Chapter 1218: This cow died from a fall; how is that breaking the law?

"Good!"

"What a 'when the body reaches its limit, willpower will break through the encirclement'—this statement is truly exquisite!"

Zhao Ponu slapped his thigh, his face full of admiration.

He looked at Gao Yang, feeling a mix of shame and respect.

He, Zhao Ponu, could be considered a veteran general, but this was the first time he realized that the methods of deploying and training troops could actually be like this!

Wu Zhao first glanced at Gao Yang, then spoke to the generals in an unquestionable tone, "I hope this training method is not spread outside."

"Otherwise, if I find out, I will never show leniency."

Wu Zhao's expression was stern, her tone carrying a chill that seeped into the marrow.

Upon hearing this, the generals all wore solemn expressions.

"Yes!"

Gao Tianlong also looked at Gao Yang, wishing he could give this brat a good beating.

Such a training method, and he just blurted it out so easily—this was a military strategy that could be passed down!

Sensing the dissatisfaction in the eyes of Wu Zhao and Gao Tianlong, Gao Yang was instantly bewildered.

This was just a standard training method; was there any need to be so tense?

He hadn't even mentioned folding quilts, military posture, various special operations, flanking maneuvers, surprise attacks, or blitzkriegs yet.

But he was sensible enough to keep his mouth shut.

If he mentioned blitzkrieg, Gao Tianlong would probably beat him the moment he got back.

He, Gao Yang, had always been very good at reading the room.

However, he added one sentence.

"Although the conditions are very difficult, your subject feels that someone should be able to achieve it within one hour!"

As he said this, a hint of expectation flickered in Gao Yang's eyes.

Almost instantly, Wu Zhao narrowed her eyes and asked, "You think highly of the mining soldiers?"

Gao Yang nodded again in response.

"However, your subject does not have much certainty regarding this, but if Your Majesty has nothing else to do today, you might as well wait here for another hour."

"By then, the answer will be clear."

Wu Zhao arched her phoenix eyes and said, "Since I have nothing else to do, I will wait a while longer."

"But it is a full hour; am I just to wait here idly?"

"Your Majesty can eat while waiting; it just so happens that your subject has a few signature dishes today."

As he spoke, Gao Yang looked outside the main camp.

"Eat?"

Wu Zhao followed Gao Yang's gaze and saw three flatbed carts approaching from not far away.

One cart was loaded with vegetables, one was tied with a fat, meaty pig, and one was tied with a cow lying on its back with its four legs in the air.

The person leading them was none other than the head chef of the Duke's Prefecture, Wang Tao.

"Wang Tao pays respects to Your Majesty!"

Wang Tao first bowed to Wu Zhao, then said to Gao Yang, "Young Master, shall we start cooking now?"

Gao Yang nodded and said, "Do it. This high-intensity training requires good food, otherwise, their bodies won't get enough nutrition. Stew this cow."

"Yes!"

Wang Tao bowed again to Gao Tianlong, Wu Zhao, and the others, then directed the servants from the prefecture to move the goods from the carts into the military camp.

"Hiss!"

Wu Zhao's expression changed, and she drew a sharp breath.

Beside her, Wang Zhong stared at the cow with its legs in the air and said in shock, "If this old man is not mistaken, that appears to be a cow."

"Your Majesty, Lord Gao is actually ordering his chef to slaughter a cow in public to eat beef!"

Wang Zhong pointed at Gao Yang and said to Wu Zhao.

Gao Tianlong: "..."

Among the seven kingdoms of the world, plow oxen were extremely precious, and the laws were strict; slaughtering a plow ox just for the sake of one's appetite would lead to imprisonment!

Yet Gao Yang had sent a cow into the military camp in front of all the officials and in front of Wu Zhao...

Seeing this, Gao Yang quickly said, "Old General Wang, you can eat anything, but you cannot say just anything; otherwise, be careful, or this official will sue you for slander!"

Wang Zhong's eyes widened, and his voice rose sharply, "Lord Gao, is this Wang Tao not the chef of the Duke's Prefecture?"

"Yes!"

"Was it not you who gave the order for this cow to be sent into the camp and stewed today?"

"Yes!"

Gao Yang continued to answer.

"Then you still won't admit it? How can there be such a shameless person in the world as you?"

Gao Yang shook his head, "Old General Wang, according to the laws of our Great Qian, slaughtering a plow ox for the sake of one's appetite is what breaks the law, but the plow ox in my prefecture died from an accidental fall; how can you say this was intentional?"

"If we don't eat a cow that died from a fall, it would be too much of a waste."

"It just so happens that this official is selecting personal guards, and with such high-intensity training, their bodies need proper nutrition. This official is not eating alone in the prefecture; how can this be wrong?"

Wang Zhong's eyes widened as he pointed at Gao Yang, deeply aware of Gao Yang's shamelessness.

"Lord Gao, is it really such a coincidence? You were just about to conduct rigorous training that requires supplementing the soldiers' nutrition, and yesterday, a cow just happened to die from a fall?"

Gao Yang nodded and said very seriously, "Old General Wang, it really is such a coincidence, but if you don't believe this official, then this official has no way to help you."

Wang Zhong felt a surge of frustration pent up in his heart, his eyes wide as copper bells.

Shameless!

Too shameless!

But in Wang Zhong's heart, a pale sense of powerlessness suddenly rose.

He then remembered Gao Yang's other identity—an outlaw who defies the law!

Back when the incident of Gao Changwen's "free-loading" spread, it was the talk of the town, and the entire Changancheng knew of it.

He hadn't thought it was impressive at the time, just listening to it as a joke.

Now he realized the power of being well-versed in the law.

When it came to exploiting loopholes in the law, he feared no one in Changancheng could surpass him.

Just like this trick of the cow falling to its death on its own—what could one say to that?

Was the cow even more foolish than he, Wang Zhong, that it could fall to its death all by itself?

Even Wu Zhao felt this was deeply shameless.

The original intent of this law was good; plow oxen were too precious, so their slaughter was strictly forbidden, with heavy penalties for violators.

But a problem arose: how should cows that died of illness or old age be handled?

In a world where even pork was extremely precious, not being allowed to sell or eat a dead cow was undoubtedly too harsh.

Therefore, this law was created: one must not slaughter a plow ox for the sake of one's appetite, with heavy penalties for violators!

But because of this, the law-defying outlaw Gao Yang was born.

"I can understand one dying from a fall, but if they keep dying from falls for no reason, and the cows are all so foolish, then I will have to investigate thoroughly."

Wu Zhao took a deep breath, her phoenix eyes fixed on Gao Yang.

Seeing this, Gao Yang quickly smiled and said, "Your Majesty, that is only natural. Such foolish cows are hard to find in all of Great Qian; how could they die from falls for no reason one after another?"

"Alas!"

"It is a pity about the foolish cow... but since it has died from a fall, I can only eat a couple of bites."

Wu Zhao's tone softened, and she said with a sigh.

As royalty, she had to lead by example, and Wu Zhao had not eaten beef for a long time.

Today, she would just have to eat two bowls with tears in her eyes.