After staying in Hangzhou for several days, what Xiao Feng was waiting for finally arrived.
Strictly speaking, it's a bit rude to say that we are waiting for something, because there are still people here, five fresh graduates sent by Wudang Mountain.
The old Fox Valley Kyoshi is well versed in the essence of package distribution in vocational colleges - that is, the best place to find a job is where there are senior brothers and sisters.
Now Zhang Wuxin and An Qingyue are working under Xiao Feng. It would be outrageous if Xiao Feng didn't arrange a few employment places for graduates!
So when Xiao Feng wrote to him, hoping to lend him a few people, Gu Xuzi looked up to the sky and laughed, the sound shook the valley, and all the disciples thought that the master was about to achieve enlightenment and ascend.
Then Gu Xuzi quickly replied with the following content.
"I said Master Xiao, why do you say borrow? This seems too foreign. I will select five of the disciples who are due to leave this year to serve under your account!
I hope they can be successful, and under your care, they can make meritorious deeds and get official positions. It will not be in vain for these children’s ten years of hard work and their families’ hopes for their children to succeed!”
Xiao Feng secretly smiled bitterly after receiving the letter. This was a warning to himself! The people who work for you this time must be given the status of civil servants. You can't return them to me after use like last time!
Although Wudang Mountain is a Taoist sect, it has always had a good relationship with the imperial court. What it relies on is that many Wudang disciples enter the imperial court to serve. Regardless of the big and small officials, the more students become officials, the more famous and developed the alma mater will be!
Apart from these five people, what Xiao Feng was really waiting for were several large ships, which carried horses bought from the Datong Exchange. From Datong, he rushed to Jining to board the ship and sailed down the river to Hangzhou.
horse transport
The ships were specially made large ships. They did not need to be very high, but they had to be very wide so that they could transport more. The ten large ships brought 500 war horses and 500 cavalrymen assigned by Qiu Luan according to the imperial edict.
In the cabin of the big ship, there are also two thousand steel knives forged from the world view in Beijing.
These steel knives have been improved by blacksmiths and fire masters. Although they are not as good as Japanese knives, they are not far behind. At least they will not be cut or twisted after dozens of cuts.
In the northern region, five hundred cavalry may not be a big deal, but in coastal areas, a team of five hundred cavalry is extremely rare.
There were very few cavalry battles in coastal areas, because the main battlefield for Japanese pirates was the seaside. Even if they penetrated deep into the city, they would still retreat to the seaside if they could not fight. The cavalry fought on the seaside because there was too much mud and sand to run away.
More importantly, there are too few cavalry in the Ming Dynasty. They are not enough in the north. How can the rich ones be transferred to the south! If the north is calm now and the mutual market can bring in a large number of war horses, Xiao Feng will also come.
cavalry.
But Xiao Feng didn't want the cavalry to go to the beach to fight. He went south this time, carrying bait with him. The enemy would naturally follow the scent and come to him. What he wanted was mobility and super combat effectiveness in the city walls.
These five hundred cavalry, plus the remaining two hundred and seven hundred cavalry, are extremely mobile and are designed to deal with Japanese pirates who dare to attack the county town.
The biggest advantage of the Japanese pirates in the past was mobility. They made a surprise attack and ran away. Although they were all infantry, they took the initiative. The Ming army's defense line was too long, weak everywhere, and suffered losses everywhere.
But with these seven hundred cavalry, Xiao Feng can rush to help and offset the forced
The defense is passive. Of course, after Qi Jiguang's Qi Family Army is established, the Japanese pirates can be defeated without cavalry.
But Xiao Feng is not Qi Jiguang, and he does not have Qi Jiguang's genius military command ability, so his style of play is simple and crude.
I am faster than you, and I have more people than you. I have a wolf fork and a steel knife, and my weapons are no worse than yours. I have money to put a reward on my head, and I will behead anyone who dares to run away. I don’t believe that I can’t defeat you!
Xiao Feng took 700 cavalry, supplemented them with 2,000 infantry in Hangzhou, took the princess's large RV, and marching provisions, said goodbye to the picturesque Hangzhou, and fought all the way through Taizhou, Wenzhou, and all the way to Fujian.
Everywhere he went, Xiao Feng put the army first. Yu Dayou was more expert in fighting, but when it came to organizing the army, Xiao Feng had mastered the art of military masters of the past dynasties.
The masters of the past dynasties organized the army. It sounds complicated to say, but in fact it can only be said in eight words: strict military laws, high rewards and heavy punishments!
When it comes to soldiers, you should not have your own thoughts. Whether you are practicing in peacetime or fighting on the battlefield, you must do whatever you are asked to do. Otherwise, it does not matter whether it is right or wrong, military law will be engaged!
You need to keep practicing, keep stimulating, and finally form muscle memory. When you get to the battlefield, you will forget everything else and just remember to obey the orders and swing the knife. That's enough!
The rewards offered must be cashed, preferably in cash, not futures. When Xiao Feng organized his army, he mainly focused on a rich man, and the reward was extremely high, but in fact Xiao Feng himself could not spend much money.
Because when a battle is won, there will be seizures, and the private gentry is happy to lose. In addition to the silver reward from the court, Xiao Feng will only subsidize the excess.
Therefore, throughout the ages, armies that have been winning battles have not been short of money. On the contrary, armies that have been defeated repeatedly have to consume a lot of money.
Amount of military spending.
So Xiao Feng fought and killed all the way. After he passed by, not only the local Japanese pirates were seriously injured, but the temperament of the local guard soldiers also became much tougher.
As a result, the coastal areas where Xiao Feng traveled have greatly reduced the number of Japanese pirates in a short period of time. Although the goal of eradication has not been achieved, it can be regarded as a rare stable situation since the Jiajing Dynasty.
Yan Song's eyes were as wide as beanbags, waiting for Xiao Feng to go to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to promote the conversion of rice to mulberry. But as soon as Xiao Feng escaped, he went directly to the coast, killing and killing all the way, but refused to stop in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
However, the battles he fought had more wins than losses, and it was difficult to find fault. Jiajing was watching the victory memorial and showing off to the officials every day that his junior brother was capable. Yan Song finally couldn't help it anymore and decided to take action again!
A military officer issued a memorial to the incident: "Long live, although Xiao Feng has a good record, there are also hidden dangers during this period, which must be paid attention to!"
Jiajing asked Yan Song to bring this guy into Xiyuan and let him speak at the small court meeting. Ji Shizhong is similar to a professional censor, who is responsible for impeaching others, but Ge Shizhong only cares about matters related to his own department, and
The censor is in charge of the affairs of the world.
The Ministry of War spoke eloquently about the matter: "Long live, my lords, since Xiao Feng became the governor of Jiangnan, the war has gone smoothly and he has made great achievements. Long live has already issued an order to commend him. Your kindness is profound!"
However, Xiao Feng, as the governor, did not know how to avoid suspicion and rewarded the soldiers with personal property. This is like "a man can reward the army of the world"!
Moreover, Xiao Feng is both the governor and the Taoist tutor of the two princes. In this capacity, he privately rewards the three armies. What is his intention? I hope you will find out!
"
Good guy! All the ministers immediately raised their heads and looked at the Ministry of War.
Ding Rukui was even more frightened and stared at this subordinate in stunned silence. He didn't know when this guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes completely surrendered to the Yan Party.
What kind of crime is this? To reward the world's army for a single man! This sentence was said by Zhu Yuanzhang, the great ancestor of the Ming Dynasty, to Shen Wansan, the richest man in the Ming Dynasty!
It is said that when the beggar monk Zhu Chongba attacked the smuggling salt dealer Zhang Shicheng, Shen Wansan's family was just outside the city of Suzhou Prefecture. They had a house and fields, and their life was full of joy.
So Shen Wansan provided money and food to support Zhang Shicheng in protecting his family and the country. With the support of Shen Wansan's ability, the Suzhou Prefecture resisted for eight months. The beatings made Zhu Chong 80% angry and his urine turned yellow.
In the end, Zhu Chongba captured Suzhou and couldn't wait to settle the score with Shen Wansan. However, Shen Wansan's reputation among the people was pretty good. Zhu Chongba had just won the victory and was unwilling to bear too much infamy, so he planned to run against Shen Wansan. Wan San, find something wrong to deal with him.
The following dialogue is not real history. It is an imaginary dialogue scene based on some historical data. Please treat it critically.
Zhu Chongba said to Shen Wansan: "Look, just because you supported Zhang Shicheng, this battle was fought so hard and ancient buildings with a long history were destroyed.
I plan to rebuild the damaged Nanjing City Wall. The cause of this loss is half mine and half yours. You have to pay for it!"
Shen Wansan replied: "Although Long Live you are attacking Suzhou City, not Nanjing City, the damage to the Nanjing City Wall actually has nothing to do with the common people.
But you have a big fist, so what you said makes sense. The common people are willing to pay to build the city.
.
Because the grassroots people have been robbed once by the righteous master of Long Live, so I don’t have much cash in hand, so I will pay 30% first, and then I will give more to the grassroots people when their property is realized.”
Zhu Chongba was actually asking for a lot of money. He didn't expect that Shen Wansan was really so rich and could still come up with so much money after being robbed once, so he felt even more unhappy.
When the Nanjing city wall was repaired, Zhu Chongba called Shen Wansan again: "You said at that time that you would let me wait for your property to be realized. Now I want to reward the three armies. Please do something."
Shen Wansan was indeed very wealthy, and he thought that by completing the construction of the Nanjing City Wall, his sins had been fully offset. He was a little arrogant, and casually said: "This matter is easy to handle, please tell me the number."
Zhu Chongba gritted his teeth and stretched out a finger. Shen Wansan also gritted his teeth and stretched out a finger.
Zhu Chongba laughed and said: "I said one million people! What do you mean?"
Shen Wansan breathed a sigh of relief: "I said one million taels, which is exactly one tael of silver per person."
Zhu Chongba was so angry that he threw away his job when he returned to the palace: "To reward a common man with the army of the world, does Shen Wansan want to rebel? Come here, arrest him and behead him!"
Queen Ma, who was having dinner at the same table, felt that her husband was a bit too unreasonable. It was like some begging places where people would scold others for not giving them money when they were given food. She didn't know if her husband had this style when he was begging for food.
"Chongba, it's not good of you to do this. You ask for money from others, and they give it to you. They don't ask for labor. You can say that he behaves arrogantly, but you insist on saying that they are rebelling. This is not good."
Zhu Chongba was very obedient to his wife, so Shen Wansan escaped from being beheaded and was eventually exiled.
(Various historical materials conflict with Shen Wansan’s life and ending, so the version most widely circulated among the people shall prevail here.)
At this time, the Ministry of War introduced this crime into the matter. Not only was it conclusive, but it also listed the good news reported by the Ministry of War from various places, followed by silver rewards and pensions, which were much higher than the normal standard of the imperial court.
Jiajing closed his eyes slightly and didn't know what he was thinking. The ministers were also talking about it. This matter was indeed a taboo. Xiao Feng didn't look so stupid!
Several officials who had been governors along the coast shook their heads secretly. I really don’t know what Xiao Feng was thinking. This matter is obviously a thankless loss! You have lost so much money yourself, and you have been caught. The result is only There is no benefit to the disadvantage!
Of course, this can boost morale and win a few battles. But what does it matter about winning and defeating? This is not the key issue! Look, for so many years, we have been losing battles along the coast. Who has been punished? Aren’t they all promoted safely? ?
The only one who died was Zhu Wan, who had won the battle, and the other person who almost died was Zhang Jing, who had fought a great victory. What does this mean? It means that victory or defeat does not matter, the key is not to make mistakes!
In the silence, Ding Rukui stepped forward. He couldn't do it if he didn't come forward. This was a matter that the Ministry of War should deal with, and it was also the Ministry of War's responsibility to impeach Xiao Feng. He had to express something.
"Long live the war, I believe that the dangers of war cannot be treated as commonplace. As the governor, it is extremely rare for Xiao Feng to visit the front line in person.
The military at various coastal defense stations was depleted and morale was low. Xiao Feng could not resist the Japanese pirates without giving heavy rewards and punishments. Xiao Feng's consecutive victories also illustrate this method.
efficient.
Moreover, there is no evidence that Xiao Feng rewarded the three armies in his own name. If it was in the name of the imperial court, we cannot think that Xiao Feng is just a common man working for the army, let alone that he has evil intentions."
The Ministry of War obviously received strong support from Yan Song during the incident, so he was not afraid of Ding Rukui, his immediate superior, and protested loudly.
"Master Ding's words are wrong. Zhang Jing won a great victory before and did not offer any additional rewards. This shows that large rewards are not a necessary way to win!
What's more, your Excellency said that the military of the various defense stations is depleted and morale is low, and the lower-level officials do not agree. The military stations are all under the control of the Ministry of War. Doesn't your words mean that everyone in the Ministry of War is just a loser and has failed the emperor's favor?"
Damn, that's so cruel! All the officials looked at Ding Rukui. As a minister, it must be too painful to be stabbed in the back by one of his subordinates for a small matter.
Regardless of the character of the person involved, these words are indeed extremely sharp and are indeed a professional way to find trouble.
You are the Minister of the Ministry of War. If you say that the guards you manage are all useless, doesn't that mean you are guilty?
Ding Rukui's eyes were burning, and he stared at Gui Shizhong. Gui Shizhong looked at him without fear, with a selfless and boundless attitude in his heart.
The right minister of the Ministry of War was promoted by Ding Rukui. At this time, he also stood up. He first saluted Jiajing and then turned to look at Ji Shizhong.
"You are using your clever words to frame someone up! It is a fact that the defense force's low combat effectiveness did not occur overnight, and the imperial court is also aware of it.
If the combat power of the garrison was not insufficient, why would the imperial court establish a camp system to supplement the military strength? Nowadays, wars in the north are almost all based on camp troops. Isn’t it precisely because of the low combat power of the garrison troops?
?
The camp system has been implemented since the time of the previous emperor. If it is said that this is the responsibility of the Minister of War, then wouldn’t it be inevitable that all the ministers before Minister Ding would be culpable?"
Ding Rukui breathed a sigh of relief and looked at his die-hard allies with relief. Unfortunately, he had too few allies, while the strict party's allies were everywhere.
The left minister of the Household Department talked to the Yue people and said: "This is just a way of passing the buck! The reason why the guard is weak is because the Mongolian and Jurchen attacks have increased, and the guards are mostly infantry, so it is difficult to resist.
Therefore, more troops were added to fight against the nomadic people. Today, along the coast south of the Yangtze River, there are mostly Japanese pirates and no cavalry. The guards were outnumbered and the enemy was outnumbered. They were completely defeated. It was due to the incompetence of the military department!
Our Ministry of Household Affairs wastes military expenditures every year to support the various military posts of the Ministry of War. Now that we are using troops for a short period of time, we actually think that the military is ineffective and morale is low. It is really unreasonable!"
Pan Huang glanced at Tan Tong and remained silent as usual. Tan Tong was obviously standing up for Yan Song. If Xiao Feng was here, he could still play a role. But if Xiao Feng was not around, it would be too risky to step forward on his own.
What's more, it's not like Xiao Feng has no one here, so why should he go there himself...
"Master Tan, what you said is wrong, this, this is wrong! How much military expenditure did the guardsmen spend on the Ministry of Household Affairs?
This, this, the soldiers of the guard station all farm their own land to support themselves! Has the Ministry of Household Affairs ever allocated a penny to any guard station?"
Liu Tong was indeed very nervous when he spoke at the Xiaochao meeting for the first time. Not only was he stumbling a bit, but his voice was also rising and falling. Jiajing raised his eyelids to look at him and then closed them again.
Tan Tong did not expect that Liu Tong, a guy who had risen to the top by dragging his son-in-law's waistband, would dare to confront him face to face. He was furious in his heart, but he was very sincere on the surface.
"Liu
Sir, I know you want to protect your son-in-law, but everything must be done with reason and evidence.
How much fertile land do the guards occupy? These fertile fields originally belonged to my household department, and the household department cultivated them for free for the guards. Isn’t the land money?"
Liu Tong was furious: "Don't you feel guilty when you say this? Guard troops occupy fertile land? Check the account books of the Ministry of Household Affairs! The fertile land in the guard office has long been bought up by local tycoons!
The rest is just some thin land! Those guard soldiers can just rely on cultivating these thin fields to avoid starving to death, so how can they still think about fighting?
Food is the most important thing for the people! Do you understand that food is the most important thing for the people?"
Seeing Liu Tong gesticulating and spitting everywhere, Pan Huang coughed and said, "Liu Shilang, lower your voice, please be careful. You are disrespectful to me."
Talking about Tong was also popular. I didn't expect Liu Tong to be so arrogant. The key is to expose his own scars! The farmland in the Wei Suo was bought by the local tycoons. The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household are both responsible for this!
As the left minister, I have been a minister for many years, so my responsibilities are naturally greater than those of Liu Tong, the right minister who just came up!
But Pan Huang and Ding Rukui, who were most responsible, hadn't said anything yet. It seemed useless to hold on to this matter, so they could only glare at Liu Tong angrily.
Seeing that the topic had gone astray, the man quickly bowed and saluted again, with an angry and decisive tone.
"Long live, please punish Jiangnan Governor's common man's army, win over the army's morale, and plot evil!"
This time, as if they had been rehearsed, the strict party officials bowed and saluted together and responded in unison, with amazing momentum.
"Long live, please punish Jiangnan Governor's common man's army, win over the army's morale, and plot evil!"