Our old adversary, Tian Heng...
will soon be here in person.
That's great! We can boil him alive!
-Yeah. Boil him alive! -That's too mild a punishment.
People like him should be ripped into pieces!
Right. Tear him into a million pieces!
What do you think, Ziqi?
Since he's coming, I think we should identify his purpose
before we come to a decision.
I think he’s been driven into desperation.
Otherwise he wouldn’t approach his enemy for help.
General...
Tian Heng led the Qi troops and fought with us for many years.
We’re familiar with him but we’ve never actually met him.
He’s tough. We shouldn’t underestimate him.
Where’s Xiang Yu?
How dare you call my general by his given name!
Tian Heng, you shameless trickster!
I haven’t settled scores with you over the damage to our supply route.
Now you've come looking for death!
If I were afraid, I wouldn’t be here.
Since I’m already here, nothing else matters to me.
-You! -How dare you!
Stop!
General.
So you’re Tian Heng?
And you’re Xiang Yu?
Tian Heng!
You’re now a dog without its master. How can you come to us for help?
You are truly shameless.
If you weren’t a dog yourself, you’d not have given me such a warm welcome.
Do you think you can come and go as you please?
That doesn’t concern me.
If you want to behead me...
I suggest you do it quickly. Enough talk!
How dare you!
Take a look at my men.
Each and everyone of them here once fought with your Qi warriors.
Each of them...
have nothing but great hatred for your warriors.
I bear the same hatred towards all of you.
But for the safety of my state...
I’d rather put my hatred aside.
My king has sent me...
for a discussion on forming an alliance to attack Liu Ji.
Are you asking me for help?
If my state is conquered...
your state will also be endangered.
So in a way, we're helping your state.
Helping me?
I fought off Han warriors countless times.
But you've never beaten them.
In a war, changes take place in the blink of an eye.
If you ignore the real world, and continue to live in your dream,
you’ll become a laughingstock.
Tian Heng,
why do you think I’ll ally with you?
The die is cast.
It’s either you or Liu Ji, who will rule all the vassal states.
As for me, I…
prefer you winning.
My Lord.
My Lord, Han Xin conquered Qi. You should be happy.
But it seems that you're not happy at all.
What is there to be happy about?
Li Yiji was killed because I failed him.
You're grieving over his death?
But we got the Qi state. His death wasn’t in vain.
But Qi has got nothing to do with me.
Han Xin conquered Qi for himself
and for his own territorial expansion.
You think he did all that for me?
I…
He won the war but what did I win?
Only a bad name.
What do you mean, My Lord?
Will the people of Qi trust me anymore?
Qi lost the war...
and I lost. I lost their trust.
The only winner is...
Han Xin.
We can’t ally with them.
They killed too many of our warriors!
I think we should kill Tian Heng.
Yes. We should kill him.
-We can’t ally with Qi. -Kill Tian Heng, so he’ll never bother us.
What use is Qi for us? Such a small state, we needn’t ally with them.
-We shouldn’t ally with them. -Otherwise,
our warriors would have died in vain!
-We shouldn’t join hands, should we? -We shouldn’t ally with them.
In my opinion, we should kill Tian Heng. Yes or no?
General.
We should boil Tian Heng alive.
-General. -Stop. Be quiet.
We heard Tian Heng come for help.
His warriors once created a lot of trouble for us.
They lost the war. Like homeless rats, they're scavenging for food in Pengcheng.
General, you should’ve driven him out but you treated him like a guest.
Long Ju.
-Why? -Why?
If we talk about hatred...
I hate Qi more than anyone.
The Tian family are not just rats. They are cunning insects...
that harass us all the time.
Neither can we eliminate them nor can we catch them all.
They are irritating!
General, it’s easy.
Now that we have a chance, we should kill Tian Heng.
Then we can concentrate on attacking Liu Ji.
General, only thousands of warriors are left in the Tian family army.
And they've retreated to the North of Linzi.
What use are they for us?
-Right. Right. -Right.
Though Liu Ji won Qi,
he didn’t gain the trust of the Qi people.
In this aspect, the Tian brothers are still of use to us.
Tian Heng is right.
Now Han is much stronger. It's no longer the old Han we know.
Qi is merely a foot fungus...
while Han is the bone that's choking us to death.
Mr. Fan used to remind me about that frequently...
but I was too dog-headed and wouldn’t listen.
But I think it’s not too late.
-Long Ju. -Here.
Lead 100,000 crack warriors to attack Linzi.
We must drive Han Xin out of Qi.
General, Han Xin has lots of provisions.
I’m afraid we can’t easily defeat him.
The Tian Family wanna take revenge on Han Xin, right?
We can give them a chance.
They can lead their warriors towards Boyang
to create a pincer-like blockade around Han Xin’s supply route.
Han Xin has a fortified rear line.
This will not be easy for Tian Guang.
We will set off tomorrow morning.
So early?
Speed is critical.
The situation is as clear as day.
It’s either Liu Ji or me. Whoever controls Qi
will be the ultimate winner.
Right, got it. Yes.
My aim is to let the Tian family harass Liu Ji’s men.
I see.
What happened to Long Ju?
Doesn’t he know the time?
I’m here.
General.
Why are you late?
Military orders cannot be disobeyed. Don’t you know that?
Look, general.
You’re setting off now. Why are you carrying such an inauspicious thing?
I prepared this coffin for Han Xin’s final rest!
I swear I’ll put Han Xin in this coffin, and deliver him to you.
If I can’t do it...
I’d rather be put into it myself.
I’d be buried wherever I die!
All right.
Not bad.
Then I’ll wait at Mt. Guangwu for your news on Han Xin’s death.
Set out!
Yes, sir! All warriors, set out!
It’s interesting that Tian Guang allied with Xiang Yu.
They regarded each other as enemies in the past.
My Lord, this is good news for us.
Why?
They were once enemies, forced to ally.
What does that show?
That shows that they fear us.
That shows that we are much stronger now.
Han Xin asked for reinforcements several times.
What’s his purpose? Why does he want my warriors?
Right. What’s his purpose?
It’s not that he doesn’t have enough men.
He already has 50,000 warriors!
He once defeated Zhang Han easily.
And when we were defeated in Pengcheng,
he turned the situation in our favor.
I think Long Ju is not his match at all.
So why does he want more men?
My Lord, I don't think Han Xin fears Long Ju,
he’s giving us a hint.
A hint? What is it?
He's hinting to us that Qi is very important
and he himself even more so, don't you think so?
Then I’ll send Cao Can.
With warriors?
No. Just Cao Can.
I have a plan.
Now Qi has allied with Chu.
Tian Guang is attacking our supply route.
We must stop them from converging to attack us.
You’re absolutely right.
Our warriors are exhausted. We don’t have enough warriors or provisions.
Even if their warriors don’t surround us,
and only attack us on a single front...
we still might not win the battle.
Any news from our lord?
Not yet.
He will not disregard our safety, right?
I don't think he will do that.
He only wants to give you a warning.
He means to admonish you a little.
Reporting.
General, our lord sent messengers.
Invite them in now.
Yes.
-General. -General.
Thank you for traveling all the way here.
General, here's a letter from our lord.
Just 5,000 relief warriors?
He sent you 5,000, but we were attacked on route.
We struggled to fight our way out.
Now we only have 3,000 left.
And we lost most of our provisions.
Along such a dangerous route, why didn’t you take extra precautions?
Our lord has his own reasons.
We’ve done what we could.
Insufficient provisions, inadequate forces.
How can we match up to Xiang Yu’s main force?
If we lose this battle, Qi will belong to Xiang Yu.
Then our lord will have my head.
-General. -Yes.
Liu Ji planned to send these provisions to Han Xin.
We intercepted most of them.
They’ve lost their provisions. They won’t last long.
Long Ju, Han Xin is a cunning man.
Now the situation is in our favor.
We should hurry to attack him.
Otherwise he’ll have time to think of a plan.
Look at this terrain. Once we launch our invasion,
even if Han Xin were a genius,
will he be able to snatch a victory from the jaws of defeat?
I don’t believe he can!
General, what if all these are just bait Liu Ji is using to lure you in?
Impossible. At such a time, provisions are more important than weapons.
Liu Ji can’t be such a fool.
Of course he’s not a fool. He's quite clever indeed.
He once stayed in Xiang Yu’s camp.
He’s very familiar with Xiang Yu’s division strategy.
You mean. There's sand mixed in the provisions?
Right. So long as Han Xin is in Qi,
Liu Ji will worry that he’ll become stronger.
So what Liu Ji wants is a chance.
Most of Han Xin’s men are newly-recruited. They are no match for our forces.
So Han Xin has to ask Liu Ji for help.
And Liu Ji will take the opportunity
to send all his sworn brothers to Han Xin’s camp.
If you don’t believe me, just wait and see!
Really?
But why didn’t I see warriors sent by Liu Ji?
Reporting. General.
What did you find?
We found Liu Ji’s warriors in the valley.
They are coming to attack our camp.
What kind of men are they?
They are highly organized and have murderous looks.
It seems as though they are experienced warriors.
There you go, am I right?
They are cavalry led by Guan Ying.
They want to attack us before joining Han Xin.
Our lord ordered you to attack them secretly?
No. It was my idea. I wanted to spring a sneak attack on them.
But it didn't occur to you that they might ambush you?
No, Sir.
How many of our warriors were killed?
Guan Ying...
is this your way of helping me?
General, I attacked them without your consent.
But I tried my best.
Your best?
The battle has yet to begin, and you've hurt our military morale.
That’s intolerable, yet you call that your best?
You scoundrel! I should kill you!
Guards!
Yes, sir.
Take him and give him 100 strokes on the military stick.
Yes, sir.
Guan Ying, are you all right?
Why are you here?
To mock at me?
Get out. Get out of here.
Hmm.
You misunderstood me.
General has his reasons for doing this. Don’t blame him.
What damn reason!
I tried to attack our enemy.
I don’t expect a word of thanks from him, but punishment?
That’s just the battlefield for you.
Oh, Han Xin, like he’ll always win and never lose? Eternally victorious?
Other people can talk like that.
But you should watch it.
Why can’t I say this?
He beat me in the presence of our warriors.
I didn’t say anything then.
But he cursed my mother.
How could he?
No.
I can’t tolerate this insult.
I must go. I must kill him with my sword.
-Guan Ying, don’t be silly. -Then I’ll kill myself.
Calm down.
-Don’t stop me. -Guan Ying, Guan Ying.
Get out of my way.
Fine, go! You can go!
To be frank, our general-in-chief was being merciful.
-Merciful? -Of course!
Don’t you know that he could have killed you?
Our lord sent you to help him.
But what have you done?
You attacked our enemy without any authorization.
You didn’t show any respect for him.
You've violated the military law! That’s the death penalty!
If he didn’t punish you, how can he make the others obey him?
All right. Bear with this.
At this moment, he's also trying to bear with everything.
He’s warning us...
beating Long Ju is no mean feat.
Tian Heng’s lookouts are everywhere along the Wei River.
To attack Long Ju is asking for death.
He’s just waiting us to fight him there.
-Then will we fight him? -Of course, we will.
Long Ju has waiting to fight us head-on along the Wei River.
Then we can fight him head-on.
Can our provisions sustain us till the day after tomorrow?
Yes.
Cao Can, listen up, I’ll give you a day
to prepare 5,000 sandbags. At dawn, day after tomorrow, we’ll attack.
Yes, sir.
Are you kidding?
How can we use sandbags to hold off the Chu troops?
I’m not kidding.
How’s Guan Ying?
Lying on his stomach.
He cursed me, didn’t he?
Tell him that I can give him another chance.
He can set off together with you tomorrow night.
Yes.
Why are we setting up camp by the river?
I’m waiting for his attack.
Our messenger reported they found some 5,000 Han warriors heading upstream.
I knew this already. So what?
Han Xin is very skillful in troop formations!
He knows how to corner soldiers along a river.
General, we should be very cautious.
Nothing to worry about.
In my opinion, Han Xin knows nothing about formation.
Why do you say so?
Isn’t it obvious?
If he could deploy troops with great skill,
why would he send warriors to attack our camp secretly?
That’s just asking for death.
I heard that...
after that general returned, he got a sound beating.
I also heard that Han Xin was furious
and pranced in his tent for a long while.
He was so angry he spouted curses like water!
I think Han Xin is not to be trifled with.
General, it can't hurt to err on the side of caution.
I think he's making Qi people like you, quiver in your boots.
General, I'll lead 200 men to find out what they are doing.
No.
I’m your general.
You should follow my order.
General.
Violators will be beheaded.
General!
I don’t understand.
If we block off the upstream,
the river will see a drop in its water level downstream.
Long Ju is an experienced general.
He’ll recognize it.
You did not participate in the battle of Yongqiu,
so you don’t understand the strategy.
We used the same strategy of flooding in that battle to defeat Zhang Han.
We block the flow,
but not completely,
in case they suspect something.
Now it’s late autumn...
the water level drops almost daily anyway...
common soldiers will not see the decline in the water level.
Only a veteran will understand what it means.
It’s lucky that Long Ju doesn’t realize it.
He still hasn’t sent any scouts up here.
Reporting!
General, one kilometer away here, we found some suspicious activity.
Hurry! Find out who they are.
Yes.
Let’s go have a look.
Tian Heng?
Move! Faster.
General, we caught Tian Heng.
Just kill me. Cut the crap!
When we catch Long Ju, we'll send both of them to our lord.
Put him in a cell.
Yes. Take him away.
When did Tian Heng escape?
I think he cut the rope and fled in the middle of the night.
-How long since our warriors set off? -About two hours.
-Prepare a horse. -Yes.
-Cao Can. -Yes.
Once you see my signal, break the sandbags and water will surge downstream.
I see. As per your orders,
I’ve arranged a large group of archers.
Once the Chu warriors attack us,
we’ll shoot arrows into their ranks.
General! General! General!
General!
General! Tian Heng escaped.
He meant to send a message to Long Ju.
If Long Ju learns about our plan, we might as well call it off.
Such carelessness almost brought us a disaster.
Behead those that guarded Tian Heng.
General, we should change our strategy.
General, it’s not too late.
Yes.
I know how an arrogant general thinks at such a moment.
We’ll not change the plan.
-Yes. -Got it.
General, Han warriors are ready to cross the river.
Are our archers ready?
All ready. We’re just waiting for them to arrive.
Good.
I anticipated that Han Xin won’t fight us head-on.
My orders, if Han warriors retreat, we'll give chase and charge across the river.
If anyone can behead Han Xin, General Xiang Yu will reward him.
Yes.
No! No!
General! Don't fall for their trick!
Han Xin blocked the upstream with sandbags.
If he retreats, he'll lure us across the river,
and he’ll drown us.
How did you know that?
You violated my order and left the camp. You should be beheaded.
General, you can behead me.
But you should hurry and call back our warriors.
Otherwise, I won't be the only one who will be beheaded.
It's the late autumn now. I've many years of military experience.
If there are changes in the river, I can easily detect it.
Tian Heng, you are too sensitive.
Reporting.
General, we’ve encircled Han Xin along the bank.
Are you sure?
Definitely. He’s in a red robe and white coat. I’m sure he’s Han Xin.
My orders, march onward and capture Han Xin alive.
Yes.
General, don’t forget
that in Yongqiu, Zhang Han was once defeated by Han Xin in the same way.
Tian Heng, you are trying to undermine our morale.
I don’t blame you.
Because the world thinks that Zhang Han and Han Xin
are as great as gods.
But I think that’s because they never met me.
Tian Heng...
if I catch Han Xin alive,
I’ll share the credit with you.
Guys, this is all my fault.
I should have listened to Tian Heng.
In my entire life...
I won with loyalty. I lost with arrogance.
Guys,
I was too reckless.
I'm sorry that so many men died because of me.
In my next life,
I’ll try my best to repay my debt to you.
Charge! Charge! Charge!
Sir. Long Ju-- He…
Idiot. He’s really an idiot.
Hurry and retreat! General! Let’s retreat before it’s too late!
Han Xin. Han Xin.
Is it that Heaven is on your side?
Retreat!
Release the arrows.
General, Long Ju is dead.
Clean his body. Send it to his hometown.
Yes, sir.
General.
Yes?
Though we killed Long Ju, but Tian Heng fled. The Tian family is still alive.
In Qi, they’re a very cunning and capricious family.
We need to make Qi a safe place.
General, will you take charge of this or not?
Yes. I will make Qi a safe place.
But are you entitled to do so?
General, what gives you the right to do so?
Because I am the general.
A general does not have such powers.
I think you should send a request to our lord
to make you king of Qi.
What did you say?
General, it’s not a matter of right or wrong.
It’s a matter of can and can’t, whether you want to do this or not.
When we attacked Qi and Li Yiji was killed,
our lord didn’t criticize me, but I doubt he was happy about it.
Now he’s confronting Chu warriors in Mt. Guangwu.
If I ask him to make me king at such a time,
he’ll surely hate me, no?
General, do you want to be the king of Qi?
If you want to, and you can, why not do it?
In Qi, people are tough,
the Tian family constantly stir up trouble,
Xiang Yu drools over conquering Qi, thieves are rampant.
Without a king, a rebellion could happen any moment.
What’s more, Liu Ji once wrote to you saying
as long as you can kill Long Ju, he will grant you any request.
Now you're just asking for a title, with the intention of consolidating Han.
You are still Liu Ji’s victorious general,
and also his subject.
In this case, Liu Ji loses nothing.
So why would he hate you?
Subtitle translation by Min Wei Wong