Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 277 Differential Treatment
“It smells so good~”

“It smells so good~~~”

The young people, their faces bruised and swollen, grimaced as they approached the stove.

Along the way, people pointed and laughed when they saw him, or simply ignored him.

This kind of thing is perfectly normal in the military.

They were all hot-blooded men, and being confined in the camp all day, fighting and brawling were commonplace.

Unless something serious happens, like someone is killed or maimed, nobody usually cares.

A large pot sat on the stove, filled with meat broth and white rice, making the young people's eyes light up.

For countless years, the people of the Central Plains have been unable to afford white rice even if they grow grain, and unable to afford silk even if they raise silkworms and weave silk fabrics.

White rice?
They can only eat a few dry meals during the busy farming season.

The young people's eyes were red.

As for the aroma of meat, that's a deliciousness you can only taste a few times a year.

"queue!"

Fu Youde instructed Xu and Chang to "make the arrangements."

The two men accepted the order, one standing in one direction and the other glaring at the crowd. The previously noisy crowd immediately quieted down and began to line up.

There's nothing we can do, they're really good at fighting!

Young people admire this.

Holding their own aluminum lunchboxes, they lined up and took turns getting their food.

This lunchbox, which looks like a kidney, actually has a large capacity.

Add two large spoonfuls of rice, and then another large spoonful of meat broth.

The group gathered in groups according to their assigned numbers, squatted on the ground, and ate and drank with chopsticks.

"These iron chopsticks are so heavy."

"Even the chopsticks are made of iron; King Ming must be incredibly wealthy."

"This lunchbox is made of metal, what if it rusts?"

Using iron cutlery, everyone ate and chatted, feeling quite luxurious.

For Han Chinese families, where even a single kitchen knife required the combined resources of ten households, ironware was truly a luxury.

"This is no ordinary iron."

Fu Youde, holding a lunchbox in his hand, paced back and forth, saying, "I heard from the Ming King that the lunchbox is made of aluminum alloy and the chopsticks are made of stainless steel."

Xu Da and Chang Yuchun asked in unison.

What is aluminum alloy?

What is stainless steel?

“I actually know that.” Fu Youde showed off his knowledge. “Aluminum alloy is a kind of white gold. Stainless steel is steel chopsticks that won’t rust.”

These words stunned everyone. "Gold?"

"We're actually eating from bowls made of gold?"

"This is like holding a golden rice bowl!"

Everyone was talking at once, discussing the matter animatedly, and some were even starting to think about taking the lunchboxes.

Once he came to his senses, Fu Youde realized he had misspoke and quickly tried to cover it up, saying, "Actually, it's just a nominal title; it's not real gold."

"It's similar to iron, but probably a little more expensive."

His words were as if he hadn't said anything at all, which only made the crowd murmur even louder.

Chang Yuchun stood up and let out a low roar.

"Shut up, everyone!"

The noise stopped abruptly.

"Eat your food!"

Some people looked resentful, but dared not retaliate and continued eating with their heads down.

There's no way around it, Chang Yuchun is just too good at fighting!
If you have a big fist and a bad temper in the army, others will naturally respect you.

"While in the military, one must abide by military regulations."

Fu Youde hurriedly added, "When I was in night school, the first lesson was about military regulations."

“Selling military supplies is a recipe for disaster; don’t do anything foolish.”

He pointed towards the camp gate. "When you entered the camp, you saw those wooden cages hanging outside, right?"

"There are fools who steal and sell military assets, and merchants who buy military assets."

"Don't do anything foolish."

Indeed, facts speak louder than words.

Hearing these words, and then recalling the snarling heads in the wooden cages he had seen when he entered the camp.

The murmurs immediately ceased.

Money is good, but life is more important.

Especially since the benefits here are so good.

We can even eat meat at the meal!

Xu Da picked up a piece of luncheon meat about half a finger thick and asked, "Bai Chang, what kind of meat is this?"

"pork!"

Fu Youde asserted with certainty, "It's authentic pork, with added spices and oil, making it both fragrant and delicious."

For someone trying luncheon meat for the first time, it is indeed an unparalleled delicacy.

Especially for those who rarely eat meat, it is so delicious that it is irresistible.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, they would lick the lunchbox, but the lunchbox was quite deep, so they couldn't lick the inside.

"follow me."

Fu Youde led the group to the water bucket.

There is a row of stoves here, with honeycomb briquettes burning inside, and large kettles boiling water on top of the stoves.

There are people specifically assigned to watch over it, constantly pouring water into the bucket and refilling the kettle.

"There are hygiene regulations in the military that strictly prohibit drinking raw water; you must drink boiled and cooled water."

"Those who violate the rules will have to clean the dry toilets for three days the first time, ten days the second time, and one month the third time. After that, they will have to clean for one month for each subsequent violation."

Fu Youde added, "It was a sweep by everyone in the entire area."

Under such rules, someone might break the rule once, but it's almost impossible for them to do it a second time.

Because the people of Tongshi would use their fists and feet to teach him not to drink unboiled water after he returned to his tent at night.

If you can't remember it even after several attempts, you'll either be forced out or you'll accidentally make a mistake on the battlefield.

Unless they have real skills, like Chang Yuchun, Xu Da, and Tang He, who are very good at fighting.

Pour water into the lunchbox, shake it around and drink it, and only then do you wash the lunchbox.

After doing all this, Fu Youde led them to form groups and assigned them their respective tents.

He grinned and pointed to the outhouse not far away, "That's our team's outhouse, there are only five of them."

"If you want to go, remember to go in advance."

"You'll be making a ruckus tonight." Although luncheon meat is made in broth, it still contains oil.

For these young people, the sudden intake of a large amount of oil will make the dry toilets quite lively tonight.

Sure enough, a fight broke out that night over the dry toilet.

Some people even secretly washed their trousers.

I get up in the morning, get dressed, wash up, tidy up my room, and go to eat.

Breakfast consisted of rice porridge and steamed buns.

Each person received a large box of rice porridge, four large steamed buns, and a bag of pickled vegetables.

Each bag of pickled vegetables bears the name "Fuling".

This was specially ordered by Lin Dao from the manufacturer. It comes in simple packaging with only these two words on it.

In terms of price, it was extremely cheap.

After finishing my meal, I washed my lunchbox and chopsticks.

Fu Youde led everyone to the training ground.

"The first lesson of training."

"Line up!"

"Stand at attention!"

"Everyone, divide into left and right sections first!"

The morning was almost entirely spent lining up, standing, and distinguishing between left and right feet.

That's right. During training, the most important thing is to distinguish between front, back, left, and right.

Without the ability to distinguish left from right, it would be almost impossible to form ranks on the battlefield.

Lunchtime was another meal.

The new recruits were quite surprised as they lined up.

"I can eat three meals a day~~~"

They were already surprised that they started eating so early in the morning.

Unexpectedly, they ate three meals a day.

This is a privilege reserved for the powerful and wealthy.

Lunch was dry rice, two large spoonfuls of rice filling more than half the lunchbox, and I had to press it down with a spoon.

Next came a large spoonful of stir-fried greens and potatoes, and finally, each person had a boiled chicken leg!

"This...this really is a chicken leg?!"

These days, there are no fast-growing chickens; domesticated chickens take several years to grow.

The rooster crows, the hen lays an egg.

Who would be willing to take it out and slaughter it for food?

Xu Da looked around and saw that there really was one of each of the guards and personal soldiers who had come to eat!
At this moment, he was truly looking for Fu Youde with admiration.

"Commander, are the benefits in the military really that good?"

"There must be thousands of people eating here, and this meal must have consumed hundreds of chickens!"

Hundreds of chickens. In his hometown of Yongfeng Township, there might not be that many chickens in the entire township.

"Commander Bai." Chang Yuchun approached with an expectant look on his face. "Is there something important happening today?"

In his view, since he was eating so well today, he had to work his ass off.

"You know nothing!"

Fu Youde, munching on a chicken leg, muttered, "We're the Imperial Guards!"

"We get to eat meat every day!"

“Go and see other camps. They can only eat meat once every ten days. They also eat stale grains every day, unlike us who eat rice and wheat flour every day.”

“You are lucky to have joined the Imperial Guard.”

"From now on, you can enjoy the good life."

Lin Dao has plenty of experience and understands people's needs very well.

Once a position is assigned, corresponding treatment must be provided, and there must be differentiation in treatment.

The ancients really valued this.

Treating everyone equally was not applicable in ancient times; it really was not applicable.

If you dare to treat everyone the same, they'll immediately start slacking off.

Therefore, the Imperial Guards received the best treatment, with meat every day and unlimited rice and flour.

Ordinary Red Turban soldiers, on the other hand, ate meat once every ten days, and mostly consumed old grains that Lin Dao had transported from the Chongzhen era.

As for the soldiers accompanying the troops in the old camp, there was no meat, and they only had two meals a day, both of which were coarse grains.

This arrangement not only avoided causing any trouble, but also filled everyone with gratitude and high motivation.

After a short rest at noon, Fu Youde led his men to receive their sabers.

"Remember, we're here as a ceremonial guard, just stand firm and straight."

"Anyone who dares to draw their sword recklessly, I'll shove them into the latrine when they get back!"

When the group arrived at the government office, most of them were assigned to stand on the outer street.

Fu Youde led Xu Da and Chang Yuchun inside and stood outside the main hall.

Besides their own men, there was another group of imperial guards deployed inside the government office.

Two teams came over to relieve the two teams that had been on guard duty, and began to stand in the sun.

They truly had no complaints.

It's much better to stand here after eating and drinking to one's heart's content than to go to the fields to do farm work.

Xu Da and Chang Yuchun curiously looked around at their surroundings.

People were constantly coming and going; some were carrying various files, and others were dressed in military uniforms.

Faint sounds could be heard coming from inside the hall.

Both of them wanted to peer inside to see if the Ming King was indeed as rumored—over ten feet tall, radiating light, and possessing three heads and six arms.

The hall was indeed very bright, but logically a room shouldn't be that bright.

In ancient times, houses were never brightly lit, even during the day.

Wealthy families would cut a hole in the roof and cover it with polished mica or similar materials to let in light.

Or they could use expensive glass windows to let in light.

Ordinary people didn't have that luxury; even with windows covered in something like oiled paper, it was still dark even in broad daylight.

Those scenes in movies and TV dramas where you can poke a hole in a window with just a finger dipped in saliva are actually using plain white paper as a window.

They're treating the audience's intelligence like a rag.

White paper is no match for anything, let alone rain; it can't even withstand strong winds.

In the afternoon, someone came in to report.

"Guo Zixing, a wealthy man from Dingyuan County, has come to pay his respects to the Ming King as requested."

(End of this chapter)