According to Yu Qian's point of view, to judge whether an army is truly elite, one must first look at logistics, secondly morale and military discipline, and then look at equipment and drills.
If an army cannot even provide the most basic food and military pay, then there is no need to look further. It is just a waste of time and emotions.
Xu Tong didn't say much, and immediately led everyone to the kitchen. At this time, a group of cooks were cooking, and the kitchen was buzzing and buzzing.
Yu Qian asked curiously: "Although it gets dark earlier now, are you still making dinner a little early?"
Xu Tong replied: "Yes, we have dinner early because we have to train for night battles after dinner. Our kitchen is open until late at night. After training in the evening, the soldiers can come and have another meal at any time."
"Night fight?"
"Yes, night fighting. His Highness ordered us to practice night fighting diligently to prepare for the night attack on the Wala Camp."
Yu Qian asked curiously: "But most of our soldiers have night blindness and cannot see clearly at night."
Xu Tong replied: "That's true, but fortunately our Yingzhou Guard soldiers are relatively young and strong, and they eat chicken, duck, fish, tea, eggs, fruits and vegetables every day, and they also have targeted training every night.
Yu Shangshu also knows that night blindness is generally caused by nutritional deficiencies. Now that our army is well-supplied and well-trained, the situation of night blindness has been greatly improved. If the general is given another month, he will be able to train a strong army that is good at night fighting. "
When Yu Qian heard this, he turned to Zhu Qiyu and asked for instructions: "Your Highness, I would like to have a meal in the camp."
Zhu Qiyu waved his hand: "Okay, okay, everyone wants to try the food of our Yingzhou Guard today."
After saying that, Zhu Qiyu took the lead and sat down.
After a while, the cook brought the food.
Yu Qian looked at the food on the table, hurriedly stopped a cook, and then asked: "What do you usually eat? Don't take special care of us just because we are here. Whatever you eat on weekdays, we will eat." "
The cook replied with a puzzled look on his face: "This is what we eat on weekdays. Is there any problem?"
Yu Qian looked at the meal in front of him: a bowl of fragrant rice, two white flour steamed buns; a large bowl of stew with large chunks of pork, cabbage and tofu; and then a few small plates, There are several slices of pork liver, two eggs, grapes, red dates and other fruits inside.
Yu Qian still didn't believe it: "Your ordinary soldiers usually eat this every day?"
The cook smiled and said: "Of course, and you can add more if you are not full. Your Highness has an order to let the soldiers eat until they are full."
Yu Qian turned his head and looked at Zhu Qiyu, still shocked and unconvinced.
Seeing this, Zhu Qiyu expressed his attitude impassionedly: "I am doing all this to welcome my eldest brother back as soon as possible. I would rather not have enough food and clothing, and I would rather tighten my belt, so that the soldiers can eat well, drink well, and be strong." Go into battle to kill the enemy and defeat Wala, so that you can welcome your eldest brother back as soon as possible and stabilize the world."
Yu Qian asked again: "How much salary does each ordinary soldier receive per month?"
"One or two a month."
Yu Qian didn't know what to say. According to Zhu Qiyu's method of raising troops, the money would have to be spent like running water. Every time he looked at the account book, it was absolutely shocking.
Yu Qian didn't know that Zhu Qiyu never looked at the accounts. He neither understood nor wanted to read: Why bother to take care of the house personally when he spends so much money to support the princess and concubines.
When the group of people came out after dinner, it was already dark. Coincidentally, at Yu Qian's request, everyone watched the Yingzhou Guards officers and soldiers shoot at night before entering the Chinese army's tent.
Next comes negotiation.
Everyone sat down separately, and Zhu Qiyu was the first to speak: "Yu Shangshu, do you think my bodyguard is okay?"
"Your Highness is being too modest. It's more than just makeshift. What Duke Cheng said is true. This army does have the potential to become a powerful force."
"Then you see, my bodyguards are not bad at their potential. They are also the first Qinwang army to rush to the capital, and they are guarding outside Desheng Gate to be the first to face Oala's troops.
Should the Ministry of War prioritize sending a batch of muskets, artillery, weapons and armor? "
When Yu Qian heard this, he muttered in his heart: Good guy, it turns out you are waiting for me here. This ridiculous prince really refused to let go of anything, so I came to the military camp for an inspection. After a simple meal, he wanted to pluck my feathers.
Yu Qian still wanted to struggle: "What your Highness said makes sense, but all the troops have arrived one after another. Ordnance and supplies should still be allocated as needed to show fairness."
Hearing this, Zhu Qiyu changed the subject: "In the Battle of Yanghekou, the Ming Dynasty's 40,000 elite troops were completely destroyed. No one is responsible for this until now. Where is Guo Jing, the supervisor of the army at that time and the eunuch of Datong Guarding? Where is this? Zhan Shi Heng fled back to Datong alone, did the Ministry of War investigate Shi Heng?"
Yu Qian replied: "With the national crisis at hand, the Ministry of War did not have time to question Shi Heng. The whereabouts of eunuch Guo Jing are unknown."
When Zhu Qiyu heard this, he remained silent.
Yu Qian also knew that there was nothing he could do. Zhu Qiyu was deceived. If the Ministry of War does not allocate a large amount of ordnance to the Yingzhou Guards, Zhu Qiyu will investigate the Ministry of War for its dereliction of duty in the Battle of Yanghekou.
After thinking for a moment, Yu Qian had no choice but to reply: "Fifty cannons, a thousand muskets, three hundred chariots, a thousand war horses, and three thousand sets of armor. What do you think, Your Highness?"
Zhu Qiyu waved his hand: "With so many troops under King Qin, it is necessary to distribute ordnance. It is also very difficult for the Ministry of War. I understand you. I don't want a thousand war horses. Please send Yu Shangshu the other ordnance as soon as possible."
Yu Qian quickly thanked him. He was bleeding heavily, and he had to thank Zhu Qiyu for his consideration for the Ministry of War.
After the matter was discussed and the military camp was inspected, Xu Tong and Gu Zhong sent the group out of the camp.
Zhu Qiyu smiled at Xu Tong and said, "Okay, send it here. You guys are going to select a thousand powerful warriors these days. I will send you three hundred divine arm crossbows later."
Xu Tong and others were overjoyed when they heard this and quickly thanked him.
Yu Qian felt a chill in his heart. It seemed that the ridiculous prince in front of him had just finished blackmailing the Ministry of War, and then turned around to blackmail the Jin Yiwei again.
Zhu Qiyu didn't care what everyone thought, he told him what to do tomorrow, and went back to the palace to rest with satisfaction.
A night of silence.
Early the next morning, Zhu Qiyu was lying in bed with his little princess in his arms, when he saw Su Xi and Qian Xue walking in with a large stack of documents each.
Seeing this, Zhu Qiyu complained: "Why did you just barge in like this? It would be so embarrassing if you ran into something that the princess and I couldn't do well."
Qianxue asked innocently: "My sister allows us to come and go at will. Besides, we are His Highness's concubines. From now on, we will have to deal with things in the house every day. What is there to be embarrassed about?"
"Where can I serve concubines? How old are you? Don't serve concubines and scream all day long. I'm not a real slave owner. We'll see what happens when you grow up. If you have a beloved man by then, I will I will give you a generous dowry and let you out."
"What beloved man! We are all innocent women and have never been in contact with other men. Why does Your Highness always suspect us of being unchaste?"
Qianxue and Su Xi's noses were sore and they were about to burst into tears.
Lin Xiangyu smiled hurriedly when she saw this and said: "His Highness is already stunned. You should ignore him. I will make the decision for you. I will officially designate you as concubines in a few days. But why are you holding so many arms so early in the morning?" Where's the paperwork?"
When Qianxue and Suxi heard that they were going to be made concubines, they burst into laughter and replied happily: "Who wants to get up early in the morning and bother? This is the list of previous Jinshi scholars sent by the Ministry of Rites. His Highness specifically requested it from the Ministry of Etiquette."
Lin Xiangyu smiled and said, "Bring it over and let me take a look."
Qianxue hurriedly piled the documents beside the bed, and Lin Xiangyu took a book and read it. I saw that the name, place of birth, date of birth, life experience, and family situation of each Jinshi were recorded in detail. Some even come with answer sheets for the imperial examinations.
"Is Your Highness going to cultivate cronies?"
Zhu Qiyu sighed: "Hey, let's try our luck. As long as there are one or two people who are willing to be loyal to me sincerely, I will burn incense and kowtow to Guanyin Bodhisattva."
"With so many documents, can His Highness read them?"
When Zhu Qiyu heard this, he looked innocent: "I didn't say I wanted to see it myself. I am a slave owner and have slaves under me, why should I work by myself.
Come on, my little princess and concubine, you three, work hard for me.
First, select the people who were admitted to Jinshi before the age of 25, then sort them according to their information and examination papers, and finally submit them to me for review. "
Qianxue smiled and said: "Well done, is there any reward for your highness?"
"Good guys, you are my slaves, and you should work as you should. I don't need to whip you with a whip, but you still dare to ask for rewards. Whose slaves are like you?"
Su Xi retorted with a look of dissatisfaction: "Your Highness is such a mean slave owner. Even if you let the donkey grind, you still have to feed two carrots."
"Okay, what do you want?"
Qianxue replied firmly: "We want to sleep with His Highness."
Hearing this, Zhu Qiyu waved his hands quickly: "Okay, okay, although I also want to play with you, you are still too young. Let's wait a few years. Let's go to the warehouse and pick out a few treasures. Let's see. Take whatever you want, you’re welcome.”
A pair of little sisters pouted and looked unhappy, and reluctantly thanked them.
At this time, Lin Xiangyu took out another letter from under the pillow and handed it to Qianxue: "Give this letter to your sister Lingxi and ask her to go to the palace for me and personally deliver the letter to the imperial concubine Zhou Empress.
I just said that I missed Princess Chongqing and would pick her up to play at home for a day tomorrow. Moreover, His Highness will also be taking a bath at home tomorrow, and the whole family will be busy. "
Qianxue hurriedly agreed.
Zhu Qiyu didn't say much, got up, changed clothes and freshened up, then took his personal guards to Benren Hall to manage politics, leaving only the three little princesses behind to screen the Jinshi of the past three terms.
