After some compromises, Zhang Ning still issued a series of new decrees and formulated a strategy that focused on military affairs. Since a large number of soldiers joined after occupying Chenzhou, they first organized the troops and horses and divided them into two categories. The first
The first category is regular soldiers, with the core of the soldiers who followed them in the early days. The soldiers are based on their origin and military exploits, and serve as the main force of the Suzaku Army. The second category is called peasant soldiers, which is just a title, and also includes newly recruited miners and factory workers.
wait.
The treatment of the two types of soldiers is different. The regular army is stationed in a fortress close to important cities and important places. In peacetime, it trains and maintains the defense of important towns. In addition to military pay, it also receives a piece of land from the public nearby. If a soldier dies in battle, his family members will receive a pension.
His father, son, and brothers were allowed to inherit their original positions, but if no one in his family served in the Suzaku Army again, the public land would be recovered. The public land would be charged a grain tax less than half of the tax, and would be exempted from corvee. The peasants and soldiers would not be allocated land, but only
The soldiers are given pay and rations, which are less than those of the regular army. After the training period is completed, they can be demobilized to work in agriculture on the basis of military orders from the Council of Ministers during non-war times.
Regular army officers and soldiers who perform poorly in the assessment of the Military Household Department of the Council Department will be eliminated as peasant soldiers; peasant soldiers who kill three or more enemies will be promoted to regular soldiers, or if a certain unit has made great achievements, they can be promoted and reorganized as a whole.
There are no restrictions on officers taking imperial examinations and being transferred to local civilian officials.
After that, Zhang Ning encouraged the descendants of the Jianwen Party to serve as scribes in the government. After getting familiar with government affairs, they could take examinations and be promoted to officials. Since most of the descendants of Yu Chen were too illiterate, direct imperial examinations would be difficult to maintain, so they could only do this. Moreover, Zhang Ning was in the Ming court in the Ming Dynasty.
After working as an official for a period of time, I discovered that some of the candidates for the imperial examinations knew nothing about administration. Government affairs depended entirely on the officials, and they had a lot of ink in their stomachs. Those who could obtain honors were not necessarily qualified for government affairs; perhaps the imperial examinations in the Ming Dynasty were not all for selecting talents.
, is also a way to balance social contradictions by circulating "blood" up and down.
Just when Zhang Ning was in a hurry, he suddenly received the news that Fan Si, the deputy promotion officer of the Ordnance Bureau, was missing, along with several craftsmen from the Ordnance Bureau. Someone reported that Fan Laosi had been with a "relative" from his hometown a while ago.
"I met him several times, and he might have been recruited by the government and defected. Zhang Ning realized that the matter was a bit serious. Fan Laosi might have leaked the secrets of firearms manufacturing. Although the weapons used by the Suzaku Army would sooner or later be imitated by the officers and soldiers, it would be leaked in this way.
It's too fast.
...Fan Laosi has arrived in Wuchang with his eldest son. In order to perform meritorious service, he also secretly took away several confidential drawings of the Ordnance Bureau.
Yu Qian, who had just taken office as governor of Huguang, and his aide Wang Jian were in the governor's office thinking about the firearms drawings presented by Fan Laosi. The person sitting next to him was Xue Lu, the Marquis of Wuyang. Xue Lu was also pretending to observe the drawings on the table, but it seemed that
Can't quite figure it out.
At this time, Lu Qianshi, the Fusi of Jinyiweinan Town, came in and exchanged a few greetings with Yu Qian and others. Yu Qian said: "Knowing yourself and your enemy means you can fight a hundred battles. Lu Qianshi made great achievements as soon as he arrived in Huguang. He is worthy of being a minister of the emperor."
When Lu Qianshi heard the civil servants praising him, his face suddenly broke out in laughter, and he said: "Where is it that your Excellency can be called the Emperor's minister of consolidation? What I have done is nothing more than a trivial matter, so why should I care? Then
Deputy Fan Tiju is also a person who seeks advantages and avoids disadvantages. As long as he understands the advantages and disadvantages and promises to be an official of the Imperial Guard, what else can he do? He works as an errand behind the rebels and is always just a traitor. How can he compare to it?
Become an official in the imperial court...With these things, our Nanzhen Fusi can make new firearms within a few months, ensuring that once Wuyang Hou's army arrives, it will be invincible."
Yu Qian has no objection at all to counterfeiting new weapons. Although he is a civil servant, few Han officials are averse to "strange tricks". In the final analysis, it is a pragmatic civilization. You can learn whatever you think is useful, and there is basically no moral integrity.
It can be said that many people can both worship Buddha and believe in Christianity and accept Christ at the same time. Unless the things that arouse the opposition of scholar-officials conflict with the basis of their ethical rule, for example, if someone suddenly says that father and son, men and women are equal, then it will not work; or it will affect the political reform.
For the interests and status of some people, there are very few people who really stick to the rules.
After listening to what Lu Qianshi said, Yu Qian said: "Firearms should naturally be tried out to see their effectiveness, but we probably can't let Wu Yanghou wait for a few months before using force against Chenzhou. The most important role of these things at the moment is not
We should imitate the weapons equivalent to those of the rebels, but understand their tactics so that we can prepare corresponding tactics in advance so as not to be overwhelmed in the face of battle."
After hearing this, Xue Lu bowed in admiration and said: "My lord, these words are profound in the art of war."
Lu Qianshi said: "This time we arranged several spies and contacts. In addition to persuading Fan Si to surrender, we also found out a piece of news. Liu Heju, the former commander of the Yongding Guards, has surrendered to the rebels, and another commander Feng Youxian has also joined the rebel leader.
The contacts were very close. We were unable to contact Liu Heju, but according to Master Yu’s wishes, our people asked some questions among the Yongding Guards and Zhu Yong’s defeated generals, and roughly understood the tactics of the rebels.”
Yu Qian glanced at Xue Lu and then said to Lu Qianshi, "Lu Qianshi, please tell me."
"The bandit army is mainly infantry. They value firecrackers and form a dense square formation. The front two rows hold spears one foot and five feet long. The flanks are also preceded by spearmen. The infantry mainly protects its firecrackers. After forming the formation,
, waiting for the opponent to attack. Its fire cannons have a range of a hundred steps and can penetrate iron armor. If the three columns are fired in turn, the sound of cannons will be endless. If the infantry is subjected to several rounds of salvos within a few dozen steps, it will collapse and it will be difficult to engage the enemy; the cavalry will be unable to engage the enemy.
When approaching, the camp will be defended with spearmen, the bandit army will be in good order, and the formation will be strong, so Zhu Yong will suffer the loss here."
Wang Jian, Yu Qian's staff, couldn't help but said: "Heavy arrows can't pierce a poplar at a hundred steps, let alone break armor. The rebel army's muskets are so powerful, why should we use bows and arrows?"
Lu Qianshi smiled and said: "It seems that the 'magic blunderbuss' is really powerful, but I think they use a lot of fire blunderbuss without bows and arrows. I am afraid that their soldiers and horses are not good at bows and horses, and it is difficult to train them quickly. It is naturally easier to use fire blunderbuss."
.Firing the fire cannon is very troublesome. By the time it fires, the bow and arrow have already fired several arrows. No wonder they take turns firing in a dense square array; the fire cannon has no accuracy, and whether it hits the target or not depends on luck... It cannot be used on rainy days.
, of course our bows and crossbows cannot be used in battle on a rainy day, so we can only fight hand to hand."
He took a breath and then said: "In addition, the bandits also have two kinds of cannons. I only know how to use one of them, the 'general cannon'. They are called mortars. They are set up at the top of the city first, with a range of more than one mile, and wait until the opponent does not know the situation.
When they entered the firing range and formed a formation, they fired artillery into the formation, causing chaos in the formation and damaging morale. Likewise, the mortars had limited power and lacked accuracy."
At this time, Xue Lu pondered and said: "It is not difficult to break this formation. Since the rebels formed a dense square formation and first bombarded it with the general's artillery, the siege can also return artillery to disrupt their formation, and then use
The cavalry rushes to its flank and rear, and after breaking the formation, it is no different from the usual cavalry fighting infantry."
Yu Qian immediately showed his ability to coordinate all parties: "Wuchang, Jingzhou, and Changsha Town all have Tianzihao generals. Each one weighs more than two thousand kilograms. It has to be transported by water. I can order each government to transfer ships.
First transport the cannon from Dongting Lake to Changde Mansion; after Marquis Wuyang has gathered his troops, the cannons that arrive at Changde Mansion can be handed over to the army nearby."
Xue Lu thanks you.
Yu Qian smiled and said: "You and I are both on errands for the emperor. At this time, rebels are rampant in the area. Putting down the rebellion is Huguang's top priority. Although I am the governor, I am willing to supervise the military supplies and supplies for the Marquis of Wuyang. I will do my best to spare you.
With no worries about the future, I hope that the generals and soldiers will be victorious, share the emperor's worries and solve difficulties, and fulfill the duties of a minister."
Xue Lu remembered that he was recommended by Yu Qian to suppress the rebellion. Yu Qian could not drag the people he recommended back. Thinking of this, Xue Lu felt very relieved. Sure enough, sometimes civil and military cooperation is needed to get things done.
Yu Qian added: "Zhang Ning... he may change the combat tactics when he learns that we persuaded the weapons maker to surrender. Therefore, Lu Qianshi must continue to send people to inquire about the situation, and do not underestimate the enemy."
The two of them bowed together and said, "I obey my command."
Yu Qian finished his business in the hall and returned to his residence to rest. His wife Dong came up to greet him happily and brought ice cubes to warm him up. Unexpectedly, Yu Qian glanced at the setting sun outside the door, which looked like burning charcoal, and couldn't help but complain.
He said: "In the hot summer, ice is so expensive. There are still people in the world who have no clothes to cover their bodies and no food to eat. It is better for us to be frugal."
After hearing this, Mrs. Dong seemed to have been poured cold water on her, but she was usually very weak-tempered, so she could only reply respectfully: "Yes, I only thought about my husband who has been working hard all day long, and I neglected it for a moment."
Yu Qian originally disapproved of being appointed as the governor of Huguang and bringing his female dependents with him, but because he was out of Beijing for several months and was away from home for a long time, Dong used the excuse that he could take care of him when he was away and save the expense of hiring slaves. He repeatedly requested Yu Qian.
Only then did he agree.
When he got home, he still kept his mind on business and said to himself: "This time my opponent is Zhang Ning, you have seen him before. Alas, things are so unpredictable. Who would have expected that he would rebel against the imperial court?"
Mrs. Dong was originally not very interested in listening to his official affairs, but she happened to still remember Zhang Ning, so she asked casually: "Is he really a descendant of Jianwen Jun?"
"I guess I can't be wrong. I heard that Jianwen who was hiding has made him the King of Jade Huai." Yu Qian pondered for a while, "Yang Gong asked me to take him to the capital a few years ago. The road was very dangerous. This man is very courageous and thoughtful.
He is indeed a rare opponent." When he said this, there was a hint of excitement and indescribable mentality on his face, just like the mood of a master chess player who wants to defeat a player of the same level.
At this time, Mrs. Dong interrupted him: "Luo Yaoniang sent a letter, but I accepted it while you were away. You... She really doesn't mind the mountains being high and the roads being far away, so she writes to you even though it's so far away."
Yu Qian heard that the tone was wrong and said angrily: "I respect Mr. Yang as my teacher. How can I have any evil thoughts about my adopted daughter when I am already married? Who do you think Yu is?"
Mrs. Dong said angrily: "It would be better if you didn't marry a wife. Marrying Yang Gong's daughter is a thousand times better than me!" She couldn't help but vented for a while, and couldn't stop, "There is also the place where I stayed in the old Nanjing hospital.
Girl, what's your relationship with her? I know I'm not good. I can't compare to that girl Fang in terms of beauty and talent, and I can't compare to Luo Yaoniang in terms of birth..."