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

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, commotion arose in the vanguard general's tent.

Xu Zhaowu had already woken up.

He lay on the bed, staring at the top of the tent, unable to stay still no matter what.

After enduring it for a while, she finally couldn't hold back anymore and turned to push Xu Zhaowen next to her.

"Big brother, big brother! Wake up! Get up and watch the show!"

Xu Zhaowen was sleeping soundly when he was nudged and rocked a few times. He mumbled something indistinctly, then turned over to continue sleeping.

Xu Zhaowu grew anxious and nudged him twice more, raising his voice several decibels: "Brother! Wake up! According to the schedule, those guys from the cookhouse should have been back at camp by now! We can't miss the chance to see that old man make a fool of himself!"

The words "fire station" were like a bucket of cold water poured over Xu Zhaowen's head.

He suddenly opened his eyes, wide awake, and sat up abruptly, aggravating the wound in his chest. He grimaced in pain, but his face was full of excitement.

"Oh dear! How could I have forgotten something so important!" He turned and shouted towards the outside of the tent, "Someone! Quickly! Help this general get dressed!"

Two guards rushed in from outside the tent and hurriedly dressed the two men.

Xu Zhaowu stretched out his arm and urged, "Hurry up! Hurry up! Don't delay our show!"

The two men put on their clothes, leaned on their canes, and limped out of the tent.

Their chest wounds hadn't fully healed, and every step they took made them wince in pain, yet their pace was faster than anyone else's.

"Hurry! Hurry! To Father's tent!"

……

Xu Shigui had already gotten up in the central command tent.

He paced back and forth in the tent with his hands behind his back.

He was calculating the time in his mind.

If Su Mu's cooks had succeeded, they should have been back early this morning.

There's still no movement, which means the mission has failed.

It's okay if we fail.

If he fails, he can rightfully punish the old man, reclaim the Ferghana horse, and then send his elite troops to Qingfeng Town to collect grain.

Kill three birds with one stone!

As he was thinking, the curtain was lifted and his two sons, leaning on their canes, walked in.

"Father! Father!" Xu Zhaowu shouted as soon as he entered the tent, his voice so loud it shook the entire tent. "Has that old geezer Su Mu returned yet?"

Xu Shigui turned around, looked at his two sons' excited faces, and shook his head with a smile.

"Not yet. It's already this late, and they still haven't returned. That means the mission failed, and our plan—has succeeded." Xu Zhaowen and Xu Zhaowu exchanged a glance, unable to suppress their smiles.

"Great! Great!" Xu Zhaowu slapped his thigh, unable to contain his laughter. "This is truly good news! We can finally vent our anger!"

"This time, we brothers will reclaim all the dignity we've lost!"

Xu Zhaowen gripped his cane, his emotions running high, his eyes filled with anticipation.

Xu Shigui waved his hand, about to order his personal guards to summon Qin Hao!

The tent flap was suddenly flung open.

A soldier came running in, panting heavily, his face flushed and out of breath.

Xu Shigui frowned and scolded, "What's wrong with you, you scoundrel? I haven't even had anyone summon you yet, what are you doing barging in here?"

The soldier hurriedly cupped his hands in greeting, his voice trembling, "Reporting to the General, the cooks...the cooks are back!"

"You're back?" Xu Shigui's smile froze for a moment, and an ominous premonition welled up in his heart.

came back?

You came back alive?

What about the grain and fodder?

Xu Zhaowen eagerly asked, "What about the provisions? Has the cooks brought them back?"

The soldier took a deep breath and shouted, "They're back! They're all back! Dozens of truckloads, enough to feed our army for a month!"

The tent fell silent.

Xu Shigui's smile froze completely, his lips twitched, and a look of disbelief flashed in his eyes.

"This...how is this possible?" Xu Zhaowu's voice trembled. "How could those cooks from the Fire Station have managed to haul the grain back from the bandits of Qingfeng Village?"

Xu Zhaowen's face was ashen, as if he had swallowed a mouthful of bitter herbs. He gritted his teeth, his cheeks puffed out.

The soldier swallowed hard and said cautiously, "General, General Qin requests your presence to check the grain supplies."

Xu Shigui took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart, snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves, and strode out of the tent.

"Hmph! This general wants to see for himself whether the grain has truly been brought back!"

Xu Zhaowen and Xu Zhaowu exchanged a glance, then, leaning on their canes, limped after him.

After walking a few steps, unable to go any faster, Xu Zhaowu shouted to his personal guards beside him, "Carry us! Carry us over there! Quickly!"

……

At this moment, the supply depot was as bustling as a market.

Dozens of horse-drawn carriages were neatly parked in the open space, piled high with grain sacks. The white rice and golden millet glistened enticingly in the sunlight.

Although the brothers in the cookhouse hadn't slept much all night, their eyes were bloodshot, and their clothes were stained with blood and dirt, their faces were full of smiles.

"Grandpa Su, you've really done a great service this time!"

The captain of the supply battalion gave a thumbs-up, his voice full of admiration.

"Bringing back so much grain at once has solved our army's urgent problem!"

"The brothers of the cookhouse are amazing! Amazing!"

Several soldiers from the supply battalion nearby echoed this sentiment, their eyes gleaming.

Upon hearing this, the brothers of the cookhouse straightened their backs, raised their chins slightly, and their mouths almost reached the sky.

"From now on, our cooks will no longer just be in charge of cooking!" Zhao Dazui shouted from the carriage, raising his arm. "We can go to the battlefield and fight the enemy too!"

"Yes!" the cooks below echoed in unison.

"With Elder Su here, who are we afraid of? Aren't we brothers?"

"That's right! Old Su is invincible! Awesome!"

The shouts were deafening, attracting soldiers from other nearby battalions to stop and watch, whispering among themselves as they inquired about what had happened.

Su Mu stood at the edge of the crowd, looking at the cooks who were as excited as children, shook his head helplessly, and gave a wry smile.

He walked out hunched over, waved his hand, and said in a hoarse but amused voice, "Keep it down, keep it down. It's just dealing with a few bandits, nothing to brag about."

"You can say that again when you've personally killed a few of those Northern Barbarians."

He paused, his eyes sweeping over the crowd, and his tone became serious.

"When you get back, you need to practice your swordsmanship more. The reason you came back alive today is not because of luck, but because of the sword in your hand. The sharper the sword, the tougher your life."

"Understood, Elder Su!" The two hundred cooks responded in unison, their voices so synchronized that they sounded like a single person shouting.

Qin Hao and Zhou Huchen walked out of the crowd, followed by several captains.

Qin Hao walked up to Su Mu, looked him up and down to make sure he wasn't injured, then breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.

"Well done, brothers of the cookhouse!" Qin Hao's voice boomed. "This mission was completed exceptionally well! This much food has solved our urgent problem; it's another great achievement!"

Zhou Huchen stood behind Qin Hao, lowered his voice, and said with a sly smile, "General Qin, do you think our Commander-in-Chief will be furious if he sees this?"

Qin Hao couldn't help but twitch his lips, and quickly coughed to cover it up.

Before the words were finished, footsteps could be heard from outside the crowd.

Xu Shigui strode over, followed by two bodyguards carrying a stretcher—Xu Zhaowen and Xu Zhaowu sat on the stretcher, both leaning on canes, their faces grim.

The soldiers automatically parted to make way...