A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

"Settle me down before the big battle?" Gu Xixi seized on the key point again.

"In other words... once a war breaks out, he won't be able to spare any time."

Gu Xixi lowered her head, broke off a pancake, and soaked it in the vegetable soup, saying casually, "Isn't he a civil official? Why does he have to go to the battlefield when there's a war?"

Meng Chengping was startled, his eyes widened, and he stammered, "Yes, yes, he's a civil official, what does war have to do with him!"

That was close! I almost got tricked into telling the truth!

Before Meng Chengping could even applaud his quick thinking, he heard Gu Xixi say quietly:

"This time it shouldn't be the General's intention, right? It's Mu Nanzhao who's telling you not to speak?"

After a moment of silence, seeing Meng Chengping deflated like a punctured husk, he lowered his head and resignedly said, "Boss Gu, I don't want to lie to you, so please, could you please stop asking?"

The sound was squeezed out from between his teeth, as faint as it could be.

However, he quickly straightened his back and said confidently, "It concerns military secrets, so it's not something I can talk about!"

Gu Xixi took a bite of the soup-soaked flatbread, nodded, and said, "Then let's choose the parts you can talk about."

Meng Chengping was still hesitating.

In fact, apart from the specific personnel arrangements and tactical layout for implementation, nothing else about this matter is classified.

But... we can't disregard brotherhood.

He Jinglan snorted coldly and said with a smile, "We've made things too difficult for General Meng. But don't worry, General Meng, we won't listen to anything that's not our place to know, even if you dare to say it."

Meng Chengping sensed danger, but he gritted his teeth and held on, "Anyway, you can speculate all you want, I won't say a word!"

Gu Xixi looked at Meng Chengping for a while, then relented and said, "Fine, if you don't want to say, then don't."

He Jinglan was surprised and wanted to say something more, but Gu Xixi stopped her, "Jinglan, I admire General Meng for keeping his mouth shut and keeping his promise. Let's not make things difficult for him."

He Jinglan caught Gu Xixi's gaze, paused for a moment, then lowered her head and silently ate her pancake.

Meng Chengping felt as if he had been granted a pardon, exclaiming, "Boss Gu is such a good person, a truly wonderful person!"

After finishing her meal, He Jinglan said she wanted to rest and didn't want any smelly men around.

Meng Chengping was in a good mood because He Jinglan hadn't completely ignored him. He picked up his food delivery tool and happily walked away.

He Jinglan looked outside to make sure the person had left the courtyard, then quickly grabbed Gu Xixi.

"You gave me that wink just now, do you already know something?"

Gu Xixi praised with a smile, "So clever!"

She continued, "Whether Mu Nanzhao will personally lead the troops into battle or not, there are only two answers: yes or no. Isn't it easy to guess? Just look at General Meng's performance."

He Jinglan suddenly realized, "You mean, Mu Nanzhao is also going to fight?"

Gu Xixi said, "I'm not involved in this. Just like General Meng said, I'm just speculating, and you should just take it as a casual remark."

He Jinglan nodded repeatedly; she was simply too curious.

The Mu Nanzhao she knew in the past, although he was very skilled in martial arts, was someone almost no one knew he could fight.

Because he said, "No wise man exerts his strength."

He was very confident in his intelligence and had too many ways to kill his opponent, so why bother with a punch?

He Jinglan felt that this trip to the Northwest was worthwhile, as she was able to witness the miracle of Mu Nanzhao personally going to the battlefield.

She raised her hand and swore, "I, He Jinglan, swear to heaven that I will take every word Gu Xixi has speculated about today as a story, and I will never tell anyone else a single word!"

Gu Xixi pondered, "If we win this battle decisively, the situation on the northwestern border will inevitably change, and the strength of the northwestern army will surely increase greatly."

"Based on my understanding of Mu Nanzhao, he is not the kind of person who likes to show off his strength and fight or fight for short-term gains. Like a lone wolf lurking in the dark, he doesn't move until he does, and once he does, he will tear a big chunk of flesh from a fatal spot."

"The general is the king who entrenched himself in the northwest. I guess their purpose, in addition to protecting the country, is to ensure that the general's position will not be shaken by anyone for a short period of time."

"Mu Nanzhao is both an ally and a person who will directly benefit in the future, so he should do his part in this endeavor."

"Of course, this was also his own wish."

Gu Xixi paused for a moment, "He wants to return to the court as soon as possible. No one understands the principle of seeking wealth and honor in danger better than him."

After he finished speaking, there was no response from the side.

Gu Xixi thought He Jinglan was asleep, so she turned her head and met a pair of eyes that were sparkling with tiny stars.

"Xixi! How do you know everything?"

"If only the court could restore the system of female officials from the previous dynasty, you could stop farming and become an official. You would definitely be just as good as the men in the court."

Gu Xixi imagined the scene, her teeth aching as she grimaced and shook her head, "No way."

"I still prefer farming."

Being a female official inevitably meant attending the morning court session, and after the session, she had to return to her department to sit in her office and handle official business.

Having already transmigrated into a book, and still having to work a restrictive 9-to-5 job, it just doesn't seem worth it.

Furthermore, if an official does a good job, he can enjoy a period of glory, but if he does a bad job, he may be imprisoned, have his property confiscated, have his entire family executed, or be sold into slavery and suffer a fate worse than death—all of which can be chosen randomly.

Farming is different. She has the skills, and the land and crops never lie. As long as she works hard, she can have a stable and secure harvest regardless of drought or flood.

After hearing this analysis, He Jinglan rested her chin on her hand and said, "But what I often hear is that a higher-ranking official can crush a lower-ranking person."

"Think about it now, what about ordinary people?"

"If you have no power, anyone with a little more power than you will have the opportunity to bully you. What can you do?"

Gu Xixi laughed, "I have the King of the Northwest as my backer, what am I afraid of?"

This was Huo Jiang's promise, and also one of the rewards Gu Xixi received for helping the Northwest Army reclaim wasteland.

In any case, the Northwest occupies the largest piece of land within Daye's territory, so Gu Xixi can expand her agricultural empire however she wants in the future.

The imperial court knew that the northwest was harsh and barren, and the land was unsuitable for growing grain, so it never paid much attention to the vast lands of the northwest. To this day, the nation's granaries are located in the Jiangnan region and the central riverside area.

But what they didn't know was that there was now a farmer in the Northwest named Gu Xixi.

He Jinglan was deeply shocked. After a moment of digestion, she suddenly clapped her hands.

"Xixi, you're so cunning! But I like it!"

It's time to rest; we have to get back to work this afternoon.

After digging for two and a half days, I had gathered enough of the herb needed for epilepsy.

After all, the goal is simply to find a way to mix epilepsy into the feed of the Beili people. We can't be greedy; mixing too much at once will easily be discovered.

At noon, when Gu Xixi announced that work was over, she and He Jinglan settled everyone's wages for the last half day.

Previously, wages for the day were settled in the evening.

Many women received their first paychecks in their lives, which inspired them and made them even more motivated.

As a result, the project was completed a full half day earlier than Gu Xixi had anticipated.