The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 371 Military Service
After visiting the "Chuzhou Ministry of Works" and the "Chuzhou Ministry of Agriculture," Fu Songqing's mind was already a bit overwhelmed. He sensed that the Northern Song Dynasty was "more advanced" than the Southern Song Dynasty in many ways, and that most of these "advanced" aspects were based on "advanced productive forces."

The development of productive forces will promote the progress of social structure.

Such a dramatic change was incredibly shocking for people who grew up in a feudal agricultural society.

In fact, this is also why Yue Wenxuan did not start making sweeping changes in the Jiaodong Peninsula as soon as he came into contact with the sand table. If it is too radical, it will not be able to develop in the first place, and there will be too much resistance.

It wasn't until Chuzhou was rebuilt that Yue Wenxuan was able to fully unleash his potential.

Anyway, the whole place was burned down, and the deeply entrenched local vested interests were gone. There were only large groups of captured bandits who could only do whatever they were told, and no one dared to object.

It's like drawing on a blank sheet of paper, much easier.

Once advanced productivity is established, subsequent changes become much easier.

After looking around, Yue Wenxuan finally led Fu Songqing into the prefectural government office...

Now that we've reached this point, someone else will be there to greet him!
After Jing Ke took his leave, Fu Songqing, led by the guards, entered the prefectural government office and saw Gong Erniangzi and Yan Chengping sitting in the main hall chatting.

Fu Songqing straightened his posture and adopted the demeanor of an envoy from a great nation, saying neither humbly nor arrogantly, "I am Fu Songqing, an envoy from the Great Song Dynasty, here to meet with... cough... the advisors of the Seventeenth Prince of the North."

Hearing him say that, Gong Er Niangzi wasn't angry. She was born into a humble background and didn't care much about these kinds of titles.

Yan Chengping was furious: "What kind of address is this?"

Fu Songqing: "Our Emperor is the legitimate ruler of the Song Dynasty. The Seventeenth Prince has proclaimed himself Emperor, but the Song Dynasty has not recognized him. My way of addressing him is not inappropriate at all."

Yan Chengping slammed his fist on the table: "Zhao Gou abandoned us Shandong people, what kind of bullshit legitimacy is that? Would a legitimate Song emperor abandon his people? My Yan family is the first to reject this false legitimacy. Only our Emperor truly loves his people like his own children and is rightfully the rightful heir to the throne..."

He was about to continue speaking when the small door next to him opened, and Yue Wenxuan walked in from behind.

Yan Chengping immediately stopped talking to show his respect for Yue Wenxuan.

Gong Erniangzi said happily, "You're back."

Yue Wenxuan nodded, indicating that he had "returned from his spiritual journey."

Then he smiled at Yan Chengping and said, "Chengping, don't get hung up on such trivial matters. Let him call us whatever he wants. Just like how they used to call the Jin Kingdom 'Jin thieves,' but in the blink of an eye, they knelt down in front of the thieves. They were so adorably cowardly."

Yan Chengping chuckled and said, "That's true."

Fu Songqing retorted angrily, "Nonsense! We did not kneel before the Jurchen traitors!"

Yue Wenxuan: "You can say 'I didn't,' but you can't say 'we didn't,' especially when you're speaking on behalf of Zhao Gou, you have no right to say 'no.'"

Fu Songqing was speechless for a moment: "..."

Everyone witnessed Zhao Gou kneeling.

While the Jin dynasty was searching high and low to capture Zhao Gou, Zhao Gou was simultaneously fleeing and sending envoys to sue for peace. This series of bizarre actions resulted in a huge loss of face for the pro-war faction, who had completely lost face and could not recover.

Yue Wenxuan: "Let's not get bogged down in such trivial matters as forms of address. Let's get down to business. I guess you're here to negotiate peace with us on behalf of Zhao Gou, since Zhao Gou loves peace talks the most."

Fu Songqing was humiliated and felt utterly ashamed, but he could not refute it because he had indeed come to negotiate peace. He could only force himself to say, "Your Majesty is benevolent and does not wish to harm the people of Huaidong by recklessly waging war. Therefore, you have sent me here to discuss the matter of the two Song dynasties ceasing hostilities."

Yue Wenxuan nodded: "I understand, I understand! The pseudo-Qi state is currently sending troops to Shouchun, the Chu state is seizing control of Hunan, and Cao Cheng is causing trouble in Jiangxi. Zhao Gou really can't spare any resources to deal with us, so he wants to appease us, right?" Fu Songqing: "..."

His bluntness upon arrival almost caught Fu Songqing off guard.

Yue Wenxuan: "But you're a proponent of war. Don't you feel embarrassed being sent to negotiate peace?"

Fu Songqing: "!!!"

Yue Wenxuan: "Alright, I declare your mission a success, and I accept the peace negotiations."

"Pfft!" Fu Songqing felt that his thoughts couldn't keep up with Yue Wenxuan's words. How could you possibly respond like this? Just now you were speaking so bluntly, as if you were about to send someone to drag me out and behead me, but in the blink of an eye, you immediately agreed to the peace talks.

Talking to someone whose thinking is so unpredictable is exhausting.

What surprised him even more was what happened next. Yue Wenxuan changed the subject again: "But when you came in just now, you kept talking about the Seventeenth Prince and questioned the legitimacy of our Emperor. You made me furious. I'm so angry now that I can't just let you go back like this."

Fu Songqing raised his head and straightened his neck: "You can cut off my head and see if I'm afraid."

Yue Wenxuan: "Cut off your head and you'll be lucky! Guards, seize this rude Southern Song envoy and conscript him into the army!"

"Exiled to the army?" Fu Songqing felt like he'd misheard. "Me, a mere scholar from the Zhilongtu Pavilion? You want me to be exiled to the army? Hey! Back then, Zhang Shao was sent as an envoy to the Jin Dynasty, angering Talai and being exiled—that is, exiled to Heilongjiang and placed under house arrest in a temple. Who ever exiles a civil official to the army? You people of the Northern Song Dynasty have no martial virtue!"

But his protests were useless; if Yue Wenxuan said he would be sent to the army, then he really would be sent to the army.

The arrangement by the gods is the greatest.

Several veteran guards under Gong Erniangzi immediately stepped forward, seized Fu Songqing, and dragged him into the military camp.

Fu Songqing: "I protest! I protest! This is an insult to civility and a violation of ancestral rules!"

Yue Wenxuan: "Drag it out."

Although Fu Songqing cursed and swore, it was to no avail. He was soon dragged to the barracks and handed over to the captain of a musket team.

Little did he know that the captain of the musket team had already received instructions from Yue Wenxuan.

Upon seeing Fu Songqing being dragged in, he was immediately assigned to the musket team and placed in the middle of the second row.

Fu Songqing stopped protesting at this point!

He knew that when facing important figures like Yue Wenxuan and Gong Erniangzi, he could "protest" and argue his case, but once he entered the barracks, if he dared to protest against the captain, he would be beaten in no time.

It would be too humiliating for a scholar from the Zhilongtu Pavilion to be beaten by ordinary soldiers.

Fu Songqing had no choice but to cooperate obediently. He did whatever the captain told him to do, knowing that a wise man doesn't suffer a loss in front of him.

So he quickly learned the basics of lining up, marching in step, turning right, and so on...

Learned people learn anything quickly. It takes an ordinary soldier half a day to learn to turn left or right, but Fu Songqing only took two incense sticks' worth of time to perfectly integrate himself into the army.

(End of this chapter)