Li Zicheng's slogan of land equalization and tax exemption was too loud, but he did not have the ability to actually implement long-term governance. The people could not care about this, and they blindly followed the trend when they saw that they could get benefits. They were so cunning that it would be very difficult to change back.
It is easy to enter luxury, but it is difficult to move from luxury to frugality. It is very appropriate to describe the present moment.
Instead of risking confrontation with the people and restoring the previous taxation, it is better to use this stock style, continue Li Zicheng's slogan, and make a complete change, which will help win over the people.
But this matter should not be done by Chongzhen himself. Once the emperor said it, it was a done deal, and there was no possibility of turning around.
But the frontline army needs money and food to fight, and the court needs money and food to maintain. If these people are not promoted to fight against the common people, then they have no choice but to attack the wealthy people. No need to guess, once this matter spreads, the gentry will have no choice but to make trouble with Chongzhen.
How to establish a new financial system and reconcile the contradictions between the upper and lower classes is another major problem that Chongzhen needs to think deeply about. Fortunately, a bigger problem is coming, and internal conflicts can be put aside for the time being.
The Xuanfu was defeated, and the Jianlu army soon attacked Datong.
"Your Majesty, I arranged to spend the night on the western front to spy without asking for anything in return. I discovered that General Tang Tong's troops were camping in the area of Baodezhou."
"Tang Tong? Did he participate in the Shanhaiguan War?"
"The trespassers had transferred other troops to Beijing before. They only appeared in Baode in the past two days. The sentry found that the camp was loose and the soldiers were not in order. They seemed to be the remnants of the troops."
Chongzhen was thoughtful and said nothing.
Everyone rode their horses to the main camp in the city. After Jiang Quan and Jiang Xuan joined forces, they knew that they were no match for Jianlu in the field, so they set up the general camp in the city.
It happened that behind the main town office in the north of the city, there was a large area of ruins. Most of them were Taoist temples and temples here. Due to Zhang Tianlin's special hobby, they were all destroyed and became vacant. So Jiang Quan ordered people to clean it up and set up camp with materials on the spot.
.
As soon as he entered the gate of the military camp, he heard the wailing sound of "Ah! Ah!". Chongzhen took a closer look and saw that it was the fat and important official who was tied naked to a wooden post and being whipped by others with a whip.
It turned out that Jiang Gan had a concubine that he liked the most. This concubine's brother usually idled around and did not do his job, so the concubine persuaded Jiang Gan to arrange a job for his brother-in-law as a transport officer in the army.
Last night, the baggage officer came home very satisfied and realized that he had done a good job. He asked his sister where the new adult in the city came from and gave an overview of what had happened.
His sister also didn't know and was curious, so after Jiang Yu returned home, she told Jiang Yu about the matter.
After Jiang Quan heard this, his liver and gallbladder were split, and he slapped his concubine and fell to the ground. He didn't know why, and then ordered someone to take his brother-in-law in for questioning.
This matter is not unusual in the military.
In recent years, the focus of the imperial court has been on Liao pay, which has led to a shortage of money and food for the soldiers in the border towns. It is reasonable for the generals to find ways to amass wealth and support their troops. Therefore, methods such as killing good people for merit, embezzling and confiscating money quickly have become more and more popular.
But this kind of "reasonableness" was only in private, and it passed by turning a blind eye. Now the good guy was put directly in the emperor's face. It was a serious crime that could punish the nine tribes.
Therefore, Jiang Gan stayed up all night, sitting at home with red eyes and thinking about it. He even came up with the idea of surrendering and revolting. He was sitting in Datong. If Chongzhen was kidnapped and sacrificed...
Jiang Quan was waiting for Chongzhen to summon him. If Chongzhen really wanted to punish him for this, he would probably rebel even at the risk of eternal infamy.
In this way, he remained anxious until noon of the next day, but did not receive any news from Chongzhen summoning him. Only then did Jiang Gan gradually feel relieved, and he even felt remorseful and guilty for his previous thoughts.
He was such a contradictory egoist, and he jumped over the wall repeatedly just because of a thought. Chongzhen should really feel lucky that he acted cautiously.
So there was this scene in the camp. Chongzhen recognized the baggage officer and knew what was going on, but he didn't point it out. He turned to Jiang Quan and asked, "Hey, why is this?"
Jiang Quan had a clear mind. After hearing this, he dismounted from his horse and saluted, and replied: "This is a humble position, but I am not being strict with you. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."
Seeing that Jiang Quan was avoiding important matters, Chongzhen knew what he was doing and said: "What kind of crime is it to be punished in a daze? You can handle the military affairs yourself. Since I have given you full authority, I will not interfere at will. It's just that this person can't be whipped properly."
, it’s still raining, I think it’s better to let it go.”
"Your Majesty has a kind heart, but the military law is not merciful. After completing the military law, he will be handed over to someone for treatment. Whether he dies or lives depends on his own destiny."
"As you say, take me to the big tent."
"promise!"
After the group of people left, the soldiers enforcing military law quickly stopped, untied the dying baggage officer, carried him on his back, and carried him to the accompanying medical officer.
After entering the tent in the camp, Chongzhen sat down at the top and asked, "What is the situation of those prisoners now?"
Chen Zhuo came out and said: "After returning to your majesty, after a humble count, we captured a total of more than 1,600 people, including about 500 old soldiers, and the rest are new soldiers who have not been in battle."
"Are you willing to surrender?"
"There are some old soldiers who are unwilling. There are about two hundred of them. They are in low-level positions and don't know what to do with them. I would like to ask Your Majesty to make up his mind."
After listening to Chen Zhuo's report, Chongzhen rubbed his temples. It was a pity to kill these old soldiers. They were difficult to tame in a short time and were really worthless.
After thinking for a while, he said to Jiang Quan: "Let's do this. Those who are willing to surrender will be broken up and placed in the fifth camp. The remaining two hundred bones will continue to be locked up and starved for a few days. Then I will go and see for myself."
"promise!"
"A lot of money and grain were seized from the Prince Dai's Mansion this time. I already know the specific amount."
At this point, Jiang Yan's ears couldn't help but twitch, and he secretly glanced at Chongzhen's face, but there was nothing strange about it.
"Half of it will be allocated to the camp, and the other half will be deposited in the treasury. I want to use it for other purposes. Jiang Xuan, you will supervise this matter. It must be completed within today."
Jiang Xuan immediately went out to take orders, feeling a little confused. Why did Your Majesty assign this matter to me? Shouldn't it be my brother who is responsible?
"Jiang Yu, tell me about the military situation in the city."
"Your Majesty, the armament situation is really not optimistic. The intruders took away most of them when they left the country. The remaining ones were mostly damaged for many years and were difficult to use. After screening, the number of swords, guns and shields was barely enough, and a total of two rifles, bows and crossbows were found.
Thousands, fifty thousand arrows. Defensive equipment such as fire oil, rolling stones and wood, etc. are more abundant. The firearms that can be used include three small Buddha guns, fifteen tiger cannons, quick guns, and birds.
Guns, three-eyed guns, totaling five hundred."
"Where's the armor?"
"Not a single piece of armor from the intruders was left behind, and there are only 800 armor-wearers in the army."
There are more than 10,000 people, 800 of whom are wearing armor. Most of them wear fat jackets or winter clothes. They have few cannons and few guns. Except for the ten-meter-high wall of Datong City, there is nothing they can do.
Chongzhen looked at the map hanging on the wall quietly and stopped talking, feeling a little disappointed in his heart.
Wang Chengen, who had not said a word while accompanying him all the way, secretly winked at the generals. Jiang Guan understood what he wanted, and quickly continued: "Your Majesty, although our army is insufficiently equipped, our officers and men are united and have high morale, so we may not be unable to fight against Jianlu."
Chongzhen shook his head, he didn't need these scenes.
"How many cavalry are there in the camp?"
"There are a thousand cavalrymen, each with one man and one horse."
"Cut half of the troops, re-select good riders from the camp, and expand the camp for five nights without collecting the general flag. Prepare enough dry food for one man and two horses and send them all out. With Datong as the center, it extends to Xuanfu and Taihang in the east and Taiyuan in the south. , I want to know the movements of all enemy troops from the west to the Shanxi-Shaanxi border."
"Would it be difficult if the soldiers were allowed to practice once a day?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Quan and Jiang Xuan were in trouble at the same time. What is your majesty doing? If you practice once a day, wouldn't you have to be a servant?
Seeing their expressions, Chongzhen also knew that it was unrealistic, so he had to settle for the next best thing: "How about two more hours of training every day and one extra meal?"
The two looked at each other, and Jiang Xuan said: "If the money and food are enough, it is not impossible to train for two hours every day, but what I don't understand is, what does Your Majesty want the soldiers to train for?"
"Each person carries ten kilograms of weight on his body and runs around the city wall in a circle until he can't get up before resting."
"Your Majesty, is it just running laps?" Jiang Xuan understood that Chongzhen probably wanted to improve the physical fitness of the soldiers, but was it too simple to just run laps? Jiang Yu also looked strange, why did Your Majesty practice running laps alone? To practice combat. The array is more appropriate.
"Just practice as I told you, and tell the cooks in the army to add oil, water, and more salt to your meals every day."
"Your Majesty, I have to say frankly that the cost of this move is too high. If it is just to train the soldiers' physical fitness, I am afraid that the gain will outweigh the loss."
"My plan has been decided. Just practice and practice hard. You don't have to worry about food and salary."
"promise!"
The matter was almost settled, and the two commanders-in-chief took the order and left on their own. Training more than 10,000 people was not an easy task, and had to be arranged step by step.
Chen Zhuo stayed in the tent to guard. He saw Chongzhen take down the map, lay it flat on the ground, draw on it with his hand, and write and draw on the paper with a pen, all of which were symbols he had never seen before. Chen Zhuo wanted to ask but didn't dare to speak.
Chongzhen raised his head and saw Wang Chengen and Chen Zhuo staring at him, smiling and saying, "You're all curious about what I'm doing, right?"
The two nodded in unison, and Chongzhen put down his pen lightly.
"I won't tell you." This chapter has been completed!