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墨書 Inktalez
"What happened? Are we being attacked?"
Xia Muxin immediately grabbed the sleeve of a nearby soldier, her expression serious as her gaze swept around, not seeing Shen Muhan and the others, causing her heart to race with anxiety.
"These are General Wei's men. It is said that he led troops to provide assistance but was ambushed midway and fell into the enemy's trap. Some soldiers fought their way to Linshan County seeking help, and we managed to rescue them."
The soldiers still showed great respect towards Xia Muxin; after all, any woman who could stand by Shen Muhan's side was not to be underestimated.
"And General Wei?"
"It seems he was rescued by someone."
General Wei was full of passion and loyalty to his country, and Xia Muxin admired him greatly. She did not wish for his demise. Hearing this from the soldier eased her heart, and she released his sleeve, waving him off as he nodded and left.
She circled the military camp but did not see Shen Muhan. Instead, she noticed someone training the soldiers and quietly stood by to watch.
It had to be said that Shen Muqing's subordinates were no pushovers; each one was well-trained. While they could not compare to modern standards, they certainly earned her respect.
Before long, she saw Shen Muhan returning with a basket of herbs alongside Shen Muqing. The basket looked full, and Xia Muxin felt a surge of emotion; they had actually gone out themselves to gather medicine for the wounded.
She jogged over and saw that Shen Muhan and the others were already cleaning the herbs on the spot. She bent down with a smile and asked, "Do you need any help?"
Shen Muhan looked at her and smiled back, tossing a bag in her direction as he replied:
“Girl, look at this.”
Xia Muxin's eyes lit up as she turned the bag upside down, causing a heap of mushrooms and wild vegetables to spill onto the ground, covered in dirt.
“Ah, uncle, this one is poisonous, and this one, and this one...”
There was quite a pile on the ground, and her rough handling drew discontent from many onlookers, though they dared not speak up. Of course, aside from Shen Muhan's displeased expression, Xia Muxin paid them no mind. Instead, she crouched down to sort through the items. Before long, she had identified a large number of toxic mushrooms. Her delicate face elongated as she looked at the few edible mushrooms left, feeling a bit regretful.
Shen Muhan wiped his nose, intending to say that these weren't picked by him but by Qingyue and Rong Li. However, before he could finish his sentence, he saw Xia Muxin laughing heartily while holding the poisonous mushrooms.
“Haha, haha! Poisonous! This is great!”
Saying this, she quickly packed away the toxic mushrooms.
“Today, I will cook myself. I need a few people to help out. After this meal, you all have to listen to me. I guarantee you’ll all survive to go back and find wives.”
Upon hearing this, everyone twitched collectively, sensing that this might be their last meal and whether they would return alive to find wives was questionable.
But since Shen Muhan didn’t stop her, no one else dared to oppose her. A few soldiers nervously followed in Xia Muxin's footsteps.
The kitchen was small and open-air, but there was plenty of firewood available and other tools were somewhat complete. Xia Muxin rummaged through the kitchen until she found some baking powder and immediately began kneading dough while instructing someone to boil water.
Fortunately, Linshan County was rich in clear water; it was high in elevation and upstream from the enemy forces. Even if they cut off all supplies, as long as there was time to forage for wild vegetables or search for other food sources, they wouldn’t starve for at least a year.
It was already June now; the season's rice harvest must have been completed. From here, Linshan County appeared desolate; the fields were unrecognizable due to overgrown weeds.
“Hey, how long has it been since you last ate meat?”
Xia Muxin approached the soldiers who were awkwardly trying to start a fire, wash mushrooms, and prepare Pipi Vegetables, and asked them a question.
There was no village nearby, nor any shops, and with the heat of the day, if they didn’t go hunt some Game Meat, they wouldn’t even catch a whiff of meat or fish.
Sure enough, as soon as she spoke, several soldiers swallowed hard, their eyes filled with longing as they replied, “Since we were forced to come here, we haven’t had any meat.”
Shen Muqing had set out even earlier than her. By now, it should have been two months since he last ate meat—at least a month and a half without any. It was tough for them; after all, when you’re out fighting, if your stomach isn’t full, you lack the strength. She had trained before and understood this well.
Thinking this over, she devised a plan and addressed one of the soldiers. “Is there a bamboo grove nearby? If so, take a few brothers with you and chop down some stalks. I have an urgent need for them.”
The soldier hesitated for a moment but when he saw her shape a bun with her hands, he no longer cared about anything else and quickly ran out.
“The water is boiling! You all need to blanch the mushrooms and Pipi Vegetables. You few come over and help me; shape them like this. A bun of this size will do.”
The food here was mostly flour; rice was scarce, and there were only some corn kernels. Making buns to eat with soup would fill their stomachs while conserving food—that was her first step.
After teaching a few people how to make them, she began steaming the buns.
Due to limited conditions, these buns were made without filling and were plain—no salt or sugar added.
Fortunately, the steamer was large enough to hold about fifty buns per layer. There were ten layers in total and five such steamers. This meant that to steam over ten thousand buns would require six rounds of steaming—each round taking about fifteen minutes on high heat—and it would take over half an hour in total. The fire was difficult to maintain; it would take several people to manage it.
“Miss, are you really going to steam this many?”
The soldier looked at Xia Muxin's actions with some surprise. This kitchen was reserved for the generals, and they usually just cooked something simple to get by.
The so-called bowl and a half of rice were meant for the Disabled Individuals, as they needed nutrition and had to recover quickly. There was little to supplement in this camp; the only thing they could provide was Steamed Rice. Giving them this meal yesterday was already the limit, and the vegetables in the kitchen were nearly gone. The supplies consisted only of grain and fodder, without any Diesel Salt.
"Of course, everyone is equal. Don't worry, trust me, everyone will soon have enough to eat. I keep my promises, and you will definitely return alive and find a good wife."
Xia Muxin pressed the steamed buns down, instructing a few people to tend the fire while she busied herself with the blanched mushrooms and Pipi Vegetable. As she spoke, she pinched the ingredients and then took a ladle of water to drink. Upon tasting it, she immediately spat it out and asked urgently, "Where did this water come from?"
One soldier scratched his head and chuckled foolishly, "Strange, right? We don't dare to drink it either. When we cook, we don't add salt; we just put in more water because this water is really salty."
Haha...
Xia Muxin laughed lightly, genuinely worried about this matter. Salt is an essential energy source for the body; without it, one would feel weak and unable to fight on the battlefield. Moreover, having this saline water would be beneficial for disinfecting soldiers' wounds. It seemed that Heaven was still on their side.
However, she did not voice these thoughts but simply nodded lightly before continuing her work.
With the buns steaming away, Xia Muxin stepped outside and saw many people carrying bamboo poles toward her. She asked if they had enough bowls; if they did, she gathered everyone to bring their rice bowls and line up for their portions—one bun and one bowl of soup each.
At the same time, she instructed others to peel the bamboo into strips. Once done, she demonstrated how to do it so that a few could learn and then do it themselves.
After finishing all of this, she had a few people lead her outside to explore the terrain.
"This woman must be crazy. At this rate, forget about two months; if we can last half a month, that would be impressive."
At that moment, Shen Muqing's face turned ashen upon hearing that the kitchen had steamed over ten thousand buns, each as large as a rice bowl. Anger surged through him, causing his entire body to tremble as he had no choice but to roar at Shen Muhan.
Shen Muhan was busy sorting and washing herbs when he heard Shen Muqing's words. He casually dug at his ear and replied calmly, "If you want everyone to survive, then don't stop her from doing anything. Trust me, you will see her in a new light. Just remember, she is mine, and no one should have any improper thoughts about her."
As he spoke, his gaze shifted to the contemplative Rong Li nearby.
Shen Muqing found this utterly unreasonable. He exhaled a few breaths of frustration and waved his sleeves as he walked away.
After Xia Muxin returned from her rounds, she began preparing soup, making pot after pot. Starting with mushrooms, she added Pipi Vegetable next. The salt was dissolved in water first, and only a small amount of oil was used. She stir-fried everything until it released a fragrant aroma before adding water. The resulting dish was so delicious that it made mouths water.
This meal consisted of just one bun and a simple bowl of vegetable soup, yet it was the most satisfying meal for the soldiers because they all felt equal and truly filled.
Each person washed their own bowl. After finishing her meal, Xia Muxin eagerly stepped into the crowd and pointed at several soldiers, saying, "You, you, you, you... all step forward and follow me."
- End of Chapter -
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