On the Nanjing school grounds, the officers of the various battalions of the New Army lined up in several rows in front and behind, and behind them, the new military contingents formed by bureaus were as motionless as sculptures. This degree of uniformity is not something that no one can do in the current Ming Army.

But those who can achieve this level of neatness are all the pro-soldiers around the generals, and the number is limited. Like that kind of veteran, he is more likely to boast of his ability to kill, and he can't maintain this formation for a long time. This kind of tens of thousands of troops lined up for half a day, and the formation did not move at all, which seemed a little strange to these people.

Although those nobles in Nanjing do not have the skills of their ancestors, their vision is still there. At first sight, I was quite surprised in my heart, even the four outer armies that went south two years ago did not have the strength of these military academies in front of them, a group of farmers and miners who put down their hoes, trained for a few months, and then had such a ability?

They originally knew that Yang Chengzu was very good at making money and being a good person, and he was the kind of pen that was very rare in Xungui who was good at writing scripts. But after seeing this army, many people secretly thought, maybe he is really pretending to be a pig and eating a tiger, and he is also very good at training, but he doesn't show it at ordinary times, and only uses it at critical times.

Yang Chengzu wore a wingless black veil and a bullfighting suit, standing on the platform, with dozens of wooden boxes beside him. The mouth of the box was lifted, revealing a narrow sheathed waist knife neatly stacked inside. These waist knives, called Yanling knives, are different from the waist knives often equipped by officials and generals in the Ming Dynasty, with narrow blades and shapes closer to Japanese knives.

Each knife is made of steel-clad technology, with a sharp edge, and when put on the rivers and lakes, it is the so-called magic weapon, and the price is expensive. More importantly, these knives were personally supervised by Emperor Jiajing today, and each knife was personally accepted by the emperor himself, which is of great significance. Yang Chengzu picked up a knife, clicked the tension spring, pulled the knife out of the sheath, and gently flicked the spine of the knife with his fingers, and the Xueliang long knife let out bursts of dragon groans

"Erlang soldiers, these Yanling knives in front of you are all supervised by Banzai himself, and each knife has been verified by Banzai's own hands. Long live Grandpa's daily management, but he has to take time to test a knife and a knife for us. What does this mean? It shows that the emperor's grace is vast! It shows that in Your Majesty's heart, there is always a place for our Zhejiang New Army. Each of you has received enough food and salary, and it is your duty to be buried with bereavement and burial for the dead, to have a decoction for the wounded, and to take care of Yang Ji at home. But Banzai still thinks about you, and not only does he try the edge of each knife himself, but he also engraves his name on the knife. The knife in front of me is divided into three types: the reward knife, the Ji Yong knife, and the loyalty knife. Awarded to the meritorious soldiers, wounded warriors, and fallen soldiers in this peace. On each knife is engraved a person's name, that is, long live your name, remember the name of each of you! Now I read the name out, give the knife! Qi Jingtong! ”

This time, Yang Chengzu's invitation was handed over, and Jiajing's approval was not too fast, and he thought that there was something wrong in the court, and what he was waiting for was good news that he didn't expect. Jiajing actually thought of such a way to reward his merits, although this should be related to the story of Zeng Guofan that he told him, but it is not easy to learn and apply the story.

In the past, rewarding meritorious soldiers was basically inseparable from money and fame, and it was common for a major battle to be held to hold dozens of command and envoy titles. Coupled with the deduction of the handler and the local interception, this kind of reward is often not appreciated by the grassroots soldiers, and the real benefits cannot be experienced.

Moreover, since the money is sent from the person in charge to the soldier, the object of the soldier's gratitude may also be shifted to thank the payer instead of the emperor.

The value of these waist knives is not very high, and even if they are made of good materials, due to the limited number of knives, there are not many knives. But just by relying on a few hundred waist knives, these soldiers really felt the emperor's care for them, as if their performance in killing the enemy on the front line, the emperor knew it and witnessed it with his own eyes in the back.

For these sword-wielding people, it goes without saying glory, and in the context of this era, it is a great honor for anyone who has a royal gift in their home. A single knife made by the Son of Heaven and engraved with his name is enough to be regarded as a family treasure. Moreover, when the military department is in charge, when there is a vacancy, take out this knife and show it to the officials in charge, which can add a very large weight to the other party's heart.

Considering the qualifications assessment in the officialdom, those who have knives and those who don't have knives are likely to embark on two completely different paths in their future careers. After all, in the original Xingwang Mansion, those who threw bricks at the rebellious army are now the youngest to eat six pins of Lu, not to mention this treasure knife?

In the current new military camp, although most of the officers are Anlu people, there is even a saying that "if you can speak Anlu dialect, you will carry a knife on your waist". But from now on, it no longer matters whether you are an Anlu person or not. The entire cadre group will be divided into waist knives and waist knives, and those who hang waist knives are their own people, and long live their own names.

Even if the wounded or the dead are relying on this knife, it is not too difficult to rely on this knife, or to seek treatment for themselves, or for the benefit of their families. When I got to the county yamen, I took out this knife, and the county order also took a high look. These benefits and glory are not something that can be measured by silver.

Even those who didn't get the knife thought that the battle was not over yet, and as long as they were brave or lucky, they were afraid that they would not have a knife to take in the next battle? Relying on these hundreds of knives, the military heart of the new army of the five battalions was almost enveloped by the emperor.

The generals who led the knife, from Qi Jingtong to Yu Dayou, all had tears in their eyes, and when they raised the knife above their heads, they all shouted, "The knife is in the people, and the knife is lost!" Then he kowtowed to the offering table where the decree was placed.

Xu Pengju looked at the waist knife and sent it down, although he knew that this thing was not worth a few dollars, he always felt red and hot, and secretly pondered in his heart, "I have to let those forty-nine guards and bastards practice when I go back, and I can't be too comfortable all day long." It's also a military guard, there are tens of thousands of people, and it's too embarrassing to kill a few widows for Lao Tzu and earn a few knives back. ”

Those guards around them, the family guards looked at these waist knives, and their eyes also showed envy. Thinking that what they had learned could not be lost to these mud legs who had only been trained for a few months, some people were eager to find an opportunity to come back with a knife and a shot.

Yang Chengzu said again: "Your reward has been issued, and the court will reward those who bravely kill the enemy." However, the former is only broken by the thief, and the fighter has been the enemy recently. ”

"Dare to fight! Fight the enemy! ”

The three armies responded in unison, and the sound was like a torrent, washing the entire school field, as if a huge thunder had been fired in the world at the end of autumn, shaking the heavens and the earth.