Chapter 300: Roasted Flour

"Furthermore, since we have the Telescope, our scouts can see much further, discover the Xiliang Cavalry in time, and make preparations early," Zhong Li said at this moment.

Having seen the Telescope, he was very fond of this object.

Holding it, they would be able to see much further than the Xiliang Cavalry.

Chen Hu nodded in agreement; to anticipate the enemy and seize the initiative, nothing could be better than this.

"Hmm, these are all good ideas," Zhao Xu said. "This Prince has another method, and that is Roasted Flour."

"Roasted Flour!" Hearing this term, everyone looked at each other in dismay; this was something they had never heard of.

"If you want the supply lines to be secure, there is another way, which is to speed up the transport of grain. During the process of transporting grain, one often needs to set up pots and cook, which not only delays the timing of the transport but the cooking smoke also exposes the location of the supply line," Zhao Xu said.

After pondering for a moment, he continued: "Besides the supply lines, if you want the troops to be swift and launch surprise attacks, you must also find a way to avoid setting up pots and cooking, which exposes your position. This Roasted Flour is easy to store, does not spoil easily, can be eaten by adding a mouthful of water, and is very easy to carry; eating it for ten days or more at a time is no problem."

When Zhao Xu said this, Chang Wei and the others were even more astonished.

In fact, soldiers also bring their own dry rations when marching.

For example, rice, wheat, etc., but it is usually only enough for three days, and these things also need to be cooked.

If it were truly as Yan Wang said.

This kind of thing is simply too powerful; their marching speed could be greatly increased.

The most important thing is that the enemy sometimes judges the number of soldiers by the number of cooking pits.

Not cooking can also provide the enemy's scouts with false intelligence.

Now, the only thing they were curious about was what exactly this Roasted Flour was.

Zhao Xu smiled mysteriously and beckoned to the generals.

He led them to the mess hall of the Feihu Pass camp.

Then he called over a cook and ordered him to bring flour, bean flour, oil, and salt.

He taught the cook step by step, first pouring in oil to heat it, then mixing the flour and bean flour together to dry-fry.

After it was half-cooked,

he added salt, continuing until it was thoroughly cooked.

"Taste it." The Roasted Flour was completely cooked, and Zhao Xu said to Chang Wei and the others.

While the cook was frying it, a rich aroma drifted out.

The generals' Adam's apples had been bobbing for a while.

Having received Yan Wang's order, one by one they found bowls and chopsticks and set upon the Roasted Flour.

Chang Wei took a bite and immediately gave a thumbs up, "Fragrant."

As he spoke, the Roasted Flour sprayed out of his mouth, and he coughed repeatedly.

He went to find water to drink, and after swallowing it, he said: "Your Highness, this taste is really good, it's just a bit choking to eat dry."

The other generals were also eating with great relish.

It was their first time tasting this food, and their appetites were wide open.

After eating a bowl, Chang Wei nodded repeatedly, "If Your Highness intends for the soldiers to eat this during the upcoming march, then the soldiers will be in for a treat."

Zhao Xu smiled helplessly.

Roasted Flour is considered to have legendary status in the modern era.

During the War to Resist America and Aid Korea, logistics were difficult, and the dry rations the soldiers carried were changed to Roasted Flour.

On one hand, Roasted Flour is cooked, easy to carry, and convenient to eat.

On the other hand, it avoids starting fires, providing convenience for night marches.

It was precisely because of these advantages, and facing the problem of protecting supply lines, that he decided to use Roasted Flour in this war.

Chang Wei said it was delicious, and he agreed.

After all, the environment in ancient times was very harsh.

Before the soldiers entered the Prince's Personal Army, their family situations were mostly difficult; eating chaff and choking on vegetables was even the norm, so having this to eat was indeed quite good.

The other generals also tasted it for the first time at this moment.

Zhong Li said: "Your Highness, this dry ration is good; it's delicious, can be eaten directly, and the main thing is that this flour can be packed in large quantities. If it were steamed buns or flatbreads, they would take up space."

"You're right, that is an advantage this Prince mentioned," Zhao Xu laughed.

Steamed buns and flatbreads are naturally also cooked, but they take up space.

Whereas for Roasted Flour, one only needs to sew a long, cylindrical bag.

Once the Roasted Flour is packed inside, one can wrap it around the neck and carry it directly on the back.

The others all nodded one after another upon hearing this.

It meant that using Roasted Flour as dry rations was feasible.

As long as they didn't start fires to cook, they could avoid a lot of trouble.

"Since that is the case, this subordinate will mobilize the soldiers tonight to grind the wheat and roast the flour," Chang Wei said.

Since the war had already begun, attacking Hengshan City was not a matter of a single moment.

Now that they had such excellent dry rations, they naturally had to prepare them, even if it meant delaying by a few days.

The matter was settled.

Zhao Xu, on one hand, ordered the Commandery Governor of Shanggu Commandery to transport salt, oil, and such to Feihu Pass.

On the other hand, he ordered people to ride fast horses to other commanderies to request the sewing of Dry Ration Bags.

Chang Wei and the generals, after learning how to make Roasted Flour, organized the soldiers to grind the flour and roast it themselves.

Having received Zhao Xu's order.

The Government Offices of each commandery immediately took action.

During this period, the other commanderies established the same system as Yan Commandery.

The benevolent governance of the Prince's Mansion made the relationship between the people of Yanzhou and the Government Office closer than ever before.

In order to complete the tasks issued by Yan Wang in a timely manner, the Commandery Governors all mobilized the people of their respective commanderies to sew dry ration bags.

The Government Office used silver to purchase them from the hands of the people.

In just half a month.

Over one hundred thousand dry ration bags were delivered to Feihu Pass.

By this time, a large quantity of roasted flour had already been stockpiled within Feihu Pass.

The soldiers received their dry ration bags, went to their respective camps to collect the roasted flour, and strapped them onto their backs.

The laborers also received their own dry ration bags.

They hung two bags on their carts and transported them along with the grain and fodder.

During this period, the reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance between the Wangfu Cavalry and the Xiliang Cavalry never ceased.

It seemed that at first, Xiliang was very curious as to why the Prince's Army had suddenly gone quiet, frequently approaching Feihu Pass to investigate.

However, as time passed, the Xiliang Cavalry's investigations gradually decreased, and they became much more lax.

And this was yet another effect of Zhao Xu's plan for the roasted flour.

To paralyze the enemy.

"Today, have the soldiers and laborers sleep all day, and march after dark." Everything being ready, Zhao Xu gave the order.

The generals participating in this expedition all responded in unison, "Yes."

That night.

The moon hid behind dark clouds, and outside Feihu Pass, it was exceptionally pitch black.

After the sun set, under the command of the generals, the soldiers set out from Feihu Pass.

There is naturally an official road from Feihu Pass to Hengshan County.

Following the official road, they advanced rapidly toward Hengshan County.

Because running was a mandatory subject in the soldiers' daily training, and running with a load was also the norm, a forced march was not a problem for them.

However, the laborers pushing the carts were very slow and could only fall behind.

But the benefit of a night march was that the darkness provided good cover for the laborers.

Unless one looked from right up close, even if the Xiliang Cavalry arrived within a hundred meters, they would not be able to tell what they were.

Zhao Xu and Chang Wei rode their horses in the middle of the soldiers.

It was also his first time experiencing a night march; everything around was pitch black, and he could only see the faint reflection of the soldiers' silver armor in front.

It was precisely by relying on these faint glimmers that the troop was able to advance in an orderly fashion.