Daming Yuanfu

Chapter 2320 Fengshan (Seventeen) Reviewing the Three Guards of Tianjin

The shock of this day will forever remain in the hearts of the officials and the emperor who attended the meeting. However, the schedule of the imperial entourage was very full. They had to review the three guards of Tianjin tomorrow morning and inspect the Tianjin Port commercial zone in the afternoon. Therefore, after watching the artillery display of the Dongchang, everyone quickly returned to the Yingbin Hall for dinner and were then arranged to go to bed early.

As the first rays of sunlight penetrated the mist in the early morning, a loud horn sounded in the barracks of the Tianjin Three Guards. The soldiers quickly assembled to prepare for the emperor's inspection. According to Gao Youshi's order, they had to train normally today, but this training was not a performance training to show the military appearance, but a drill close to actual combat.

Zhu Yijun, accompanied by Gao Youshi and the three main officers of Tianjin, rode in a beautifully decorated carriage and slowly drove into the military camp. The emperor did not ride in the imperial sedan chair throughout his journey south this time. For example, he changed to the imperial carriage when he went to Tianjin Port yesterday and came to the Tianjin Wei military camp today.

As soon as the carriage stopped, a group of guards in bright armor came forward and saluted in unison. Zhu Yijun stepped off the carriage and calmly scanned the soldiers in front of him, only to see that they all knelt on one knee while holding their weapons in one hand and sticking them on the ground.

Zhu Yijun raised his eyebrows and turned to ask Gao Youshi: "Rixin, I remember when you were commanding the troops, you asked those in armor not to kneel down to salute, but to just stretch out their right hands, bend their arms and raise them, with their middle fingers pointing to their eyebrows, which was called the new military salute... Why did they still kneel down on one knee?"

Gao Youshi laughed and said, "Your Majesty, your majesty, your orders are not applicable to me. If you hadn't come today, they wouldn't have to kneel."

Zhu Yijun glared at him, then turned around and said loudly: "I know that you have been accustomed to the new military salute over the years. Even though I am here in person today, there is no need to make an exception. There is no need to kneel down. Stand up."

However, the soldiers did not dare to move. After looking at each other, they all looked at Gao Guoshi. Gao Guoshi had no choice but to say, "Since the emperor has given special permission, why are you hesitating? Stand up." Only then did everyone feel relieved, and they all stood up and changed to the new military salute.

Zhu Yijun strode into the military camp, Gao Youshi followed closely behind him, and then Luo Yuren, Zhang Wanbang and Huang Yichen. The rest of the officials followed suit.

At this time, three huge military flags fluttered in the morning breeze in the military camp, representing Tianjin Guard, Tianjin Left Guard, and Tianjin Right Guard. In addition to the text on the flags, the Ming Dynasty dragon pattern was embroidered around them, which was majestic and sacred, symbolizing the supremacy of imperial power.

Soon, Zhu Yijun was standing on the reviewing stand, looking sharply at the soldiers below. They were holding Wanli II-style muskets with wooden training bayonets, and their faces were full of seriousness. Today's training was a simulated trench warfare training, and the soldiers had to learn to fight the enemy at very close range.

The training began, and the soldiers quickly entered the role. They were divided into two teams, one team played the attacking side and the other played the defending side. The attacking soldiers advanced in a low posture, using the terrain and cover to carefully approach the "enemy" defense line. The defending side held their bayonets tightly and watched every possible attack point vigilantly.

Following the commander's order, the two sides launched a fierce confrontation. The clash of wooden bayonets and the shouts of soldiers intertwined to form a symphony of war. Every thrust was full of power, and every block revealed the tension of a life-and-death struggle.

Zhu Yijun held the railing tightly, his eyes flashing with admiration for the soldiers. He also knew what a shitty level the second-tier troops like Tianjin Sanwei were more than 20 years ago, and now, whether their training is still a performance or not, at least it looks decent.

"Rixin, what do you think of this level? What I mean is, among the soldiers you have led in the past, are they good or bad?"

Gao Youshi said: "The three guards of Tianjin have been called upon to fight under my command many times. Their level... has always been in the middle. As for their current performance, it basically fits this judgment."

Zhu Yijun was slightly surprised, and said something like he was answering Gao Youshi, but also like he was talking to himself: "Really? I think it's not bad."

Gao Fusi smiled and didn't say much.

After the infantry bayonet training, the horsemanship training began. The cavalry mounted their horses and began their actual combat drills. The main training item for these cavalry today was to hack and slash at high speed.

Although it is called chopping, it is actually divided into two types of actions. One is the real "chopping", which means that each cavalryman has to use a wooden training saber to drive through a sparse group of scarecrows, and they need to chop down or cut off at least three scarecrows in the process.

The other type is the Mongolian-style "shovel" training, which also involves facing scarecrows, but these scarecrows are much taller than the previous ones, roughly the height of a person on a horse. The cavalrymen need to hold the saber straight (the tip of the saber is at the other end of the tiger's mouth) while sprinting at high speed, keeping the saber horizontal with the tip facing outward, and rely entirely on horsepower and the blade of the scimitar to cut off the scarecrow beside them.

Because both types of training require the ability to chop and cut the scarecrow, the cavalry training uses real sabers instead of wooden training knives. Relatively speaking, this is also a more dangerous training. If the coordination is not good, comrades may be injured, disabled or even killed.

Gao Youshi explained a few things to Zhu Yijun, and the emperor became a little nervous after listening to them. He was a little worried that there would be bloodshed in the training ground, as it would not be a good sign.

Fortunately, although Gao Youshi's words were scary, the more than 300 cavalrymen who trained today performed well and successfully completed the two training subjects.

Gao Youshi looked at the emperor who was greatly relieved, and couldn't help thinking: Three guards have put together a cavalry camp composed of elite soldiers. If something unexpected happens, I will have to put you in solitary confinement afterwards.

Thinking about this, he glanced at Zhang Wanbang next to him. Zhang Wanbang shrank his neck at first, then felt something was wrong, so he moved closer and whispered to Gao Youshi: "My Lord, I'm not being clever, it's just that the cavalry training of the three guards in Tianjin is not good enough, there is really no other way, so I chose the best of the best... I'm sorry to make you laugh."

Gao Fusi snorted and said nothing, then waved his hand to let him leave.

Zhang Wanbang was an old subordinate of Gao Youshi, but he was most famous for his bayonet formation. He was recently transferred back from Korea to the vicinity of the capital to serve as the Tianjin General. He was very worried about accepting the emperor's inspection of the cavalry, and it was not until this moment that he felt relieved - it was obvious that the marquis saw the trick, but did not intend to point it out.

That's fine. Anyway, he was only afraid of Gao Youshi, not the emperor. To be frank, the emperor didn't know what was good and what was bad. He could just fool around. He was not like the Marquis, who had commanded troops for many years and was truly knowledgeable. He couldn't be fooled. He could only strive for his understanding and accommodation. The little episode passed, and the more than 300 cavalrymen on the training ground began more complex tactical actions, such as charging, turning, and encircling. Obviously, this was a typical performance training - these more than 300 cavalrymen were selected from the nearly 20,000 people in the three guards of Tianjin, so they were naturally of some level.

As expected, the cavalrymen displayed amazing coordination and balance on horseback, with each of their movements perfectly synchronized with the movements of their horses. Under the control of the cavalrymen, the horses were like beasts on the battlefield, brave and flexible.

  Zhu Yijun watched the performance of the cavalrymen, and his heart was filled with pride. No wonder every powerful dynasty from ancient times to the present must have an elite cavalry. If the Ming Dynasty had 100,000 or even 200,000 such cavalrymen, what would happen if Liu Jing continued his 3,000-mile expedition to the west? The world is so big, who dares to confront me!

He suddenly turned to Gao Youshi and said, "Rixin, I have decided on all the reform suggestions you mentioned before regarding the cavalry. I will approve them all. Please draft the edict as soon as possible without delay!"

"Uh..." Gao Youshi was caught off guard by him, thinking to himself, I have made so many suggestions on cavalry reform, and you just agreed to them all at once?

However, Gao Youshi knew that this was a rare opportunity, and after a moment of hesitation he quickly replied, "I obey your command." Then he found it a little funny, and thought: It seems that the so-called man's nature does exist. Even an emperor in the deep palace who has never led troops himself, once he sees the mighty and majestic military machine with his own eyes, he will involuntarily become fanatical, and then make a decision in a fit of rage that he may regret at some point in the future.

Yes, if all the "reform suggestions on cavalry that you mentioned before" were implemented, Gao Youshi was almost certain that the emperor would sooner or later regret his decision - at least several million taels of silver would have to be invested directly, and then in order to maintain the level and scale, hundreds of thousands of taels of silver would have to be invested every year after completion, which would exceed the current total.

Given Zhu Yijun's "stinginess", Gao Youshi was sure that he would start to regret it once he calmed down. When one day in the future the finances became so tight that a minister suggested that he use the imperial treasury to subsidize the money, he would regret it to death.

But Gao Youshi was not worried. After all, Zhu Yijun was the one who cared most about his reputation. As long as he went back and drafted the imperial edict, let him use the treasure, and sent it to the six departments for approval, the matter would be settled. As for the future... let's talk about it in the future. After all, if the emperor really lost his face at that time, the ministers would have to use the old method of ancient and modern times to argue with the emperor, and delay it for one more day.

But then again, if these investments can recover costs from other aspects, perhaps the emperor will be able to accept it in the future. Who can say for sure?

Amid the emperor's excitement and Gao Youshi's deep thoughts, the training finally came to an end. The soldiers lined up neatly on the training ground, waiting for the emperor's final inspection.

However, Zhu Yijun was surprised when he heard that he was required to speak publicly. He coughed lightly, pulled Gao Youshi aside and whispered, "I am not good at this matter, so you should go and give the speech. You are the Prime Minister, the Marquis of Nanning, and the initiator of this military reform. Many of these people have fought under your command, so you are the most suitable person to give the speech."

Gao Youshi was a little surprised, but seeing that Zhu Yijun's expression did not seem fake, he had to agree: "Yes, I obey your order." Zhu Yijun breathed a sigh of relief, patted his loyal minister on the shoulder encouragingly, and with a light push, pushed Gao Youshi to the front.

Standing on the reviewing stand of the Tianjin Army Camp, Gao Youshi took a deep breath. As the "world's best military commander" who had led thousands of troops many times, his eyes were firm and powerful. As soon as he stood on the main seat of the reviewing stand, the audience immediately fell silent, and countless pairs of eyes stared at him eagerly.

"Soldiers!" Gao Youshi's voice echoed in the morning air, clear and powerful: "Today, we are here not only to show our strength, but also to temper our will and to prepare for every challenge in the future."

He paused and glanced at the neatly lined-up soldiers, their eyes flickering with anticipation for the words they were about to hear.

"We are Tianjin Guard, Tianjin Left Guard, Tianjin Right Guard. Our names may be different, but our goals are always the same - to be loyal to the emperor and protect the country!" Gao Youshi's words revealed a deep sense of responsibility: "In the coming days, you will be reorganized into the Second Regiment of the First Army of Baoding in accordance with the latest military reform plan of the court. This is not only a change in number, but also a sublimation of responsibility, and a higher requirement for our army's combat capability!"

His voice gradually became louder, full of motivation: "Bayonet training is to make you fearless on the battlefield. No matter how powerful the enemy is, you must have the courage to fight with the bayonet. Equestrian training is to make you as swift as the wind on the battlefield. No matter how complicated the battle situation is, you can control it freely and charge forward at any time to break through the enemy's formation and kill the enemy!"

Gao Youshi's tone turned serious: "Remember, every sweat of training will be transformed into victory on the battlefield. Every simulated sacrifice will avoid losses in real battles. You are the real Great Wall of Ming Dynasty, the strong shield and sharp blade for the emperor and the people of the world when facing the barbarians!"

Finally, he raised his voice, almost shouting: "Soldiers, let us be proud of today's training and tomorrow's battle. Let us stand shoulder to shoulder, heart to heart, and jointly create the supreme glory of the Ming Dynasty!"

As Gao Youshi finished his words, the soldiers cheered loudly. They were deeply moved by his plain words and filled with confidence.

  Zhu Yijun stood aside. Although he claimed that he was not good at public speaking, his eyes revealed his admiration for Gao Youshi. He thought to himself: So it is necessary to be so straightforward when giving lectures to soldiers? But then again, they are not scholars. It would be a waste of time to talk about all sorts of things if they don't understand. It's really strange. Ri Xin himself is the leader of scholars. How can he know how to deal with these ordinary soldiers?

The emperor was distracted and did not hear what Gao Youshi said next - the rest of his words were not very sensational, because he was announcing the distribution of rewards, and the reason was that the emperor was very satisfied with their performance today, so he showed mercy and rewarded them.

By the time the emperor realized what was happening, tens of thousands of taels of silver had already been given out as a reward. Zhu Yijun pretended to be calm, but when Gao Youshi stepped down from the stage, the emperor quickly stopped him and asked quietly, "Rixin, the reward you just announced should come from the Ministry of Revenue, right?"

Gao Youshi rolled his eyes and said, "Why should the Ministry of Revenue pay for it? The Ministry of War has emergency funds, which were already allocated by the Ministry of Revenue in the budget at the beginning of the year."

  "Oh... that's fine." Zhu Yijun breathed a sigh of relief and laughed dryly, "The Ministry of War will send it, the Ministry of War will send it, I think it's quite appropriate."
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