The soldiers of the Imperial Guard did not come from the original soldiers of the Beijing Camp Guards, but were recruited from the people of Hebei by Qi Jiguang. Since the Imperial Guard has not been established for a long time and has not experienced many wars, it is obviously difficult for these privately recruited soldiers to grow into generals in a short time, so the source of generals for the Imperial Guard is more complicated.
In general, there are three sources of generals and mid-level officers of the Guards.
The first part is Qi Jiguang's direct lineage. Among them, the only real "veteran" is Wu Weizhong, and the rest are all middle-level generals. In the Guards system, most of them are officers at the company, platoon, and shed levels, and there are several battalion-level officers.
This arrangement was made by Qi Jiguang after asking Gao Pragmatic for instructions. There are two reasons: First, the imperial guards belong to the direct lineage of the imperial court, and can even be said to be the emperor's personal army (its role is different from that of the imperial guards), and Qi Jiguang is not a noble. The First Department obviously did not dare to arrange too many of its trusted generals in such an army, lest it would be like snow and bullets and it would not be able to bear the consequences.
Secondly, the real main force of the "Qi Family Army" has been taken away by Qi Jin and went to Liaodong to guard the border. Since the army left, of course the generals had to follow. Except for some generals who had accumulated merit and were promoted to various parts of the country in the early years, the generals who were still in the army at that time basically followed Qi Jin.
As for Wu Weizhong, he was Qi Jiguang's capable general and the "old man" of the Qi family's army. Qi Jiguang always had to keep a close person by his side to handle various affairs. Otherwise, he would have to die from exhaustion if he could lead such a large army single-handedly?
The second part of the generals of the Imperial Guard came from the three towns of Xuanda and Jizhou, Changping, Baoding and other towns. Among them, there is no doubt that the three towns of Xuanda belong to the direct lineage of Gao pragmatism; Ji Town, although not the direct lineage of Qi Jiguang, belongs to Qi Jiguang’s old subordinates; Changping, Baoding and other towns are within the radiation range of Gao pragmatism and can be roughly regarded as high pragmatism. The generals under his command, or the generals of the Pan-Realistic School - the civil servants they relied on belonged to the Practical School.
As for the third part, they are naturally the children of nobles and meritorious officials. There is nothing we can do about it. The attributes of the imperial guards are here. If there is not even a noble son or hero Yinzi in the army, let alone the civil and military officials in the court, even Zhu Yijun will probably have a sudden heart attack.
These generals are not Xungui himself or his direct lineage, but are usually the second son and remaining sons, such as Zhu Yingzhen's younger brother Zhu Yinghuai, Zhang Yuangong's younger brother Zhang Yuande, and others. In addition, there are heroes and generals from all over the country. This part is mainly based on the kindness of generals. For example, the famous direct generals under Gao Pragmatic, the Ma family, include Ma Chengxun (not Ma Chengxun), Ma Chengxuan, and Ma Cheng Zhao and the other three were kicked by Ma Gui to the Imperial Guards.
The other generals, especially the direct generals of Gao Jingjing, also have such treatment. As long as the general himself is rewarded with Enyin, Gao Jingjing will help "operate" when it is convenient to let them enter the imperial guard according to Enyin's level. Military training.
In Gao Pragmatic's view, this is the best solution under the existing system. It is not just a win-win, but even a triple win: Gao Pragmatic himself, the generals, and the court are all beneficiaries.
Moreover, rather than keeping these generals hereditary in the town, Gao Pragmatic believed that it would be better to integrate them into the Imperial Guard. On the one hand, it prevents the general's forces in this town from continuing to snowball, and on the other hand, it also allows them to form healthy competition within the Guards system.
General, if you don't obey me, I won't obey you. You say that your Tieling Li family is the best general in the world, but I, the Datong Ma family, just don't accept it. In the past, it was difficult for everyone to make gestures, but now it is more convenient - the Guards have quarterly training and annual competitions. Everyone is a mule or a horse, and they come out to see who leads the best soldiers!
What does breaking stereotypes and healthy competition mean? That's it.
Qi Jiguang has always said that Gao Pragmatic's method is a genius idea, but he still made a supplementary suggestion, that is, since this is done, the commander of the Imperial Guard must not choose someone with an obvious position.
Qi Jiguang himself was famous for being strict in leading troops and fair in dealing with things. He could ensure that he was not partial, but he was very worried that the successor to the commander of the Imperial Guard arranged by Gao Pangshi in the future would be partial, so he said this.
But in fact, he was too pragmatic to agree to this matter. Although he created the Imperial Guard, he was not the emperor. How could he guarantee who the successive commanders would be in the future? It can only be said that he will recommend a relatively fairer successor within his own sphere of influence. However, there is no rush on this matter for the time being. Qi Jiguang's term is not over yet, and he should be able to be re-elected for another term.
Not many generals of the Imperial Guard came today. Apart from Qi Jiguang himself, only Ma Chengxuan came as the representative of the generals. The noble family did not send anyone, probably because the nobles were going to pay a visit tonight. For the sake of high pragmatism.
As soon as the two parties met, Qi Jiguang first raised his concerns. It turned out that he was not here for other things, but was worried about whether there would be changes in the current system of the Imperial Guard.
As mentioned earlier, the Ming court had actually been engaged in the restructuring of the Beijing camp. It had been revised many times, and situations such as having to start over again and rolling back the system often occurred. Qi Jiguang was worried about this. He was afraid that the Imperial Guards who had finally achieved some respect would leave office due to their high pragmatism, and the imperial court would inexplicably "roll back the system" to the previous state, and all his hard work for so long would be in vain.
Gao Pragmatic can still guarantee this, and comforted Qi Jiguang: "Don't worry too much, Mr. Nantang. The restructuring of the Jingying camp is the emperor's final decision. The emperor had this intention as early as Yuji, and the headquarters is just doing some things in it." Just a suggestion.
The reason why the emperor did this, I think Nantang Gong must also know, is to completely eliminate the hidden dangers in northern Xinjiang. Because of this, the Imperial Guard will never undergo major changes before Chahar is eliminated. As long as the Imperial Guard performs well in the battle to destroy the residual Yuan, there will be enough reasons for the current system to survive.
Therefore, Nantang Gong, instead of worrying about these things now, the Imperial Guards should further intensify their training, reserve supplies, and strive to gain a reputation in that battle, make special achievements, and lay the foundation for eternity. "
Qi Jiguang nodded, sighed softly, and laughed at himself: "What Da Sinong said is true, but it's just that I put all my efforts into it, so I can't help but feel uneasy in the end."
Gao pragmatic said a few words of comfort, then turned to ask Ma Chengxuan: "Ma Biaotong, why are you here?"
Ma Chengxuan smiled bitterly and bowed, first apologizing and saying, "I'm sorry, Great Sinong. I didn't intend to come to this humble position, but unfortunately my uncle sent me a letter saying that after I went to the northwest with Great Sinong, I, the guards of Datong, fought again." The Great Sinong Hu was so powerful that he received many awards. Many of his colleagues heard that the Imperial Guards had strict drills and hard training, and they all wanted to send their remaining sons over..."
After hearing this, Gao pragmatic thought for a moment, shook his head and said: "You know that the Imperial Guard is intact now. Even if the headquarters has not resigned, this matter will not be easy to handle for a while."
Ma Chengxuan smiled bitterly and said: "Yes, yes, of course Beizhi knew about it, but... well, Beizhi felt that his uncle was probably too troubled, so he had to ask Beizhong to come, at least not to let anyone talk about our Ma family behind his back. gossip."
Gao is pragmatic and understandable. The Ma family has now made it clear that they are the direct descendants of Gao Gao. If the villagers of the Datong Guards ask the Ma family to pass the news on their behalf, the Ma family will not agree. Shouldn’t one’s reputation be bad on the streets? People today attach great importance to nostalgia. It is generally true that rabbits do not eat grass beside their nests.
Gao Pragmatic just nodded slightly and didn't say much. However, Ma Chengxuan was inexperienced. Qi Jiguang, the military god of his generation, was also an official veteran, but he was an expert at observing words and emotions. He had already heard that there was something in Gao Pangshi's words just now.
Seeing that Ma Chengxuan didn't hear it, Qi Jiguang had no choice but to point it out himself. He coughed lightly and said, "Forgive me, Sir, I'm a little deaf... Did you just say that it's hard to deal with it 'for a while'?" He put "for a while" "Time" with a particularly emphatic tone.
Gao pragmatic pointed at him and said with a smile: "Nantang Gong, are you calling me deaf?"
Qi Jiguang just smiled and said nothing. Qishu e-book
Gao Jingshi said helplessly: "I originally had an idea to add one more officer to each officer position in the Guards. Unfortunately, he left before he could do it. I'm afraid this matter will be delayed. We will see when. When you have time, mention it to the emperor and ask the new minister of Rongzheng to come to Shu..."
This sentence shocked Qi Jiguang and Ma Chengxuan at the same time. A calm man like Qi Jiguang couldn't help but widen his eyes and asked hurriedly: "Ah, Da Sinong originally planned to double the size of the Imperial Guard?"
Gao pragmatic smiled and said: "Otherwise, we will not expand the army."
Qi Jiguang was stunned and said in surprise: "If we don't expand the army, how can we have twice as many officers?"
Gao pragmatically said: How can I explain to you Germany's "One Hundred Thousand Army Plan" after World War I?
After World War I, Germany, as a defeated country, was restricted in the size of its army. The Wehrmacht was called the Wehrmacht and was required to have no more than 100,000 troops. So the then commander-in-chief of the German Defense Forces von Seeckt geniusly came up with the "One Hundred Thousand Army Plan", which laid a solid foundation for the ultra-high quality of the German army during World War II.
Rabbenau, the author of Seckter's biography, said after the German army's victory over the British and French forces: "Without Seckter, there would be no actual staff today (referring to 1940), because this organization must go through several generations. It's built with hard work.
No matter how talented the officers are and how hard they work, it cannot be established overnight. Conceptual continuity is necessary to ensure leadership in the serious tests of reality. Personal knowledge or ability is not enough. In war, the locally developed capabilities of the majority are necessary. This kind of collective capability takes decades to successfully cultivate..."
As early as 1921, Sekter was secretly busy on paper designing a complete German army, and humbly defended his various activities to the Allied Affairs Control Board.
Conscription was prohibited, and Seckert regarded this small force as the core of the future German army, becoming a melting pot from which a million-strong army would emerge when possible. These 100,000 people are the backbone of 100,000 people. Once it is decided to expand, the soldiers will become sergeants and the sergeants will become officers.
Sekter's description of strategies, tactics and other thoughts does not have much reference value to Gao Wuzhi now, but his idea of training officers is something Gao Pragmatic attaches special importance to, but how to express it to Qi Jiguang is a bit troublesome.
Gao pragmatic had to describe it in a language that Qi Jiguang could understand and had "rules to follow": "To put it simply, this plan is somewhat similar to the cabinet's official Jinshi. Of course, the specific circumstances are somewhat different. The meaning of the main department is , in addition to the official officer, there is also a trainee officer for each position in the Guards."
When he said this, he pointed at Ma Chengxuan and said: "For example, Ma Xietong, you are a Xietong. Now that the Imperial Guard is full, the headquarters cannot transfer you without any reason and arrange for another one." One person will replace you. But what if the headquarters needs to train another general at the same time?
You can set up a 'trainee commander' in addition to your co-ordinate duties. This trainee co-president is not a real military commander. The main reason for him to stay with you is to learn from you and how you train. , how to lead troops, and how to deal with various affairs in the First Association Army.
As for you, you also have the responsibility and obligation to take care of him, because his performance in the future is linked to you - in other words, if he trains by your side, if he makes meritorious deeds in the future, then you will have a share of his meritorious deeds; if he If the army is defeated, then you are also responsible for his crimes... This is what I said, do you two understand? "
Qi Jiguang said with a smile: "Da Si Nong spoke thoroughly and in simple terms. Although the general is stupid, he can still understand it." Then he paused and thought about it and said: "Da Si Nong's plan is very high-level, and the general will think it is extremely useful. . But there is one thing that I still want to ask more clearly."
Gao pragmatically nodded and said: "Nantang Gong just said it doesn't matter."
Qi Jiguang said: "This trainee officer...is his actual duties the same as those of the cabinet officials, far lower than those he studied for?"
Gao Pingshi smiled and said: "Nantang Gong is worried that I will let the company commander go to train with Xietong? Of course not. The meaning of the headquarters is that, for example, if a Yin official's son originally came to the Imperial Guard, he should be given a Xietong , but how can the Imperial Guards just come and go? They all need to go through apprenticeship first, and the apprenticeship time is not short, it takes at least two or three years.
After the apprenticeship is completed, the Imperial Guard recognizes his officer qualifications and can use his job as a trainee officer - for example, the job of a trainee auxiliary commander is auxiliary commander - to transfer troops from other towns and armies. "
"Oh..." Ma Chengxuan suddenly realized and said: "That is to say, he came to the Imperial Guard to train, and the Imperial Guard gave him the opportunity to train, but his position is not really in the Imperial Guard. He will be a trainee in the future. Once completed, he can be transferred to other places based on his seniority in the Guards."
Gao pragmatically said calmly: "Not bad."
Ma Chengxuan was about to speak but Gao Pragmatic raised his eyebrows slightly: "Are you saying that maybe many people will feel that it is meaningless to come to the Guards to exercise, so they will simply stop coming?"
Ma Chengxuan was a little embarrassed, but he still didn't defend himself, which was a disguised admission.
Gao pragmatic shook his head and said: "No, after completing the apprenticeship in the Imperial Guard, he will definitely be promoted when he is transferred from outside. The headquarters will definitely explain this clearly to the emperor."
Qi Jiguang's heart moved and he asked: "Ah, is this the 'military academy' that Da Sinong once told the general a few years ago?"
Gao pragmatic laughed loudly when he heard this, nodded and said: "Although there are differences, it's roughly the same."
Qi Jiguang sighed: "It's a pity that if the chief minister is appointed as the Minister of Rongzheng... Oh, look at the old fool like this. The chief minister should be congratulated for his promotion."
Gao Pragmatic waved his hand and said: "It doesn't matter. Even if I leave office, I will promote this matter. Nantang Gong doesn't have to worry."
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Thanks to book friend "Cao Mianzi" for your monthly ticket support, thank you!
PS: I originally planned to leave the chapter about the meeting with Qi Jiguang blank yesterday, but after thinking about it, I decided to write it down and postpone the affairs of the court for a while, leaving it to talk to the nobles.
