I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 215 Chopping Wood
Duke Wei arrived half a day earlier than Gu Ci had anticipated.

Tang Zhao bowed respectfully, "Father, it's been a long time. Your daughter greets you."

Tang Zheng dismounted, "What are you doing here? This is utterly ridiculous!"

He looked at Gu Ci beside him and said accusingly, "The Turkic cavalry are right outside Shanhaiguan. This place is extremely dangerous. Why did you send a woman here?"

"Guards, escort the young lady away immediately!"

Tang Zhao maintained her smile, "If my daughter leaves, I'm afraid my father and the soldiers will go hungry."

Tang Zheng frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"My daughter, acting on my father's orders, transported military supplies such as provisions to the Northeast and is responsible for the distribution of these supplies," Tang Zhao explained. "If my daughter leaves, how will these military supplies be distributed?"

Tang Zheng frowned. "Just hand it over to the logistics personnel."

Tang Zhao chuckled, "On what grounds?"

Tang Zheng was taken aback. "What did you say?"

Gu Ci stepped forward and said, “Duke of Wei, the grain, herbs, weapons and even military doctors are all squeezed out of my Northwest military supplies. Before my father left, he repeatedly instructed that every piece of military supplies must be used wisely.”

"The Turks are coming with great force this time. We are fighting them on the front lines, and we must also ensure stability in the rear. Therefore, my father specially sent Zhaoshan here to discuss the distribution of military supplies with the logistics department of the Northeast Army."

Tang Zheng wasn't stupid. The Northeast Army's military supplies had long been exhausted, and everything they were using now was provided by the Northwest Army. How could they dare to interfere? They were probably following Tang Zhao's orders completely.

"In that case, you should be careful," Tang Zheng asked. "Should Father send some people to protect you?"

"Father need not worry," Tang Zhao declined, "My husband has already sent men to protect you."

Tang Zheng nodded. "If you have been wronged, please tell your father."

Tang Zhao obediently agreed.

The group talked as they strode toward the royal tent.

Inside the royal tent, after more than two months of recuperation, Prince An's injuries had largely healed. Now that reinforcements had been sent from the Northwest and Luoyang, Prince An's confidence had greatly increased, and he began to discuss the matter of repelling the enemy and recapturing the city.

"Your Highness, you must not!" Tang Zheng advised. "It is the coldest time of year in the Northeast. The horses' hooves are slippery and difficult to travel on the icy and snowy ground. The Southwest Army is not adapted to this climate, and many soldiers have already suffered frostbite along the way. Starting a war rashly would be disadvantageous to our army."

Prince An was displeased. "So, are we just going to stay here, eat and drink every day, and wait until next spring to fight again?"

"Nephew, what do you say?"

“The Duke of Wei is right. The Turks have now increased their troops to 30,000, while the combined forces of the Northwest and Northeast armies number only 50,000, of which only 10,000 are cavalry.”

“The Turkic cavalry are fierce. Our three soldiers from Dayu were only able to fight one Turkic soldier to a draw. Judging from this, our army is definitely short-handed.”

"So you're just going to stay holed up in the city? What are you even doing here?" Prince An scrambled around in a fit of rage.

Tang Zhao curled his lip, "If we don't come, how will the Prince defend the city with his 20,000 remaining soldiers?"

Prince An glared at her, "You brat! Why are you interrupting when the men are talking? I only let you sit here because of my second brother and Yuan Ye. Don't you dare be so presumptuous!"

Tang Zhao reached out and pulled Gu Ci back before she could retort, then turned to Tang Zheng with a wronged expression and cried, "Father! Someone insulted your daughter! You said that if your daughter was wronged, you would stand up for her!"

Tang Zhao cried uncontrollably, "You're not afraid of Prince An's power and dare not stand up for your daughter, are you?"

Tang Zheng: . . . .

Prince An: ...

No, what did he say? Why is he crying like this?
He said this girl was thick-skinned and ruthless, but Second Brother lied to him!
"Your Highness, although my daughter's words may be disrespectful, they are the truth. Our main purpose in coming to the Northeast is to guard Shanhaiguan and prevent the Turkic cavalry from advancing south. As for capturing the city, we need to wait for the right opportunity."

"Your Highness, you assume I'm talking nonsense simply because I'm a woman. This is prejudice. I've been raised by my father-in-law since childhood. How could I dare to speak or act recklessly?" Damn it, that dog of a man, how dare he put her on the spot!

Tonight, each soldier in the Southwest Army will only receive one potato!
"Alright, alright! I misspoke!" Prince An sat in his chair and shooed them away. "My old ailment has flared up again, so I won't entertain you any longer."

Tang Zhao snorted coldly and summoned General Chen for a whispered conversation.

General Chen looked troubled and winked at Gu Ci.

Gu Ci turned his head away to avoid eye contact.

General Chen reluctantly accepted the order. That evening, the Southwest Army and the Northeast Army looked at the potatoes and bean curd cakes in the hands of the Northwest Army soldiers, which were much larger than their own, as well as a large bowl of tofu soup, and fell into deep thought.

Inside the royal tent, after listening to his subordinates' report, Prince An looked at the tofu soup on his table with only a single vegetable leaf floating on it and laughed in exasperation.

That brat really holds a grudge!
"Your Highness, we are now dependent on Princess Zhaoshan for our food. You must not provoke her," the strategist sighed. "If Princess Zhaoshan were to turn her back on us, we would go hungry!"

Prince An picked up his bowl and drank the soup, swallowing his anger as he said, "I understand."

After arranging the night patrol, Gu Ci saw Tang Zhao sitting on a large rock, looking up at the sky. He walked over and asked, "Director of the Imperial Observatory, have you predicted the weather for the next few days?"

Tang Zhao pretended to count on his fingers, saying, "Tomorrow will be sunny, the day after tomorrow will be sunny, and it will rain from the day after that until the day after that."

Gu Ci chuckled, "Rain? How could it rain on such a cold day?"

"Freezing rain, or rather, sleet, and it's falling quite heavily," Tang Zhao said, turning around. "Haven't you seen this before?"

"You," Gu Ci hesitated for a moment before asking, "Are you...?"

"What is it?"

Gu Ci stepped onto the stone and whispered in Tang Zhao's ear, "Is it possible to predict natural disasters?"

"So what if I am?" Tang Zhao turned around. "Are you going to lift me up and burn me?"

"How could that be? If anyone dares to hurt you, I'll be the first to kill them," Gu Ci said, grabbing Tang Zhao's wrist. "I just want to ask you this."

"what?"

"You," Gu Ci hesitated, "are you really a goddess descended from heaven?"

"Hahahaha," Tang Zhao laughed so hard he bent over.

Gu Ci was somewhat embarrassed and annoyed by the laughter.

"It's one thing for the common people to talk, but why did you have to join in the fun?" Tang Zhao wiped away the tears of laughter. "If I were really a goddess, would I have been trapped on this estate for seventeen years?"

If she had magic, she would kill the Duke of Wei first.

“I didn’t believe in ghosts and gods before,” Gu Ci said, turning his head to avoid Tang Zhao’s teasing gaze, “but after meeting you, I had no choice but to believe.”

She can make soybean oil, compost new fertilizer, produce alcohol, refine steel, farm, and even provide early warnings and responses to various natural disasters. Any one of these skills is beyond the capabilities of ordinary women.

Tang Zhao patted Gu Ci's hair sympathetically, "Silly child, stay away from those superstitious people in the future."

Look what they've done to their Great Yu War God!

Gu Ci blushed slightly. "I...I'm going to discuss with the strategist about going up the mountain to chop firewood tomorrow. You...you should go back and rest early."

"Okay," Tang Zhao watched Gu Ci leave before jumping off the rock and returning to his room to rest.

The next day, everyone went up the mountain to collect firewood and cut down trees.

Tang Zhao watched as the trees fell one by one, exclaiming how terrible it was.