The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 283: Unrighteous Path

Today's soldiers in the central army are particularly passionate during training.

With the sound of war drums and the loud shouts of the generals, the soldiers in heavy armor began to run wildly. The armor clashed and the two sides encountered each other, with people and horses falling to the ground.

The strong smell of sweat was everywhere.

The shouts of the soldiers were like thunder, constantly echoing in the camp.

The soldiers in the central army did not dislike this kind of training. The central army of Cao Wei was different from the past. They were not conscripted, but recruited.

They were not the farmers who were forced to serve in the army for three years during the Later Han Dynasty. They were full-time soldiers recruited by the imperial court.

Therefore, the ideas of the two are also different. The farmers who serve in the army just want to survive this period as soon as possible and then return home. However, these professional soldiers do not have the concept of surviving this period. They either want to win military exploits and become successful.

Or you can just work as a low-level soldier until you are old and can no longer lift a spear.

However, the original central army no longer had a way to advance through military achievements.

As the ruling class became corrupt, the position of the central army was gradually occupied by those sons of noble families who were good at drinking and drinking. They were parachuted in directly and did not behave reasonably.

They do not participate in training on weekdays and hide at the back during battles, but they are the first to get the credit.

The soldiers were no longer busy with training, but were just thinking about ways to flatter these people, bribe them, and win their favor.

The truly talented soldiers were buried, and those flatterers were promoted.

Even the positions that the sons of noble families looked down upon, such as the most basic positions such as officers, firemen, and sergeants, were replaced by their minions. When it came to Qu Hou, scholars started to take up the position. There was no place for ordinary people in the position of Sima, and as for the position of captain and the like, haha.

Not only was there injustice in rewards and punishments, but the treatment in other aspects was also extremely unfair. Even their food was withheld, and their rewards and subsidies were often swallowed up by officers on all kinds of trumped-up charges.

The reason why aristocratic families become the richest in the world is that they can make money by any means necessary.

They can even rob soldiers, so what does withholding salaries mean to them?

Since the arrival of Ma Long and others, the situation has obviously changed.

In the past, officers rarely trained themselves to death, and even if they did, they would not receive any rewards or promotions.

However, Ma Long personally led the soldiers to participate in the training, promoted outstanding ones, and punished those who failed to complete the task. Batches of relatives and losers were caught by Ma Long, some of whom were beheaded, and some were driven out.

Those who blatantly engaged in embezzlement were beheaded in public, and the children of wealthy families fled in fear.

The atmosphere in the central army suddenly changed.

When Xiahou Xian became the commander-in-chief, he began to use Ma Long's method to reorganize the army. For a while, the camps of the central army were in chaos, and a large number of rats were driven out. That's how Feng Xun got away.

The reason for his dismissal was not because he was implicated by the Sima family as he said. In fact, there were still Sima family captains in the central army.

"Captain Ma! How's the drill going?"

Xiahou Xian's chariot stopped at the central camp. Ma Long hurried forward and said, "We will conduct the drills as you instructed. We will set rankings, reward those who excel, and punish those who lag behind."

Ma Long was very humble, but Xiahou Xian nodded, "Well done!"

The more he looked at the young man in front of him, the more satisfied he became.

He didn't know where the emperor found such an outstanding young man.

Ma Long wrote a letter to himself, in which he mentioned many methods of training soldiers. He believed that in order to maintain a combat-ready army, it was necessary to maintain close communication with the soldiers through rewards and imitate the Former Han Dynasty by holding competitions at intervals.

Ma Long wrote in his memorial: "First compare the fires, then the officers, then the curved troops, and finally the various camps."

The competition is conducted at different levels. Officers with good rankings will be rewarded, while officers with bad rankings will be punished.

Xiahou Xian deeply agreed with this.

Ma Long is different from Wen Yang. Wen Yang is a very powerful general, while Ma Long is an excellent military strategist.

Ma Long once wrote military works in history, explaining the principles of leading troops in battle and training the army.

Just when Xiahou Xian was talking to Ma Long, a scout suddenly came hurriedly.

"General! His Majesty, come forward!"

"what??"

Xiahou Xian's eyes widened, his expression somewhat surprised. "Your Majesty, what are you doing here?"

"Did something serious happen?"

Xiahou Xian frowned immediately and hurriedly led his men towards the camp gate.

But when he hurried to the gate, Cao Mao was standing in front of several soldiers with a comfortable look on his face, asking something in a low voice.

Those soldiers looked quite restrained, trembling and answering the emperor's questions incoherently.

"Your Majesty, it has been twelve years, and you have never...never..."

Xiahou Xian quickly got off the carriage, walked in front of Cao Mao, and interrupted the soldier, "Your Majesty!"

The soldier dared not say anything more and quickly stood aside.

Cao Mao looked at Xiahou Xian with a smile, "Father Zhong, I can hear the sound of soldiers from all camps training in Taiji Hall."

"I've been really troubled by you these days, Zhongfu. You are indeed a famous general who can lead the army!"

Xiahou Xian repeatedly said that he dared not, and Cao Mao smiled and said to the soldier, "Erlang of the Zhao family, right? I will remember your name and will come to see you again in the future!" The soldier was flattered and hurriedly saluted again.

Cao Mao pulled the confused Xiahou Xian into the camp.

Xiahou Xian looked at the armored soldier in the distance and suddenly asked, "Your Majesty, is there something wrong with that man?"

"Nothing wrong with that. I saw that he was quite courageous and eloquent, so I chatted with him for a few words."

Xiahou Xian was a little confused. What could an emperor like you have to talk about with a soldier?
However, Xiahou Xian did not ask any more questions about this matter. He was more curious about the purpose of His Majesty's visit. He asked again, "Why did Your Majesty come to this camp?"

Cao Mao replied calmly, "Of course I came to see their training. I can't burden you with all these important matters."

Xiahou Xian reacted immediately and smiled bitterly.

"Your Majesty, you are the Son of Heaven. The Central Army should obey your orders. You don't have to do this."

Xiahou Xian knew the emperor's purpose. It was obvious that he came to show favor to the central army and win over the soldiers, but why?

You are the emperor, and these people are originally your men.

Xiahou Xian suddenly felt some hatred towards Sima Shi again. It was all because of this guy. He made His Majesty so unconfident that he even had to come to the central military camp in person. Since Emperor Wen, how many years has it been since the emperor came to the central military camp?

Cao Mao said, "The central army is now fully mobilized, so naturally I need to come and appease them."

“That will help you with what you’re going to do next.”

Xiahou Xian did not refute again. He did not want to hold military power alone and prevent the emperor from interfering. He just felt that the emperor was thinking too much and it was completely unnecessary.

Cao Mao walked all the way to the first camp, which was where Ma Long was.

When Emperor Huang Gai appeared here, he immediately caused an uproar among the soldiers. They stopped training and stood on tiptoe to look in the direction of Huang Gai.

Ma Long even brought many generals and officers to pay a visit.

"Hahaha, Captain Ma, that's right, the central army has changed a lot!"

"You truly have the demeanor of a famous general from ancient times!"

Cao Mao praised.

Ma Long repeatedly said he dared not, and Cao Mao exchanged a few words with the other generals, and finally looked at the soldiers in front of him.

"Are there any people who excel in training?"

Ma Long was stunned and quickly called over a few soldiers. These soldiers looked extremely frightened and trembling all over.

"These are the best warriors in this competition!"

"Hahaha, there's a competition like this, why didn't you call me? Next time, you must call me, I want to see it with my own eyes!"

"only!!"

Cao Mao looked at those people and asked their names and hometowns, and they answered quickly.

Cao Mao was very happy. He held their hands and encouraged them one by one.

"With such brave warriors in the world, what do I have to worry about? Come on, I'll give you a reward of ten gold coins, ten pieces of silk, and a precious sword!"

Xiahou Xian’s eyes widened.

The soldiers' faces turned red and they were at a loss.

Ma Long said seriously: "Why don't you thank me?!"

The soldiers hurriedly thanked Cao Mao.

"Hahaha, no need for that. You need to work harder in the future. General Xiahou did a great job in the competition. We need to continue promoting it. I will personally come and watch next time! If you can still win, I will give you a generous reward!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!!"

Those soldiers were so happy that they went crazy.

Cao Mao asked Ma Long to continue training while he watched from the side. With the emperor watching, the entire camp, from top to bottom, worked very hard and no one dared to delay.

Cao Mao looked at them, his face full of emotion.

He said loudly again: "The soldiers are so brave, I am very pleased."

"They all fought for the sake of the world and for me. We cannot treat them unfairly."

"I have decided to increase their salaries, increase their rewards, improve their food, give them the opportunity to return home on leave, and properly arrange for the old soldiers who have left due to old age or who were injured in the war."

"what??"

As soon as this statement came out, everyone was shocked.

Ma Long looked at the emperor deeply without saying much, but Xiahou Xian was a little anxious at this moment.

He quickly stood in front of the emperor and whispered, "Your Majesty, no!"

"The sage said: The martial arts of Qi cannot match the warriors of Wei! The warriors of Wei cannot match the sharp warriors of Qin! The sharp warriors of Qin cannot match the discipline of Huanwen! The discipline of Huanwen cannot match the benevolence and righteousness of Tang and Wu!"

"Your Majesty, in governing your army, you should act with the benevolence and righteousness of Tang and Wu. How can you lure them with the cruelty of Qin? Or offer rewards?"

(End of this chapter)