In fact, there is nothing unusual about this brand. It is nothing more than a symbol of the emperor's status. Holding this brand can gain the emperor's empowerment and become the incarnation of the emperor's power when he leaves the palace.
But in fact, the status of imperial envoy, who performs the king's affairs on behalf of the local government, already has some of these functions.
As for Shen Yi, he still has the status of the Southeast Coast Patrol Imperial Envoy, so originally, there was no need for the emperor to give him such a brand, which was a bit superfluous.
Compared with the original status of the imperial envoy, at best, he has a little more power to make emergency decisions. When necessary, he can use this sign to mobilize local soldiers, or deal with a few people temporarily.
However, Shen Yi could have mobilized the anti-Japanese army, and even mobilized more than 20,000 people from the soon-to-be-established coastal capital. The combat effectiveness of the anti-Japanese army was much better than that of local soldiers, and it was somewhat unnecessary.
The emperor is a smart emperor, and he is unlikely to do such unnecessary things.
Therefore, this sign has only two real functions.
The first is to show favor and make Mr. Shen completely loyal and devoted to the emperor.
And the more important function is to control Li Mu!
The crown prince of the Jin Dynasty, Li Mu, moved south this time and was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the Coastal Capital Division. He was the nominal commander of the Coastal Capital Division.
Shen Yi, the imperial envoy, was responsible for inspecting the coastal areas, supervising and assisting the establishment of the Coastal Capital Division and the five coastal cities' shipping divisions. In name, he had no direct control over the anti-Japanese army and the power of the future Coastal Capital Division officers.
In other words, according to the legal principles of the imperial court, Li Mucai should be the actual controller of more than 20,000 people in the coastal capital.
Although the possibility of the Jin Crown Prince actually controlling the coastal capital is very slim, the young emperor still cautiously gave such a sign, allowing Shen Yi to directly override everyone, including Li Mu, when necessary. , take control of the situation.
It can be regarded as an insurance policy left by the emperor in the southeast.
Shen Yi, Li Mu, and Cheng Tingzhi met at Shiliting outside the city. After the meeting, the three of them found a home restaurant on the roadside for lunch, and then headed straight to Yueqing.
Jiankang is not too close to Yueqing, but the three of them had things to do when they went south, so they were traveling in a hurry. It only took about ten days to reach Yueqing.
All in all, I walked almost a hundred miles every day.
This speed seems slow, but it is almost the limit of the carriage. After all, even the official road in this era is not particularly smooth. In addition, the carriage is very heavy. Being able to run at this speed is enough for three people to travel along the official road. The result of changing horses.
The three of them arrived at Yueqing on the ninth day of February. As soon as they entered Yueqing, Ling Su, the commander of the anti-Japanese army, took Xue Wei and more than a hundred generals of the anti-Japanese army to greet them on the official road. As their carriage passed by, these anti-Japanese generals all dismounted their horses, bowed and clasped their fists, speaking in unison.
"I've met Li Dushuai!"
"I've met Imperial Commissioner Shen!"
Jin Crown Prince Li Mu and Shen Yi immediately got off the carriage and greeted the anti-Japanese generals. The prince of Jin Palace looked at these anti-Japanese generals and said with some emotion: "In just over two years, we have With such an appearance, he is much more tidy than before I returned to Beijing. Ziheng is really amazing."
Shen Yi stood next to Li Mu, only half a body behind, almost walking side by side. Hearing this, he said with a smile: "The factors that affect the combat effectiveness of the army are just a few factors, including unclear military discipline and insufficient money and food."
Mr. Shen looked at the anti-Japanese army generals standing in two rows and said slowly: "Since the establishment of the anti-Japanese army, merits must be rewarded and punishments must be punished. Money and food have never been cut off. Rewards for killing Japanese pirates and pensions for soldiers are also immediate. Just send it."
"Plus there are a few generals who know how to train troops."
Shen Yi smiled and said: "As time goes by, things will naturally change."
Li Mu was silent for a while and sighed slightly: "It's easy to say, but in the whole of Dachen, you, Shen Ziheng, are the only one who can train this kind of army. Don't say anything else, just put this anti-Japanese army in Yueqing. Replacement of someone from the Ministry of War to lead them, within three to five years, they will be rotten."
"It's all caused by selfish desires."
Mr. Shen also felt a little emotional: "Those people took power in their hands and came down to drink the blood of the soldiers and eat empty wages. The court's money could only go to the hands of the soldiers, two or three cents or even one or two cents."
"Slowly, it will naturally rot."
"More than these."
Li Mu shook his head and said: "What's more important is the lack of money."
He glanced at Shen Yi and said, "Zi Heng, the salary of your five thousand anti-Japanese troops is almost twice that of the Forbidden Army. Plus the rewards for killing Japanese pirates, the actual cost is more than twice that. "
"These five thousand people can be supported by raiding homes and doing business, but they will soon be expanded to 25,000 people."
The prince looked at Shen Yi quietly.
“Where does the money come from?”
"City Ship Division."
Shen Yi said softly: "When I came to the southeast this year, my main purpose was to build five municipal shipping companies and make them operate normally. As long as they can operate normally, supporting a coastal city is not a big problem."
"Moreover, there will probably be a lot of surplus that can be paid into the national treasury."
While talking, the two people had already said hello to these generals. Under the escort of the anti-Japanese generals, they returned to the carriage. This time, Li Mu got directly into Shen Yi's car, and then looked at Shen Yi. .
"I'm afraid it's in the treasury."
Li Mu sighed slightly and said: "Once the Ministry of Household Affairs intervenes, then the money of the City Shipping Department will no longer be the money of the Coastal Department. If the money is directly taken over by the Ministry of Household Affairs..."
"Zi Heng, if you want to get the Imperial Army's military salary from the Ministry of Household Affairs, it will be extremely difficult. If you want to pay it according to the Anti-Japanese Army's current military salary, it is simply a dream!"
After a pause, Li Mu continued: "If our Coastal Capital Division directly takes over the money from the Shipping Division and gives the remaining money to the Ministry of Revenue, then this is much higher than the expenses of other armies, and those civilian officials can Let’s talk about it.”
The prince said slowly: "You know, the civil servants in Jiankang City are very proud and have always looked down on the military attachés."
He looked at Shen Yi and said helplessly: "They said that Shen Ziheng was embezzling and amassing money, but that's not a big deal. I'm just afraid that they would say that you were deliberately benevolent to the local army and had bad intentions!"
"When the time comes, not only you, Ziheng, but also me will be in trouble."
This is indeed the biggest problem facing the two people.
Because the coastal capital is about to be established, there is a big difference between feeding 25,000 people and 5,000 people.
If the money of the Shipping Department is really taken over by the Ministry of Revenue, then the situation Li Mu mentioned will almost certainly happen.
Even if Zhao Changping, the Minister of Household Affairs, is Shen Yi's uncle, it won't work.
This is the unanimous contempt of the civil service group, and it is also the unanimous interest of the civil service group. It is impossible for Zhao Changping alone to allow the Ministry of Household Affairs to willingly treat military attachés preferentially.
Shen Yi sat in the carriage and touched his chin.
"Your Majesty, the eunuchs from the palace came to supervise the construction of these five port offices. The eunuchs from the palace are also responsible for the actual management."
"For the time being, it shouldn't be handed over to the Ministry of Household Affairs?"
Li Mu shook his head.
"When the annual income is hundreds of thousands taels, the Ministry of Revenue will not take it seriously and will only treat it as pocket money for His Majesty. However, once the income of the Shipping Department increases, the Ministry of Revenue will definitely try its best to fight for it. According to them..."
Having said this, Li Mu smiled at Shen Yi and said: "According to you scholars, only when money goes into the national treasury, it becomes the world's money. When it goes into internal funds, it becomes the emperor's private property."
"They will also ask His Majesty in a righteous manner whether he wants to compete with the people for profit."
Hearing this, Shen Yi shook his head slightly and said, "Let me say something that is not humane to outsiders."
"Dachen's military force has been weak in recent years, and even the great changes that occurred more than 60 years ago were basically because he emphasized civility and restrained military force too much."
Prince Jin looked at Shen Yi with a smile on his face.
"Zi Heng, you are a second-ranked Jinshi."
Mr. Shen's eyes were calm. He looked at Li Mu and asked, "If I weren't a second-ranked Jinshi, how could I be able to stand out in the court?"
Li Mu shook his head.
"I'm afraid not."
Mr. Shen opened the car curtain and looked at the anti-Japanese generals escorting them outside.
"The Crown Prince just said that the military pay for the anti-Japanese army is far higher than that of other armies. In my opinion, it's not that the anti-Japanese army has too much military pay..."
"It's because other armies have too little pay."
Li Mu sighed quietly: "Even with the current military salary, a Zhao Clan has been raised."
He looked at Shen Yi, as if wondering whether Shen Yi would become the next "Shen Val".
Shen Yi shook his head slightly and said: "The rise of the Zhao clan has nothing to do with military pay. It is mainly because the imperial court has to rely on them."
"Furthermore, among the Huaihe Navy, there are many cases of empty pay and drinking of soldiers' blood. The money cannot be distributed to the soldiers."
"In my opinion."
"If Da Chen wants to return to the old capital."
Li Mu took a deep breath: "What should I do?"
"You should be paid more for working hard."
Master Shen said slowly.
"Those who sacrifice their lives should be lifted more."