A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 747 Sun Chuanting

"Enriching the place with officials is really a pen of the Marquis of Yongning, and it hits the good governance of our dynasty's long-standing evils!"

A few days after Li Banghua and his entourage entered Xuanfu Town, a group of people and horses also hurriedly galloped on the flat official road of Xuanfu Town. , only a thick white gas was sprayed from the nostrils.

The leader of this team was a majestic man about fifty years old in casual clothes. He had a handsome appearance and thick beard, and his eyes were shining brightly. He was Sun Chuanting, the new governor of Shaanxi Province.

On the day of Lidong, Sun Chuanting recovered, and the emperor summoned him. Until now, Sun Chuanting still clearly remembers the situation at that time.

After he met the emperor to ask about politics, and said "If you want to break the bandits, you must have [-] elite soldiers and a million in food and pay", he could keenly feel the embarrassment in the emperor's heart.

"The salary is one million..."

Sure enough, after a long time, the emperor sighed, "I can only give you 30 yuan."

Sun Chuanting had been prepared for this long ago, so he asked the emperor to allow himself to raise funds and train the new army. The court did not interfere.

The emperor was silent for a long time, and finally said: "I agree, Wang Qing will wipe out the thieves as soon as possible, and I will live up to my expectations."

On that day, the emperor entertained Sun Chuanting in the apse. He was overwhelmed by Sun Chuanting's grievances over the years, and asked about his administrative measures after he arrived in the local area. Sun Chuanting answered them one by one. , quite in line with Emperor Chongzhen's wishes.

The monarch and his ministers chatted a lot, and they were very excited. The emperor also adopted many of Sun Chuanting's suggestions one by one, which made Sun Chuanting very excited.On that day, the Ministry of War also resumed the official position of Sun Chuanting, and appointed him as the left servant of the Ministry of War and the governor of the three sides of Shaanxi.

On the second day, Emperor Chongzhen issued a decree to reward Sun Chuanting with fine gold, silver, robes, cloth, and more than a thousand silver medals for meritorious service. .

Now everyone in the capital knew that Sun Chuantingjian was in the emperor's heart, and all the officials invited him one after another.

There are still many people who come to seek refuge, hoping to serve as aides, which is in stark contrast to the coldness of the past.

The Ministry of War urged him very urgently, and Sun Chuanting had no intention of staying in the capital.

At this time, he already knew about the Tang Bao. After the defeat of the former governor of the three sides, Wang Qiaonian, the intruders tried to attack Tongguan. Fortunately, the governor Feng Shikong collected the defeated soldiers and guarded the pass so that no thieves could enter. Preside over the overall situation.

Concerned about the situation in Shaanxi and Henan, Sun Chuanting didn't care to stop in the capital. He only went to visit his mentor Hong Chengchou when he was parting.

After Hong Chengchou was granted the title of Nan'anbo, he has been recuperating in the capital. In fact, he is also an ambitious person. He was equally happy when he learned that he would be the governor of the capital.

Sun Chuanting felt sad when he saw his teacher's face became clearer, his body became thinner, as if he could be blown down by a gust of wind, and he coughed painfully from time to time.

This time I was able to recover, thanks to the great efforts of my mentor, but I couldn't repay it.

In the past, although Hong Chengchou was said to be his boss and his teacher, Sun Chuanting was arrogant and did not take Hong Chengchou seriously, but after several years of setbacks, standing in front of Hong Chengchou, Sun Chuanting could only be grateful.

Seeing that his disciples were respectful and restrained, Hong Chengchou nodded slightly, satisfied in his heart, he kindly asked Sun Chuanting to sit down, and said, "Baigu, I have high hopes for the situation in Shaanxi, you need to be careful, don't I have failed the emperor."

Sun Chuanting said respectfully, "Student understands."

Hong Chengchou asked what he heard: "When I heard that the platform called for the right, you said, 'Use the Qin soldiers to defend the Qin land, and use the Qin land to support the Qin soldiers'?"

Sun Chuanting raised his head abruptly: "The court's food and pay are not enough, so the only way is to farm in the local area."

Hong Chengchou was thoughtful: "This is to imitate the Jingbian army."

Seeing Sun Chuanting nodding, Hong Chengchou sighed: "It's a good thing to train new troops, and all over the world are following the example of Marquis Yongning. I'm afraid painting tigers won't turn into anti-dogs."

He looked at Sun Chuanting, his eyes were full of wisdom: "Do you know what is the core of Yongninghou?"

Sun Chuanting looked at his mentor and said in a deep voice: "The staff system, the training system, and the logistics system!"

Hong Chengchou looked at his student for a long time, and smiled gratifiedly, followed by a piercing cough, he waved his hand, stopped Sun Chuanting from stepping forward to support him, and said with a smile: "As expected of Sun Baigu, my most proud student , is to touch the key point!"

He walked in the hall with his hands behind his back. In Sun Chuanting's eyes, his thin figure was as majestic as a green pine.

Just listen to Hong Chengchou slowly said: "People say that the success of Marquis Yongning lies in the fact that he is a son of a good family and divides the land. But how can things in the world be so simple?"

He said: "If this is the case, we can only train a new army like Cao and Wang...Of course, if there is enough quantity, this new army will be enough, but it will never reach the height of the Jingbian army!"

His complexion was deep: "I have lived in the capital for a long time, and when I have nothing to do in my spare time, I have been thinking about Yongninghou and the Jingbian Army. I even thought about it one by one when Yongninghou made his fortune in Jingbianbao. People have deep meaning and great ambition!"

He said: "Already at that time, Wang Dou subdivided the logistics, separated the management of soldiers from the training of soldiers, and promoted the official language, so that the soldiers could read..."

He turned his head abruptly and looked at Sun Chuanting: "What do you mean by that?"

Sun Chuanting said in a deep voice, "This is the drill of a dignified army!"

He said: "Subdividing the logistics, the soldiers have enough food and clothing, so they can concentrate on fighting without worrying about the future. Separate the command and training of the soldiers, and treat the soldiers as the same during the training, so there will be no bad habits of family members. Everyone can fight, that is, Qi Shuai The truth of the majestic array."

"There is another person in charge of the army. If the soldiers are not used as generals, the authority will be in the hands of the commander. He will not worry about the disaster of private soldiers! It is the capital of the leader. This army has no congratulatory dragons, Zuo Liangyu and other rats. , there is no fear of being defeated by the enemy, and you can stand in an invincible position!"

He said: "Let the sergeants be literate and promote the official language of the army. All the soldiers in the army are heroes. They understand the principle of loyalty and righteousness for the country. They are eager to fight and dare to fight! You can also remember military discipline, strict military discipline, and skilled battle formation. In this way, the former dies and the latter dies." Continue on, the army is extremely tough, safe and invincible?"

He said: "Occasionally there will be a small defeat, and there will be a steady stream of soldiers from the training side, enough to make up for the source of troops, and then the veterans will lead the new soldiers to make the army stronger. The stronger it is."

Hong Chengchou looked at Sun Chuanting in surprise: "You said it very clearly, some teachers didn't expect it, but you mentioned it!"

He pondered and said: "However, in the Song Dynasty, soldiers were not used as generals..."

Sun Chuanting said disdainfully: "Those who talk about armies on paper, with him in charge of the army, can they be undefeated?"

He said: "So, this is the magical effect of the staff system!"

He said: "Using the counselors who are familiar with the military system as the praise painting, using the night not to harvest as the eyes and ears, and then using the sand table of the atlas as the plan, so that the battlefield is concentrated in a square inch. When I look at the situation, it is like looking at the pattern on the palm of my hand. Is it just talking about soldiers on paper in the past? Therefore, soldiers are not used for generals, and sergeants can fight wars, so the staff system is indispensable."

Hong Chengchou nodded thoughtfully, and looked at Sun Chuanting: "After you arrive in Shaanxi, will you do this?"

Sun Chuanting said: "It's easy to say, but if you want to form an army based on this, it's difficult..."

He shook his head: "There is a way to be late, every step is late... To garrison the fields, you need to be upright and capable to garrison officials, and the army of a province needs to garrison enough food and wages. I don't know how long it will take. There are many people who praise paintings and talk about them. In the military system, there are few people who are killed on the battlefield. It is not easy to build a staff department. It is not easy to draw detailed battle maps in various places on the sand table and maps. It is not easy for the sergeants to learn to read and memorize the military laws. It's been a long time, I can't wait..."

After many years of development, Wang Dou has achieved the present results. Sun Chuanting wants to build a new army from scratch. It is not a simple and easy task.

Hong Chengchou sighed: "Indeed, it is difficult!"

He murmured: "The key to running an army is to have enough soldiers and food, dare to fight and want to fight! It's just easier said than done, that is, enough soldiers and food..."

He kept shaking his head, and he could imagine Sun Chuanting's difficulties when he arrived.

In the past, when Sun Chuanting was the governor of Shaanxi, he also rectified the long-standing malpractices in the settlements and paid enough for the army. At that time, many powerful officials and gentry who occupied the farmland instigated the riots and were suppressed by Sun Chuanting.

But it was still a small matter at that time, and he had his own support. Now that Sun Chuanting is the governor, he wants to drill the new army on a large scale, which will touch the interests of more people. Besieged on all sides, attacking them in groups will be a typical portrayal of his future.

Sun Chuanting was also silent. Indeed, it was quite difficult to rectify the affairs of the village after returning home.

And why is Daming not good at soldiers?The biggest reason is also the lack of food and wages.

Without food, sergeants can't even do basic training. If they want to train elite soldiers, they need a lot of meat. Otherwise, forced training or rectification will only lead to mutiny.

Why did the armies appear as servants?It's not because of the lack of food and wages that some people are not allowed to have enough food and clothing, and the rest are starving.These people became the elite servants, which played a great role at the beginning, but now they have become the source of private troops, and the court is helpless.

The premise of rectification has always been that there must be enough food and wages to put it down, otherwise all previous efforts will be wasted.

More importantly, there needs to be an army that completely obeys itself.

Hong Chengchou also thought of this, he mused: "It's a pity that Zuo Guang, the commander-in-chief of aid and suppression, died first in battle. It's overwhelming, you're all alone..."

He also heard some rumors, looked at Sun Chuanting, and pointed out: "If there is something to do, we should try our best to appease you..."

Sun Chuanting remained silent, but a sharp cold light flashed in his eyes.

Moreover, in the 12th year of Chongzhen, he and Hong Chengchou entered the guard, and afterwards he was imprisoned and demoted to a commoner. Ma let himself take back to Shaanxi.

Sun Chuanting felt that it was no less difficult for his mentor to rectify the capital camp than himself. It is better to stay in the capital for the remaining soldiers and horses, so that his mentor can mobilize some close soldiers and horses. He can find a way to solve the Shaanxi matter by himself.

Seeing Sun Chuanting's appearance, it was obvious that he didn't listen to his own words, Hong Chengchou sighed in his heart, although Sun Chuanting has been more introverted these years, he is still stubborn and arrogant in his bones, I hope everything goes well after he goes back.

The two talked a lot. What Hong Chengchou experienced the most about the thieves in these years was that "people's turmoil starts from hunger and cold." The thief will not repeatedly destroy the revival, he said solemnly: "I don't know what good strategy Baigu has?"

Sun Chuanting said, Hong Chengchou was shocked and turned pale, he tremblingly said: "This is against the way of benevolence and forgiveness of our holy sect, absolutely not... The impeachers are like clouds, you..."

He was so anxious that he wanted to speak, but he felt a fishy and hot thing rushing up his throat, and he tried to swallow it. His body was shaking, and he pointed at Sun Chuanting tremblingly, and finally spoke again: "...absolutely not! "

"Why not?"

Sun Chuanting raised his head suddenly, he roared, and stared at Hong Chengchou, his eyes were full of coldness, Sen Han's voice was more like a word, squeezed out from his chest: "These thieves, why not?" ?”

There was a faint light in his eyes, and some of the deepest things were in his words: "There is a way for me not to go to hell, who will go to hell! For the sake of Ming Dynasty, my Sun Chuanting will be ruined and left dead in the wilderness, so why should I be afraid?"

……

After leaving the capital, besides some guards, those who followed Sun Chuanting at this time were the staff recruited over the years.Like Sun Chuanting, they are all very concerned about the current situation, often pointing out the country, encouraging words, and all of them are people with great ambitions.

These people were the result of Sun Chuanting's careful selection when he got acquainted when he was in crisis. They were trustworthy in character.

When Sun Chuanting returned to Shaanxi, of course he would not take the bridge, nor did he show a guard of honor. Instead, he rode his horse along the way, and sometimes even dozed off immediately. Follow up.

All the staff finally waited for Sun Gong to recover, and they could show what they had learned in their chests. They were all very excited. Regardless of fatigue, they followed Sun Chuanting's pommel horse all the way, and no one felt tired.

When they entered Xuanfu Town, they of course had to check their IDs, but Sun Chuanting had been in Xuanzhen for a long time and had already gotten used to it.

Even when entering the checkpoint, he joked a few words with the officer guarding the checkpoint.

The news of his recovery spread quickly. At this time, the officer guarding the card already knew about it, and because Sun Chuanting often went out and in the customs, the two had known each other for a long time. The officer even congratulated him, but when Sun Chuanting smiled and wanted to give the reward, he Smiling and declined.

Because he suffered from it in his early years, Wang Dou suffered from the disadvantages of the concierge barrier, so when selecting these people, he paid great attention to selecting those who have new ideas, good prospects, and high status.

In the Jingbian army, these people have relatively high status and rich wealth. Coupled with the strict supervision and punishment system, their ability to resist temptation is greatly enhanced.

This is easy to understand. A person with a bright future and a net worth of millions or tens of millions will naturally disdain a bribe of ten or one hundred yuan, let alone ruin his future.On the contrary, with a salary of 100 yuan or 500 yuan a month, many people are shocked by the bribe of a pack of cigarettes.

Sun Chuanting also appreciated this system very much, thinking that he would do the same when he arrived in Shaanxi.And before he went to the capital, he had already applied for a pass, which had not expired at this time, so he passed the pass with all his staff in a short period of time.

Of course, they also saw what was reported by the Xuanfu Times. Everyone either agreed or disagreed, arguing all the way, especially when they were resting at the station at night.

Sun Chuanting categorically denied what the staff said that Xuanfu Town might develop in the direction of redundant government and redundant officials, and praised this policy full of praise.

He said: "Imperial power does not go to the countryside, this is the root cause of the country's lack of financial resources!"

He said: "The local control is weak, and we have to rely on the big gentry to undertake the taxation. This generation colludes with the subordinates internally and externally, transfers the burden, and even conceals the household registration. The less the government's tax revenue, the heavier the burden on the common people. In the early days of the country, the tax revenue was especially high. Nearly 4000 million stones, how much is there now? It’s all because the Lijia System was abolished, and the Fish Scale Atlas and Yellow Book became empty talk!"

"Although the current country is large, it is empty and powerless. It is like a patient with paralyzed hands and feet. Coupled with the control of the clan, the powerful and powerful sit big, and the government becomes weaker and weaker. On the other hand, in Xuanfu Town, the protection system is strict, like arms and fingers. Anyone who is an officer Gentlemen, no one can evade taxes, this is small but solid, and the local officials are capable!"

Sun Chuanting vaguely realized that self-government in the countryside was the source of all the evils in front of us. If the local power is strong, the power of the government will inevitably shrink, which will lead to the retrogression of the fiscal and taxation machinery, and the less tax and food payable. In this era, it is really a terrible thing.

Therefore, it is better to be too strict with local affairs than to be too lenient!
This is also the result of his several years of investigation in Xuanfu Town. He is very envious of Xuanfu Town's integration of top and bottom, as well as a powerful taxation machine.

Moreover, he also realized that the lack of a financial center to coordinate the overall situation is also one of the reasons for Daming's current financial chaos. There are local finances in the local area, and central finance in the central government. All parties were swallowed up, and there was nowhere to check.

In contrast, Xuanfu Town, an independent financial secretary, makes overall planning so that every tael of silver can be used where it should be used to avoid meaningless consumption.

Sun Chuanting also said to the staff: "It is taken from the people and used for the people. Although there are many officials in Xuanzhen Town, there are endless tax sources. Especially in Daxing factories and workshops, the more tax sources every year, it is enough to pay for the recruitment of officials. "

An aide who knew the local situation also said: "It is true that in addition to the government officials, there are actually many non-economic officials in various parts of the country. The total number of people in the county is not much less than the local officials in Xuanfu Town."

In all parts of the Ming Dynasty, although there are very few officials in the establishment, at present, due to the many affairs, which yamen has recruited a large number of assistants and white servants?These people are of the same nature as the temporary workers of later generations. They do not need support from the state, but they need local support.

In order to support these temporary workers, the local governments have to greatly increase their retention, and the less tax and food they turn over to the state treasury.

Moreover, most of these people are local green-skinned idlers, and their character is even worse. Many economic officials and the three gangs of official government officials are embarrassed to do things, but they are unscrupulous. They can do any evil and bad things. The local people eat these people. The pain is even greater.

It's better to recruit some regular officials, at least there is a unified assessment.

A group of people pointed out the country and talked freely about their future actions. Sun Chuanting was full of passion, and all the staff were also enthusiastic. They wanted to follow Sun Chuanting to do great things.

On this day, everyone arrived in Huailaiwei, rested at Chenzi Nuanpu for one night, and continued on their way the next day.

At this time, the sky was just slightly bright, but Sun Chuanting packed up his luggage in high spirits and was ready to leave.Last night he had been discussing with his staff until late at night. After they left, he organized his notes again. He didn't sleep for a long time, but Sun Chuanting didn't feel tired at all.

When he went out of the room, all the staff were ready and waiting for him, and there was also Ma Weizhong, the loyal long follower, wearing a long sword, who looked around vigilantly. Although the town of Xuanfu was peaceful, he never relaxed his security protection for the lord.

Sun Chuanting stretched his waist and said with a smile to everyone: "If you have to catch another day today, you can reach the town by tomorrow at the latest."

All the staff members laughed, and a close staff member approached and said in a low voice: "Grandpa Sun, do you really want to go to Zhencheng to seek help from Marquis Yongning? This matter..."

Sun Chuanting waved his hand: "I know what you're going to say. It's just a rudimentary creation in Shaanxi, with a lot of waste waiting to be done. Without the support of the Marquis of Yongning, I don't know how long it will take for the new army to go on the right path."

He said with emotion: "Time does not wait for me, for the sake of Daming, what is a mere face?"

He looked back and saw Wo Niu Mountain looming. The mountains were emerald green, covered by clouds and mists. The road in front of him was covered with frost and light snow, and the surroundings were silent.

The chief followed Ma Weizhong to lead his own horse, and neighed him familiarly, as if complaining that he was not sympathetic to himself, and was on his way all day.

Sun Chuanting smiled, stroked the horse's head, and said, "Get on the horse!"

He took the lead and ran up the official road, and everyone in his entourage also got on their horses and caught up.

Long hisses came and went, and the whistling sound of horses spread far and wide.

……

After returning from Baoanzhou, Li Banghua no longer had the interest to visit in private. From Baoanwei City to Zhencheng, it was about tens of miles away. Ma Guoxi had been sent to Jiming Station, and Li Banghua had to go the rest of the way by himself. .

After bidding farewell to Ma Guoxi, the group continued on their way. Because they were sitting on the Guanqiao, they traveled slowly. They traveled at dusk that day and rested at a post station.

When I got up early the next morning, there was a snowfall, because it was not far from the town, the flag guard of honor had to be more neat, but at the time of the Acropolis, all the entourage did not want to go to Yijin, the snow melted It was very cold and thick.

After many days of grievances, everyone complained, especially the accompanying eunuchs, who kept yelling and cursing. They once extorted money from Xu Zucheng, who was guarding the security guard city, but Xu Zucheng sternly refused. The servants beat out with sticks.

This is Jin Yiwei. He used to stomp his feet casually, and the ground of Daming would shake three times. Now he can't even deal with a guard with a big booger in the border town. It makes everyone feel that the hairy phoenix is ​​not as good as the chicken, and is angry. Heartbroken.

In addition, at this time, they were shrinking their hands and stomping their feet, and they were walking on the right side of the road. No matter how you look at it, the guard of honor in this line did not have the majesty of an imperial envoy.

Looking outside, Li Banghua sighed softly, and continued to close his eyes to meditate, only thinking in his mind, what should he do when he arrives at Xuanfu Town and meets Wang Dou.

The only thing that comforted him was that after receiving the news that the imperial envoy was coming, the Marquis of Yongning, Wang Dou, had already led the civil and military officials from the town ten miles out of the city to meet him.

(End of this chapter)