Carts upon carts of gold and silver treasures were moved from the tomb of King Liu Chang of Zhongshan to the Wei Prefecture in Chenliu.
Along the way, some mountain bandits, judging by the tracks of the carts, realized that as long as these carts weren't filled with stones, their value was immeasurable. If they could manage to rob just one cart, it would be enough to cover a mountain stronghold's expenses for several years.
However, once they made a slight inquiry and learned that the knights escorting the carts were official soldiers from Yanzhou, their thoughts of plunder immediately vanished.
Yanzhou soldiers were now a mythical existence. Thousands of them had managed to make hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turban rebels surrender. These mountain bandits had to carefully consider their own capabilities.
Nevertheless, this news spread like wildfire.
Some said that Chenliu's richest man, Wei Hong, had likely made another profit from his business, earning so much that his mansion's underground storage couldn't hold it all, and his grandson drank from a golden chamber pot every day.
Others claimed Wei Hong had discovered a gold mine, with gold and treasures everywhere, so much that it was impossible to pick them all up. In short, the rumors were wildly exaggerated.
Of course, they had no idea that this gold was being taken from a tomb, and more importantly, it didn't even belong to the Wei family, Chenliu's richest household.
The reason it was attributed to the Wei family was because Lu Yu felt it would be more convenient for Old Man Wei to exchange it for grain in the black market. In those days, copper coins were worthless, while the prices of gold and jewelry remained remarkably stable.
More people focused on the countless gold bars in the Wei mansion's underground vaults. Few noticed that cartloads of grain were being sent day and night to a military camp five li southeast of Chenliu Commandery. This was where Lu Yu's thousand elite cavalry were stationed.
Lu Yu was having a windfall, and consequently, the thousand elite cavalry were also entering a period of good fortune.
...
"Cough, cough..."
Cao Xiu in the central army tent coughed repeatedly.
The reason was that Lu Yu had specifically visited the military camp earlier to inform him.
From now on, the dietary standards for these thousand brothers would be changed.
Lu Yu even provided a detailed list, requiring that each soldier must consume at least two jin of grain, one jin of meat, and one jin of vegetables and fruits daily. This was the minimum standard.
Uh...
Cao Xiu gasped in shock. He pondered that even though they had money now, even a landlord's family wouldn't dare to be so extravagant.
Even if that were the case, Lu Yu had also set extremely stringent requirements: every single soldier's daily ration must not be less than one liang of grain or one liang of meat.
If a soldier was short even one liang of grain or one liang of meat, the squad leader would be held accountable! If an entire squad of a hundred men was found to be short, the centurion would be held accountable!
If a thousand men were similarly deficient, then the banner commander would be held accountable...
Heh heh, Cao Xiu's heart chilled. He mused that if any of his soldiers were short on rations, he himself would be implicated.
This was truly a happy dilemma.
Speaking of which, in the original Qiao Pei military camp, withholding military rations was practically commonplace.
Everyone was accustomed to it and understood it. This wasn't to say that his uncle Cao Cao deliberately did so, but rather that everyone knew Cao Cao was poor. It was good enough to ensure they weren't starving, so what more could they ask for... ah, no, what more grain could they ask for!
But now?
They had to eat so much grain every day, including meat and vegetables, and it was a mandatory requirement. Crucially, the quartermaster dared not withhold anything.
Let alone Cao Xiu, even the entire camp's officers and soldiers were somewhat bewildered, feeling that this happy life seemed somewhat unreal.
When they thought about other military camps, where soldiers were struggling to make ten days' worth of rations last for two months, they felt even more astonished.
Especially Xiahou Dun. His eyes ached from worry, particularly his left eye, which he felt was twitching violently, on the verge of popping out.
His Qingzhou soldiers were already difficult to manage, and on top of that, they were a vast crowd of hungry Qingzhou soldiers. Although Xiahou Dun didn't voice it, his heart was filled with bitterness!
...
"General? Should we really follow Young Master Lu Yu's orders?" Cao Xiu's deputy scratched his head. "Three jin of grain and one jin of meat per person per day, isn't that a bit excessive? If this gets out, it might be a bit awkward..."
It was indeed awkward. If other military camps were gnawing on bark, and you were eating four jin of grain a day, it couldn't just be described as awkward anymore; it was downright provocative!
"Cough, cough..." Another light cough.
"While it might be a little awkward... but..." Cao Xiu rubbed his round belly. "How could your understanding, or mine, possibly fathom Young Master Lu Yu's foresight? Besides..."
Cao Xiu recalled Lu Yu's words from earlier and decided to imitate Lu Yu's tone.
"Didn't you just hear what Young Master Lu Yu said? 'When the troops have not yet moved, the provisions must go first.' Ensuring the soldiers' sustenance is of utmost importance. If they can't even eat their fill, how can they train?"
"People who are starving, if trained too rigorously, will directly faint. Ah, no one understands your feelings better than Young Master Lu Yu. With your stomachs rumbling, you have no strength for anything! Training would be done half-heartedly!"
When Cao Xiu repeated Lu Yu's words like this, the few deputy generals suddenly felt it made a lot of sense...
Truly worthy of you, Young Master Lu Yu! To be able to derive such a profound and insightful argument from eating four jin of rice a day, they were truly convinced, convinced from the bottom of their round bellies.
Of course...
They had no idea that the reason Lu Yu did this was based on the dietary standards of our great Chinese soldiers.
Before his transmigration, although being a soldier was tough, the food was truly delicious. Not only was there meat at every meal, but the nutrition was also well-balanced, the portions were massive, and there was plenty of meat!
With such meals combined with training, every soldier, upon shedding their uniform, could reveal a body of bronze-like muscles.
Their bodies were as robust as grizzly bears, with six-pack abs bulging, and their biceps, without any special exertion, were as taut as stretched drum skins.
It was precisely because of this that every citizen of our great China could feel a sense of security.
However, the soldiers of this era were certainly not comparable to the soldiers of our great China.
But since they couldn't compare in other aspects, they would start with the food. Anyway, Lu Yu was now engaged in a "no-cost" business, making money in a clever way, and he wasn't short of money. It was just a drop in the ocean!
"General..." One deputy general still had a somewhat thin skin. "Our neighbors are the three thousand soldiers under Chenliu Prefect Zhang Miao. Should we share some grain with them? After all, they are close by. We're feasting on meat and fish, while they're gnawing on bark. It doesn't look good..."
People in ancient times were more concerned about their reputation and feared gossip behind their backs.
However.
"Give it to them? Forget it!" Cao Xiu immediately refused. "This is what our brothers exchanged for with their lives. You wouldn't know how terrifying it was to 'light candles for people and chase ghosts' if you hadn't entered the tomb. If not for Young Master Lu Yu's mastery of the ways of this place, how would we be alive to enjoy it?"
After saying this, Cao Xiu paused. "Besides, it's enough for a bunch of rough men like us to clean our own 'doorstep snow.' Where would we have the leisure to concern ourselves with others' 'frost on the tiles'!"
"Even if we were to give, we'd have to have Prefect Zhang Miao of Chenliu beg our Young Master Lu Yu. If Young Master Lu Yu gives it, he can take it. If Young Master Lu Yu doesn't give it, he can't take it by force. In this day and age, having grain is paramount!"
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