Chapter 21 Eating Meat If these meat sausages are given to every soldier in the camp, one each…

Chapter 21: Eating Meat – Every soldier in the camp gets one of these sausages...

On the first night in the camp, Jin Yanqiu slept like a baby.

The quilt that Mu Guang had snatched from Lu Deyong had a silk cover and was filled with mulberry silk. Sleeping under such a light, fluffy quilt was super comfortable.

She slept well, and so did everyone else in the camp, since last night they got to taste food they'd never had before.

It was still dark when the soldiers woke up, chatting about the previous night.

"You know what? Those pastries we had yesterday are a Luoyang exclusive!"

"No wonder they tasted so good!"

"I heard they're super hard to make. First, you have to hull the wheat, then grind it into flour, and you gotta add lard, salt, and honey—those are expensive stuff!"

"The Lady actually gave us such good stuff! She's way too good to us!"

...

The soldiers kept repeating what they'd heard, all while still reliving the taste of last night's feast.

Just then, they heard shouts: "Breakfast! Breakfast!"

They were taken aback. Eating this early?

Before the food shortage, their camp had always had two meals a day. But the first meal was usually served two hours later, not as early as this, at first light.

Still, eating this early was a good thing!

Everyone grabbed their bowls and rushed to line up for food, and at the same time, they sensed something off: "Why do I smell meat?"

"Same here, it smells amazing!"

"Are the personal guards having meat today?"

...

The regular guys were clueless, but Jin Mingtang's personal guards knew exactly what was going on.

This morning, the Lady had conjured up a huge pile of biscuits and a ton of meat sausages.

The sausages weren't quite the same as last night's, but still just as tasty!

The Lady said that these meat sausages were to be given to each soldier in the camp—one per person. That's over the top, way too extravagant!

The Lady really is a goddess!

Yesterday, Jin Yanqiu had spent over seventy thousand Gratitude Points and had nearly nothing left. But overnight, those seventy thousand points were back!

Sure, there were only fifty thousand soldiers in the camp, but nearly twenty thousand family members lived nearby. Plus, some folks gave thanks more than once.

So this morning, she exchanged more grain, including twenty thousand kilograms of cooked, whole hot dogs that would have been wasted otherwise.

She had them handed out.

The fit young soldiers each got two, and the ones unfit for battle got one each.

The rest, along with canned compressed biscuits, were sent to the troops stationed elsewhere.

The soldiers stationed elsewhere couldn't be shortchanged!

After the buzz from last night and this morning's display of miracles, Jin Mingtang's personal guards now totally saw Jin Yanqiu as a goddess, and the officers loyal to Jin Mingtang felt the same way.

They were already thinking about having a golden statue of the Lady cast and worshipped!

Bu had come back to camp last night.

He had been at death's door, but today he seemed to have a little strength.

Still, he was worse off than the others in the army. Those without families had not only downed three bowls of paste yesterday but also munched on their dry rations. Now they were bursting with energy.

"I was gonna save that dry ration for today, but it smelled so good I couldn't resist."

"Same. I caved and ate it in the middle of the night... And I'm not even hungry, yet here's more food?"

"Good heavens! What they're giving us is the same pastry as yesterday!"

"And there's meat too!"

Since Bu looked weak, his squad let him go first.

Bu walked up with his bowl. A young guard in uniform ladled him a bowl of paste and fished out a meat sausage from the hot water: "One sausage per person, courtesy of the Lady!"

There really was meat! The Lady was actually giving them meat!

Tears welled up in Bu's eyes: "Thank you, my Lady!"

He took his bowl to one side and couldn't wait to take a sip of the paste.

Unlike the others, he had taken his dry ration and one bowl of paste home, so he'd been hungry for a while.

The paste was still delicious. After one swallow, Bu felt his whole body warm up and gain strength!

As for the sausage, Bu took a tiny, careful bite.

He had no idea how it was made, but the taste was incredible!

This sausage was rich and fatty, incredibly delicious.

No meat he'd ever eaten before could compare to this sausage!

Many around Bu had already wolfed down their sausages in just a couple of bites, but Bu, thinking of his wife and kids, held himself back.

He wrapped up the sausage with the bite mark, planning to take it home for his family.

In the area where Bu lived, all the soldiers were no longer fit for battle. In another area lived the fit young soldiers.

They also received paste and meat sausages. The guards handing them out told them: "Eat these sausages now. Training's going to start again soon, and if you don't eat enough, you won't be able to handle it."

"Don't worry, you'll each get another sausage later to take home."

"The Lady is a huge benefactor. From now on, you'll never go hungry!"

...

Among these people, many were like Bu, planning to take the sausage home.

But after hearing what the personal guard said, they relaxed and started eating the sausages in their hands.

The sausage was hot. With one bite, the rich, fatty juices filled their mouths...

"Thank you, Lady!" Loud, sincere thanks echoed throughout the camp, one after another.

The soldiers were very happy, but of course, also a bit uneasy.

How could such tasty pastries and meat be given to them to eat?

Was General Jin about to lead them into a very dangerous battle?

However, they quickly brushed off that worry.

In the past, battles were also very dangerous.

General Jin treated them so well, even willing to share such precious pastries and meat with them. They'd even be willing to rebel with General Jin!

In the camp, those who had it in for Jin Mingtang were now stunned by him.

Where did Jin Mingtang get all these good things?

Even after getting them, he actually gave them to common soldiers... Is he insane?

A few people huddled together, looking grim: "Jin Mingtang is currying favor!"

"I'm afraid he's thinking of rebelling."

"He defied the imperial decree and ran back to the camp, clearly intending to oppose the court... What do we do now?"

...

Should they now go join Lu Deyong, or side with Jin Mingtang?

An hour later, everyone had finished eating.

At this time, Jin Mingtang began assigning tasks to the soldiers in the camp.

The fit soldiers all got assignments.

Some went to deliver grain to soldiers elsewhere, some repaired the barracks, and some went to gather and buy hay nearby.

As the saying goes, "An army marches on its stomach." Grain and fodder were very important to ancient soldiers.

Among them, grain refers to food, and "fodder" means hay.

As for why hay... Back then, getting through winter meant relying completely on hay!

People would stuff hay into their clothes to keep warm, and also use hay as bedding.

Without hay, many people would freeze to death in the deep winter!

Around this time in previous years, they would have already started collecting hay, but this year there was not enough food. Even if the soldiers wanted to collect, they had no strength, nor the means.

"So we're going out. No wonder they fed us so early," a soldier said.

"It's fine to eat early. This morning's meal was so hearty, I can hold out until evening!"

"That's right! We ate meat, and it was fatty meat. The horse meat General used to hand out is nothing like this."

...

As these people were talking, someone came to call them: "Grab your ration bags and go collect today's lunch."

The soldiers were stunned. Lunch? What was lunch?

The guard who came to fetch them added: "The Lady said that from now on you'll get three meals a day. Since you're going out to work, we'll give you dry rations for the midday meal to eat outside."

The soldiers were shocked and thrilled.

They could actually eat three meals a day? How much grain would that take? Did the Lady have that much grain?

But no matter what, this was a good thing!

Jin Yanqiu gave them soda crackers and little sausages as rations.

Since they were going out to work, she just gave them something nice to eat.

Jin Yanqiu procured a bunch of soda crackers, some with scallion flavor, some with sesame and milk flavor. These crackers were first distributed to their respective officers, then distributed down the chain of command, ensuring each soldier received at least six liang, which is 300 grams.

300 grams of soda crackers could provide 1200 kilocalories, enough for these soldiers for one meal.

In addition to the crackers, each soldier also received three small sausages.

When the soldiers got the crackers, they were dumbfounded.

This dry rations distributed to them... wasn't it too precious?

These snacks called "crackers" were rectangular, with many small holes on them, each piece neat and regular.

When you bit into one, it was rich with wheat aroma and had a crisp texture.

Clearly they were made from flour and salt.

Making one cracker meant not just grinding flour but also shaping it with a mold and baking it. It must have taken a lot of effort.

This was food meant for government officials, how could it be given to them as rations?

The soldiers stood there holding the crackers, not knowing what to do. A few soldiers accidentally crumbled the crackers in their hands.

This soldier hurriedly crouched down, picked up the fallen small piece of cracker and stuffed it into his mouth, while feeling sorry for the crumbs he couldn't pick up.

Many others did the same—the crackers were so fragile.

It was also salty and fragrant, even better than the compressed biscuits they'd had that morning.

The only downside was that it crumbled when you ate it.

These soldiers all caught the cracker with their hands while eating, but still some crumbs fell to the ground, making them wince in pain.

"This isn't the kind of thing us roughnecks should be eating..."

"Yeah, we couldn't even afford wheat cakes before!"

"I never thought I, Old Six, would ever get to eat something like this in my life..."

"Are we really going to collect hay? With rations like this?"

...

The soldiers were floored, and so was the officer in charge of them.

This officer was named Xu Shou. He was about the same age as Jin Mingtang and even braver in battle.

But he'd never ranked as high as Jin Mingtang.

Because Jin Mingtang had a good family name and knew how to read.

He'd always held a grudge against Jin Mingtang and would stir up trouble now and then.

Yesterday, he even spread a rumor that Jin Mingtang was about to leave with his personal guards, leaving the regular soldiers in the lurch.

He didn't have any deep grudge against Jin Mingtang, but he wanted him out of the Zhenbei Army.

That Lu Deyong is a coward who's never even seen a battlefield. After Jin Mingtang left with his trusted men, the Zhenbei Army might fall under his control, and then he'd be the general in charge of tens of thousands of soldiers!

But right then, Jin Mingtang whipped out food!

Last night, when he saw Jin Mingtang feed the entire camp, he got a sinking feeling. This morning, when he saw Jin Mingtang hand out sausages to the soldiers, he was even more convinced Jin Mingtang was sneaky and underhanded.

With Jin Mingtang winning over the soldiers like this, who would listen to him in the future?

Right while he was steaming, he got the order to collect hay. Jin Mingtang's personal guards even brought him the soldiers' lunch rations to hand out.

By now he'd handed out all the food and sent the soldiers off in teams to collect hay from different spots.

Popping an onion-flavored saltine into his mouth and chewing hard, Xu Shou snarled, "That jerk Jin Mingtang is giving the soldiers rations like this just to rub it in my face!"

"He's showing off his connections and wealth!"

"Dammit, how did he end up marrying a Qian family girl? All this fine food must have come from his father-in-law!"

"Jin Mingtang is just a kept man!"

...

Xu Shou munched on crackers while cussing under his breath, and also grabbed some hot dogs and little sausages.

Jin Mingtang had given him plenty of food, and he stashed the extra in his tent to eat later.

Xu Shou had a big appetite. Last night, throwing his weight around as an officer, he ate six bowls of gruel and a pound of hardtack. Today he ate even more—ten hot dogs just by himself.

Right after breakfast, he dug into the saltines and little sausages.

Suddenly, his stomach ached.

His face fell, and he grabbed his stomach, heading to the latrine.

When he came out, his men had already left to collect hay. He hadn't even taken a sip of water before he felt sick again and sprinted back to the outhouse.

After going back and forth a few times, Xu Shou couldn't take it anymore. He ordered his personal guard to go get the army doctor he was buddy-buddy with.

Feeling this awful, it had to be poison from Jin Mingtang!

There were a few doctors in the army, barely competent and just getting by.

The one Xu Shou was tight with was also useless.

But even he could tell why Xu Shou had the runs. "General Xu, have you been eating too many hot dogs?"

Xu Shou said, "I haven't eaten that many. Is there something wrong with the sausages?"

The doctor replied, "General Xu, when people who've been starving suddenly eat a lot of greasy food, they get the runs!"

General Xu used to be a big guy weighing over two hundred jin, but after going hungry for so long, he'd lost fifty or sixty pounds.

Now he was overeating, and his body couldn't take it.

Xu Shou went quiet. The doctor continued, "General, you can eat the crackers, but take it easy on the meat."

Xu Shou's eyes bulged. "You want me to cut back on something this good? So what if I get the runs? I ain't giving it up!"

The doctor was speechless.

Even so, Xu Shou didn't dare pig out like before. It'd be such a waste to have all that meat go right through him! He'd wait until he got better before eating more!

After handing out the rations, he hid the leftover sausages in his own tent, Xu Shou dragged his shaky legs, weak from running to the outhouse so many times, and went to see Jin Mingtang.

Since Jin Mingtang was so capable, he had no choice but to toe the line and follow his orders from now on.

Xu Shou found Jin Mingtang and reluctantly said he'd do as told.

Jin Mingtang was a bit puzzled.

Had Xu Shou ever disobeyed his orders?

Sure, Xu Shou kicked up a fuss now and then, but he always did what Jin Mingtang told him.

Jin Mingtang didn't see Xu Shou as a close confidant or trusted advisor, but he did consider him part of his team.

With a smile, Jin Mingtang said a few words to Xu Shou, handed him a basket of strawberry sandwich cookies, and sent him off.

As soon as he stepped out, Xu Shou grabbed a strawberry sandwich cookie and took a bite.

The sweet flavor instantly won him over.

If only he had known Jin Mingtang had such good food, he would have pledged his loyalty long ago!

These things couldn't have come from a rough guy like Jin Mingtang; they were probably brought by his daughter.

And his daughter had them because of the Qian family!

Why couldn't he marry a woman from a prominent family? If he could marry a woman from the Qian family, he'd be even more impressive than Jin Mingtang!

Back at his quarters, reluctantly sharing half the basket of sandwich cookies with his personal guards, Xu Shou ate the rest.

When he finished, he was off to the latrine again.

Like Xu Shou, many who weren't originally Jin Mingtang's trusted men now came to pledge loyalty to him.

Jin Mingtang accepted their submissions, and by then, it was time for lunch in the camp.

The soldiers couldn't help thinking they must be dreaming.

We just finished breakfast a little while ago, so how come we're having lunch already?

This time, they're still eating hardtack, along with a meat sausage.

But the sausages they're eating now are different from the ones this morning—these are small sausages.

"I thought only the ones going out to work would get lunch, but it turns out we have it too."

"Lady is truly kind. She even remembers us useless folks!"

"Since we can't fight anymore, why's the Lady giving us such tasty food?"

...

The soldiers didn't get it, and Bu didn't either.

He couldn't figure out why the Lady would give such great food to a nobody like him.

His leg was bad, and he was old. He couldn't even do farm work, never mind fight.

But he was thankful to the Lady!

After collecting his food, aside from shouting "Thank you, Lady!" Bu also bowed low toward the center of the camp.

Having done that, he carried the bowl of gruel and the small meat sausage he had received, and once again walked out of the camp.

He had already gone back once in the morning, letting his child taste meat.

His kid was thrilled. Now that he was going back, they'd be even happier!

Last night, Bu had been uneasy, fearing that that meal was his last full one in this life.

But at this moment, his heart was full of hope.

He felt like their lives might slowly improve.

Near Juyong Pass, Zhou Jinling was packing up with the laborers.

"We'll set out tomorrow and head to the camp! From now on, we'll be Lady's men!" Zhou Jinling preached to the laborers. "The Lady saved us, so in the future, we gotta follow her orders."

Guan Hu listened to Zhou Jinling's chatter, got annoyed, and decided to mess with him: "Mr. Zhou, you always tell us to obey the Lady... But what if General Jin and the Lady give us different orders—who do we listen to?"

Zhou Jinling didn't even hesitate: "Of course, we follow the Lady."

What's Jin Mingtang anyway? He's just lucky to have a daughter who's a goddess.

Without the Lady, Jin Mingtang would've been killed by schemes! The Lady's way more important!

Guan Hu was floored.

Zhou Jinling added, "By the way, since you have nothing to do, take a few men and scout the area. Don't bother me."

Zhou Jinling sent Guan Hu and a few other hotheads off and continued with his own tasks.

Meanwhile, a group of people were slowly approaching the laborers' area.

This group had been sent by the Qian family to gather information, who'd just come from Luoyang.

"The family head sent word that Jin Mingtang's daughter is at the border too... They say the laborers eat people. Jin Mingtang's daughter might've been eaten by those creeps." The leader, the third steward of the Qian family, knew a bit more and showed off on purpose in front of his men.

"Third Steward, if those people are cannibals, should we still go? There are only a dozen of us, and we can't fight thousands."

"We've got horses. We'll outrun them. What're you worried about?" said the third steward.

But his men were nervous.

True, they had horses, but this was a mountain path; the horses couldn't go fast.

As the group moved forward, the third steward kept badmouthing Jin Mingtang for being ungrateful.

If it weren't for Jin Mingtang, he wouldn't have had to come to this border!

Guan Hu, out on patrol, spotted these people from afar.

Being a hunter by trade, he quickly hid himself and began observing. He quickly figured out these guys were hostile toward Jin Mingtang.

Having once gotten Jin Mingtang wrong, Guan Hu felt really guilty and wanted to make it up to him.

Now that he had the chance...

Guan Hu, along with the hotheads under him, set traps. Then, carrying a stone hammer—the kind used to ram earth when building the Great Wall—he charged out...

After Guan Hu killed a horse with one swing of his hammer, Guan Hu caught the third steward and his dozen men.

Guan Hu tied them onto the horses and led them back. This time, he didn't even bother calling him "Mr. Zhou": "Zhou Jinling! Zhou Jinling! I caught a bunch of bandits, and I even got horses!"

Hearing Guan Hu's shouts, Zhou Jinling's heart jumped.

There weren't many people with horses at the border. The so-called bandits Guan Hu caught—could they be from the Zhenbei Army, their own people?

He hurried over and frowned at the third steward and his men.

The third steward shouted, trying to bluff: "You'd better release us quickly, or our family head won't let you off!"

Guan Hu, who hated bullies the most, waved his stone hammer to scare the third steward: "Your family head won't let us off? We won't let you off either! Later, I'll cook you all and eat you!"

He had heard these people say that they ate people!

They didn't eat people, but they could scare this guy!

The third steward's face turned pale.

Zhou Jinling looked closely at the third steward and realized that this man was not from the Zhenbei Army, nor was he one of the Lady's men.

He gave Guan Hu some of the cream-filled cookies as a reward, then ordered the third steward and his men to be taken away for interrogation.

Guan Hu didn't know what Zhou Jinling was up to. He stared at the cookies in his hand for a moment, then took a bite.

Too sweet, really too sweet! He loved it!

Catching people earned him such delicious cookies?

He had to find a way to catch more people!

At the same time, the men Lu Deyong sent had also reached the area...