It seems we haven't reached a life-or-death situation yet. Should he not mention Princess Qinghe and annoy the young master?
Moreover, the princess intended to use this money to help the young master enroll, not to subsidize the army!
The army's provisions and clothing should be provided by the imperial court; we cannot use the young master's life-saving money!
Although he felt that his thinking was selfish, everyone is selfish!
He only wanted to protect the young master; as for the others, he didn't have the ability to interfere.
He's just a errand boy!
"General, the enemy is attacking!"
"Ready for battle!"
While Xiao Bei was still hesitating, Mo Lingchen had already dashed out.
The battle lasted for two days and two nights. Mo Lingchen's side suffered countless casualties, with a total of 20,000 dead, nearly half of the total.
In extreme weather, the soldiers bleed and sweat, their bodies quickly freezing and sticking tightly to their weapons, tearing off skin and flesh with every swing.
The vast majority of soldiers had frostbite on their feet to varying degrees, some even turning black and necrotic.
This is the home ground of the Northern Rong Kingdom. They have long been accustomed to such extreme weather and have accumulated cold-weather gear over thousands of years.
The army of the Great Ming Kingdom was already at a disadvantage, and then they were given fake cotton clothes and sand and gravel as food.
Li Quan scratched his head in despair: "How are we supposed to fight this battle?"
"We, these 50,000 men, are clearly here to die."
“The Northern Rong army came prepared, and now that they know we are poorly equipped and lack supplies, they will only take the opportunity to launch an even stronger attack.”
"In just two days, we've lost 20,000 men. Can the remaining 30,000 hold out for three more days?"
Li Quan's eyes were bloodshot with anger; he really didn't want to do this job anymore.
If it weren't for his wife, children, and elderly parents all being in the capital, he would really want to desert!
This is such a humiliating battle, it's impossible to fight!
Mo Lingchen remained silent, his lips pressed tightly together.
Xiao Bei, listening to Lieutenant General Li's angry outburst, realized just how serious the situation was.
Young master, you are truly facing a life-or-death situation!
If all these soldiers and generals die in battle, the young master will surely die on the battlefield as well.
He cannot and will not run away.
If the young master deserts, what will happen to the more than one hundred people in the Prime Minister's mansion?
"Go down and reassure the soldiers!"
A crushing defeat in the first battle is not a good start and will greatly dampen the morale of the soldiers!
Coupled with the shortage of food and clothing, they will only become more pessimistic.
"Sigh, the most practical way to appease them is to provide clothing, food, and rewards. Words alone are useless!!!"
Li Quan left, grumbling.
Mo Lingchen sat in his tent with a furrowed brow. It would take at least ten days for the battle report to reach the capital, and twenty days for the round trip.
Even if we retrieve it from nearby, it will take at least a month.
Those rice grains mixed with sand and gravel could barely last a month with two bowls of thin porridge a day.
Without cotton-padded clothes, coupled with the enemy's repeated fierce attacks, they probably wouldn't be able to hold out for even ten days!
Seeing Mo Lingchen's worried expression, Xiao Bei finally spoke up: "Young Master, why don't we go to the nearby prefectures and counties to buy a batch of winter clothes and boots?"
"This servant has money here!"
Mo Lingchen smiled wryly: "Thirty thousand sets, winter clothes and winter boots, not three-year sets."
"This servant has a lot of money!"
Xiao Bei grew up with him and usually received a lot of rewards, but at most, it only amounted to a hundred or so taels. What could that be enough for?
Seeing that Mo Lingchen didn't believe her, Xiao Bei turned and left.
Then he took a package from his bed and handed it to Mo Lingchen.
Mo Lingchen looked at him in confusion: "Are you leaving?"
"Young master, open it and take a look."
Mo Lingchen glanced at him, opened the package, and froze.
A thick stack of silver notes, including large denomination notes of one thousand taels of silver, were all packed in a transparent cloth bag.
Mo Lingchen counted them and found that there were as many as 200,000 taels.
Where did you get those silver notes?
"Given by the princess!"
Mo Lingchen was stunned. He remembered that before he left, she had indeed given him a package, which he had slapped open.
When Peony died, he wished he could kill her with his own hands, so why would he want her money?
Moreover, even the most favored princess wouldn't have that much personal money.
Is this money ill-gotten?
Seeing that he remained silent, Xiao Bei quickly explained, "Young master, I originally didn't want to accept it, but... the princess knelt down and begged me. I was so frightened that I accepted it without thinking."
"She knelt down before you?" Mo Lingchen looked up abruptly.
Xiao Bei was so frightened that she immediately knelt down: "It wasn't this servant who made the princess kneel. Even if you gave this servant a hundred lives, this servant wouldn't dare."
"Princess, you prepared this money because you encountered danger on the battlefield."
"Although the princess is wicked, the fact that she knelt down to this servant for the sake of the young master shows her deep affection for you."
"The princess was coughing up blood and pleading, she didn't even have the strength to speak. Even though she was dying, she still cared for you so much, I couldn't bear to refuse."
"And this servant also has his own selfish motives. If I encounter any grievances, having some money will be helpful in an emergency."
As Mo Lingchen listened to Xiao Bei's words, imagining the scene of Chu Qinghe kneeling down and begging Xiao Bei, he felt a mix of emotions.
It's complicated; there's hatred, resentment, and a touch of heartache!
"Get up."
Did she say where the money came from?
“The princess didn’t say, but there’s a letter in that bag.” Xiao Bei pointed to the letter mixed in with the silver notes.
Mo Lingchen opened the envelope and saw the neat and beautiful handwriting on it. His eyes widened suddenly, and his heart pounded.
Is this handwriting by a peony?
"Is this a letter she wrote?"
"It should be...right?" Xiao Bei was also confused. If it wasn't the princess's letter, then whose could it be?
Perhaps it's a letter from the Prime Minister!
Xiao Bei didn't understand that Mo Lingchen was referring to the handwriting!
Mo Lingchen suppressed his inner turmoil and unease and carefully read the contents of the letter.
The gist of it was telling him to take care of himself and make sure he came back safely.
He also explained the source of his money.
She said that Su Yujiao was always shrewd. She suddenly cleared a large area of land to plant a crop that she had never seen before, and the Crown Prince also planted it, in even larger quantities.
So she followed suit and planted it too; it couldn't be wrong.
She only realized how high the potato yield was when it was harvest time, and it just so happened to be a year of famine, so she sold the potatoes to the people at a low price, which was both a good deed and a way to make money.
This means that these banknotes are of legitimate origin, and he can use them with peace of mind.
Mo Lingchen stared at the words again and again. How could Chu Qinghe imitate them so perfectly?
Is this really not Peony's handwriting?
Seeing Mo Lingchen staring blankly at the letter, Xiao Bei whispered a reminder: "Young Master, Deputy General Li requests an audience."
Mo Lingchen realized what was happening, folded the letter neatly, put it back in the envelope, and carefully kept it close to his body.
Seeing his actions, Xiao Bei thought to herself that perhaps the young master had been moved by the princess's sincerity, otherwise why would he cherish the letter written by the princess so much?
Unfortunately, the young master was unlucky; all the women he loved left him.
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