Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 27: Training to become stronger
"..."

In the Yulin Zuowei Yamen, Zhu Gaoxu was stunned for a moment when he heard the military attache announcing his family status.

"Zhu Gaoxu, the second son of Yan, has met Commander Sheng."

Zhu Gaoxu came to his senses after a short period of astonishment. While bowing in return, he couldn't help but look at the other person carefully.

Sheng Yong is a typical Jiangnan person. He is not very tall, but he is about five feet four inches (173).

He has a broad face, broad nose, thick eyebrows and long eyes. His appearance is not outstanding, but he is somewhat majestic.

If Zhu Gaoxu remembers correctly, although Sheng Yong's record did not defeat Zhu Di twice in Jinan and Dongchang as boasted in "History of the Ming Dynasty", he did kill the Yan army general Tan Yuan in the Battle of Jiahe, putting the Yan army at a disadvantage for a time. it is true.

Moreover, what Zhu Gaoxu remembers most about Sheng Yong is that he is good at training troops.

The infantry he trained were penetrated several times by the Yan army's cavalry without losing their position. This was simply a fantasy for the ancient army.

Zhu Gaoxu did not expect that he would actually serve under Sheng Yong.

What also made him even more unexpected was that Sheng Yong was actually just a small guard commander.

But it's not surprising if you think about it carefully. It's still the 27th year of Hongwu, and there are still four years before Sheng Yong enters the history books.

Four years is enough time for a person with outstanding ability to climb several levels.

Sheng Yong was not as curious as Zhu Gaoxu. After Zhu Gaoxu returned the gift, he took out a bronze medal and handed it over.

"This is the waist badge of Habayashi Zuoweijia with the word Qianhuxu and the word Baihu. From now on, His Highness will control and command him."

During the conversation, Sheng Yong also explained:

"Nowadays, hundreds of households with four characters such as Xu, Bing, Geng, and Xin are jointly responsible for guarding the Yingguo Palace and Song Guogong Palace. The four hundred households take turns to be on duty. His Highness's residence is also arranged near the two palaces. This is key……"

Sheng Yong handed over the key, and when Zhu Gaoxu took it, a subtle feeling arose in his heart.

"Lao Zhu asked me to guard the mansions of Duke Ying and Duke Song?"

Upon hearing the news, Zhu Gaoxu's first reaction was excitement, and then he became suspicious.

He was excited because Ying Guogong Fu Youde and Song Guogong Feng Sheng were undoubtedly the two most capable warriors in the Ming Dynasty. If he could take the opportunity to learn some skills from them, it would probably be beneficial to his own growth.

But after such excitement, all that's left is doubt.

Zhu Gaoxu knew very well that Zhu Yuanzhang would not arrange something for no reason, but let the county king be a hundred households to guard Ying Guogong and Song Guogong. This obviously had other purposes.

Thinking of his excitement, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but think about Zhu Yuanzhang's intention of making such an arrangement, whether he wanted to learn something from Fu Youde and Feng Sheng.

However, when he thought about his identity and status, he suddenly felt that such a thing seemed impossible.

Therefore, there are many thoughts in his mind right now, but he is not sure.

"Your Highness, today is your first day of reporting. I will give you a day off. Please arrive at Duke Ying's Mansion tomorrow at Chenshi and lead your troops on duty."

"The specific shift matters will be reported to hundreds of households after arriving at the Duke's Mansion."

"The armor on duty and the silk silk given by His Majesty have been placed at the residence."

"I still have military affairs to attend to, so I will not accompany His Highness to his residence. The soldiers at the door will accompany His Highness."

After Sheng Yong explained everything in a formal manner, he bowed in return without leaving any chance for Zhu Gaoxu to get closer, and then turned and left.

Looking at his back, Zhu Gaoxu finally understood why he, who was over thirty years old, was just a guard commander.

"Your Highness, Commander Sheng's temper is like this. Don't take it to heart." The soldiers who brought Zhu Gaoxu in tried to smooth things over, but Zhu Gaoxu smiled and shook his head:

"It's okay, just take me to my residence first."

"Yes!" Seeing that Zhu Gaoxu did not hold a grudge, the soldier couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief, and then volunteered to take Zhu Gaoxu to his residence.

He asked people to find a donkey cart, and after walking out of the Yamen, he asked Zhu Gaoxu and three others to ride on it, while he led the donkey cart to his residence.

The Yu Linzuo Wei is in the northeast corner of the Forbidden City, while the Song Guogong Palace and Ying Guogong Palace are on Chang'an Street in the south of the Forbidden City.

Normally, the residence of the Yulin Guardsmen would definitely be near the Yulin Guards station, but in order to take care of Zhu Gaoxu, the Governor's Mansion arranged for him to live near the avant-garde of the Imperial Army.

Therefore, they rode a donkey cart down Donghuangcheng Gen Street all the way south, turned into Chongli Street, and then detoured into West Chang'an Street.

Along the way, Zhu Gaoxu didn't see too many people. Perhaps it was because when it came time to go to court, the traders and lackeys all stayed away from Dongcheng District and went to Xicheng District to do business.

On the way, all Zhu Gaoxu could see were the guards and horses of the Twelve Shangzhi Guards responsible for patrolling, as well as some officials in a hurry.

Most of these officials are of eighth or ninth grade, and few of those above seventh grade can walk on the streets at this time.

After watching for a while, Zhu Gaoxu stopped paying attention and started talking to the soldiers walking with the donkey.

"I see that the Yulin left guard is in the streets. Is it possible that he doesn't need to practice?"

Zhu Gaoxu used the act of passing the water bag to talk to the soldiers. The soldiers were flattered and took the water bag and told him truthfully:

"Going back to Your Highness, the places where the guards and horses are stationed are not all courtyards where soldiers and their families rest, but there is also a small school ground hidden in the depths."

"The small school field is three hundred steps deep and four hundred steps left and right. It stores moon grain, gunpowder, and armor pieces, and also keeps army horses."

The soldier gave a comprehensive answer. When Zhu Gaoxu saw this, he was not in a hurry to ask, but waited for him to finish a sip of water before continuing to inquire:

"When I was in the big training ground, the Bao Tao Guards and Hezhou Guards in front of the palace both practiced every three days and drilled every ten days. Is there any difference between the twelve guards?"

Seeing Zhu Gaoxu's interest and the fact that he was far away from his residence, the soldiers answered truthfully:

"Back to Your Highness, nothing much has changed. The rules of the twelve guards on the top are the same as those of the two guards in front of the palace. They are trained once every three days and drilled every ten days. The soldiers who are not on patrol on weekdays are at home, or perhaps Maintain your armor and weapons in the small school and practice martial arts on your own.

Having said this, the soldier paused and couldn't help but lower his voice and said, "But the rules of the Yulin left guard are stricter. Commander Sheng asked me to practice every other day and once every seven days."

"So strict?" After hearing the soldiers' words, Yang Zhan and Wang Xuan, who were sitting in the car, took a breath of cold air. After all, the local guards trained every five days and performed exercises every half a month.

"It is precisely because of this that many brothers in the army have complaints. After all, we have no chance to go to the battlefield." The soldier sighed.

Looking at his appearance, Zhu Gaoxu finally understood why Sheng Yong's troops could be penetrated by the Yan army's cavalry several times without the formation collapsing.

In ancient times, practicing every three to five days and doing exercises every ten and a half days were considered elite.

In the entire Ming Dynasty, only Qi Jiguang could practice every other day, but Qi Jiguang also paid enough to make his soldiers willing to practice.

Although Shangzhi's treatment was good in the early Ming Dynasty, he only received more miscellaneous items than other guards. Such training and distribution would hardly not arouse the resentment of the soldiers.

However, the soldier's resentment taught Zhu Gaoxu a lesson.

"It seems that whether it's ancient times or modern times, if you want a horse to run, you have to let the horse eat first."

"If I train soldiers in the future, not only to keep up with the money, but also to at least benefit the soldiers and their families and be willing to sacrifice their lives. Otherwise, I might be tempted by Zhu Yunwen to surrender without waiting for Jingnan."

Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but laugh, and at this time they also arrived at the forward guard station of the government army.

(End of this chapter)