256 BCE
HOUKU PLAINS
NARRATOR POV
Though it would seem like an open plain, the terrain was in truth quite complex with hills and forests. This was a field favoured by Sei Chou, and the site he had chosen for his upcoming battle against Duke Hyou.
NARRATOR POV END
SEI CHOU POV
"So, my first battle against the Qin is Duke Hyou." The moment I learned that I would be facing Duke Hyou, I purposely chose a battleground that almost forces you to split up your forces. I remembered a few things from the manga, and Dakan Plains was one of them. In that arc, it was said that Duke Hyou was an instinctual General, who relied on his gut feeling or the "Fire", as he would say.
My key thought was to try to counter that, or if I could not counter it outright, then find ways to limit the net positive that being an instinctual general is.
"With the Jo brothers on the right flank and Den Pou taking command of the left flank. We have the centre, seeing the enemy line up, they've also gone with a similar deployment." I said to Fu Jin, who stood beside me, looking over the strategic map in the now-empty war tent.
"Hmm, he was a step slower than you thought, My Lord. Which means he followed your lead in setting up his troops." Fu Jin replied, and I nodded, knowing that was how it went. We had been stationed at Houku plains for a long while, even before King Xiaocheng summoned me. I had a small army stationed inside Houmou, a force of only around 10,000 strong, with Fu Jin drafting in soldiers for the army.
We managed to gain 10,000 through the drafting. I personally led an army of 70,000 troops after meeting up with the Jo brothers and Den Pou after receiving command-in-chief status at Kantan.
This put us at a total of 90,000 troops, to which I decided to unevenly split the numbers. Instead of going the conventional route and dividing the 90,000 into three. I gave 35,000 to Den Pou on the left flank and 35,000 to the Jo brothers on the right flank, which left me 20,000 for my main headquarters.
"Qin's Duke Hyou commands roughly 80,000 troops in total, or so that is what the scouts say. But who's to truly know?" Fu Jin said.
"Knowing the Duke and his manner of warfare, I can see this will be a bloody affair." My eyes went to the Qin side of the board, seeing Duke Hyou's headquarters being stationed directly opposite mine. Commanding his right flank was Dan Shi, a person who was shown in the Kingdom Manga only once. At the time of the manga, he commanded Baou City.
Now he was here, facing up against Den Pou, I didn't know if the man had any abilities as General but based on his rank, he should probably give Den Pou something to think about.
The Qin left flank commander was Kou Ri, an unknown General to me, as I did not remember the name at all but apparently he had long since been a General under Duke Hyou, which made me take notice of the guy, on the simple factor that Duke Hyou's manner of warfare was chaotic, fast and destructive to both himself and the enemy.
"Well, then, before we start the battle, there's something I need you to do for me…" I said to Fu Jin, a plan started to form in my mind. One that was just too good for me to turn down.
SEI CHOU POV END
QIN RIGHT FLANK
DAN SHI POV
The right flank was his to command; the only objective Duke Hyou had given him was that he must crush the Qin commander who opposed him. Dan Shi supposed that was just right, that there was no need for grand plans when coming up against the Zhao.
"Look how far the Zhao have fallen, long gone are the days when they boasted of their Three Great Heavens. Now they send greenhorse to be smashed against our Qin's hammer!" Dan Shi had heard that the Zhao Supreme Commander was scarcely a man, being 17 years of age.
'He's young enough to be the Duke's son.' Dan Shi thought. "Hahaha," He laughed to himself, the thought bringing him much amusement. He didn't need to focus on what the Zhao across from him was doing; his victory was already carved in stone.
"My Lord, I wonder what you're laughing about?" One of his 5,000-man commanders asked him with a curious gaze.
Dan Shi waved a hand before replying, "Just laughing at the decline of Zhao. How can they place a 17-year-old as their supreme commander? Does Zhao not have anyone worthy?"
"...I guess they do not, my lord. However, they do say that Sei Chou killed Great General Chi Ketsu of Yan and defeated the Fire Dragons of Wei numerous times." His commander replied. Dan Shi nodded, having heard the same thing, but he knew nothing of the talent of Chi Ketsu of Yan.
"Hmph, should the boy have killed Gaku Ki of Yan, then that would be credible for me to give him notice, but instead, Chi Ketsu, whom I know nothing of. I say the Zhao are lying regarding his record against the Wei, possibly trying to prop the youngster up." He replied, dismissing the notion that Sei Chou was a person to take note of.
In the mind of General Dan Shi, there was nothing to be afraid of. "The Duke will take the boy's head, before the sky darkens and the moon ascends." He made his prediction with full confidence.
As Dan Shi looks over the horizon, he can see that the Zhao soldiers are already in formation; he, in turn, also sends out orders for his men to get into formation. They will open the day with a charge straight into the Zhao, fully confident that the weakbellied greenhorns would crumble under the might of his glaive.
"MEN OF QIN! IT IS TIME TO SHOW THESE ZHAO GREENHORNES THE TRUE STRENGTH OF THE QIN AMRY!!!" Dan Shi shouted aloud before pointing his glaive directly towards the awaiting Zhao army.
"CHARGE MEN OF QIN!!!"
"OOOOUUUUU!!!!" The Qin soldiers answered him earnestly.
DAN SHI POV END
ZHAO LEFT FLANK POV
"Should we use Lord Chou Gaaryu's shifting sands?" Jo Rin asked his twin brother. They both sat next to one another and had a clear view of the incoming Qin soldiers. Leading the charge was Dan Shi, the commander of the Qin flank.
"Hmm, no, we should look to end this rather quickly, rather than making it a drawn-out war. Young Master did give his orders." Jo Shou replied, remembering what their young master had said to both of them before they took their position. For the twins, the words had both challenged and motivated them; they wanted to prove themselves and show just how much they had grown since being given the freedom to battle how they see fit.
"True, then let's use the same trick we used to." Jo Rin replied easily, before turning and calling for a small detachment of soldiers from the Dojaku. Their usual tactic was both simple and highly effective. Having grown up together as twins, their parents often commented about how their bond was strong and different.
They always knew what the other was doing; it was as if they had been born with a shared mind. The tactic fed into their shared bond. Jo Shou watched as Jo Rin easily slinked away with over 500 cavalrymen following him. Looking back, he noted that the Qin were not paying any attention to his brother. They were still advancing towards the headquarters in an orderly fashion.
Seeing this, Jo Shou allowed himself a smile, "Young master, you better not have lied. The Dojaku still needs their leader." He said before sending out orders for the troops under his command to set out in full.
Both Qin and Zhao commanders committed all their soldiers, only leaving a skeleton force to protect their headquarters. Even though this was the first day, General Dan Shi of Qin and the Jo brothers had made their own decision.
To end the battle of Hoku plains in a single day.
….
Narrator POV
As Qin General Dan Shi charged into the Zhao ranks, on the other flank, another battle was taking place… On the attacking side, Qin's General Kou Ri, the commander of the Qin left flank army and standing against him, Den Pou leader of the Rai Un.
Both sides were equal in might, which resulted in a stalemate. Yet, neither army dared to take a step back. Instead, they both looked to gain an advantage.
QIN LEFT FLANK POV
Unlike the Great General's of whose banner his fights under, General Kou Ri did not rely on his instincts in war. Whilst he was a charge-leading general, he also understood formations and knew how to manoeuvre his troops well. The core of his army had followed him for many years, forging a bond in the crucible of warfare.
So, as General Kou Ri sat down and received the reports from the frontlines. The men around him could understand just from his facial expression that their General was angered.
"My Lord, the Zhao have been putting up a better fight than we initially believed." One of the Qin commanders under Kou Ri tried to reason with the already vexed general, but by the looks of those in the surroundings, they knew reasoning at this point was the wrong move.
General Kou Ri exploded in anger, "ARE YOU TRYING TO TELL ME THOSE DAMNED ZHAO ARE BETTER THAN US!" The General only heard what he wanted to hear. Everyone who knew General Kou Ri understood the man was an eccentric like Duke Hyou, except he hated losing; even an inch of ground lost was something he loathed.
"It's not that, my lord, it is just…" The commander's words trailed off, not knowing how to broach the topic without fraying any nerves.
"You're making me bring shame to the Duke's name, as one of the only generals who has managed to follow the Duke since his first battle." Kou Ri spoke with wistful emotion, his demeanour doing a complete 180.
"...Though I guess that can be expected, I know my men." Kou Ri said, looking at the messenger whilst speaking to his whole army, "I know the types of battles we favour, the types of clashes we desire, the Kou Ri army does not like to play strategic games!" His voice started to increase in volume.
"The Kou Ri army fights on the front line with their General leading the charge!" He finished his short speech with a fist lifted into the air, and the sun seemed to shine off his armour, bathing him in a radiant light for everyone to see.
Casting one more steely look over his soldiers, Kou Ri decided to speak once more, stoking the fire in their hearts and minds. "Do not worry, I will be joining the frontlines. Does the youngster Sei Chou believe that a mere subordinate of Gyou'un (not even the man himself) can hold back me and my army?" The question did not need answering for the Qin soldiers.
Since they already had the answer in their mind and chest, and it was a resounding 'NO!'
With such high morale, the main headquarters of Kou Ri came alive with activity. Soldiers who had been placed in the reserves were receiving new orders to join the frontlines, and strategists were looking for new ways to destroy and dismantle the Zhao army led by Den Pou.
"You better have washed your neck, Den Pou." Kou Ri of Qin said, looking in the direction of Den Pou's headquarters.
QIN LEFT FLANK POV END
DEN POU POV
There was a huge clamour of noise coming from the Qin Headquarters; more and more flags were being spotted entering the battlefield in the distance. Den Pou was now a seasoned commander, and he thoroughly understood what was happening. Not needing someone else to spell it out.
"He wants to finish it on the first day." Den Pou said, standing at the edge of his camp, he could oversee much of the battle and get a good read on what was happening. His eyes went to see where his army had been overpowering the Qin, until Qin's Kou Ri decided to take the field.
"Bring me my horse." Den Pou only needed to wait a few minutes before his full-armoured horse was brought to him. The Rai'un unit already begun forming around him, their flags were being held aloft for all to see. Looking directly below the flag of the Qin general Kou Ri, Den Pou spotted the man before pointing his spear in his direction.
"Men of the Rai'un!" He began his speech, "The Qin think we are so feeble and weak that they've invaded our lands!" He started to inflame the hatred for the Qin dogs, "They believe us so shaken that they would dare to attack our great Kingdom of Zhao!"
"How can we allow such an injustice!" He asked.
"We can not!" The Rai'un replied.
"Our Lord has given us a task! Take Kou Ri's head and win the war!"
"OOOOUUUUU!!!"
"Take his head!"
"Rai'un unit!!!!"
Den Pou's horse neighed, standing on its back legs before stomping down hard into the earth. No more words were needed, no more motivation was to be given. He tapped his horse into a full gallop, leading a charge directly at Qin's general.
DEN POU POV END