Autumn of the 17th year of Chongzhen

Chapter 601
The various units of the Ming army on the north bank of the Yangtze River were conducting drills in the wilderness, shouting together and covering the sky with dust. The scene was fiery and spectacular.

Wang Yan galloped to the outside of the school grounds, got off his horse and was accompanied by all the generals, and inspected the training of the various ministries. He watched as he walked, and saw that the soldiers were all full of energy and momentum. He nodded in satisfaction, and said to the generals beside him: "That's right, the harder the army trains, the better our chances of winning the counterattack against Jiangnan."

Dai Zhifan followed behind, holding his saber, "Sir, you can rest assured about the training, but there is something that needs to be reported to you."

Wang Yan stopped and turned around, "What's the matter? You can speak directly."

"Sir, please follow the future." Dai Zhifan did not say, but led Wang Yan to the other side of the school grounds.

Wang Yan saw that in an open space, there were piles of Ming army armor, knives, guns, bird guns, etc., each of which was classified and put together. More than a dozen scribes and craftsmen were checking the status of these weapons and armor. According to the degree of damage, they are then sorted and transported back to the weapon workshop for repair.

Wang Yan casually picked up a pair of armor, which was the standard cloth face armor of the southern Ming army, nailed with iron plates.

Generally speaking, this kind of cloth face armor is relatively weak in defense. However, the armor of ordinary soldiers cannot be made of all iron. The Ming Dynasty did not have so much pig iron. Only generals with more than a thousand households can wear the mountain pattern armor. Low-ranking officers wear ordinary iron armor, and ordinary soldiers can only wear cloth face armor.

Wang Yan picked it up and looked at it, only to find that the armor was torn and could no longer be worn.

Dai Zhifan said: "My lord! All the armies are assembled for this drill, but now the soldiers' armor and equipment are seriously worn out, which affects the training of the army, and the weather is getting colder. The troops in Huguang are fine, but we came from Guangnan, and there are many soldiers. Shouldn't the brothers be given battle coats and padded armor instead?"

As soon as Wang Yan heard it, his head grew big. How much does it cost for this army to change clothes? In fact, the loss of weapons and armor caused by war is amazing. After a few battles, a spear, a sword, and a bird gun , basically can no longer be used and must be replaced, which is one of the important reasons why war consumes national strength.

The cost of war is huge, not only depleting troops, but also depleting supplies. This weapon must be replenished, and soldiers cannot be allowed to go into battle in winter.

Wang Yan pondered slightly, "I have already ordered Huguang to start building armor and weapons. In addition, Guangnan will send a batch over. I will try my best to maintain the support of the army as much as possible."

After hearing this, the generals at the side were all relieved, Xianggong always said what he said, and said one after another: "If you can make it up, then there will be no worries this winter."

But Wang Yan was thinking in his heart that last year he led troops from Huguang to Jiangxi, and then went south to Guangnan. The soldiers' cotton armor was collected, sorted out and repaired. In addition to Guangnan's production this year, there is no problem for the army to spend the winter. However, the recruitment and equipment of recruits may be greatly affected.

At this time, Wang Yan, accompanied by everyone, inspected the barracks and found that there were no problems in all aspects of the training. The only problem was the lack of equipment and materials, and the blunderbuss soldiers did not have much medicine for training.

The key to solving the problem, in the final analysis, is money.

In the Qing Dynasty, the more they fought, the richer they became. In the Ming Dynasty, the more they fought, the poorer they became, and the debts piled up.

Wang Yan walked around the school grounds, all the troops were training in an orderly manner, and suddenly ordered the stage, the flags and drums were collected at the same time, and tens of thousands of horses stopped at the same time.

Wang Yan was surrounded by more than a hundred generals on the platform, and he saw tens of thousands of people looking forward. Looking at the expectant faces, Wang Yan waved his hand, and the general behind him immediately fell silent. .

"The middle land is covered with filth and filth, and the southwestern provinces are kept clean. This is why our great Han soldiers fought against Sichuan and Shu, and guarded Chu and Jiangxi. Tens of thousands of people with lofty ideals have achieved benevolence. Today, the general situation has reversed. Between Sichuan, Chu, Jiangxi, and Guangdong, The gentry and the people rise up, the soldiers fight hard, and the will is united. The East Hu, it is difficult to stop the general trend of the revival of our dynasty. This is the autumn of the rebellion. All over the world, fight for fame and fame during your lifetime, seal your wife and son, and strive to be immortalized after death. It will be known in the annals of history. The five loyal soldiers, the heroes of Hunan and Chu, should encourage each other to restore our country!"

All the troops raised their arms together, "Seal my wife and son, and restore my home country!"

Surrounded by all the generals, Wang Yan turned around and walked out of the school field amidst the shouts, heading for the military tent.

After the inspection, all the generals were sent out of the tent, and then dispersed. Wang Yan asked his personal guards to keep Dai Zhifan and Wang Shixiu in the tent for discussion.

At this time, Wang Yan sat down in the big tent, and the two entered the tent after entering, clasping fists and saluting, "Mr.

Wang Yan seated the two of them, and then said with a smile: "You two, Yangzhou will follow me. Time flies, and it has been more than three years. You are my confidant. I have something to ask now, and you two should tell the truth."

The two listened, looked at each other, stood up again as soon as they were seated, and saluted again, "Sir, if you have anything to ask, we will definitely tell you everything."

Wang Yan nodded with a smile, waved his hand to signal them to do it, and then said: "Jiangxi fought well this time, and Jin Shenghuan's call for the title of Duke is very high. What do the generals in the army think about this?"

The two listened with disdain on their faces, and Dai Zhifan said: "Jin Shenghuan is a general anyway, but he just defeated tens of thousands of local chickens and dogs in the green camp, and killed Man Dahai by luck. Ke Dehun, the puppet Duke Shen Zhixiang, who restored Chu and Jiangxi and rescued him, now has the title of Duke of Chu, why should Jin Shenghuan be named Duke?"

After hearing this, Wang Yan knew clearly that what He Tengjiao and himself were worried about was not wrong. Jin Shenghuan was named Duke, and the five loyal troops were unwilling to see it.

"In the Ming army today, my family of five loyalty is the only one, and His Majesty has long been deeply jealous. Now that Jin Shenghuan has made such a great contribution, His Majesty will definitely support him, and the duke's reward is probably a certainty." In this matter, the truth can order people to write a letter to obstruct it, but in this way, if you offend Jin Shenghuan, it will also make other Ming troops think that the imperial court does not reward them for their merits, which will inevitably damage morale, and think that the truth is jealous of the virtuous and capable, and the Five Loyalty Army intends to suppress the troops At that time, Jin Shenghuan and Zheng Guoxing may become my enemies."

When the two heard that Wang Yan did not intend to prevent the imperial court from ennobling Jin Shenghuan, Wang Shixiu was silent for a while, cupped his fists and said, "Master, how does the imperial court plan to reward Xianggong and the five loyal troops?"

Wang Yan did not answer, but asked: "You are in the army, Gao Yigong, Liu Tichun and other generals, what do you think about this matter?"

Wang Shixiu was born as a scholar, and he didn't have much in common with the generals in the army. Dai Zhifan has a good relationship with the generals of the Shun line.

When Dai Zhifan heard Wang Yan's question, he immediately said: "Bizheng and Feihu, I have heard that Jin Shenghuan may be made a duke these days, and while talking with the general, it seems that the general wants to persuade the general to ask the court to be the county king. The general at the end of the point also agrees very much. If His Majesty confers Jin Shenghuan as the Duke, then he should be crowned as the Duke based on his merits, otherwise the reward and punishment will be unfair."

It is human nature for people to go to high places and water to flow to low places, so that they can look forward to Shu. After listening to Dai Zhifan's words, Wang Yan already understood the attitude of the generals in the army.

The relationship between Gao Yigong and others and Wang Yan is not as close as that of the Yangzhou Clan after all, so it is not easy to talk directly to Wang Yan, so they disclosed their wishes to Dai Zhifan, hoping to express their opinions through him.

Jin Shenghuan was proclaimed a duke, but the generals had done a lot of meritorious service, but they were still marquises. They were actually lower than the generals anyway, so they were naturally unconvinced. Only when Wang Yan took a step closer could they follow suit.

"You can tell the generals about the reward this time, so that everyone can feel at ease. The truth will be fought for with all your strength, so that the court's rewards and punishments will be clearly defined."

(Thank you for the 88 book coins from the descendants of Ziye Sanlang. I am very touched if I stop changing for a day, and I will still gain something. Thank you Yuedongwoxin, fwx[-], come and give me a smile, Mingyuezhao wolfberry reward. Too many monthly votes, I will not list them one by one in detail, thank you very much. In addition, "Shunchao Qiuqiulu" can be collected and kept for reading)
(End of this chapter)