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

Late at night, in the Daqian military camp.

The moonlight, as white as frost, spilled onto the dirt road between the tents, casting a pale white glow on the ground.

The soldiers on night patrol carried lanterns and marched in formation past the supply depot, drill ground, and granary. Their footsteps rustled and were particularly clear in the quiet night.

A soldier suddenly stopped, squinted, and stared at a dark figure that flashed by in front of him.

"Who?"

The shadowy figure didn't answer; instead, it quickened its pace and crouched low as it made its way towards the granary.

"Stop! Don't run!"

The night patrol soldier shouted and chased after them, torch in hand.

Hearing the sound, several companions behind him moved and flanked him in a fan shape.

Seeing that he couldn't escape, the shadowy figure stopped, turned around, and put on a smile.

"Brothers, don't be nervous. I'm from the supply battalion. I couldn't sleep at night, so I came out for a walk."

He was dressed in the uniform of a Daqian soldier, head down, smiling obsequiously, and didn't seem to be acting strangely.

The night patrol soldier looked him up and down and asked, "Which team are you from? Who's your captain?"

"I'm...I'm from the cookhouse...no, the supply battalion, and my captain's surname is Wang..."

The man's voice grew softer and softer, carrying a strange tone.

It wasn't an accent from the northern border of the Great Qian Dynasty; it sounded like they came from even further north.

The patrolling soldier frowned, about to continue questioning, when he heard steady footsteps behind him.

"What happened?"

A tall figure dressed in a captain's armor walked over.

The visitor was none other than Captain Zhang Heng, who was in charge of patrolling the camp's defenses tonight.

He was broad-shouldered and burly, with a full beard, and walked with a brisk pace.

"Reporting to the Captain, this man was acting suspiciously in the camp late at night, claiming to be a brother from the supply battalion, but he couldn't even pronounce the captain's name correctly," the patrolling soldier reported, bowing.

Zhang Heng walked up to the man and stared down at him.

The torchlight shone on the man's face, casting it in shifting light and shadow, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

"Which battalion are you from?" Zhang Heng's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable air of authority.

"The supply...supply camp."

Who is the captain of the supply battalion?

"Yes...yes..." The man's eyes darted around, his lips trembled, and he couldn't answer.

Zhang Heng narrowed his eyes.

The person in front of me, although wearing the military uniform of the Great Qian Dynasty, did not have the demeanor of a Great Qian soldier.

"Take him down!" Zhang Heng waved his hand.

Several patrolling soldiers rushed forward, pinned the man to the ground, and searched his entire body.

He pulled out a letter sealed with sealing wax from a hidden compartment in his waistband.

Zhang Heng took the letter, tore open the seal, pulled out the letter, and unfolded it by the torchlight. His pupils suddenly contracted.

The handwriting on the letter was neat but unfamiliar, but he recognized the name at the end.

Tuoba Han.

The Right Wise King of the Northern Barbarians.

The letter was short, but every word was piercing:

"I have long admired General Su Mu's reputation for martial prowess and unparalleled loyalty. I admire him greatly and would like to offer a thousand taels of gold and a hundred fine horses as a dowry to invite the old general to move to the Northern Barbarians and work together to achieve great things. I will never break my promise."

Zhang Heng's hands trembled slightly.

He abruptly raised his head, staring at the "soldier" pinned to the ground, his voice like muffled thunder squeezed from his chest: "Speak! Who sent you? What's the meaning of this letter?"

The man did not answer.

His lips twitched suddenly, and a strange smile appeared on his face.

Then, his eyes widened suddenly, his mouth opened, and a stream of black blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.

"Oh no! He's taken poison!"

Zhang Heng squatted down and pried open the man's mouth, but it was too late.

The poison was sealed inside the teeth; biting it would result in instant death, leaving no chance for rescue.

A night patrol soldier flipped the man's arm over, rolled up the sleeve, and revealed a wolf's head tattooed on the inside of his arm.

He had seen this symbol before; it was the mark of the Northern Di spies.

Zhang Heng slowly stood up, looked at the gradually cooling corpse on the ground, and then glanced at the letter in his hand, his brows furrowed.

"Captain, this letter..." the soldier next to him asked cautiously.

Zhang Heng did not answer.

He folded the letter, tucked it into his pocket, and glanced at every night patrol soldier present.

"None of you are allowed to tell anyone about what happened tonight, understand?"

His voice was low and his expression was serious.

"Understood!" the night patrol soldiers replied in unison.

Zhang Heng nodded and strode towards Qin Hao's tent.

……

In a side tent next to the main command tent, candlelight was still burning.

Qin Hao didn't sleep. He put on his coat and sat at the table, with a topographical map of the area surrounding Qinghe County spread out in front of him.

His finger moved slowly across the map, studying the route from Yuzhou City to Qinghe County, and from Qinghe County to the road south to the Central Plains, over and over again.

His brows were furrowed, and his expression was full of worry.

His troops were a mix of new and old soldiers, and their provisions were barely enough. Meanwhile, the general above him was always thinking about how to curry favor with the emperor and suppress loyal officials.

Qin Hao rubbed his temples and sighed.

These past few days he's been thinking about one question: how to directly present Su Mu's matter to the Emperor.

He wanted to promote Su Mu to general so that he could help Daqian garrison Qinghe County.

If Xu Shigui's path is blocked, then we'll go around him.

However, his influence in the court was not deep, so how easy would it be for him to reach the emperor directly?

"General." Zhang Heng's voice came from outside the tent.

"Come in."

Zhang Heng lifted the curtain and entered, his armor plates still damp with the night's dew.

He walked up to Qin Hao, and without any further formalities, took out the letter from his pocket and handed it to him with both hands.

"General, take a look at this."

Qin Hao took the letter and unfolded it.

He was shocked when he finished reading the contents of the letter!

He recognized every single word in the letter, but when put together, it seemed utterly absurd to him.

"Where did it come from?" Qin Hao's voice was urgent.

Zhang Heng recounted in detail how the patrol discovered the Northern Di spy that night, found the letter, and the spy committed suicide by poison.

Qin Hao remained silent after listening.

"General, how should we handle this?"

After a long while, his gaze suddenly hardened:

"This letter is fake."

"Fake?" Zhang Heng showed no surprise, but instead echoed, "Yes, this humble general also thinks this is fake. Old Master Su would never do something like colluding with the enemy and betraying the country."

"Old Master Su's son and daughter-in-law were killed by the Northern Di people five years ago," Qin Hao said firmly. "His only granddaughter was almost kidnapped by the Northern Di people. He hates them to the core. How could he possibly betray his country?"

"This is a divisive tactic. Tuoba Han wants to use Xu Shigui to kill Old Master Su."

"It seems that Old Master Su's performance has caught Tuoba Han's attention, and he is now wary of him."

Zhang Heng's pupils suddenly contracted, and a chill ran down his spine.

"What a vicious plan!"

"General Xu already harbors resentment towards Elder Su; if this letter falls into his hands..."

Zhang Heng dared not think any further.

He subconsciously touched his neck and felt a chill on it.

Qin Hao turned around, looked at Zhang Heng, and asked, "Who else knows about this?"

"Only a few brothers on patrol tonight. I have already instructed them to keep their mouths shut." Zhang Heng paused, then added, "The brothers all believe Elder Su, and they all think this is a frame-up. They say that if Elder Su would betray the country, the sun would rise in the west."

Qin Hao nodded slightly, a hint of relief flashing in his eyes.

A centenarian who has been in the military camp for less than a month has earned the trust and affection of the lower-ranking soldiers.

This wasn't achieved through words, but through bloodshed, one sword at a time, by risking one's life to protect one's brothers.

"Okay." Qin Hao patted Zhang Heng on the shoulder. "I understand. Go down and tell the brothers not to tell anyone."

"Yes!" Zhang Heng clasped his hands in a fist salute, turned around, and strode away.

As he reached the tent entrance, he suddenly stopped, turned around, and added a sentence.

"General, I have followed you for so many years, and there is something I must say."

He paused, his voice filled with emotion.

"Old Su... although he is old, his strength is unparalleled, and he is a fierce general for our army."

"We must protect Elder Su!"

Qin Hao didn't speak, he just nodded.

Zhang Heng lifted the curtain and went out.

Inside the tent, Qin Hao sat alone for a while, then stood up and walked out of the tent.

In the distance, towards the direction of the fire station, a few faint lights still flickered in the night.

Qin Hao gazed at the lights and murmured to himself.

"Old sir, your prestige in the army is higher than mine as a general."

He smiled.

I've already made up my mind.

Tomorrow morning, go to the fire station, tell Su Mu about this, and discuss how to resolve it.

Because he knew that Tuoba Han would never give up on the plan to use Xu Shigui to eliminate Su Mu!