Wife, you didn't really drug me, did you?

The mobilization meeting was a great success. Chen Jie's appearance greatly calmed the uneasy high-ranking officials of Huangzhou Prefecture. With Yuan Sanjia seriously injured and Chen Jiu Si absent, these officials faced enormous resistance and pressure.

This was a great test of their loyalty, and Chen Jiu Si was not surprised that some of them could not withstand the pressure and surrendered to the enemy.

After all, the desire to survive is understandable.

Human nature cannot be easily tested, because the human heart is the most vulnerable thing in the world.

Those who attempt to test people's hearts will ultimately be devoured by people's hearts.

Chen Jie did not test people's hearts, and he also believed that most of his trusted ministers were reliable and loyal.

However, no matter how loyal or devoted one is, when faced with a life-or-death crisis, it is inevitable that other thoughts will arise. These thoughts, though few, can accumulate and eventually influence the outcome of the entire war.

Now that Chen Jie has appeased these top-ranking generals, they can go back and appease their soldiers.

This creates a virtuous cycle, which will have a significant effect when fighting the enemy on the battlefield tomorrow. This is the purpose of Chen Jie summoning the generals today.

Chen Jie concluded by saying to his generals, "Gentlemen, do not let anyone know that I have returned today. Keep it a secret. Tomorrow I'm going to give those three guys outside the city a big surprise."

Upon hearing Chen Jie's words, the people present exchanged glances and immediately replied, "We will obey our lord's orders!"

After Chen Jie's arrangements, everyone felt more confident and their spirits were renewed. With Chen Jiu Si as their backer, the crisis outside the city was much less stressful for them.

At this time, one by one, they dragged their tired bodies back to their garrisons, and then the party began. The content of the meeting is unknown, but after this night of mobilization, all the soldiers in Huangzhou Prefecture were full of energy and refreshed.

The gloom that had shrouded them a few days ago has been swept away, replaced by vibrant vitality.

Just like that, overnight, the entire Huangzhou Prefecture was transformed, and the atmosphere of the entire army changed.

The following morning, a large army was mobilized outside Huangzhou Prefecture. The three armies, Zhang Shicheng's army, Ming Yuzhen's army, and Chen Youding's army, totaling nearly 150,000 main forces, all surrounded the city of Huangzhou. As the army moved, dust billowed, obscuring half the sky.

"Ah~"

On the city wall of Huangzhou, Chen Xiaohu stretched and rubbed his sleepy eyes, saying, "Ah~ I haven't slept this well for several days."

As he spoke, Chen Xiaohu looked up and around and said, "These bastards are really energetic, making such a commotion so early in the morning."

As he spoke, he glanced at the soldiers on the city wall, who all looked very tense. Chen Xiaohu went over to each of them and asked, "Have you had breakfast?"

"Reporting to Tiger Commander, none of the brothers have eaten. I told them we'd have breakfast after we defeated the bandits below. If we win, it'll be a victory celebration; if we lose, we'll save some food for Huangzhou Prefecture."

Chen Xiaohu looked at the soldiers in front of him and said, "Good, you have such spirit and morale, I like it. However, Huangzhou Prefecture will not lack food for our brothers. I have already instructed the kitchen to stew meat and make pancakes this morning. We will eat pancakes rolled with meat."

"Brothers, eat as much as you want today. After we win this battle, I'll give you all bonuses, and I'll also help each of you get a wife. How about that?"

Chen Xiaohu laughed heartily, and the soldiers laughed along with him. In an instant, the gloom of death that had enveloped the entire city wall dissipated considerably.

At this moment, a soldier said, "Tiger Commander, I heard that there is a master on the other side who can keep his spear invincible. Can we defeat them?"

"Invulnerable to swords and spears? Hahaha, who among you has ever seen someone invulnerable to swords and spears? There is no such thing as an invulnerable person in this world. Who among you has ever seen one? It's just them making a fuss. I don't believe there is such a thing as an invulnerable person. Fine, even if he really did achieve invulnerability, can he penetrate a cannon?"

"Let that invincible guy stand within our artillery range and see if we can blast him to smithereens."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding soldiers immediately laughed. Yes, they knew all too well how powerful the cannons of Huangzhou Prefecture were. What invulnerability to swords and spears? You tell me, could you withstand two cannon shots? Let the cannons bombard you for a quarter of an hour, and they could flatten a mountain. Forget about being invulnerable to swords and spears.

At this moment, some of the tension in the soldiers' hearts eased considerably.

Chen Xiaohu said, "So brothers, don't worry. We have enough food, enough weapons, enough soldiers, and enough experts. No matter how many enemies there are outside, I see them as nothing more than chickens and dogs."

"Victory in this great battle will surely belong to us."

"Of course I know that wars involve bloodshed and sacrifice, and everyone is afraid, including me. But can we run away and surrender just because we're afraid?"

"No, they came to our Huangzhou Prefecture to rob us of money, grain, and people. They are unhappy because they see us living a good life, so they came to cause trouble."

"I ask you!"

Chen Xiaohu called out to a soldier standing nearby, "Has your family been allocated land yet?"

"We got it! Ten acres!"

Chen Xiaohu said, “Very good, ten acres of land. We all come from poor backgrounds and know how precious land is. In the hands of landlords and rich people, this land is more precious than their wives. But we have all been allocated land. With land, we can live a good life. Our family will have something to look forward to.”

"But now there are people outside who are eyeing our land, what should we do?"

"Hit him!"

At this moment, someone spoke up, and Chen Xiaohu said, "That's right, beat him up. Who would covet not only your land but also your family's valuables?"

"Beat them to death!"

At this moment, a soldier spoke up, and Chen Xiaohu said, "Good, you have guts. Then let me say this: these people not only want your property, land, and house, but they also want to rob your wife and daughters, rape your sisters, and enslave you. What will you do then!"

"Fight them!"

"Yes, let's fight to the death, a fight to the death!"

The soldiers shouted loudly, their eyes filled with murderous intent, as if they wanted to fight the enemy outside to the death.

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Chen Xiaohu said, "Alright, brothers, the enemy is about to launch a trial attack. I'll have the kitchen bring up the meat-filled pancakes. Let's eat them and see what tricks these bastards can pull, haha..."

Chen Xiaohu raised his hand and said, "Go, bring up the meat-filled pancakes."

"Yes!"

At a command, the mess sergeant carried up a large basket, which, when opened, revealed layers upon layers of flatbread.

Behind them were people carrying large basins filled with chopped braised meat. When they arrived at the mess hall, the soldiers took a flatbread, went to the cook, and got a spoonful of braised meat and a scallion.

One roll, one bite, and it's so delicious!
The soldiers ate with gusto, their mouths brimming with oil, and their morale soared. The food in Huangzhou Prefecture was truly top-notch.

This scene wasn't just happening at Chen Xiaohu's location; it was unfolding across the entire Huangzhou Prefecture defense line. The first thing Huangzhou Prefecture did today was open its warehouses, take out all the stored meat, and prepare a meal of pure meat-filled pancakes for its 100,000 garrison troops. Food often determines an army's morale. A plentiful supply of meat-filled pancakes would surely create a highly motivated and disciplined army. Even the wealthy Huangzhou Prefecture wouldn't normally dare to feed its soldiers like this; no army could withstand such a diet.

While the military doesn't lack meat, it's never this extreme.

One of Huangzhou Prefecture's military objectives today is to boost the morale of its troops and restore their morale, which has been suppressed by the enemy, as quickly as possible, because today is definitely going to be a tough battle.

……

"Pooh!"

A soldier from Chen Youding's army, who had just swallowed a mouthful of sand outside the city, said with a face full of dissatisfaction, "Every single one of those in charge of supplies should be killed!"

The other soldiers echoed this sentiment: "The cornbread we're given is mixed with sand, and the vegetables are just rotten leaves. Look at what those officers are eating—it's so luxurious! Compared to them, we're practically beggars!"

"They're not even as good as beggars!"

"No wonder, even three peerless experts couldn't take Huangzhou Prefecture City. Have you seen what the soldiers in Huangzhou Prefecture City are eating?"

"What to eat?"

"Today, we brothers are acting as scouts. We're close by, so we can see it clearly: meat-filled pancakes!"

"Meat rolls in pancakes? Really?"

Upon hearing this, the surrounding soldiers couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Then there is still a holiday?"

"The pancake is baked to a golden brown, rolled with such a thick layer of meat. Take a bite, and the broth and meat flavors burst together in your mouth. You tell me, isn't it delicious!"

"Damn, this is what a human life should be like! Look at us..."

"Pooh!"

The soldiers suddenly found the cornbread and rotten vegetable leaves in their hands to be unappetizing.

People are afraid of comparisons. Once the contrast is revealed, the soldiers immediately lose their motivation.

Moreover, this phenomenon is not in one direction, but in the entire direction, at which point the commander-in-chief of the three armies...

Tang Bao of the Tang Clan, Tong Wei of the Whale Shark Gang, and the Holy Lord of Fusang emerged from their tent. After discussing the matter yesterday, they had made preparations to capture Huangzhou Prefecture today.

At this moment, the three men led their troops to the front of the battle line to observe the defenses and morale of Huangzhou Prefecture. In their view, after their pressure, Huangzhou Prefecture should be on the verge of collapse, especially since Yuan Sanjia had been ambushed by them.

At this time, the city of Huangzhou should have been in a state of panic.

At this point, morale must be at its lowest point. Therefore, as long as they attack and apply some pressure, Huangzhou Prefecture will not be able to withstand the pressure and will collapse directly. At that time, it is not impossible to pacify the area by issuing a proclamation.

However, when the group rode their horses to observe the battle formation today, they were shocked by what they saw. Overnight, the area in Huangzhou Prefecture that had been breached the previous day had been rebuilt with cement. Although it looked terrible, it still served the purpose of blocking the enemy.

On the other hand, the soldiers on the city wall visibly regained their spirit and energy, a stark contrast to the soldiers who were overwhelmed and struggling to breathe yesterday.

"What's going on?"

Tong Wei, quick to speak, said, "How come the soldiers in Huangzhou Prefecture seem to have been completely transformed overnight? Their morale is just too high!"

Tang Bao frowned, and the Holy Lord of Fusang frowned even more, then said, "Go down and ask if anyone knows anything about the situation?"

Upon hearing this, the people beside the Holy Lord of Fusang immediately went down to inquire about what was happening inside. After some questioning, the person who had been gathering information rushed over.

"My Lord, we've found out that Huangzhou Prefecture served the soldiers meat-filled pancakes this morning!"

"Meat rolls in pancakes?"

Tang Bao, Tong Wei, and the Holy Lord were all taken aback. They never expected that this change in morale would come from something as simple as a meat-filled pancake.

Tong Wei frowned slightly and said, "Making meat rolls in pancakes? There are a full 100,000 soldiers guarding this city. How much flour and how many pigs would that require? Is Huangzhou Prefecture really that rich?"

Tang Bao and the Holy Lord were also slightly surprised. Making meat-filled pancakes for 100,000 people was truly a grand gesture.

However, it seems somewhat impossible that a simple meal of meat-filled pancakes could boost the soldiers' morale so much.

Tong Wei said, "This meal of meat-filled pancakes can boost the morale of 100,000 people so much. I feel like there's something fishy going on here."

"Could there be other things we don't know about?"

"What other things do we not know?"

The Holy Lord looked at Tong Wei, who said, "I don't know about that, but I always feel that there are some things we don't understand."

Tang Bao looked at Tong Wei and said, "Old Tong is right. Logically speaking, the morale of soldiers should be based on the officers. These days, the officers of Huangzhou Prefecture have lost all fighting spirit and are just relying on their fighting will to hold on. This sudden change is probably suspicious!"

"Strange, what's strange? Could it be that Chen Jiu Si is back?"

The Holy Lord then looked at the two of them and said, "It's hard to say. That Chen Jiu Si is very cunning and often does things that are not ordinary. He might really be capable of doing something like this!"

Upon hearing this, the Holy Lord said, "I know Chen Jiu Si. Isn't he just a third-stage Fusion God? If he dares to come, I can destroy him with a wave of my hand!"

Tang Bao said, "We must not underestimate him. This Chen Jiu Si is no ordinary person. If I'm not careful when dealing with him, I could easily suffer a loss. Moreover, it is said that he went to Kunlun this time to find a way to break through to the fourth level of the Fusion God Realm. We must be on guard!"

Upon hearing this, the Holy Lord said, "I admit that Chen Jiu Si has some skill, but so what? Even if he breaks through to the fourth level of the Fusion God realm, so what?"

“Yuan Sanjia’s life is in danger. Even if he doesn’t die, he’ll be crippled. How much trouble can a fourth-level Fusion God cause? Even if we can’t beat him by ourselves, there are three of us. Three fourth-level Fusion Gods fighting one person, even if he has extraordinary abilities, he’ll be left here.”

After hearing the Holy Lord's words, Tong Wei said, "That's right. Even if Chen Jiu Si really has incredible luck and enters the fourth level of the Fusion God Realm, the three of us at the fourth level of the Fusion God Realm can still defeat him. Don't worry, even if Chen Jiu Si comes back today, it won't matter."

"Huangzhou Prefecture will surely fall today!" (End of Chapter)