Ming Dynasty: Tanks blocked the door and you said to me, "Long live Ming Dynasty"

The sound of sticks clacking and Li Shouqi's screams.

This made the officials of all ranks who came with him shrink their necks.

I don’t know when the last time the emperor visited the Shenji Camp was. God knows why this ancestor launched a sudden attack today!

After twenty blows, Li Shouqi lay on the ground like mud, unable to get up.

Zhu Youxiao took a few steps forward, squatted down and looked down at him.

"I handed over the Divine Machine Camp to you, and this is how you repay me?"

"The imperial court has no shortage of food and money for you every year, but you tell me!"

"Where have all my soldiers gone?"

"Are these old, weak and disabled soldiers on the parade ground my Divine Machine Battalion?"

"what?!"

His voice became louder with each sentence, and the last "ah" was shouted out like a roar.

He is very angry!

If it was the situation at the end of Chongzhen's reign, when the soldiers had no food to eat and no money to take, he would have nothing to say if they ran away.

But during the Tianqi period, the food and wages of the Shenji Camp were never in arrears, and the money obtained by Wei Zhongxian was always allocated to the Beijing Camp first, and then to the Nine Border Garrison!

After yelling at Li Shouqi, Zhu Youxiao looked at the other people kneeling on the ground.

"And you, you better give me a reasonable explanation!"

"Otherwise, I don't mind killing someone!"

"So that you can kill me before the enemy even reaches the capital!"

“Bang, bang, bang…”

As soon as he finished speaking, officials of all ranks began to kowtow continuously.

"Your Majesty, please spare me, Your Majesty, please spare me..."

They kowtowed and begged for mercy, because no one knew the current state of the Shenji Camp better than them!

Even what Zhu Youxiao saw at this moment was just a drop in the bucket!

The real situation of the Shenji Camp is even worse than this!

Zhu Youxiao's gaze swept over these people one by one, and then stopped on one of them.

"You are the eunuch commander of the Shenjiying Camp!"

"According to the regulations, the Shenji Camp has five armies and sixteen divisions, each with more than four thousand people. The division standing on the parade ground now probably has less than eight hundred people!"

"Answer me, where have all my soldiers gone?"

The eunuch admiral's body trembled violently, and a large amount of liquid immediately oozed out of his raised buttocks, flowing down his trouser legs and wetting the ground beneath him.

"Your Majesty, this department is closed today, and the generals and soldiers have gone home to rest..."

"The rest of the military commanders, they should have had practical operations, they were pulled out..."

"Oh? Practical training? Well, get up, and accompany me out of the city to take a look!"

Zhu Youxiao's words could not be refuted. He knew very well that this was just an excuse made up by the eunuch admiral in front of him!

Simply because it is impossible for the five armies and sixteen divisions to go out of the city for actual operations on the same day!

This is common sense!

After all, a part of them have to be left behind to guard the capital!

Upon hearing this, the eunuch admiral was speechless.

Zhu Youxiao snorted coldly and walked towards the reviewing platform without looking back.

Wei Zhongxian, Sun Chuanting and others hurriedly followed, and the guards went to the barracks to bring benches.

Arriving at the reviewing platform and sitting on a bench, Zhu Youxiao said to Wei Zhongxian.

"Pass the order down and have Tian Ergeng bring the Royal Guards over!"

"Also notify the nobles in Beijing and ask them to come here to see me!"

Wei Zhongxian agreed and called a group of guards over. After giving them instructions, these people turned around and left the Shenjiying.

Half an hour later, nobles arrived one after another.

But as soon as they entered the Shenjiying training ground, they found that the atmosphere seemed a little wrong.

All the officials, both big and small, in the Shenji Camp were lying on the ground, shaking like sieves.

Many of the old, weak and disabled soldiers standing on the parade ground fell to the ground under the scorching sun.

But the emperor sitting on the platform had a gloomy face and turned a blind eye to all this.

What happened?

Unable to guess the reason, they could only step forward and salute Zhu Youxiao.

"Your Majesty, I am here to see you! I wonder why Your Majesty has summoned me here?"

Zhu Youxiao glanced at them sideways and snorted again.

"Since you are here, just kneel down and wait!"

After saying that, he ignored them.

Time passed little by little, from noon until sunset. Most people's stomachs were protesting, and only then all the military heroes in Beijing arrived.

It was already dark, and torches were lit around the parade ground.

The military heroes, like the generals of the Shenjiying Camp, knelt on one knee in front of Zhu Youxiao. After half a day, their bodies were in danger of falling down at any time, and the leg they were kneeling on the ground seemed not to be their own.

Only then did Zhu Youxiao slowly stand up.

"Are you all curious about why I suddenly called you to the Shenji Camp?"

"Look back!"

"This is the Shenjiying of our Ming Dynasty!"

"Tell me, what is the difference between them and beggars!"

"Who can tell me where the missing soldiers went?"

"Who can tell me, who pockets my annual millions of taels of silver in food and wages?"

"Who can tell me, with such an army, how can I believe that they can go to the battlefield and defeat the enemy!"

Everyone present didn't dare to breathe. These continuous questions were like a mountain falling from the sky and hitting them!

A few days ago, they were still gloating and proud of the officials who were sent by Zhu Youxiao to Shanxi and Shaanxi to take up their posts.

But he never expected that right after dealing with the civil officials, the master would come to deal with the military officials!

Seeing that these people didn't say anything, Zhu Youxiao laughed in anger.

"Okay, you won't say anything, right?"

"Then let's sit here until dawn. You kneel and I sit!"

"Let's see who can't bear it first!"

When the moon was at its zenith, Wei Zhongxian sent someone to bring food, but was slapped to the ground by Zhu Youxiao.

In this situation, he had no appetite at all.

"thump!"

One general couldn't bear it and fell to the ground.

Zhu Youxiao pointed at the guy and shouted, "Come here, bring me some water to wake him up!"

"As long as they don't open their mouths, I will make them kneel before me!"

"Yes!"

Tian Ergeng quickly brought a bucket of well water and poured it on the general.

The weather at this moment is hot during the day but very cool at night, with the temperature difference between day and night being at least 15 degrees.

After the cold water was poured on his body, the general quickly opened his eyes. His face was pale and his lips were cracked. After swallowing twice with difficulty, he saw that the others had no intention of speaking yet, so he could only force himself to walk to his original position and kneel down.

But these wet clothes became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

After only half an hour, he could no longer hold on and fell to the ground again.

But this time he didn't faint.

He pushed away the other people who were blocking his way and crawled hard to Zhu Youxiao.

"Your Majesty, I, your servant, speak!"

Zhu Youxiao gave Wei Zhongxian a wink, and ginseng soup was immediately brought over.

The general greedily drank the ginseng soup, followed by a bitter smile.

he knows.

This was the best ginseng soup he had ever tasted in his life.

But, this might also be the last bowl of ginseng soup he drinks in his life!

"Your Majesty asked us where those soldiers had gone, and I dared not lie!"

“Almost all of the colleagues present here have one at home!”

"Some have dozens of people, and some have hundreds!"

"Your Majesty, your subjects are suffering!"

After saying that, he fell to the ground and burst into tears.

Chapter 18 If you eat what I have, you must spit it out for me!

"bitter?"

Zhu Youxiao grabbed the man's hair and forced him to look into his eyes.

"Are you suffering?"

"Why does the dynasty support you with high positions and generous salaries?!"

"This is what your ancestors paid for with their lives!"

"Look what you have done!"

"Are you still able to wield swords, brandish guns, ride horses, and kill enemies?!"

"Not only have they been drained of their bodies by alcohol and sex, but they even dared to set their sights on my Beijing camp!"

"You guys, damn it!"

After saying that, he kicked the guy out hard.

In fact, he could guess where those soldiers had gone without these generals saying anything!

Emperors of every dynasty would reward land to military heroes. Over the past dozen or so dynasties, the farms of these military heroes became larger and larger.

Someone needs to go to the fields to work!

And these soldiers, who did not need to be paid or fed, became their best labor force!

On the one hand, they withheld military pay, and on the other hand, they forced the soldiers to put aside their own jobs and work for them.

This is just treating the imperial court as fools!

This is blatant bloodsucking!

This is a termite of the Ming Dynasty!

This kind of situation exists not only in the Beijing camp, but also in the nine border areas and local garrisons, almost all of them are of the same character!

According to historical records, after Chongzhen ascended the throne, he sent Li Banghua to reorganize the Beijing camp.

But Li Banghua was just a minister after all, and a member of the Donglin Party who had been severely damaged by Wei Zhongxian.