Chapter 1257: War Drums Beat

Lord.Before the fourth hour, Feng Lingxi and Xiaoli returned to the Holy Maiden Hall from the Yaozu's forbidden land. They bathed and changed into the attire of the Holy Master, preparing for the enth..."I just want to go and see where that place is, I'm not going into the mountains."

Xiao Li shook her head like a tambourine, “Your Highness, please don’t take any more risks. I’m not afraid of death, but the King ordered me not to let Your Highness go past Dong Mian.”

Feng Lingxi looked at Xiao Li standing in front of her, eyes firm, refusing to budge an inch. Feng Lingxi gave up, "Fine, let's wait for him to come back and talk then."

Xiao Li only then let out a sigh of relief. The Wangye had given her a thousand warnings, reminding her time and again not to allow the Crown Princess to take any risks. If she were to let the Crown Princess go, it would be fine if nothing happened. But if something did happen, even if she tried everything, she wouldn't be able to escape blame.

"Your Highness, your servant has prepared some food for you. Let's eat something first."

Feng Lingxi responded and, looking at the soldiers in this camp, saw that they were all downcast because of the missing soldiers on the east front and the three corpses. The atmosphere was one of fear and uncertainty.

"Xiao Li, notify me the moment the prince returns."

Feng Lingxi returned to the camp tent and looked at the breakfast the soldiers had brought, but she had no appetite at all.

Things have been happening one after another lately, there hasn't been a single good thing. Every day I feel so anxious and on edge, no matter who it is, their mood would be affected.

Xiao Li nodded and served the queen a bowl of porridge, "Your Majesty, how about you eat some first."

Feng Lingxi lowered her head and took a bite of the steamed bun. It was filled with meat, but Feng Lingxi couldn't stomach it. She remembered that the soldiers' rations were never very good, and it was difficult to even get some meat. Every time she came, she had to consider her own rations.

"Xiao Li, if we ever come to the military camp in the future, tell the fellow soldiers that they don't need to prepare extra food for us. We'll eat whatever they have, just like them. Also, every month, be sure to check the army's rations and see how the soldiers are doing."

"Your Highness, with an army of 500,000, just providing for their food and clothing is a major issue. It's already difficult enough to ensure they have enough to eat and wear warm clothes... As for anything else..."

"Food is important; without a body, there's no strength to defend one's home and country."

Xiao Li responded, Feng Ling Xi holding the bowl of buns walked out. Walking through the military camp, soldiers were training. Seeing Feng Ling Xi arrive, they saluted. This was breakfast time, and many soldiers lined up for porridge, eating buns in a corner.

Feng Lingxi watched them gobbling down the buns and stepped forward to ask, "What kind of filling is in these buns"

Seeing Feng Lingxi, the soldier hurriedly stood up, swallowing the steamed bun in his mouth. He hastily bowed to Feng Lingxi and said, “Reporting to Your Royal Highness, this is a steamed bun.”

"In a month, will it be possible to eat meat Will it be enough to fill your stomach"

When the soldiers heard Feng Ling's question, some of them panicked and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, we eat well and are warm here. Everything is good."

Seeing the anxious expressions of these soldiers, Feng Lingxi offered him the bun in her bowl. “I’ll trade with you.”

"My Lady, you are the Princess. How could I possibly..."

Feng Lingxi put the steamed buns in his bowl and took over the only remaining bun in his bowl. He took a bite, but it had no taste at all. The rice porridge in their bowls was really thin, with more water and less rice.

"Just eat it, it's fine."

Feng Lingxi got up and walked towards the barracks, looking at the soldiers inside. They were gnawing on steamed buns, and when they saw Feng Lingxi arrive, they hurriedly stood up and saluted, "Your Majesty pays respects to the Princess."

"No need for formalities." Looking at the steamed buns in their hands, Feng Lingxi asked, "You're just going to eat these"

Seeing them nod, Feng Lingxi's mood grew even heavier. "Tell me about the rations in the army camp, what do you eat for three meals a day Can it fill your stomach"

"They could eat their fill. Breakfast was porridge and steamed buns, flatbreads. Lunch had rice and vegetables. Once a month they would have meat."

"Can the soldiers' bodies take it"

Five hundred thousand soldiers require a staggering amount of provisions. However, these soldiers have followed Dugu City for so many years. Without the support of the imperial court, they rely entirely on Dugu City's support from Ti Xiang Lou. It has been extremely difficult to keep them fed and clothed.

“Your Majesty, we don't need to fight wars now. We have enough food and warmth, which is already very good. General Yumo told us that during our leisure time, we have also raised many cattle and sheep here in our camp. When they grow up, we will be able to improve our rations.”

When mentioning Feng Yu Mo, Feng Ling Xi's mood became heavy.

"If you need anything in the future, just mention it to Yumo. If you can't find them, you can come directly to Chen Wangfu to find me."

Feng Lingxi looked at Xiaoli, “Let’s go.”

Coming out of the barracks, Xiaoli hurriedly asked, "Your Highness, are you trying to improve the soldiers' rations With 500,000 soldiers, just feeding them is frightening. If you also want to add meat to their meals, it will be really difficult."

“You heard them say no, Yu Mo took them into the camp and raised cattle and sheep. Our side of the grassland has more pastoralists, so these pastoralists raise more animals. We will buy back the cattle and sheep and give them to the camp. At times like New Year's festivals, we can supplement the soldiers' rations.”

This time, the emperor's gift of ten thousand taels of gold would be enough for them to buy a lot.

Since they all followed Dugu City, she couldn't mistreat these soldiers, at least, let their efforts be worthwhile.

Although her idea was good, Feng Lingxi knew very well that it wasn't easy to support half a million soldiers, let alone provide them with extra meals.

Dugu City returned to the military camp at noon and saw Feng Lingxi was still there. He was a little surprised and hurried over.

"Xier, why don't you return to the mansion"

"Waiting for you."

Before Du Gucheng could even feel touched, Feng Lingxi's next words left him feeling down. “I want to go take a look at the east side. This morning, three bodies were found on the east side. They were the first batch of missing soldiers. All three had their tendons severed and several cuts all over their bodies, causing them to bleed to death.”

Feng Lingxi saw that Dugu City was silent and hurriedly said, "They died last night. If they were the first batch of soldiers to be killed by bloodletting, it is very possible that there will be a second batch tomorrow."

Soon, it will be Yu Mo's turn. She can't let Feng Yu Mo get hurt.

She must find them, no matter what their reasons are, she has to face them.

"Your Majesty, I'm already aware of this. But going to the crime scene could cause unnecessary trouble. We might inadvertently encourage the perpetrator to harm other soldiers. We don't even know who they are yet! What if they find out we were there and target the next victim Don't you think we would be responsible for their fate"

"Must we just wait for them to find us"

Feng Lingxi's whole person was like a deflated balloon, slumped there dejectedly, her eyes filled with unwillingness. She just wanted to take a look, wasn't that allowed

Dugu Cheng looked at Feng Lingxi like this, his heart was also very uncomfortable, but he had no way. Just received the news from Luoli, telling him to wait for news and absolutely not to act privately. Wait until he figured it out before taking action, otherwise, the consequences would be borne by himself.nned. He looked up to meet Feng Lingxi's earnest gaze, and his heart ached even more."Doesn't she just not want to live anymore"She said, "Someday you'll understand."Feng Lingxi looked at Li Wuyan, "A...