The Great Qin Dynasty: The egg of the Black Bird was revered as a national guardian beast.

"Second General, you absolutely mustn't do that!"

Seeing that the general was enraged, the people around him rushed forward to pull him back and disarm him.

One of them even grabbed his leg and addressed Han Xindao.

"General, let's go!"

Han Xin nodded, bowed, and took his leave. He felt guilty towards his deputy general and the more than ten thousand men who had died in battle.

It was his own stubbornness and reckless advance across the river that led to his being ambushed by the Chu army and dying on the banks of the Ji River.

If they had attacked the city in a conventional manner and conquered Qi territory, perhaps this wouldn't have happened.

He didn't know either.

Han Xin was about to leave, but even though he was being held back by seven or eight people, the curses of the deputy general continued to ring out.

"Han Xin, you shameless youth, don't go!"

The second general's insults became increasingly offensive, hurling phrases like "defeated general" and "tyrant who crawls between someone's legs," and he began to expose Han Xin's shortcomings.

It was as if they wouldn't feel satisfied unless they did this.

Finally, even your mother and maidservants were cursed.

Han Xin paused, startled. Although he felt guilty, he decided to let himself vent his anger.

But he couldn't stand anyone insulting his mother.

He was alright when he was insignificant, but after he was given important responsibilities, a certain flaw in his personality became glaringly obvious.

Arrogant because of his talent, with high standards, and looking down on others.

He was also a sharp-tongued person who never said nice things to his colleagues, only boasted about himself and never praised others.

Just like a duck.

Even if he's about to die, he'll still be stubborn.

So, amidst the second general's curses, Han Xin slowly turned his head, looked at him, and sneered.

"Vice General Zhao, you have insulted me so blatantly, but if you were in my position, could you have done better than me?"

.....................

"General, Vice General Zhao is from Guanzhong. His nature is as fierce as a tiger or wolf. Why must he resort to verbal prowess?"

"Luckily, someone disarmed him, otherwise..."

That night, in the room.

The military doctor was applying medicine to Han Xin's face. Recalling what had happened that afternoon, he was still filled with lingering fear.

Han Xin puffed out his cheeks, neither speaking nor crying out in pain.

Showing off might feel good for a moment, but the result was that even though Zhao Ci was being held back by seven or eight people, he still managed to break free.

He strode over and delivered a hard punch to Han Xin.

That one blow was enough to make him see stars, and half of his face turned ashen and swelled up.

This was the most serious injury Han Xin had ever suffered since he began leading the army!

After the army doctor left, Han Xin looked at his reflection in the bronze mirror, one side of his face swollen, and gave a self-deprecating smile.

"Oh."

Others may experience wins and losses and consider it normal, but he is Han Xin, he cannot!

In every battle, even when the enemy outnumbered us...

But Han Xin always found a way to win, creating miracle after miracle and earning the admiration of his soldiers.

But now, the disastrous defeat at Jishui is like a big stain left on his brilliant achievements!

Han Xin's pain came not only from the soldiers who had followed him for so long, whose bodies lay scattered on the Ji River.

It wasn't just the deputy general, his only friend in the army since he took command, who suffered a severe blow.

Rather, it comes from the depths of one's heart.

He himself was very demanding of himself.

His pride and arrogance were not innate, but maintained by a series of great victories. Han Xin could not afford to lose!

But now, his invincible status has been broken, his arrogant confidence has been shattered, and Han Cijiang's insults have filled him with fear and confusion.

Because he lacked social skills and was arrogant, Han Xin had few friends in the army, but many enemies.

They envied his rapid rise in rank.

He was jealous of the physician's special treatment of him.

He insisted on suppressing the dissenting voices, making him, a man with no merit, the commander of an army.

He silenced them with resounding victories.

This time, however, the invincible Han Xin returned in defeat, and he was sure to be ridiculed by those people.

It's just like in Huaiyin.

He absentmindedly wiped his sword, the moonlight reflecting off it and making it shine.

If it were a nobleman from the State of Chu, he would probably have drawn his sword and committed suicide to atone for the defeat!

But Han Xin was just a commoner, a nobody.

His dignity wasn't so noble after all. As he stroked his sword, he recalled his past.

Han Xin's family moved to Huaiyin to escape the ravages of war.

His father died early, and Han Xin couldn't even remember what his father looked like. He lived with his mother, but she also died later.

All that remained was a sword and a book.

Holding his sword and putting away his books, Han Xin resolved from that moment on to rise above others, to be ennobled as a lord and return home in glory!

So he fought with wild dogs for food, shamelessly mooching food and drink from all over the place, just to survive.

Therefore, he would rather sheathe his sword, abandon his dignity, and suffer the humiliation of crawling between someone's legs than lose his life and wait for the right moment to act.

"Compared to these..."

He let out a breath and smiled with relief.

"What does one defeat matter?"

Han Xin raised his hand, touching his swollen face.

This punch will leave an indelible mark on his face, just like the defeat at the Battle of Jishui.

But the scars will eventually heal.

Defeats can be overshadowed by new victories.

Most importantly, stay alive!

He felt relieved at once, stood up, stopped looking at his reflection in the bronze mirror, and walked out of the room.

He gave an order to the guards outside the door.

"Raise your troops and prepare for battle. Await our orders, march swiftly and cover your tracks, and launch a surprise attack on the Chu camp to avenge the defeat at the Ji River!"

..................

Dark clouds gathered in the sky.

It looks like it's going to rain today.

Xiang Liang was sitting in his military tent when someone pushed open the tent flap and walked in.

After a pause, Xiang Liang raised his eyes.

"Song Yi?" There was a hint of surprise in his voice, but he still put down the bamboo scroll and looked at him, asking, "What is it?"

"General."

Song Yi walked up to Xiang Liang and raised his hand.

"Now that the victorious troops have been stationed at the foot of Dingtao City, our soldiers have become lax in discipline and negligent in their defenses."

"Moreover, the Qin army is constantly reinforcing its troops from Guanzhong, and it is feared that Han Xin's military strength will soon be greatly restored, so we must be on high alert."

"In my opinion, we should immediately order Liu Ji and Xiang Yu to stop attacking Chenliu and redeploy their troops to its aid."

But at this moment, Xiang Liang raised his hand, stopping him from continuing.

Instead, he asked, "Han Xin's army is already a defeated and remnant force. Even if reinforcements are sent from Guanzhong, how many more can they send?"

"Furthermore, Liu Ji and Yu'er have joined forces to attack Chenliu. They are about to break through, how can we stop halfway?"

Looking at Xiang Liang in front of him, Song Yi opened his mouth slightly, but then closed it again.

He didn't speak, his expression remained calm.

"But, General," Song Yi looked at Xiang Liang, as if he wanted to say something more.

"Shut up."

Frowning, Xiang Liang interrupted Song Yi.

"Military affairs are none of your business. You are undermining morale. If this happens again, you will not be let off lightly."

As he spoke, he waved his hand.

"You may leave."

Song Yi sighed, as if he had let go of something.

He lowered his head, placed his hands in front of him, glanced at Xiang Liang, and said helplessly, "Yes."

But at this moment, Xiang Liang changed his mind.

"slow."

Turning around, Song Yi looked at Xiang Liang, assuming that Xiang Liang had taken his advice to heart, and his expression was somewhat expectant.

But to everyone's surprise, Xiang Liang simply said it calmly.

"Song Yi, you should set off now to go to the State of Qi to arrange for a joint attack on Han Xin."

He lowered his head and exhaled.

With his hands placed horizontally in front of him, Song Yi said, "Yes."

After saying that, he walked out of the tent, looked up at the gathering dark clouds in the sky, and sighed inwardly.

"Victory is achieved by defeating arrogant and lazy soldiers."

"In my opinion, the State of Chu is about to suffer another major defeat."