My wife, Wei Gui, was 1.9 meters tall and fought against the Tang dynasty for the throne.

Zhuojun, the temporary palace.

Yang Guang sat high on his throne, with Li Ju's victory report spread out before him.

He read it once, and then read it again.

One hundred thousand bandits besieged the city, fought bitterly for three days, the city was not lost, the supply lines were preserved, and a great victory was achieved to repel the enemy—every word of it scratched his itch.

"Excellent!" He slammed his hand on the table, his face beaming with delight. "Li Ju is a young man of great talent, courageous and resourceful. In times of crisis, he was able to safeguard the nation's vital resources. He is truly a loyal minister to the country!"

The assembled officials in the hall shouted in unison.

Yuwen Shu stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, the Liyang granary is the lifeline of Hebei and the throat of the Yongji Canal. The grain supply for the Liaodong campaign depends entirely on this line. Li Ju's defense of Liyang is tantamount to safeguarding the foundation of Your Majesty's Liaodong campaign. This merit deserves a great reward!"

Yang Guang nodded repeatedly, and was about to speak when the Imperial Censor Pei Yun stepped forward with a solemn expression.

"Your Majesty, I have my own foundation."

Yang Guang's smile faded: "Speak."

Pei Yun cleared his throat, his voice low but clear: "Although Liyang is in danger, the Directorate of Waterways is a civil post responsible for water transport and should not hold a large military force. Now Li Ju has requested to expand the army by three thousand and has also established his own battalion. If this continues, the local power will increase, which is not a blessing for the court."

Another official stepped forward to echo: "Your Majesty, the number of enemy troops and their casualties are mostly reported by local authorities without verification by censors. It is hard to guarantee that there is no false reporting of battle achievements and inflated losses, which could be used as a pretext to extort weapons and provisions."

Another official stepped forward, his words even more vehement: "Bandits are rising up everywhere. Those who control granaries, waterways, and military power must be checked and balanced; their power and responsibility must not be combined! Li Ju now controls the grain transport, the river embankment troops, and the grain transport guards—three powers in one person. If he expands his army further, he will have real power over half of the area from Luoyang to Hebei, which could lead to an uncontrollable situation!"

Yang Guang's brows gradually furrowed.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Yuwen Shu calmly stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say."

Yang Guang looked at him and said, "Speak."

"Your Majesty, Liyang Granary and Yongji Canal are the foundation of Hebei and the lifeline of the Eastern Expedition. Gao Shida and Dou Jiande have 100,000 bandits surrounding the city. If the granary falls, the grain supply to the empire will be cut off, and the overall situation will be shaken. Li Ju, a civil official, defended the besieged city to the death, ensuring that the court's lifeline was not lost. This merit deserves to be rewarded and should not be criticized."

Yang Guang nodded slightly.

Yuwen Shu continued, "As for reinforcing troops and weapons, it is not for personal reasons. The enemy forces were overwhelming in this battle, and the casualties were indeed heavy, with the city's defenses in ruins. Liyang is isolated in Hebei, surrounded by enemies on all sides. If the troops are weak, the city will be in danger, and if the city is in danger, the food supply will be in danger. Reinforcing troops is only to guard the granaries and protect the grain transport, not for a private war, and we have no intention of seizing power."

Pei Yun sneered, "General Yuwen has certainly spoken up for Li Ju perfectly."

Yuwen Shu ignored him and turned to Yang Guang, saying solemnly, "The forging battalion established by Li Ju has a strength of no more than three hundred men and is under the jurisdiction of the river embankment guard, not a private army."

The soldiers have fought hard and rendered meritorious service; replenishing their armor and weapons is a way to appease the army and solidify the defenses. In chaotic times, capable people should be employed. If one is constantly restricted and suspicious, who will be willing to defend the border for Your Majesty to the death in the future?

Yang Guang remained silent for a moment. He was suspicious, but it was a fact that Li Ju was defending Liyang, and it was also a fact that there were 100,000 bandits.

Without Li Ju, Liyang would have truly fallen, and the Hebei canal transport would have been paralyzed. How could the campaign against Liaodong have continued?

He raised his hand to stop the ministers from arguing.

"Issue the imperial decree," he said slowly. "Li Ju has rendered meritorious service in guarding the granary. He is hereby awarded five hundred bolts of silk, ten jars of imperial wine, and his rank is promoted one level. He is hereby granted the title of Duke of Wu'an County as a reward."

Yuwen Shu was secretly delighted, but remained outwardly calm.

Regarding the expansion of the army—" Yang Guang paused, "I approve the expansion of the army by two thousand. Weapons and armor will be allocated by the Ministry of Works, and provisions and pay will be disbursed as needed. However, no new battalions may be established without authorization outside of the Forging Battalion, and the quota of soldiers under the Water Conservancy Bureau shall not be exceeded."

Pei Yun was about to say something when Yang Guang raised his hand to stop him: "My mind is made up. Court adjourned."

The assembled officials shouted "Long live the Emperor!" and then withdrew in turn.

Yang Guang stood before his imperial desk, gazing at the departing figures of his ministers, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

Did he trust Li Ju? No.

But Liyang needs someone to guard it, the Grand Canal needs someone to manage it, and the conquest of Liaodong needs someone to risk their life.

Let's use it for now and talk about it later.

He turned and whispered to the eunuch beside him, "Issue an imperial decree to send an imperial censor to inspect the defenses of the Hebei granaries, especially Liyang."

The eunuch accepted the order and left.

Dou Jiande's camp.

The camps stretched out in a continuous line, with banners neatly arranged.

Unlike the chaos during Gao Shida's time, Dou Jiande's camp was orderly in every aspect.

The camps were arranged in an orderly manner, patrols were constantly coming and going, and even the smoke from the cooking fires rose more neatly than elsewhere.

Dou Jiande summoned his generals in his tent. A complete roster was laid out on the table, and he was assigning tasks.

"From now on, the entire army will be reorganized. Gao Shida's old troops will be weeded out, the strong will be retained, the capable will be incorporated into the elite, and the incapable will serve as auxiliary troops." Dou Jiande's gaze swept over the crowd, "Liu Heita."

"exist."

"You are promoted to vanguard, leading an army of two thousand elite troops, forming your own battalion."

Liu Heita clasped his hands in a fist and said, "This humble general obeys!"

Dou Jiande stood up and walked to the map.

He drew a red circle around the location of Liyang on the map.

"We lost the Battle of Liyang," he said slowly. "We lost because we underestimated the defenders of Liyang. But Liyang was just a granary city; there are countless other counties and prefectures in Hebei."

He turned to his generals and said, "From this day forward, we shall temporarily avoid direct confrontation and refrain from a direct attack on Liyang. We shall gradually annex the counties and prefectures of Hebei, stockpile grain and raise troops, and wait for the opportune moment to embark on our grand undertaking."

Wu'an Prefecture, Huangshishan Granary.

The mountain path is winding and the walls are heavily fortified.

The warehouse gate was located between two mountains, with walls made of huge stones and numerous hidden sentries.

Without close inspection, it's impossible to tell that this is a granary; it looks more like a military fortress.

Wang Yu, dressed in plain clothes, followed his younger brother Wang Yuan into the warehouse.

After passing through three iron gates, a vast expanse of space opened up before us—in the huge warehouse, grain sacks were piled up neatly, stretching from the ground to the roof, seemingly endless.

In the adjacent armory, swords, spears, bows, crossbows, and armor were lined up like a forest, gleaming coldly in the torchlight.

Wang Yuan walked ahead, a barely perceptible excitement in his voice: "Brother, look at this granary! 1.2 million shi of grain, over 7,000 sets of armor, and 5,000 elite troops. Enough for us brothers to take over Huangshi Mountain and establish our own power base!"

He paused, leaned closer to Wang Yu, and lowered his voice: "We follow the Imperial Supervisor, risking our lives, mobilizing troops and transporting grain, concealing accounts, but in the end we are still living under someone else's roof."

Why don't we take these supplies, recruit soldiers, and establish our own Wu'an County? In this chaotic world, no one can do anything to us!

Upon hearing this, Wang Yu's face instantly darkened, and he raised his hand to pat Wang Yuan's shoulder with considerable force.

"Foolish!" he hissed, glancing around to make sure no one was watching before slowly speaking, "You think you can carve out a territory just by holding onto grain and armor? You and I, brothers, have no foundation, no strategy, and you think you can rule this chaotic world with just this mountain and a batch of grain?"

Wang Yuan blushed and wanted to argue, but Wang Yu interrupted him.

"Without the Emperor, we brothers are nothing." Wang Yu's gaze became distant. "The Emperor has a broad vision and a long-term perspective. What he wants is never just a granary in Liyang or a piece of land in Hebei, but the whole world."

If we follow him, protect Huangshi Mountain, and be his support, what we will achieve in the future is immense wealth, a lifetime of glory, and a place in history.

But if they try to establish themselves independently, they will only be barely surviving, and sooner or later they will be swallowed up by the chaos of the world, ending up dead and forgotten.

Wang Yuan was stunned. He lowered his head and remained silent for a moment. Then he clasped his hands in a fist and bowed deeply, saying in a low voice, "Brother, I was wrong. I was short-sighted. From now on, I will guard Huangshi Mountain, obey the orders of the Supervisor, and obey your orders, brother. I will never have any disloyalty again."

Wang Yu nodded and patted him on the shoulder: "Remember, in chaotic times, choosing the right lord is more important than having a large army. Your lord is worth risking everything for."

Wang Yuan straightened up, looked at the mountain of grain armor in the granary, and his gaze became calm again.

"Brother, I understand."

Wang Yu turned around and strode out of the granary.

A mountain breeze swept over me, carrying the coolness of early summer.

He gazed in the direction of Luoyang, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

My Lord, we have protected the foundation of Huangshi Mountain for you.

Now it's up to you.