Ye Shikai sat on the chair, anxious and uneasy. Only a few deputy generals remained in the barracks; nearly the entire army had already gone into battle. The outer wall of the camp was like a "meat grinder," with warriors from both sides continuously thrown into it, leaving... countless corpses.

Both sides were well aware that this outer wall was the last line of defense. Without it, the Qin Army could charge straight in, turn the camp into a "slaughterhouse," so the insurgents fought desperately. Ye Shikai had battled with the insurgents a hundred times, yet this was the first time seeing such fierce resistance.

At this moment, Wan Qi Yuan walked in from outside the barracks. Ye Shikai looked up, and upon seeing who came, his solemn expression finally relaxed a bit.

"Subordinate Wan Qi Yuan pays respects to the General."

"Get up quickly, war time situation is urgent, no need for so many formalities," Ye Shikai nodded in response.

"General, Wan Qi Yuan requests to fight for the cavalry squad."

"Your courage is commendable, but I have my reasons for not letting the cavalry squad join the battle. The cavalry squad is my old guard, and I understand well how difficult it is to train such an elite iron cavalry. As the leader of the cavalry squad, you should know how much effort it took to build this force of two thousand cavalry. Your battlefield is the wide plains, whereas in these mountains, the rugged paths will ’bind’ your warhorses, not only preventing you from charging into battle, but also leading to a massacre."

"General, as a leader, I naturally care for my brothers, but as a warrior, I cannot stand idly by and watch the battle in front unfold," Wan Qi Yuan replied with calm determination. His voice wasn’t loud, nor did he shout directly, but Ye Shikai saw the resolve in this Wolf Clan man’s eyes, just like a pack of wolves on the prairie, silent, resilient...

"Wan Qi Yuan, you have always acted steadily, coming to ask for battle today, there must be a plan in your heart already," Ye Shikai discerned Wan Qi Yuan’s intent. If not for thorough planning, how could he recklessly come to request battle?

"The General is wise, indeed I have a plan, hoping the General can advise," Wan Qi Yuan replied.

"Speak."

"General, please look at the map," Wan Qi Yuan pointed to the map hanging on the wall. It was drawn anew by soldiers according to reports from small team members about the enemy camp layout.

"What about this map?"

"General, do you think the enemy would put all their eggs in one basket?" Wan Qi Yuan suddenly said, catching Ye Shikai’s attention.

"Of course not. The team’s report said this is just one major camp."

"Reporting to the General, according to my investigation these past few days, there is a hidden road behind the camp. If the enemy knows they can’t resist, they could escape through the small path," Wan Qi Yuan explained.

"What did you say?" Upon hearing this, Ye Shikai became tense, his finger trembling. Wan Qi Yuan’s news was like a "heavy blow." If the enemy truly escaped, the battle fought by the thousands in front would be meaningless.

"Is this information accurate?" Ye Shikai turned away, speaking coldly, "You should understand, if what you said is a lie, there will be consequences."

"I’m willing to vouch with my life, every word is true. If any part is false, I am willing to apologize with my death," Wan Qi Yuan pledged.

"Wait, how do you know?" Ye Shikai questioned.

"Since the army entered the mountains, I dispatched my men to scout the paths quickly, and upon learning of the enemy camp, I sent light cavalry around to their rear, and incidentally discovered this small road," Wan Qi Yuan explained, then suddenly knelt on one knee.

"What are you doing?"

"I worry the enemy might flee early, so without explaining to you, I took the initiative to mobilize the iron cavalry under the camp, circumvented to the rear of the enemy camp, and blocked the escape route. Right now, they should be close," Wan Qi Yuan announced.

"I see." Ye Shikai sighed deeply, gently patting his shoulder. "All right, you’re also considering the bigger picture, I won’t blame you. If the cavalry squad can intercept the enemy, I’ll credit you a merit."

"Thank you, sir."

"By the way, quickly call Shangguan Jian back."

"Yes."

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

Night.

"General, why did you sound the retreat and pull us off?"

"Yes, General, our brothers fought hard all day; we’re about to take down the outer wall."

The barracks of Ye Shikai were crowded with generals, each covered in blood, complaining incessantly. As dusk fell, he ordered the soldiers to sound the retreat. Several battle-crazed chiliarchs and Five Hundred Masters were even "dragged" off the battlefield by guards.

Man Cang sat alone in the corner, silent. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to complain, just that... he was too exhausted. With two knife wounds and an arrow wound, dragged off by guards, he couldn’t tell which blood on his body was the enemy’s and which was his own. Having killed dozens of enemies, the blade in his hand was nicked, the spear broken. He just picked up weapons from the ground and continued fighting...

"I just received news of a small road behind the camp that could be used for escape," Ye Shikai remarked calmly, Wan Qi Yuan’s information was enough to change the entire situation, forcing Ye Shikai to adjust his plan.

"What do we do, General?"

"Wan Qi Yuan has already taken the cavalry to intercept. I’m concerned that if you fight to the death today, it might force them to flee early," Ye Shikai explained.

"This..." The generals looked at each other, but there was nothing they could do. They were just unwilling to fight all day and end up like this.

"What are our casualties?" Ye Shikai asked.

"Over eight hundred killed, more than five hundred injured, enemy casualties over two thousand. Additionally, the camp’s outer wall has been damaged; tomorrow’s assault should be much easier," Shangguan Jian reported.

"Give the fallen brothers proper burial, and swiftly treat the wounded brothers in the rear," Ye Shikai ordered.

"Yes."

In fact, asking everyone to retreat wasn’t what Ye Shikai wanted, but losing morale aside, after sacrificing over a thousand men, they hadn’t yet taken the camp, which was hard to accept, especially for those fiery-tempered generals. Moreover, the key to assaulting a camp is momentum; if they fought another hour, they could break the outer wall. But retreating now is equivalent to giving the insurgents a chance to breathe, making tomorrow’s attack require great effort to break through the wall, costing more soldiers’ lives.

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