Jiang Jin nodded. "Good. First, let her train in our military camp and get used to our military regulations and commands."
Remembering something, she said with a smile, "Let her go to Lin County this time."
She didn't know exactly what skills Hua Ruo had. However, as someone from a military family, she should be good in normal circumstances.
It would be a waste of talent for someone with such a foundation to be just a common soldier.
There was a fierce battle in Lin County. If she really had the ability, she could earn military merits and be promoted reasonably.
Mu Ning immediately understood Jiang Jin's intention.
Jiang Jin was actually giving Hua Ruo a special privilege. Under normal circumstances, unless it was a large - scale battle, a "new recruit" like Hua Ruo wouldn't be sent to the battlefield.
This was clearly an opportunity to gain military merits.
She replied, "Don't worry, Lord. She has already been training with the soldiers in the barracks."
At this time, Hua Ruo didn't know that she would soon participate in a city - siege battle. Since she arrived in Gefeng, she had been assigned to the barracks.
She then learned that there were so many female soldiers in the Jinyang Army!
And Shuangjiang, who came back with them, looked like a child but was already a regimental commander.
It was said that she was incredibly strong and that she had cut down a general of Qu Zhao's army with a single sword strike. She was one of the earliest people to follow the Lord.
She also learned that the captain of the elite Dragon Shadow Guards of the Jinyang Army was also a woman.
And Mu Ning was the head of the intelligence group.
More importantly, the Lord of the Jinyang Army was also a woman!
Here, regardless of gender, only achievements were considered.
She touched the cotton - padded uniform of the Jinyang Army on her body. This was a symbol of her identity. Now, she was also a member of the Jinyang Army!
Although she was currently just a common soldier, she believed in her own strength.
A smile appeared on her face, filled with enthusiasm and pride.
In Gefeng City, Ma Feng and An Liuliang were like country bumpkins in a big city. They had lived for so long but had never seen such a prosperous city. They found everything novel.
An Liuliang was assigned to Green Mountain Village. He came to Gefeng City specifically to buy winter supplies today. He saw Ma Feng when queuing up at the city gate and then entered the city together with him.
"Th - th - there are so many people," he finally managed to say.
Ma Huan felt that her eyes weren't enough to take in everything. "All the houses are new, and the streets are so clean. Is that a tavern over there? What are they doing? It smells so good!"
"Wow, the clothes they're wearing are so strange. Where can I buy them?"
"Hiss, what's that person selling in the cart over there? It's red and black. It looks so delicious." She couldn't help but swallow her saliva.
An Liuliang's daughter, An Xin, who came with them, also had a sparkle in her eyes. "I know, I know. I heard that they have a kind of food called sweet potatoes. They're delicious when roasted. That should be it."
Ma Huan wiped the non - existent saliva from the corner of her mouth. "I wonder if it's expensive? Can we grow them too?"
An Xin seemed to have inquired relatively clearly. "It's said that they can be grown in the courtyard. There are seeds for sale in the grocery store, and there are also many vegetable seeds. The yield is so high that it can pile up like a mountain."
Ma Huan looked at her father. "Father, let's also buy some seeds."
Ma Feng sighed helplessly. "Alright. We're going to the grocery store to buy rice anyway. Then we'll ask how much the seeds cost. If they're not expensive, we'll buy some."
"Did you bring the grain tickets?" he asked his wife.
His wife nodded and tightly protected the package in her arms, which contained various tickets and all the family's copper coins.
To be honest, she was a bit nervous, afraid that someone would steal or rob her package.
She was also worried inside. She wondered what the grain price was in Gefeng. Was it as cheap as what Master Chen said?
Ma Huan grabbed her arm. "Mother, don't be nervous. Look, there are many soldiers patrolling the streets."
His wife looked up and indeed saw many soldiers patrolling the streets. She secretly let out a sigh of relief. The escape during this period had made her fully trust the Jinyang Army.
Not long after, they arrived at the grocery store. But at this time, buying things was like a scramble, with a long queue.
The group looked at each other, not knowing what to say. To save time, they decided to split up.
After all, it was still quite far from the village to Gefeng City. Although the cement road was easy to walk on, it still took a lot of time.
In the county government office, Jiang Jin saw Yao Ji and Qiu Liao looking exhausted and said with a smile, "You've worked hard. Was the journey smooth?"
Both Yao Ji and Qiu Liao were very excited. They felt that they hadn't returned to Gefeng for a long time and hadn't seen Jiang Jin for a long time either.
Yao Ji said concisely, "It was smooth."
Qiu Liao stroked his beard. "Lord, there are many more people in the city. Have the people from Sizhou arrived?"
Jiang Jin nodded. "Yes. It'll probably be a bit chaotic these two days. After all, they've just arrived and need to buy a lot of things."
Qiu Liao tightened his cotton - padded jacket. "Winter is coming soon. I see that most of these common people are wearing thin clothes. We need to plant more cotton next year."
He had now deeply fallen in love with the feeling of wearing cotton - padded clothes. Really, even ten single - layer clothes weren't as warm as one cotton - padded jacket.
Although you could stuff willow catkins or weeds inside, those things would expand and weren't warm at all. The cold wind would blow through the clothes and onto the skin, making people shiver.
It could be said that in winter, one had to rely entirely on their physical constitution. An old man like him really couldn't stand it.
Mu Qing agreed. "Don't worry. I've made all the plans according to the needs."
Feng Qingzhu added, "Cloth made of pure cotton or cotton - linen blend is much softer than linen cloth and more comfortable to wear."
The cotton planted this year wasn't enough, so a lot of it was a cotton - linen blend.
Everyone smiled knowingly, and the atmosphere was harmonious.
Jiang Jin got to the point. "Lin County probably won't hold out for long. I'm planning to set off tomorrow. Let's discuss how to attack and defend."
The attack, of course, referred to Lin County.
The defense referred to the three counties of Gefeng.
Once she led the troops to Lin County, Gefeng would inevitably be relatively empty. If an emergency occurred, how to deal with it had to be planned in advance.
Zhou Sui nodded. "How many troops are you planning to send, Lord?"
Jiang Jin pondered for a moment. "I'm planning to go by sea. It's not advisable to send too many people. Three thousand elite soldiers are enough."
Yun Ci looked at the map. "Are you planning to land in Ningding County, Lord?"
Landing in Ningding County and bypassing Wuqin to reach Lin County was the fastest route.
Jiang Jin shook her head. "No."
She pointed to a point on the map. "Land here!"
Zhou Sui gasped and immediately understood her plan. "Lord, have you made all the arrangements?"
Jiang Jin nodded and smiled. "Yes."
She hadn't spent her time on the island in vain. Many things had been taken care of.
"Now, let's talk about who will go to Lin County with me?"
"I'm willing to follow the Lord," the military generals present said in unison.
Jiang Jin felt a throbbing in her forehead. She looked at Zhou Sui and Yao Ji. "One of you two must stay in Gefeng. Qu Zhao may take advantage of our weakness and attack."
Yao Ji coughed. "I'm young. Young people need more training to make progress."
Zhou Sui, who was regarded as the old one, felt as if he'd been hit hard in the heart. However, as the Grand General, he could keep a straight face and deliver the ultimate blow. "I have a telescope!"
Yao Ji: "..." You know how to hurt people.
Everyone: "..." It's a group - kill!
Yao Ji held back his jealousy. "It's not a night raid. This telescope won't be of any use."
Zhou Sui smiled. "You don't understand without a telescope. You don't know how powerful it is. The telescope can be used both at night and during the day."
Yao Ji was hit by another arrow. "… I'm young and have good eyesight. I can see far without binoculars."
Zhou Sui continued to smile. "You're right. However, I have binoculars, which can ensure preparedness for any contingency."
Yao Ji gritted his teeth. "My horse lance is very suitable for cavalry raids."
Zhou Sui said, "I have binoculars and the Cold Scale specially bestowed by the Lord!"
