[The foundation of which I speak is the human heart.]
Li Guanyi’s expression grew solemn as he sat up straight to read the letter. Lowering his eyes, it was as if he could see the gentle youth, who had written it word by word from afar:
[It depends on whether the General seeks a single land, or something greater.]
[The captives you’ve taken are from Chen Country, are from Ying Country, are someone’s son, someone’s father, someone’s brother, and now captured under your command, their families knowing not whether they are alive or dead. A mere nudge in that direction, and your reputation could be ruined.]
[According to my plan, all prisoners from Chen Country, Ying Country, should be released, given provisions for the journey, and sent off with an Imperial Decree.]
[Order and proclamate by a separate path]!
Li Guanyi, looking at this line of five characters, his pupils contracted as he murmured softly, "Proclamation by a separate path..."
[Let these routed prisoners return, to tell their parents and kin of your benevolence, of the deeds of the General. Observing your actions, I believe that from an initial force of over a thousand Qilin Army, you could command ten thousand. Presumably, what you do is akin to the magnanimous Way of Kings.]
[Thus, in no more than three months, the General’s name will be known all over the world.]
[You should make the hearts of the people your city walls, the hearts of the citizens your boundaries. In this way, as the King, upright and forthright, if you can achieve this, then you are invincible under heaven.]
At this point alone, Li Guanyi felt like applauding.
Had he not yet finished reading the letter, Li Guanyi would almost look to Yuan Zhi beside him, grasp his strategist, and ask who exactly this person was. Li Guanyi continued reading; the words below still carried a composed earnestness:
"[But even so, it is not enough. Though the General has taken Jiangnan, his reputation under heaven is insufficient. I surmise the General will next subtly build his position, concealing his sharpness. I have a plan.]"
"[I suggest the General enlist great talents, and holding treasures, to lobby Central State. Speak of Qin Wu, the Founding County Knight, serving the lineage of the Red Emperor, the current Great Emperor of Central State. At this moment, the Red Emperor’s lineage is powerless, and both Ying Country and Chen Country harbor wolfish ambitions.]"
"[By revering the Great Emperor of the Red Emperor lineage, the General may gain greater renown. If among the General’s men there is such talent, this endeavor could succeed, elevating from Founding County Knight to higher rank. By then, you will have a footing in Jiangnan, the people’s hopes, and also carry a title conferred by the Emperor of Central State.]"
"[As long as neither Chen Country nor Ying Country wishes to turn against Central State immediately, the General need not worry.]"
"[Swallow the advantages of the situation for yourself, while using the turmoil of the Red Emperor’s influence in Central State to nullify threats. Your actions will be dignified, forcing Chen Country and Ying Country to retreat due to the current larger situation, even though internally, they might be utterly unwilling, they would be helpless.]"
"[This is dignified domination.]"
"[The world’s sovereigns should mix the tactics of kings and overlords.]"
"[I present this plan as the best course of action for the General, yet I also harbor my own selfish motives. Eight hundred years ago the Red Emperor opened the world, and I cannot bear to see his descendants fall so low, without anyone to rely on. At this juncture, the General moving forward, gaining momentum, and thus eliminating threats would also grant the Great Emperor of Central State a pillar for support.]"
"[This dignified domination, though offered for the King, is merely a discussion of possibilities.]"
Li Guanyi mulled over the two strategies targeting [human hearts] and [reputation under heaven] in the letter, finally sighing deeply and saying, "Although this person is miles away, he seems to have pierced through our current predicament at a glance."
"At this moment, Jiangnan has not fully recovered and still needs to heal and recuperate."
"If we were to raise troops now, it would indeed give the impression to the world that we are driven by desperation for military power, like a military madman, the same impression left by prominent generals and fierce ones of the past, like the previous overlords."
"While we have pushed back the main forces of Chen Country and Ying Country, we have inevitably become hostile toward them. However, if we establish contact with the Great Emperor of Central State, these two nations wouldn’t be able to touch us; after all, the Jiangnan Eighteen States had already broken away from Chen Country."
"Under the whole heaven, all are subjects to the king; by taking this land, we also comply with the law."
"One strategy is to make the hearts of people under heaven your borders, the other to seize momentum while shedding your name."
"And now these two strategies directly resolve our dangers."
Li Guanyi praised, and the young General’s heart felt as if he had come across a rare card in a game, an instinctive desire to claim that card for himself. Looking towards his young strategist, he asked:
"Yuan Zhi, do you know who this person is?"
Yuan Zhi replied, "Merely by looking at the handwriting and the style, I can tell."
"Wen Lingjun, from noble families that have continued since the early years of the Red Emperor, now all residing in the capital of Ying Country. He entered the academy at a young age, known as the foremost in strategy, unlike Yuan Zhi, skilled solely in local conflict, decided by the blade’s edge.]
"Wen Lingjun, however, can plan a hundred steps ahead, his vision far-reaching, possessing the talent of the king’s aide."
Li Guanyi looked at the two strategies in the letter.
He earnestly wrote responses to both Fang Ziqiao and Wen Lingjun.
Then he implemented their strategies: he stripped the routed soldiers of their armor and weapons, provided them with food and travel expenses, and drafted Li Guanyi of the Qilin Army’s order of safe passage, allowing them to leave from the East Crossing to their respective destinations.
Hence, the reputation of the Qilin Army soared, exuding the air of a sovereign’s troops.
As for the remaining four generals.
All were confined by Li Guanyi. A thousand troops might be easy to obtain, but a general is hard to find. These four generals don’t consume much rice here, but if sent back, they would become a group of hardeners who had experienced the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation; Li Guanyi preferred to sustain them.
And as the captives from the defeated armies each returned to their own nations, the propaganda pressure from Ying Country and Chen Country on Li Guanyi dissipated; the reputation originally prepared for this youth was akin to the previous Overlord, fierce and tyrannical, able to fight well, but with considerable bloodshed.