That night, Jiang Shidao pondered how to gain Li Jun's genuine trust, and thus didn't fall asleep until very late. The next morning, while still half-asleep, he heard Li Jun laughing loudly outside the tent: "Mr. Jiang, are you awake yet?"
The warrior outside the tent whispered, "Not yet. Mr. Jiang slept soundly all night without any unusual activity."
Jiang Shidao pretended to be fast asleep, emitting soft snores, and lingered on the couch for a full half hour before finally stretching and getting up. Seeing Li Jun sitting upright in the tent, he exclaimed in surprise, "I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting, Commander Li! I deserve to die a thousand deaths..."
“Mr. Jiang, there’s no need for that.” Li Jun smiled slightly. “I only waited a moment.”
Although Jiang Shidao was unwilling to truly follow Li Jun, he couldn't help but admire Li Jun's demeanor. As the commander of tens of thousands of troops, he had waited patiently at the bedside of a man who was a prisoner just yesterday. This was something no ordinary person could do. If Li Jun hadn't been drunk yesterday, Jiang Shidao was afraid he wouldn't have been able to easily extract secrets from him. Even so, he didn't know how Li Jun would treat him today.
Sure enough, Li Jun scrutinized him for a long time, then suddenly laughed and said, "You were drunk yesterday and talked nonsense. I wonder what you said to Mr. Jiang?"
“This…” Jiang Shidao looked thoughtful, then smiled wryly and said, “I was also drunk and forgot what the commander said. I only remember that the commander seemed to have mentioned the dragon spirit in the eastern sea of Kuanglan City. Commander, please don’t blame me for forgetting the great achievements you mentioned last night.”
Li Jun visibly breathed a sigh of relief, then said, "It's nothing, it's nothing. We were just chatting about trivial matters. Mr. Jiang, please wash up quickly. I've prepared a small feast for you to enjoy."
Jiang Shidao knew that he had gained Li Jun's trust to some extent, so he smiled and agreed. After breakfast, Li Jun frowned and paced around the tent. Suddenly, he said, "I deeply admire your courage, sir. There is something I would like to ask you, but I don't know if I should say it."
Jiang Shidao was secretly pleased and said, "Commander, please give your orders. How could I dare to disobey?"
Li Jun stared intently at him and said, "I want to release you, sir. Could you please pass on a message for me?"
Jiang Shidao suppressed his excitement, fearing that Li Jun would notice, and asked, "What news?"
"I would like to ask you to go to Huai'en City and inform the traitor that our army is short of food and that we will immediately send troops to attack Huai'en." Li Jun revealed a cunning smile.
If Jiang Shidao hadn't heard Li Jun's arrangements last night, he would have been greatly surprised as to why he would reveal his plans to his enemy. Nevertheless, he still feigned surprise and said, "Commander, you are mistaken. Now that I have pledged allegiance to you, there is no reason for me to leak your military intelligence. If you want me to investigate Huai En's strengths and weaknesses and act as an inside agent, I will do my utmost. But if you want me to collude with the enemy, I absolutely cannot."
Li Jun laughed heartily, patted Jiang Shidao on the shoulder, and said, "Don't worry, don't worry, what you revealed is what I want the enemy soldiers to know. Just tell the enemy soldiers what you want. If I capture Huai'en City, the credit will be yours."
Jiang Shidao scoffed inwardly. It seemed Li Jun was truly a cold-blooded man. If he had followed Li Jun's plan from last night, telling the garrison in Huai'en that he was going to attack Huai'en, scaring them into staying inside, and allowing Li Jun to conquer the other two cities one by one, then the garrison would surely suspect that he was spreading false information for Li Jun. At that point, even a hundred lives wouldn't be enough for the Lianfa Sect to kill him. No wonder Li Jun treated him so kindly; he was just trying to use him. Thinking this, he became even more determined.
"I see." He pretended to understand. "In that case, Shido has no choice but to comply. When does the commander require Shido to depart?"
"There's no time to lose, sir. Please act now, otherwise if you stay in my army for too long and too many people find out, my plan will become ineffective," Li Jun said.
Jiang Shidao was secretly delighted. Li Jun's request was exactly what he wanted. Although he couldn't get the details out of Li Jun about which city he intended to focus his attack on, the information he had was enough. With this information, he might even be promoted to Grand Master.
After bidding farewell to Li Jun, he left through the west gate alone. Li Jun also gave him a horse, which allowed him to travel to Huai'en more quickly. He endured wind and rain along the way, sleeping in the open, and what should have been a three-day journey he completed in just two days.
The Lianfa Sect in Huai'en City had already learned that Li Jun had captured Ningwang, so they kept the gates tightly shut, preventing any unauthorized personnel from entering or leaving. Jiang Shidao rode up to the gate and shouted, "Brothers on the city wall, open the gate quickly! I'm from Ningwang City, I have urgent military news!"
The one guarding Huai'en was Xue Qian, one of the sixteen masters of the Lotus Dharma Sect. He had given strict orders to guard against spies from the Peace Army entering the city. Therefore, the ghost soldiers guarding the city did not open the gate immediately, but instead urgently informed Xue Qian.
"Who are you, and how did you come from Ningwang City?" Xue Qian dared not be careless, and leaned down to ask, his hand resting on the battlement.
"Master, don't you remember me?" Jiang Shidao hurriedly dismounted and knelt down, saying, "I am Jiang Shidao, one of the three chief priests of Ningwang City. I served under you a month ago."
Xue Qian squinted at him and felt that the man looked familiar. So he said with a stern face, "So it is Chief Minister Jiang. You lost Ningwang City, but you did not live or die with Ningwang. How do you have the face to come and see me?"
Jiang Shidao kowtowed and said, "I lost Ningwang City and deserve to die, but I learned an urgent military intelligence in the Heping Army. Therefore, I left my body to report to my master. I hope that my master will allow me to make amends for my crimes."
Upon hearing the urgent military news, Xue Qian's heart skipped a beat. He said, "If that's the case, open the door and let him in."
Jiang Shidao entered the city and recounted his entire conversation with Li Jun to Xue Qian. He then stared intently at Xue Qian's face, hoping to catch the look he desired. But Xue Qian remained silent, paced around the room a few times, and then laughed, "Chief Jiang, you've fallen for my trap!"
Jiang Shidao was taken aback and said, "Does the Master mean that Li Jun has deceived me?"
Xue Qian said, "Exactly. Either you've fallen into a trap, or you're colluding with Li Jun to deceive me!"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shidao's hope was instantly extinguished by the torrential rain. He knelt on the ground and cried out, "Master, please see the truth! I have never colluded with Li Jun. Every word I have spoken is the truth. No matter how Li Jun threatens or entices me, I would never dare to betray the sect. Please, Master, see the truth!"
“Let me ask you,” Jiang Shidao’s defense made Xue Qian’s judgment waver slightly. He said, “What merit or ability do you have that makes Li Jun value you so much? You claimed that you would never kneel before Li Jun’s tent, so why did you kneel down after I only said one sentence? I have heard about Li Jun’s military tactics. He is meticulous and good at using ingenious strategies. How could he let you find out his tactical arrangements? And how could he let you leave so easily? If I am not mistaken, the moment you left Ningwang City, Li Jun’s army followed!”
Jiang Shidao repeatedly kowtowed, saying, "Master, please forgive me. My knees are worthy of kneeling before the Great God and the esteemed leaders of the sect. How could I possibly kneel before that mere child, Li Jun? Li Jun doesn't truly value me; he intends to sacrifice me to achieve his scheme. If his plot succeeds, and you, Master, remain in your city and refuse to aid Yuanding and Baoshan, you will surely execute me to atone for your sins once Yuanding and Baoshan fall. Li Jun completely disregards my life and death; how can he be considered to value me? As for my knowledge of Li Jun's tactics, it was only after his great victory that he spoke carelessly while drunk. Moreover, to prevent me from harboring any disloyalty, he specifically ordered his warriors to guard my tent all night, only believing me when I showed no unusual behavior. If he wants to use me, he naturally must let me return; otherwise, how can his cunning scheme be carried out?"