The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 435 No Need to Hesitate

Tang Tingshu led several thousand people away, registering for various jobs and discussing which factory to send them to.

There are still about 30,000 people left.

After touring the cement plant, the group continued to stroll around with Yue Wenxuan and Gong Erniangzi.

The group passed through Yanzihe Town and continued heading northeast.

Seeing that several thousand believers had been properly taken care of, the remaining 30,000 people became very calm. They realized that once they entered the territory of the Northern Song Dynasty, survival should not be a problem. The key issue from now on was probably whether they could "live better" rather than "survive".

Everyone behaved themselves and continued walking with the group.

There were many elderly, weak, sick, and disabled people, so the group was not moving fast. It was clear that the grain that the agricultural official had given them last time was about to run out when a large number of boats came along the Yanzi River. They easily found the group that was traveling up the river and delivered a large amount of grain to them.

The remaining 30,000 people were now much calmer!

As long as you follow the crowd and don't cause trouble, you'll have food to eat and won't starve.

They obediently followed the group and continued walking. The water surface ahead widened, and a small lake appeared.

This small lake will later become the famous Xianghongdian Reservoir, a huge water conservancy project. At this time, it is just a small lake, which is fed by seven tributaries: Yanzi River, Qinglong River (Jiangjia River), Songjia River, Wuji River, Lianhua River, Sanwan River, and Shijia River, as well as several streams.

Therefore, water transport is extremely developed in this area!

There is a town called Mabu on the lake, which is a water transport hub in the southern part of Shouzhou.

The Northern Song Dynasty stationed a large number of troops here, utilizing the extensive waterways to reinforce the entire southern region of Shouzhou at any time, and to guard against invasions from the puppet Qi regime and the Southern Song Dynasty.

So when Yue Wenxuan brought Yang Tian here, Yang Tian immediately saw the Song army's barracks and the water fortress next to them...

A young general emerged from the water fortress; he was one of Li Bao's old subordinates. Several years ago, Li Bao brought several hundred men to join him. After joining, these men all went to follow Li Bao in his naval endeavors, and as a result, they all became naval (marine corps) commanders.

The man before us was originally a minor officer under Li Bao, but now he has become the commander-in-chief of the Shouzhou Navy.

Yue Wenxuan gave a brief introduction of him, then pointed to Yang Tian and said, "This is Yang Tian, ​​a former general of the Chu Kingdom! He led tens of thousands of people from the former Chu Kingdom to join us."

Upon hearing this, the young general was overjoyed: "People from the former Chu? There must be many of them skilled in naval warfare! I've heard that Yang Yao is the second best naval warrior in the world."

Yang Tian was a little unconvinced: "Huh? How come Brother Yang is second? His fleet swept across Dongting Lake, he should be the number one navy in the world."

The young man said, "The first one is my boss, Li Bao."

Yang Tian: "I've never heard of Li Bao."

The young man chuckled: "You'll find out in time, hehehe."

Yang Tian really thought Li Bao was a remarkable person, and thought to himself: I should get to know him in the future.

Yue Wenxuan glared at the young general, then laughed and scolded, "You're bragging again. How can your boss be that good? He probably can't even swim fast yet!" The young general replied, "A general doesn't need to be fast at swimming; as long as he commands well, that's enough."

Gong Er Niangzi said irritably, "How dare you banter with Young Master Yue?"

The young man was startled, only then realizing he had spoken to the wrong person.

Yue Wenxuan wasn't angry at all. He never put on airs and laughed, "It's alright, it's alright. It's fun to banter."

After saying that, he turned to Yang Tian and said, "You can ask your men if there are any good swimmers who are willing to join the Shouzhou Navy here. However, we don't need many people here. Just select eight hundred men to join the navy. Their families can stay here and be allocated farmland next to the water fortress. Our naval soldiers will enjoy the same treatment as the army soldiers, with food and lodging provided and a monthly salary of five strings of cash."

"Five strings of cash?" Yang Tian was stunned when he heard this.

He didn't even need to relay the message; his subordinates immediately passed it on.

In an instant, the remaining 30,000 people were in an uproar.

So that's how high the military pay was for soldiers in the Northern Song Dynasty!
Immediately, some people became restless, but an interesting scene unfolded: these restless people did not actually take any action; they all kept their eyes on Yang Tian.

This is the difference between a warrior and an ordinary Manichaean believer!

As soon as the ordinary believers heard about the good treatment at the cement factory, they ran away without even asking Yang Tian a question.

But those who have served in the military are used to following orders and still need Yang Tian's nod to obey.

Yang Tian turned his head: "Those who are willing to join the Shouzhou Navy, then join us!"

He knew very well that the Northern Song Dynasty would not allow a surrendered general to control tens of thousands of his original troops. They would definitely disperse his forces. This was a precaution that any dynasty would inevitably take. It wasn't targeted at Yang Tian, ​​but any surrendered general would receive the same treatment.

Soon, hundreds of sailors came out!
These people fought water battles on Dongting Lake year after year, and clashed with many famous generals of the Southern Song Dynasty. Even Yue Fei's army couldn't do anything about them at first, until Yue Fei used the "water weeds rolled into wheels" tactic to defeat Yang Yao.

To be fair, Manichaeism's naval warfare capabilities were among the best in the world.

These sailors are ready to be used as soon as they join, but their ideological education... cough... needs to be re-examined.

Yue Wenxuan summoned the civil officials of Mabu Town and asked, "Are there any good fields left to allocate?"

“Yes!” the civil official immediately replied, “Because of the war, many local people were killed or injured. After our army recovered this place, although some of the fleeing people returned home, the utilization rate of the land was still less than 70%, and there are still many unclaimed idle fields available for distribution.”

Yue Wenxuan nodded: "Distribute these unclaimed fields to the newly joined sailors, and let their families be responsible for cultivating them."

The sailors were overjoyed. The Northern Song Dynasty was truly wonderful. Not only did they provide five strings of cash in military pay, but they also arranged land for their families. Where else could they find such a good court?
Compared to the Southern Song Dynasty, it was a piece of shit, and the Chu Kingdom was a fraud!
Yue Wenxuan said, "Let me make this clear from the start: our soldiers in the Northern Song Dynasty receive high military pay, and even their families enjoy the benefits of military dependents. Why is that?"

The new soldiers immediately understood and shouted in unison, "We are determined to fight to the death for Young Master Yue! We would never dare to be cowardly!"

“That’s right!” Yue Wenxuan smiled. “Your spirit is right, but you’re wrong about one thing. You’re not fighting for me, but for the country and the people! Your purpose in fighting is to protect your home and country and your fellow villagers. You must not forget that. As for me, if my orders go against the interests of the country and the people, I will allow you to betray me without the slightest hesitation.”

(End of this chapter)