Southern Ming: A boy soldier at the beginning, supporting the world

Chapter 170: Military Academy, Longmen Casting Generals

After the occupation of Nanning and Taiping, the Red Army's financial resources were secured and its income from money and grain also increased significantly.

With funding secured, various undertakings were also being accelerated.

The first priority was to expand the army. Danchu did not expand the army blindly, but mainly added a navy battalion and an infantry battalion, totaling about 5,000 people, half of whom were prisoners and half were newly recruited. The navy started from scratch, building warships and determining the camp system, which cost a huge amount of money.

In addition, the firearms battalion of the personal guards was split into a musket battalion and an artillery battalion, with the number of personnel increased by 500. The auxiliary guards added a baggage battalion, with the number of personnel also increased by 500.

At the same time, the Red Army accelerated its strategic transfer, and families, the Ironware Bureau, the Military Equipment Bureau, the General's Office and other institutions and personnel moved to Nanning one after another.

Yongning Company and Xinning Company were established in Nanning and Xinning Prefecture respectively.

The Yongning Company was a government-run company directly under the General's Office. It was headed by Liu Yuchun, the general manager of the Ironware Bureau. It integrated the Red Army's Ironware Bureau and Military Equipment Bureau, and had shipyards, steel mills, gun factories, ammunition factories, etc. under its jurisdiction. It mainly produced military equipment and weapons for the Red Army.

The Xinning Company was a government-supervised and privately-run company funded by business gentry. Wei Sishu, the richest man in Nanning, was the general manager. It had iron factories, textile factories, porcelain factories, saddle and armor factories, transport fleets, etc. under its jurisdiction. Overall, it was more civilian-oriented and could provide logistical support for the Red Army at any time.

In addition, Danchu also advocated the establishment of a military academy as the highest academy of the Red Army.

To train soldiers, one must first train their commanders. If the Red Army wants to grow and develop, it must build a martial arts school and step up the training of officers. The teaching content of the night school is limited, and the teaching team focuses on short-term training. It is undoubtedly more beneficial to establish a martial arts school similar to Yongan University.

The military officers in the Ming Dynasty were hereditary, and the imperial court emphasized civil service over military service. Over time, the sons of military honors became corrupt and degenerate, not only did they not learn martial arts, but even the martial arts passed down in their families gradually fell into disuse.

In order to encourage the children of military meritorious service, the Ming Dynasty established a military school and stipulated that the children of military meritorious service must pass the examination before they can inherit the military position. This was a matter of cutting off people's jobs, and it was not implemented thoroughly.

Therefore, the purpose of martial arts in the Ming Dynasty was not to train generals, but to accommodate and take care of the children of military merit. Later, even the children of military merit were unwilling to enter martial arts, which shows the low status of military generals in the Ming Dynasty.

"Laws established but not enforced are the same as no laws at all." The military gradually declined, and after several rounds of rectification, it never improved. The decline of the military undoubtedly foreshadowed the fate of the Ming army.

To resist the Qing invaders, we must first train elite soldiers. The strength of the Red Army depends on the leadership charm of Cen Danchu, a scientific organizational system, advanced military equipment and weapons, and to win victory and increase combat confidence. It also requires the construction of a loyal, reliable, brave and courageous officer team.

It is imperative to establish martial arts and train direct military officers.

Cen Danchu attached great importance to this, named the martial arts school "Wubei Academy" and personally reviewed the school regulations.

To avoid interference, the Military Academy was located far away from the town at the foot of Longmen Ridge on the southern slope of Gaofengai, close to the confluence of the Zuo and You rivers. It was also called the "Longmen Military Academy."

Unlike Yong'an University, the Military Academy had a more rigorous organization, with one principal, one inspector, one sitting director, one chief instructor, and one co-director. It had ten disciplines, including operations, teaching, logistics, navy, infantry, cavalry, artillery, engineering, auxiliary forces, and intelligence and reconnaissance.

Cen Danchu was appointed as the principal, and the right military officer Fang Yizhi was appointed as the supervisor. However, the two were too busy to take care of the school. The school manager stayed in the school and presided over the overall work of the school, which was a very important responsibility. The first school manager was Feng Lin, Danchu's elder brother, who was transferred from the director of the Central Army Camp Affairs Office. The chief instructor was in charge of teaching affairs, and the assistant manager was the deputy of the school manager.

The power of the director of the Red Army’s camp office became increasingly important, equivalent to the combined positions of chief of staff, director of the political department, and chief of logistics.

Feng Lin was transferred to the Military Academy as the director, and Danchu took the opportunity to split the Camp Affairs Office, making the Operations Office, the Teaching Office, and the Logistics Office independent, with three directors in charge of command, military administration, and logistics. The position of the Camp Affairs Office Director was naturally abolished, which helped Danchu better control military power.

The camp offices of each battalion will not be changed for the time being, so as to avoid frequent changes in orders. There are two types of courses in the Military Academy: a long-term course and a crash course. The long-term course lasts one year, and the students are mainly young officers with potential or scholars who are interested in joining the army. The crash course mainly has students who are about to be promoted or change positions.

On February 10, with the strong support of Cen Danchu, the Military Academy was officially established after more than a month of preparation.

That morning, Danchu came to Longmenling to attend the unveiling ceremony of the Military Academy. At the entrance of the academy, a large red velvet cloth blocked the door plaque, with a rope hanging from the edge.

The school requisitioned the temple as a school building and renovated the entrance. Many people came to watch. In addition to the school teachers and students, there were also ordinary people who came to watch after hearing the news.

The guards enforced order, and Danchu pulled the rope open, and the red cloth fell to the ground, revealing a brand new door plaque. On it was a red background with golden characters, with the four characters "Wubei Academy" written on it, which was the inscription written by Cen Danchu himself.

At the same time, firecrackers were set off and cheers were heard everywhere. The teachers and students of the school were excited about the new school, and the people saw Cen Danchu with their own eyes and were impressed by his graceful and calm temperament.

Cen Danchu delivered a brief speech:

"Teachers, students, elders, fellow countrymen, and Red Army brothers, we are gathered here today to hold the unveiling ceremony of the Wubei School. The Wubei School is a military school sponsored by the Red Army, which aims to promote martial arts and teach the art of training and fighting.

"To accomplish great things, we must first obtain talents. We will select the most outstanding officers to enroll for further studies, and we welcome those with aspirations to apply. When students graduate, we will appoint them to positions based on their performance..."

The school opened as soon as the plaque was unveiled. In order to cope with the imminent attack of the Qing army, the Military Academy organized the first crash course with a three-month course. There were more than 200 officers in total, who came from all parts of the army and were all carefully selected.

The first crash course was divided into three student teams, which were managed in accordance with the teaching team. The training was stricter than that of the teaching team, and the student supply standard was 50% higher than that of the teaching team.

Accompanied by Fang Yizhi and Feng Lin, Danchu briefly toured the campus and then returned to the auditorium.

More than two hundred spirited young officers and dozens of instructors were already seated in the audience, sitting upright with solemn expressions, which was a delight to see.

These young officers are the hope of the Red Army's future. Cen Danchu was filled with emotion and delivered a mobilization speech:
"Everyone, today we gather at Longmenling to attend the first crash course of the Military Academy. As early as the opening of Yongan University, I wanted to establish a military academy. At that time, the Red Army only had Zhaoping, Yongan, and Wutun, and was not strong enough.

"Now, our army has defeated Xu Biao and occupied Nanning and Taiping. The people have returned and the chieftains have come to us. This is the foundation of our hegemony. After intensive preparations, the Military Academy was finally unveiled today.

"Unlike Yongan University, the Military Academy is a school dedicated to training officers. The first batch of students are all elites of the entire army. The semester is not long, planned to be three months, but there are many courses, all of which are personally reviewed by me.

"There are military theory courses, which teach courses on strategy, tactics, current affairs, weapons, transportation, fortification, logistics, etc.; there are military politics courses, which teach military law and discipline, and carry out education on loving the people; there are military skills courses, which teach basic skills such as firearm shooting, horsemanship, slashing and stabbing, marching, camping, and communication.

"I am the leader of the Red Army, the principal of the Military Academy, the monitor of the first accelerated class, and your teacher and friend. You are the first accelerated class students, that is, my students.

"I hope you will cherish this opportunity, study hard, train diligently, and bring back what you have learned to the troops and make it bear fruit. At the end of the crash course, we will organize a final examination. Those who excel will be rewarded and promoted, those who pass will be commended, and those who fail will be eliminated. This notice will be issued to the entire army..."

In ancient times, the relationship between teachers and students was very important. Cen Danchu regarded himself as a teacher, and the students regarded themselves as "disciples of the emperor", which was like the surging spring tide, exuding infinite vitality.

(End of this chapter)