Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 682 The Beginning of the Rotation War
This position is equivalent to the Chief of the Prime Minister's Office; it's not a high-ranking position, but it's very important.

Even if Hong Dasheng had no problems, Jia Lian wouldn't keep him around. Even if Lin Ruhai specifically instructed him to take care of him, Jia Lian still wouldn't keep him around.

In short, this position must be filled by someone personally promoted.

The most remarkable thing our founding emperor did was to stop the daily lectures on the classics.

This greatly weakened the influence of the civil service on imperial power and reduced the workload of the Hanlin Academy.

This doesn't mean that Hanlin scholars had nothing to do. This group not only had to be good writers, but also had to educate the royal descendants and had the opportunity to be transferred to the cabinet to serve as heads of various offices.

After serving in this position for a few years, one can choose to be transferred to a county magistrate (upper-level county) or prefect (lower-level county). From an official's perspective, this is a much higher starting point than those who start as county magistrates. Don't underestimate the difference between the seventh and sixth ranks; crossing these two levels puts you ahead of almost half of the other officials.

The vast majority of officials' careers stop at the third rank, and only a lucky few can surpass the third rank and become so-called high-ranking officials.

In any industry, only a few people ever reach the top. The path to officialdom is even more difficult.

After completing the handover, Hong Dasheng did not choose to go to any department, but instead requested to be transferred to another department.

This demonstrates his ambition. Given that he once served as the head of the Grand Secretary's office, if he were to become a prefect, he could only be the prefect of a large city like Nanjing, with an official rank of fourth grade.

After Jia Lian gave the instructions, he wouldn't keep an eye on things; just wait for a reply.

On his first day in office, the newly appointed head of the department, Mei Junsheng, naturally had to pay his respects to his direct superior. This position had one unique characteristic: it was solely for the service of Jia Lian, and he wasn't expected to serve any other powerful figures.

Mei Junsheng was undoubtedly the envy of everyone. He jumped from a seventh-rank Hanlin scholar to a sixth-rank scholar entirely because he caught the eye of Jia Lian.

Of course, there were corresponding consequences, namely that his future prospects and destiny would be firmly tied to Jia Lian.

This is the norm in officialdom.

For Mei Junsheng, now is not the time to be happy. If he cannot satisfy Jia Lian, he may be replaced at any time, and the consequence will be that he will be stuck at the sixth rank for life.

Jia Lian didn't bother with any fancy tricks. He glanced at Mei Junsheng who came in and simply instructed him, "Get to work after you've finished the handover!"

After receiving the transfer order, he made countless preparations, his palms sweating with nervousness, only to receive such an explanation, which was far beyond Mei Junsheng's expectations.

The truth is that Jia Lian didn't have many options. He had always been at odds with the Hanlin Academy, and previously, Jia Lian was the only cabinet minister who wasn't assigned to a principal position.

Since that's the case, I'll just pick one at random and use it for now. Anyway, it's all just document processing work; I'll observe it for a while and then decide what to do next.

Wu Anzhong, whose career had been delayed for many years, refused to sign the handover document during the handover of the armory, insisting on settling the accounts.

This incident had a significant impact on various departments, but the superiors in the Ministry of War dared not do anything to him, given that he could go to the Jia residence and be personally seen off by Jia Lian. He was also the brother-in-law of the former Grand Secretary Zhang Ting'en.

The Ministry of War had no choice but to reluctantly cooperate with his accounting, making up for all the deficits, for fear that he would refuse to sign the handover papers and cause a major incident.

This incident, combined with Jia Lian's appointment as Grand Secretary, created considerable undercurrents, with various departments under the Six Ministries in the capital secretly devising ways to "balance the books."

After nearly half a month of turmoil, Wu Anzhong finally took office. At this point, he could confirm that there were no major problems with the armory's accounts.

Just when everyone in the Ministry of War thought they had overcome a hurdle, Yue Qi didn't think so. Instead, he believed it was just the beginning.

After finishing his shift that day, Yue Qi went straight to find Jia Lian. He asked Mei Junsheng to make sure Jia Lian was there before knocking on the door.

"Prime Minister Jia, this is the military reform plan submitted by the Ministry of War. Please take a look." Yue Qi presented a copy of the latest military reform plan with both hands. Yue Qi put down his pen, leaned back slightly to look at Yue Qi, then glanced at the thick stack of plans on the table, and pushed it away: "It is not appropriate for me to interfere in the affairs of the Ministry of War! Please forward it directly to the Emperor!"

Yue Qi seemed to be struck by lightning, twitching for a moment before silently stepping forward, taking back the plan, and turning to leave.

The moment the door closed, Yue Qi heard a soft "hum" behind him, and his strength seemed to wane, his posture collapsed, and his steps became increasingly heavy.

As the only military general to be appointed Minister of War and then enter the Grand Secretariat, Yue Qi was once incredibly successful and unparalleled. He also dreamed of making a name for himself and earning everyone's respect.

The reality is that after becoming a cabinet minister, he quickly lost his edge. Even with Emperor Chenghui's favor, he was slow to make sweeping reforms to the old military system and instead became a spokesperson for the military's interests.

Li Yuan was able to tolerate him after ascending the throne entirely because Lin Ruhai, the chief minister, was also able to tolerate him.

Even Yue Qi himself couldn't understand when his work style had changed so drastically, becoming one that procrastinated whenever possible. During his two terms in the cabinet, the military reform plans he put forward were consistently devoid of any innovation.

Was it because the position of cabinet minister was too comfortable? Yue Qi had no answer in his heart.

In Yue Qi's view, going to see Jia Lian just now was a way of taking sides and making a statement. That's what he did to Lin Ruhai back then, and it worked quite well.

The same tactic was used against Jia Lian, but it yielded no results. Jia Lian was unwilling to have anything to do with him, and this was not something that could be resolved by simply bowing down and admitting defeat.

There was something Yue Qi genuinely didn't know: where did the rifle and revolver used by the assassins when Jia Lian was attacked come from? Yue Qi had no idea, but Fan Ping's men, after a lengthy investigation, determined that the weapons originated from the military and were disposed of through obsolescence. This was originally a military benefit, with a 10% obsolescence rate for military equipment each year. The weapons that were replaced were never truly obsolete; they were simply sold off.

There's one more thing Yue Qi probably doesn't know, and even if he did, it wouldn't matter. That is, after he joined the cabinet, the annual weapon scrapping rate of the three major garrisons of the Beijing Garrison reached 30%, far exceeding the normal standard.

So what is the actual situation of the three major towns under the Beijing Garrison? Yue Qi had a pretty good idea of ​​the situation; the situation in the three towns under the Beijing Garrison had indeed not been so good in recent years.

This problem was exposed when a mixed brigade was previously organized to fight in Anxi. Ultimately, citing the Beijing garrison's lack of experience in fighting in the Western Regions, three thousand new recruits were urgently transferred from Shaanxi and Gansu, and another thousand cavalry were transferred from various grassland tribes, finally bringing the garrison to full strength. So what went wrong with the three garrisons of the Beijing garrison?

Jia Lian had very clear information: the three major garrisons of the Beijing Garrison were only at 70% of their authorized strength, and the cavalry was far from sufficient. When selecting officers and soldiers, many were unwilling to go to Anxi for rotational combat, resorting to bribery and networking. It could only be said that while the three major garrisons of the Beijing Garrison were initially considered elite, corruption spread rapidly, and their current combat effectiveness was truly uncertain.

The only force that could still maintain considerable combat effectiveness was the Shenji Battalion, and that was only because the emperor kept a close eye on them. Their daily training and personnel replenishment were also quite effective.

Another factor is the solid foundation laid in the past. The Shenji Battalion recruits soldiers every year, drawing troops from all over the country to ensure a constant influx of fresh blood.

Privately, Jia Lian harbored serious suspicions that if a war broke out, Shenji Town alone could defeat three major garrisons of the Beijing Garrison. Of course, now was not the time to deploy troops; Jia Lian had enough patience to wait for them to reveal their true intentions.

Having no chance to inherit the title of Ningguo Mansion, Jia Shi chose to venture out and make his own way in the world. At this moment, he was riding on horseback, looking back at the long line of people traveling along the edge of the desert.

After passing Yumen Pass, it took three whole months to finally see Dihua City.

He lowered his head and took a sniff. Jia Shi felt that his sense of smell had been destroyed. The smell on his body was too terrible.

The last time I took a shower was ages ago; I can't even remember. The pants in my military uniform are worn out, so I patched them myself.

This is one of the skills he learned at military school.

As the eldest son of the Ningguo Mansion, Jia Shi could have brought more attendants. However, things are different now. There are strict disciplines in the army, and Jia Shi can only bring one personal attendant named You San.

The brigade commander led a group of people into Dihua. The main force camped by the river outside the city. As the team leader, Jia Shi had no special privileges and, according to regulations, was among the last to go into the river to bathe.

The battalion commander's messenger came with a message, instructing all officers and soldiers in the battalion to be on high alert every day, to prepare for the cold at night, and to prevent soldiers from getting sick.

When they left Yumen Pass, Jia Shi's team had 140 soldiers, but now there are only 135 left. Five of them have disappeared forever in the desert.

Jia Shi did not have specific figures on the extent of the Mixed Association's losses. He chose to join the Mixed Association for rotational battles entirely because he wanted to make a name for himself and obtain an imperial title for his mother, You Shi.

Of course, not many people in the military knew Jia Shi's true identity, which was largely due to his low profile within the army. As a top student at the Royal Military Academy, Jia Shi's appointment as a squad leader was primarily due to his own efforts.

After checking on the officers and explaining the shifts to the deputy captain, Jia Shi was finally able to get some sleep.

The sleeping bag in the tent hadn't been washed in a long time and had a strong smell, but Jia Shi was numb to it and fell asleep almost immediately after closing his eyes.

In the middle of the night, Jia Shi was woken up, took the wet towel handed to him by You San, and casually wiped it on his face. A cold wind blew and he shivered.

In Xinjiang, where the temperature difference between day and night is huge, there's a saying: "Wear a cotton-padded coat in the morning and a light gauze dress at noon; eat watermelon around the stove."

After patrolling and checking the posts, Jia Shi returned to the fire to warm himself and stand guard. He did not wake the deputy captain, but waited until dawn for the deputy captain to come and relieve him before going back to catch up on sleep.

When Jia Shi woke up at noon, he was summoned to the camp by a messenger. The first thing the commander did was to take out his pocket watch and have everyone check their watches.

If you don't adjust the time and check your watch, it will already be nine or ten o'clock at night when it gets dark here.

"The supplies will be delivered soon, we won't have to eat canned food today!" the commander joked, and everyone laughed.

Jia Shi took out a pack of cigarettes, waved it around, and said, "Hademen, this is the last pack. After this, I'll only be able to smoke a pipe."

After finishing his cigarette, the officer stood up, straightened his uniform, and said with a smile, "Let's go to the headquarters for a meeting."

The Royal Independent Mixed Brigade was the temporary designation of this unit. Their journey was still far off. After the brigade commander entered the city, he returned to hold a meeting and announced a two-week rest to replenish supplies before continuing their journey.

The bad news is that it will take another three months, but the good news is that the livestock will be greatly replenished, and the tribes within the new province will be more docile because they were terrified of Prince Teng.

It is said that the ruins of the ancient Jingguan (a type of mound of stones) can still be seen on the road to Anxi.

During the two-week rest period, the Mixed Corps gained hundreds of new recruits. These young men were all descendants of exiled criminals. Their purpose in joining the Mixed Corps was simple: to make a name for themselves, return to the capital with the troops, risk their lives for a glorious return home.

The descendants of prisoners have no chance of getting ahead in the new province through school; their only chance is to go to war.

The term of office for a provincial governor is generally six years, and with a round trip, it takes seven or eight years to enter the capital. There are advantages, though; after returning to the capital, one can be assigned to a good place, or be directly retained in the ministry.

During the reign of Emperor Chenghui, the Xin Province was given considerable importance. After the Prince of Xining took away tens of thousands of troops, the court quickly transferred two million people from various parts of the Northwest to populate the Xin Province. Including the exiled population, it was quite remarkable that the proportion of Chinese in the Xin Province remained at 40% over more than 20 years.

Of course, the King of Xining also deserves credit for this, as he conscripted tens of thousands of young men from various tribes in the new province every year to serve as soldiers.

This resulted in a diverse mix of ethnic groups in the new province. The provincial government adopted a simplistic and brutal approach to governance. Existing tribes were required to register with the government upon entering the province and accept the assignment of officials. The children of tribal leaders were sent to school in Dihua (Urumqi). Tribes that did not cooperate were either forced to leave or subjected to brutal suppression.

There was even a rule that wasn't written down: any tribe with a population exceeding ten thousand had to be split up. Those from the southern border went to the northern border, and those from the northern border went to the southern border.

Of course, you can also choose to go to Anxi, which is the most popular choice.

After strolling around Dihua City, Jia Shi's most direct impression was that there were so many mixed-race children.

Jia Shi, who got married right after graduating from military academy, is only nineteen years old, but he already has a son. Without this son, Madam You would never have agreed to his joining the Independent Mixed Brigade.

After buying a bag of tobacco and a pipe at the market and having a local specialty meal, Jia Shi returned to the military camp.

After resting and recuperating, the Independent Mixed Brigade continued their journey. The road became increasingly difficult, but after three months of perseverance, they finally saw the ancient capital of Xining in Anxi.

Before the army could catch its breath, it immediately received a report from the King of Xining that there was military intelligence in northern Anxi and that the troops should immediately head north.

The commander-in-chief cursed loudly at the meeting and ordered all departments to rest for three days to replenish supplies and livestock.

Three days later, the mixed corps passed through the Xining royal city and slowly headed north, while sending messengers to deliver the report to Dihua and then back to the capital.

During the resupply period, the supplies provided by the Xining capital were insufficient, so we had to purchase some ourselves. Fortunately, we had prepared well and brought enough money when we set off, so we didn't run out of supplies.

Fifty kilometers north of Xining Royal City, people from the Xining Royal Palace were waiting ahead, bringing ample supplies.

The commander-in-chief launched into another tirade of curses. How much does this old bastard, the Prince of Xining, guard against becoming a commander-in-chief?
(End of this chapter)