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Chapter 431 Reward based on merit 2

"Take it. Although he did not perform any meritorious service when he left the city, he shot and killed many cavalrymen on the city wall. I saw it with my own eyes." Seeing that Zhang Yongling was wilted, Hong Tao stopped being harsh.

It's right to think about it. The Jurchens were suddenly bombarded and lost two coaches. It was difficult to regain combat effectiveness in a short period of time. It was considered a strong army if they could not scatter in all directions. He also set the pursuit range. Compared with the speed of horseback riding, the Musketeers may not be able to catch up with the Jurchens even if they train for ten years.

"Long live my Lord, I have something to say!" Zhang Yongling was satisfied, and Jieji appeared again.

"Say!"

"I think it would be more appropriate to put the artillery on land and use it differently."

Compared with Li Jinzhong and Zhang Yongling, Jieji behaved more freely in front of the emperor. She sat down when asked to sit and ate when asked to eat. She even dared to find fault. These artillery pieces were built under the emperor's order and were highly regarded in the navy. They have made great achievements today, and others will definitely not talk much about them.

"How to change it?" Sure enough, the emperor's brows frowned and the smile on his face disappeared.

"My slave has carefully observed that the range of the cannonball is far enough, but it is still inaccurate after two hundred steps. Land battles are not like naval battles. They need to penetrate thick ship plates, and ordinary armor and shields have no power to resist them.

In this case, the barrel is too long and becomes a burden. It is better to shorten the barrel, increase the caliber, thin the bore wall, and fire larger-caliber shells with the same weight barrel, and the lethality should be better.

If you think the range is insufficient, you can raise the muzzle more and use a parabolic lob. If the gun body and gun carriage can be made more compact and dismantled and mounted on horseback to fight with the army, it will be a powerful weapon in field battles and sieges. "

Jieji didn't seem to see the change in the emperor's expression and was still talking about his own thoughts. In order to express the content more clearly, he also dipped his fingers into the milk tea in the cup and drew on the imperial book table.

"...Wang Chengen, take note of everything Jie Ji said every time, and send someone to Luanzhou tomorrow to give Li Zhizao, so that he can test and improve as appropriate. Little Jack, do you want to change your career to become a gunner?"

A strange thing happened. The emperor, who always paid great attention to cleanliness and hygiene, was indifferent when he watched others using sticky milk tea on his table. He even smiled kindly when he heard the end.

"Long live my lord, I still want to be a pilot, and I still want to drive a big sailing boat around the earth." Jieji's answer was even more puzzling. She was stunned to reject the emperor's proposal in person. She must have been too courageous.

"Hey, we can't make cakes without rotten eggs. Why don't you go? Wang Zhizhen, how many broken troops and prisoners of war are there outside the city?" After being refuted by the eunuch, the emperor did not get angry and muttered in a low voice, "No more." Paying attention to Jieji, he began to ask about Jin Yiwei's work progress.

"I have made a rough count. The three battalions have killed more than 3,700 people in total. Taining Marquis Chen Liangbi and Ningyang Marquis Chen Yingzhao are also among them. Huaiyuan Marquis Chang Yinxu has disappeared, and the government officials from Wanping and Daxing counties are also among them. Searching in villages and towns outside the city.

Jianlu left more than 1,100 corpses outside the city and captured more than 2,500 prisoners. They were temporarily detained in the Guandi Temple in the east of the city, guarded by the Shuntian Prefecture Yamen and the Haitusi Rebel Army. A total of more than 31,000 people were gathered from the defeated troops of the three major battalions, and they were all locked up in Mingzhifang Pasture and guarded by Jinyi Guards."

Compared with these eunuchs, Wang Zhizhen, the commander of the Jinyiwei, was the most strict. He was not as frightened as Li Jinzhong and Zhang Yongling, nor was he as wanton as Jieji, who said whatever he asked.

"Where's the scout?"

"They were all sent out, a total of twelve teams, with five people in each team. An hour ago, the reconnaissance cavalry came to report that the remnants of the captives were divided into two groups, one heading north and one heading east. The number is estimated to be around two thousand. We should have passed Shunyi and Xianghe by now."

"Well, the defenses on the city cannot be withdrawn tonight. We will send more reconnaissance cavalry out of the city to patrol, and use rockets to warn of enemy situations. Not only the east and north, but also the west and south must be covered. Don't be careless. Remember. If there is an accident, please report it no matter how late it is. I will send someone to be at Beigong Gate at any time.

I will take some new measures after tomorrow's meeting, and I'm afraid many people won't be happy to see them. You all should wake up and don’t believe anyone except my orders. Dogs will jump over the wall when they are anxious, so you must not be negligent at this time. If someone disobeys the order, there is no need to report it. Immediately notify the nearby artillery and musketry teams in the city. Anyone who trespasses in the restricted area will be killed first, regardless of official rank! "

The three major battalions were completely destroyed, and two of the three noble generals who were closest to the civilian clique died and one disappeared. The Jurchen army has also been crippled and has been far away from the capital. Now it can finally breathe a sigh of relief, but only half of it.

Historical lessons always remind Hong Tao that whenever the situation is good, danger is often approaching. If you don't pay attention, all your previous efforts may be wasted. Whether this battle can be won or not, defeating the Jurchen army is only superficial. In essence, it still depends on the outcome of tomorrow's imperial meeting.

If the courtiers wake up and understand the inevitable connection between personal interests and national security, are willing to give the emperor limited trust, and do not strongly oppose the construction of the new army, naturally everyone will be happy.

However, it is relatively difficult to achieve this ideal outcome. According to past experience, each party should carefully consider their own interests, and only after some bickering and exchange of interests can they reluctantly reach an unstable consensus.

The question is how much benefit should be given to them in exchange for military power? Hong Tao thought that he could not get it in exchange for any amount of money. Officials of the Ming Dynasty were greedy and lacked national spirit and national backbone, but they were definitely not stupid. They must understand the truth that if their life is in the hands of others, no amount of money will be earned.

Military power is their life. This has been proven by the emperors of the Ming Dynasty with countless practical actions. Therefore, the exchange of interests alone is completely insufficient. It is time to come up with another bargaining chip.

The people in the capital could neither see nor participate in the battle that took place outside the city during the day, and they could not even move around to inquire for information. Suddenly, a large number of cavalry soldiers appeared on the street, leading soldiers from the Five Cities Military and Horse Division to patrol back and forth. They were not allowed to move around freely, and most of the shops and businesses were closed.

The sound of artillery finally stopped. It is said that the emperor personally came to Chaoyang Gate to command the imperial army to a great victory. However, before everyone could cheer and shout long live our emperor, Dongchang Fanzi and Jinyiwei were busy in the city again.

Seeing that the homes of several wealthy families were ransacked, all the people living there were bundled into groups and put on carriages and headed towards Zhengyang Gate. As a person from the capital, I'm afraid no one in the capital doesn't know what's there. It's the imperial prison of Fusi in Jinyiwei North Town. The fate of these people is basically clear. They will definitely be in trouble if they go to jail.

The raids and arrests continued until midnight. No one knew what crimes these normally aloof officials and nobles had committed, and there was no place to ask. But some people have already noticed that something big is going to happen, and it is most likely related to the war that happened during the day.

In the Hall of Yangxin, the huge long table was filled with officials of the Ming Dynasty. The number of people in the imperial meeting on peacetime had increased compared with today. In addition to the six ministers and nine ministers, the left commander of the rear army, Yongnian Bo Wang Mingfu, and the left commander of the central army, Wu Qingbo and Li Mingcheng, Also among them.

Everyone's expressions were a little solemn. In the court meeting just now, the emperor did not pay much attention to yesterday's glorious victory, nor did he reward them based on their merits. It seemed that all this was just a drill and not worth mentioning.

But he was not idle either. He scolded more than a dozen officials and dignitaries in front of all the civil and military officials. No matter from the expression, word choice or body movements, everyone was very angry.

"My dear friends, did you sleep peacefully last night?" Just when everyone was getting a little impatient, the emperor's figure finally turned out from behind the screen, with a harmless smile still on his chubby face, as if he was in the morning court. It was another person who was furious.

"In this chaotic situation, Your Majesty has personally done the work, and I dare not take any time off." Ye Xianggao, the chief minister of the cabinet sitting first on the left, stood up and responded. At the same time, he secretly glanced at the emperor's face from the corner of his eyes, trying to see from those unfamiliar eyes. Some inspiration was found in the deep eyes.

"Yes, they are all very busy... Look at these, they are all confessions and letters that have just been obtained. I can't believe that when the enemy is at hand, there are so many far-sighted people in the court who have already taken care of me. A perfect plan has been made.”

As the emperor sat down, a thick stack of documents was placed on the table by Wang Chengen. With the rhythmic tapping of fingers, the content of the copy was also spoken in a joking tone.

(End of this chapter)