The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 362 Zhang Yong is here
Upon seeing the vast expanse of fertile land, more than half of Zhang Yong's 50,000 bandit soldiers began to waver.

Most of the bandits were originally good citizens!
But this turbulent world has turned people into monsters and good citizens into thieves.

If a pure land suddenly appeared in the world, where people could farm in peace, why would they still be bandits?

The army marched in a long, single-file formation along the official road, with thriving farmland on both sides.

Luckily, they had already eaten their fill and each had a bag of grain, otherwise they really wouldn't have been able to resist rushing into the field to pick the grain...

Seeing this, Zhang Yong couldn't help but think to himself: "These officials of the Northern Song Dynasty have the common people in their hearts. If it were officials of the Southern Song Dynasty, they would never have thought of this beforehand. They would have made sure my people were fed first to prevent them from taking advantage of the farmland."

In the minds of Southern Song officials, it was probably normal for the army to rob civilians; who would care about the lives of the people?
Just then, Yue Wenxuan suddenly spoke up: "General Zhang, half of your 50,000 men are actually the elderly, weak, women and children, and a small part, although they are young and strong, are not good at fighting, or rather, they have no will to fight and do not want to participate in the battle."

Zhang Yong was aware of this as well, and nodded in agreement: "Yes! I'm not afraid to tell you, but wherever we bandits go, we recruit soldiers and horses. As long as they are willing to join, we bring them in, regardless of whether they are old, weak, women or children. As long as they can keep up with the group, they can join."

What he said wasn't entirely true. What he meant by "willing to join" should actually be described as "coerced into joining."

Many villagers were coerced into joining the thieves; if they refused, they would be burned, killed, and robbed.

That's just the kind of era we live in!
Zhang Yong was considered a righteous and good person among the thieves, but he still had to do these things, otherwise he wouldn't have become a force to be reckoned with.

Yue Wenxuan said, "Since they don't want to fight and can't fight, why keep them in the army? General Zhang should also know that in war, numbers don't guarantee victory. Li Cheng's 100,000-strong army couldn't even defeat our supply convoy..."

Zhang Yong certainly knew this principle: the elderly, women, children, and able-bodied men who couldn't fight were all a burden to the army. But he had no choice but to bring these people along because many of them were relatives or neighbors of his soldiers. If he didn't bring the elderly, women, children, and men along, his soldiers would rebel.

Now that Yue Wenxuan brought this up, he couldn't help but ask, "What does 'hero' mean...?"

Yue Wenxuan said, "Because the last time the Jin army came, the defensive battle in Chuzhou was too fierce, and only one-tenth of the population survived. Therefore, a large amount of farmland is still abandoned. Now, anyone who comes to Chuzhou and is willing to farm can be allocated a piece of land immediately."

Zhang Yong understood instantly: "You want to have the elderly, women, children, and those who do not want to fight in my army stay here and farm."

Yue Wenxuan: "That's right. Farming is fine, and so is working. As long as he's willing to work, he can find a place to stand in Chuzhou. To be honest, last year our army defeated Li Cheng and captured more than 20,000 of his men. They are all now settled in Chuzhou. Many of the fields you see in the general's field of view were planted by Li Cheng's men."

Zhang Yong: "Huh? From Li Cheng's people?"

He looked out over the fields and saw several old farmers sitting on the edge of the fields, grinning at him foolishly: "I never expected this! I thought that after Li Cheng was defeated by the Northern Song Dynasty, all 20,000 of his brothers were in dire straits. I never expected them to be doing so well now."
The two were not speaking in a low voice, and those around Zhang Yong could hear them.

And so, these words began to spread among the 50,000 bandits…

More and more people know about it!
The elderly, women, and children in the group looked at the farmland next to them with a noticeably burning desire in their eyes.

They now look at these fields as if they were looking at their own.

As long as the big boss nods, they can get a piece of land and start a new life there. Who wouldn't be envious of that?
Zhang Yong wasn't stupid; of course he would nod. The opinions of the elderly, women, and children would be tied to the opinions of the able-bodied soldiers in his army.

If they don't agree, the outcome could be a mutiny in no time.

At this point, it would be better to adopt the attitude of a righteous elder brother: "We are grateful to the esteemed officials of the Northern Song Dynasty for thinking so highly of us and providing us with such a good place. How could we be ungrateful? Once we are settled, I will order all the brothers in the army who are willing to retire to their hometowns to do so."

Upon hearing this, the bandits were overjoyed, and cheers resounded throughout the army.

The bandits continued their advance, getting closer and closer to Chuzhou City.

When the city came into view in the distance, Gong Erniangzi led her army out to greet them. This time, the Northern Song army was a regular force, and its military appearance was worlds apart from Zhang Yongjun's.

To prevent Zhang Yong from "not understanding firearms and thus failing to deter others," Gong Erniangzi specially brought three hundred heavy infantrymen. These three hundred heavy infantrymen walked at the forefront of the army, wearing two layers of iron armor, and their imposing presence was terrifying.

Zhang Yong's gaze was instantly drawn to these heavy infantrymen, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Those are... Iron Pagodas? They're Iron Pagodas painted red!"

“That’s right,” Lady Gong said with a smile. “After our army defeated the Jin army’s Iron Pagoda, we captured their armor and used it to forge this heavy infantry unit.”

The Northern Song people in front of Zhang Yong suddenly seemed much taller and more imposing.

There is only one person in the world who can defeat the Jin army's Iron Pagoda.

How can one not admire such a person!
Zhang Yong almost kowtowed to Gong Er Niangzi.

He had initially harbored a slight idea of ​​being a fence-sitter, but now he instantly thought, "What fence-sitter? Which country could be better than the Northern Song Dynasty? It's better to stick with a good leader than to be a fence-sitter."

Without a second thought, he dismounted and knelt on one knee before Lady Gong: "Zhang Yong is willing to follow Lady Gong, even through fire and water, without hesitation."
-
Two months later!

Zhang Yong, dressed in a martial arts outfit, rode a tall horse, accompanied by his wife "Yi Zhang Qing" and more than thirty military leaders, and arrived in Jiaoshui County.

They came to study at a military academy.

When Gong Erniangzi suggested that he attend a military academy, Zhang Yong doubted his ears. Although he was a thief, he had commanded an army of 50,000 men and he didn't think he needed to attend any military academy.

However, after Gong Erniangzi took him to the training ground and let him witness the Northern Song army's exercise, Zhang Yong realized that he really didn't know how to fight and that he really needed to go to military school.

So he took his wife, Yizhangqing, and more than thirty leaders and headed north to Jiaoshui, intending to enroll in the military academy.

The group was amazed by the prosperity of the Northern Song Dynasty along the way, which goes without saying. When they arrived in Jiaoshui City, they gave their names and were invited into the Ministry of War, where they stood before Wu Jialiang, the Minister of War.

(End of this chapter)