I'm really not doing business

Chapter 872: Rewards are not inadequate but unfair; punishments are not severe but unfair
The Ministry of Rites took great pains, searched through old records, and spent three months to formulate a complete set of ceremonies for demotion and suburban labor, but it was unexpectedly destroyed by the emperor.

According to the original plan, the Ming army disembarked and Qi Jiguang led the troops to the Jiao Laotai, where there were eighteen victory banners. All the soldiers first performed a ceremony to pay homage to the banners.

During the flag-paying ceremony, the Minister of Rites would invite the emperor to come out, and the emperor would walk out slowly. Conch shells would sound, and cymbals would be played. Cymbals are military music played when the army triumphs. They are made of bronze and look like a bell. When used, the mouth of the bell should face upwards and be struck with a cymbal hammer.

For this purpose, Shen Li specially invited Zhu Zaiyu, the president of the Academy of Gewu, to compose 18 Ming Dynasty cymbals. These 18 songs were all songs of victory. Zhu Zaiyu carefully selected 18 songs from his own compositions, and people from the Ministry of Rites wrote lyrics for these 18 songs, including "Jade Plate".

When the emperor passed by, all the military generals saluted. After the emperor passed by, the military generals followed behind him, step by step, until the emperor walked in front of the victory banner. The ceremonial officer shouted for kneeling, the emperor recited the blue poem, and the ministers performed the ceremony of five bows and three kowtows. After the emperor finished reciting the blue poem to pray to heaven, the ceremonial officer sang: The emperor and his ministers worship heaven, and we return victoriously.

The ceremony of worshiping the flag is considered complete.

When the emperor returned to the Jiao Lao Terrace, Qi Jiguang and other generals led the heroes of the Eastern Expedition to the octagonal pavilion of the Jiao Lao Terrace. The generals headed by Qi Jiguang presented their victory reports one by one. After the eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department finished reading out the congratulatory reports one by one, the emperor took back the tiger talismans, fire tokens, seals and ribbons of the General Who Conquers the Japanese and others, as well as the imperial sword bestowed by the emperor at the Jiao Lao Terrace. Then Feng Bao read out the emperor's edict and rewarded the meritorious soldiers according to their merits.

For the emperor, this octagonal pavilion is called Jiao Lao Tai, and for the victorious soldiers, it is called Bao Jun Tai, which means to report to the emperor for his support. This whole set of things is also called the Ceremony of Meeting the Emperor.

After the military salute, it was time to "present the left ear to the king". This was the Zhou ritual, which meant cutting off the enemy's left ear to calculate the merit of the head. But it was no longer the Shang and Zhou dynasties, and this custom was a bit barbaric. The Ministry of Rites, in light of the new situation and new needs, changed the ceremony of presenting the left ear to presenting prisoners and various trophies instead of the left ear.

After the ceremony of offering the progeny, there was a grand banquet. The emperor came out and, after a brief speech, the meal started directly. This was because the Ministry of Rites estimated that it was time for lunch and it didn't matter if the soldiers went hungry, but they couldn't let His Majesty the Emperor go hungry.

After dinner, the afternoon session would see the announcement of the victory. This is also an ancient ritual, where the victory reports of the nine victories in the Eastern Expedition were written on a flag a meter wide, passed through the army, and then carried by postmen to spread to all directions along the Jiulong Post Road. The meaning of "announcement" is to show it to the eyes and ears and spread it to the four seas.

After the proclamation, it was time for the soldiers to receive their salaries, which was their favorite time. The emperor's reward was to treat his meritorious officials well and boost the morale of the soldiers. Then the emperor, generals, prime ministers and all the others took the train back to the capital of the Ming Dynasty. They once again offered sacrifices to their ancestors in the Taimiao and announced the army's triumphant return. Then the emperor of the Ming Dynasty led his ministers to the Fengwang Palace and began to drink the most ceremonial drink, which was the emperor's palace feast where he drank nine cups of wine.

At this point, the whole set of suburban labor ceremony is considered completed.

But the Emperor's sudden decision changed everything, and the emperor began to welcome loyal martyrs and reward soldiers in the parade ground.

As the Prime Minister, Zhang Juzheng did not object and was even happy to see it happen. After all, this demotion to suburban labor had been traced back to the Han Dynasty, and there was no way of knowing what it was like. Your Majesty could do whatever he wanted.

In fact, Zhang Juzheng felt that His Majesty's impromptu arrangement was more reasonable, which involved the narrative of gratitude that Zhang Juzheng had been promoting.

The narrative of gratitude was a new narrative method that Zhang Juzheng came up with to consolidate imperial power as it was being lost during the Wanli Reform.

The emperor welcomed loyal martyrs and rewarded soldiers on the parade ground. This was part of his favor. It goes without saying that money was given out on the spot. Whoever took the money was happy. The most important thing was that the emperor did not avoid contact with the ashes on the grounds that it was unlucky. This was also part of his favor.

Seeing that Zhang Juzheng didn't care much, Shen Li was too lazy to correct it. The emperor didn't care, and the prime minister didn't care either, so there was nothing he, Shen Li, could do.

In fact, after formulating this suburban labor ceremony, His Majesty asked the Ministry of Rites several times where the soldiers were. In His Majesty's opinion, the war was won by the Ming army, so where were the soldiers in this complicated and tedious process?
Even though Shen Li added some links involving soldiers, such as the heroes of the Eastern Expedition and others having to accompany the generals to meet the emperor, the whole process still had little to do with the soldiers.

Now, the soldiers became the protagonists, because the emperor had no intention of going to the suburban labor platform, nor did he plan to perform the ceremony of worshiping the banner or meeting the emperor. The emperor walked directly among the soldiers and asked the soldiers who received the reward about some battlefield situations. The most important activity in these ten mornings became the conversation between the emperor and the soldiers.

This kind of scene was often seen by Ming Dynasty court officials.

Every year during the Chinese New Year, when the emperor visited the government-owned factories, he would seek out some craftsmen and ask them about the things that concerned them most, such as official housing, water, fuel, education, etc. Some officials from the Ministry of Works always felt that it was unnecessary to set up trade unions in the government-owned factories. Your Majesty would visit the government-owned factories to meet with the craftsmen every year. Isn't this a bottom-up error correction mechanism?

Whoever Your Majesty wants to meet is selected from a list the night before, and even the emperor doesn't know who he will meet the next day.

You were a craftsman before, and now you are a triumphant soldier. As for safety, for Your Majesty, is there any place safer than the Ming army?
Many elite soldiers in the Beijing camp have watched His Majesty transform from a fat boy into a handsome young man, and then to the great emperor of the Spring and Autumn Period.

The Ming emperor and soldiers were fully aware of how difficult it would be for the Ming Dynasty to conquer the world. They could fail and lose, but the most important thing was to win in the end, and win completely.

Gao Qiyu followed the emperor closely. As the focal point of this suburban labor ceremony, he was a little flattered, because the emperor accompanied him throughout the whole process, which showed his recognition of the nine articles of the Treaty of Kyoto.

Gao Qiyu felt a little regretful. He should have upgraded the Kyoto Treaty from nine articles to twenty-one articles earlier! He felt that nine articles were too few. Nine articles were already so glorious. If he could get twenty-one articles, how glorious would it be to return to the Ming Dynasty?

If Gao Qiyu could really force out the Twenty-One Articles, Zhu Yijun would definitely give Gao Qiyu the entire title. Nine articles were actually very lenient. The Ming army in the capital had been fighting for four years and was actually a bit exhausted. If the Japanese pirates were really pushed into a corner, the Ming army might fall into a strategic passive position.

After the recuperation, Li Rusong and Chen Lin led the Ming army again. After Li Rusong, there was Xiong Tingbi. The Ming Dynasty's strategy towards Japan has never changed, which is to destroy Japan, completely eliminate it and leave no future troubles.

This was not cruel for the Ming Dynasty, because it was a common practice in the Ming Dynasty, especially for the Minister of War Zeng Xingwu, who had pacified the Jiusi and destroyed the Duzhan barbarians. He had very rich experience in how to completely eliminate the enemy and had formulated a very detailed plan.

The first stage, which lasted thirty years, reduced the Japanese population to less than one million;
The second stage, which lasted fifty years, was to completely disperse these one million Japanese.

The third stage, a long period of time, completely erased all traces of Japan's existence in terms of history, culture, writing, etc.

In the end, the result was that Japan, like Yelang, became a synonym for overestimating one's own capabilities in the long river of history.

This is the path that Zeng Xingwu, the Minister of War, arranged for Japan.

Zeng Xingwu particularly dislikes the "Ruoyuan people" in the Nine Classics of the State. In Zeng Xingwu's opinion, it is a distortion in the process of cultural inheritance. In the Shang and Zhou dynasties when Qiang people were used to worship their ancestors every day, "Ruoyuan people" should be largely a way of being gentle to their own people who worked tirelessly and blazed new trails in the mountains.

Be gentle to those who are leaving, not to those who are far away.

When the Shang king offered sacrifices to his ancestors, he would first ask his ancestors what method to use and how many cattle and sheep to kill. However, the Qiang people usually used dozens of cooking methods directly, and when they were ready, they would serve them to their ancestors without asking any questions. This proved that in the eyes of the Shang king, these Qiang people were not as good as cattle and sheep.

The relationship of inheritance between Shang and Zhou is very obvious. Although Zhou was an old country that needed a new one, it had existed very early. But after defeating the King of Shang, it inherited the system of Shang to a certain extent. Therefore, Zeng Shengwu felt that the Rouyuan people during the Shang and Zhou dynasties were the pioneering ancestors of Rou, not barbarians.

There is no need to be gentle with the barbarians. Beat them up and they will reconcile with you. If they are not good at reconciling with you, just beat them to death.

Zeng Xingwu had this understanding because the Ming Dynasty was expanding overseas, and the Ming emperor and his ministers were very grateful for the contributions of the people who were willing to travel across the ocean to Southeast Asia and Jinchi Governor's Office to expand overseas. If they had not brought back endless raw materials from overseas, it would be difficult to say that Wanli's opening of the sea was so successful.

Zeng Shengwu communicated his ideas with Shen Li, and Shen Li said that Zeng Shengwu's ideas should be correct.

In the process of cultural inheritance, distortions do occur, and these should be corrected.

"The Ming army is mighty!" After distributing rewards, Ming Emperor Zhu Yijun looked at the well-organized Ming army and shouted to everyone calmly.

"Your Majesty is mighty!"

"Your Majesty is mighty!"

"Your Majesty is mighty!"

The soldiers began to cheer loudly. After all, they could get their rewards just after returning home, and they had real money in their pockets. If Your Majesty wanted to make a long speech, then go ahead. They were willing to listen even if you talked for a whole day.

"Let's feast!" Zhu Yijun looked at the sun and it was time for dinner. He was too lazy to give a long speech. The Ministry of Rites had prepared a very flowery congratulatory message, which made Zhu Yijun feel sleepy. Forget about the soldiers. He chose to reward the three armies directly. Let's feast!
The emperor had no intention of going to the Jiaolaotai from beginning to end. After eating, he took the train back to the capital with his generals.

On the morning of the 11th, the emperor led his generals to the Taimiao to worship their ancestors.

"Ancestors, our army has returned victoriously. I have avenged half of the Japanese invasion. I will continue to take revenge for the remaining half." Zhu Yijun threw the written sacrificial text into the brazier and burned it for his ancestors. A gust of spring breeze blew, and the bright yellow silk curtain kept fluttering, and the flames flickered.

The ancestors of the Ming Dynasty should be satisfied. Of course, if they are not satisfied, Zhu Yijun would interpret it as satisfaction. It is not the first time he has done this. Many times, Zhu Yijun said that if they don't say anything, it will be regarded as the ancestors' tacit consent.

Every time Zhu Yijun read out a victory report, he would ask a meritorious official mentioned in the report to come forward, stand in front of the prayer mat, and personally throw the report into the brazier.

The Nine Victories in the Eastern Expedition were nine great victories. The Ming army fought nearly a thousand battles of varying sizes during this campaign. Zhu Yijun selected more than one hundred important battles and recorded them for the Taimiao sacrifice. This took a long time, but Zhu Yijun was very patient and read them very carefully.

It was not until noon that Zhu Yijun finished the ceremony of worshiping ancestors in the Taimiao. Finally, he went to Fengwang Palace to perform the ceremonial drinking ceremony and toasted with the victorious general.

After putting down his wine cup, Zhu Yijun looked at the generals and said, "In September of the third year of Shaoxing, Yue Wumu quelled the rebellion of Li Cheng, Zhang Yong, Cao Cheng and Jizhou and Qianzhou, and then went to Hangzhou Lin'an to meet the emperor."

"Song Gaozong Zhao Gou gave Yue Fei armor and a banner with the words 'Jing Zhong Yue Fei' written on it as his banner. At that time, Zhao Gou told Yue Fei to stop drinking because Yue Fei beat Zhao Bingyuan when he was drunk in Hongzhou. Yue Fei never drank again after that."

"At that time, Zhao Gou promised Yue Fei that after the restoration of the old country, the emperor and his subjects would drink together and would not return until they were drunk."

"In the end, Zhao Gou failed to fulfill his promise. When Yue Fei really wanted to restore the old country, Zhao Gou got scared."

"I promised General Qi that I would lead the army with swords and spears, and I also promised General Qi that after he was conferred the title of Duke of Fengguo, General Qi would still lead the troops to fight. I did it. General Qi promised me that he would return to me a Ming army with glorious military power and swords and spears that could calm the waves of the sea. General Qi also did it."

Qi Jiguang bowed his head and said, "It is my honor."

"General Li, your father killed someone in the street, so I had to punish him and send Marquis Ningyuan to the Western Regions." Zhu Yijun had restored Li Chengliang's title of Marquis, a total of one level of demotion, in just a few months, but Zhu Yijun still explained the matter to Li Rusong in person.

Li Rusong said somewhat confusedly: "Doesn't that let father go there to make great achievements? He can't sit still. Being an idle marquis in the capital will make him sick." It would be better if he really went to the south of the Yangtze River and lived in a gentle land. The capital is not much better than Liaodong. In winter and spring, the sandstorms brought by the north wind cover the sky and are not very suitable for living.

Li Rusong understood the emperor's decision very well. His father was almost becoming a local tyrant in Liaodong, and there was nothing he could do if he didn't return to Beijing. However, such a sharp knife would become blunt after being left for a long time. Going to the Western Regions was to make achievements, not to be exiled.

What was a pity for Li Rusong was that he originally wanted to use his biological father Li Chengliang as a reward for his military merit, but failed to do so.

Li Chengliang is old and can no longer defeat Li Rusong. As long as Li Chengliang is still in Liaodong, Liaodong will inevitably become a feudal system, and then it will be Li Rusong's stage.

"Sir, you said: if there is a loophole, make it clear so that no slander can get in. I am very pleased that General Li understands the profound meaning of my arrangement." Zhu Yijun nodded and said.

When there are rifts or doubts, the ruler and his subjects must make things clear to prevent slanderers from taking advantage of the opportunity to sow discord. Otherwise, the ruler and his subjects will become alienated, lose trust, and finally become enemies.

"I thank Your Majesty for your great grace." Li Rusong bowed his head again to express his gratitude. He now hoped that his father would show some strength and that his father would become a successful mansion and conquer all the Western Regions. In this way, their family could be granted the title of Duke's Mansion. The Duke's Mansion would rise and fall along with the country, and trivial political disturbances would not be able to enter the door of the Duke's Mansion.

At the drinking ceremony, Zhu Yijun had a good chat with the generals about the battle situation on the front line. It seemed that the Ming army was unstoppable, but in fact the situation on the battlefield was far from as smooth as shown in the battle reports. The resistance of the Japanese pirates in Korea was very strong.

The capture of each mountain city required two or three repetitions. The most frequent attack was in Ulsan, where we went in and out nine times and only ended the battle after all the Japanese pirates in Ulsan were killed.

At that time, the Ming army had already captured Busan by surprise. The Japanese pirates in Ulsan were trapped like beasts. They refused to surrender and were eventually killed after repeated attacks by artillery, armored vehicles and armored vehicles. Only then was the battle considered over.

Qi Jiguang believed that the Japanese pirates were still a strong army in terms of fighting will, military equipment, and organizational deployment, and were not a weak force that could be easily defeated. Otherwise, it would not have been possible for them to fight from Busan to Pyongyang within a month.

Qi Jiguang said solemnly: "Your Majesty, if the Japanese pirates come ashore and sail out from Incheon to harass Shandong, Liaodong and other places, and attack Liaodong of the Ming Dynasty on land, it will probably become a disaster for the Northeast."

Qi Jiguang was never arrogant. He always considered failure before victory. He thought about what would happen if he failed and made the worst-case scenario plans.

Once the Japanese pirates came ashore, they would use Incheon as the port to harass Liaodong, Tianjin, Shandong and other places. They would go out to sea at sunrise and return home at sunset, causing unrest in the entire northern coastal area. Once the Ming Dynasty was busy defending these places, the defense of Liaodong would inevitably weaken. Once the Japanese pirates and tribes such as the Jianzhou Jurchens united, it would be a disaster that would devastate the world.

Qi Jiguang said sincerely: "I have always been cautious and prudent, fearing any mistakes, and afraid of giving the Japanese pirates an advantage. Your Majesty, I think the Liaodong Army should be the first to win."

"After the Japanese invaders invaded, the Liaodong Army quickly assembled in Jiuliancheng under the order of Ningyuan Hou. Even if the Ming army in Beijing was not well-managed, the Liaodong Army could enter the DPRK to fight at any time."

"Your Majesty, considering the terrain of Korea, if Yizhou falls into the hands of Japanese pirates, it will be extremely difficult and dangerous to intervene again."

Fighting a war requires the right time, place and people. The quick response of the Liaodong Army laid a solid foundation for victory in this campaign. With Yizhou, the Ming Dynasty had a bridgehead and could deploy its battle formation. No matter how elite the army is, it will have no combat effectiveness before it deploys its battle formation.

Zu Chengxun, who was having a meal, was stunned. This time, the Liaodong Army was mainly assisting the Ming Dynasty's Beijing Camp in the war. The military discipline was pretty good, and there was no war mission. The main focus was on maintaining stability in the rear. Zu Chengxun just wanted to get a free meal, and after the meal, he would return to Korea to continue guarding.

As a result, Qi Jiguang specifically requested credit for the Liaodong Army headed by Zu Chengxun.

Zhu Yijun could fully understand Qi Jiguang's thoughts. In the second year of Longqing, after Qi Jiguang was transferred from Fujian to Jizhou, the main contradictions he faced were the contradiction between the southern soldiers and the northern army, and the contradiction between the Beijing camp and the border army. These two contradictions broke out directly when Qi Jiguang returned to the capital to receive his reward.

The Liaodong Army was also dissatisfied at first. Why was the Ming Dynasty's Jingying the main force? Did the Liaodong Army do something wrong? When the war broke out in Korea, His Majesty mobilized the Jingying to fight and ignored the Liaodong Army. This actually laid the root cause of the contradictions between the southern army, the northern army, and the Jingying border army.

It was not until the Battle of Pyongyang that Zu Chengxun saw the line-up and shooting tactics of the Beijing Army and completely acknowledged the strong combat effectiveness of the Beijing Army. He then began to play a supporting role with peace of mind. Only then did the phenomenon of the five armies of the Northern Song Dynasty attacking Western Xia no longer hinder each other. There must always be a main force, otherwise there would be the danger of internal strife.

Now that the battle is over, it is natural that the Beijing camp will receive more rewards based on merit, but the Liaodong Army fought throughout the entire battle and never disrupted the battlefield situation in order to win merit.

But what about the future?

If there is another coordinated battle, and the Liaodong Army is dissatisfied and does not want to be a supporting force, but wants to be the main force, and is greedy for merit and advances rashly, the situation on the battlefield will change instantly.

"General Qi is right. If the Liaodong Army had not reacted quickly and assembled in Jiuliancheng, crossed the Yalu River and entered Yizhou as the vanguard, I'm afraid the entire battle would not have been so smooth. In this way, the Liaodong Army will be rewarded with an extra five silver coins for its vanguard merit, to establish the foundation for victory." Zhu Yijun followed Qi Jiguang's advice and gave an extra reward of only 100,000 silver coins in total, but it was enough to bridge the contradictions between the southern army, the northern army, and the border army of the Beijing camp.

Zhu Yijun observed the expressions of the generals of the Beijing camp. When Qi Jiguang spoke, no one showed any dissatisfaction. It was obvious that Qi Jiguang's request for credit was made after discussing it with the generals of the Beijing camp, and not on his own initiative.

Qi Jiguang had led troops in battles for so many years and had always been very tactful in his work, so he certainly did not say this for no reason.

After the drinking ceremony, Zhu Yijun specifically kept Qi Jiguang to inquire about the details, and only then did he know why Qi Jiguang had specifically requested credit for the Liaodong Army.

The Liaodong Army did a lot of work, but all the tough battles were fought by the Beijing Camp. The Ming Dynasty’s military merit system was mainly based on front-line merit. The rewards for opening up the front line were generous, but the rewards for stabilizing the front line were much less.

The problem with rewards is not their insufficiency but their unfairness; the problem with punishments is not their severity but their unfairness. Rewards are used to promote virtue and punishments are used to discourage evil.

Stabilizing the battle line was also very important. The Ming Dynasty's Beijing camp relied on firearms for combat and was highly dependent on logistics. The Liaodong Army, which was sent to consolidate the rear, received too little reward. A Liaodong Army soldier who had fought for three years received an average of 20 silver coins in reward. On the other hand, a sharp soldier in the Beijing camp received rewards of at least 30 to 50 silver coins, and as much as 100 silver coins, over the past three years.

Although the extra reward of five silver coins is not much, this extra reward means that the emperor remembers the merits of the Liaodong Army. For the Liaodong Army, the amount of the extra reward does not matter. The main thing is to affirm their merits, which is very, very important for the soldiers fighting outside.

This is an affirmation from His Majesty.

"In this case, although the reward system of the fifth-class merit plaque is more reasonable than the merit for headhunting, it is still somewhat unfair. At least for the soldiers who stabilize the rear, it alienates their contributions. General Qi's reminder is quite timely." Zhu Yijun said with emotion.

Qi Jiguang bowed his head and said, "The commanders and soldiers of the Beijing camp have no complaints. After all, this is an extra reward from your majesty and an affirmation of this great victory."

The emperor has given extremely generous rewards to the Beijing Camp and has never treated the Beijing Camp unfairly. His Majesty is willing to give more rewards to the brother troops in Liaodong. This is part of strengthening the military. The generals and soldiers of the Beijing Camp are happy to see this, as they have also received a lot.

"Your Majesty, the eldest prince has returned to the palace to report." Seeing that the emperor had finished his important business, Feng Bao hurriedly told him another story. After Zhu Changzhi brought the soldiers to bury the martyrs, he returned to the palace to report.

"Xuan."

Zhu Yijun explained to Qi Jiguang why the Suburban Labor Ceremony had become like this. Qi Jiguang then understood why the Suburban Labor Ceremony did not take place at the Suburban Labor Terrace. It turned out that the ceremony was to welcome the martyrs home. Qi Jiguang then realized that it was the eldest prince who volunteered.

After the meeting, Zhu Changzhi reported everything about the burial of the martyrs. The child was still young and talked a lot, so there were some things he couldn't explain clearly, so Xu Jue would quickly add to it. Overall, Zhu Changzhi, the eldest son of the emperor, did not bring shame to the emperor. He also personally buried the ashes of a soldier and erected a monument for the soldier.

Zhu Changzhi said solemnly, "Huang Jie is a fireman in Wenzhou Prefecture, Zhejiang. He followed his father to cook for a living since he was six years old. His parents died when Huang Jie was only twelve years old. He joined the Ninth Battalion of Zhejiang and was later selected to the Beijing Battalion. Because he was good at mathematics, he joined the Artillery Battalion and became an artilleryman."

"During the Battle of Chungju, the Japanese pirates' Monomi team took advantage of the night and sneaked near the artillery camp. Huang Jie gave the warning and was killed by the Japanese pirates."

Huang Jie was the martyr buried by Zhu Changzhi himself. Huang Jie was the secret sentry that night. His warning exposed his position. Although he bravely killed three Japanese pirates, he was eventually killed at his sentry post. Then this team of Japanese pirates were all killed outside the artillery camp.

This is a microcosm of the Ming Dynasty battlefield.

"Zhi'er, you did a great job." Zhu Yijun affirmed Zhu Changzhi's behavior. His willingness to take the initiative to get involved in these matters showed that he truly recognized the sacrifices of the soldiers and their dedication to the country. Throughout the whole process, no one forced him to do anything.

Zhu Yijun did not keep Qi Jiguang for long, but asked about Qi Jiguang's health. When he learned that Qi Jiguang was eating well and in good health, he let Qi Jiguang return to the General's Mansion.

"Your Majesty, I heard in Japan that the capital has a kind of composite bow and composite crossbow?" Qi Jiguang asked about the bows and crossbows before leaving. He came from a military background and was very fond of these weapons. He had also asked about it. Now they were in the inspection office, and crossbows were banned among the people, so he simply asked for a reward.

Zhu Yijun smiled and said, "Yes, General Qi, go back to the mansion, and send all the composite bows and crossbows to the general's mansion after they are made."

"I thank Your Majesty for your great grace." Qi Jiguang was overjoyed and returned to the general's mansion happily.

Zhu Yijun looked at Qi Jiguang's back. In the original historical line, Qi Jiguang had died of illness on December 20th, the 15th year of Wanli. After the court learned of Qi Jiguang's death, there was no pension, no posthumous title, no official funeral, and he was not even allowed to inherit his hereditary position. He was not even allowed to inherit the hereditary position of Dengzhou Guard Commander.

In the 17th year of the Wanli reign, Qi Jiguang's eldest son Qi Zuoguo came to Beijing to request the court for relief, and only then was he given an official funeral. It was not until the Battle of Sarhu, when the Ming Dynasty was severely defeated, that Emperor Wanli gave Qi Jiguang the posthumous title of Wuzhuang. It was not until the Tianqi period that it was changed to Wuyi.

After forty years of military career and outstanding achievements, he ended up like this.

Now Qi Jiguang showed no signs of illness. He won many battles and suffered few injuries. The accompanying chief medical officer would report Qi Jiguang's condition every seven days. He was in great health. Although he could not fire the Tiger Power bow, he could still fire the 100-jin hard bow ten times in a row.

On the 13th, Zhu Yijun issued an edict to prepare for the southern tour. On this day, during the morning court meeting, he held a memorial from Zhang Youxin, who had just become the prefect of Tianjin Prefecture.

Zhang Youxin submitted this memorial to ask Your Majesty to grant permission to build a cemetery for loyal and brave martyrs in Tianjin Prefecture to bury the heroic souls of those from Tianjin.

There was no need for the imperial court to pay, or even the Tianjin Prefecture to pay. The local gentry and powerful people in Tianjin Prefecture were all willing to pay. All they had to do after the construction was completed was write their names and the amount of silver they had donated on a construction monument in a corner that no one cared about.

Zhu Yijun reviewed the memorial and shook his head, saying, "How can they get such a good thing? I will pay for it and order it to be built. It will cost no more than 200,000 silver coins at most."

Money is not important. Zhu Yijun really does not lack the 200,000 silver coins. Zhu Yijun certainly would not give such a thing as leaving a name for himself to the local powerful and wealthy.

(End of this chapter)