Ningguo Mansion
In the flower hall in the front yard, the sound of justice resounded.
Jia Heng's face was silent, he looked at Che Zheng and said sternly: "Comrade Che understands the righteousness, and I am very pleased. The country is in trouble now, and I was ordered by the emperor to supervise the army to suppress the bandits. Some generals in the Guo Yong camp are... People and gods alike are outraged by such a heartless act for their own selfishness, and I will never allow these and other people to commit lawlessness!"
"My lord, they took the risk out of fear precisely because they were worried about being short-changed. My lord discovered it. To be honest with you, there were more than 20,000 Guoyong generals in the camp. In fact, there were only more than 10,000 registered soldiers, and half of them were old, weak, and sick. It is too crippled and cannot be used for much purpose. How can it be useful in military affairs like the Jingying Camp?" Che Zheng said with emotion.
Listening to the righteous voice, Jia Heng's strange feeling became stronger and stronger. He pondered for a long time and asked:
"Che Tongzhi has been in Guoyong camp for so long. Why didn't he say anything when he saw the shortcomings of the military system?"
Che Zheng sighed and said: "It's hard for a lower official to support himself, and he doesn't like to speculate and flatter others, so he can only take care of himself."
Jia Heng smiled and said: "A single tree cannot support itself? I don't think it's true. I went to the Ministry of War the day before yesterday. Why did I meet Liu Tongzhi from the former Army Governor's Mansion to recommend you to go out of the city to suppress the bandits?"
Che Zheng's expression suddenly changed, and he explained: "The lower official also saw that the bandits from the Third Auxiliary in the capital were wreaking havoc and causing trouble in the area. He couldn't stand it anymore, so he took the initiative to ask for help from the former military governor's mansion."
Jia Heng's face was pale and noncommittal.
Just when Che Zheng was thinking of words to explain, suddenly a servant stood up under the eaves and said, "Sir, there is a man outside who claims to be a military attache of the Beijing camp. He handed me a letter of worship and asked to see you."
Jia Heng raised his eyes, stood up and walked to the door, took the greeting card, looked down at the name on it, and twitched the corner of his mouth.
Then he turned to look at Che Zheng, whose eyes were frightened, and said with a smile: "Comrade Che, you might as well go to the back hall to escape for a while. If I don't call you, please don't come out."
Che Zheng was surprised and uncertain, and when he heard the words, he responded calmly.
Jia Heng said, turning to look at Jiao Da under the eaves, and said: "Steward Jiao, take Tongzhi Che to the back hall."
Jiao Da responded, entered the hall, looked at Che Zheng, and said with a smile: "Please, Master Che."
Che Zheng nodded and followed Jiao Da into the inner hall without saying much.
Not long after, a servant led a middle-aged military attache from the Yimen along the Chaoshou corridor. As soon as he entered the hall, the man clasped his fists and said, "I've seen Mr. Jia in this humble position."
It was none other than the governor, Qian Shi Lu He.
Jia Heng looked calm and said, "Why did Mr. Lu visit us at night?"
Pointing to the chair beside him, he said, "Sit."
Lu He's face straightened and he said eagerly: "How dare you sit down in front of your lord in a humble position? I have a hundred thousand urgent matters in this humble position. Please report them to your lord!"
Jia Heng frowned and asked, "Oh? It's an urgent matter?"
"Sir, the governor also knows that Master Che Zhengche and Xia Mu are going to incite the generals to mutiny when the troops are ordered tomorrow in order to blackmail you and prevent them from leaving the city to suppress the bandits!" Lu He said with a solemn expression and lowered his voice.
When Jia Heng heard this, he suddenly stood up from his chair and said angrily: "What? This happened?"
Seeing Jia Heng's reaction, Lu He felt certain and said anxiously: "Master Jia, they have given instructions to some of the soldiers below who are unwilling to leave the capital to fight. They plan to cause trouble tomorrow. Originally, the capital camp has been in arrears of pay for three months. My brothers below are sorry. This is quite a complaint. As long as they stir up trouble below and say that even the emperor has no shortage of soldiers, it will inevitably lead to chaos. Your Excellency, you must be on guard."
Hearing this, Jia Heng's face was full of murderous intent, and he shouted: "They are so brave! Is it bad to disobey the army's orders, incite the soldiers to cause chaos, and deceive the Emperor's Sword in the hand of my officer?"
And while Lu He was talking in the front hall, Che Zheng, who was across the wall, was shocked and angry after hearing Lu He's words. His face was livid, his fists were clenched, and he secretly cursed, "You are a bastard!"
As long as he listened to this guy's words and didn't come to report the news, he would now become someone's scapegoat!
Lu He cupped his hands and said, "Sir, I have humble feelings to report for my humble position."
Jia Heng raised his eyes to look at Lu He and asked, "Is there anything else?"
Lu He looked hesitant, moved his lips, and said slowly: "Mr. Jia, when Governor Niu was in charge, the military discipline of the general was corrupted, and he was deprived of his quota. Every year, corruption became common, and he had no choice but to live with the glory and endure the humiliation. At that time, Niu Dudu alone had three thousand free quotas, and Xia Qianshi was divided into one thousand and five thousand. His subordinates had no choice but to give in, so they had to allocate one thousand and five thousand, and Che Tongzhi was given one thousand. Among the five generals, three generals Each takes five hundred. Among the eight guerrillas now, except for the Cai brothers who have taken over, there are four guerrillas who each take three hundred. This has become a bad habit in the capital camp! If the generals do not take short quotas, they will be able to stay in the sacred city with their salaries alone. I can't make a living, and my colleagues are running against me, so I won't be able to hold on to my job for long, so please forgive me."
At the same time, he knelt down and took out an envelope from his armhole.
"This is some of the savings of the lower officials. The total amount of silver notes is about 30,000 taels. If the soldiers cause trouble tomorrow, I can use it to pay for the military." Lu He said with a bitter look on his face: "I know I am guilty in this humble position, so why not?" Mr. Jia, please give me the opportunity to make meritorious service despite my humble position. I am willing to die for the sake of suppressing the bandits."
In fact, there is still something to hide, for example, the same amount is one thousand and fifty, and some of them are the salaries of small flags, chief flag officers, and hundreds of households, but they are all big soldiers.
In addition, some of the old, weak, sick and disabled soldiers in the Beijing camp who are not on duty are being paid at half the rate. In addition, the military rations purchased over the years have been shoddy and shoddy.
In addition, in recent years, he has helped some military generals fill their vacancies and sent money to the Ministry of War. How can he be more than capable?
The top priority now is to survive by cutting off the tail and keep the position. I heard that the person in front of me has a lot of face with the military department officials.
Jia Heng looked at Lu He and looked at him with profound meaning. He chuckled and said, "It's hard for Lu Qian to understand the righteousness so well."
This is because he saw the power of the emperor's sword in his hand and wanted to take out some silver to atone for his sins.
While he was talking to himself, he heard the voice of a servant from outside, saying: "Sir, there is a man outside who calls himself General Guoyong, and he wants to see you."
"Oh? It's a coincidence today. The generals and commanders of Guo Yong camp are almost ready." Jia Heng said lightly, looked at Lu He and said, "Master Lu, please keep the money first and go to the inner hall to talk about it. Whatever Whatever you saw or heard, don’t say anything.”
A flash of suspicion flashed in Lu He's heart, and he cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, sir."
Under the guidance of a servant, they entered the inner hall, but as soon as they entered the back hall, when they saw Che Zheng sitting on the chair, his expression changed drastically, and he said in shock: "You...why are you here? "
Che Zheng snorted coldly, with a gloomy expression on his face, and looked at Lu He with almost burning eyes, "Despicable villain!"
Lu He's expression changed, becoming gloomy and uncertain. He laughed evilly and said, "Lao Che, you and I are each other."
"You!" Che Zheng's face was filled with anger.
Jiao Da coughed lightly and said, "You two adults, please be quiet."
In the front hall, not long after, a middle-aged general with a burly figure and piercing eyes stepped into the hall, clasped his fists and said: "General Shan Ming of the Jia family has met Uncle Yunhui General Heng."
As he spoke, he knelt down on one knee.
Jia Heng's eyes moved slightly, and this time he was actually a little surprised. He looked at the middle-aged general with a frown, and frowned: "Get up first, why do you call yourself a general of my Jia family?"
It was said that the Jia family had been in charge of the capital camp on behalf of Duke Hua for decades, and there were still some remnants in the army. He had not seen any of them before, and he wondered if they had all been lost in the Battle of Liaodong.
Now an old member of the Jia family has popped up.
Shan Ming did not get up, raised his head, and reported back: "In the twenty-eighth year of Longzhi, Xiaguan first entered the capital camp as a small flag officer. Because of his bravery, he served as a guard for Daihua Gongzhong. Later, he was singled out by Daihuagong and served as a hundred households. , Deputy Qianhu, Qianhu, guerrillas, and generals, it has been more than twenty years now. When I heard that Uncle Heng had re-promoted the capital camp, I was very happy. "
It's not that there are no smart people. As Jia Heng mobilized Guo Yong's camp to suppress the bandits in Sanfu, some veterans of the Beijing camp began to get excited.
Because this was different from the previous one where he led an army to help suppress the Sanhe Gang. This time, Jia Heng led an army to leave the capital alone. This political signal could almost indicate that the palace would reuse Ning Guofu's current spokesperson.
Of course, the original nominal military spokesperson of the Jia family was still Wang Ziteng. This person was the Jiedu envoy of the Beijing camp, so he was also the top leader. The original Jia family's old troops had already joined his command, so they were a bit on the sidelines at the moment.
If Jia Heng successfully takes over Guoyong Camp, it may be able to influence some people's attitudes.
As for Shan Ming, he was originally waiting and watching, but now he obviously can no longer wait and watch.
What those people are planning is hard to hear...
Jia Heng sighed and said, "I didn't expect it to be a general of my Jia family. I wonder how many people in the Jing camp know my Jia family now?"
Shan Ming said enthusiastically: "Among the twelve battalions, most of the Qianhu and deputy Qianhu were recruited from local elites in the past ten years. Let's not forget that, for example, nearly half of the guerrilla generals at Mojiang's age are representatives of the guerrilla army. Hua Gong's generals were all delighted to hear that Ning Guo had a young man like Yun Hui."
Jia Heng was noncommittal and thought to himself, how many of these people are available?
I'm afraid most of them have been corrupted, otherwise they wouldn't be able to just sit back and watch the capital rot. Of course, this is also due to the general environment.
As far as he knew, the collapse of the Beijing camp's combat power actually happened in the past twenty years.
At that time, the Supreme Emperor, in order to weaken the Jia family, took advantage of the death of Duke Daihua and transferred elite soldiers and generals from the local capital, as well as generals from the Zhao and Zhou Dynasty kings. For a time, the sand in the capital camp was very mixed.
For example, many Che Zheng and Lu He were generals from the local Dusi system.
This move undoubtedly weakened the fighting power of the Beijing camp to a certain extent. Coupled with the change of throne in the early years of Chongping, the subsequent purge of King Zhao and the Prince's subordinates in the Beijing camp, and the subsequent two-day suspension, the Beijing camp was full of internal strife. .
In addition, it is close to the prosperous place of Shenjing, the country has been dynasty for hundreds of years, the culture of Wen Tian and martial arts, and various reasons have led to the corruption of Jingying.
"Actually, the emperor also controls a forbidden army in the Diansu Palace. They are the Tengxiang Four Guards, about 20,000 people, fully paid, plus the internal guards under Dai Quan, such as Ban Zhi, spies and spies. There should be about 40,000 to 50,000 people? Use them to defend the imperial city and protect the imperial power. This is the last line of defense for the Chen and Han royal family and must not be touched without permission."
For more than a month, he also had some understanding of the Emperor's trump card.
Of course, these imperial guards cannot be dispatched, so the Beijing camp still needs to be rectified.
Suppressing the thoughts in his heart, Jia Heng looked at Shan Ming and said with an indifferent expression: "General Shan, you must have something to do when you come to the house."
"The last general has indeed reported something urgent. Guo Yongying's commander-in-chief Tongzhi Chezheng, the commander-in-chief Qianshi Xia Mu and Lu He, and the guerrilla general Yu Zhenglun. These four are trying to stir up chaos among the soldiers tomorrow and prevent Yunhui from leading the expedition. The last general After learning about this matter, I reported it immediately and asked Yunhui to pay attention to it."
Jia Heng frowned and said, "Why did they do that?"
Shan Ming said: "The whole army will go out tomorrow, and we will definitely have to recruit troops. I am worried that Yunhui will find out that there are not enough soldiers and ask him for his crime."
Jia Heng looked gloomy and said in a cold voice: "You are eating your empty quota and drinking your soldiers' blood. No one from the Ministry of War came to investigate?"
Shan Ming said: "Yun Hui doesn't know something. As long as the officials at the Ministry of War send money, they won't investigate it carefully. If the official orders troops, they will borrow some temporary funds from other battalions."
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "There are now more than 200,000 troops in the twelve regiments of the Beijing camp. For Guoyong camp, nearly 50% to 60% of the quota is short. Add in some old, weak, sick and disabled, and there are still 70% of those who can fight." Eighty thousand?"
Because last time Guoyong camp mobilized 6,000 troops to assist in the defense of Dongcheng, multiplied by 12, it is estimated that there are 70,000 to 80,000 troops. Most of these 70,000 to 80,000 troops will be defeated.
shocking!
Shan Ming heard that the young man's tone across from him was wrong and said quickly: "Not only us, but also the border troops have taken short quotas. This has been a long-standing malpractice in the military."
Jia Heng frowned and said, "Did this happen when Dai Shanggong was around?"
Shan Ming paused for a moment and said: "Although the Beijing camp did not dare to say that the troops were fully paid at that time, 90% of them were on the roll. They had one drill every three days and one drill every five days. Later, in the battle of Liaodong, tens of thousands of elites were lost. , and then gradually ceased to be a grand occasion.”
Jia Heng remained silent for a moment and said loudly: "The two generals from the capital camp should come out, and the single general should also get up."
In the inner hall, Che and Lu, who were glaring at each other, stepped out of the inner hall, their expressions ugly.
Shan Ming stood up in shock.
Jia Heng ordered: "Come and invite Qu Qianhu."
Not long after, Qu Lang, who was wearing a flying fish suit, crossed the threshold and entered the hall. He cupped his hands and said, "Sir."
As soon as they saw the Jin Yiwei Qianhu in Feiyu uniform coming, several people in the hall looked at each other, their hearts sank, and they all felt something bad.
Jia Heng looked at the night and knew that no one was coming to "snitch" anymore. Shen shouted: "Send the order, close the net immediately, capture Xia Mu and other criminals, and make sure they don't rebel!"
"Yes, sir."
As Qu Lang said this, he turned around and ordered the accompanying Jinyi guards.
Che Zheng and Lu He were already frightened and rebelled. Lao Xia was finished!
Obviously, people have been on guard!
They knew that with Jinyi Mansion's all-pervasive intelligence capabilities, this would probably not be hidden.
Jia Heng glanced at the three people who were either frightened or silent with a pair of stern eyes, and shouted: "Che Tongzhi, Lu Qianshi, how many vacancies have you taken over the years, at least 50% of them must be made up! We have to make up the camp. The officials have no control over it, but my Guoyong camp needs to have enough troops and pay. After the bandits are suppressed, I will recruit refugees from Shandong and Henan in the Sanfu area to strengthen the camp. At that time, will you be safe and sound, or even still there? If there is a position in the camp, it depends on how much effort you are willing to put into this battle. I am holding the Emperor's Sword, so I have the right to kill first and then show off!"
It's better to do the right thing than to do the right thing.
Because it was impossible for him to clean all the generals and generals of Guoyong camp before going out, so would there be a war?
And there is a deeper consideration. With the current atmosphere in the Beijing camp, if the purge method is too harsh, once word spreads, it may lead to a real "mutiny."
Because the rabbit dies and the fox mourns, everyone is in danger. In fact, even Cai Quan gave Lu He gifts in order to run for office.
Of course, in war, if you are both incompetent and greedy, it goes without saying that you can just follow the military law.
There is no fool among these people. If there is a chance to go ashore, they will not take risks. Otherwise, they will not report one after another and throw a carrot at the moment.
As for how to deal with them in the end... We are just fish and meat, and I am a swordsman, so why bother?
When Che Zheng heard this, he breathed a sigh of relief, cupped his hands and said, "I will obey your orders."
"I humbly obey my orders." Lu He's expression changed and he responded.
It's a bit heartbreaking. I have to pay 50% of the quota I've eaten over the years?
Fortunately, with the money left behind, enjoying your old age should not be a problem.
Shan Ming also surrendered.
