To this day, Chen Qiyu has completely admired his king.

Although he felt that His Majesty had changed a lot, wasn't that a normal thing?

People who have gone through hardships will change, and he himself is the truest portrayal.

In the Fan Mansion, Emperor Chongzhen smiled and nodded his head at the soldiers of the Yongwei Battalion who passed by along the way.

Even, some ordinary soldiers who remember their names, Emperor Chongzhen will simply greet them.

"Ma Xiaowu, it's your turn to fight again today?"

"Liu San'er, straighten your chest, that's right...... That's it! ”

Every now and then, it will always make the hearts of the soldiers of the Yongwei Battalion warm.

Through the intimate contact in the past few days, the soldiers found that His Majesty, who was high in the palace on weekdays, was so approachable.

And this also made the hearts of the soldiers stick tightly to Emperor Chongzhen.

The backyard of Fan's Mansion was originally Fan Yongdou's kitchen, with all the utensils readily available, and the Jinyi guards were preparing meals.

"Feed the soldiers!"

Emperor Chongzhen walked in and gave a simple order.

"Eh, Emperor!"

Lu Jiude, the supervisor of the Yongwei Battalion, who is responsible for supervising food safety, immediately responded.

"Good job, keep up the good work!"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded and praised Lu Jiude.

The Yongwei Battalion has been able to get to this day, and the supervisors Lu Jiude and Liu Yuanbin have contributed a lot.

When the former Emperor Chongzhen formed the Yongwei Battalion, he appointed Cao Huachun, an old man he trusted, as the eunuch in charge of the seal and the governor of the Imperial Horse Supervisor and the Yongwei Battalion.

Cao Huachun was ordered to retrain the original Four Guards Battalion into a new Yongwei Battalion.

It's just that because of Cao Huachun's high position, it is impossible to be in charge of the Yongwei Battalion specifically, in order to actually control this army, Cao Huachun chose Lu Jiude and Liu Yuanbin of his own faction as the supervisors.

Both of them are well-known talents in the inner court, and in order to effectively improve the combat effectiveness of the Yongwei Battalion, they are extremely careful in selecting and appointing talents.

They carefully recruited loyal and brave people, such as Zhou Yuji, who was born in Beijing, Sun Yingyuan, Huang Degong, and others who were born in Liaodong for a long time.

With the addition of these warlike generals, the combat effectiveness of the Yongwei Battalion has increased rapidly.

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen was quite satisfied with the work of Lu Jiude and Liu Yuanbin.

"Thank you for the emperor's false praise, the slave and maid must make persistent efforts to live up to the holy will!"

After receiving the emperor's personal praise, Lu Jiude excitedly expressed his determination as if he had been beaten with chicken blood.

It can be said that with the emperor's words, he is as stable as Mount Tai in the Yongwei camp.

Even in the Imperial Horse Warden, he can walk sideways.

While talking, a group of generals such as Huang Degong and Zhou Yuji walked in with a smile, and when they saw His Majesty here, they were immediately silent.

"Come out with me and see what the soldiers eat?"

Seeing that these brave generals were a little restrained, Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand and ordered them.

In the central compound of the Fan Mansion, there are neat benches and long tables in the open air, and the faces are clean.

In a corner of the courtyard, dozens of gang leaders set up iron pots, added soup and vegetables, and the steamed buns were stacked as high as a hill, and the fragrance of food floated in the air.

Emperor Chongzhen, who took the lead, and his entourage walked over, and his old man picked up a bun casually, broke off a corner, and put it in his mouth to chew.

Suddenly, the fragrance of flour and the tendon of kneading dough lingered between Emperor Chongzhen's lips and teeth.

I have to say that no matter what era, the army's big pot rice is always more flavorful than the dishes cooked in a small stove.

"Pretty good!"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded and praised it.

"Your Majesty, the army is because of the recent raid on the Jin merchants, and even the abundance of food, the food of the soldiers has been slightly improved in the past few days, and it is still ...... on weekdays."

Zhou Yuji, the deputy general of the Yongwei Battalion, didn't understand what Emperor Chongzhen meant, and hurriedly came out to explain.

In the era of lack of food in the Ming Dynasty, food was life.

In the army, food is rationed.

Under normal circumstances, there is no war, and one meal is dry and one meal is thin. If you eat dry before the war, you will be rewarded with some wine and meat, and the soldiers will be grateful to Dade.

As for eating, eating, and eating well, as in the Hereafter, that does not exist.

Even if the Yongwei Battalion is the Imperial Forest Army of the Son of Heaven, it is impossible to be much stronger than other Ming armies.

It's nothing more than a ration, and it's more secure.

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he was noncommittal, and just asked, "How many days will the Yongwei Battalion be drilled?" ”

"Your Majesty, the Yongwei Battalion has a small exercise every three days, and a big exercise every ten days, never stopping!"

Seeing that His Majesty asked about the exercise, Zhou Yuji breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, and reported to Emperor Chongzhen in a complacent tone.

At the beginning of the formation of the Yongwei Battalion, it took the strongest army in the world as its own responsibility.

Therefore, in the training exercises, the Yongwei Battalion has always been diligent and uninterrupted.

This is among all the armies of the Ming Dynasty today, the Yongwei Battalion can be said to be second to none, and no other army can compare.

Even if it was the Qi family army back then, it was nothing more than that.

Who knows......

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen frowned slightly, and immediately ordered Chen Qiyu, who was following behind him, "Chen Aiqing, in the future, the Yongwei Battalion will be drilled every day, rain or shine." ”

It's just that......

Without waiting for Chen Qiyu to reply, the crowd at the scene was in an uproar.

One a day, rain or shine, Your Majesty, this is too exaggerated!

He is an old man, this is ignorant of military affairs, blind command!

I know that his old man is anxious about the war and wants the army to train and strengthen the army as soon as possible, but the conditions do not allow it!

One day at a time, there are too many logistical things involved.

Armor, uniforms, weapons, food, ...... The loss is simply too great.

Of course, the most important thing is food.

If the wear and tear of military uniforms, weapons and other materials can be barely overcome, then there is really no way to provide food.

The people live on food, and the army is even more so.

According to His Majesty's high-intensity training and drills, what about the daily food?

The original amount of food as a soldier is large, and a few bites of a steamed bun will be gone, if you can do it every day, these soldiers will eat it, and they will all be rice buckets.

If it's still dry, even an iron man can't stand it!

At this time, Dong Changqing, a thousand households in brocade, brought people in with a few cauldrons, and the steaming heat in the pot turned out to be radish and cabbage stew.

This dish is Emperor Chongzhen who ordered Lu Jiude to add food to the soldiers.

The enticing fragrance wafted through the courtyard, making the soldiers who had been hungry after a long day's work salivate.

Emperor Chongzhen glanced at the generals of the Yongwei camp, pointed to the steaming stew in the pot, and asked them:

"Ladies and gentlemen, in the future, the Yongwei Camp will have three meals a day, and there will be meat for the meals, can you do it once a day, rain or shine?"

Gollum......

However, some soldiers were not angry and issued the most primitive "protest" of human beings against food.

Obediently, I was really seduced by His Majesty's words.

Three meals a day, there is meat in the meal, think about this day, wonderful like a fairy!

"Your Majesty, if the food can keep up, not to mention one exercise a day, it is three exercises a day, and we can also do it rain or shine."

In the end, in the face of Emperor Chongzhen's question, a general named Li Shichang took the lead in answering.

It should be said that Li Shichang's answer represents the voice of the general officers and soldiers.

In fact, in this era, don't say anything noble, many people join the army just to eat a bowl of rice.

If they can eat enough and eat well, they are really not afraid of hardship or tiredness.

"Good!"

Emperor Chongzhen stroked his palms with great interest, looked around at the generals such as Huang Degong and Zhou Yuji, who were a little incredulous, and said something that made them ecstatic.

"My warriors, after this battle, I have decided to expand the Brave Guard Camp to replace the current position of the Beijing Camp.

Therefore, the imperial court will do its best to give priority to ensuring the daily supply of the Yongwei battalion. ”

"Long live Your Majesty!"

"Son of Heaven Shengming!"

Suddenly, Huang Degong, Zhou Yuji, Sun Yingyuan and other generals all knelt down happily and shouted praises to Emperor Chongzhen.

The expansion of the Yongwei Battalion and the replacement of the position of the Beijing Battalion are the most beneficial to them, the generals of the original Yongwei Battalion.

In a word, if the tide rises, they can all be promoted naturally, so how can they not be happy?

Only Chen Qiyu frowned lightly, and his face was worried.

It's not because of the problem of expanding the Yongwei Battalion, but because I am worried that His Majesty will say that the Yongwei Battalion will replace the Jingying camp too early.

Originally, such a thing had to be done quietly, and when the Yongwei Battalion grew and the time was ripe, it would naturally be logical.

Now say it and spread it, and the nobles who control the Beijing camp will definitely not be happy in their hearts, so they will naturally make trouble with Your Majesty.

After all, today's nobles are suppressed by Wenchen, and they only have the land of Jingying.

If there is no more land left for himself, what is left of Xungui?

However, in this public, Chen Qiyu did not advise Emperor Chongzhen on the spot, he was ready to find an opportunity to communicate privately.

"Don't be happy first, don't be happy, I can say it first, if you can't help me bring out an invincible hero with great martial arts, don't blame me for being ruthless."

Looking at the elated generals of the Yongwei battalion, Emperor Chongzhen said lightly with a straight face.

It's just that the words are light, but the content makes people shudder.

In fact, it is not surprising that Emperor Chongzhen is so strict, this matter is really important, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it is related to the life and death of the Ming Dynasty.

Therefore, it was necessary for Emperor Chongzhen to beat the generals so that they would not get carried away.

"Your Majesty, the minister will live up to the grace of God!"

In front of everyone's eyes, Zhou Yuji took the lead in expressing his position.

However, he didn't dare to endorse everyone, so he could only guarantee for himself.

"Your Majesty, the minister will also live up to the grace of God!"

Immediately afterwards, Huang Degong also expressed his position on his own behalf.

"Your Majesty, the minister will also live up to the grace of God!"

Suddenly, the generals expressed their positions on behalf of themselves one by one.

You don't need a hammer to beat the drum, just point it to the end.

Besides, there are Chen Qiyu, Huang Degong, Zhou Yuji, Sun Yingyuan, Lu Jiude, Liu Wenbin and others, and Emperor Chongzhen is actually very relieved.

Therefore, after beating them, Emperor Chongzhen immediately showed a smiling face again, looking very relieved.

"As long as you can be loyal to state affairs, I will be rewarded.

Please also tell your subordinates that if they are unfortunate enough to sacrifice their lives for the country, the dependents of the family will be supported by the imperial court. If there is a disability, the court will make them worry-free!

I will not let the soldiers shed blood and tears! ”

In the face of the generals of the Yongwei battalion, Emperor Chongzhen made a solemn promise.

"Your Majesty......"

Finally, Chen Qiyu couldn't help but call softly.

Your Majesty is crazy!

In order to quickly form an army and boost morale, His Majesty really did everything.

It's just that it's not realistic!

Speaking of which, in the Ming Dynasty, ordinary soldiers who were killed or disabled in battle also had a one-time pension of fifty taels of silver.

However, His Majesty's move is to take care of the families of the soldiers killed in the war and the lives of the wounded soldiers, and this burden is great.

Even though Chen Qiyu believed that His Majesty was capable of solving the financial problems, such a huge burden, accumulated over time, wouldn't it be necessary to drag down the finances of the Ming Dynasty?

Therefore, Chen Qiyu tried to stop it.

Emperor Chongzhen knew what Chen Qiyu meant, shook his hand with a smile, and said firmly to the generals who were also very shocked: "The Jin merchants have fallen, and someone must take over their business."

I will choose from the families of meritorious soldiers to choose people who are good at business and replace them!

It's just that some of the rules have to be changed. ”

As soon as Emperor Chongzhen's words came out, Chen Qiyu breathed a sigh of relief, and all the generals also understood what His Majesty meant.

Raise the army with business!

How did the huge wealth of the Jin merchants come about, and it did not start by the policies of the Ming court.

In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang adopted a series of strategies conducive to economic development, so that the national economy could be restored and the country became increasingly stable.

However, the remnants of the Mongol and Yuan forces on the northern frontier were constantly trying to move south, forcing the Ming Dynasty to amass a large number of troops on the northern border.

At the same time, due to the imbalance between the economy and the output of goods in the north and the south, the border towns have a huge demand for military supplies, but the supply is seriously insufficient.

In order to solve this problem, the Ming Dynasty created a system of opening grain and paying for it.

That is, the household department will use the monopoly right of salt to bid for merchants to send military supplies to the border towns according to the surplus and shortage of grain storage materials for war readiness on the border.

Then, according to the actual transportation situation, the same amount of official salt is paid, so that the merchant can obtain the official salt and sell it legally.

This is the "opening of the middle method" to stabilize the construction of the frontier in the early years of the Ming Dynasty.

There are three specific contents of the "Open China Law":

First of all, "report to China", that is, the merchants in Kaizhong transported the materials to the border garrison according to the items indicated in the household department, and then obtained salt quotations;

secondly, "guarding the branch", that is, after the merchant receives the salt, he goes to the designated salt field to wait for the salt according to the regulations;

Finally, the "market trade", that is, after the merchant withdraws the salt, then sells it in the designated area according to the quotation.

The newspaper - the branch - the market is easy, which constitutes the whole process of "opening the law".

Through the "Open China Law", the Ming Dynasty effectively ensured the supply of military supplies for the garrison troops in the border towns, and at the same time reduced the expenditure of the state finance.

In this way, the original official monopoly of salt sales has been transformed into a model of both government and business, which has effectively driven the vitality of the salt trading market.

What's more, some businessmen who had profited through the "Kaizhong Law" began to try to raise their own funds in order to obtain higher profits from salt introduction, and took the initiative to recruit laborers to go to the border towns to expand the border areas and reclaim the builders.

With the emergence of salt to attract merchants, the price of military food in the border areas gradually became similar to that in the mainland, and the markets in the border towns also prospered, which attracted a large number of people to settle in the border towns.

At the same time, in order to deal with the plundering of the Mongol forces that may occur at any time, Shangtun spontaneously built various defense facilities, and virtually pushed the defense system north of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty to the north as a whole.

It has effectively improved the function and radiation range of the defense system in the northern part of the Ming Dynasty.