Inside the central military tent, the Fifth Prince, Wei Shao, was reading a secret letter written by his mother, Consort Li.

Emperor Kangping suddenly fell seriously ill and was bedridden. The imperial physicians racked their brains and adjusted the herbal medicine, and with great difficulty, Emperor Kangping's condition improved slightly. He went from having a high fever and being in a deep sleep to having a low fever and waking up, and was able to eat a little.

"The imperial physician says that unless a miracle occurs, His Majesty has at most two months left to live. My son, you should quickly capture Xiping Pass and annihilate Wei Jingzhuo. At that time, I will speak to His Majesty, and with your unparalleled achievements, the position of Crown Prince will surely be yours. When His Majesty passes away, you will be the next ruler..."

Having read this far, Wei Shao sighed heavily and put the letter down. He turned to his strategist and said, "My mother actually wants me to break through Xiping Pass within two months. Do you think that's possible?"

The strategist standing beside him was Wei Shao's confidant. Upon hearing Wei Shao's question, he immediately hesitated.

As Wei Shao's strategist, he knew his master all too well.

Wei Shao was tall and handsome, and was bestowed the title of Prince Shao. Among all the princes, he was the only one whose temperament could rival that of Wei Jingzhuo; anyone who saw him for the first time was captivated by his imposing presence. However, compared to Wei Jingzhuo, his temperament was more of an embellishment, and his inner qualities were two levels lower.

In short, it's all show and no substance; it looks impressive, but it would break if it clashed with a real gun.

Wei Shao was also skilled in military strategy and tactics, as well as swordsmanship and martial arts. He had a smattering of knowledge in various arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, painting, playing musical instruments, and singing, but he wasn't proficient in any of them. This personality led him to only have a superficial understanding of whatever he learned, and he had no interest in delving deeper into anything.

But Wei Shao wasn't entirely without merit. No one is perfect, and gold is never pure. He did have one redeeming quality: self-awareness.

After carefully assessing his master's character, the strategist decisively shook his head and said, "In my humble opinion, Your Highness will not be able to capture Xiping Pass in just two months."

Wei Shao slammed his hand on the table and stood up, saying, "That's right, I think so too. Mother Consort only talks big, why don't you tell Father Emperor to hurry up and equip me with the Divine Machine Cannon? How many times have we urged him already?"

While on the march, he kept sending letters to Emperor Kangping. After receiving no reply after two letters, he learned that Emperor Kangping was ill. So he wrote to his mother, Consort Li, to see if she could persuade Emperor Kangping to use the powerful cannons to help with the attack.

While sending the message, he was not idle. He personally went to the garrison of the Divine Cannon to see the general in charge and see if he could use the cannon as the Fifth Prince.

To his dismay, the artillery battalion commander said that unless the emperor personally led the expedition, no one could mobilize these cannons, so he had no choice but to return disappointed.

The strategist said with a bitter face, "Your Highness, the Divine Cannon is extremely powerful, and it can only be mobilized if His Majesty personally leads the army. But His Majesty is currently bedridden..."

Wei Shao waved his hand and said, "This is really annoying. Summon all the generals and let me see what everyone thinks."

He left the central command tent and stood on a high point, looking towards Xiping Pass shrouded in mist in the distance.

Xiping Pass was built amidst towering mountains and steep ridges. It was constructed by the previous emperor specifically to defend against the Western Rong tribes. Three emperors later led expeditions westward from the pass, and it has stood for over seventy years. The tall city walls are faintly visible in the morning mist, reflecting a bluish-black color under the sunlight, as if the walls were cast from steel.

A gust of cold wind blew by, making him shiver and quickly get down and go back into the tent.

With war imminent, the commander-in-chief must not show any signs of panic. Although he wasn't exactly a brilliant strategist, he understood this perfectly well.

The soldiers beat the drums, and the generals surged into the central command tent. The anti-rebel army consisted of fifty generals, each with gleaming helmets and armor, chests puffed out and bellies protruding, standing in two rows on the left and right.

Wei Shao said, “Generals, we are about to reach Xiping Pass. Xiping Pass has always been the most strategically important pass in the world. The late emperor relied on this pass to repel the western barbarian tribes. It is easy to defend and difficult to attack. I plan to rest here for half a month and request my father to send the Shenji Cannon to assist us. What do you generals think?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the generals erupted in uproar.

For many years there has been little war, except for the Western Rong causing trouble, which was firmly blocked outside Youzhou by General Zhao Xian's Northwest Army.

Military officers cannot be promoted without military merit. Now that there is finally a Wei Jingzhuo to be attacked, everyone is eager to make great contributions and be ennobled. Unexpectedly, before the army even reached Xiping Pass, Wei Shao backed down.

A burly man eagerly stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and spoke in a booming voice.

“Your Highness, you are being too cautious. His Majesty is unwell and cannot personally lead an expedition. Xiping Pass is a small pass that can be easily conquered. I am willing to serve as the vanguard and lead 5,000 troops to attack the pass for Your Highness.”

Before Wei Shao could speak, another burly general stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, our army is here to punish the traitors. We have the support of the people and are invincible. I, Pan, am willing to lend General Fang a hand. If we fail to capture the pass, we will be subject to military law."

Wei Shao hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at the strategist.

The strategist whispered in Wei Shao's ear, "Your Highness, although Xiping Pass is treacherous, you are here on imperial orders to quell the rebellion. If you do not engage in battle with your 100,000 troops, not only will you become a laughingstock among the generals, but you will also disappoint His Majesty."

Wei Shao suddenly realized his mistake and said to the two generals below him, "Since Generals Fang and Pan are so eager for battle, I will allocate ten thousand troops to you. I appoint General Fang as the vanguard and General Pan as the deputy general, to attack Xiping Pass. I await your report of victory!"

"Your subordinates obey the order." The two men answered in unison, took the command tokens, and walked out between the two rows of generals with smug expressions.

Wei Shao dispatched two generals with 10,000 troops to attack first. After careful consideration, he felt this was a suitable strategy, at least to probe the strength of Xiping Pass.

Just as he was about to continue assigning military duties, a soldier rushed in, presenting a letter that said, "Prince Shao, there is a letter here at Xiping Pass."

Wei Shao was overjoyed. Could it be that the enemy was so frightened by the sight of the 100,000-strong army that they decided to surrender the pass?

He waved his hand and said, "Present it quickly."

The soldier presented the letter, which Wei Shao took, tore open the envelope, and unfolded the letter. It was filled with crooked, illegible handwriting written in calligraphy, the style of which was unclear. There were also a few drops of water on the paper, as if tears had fallen onto it.

He carefully examined the text and finally recognized the first line, then read it aloud.

"Wei Shao, you idiot, you've ruined my brother..."

He didn't understand what the greeting was, and thought it was a term unique to the army, so he stopped reading it aloud and showed the letter to the generals.

"Generals, what does 'idiot' mean?"

The generals were all somewhat bewildered. Fortunately, one general reacted quickly and stepped forward, saying, "Your Highness, let's not worry about what this word means for now. Since the other party dared to address you by your name, this word is probably not a good one."

The others chimed in, saying, "Your Highness, this is probably just a verbal attack from the other side."

The strategist leaned close to his ear and said, "Your Highness, what's coming next is probably even more unpleasant, so please don't read it aloud."

Wei Shao suddenly realized what was happening, his face flushed red, and he angrily tore the letter to shreds, throwing it on the ground, saying, "This is outrageous! How dare they insult me, the King! Where is their messenger?"

The soldier said, "The messenger simply delivered the letter and then went back."

Wei Shao was even angrier now. He stood up and said, "How dare you provoke me! The entire army will break camp and march on Xiping Pass."