In the Xuan Cavalry army camp, Gongsun You neatly arranged his few belongings and took a stroll around the camp with his hands behind his back.
He and several dark guards were brought by His Highness. Zong Luo didn’t give any instructions and rode off on Zhao Yebai. For a while, Mu Yuanlong didn’t know how to handle it, so he let them enter the tent first, put their luggage away, and then distribute sleeping bags separately.
Probably about an hour after Zong Luo left, the rain stopped.
The rain came quickly and ended quickly. It seemed as if the pouring rain in the middle was just the anger of the Thunder God and the Goddess of Lightning. Once their mood improved, the rainy day turned sunny.
It started raining in the afternoon, and it was not long after nightfall. The army’s dinner had not been used yet.
“Go tidy up and bring out the dry firewood.”
After the rain stopped, the Xuan Cavalry soldiers came out of the tent one after another.
Mu Yuanlong skillfully directed them, cleaned up the ground full of puddles, then set up a simple food rack, hung a small stove on it, piled up firewood underneath, put on tinder, and with a rub, the flames rose.
The cavalry skillfully added cold water to the stove. When the cold water inside boiled, they calmly took out some paste-like stuff from the sack, added it to the hot water, then took out a can and poured out some pickles.
Gongsun You watched this scene with interest and suddenly asked, “What is this paste-like thing?”
The cavalry was stunned for a moment. Seeing that he was brought by His Highness, he replied, “In response to Da Fu, this is noodle soup. It’s made from wheat flour.”
(t/n: Da Fu-an official title or title below the ministers and above the scholars)
As soon as wheat was mentioned, Gongsun You’s eyes flashed with understanding.
The staple food of the Great Yuan people was rice produced by rice. Wheat was a product introduced in the Great Wilderness from the Western Regions hundreds of years ago. It grew well in the Ah Country and was the staple food of the Ah people.
(TL: “was rice (水稻-Rice grown in paddy fields) produced by rice (大米-Hulled rice seeds)
Ah Country occupied one of the most advantageous terrains in the countries of the Great Wilderness. Its grain output was extremely abundant. It had also been glorious and had been the overlord of the group like the Wei Country. More than a hundred years ago, the army even reached the foot of the Great Yuan Imperial City, accelerating the process of the Zong family’s relocation.
As the saying went, a skinny camel was still bigger than a horse. When Emperor Yuan personally led the troops to invade the Ah Country, no one was optimistic. But to everyone’s surprise, Great Yuan really took over this resource-rich granary.
“What about this?” He pointed to the unknown thing in the can and asked.
“This is pickled vegetables, something that His Highness researched.” The cavalry said, “It’s troublesome to carry salt during a march. Just add a bit of this and you can directly cook a pot of soup. This is how the Great Yuan army eats. But this thing is very salty, you can only add a little to the pot, and then boil it to eat.”
It’s actually pickled vegetables?!
Gongsun You was somewhat surprised.
In the previous dynasty, there were special pickle makers, whose purpose was to preserve vegetables in winter. But generally, ordinary pickling was the majority, and some well-off families with conditions would cellar them and would not use such a method that loses taste.
This can of pickled vegetables was different from the pickles that Gongsun You was most familiar with. It contained a lot of salt, which also solved the problem of eating salt.
Salt was a specialty of the Yue Country. In the past, Great Yuan’s merchants had to import from the Yue Country. After defeating the Yue Country, the army never lacked salt, but this method was still retained.
Gongsun You didn’t ask any more questions, but fell into thought.
Since ancient times, the problem of military food has been a major problem.
It was often said that before the troops move, army provisions go first. If the army provisions were not in place, no matter how brave the army was, it was still helpless.
Although he stayed in a hermit family when he was learning arts, it did not mean that he was isolated from the world.
Gongsun You knew that in the early years when the Great Yuan had not taken down so many countries, the Third Prince led the Xuan Cavalry, and every time he sent troops, he first attacked the city, or robbed the army provisions from the opponent’s army.
Because the cavalry had strong mobility, the Third Prince could accurately predict the hiding place of the enemy’s army provisions, and almost every time he could rob a big victory.
The enemy’s army provisions were stolen, not to mention the chaotic military morale, at least they couldn’t engage in a long and exhausting battle with the Xuan Cavalry. This gave the opportunity to the main army bringing up the rear behind, and several famous battles were created in this way.
Gongsun You had ambitions. He was good at military strategy. Although he could also be safe in the court, he wanted to get involved in this unprecedented achievement and shine.
From the first sight of Zong Luo at the opening of the Baijia Banquet, he knew that this His Highness was extraordinary. The loyalty at the hunting competition was also his gamble.
Time had proved that he bet right.
From the prince who was not valued by Emperor Yuan, to the crown prince below one person, and then to the permission to control the soldiers.
The tyrant’s love for his heir was simply overflowing, no need to speculate.
After the Zong Chengsi incident, the Imperial City was in turmoil, and the forces behind the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince were as docile as quails.
In fact, in his opinion, Emperor Yuan deliberately agreed to his crown prince to leave at this time, but there was some meaning to let his valued crown prince not get involved in the struggle of the Imperial City.
According to the news released before leaving, Emperor Yuan was determined to recreate a bloodbath in the Imperial City once again, to establish his tyrant’s name, and pave the way for the next heir.
He had no doubt that after a few months, when His Highness led the troops back to the court, the messy forces in the Imperial City would have been purged.
And His Highness was good at everything, but he was not cruel enough to eradicate the roots. In addition, His Highness was a famous general, and it was much better to shine on the battlefield than to engage in dirty political struggles in the Imperial City.
Just as Gongsun You’s brain was running at high speed and began to think about the intentions of these power holders, a familiar and hesitant voice suddenly came from the front, “Aren’t you the strategist who followed the Fourth Prince?”
Zong Ruichen, holding a pair of tongs, stood in front of him, looking puzzled.
Gongsun You said in a low voice, “Eighth Highness.”
It was indeed unexpected for Gongsun You to meet Zong Ruichen here.
But on second thought, remembering His Highness’s love and attention to the Eighth Prince on weekdays, even in the Xuan Cavalry army camp he could come and go freely, and Deputy General Mu being assigned as his martial arts instructor, it was not surprising.
Most importantly, looking at Zong Ruichen’s appearance, one would know that His Highness did not intend to let the Eighth Highness face the glint and flash of cold steel the first time he went to the battlefield. He should still do some logistical work, such as delivering documents, to feel the atmosphere of the battlefield.
Previously, Gongsun You had met Zong Ruichen a few times when he was with Zong Chengsi. The Fourth Prince introduced him as a very powerful strategist.
