Compared to the General, the low-ranking officers and soldiers all received the sa al: a bowl of coarse-grain porridge and a piece of hard stead cake made of black flour.
Fu Chen’an sat in the corner and took out a piece of at jerky from his spatial bag when no one was looking.
Unlike the dried at processed by the people in this era, the at jerky he was eating was bought from the system’s shop by Yao Zhi. It was perfectly seasoned, soft, and chewy.
Thanks to the at jerky, he managed to finish the plain porridge. Although he didn’t want to admit it, his taste buds had been spoiled by his wife with delicious food. Now, he found it unbearable to eat the coarse food served in the army.
Most of the soldiers had a big appetite. So even after they finished the porridge and stead cake, they were only 30% full. To fill their hungry stomachs, they could only drink more water.
Fu Chen’an thought about the food stored in his spatial bags and after a mont of hesitation, he took out a piece of marrow cake.
There were still 88 pieces left. With so much food in his spatial bags, he had no worry about going hungry at all. Sitting in the corner, he finished 3 pieces of marrow cake before he finally felt 70% full.
While he was drinking water from his waterskin, he saw Xiao Wei walk over.
After he took his seat, Xiao Wei leaned closer and whispered, "Chen’an, I heard that the Imperial Court didn’t prepare any supplies for our expedition this ti. I don’t know if our supplies will be enough until the war ends."
Hearing this, Fu Chen’an raised his eyebrows. "Brother Wei, this matter should be confidential. How did you know about this?"
"When I went to relieve myself just now, I heard the people sent by the Imperial Court talking about this. The envoy’s only task is to keep an eye on the General. Whether we are dead or alive is not their concern," Xiao Wei said through gritted teeth.
He and the other soldiers had long been dissatisfied with the Imperial Court. Not only did they withhold their stipends, but they also constantly sent them on war expeditions.
It’s one thing if they paid their military salaries and handed out the stipends on ti. Since they enlisted as soldiers, they had already prepared themselves to go to war.
The problem was that the Imperial Court wanted them to sacrifice their lives for the Kingdom, but they were unwilling to fulfill their responsibilities.
Now that they were alive, the Imperial Court already treated them like this. If they died on the battlefield one day, they knew that the Imperial Court would never give any compensation to their families. Without them, their families would starve to death.
When the soldiers reached this conclusion, no one was willing to sacrifice themselves for the Imperial Court anymore. Their loyalty now lay with the General and the White Tiger Army, and no longer with the Emperor.
Therefore, they never gave the envoy a good face from the mont the envoy arrived with the Imperial Edict.
Fu Chen’an also noticed this because his wife told him that the soldiers’ salaries and stipends were paid by the General and his wife. The Imperial Court had already stopped paying the military salaries for more than 3 years.
Seeing that his brother was lost in thought, Xiao Wei nudged him and said in a low voice, "Chen’an, don’t worry too much. Do you see the young man who stays in the General’s tent?"
"What’s wrong with him?" Fu Chen’an asked.
"From my observation, that young man should be a woman disguised as a man."
The mont he heard this, a guess flashed through his mind. For the General to allow a woman to stay in his tent, that person must be his wife.
Recalling the plan his wife told him before, Fu Chen’an smiled. After a mont of silence, he said, "Brother Wei, Heaven will bless the White Tiger Army. This war, we will win for sure."
Xiao Wei was taken aback by his brother’s confidence and asked, "Chen’an, do you know so inner information?"
Shaking his head, Fu Chen’an looked at him with an innocent gaze and replied casually, "I don’t know, but I trust the General won’t let us fight a losing war."
Despite his curiosity, Xiao Wei no longer talked about this matter and changed the topic. Rubbing his firm abs, he said, "I wonder if I can get another stead cake if I ask the cook later."
Fu Chen’an turned to look at him and noticed his pale face.
Although his wound recovered well, he did lose a lot of blood. In the past few days, they only had hard black cakes and rested for only a few hours daily. With the harsh conditions, it would be amazing if Xiao Wei were able to fully recover.
Opening his spatial bag, he took out a flatbread and handed it to his brother. The flatbread was around 1 centiter thick and 12 centiters in diater. It was heavy and filled with savory minced at.
Fearing that the other soldiers would hold a grudge, he shoved it into Xiao Wei’s hands and said in a low voice, "This is a flatbread prepared by my wife. Eat it secretly."
Xiao Wei was surprised to see the flatbread. Just from the fragrance, he knew that this flatbread was made using oil. He hid behind Fu Chen’an and took a bite.
When he tasted the savory at filling, he gave his brother a glance and finished the flatbread in several big bites.
Seeing that he almost choked, Fu Chen’an gave him his waterskin without saying a word.
Xiao Wei drank several mouthfuls before he finally felt alive again. Perhaps it was because he hadn’t eaten at for a long ti, but he felt more energized after eating the flatbread.
Using his sleeve, he wiped his mouth clean before he said, "Chen’an, your wife treats you so well. She is even willing to give you a at flatbread."
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