I, the villainous eldest prince, will suppress everything!

The days that followed were no different.

Wei Hongying's vanguard battalion seized every minute and second to train hard, hoping to defeat the Northern Barbarians in seven days.

Aside from their daily training, the other soldiers of the Great Zhou were talking about how the Crown Prince had been seduced by a beautiful woman.

Despite the vanguard battalion's disastrous performance in the last battle, they were still allowed to fight this one. Even General Wang Hu, who said a few words, was punished by being sent to the rear to oversee the supply of provisions.

As for Fang Yuan leading men to poison the enemy camp, they had no idea.

Qin Li wasn't foolish enough to publicize this matter; he would keep it a secret for as long as possible.

The longer we keep it a secret, the better for the Great Zhou; otherwise, it will definitely shake the morale of the army.

What puzzled Qin Li was that the Northern Mang army inside Qingling Pass had been completely silent these days, showing no signs of poisoning whatsoever.

Could it be that Chuntao is lying?

Or perhaps, the Empress forcibly suppressed it.

In short, there are only these two possibilities.

"We won't know the result until tomorrow, so is it a bit too much to hold a victory celebration tonight...?"

As dusk fell, on the way to a banquet with Qin Li after finishing a day of training, Wei Hongying couldn't help but say something.

Tomorrow will be the seventh day, the day the vanguard battalion and the Northern Barbarian Iron Pagoda will clash, and the day to test the results of the vanguard battalion's training over the past few days.

To be honest, Wei Hongying herself was not sure what to do, but Qin Li suddenly came to her today and told her that he wanted her to attend the banquet tonight.

When asked what kind of banquet it was, Qin Li said it was a victory celebration banquet.

Upon hearing the words "victory celebration banquet," Wei Hongying herself felt embarrassed and ashamed.

Should she say Qin Li is confident, or should she say it's just like what's circulating in the military now?

Qin Li was seduced by her beauty and sided with her in everything.

"What, that thing?"

Qin Li waved his hand dismissively and said, "Hongying, do you know why Northern Mang has been on a winning streak? Your father and General Su are no match for them."

Why?

Wei Hongying's bright eyes sparkled as she asked with great curiosity.

"Because they have unwavering confidence in their victory!"

Qin Li said in a serious tone, "Our Great Zhou has a population of 60 million, while Northern Mang has a mere 4 million. Our Great Zhou has 39 provinces, rich in resources from south to north, while Northern Mang has only 13 provinces, most of which are barren. On paper, Northern Mang is definitely no match for our Great Zhou!"

"But they just believed they could defeat us, and look what happened, they turned our northern border upside down."

"And you too, if you don't even have the confidence to defeat the Iron Pagoda, how can you expect to actually beat them tomorrow?"

"So, what's wrong with having a victory celebration tonight? It's a sign of our unwavering confidence in winning, understand?"

Wei Hongying frowned, her handsome brows furrowing as she thought carefully.

Although I felt that Qin Li was talking nonsense, his nonsense made a lot of sense.

Wei Hongying gave a heavy "hmm" through her nose, nodded, and then said:

"Your Highness, can you grant me a request?"

"Of course, but you have to tell me what it is first."

Now, Qin Li has long regarded Wei Hongying as an indispensable woman in his life.

Let alone agreeing to one thing from her, Qin Li would agree to a hundred or a thousand things.

Wei Hongying didn't say anything, but instead said to Qin Li in a coquettish tone, "Your Highness, please promise me first, and then I'll talk."

Qin Li wasn't fooled. He shrugged and said, "You tell me first, then I'll agree."

"Your Highness~"

Reaching out to hug Qin Li's arm, Wei Hongying gently shook it, pleading, "Your Highness, please say yes, I beg you~"

It's fortunate that no outsiders were present; otherwise, their jaws would have dropped to the floor in shock.

Especially for the soldiers of the vanguard battalion, in their hearts, their captain Wei Hongying was a stern, decisive, and heroic woman who was more manly than any man.

Where have I ever seen Wei Hongying act like such a young girl?

The more Wei Hongying acted this way, the less Qin Li would agree.

Even though they were about to arrive at the place where the victory celebration banquet would be held, Qin Li still didn't fall for the trick.

Left with no other option, Wei Hongying spoke the truth: "Your Highness, I hope you won't implicate the General because of me. The General is innocent!"

"Sending the General to the rear to oversee the supply of provisions is inappropriate!"

"Your Highness, please order the return of the Grand General to command the central army!"

Tomorrow we're going to war with the Northern Barbarians, and Wei Hongying feels really bad that Wang Hu isn't here.

She knew that Qin Li cared about her and was willing to punish his uncle, Wang Hu.

Upon hearing the news, Wei Hongying was overjoyed and almost jumped for joy.

This shows that in Qin Li's heart, her status was actually higher than Wang Hu's.

However, after her initial excitement, Wei Hongying felt that Qin Li's actions were somewhat biased.

Regardless of the circumstances, Wang Hu should come back.

Qin Li simply smiled, "I've already sent someone to invite him; he'll arrive at the climax of the celebration banquet today!"

"The climax?"

Wei Hongying frowned, puzzled.

How could Qin Li have known that Wang Hu would return at that time?

The climax? When was the climax of the banquet?

Qin Li deliberately changed the subject, "Alright, stop asking so many questions, let's go inside."

Tonight's victory celebration banquet will be held in the central command tent. After tidying up and temporarily removing any unnecessary items, it can accommodate several dozen people.

When the two arrived outside the tent, it was already completely dark, and a huge bonfire was burning outside the tent.

Many ordinary soldiers were gathered around the campfire, eating and drinking meat, which was their victory celebration.

Upon seeing Qin Li and Wei Hongying arrive, the soldiers, their mouths greasy from eating, all stood up to greet them.

"No need for such formalities!"

"Eat and drink well, everyone! Ask for more if you're still hungry!"

" Plenty of meat tonight, but drink less alcohol; we have a tough battle to fight tomorrow!"

Qin Li waved his hand, indicating that everyone did not need to be so polite.

After saying that, he was about to lead Wei Hongying into the main tent.

Before going in, Wei Hongying couldn't help but look back a few times.

"What's wrong?"

Qin Li asked.

Wei Hongying frowned and said, "Why are they all unfamiliar faces? Where are Zhou Biao and the others?"

Those who can drink and eat meat outside the main tent are not ordinary soldiers; at the very least, they are personal guards or similar figures.

Zhou Biao and the others should have been inside, but they weren't seen.

"oh."

Qin Li explained, "Zhou Biao and the others? I sent them to do other things; they'll be here in a bit."

"As for these unfamiliar faces, they must be the personal guards of the generals' residences who are here to attend the victory celebration banquet."

"We don't even recognize all the generals, let alone their personal guards."

After saying that, Qin Li told Wei Hongying not to overthink it and led her into the central military tent.

Inside the main tent, the atmosphere was far less lively than among the ordinary soldiers outside. Groups of generals gathered together, whispering among themselves, their faces grave, mostly with worry about tomorrow's battle.

Upon seeing Qin Li arrive, they all stopped their whispering and stepped forward to greet him with clasped hands.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"