"How many days has Zhang Yi been out?" Ling Li carried the small copper kettle with fire paint on the desk to the stove that had not yet been lit, and asked as he shook it back and forth.

"It's been almost half a month since Captain Zhang left the camp. In this cold winter, it's not easy to borrow things anywhere. Seeing that Ling Li was staring at the flames in the furnace without saying a word, Bai An dared to say again, "If His Highness doesn't accept those poor people in winter, our grain and grass can last for a while longer......"

"They're not asking for food." Ling Li said.

"It's about the same as asking for food. They are all the old, weak, sick and disabled people who have been laid off from the surrounding army, and they are all good at eating white rice, and they don't see any skills, and many of them can't even pull heavy bows......"

"Can't you pull it open?" Ling Li glanced at him and said, "They have experience in the army, and the fire head army and military horse farm can be used, and it is also suitable to develop the military camp." ”

The group of "people who ask for food" in Bai An's mouth are very useful in Ling Li's eyes. Most of these people are peasants in the Wuhualing area, who have retired from the army for many years and returned home, and found that their homes were in ruins, and they had long lost their relatives who cared about them day and night.

At first, it was just a few scattered people, and then somehow hundreds of people suddenly came in. Ling Li ordered people to investigate, only to learn that every winter, in order to reduce military pay expenses, the army in various places will lay off some old, weak, sick and disabled soldiers. Sometimes, in order to embezzle the capitation fee, the Overseers at the top kicked out soldiers who were not eligible for retrenchment.

Zhenxi revenue has left these people who have no return, and the already tight supply is being consumed faster and faster. Ling Li has gone through several folds to urge the allocation of military salaries, but no materials have been delivered for a long time. He sent several teams of men to raise supplies, but there was no news. In desperation, he thought of asking his uncle Cheng Beikui to borrow money.

"General, here, here they come!!" A guard on duty outside the tent rushed in with a shoulder of snowflakes and an excited face as he lifted the tent curtain.

"What's coming?" Ling Li frowned and asked.

"Grain and grass, grain and grass. Just now, the scout came to report that the convoy transporting grain and grass was almost to Liuli Gorge! ”

A strange color suddenly flashed in Ling Li's eyes, "Let's go, let's go and answer!" ”

Ling Li dropped the small copper kettle in his hand and strode towards the tent. Bai An hurriedly removed the cloak from the wooden frame and chased after him.

Liuli Gorge, as the name suggests, is six miles away from Zhenxiying.

Hearing that the grain and grass had arrived, Ling Li didn't care about the wind and snow, and rode over with a few guards. The convoy laden with grain and grass moved slowly, and when he reached the Liuli Gorge, the canyon was still silent, and there was not even a single beast's footprint left on the thick snow.

It was dark and it was about to fall into the night, and he was afraid that the convoy would get lost in the wind and snow, so Ling Li asked people to pick up dead branches and light a fire at the entrance of the canyon.

It was not easy to light a fire on the snow, and when a pile of firewood was burning with thick smoke, a team of carriages and horses appeared faintly at Taniguchi.

One, two, three, four, five......

The convoy got closer and closer, and everyone, like Ling Li, looked at the team of cars and horses that slowly appeared in the field of vision, and began to count them one by one in their hearts.

Eleven, twelve......

Ling Li straightened his waist on the horse's back and looked hard towards the back of the canyon until the pass was gradually swallowed up by the night, and no more carriages appeared.

"Are you the military master of the Zhenxi camp?" The carriage with the head gradually drove in front of him, and a middle-aged man with a round waist asked loudly.

"Exactly. Our general Zhenxi personally came to greet the grain and grass, where did you come from? Song You replied loudly.

"Fight forever. I didn't expect the snow to come so early this year, and this road is a bit bitter for the old men......" The middle-aged man nagged about the experience of the convoy along the way, complaining bitterly.

"Thank you all for your hard work. After a while, we arrived at the camp, and I gave everyone a hot pot of hot wine. After Song You calmed down, he turned back to Ling Li and said, "Your Highness, they are from Yongding. ”

Ling Li didn't respond, he stared straight at the end of the convoy, but it was not for a moment.

Song You followed Ling Li's line of sight and looked back, only to see a person dressed in navy blue, stepping on the snow, limping from the wind and snow.

The person escorting the car looks too thin, right? Song You muttered to himself. When the figure approached step by step, he couldn't help but be surprised: this, this person is clearly ...... That little girl from Anyuan Duwei Shu Jingcheng's family!

"Why are you here?" Ling Li's voice seemed to be frozen cold and hard by the wind and snow.

"I've always wanted to go to Anyuan to go to the grave for my father, Grandpa didn't worry about me going alone, this time there was a convoy of grain and grass to Jinlan Beach, so I followed by the way." Shu Mei, who was dressed in men's clothes, stopped in front of Ling Li's wind chasing horse, looked up at him, and squeezed out a smile on his cold red face.

"It's nonsense!" Ling Li dropped this sentence, and turned to the middle-aged man at the leader of the convoy and said, "There are still five or six miles away from the camp, and it will be dark soon, everyone hurry up!" ”

"Still in a hurry?!" The middle-aged man smiled bitterly, raised the order flag in his hand, and directed the convoy to move on.

"Miss Shu, it's very cold outside, go back to the carriage quickly." Seeing that Ling Li had gone to the front to lead the way, Song You stepped forward and said to Shu Mei.

"It's just very cold, so I ran over when I saw the fire." Shu Mei smiled awkwardly, then turned around and walked towards the carriage at the end of the line.

When the convoy arrived at the camp at Jinlantan, the soldiers who had heard the news in the morning rushed forward to help carry the supplies. In less than a quarter of an hour, a dozen wagons were empty.

"Report to the general, the grain has been cleared and returned to the warehouse, a total of nine truckloads of rice grain, two trucks of winter clothes, and one cart of quilts, please instruct!"

After counting the supplies, the quartermaster reported loudly to Ling Li, who was standing outside the warehouse.

Lu Yuqing, the secretary in charge who rushed to hear the news, frowned and asked, "There are only so many?" ”

"And a few more. Because it had been snowing heavily for the past two days, the road was not easy to walk, so I let them stay in the town in front of them first, and send them over when the snow stopped. It was not the leader of the team who replied, but Shu Mei who was standing aside.

"You let the convoy of grain and grass stay?" The quartermaster suddenly turned his head and said angrily, "Do you know how many people here are waiting for supplies?" Do you know how difficult it is to endure the lack of food and clothing in winter?! ”

Shu Mei had never seen such a battle, and he was so frightened that he took a step back.

"This military master, you are short of food and clothing, so isn't it difficult for us to drive in the snow? If it weren't for this little brother Shu's pleading, we wouldn't want to take this risk. The middle-aged man who led the team stepped forward and stopped in front of Shu Mei.

"Adventure?! Do you know that delaying the supply of supplies allocated by the imperial court is a felony to delay the military aircraft? The quartermaster grew angrier.

"These materials are not allocated by the imperial court." Ling Li, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke.

"Didn't it be allocated by the imperial court?" The quartermaster was stunned, then muttered, "No wonder I don't think the quantity and quality are right......"

"Isn't the quality right?" Shu Mei was anxious when he heard this, "I went to the merchant to inspect it in person, but I was afraid of being deceived, and I still used the name of grandpa......"

"You come with me, I have something to ask you." Afraid that if she continued to talk about it, her identity would be exposed, Ling Li interrupted.

Under the sympathetic gaze of everyone in the convoy, Shu Mei followed Ling Li to the Zhongjun tent.