Wild North America 1846

Chapter 249
Merchants and nobles are an alliance of interests that need and depend on each other, rather than one party simply relying on the other.

Two days later

A call back from GACC in Seattle arrived at Veraque Bruce over the military's long-distance telegraph line.

At this moment

After reorganization, the third batch of the returning expeditionary force has already embarked on the journey back to the mainland of the kingdom through seven trains, and there are not many people still stranded.

Brigadier General Fan Pengfei is busy in the temporary command post next to the train station. As the incoming commander of the "Snow Mountain Division", when the expeditionary force is facing a major abolishment, he gathers the elite forces of the original 1st Division and 5th Division to form a new Southern Division. 1st Field Division.

Some officers and soldiers will retire, some officers and soldiers will be transferred to other units, some officers and soldiers will be promoted, and some officers and soldiers will enter Chang'an Lecture Hall for further studies. Everyone's whereabouts are different.

The temporary headquarters was faced with a lot of tedious and meticulous paperwork, involving every returning expeditionary officer and soldier, and Brigadier General Fan Pengfei took over the command without hesitation.

Among the third batch of officers and soldiers of the returning expeditionary force, 3 officers and soldiers belonged to the "Snow Mountain Division." The temporary headquarters selected 411 officers of all levels and 31 soldiers from them to deal with tedious and complicated returning affairs.

The transferred officers and soldiers only need a paper transfer order, and the retired officers and soldiers are much more troublesome. First of all, they need to seek their own opinions, determine their destination in the eight southern provinces to be assigned, prepare files and sign and issue retirement certificates, check military achievements and issue them Proof, issue retirement subsidies, and finally send retired soldiers and their families to the train.

"Is the military department sure that 1100 retired soldiers will be placed locally? This number is not small!"

"Reporter, this is an order signed by the Military Command just this morning, please review it."

"Oh……"

Brigadier General Fan Pengfei took the order letter, looked it over carefully, nodded, and said, "Since Shangfeng has a formal military order, it will be executed unconditionally, but..."

Having said that, he frowned, waved his hand to make the staff officer retreat, and pondered for a long time with his hands behind his back.

Now Veraque Bruce belongs to the territory of Mexico. Although it is a free port like Tianlagua, it is a foreign territory after all.

Bad name, bad words.

But Shangfeng's order is not fake, and the mystery inside it is intriguing.

Wellake Bruce was originally located in an open and hilly area surrounded by mountains. Now the town is small in size, and there is a large area of ​​barren land on the outskirts that has yet to be developed, extending all the way to the inland area.

Not to mention the placement of 1100 soldiers, even 10 times more soldiers can be placed. The key is that this place is too sensitive.

If the U.S. and other foreign forces know about it, why not blow it up?

Of course, this is not something that Fan Pengfei will consider. It is the highest level of the kingdom and even His Majesty's personal order. Is there a possibility? It is a test of the hostile forces...

Thought of here
Brigadier General Fan Pengfei's heart was "thumping" very fast, his hands and feet were numb like an electric shock, and he was very excited for his bold speculation.

The Tang Kingdom has always given generous rewards to retired soldiers. Those who have not participated in the war are naturally ignored. There is no meritorious service if there is no meritorious service.

Soldiers who participated in the war and received awards for their meritorious service all had meritorious service fields, but it was just how much.

For example, there were 37868 officers and soldiers in the European Expeditionary Force (not counting the Fifth and Ninth Divisions hired by the British). The logistics soldiers with the least meritorious fields also had more than 20 acres, and the soldiers with the most meritorious service often used 40 or even 50 acres.

And there are even more officers. Officers at the rank of colonel and division commander not only receive the title of nobility, but also have meritorious service fields as high as thousands of acres.Both the 1st and 5th divisions with the best performance have more than 3000 acres, close to 2 acres.

Such a large area, almost 13 square kilometers, is a large ranch.

Fortunately, the land of the eight southern provinces is extremely vast, and it is just a piece of cake for the soldiers of the expeditionary army to entrust the land of meritorious service. The total area does not exceed 3000 square kilometers, which is only 1/350 of the vast territory of the eight southern provinces.

some people will say

Chinese who immigrated to the northern and southern provinces can also get 10 acres of land for free, so it seems that it is not worthwhile to serve as a soldier?

actually not
These refugees directly recruited from mainland China enlisted in the army, free of ferry tickets to North America or Europe, and enjoyed the highest standard of food, rice and white noodles to eat freely.

After the soldiers arrived in North America, they didn’t need to be bonded workers for 2 to 3 years to pay off their debts. They could enjoy a series of preferential treatment for retired soldiers in the Kingdom, and they could work in the government or police department with a relaxed and lucrative salary. Their social status was completely different.

The land obtained by immigrants for free is private land, and the policy of "ten taxes and three" is implemented, and tax evasion will be severely punished. In serious cases, the land can be confiscated.

Soldiers get meritorious service, more rewards for more meritorious deeds, the implementation of the policy of "ten taxes and one tax for life", and various preferential treatments.

The meritorious land can be sub-leased, but the ownership cannot be traded or transferred, and the local government cannot handle it. Related cases must be handled by the Military Law Department under the General Staff Headquarters.

This is His Majesty's reward to the officers and soldiers. The officers and soldiers can enjoy preferential tax rates during their lifetime. After death, they will pay a small inheritance tax, which can be inherited by their children, but the nature of the land will be changed to civilian land.

Civil land can be traded and transferred, and the general tax rate of "10 tax 3" is implemented, which is the same as other private land.

The two are not the same thing at all, and the treatment is very different.

Anyway, no matter how the policy of encouraging reclamation is implemented, the Royal Government is the biggest winner.

The original barren land was allocated to the Chinese. With the continuous expansion of the cultivated area, there will be a steady stream of tax revenue. The government is lying down and counting the money, and its financial resources are becoming stronger and stronger.

There are only wrong buys in the world, but where are the wrong sells?

Between mind turns

Brigadier General Fan Pengfei knew what to do. There were five words in the order of Shangfeng that "it should be kept secret and not publicized". So when granting land to retired soldiers in the area, it would not be a big fanfare to adopt the joint farm and joint ranch. Publicity is the nature of meritorious service.

As for the local Mexican government, I believe that the Royal Government will take corresponding measures to cooperate and keep silent.

This is equivalent to planting a mine in the Veraque Bruce area. When will it explode?How to explode the above has its own consideration, just wait for the order.

As the local receiving officer of the expeditionary force, Brigadier General Fan Pengfei was responsible for the diversion, resettlement and reorganization of the troops. With innate convenience, most of the former 5th Division's retired soldiers could be resettled on the spot.

These subordinates who have followed him through life and death have developed a feeling of comrade-in-arms with each other. He doesn't mind using his power to arrange the former subordinates better, and maybe there will be opportunities for meritorious service in the future.

"Master seat, urgent call from Seattle."

"Oh……"

Brigadier General Fan Pengfei reached out to take it, unfolded the telegram and looked at it. The telegram contained the conclusion of the investigation of the Maochang Commercial Company run by the Tian brothers in Seattle;

A newly rising Chinese trading firm pays taxes on time, operates in a responsible manner, and has no record of criminal offenses. The overall evaluation is "good".

A private enterprise evaluated as "excellent" should not only abide by its duties, pay taxes on time, and set an example in all aspects.In addition, they must be enthusiastic about public welfare, have a sense of responsibility, be rewarded by the provincial and municipal governments, and have a certain social influence. Maochangxing obviously cannot meet these conditions.

Brigadier General Fan Pengfei is not a moral model, he is just an authentic soldier, a representative figure of the kingdom's autocratic armed forces, and a lucky man who is about to receive a noble title.

For the sake of his aristocratic castle, he only thought about it, and quickly beckoned for a staff officer, asking him to quickly notify Colonel Lin Feng in the town, and discuss matters at the temporary residence at night.

The matter of becoming a shareholder of Maochang Commercial Bank can generally be settled, and the details still need to be discussed.

Chang'an City (San Francisco, San Francisco)

Daming Palace

After the grand ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven, the three main halls of the Daming Palace, the auxiliary halls, and the harem have been officially opened. The ground is paved with snowflake marble imported from Italy. The majestic palace is resplendent and magnificent.

in the spacious hall
Li Cha sat behind the throne reviewing the memorial, and he casually reviewed "Yes" on a memorial for the honorary title of "Snow Mountain Division" reported by the Army Staff Headquarters.

Then, after receiving the reorganization plan reported by the expeditionary force, the expeditionary force of more than 3.7 people will be reduced to about 1.5 people, retaining a southern field strike division, and a total of five cavalry regiments and one artillery regiment for the entire cavalry.

Excess weapons and equipment will be handed over to the reserve, resettlement of retired soldiers, rewards, rewards for meritorious service officers and soldiers, promotion and re-appointment, etc., all in a thick pile.

Li Cha spent more than ten minutes flipping through it roughly, and finally wrote the Royal Assent, "Yes, we should carefully organize and implement it."

At the forefront of the densely packed people reporting meritorious service, Li Cha saw a familiar name, pondered for a while, and then remembered that this was the commander of the 5th Division who led the troops to fly over the snow-capped mountains during the attack on the Sevastopol Fortress. It's called Fan Pengfei.

He raised a pen and drew a circle on the name, which means "circle red", which means that the military department will focus on training in the future.

All military and political officials who have been "popular" have obviously entered the eyes of His Majesty the King. After serving in one party, most of them will be transferred to the Imperial Guard, the Royal Servant's Office or the Secretariat for training nearby, and be carefully trained by His Majesty the King.

After going through this hurdle, the next release is the senior member of the side who sits in charge.

Lieutenant General Duan Debiao (recently promoted), Commander of the Expeditionary Force, Lieutenant General Tian Mantun (recently promoted, former Chief of Staff of the Expeditionary Force), Deputy Commander, General Wu De Gao (recently promoted) and others all have resumes in the Royal Guards. Recognized as an outstanding military general.

Li Cha, the military and political officer of the Tang Kingdom, always kept by his side to personally examine his character, so as not to cultivate a rebellious boy, which would cause great harm.

Planting a mine by the Gulf of Mexico was personally instructed by Richard, and the time has entered the end of May 1856, not long before the official showdown in North America.

During this time

The Datang Kingdom should consider the direction and path of its next expansion. Whether it can finally dominate North America, disdain the heroes of North and South America, push the Datang Kingdom to a higher level, and grow into a real Datang Empire depends on this. .

For this reason, many preemptive actions and ambushes can be officially launched. As the construction of the Daming Palace comes to an end, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will be able to free up a large amount of funds and budget, and large-scale strategic acquisitions will also be accelerated.

The goal is to establish no less than 200 strategic reserves across the country, prepare firearms and supplies that can be used by millions of troops, and store food that can be used by millions of troops for a year and a half, in preparation for a major war of unprecedented scale.

(End of this chapter)