Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

In the third year of Chongzhen, on the tenth day of the second month of the lunar calendar, it was the Spring Equinox.

Zhu Youjian formally appointed his eldest son Zhu Cilang as the crown prince, sent eunuchs to bestow imperial calligraphy as gifts on the various royal palaces, and appointed officials from the Hanlin Academy to concurrently serve as officials from the Zhanshi Palace to go to various places to convey the enthronement edict.

After being vacant for two years, the Zhanshi Mansion was re-appointed. In addition to Liu Zongzhou, who was appointed Zhanshi early on, Kong Zhenyun and Ni Yuanlu were also appointed as Junior Zhanshi.

Chen Renxi and He Wuzuo were appointed as prefectural chancellors. Chen Renxi also served as the deputy envoy of the newly formed Eastern Palace Guards, responsible for establishing the Guards Office and managing the Eastern Palace guards.

The five Yulin guards and the five Dongning guards, these ten guards assigned to the prince, were also clearly written in the enthronement edict to be under the management of the Eastern Palace Guards.

The Zhuolu Central Guards, who were transferred to the Yulin Central Guards, were naturally very happy. The officers and soldiers of the Zhuolu Left and Right Guards were also very happy because they also became the Imperial Guards.

However, the officials and soldiers of the three guards, namely Yulin Vanguard, Yulin Left Guard and Yulin Right Guard, were not so satisfied.

Becoming the prince's personal guard was certainly a happy event, but they had to be transferred out of the capital and stationed along the Beijing-Tianjin road. Many officials who had been rooted in the capital for hundreds of years complained about this.

Once they leave the capital, it will be difficult for them to preserve the family business accumulated over generations intact.

For any hereditary official, being transferred away from the place where he has run his business for generations would be a serious blow to his vitality.

Just like Qi Jiguang's eldest son Qi Zuoguo, who had only inherited the position of assistant commander of Dengzhou Guard, his hereditary position was not as good as his younger brother Qi Changguo's hereditary commander of Jinyiwei.

Did Qi Zuoguo not know that the hereditary commander was a higher position? Obviously not. The reason why Qi Zuoguo did not inherit the higher position of hereditary commander was because the Qi family's ancestral business for generations was in Dengzhou Guard. He stayed in Dengzhou Guard to inherit the position of commander, and was the true heir of the Qi family.

After the current emperor conferred the title of nobility on Qi Jiguang and allowed the descendants of the Qi family to establish fiefdoms, Qi Zuoguo also needed to make a choice first. Only when he clearly gave up, talents like Qi Changguo would have a chance.

Now, Qi Zuoguo is still somewhat undecided, not knowing whether to abandon his ancestral heritage and move overseas, or to continue to stay in Dengzhouwei and let Qi Changguo and others go overseas to open up fiefdoms.

Even Qi Zuoguo, who was able to establish a marquisate, was so hesitant, let alone the hereditary officials of the Three Yulin Guards.

After the transfer order came down, they generally did not want to leave the capital, and went to the five prefectures and close noble families to build connections, hoping to stay in the capital.

However, to their surprise, many nobles were not at home, and the Five Military Governor's Office, which usually had few people on duty, had even fewer people. Most of these people were now in the Beijing camp, and it was said that they were training the army in preparation for the exercise.

"What preparation exercise?"

"It's obvious that they are worried that some people will not obey orders, so they want to mobilize the Beijing Battalion to suppress these people."

"Don't do anything reckless. The Imperial Camp, the Patrol Camp, and the Divine Machine Camp are all on combat readiness now."

A nobleman warned.

Someone in his family worked in the Three Imperial Guards and leaked a little information:
"This time the reform of the guard post is not just about transferring the three guards of Yulin."

"Those of you who have been transferred to the Beijing-Tianjin Road should be happy. The Eastern Palace Guards will not ignore you."

"Being transferred to a garrison outside the Great Wall is even more miserable. In the future, they will not be able to be called the imperial guards."

"If anyone causes trouble, or if there are more hereditary officials than the quota, they will be transferred out and temporarily placed in the Daning Five Guards."

"Behave yourself and don't involve your family."

Those serving in the army can get a sneak peek into the movements of troops in the capital.

They had not thought much about it before, but only now realized that the emperor was trying to prevent the reform of the garrisons from causing unrest.

Therefore, after this news spread privately, the hereditary officials of the capital's guards were suddenly silent. They did not want to run into the emperor's gun, and they did not want to be killed by the Privy Council as a warning to others and use their heads to promote the reform of the guards.

However, the relocation of the guards affected the ancestral property of each family, so many hereditary officials moved around privately, hoping to find out more accurate information.

Qian Sheng, a centurion of Fuyuwei, was one of them.

Although his position was low and he was at the bottom among the officials, he had his own connections and was able to get information from the new army in the patrol camp.

On this day, he was asked by Fuyu Wei Shiguan to go to the barracks of the new army of the patrol camp with gifts to visit his nephew Qian Wu.

From a distance, he saw a flag with an eagle spreading its wings. After asking, he learned that the new army of the Patrol Battalion had been given the name of Eagle Army by the emperor and was awarded a military flag.

The Yingyang Army now has two battalions, the Shesheng Battalion and the Zhonglei Battalion, as well as a directly affiliated sniper battalion.

Because the organization had just been adjusted, Qian Sheng didn't know which battalion or team his nephew was in. Fortunately, Qian Wu visited him after returning from the expedition to Korqin and mentioned that he had made contributions with his superiors Zhang Yongan and Gu Yanwu and had now been promoted to second lieutenant.

Qian Sheng said to the soldiers guarding the gate:
"Do you know Qian Wu, who was born in Zhuolu Guard?"

"His boss is Zhang Yongan, and his instructor is Gu Yanwu Gu Yuanshi."

"I'm his uncle, and I want to discuss something with him."

Not many people know Qian Wu alone, but many people know Zhang Yongan. This squad leader, who was promoted to brigade staff officer only last year, has been promoted to battalion chief of staff after making meritorious contributions in the expedition to Korchin. He is one of the senior officers of the Shesheng Battalion.

As for Gu Yanwu, even more people knew about him. This scholar, who was specially granted the title of Yuanshi, was one of the most watched people in the army.

Especially since he had been promoted to the rank of Battalion Guard and was also conferred a title of nobility, there were only a few people in the Yingyang Army who didn't know him.

After seeing Qian Sheng's seal, the officer in charge of the gate did not neglect the hereditary centurion and said:
"Chief of Staff Zhang is leading his troops in training. If Lieutenant Qian is one of his subordinates, he is probably also in training."

"I'll convey this matter to Mr. Gu. He should know which team Qian Wu is on."

He sent a soldier to inform Gu Yanwu of the incident, saying that he was Qian Wu's uncle and wanted to discuss something with him.

Gu Yanwu had served as an instructor in Qian Wu's squadron and had a heart-to-heart talk with Qian Wu as a soldier. He knew that Qian Wu had an uncle who served as a centurion in Fuyuwei, and Qian Wu's ancestors had replaced them as military households.

So after thinking about it, he quickly guessed what Qian Sheng's intention was. He was worried that the reform of the guards might affect them.

Thinking about the discussion in the Privy Council a few days ago, he ordered someone to invite Qian Sheng to the reception room of the military camp and said:

"Qian Wu is about to carry out a confidential mission, so it is not convenient for him to meet with outsiders for the time being."

"If Captain Qian is trustworthy, you can tell Gu about the matter, and I will pass it on verbatim."

Qian Sheng had heard of Gu Yanwu's name a long time ago, not only because Gu Yanwu was awarded the title of Yuanshi after joining the army as a scholar, but also because Gu Yanwu once published "On the Military System" in a newspaper, proposing bold suggestions for military system reform.

Judging from the fact that Gu Yanwu was already a guard at such a young age, the emperor obviously admired him very much. The reform of the guards might have been his doing.

So Qian Sheng talked about this and that for a while, seemingly concerned about Qian Wu's situation in the army, and then seeing that Gu Yanwu was a little impatient, he asked:

"Mr. Gu once published "On the Military System", proposing to restore the guards of the early days of the country."

"I wonder if the reform of the garrison this time is in accordance with Mr. Gu's suggestion?"

Gu Yanwu sneered when he heard this, and said self-deprecatingly:

"Which minister in the court would take the humble opinion I expressed back then seriously?"

"Tell Captain Qian the truth, the Privy Council has already made a decision on the reform of the garrison."

"That is, just like the three guards of Zhuolu, where land is distributed to the guards, and each household provides soldiers to serve in the camp."

This system had actually been in place for 100 to 200 years in the Ming Dynasty, so Qian Sheng was not surprised. What he cared about was what to do with the guards in the capital. After all, everyone knew that there was not enough land in the capital for so many guards to settle and cultivate.

"If the three guards of Zhuolu can do this, how will the guards in the capital distribute land?" "Qian has heard that many guards will be relocated like the three guards of Yulin."

"Many officials of the imperial guards are in a panic, worried that they will be driven out of the capital."

With a look of worry on his face, Qian Wu asked Gu Yanwu.

After the topic was brought up, he stopped pretending to be polite and directly stated his purpose.

Gu Yanwu met with Qian Sheng not only to understand the thoughts of the hereditary officials of the capital's garrisons, but also to contribute to the reform of the garrisons and appease people's hearts.

So he smiled and said:
"Don't worry about that!"

"Only a few of the guards moved out of the capital, and most of them were able to stay."

"But the number of hereditary officials in the inland guards is limited to 135. If you exceed this limit, you will have to transfer to other guards."

After hearing what Gu Yanwu said before, Qian Sheng felt relieved.

But after hearing that the number of hereditary officials was limited to 135, he suddenly became nervous again.

Because as a centurion, the lowest rank among the hereditary officials, he felt that there was a high chance that he would be relocated.

This made him ask worriedly:
"The number of hereditary officials is limited to 135. How come there are so few?"

"Wouldn't it be like the three guards of Zhuolu, where each guard had to relocate several of its hereditary officials?"

When the three guards of Zhuolu were reorganized, nearly half of the hereditary officials were relocated, which made many hereditary officials shudder when they thought about it.

This is also the reason why many hereditary officials were worried after the news of the reform of the capital's guards spread.

They were all worried that they would be forced to relocate to a wild overseas place like Dongning Island, like the hereditary officials of the Three Guards of Zhuolu.

Because he had deep insights into the reform of the Wei Suo system, Gu Yanwu was deeply involved in the reorganization of the Wei Suo in the capital and was quite familiar with various policies.

Hearing Qian Sheng's words, he smiled and comforted him:

"If we need to relocate, we should first relocate the hereditary commanders and thousand households. It's not your turn as a mere hundred households to worry about it."

"Let me give you a lowdown. In this garrison restructuring, the number of centurions will basically remain the same. We will also increase the number of trial centurions. Each garrison will have 100 grassroots officers."

"The remaining 35 places are for hereditary commanders and thousand-householders. You, a hereditary hundred-householder, don't have to worry at all."

Then he asked Qian Sheng:

"I heard from Qian Wu that your ancestors belonged to the Zhuolu Guard, and later they were promoted to centurions for meritorious service, and then they were transferred to the Fuyu Guard."

"When did your family obtain the hereditary title? During the Hongwu or Yongle period? Or later?"

Qian Sheng heard this and said with some pride:
"My ancestor joined the army during the Hongwu reign, and later on, he was promoted to centurion in the next generation for his meritorious service, and during the Yongle reign, he received a hereditary position."

"Our Qian family has served the country for 260 years. We can be said to be related to the country."

"Even if we follow the calculation method of hereditary sergeants, my family can at least be awarded a ninth-level hereditary sergeant."

This was calculated privately by Qian Sheng after the reform of the Three Guards of Zhuolu to establish hereditary military officers.

The Qian Wu family, who replaced his family as military households in Zhuolu Guard, were able to be granted the title of third-level hereditary sergeant. As officers, they were more likely to make meritorious contributions, so naturally they had more merits.

Qian Sheng made an incomplete calculation privately and calculated that his family could at least be awarded the ninth-level hereditary military sergeant. If other merits were taken into account, it would not be difficult to become a hereditary official according to the new calculation method.

Gu Yanwu, who knew how much merit a ninth-level sergeant required, immediately stood in awe and bowed to him, saying:
"I didn't expect Brother Qian's ancestors had made so many achievements."

"In that case, what is Captain Qian worried about?"

"Even if we calculate military merit according to the new law, your centurions will still be included."

Then, Gu Yanwu added:

"In fact, even if Brother Qian's ancestors did not have so many achievements, they don't have to worry about hereditary positions."

"Your Majesty has particularly emphasized that most of the hereditary officials of the Hongwu and Yongle periods had contributions to the founding of the country and the suppression of rebellions. Even if the contributions are recalculated, the hereditary positions can only be promoted and not demoted."

"If your contributions can be calculated more, your ancestral title of centurion may be able to be promoted."

This made Qian Sheng grin with joy, obviously he didn't expect such a good thing to happen.

In this case, he would certainly support the recalculation of military merits, which might lead to a promotion.

However, thinking of the hereditary officials who were later conferred in the guards, he asked:

"What about the other officials?"

“What if the credit is not enough?”

Gu Yanwu smiled and said:

"If none of your ancestors entered the Temple of Heroes, and no one currently holds a position above the rank of Assistant General in the military, then you can only be demoted."

"After all, we need someone to fill the additional hereditary trial positions this time."

"From now on, each centurion will have a trial centurion as the lowest level of hereditary official."

When Qian Sheng heard this, he felt both worried and happy.

The worry is that this will make some officials dissatisfied and lead to causing trouble.

The ones who were happy were naturally those hereditary officials who had not made as much contributions as his family but had become hereditary commanders and hereditary thousand-householders, but they would be demoted this time.

Qian Sheng, who had long been displeased with some people, of course hoped that they would fail.

So he patted his chest and promised:
"Don't worry, Mr. Gu. I, Old Qian, understand what you mean."

"No matter how high the previous position of the trial centurion assigned to me was, I, Old Qian, can make him obedient."

Gu Yanwu smiled and nodded secretly to Qian Sheng.

I thought that no matter how capable this man was in leading troops, at least he was not a complete good-for-nothing.

In a happy mood, he said to Qian Sheng:
"When calculating your military merits this time, don't just ignore it because your hereditary position won't be reduced. You must check your ancestors' merits and report them proactively."

"In addition to beheading merits, officers also have to count their command merits."

"The military merits of your subordinates when your ancestors were military officers, and the military merits of the military households under your jurisdiction, will all be calculated in proportion."

"This may be missed when the Ministry of War calculated it. You should proactively report it and compare it with their merit list."

"Maybe I can be promoted to deputy commander, and become a hereditary baron and open up a hundred-mile territory." (End of this chapter)