I became a prince in a martial arts world.

Wang Yu and his group headed north, first to Lingwu Pass, the garrison of the Ding'an Army under the command of Feng Jing.

Although Lingwu Pass is located in Qing'an Prefecture, it is actually closer to the Prince of Zhenxi's Mansion than Jinfeng Pass, which is also in Longshan Prefecture. They were carrying tens of thousands of catties of meat, wine, and silver, so naturally they went wherever was closest first.

"It's a pity we didn't encounter any blind assassins or robbers," Wang Yu sighed.

Qianqian couldn't help but roll her eyes dramatically.

This time, they were accompanied by five hundred soldiers, escorting tens of thousands of taels of silver. Powerful bows and crossbows were placed under the vehicles, and several experts were hidden in the caravan.

It would be truly strange if someone were to be so blind as to block the way.

That's why she looked at Li Yunxiu with disdain before. It was just worrying unnecessarily. Did she really think that there were innate masters everywhere?

Outside Lingwu Pass, Feng Jing was already waiting.

With an ordinary appearance, an ordinary build, and an ordinary demeanor, Feng Jing appears at first glance to be just an ordinary middle-aged man. If he were to take off his armor, others might not even be able to tell that he is a soldier.

But this very soldier was praised by Zhao Zheng, the former King of Zhenxi, as the best among the five armies.

Zhao Siqi was the most senior, Peng Hu was brave in battle, Lu Yunzhou was exceptionally intelligent, Yang Tianzhao often came up with unexpected strategies, but Feng Jing was the most reliable in his military tactics.

When Feng Jing led Wang Yu into Lingwu Pass and showed him around the military camp, Wang Yu finally saw the so-called "stability." Even with his knowledge from modern times, he couldn't find any flaws.

Orders were strictly obeyed and discipline was strict; patrols and guards were flawless.

Wang Yu had originally intended to offer his opinions based on his half-baked understanding of "The Art of War" and "New Book of Military Efficiency," but now it seems there's no need for that anymore.

Wang Yu then began to perform his duties, summoning all the soldiers in the camp and delivering a short speech.

"I am the newly appointed King of Zhenxi!"

"Your resistance against the northern nomadic tribes makes you heroes who protect the people of the Central Plains!"

"Heroes deserve respect!"

"Two catties of meat, two liters of wine, and two taels of silver per person!"

"The more prosperous and safer the Northwest, the more money you can make, and the more bounties you'll receive!"

"A two-day grand banquet, with rotating shifts, ensuring everyone drinks until they drop!"

"Long live the Prince!"

On the high platform, Feng Jing originally wanted to stand at the back, but Wang Yu pulled him to stand beside him. He was also very satisfied with Wang Yu, because he had already discussed Wang Yu's speech with him beforehand and asked him to review it so that it would not affect military affairs.

"Although Your Highness is young, you are a man of great military knowledge. I admire you!" Feng Jing flattered.

"You're too kind! After all, war is a matter of great importance to the nation, a matter of life and death, a path to survival or destruction, and cannot be ignored." Wang Yu raised his cup. "General Feng is a prudent commander and a renowned general of our time. I hope you don't mind that I'm interfering with military affairs."

Feng Jing's eyes lit up. "This is the very opening statement of 'The Art of War'! Your Highness truly understands military strategy!"

This world is very similar to the world Wang Yu transmigrated to, but there are also differences. Apart from the most obvious difference in martial arts, the famous historical figures are also ambiguous. Sometimes Wang Yu doesn't even know if the famous quotes he uses actually exist in this world.

So Wang Yu started talking to Feng Jing about military strategy, training troops, and how to use troops.

"Win by using both orthodox and unorthodox methods."

"Use your own invincibility to wait for the enemy to become vulnerable."

"The most important thing in training troops is discipline, discipline, and more discipline. On a battlefield with thousands of people, just the fact that their movements and voices are in unison can intimidate the enemy and increase their chances of victory by three points."

"The key to warfare is logistics. As long as there is food and money, we can fight again and again. One great victory can turn the tide completely. If the logistics are weak, even if we win ten great victories, one defeat will lead to utter ruin."

"Let the soldiers know why they are fighting. It's not enough for them to just be soldiers and get paid. They can't fight a war against the odds. They need to know that fighting is to protect their families and to make their lives better. Of course, they should also do that afterwards."

Although Wang Yu is far inferior to Feng Jing in military affairs, he has been exposed to the modern internet and his modern military analysis and strategic vision are definitely up to par.

Therefore, some detailed discussions and some macro-level explanations also filled Feng Jing with awe.

Regardless of whether he knew or not, the fact that Wang Yu knew is enough to prove that this newly appointed Prince of Zhenxi is a man of great insight.

Besides Zhao Yingjie and Qianqian, there were also three captains and a colonel from the Ding'an Army at the table. They all showed admiration as they listened to Wang Yu and Feng Jing's conversation.

Zhao Yingjie knew absolutely nothing about military affairs, and at this moment it was like listening to a foreign language. He only knew that fighting required money, but he didn't quite understand why they could win after losing so many times.

Qianqian sat next to Wang Yu with a smile on her face, not interrupting or causing any trouble, but just pouring him wine. From time to time, she would look at Wang Yu with a deep gaze of admiration, as if she wanted to get into his heart.

"Many of Your Highness's words are unprecedented, enlightening me greatly," Feng Jing said admiringly. "Why doesn't Your Highness compile them into a book and pass them down to future generations, so that they can shine alongside 'The Art of War'!"

That's why they say Feng Jing's military strategy is prudent! He's such a smooth talker!

"Because I know my own limitations," Wang Yu laughed. "I only have this little bit of scattered, unsystematic stuff to say. I've almost finished. If it's helpful to General Feng, then all the better. If it's useless, then we'll just consider it a chat."

Feng Jing put down his wine cup and said earnestly, "Your Highness is too modest. What Your Highness just said, with its grand vision encompassing the world and its attention to detail in understanding human nature, has already surpassed the limitations of ordinary military books. With slight improvements, it would be a divine strategy for military operations. If Your Highness agrees, this humble general is willing to compile it."

Feng Jing wasn't exaggerating. He had read many military books and had compiled some of his own military insights over the decades. Although he had some new ideas, he couldn't break free from the constraints of his predecessors. Forcing himself to write a book would just be picking up scraps of others' ideas, so it was better not to write at all.

However, many of Wang Yu's words are indeed thought-provoking. If one were to use them as a framework and then incorporate his own methods of military command, he could indeed write a new book on military strategy that is different from other military treatises.

"General Feng, please make yourself at home." Wang Yu smiled and raised his glass in a toast. "Don't mention anything about it being ghostwritten. I only have this much; how could it possibly support a military treatise? It's all General Feng's hard work!"

Everyone raised their glasses in unison.

……

We stayed at Lingwu Pass for two days. No Qiang people attacked us. On the contrary, there were many Han and Qiang people trading and passing through the pass.

Of course, one could only enter and exit, not linger, and all goods coming and going were subject to strict inspection. If a large number of weapons or ironware were found, one would be caught on the spot and handed over to the authorities.

After leaving Lingwu Pass, we turned northwest and soon arrived at Jinfeng Pass.

The commander guarding Jinfeng Pass at this time was Yang Tianzhao, who was said to be very wild, but when Wang Yu first met him, he felt that he was more refined than Lu Yunzhou.

Of course, when Wang Yu saw the welcome party that Yang Tianzhao had prepared for him, he knew just how wild he was.

Two Qiang soldiers stood on the open ground in front of the main tent.

A circle of soldiers surrounded the tent, watching them with varying degrees of indifference, laughter, or hatred.

There were several tables at the entrance of the main tent. Yang Tianzhao invited Wang Yu and the others to sit down. "These two are cavalrymen of the Qiang people. They killed several brothers of my Yangwei Army. They were captured by me when I went out to patrol."

Yang Tianzhao sat to the side, looked at the two of them, and chuckled coldly, "I suppose you already know the rules. One of you must die, and I will not kill the one who lives. Instead, I will let him leave the pass."

Now the choice is yours. If you brothers are of one mind and fight to the death, I will let you die together. If one of you is willing to commit suicide, I will send the other out of the pass.

"Of course, if any of you can kill the other, I will not only let him pass, but also give him a horse and a bag of salt."

Zhao Yingjie, sitting to the side, grinned and said, "Good heavens, General Yang is having a cockfight!"

Yang Tianzhao glanced at Wang Yu, only to see Wang Yu also turning to him. "Are we just going to stand by and watch?"

Yang Tianzhao was taken aback, not understanding what Wang Yu meant.

"Where's the wine? Where's the food? Even if you can't drink alcohol normally, at least bring a pot of tea, and some pastries and fruits, okay?" Wang Yu tapped on the empty table in front of him.

Yang Tianzhao's expression glowed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He didn't ask his men for help; he just ran back to the main tent himself and brought out a large teapot and a cloth bag.

"There's no wine in the army, but we have plenty of snacks!" Yang Tianzhao personally poured tea for Wang Yu and took out a lot of pastries, fruits, and dried cured meat from his cloth bag.

"Thank you, General." Wang Yu accepted the tea.

"Your Highness is too kind!" Yang Tianzhao said with a smile as he sat to the side.

Yang Tianzhao beckoned, and a soldier beside him threw out two curved swords, which were caught by the two Qiang men in the field.

"Ah Chai, I'm sorry, Mom is waiting for me to come back, I can't die!"

"You think you're the only one with a mother? Don't I have one too? Rena and my daughter are counting on me!"

The two men each uttered a phrase that no one could understand, and then, with red eyes, they brandished their curved swords and began to fight. Every strike was delivered with full force, as if they wished to kill each other with the next blow.

But the soldiers watching remained focused, still holding their spears.

But they were clearly overthinking it. The two Qiang men were not faking it, nor did they join forces to charge and resist. Instead, they fought each other to the death, with sparks flying everywhere. Although the scene may not have been very beautiful, it was intense, exciting, and entertaining.

The two men fought until they were panting and exhausted. In the end, one of them traded his life for the other's, finally killing him.

A-Chai pulled the scimitar from the man's neck, noticing the gazes of the surrounding soldiers. He immediately threw the scimitar to the ground, letting blood flow from his right arm. Gasping for breath, he looked at Yang Tianzhao, his expression a mixture of trepidation and anticipation, "I won! Let me go!"

"Don't worry, I said I'd let you go, and I mean it!" Yang Tianzhao smiled with interest, waved his hand, and had someone take him away.

Zhao Yingjie couldn't help but ask, "General, are you really going to let him go?"

Yang Tianzhao did not answer, but instead looked at Wang Yu, as if waiting for his answer.

Wang Yu snorted, "You think you can leave safely after getting your hands on the blood of my soldiers?"

Yang Tianzhao asked with a smile, "But I just made a promise; a general in command of troops must not break his word."

Wang Yu nodded. "So you only promised to let him out of seclusion. As for whether others will kill him after he comes out, that's none of your business."

Yang Tianzhao immediately knelt on one knee, bowed his head, and clasped his hands in greeting, "Greetings, Your Highness!"