Zhang Xingzhong banged for a while, and then he saw the door creaking open, and a girl with two hairpins on her head leaned out and called out: "Second brother!" The girl grabbed Zhang Xingzhong's arm, and tears of joy immediately fell down.
An old couple came out immediately behind the girl. Zhang Xingzhong immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed his head respectfully. The old couple asked the girl to help Zhang Xingzhong quickly, and turned around to see Li standing outside the door.
Chengzhong and others were stunned for a moment. Zhang Xingzhong introduced them hurriedly, and then led everyone inside.
Li Chengzhong looked around and saw that this was a small courtyard with two entrances. There was a green pine tree planted in the main courtyard, which looked a bit old. There were no extravagant furnishings in the small courtyard, but it was very neat. Because there were so many people coming in, Zhang Xingzhong's family was not prepared.
, everyone is a soldier, so they don’t pay much attention to it and just sit on the ground in the courtyard.
Zhang Xingzhong came from a military family, and his family also had some influence in the Lulong Army. However, his father was from a side lineage, so after he became the head of the capital, he was never promoted, and he only earned this small courtyard as a place to stay.
.Laodu was the first born to have two sons and a daughter. Both sons joined the army. The eldest brother died in the battle last year. Zhang Xingzhong was an Erlang and is now a soldier in the army.
Lulong's army was defeated in the southern expedition to Weibo. The old couple who were worried about their second son couldn't sleep well these days. Now that their son was not only back, but also became the leader of the team, the old couple were so happy that they didn't know what to do. The old man was beaming with joy.
He immediately ordered his daughter to go out to buy food, and to meet the Youdu brothers in the evening. However, it was not very peaceful outside the customs, so only one of the two lambs originally planned to be purchased was obtained. It is said that this one was obtained with great difficulty. People
At Lao Dutou's age, he often likes to reminisce about the past. The old man sighed and began to talk about his experience of guarding the border outside the customs. He recounted the big and small battles he fought at that time. After finishing it, he complained bitterly, saying that it was that time.
Helping foreigners has never been a thing, but now that the commander-in-chief has lost his troops, he is starting to make plans to make them look good sooner or later.
It was troublesome to prepare meals for more than 20 people, which kept the two women at home busy for a while. Li Chengzhong couldn't bear it, so he asked Zhao Da to go over and help. Zhou Qidao also volunteered to go over and slaughter the lambs, and got a delicious one with fragrant skin, tender inside, and charred yellow color.
The whole lamb was roasted and the brothers feasted on it.
Zhang Xingzhong's younger sister is named Lan'er. She is sixteen years old. Although she was born into a military family, she has a graceful figure and a pretty face. Northern girls are not as shy as southern girls, and she has a cheerful temperament.
He quickly got along with everyone. Wang Dalang ridiculed Zhou Maidao for his impure purpose of spontaneously going to help the cook, which immediately made everyone burst into laughter. Even if the young lady was cheerful, she couldn't stand it anymore and ran back to the backyard with a red face.
Zhou Dao was so angry that he gave Wang Dalang a chestnut, snatched away a piece of lamb leg meat that he was chewing, and said bitterly: "I will never let you roast meat again!"
The mutton was mixed with light wine, and the noodles were mixed with large green onions. The courtyard was full of joy. After experiencing the baptism of life and death in the war, the Youdu brothers finally let go of their hearts to eat and drink. That night, everyone was drunk and slept soundly at Zhang Xingzhong's house.
, even the old man drank a few more drinks, kept shouting "Kill! Kill! Kill!", and was helped by the old woman to sleep in the backyard.
In the next few days, everyone used Zhang Xingzhong's home as a base and had a lot of fun in Youzhou City. On the third day, when everyone went to the market, they learned about some of the current trading conditions, and finally knew that twenty
Food for so many young men was such a burden to Zhang Xingzhong's family. So he hurriedly left and returned to the military camp to order money from the Chinese army.
At midnight, everyone was unexpectedly deprived of a month's military pay. Each of the four team leaders received two pay, and the others received one pay. After the pay was paid, Zhang Xingzhong returned to the city without mentioning it. Jiang Miao, Wang Dalang and others all
Wanting to go home for a visit, Zhou Maidao and Zhou Xiaolang also wanted to return to Zhougezhuang to find out if there were any living neighbors. Li Chengzhong went to the Chinese Army to ask Zhao Zaili for leave.
Zhao Zaili readily gave him fifteen days' leave, but when Li Chengzhong asked about Commander Zhou, he frowned and said: "After I heard that the commander's illness had improved, he wanted to reorganize the army. Commander Zhou is now
I have been running around the city these days for this matter."
When Li Chengzhong heard that he wanted to rectify the army, he quickly asked: "How to rectify it?"
Zhao Zaili said: "I haven't confirmed it yet. It seems that the decision has not been finalized. It's just that Commander Zhou came back a few days ago and said that the situation is not very good."
It was not Li Chengzhong's turn to be involved in such a big event, so he could only return to the Youdu camp full of thoughts. In order not to cause trouble for everyone when the brothers went home to visit, he suppressed the matter and said nothing. Brother Youdu immediately got the fake news.
They happily packed their bags and returned to their respective hometowns. In the end, only Zhong Shiro was left in the military camp.
Li Chengzhong was a little surprised and asked him why he didn't leave. Zhong Silang said: "A certain family has been defeated for a long time. His parents died early and there is no one in the family. When I was a child, my neighbors in the same village looked down on X. When I came out, I swore,
I will never go back until I have done something great!" As for how big of a career he wanted to do, Zhong Silang muttered and couldn't tell, and finally said: "At least be a team officer and manage dozens of people.
"
Li Chengzhong didn't know what to say about Zhong Silang's wish. Ever since he heard that the commander wanted to reorganize the army, he was a little worried. It was not easy for him to achieve military success in front of Commander Zhou and leave a good impression in his heart.
If Commander Zhou leaves the Jianzu Camp after the reorganization, wouldn't all the previous achievements be wiped out? In addition, he worked hard on the way north to form Youdu into a group that has begun to bear fruit.
He also initially established prestige in the group. If the organization was broken up after reorganization, wouldn't all the hard work be in vain? So he went to see Zhao Zaili more frequently.
Zhao Zaili also looked depressed. As the personal guard of the commander Zhou Zhiyu, his future is closely tied to that of his commander. If the commander is good, he will be good. If the commander is bad, he will be bad. I heard Zhou Zhiyu said several times about restructuring.
The prospect of the incident seemed to be quite ominous, and one can imagine the depression in Zhao Zaili's heart. Two low-level officers who were very concerned about this matter got together and sighed and frowned all day long, but they gradually became inseparable from each other.
As the days passed, the news became more and more unfavorable. Finally, the commander Zhou Zhiyu brought back the preliminary plan for the army reorganization. The main reason for the army reorganization was the lack of funds. In order to supply the army of Weibo in the south, Lu
Long Jiedu Mansion has been struggling to support itself in the past few months, relying solely on Hua's old capital to survive. In addition, all the food and supplies were thrown away during the great defeat. Now the Jiedu Mansion is already empty. But wait.
After the armies came back, they all asked Jiedu Mansion for money according to their wartime establishment and prepared to recruit sergeants again.
For example, in the Jianzu Battalion, Commander Zhou Zhiyu reported the original five-battalion establishment, and each battalion was a very large establishment before the war, with a total of one hundred people and tens of thousands of people. Even the officers and soldiers at all levels needed to pay 20,000 guan a month.
The military rations are five thousand dan. The commander-in-chief's Yameni Army is the elite of the Lulong Army. Although it has only 5,000 people, its pay and rations are higher. By analogy, Yameni Army, Shanhou Army, Yinhuludu, Jianzu Camp, Yi
The number of soldiers reported by the children's army and the state soldiers was actually 40,000, which fully reached the total number of troops sent out and left behind during the expansion of the army before the war. The total salary and rations were as high as 110,000 guan per month, and the military rations were 36,000 shi.
Calculated on an annual basis, it requires 1,320,000 guan of money and 432,000 dan of military rations each year. This is equivalent to nearly twice the annual financial revenue of the 13 prefectures and 35 counties under the jurisdiction of Lulongjiedu Prefecture.
!
This does not include the Badu Cavalry, which was almost completely wiped out. The Badu Cavalry, Yuhou Zhao Ba, who stayed in Youzhou, reported an ambitious reconstruction plan. He wanted to restore the Badu Cavalry to the level of 8,000 men. In
In the plan, he requested the allocation of 20,000 guan for recruiting soldiers, 200,000 guan for purchasing horses, and 50,000 guan for military armor and equipment. In addition, there were also monthly military pay of 30,000 guan, 5,000 dan for military rations, and 15,000 dan for horse materials.
!
Not to mention where the armies would recruit so many young men, the military expenditure alone would be too much for the Jiedu government, so the army reorganization was put on the agenda. According to the information obtained by Zhou Zhiyu, the focus of the army reorganization this time is
Guarantee that the Yameni Army and the newly established Volunteer Army and all other battalions are within the scope of the abolition. For example, the town troops in various states will be reduced by 70%, and the Yinhulu Army will be reduced to 2,000 people. The army behind the mountain will be transferred to the pass towns in the north of the mountain.
The salary of soldiers is reduced by half, Badu Cavalry retains the establishment of one thousand cavalry, and the Jian soldiers camp is included in the cancellation.
After this army reorganization, combined with the Central Army and the soldiers from other states, the Lulong Army has a total strength of 22,000 people, and the annual food and salary expenditure accounts for 90% of the Jiedu Prefecture's annual financial revenue. This was only when the commander finally spoke.
Otherwise, the new judge Liu Zhiwen will further reduce the number to 80% before giving up.
This army reorganization plan would not have been feasible if it had been placed before the Southern Expedition. In the century-old history of the Lulong Army, the military power of each army was firmly in the hands of the commanders of each battalion. Even the central army in this town
Here, the only thing Liu Rengong can really control is the commander-in-chief's yameni army. A discerning person will know at a glance that this is the Jiedu government taking advantage of the trend to suppress dissidents and establish authority. If the Jiedu government issued such "chaotic orders" in peacetime, I am afraid Liu Rengong would have been killed by all parties.
The army was overturned. However, at this time, after the defeat of the Southern Expedition, the only remaining half of the Lulong Army that could still fight was the Yanei Army and the newly established Yier Army. The strength of each army was greatly weakened.
It is just right to organize the army under the circumstances.
Zhou Zhiyu convened an enlarged meeting of the officers of the Jianzhi Battalion in the main tent. All officers with a certain rank can only participate in the battalion. There were twenty-one officers participating in the meeting. In addition to Zhou Zhiyu himself, they included a commander and a lieutenant.
There were three captains, two captains, and thirteen captains. Li Chengzhong, as deputy lieutenant and captain, also participated in the meeting.
According to Zhou Zhiyu, the Jianzu Battalion will be merged into the Marshal's Yameni Army, and all officers will retain their titles and then be demoted by half a rank. In other words, their salaries will be retained and their positions will be demoted. For example, Li Chengzhong, deputy lieutenant of the accompanying army, will be demoted from the ninth rank.
His salary remains unchanged and his monthly salary is double, but after joining the Yameni Army, he can only serve as a corps commander. Zhou Zhiyu himself is expected to serve as the deputy commander of the left wing of the Yameni Army.
For officers at all levels in the Jianzu Battalion, being downgraded by half a rank is just one of the severe blows. What is really discouraging is that after being merged into the Yameni Army, everyone's future will be bleak. Naturally, everyone in the Yameni Army is
The veterans of the Yameni Army have the final say. Whether it is Zhou Zhiyu or other officers from the Jianzu Camp, they can only feel aggrieved when they go there. No one will mention them if they do well, and no one will take care of them if they make mistakes. All they can do is look down upon them.
I bowed my head and considered myself unlucky.
There was a lot of sighing in the Chinese army tent, and everyone looked at each other with a frown on their face and was speechless.
Among these people, the most frustrated one is Zhou Zhiyu. He has become a stand-alone general, holding the head of an independent battalion in his hand. Not only is he a man of words in his own barracks, he is also a person who can speak in front of the commander.
But now he has become the deputy commander of the left wing of the yamen army, with the commander of the left wing on his head, the commander of the yamen army and other superiors. Not only does he have no say in serving in the camp, but he may not even be able to meet the generals alone in the future.
Opportunities to be handsome are few and far between.
But Zhou Zhiyu was the leader of the Jianzu Battalion, and he still had to comfort his brothers. He forced a smile and comforted everyone, saying that it would be good to go to the Yameni Army, where the treatment was better, and the monthly military pay was higher than now.
Being strong and elite, there will be many opportunities for promotion in the future.
Naturally, such explanations had no effect. Everyone was still sullen and did not respond to Zhou Zhiyu's comfort. There was silence in the camp.