He Jiuniang had already researched the directions and distances between the several countries beforehand, and since she was going to the border to find Prince Jing, she drove very fast.
Fortunately, the weather was good throughout the journey, and we didn't encounter any special situations. We arrived at the border at noon on the second day.
After finding a safe place to land, He Jiuniang disguised herself as a messenger soldier, showed the token given to her by Lu Baichuan, and easily entered the military camp.
This was her first time visiting a border military camp in this era. The sky was filled with yellow sand, the environment was harsh, and the soldiers' conditions in the camp were not optimistic.
They looked listless and lifeless, and some of them were injured with rough bandaging.
With soldiers in such a state, it's no wonder the Eastern Court people don't take the 100,000-strong border army seriously.
He Jiuniang glanced around, then walked through the crowd towards the main tent.
"Have you heard? It seems we're about to go to war with Dongting!"
"Fight my ass! It was just a casual remark. If we were going to fight, we would have done it already!"
"Not necessarily. Haven't you noticed that His Highness Prince Jing has been quite attentive lately? Perhaps the political climate in the court has shifted."
"If you're going to fight, then fight sooner rather than later. I've been on this border for four or five years, and I've hardly ever fought a real war. All I know how to do is put up with those bastards. It's so frustrating!"
...
Although they were stationed on the border, the generals turned a blind eye when the other side didn't go too far. After all, war couldn't be started easily without the imperial court's permission, as that would disrupt the superficial peace.
If the imperial court were to hold these generals accountable, they would be the ones to bear the responsibility, ranging from being dismissed from their posts to having their property confiscated and being beheaded.
Of course, minor skirmishes are common on ordinary days, with very few casualties, and they don't even need to be reported.
Because of this, the soldiers lost all interest in training and couldn't muster the energy to do anything. They figured there was no point in training since it was pointless anyway.
He Jiu Niang then realized that the soldiers were listless because they felt there was nothing to look forward to. No matter how much the Eastern Court provoked them, a real war would not break out, so they had no interest in training.
In fact, from this perspective, the soldiers' thinking wasn't wrong. If the country didn't dare to fight, what good would their bravery do? They might as well just stay put and give up.
He Jiuniang frowned, feeling that the current situation was not good. If they did not intensify their training, the chances of Beiyan winning when they actually fought Dongting would not be very high.
No wonder Prince Jing was in such a hurry to ask Lu Baichuan for the training manual; this really can't go on.
Soon, they arrived outside the main tent. The soldier who had led the way went in to report and quickly came out to let her in.
He Jiuniang thanked him and went inside. There was only Prince Jing in the tent. He was standing by the table studying the terrain map with a serious expression on his face.
The moment He Jiuniang saw him, she felt that Prince Jing had changed. He no longer had the arrogance she had seen in the capital; he was much more composed, and his skin had darkened considerably.
In He Jiuniang's eyes, Prince Jing is now a grown-up.
"Your Highness, I am here on General Lu's orders to deliver a message. This is General Lu's latest training plan. Please do not divulge it to anyone."
He Jiuniang adopted the demeanor of an ordinary soldier, bowed respectfully, and even altered her voice, so Prince Jing had no suspicions whatsoever.
"How could it be so fast? Logically speaking, he should have just received my letter by now."
Prince Jing frowned, somewhat doubting the timeliness of the letter, but still took the envelope, opened it, and found that it was indeed Lu Baichuan's handwriting, along with his personal seal.
The handwriting is a little messy, and it looks like it was written in a hurry.
He Jiuniang explained, "Our general knows that Your Highness needs it urgently, so he ordered his subordinates to deliver it day and night. He also said that a great battle is imminent, and asked Your Highness to intensify his training. He will also lead troops to support the general soon."
"Oh? He's going to do it himself?"
Prince Jing glanced at He Jiuniang, but did not suspect anything, and continued to look at the proposal written by Lu Baichuan.
This plan, which combined the insights and ideas of He Jiuniang and Lu Baichuan, was considered perfect. However, Prince Jing frowned, feeling that it was too idealistic and might be difficult to implement.
"Yes, our general does have this idea. If it really comes to war, our general will never back down."
He Jiuniang closed her eyes and praised her husband. Prince Jing nodded in agreement, but then said, "That is indeed his personality. However, are you sure this plan will work? When you came, you should have seen the state of those soldiers outside. Let alone training them, it's difficult to even get them to move."
As he spoke, he looked up at He Jiuniang, hoping she could give him an explanation, otherwise he would really doubt the authenticity of the plan.
He Jiuniang immediately said, "When my general first took over the military camp outside the city, the situation in our camp was much worse than here. But under the joint training of you and our general, everyone has improved rapidly. If Your Highness doesn't believe me, you can find someone to spar with me. As for Your Highness's concern that they might not cooperate, that's even simpler. Your Highness's status is what it is. If you deal with a few troublemakers in public, who would dare to say a word?"
As she said this, He Jiuniang smiled and looked at Prince Jing. This time, Prince Jing finally noticed her and felt that her smile was very familiar.
In my memory, that woman also liked to talk to him while laughing at him with a slightly sarcastic tone.
But, it's one thing for that woman to laugh at him, but now even a lowly soldier dares to disregard him?
However, he didn't delve into it further. Instead, he noticed another key point in her words and asked, "You mean, He Jiuniang also went to the military camp?"
"When the general was too busy before, my sister-in-law went to the military camp to help out for a while. My sister-in-law is indeed my sister-in-law; she taught me all sorts of killer moves that can easily establish military power!"
As she spoke, she displayed an excited and admiring expression. Prince Jing glanced at her with some disdain and said, "Look at your pathetic self, you're nothing but a woman!"
Prince Jing was furious. He didn't want to admit that he was no match for that woman. Moreover, he only realized after arriving here that the things that woman had given him before could really save lives. Several times he had almost been assassinated, and those things saved him.
There are also Lu Hei Ya seasoning packets. There's nothing good to eat here, and my mouth is so bland. I'm only able to keep myself full thanks to those seasoning packets!
He Jiuniang glanced at him sideways and deliberately said, "Our sister-in-law has a bad temper. If she knew His Highness said that about her, she probably..."
"How will she know if you don't tell her?"
Prince Jing glared at him coldly, his words carrying a strong warning.
But why does he feel that this soldier's personality is so similar to that woman's? Could it be that all the soldiers who were led by that woman are like that?
Even he isn't afraid anymore?
Thinking about this, I felt a surge of displeasure again.
He Jiuniang quickly put on a respectful act, which pleased Prince Jing greatly.
"Alright, since you've come from the capital, let me see what you're capable of. Let's go!"
Prince Jing put the paper in his pocket; he was indeed quite looking forward to it.
The fact that this soldier dared to volunteer to demonstrate his abilities shows that he is quite confident in his skills. Let him see for himself whether he is really that good.
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