The huge military camp was completely silent. Everyone looked up at the young man on the platform, as if they were looking at their own faith.

This was a swearing-in ceremony before departure, and Du Shaoxuan, standing on the stage, was very passionate.

"When our Du Family Army was first established, we swore an oath to defend our country and protect the people of Daqi. I think we have done it over the past hundred years."

"For hundreds of years, we have been stationed in Xiliang and guarding our territory, and we will never let invaders set foot in."

"Today, the border war has reignited. Northern Chu and Western Wu have brazenly sent out troops to burn, kill, and plunder our territory. They have committed all kinds of evil, killing our relatives and insulting our sisters. As soldiers of the Great Qi, can we agree to this?"

The soldier's blood boiled, he raised his hands and shouted, "No, no!"

The sun shone on Du Shaoxuan, as if covered with a layer of golden light, shining brightly, "Then let's fight, for our beloved family, for this beloved land, fight, and swear to drive out the invaders."

"Drive them out! Drive them out!" The shouts were as overwhelming as a tidal wave.

…

Not far away, Mu Wanqing watched this scene silently with mixed feelings.

War is always filled with blood and killing. Of these people who leave, how many will be able to return?

After an unknown amount of time, Du Shaoxuan came over, eyes full of joy, "Wanqing, why are you here?"

Mu Wanqing rarely appears here unless there is something important. "I'm here to give you a parting gift."

Du Shaoxuan was stunned. "Uh, no, no need. I don't know when I will be back. If..."

He hesitated for a moment, "If anything happens, please take care of my family when it's convenient for you."

He believed in Mu Wanqing's ability. There was no one smarter than her in the entire Xiliang city.

If the army is defeated, the Du family, who have been stationed at the border for a hundred years, will be the first to bear the brunt and there will be no chance of escape.

Mu Wanqing's eyes were cold, "Nothing will happen, take care of your family yourself."

Du Shaoxuan was somewhat delighted. Was she caring about him?

"Okay, no, no, you... just be careful and bring more people with you when you go out or you can take your people back to the capital to stay temporarily."

This is not Mu Wanqing’s hometown. The Mu family can return to the capital at any time.

In the entire Great Qi Kingdom, the safest place is naturally the capital.

Once the war breaks out, he will not be able to control the situation.

In fact, Mu Wanqing had already arranged several escape routes so that they could retreat to a safe area as quickly as possible once the war broke out.

However, Du Shaoxuan cannot retreat, and the Du family army cannot retreat either. They must either win or die in battle!

"Don't worry about me. I have an army of women at my disposal. They are pretty capable and are more than enough to protect me."

This was the first time Du Shaoxuan had heard of this. He was stunned for a while, "Did you predict it in advance?"

She is a magical girl with magical powers.

"Yes." Mu Wanqing's black eyes sparkled.

This private armed force is hidden in the farm and no one knows about it, but it is her trump card and her life-saving talisman.

No matter when, if you want to live well, you must have a force of your own.

Du Shaoxuan was really impressed by her. "You have always been very smart. I have nothing to worry about. Take care of yourself and live a long life."

He originally wanted to send a small team to her to escort her away from the war-torn Liangcheng in times of danger.

It seems that it is useless. She is stronger than I thought. That's good.

He had a lot more to say, but he swallowed it all back when it came to his lips, suppressing all the reluctance and nostalgia in his heart.

The road ahead is long and uncertain, and if we never come back, then... let those feelings be buried forever.

He just wants her to be happy!

Leave the regrets to yourself, take one more look, and one more look.

But Mu Wanqing was such a smart person that she knew everything even if he didn't say it. She had mixed feelings in her heart.

It was this tenderness that made her make up her mind. She stopped struggling. "Come on, I'll take you to a place."

Du Shaoxuan was stunned and shook his head subconsciously, "I can't leave. I am the young commander of the Du family army."

Mu Wanqing rolled her eyes at him, "What are you thinking about? Can I elope with you?"

Du Shaoxuan: ...

Mu Wanqing took Du Shaoxuan to a remote place. Du Shaoxuan was a little confused about what she wanted to do.

"Watch carefully." Mu Wanqing took a deep breath, took out a small colorful flag from her arms, and raised her hand.

"Boom." There was a violent vibration under my feet, and a small hill not far away was overturned.

Du Shaoxuan was stunned, his eyes widened, "This... this is..."

Mu Wanqing looked disappointed. "This is gunpowder. It has great lethality and can sweep away everything on the battlefield."

She had always been reluctant to develop gunpowder, but once this thing came out, it would change the course of the future.

Gunpowder will eventually spread out and get out of control, and then people will suffer...

"I didn't want to bring this killer weapon into the world, but I don't want anything to happen to you."

Du Shaoxuan's heart was beating violently, and he spoke slurred words nervously, "Are you... worried about me?"

Mu Wanqing looked at him deeply, "We are friends, Du Shaoxuan, you will live a long life too, let's live well together."

Just friends? Du Shaoxuan felt sour in his heart, but also a little sweet. Friends who live a long life together seem to be quite sweet.

"good."

Mu Wanqing brought boxes of saltpeter, sulfur and charcoal, which are the main ingredients of gunpowder.

Saltpeter can also be used to make ice. Mu Wanqing had stockpiled a lot of it before, planning to sell smoothies and use it for cooling down in the snack street.

As for sulfur, realgar can be used instead.

Mu Wanqing gave him the formula, and Du Shaoxuan immediately called his personal guards to conduct experiments on the spot.

At the beginning, the ratio was wrong and I failed a few times, but then I slowly figured out the correct proportion.

"Boom." The gunpowder exploded, blowing everything nearby away.

The guards were ecstatic, ahhhhh, they didn't have to worry about going off to die.

With such a magical weapon, what are you afraid of?

The Princess of Qingping County is mighty and majestic. From now on, the Princess is their living Bodhisattva, and they burn three sticks of incense to offer her morning and evening.

Mu Wanqing listened to everyone's flattery with a slight smile on her face. Well, she was indeed pretty awesome.

Du Shaoxuan's eyes lit up, and he gained confidence in this war. "Thank you, Mu Wanqing. On behalf of the Mu family army and the people of Xiliang, I thank you."

Mu Wanqing smiled slightly and said, "I am also a part of Xiliang. It is everyone's responsibility to defend the country."

Du Shaoxuan had always known that she was very beautiful, and now she looked even more beautiful than a fairy. He suddenly said, "The killing caused by gunpowder has nothing to do with you. You just provided the recipe. I gave the order, so I bear all the sins."

Mu Wanqing pursed her lips. This man really... made her feel soft-hearted.

She doesn't want to be involved in bloodshed, but if she is forced into a desperate situation, she doesn't mind killing people.

Sometimes, killing can only be used to stop killing. War does not believe in tears or mercy.

"I will take care of the food and grass for your team. Just focus on fighting in the front, and I will be at your back."

This joy came so suddenly that Du Shaoxuan was stunned. "Where did you get so much food?"

He knew the maximum capacity of her military food workshop, which was far from enough to supply the materials needed for the war.

Before troops move, food and fodder must be sent first. Once a war begins, supply from the rear is very important.

The court's military equipment and food supplies have not yet been delivered, so they can only collect a portion from the Xiliang area, which is only enough to supply my father.

He could only use the Du family's warehouse and the wealth accumulated by several generations to buy food and fodder.

If the country is no longer a country, how can there be a home?

Mu Wanqing had already made sufficient preparations. "Before the New Year, I purchased a large amount of food from various places through Guo Er, and the military food workshop has already stockpiled thousands of boxes of instant noodles."

The female soldiers train for half a day and work in the workshop for half a day, making instant noodles in the military ration workshop. Instant noodles have a long shelf life and can be eaten dry. Just soak them in hot water and they are ready to eat. It is very convenient.

"As for alfalfa, it was not cost-effective to reclaim land and grow other things on the small farms of my family last year, so we planted alfalfa. We didn't sell it, so we stored all the alfalfa." This is what the war horses eat.

"Wanqing, you..." Du Shaoxuan was ecstatic. She was such a treasure.

Mu Wanqing put her index finger to her lips and made a shushing gesture, "Don't tell anyone. I don't want to be accused of spreading evil words to confuse the public."

When Xiwu and Beichu proposed to Miss Ji at the same time, Mu Wanqing had a close contact with them and came to a conclusion.

War is coming.

She mentioned it to Du Shaoxuan a few times, but it was none of her business whether Du Shaoxuan believed it or not, so she started to prepare secretly.

Stockpiling more food has always been a fine tradition in our country. Mu Wanqing specially built several large warehouses to store food and medicinal materials.

She purchased a lot of things through Guo Er. She had a business and a snack street as a cover, so she did not attract the attention of the outside world.

Du Shaoxuan was filled with joy and wanted to pick her up and spin her around in circles, but he didn't dare.

"Do you have enough money? If not, I have..."

"Let's talk about it later. I'm not short of money for now." Mu Wanqing added, "By the way, my family's farms planted wheat, rapeseed, peanuts and sesame in the spring, covering tens of thousands of acres. I also stockpiled three years' worth of rice and wheat, enough to feed 30,000 people."

These are enough to support Du Shaoxuan in leading his troops to fight for a year or two.

Of course, even if there was no war, she could digest these things by just preparing more food.

Du Shaoxuan finally understood why Mu Wanqing always liked to stay on the farm and why she did so many things secretly.

"I'm so lucky to have met you."

Mu Wanqing's eyebrows curved, and she smiled proudly, "That's right, I think so too."

"Thank you, Mu Wanqing." Du Shaoxuan's heart was full of confidence that he would win. With Mu Wanqing's full assistance, he would definitely win!

"You're welcome. This is considered an advance investment. When you win the war, I will gain a lot." Mu Wanqing doesn't know how to fight, so she can only help him with this.

War is never a matter of a few people, but the vital interests of the people of both countries.

The two smiled at each other, and the atmosphere was very pleasant.

Suddenly, a flurry of footsteps sounded, "Young Marshal, Young Marshal, something happened, Marshal Du...he was seriously injured."

Like a thunderbolt, Du Shaoxuan turned back fiercely, eyes full of disbelief, "Nonsense, this is impossible, my father is the commander-in-chief of an army."

The commander-in-chief is responsible for commanding the overall situation and directing the battle, rather than fighting in person.

Even on the battlefield, he was surrounded from all sides, and the enemy could not easily approach him.

The soldier's eyes were red with anger, "It was an arrow shot from behind."

Du Shaoxuan's mind went blank, and his limbs felt cold despite the hot weather...