The words that reached Wang Yi and others, though making them feel a bit bewildered, did not lead them to overthink.
In their view, as long as they repelled the Qin army and defended their Wei border, that would suffice.
As for the specific circumstances, it seemed less important.
However, by the next day, they would regret their complacency immensely.
On the morning of the second day, a message arrived from the Qin state.
It claimed that the previous night, while Qin soldiers were tending to their horses, they were suddenly ambushed by the Wei army.
Not only were many warhorses injured, but numerous Qin soldiers were also wounded.
The Qin state was furious about this incident and demanded an explanation from Wei.
Therefore, that morning, the Qin army descended upon the Wei border.
This development unsettled the common people of Wei.
"What? Our army shot and injured Qin's warhorses and soldiers, and now Qin demands an explanation? What were those soldiers thinking, provoking the Qin army??"
"Exactly! The might of Qin is evident to anyone with eyes. Why provoke Qin at this juncture? Isn't this creating war and trouble for our Wei?"
"Useless fools, truly useless fools! Why would they provoke Qin? Wei will eventually be ruined by their hands!!"
While many of the common people were aware that the Qin army had mobilized and appeared at the Wei border,
Lin Tian and his forces had only appeared; they had not yet attacked Wei.
This fostered a sense of hope among many Wei citizens, who believed Qin would not attack them and their peaceful lives would continue.
However, little did they expect that before Qin even moved against Wei, Wei had already provoked Qin.
This enraged many citizens, who felt their tranquil lives had been disrupted.
Many grew fearful, dreading death in war.
Conversely, there were also some who supported Qin's attack on Wei. This group comprised the landless and impoverished populace.
They had witnessed firsthand the policies Qin implemented among its populace.
They knew that many formerly landless people had acquired land.
Many who had struggled to survive could now cultivate the land, regaining hope for their lives.
Therefore, they secretly wished for Qin to conquer Wei so that land could be distributed to them.
This way, they too could survive and live more prosperous lives.
Behind closed doors, they strongly supported Qin's invasion of Wei.
"Attack, attack, quickly take Wei! Only when Wei falls will my good life truly begin!!"
"Hmph! Those nobles have long oppressed us. All our land was seized by them. May Qin conquer Wei in one swift battle, confiscate their land and wealth, and avenge us common folk!!"
"I await the arrival of the Qin army. When they come, I will open my doors to welcome them!!"
Though these individuals took no concrete action, they secretly held these fervent hopes.
Consequently, few blamed the Qin army for the conflict. They all believed Wei had initiated the provocation.
Had the Wei generals not ordered the shooting of Qin's warhorses and soldiers, Wei and Qin might have remained at peace.
Therefore, they placed all the blame squarely on the Wei commander.
Many people incessantly cursed Wang Yi and the Wei army.
Upon hearing such sentiments, Wang Yi, the Wei commander, was dumbfounded.
He never imagined that the common people of Wei would not blame the Qin army for attacking them, but instead blame him, their own commander.
This blame and cursing left Wang Yi feeling deeply wronged.
Fortunately, as an veteran general, he possessed strong psychological resilience and could withstand such accusations.
Thus, he continued to man the city defenses without much outward reaction.
Lin Tian was not surprised by this. He did not need Wang Yi to react extensively; he merely needed a legitimate pretext.
With the blame shifted entirely onto Wang Yi, he could openly launch his campaign.
The presence of his 150,000 troops on the Wei border felt like an act of claiming what was owed.
It was effortless, unburdened, and gained the initiative.
In contrast, the Wei soldiers were constantly worried about an attack from Lin Tian's army, and what stratagems he might employ.
At this point, Wang Yi shouted to Lin Tian:
"General Lin, you have indeed employed cunning tactics, shifting all the blame onto others!"
"However, do you think you can shake the morale of my army with this? I tell you, it's impossible!!"
"The morale of our army is unshakeable! Your Qin will not set foot in our Wei!"
Wang Yi's words were resolute, and he was simultaneously rallying his soldiers and officers.
He wanted his soldiers to be spirited, as the true war had not yet officially begun.
Lin Tian, at this moment, merely smiled slightly.
"I do not know what you are talking about. I only know that you injured our Qin people and also our warhorses. This incident demands an explanation!"
"Otherwise, our Qin state will certainly not let this matter rest!!"
"An explanation? What kind of explanation does your Qin state seek?"
"The perpetrators shall pay with their lives, and the injured warhorses shall be compensated tenfold!!"
Lin Tian's words were clear and reached everyone's ears.
This stirred many hearts. Such terms, they felt, were not entirely unacceptable.
After all, Qin had not deployed many soldiers or warhorses the previous night.
Under some strange compulsion, a Wei general inquired:
"Then what is the specific amount of compensation?"
"All the archers from last night shall pay with their lives!"
"We had a total of fifty thousand warhorses injured yesterday, so we require five hundred thousand warhorses!"
Upon hearing this, everyone gasped.
To some generals, the demand for the lives of last night's archers was somewhat acceptable.
After all, only a few thousand archers had been involved yesterday.
A few thousand lives to appease Qin's wrath seemed like a fair trade.
However, to procure five hundred thousand warhorses was an impossible task for them.
The entire Wei state did not possess five hundred thousand warhorses.
Lin Tian's demand was an insurmountable task for Wei.
Simultaneously, it made the Wei people realize that Lin Tian had no intention of truly forgiving Wei; he still desired war.
...