Upon hearing that grain would be offered as a reward, Huo's army, like wolves, slaughtered the Northern Barbarian army, causing them to howl in agony.

Many of the northern barbarian soldiers were cut down and lay on the ground, struggling to escape in a panic.

But as soon as he stood up, he was shot through the heart by an archer hidden on the cliff.

The mere three thousand Huo family soldiers, working together flawlessly, annihilated the thirty thousand Northern Barbarian troops, leaving not a single survivor.

The battle raged until noon, and Huo's army won a great victory!

When Zheng Hu and Ling Tianen returned to the city, the people at the city gate swarmed forward, lifted the two high, and threw them into the air.

Cheers stretched for hundreds of meters from the city gate.

Ling Tianen led his soldiers, chatting and laughing, all the way to the military camp, and knelt down in front of Qin Yuezhao.

"Your Highness, we have won the battle! The entire Northern Barbarian army has been wiped out!"

Qin Yue Zhao helped him up and asked, "Good, that's great! Where's Mog? Is he dead?"

Ling Tianen shook his head: "Of the entire Northern Barbarian vanguard, only Mog and his strategist ran fast. I don't know where they found the path in the forest, but they actually ran through the forest!"

Are they familiar with the surrounding terrain?

"Hmm, I don't seem to know Mog very well, but I know the strategist very well!"

Upon hearing this, Qin Yue Zhao suddenly remembered something and asked, "What does that military advisor look like?"

Ling Tianen thought for a moment, "That person was tall and thin, with very fair skin, thick eyebrows and big eyes, and looked quite presentable, but he had a scar on the corner of his right eye, running from his eyebrow to his temple."

Qin Yue Zhao's expression changed, and she stood up.

"Could it be Huo Zisu?"

Ling Tianen asked curiously, "Who is Huo Zisu? How come he also has the surname Huo?"

Qin Yue Zhao frowned, not answering his question, but urging, "It's alright, take your men down to collect the reward."

"Really? I killed over a hundred northern barbarians, so I'll get a lot of food."

"Reward! Receive your reward according to the number of ears you brought back!"

Ling Tianen was somewhat embarrassed.

"But as far as I know, the military camp doesn't have that much food."

Qin Yue Zhao smiled and pointed at Steward Chen.

"This is the steward of the General's Mansion. Follow him to the General's Mansion to receive your reward."

Upon hearing this, all the soldiers went down happily.

The general's mansion gates opened, revealing mountains of grain, vegetables, and meat; all the soldiers stared wide-eyed.

Good heavens! Did the gods send food while they were away fighting?

The new recruits, in particular, were as excited as a group of children, rushing into the pile of vegetables, touching and looking at everything.

Qin Yue Zhao had them line up, and Steward Chen distributed rice and vegetables.

Immediately, the courtyard echoed with the resounding reports of the young soldiers:

"Wang Dali has killed thirty enemy soldiers from the Northern Barbarians. He will be rewarded with thirty catties of rice, thirty catties of pork, and thirty catties of cabbage!"

"Zhao Erhu has killed 45 enemy soldiers. He will be rewarded with 45 catties of rice, 45 catties of pork, and cabbage!"

"Ling Tianen killed 160 enemy soldiers and obtained 160 catties each of rice, cabbage and pork!"

"..."

These reports made the other soldiers eager to fight the Northern Barbarians again!

The soldiers who received the food were overjoyed and wept tears of joy.

Wang Dali held Zhao Erhu tightly, choking back tears.

"That's wonderful, that's wonderful! My family is all farmers, and I'm the only one who's become a soldier. I've not only brought honor to my family, but I've also received so much grain. My mother and father will never have to go hungry again!"

Zhao Erhu's voice trembled with excitement.

"That's right. My wife was pregnant before, but a natural disaster struck and the baby starved to death in her womb. Now we finally have rice and meat, so we can give her a good rest."

Ling Tianen patted them on the shoulder.