The background of Mulan's story is related to an ancient Chinese military system: Fubing system. The founder emperor of the Northern Zhou Dynasty Yu Wentai established this most extensively adopted and long-lasting military service system in China's World War history (Yang, 2018). This unique military system originated in the Western Wei Dynasty, developed in the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Sui Dynasty, and Tang Dynasty, but declined during the Xuanzong era of the Tang Dynasty (Yang, 2018). Importantly, the period from the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Northern Zhou Dynasty has witnessed the main stages of this famous military system (Yuan,2020).
Fubing system was created during the Northern and Southern Dynasties when China was in constant wartime, the country immersively recruited soldiers from the Han nationality due to the lack of revenue (Yuan,2020). The main intention of this system is to maximize soldier-civilian integration and sustain the military's combat effectiveness while not interfering with agricultural output (Zhang & Ma, 2021).
Some details of the Mulan Ballad reflect the Fubing system:
This shows the selection of strong soldiers to join the army. When it is wartime, soldiers would prepare to battle, while in peacetime, the soldiers would “return to the government”.
Fubing system demands the soldiers prepare essentials and weapons by themselves (Yang, 2018). As the Mulan ballad describes how Mulan purchased everything needed soon after she decided to replace her father and join the army:
It is necessary to note that, the Khan would call for the families that are financially eligible to join the army (Zhang & Ma, 2021 ). Therefore, this reveals that Mulan does not come from a low-income family, so she could buy all the essentials soon after she made the decision. It may also explain Mulan’s confident facial expression and crossed arms in this 3D model.
The Fubing military system played a positive role in resisting foreign invasion in the war-torn history of ancient China, it helped unite the Han people in the Guanlong area and promoted national integration in ancient China (Zhang & Ma, 2021). This strategy eventually evolved into a significantly economical army of military cultivators(Graff,2003), which guaranteed agricultural produce during the integration process of the country.