Chapter 93: Let's Go
Chapter 93: Let's Go
Because the imperial edict was too obscure and difficult to understand, there were only two listeners on the scene, Wu Wenxi and Qiao Songnian. Even the scholar Le Sen and the tribute student Wu Ci were confused.
The two of them finally understood why they failed the imperial examination. What were these imperial scholars who drafted the imperial edicts for the emperor studying all day? Was it useful to draft imperial edicts that no one could understand?
Why don't you just say what to block?
The people who complained the most about the imperial edict were not the hundreds of rough folks in the front rows who could hear it. Even if the imperial edict was simpler, they probably would not have understood it.
However, Le Sen and Wu Ci, who usually claim to be knowledgeable, felt that their dignity was hit.
Lu Laifu knew everyone's mood, so when he read the imperial edict conferring honors on Lin Bozai, he spoke faster, but when he read out the official position and honorary title, he deliberately slowed down and emphasized it.
Lin Bozai was appointed as the captain-general of the Huai Army, and was given a yellow riding jacket, a blue feather, and the title of Swift and Brave Baturu, and the rank of Enqiwei, which was the treatment of a seventh-rank official.
The captain-general was of the seventh rank, but military rank was worthless. Whenever officials in Hailing City gathered, the poor captain-general of the Green Camp always sat at the last seat and had no right to sit at the same table with the civil officials.
The titles of Yellow Jacket and Baturu were very impressive in the past, and only people at Nian Gengyao's level were qualified to receive them.
Since the Taiping Rebellion, this thing has become rampant, and there are a lot of people in the Hunan Army wearing yellow jackets and carrying the title of Baturu.
Only the Enqiwei is the most valuable. He is a noble and must have great merit to get it. It is the real reward for Lin Bozai killing generals and seizing flags in the hail of bullets.
Lin Bozai kowtowed to express his gratitude, took the imperial edict from Lu Laifu, holding the seventh-rank blue feather hat and yellow jacket in his arms, and did not know what to do for a moment.
Lu Laifu's duck voice sounded, "Lord Lin, the emperor particularly likes brave generals like you who dare to fight and charge for the country, and has issued a special oral order."
Lin Bozai has not yet adapted to his new identity. He did not expect that the unfamiliar title "Mr. Lin" was referring to him.
Shao Quanzhong kicked him in the knee, and Lin Bozi hurriedly knelt down to listen to the imperial edict.
The emperor's oral instructions were much more friendly to the people. "Lin Bozi, your name is too rustic. You don't look like an official of the Qing Dynasty. I will change your name to Lin Bo and grant you the character Buer. You must be loyal to me from now on. I decree this."
Ah? Lin Bozi was named by my father, why did the emperor change it? I still have a name?
At least Bo Zai knew that he couldn't go against the emperor, so he kowtowed and expressed his gratitude and stood up.
Shao Quanzhong walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "Buer, it is a great honor for your family to be granted a name by the emperor. I grant you three days of leave. Go back to Luzhuang immediately to show off this good news. Don't forget to display the imperial edict and the yellow jacket."
Lin Bozai nodded blankly.
"For beheading the general and seizing the flag this time, I will reward you with two thousand taels of silver. I will give it to you now. You will return home in glory and build a big house. From now on, your Lin family will be the first family in our Lu Village."
Of course this is the result of the old Shao family moving away.
Lin Buer, who had just come out of the oven, nodded. It was useless for the emperor to give me a name, because the one I was loyal to was definitely Brother Shao.
Zhang Siwen had quietly returned and nodded to Shao Quanzhong. Shao Quanzhong bowed to Lu Laifu and said, "Eunuch Lu, you have worked hard on the journey. Go have some tea and take a rest. I will disband the team and accompany you back to my humble abode."
It took Shao Quanzhong twenty days to escort Wenxiu and her mother back to Hailing, and it took Eunuch Lu five or six days to get from Rehe to Hailing, which is almost as fast as the 400-mile journey, which must have been quite tiring.
The emperor was so excited about having destroyed the main forces of two powerful princes of the Taiping Army at once that he ordered the eunuchs to travel day and night to reward the heroes as soon as possible.
Shao Quanzhong stood in front of the soldiers in the training ground and said, "Lin Buer is rewarded with two thousand taels of silver for killing the general and capturing the flag. I will pay it out now. The rewards for the others and the salary for the new soldiers will be paid out after I receive the angels. Dismissed!"
Shao Quanzhong accompanied Eunuch Lu into the command center and asked Eunuch Lu to take a rest.
Just now, Lord Qiao signaled me with his eyes, obviously he had something to do, so he had to receive my godfather first.
"Yuting, plans can't keep up with changes. Your father is now in charge of the Jiangning Provincial Government, and the salt industry is about to be handed over. I can't wait three months to give you military funds. I'll just give you all I can now." If Qiao Songnian didn't get promoted, military funds could be a steady stream. Now that the salt transport office is gone, won't the money of the salt transport office be spent by the next person in charge?
"During this period, the Lianghuai Salt Industry has collected a total of 800,000 taels of silver. Your father has tried his best to obtain it for you. 300,000 taels were handed over to the court, and the remaining 500,000 taels are for you to expand the Huai Army."
Shao Quanzhong knelt down to express his gratitude, "Thank you, foster father, for your kindness."
In such a short while, Shao Quanzhong didn't know how many times he had knelt.
But it's worth it, today I'm getting promoted and making money. Every time I get a head, I get more than 100,000 taels of silver or a promotion.
If such a good thing happened every day, Shao Quanzhong would be willing to kneel and kowtow all the time. If he kowtowed for ten days or eight days, he might be admitted to the Military Affairs Council and promoted directly to the Governor-General of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang.
Since he could deduct more than 60% from the total income for himself, his godfather must have done his best to use his influence in the court.
Qiao Songnian laughed out loud, "The deer in the Central Plains are fat." If you want to compete for the Central Plains, how can you do it without money?
He had just seen the couplet outside the headquarters and did not think it had any rebellious meaning.
A warlord without ideals is not a good warlord. Being a hegemon and having the final say in the court is also considered a fight for the Central Plains. As long as you still respect the Zhou emperor as the boss, who says that the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period can't be the same?
"This time, Eunuch Lu came with a promise from the emperor himself of 200,000 taels of silver to form the Huai Army, which will also be paid from the salt payment. 700,000 taels of silver should be enough for you to raise the Huai Army. Send someone to the Salt Transport Office to bring it back."
That is, the Hunan Army now has 140,000 people, and they are digging holes in the gates and stealing holes, trying every way to squeeze the land, but the military expenditure is only 3 million taels of silver a year.
Initially, he only wanted to raise an army of thirteen battalions with less than ten thousand people, but he had a budget of seven hundred thousand taels of silver. It would be very useful to have a godfather who was in charge of the court's purse.
"Your father has become the governor of Jiangning Prefecture, Yangzhou Prefecture, Huai'an Prefecture, Xuzhou Prefecture, Haizhou Prefecture and Tongzhou Prefecture. In the future, there will be lijin and donations for you, but it will not be as much money as the salt industry."
"Don't worry, foster father. I want to train elite troops. I don't want any of the cannon fodder soldiers of the Hunan Army who are just filling in the line with swords and spears. We don't need so many people. This budget is enough."
"Won't it be difficult to fight a big war with fewer soldiers?"
Qiao Songnian was a little worried.
"Father, occupying territory, guarding borders, and confronting the Taiping Army are rough jobs that bring little credit and little profit, so let Zeng Guofan do them. We only need a strong and elite force to enter Nanjing and reap the most juicy fruits."
The father and son laughed at each other, Yuting understands me.
What Shao Quanzhong didn't tell Mr. Qiao was that after the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was destroyed, the imperial court would reduce its military. But at this time, the Qing court had not yet lost its vitality, so it was not the right time to rebel.
You think Zeng Guofan didn't want to rebel and become emperor, but he judged the situation and didn't do it. In the end, he disbanded the Hunan Army and became a loyal minister. Why?
Did Zeng Guofan have high moral standards? Bullshit!
In front of the throne, morality is just toilet paper. As long as you are in power, there will always be great scholars to debate for you.
It would be impossible to succeed if we rebel at this time.
If the Huai Army becomes too large, it will eventually be disbanded.
Only by maintaining an elite force of a moderate size can we preserve our strength and wait for the right time. Shao Quanzhong does have this vision.
Because of an unexpected battle in Zhenjiang, which was expanded into a great victory with the strong cooperation of the famous general Feng Zicai, Shao Quanzhong received the military funds for military expansion three months ahead of schedule, which was much more than originally expected, so he can now start working hard.
(End of this chapter)