Jiangnan, Lin'an Prefecture, in the early morning of the twelfth lunar month in the cold winter, the first snow of winter fell slowly and disappeared without a trace. The ground was slightly moist, but there was no mud.
Yujin Garden, located outside the south gate of Lin'an Imperial City, is a long-abandoned royal garden. Now with the new emperor's accession to the throne, time has changed and it has become lively again.
The usually closed red gate of Yujin Garden has been replaced by a huge iron gate. The iron spear head that pierces the air is fierce and dark. Through the gap between the iron gate railings, the scene in Yujin Garden can be seen at a glance.
Snowflakes were falling, and the sergeants holding guns standing on both sides of the door remained motionless, looking straight ahead in the cold, solemn and majestic.
The door and walls were crowded with people who came to visit. Yujin Garden is located in Lin'an City, where scholars and people are bustling, and the sergeants in the garden are not surprised. But no one dared to break in directly, whether they were traffickers, pawns, or bureaucrats. On the public notice board at the door, the signs "An important military site, no one allowed to enter" and "Soldiers are sacred and inviolable" are clearly visible, which makes people awe and dare not overstep.
In Yujin Garden, the original riding and shooting ground was filled with the imperial guards in front of the palace. The surrounding miscellaneous houses and pavilions were cleared away, highlighting the emptiness of the teaching ground. On the high platform next to the riding and shooting range, Zhao Hong was wearing a red cloak, with a nine-dragon umbrella covering his roof, and the Forbidden Army was on guard around him, watching eagerly.
Zhao Hong sat on the chair. He looked at the three thousand soldiers standing solemnly under the stage, and nodded slightly to the generals on the side.
Tian Yi understood, strode to the edge of the stage, took the imperial edict, and shouted loudly.
"Listen up, all the soldiers below. Your Majesty has decreed that there will be a sword and gun competition. The first place in sword and gun will each receive 500 guan reward, the second place will each receive 200 guan, and the third place will each receive 100 guan. The fourth to tenth place will each receive 100 guan reward. 50 crowns, 20 crowns each for the 11th to 20th place, 10 crowns each for the 21st to 50th place, and a consolation prize of 5 crowns for the 51st to 100th place!"
Consolation prize!
Many of the soldiers under the high platform laughed.
Needless to say, this is a new term created by the officials of the Song Dynasty.
Now we can't call them "officials" because the emperor doesn't like them. They can only be called emperors, emperors, your majesties, etc.
However, the first place is worth 500 yuan, which is also a huge reward. The family can live for two or three years.
"The competition begins!"
Tian Yi shouted loudly, waved the command flag, and the entire teaching ground moved.
Zhao Hong, who was on the high platform, also came down from the stage, accompanied by a group of ministers, to watch the game up close.
In the Southern Song Dynasty, there were strong branches and weak branches. There were 400,000 soldiers on each road, and there were nearly 100,000 soldiers around Guan'an Mansion. Among them, there are 73,000 people in the front department of the palace, 21,000 people in the infantry department, and excluding 13,000 naval forces, there are more than 80,000 infantry in total.
The 3,000 people selected to participate in the competition were selected from six elite armies, including the Youyi Army, Xuanfeng Army, Front Army, Rear Army, Right Army, and Saint Guardian Infantry Army, among the thirteen armies of the Dianqian Division. 200 people were selected out of 3,000 people, and the winning rate was not low.
The competition is divided into multiple rounds, with 150 people in each group, a total of 20 groups, 10 groups each for swordsmanship and spear skills, and 10 people from each group are selected to participate in the final competition.
"Your Majesty, Hu Datou, Zhang Hong and others want to participate in the competition. I wonder if your Majesty can allow it?"
Li Tang was wearing armor and carrying a sword. His dark face was solemn and majestic, but there was a bit of embarrassment on his face.
"Don't keep your face dark all day. How old are you? Just relax."
Li Tang is now in charge of the guards of the Forbidden Palace. He is no longer the guard chief of the Little East Palace.
Under heavy rewards, there must be brave men. Even his guards were tempted.
"You can all participate, go all out, take the lead, and get familiar with the soldiers. At that time, suitable candidates will be selected from among them and trained by you as future instructors!"
These guards were the best among the imperial guards in front of the palace, otherwise they would not have been chosen as his bodyguards. When employing people, it is natural for them to participate in competitions.
Hu Datou, Zhang Hong and other guards all smiled happily and took orders together.
Zhao Hong secretly despised him.
They are already high-ranking generals in the imperial court, and yet they are so brave and fierce, which is really speechless.
There is a fierce battle between dragons and tigers in the school field. After two months of training, these tough men will become the backbone of the military academy...or martial arts hall.
The martial arts hall, the cradle of military officers, must be established as early as possible.
"Your Majesty, now that the competition is over, shall we start...training?"
Tian Yi asked quietly from the side.
His training, of course, refers to queue training, as well as various tactics and firearms training, including all three thousand elite Forbidden Forces.
"Hello, General Tian, you are here!"
Zhao Hong ignored Tian Yi, but smiled and greeted Tian Yi's father "Tian Liuhe" Tian Shouxin loudly.
The secretary in charge of the front office is another powerful person who relies on nepotism.
"I have seen your majesty!"
Tian Liuhe has a majestic appearance and a strong back, and is a bit more powerful than his son Tian Yi.
"General Tian, Instructor Tian, how are you doing with your stabbing skills? How are these soldiers?"
"Your Majesty is a great expert! I admire you! Many of these soldiers are masters of using guns. Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will give you a month to ensure that they all come out and can be used by Your Majesty!"
Tian Liuhe stood up straight, clasped his fists and said, with a confident look on his face.
"Okay, okay, General Tian, I'm waiting for good news!"
Zhao Hong said loudly and walked away with a smile on his face.
The gun-stick instructor can make the trip in a month. But when it comes to firearms, especially artillery, training may take time.
"Queue training, physical training, tactical training, and firearms training, mainly grenade training and artillery shooting training, none of them can be missed. The training starts today. Soldiers who are not competing must train, and it is once a day. practice."
Zhao Hong frowned slightly when he thought of firearms.
God of war! This is also the top priority of the future teaching of the Wushu Hall, and a separate subject can be established.
"Tian Yi, are all the teaching materials for the martial arts hall ready?"
"Your Majesty, the professors and doctors of martial arts are compiling teaching materials. The stabbing skills and the physical training of queue training have been prepared. The artillery training is only a rough draft and may need to be revised as you practice."
Tian Yi replied honestly.
Although he is now being promoted by weapons, he still has to take care of the training of the Forbidden Army. At the very least, firearms training was his duty.
"Of course! In the future, we will build various types of artillery, including breech-loaded cannons, rifled cannons, explosive bombs, etc. Of course, we must continue to study, modify, and improve them."
Zhao Hong nodded. The development of science and technology requires years or even decades of tireless efforts. How can it be achieved overnight?
Breech-loaded cannon, rifled cannon? What the hell is that?
Tian Yi was confused and followed Zhao Hong.
"Wang Dalong, Zhang Zhengsi, come out!"
At a competition venue, Xu Sheng shouted loudly.
"Here! Here!"
Two tough Imperial Guards stood up one after another. They wore helmets and armor, face and throat protection, and held wooden guns. They stood opposite each other and stared at each other eagerly.
The viewers were all wide-eyed. Wang Dalong is the number one warrior in the Golden Spear Class and has few opponents in his spear skills. All the troops wanted to see how many rounds the opponent could survive under his command.
"start!"
Xu Sheng blew the whistle and waved his palm down.
The two Imperial Guards held wooden spears and stared at each other eagerly, and soon they got into a fight.
The clash of wooden guns was endless, the confrontation was fierce, the martial arts practice in the Southern Song Dynasty was strong, and the Forbidden Army was the most elite among all armies. These selected masters in the army were particularly fierce. Under the emperor's gaze, the sound of fighting continued and was extremely lively.
Zhao Hong, who was watching from the sidelines, also nodded secretly.
The enthusiasm of the lower-level officers and soldiers was chilled by the incompetence and corruption of the upper-level kings and scholar-bureaucrats.
After fighting for more than ten rounds, one contestant was accidentally stabbed in the chest by his opponent and fell heavily. Seeing the emperor and ministers watching, his face turned red.
"Don't be discouraged, there is still a chance!"
Zhao Hong smiled slightly and encouraged him warmly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
The Imperial Guard knelt down on one knee and clasped his fists to thank him.
"His Majesty!"
The surrounding soldiers all knelt down on one knee to pay tribute to Zhao Hong.
"Soldiers, no courtesy. Let's have a good game!"
Zhao Hong said loudly, asking the soldiers to get up.
In order not to affect the game, he specifically asked the Imperial Guards not to be polite before the game, but now it seems that it still doesn't help.
The defeated Imperial Guard took off his mask, grew a beard, and looked extremely majestic. Zhao Hong couldn't help but feel happy when he saw it.
"Zhang Zhengsi, it's you indeed! You're here too!"
Zhao Hong was sincerely happy to see Zhang San here.
"Your Majesty, I also want to see it. But I failed to pass the third level, which made Your Majesty laugh. But I am confident that it will be very different in a month."
Zhang Zhengsi was slightly embarrassed after being defeated in front of the emperor.
"Don't be arrogant when you win, don't be discouraged when you lose. Good!"
Zhao Hong nodded repeatedly, feeling very pleased.
Young man, the prodigal son turned back and finally took the right path.
"Zhang Zhengsi, didn't any of your brothers come to participate in the competition?"
Zhao Hong was very interested and looked around the school grounds.
"Your Majesty, only Wang Gui and Du Er are here. Gao Hu, Du San and the others are not well-educated and are very brave and fierce. The villain did not ask them to come."
It must be of great use for the emperor to hold a martial arts tournament. Gao Hu was very brave, but he had a bad temper, read little, and couldn't think clearly. Although he wanted to come, he didn't agree.
Zhao Hong nodded, loving Cai sincerely.
"Zhang Zhengsi, I plan to establish a martial arts hall to train military generals. Do you want to be a sword and gun instructor, or do you want to enter a martial arts hall for further study?"
Zhang Zhengsi is calm and courageous. He is definitely a talent. He will not make a mistake and is willing to give him a chance.
"Talk about martial arts hall?"
Zhang Zhengsi was stunned, his heart felt hot, and he blurted out.
"Your Majesty, I am willing to go to the Martial Arts Hall to further my studies. I will fight on the battlefield in the future, make contributions to our Song Dynasty, and share your worries for Your Majesty!"
Instead of being a well-behaved sword and gun instructor, it is far better to go to a martial arts school to learn something so that you can serve in the military and make contributions in the future.
The name "Jiang Wu Tang" sounds exciting.
"Okay, okay! I'll give you this opportunity! When the time comes, pick a few good brothers to go to the Wushu Hall to study together. This will become a good story for future generations and will be passed down through the ages. It will be more famous than Zhou Chu and go down in history."
Zhao Hong smiled, nodded and walked away.
Who wouldn’t like to hear such inspiring stories about gangsters who made great achievements and fought for the country?
"Tian Yi, if there were more young people like Zhang Zhengsi, who would I, the Huanghuang Song Dynasty, be afraid of?"
Zhao Hong was in a good mood and his face was glowing.
"Your Majesty, no matter how good a warrior is, he is useless in the hands of those messy civil servants."
Tian Yi said boldly, and there was something in his words.
"Now you know that it is necessary for me to establish a martial arts hall."
Zhao Hong nodded with emotion.
Using civil servants to rule the military and civil servants to lead the troops, such things will never happen under his command.
In other words, it is better to bury the civil servants who have the ability to lead the army than to let the civil servants run the army. If a civil servant wants to run an army, he must first start in the martial arts hall.
"Your Majesty means..."
Tian Yi asked suspiciously.
"Civil ministers govern civil affairs, and generals manage military affairs. Their responsibilities are clearly defined. Of course, if civil servants are really capable, I will never use them."
"Then what if the military commanders divide the empire?"
Tian Yi asked immediately.
"This goes back to the basics. This is the purpose of establishing the Martial Arts Hall."
Zhao Hong smiled slightly, feeling a little proud.
"Because, not only will I establish the Martial Arts Hall, but I will also teach at the Martial Arts Hall, and I will also serve as the... principal of the Martial Arts Hall! How about a surprise!"
He is a history teacher, and he also teaches music, geography, mathematics, etc., and then returns to his old profession, seamlessly.
"headmaster!"
Tian Yi was stunned and turned to stone on the spot.
In this way, there is not only the feeling of monarch and minister, but also the relationship between teachers and students. The emperor's righteousness in the world will be fully occupied, and the separatist rule of feudal towns will naturally disappear.
Even if someone wants to rebel, the officers of the Jiangwu Hall below will not agree.
The emperor had already prepared in his mind, but he was so old...scheming, old...and cunning!
