General and I Episode 12 Recap, Plot

> General and I
> General and I Recap

Chu Beijie established his camp fifty li southeast of Kanbu City, remaining inactive for two days, leaving even Bai Pingting unsure of his intentions. Scouts reported that while the Jin army maintained a normal daily routine, a small contingent of infantry entered Bailimao Woods every morning and returned late at night. Recognizing Chu Beijie's purposeful nature, Bai Pingting immediately dispatched Ze Yin with a team of soldiers to investigate the woods.

Concurrently, she immersed herself in ancient texts concerning Kanbu and Bailimao Woods, working through the night. She eventually discovered the reason for Chu Beijie's actions: Bailimao Woods was abundant in Three-Flower trees, whose poisonous sap could incite bees into a frenzy. However, the same sap, when brewed into a medicinal drink, served as an antidote.

Chu Beijie's strategy was to launch arrows coated with the tree sap into Kanbu, then unleash a massive swarm of poisonous bees, which would decimate over half of the city's defenders. Once the bees dispersed, the Jin army, having pre-emptively consumed the Three-Flower tree antidote, would advance, easily breaching Liang's final defenses.

The information gathered by Ze Yin's scouting party confirmed Bai Pingting's deductions; they found Jin soldiers cooking tree branches for medicine, maintaining the woods' outer appearance to avoid detection. Bai Pingting realized that the antidote would likely be finished already. To counter Chu Beijie's ingenious plan, Bai Pingting instructed a general to swiftly procure a playable zither in Kanbu. Soon, Chu Beijie's prepared army arrived outside Kanbu City.

Bai Pingting calmly took her place on the city wall and began playing the zither, executing the Empty City Stratagem. Chu Beijie, upon seeing her, immediately ordered his army to retreat fifteen kilometers and establish camp. He was enraged, questioning if Ze Yin desired death for allowing Bai Pingting, a woman, to face his formidable army alone. He believed that after this battle, the entire world would know his fatal weakness: he would never allow Bai Pingting to be sacrificed.

Bai Pingting, however, retorted that her presence was her own decision as the battle's chief commander, not Ze Yin's. She asserted that her plan was successful as long as his army retreated. She further explained that if Chu Beijie had used the poisonous bees to kill her, it would ignite the Liang army's and citizens' fervent patriotism, leading to a desperate resistance that even his powerful army could not withstand.

Chu Beijie acknowledged her move as "terrible" for forcing his retreat and exposing his deepest vulnerability. Bai Pingting then recalled the assassin who once claimed "Prince Zhenbei ordered me to send you to heaven," making her question Chu Beijie's sincerity about not sacrificing her. Chu Beijie asked why she was aiding Liang, and she countered by implying that Liang was not responsible for the attack on Jin traders.

Accepting that they served different leaders, Chu Beijie conceded her victory, admitting she outmaneuvered him by six hours, but vowed to capture her alive next time. Bai Pingting promised not to disappoint him. Chu Beijie informed Bai Pingting that Kanbu City was already empty, with the Liang army having relocated to Bailimao Woods. He offered her a ride, noting her "empty city act" was complete, but she declined, preferring to walk.

He reminded her they would be true enemies in six hours. Chu Beijie escorted her part of the way, and she admitted he was the most formidable enemy she had ever encountered, confessing she could not discern his thoughts. He responded that his heart had always been open to her, depending only on her willingness to see it. Bai Pingting acknowledged their roles as commanders of warring states and stated that all her words to him were true.

Later, a subordinate expressed relief to Chu Beijie that he had not attacked, stating that Bai Pingting’s plan left no room for maneuver, and attacking would have damaged his upright reputation. Chu Beijie reiterated that he would never have attacked, as losing Bai Pingting would be his greatest loss, and Kanbu City paled in comparison to even a single strand of her hair.

He confirmed they would still fight, but instead of assaulting the city, he ordered his soldiers to prepare provisions for an advance into Bailimao Woods. Meanwhile, Princess Yaotian and General He Xia were journeying back to Bailan. Yaotian confessed her anxiety about returning to Yun'an, fearing palace matters were far more complicated after her brother's recent death. Prime Minister Gui, who had previously faced her brother's harshness, was eager to use her return to consolidate his own power.

Yaotian worried about her brother's remaining supporters and the challenges of palace life despite her lack of ambition for power. He Xia advised her that Bailan, long militarily weak, could not afford internal unrest or external aggression. He urged her to focus on "safeguarding" – protecting her land, her people, and herself. Yaotian agreed. Back at their camp, General Gui, realizing Yaotian and He Xia were missing, frantically searched for them, closing all state gates.

However, Yaotian reappeared, feigning an early morning stroll, and casually dismissed General Gui's panic, assuring him she had General He’s protection. General Gui, suspicious of He Xia, secretly ordered his subordinate to eliminate him before they reached Yun'an City, though he was warned of He Xia’s martial prowess. Elsewhere, Consort Zhang conspired with her father, Prime Minister Gui. He gloated about the new golden pill slowly incapacitating the king, undetected by imperial physicians.

Consort Zhang suggested making a move while Chu Beijie was away fighting Liang. Her father cautioned patience, explaining that even if they succeeded, Chu Beijie's return would pose a threat. He revealed that Chu Beijie was their true obstacle. Consort Zhang wondered if he meant to kill Chu Beijie. Her father suggested attempting to persuade Chu Beijie to join them, but if that failed, he would have to be eliminated, though he acknowledged the difficulty.

Consort Zhang recalled Chu Beijie's past insults when she tried to win him over. Prime Minister Gui, apologizing for her suffering, assured her he would handle Chu Beijie. He then presented a letter from the King of Liang, revealing a brilliant plan to dispose of Chu Beijie while he was engaged in the war. He promised Consort Zhang that her hands would remain clean, urging her to build connections for future influence.

Consort Zhang burned the letter, declaring Chu Beijie had forced her hand. Back in Bailimao Woods, Chu Beijie, now leading his troops, consulted with his subordinate Eran on how a Liang general might counter them. Eran suggested poisoning water sources and setting ambushes. Chu Beijie, however, anticipated Bai Pingting's move. He knew Dianqingfeng Mountain was the highest point and the source of all mountain streams, meaning the Liang commander would likely camp there.

He immediately forbade his soldiers from drinking any mountain stream water. He then ordered Moran to divide their forces into six groups, setting up false camps near the six streams to lure Liang spies, ready to launch a head-on attack when Liang forces emerged. Bai Pingting, learning of Chu Beijie's entry into the woods, instructed General Ruo Han to poison the six streams at the mountain's mid-level to cut off Jin's water supply.

To further confuse the Jin army and buy time, she also dispatched small squads to harass them along the streams. She reasoned that these tactics would demoralize the water-deprived Jin soldiers, making them vulnerable to a night attack. However, she expressed unease, stating that while the strategy would work on others, it might not on Chu Beijie "because he is Chu Beijie." She knew Chu Beijie was meticulous and would have thoroughly investigated the woods after his previous loss.

Soon, General Ruo Han reported to Bai Pingting about repeatedly ambushing Jin camps, only to find them empty with fresh cooking traces, making it seem as if the Jin army could teleport. Bai Pingting deduced that Jin was employing a feint, a trick to distract them and cover their true objective, as Chu Beijie would not pursue a delaying tactic without a water source unless he had a bigger plan.

She realized that the ultimate water source was the mountain top, and if she were Chu Beijie, she would head straight there. She then recalled the Yunya Ropeway, a narrow, dangerous, and long-abandoned shortcut directly to the mountain top, previously used only by animals. She knew that while the mountaintop provided an advantage, its key weakness was that it could not accommodate a large number of troops, making it vulnerable to a decisive strike.

Fearing Chu Beijie would exploit the ropeway to launch such an attack, she ordered Chief General Ze Yin to take 10,000 elite soldiers to encircle the Jin forces at the mountain waist, confining them to the Thunder Protection Peak area. She also sent General Ruo Han to sever the Yunya Ropeway. Unexpectedly, Chu Beijie had already single-handedly reached the mountain top and was challenging them at their camp.

As Bai Pingting watched her guards fall to Chu Beijie, she mounted her horse and galloped away. Chu Beijie, seeing her heading towards a precipice, threw a rope, ensnaring her horse and rescuing her just in time. Bai Pingting, remembering the assassin who claimed to be sent by Prince Zhenbei, confronted him about his apparent hypocrisy. Chu Beijie vehemently denied ever sending anyone to kill her, offering his own life as proof. Bai Pingting chose to believe him, and Chu Beijie then asked her to leave with him.

Episode 11 Recap

Episode 13 Recap