Chapter 165: Chang Jiang's Scheme

Beneath the starry canopy, the civil and military officials had split into three distinct factions.

The idle officials with no partisan ties were already growing impatient.

The officials belonging to the factions of the Prince of Beichang and the Prince of Changwu were beginning to look anxious; after all, this second trial directly concerned the distribution of military command among them. If Lu Jue emerged victorious, Feng Yewu would inevitably curtail the military authority of various generals to redeploy them for the Northern Expedition.

The final group of people was driven entirely by curiosity. Lu Jue had always served closely by Feng Yewu's side, and little was generally known about him. His previous bout with Li Siyuan had clearly demonstrated his formidable personal prowess; if he could achieve another stellar result in this battle, he would undoubtedly become a prime candidate for everyone to win over.

Chang Jiang glanced at the gathering assembled on the martial practice grounds, smiled faintly, and offered a suggestion to Xiao Han and Feng Yewu.

"At present, finding actual Tidi tribesmen for a drill is clearly out of the question. In my humble opinion, since the number of participants remains unchanged, how about we swap out the weapons instead?"

Swap the weapons?

Xiao Han had long since guessed that Chang Jiang was brewing no good intentions, but he had not expected him to be this despicable.

Standing among the ranks of officials, the straightforward and upright Li Siyuan heard Chang Jiang's words and immediately rebuked him loudly.

"Could General Chang possibly mean to switch to live blades?"

When Chang Jiang first made his proposal, Feng Yewu had been somewhat unclear of his intent. Prompted by Li Siyuan's remark, a surge of irritation welled up within her. How could they possibly spar after switching to lethal blades? Although these guards were skilled in martial arts, not everyone possessed staff techniques as transcendent as Lu Jue's.

Blades versus wooden staves—leave it to him to conceive of such a thing.

Xiao Han let out a cold laugh, his words dripping with sarcasm.

"Chang Jiang, while the combat prowess of the Tidi tribesmen does indeed exceed that of our Ye Dynasty warriors several times over, their numbers are small. If, as you suggest, your side's warriors switch to blades, can the headcount be reduced accordingly? Moreover, although the Tidi tribesmen possess fierce individual combat capabilities, they lack an experienced commander like you. Has General Chang lost his mind along with his head?"

Faced with such an unfair proposition, anger raged within Xiao Han's heart. How old was Lu Jue? He had no prior experience in leading troops into battle. It was one thing for Chang Jiang to rely on his seniority and act presumptuously, but to put forth such a demand was utterly shameless.

Hearing Xiao Han's sarcasm, Chang Jiang showed not a shred of shame; instead, he acted as though he had just received a compliment.

Seeing the hidden anger in Feng Yewu's eyes and Xiao Han's indignation, Chang Jiang knew the two of them would not easily agree. He therefore turned his gaze toward Lu Jue, his eyes burning with intense provocation.

After all, according to the secret letter analysis from the Prince of Beichang, he stood a very strong chance of being selected as commander this time. The sudden appearance of Lu Jue halfway through had caught him completely off guard.

In his eyes, Lu Jue was nothing more than a pretty boy who knew a few martial arts tricks. He had no idea what kind of spell Lu Jue had cast on Feng Yewu to win her personal appointment.

What good was martial prowess? When facing an enemy on the battlefield, if one understood nothing of military strategy and formations, no matter how formidable one's skills, it would only lead to a dead end.

It wouldn't matter if Lu Jue died, but what would become of the countless soldiers?

Though Chang Jiang was a trusted confidant of the Prince of Beichang, Wei Siyuan, it was because he viewed Wei Siyuan as his patron—without Wei Siyuan's recommendation, he would not be where he was today.

Loyalty was loyalty, but his patriotic devotion remained steadfast. With a formidable enemy at the gates and foreign invaders pressing in, Chang Jiang refused to believe that an unweaned, wet-behind-the-ears pretty boy could be of any great use.

"Well, Young Master Lu, what do you think of my proposal?"

Lu Jue met the disdain in Chang Jiang's eyes with a faint, fearless smile. Nodding lightly, he replied nonchalantly, "Since General Chang has spoken, why ever not?"

"Young Master!"

Xiao Han could clearly sense that Chang Jiang harbored ill intentions. He had expected Lu Jue to refuse—after all, even if he lost this second trial, Xiao Han would still have thrown his full support behind Lu Jue to serve as the Northern Expedition general. Never had he imagined that Lu Jue would actually agree, prompting him to anxiously lower his voice and offer a hasty warning.

"Young Master, you must not be reckless. This Chang Jiang is a master of military tactics; serving under the Prince of Beichang, he never suffered a single defeat against the Tidi."

Even Feng Yewu nearby looked at Lu Jue with a trace of worry. However, as the sovereign, it was naturally inappropriate for her to try and dissuade him now, lest she invite criticism and disrupt military morale.

Meeting Xiao Han's eager and anxious expression, Lu Jue offered a faint smile and replied softly.

"General Xiao need not worry. Since I have given my word, I naturally am not without preparation. Furthermore..."

Lu Jue turned his gaze toward Chang Jiang, raising his voice slightly so that it was clearly intended for the general's ears.

"When the Tidi tribe battles our people, the advantages of elite troops and blunt weapons are both greatly diminished. Switching to blades will only better simulate actual battlefield conditions."

Hearing Lu Jue speak thus, Xiao Han knew it was futile to persuade him further. He could only turn back with a helpless expression to glare at Chang Jiang, the hostility in his eyes palpable as he suppressed his fury and spoke.

"Since Young Master Lu has agreed, I wonder how General Chang intends to arrange the switch to blades."

Hearing Lu Jue make such an ignorant and reckless statement, Chang Jiang inwardly sneered, thinking him truly a newborn calf unafraid of tigers.

"I have no intention of deliberately making things difficult for Young Master Lu. How about this: the guards on both sides will be divided. One side will wear iron armor and wield long sabers to represent the Tidi, while the other side will use rattan armor and school staves to represent our own troops. You and I shall swap camps for two rounds. If you defeat me in the first round, then Young Master Lu shall serve as the Northern Expedition General, and this Chang will have no complaints whatsoever. If you lose, I will take the side with the school staves and rattan armor in the second round, and if I win, I shall take the command of the Northern Expedition. How does that sound?"

A cunning scheme!

Cold light flickered in the depths of Lu Jue's eyes. Chang Jiang was playing a very clever game; if Lu Jue lost, all of today's plans would end up paving the way for this man. While the terms appeared exceedingly fair, upon closer inspection of the actual odds of winning and losing, Lu Jue was clearly at a disadvantage.

In a skirmish involving only ten men per side, large-scale military formations naturally could not be deployed, leaving only a handful of tactical options. If he lost the very first round, then even if he were equipped with elite arms and heavy armor in the second round, his strategies would already be thoroughly familiar to the opponent, making it all the easier for them to counter.

By using the long saber and iron armor formation against rattan armor and staves in the first round, Chang Jiang could completely crush finesse with sheer force while concealing his own true depth and capabilities from Lu Jue.

Before Lu Jue could reply, Feng Yewu looked at Chang Jiang and asked, "And what if both of you fail to defeat the side with the long sabers and iron armor? How shall that be calculated?"

Feng Yewu's question also voiced the lingering concerns in the hearts of everyone present.

After all, the discrepancy in weaponry between the two sides was so stark that many believed this outcome was the most probable.

Hearing the ruler's inquiry, Chang Jiang answered with poised composure, "Should that truly come to pass, even if this subordinate were to be considered defeated, the fact that Young Master Lu, despite his youth, could fight this general to a standstill would naturally mean Young Master Lu is the victor."

Chang Jiang's words completely dissolved the remaining skepticism the onlookers held toward his proposal. A fresh layer of vigilance toward Chang Jiang's character formed in Lu Jue's mind.