The evening sky turned crimson above the ruins of Qinghe Village. Black smoke billowed from the remains of wooden houses still smoldering, carrying the metallic scent of blood mixed with burning wood. In the middle of the now silent battlefield, a man in his late twenties stood unsteadily among scattered corpses.
His name was Chen Wei. Once a brilliant young general, feared on the battlefield. But that was a different story. In a different world. A world with tanks, fighter jets, and modern warfare strategies. Not a world of swords and arrows like this.
Three months had passed since he woke up in this foreign body. Three months since he realized that his death in a mortar explosion in his original world had somehow brought him to a completely different place. A place resembling ancient China's dynasties but with country names and territories he'd never heard of.
Chen Wei pressed the wound on his shoulder, wincing. The battle earlier had been brutal. Bandits from Heifeng Mountain attacked the village to plunder the harvest. The villagers fought back desperately but without proper military training they were just easy targets.
"Damn it..." he muttered softly while staring at the blood covered sword in his hand.
He'd killed five people today. Five bandits who tried to massacre a merchant family at the village edge. The reflexes of his original body as a general immediately kicked in. Analyzing positions, finding gaps, attacking with precision. But it still felt wrong. Killing with his own hands was far different from giving orders from behind a radar screen.
Suddenly, a blue holographic panel lit up before his eyes.
[COMMAND & CONQUER SYSTEM ACTIVATED]
Chen Wei jerked backward, nearly tripping over a corpse behind him. He rubbed his eyes thinking his vision was disturbed from blood loss. But the panel didn't disappear.
[Welcome, Commander. You have met the system activation requirements.]
[Requirement: Win first battle using superior tactics.]
"What... is this?" Chen Wei whispered while examining the panel with wide eyes.
Text appeared rapidly, forming an interface extremely familiar to him. Too familiar. This was exactly like the real time strategy game he often played during his free time. Command & Conquer. A classic game about building bases, recruiting troops, and conquering enemy territories.
[AVAILABLE FEATURES:]
- Unit Recruitment
- Structure Construction
- Technology Upgrades
- Tactical Map
- Resource Management
The panel expanded, displaying a minimap of the surrounding area. Qinghe Village was marked in pale green. Neutral territory. To the north, several red dots still blinked. Remaining bandits who had escaped. To the east, a gray line indicated the border of Wei Nation.
Chen Wei covered his mouth with his hand, holding back laughter that almost erupted. This was insane. This was impossible. But... this was also an opportunity.
"Territory status," he said quietly, trying to give a command like in the game.
[QINGHE VILLAGE]
Status: Unclaimed
Population: 127
Resources: Low
Defense: None
Note: This territory was just attacked. Resident morale is very low. Chance to claim territory: HIGH.
Chen Wei's heart pounded. He glanced around at the ruins, corpses, and several residents starting to emerge from their hiding places with pale frightened faces. Their eyes looked at Chen Wei with a mixture of fear and... hope?
Of course. He'd just saved them from slaughter. In situations like this desperate people would look for anyone who appeared strong to protect them.
Chen Wei took a deep breath. His general's brain began working, quickly formulating a plan.
"Claim territory," he whispered to the system.
[CONFIRM: Claim Qinghe Village as first territory?]
[Yes / No]
"Yes."
Blue light radiated from Chen Wei's body, spreading across the entire village in thin waves barely visible. The residents watching were startled but none ran. They were too tired, too scared, and too desperate to run.
[CONGRATULATIONS! You have claimed Qinghe Village.]
[Territory: 1]
[Population: 127]
[Starting Resources: 500 Metal, 200 Food]
[WARNING: As the new ruler, you must stabilize the territory within 48 hours or risk of rebellion increases.]
Chen Wei smiled faintly. Two days... that should be enough for the first step at least.
An old man with a long white beard approached him with hesitant steps. That was Village Chief Zhang. Old Zhang. Someone the original bdy had known before Chen Wei took over this consciousness.
"Y-young master Chen..." Old Zhang's voice trembled. "Thank you... thank you for saving us. Without you we would all have already..."
"Village Chief Zhang," Chen Wei interrupted with a firm but not harsh tone. "Gather all residents who can still stand in the village square. Now."
Old Zhang flinched but nodded obediently. "A-alright, young master."
Within ten minutes most of the village residents had gathered. Tired faces, minor wounds, and eyes empty from shock. But they came. Because there was no other choice.
Chen Wei stood on a pile of stones that used to be a house foundation. High ground. Basic principle of leadership: make yourself look bigger than others.
"People of Qinghe!" his voice rang out, piercing the silence of the descending night. "You just survived an attack that should have killed you all. The Heifeng Mountain bandits won't stop. They will return. And when they return you will die."
Panicked whispers spread through the crowd.
"UNLESS," Chen Wei raised his voice, "you choose to change. Stop being prey. Stop waiting for protection from nobles who don't care about you. Starting now this village is under my protection."
Silence. Then a young man with a wound on his cheek shouted, "Who guarantees you're not the same as those bandits? Who says we can trust you?"
Chen Wei stared directly into the young man's eyes. "I just killed five bandits to save your family. If I wanted to rob you I would've done it already. But I didn't. Because what I need isn't loot. It's soldiers."
Confused murmurs spread.
"I will train you," Chen Wei continued. "I will give you weapons. I will make this village into a fortress that can't be breached by any bandits. But in return you must obey my commands. You must work. You must fight."
Old Zhang stepped forward hesitantly. "Young master Chen... we are just farmers. Not soldiers."
"All soldiers were once farmers," Chen Wei replied coldly. "The difference is training. And I will give you the best training."
He opened the system panel again. This time only visible to him. The recruitment menu appeared with a long list.
[AVAILABLE BASIC UNITS:]
- Militia (50 Metal/unit)
- Spearman (100 Metal/unit)
- Archer (150 Metal/unit)
[Note: Recruiting units requires population that agrees to join your forces.]
Chen Wei stared at the crowd before him. "Who wants to live? Who wants to protect their families? Step forward and join me."
No one moved. Then a young man, the one who challenged him earlier, stepped forward with heavy steps. "If you can really train us... if you can really make us strong enough to fight bandits... then I'm in."
[1 Population willing to be recruited.]
One by one other young men began stepping forward. Ten people. Twenty. Thirty. They all had the same reason. Their families had almost been slaughtered and they didn't want to experience that helplessness again.
[35 Population willing to be recruited.]
[Recommendation: Form mixed units for early efficiency.]
Chen Wei nodded with satisfaction. "You've made the right decision. Starting tomorrow morning training begins. And trust me... I won't go easy on you."
That night Chen Wei sat in the simple house Old Zhang provided for him. The system panel opened before him displaying details of his new territory.
[TERRITORY OVERVIEW]
Qinghe Village
- Total Population: 127
- Forces: 0 (35 in training)
- Structures: 1 Command House (Automatic), 12 Residential Houses (Damaged), 1 Warehouse (Damaged)
- Resources: 500 Metal, 200 Food
- Daily Income: +10 Metal, +20 Food
Low income. But enough for the early stage. Chen Wei opened the construction menu.
[AVAILABLE STRUCTURES:]
- Barracks (300 Metal): Trains basic units
- Farm (150 Metal): +30 Food/day
- Mine (200 Metal): +20 Metal/day
- Wall (100 Metal/segment): Basic defense
He thought for a moment, calculating quickly. Barracks first. Without proper training facilities the troops would be ineffective. Then Farm to ensure food wouldn't run out. Mine could come later.
"Build Barracks," he commanded.
[CONFIRM: Build Barracks in Qinghe Village?]
[Cost: 300 Metal]
[Construction Time: 24 hours]
[Yes / No]
"Yes."
Blue light appeared in an empty area near the village square. Residents who saw it were startled but Chen Wei had already closed his door. Let them be amazed. Tomorrow they'd be even more amazed.
He lay down on the hard wooden bed, staring at the dark ceiling. His mind spun rapidly with short term, medium term, and long term plans. Qinghe Village was just the beginning. This territory was small, remote, and unimportant to the major nations. But that's exactly what made it perfect.
No one would notice until it was too late.
Chen Wei smiled in the darkness. "Just wait," he whispered to himself. "This world doesn't know yet what's going to hit them."