Shi Le sat on the ground, grabbing a few cooked rice grains and beans to eat, staining himself with black ash, but not feeling the slightest fullness—instead, he felt even more choked.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, realizing that he was so close to success, with all the riches and food in Zhao's Fortress within reach, only to be thwarted by this woman.
Someone returned to report that there was no reinforcements, which infuriated Shi Le even more upon realizing he'd been deceived. However, seeing his already exhausted soldiers, he decided to rest in place and wait until dawn to charge back again.
He chewed the beans in his mouth repeatedly before swallowing them, then leaned against a tree with closed eyes for a nap. In a daze, he felt as if he had shed the constraints of heaven and earth, feeling lighter than ever, as if walking on clouds. Suddenly, he stumbled, falling heavily, and awoke.
Shi Le raised his hand to cover his forehead, the dizziness in his head gradually subsiding, and he remembered he had been on the throne for fourteen years and had been emperor for three. Now bedridden, he might soon leave this world, uncertain if future generations would brand him a hero or a demon?
Some might say he was of the Jie Clan, a slave by birth, not only ruthless but also a butcher of Han people, unforgivable. Yet when he was initially seized and sold into slavery, the Han showed no mercy either. Over the decades, countless barbarians faced the same fate as he, but he was fortunate not to die halfway.
Since he was born into a chaotic era, with destiny pushing him into the mire, one must desperately climb upward. As long as there is a breath left, one should not abandon their ideals and ambitions, break the curse of destiny, and achieve great deeds—to not have lived in vain. Thankfully, he succeeded in this.
Zhang Bin was a competent strategist, and he considered himself perceptive in employing people, heeding advice, tolerating the intolerable, and embracing good counsel. He measured land, verified household registries, encouraged agriculture and silk farming, developed the economy, capturing wherever he attacked, winning every battle, establishing Later Zhao, and unifying the Central Plains.
He hoped Shi Hu could adequately assist Crown Prince Shi Hong, who was noble, humble, self-disciplined, diligent in study, fond of composing poetry and essays, and liked to associate with scholars—entirely unlike a barbarian Crown Prince. If the Crown Prince stabilized his throne, ethnic fusion would soon be realized, and neither barbarians nor Han would have to fear being seized as slaves. But the hope was faint, as Shi Hu was like a wolf cub—how could one expect a wolf to eat vegetables?
Regrettably, there was not enough time. If only he hadn't lived in such an era of factional division and incessant Royal Family strife.
If I had met the First Emperor, I would have served him from the north; I would have contended for precedence with Han Xin and Peng Yue; if I had met Emperor Guangwu, we would have raced through the Central Plains—uncertain who would have triumphed. A great man must carry out deeds with openness and steadfastness, as bright as the sun and moon, and never like Cao Mengde and Sima Zhongda and his son, who deceived orphans and widows, using trickery to seize the world. In his haze, he suddenly heard a whisper by his ear: "General, dawn is breaking, you should get up and eat something. Let's go meet that woman at Zhao's Fortress again!" Shi Le opened his eyes, his head a bit heavy, as though he had dreamt something but could not recall. Yet in his heart, there was a surge of courage. He stood up and shouted to his soldiers: "Sons, once we finish our meal, let's charge back and storm the fortress!"