The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 361 Was the Northern Song Dynasty really that happy?
When Zhang Yong saw that there were indeed Northern Song officials coming to greet him, he couldn't help but breathe a long sigh of relief.

He quickly bowed deeply: "This humble subject, Zhang Yong, greets Lord Ma."

Ma Sheng came from a prominent family and possessed a natural air of refinement. His manners and interactions with others were entirely in line with the national dignity of the Northern Song Dynasty. (A hundred million words are omitted here regarding his reception of Zhang Yong.)

Zhang Yong then led an army of 50,000, following behind Ma Sheng, towards Chuzhou.

As they walked, Zhang Yong couldn't help but ask about the grain supplies.

He had run all the way from Qiaoshe Town, and his food supplies were almost exhausted. The 50,000 bandits behind him all needed to eat.

"Lord Ma, this humble subject has led his army to surrender, willing to serve the Northern Song Dynasty with utmost loyalty. I dare not make any demands, but... my fifty thousand brothers have been traveling desperately for days, without even having a hot meal. I wonder..."

Ma Sheng laughed: "General Zhang, please rest assured. Now that you have surrendered to our Northern Song Dynasty, your soldiers are our Northern Song soldiers. How can we let our own soldiers go hungry? The food and supplies have already been prepared and are just a short distance ahead."

Zhang Yong was somewhat incredulous at how easily he agreed. Fifty thousand men! Fifty thousand men's worth of provisions!
If Ma Sheng had seemed a little embarrassed and managed to produce some grain, Zhang Yong would have believed him. However, Ma Sheng's nonchalant attitude made Zhang Yong think that he was putting on an act.

He has always been timid and afraid of death, and he was feeling uneasy and unsafe.

If Ma Sheng and Su Qi'er hadn't been walking right beside him, giving off a "you can kill us anytime if there's a problem" vibe, Zhang Yong really wouldn't have dared to go any further.

The group continued forward, and ahead lay a forest.

Worried about an ambush, Zhang Yong waved his hand, signaling a scout to go into the forest to investigate.

But then a horse's voice rang out, "The grain is in this grove of trees. General Zhang, you can send someone to fetch it."

Zhang Yong: "Huh?"

Just as they were wondering, the scout they had just sent out ran back, looking like a kitten seeing a drawer full of cat treats: "Brother Zhang Yong, it's incredible, it's incredible! The woods are full of grain, piled up like small mountains!"

Zhang Yong: "!"

Ma Sheng: "General, please send your men to fetch the grain yourselves. To avoid the general suspecting that we are ambushing you, there are no of our men in the forest, so the grain can only be carried by your own men."

Zhang Yong sent a team of men into the woods. Soon, they emerged from the woods carrying sacks and baskets of grain on their shoulders and in their hands, their faces beaming with joy: "General, it's all food, so much of it... and no one is guarding it."

Only then did Zhang Yong's suspicions completely disappear.

With a wave of his hand, he gave the order, and a large group of bandits surged into the woods. In no time, they brought out a large amount of grain, more than they could have looted from a county town in the past.

Seeing so much food, the elderly, women, and children in the group breathed a sigh of relief. To maintain their fighting strength, the bandits could only ensure that the able-bodied men were well-fed when food was scarce, so that they would have the strength to fight and seize more grain. Therefore, the elderly, women, and children often went hungry. Now that there was enough food, they were finally able to get enough to eat.

In just a moment, the Northern Song Dynasty became beautiful in their eyes.

Ma Sheng said, "General, I have brought you enough food, and I deliberately gave you so much food when we were still far from Chuzhou. You should understand why, right?"

Zhang Yong nodded: "I understand. Tell me not to be suspicious."

Ma Sheng: "That's not all! Next up is the territory of Chuzhou, which is all the land of our Northern Song Dynasty. General, please restrain your men and do not disturb the people or take a single needle or thread from them. According to the military regulations of our Northern Song Dynasty, anyone caught robbing the people will be beheaded without exception."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yong suddenly realized that the reason the other side had given him so much grain was to ensure his soldiers were well-fed and wouldn't plunder the people of the Northern Song Dynasty. He slapped his forehead, exclaiming, "That's right! If I surrender to the Northern Song, I'll be a proper general and can no longer have the habits of a bandit!" Zhang Yong quickly ordered his 50,000-strong army to cook, ensuring everyone was well-fed, and then giving each soldier a bag of grain to keep in their pockets to reassure them. Afterward, he addressed the entire army, telling them that they were no longer bandits but citizens of the Northern Song Dynasty and could no longer engage in burning, killing, and looting.

If someone is distributing food, who would bother to rob it?

The bandits naturally obeyed.

After a hearty meal, the army set off and finally entered the territory of Chuzhou.

Upon entering Chuzhou, we saw the "border fortress" of the Northern Song Dynasty.

The fort was built of stone and mud, and was sturdy and solid. Dozens of soldiers were stationed in the fort. When they saw the 50,000-strong army passing by, the soldiers should have given a warning, but they had obviously been notified in advance. Instead of lighting the beacon fire, they waved to Zhang Yong's army.

Zhang Yong couldn't help but ask, "Are these border forts used to defend against the Southern Song?"

"Yes!" Ma Sheng said, "Chuzhou is currently our bridgehead in the war against the Southern Song Dynasty. The Southern Song has two generals stationed not far to the south. One is Liu Guangshi, who is currently stationed in Yangzhou, only two hundred miles away from Chuzhou. The other is Zhang Jun, who is leading his troops to run rampant in the eastern and western routes of Huainan. Did you not encounter Zhang Jun on your way here, General?"

Zhang Yong was timid, and upon hearing the name of these two "generals," he nearly lost his mind: "Oh dear, these two are both generals of the Southern Song Dynasty. Luckily, I didn't run into them when I arrived, or I would have been in grave danger."

Su Qi'er, who was possessed by Yue Wenxuan, couldn't help but chuckle to himself: These two good-for-nothings are generals? They're both experts at escaping! They ran faster than Zhao Gou when they encountered the Jin bandits.

Yue Wenxuan said in a low voice, "General Zhang, don't worry. Zhang Jun has already been bribed by us. Now he is focused on doing business with our Northern Song Dynasty. Even if he sees you, he won't attack you."

Zhang Yong: "Huh?"

Yue Wenxuan continued, "As for Liu Guangshi, his best skill is running away. If you see him, General, all you need to do is reveal the name of our Northern Song Dynasty, and he will run faster than a rabbit."

Zhang Yong: "!!!"

Yue Wenxuan: "The Southern Song Dynasty is nothing to fear."

Zhang thought to himself: Of course you're not afraid, but I am! Don't I know my own level?
Before we knew it, we had passed the border fort.

We have officially entered the territory of Chuzhou...

As soon as he entered, Zhang Yong saw vast stretches of fertile land, densely packed with thriving crops. Even someone completely unfamiliar with agriculture would know from the growth of these crops that a bumper harvest was inevitable.

Zhang Yong was greatly surprised. How many years had it been since he had seen such a scene?

The 50,000 bandits behind him were equally astonished: fertile fields! Fertile fields stretching as far as the eye could see!

God!

There's war going on all over the world, and we can't even find a place where we can sleep peacefully.

Within the territory of the Northern Song Dynasty, there was such a large-scale farmland, growing so well, as if completely unaware of the war raging outside. Every plant had an innocent and naive face, like a child raised in an ivory tower.

Were people in the Northern Song Dynasty really that happy?

(End of this chapter)