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

"Reporting to General, the cooks have already set off."

Inside the tent, a messenger knelt on one knee, cupping his hands in a gesture of respect to report.

Xu Shigui, sitting in the main seat, slowly grinned upon hearing this, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

"it is good."

He waved his hand, signaling the messenger to leave.

The tent flap fell, leaving only Xu Shigui and his two sons inside the tent.

Xu Zhaowu leaned against the bed, his brows furrowed.

"Father, I have a concern."

"What if they disguise themselves and sneak into Qingfeng Town, stealthily transporting the grain away without anyone noticing? If the bandits don't even notice, our plan will be ruined!"

A sly glint flashed in Xu Shigui's eyes.

"You can rest assured about that."

He sat upright, his expression and voice full of smugness.

"I had already sent someone to Qingfeng Town to spread the word to those bandits that the Daqian Cook Battalion was about to go to Qingfeng Town to transport grain and fodder, and that the old man leading them was riding a once-in-a-century Akhal-Teke horse."

Xu Zhaowu's eyes lit up immediately.

"Brilliant! Father, that was a brilliant move!"

"That way, those bandits will definitely ambush the cooks on the way! And if we spread the news about the Akhal-Teke horses, those bandits will definitely target that old geezer and trap him in an encirclement!"

As he spoke, his eyes were filled with hatred.

"That damned Akhal-Teke horse broke five of my ribs with one kick! If I hadn't been thinking of sending it to the capital to show the Emperor, I would have torn it to pieces!"

Xu Shigui turned around, looked at his two sons, and softened his tone.

"You two take good care of your injuries and don't let them hinder your achievements. Once that old geezer is dead, the Akhal-Teke horse will be ours."

Xu Zhaowen and Xu Zhaowu exchanged a glance and nodded heavily.

Xu Shigui lifted the curtain and strode out.

He was going to Qin Hao's camp to see what that clueless general had to say.

……

Qingfeng Town, Qingfeng Village.

The night was as dark as ink, but the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness was brightly lit and bustling like it was Chinese New Year.

Dozens of shirtless, burly men sat around several square tables, which were laden with large bowls of wine and chunks of meat.

One wine jar after another was emptied, meat bones were scattered all over the ground, and oily faces were full of drunkenness.

"Drink! Brothers, bottoms up!"

"That felt great! I haven't felt this good in ages!"

"Come on, fill it up again!"

The sounds of drinking games, clinking bowls, and loud laughter mingled together...

Just then, a figure hurriedly walked in from outside, crossed the table, and went straight to the chieftain in the main seat.

"Chief, we have received important news from the brothers down the mountain!"

The chieftain, You Zhongyi, was gulping down a bowl of wine when he heard this. He put down the bowl, wiped the wine stains from his lips, raised a thick eyebrow, and asked:

"What news? Could it be that the Northern Barbarians have attacked again?"

The man shook his head and replied, "News has come from down the mountain that the Daqian's cooks are about to come to Qingfeng Town to transport grain."

"Transporting grain?"

Before You Zhongyi could speak, a burly man with a full beard next to him started shouting, his voice booming like a bell.

"Qingfeng Town was ravaged by the Northern Di people and is now dirt poor. What grain could they possibly have left to transport?"

"Could it be that those soldiers also want to follow the example of the Northern Barbarians and plunder our Qingfeng Town?"

"That's for sure! Those soldiers are all useless! Tens of thousands of them are stationed in Qinghe County, but they don't dare utter a single word. All they know is to conscript men and bully the common people!"

"They're incompetent at killing the Northern Barbarians, but they're masters at bullying their own people!"

"Brother, if you ask me, we should ambush them halfway there and wipe out all these cooks. Let them know that Qingfeng Town isn't a place they can just come and go as they please!"

"Yes! Slaughter them all! None of these soldiers are good people!"

"Kill them all! Steal their horses! Steal their grain!"

In an instant, the crowd was filled with rage, bowls and chopsticks were smashed with a loud crash, and some people even drew knives from their waists, which shone so brightly in the candlelight that they made people dizzy.

You Zhongyi frowned, raised his hand, and pressed it down.

"Quiet down."

He looked at the messenger and continued, "Have you found out where they're going to transport the grain?"

The man cupped his hands and replied, "It is said that the former magistrate secretly built a granary in Qingfeng Town, which is filled with a large amount of grain. They have come here to empty the granary."

"What?"

"A granary? In Qingfeng Town?"

"We've occupied Qingfeng Town for three years, how come we've never heard of such a granary?"

The hall erupted in chaos once again.

A tall, thin man stood up, his eyes wide like saucers: "Brother, this is a godsend! A granary that even a large army is eyeing—how much grain must be inside? Enough to feed our Qingfeng Village for at least a year and a half!"

"The people of Qingfeng Town have been starving for a long time. If we could share some with them, we would be doing a great service!"

"Kill all those soldiers and seize the granary!"

"Kill them all! Seize the food!"

"Grab food! Grab food!"

Dozens of people raised their arms and shouted, their voices rising in waves, making the candlelight flicker.

You Zhongyi, however, remained remarkably calm.

He stroked his chin, his brows furrowed, his eyes deep in thought.

He felt that something was wrong.

The Daqian army has always used elite troops to escort grain supplies, so why was a cook battalion sent this time?

The cookhouse is for cooking and lighting fires; how could it be used for fighting?

Even if Xu Shigui is stupid, he can't be this stupid, right?

"Brother, what are you still hesitating for?" The burly man with a thick beard was impatient, slamming his hand on the table, making the dishes jump. "Just give the order, and the brothers will get ready immediately! Don't let those government soldiers get there first!"

You Zhongyi ignored him and turned to look at a scholar sitting on the lower right.

The man was in his forties, dressed in a gray long gown, with a thin face, and holding a folding fan in his hand, appearing calm and composed.

This man was the strategist of Qingfeng Village, named Meng Ziyi, and was known as Mr. Meng. He was said to be a scholar who had fallen on hard times in the capital and came here.

"Strategist, what's your opinion on this matter?"

"I have a feeling that Xu Shigui is using the pretense of escorting grain supplies to suppress bandits. Could his target be our Qingfeng Village?"

Meng Ziyi shook his folding fan, a smile playing on his lips, and replied:

"The chieftain is overthinking it."

He closed his folding fan, tapped it lightly twice on the table, and said unhurriedly, "I had heard of this person when I was in the capital. He is Xu Shigui. He climbed to the position of general because his sister was a concubine."

"However, this man is short-sighted, cowardly, and afraid of death. He only thinks about how to please the emperor and get promoted and make a fortune."

"Let him suppress bandits?" Mr. Meng scoffed. "He has neither the intention nor the ability."

You Zhongyi's brows relaxed a little, but he still had some doubts.

"Then why did he send the cooks to escort the grain supplies? Wasn't that tantamount to suicide?"

Mr. Meng smiled, a smile that held a profound meaning.

"Chief, think about it. Xu Shigui's elite troops are only enough to guard against the Northern Di people. How dare he send them out to escort grain supplies?"

"If the Northern Di people take advantage of the situation and invade, he'll lose his head. If we send the cooks, even if the entire army is wiped out, he won't care."

He paused, then tapped his folding fan in his palm.

"So, Chieftain, you can rest assured, we're going to have a good meal this time."

Just as You Zhongyi was about to nod, the messenger suddenly remembered something and spoke again.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing."

"explain."

"The brothers down the mountain sent word that the leader of this cook battalion is an old man with white hair, and he rides a Ferghana horse."

"What?"

This time, even You Zhongyi couldn't sit still.

"A Ferghana horse? Are you sure?"

"It's confirmed. Our brothers got the information from the soldiers in the Daqian army camp, so it can't be fake."

The hall erupted in chaos.

"The Akhal-Teke horse! That's a legendary steed, appearing only once in a century!"

"An old man with white hair riding a Ferghana horse? What kind of combination is that?"

"Who cares about the combination? How much is a Ferghana horse worth? Enough for our Qingfeng Village to live on for a lifetime!"

"Brother, this is a golden opportunity! We must seize it!"

"Yes! Take the Akhal-Teke horses! Take the granary! Let those soldiers never return!"

Everyone stood up, their eyes gleaming with greed, like a pack of hungry wolves smelling blood.

You Zhongyi stood up, placed his hands on the table, and scanned everyone's faces.

He glanced at Meng Ziyi.

Meng Ziyi nodded, closed his folding fan, and gave him an affirmative look.

You Zhongyi took a deep breath and suddenly raised the wine bowl in his hand.

"good!"

His voice was loud and clear, drowning out all the noise.

"Since Heaven has delivered granaries and magnificent horses to our doorstep, it would be an insult to Heaven not to take them!"

"Pass on my order: all troops from Qingfeng Village are to be mobilized!"

"This time, we've got those soldiers completely out of the loop, emptied the granary, and taken that magnificent Akhal-Teke horse!"

"Brothers, bottoms up! Let's get to work!"

"Let's do it!"

Dozens of wine bowls clinked together, making a crisp sound, and wine splashed everywhere.

Everyone tilted their heads back and drank it all in one gulp, then smashed the bowls on the ground, scattering shards everywhere.

"Kill the government troops! Loot the granaries! Seize the prized horses!"

"Kill the government troops! Loot the granaries! Seize the prized horses!"

The shouts were deafening; even the night birds outside the window were startled and took flight in a flurry...