At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

"What are you doing? Get up right now!"

Seeing what Zhao Dazui and the others were doing, Su Mu quickly stepped forward, grabbed Zhao Dazui's arm with his thin hand, and pulled him up with all his might.

Zhao Dazui, however, did not get up.

He raised his head, looked at Su Mu, and his eyes were sincere:

"Sir, you are the pride of our cookhouse!"

Behind him, about two hundred cooks echoed in unison, their voices loud and clear.

"Yes! Proud!"

"We want to become your disciples!"

"I want to learn horsemanship and swordsmanship from you!"

"Learn skills, go into battle, fight the enemy, and achieve great deeds!"

For a moment, everyone was talking at once, saying all sorts of things.

Some wanted to learn horsemanship, some wanted to learn swordsmanship, some wanted to follow Su Mu to the battlefield, and some even said they wanted to recognize Su Mu as their godfather.

Su Mu stood at the front of the crowd, his body hunched over, his full head of white hair fluttering slightly in the evening breeze.

His eyes swept over the faces.

"You..." He shook his head, his voice tinged with helplessness, "I'm just a woodcutter and water carrier, what's there to learn?"

"Sir, you're too modest!"

From the crowd, a young man raised his head and shouted, "If you're only fit to chop wood and carry water, then we're not even fit to do that!"

"Yes! You are a god descended from heaven! It will be enough for us to learn just a little from you!"

"Sir, please take us in!"

Zhao Dazui knelt at the very front, his back ramrod straight, his voice resounding:

"Sir, if you don't agree, we'll kneel here forever!"

Behind him, two hundred people echoed in unison: "Yes, kneel forever!"

The shouts rose higher and higher, echoing over the fire station.

Su Mu fell silent.

He stood there, hunched over, with his hands behind his back.

The painful scenes from five years ago flashed through his mind again.

The son and daughter-in-law fell to the swords of the Northern Di people, their bodies covered in blood.

His seven-year-old granddaughter, Qingxue, knelt on the ground, crying her heart out, and he couldn't pull her up no matter what he did.

At the village entrance, the Northern Di general rode a tall horse, his sword stained with the blood of the people of Daqian.

Su Mu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, his gaze hardened, and his expression became serious.

"You really want to learn swordsmanship?"

"Yes!" the two hundred people answered in unison.

"In my entire life, I have witnessed far too much burning, killing, and looting by the Northern Di people."

Su Mu's voice was calm, but it contained a deep hatred.

"They killed my son and daughter-in-law, my fellow villagers, and the people of Daqian."

"They don't treat us like human beings, so we don't have to treat them like human beings either."

He paused, his eyes scanning each face.

"If you want to learn swordsmanship, I will teach you."

"I learned swordsmanship not to show off or be fierce to my own people, but to kill more Northern barbarians, to protect the people behind me, and so that your parents, your wives and children no longer have to live in fear and trembling."

There was complete silence in front of the tent.

None of the two hundred cooks spoke; they all stared at Su Mu, who was speaking.

Su Mu took a deep breath, his tone becoming even more stern.

"But let me make this clear from the start."

"You've already worked hard enough chopping wood, carrying water, cooking, and preparing meals all day."

"At night, I will also learn swordsmanship and horsemanship, which will be ten or a hundred times more tiring than now."

"If anyone can't handle it, say so now. If they can't endure the hardship later, don't blame me for being ruthless."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment and discussed it privately.

They all knew very well that being able to learn horsemanship and swordsmanship from Su Mu was a tremendous opportunity, and they couldn't afford to miss it.

In reality, no one wants to be a cook for the rest of their life!

What soldier doesn't want to make a name for himself?

Then everyone raised their heads, their gazes firm.

"Grandpa, although we can't compare to you, a god descended from heaven, we're not cowards who can't endure hardship!"

"Yes! No matter how hard or tiring it is, we must persevere!"

"Since we've chosen this path, we'll see it through, even if we have to crawl!"

"Please teach us, sir!"

The shouts grew louder and louder.

"Very well." His voice was firm and resolute. "From today onwards, I will teach you swordsmanship and horsemanship."

"Let's start with swordsmanship."

Zhao Dazui was overjoyed, clasped his hands in a fist and kowtowed deeply: "Thank you, sir!"

Two hundred people behind him kowtowed in unison, their heads hitting the sandy ground with a dull "thump-thump" sound.

"Thank you so much, sir!"

Su Mu stood there, looking at the young men scattered on the ground, a slight smile playing on his lips.

He didn't speak, but turned around, walked to the tent, picked up the saber leaning against the wall, and slowly drew it out.

The blade gleamed coldly in the setting sun, reflecting off his full head of white hair.

"Get up, all of you." His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to everyone's ears. "Kneeling for too long will hurt your knees."

"It's still early today, and the cooks' duties haven't been finished yet. Everyone needs to work hard."

"At dusk today, everyone gather at the haystack yard, and I will personally teach you knife skills."

"Remember to bring your knives!"

Two hundred cooks stood up in unison and shouted, "We obey Elder Su's orders!"

Afterwards, everyone quickly dispersed and returned to their posts.

This time, they worked even faster.

Nobody is deliberately slacking off or procrastinating!

……

Inside the vanguard general's tent.

"Ouch... Be gentle! Be gentle!"

Xu Zhaowu's screams echoed from the tent, one after another, sending chills down one's spine.

The military doctor, covered in sweat, carefully wrapped bandages around his neck.

Xu Zhaowu's chest was covered in bruises, and five of his ribs were broken. He grimaced in pain with every breath.

On the bed next to him, Xu Zhaowen was in no better condition.

His face was as white as paper, his lips were bloodless, his eyes were closed, his brows were furrowed, and he occasionally let out a muffled groan.

Xu Shigui stood in the center of the tent, his hands behind his back, his face ashen.

"How is it?" His voice was filled with anger, like magma churning beneath the surface.

The military doctor wiped the sweat from his brow, stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and cautiously replied, "Reporting to General, the injuries of both generals have been treated, and their lives are no longer in danger."

"However... each of the generals has five broken ribs. They will need to rest for the next two months and cannot engage in strenuous activity."

"Two months?"

Xu Shigui's voice suddenly rose, and a cold glint appeared in his eyes.

"You mean, my son hasn't been able to get out of bed for two months?"

The military doctor trembled with fright and quickly bowed his head: "General, please calm down. It takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. It's already the best outcome that the two generals can recover within two months..."

Xu Shigui gritted his teeth, turned around, and looked at his two sons lying on the bed, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked.

"Damn Akhal-Teke horses!"

"You dare to seriously injure my son? Don't give this general a chance, or I'll make sure you're skinned alive!"

He paused, his eyes filled with even more intense hatred.

"And that damned old geezer!"

As he spoke, he kicked over the wooden stool next to him with a loud crash.

"Give me the chance, and I'll show you what I'm made of!"

Inside the tent, several guards shrank back in fear, not daring to breathe.

Just then, a report came from outside the tent: "Reporting to the General, General Qin requests an audience!"

Xu Shigui's face twitched, and his eyes narrowed.

"Hmph, this guy..." he sneered, "Does he want to see me, the general, make a fool of myself?"

He took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, straightened his armor, and sat back in the main seat.

"Let him in."

Qin Hao lifted the curtain and walked in. He first glanced at Xu Zhaowen and Xu Zhaowu on the bed, then clasped his hands and said, "Both generals are injured, and this humble general has come to visit them."

Xu Shigui remained silent, his face cold.

Qin Hao didn't mind and said a few polite words like "take good care of your injury" before his tone changed and his expression became serious.

"General, I have another matter to report."

"explain."

"The Northern Di attacked the supply camp last night. Although we were repelled, we suffered significant losses of food supplies. I have taken stock, and the current food reserves in the camp are only enough to feed the entire army for ten days."

Xu Shigui frowned.

"Ten days?"

"Yes."

Qin Hao's voice was incredibly deep and resonant.

"Moreover, our grain transport route has been cut off by the Northern Di people. The next batch of grain will not arrive for at least half a month. We need to find a way to fill this gap."

Xu Shigui remained silent for a moment, then waved his hand.

"I am aware of this matter. You may leave now, and I will think of a solution."

Qin Hao clasped his hands in a fist salute, turned around, and walked out of the tent.

He wanted to see how Xu Shigui would resolve this issue!