She asked curiously, "Is that Northern Wei script?"
"Yes, Your Highness Consort!"
As Li Su finished speaking, Lu Qingwan heard a Xuanjia Army soldier babble a string of words. Before she could understand, Li Su let out a chuckle.
"His Highness truly shows his affection for you, the Consort, at all times!"
Lu Qingwan seemed to sense something. "What is that young soldier saying?"
She, a formidable counter-terrorism operative, was a genius fluent in major world languages and various Southeast Asian dialects. Yet, here, she was rendered blind.
Those few words didn't seem particularly special, but the language sounded somewhat familiar. She couldn't be sure if it was what she understood it to be.
Li Su's eyes narrowed into slits as she laughed. "He said that the Consort, out of compassion for the plight of the Northern Wei people, personally paid for it, even selling her dowry to help them through the winter.
He also said that the Northern Wei court is foolish, fighting wars every year, and causing their people to starve and go hungry. That is the court's foolishness, not the fault of the common people.
As long as the people live peacefully, His Highness and the Consort will not let them use their livestock to supply those foolish officials…"
Li Su couldn't help but laugh as she spoke.
Lu Qingwan, while deeply moved, also took the young soldier's words to heart.
"What he says is not without reason.
Both Northern Wei and Yun Qi want to fight in the winter, simply because they cannot feed themselves in their own territories.
It's clear that with their intelligence, they can't think of any other solution but to raid southward and seize resources.
Now that Northern Wei is our territory, we cannot allow unrest due to starvation.
Tell Li Jin to transport all the reserve grain I 'stole' from Nie Wuming here, to help the people of Northern Wei and Yun Qi get through this winter."
Li Su's little face fell. "Your Highness Consort, Northern Wei winters last half the year. Are you serious?"
While the grain was not insignificant, it was hardly enough to sustain the people of Northern Wei and Yun Qi.
Moreover, in Li Su's heart, using their own grain to feed the people of Northern Wei and Yun Qi was akin to a dog that swallows a meat bun – no return.
Lu Qingwan looked at her with a cool gaze. "Which is more important, grain or the lives of our soldiers?"
Li Su immediately conceded. "This subordinate admits her mistake. This subordinate will make the arrangements immediately."
…
"Your Highness Consort, we are nearing Jiuyuan. There is a battle ahead, shall we still proceed?"
Perhaps fearing that outsiders would overhear and disturb Lu Qingwan's peace, Ying Er deliberately lowered her voice to ask.
Lu Qingwan's gaze was fixed on the map of Northern Wei. "How much further to the front lines?"
Ying Er's voice came back. "By carriage, it's an hour and a half."
"Then let's go directly."
Lu Qingwan looked at the location of Jiuyuan on the map. "Next, it will be the Northern Wei imperial city, right?"
"At this speed, Your Highness Consort will soon return to the capital with His Highness."
Li Su said gleefully, "As the sole ruler of the three southeastern kingdoms, Your Highness Consort can think of a new dynasty name now. His Highness will definitely listen to you."
Lu Qingwan had ordered Qin Shi Guan to block the reinforcements from Southern Qi and Turkistan in the Yunzhong Forest, leaving Northern Wei's expected reinforcements empty-handed.
Si Fengwu, leading the Xuanjia Army, had almost swept through the central regions of Northern Wei like a hot knife through butter.
No wonder Li Su was so optimistic.
Lu Qingwan was also optimistic about the war situation, but she had no time to ponder new dynasty names. Instead, she was already considering matters after the conquest of Northern Wei.
Time passed exceptionally quickly when she was immersed in brainstorming.
Lu Qingwan was startled by the fierce shouts and realized that she had already reached the outskirts of Jiuyuan City.
The Xuanjia Army soldiers and the Northern Wei cavalry were clashing on the battlefield. The cannons were no longer visible, but the air was thick with the smell of gunpowder.
Li Su called out anxiously, "Your Highness Consort?"
She had not forgotten Lu Qingwan's condition. The sight of blood and the smell of gore might stimulate her. If she were to have an episode, Si Fengwu would surely be furious.
Lu Qingwan did feel a little uncomfortable, but not as much as before, when the sight of blood caused her to convulse and feel nauseous.
Hearing Li Su, she pushed away the head that Li Su had instinctively extended towards her. "It's not that exaggerated. If I were still that weak, wouldn't my desensitization therapy over the past year have been in vain?"
As she spoke, she took out her spyglass to look.
After searching for a while, she spotted three cannons behind the fortifications on the flank. She frowned. "With cannons, why are the soldiers still fighting hand-to-hand?
Is His Highness commanding this battle?"
Northern Wei was vast and resource-rich, and the Xuanjia Army was not advancing like moles digging tunnels.
Hundreds of thousands of Xuanjia Army soldiers and Great Gan Royal Army forces were spread across Northern Wei, blooming everywhere from south to north.
Si Fengwu was here simply because Jiuyuan was the gateway to the Northern Wei imperial city of Shengjing, making it the most strategically important location.
Seeing the deployment, she was somewhat bewildered.
"Are so many cannons and firearms not enough for His Highness to use?"
As resourceful as Li Su was, she couldn't possibly know Si Fengwu's combat thinking. She could only respectfully say, "Your Highness Consort, His Highness's forward command post is right there. Why don't we go over and ask His Highness ourselves?"
Indeed, Si Fengwu's forward command post was not far from them, at most two hundred zhang. Even riding a horse, the horse wouldn't be able to run fast.
Lu Qingwan looked down at her attire. "Get me that black cloak."
At the front lines, a uniform of rugged men. A woman dressed in red and green would be a living target.
Her own death would be of little consequence, but if she were targeted, Si Fengwu's strategic deployment would be ruined.
After changing her clothes and abandoning the carriage, Lu Qingwan decided to walk to Si Fengwu's central tent.
Only halfway there, Li Su suddenly exclaimed, "Your Highness Consort, look!"
As she looked up, Si Fengwu, dressed in armor, came into view.
Lu Qingwan's steps faltered slightly, then she quickened her pace, running towards him. Si Fengwu had already opened his arms wide, embracing Lu Qingwan fully.
Lu Qingwan was wearing a thick coat, and Si Fengwu could barely hold her. Feeling a fluffy mass in his arms, he couldn't help but chuckle. "Are you cold? Why didn't you come directly by carriage?"
"The carriage is too conspicuous. It might attract unwanted attention."
Lu Qingwan, too cold to even remove her hat, nudged Si Fengwu with her fluffy head as they walked into the tent. "Let's go in quickly, I'm freezing!"
A few subordinates who were preparing to salute her could only make way for Lu Qingwan with a wry smile.
Si Fengwu led the disoriented Lu Qingwan into the tent and directly pushed her onto the main seat.
"Hmm?"
Lu Qingwan's eyes lit up. "You actually have a heated brick bed in the tent?"
The seat beneath her was warm, with the distinct smoky smell of burning firewood.
Lu Qingwan, feeling comfortable, immediately lost the urge to move.