20demayo Chapter 62 Chen Ying is enraged and wants to kill.
Chapter 62 Chen Ying is enraged and wants to kill.
Chapter 63 Chen Ying is enraged and wants to kill.
Chapter 62. On the 27th day of the fifth month of the fourth year of the Tianqi reign, inside the office of the Shahe Garrison Commander.
After returning to Shahe, Chen Ying had planned to have a lot of things to do, but the problem was that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and Chen Ying couldn't resist the temptation.
After three consecutive days of shameless behavior, even Song Xianze couldn't stand it anymore.
"Brother-in-law, you've already transferred one centurion's garrison. If you transfer Wang Tiezhu and Qin Siming's garrisons as well, what will happen to Shahe?"
Song Yanniang pointed to the door and said, "Get out of here! I'll count to three—"
Song Xianze sighed deeply and disappeared quickly before Song Yanniang could retaliate.
"Chen Lang, if you drink this 'Hundred Sons Soup,' we'll definitely have a big, healthy son!"
Song Yanniang also felt pressure. In those days, there was little entertainment. Whether they were craftsmen or soldiers, after finishing their work at night, they had only one thing to do behind closed doors—to have children.
She had been married to Chen Yingcheng for more than half a year, but her belly showed no signs of pregnancy, which made her very sensitive. She said things like "a hen that doesn't lay eggs," and Song Yanniang felt that the gossipy women in the Qianhu garrison were talking about her.
I'm not going to steam buns to save face; I must have a son to shut those gossipy women up.
Chen Ying had previously traveled to Pi Island, a round trip of more than a month, and was indeed craving meat.
The problem is, even the best meat gets greasy if you eat too much, and even long legs feel tired. But the problem is, Song Yanniang doesn't agree; she's enjoying herself right now.
Chen Ying wanted to use the pretext of checking the accounts to hide for a few days, but the problem was, how could Song Yanniang let him go? Because Chen Ying had to go back to Dalu Island, and once he left, he probably wouldn't know when he would return.
He didn't need to worry about the accounts; Song Yanniang handled everything. Zhang Changgeng was in charge of purchasing grain in Tianjin, and each manufacturing bureau had its own general manager in charge. Chen Ying didn't need to worry about anything.
Chen Ying was truly on the verge of tears. Just as he was about to rest, Song Yanniang cut him off with a remark: "Chen Lang, are you impotent too? How about I find you a younger one?"
"Please don't—"
Even with the sun high in the sky, Chen Ying was still fast asleep in bed; even an iron man couldn't stand it.
"Godfather————"
Chen Yongren rushed over and said, "Godfather, the imperial edict has arrived!"
"What?"
Chen Ying waved his hand: "I'm too sleepy, I'll sleep a little longer!"
"The imperial edict has arrived!"
"What?"
Chen hurriedly dressed and, with Chen Yongren's help, rushed to the main hall of the Thousand Household Office.
Lu Jiucheng winked at Chen Ying and said in a shrill voice, "Chen Boying, Commander of the Shahe Garrison, receive the imperial decree!"
"Your subject, Chen Boying, commander of the Shahe Garrison, receives the imperial decree."
Lu Jiucheng cleared his throat, his voice rising and falling in cadence: "By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: I have heard that the key to securing the borders lies in appointing the right people; the foundation of a strong army lies in selecting the right generals. Chen Boying, the commander of the Shahe Garrison, is loyal, diligent, and devoted to the country, possessing both wisdom and courage. He has created weapons to aid in both offense and defense, established schools to cultivate talent, resettled displaced people to strengthen the nation's foundation, and further contributed to the pacification of the Pi Island rebellion, defeating a superior force with a smaller one, thus demonstrating the might of our Great Ming army. His merits are commendable, and his talent is worthy of great responsibility."
Chen Ying was completely bewildered: "What's going on?"
He immediately thought of Wei Zhongxian's influence behind it all: "Chen Boying is hereby promoted to Commander of Shahe Guard, granted the rank of Zhaoyong General, a third-rank official. The former Xingzhou Zhongtun Guard is moved to Changping and merged into the Shahe Garrison Thousand-Household Office, reorganized into Shahe Guard. It shall be under its jurisdiction five offices: Left, Right, Front, Rear, and Central, plus the Shahe Garrison Thousand-Household Office, for a total of six offices. Its territory shall be bounded by the former Shahe Garrison Office and the northern border of Changping Prefecture, with a permitted quota of 7,000 soldiers. It is hoped that you will strengthen military preparedness, diligently train soldiers, solidify the defenses of the capital region, and become a pillar of the nation. This is the imperial decree."
Shahe Guard? Commander? Third Rank?
Chen Ying was stunned for a moment. He knew that working for Wei Zhongxian might bring benefits, but the problem was that he never expected it to be such a large-scale operation.
It wasn't a simple promotion, but a direct establishment of a garrison. This meant that the Shahe Garrison Thousand-Household Office had become a garrison with a complete structure and directly under the command of the Rear Army Governor's Office!
"Lord Chen, Commander Chen, please receive the imperial decree."
Lu Jiucheng reminded him with a smile.
"Your subject, Chen Ying, receives the imperial decree and expresses his gratitude!"
Chen Ying accepted the imperial edict and stood up.
Lu Jiucheng handed over another official document: "Lord Chen, this is the Ministry of War's official seal and stamp. It contains the original personnel, registers, and documents of the Xingzhou Zhongtun Guard."
The military equipment will be gradually moved here within ten days. Also, Eunuch Wei has a message for you—”
Lu Jiucheng leaned closer and lowered his voice: "The eunuch said that Shahewei is your own territory, and you can manage it however you want. But there is one condition: the soldiers must be well trained, because they may be deployed to test their mettle in the future."
"I understand. I will certainly live up to the Factory Director's high expectations."
Chen Ying reached out to Song Xianze, who understood and took out a silver note from his sleeve. Song Xianze handed it to Chen Ying, who took it and looked at it. Holy crap, it was five thousand taels!
He subtly reached out to Song Xianze again, and Song Xianze realized the problem and hurriedly took out two silver notes, each worth one thousand taels of silver. Chen Yingdi handed them over, saying, "Eunuch Lu has come a long way and must be tired. This is just a small token of my appreciation for your tea."
Lu Jiucheng's smile widened: "Lord Chen, you're too kind. I have to return to the palace to report, so I won't bother you any longer. Farewell."
Wang Tiezhu, Qin Siming, Zhang Changgeng, and other trusted confidants stepped forward and said, "Congratulations, sir!"
"Congratulations my ass!"
Chen Ying said irritably, "Just one Shahe Garrison Command costs more than 30,000 taels of silver a month. Now, if we add five more command posts, feeding tens of thousands of people, we're going to starve!"
Although Chen Ying faced greater pressure, the problem was that he had been promoted from independent regimental commander to brigade commander, which was equivalent to a general. Of course, Chen Ying, as the commander of Shahe Guard, was still a reinforced guard.
A typical garrison consists of five thousand-household units, totaling 5,600 men. However, this particular garrison has six thousand-household units. Of course, this is not the most. The Dengzhou Garrison has seven thousand-household units, while the Embroidered Uniform Guard has seventeen thousand-household units. However, the Embroidered Uniform Guard is not the garrison with the most thousand-household units.
The guard with the most subordinate thousand-household units was the Fujun Left Guard, which had twenty-five thousand-household units under its jurisdiction. The Huguang Wukai Guard had sixteen thousand-household units under its jurisdiction. Of course, there were also guards with two or three thousand-household units under their jurisdiction.
The problem is that although Chen Ying is now under the jurisdiction of the Rear Army Commandery, he is not yet under the jurisdiction of the Commandery Commander-in-Chief. This is the power of discretion granted to him by the Tianqi Emperor, which is equivalent to allowing him to continue to be the commander of the Independent Brigade.
A year ago, he was a poor military household who had just transmigrated and was racking his brains to survive. Now, he is a third-rank commander, in charge of a guard, with soldiers, craftsmen and islands under his command, and the emperor and the Ninth Prince standing behind him.
But is this really a good thing?
How much does it cost to maintain 7,000 soldiers?
According to the standards of the Ming Dynasty's border troops, each person's annual salary, equipment, and horses would cost at least thirty taels of silver, so seven thousand men would cost two hundred and one thousand taels of silver.
Without Dalu Island, Shahe Suo might be able to hold on with its current industries. But the problem is, once it's formed, countless eyes in the court will be watching, and Liaodong will likely see a major conflict in the future.
Do you obey the Ministry of War's order to transfer troops?
Should we deploy during wartime?
And what about the officers from the old military households of Xingzhou Zhongtunwei? Even if the commander is transferred away, there are still two assistant prefects and two commanders. He doesn't have the power to dismiss these officers. Can he take them over smoothly?
Will there be any troublemakers?
Will local officials and gentry in Changping Prefecture obstruct the reform process?
A multitude of issues.
"Wang Tiezhu!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
Chen Ying said directly, "I recommend you for the position of Fifth-Rank Commander of the Shahe Garrison!"
"Thank you, Commander!"
Wang Tiezhu never expected that he would be promoted to commander of a thousand households so soon without having made any contributions.
"Qin Siming!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
"I recommend you for the position of Commander of the Central Thousand-Household Garrison in Shahe, a fifth-rank official!"
"Thank you, sir!"
"Zhang Changgeng!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
"I recommend you for the position of Fifth-Rank Garrison Commander of Shahe Guard!"
"Thank you, sir!"
Regardless of the original officers of Xingzhou Zhongtunwei, Chen Yingxian first took control of the Discipline Inspection Commission.
Chen Ying hesitated for only a moment before he understood.
What's there to be afraid of? He was determined to carve out a path to survival in this apocalyptic world.
The garrison system and the legal troop quota were bargaining chips that had been coveted before. With this official status, many things could be done openly and legitimately.
Training troops?
He has a training syllabus in his mind that is hundreds of years ahead of its time.
equipment?
The Shahe Workshop can produce the best firearms, armor, and cannons of this era.
Money and provisions?
Once the maritime trade on Dalu Island is launched, wealth will flow in.
As for the open and covert attacks in the court—he currently has the Tianqi Emperor and Wei Zhongxian behind him, and in the future, he will have seven thousand soldiers, hundreds of thousands of military households and artisan households, and a community of interests that is about to be formed.
This game of chess can continue.
"Brother-in-law, what about me!"
Song Xianze pointed to himself, Song Xianze, the commander of the Shahe Garrison, a sixth-rank official.
"From this day forward, you are the young commander of our Shahe Guard!"
Song Xianze was slightly taken aback: "Commander of the Young Masters, that's an official title from the Tang Dynasty. We don't have a Commander of the Young Masters in our Great Ming Dynasty."
"Shahewei, while I'm away, you're the boss! What kind of commander or deputy commander are you? Anyone who dares to disobey orders, just take him down!"
Chen Ying still earnestly wrote down his recommendation for Song Xianze as the Deputy Commander of Shahe Guard, a legitimate and aboveboard deputy. As for whether the Ministry of War would approve it, that was the Ministry of War's problem, and he couldn't decide that.
Song Yanniang stroked her flat belly and murmured, "Son, your father has earned you a hereditary title of a third-rank commander. You must live up to his expectations!"
"Wang Tiezhu, from this moment forward, conscript soldiers from all the garrisons. The minimum age requirement is five feet five inches!"
"Commander, this is the standard for the Embroidered Uniform Guard. For ordinary guard posts, it's five feet three inches—"
"Just five feet five inches!"
Chen Ying slammed his fist on the table: "Bring out the heavy armor from our depot, and have them run a lap around Gonghua City wearing 38-pound suits of armor. That'll make them qualified soldiers!"
"this----"
"Execute the command!"
Chen Ying still trusted his own people. He wanted to have complete control over the Zhongqianhu Garrison. As for the Xingzhou Zhongtun Garrison, it was undoubtedly a rotten garrison, otherwise, he wouldn't have given it to him.
As expected, when Xingzhou Zhongtunwei arrived at Shahe, it was not an army at all, but a group even worse off than Liunan. Many of them did not even have shoes and came barefoot, their feet covered with wounds. With each step they took, they left a bloody mark on the ground.
The boys, around fifteen or sixteen years old, didn't even have a pair of pants and their buttocks were exposed. The worst off were the female relatives of the military households; it was a truly pitiful sight.
Seeing the soldiers who were skin and bones from hunger, Chen Ying was furious: "Where are the officers? Commander, Assistant Commander, and all the commanders of the thousand-household division, get out here right now!"
Chen Ying is now enraged; he really wants to kill someone.