Among the hundreds of officials, some officials' eyes fell on the figure of Li Huan who was accompanying the emperor Luan Jia. Their eyes were full of envy and jealousy, and of course there was also a hidden jealousy.
Li Huan could not be said to be an extremely popular minister in the Ming Dynasty, but few people could match him. He was the envy of others to gain the emperor's favor and trust.
On such occasions, all the officials, even the most senior ones, would have to follow the emperor on foot. However, Li Huan was able to ride on a tall horse and accompany the emperor. What kind of favor was this?
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The most important thing is that everyone knows that as Wang Yangming leads the triumphant army back to Beijing, Li Huan, who is already extremely powerful, will soar into the sky and no one can stop him.
Although under their suppression from generation to generation, the Ming Wuxun Group has lost its right to speak in the court, there is one thing that they cannot change no matter what, and that is the Ming Dynasty's most important military merit.
Those who want to be granted a title must have military merit.
It can be predicted that this time Li Huan had the military merit of defeating the Tatars. In addition, he put down the rebellion of King Anhua. These achievements were enough for Li Huan to be granted the title of Marquis.
The titles of the Ming Dynasty were extremely respected, especially the titles that could be passed down to future generations. Even they would be jealous of them, because they were the basis for ensuring the longevity of a family.
Just take a look at the noble families in the Ming Dynasty. The families have been prosperous and wealthy for hundreds of years. No matter how disappointing the descendants are, because they are nobles who have retired with the country, there is no need to worry about the decline of the family one day.
Li Huancai was only about 20 years old, but he had already earned a title that could be passed on to his descendants. What an honor it was.
No matter how much they hate Li Huan, deep down in their hearts they are deeply envious.
A long team soon appeared at the city gate. Looking from a distance, the official road outside the city was already paved with loess. There were people patrolling the city to maintain the order around them. Everything seemed in order.
The Emperor's Luan Jia stopped, and he saw Zhu Houzhao's figure appearing, sitting on the Luan Jia, Zhu Houzhao's eyes looking towards the end of the official road in the distance.
There was no figure visible as far as the eye could see. At this time, Zhu Houzhao turned to Li Huan beside him and said, "Li Qing, how long will it take for the army to arrive?"
Li Huan smiled slightly and said: "Your Majesty, don't be anxious. Not long ago, a messenger came to report that Governor Wang's team has arrived ten miles away from the capital. If nothing happens, it will take at most one stick of incense to arrive."
Zhu Houzhao's face was filled with excitement and expectation as he said: "I wish that Wang Qing's family could rush back with their army immediately. I also want to see what a powerful army those 100,000 elites are."
Zhu Houzhao, the emperor, had certainly seen how unbearable the soldiers and horses in the Beijing camp were in the past. In Zhu Houzhao's view, if it were the old and weak soldiers in the Beijing camp, they would never be the match of the Tatars.
But now, those who returned with Wang Yangming were the soldiers and horses who had just defeated the Tatars not long ago, and under his order, they were an army of 100,000 selected from the best soldiers in the army.
Zhu Houzhao, an emperor who loved martial arts, was naturally full of expectations for these hundreds of thousands of troops who fought with the Tatars on the battlefield.
It took most of the day, from rushing to the imperial city, and then rushing to the city gate with the Emperor Luanjia. It can be said that all the officials were walking on their legs.
This back and forth lasted for most of the day, but it was too much for many people. Now that they stopped, most of the officials, instead of feeling relaxed, felt more and more tired.
Especially the legs were sore, as if they had been filled with lead water. Many weak officials only felt their legs trembling and wished they could sit on the ground and take a good rest.
However, under the inspection of the surrounding Jinyi guards, no matter how tired they were, they could only carry on. After all, these Jinyi guards were responsible for maintaining order among the officials, and they would definitely not let them disrupt the order.
Some officials felt weak and felt cold sweat break out on their foreheads after standing for a little while. The feeling of sore legs and trembling buttocks was really uncomfortable.
"Damn it, why haven't we arrived yet? How long do we have to wait for those Qiu Ba? If I wait any longer, my legs will be broken."
Some officials couldn't help but whisper.
"Your Majesty, it's true. Isn't it a great victory? It's ridiculous for your Majesty to mobilize so many troops and hundreds of officials to welcome it!"
Suddenly, among the hundreds of officials, many officials complained in low voices because they were too tired.
At this moment, a shout suddenly came from the front: "Here we come!"
After these words fell, everyone subconsciously raised their heads and looked towards the end of the official road. Suddenly they saw smoke and dust vaguely visible in the distance, and there was the clearly felt tremor of the earthquake.
Needless to say, such a big movement must be that the victorious army is about to arrive.
Zhu Houzhao was originally sitting on Luan Jia, but now he couldn't help but suddenly stood up, his eyes full of expectation and looking into the distance.
As the army got closer and closer, the shaking of the earth became more and more obvious, and a dark mass in front of them was seen approaching quickly like a torrent.
Many officials also cast their eyes into the distance. They wanted to see what kind of soldiers and horses could actually defeat the Tatars, and how they were different from the soldiers and horses in the Beijing camp in the past.
At first glance, many officials couldn't help but widen their eyes, with a look of shock on their faces.
At this time, the scene in the distance could be clearly seen. At the end of the official road, a black army was roaring towards them at an extremely fast speed.
Looking around, there are many flags, thousands of horses galloping, endless smoke and dust rolling in, a chilling air blowing in the face, accompanied by the shaking of the earth, if they don't know that the person coming is the victorious master of their Ming Dynasty, I'm afraid
Many people were frightened by this momentum.
Even so, the sight of such thousands of horses galloping and troops rolling in still made many officials who had never seen such a scene change their expressions. Some people seemed to be frightened by such a scene.
Much paler.
At the head of it were a full 10,000 elite cavalry. These more than 10,000 elite cavalry were definitely carefully selected from hundreds of thousands of troops. Even the war horses they rode on were selected from hundreds of thousands of captured war horses.
It can definitely be regarded as the strongest cavalry in the world today. Looking at the world, even the elite cavalry of the Golden Horde Army under Dayan Khan cannot compare with it.
At this time, Zhu Houzhao could only see the dark mass of elite cavalry. The sight of thousands of horses galloping was really shocking. Zhu Houzhao's eyes were shining and his cheeks were red, but he was full of endless excitement.
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"Okay, what an elite cavalry team. Could this be the elite of our Ming Dynasty that defeated the Tatars?"
Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but exclaimed as he looked at those elite troops.
Li Huan on the side smiled slightly when he heard this and said: "What your Majesty said is true. These are the most elite people of our Ming Dynasty. Whether they are soldiers or horses, they are all carefully selected. Many of them are following me."
Massacred the elites of dozens of Tatar tribes on the steppes."
Even though he had previously learned from Li Huan the origin of the 100,000 elite troops that were about to be merged into the Beijing camp, Zhu Houzhao was still shocked by what he saw with his own eyes.
Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but said: "Li Qing, do you think that if our Ming Dynasty had 100,000 such elite cavalry, could we defeat the barbarians on the grassland?"
Li Huan took a deep breath and couldn't help but smile bitterly and said: "Your Majesty may be disappointed. With the current financial situation of the Ming Dynasty, let alone 100,000 such elite knights, I am afraid that even 30,000 may not be able to support them.
"
Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but look at Li Huan, with a bit of surprise in his eyes and said: "How is this possible? My great Ming Dynasty can't even afford a hundred thousand fine cavalry?"
Li Huan slowly shook his head under Zhu Houzhao's gaze and said, "Your Majesty, does he know how much it costs per year to have more than 10,000 elite cavalry from soldiers to horses plus equipment?"
Zhu Houzhao hesitated for a moment and said, "There are always millions of taels of silver, right?"
Li Huandan said: "A high-quality war horse costs dozens of taels, as well as excellent armor and weapons. It can be said that from people to horses to weapons and equipment and daily consumption, such elites can cost millions of taels a year."
I can’t even buy it with money.”
As he spoke, Li Huan looked at Zhu Houzhao with a chuckle and said: "As your Majesty said, if the imperial court wants to raise one hundred thousand elite cavalry, the imperial court will have to spend at least tens of millions of taels of silver every year. What do you think, your majesty?"
"
Zhu Houzhao, who had been so arrogant just now and had promised to raise a hundred thousand elite cavalry, suddenly withered now. He just wanted to settle the accounts. However, Zhu Houzhao was frightened by this settlement.
Although he knew how much money it cost to raise soldiers, he never thought that such soldiers and horses would be so expensive.
Gulu swallowed his saliva, and Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but said: "According to what Li Qing said, tens of millions of taels of silver should be a one-time investment. It shouldn't cost so much to raise troops later."
Li Huan said: "Your Majesty does not know that the annual military salary of these more than 10,000 elite cavalry alone is as much as 500,000 taels."
When Zhu Houzhao heard this, he was shocked and said: "How is this possible? When Beijing had more than 200,000 soldiers, it was only more than one million taels of silver every year. This is just more than 10,000 fine cavalry. Why do we need so much military pay?"
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Obviously Zhu Houzhao didn't know the cost of this army. Zhu Houzhao didn't ask, and Li Huan didn't tell him. After all, in the eyes of Zhu Houzhao and Li Huan, this was not a big deal.
Besides, Li Huan was impeached as soon as he came back. He had too many things to deal with during his return to Beijing, and he had no chance to tell Zhu Houzhao about these things.
That's why Zhu Houzhao reacted like this right now.
Li Huan said solemnly: "Your Majesty is unaware of this. This time the Beijing camp is being reorganized, all the soldiers in the Beijing camp will be paid in full, and the military pay has more than doubled compared to the past. Even for the cavalry, firearms battalion, and military pay
It’s doubled.”
As he spoke, Li Huan pointed to the more than 10,000 elite cavalry in front of him who were getting closer and closer, rolling in like a black torrent, and said to Zhu Houzhao: "Your Majesty, do you think that the average salary of fifty taels per person per year for such an elite team is too much?"
Zhu Houzhao looked at the more than 10,000 elite cavalry who were so fierce that they were definitely the elite of the battlefield. Although he felt that Li Huan's salary of fifty taels per capita was a bit exaggerated, he had to admit that these elite cavalry were definitely worthy of what they had received.
The military pay arrived.
Nodding slowly, Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but smile bitterly and said: "According to what Li Qing said, the court would not have to raise a hundred thousand such an elite army. I'm afraid it would be just these ten thousand. If there were hundreds of people in the court,
If the officials knew how much gold and silver was spent on them, they would probably go crazy, and I don’t know how many people would jump out to oppose it."
When Li Huan heard this, a cold light flashed in his eyes and said: "If anyone has any opinions, let him come and talk to me."
As he spoke, Li Huan looked at Zhu Houzhao and said: "Your Majesty, as the saying goes, there must be brave men under heavy rewards. Such an elite force is enough to be worth the 100,000 old, weak, sick and disabled people in the capital in the past. If the imperial court cuts the food and salary, I'm afraid
It will hurt the hearts of the soldiers."
Zhu Houzhao nodded towards Li Huan and said: "Li Qing, don't worry, I will support the Qing family. Even if you sell iron, I will not lack the food and salary of the soldiers."
While he was talking, a mighty and fierce army had already arrived. The figure at the head of the army, surrounded by a group of generals, quickly dismounted from his horse and strode towards where the Emperor Luan was riding.
Suddenly, one after another's eyes fell on the figures of these people. The leader was naturally the former cabinet minister and now the governor-general Wang Yangming, who had returned triumphantly.
Wang Yangming was dressed in armor, but he showed an elegant attitude. In the eyes of everyone, he was an invincible commander who scolded Fang Qiu.
As he approached the Emperor, Wang Yangming immediately paid homage to the Emperor and said, "My lord, Wang Yangming, pays my respects to Your Majesty. May my Emperor be prosperous for thousands of years, and may the Ming Dynasty last forever."
Before Wang Yangming bowed down, Zhu Houzhao got off the carriage, took one step forward and stretched out his hand to support Wang Yangming. With endless joy on his face, he held Wang Yangming's arm and said: "Qing family, get up quickly, I love you for a big battle."
The defeat of the Tatars and the annihilation of more than 100,000 enemies is actually an unprecedented victory for our Ming Dynasty in the past decades. You have done a great job, and you have done a great job."
As he spoke, Zhu Houzhao's eyes fell on the generals who had returned in triumph following Wang Yangming.
These generals were all dressed in armor, and they all bowed down in admiration. Looking at them, almost most of them were the noble sons who came out of the capital with Li Huan.
It can be said that these people are the last elite among this generation of nobles. After this battle, these noble children can be said to have completely grown up, and most of them have become high-ranking officers in the military by virtue of their military exploits.
of generals.
Because of this, behind the emperor, among the ranks of officials, the Wuxun Group and the Civil Service Group looked at these generals with obviously different eyes.
The Wuxun Group looked at these own children. Many of them seemed to have been reborn, and there were even children from their respective families among them. Not to mention how happy these nobles were.
You must know that many of them have family titles that have been passed down for hundreds of years, and they are already an empty shell. They have no wealth and no rights at all. They are just rich and idle people.
If the honorable nobles do not have the power of soldiers and horses in their hands, they are actually just decorations. Even many low-ranking civil servants dare to ignore them.
But when nobles are in charge of military power, it's completely different. At least they have the confidence and qualifications to fight against the civilian group.
Therefore, when these nobles saw their sons among the generals returning victoriously, they were extremely happy in their hearts.
However, while the honorable nobles were happy, the civilian group had gloomy expressions, especially when looking at the young generals who came from noble families, their eyes were full of fear and fear.
It can be predicted that Li Huan, who originally had a weak foundation in the court and even the army, took advantage of this great victory and used these young generals from noble families as minions to successfully take root in the Ming army.
But they all had to admit that Li Huan was now in a state of affairs.
You must know that even if Li Huan was ordered to rectify the capital camp, the civil servants were only worried, but they never thought that Li Huan could cultivate power in the army in a short period of time.
After all, Li Huan's background meant that he had a shallow background and could not gain influence in the army. But who would have thought that following the emperor's grant of marriage, Li Huan suddenly had a relationship with the Xungui Group and successfully won over a large number of honorable people.
power.
However, King Anhua rebelled and the Tatars invaded. After the first battle, Li Huan led the army with his noble sons and returned with a great victory. He integrated his power into the army at a speed beyond the imagination of countless people.
It can be imagined that Li Huan's status in the Ming army is absolutely unparalleled for a while. I am afraid that even the governor Wang Yangming, who has great achievements, is inferior to Li Huan.
Zhu Houzhao glanced at the generals, his eyes full of joy, and he took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "All the ministers have escaped without courtesy. You and others have fought for the country. They are all meritorious ministers. I will definitely reward you generously."
"I thank you, Your Majesty. I am willing to die for Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty!"
[It’s the end of the month, brothers, if you have a monthly pass, remember to throw it in. 】
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