The boy did not look like a man who would change a war.
He stood at the edge of the hall, dressed plainly, ink stains still on his sleeves, hands steady but uncalloused. No armor. No scars. No sign he had ever stood on a battlefield.
Just a page.
Just a name buried at the bottom of a report.
Wu An entered without ceremony.
The guards parted. The hall emptied. Only a few remained—Liao Yun, Shen Yue, and the quiet figure waiting in the center.
Wu An did not sit.
He walked straight to the boy and held out the report.
"You wrote this?"
"Yes, my lord."
No hesitation.
No trembling.
Wu An watched him for a moment.
"Then speak."
The boy did not bow deeply this time. He only inclined his head and stepped closer to the map.
"The problem is not the ships," he said.
Liao Yun frowned slightly.
"That's a bold statement," he replied.
The boy shook his head.
"It's a simple one."
He pointed at the river.
"You're building ships to fight Chu's navy."
He paused.
"That's already a mistake."
Silence filled the room.
Wu An's gaze sharpened.
"Explain."
"Chu has spent years building their navy," the boy said calmly. "Their ships are designed for these rivers. Their commanders understand the current, the wind, the depth."
He looked up.
"You cannot surpass that in months."
Shen Yue crossed her arms.
"So what do we do? Sit and wait?"
The boy shook his head again.
"No."
He pointed at the river lines.
"You don't beat them at their strength."
"You change the conditions of the fight."
Wu An stepped closer.
"How?"
The boy moved the markers slightly.
"Break their movement."
"Force them to defend multiple points."
"Attack their supply from upstream and downstream at the same time."
"Use smaller, faster ships—not large warships."
"Turn the river into multiple battlefields instead of one."
He paused.
"And most importantly…"
He looked directly at Wu An.
"Stop building ships like a land general."
The room went still.
Wu An's expression did not change.
But the air grew colder.
"You speak boldly," Wu An said quietly.
The boy did not look away.
"I speak truth, my lord."
Wu An took a step closer.
"You're telling me I'm wrong."
"Yes."
Liao Yun shifted slightly.
Shen Yue did not move.
Wu An's voice dropped.
"I am the Chancellor of Zhou."
A step closer.
"The Lord Protector of Liang."
Another.
"And you think you can stand here and tell me how to fight a war?"
The guards stiffened.
The tension snapped tight.
Wu An leaned in slightly.
"Aren't you afraid," he said softly, "that I'll cut your head off… and your family's with it?"
For the first time, the boy paused.
Not in fear.
In thought.
Then he spoke.
Calm.
Measured.
"If this continues," he said, "we lose the war."
He looked at the map.
"At that point, my head won't matter."
He met Wu An's eyes again.
"I want to win, my lord."
Silence.
Then—
Wu An laughed.
Not loudly.
But fully.
For the first time in days.
"I see what you can see," Wu An said.
He stepped back.
"What is your name?"
The boy bowed properly this time.
"I am Lin Hai, my lord."
"From where?"
"A seaside town in the eastern region of Liang."
Wu An nodded slightly.
"And you came here to be a page?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Lin Hai answered without hesitation.
"So I could become a shipmaster one day."
Wu An studied him.
Then—
He turned to Liao Yun and Shen Yue.
"Good," he said.
Then he looked back at Lin Hai.
"You are hereby appointed Vice Admiral of the Liang Navy."
The words struck harder than any threat.
Lin Hai blinked.
Just once.
"You will answer directly to me," Wu An continued.
"And to Shen Yue."
He gestured slightly.
"She commands the navy."
Shen Yue raised an eyebrow slightly—but said nothing.
Because she understood.
Wu An was not promoting a man.
He was creating a weapon.
Lin Hai bowed deeply this time.
"Thank you, my lord."
Wu An did not wait.
He turned.
"Bring the generals."
Moments later, the war council gathered again.
This time, the map did not look like a problem.
It looked like a target.
Wu An stood before it.
"We do not cross the river," he said.
Murmurs began.
He raised a hand.
"They want us to come to them."
"They want us to drown trying."
He pointed.
"To Jin."
The room stilled.
"We take Jin first."
"Control the canals."
"Break the flow."
"Starve Chu from the outside.
Liao Yun nodded slowly.
Shen Yue's gaze sharpened.
"And at the same time," Wu An continued,
"We strike their river supply lines."
He looked at Lin Hai.
"You said smaller ships."
"Yes, my lord."
"Fast."
"Yes."
"Multiple fronts."
"Yes."
Wu An smiled faintly.
"Good."
He turned back to the generals.
"We don't fight Chu's navy."
"We make their navy useless."
The room was silent.
Because they understood now.
This was not one war.
This was two wars—
At the same time.
Wu An stepped forward.
"Prepare the armies."
"Secure the eastern routes."
"Begin movement toward Jin."
Then he looked at Lin Hai.
"Stay close," he said.
"You're not done yet."
Lin Hai nodded, still trying to understand how his life had just changed.
Wu An began to walk out.
Then stopped.
Without turning back, he said:
"It's time to invade Jin…"
A pause.
"And crush Chu at the same time."
Lin Hai stood still for a moment.
Then bowed deeply.
"Thank you, my lord."
Outside, the winds shifted.
The rivers still flowed.
Chu still stood strong.
Jin still held the canals.
Yan still watched.
But the war had changed again.
Wu An was no longer trying to break through the river.
He was about to break everything around it.
And when the river finally mattered again—
It would already be too late.