Mulan has been confirmed by historians and archaeologists, and there is no clear record about her in the history books. The story that everyone is familiar with now mainly comes from a narrative poem "Mulan Ci" in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, nomadic people who lived by grazing in the north were gentle in temperament, and they harassed the Northern Wei Dynasty in the south. Because of years of war, the national army was hit hard, and the emperor of the dynasty decided to send a man from every household to fight in the front. Mulan's father is old because he has no brother, and his brother is still young. After careful consideration, Mulan decided to join the army instead of her father and began a twelve-year military career.
Mulan avoided being found as a daughter in the army, mainly in the following aspects. First of all, during the war, the marching conditions were particularly difficult. She lived in a fixed place for a long time, stationed at the border, and lacked food and clothing, which led to Mulan's physical illness to some extent. For example, women's physiological cycle stops, hormones are disordered, and bones are strengthened. And Mulan should have been tied up for a long time and wrapped in her chest. And after a long period of exposure, the appearance must have changed a lot. Besides, no one in the army would suspect that a woman was mixed up.
Secondly, Mulan must have become a cavalry. According to Mulan Ci, "I would like to be a pommel horse and sign for you from now on. Buy horses in the east, saddles in the west, reins in the south and whips in the north. " What is certain is that Mulan bought the basic accessories needed by these cavalry. However, there is a big gap between cavalry and infantry. Take the infantry as an example, everyone lives in groups, while the cavalry stays on horseback almost all day and never takes off their armor when resting. Naturally, no one found Mulan hiding a shocking secret under her slightly protruding clothes.
Thirdly, according to "Wan Li went to honor her, flying over the eaves and climbing the wall" written in Mulan Ci, it can be seen that Mulan is probably an emissary in the army, and the emissary can be alone without sleeping with most people, so naturally she will not be found.
Finally, the evidence comes from Mulan Ci. It can be seen from the book "Twelve Tactics, Rewarding a Hundred Strong Men" that Mulan should have repeatedly made meritorious military service and been canonized as a senior official. Whether in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties or later in the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, she could have her own independent military account after her official position reached a certain level. If Mulan lives alone in her own military tent, naturally she seldom comes into contact with a large group of soldiers, which provides a very convenient condition for her to keep a secret.
In this way, Mulan carefully lived a twelve-year war life in the army. After returning to the imperial court, Mulan truthfully told the emperor her female identity. Instead of accusing Mulan of cheating the monarch, the emperor named her Shang. However, Mulan has been away from home for too long. She is a smart, sensible and filial daughter who is bent on returning to her elderly parents for filial piety. Finally, the emperor also realized Mulan's wish.
After a long history, the story of Mulan joining the army instead of her father has been widely circulated among the people. How Mulan escaped the eyes of tens of thousands of soldiers and hid her daughter's identity in the army for more than ten years has always been a hot topic.