Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 162 Young and old soldiers alike yearn for merit!
Late at night.

Inside the camp, bonfires blazed, casting a warm, dancing light on the frost-covered armor of the soldiers.

However, this warm light could not dispel the invisible chill emanating from the central command tent deep within the camp.

Unlike usual, the master on the throne did not return to the deep palace walls of the Forbidden City after dealing with the earth-shattering events.

Zhu Youjian ordered his men to send Consort Jingbei and the others back to the palace first, but he chose to stay in this military camp filled with the smell of rust and sweat.

He ate and slept here, as if this desolate place made him feel more at ease than the magnificent imperial city.

Inside the large tent, the lights were on, and two young and tall figures stood with their hands at their sides.

Their faces still bore the marks of the long journey from Shaanxi, yet there was no sign of fatigue between their brows; only the sharpness forged in the fires of war and the mixture of awe and fervent longing they felt upon seeing the Emperor.

Sun Yingyuan, Lu Xiangsheng.

These two young generals, who were just beginning to make a name for themselves in the new army of the capital, were now feeling the heavy gaze cast upon them by the young emperor on the throne.

His gaze was calm yet sharp as a knife.

"Your trip to Shaanxi went well." Zhu Youjian's voice was calm, revealing no emotion. "I have seen your reports and heard about your achievements in the imperial edicts. You have already learned how to kill."

Sun Yingyuan and Lu Xiangsheng trembled slightly, and lowered their heads even further.

“But in the capital, the people to be killed are different.” Zhu Youjian picked up the warm tea on the table, gently blew away the foam, and lowered his eyelids. “The Beijing Garrison is said to have 200,000 men, but in reality, they are rotten to the bone. I put you in the Beijing Garrison instead of sending you to the border for training, not so that you could enjoy a life of luxury.”

The emperor put down his teacup.

"I don't want those useless people who only know how to put on a show, and I especially don't want those parasites who only know how to exploit soldiers and embezzle their salaries!"

Zhu Youjian's voice suddenly turned stern, and the turbulent whirlpool beneath the calm surface of the lake was finally revealed. He stood up and walked to the two of them, staring at them with eyes as fierce as a hawk.

"I grant you power: the Ministry of War's Military Affairs Department and the Censors of the Censorate will all be at your command! I give you money: a million taels of silver from the Imperial Treasury, and more will be added as needed! I want you to take this rotten mud of the Beijing Garrison, knead it, and mold it anew!"

His hand pressed heavily on Lu Xiang-sheng's shoulder, the force of which made this man, who had never even frowned on the battlefield, suddenly shudder.

"I want a sword, a truly invincible sword, a sword that obeys every command! You are the swordsmiths I have personally chosen! Do you understand?"

"I...obey the order!"

Unable to contain their excitement and trembling any longer, Sun Yingyuan and Lu Xiangsheng knelt on one knee, their voices as clear as metal and stone!

……

The next three days were chaotic, ruthless, and harsh for the entire Beijing garrison.

On the training ground where the new Beijing garrison was stationed, the usual hustle and bustle and laxity had vanished, replaced by an unprecedented atmosphere of solemnity and gravity that enveloped the entire camp.

Behind rows of simple long tables sat unfamiliar faces, devoid of any emotion.

Those were newly appointed officials of the Ministry of War's Bureau of Military Affairs, promoted at the emperor's behest. The pens in their hands were now the judge's pens that determined the fates of countless people.

Not far away, a bright yellow dragon tent stood silently like a giant beast.

Everyone knew that His Majesty the Emperor was inside, and his very presence was the heaviest pressure, making every officer from the Beijing Garrison who came for the assessment feel suffocated.

The assessment items were simple to the point of being brutal: cross-country running with weights, horseback archery skills, and commanding in formation.

A large number of privileged young men, who were used to living a life of luxury and indulging in the care of birds and animals, revealed their true colors here.

The son of a hereditary commander of the guards collapsed on the ground, panting heavily, after running less than half a mile; a guerrilla general who obtained his position through his aunt being a noblewoman in the palace failed to fully draw his bow after three attempts; even worse, some couldn't distinguish left from right and ran around like headless flies in the ranks, drawing suppressed laughter.

The newly appointed officials of the Bureau of Military Affairs simply drew a vermilion cross next to their names on the list.

There are no personal connections to rely on, and no powerful backing to depend on.

Under the silent gaze of the dragon tent, all privileges vanished like bubbles.

Finally, someone broke down.

"Are you blind?! Do you even know who I am?"

A young officer, whose rank was hereditary, flew into a rage after being judged to be unqualified in archery and horsemanship. He lowered his voice and cursed:

"I am the nephew of the Earl of Xiangcheng! How dare you, a lowly official from humble origins, question my martial arts skills?!"

The official's expression remained unchanged; he simply stared at him coldly.

Seeing this, the nephew of the Earl of Xiangcheng became even more arrogant. He took out a hundred-tael silver note from his sleeve, secretly slapped it on the table, lowered his voice, and spoke with a tone that was both condescending and threatening.

"If I turn a blind eye, the silver is yours. But if you don't know what's good for you, after this matter is over, I have plenty of ways to make sure you can't stay in Beijing!"

Just then, a clear, cold voice rang out from the side.

"Oh? I'd like to hear what method you have." The crowd looked in the direction of the voice and saw that Lu Xiang-sheng had somehow appeared in front of them, with a simple longsword hanging at his waist.

When the nephew of the Earl of Xiangcheng saw Lu Xiang-sheng, his imposing manner immediately weakened by three points, but he still forced himself to say, "General Lu... this is a matter between me and this minor official, it has nothing to do with you, General."

Lu Xiang-sheng ignored him and instead asked the official from the Bureau of Personnel Administration, "What should the punishment be?"

The official rose, bowed respectfully to Lu Xiang-sheng, and replied, "General, this man performed poorly in his assessment and should be dismissed according to the law. Furthermore, he spoke rudely, insulted an official of the court, and attempted to bribe him. According to military law, his crime is doubled!"

“Okay.” Lu Xiang-sheng said only one word.

He slowly drew his long sword from his waist, the blade drawing a cold arc in the air before gently placing it on the neck of the nephew of the Earl of Xiangcheng.

The young man instantly turned pale, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.

"His Majesty has decreed," Lu Xiang-sheng's voice clearly reached the ears of everyone present, "that the reorganization of the Beijing Garrison is like scraping the bone to remove poison. Anyone who harbors illusions and tries to deceive is like poison in the bone and pus in the flesh!"

"Somebody come!"

He shouted sharply.

"Strip him of his official robes and strip him of his titles! Publicly flog him twenty times! Then throw him out of the camp!"

Immediately, two fierce-looking guards stepped forward, grabbed the young man who was already terrified, and with a tearing sound, ripped open his magnificent official robes and ripped off his waist tag, which symbolized his status.

He was pinned down on the bench in full view of everyone.

"Snapped!"

The first blow of the military stick fell heavily.

The piercing scream instantly shattered the deathly silence of the drill ground, like an invisible needle piercing the heart of every officer who harbored a glimmer of hope.

Twenty blows, neither too light nor too heavy, were enough to tear his skin and leave him utterly humiliated.

When that half-dead body was dragged out of the camp gate like a dead dog, the entire drill ground was completely silent.

Everyone realized that the emperor was not joking.

The situation in the Beijing garrison changed completely within three days!
……

The news of the major reshuffle in the Beijing garrison spread like a spring breeze throughout the various camps inside and outside the capital.

In those old camps that were disbanded, there was a gloomy atmosphere and widespread lamentation.

Those ordinary soldiers and junior officers who were truly capable and competent were secretly overjoyed and spread the news.

However, in the new army camp, especially in the artisan camp where Sun Yuanhua was under special guard, the scene was quite different.

They knew that an era that valued military merit above all else might really be coming!
Only one person was restless.

Sun Yuanhua.

The former governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou, now awaiting punishment, paced anxiously back and forth in his simply furnished but fully equipped room.

For months, he had been taken from prison by the emperor, treated well, and reinstated to his original position. But for Sun Yuanhua, it was more like a sweet torment.

He was not given any actual assignment, but was simply placed in this workshop, where he, along with his former colleagues and a group of skilled craftsmen from all over the country, buried himself in blueprints and models day after day.

They had no shortage of money, food, or materials; the inner court even went to great lengths to find them precious books that had been purchased from the Portuguese.

Sun Yuanhua knew that the emperor had high expectations for him and his group.

But he never received the Emperor's favor.

In recent days, he has imparted all his knowledge and skills to others, and combined them with the exquisite craftsmanship of the Ming Dynasty artisans, and has made several major improvements to the "Hongyi Cannon".

New casting methods, new prescriptions... countless achievements piled up on his desk, yet no one paid any attention to them.

Sun Yuanhua knew that the emperor had returned, that the decisive and unconventional emperor was in the capital garrison tent just a few miles away.

His opportunity was right in front of him, but he didn't even have a way to get in touch with it.

Just as Sun Yuanhua was extremely anxious, even considering whether to write a letter in blood and risk his life to submit it, a series of hurried footsteps approached from afar.

A young eunuch hurried over, stopped in front of his door, slightly out of breath, and bowed deeply to him.

“Lord Sun,” the young eunuch’s voice was high-pitched and urgent, “His Majesty summons you to an audience!”

In that instant, Sun Yuanhua's heart, which had been restless for months, was gripped tightly by an invisible hand! And then, it began to pound wildly!
He knew that his months of waiting had finally brought about a moment that would determine his fate.

(End of this chapter)