From cute to empress

"Report—" The messenger's shout brought me back to my senses, bringing a sudden silence to the tense chamber. He knelt on the ground, speaking in a hurried voice, "Your Majesty, the enemy generals are sending reinforcements south. Our scouts have engaged their vanguard, and we've suffered heavy casualties!"

The meeting room erupted in an uproar. The generals looked at each other, their faces solemn. I took a deep breath, trying to remain calm, and asked, "Do you know the number of enemy troops?"

"Your Majesty, according to the scouts, there are at least 50,000!"

Fifty thousand! My heart sank. Our army was already short of food and fodder, and now the enemy has increased its forces, which is undoubtedly worse than before.

"Your Majesty, the enemy general Hu is cunning and cunning. This reinforcement must be well prepared. We must not take it lightly!" General Li said with a bow, his tone full of worry.

"Yes, Your Majesty, now we should..."

The generals began to discuss again, each expressing their own opinions, but most advocated strengthening the defense and adapting to changing circumstances. I rubbed my brows, feeling a splitting headache. The atmosphere in the meeting room was oppressive, but my mind was becoming increasingly clear.

"Alright," I said in a deep voice. The meeting room suddenly fell silent, and everyone's eyes were fixed on me. "Pass the order down. Strengthen the city defenses and be on high alert. No one may go into battle without my order!"

"Yes!" All the generals responded in unison.

After the crowd dispersed, I paced the conference room alone, my mind racing. Both Zhen Youcai and General Li's suggestions made sense, but they were both too one-sided. Simply defending would only demoralize our troops and ultimately lead to defeat without a fight; a rash attack would only lead to a trap set by the enemy.

I must come up with a compromise that can ensure the safety of our troops while putting a certain amount of pressure on the enemy and buying time for our troops.

"Come here," I called over the guards, "tell General Zhen and Lieutenant General Ma to come before the emperor."

……

"Your Majesty, you mean..." After hearing my plan, Lieutenant General Ma showed a look of surprise on his face.

"I have made up my mind. Let's arrange it this way." I said in a firm tone, leaving no room for doubt.

"Yes!" Zhen Youcai and Deputy General Ma looked at each other and answered in unison.

As night fell, flames shot up from outside the border town, and the cries of battle were deafening. Zhen Youcai and Deputy General Ma followed their plan, strengthening the city's defenses while sending out small groups of troops to harass and tire the enemy.

I stood on the city wall, gazing at the flickering flames in the distance, but my heart was at peace. I knew this was only the calm before the storm; the real test was yet to come...

"Report—" A scout, covered in blood, came running from a distance, "Your Majesty, the enemy general..."

"Your Majesty, the enemy general Hu... seems to have noticed our intentions and is now gathering his forces!" The scout knelt on one knee and spoke in a hurried tone, obviously having tried his best to rush back to report the news.

My heart tightened, a chill running down my spine. It seemed this enemy general was no pushover; he'd seen through our plan so quickly.

"I understand. You can go down and rest." I waved my hand, signaling the guards to take him downstairs to heal his wounds.

The night wind was so cold that it made my clothes flutter and my heart feel cold.

"Your Majesty, it seems that this enemy general Hu is going to make a desperate move." Zhen Youcai, who had been silent all the time, walked to my side with a serious tone.

"Yes." I looked at the gradually gathering flames in the distance, my worries growing even stronger. "He wants to take advantage of our unstable foothold and seize the border town in one fell swoop."

"Then how should we respond? Should we..." Zhen Youcai hesitated to speak. I knew what he wanted to ask was whether we should ask the court for help.

I shook my head, my eyes determined. "It's too late. Even if we send a message back now, by the time reinforcements arrive, I'm afraid the border town will have already fallen."

Zhen Youcai fell silent, he knew what I said was true.

"Pass the order down, all soldiers are ready to fight. Tomorrow, we will fight the enemy to the death!" I drew the sword at my waist, pointed the tip of the sword at the night sky, and spoke in a resolute tone.

I know this battle will be extremely brutal, and it might even be the last one of my life. But I will not retreat, because I am the empress of the Great Wei, and behind me are millions of people!

Early the next morning, just as the sky was getting light, the deafening sound of war drums resounded through the sky.

I stood on the city wall, looking at the dark mass of enemy troops below the city. I felt no fear in my heart, only the determination to die.

"Your Majesty, the enemy is coming with great force. We really have to..." Military Advisor Guo on the side looked embarrassed. He always advocated winning by wisdom and would not easily talk about war unless it was absolutely necessary.

"Military Advisor, there's no need to say more. I know what you're worried about." I interrupted him, my eyes determined. "But in this battle, we have no way out. We can only fight to the death!"

Military Advisor Guo opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but I raised my hand to stop him.

"Military Advisor, you have been on the battlefield for many years and are very experienced. Do you have any good strategies to defeat the enemy?" I asked with a hint of expectation in my tone.

Military Advisor Guo pondered for a moment, a gleam in his eyes: "Your Majesty, I have a plan..." He leaned close to my ear and whispered, and my eyes became brighter and brighter.

"Okay, let's do as the military advisor says!" I gave the order decisively, with a glimmer of hope in my eyes. "Pass the order down..."

"Okay, let's do as the military advisor says!" I ordered decisively, with a glimmer of hope in my eyes. "Pass the order down, and have General Zhen..."

Military Advisor Guo's plan was bold and risky. He suggested we feign weakness, abandon several defensive positions outside the city, and lure the enemy deeper. Once they were encircled, we could ambush them and catch them unawares.

I am fully aware of the risks of this plan. The enemy general, General Hu, is no ordinary man. If we are not careful, he will see through our plan, and then our army will be attacked from all sides.

"Your Majesty, are you really determined to do this?" Zhen Youcai looked worried. "This is too risky. What if..."

"There's no such thing as a one-time event." I interrupted him, my tone firm. "Now we have no way out. We can only give it a try. I believe in the military advisor, and I believe in you."

Zhen Youcai looked at me with a complicated expression, but finally nodded: "I will obey your command! I will definitely live up to your majesty's trust!"

In the next few days, we followed the plan and gradually abandoned several defense lines outside the city. We also deliberately left loopholes during our retreat to lure the enemy into pursuit.

The enemy general Hu was fooled. He mistakenly believed that our army was short of food and supplies and morale was low, so he led his army in pursuit, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

Watching the enemy troops approaching from below the tower, I felt a sense of calm. Success or failure depended on this one move, and I had no choice.

"Your Majesty, the enemy's vanguard has entered the encirclement." Military Advisor Guo stood beside me, his tone calm, "Should we order the encirclement to close in?"

I took a deep breath, gripped my sword tightly, and looked at him with a sharp gaze: "Wait a little longer, wait until the main force of the enemy enters the encirclement before taking action. We must annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop!"

Time passed by minute by minute, and my heart kept beating as the sound of war drums approached.

Finally, the main enemy force entered our encirclement.

"Now is the time! Pass the order and close the net!" I raised the sword in my hand high, and my tone was sharp, like a sharp blade drawn from its sheath, unstoppable.

In an instant, the sound of shouting and killing shook the earth, and the originally silent battlefield instantly turned into a Shura hell...

"Your Majesty, look..." Military Advisor Guo pointed to the bottom of the city wall, and his expression suddenly became solemn.

I followed his gaze and saw...

The enemy's main force, which was supposed to be there, now only had scattered units left, far fewer than expected. Farther away, battle flags embroidered with the Chinese character "Hu" fluttered in the wind, appearing particularly dazzling in the setting sun.

"How could this happen?" I muttered to myself in disbelief, a chill running from the soles of my feet to the top of my head.

Military Advisor Guo's expression also turned extremely grim. He frowned and muttered, "Oh no! We've fallen into a trap! This is the enemy's strategy of confusing the enemy!"

My heart sank as a sense of foreboding washed over me. Could it be that our carefully planned plan had been discovered by the enemy general Hu?

"Your Majesty, what should we do now?" Military Advisor Guo's voice was filled with a hint of panic.

I forced myself to calm down, took a deep breath, and tried to stay calm. Now was not the time to panic. I had to come up with a solution quickly!

I turned my head sharply to look at Military Advisor Guo and asked in a deep voice, "Military Advisor, do you have any other plans?"

Military Advisor Guo hesitated for a moment, then looked up at me with a flicker of determination in his eyes. "Your Majesty, at this point, we can only..."

His voice became lower and lower, but I could hear it very clearly.

"Pass the order down and set up the imperial study!" I gave the order decisively, with a hint of determination in my tone.

Now, we need to re-examine the entire situation and find a way to defeat the enemy.