Episode 144 The Great Qing Military Exchange

Ignoring the various stares around him, Fourteen Gege played with a pen in his right hand and a document in his left hand, and read expressionlessly:

"In December 35, before Guangwu came to power, the price of officers at all levels in the Qing army generally rose, and the overall average market increased by 15% compared with the same period in 34....... of which the largest increase was the battalion commander, who wanted to be a battalion commander in December 34 needed an average of 3,000 oceans, and in December 35, it rose to 3,800 oceans, an increase of 27%...... Correspondingly, the price of the upper level is more moderate than that of the actual shortage of the upper level, for example, the price of a brigade commander is 22,000 oceans, which is only 9% higher than the same period in 34 years......

But at the end of 35, after the Guangwu coup came to power and announced the general mobilization for war, the price of the actual shortage of officers at all levels of the Qing army dropped sharply, with the average price of a battalion commander being only 1,500 oceans, and the price of a brigade commander being only 18,000 oceans...... In this way, you can see that the prices of middle- and lower-ranking officers in the Qing army were the most affected by the war factors and the most sensitive to fluctuations...... The upper echelons of the military are relatively stable, with little increase in peacetime and not much in the face of war......"

Fourteen grids were numb to the script, and most of the ministers in the venue were confused. Xiang Xiaoqiang couldn't stand it anymore, and said in his heart, Sister, have you been a securities analyst before.

……

"Ahem...... Xiang Xiaoqiang coughed dryly, and said with a smile, "Her Royal Highness the Princess...... Because although you know about the situation of buying and selling officials in the Qing army, it is always not so comprehensive. So, would you like to give us a general introduction? ”

"Hmm."

Fourteen Gege glanced at Xiao Qiang, then raised his eyes and peeked at the other ministers, coughed, lowered his head and said while thinking:

"Hmm...... It's also good...... That is true...... Well, the Qing army basically ...... Actually, it's always been ...... It's not the same ...... as Daming."

The "buzzing" sound rose again in the main hall, and many ministers were dissatisfied, and began to talk to each other, whispering, and many people glanced at Fourteen Gege with contempt, and their eyes were full of superiority.

…… Oh, it turns out that this is Princess Liaoyang! It turns out that this is the Manchu spy leader who shocked the Ming factory guard! That's it!

But after all, this is the princess of Daming, even if the ministers are dissatisfied, they still abide by the courtiers' etiquette, and no one interrupts.

Zhu Yourong sat on the first place, looked at Fourteen Gege with concern and sympathy, and quietly took a sip of tea to hide the anxiety in his heart.

Xiang Xiaoqiang also lowered his head and didn't say anything. He knew that Fourteen Gege was different from Zhu Yourong, unlike Zhu Yourong, who had lived under the spotlight and lens since he was a child. And there are also personality reasons for the fourteen grids themselves. Before she came to Daming, although she held huge power, she was always used to hiding herself and living in the "shadows". They don't go to the newspaper or appear in public, their whereabouts are secretive, they come and go without a trace, and even if they hold internal meetings at the sticky pole, they are just a bunch of old acquaintances.

Her poor performance at the press conference in Fengtian Temple last time had already seen that Fourteen Gege was not suitable for public. Especially today, in the last hall, all the top military and political officials of the Ming Dynasty gathered together, and the actual status of any person was higher than her...... In addition, what she wants to say now is the dark facts of her "motherland" and her nation...... Although the purpose was not to humiliate her, it undoubtedly aggravated her inferiority complex in public.

……

Xiang Xiaoqiang quietly stretched out a hand under the table and gently placed it on the thigh of Fourteen Grids. However, he did not take the opportunity to caress it, but patted it twice in relief.

Fourteen Gege's voice suddenly froze, and he raised his head suddenly, and the tension in his whole body immediately shifted from the top of the table to the bottom of the table. His thighs stiffened, his mind went blank, but his mouth unconsciously gushed:

“…… As you all know, in the Qing army, just like the Qing officialdom, selling official beards is also very popular. But you may only know that this is prevalent, but you don't know to what extent. In fact, the Qing government's officialdom sold more officials than the military, but it did not form such a price market like the stock market. Because the situation of the local government is much more complicated, the oil and water will be very different in different places. Moreover, there are many types of officials in the Qing government, unlike in the army, which only has the main ranks of army, division, brigade, regiment, battalion, company, and platoon. Moreover, the difference in oil and water in the garrisons in different places is not as big as the difference between the local governments, so the 'price' of official positions in the army is easier to unify, and it is easier for us to make statistics.

"Compared with the price trend in the past 37 years, the Qing military rank has a brief decline. Then there is a year-on-year upward trend. The short decline is that after the Guangxu Dynasty's Wuxu Reform, the Northern Qing Dynasty's officials had a short period of relatively clean and honest stage. At this time, it was also the best and fastest period for the development of various constructions in the Northern Qing Dynasty, and the phenomenon of selling official positions had converged to a certain extent, so the overall market of official positions in the army also declined. However, in the middle and late Xuantong Dynasty, various reforms came to a halt and regressed, and the rule of officials in the Northern Qing Dynasty began to corrupt sharply, even more so than before the Restoration. As a result, the price of real shortages at all levels in the government and the military has also been rising.

"There is a characteristic of the price of Qing military positions, that is, it continues to rise in peacetime, and once there is a war, it will fall sharply, such as before the Ming and Qing dynasties started the war at the end of last year, when the situation was tense. Because those who want to buy officials are ready to get rich, not to really go to the battlefield to die. Once there is a war, everyone will no longer buy officers. Especially for the official positions below the brigade commander, the market is plummeting. Because officers below the brigade commander generally have to go to the front line in person, their lives are in danger. Officers above the brigade commander do not need to go to the front line, and at least their lives are not in danger when they start a war, so the market has not fallen too much.

"In addition to this reason, it is also because in the Qing army, middle and lower-level officers such as company commanders and platoon commanders are better to be, after all, they do not require systematic military knowledge like senior officers like brigade commanders and division commanders. Officers at the army, division, and brigade levels are not all paid for, and they generally still have to be born in regular military schools, and they also have a strong nepotism, that is, the background. The harder the backstage, the less money you have to pay, and some of them have a more powerful relationship, and they can even be free. But the middle and lower-level officers are different, except for some of them who were born in military schools, many of them are the children of local wealthy people, who have not even studied in military schools, and directly buy them with money.

"For example, Zhang San opened a restaurant. Generally, if you want to open the restaurant, Zhang San first has to feed the local government and garrison, and secondly, feed the local folk bullies. However, if Zhang San spent two or three thousand oceans to buy a battalion commander for his son in the local garrison, then his son would have hundreds of brothers under him, and the local folk bullies would at least not dare to take the initiative to bully him. …… Although two or three thousand oceans is a lot of money, because of the investment in a battalion commander, although it will have to be fed to the government in the future, the money on the side of the civilian bullies will be saved, because the garrison is the most powerful bully in the local area, even more powerful than the government. But if the other party's backstage is bigger, then Zhang San still needs to be honored. However, because his son is the commander of the official army battalion, the other party also knows in his heart, and he will also give face, and the money he collects from Zhang San will be much less than that of other businesses. In this way, it is well worth investing in officers. ”

……

In the main hall, the ministers sighed. Beiqing is a very closed country, and it is very difficult to see such a concrete example in the newspapers from outside. This is the first time that the ministers have heard what Fourteen Gege said. In fact, not only ministers, but even the intelligence agencies of the Ming Dynasty, the relevant information is not so comprehensive. They can collect it through spy agents over a long period of time, and finally piece together an incomplete general picture. But because Fourteen Gege was in charge of Beiqing's own intelligence network, she was far more than just understanding the "general appearance", she could even draw a detailed price chart.

Fourteen Gege breathed a sigh of relief, completely abandoned his nervousness, smiled, and continued:

"At the beginning of this year, after the Ming and Qing ceasefires, the prices of Qing army officers began to climb again. By now, the average price of a battalion commander has risen to 4,700 oceans. In less than half a year since the armistice, it has increased by 23% compared to before the war last year. From the end of 34 to the end of 35 years, in one year, the price of the battalion commander of the Qing army only increased by 27%, and now in half a year, the price of the battalion commander has increased by 23%, which can be said to have nearly doubled. This also proves that in the second half of the war, the domestic situation in the Northern Qing Dynasty became even worse. Ten years ago, most people bought officials to make money, but ten years later, most of them bought officials for self-preservation.

"Because in recent years, a faster and more direct way to collect money has become popular among the officials in the Northern Qing Dynasty, that is, to let the police arrest people directly on the street, throw them in the number and set up a random charge, and then let the family pay money to ransom the person. How much money depends on their financial resources. If the money is not paid, the arrested person will soon die in a prison cell. Often, many people will be arrested at a time, and then the government and the police will divide the account. But if someone in the family of the arrested person is an officer in the local garrison, then if the rank is high, the two sides may sit together for a meal, and everyone laughs and says that it is a misunderstanding, and the person is directly released. Even if the level is relatively low, the government will not do too much, and there will be a big discount, so that he will not go bankrupt. ”

Fourteen Gege paused here and took a cup of tea. The Foreign Secretary took the opportunity to interject:

"Her Royal Highness Princess...... What you said about the Northern Qing Dynasty government arresting people and collecting money, etc., this minister also understands, and we, the people of the Ming Dynasty, have always understood. But there is a key question, I hope His Highness can solve the doubts of the ministers. ”

Fourteen Gege was stunned for a moment, and then smiled:

"Okay, Lord He, please speak."

何子光 says:

"May I ask Your Royal Highness the Princess, you said that buying and selling officials was quite common in the Qing army, and it was even more common among middle and lower-ranking officers. I don't know what the specific proportion is? In other words, among the officers at all levels of the Qing army, how many percent of them were born in military schools and became by ability? How many of them were born in military schools, but by nepotism or spending money? Among them, how many percent of them have never been to military school, but only rely on nepotism or spend money? And how was His Highness's specific data collected? …… This is a key question, and I hope His Highness can give a clear answer to the ministers.

"Please don't misunderstand, Your Highness, the ministers have no intention of accusing Your Highness of opening your mouth. The meaning of the ministers is: If the Qing army has not even attended a military academy, and only has a large proportion of officers who have been bought with money, such as more than half, then such an army is a rabble, although the strength is large, there is nothing to fear, and what reason does my Ming have not to immediately go on a northern expedition? I hope that Her Royal Highness the princess can solve the doubts of the ministers. In addition, this decision is related to the fortunes of the Ming Dynasty, and His Royal Highness is also requested to provide a convincing source of data. ”

Fourteen Gege lowered his head again, his eyes were a little scattered, he pondered for a moment, and said:

"This ...... Lord He, because this data is not the same as the price...... What official title and what price, this is generally more public, and it is more convenient to inquire...... As for who is spending money and who is doing it based on relationships...... Because the future and interests of too many people are involved, even when I am at the sticky pole, I dare not say that the numbers reported below are absolutely reliable...... But I can tell you that the first type of officer you are talking about, that is, the officer who was born in a military academy and became an officer by skill, no. Not at all. ”

In order to achieve the effect, Xiang Xiaoqiang deliberately asked:

"Your Highness, among the more than 10 million troops in the Northern Qing Dynasty, there is not a single officer of this kind?"

Fourteen Gege bit his lip, lowered his head and hesitated, and said:

"This ...... Probably not. …… Even if there are one or two, most of them are all kinds of accidents and coincidences...... Negligible. ”

He Ziguang took it and asked:

That is to say, all the officers of the Qing army became by background or by spending money. But the key question is, how many of them are from military schools and understand military affairs? How many people don't understand military affairs? Your Highness, please explain. ”

Fourteen Gege hesitated again and said:

"Specific...... I can't say the exact proportion......"

"Your Highness, don't you want to say?"

Fourteen Gege was a little flustered, and said:

"Well, there must be a lot of people who are not from military schools, but they are not half ......"

"Oh? How many are there? Third? ”

"Hmm......" Fourteen Gege thought about, "the platoon commander level should be no less than a third, but the company commander is higher, the proportion is less......"

The Foreign Secretary shook his head, leaned back in his chair, and looked at the crowd on the left and right, looking very dissatisfied. The other ministers also looked at each other, also looking dissatisfied with this answer.

Seeing this, the Admiral smiled and said:

"Ladies and gentlemen, Her Royal Highness is right, this kind of data is not easy to collect. It may not be difficult to collect a batch of examples, but it is too difficult to come up with a set of data that is very accurate and can even bear the national fortune of the Ming Dynasty. After all, this only represents a widespread phenomenon in the Qing army, and let us know that this is the case within the Qing army. We can't say that if 55.3 percent of the non-military academy officers are non-military academy officers, we will go on the Northern Expedition, and if 45.6 percent of the total number of officers we will not go on the Northern Expedition...... After all, this is a discussion of war, not a discussion of tariff rates and trade deficits. In the opinion of the ministers, even if 100 percent of the officers of the Qing army were born in military academies, we must resolutely carry out the Northern Expedition. Even if only 10% of non-military officers are from military schools, that's a good thing. It would be better if it was 20%. Why do you have to ask for more than half? …… War is a very serious matter, and it cannot be left to the sky. ”