Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

A clean and warm aroma of rice lingers in the air, mixed with a faint meaty fragrance and the mellow aroma of preserved eggs. It is not strong or overpowering, but it makes people feel extremely comfortable.

Zheng Quan sniffed, his throat bobbed, and then he abruptly turned his head away, forcing himself not to look at the fragrant bowl of porridge.

"I won't eat! I'd rather starve than eat! I was born a member of the Song family army, and I'll die a member of the Song family army! I will absolutely not eat a single bite of your food!!"

He who takes a bribe is bound to be obligated to serve it.

Although he didn't have much formal education, he still understood this principle.

He'd rather starve than eat that witch's food!

Gollum—

No sooner had I finished speaking than my stomach growled.

Shen Qing chuckled: "General Zheng's stomach doesn't seem to be cooperating, so why don't you eat something?"

As she spoke, she handed the bowl to Zheng Quan again.

Zheng Quan gritted his teeth and stared wide-eyed, trying to scare Shen Qing away.

He made up his mind; he would rather die than open his mouth.

Zhou Wentong watched from the side, and for some reason, he thought of the stubborn old Master Zheng from the academy back then.

They vehemently refused to eat, but ended up eating more than anyone else.

They both shared the surname Zheng, and if it weren't for their strikingly different appearances, he would have suspected they were family.

"Deputy General Zhou, why don't you help me feed General Zheng?"

Shen Qing handed the bowl to Zhou Wentong.

Zhou Wentong was overjoyed and immediately took the bowl, saying with a grin, "Don't worry, Madam Shen, I'm good at this kind of thing!"

He did a lot of work back when he was at the academy.

Zheng Quan is being stubborn now only because he hasn't tasted Shen Niangzi's delicious food.

Zhou Wentong scooped up a spoonful, brought it to Zheng Quan's lips, and said in a sly tone, "General Zheng, why don't you open your mouth? Aren't you hungry?"

"You can't possibly resist the urge, so just give up."

"Hurry up."

Zheng Quan kept his mouth shut and used all his strength to resist.

But the aroma of the porridge kept wafting into his nose, and he could even feel his lips were wet, as if they had been coated with the smooth porridge.

"He's really stubborn," Zhou Wentong sighed.

Even more stubborn than Master Zheng.

"You two, help me pry Zheng Quan's mouth open!"

Although he didn't know why Madam Shen insisted on making Zheng Quan eat this porridge, since Madam Shen had asked him to feed him, he would definitely not disappoint her.

Two soldiers rushed forward, one on each side, and pried open Zheng Quan's mouth from both sides.

"Ahhhhhh—" Zheng Quan wanted to say he wouldn't eat, but all he could do was shout "Ah!"

Zhou Wentong reacted quickly, scooping up a spoonful and putting it into Zheng Quan's mouth.

The moment Zheng Quan tasted the century egg and lean pork congee, he was completely stunned.

This porridge is smooth and silky, with the rice grains cooked until they bloom and melt on the tongue with a gentle touch.

The preserved egg has a rich aroma, and the lean pork shreds are tender and smooth, with a strong meaty fragrance.

With each swallow, the subtle spiciness of white pepper rises from the back of the tongue, leaving a delicate aroma of scallions and rice in the mouth, creating an unforgettable aftertaste.

Zheng Quan's eyes lit up immediately.

No, why does this meat congee smell so good??

How can there be such fragrant meat porridge in the world?

I want to drink another sip, no, I want to drink a whole big bowl of it!

Zheng Quan licked his lips, staring longingly at the bowl of porridge in Zhou Wentong's hand.

"...Give me another bite." After a while, he still couldn't resist.

Zhou Wentong revealed an expression of "I knew it," and scooped up another spoonful.

This time, Zheng Quan opened his mouth very cooperatively.

As soon as the meat porridge entered his mouth, he squinted his eyes, letting it slide from his mouth into his stomach, thoroughly enjoying himself.

He forgot everything at that moment: the battle, the enemy, the commander.

It felt like I was swimming in a bowl of congee with preserved egg and lean pork.

But that wasn't enough; he wanted more.

"I want more!!" Zheng Quan was a straightforward person; once he wanted something, he wouldn't beat around the bush.

Shen Qing: "Untie the rope and let him eat by himself."

Zhou Wentong immediately stepped forward and untied Zheng Quan's ropes.

He wasn't afraid of what Zheng Quan might do, after all, he had already witnessed Shen Niangzi's martial arts skills.

If Zheng Quan doesn't behave, Madam Shen can easily beat him down in no time.

As soon as Zheng Quan was free, he immediately picked up the bowl, tilted his head back, and poured the congee with preserved egg and lean pork into his mouth.

Glug glug.

In no time at all, the large bowl of porridge was gone.

Almost subconsciously, he licked the bowl clean again.

"Give me another bowl—" he shouted in a loud voice.

Completely forgetting their situation, they still thought they were in Pingkou City.

Zhou Wentong sneered, "General Zheng, didn't you refuse to eat just now? Why do you want it now?"

"Even if you wanted some, there wouldn't be any. There's only one bowl of Madam Shen's porridge for each person."

Upon being mocked like this, Zheng Quan instantly returned to reality, his face turning both dark and red.

After a long pause, he finally managed to stammer out, "I only ate some porridge. You think you can lure me into surrendering with a bowl of porridge? No way!"

"I was born a member of the Song family army, and I will die a member of the Song family army!"

"I will never betray the Song family army!!"

This preserved egg and lean pork congee is really delicious, incredibly delicious.

But even though it tastes good, he can't betray his coach just because it's delicious.

The commander-in-chief had shown him great favor, and he would not defect to the enemy just because of a meal.

He's not a traitor like Zhou Wentong.

"Since you are so loyal to the Song family army, why don't I let you go back? Another day, you can take more men and we can fight another battle," Shen Qing said thoughtfully from the side.

Zheng Quan was stunned; his mind seemed to short-circuit.

What does that mean? Let him go?

"Are you serious? You're really letting me go??"

Zhou Wentong tried to stop him, saying, "Madam Shen, you can't let him go! He's one of Song Chengwu's fiercest generals, and a loyal one at that..."

"Of course it's true." Shen Qing waved his hand at Zhou Wentong and calmly replied.

"You can go back to Pingkou City now."

"Really? No tricks?" Zheng Quan couldn't believe it.

In war, it's either you die or I live; this was the first time he had ever seen an enemy general captured and then released.

Shen Qing: "Of course I won't use any tricks."

"Even your emperor agrees??"

Shen Qing: "I will explain to His Majesty."

Seeing that Shen Qing didn't seem to be joking, Zheng Quan tentatively took two steps forward.

No one stopped them.

He then tentatively took the reins of his horse and picked up his spear.

Still, no one stopped them.

This Lady Shen really wasn't lying.

Zheng Quan immediately mounted his horse, cupped his hands in greeting to Shen Qing, and said, "Thank you. Once I'm ready, I'll definitely have a good fight with you. This time, I didn't bring enough soldiers. Let's do it another day, no, tomorrow!!"

This Lady Shen must have some unique method, which is why he stumbled.

Tomorrow, he will lead more soldiers out of the city, letting the lower-ranking soldiers lead the charge, while he will strike from the rear when the opportunity arises.

We must tie up this Lady Shen and bring her back to Pingkou City, making her the cook for the Song family army.