I started as a concubine, and I made the crown prince cry with my delicious food.

Southern Xinjiang, Jiangzhou Pass, Liang Army Camp.

The continuous rain has lasted for more than a month, and the entire campsite is soaked in mud.

Dampness, cold, hunger, despair... these negative emotions spread like a plague among the 30,000 Liang soldiers.

They have been besieged here by the barbarian alliance for almost two months.

Food supplies had long been exhausted, and the soldiers could only survive on thin rice porridge that was so watery you could see your reflection in it, along with boiled grass roots and tree bark. The thin clothing they wore offered no protection against the damp cold of the southern frontier, and in the wounded soldiers' camp, people died every day from infected wounds and diseases.

Lieutenant Zhao Yi stood atop the high watchtower, his brow furrowed as he looked at the endless camps of the barbarian coalition in the distance.

He was originally the Crown Prince's most trusted vanguard general, but now that the Crown Prince has fallen off a cliff and gone missing, his fate unknown, he has been appointed to take command of this besieged and isolated army.

He had already dispatched several scout teams to try to find a way to break out or to make contact with the rear, but all of them disappeared without a trace.

He knew that the soldiers' morale was on the verge of collapse.

Just then, a messenger, covered in mud, came running from a distance, his face filled with unbelievable elation.

"General Zhao! General Zhao! A miracle! It's a miracle!"

"What nonsense are you spouting!" Zhao Yi shouted. "Speaking of ghosts and gods is forbidden in the army!"

"No, General!" the messenger stammered excitedly, "It's...it's Her Highness the Crown Princess! Her Highness the Crown Princess has brought us food!"

"What?" Zhao Yi thought he had misheard.

The Crown Princess? The capital is thousands of miles away, and they are heavily besieged. How could food possibly be delivered in?

He didn't believe it and immediately followed the messenger down from the watchtower, heading towards a secluded valley behind the camp.

When he arrived at the valley, the sight before him completely stunned him.

In the dense forest of the valley, hundreds of ragged and emaciated soldiers were gathered around dozens of boxes that had just been carried out of a hidden cave, their eyes brimming with tears of excitement.

A captain in charge of logistics rushed over to Zhao Yi as soon as he saw him, his voice trembling: "General! Look! It's the seal of the Eastern Palace! It's military rations sent by the Crown Princess!"

He pointed to the extremely treacherous secret supply mountain path, known only to a select few. It was specially opened up by His Highness the Crown Prince as a precaution. Who would have thought it would actually come in handy today!

Zhao Yi strode forward and opened a box.

Inside were not the rice, noodles, or dry food he had imagined, but rather small packages neatly wrapped in oiled paper.

He picked one up with a puzzled look, opened it, and found a strange double-layered aluminum box inside, along with several small paper packets labeled "base ingredients," "side dishes," and "heating pack."

"What is this?" Zhao Yi asked, puzzled.

"General, look!" A soldier couldn't wait to start following the instructions in the package.

He tore open the heating pack, put it into the outer lunchbox, and poured in half a cup of spring water.

The next second, a miracle happened!

With a hissing sound, a plume of white steam suddenly rose up, and the small lunchbox began to heat up on its own, with the water inside boiling at a visible speed!

The surrounding soldiers all exclaimed "Wow!" as if they were watching some kind of divine magic.

The soldier then hurriedly put the bright red "base" and various "side dishes" into the inner lunchbox and closed the lid.

Soon after, an incredibly strong, spicy, and fragrant aroma wafted out from the gaps in the lunchbox.

This smell was the most irresistible temptation for a group of people who had been eating grass roots and tree bark for two months!

Everyone stared intently at the bubbling hot pot, their Adam's apples bobbing, drool dripping onto the floor.

When the first soldier, with trembling hands, picked up a slice of beef soaked in red oil broth with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth.

He stopped moving.

Two streams of hot tears flowed down his dark, thin face.

"Ugh... Ugh..." He wanted to say it was delicious, but because he was too excited, he could only let out a beast-like whimper.

The next second, he wolfed down the entire box of hot pot, wincing in pain from the burns while crying like a 300-pound child.

"Delicious...it's so delicious..."

"It's meat! I can finally eat meat again!"

"Waaaah... Long live the Crown Princess! The Crown Princess hasn't forgotten us!"

The entire valley was instantly engulfed by a mixture of the smell of spicy hot pot and the soldiers' joyful cries.

Looking at the group of men in front of him, wolfing down their food and crying their eyes out, Zhao Yi, this seven-foot-tall iron-blooded general, couldn't help but have tears well up in his eyes.

He knew that what the Crown Princess had sent was not just food.

It is hope! It is the hope of survival!

It's to tell them that they haven't been abandoned!

However, after the initial euphoria, a more sobering message arrived with the supplies and was delivered to Zhao Yi.

That was a letter written in the Empress's own handwriting.

In the letter, the Empress, speaking like a mother, implored Zhao Yi to bring the Crown Prince's remains back to the capital no matter what.

skeletons...

Zhao Yi held the letter, his hands trembling violently.

Only at this moment did the entire army realize that His Highness the Crown Prince was not "missing," but that the royal family had personally confirmed that he had "fallen off a cliff and died, with no remains found."

This news was like a bucket of ice water, extinguishing the hope that had just been ignited.

After a brief silence, an overwhelming rage erupted from the hearts of every soldier!

"Your Highness... Your Highness is really gone..."

"Barbaric dogs! I'll kill you all! To avenge His Highness!"

"Revenge! Revenge!"

"Kill all the barbarians! Blood for blood!"

Grief instantly transformed into primal hatred and murderous intent!

Every soldier's eyes turned red. They gripped their weapons tightly, and the pent-up frustration and despair that had been suppressed for two months transformed into a burning rage of revenge against a common enemy!

Looking at the excited soldiers, Zhao Yi knew that the soul of this army had returned!

He drew his sword from his waist, pointed it towards the barbarian camp, and roared with all his might:

"Soldiers! Her Highness the Crown Princess has sent us provisions! His Highness the Crown Prince is watching over us from heaven!"

"There's only one thing we can do!"

"That is—kill!"

"Slay these savage dogs! Use their blood to appease His Highness's spirit in heaven!"

"Those who offend our Great Liang, though far away, shall be punished!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

A roar like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami crashing through the sky, filled with endless grief and murderous intent, as if it wanted to tear apart the continuous drizzle!