Today, Baron wanted to play it rather safe. Instead of taking to the walls himself, he sat back and watched as his soldiers assaulted the city.
***
It didn’t take Yue Fei long to realize Baron’s plan. Without his assistance, his forces certainly wouldn’t be able to hold onto the West wall, but if he left his position at the East…
Yue Fei was in the midst of battle when a messenger arrived at his side, updating him with the happenings on the other walls.
“Tell the officers at the other two walls to send what reinforcements they can to the West wall. That should be able to delay the enemy for a bit.” Yue Fei said as he stabbed one of Baron’s men in the chest.
“Go now, there’s no time to waste.”
“Yes, sir.” The messenger motioned to another soldier, and they quickly ran to the North and South walls.
“It's easy to kill, Baron, but it is quite difficult to end a battle.” Yue Fei muttered.
The battle dragged on long into the afternoon, and just as the sun was about to set, Baron joined his men on the Western wall. After breaking through the wall’s defenses, Baron and his soldiers rushed down to the city and opened the gates. At this point, many of Yue Fei's men gave up and threw down their weapons in utter defeat. As did Yue Fei.
Going by Baron's calculations if every wall had only focused on their own walls without giving support to the west wall, then the west wall would've fallen in just a few hours. However, with Yue Fei making adjustments, reinforcing the West wall, the battle had almost lasted until nighttime.
Yue Fei had actually estimated that his forces would be able to hold out until nighttime — but he’d underestimated the difference in morale between the two forces. By the time Baron’s forces had opened the gates, though, Yue Fei had realized that he’d been absolutely dominated by Baron in every aspect of this simulation.
A message had popped up for both of the strategists when the bulk of Baron’s army had entered the city.
It read, “Congratulations to Baron Magellan for your overwhelming victory.”
“Play Again?”
Both players hit the “No” button without hesitation, and were transported back to the hall. They took off their helmets to look at each other.
“Well played, Magellan. You’re quite capable. It’s also nice to see a rookie who doesn’t shy away from battle. “Yue Fei reached out to shake Baron’s hand.
“You performed admirably as well.” Baron smiled as he shook Yue Fei’s hand.
The others in the room gazed at the two, shocked by what they saw. Yue Fei was a respected elder of the community, yet he was showing such respect to a greenhorn, a newcomer to planet four.
It was a sign of respect...and would represent the start of a great brotherhood between Yue Fei and Baron.
Chapter 11
Meeting the Top Brass
The two men withdrew their hands and saw the mutual respect in each other’s eyes.
“How about you go and take a rest for now? Just a few things to note. Time moves faster in the simulation, so although it took a week for our battle to conclude, it’s only been about a day for these folks.” He waved his hand at the spectators.
“Also, many of the younger generations like to watch newcomers get put in their place by the welcoming elder. But, eh. With what happened, they’re probably just jealous of your talent. I’ll have to go report on the test results, so I’ll come find you when I’m done.”
“Got it. I’ll need some time to reflect on… all that has happened. Thank you.”
“Do you still remember the way?”
Yes, thank you.”
***
"...and that is my conclusion.” Yue Fei said to the Chinese elders.
“Hmph. He's just a newcomer who needs to be put in his place!” A man shouted. The man was Bai Qi, one of the most ruthless strategists in all of Chinese history. It was estimated that during his time rampaging through China, he and his men had been responsible for over a million enemy casualties. It was also rumored that he’d never suffered a single loss in battle.
In fact, his nickname was the “Human butcher". With his reputation and status as a top twenty elder, few dared to respond.
Li Mu was one of the few who did. “What are you getting so worked up for, Bai Qi? It's not like you aren't allowed to have a go at him.” Li Mu said in a mocking tone. Li Mu had a blood feud with Bai Qi, and naturally wouldn’t shirk at a chance to mock him.
Back when Bai Qi was still alive, he’d massacred over four hundred thousand of Li Mu’s people from the state of Zhao. Li Mu, still young at the time, had been left to pick up the pieces of the Zhao state left in the wake of Bai Qi’s destruction. Of course, eventually the state of Qin had overrun the state of Zhao to create the Qin Dynasty, governed by the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang Di.
Li Mu wouldn’t hold a grudge against the Qin, as war was war, but only soldiers should pay the ultimate price in war. But Bai Qi ignored this rule, killing hundreds of thousands of Zhao citizens. Noncombatants.
Li Mu would never forget such a barbarous act.
“Watch it, Li Mu. You might be higher ranked than me for now, but I’m not afraid of you.” Bai Qi snickered.
"...” Wang Jian, another general from the state of Qin, glanced at the two but stayed silent.
Lian Po laughed. “Hahahaha! This is quite interesting, little Yue Fei. You mean to tell me that you were completely outdone by this newcomer? That's quite funny, hahaha!”
Lian Po also came from the state of Zhao but was from Bai Qi's generation. Even though he was also not a fan of Bai Qi, he wasn’t one to hold grudges — the past was in the past.
These four men, Bai Qi, Li Mu, Wang Jian, and Lian Po, were the four most revered generals and strategists of China’s warring states period. Even now, precious few strategists could match their prowess, so they held four of the top twenty elder seats.
After Lian Po’s laughter faded, the room stayed quiet for a few moments, until a lady spoke up.
“O-hoh, so you actually lost to a greenhorn. This new fellow sounds like quite the interesting little rascal. I have to say, I might have to see him for myself.” A sweet and melodic voice rang throughout the room.
It was the voice of the naval legend, Madam Zheng. She hadn’t been on planet four for long, but she’d quickly risen through the ranks to become one of the top twenty elders. This had shocked the entire Chinese community, especially the old farts who had thought their rankings in the council had been long set in stone.
Yue Fei felt the tension in the room, and felt it was time to leave. “Since I’ve made my report, I'll be on my way.
Bai Qi waved his hand impatiently. “Alright, we spent too much time on this upstart anyway. Move on.”
“Hold on, Yue Fei. Where are you headed?” Madam Zheng asked politely.
“I’ll introduce him to our community and standards, and see if I can get another go at him.”
“Oh, is that so? Well, if you get the chance why don't you invite Baron over to my place so I can have a nice little chat with him? Hmmm?” She said softly.
“Yes ma'am, I will relay your good wishes to him.”
“Excellent. Now, you may leave.”
Yue Fei left without looking back.
This little conversation Madam Zheng had with Yue Fei had garnered much interest from the other elders. With just a few words, she’d established that anyone who dared to touch Baron, would incur her wrath. Even the four most revered strategists of the warring states period wouldn’t dare to act against Baron without reason, now.
The four strategists from the warring states period were highly useful when leading armies on land, but land strategists were a dime a dozen, and more could be trained. But Madam Zheng was a naval genius, and a beauty at that. Thus, her importance to the Chinese community was far higher.
After Yue Fei left the council room, he headed to the room where Baron had initially woken up.
“H
ey, how are you feeling?”
Baron shrugged. “Pretty good. How was the report?”
“Well, at least one of the elders is very interested in you. Her name’s Madam Zheng, if you’ve heard of her. She’s insisted that the two of you have a nice chat sometime.”
“Madam Zheng? The pirate empress who terrorized the seas around China during the 18th and 19th centuries?”
“Ah, so you have heard of her.”
Baron nodded. “Actually, I’ve researched the history of warfare quite extensively — I even know how to build primitive weapons from scratch. Naturally, I’ve heard of Madam Zheng. She commanded hundreds of ships, thousands of sailors. She outlived two husbands, and was very popular with the ladies. She created the rule that if a person raped someone, they’d be executed without exception. I don’t think there’s a word to describe her, other than ‘legendary’. She has my utmost respect.”
Yue Fei chuckled. “Funny that you mentioned those two points. Her faction has more females than most. Not only that, her faction already has a base of pirates who’d served who on Earth, and were willing to serve under her again here. Her two husbands are her most trusted assistants in running this faction. She and two others are the femme fatales of the Chinese community, and most female strategists have chosen to reside in their faction.”
“As expected, her ambition hasn't waned since her death. I have an unrelated question, though. Something’s been bugging me for a while now. How is it that I’m able to understand you perfectly? I’m sure that the Chinese language has evolved from when you were alive, to when I was alive.”
“Good question, but there’s not really a way for me to explain it beyond, I guess, mind manipulation?”
“Then how come everyone here looks so picture perfect?”
“Well, I’m not qualified to know this answer either, but I've been told that everyone who died gets a new and improved body of sorts"
“Unqualified? What is considered qualified, then?”
“You have to be one of the top twenty elders to be qualified to know. I myself am only ranked in the nineties. Speaking of, you might be able to extract some info out of Madam Zheng if you do decide to have a talk with her.”
“Understood. I think I'll save the rest of my questions for after I've met her, then.”
“Excellent. Then, would you like to review our simulated battle?”
“As an elder, shouldn’t you have many responsibilities?
“Haha, no. As such a lowly-ranked elder, my only responsibility is to receive new recruits, and to kick them out if they’re not up to par.”
“Well, I haven’t got anything to do, so if you’re free, let’s go for it.”
Chapter 12
Yue Fei’s Plan
“Before we begin, I want you to know that I was holding back to see how well you could press an advantage.” Yue Fei didn’t want to hear Baron gloating.
“I figured you were going easy. If you didn’t have at least some level of ability, you wouldn't have been able to become an elder in the first place. After all, with China’s long history, there’s no shortage of impressive strategists, tacticians, and even intuitive generals.”
Yue Fei nodded. “It’s true that we have many powerhouses, but other communities have no shortage of talents either.”
“Don't worry, I'm not one to overestimate myself.”
“You are too modest, but you have the ability to back up such thoughts.”
“What's that supposed to mean?”
“Almost everyone here is only concerned about themselves, and their personal futures. Once they realize just how ruthless this world is, even if they were originally not so, they learn to be ruthless. Not everyone makes the transition, but most here have been, well, shaped.”
“I’m assuming you haven’t turned into a ruthless killing machine yet, right?”
“No. Not yet, at least. But when I was alive, I was a champion of honesty and loyalty, so it’d take quite a bit for me to change.”
“I'm well aware of the characteristics you displayed when you were alive, but I'm glad to see you haven’t changed.”
“My achievements aren't as grand or numerous as Madam Zheng, yet you've researched me as well?”
“Yes. As soon as I could read, I spent all my efforts researching all matters related to warfare. My own father was a military fanatic, so once I displayed interest and talent in strategy, he rolled me into a competitive school, meant to develop the brightest minds of future generations. After staying there for a few years, learning all I could, I toured the other strategy schools in the area to test myself.”
“Seems like you didn't have much of a childhood.”
“I could say the same for you, and for most of the people who are here.”
“That’s true, I guess. Tell me, how did you die? You seem rather young by how you talk.”
Baron shrugged. “I died at twenty years of age. Despite all my preparation, nothing could have prepared me for the hell that is war.”
“You were only twenty when you died? I served for as long as you lived.” Yue Fei said with a face full of shock. “Any regrets?”
“I mostly just regret that I died in my first deployment. I had so much ambition, so many goals to achieve… but I’m here now.”
“Don't be like that. Find new goals, a new purpose. There are many things to achieve here too.”
“I understand.” Said baron.
“Did you leave behind any special people back on Earth?”
“I...choose not to answer.”
Yue Fei blinked. Wasn’t declining to answer the same as admitting it? “Alright, well, let's just begin our review.”
The two used the next few hours to review what they each could have done better, and what they did well. Although Baron was a young and talented genius, he couldn’t compare to Yue Fei when it came to their amounts of experience. Yue Fei also took the time to teach Baron the basics of the simulation game, as well as a few tips and tricks he’d learned during his time on planet four.
After a while, Baron asked. “I appreciate it, but why are you helping me so much? Surely elders don’t spend so much time assisting every newcomer. You’ve even shared some of your trump cards with me. Why?”
Yue Fei grinned. “Yes, I’m doing this for selfish reasons — I hope that you’ll feel enticed to repay my kindness in the future. Let me explain. As it currently stands, the Chinese community is splintered between various powerful factions, each of which is vying for control.”
“There’s the hundred elders, correct? Are there other powers at play in the community?”
“Yes, there’s the three grand elders, and the head of state. The latter’s influence is greater than the sum of the three grand elders combined — their word is law in the Chinese community. To even be eligible to become the head of state, one must first be a grand elder. Then, they must win a general election, and can only succeed with 90% of the vote in their favor. In all of the Chinese community’s history, only three have succeeded in becoming the head of state.
“However, there’s a bit of doubt surrounding the current head of state, as it’s rumored that he somehow ‘got rid’ of his biggest competitor, a fellow grand elder whose accomplishments were, frankly, above his own.”
“Wow. Then, who’s currently in the grand elder seats?”
“Like I said, the current head of state, Sun Tzu, is currently occupying the head of state position, as one of the grand elder positions. With the other grand elder missing, the last one’s name is Wu Qi. However, he’s not very active. The ‘empty’ seat is likely going to be given to one of the four most revered generals of the warring states period.
“I’m sure you know them, but their names are Lian Po, Li Mu, Bai Qi, and Wang Jian. A dark horse has risen into the discussion, though. Madam Zheng. Her quick rise to prominence has gained her many supporters, and although she doesn’t quite have the level of authority as the other candidates for now, it's assumed in
the community that she’ll surpass the others before long.”
Baron grimaced. “Seems that the affairs of the Chinese community are quite delicate. But, I guess it was to be expected. After all, even on Earth, it's only been a few decades since China has been truly acting as a unified country.”
“I guess I’ll take your word for it, as I wasn’t there to see it.”
Baron sighed. “It’s actually pretty sad.”
“What is?”
Baron shrugged. “Fact is, for most of Chinese history, we’ve only been concerned about fighting each other. If we’d unified earlier, I have no doubt that our impact on the modern world would have been akin to that of the Romans or Greeks, or even Genghis Khan. But, we greatly delayed our own country’s progress by fighting amongst ourselves.”
“Are you sure? Genghis Khan is pretty well known on planet four. I don't know if China could’ve ever built an empire as big as his.”
Baron nodded. “He did create one of the largest empires of all time, but the main thing you need to know is that China was the first country to discover gunpowder, and the inventions we made from that discovery were extremely advanced for that time period. We could have had a huge edge in weaponry, and we had a huge population of men who could fight. With our advantage in both numbers and technology, few, if any nations could have withstood our advance.”
“And did you learn all of this through books?”
“Most of it was learned through the internet, actually, but we’re getting off topic. What did you want me to do for you?”
“Well, as you know, I’ve been here on planet four for more than a thousand years. I’ve fought in countless simulations, and have finally garnered enough contributions to be an elder. Now, though, I don’t see myself advancing any further. I’ve reached the limits of my own abilities, and I need another’s assistance to rise further — and you fit the bill.”
“Me? Why don't you ally with one of the other elders?”
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