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Chapter 535: Reach out to the army

"Congratulations to Chief of Staff Sun, congratulations to His Majesty the Emperor..."

With such detailed arrangements and strong support from the top, everyone here understands that Sun Chengzong is lucky. As long as he can steadily complete the training of these 30,000 new troops, his position as the second-ranking figure in the army will be secure.

Although the army is not as important as the navy now, according to the clear message given by the emperor, 60,000 people are far from enough to sweep away the Monan Mongols, and the army will definitely be expanded in the future.

As long as the Army can fight and win one or two major battles, it will immediately outshine the Navy. By that time, the status of the Army Chief of Staff will definitely be different from what it is now.

"Wang Cheng'en, take my order to the imperial prison warehouse and call the people one by one according to the list to be interviewed by General Du, Governor Li and Chief of Staff Sun. Remember, these generals are loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty and should be treated with courtesy. , don’t be arrogant.”

Whether Sun Chengzong can and has time to go to the northwest to train the new army is useless just sitting in the Forbidden City and planning. It also depends on whether the local environment allows it.

If most of the detained military officers were unwilling to give up some of their family and personal interests, and did not want to seek new development with the emperor, then it would not be the officers and staff who were heading to Shanxi, but Li Ruzhang's 30,000-strong army.

Let’s put aside whether the Mongols can be swept away. If the generals in any border town are not convinced, they will first sweep them with lead bullets and artillery shells to see how many people can be killed to make them face reality.

"Your Majesty, I also want to serve in the army. I will learn from the beginning with Governor Li and Chief of Staff Sun. I hope you will be able to do so."

Seeing everyone leaving, with only Navy Governor Yuan Keli and the emperor left in the room, Du Wenhuan plucked up the courage to make a request. This time I went to Beijing to celebrate the Queen's birthday. More importantly, I wanted to use the opportunity of meeting the Queen to pave the way for the future.

He would definitely not be able to see what the Army looks like in Ningxia, but his uncle has seen it many times in Luanzhou, and even took his own troops to practice with the Army, and he came to the conclusion that it can't be defeated no matter how hard it is.

This is a powerful army that has never been seen before, and the weapons and tactics used are completely different from those of the frontier army. Therefore, Jun Song suggested that his nephew find an opportunity to join as soon as possible, even if his rank is lower. There is no way out in the border army.

"Don't be busy now. Ningxia and Gansu are located in remote areas, and the army cannot get involved in a short time. I still need your uncle and nephew to work hard to maintain the status quo. It is a heavy responsibility.

Establishing a new army requires a process, especially the generals, which are the most important. It is difficult to master them all at once. I have a few books and several staff officers here for you. Take them back and study them carefully. If you don’t understand something, ask the staff officers to explain it. After a year or two, when you have mastered everything in the book, I will allow you to establish a new army in Gansu. "

Hong Tao agreed to Du Wenhuan's request, but did not agree immediately. Instead, he drew a piece of pie that was not too long and hung it temporarily.

There is no way. Military reform is limited by human and financial resources and cannot be fully rolled out, so there are not so many practical jobs to be awarded. To become a senior general in the army, it is no longer enough to rely on bravery and combat experience. Let alone just being a deputy general, even the most famous Mahjong has no ready position in the army at this time.

If they were willing to follow the emperor, they could at most maintain their original positions and continue guarding the border, and then learn basic knowledge from the staff stationed by the General Staff. Those who have good self-study skills and are not too old still have the opportunity to enter the army, but most of them can only stay in the old system and use their remaining talents.

That's right, Hong Tao does not intend to completely overthrow the Ming Dynasty's military system, but to coexist the old and the new, creating a dual-track system. Select a portion of the border troops and guard posts that are relatively capable of combat effectiveness to be merged, and the General Staff Headquarters will send personnel to guide and supervise them, and continue to perform daily defense tasks in border towns. The remaining frontier troops and guard posts will be gradually dismantled as the new army gradually grows, including a large part of the military forts.

The lower-level officers and soldiers who have been laid off will definitely have no objections. Military status is a heavy shackle for them, and they will not be hungry if they are not soldiers. There is plenty of work in factories and mines everywhere, and anyone who is not too lazy can find a job.

Families don’t have to worry. In addition to factories and mines, Zhou Daodeng is trying to set up farms in Shandong. Several or more than a dozen households of tenant farmers and military households who have lost their land will join forces to reclaim sloping wasteland and plant large areas of sweet potato, cotton and tobacco.

Once this method is proven to be feasible, the governments in Northern Zhili will immediately follow suit. What will follow will be a huge labor gap, and it will be easy to fill in hundreds of thousands of people.

In addition, there will be more and more track projects in Xiong Sanba. After the track is completed in the future, dedicated personnel will need to be arranged for duty, maintenance, and ticket sales at stations along the way. Rough calculations indicate that tens of thousands of people will not be able to stop there.

This is actually the prototype of a railway company, but Hong Tao hasn't figured out what form it should operate in, so he simply maintains it like this for now. Anyway, the number of rail transit lines is too small to form a scale, so there is no rush to determine it.

But the senior generals who have been abolished are a bit troublesome. They are all older and their learning ability must be much weaker. Most of them cannot adapt to the new army and face large-scale elimination.

But these people have fought for the country for most of their lives. It is not reasonable to say that they don’t want it anymore. If it is not handled well, it will break the hearts of many people.

Based on the principle of not treating those who have made contributions to the country unfairly, Hong Tao plans to include them all in the establishment of the General Staff Headquarters. They must be given high-ranking positions and higher treatment.

Not just raising trash, he also had to make suggestions for Ming Dynasty's military construction and combat operations. Of course, it's up to you whether you listen or not, but you must let others speak.

In addition, these general families must be given the privilege to continue the family's glory, allowing them to send young people in the family to the army for training, without examination or selection, and they will be accepted when they are old.

But after entering, you have to follow the army's standard requirements. Those who have the ability to pass the assessment can stay in the army and hold corresponding positions.

This is the military reform plan in Hong Tao's plan. The most effective frontier troops will be attacked first. As long as the attack is successful, the reform will be 80% completed.

The various military posts are much softer than the border troops, and the conditions awaiting their resettlement are also much worse. Most people have to go to farms to be self-reliant. A small number of young people can pass the assessment to join the construction corps and go to the border to contract military projects instead of labor. The more they work, the more they earn, and they are responsible for their own profits and losses.

Settlement expenses? No! Not satisfied? Bear with it! Can't help it? Suppression! There is no way, Hong Tao is a standard character who bullies the weak and fears the strong. If you want to take money from his pocket, you must be strong enough. The border troops can't be offended, so they will be given preferential treatment; the guards can't even defeat the bandits, so they are naturally weak and will not give a single copper.

(End of this chapter)