The Ming Dynasty started with saving the eldest grandson

Chapter 449 The whole world was shocked
In fact, he was not the only one who thought of the Shenji Camp.

When everyone listed the conditions one by one, everyone thought of this team.

The current Shenjiying is different from before.

In the past, the Shenjiying was an experimental force with about 18,000 people.

Although they have the status of imperial guards, they are not the main force.

The reason is simple. Everyone admits that gunpowder is extremely powerful, but current firearms are too backward.

It can only exert its power in specific terrain.

Moreover, the reliance on logistics is too heavy, which is not conducive to field combat.

The enemy is not a fool. Unless it is absolutely necessary, they would never go to a special terrain to die.

Therefore, their current position is to assist the military.

Later, Chen Jingke predicted to Zhu Yuanzhang the future development of firearms and its impact on war.

Old Zhu attached great importance to the Shenjiying and carried out reforms.

First, it was expanded into four guards with 24,000 people.

Secondly, they no longer recruited people directly from the civilian population, but instead selected outstanding soldiers from various armies to join.

The selection criteria were not very strict, and were roughly the same as those of the government soldiers in the early Tang Dynasty.

It is best for a good family to own land and property and be able to read and write so that they can accept the system of consolation well.

He had fought on the battlefield, killed enemies, and was loyal to the court and the royal family.

That’s not all. The comfort envoy of the Shenjiying was appointed by the royal family himself, and the ideological work was actually implemented in a practical way.

Even the military pay and food were personally monitored by the royal family.

By the way, many people believe that ancient generals drank the blood of their soldiers and withheld their wages.

In fact, this situation is not common.

The so-called drinking the blood of soldiers actually refers more to drawing salaries without doing anything.

There are 1,000 places for each of them, but actually only 700 to 800 of them are filled, or even worse, only 400 to 500.

The generals were just eating the extra money.

The food and wages for the existing soldiers in the army are basically distributed in full.

Unless one is an incorrigible fool, he would not directly withhold the food and wages of his soldiers.

It’s very simple. If you dare to withhold food and wages, who will work for you?
Do you really think that no one dares to stab you in the back on the battlefield?
The ones who actually withheld the soldiers' food and wages were the bigwigs above, or those who did not directly lead the troops.

It doesn't matter how much the soldiers hate them, they can't do anything to them anyway.

But no matter what, the royal family's attention can effectively win people's hearts.

I dare not say that the Shenjiying is the only army that meets the above standards, but it is definitely the most suitable one among the armies that can be mobilized.

So as expected, everyone finally unanimously decided to let the Shenjiying go.

If they can't complete the task, there is no need to count on other troops.

Xu Da was the only one who did not express his opinion, but the corners of his mouth, which were almost stretched behind his ears, revealed his inner thoughts.

The current commander-in-chief of the Shenjiying is Xu Yungong.

Going to fight floods and provide disaster relief will certainly attract everyone's attention, and you don't need to make any great contributions.

Just take a stroll and if nothing happens it will be a great accomplishment.

If you can achieve some results, one contribution can be worth ten times the effort.

Moreover, this time we are not going to kill people but to save them, which is of even greater significance.

It can be said that as long as this matter is done well, the Xu family will be protected by a golden body for three generations.

Even if they rebelled, the emperor had to leave a bloodline for their family.

Plus Xu Miaojin's identity as the Crown Princess...

Even with Xu Da's character, he couldn't hide his inner joy.

Everyone understood this and looked at Xu Da with envy.

Li Shanchang, in particular, was filled with emotion.

He was the first meritorious official in the founding of the Ming Dynasty, and his son married a princess.

Originally, the Li family was the first family in the Ming Dynasty, but unfortunately...

However, what made him feel relieved was that although the Li family did not become the first family, it was not his Xu family's turn either.

No matter how powerful your Xu family is, you are the number one in the military, and your daughter is in the palace...

But he still has to rank behind Chen Jingke.

As long as you are not first, second or third, it doesn’t matter. No one cares.

Fortunately, no one knew what he was thinking, otherwise they would be speechless.

You, Li Shanchang, are going to keep your petty and narrow-minded character until your death.

After the matter was agreed upon, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered all his ministers to summon all civil and military officials to assemble in front of Chengtian Gate.

"Tell all the civil and military officials that we have made up our minds."

"Anyone who objects will follow the Shenji Camp to the disaster area in the southeast, and will not be allowed to return to the court unless they have made great contributions."

The ministers looked solemn and said, "Yes."

Old Zhu reminded him again: "You can investigate the matter of Wen Hanbian privately, and don't spread it to others."

Everyone knows the seriousness of the matter and naturally knows what to do.

Even if this matter is to be announced to the public, we need to obtain more evidence and then choose a suitable time.

Obviously it is not suitable at the moment.

After the ministers left, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately issued an order to summon Li Jin, Xu Yungong and other senior generals of the Shenjiying.

After they arrived, Lao Zhu personally gave them orders.

"The Shenji Battalion will go to the southeast to fight the disaster and rescue the people. Set off immediately."

"The Ming Weekly should prepare relevant reports. You can ask Anping Hou for details on how to do it."

Upon hearing this order, Xie Jin, Xu Yungong and others were extremely shocked.

The army fights disasters and saves people?

Is the emperor becoming senile and confused?

But then Chen Jingke also came forward to confirm the order, and then he explained the reasons for doing so.

Of course, he did not mention Wen Han's transformation, but only said that the emperor cared about the people.

As well as previous related ideological education courses, such as the military and civilians are one family, the army comes from the people, etc.

Now that everyone is suffering from the disaster, the army cannot sit idly by and do nothing. They must do something.

At the end he said: "We have been telling the soldiers for ten years about loyalty to the emperor, patriotism and protecting the people. Now it is time to put it into practice."

"This operation is not only to save the people in compliance with the emperor's order, but also a test of our ten-year appeasement system."

Zhu Xiongying said firmly: "Only success is allowed, failure is not allowed."

Xu Yungong and the others looked extremely serious, and stood up and said solemnly:
"If you fail, I will bring you my head."

The system of pacification envoys was proposed by the Crown Prince, and he has been in charge of it over the years.

It can be said that this is his political achievement.

If this operation is successful, his prestige will be directly comparable to Zhu Biao.

But if the action fails, the system of appeasement will become a joke and it will also be a big blow to his prestige.

It is not known whether they, who caused all these unfavorable situations, will die, but their career in politics is definitely over.

Therefore, the impact of this action is really huge.

Xie Jin was shocked and then excited. This was an unprecedented feat. If successful, the Ming army would undergo a huge transformation.

He was fortunate enough to be involved in this action and play a vital role in it. How could he not be excited?

"I will obey your order and cooperate with the Shenji Camp to let the people know your majesty's benevolence and understand the army's achievements."

Old Zhu nodded slightly. Xie Jin was indeed a good person. He was knowledgeable and had integrity. Most importantly, he was not rigid and could understand people's intentions.

It was really a good choice to have him be the head of Ming Weekly.

However, he did not promote Xie Jin, as he wanted to reserve this talent for his precious grandson.

When Xiongying succeeds to the throne, he can be promoted to the Ministry of Rites or the Imperial College, and eventually he may be able to enter the cabinet.

Chen Jingke was also very satisfied, as Xie Jin directly grasped the core of this publicity.

The first thing to do is naturally to point out the emperor’s kindness. There is no way around it. In an imperial society, the emperor has to be put first in everything.

Secondly, we should focus on publicizing the achievements of the army. We should not let the blood and sweat of the soldiers go in vain and let them enjoy the honor they deserve.

But that alone is not enough.

He looked at Xie Jin and said, "We should also compare the armies of previous dynasties with the army of the Ming Dynasty so that people can understand the difference between the Ming Dynasty and previous dynasties."

"It would be best to analyze in depth why the Ming army could do this, but the army of the previous dynasty could not." Xie Jin immediately understood what he meant. Only a horizontal comparison could reflect the superiority of the Ming Dynasty.

This kind of comparison has been widely used in publicity work and the effect is very good.

Even common people who cannot read a single word can point out many advantages of the Ming Dynasty over the previous dynasties.

What you get in return is loyalty and a sense of identity.

The Ming Dynasty's radical reforms were opposed by many conservatives, but never caused major trouble.

A big reason is that the people remember the good things the court has done.

Some people wanted to encourage the people to resist the new policies, but they received basically no response.

In the eyes of the people, how could such a good court formulate policies that harm the people?
There must be something wrong with you officials.

It can be said that the Ming Dynasty court witnessed with its own eyes the benefits of controlling public opinion.

As the person in charge of the court's mouthpiece, Xie Jin understood this better than most people.

"Okay, when I get back I'll collect information about the armies of past dynasties and compare it with the actions of the Shenji Battalion this time."

"However, why don't Lord Chen write an article himself? I think the effect will be better."

Chen Jingke nodded and said, "I will write it. It would be best if you can ask the Emperor and the Crown Prince to write one."

Old Zhu immediately said: "I will send someone to deliver the article to the Hanlin Academy tomorrow."

The same is true for Zhu Xiongying.

Afterwards, Lao Zhu, Zhu Xiongying and Chen Jingke began to assign specific tasks to Xu Yungong and others.

In fact, it was mainly Chen Jingke who assigned the task.

First, do ideological work for the soldiers and try not to let them go to the disaster area with resentment.

Every issue of the Ming Weekly must be read to the soldiers to let them know that the people are grateful to them.

Of course, honor alone is not enough, there must also be tangible benefits.

"Tell the soldiers to treat this operation as a campaign."

"All participants will be rewarded once."

"The injured will receive two levels of military merit, the disabled will receive three levels of military merit, and the sacrificed will receive ten levels of military merit according to the decapitation rate."

Upon hearing this reward, Xu Yungong and others felt relieved.

Never underestimate the influence of military nobility.

Especially when those who sacrificed were directly given military merit of ten heads, it would definitely drive the soldiers crazy.

You know, even elite veterans may not be able to kill so many people after decades.

The key is that the military merit of ten heads can bring huge benefits.

The seventh-level meritorious cavalry captain is the highest honor a low-level soldier can get.

With the status of a cavalry lieutenant, you can get promotion priority.

Only with the status of an officer can one achieve greater merit and obtain a higher title.

Even if he retired on the spot, he would still be able to rest on his laurels until his death.

It can also be passed on to future generations.

It can ensure worry-free life for three generations of the family.

After three generations, they were demoted to Gongshi, who also had privileges such as meeting officials without bowing.

It can be said that the goal of an ordinary soldier throughout his life is to become a cavalry lieutenant.

What Xu Yungong and others are worried about now is not whether the soldiers will complain.

But they are afraid that some people will seek death for the sake of military merit.

There are many people who think that if I die, my descendants and family will benefit from this.

After talking about how to appease the soldiers, Chen Jingke began to talk about specific disaster relief requirements.

The troops were dispersed and sent to the areas most affected by the disaster in units of thousands of households.

After arriving at the destination, learn about the local disaster situation.

Establish resettlement points based on actual conditions and rescue the people.

To put it bluntly, they had two purposes for this trip: to restore order and to help the people.

As for floods, Chen Jingke did not make any strict requirements.

Just tell them that if the breach can be blocked, then do your best to block it.

If you really can't stop it, don't make unnecessary sacrifices. Just rescue the people and relocate them.

They went there this time to save people, not to die.

This made Xu Yungong and others put aside their last bit of worry.

At first they thought their task was arduous... Well, it was indeed not easy.

But at least we have a clear direction and hope of completing the task.

After the tasks were arranged, Xu Yungong and others immediately returned to the military camp to make preparations.

Time is short and the task is heavy. Every moment of delay will put many people in danger.

The court did not give them any time to prepare and they set out immediately.

Zhu Yuanzhang and his men were not idle either. They immediately changed into dragon robes and came to Chengtian Gate surrounded by a group of guards.

At this time, thousands of officials had gathered under Chengtian Gate.

They also learned from the cabinet scholars that the Shenjiying was sent to provide disaster relief.

Naturally, there was a lot of discussion, and most people were opposed to it.

However, they were more afraid of Lao Zhu's threat, which would really make them go to the disaster area.

Now let’s go to the southeast…forget it.

However, there is never a shortage of people who are not afraid of death in this world. When Lao Zhu appeared, more than a dozen officials knelt on the ground and begged him to rescind his orders.

The army cannot move lightly.

Old Zhu was not angry, but looked at these people and asked:

"Do you know that we always keep our word?"

An official said: "We know that Your Majesty is a man of his own accord, and now that he has the support of the cabinet, he will certainly not listen to our advice."

Old Zhu said with a serious expression: "Then do you still dare to persuade us?"

The official said with a resolute face: "I advise Your Majesty not for personal reasons, but for justice."

"It's up to your Majesty whether to listen or not, and it's up to us whether to speak or not."

"If we do not speak out when your majesty's policies are wrong, we will be unworthy of the emperor's grace and the salary from the court."

A flash of admiration flashed across Old Zhu's face, but he didn't show it.

Because he knew that once he did this, there would be a group of people standing up to oppose him.

At present, an iron fist is still needed to implement this order.

So, he said sternly: "Then you should take off your black hats and follow the Shenji Battalion to the disaster area in the southeast."

A dozen officials silently took off their official hats and placed them in front of them:

"Your Majesty, please take care of yourself. We are leaving now."

After saying that, he stood up and stepped aside.

The ministers made way for them and looked at them with complicated eyes.

There is admiration, helplessness, and ridicule...

Only a very few people know that as long as these people can return safely, their future careers will be smoother.

Zhu Yuanzhang scanned the courtiers and shouted, "Anyone else objects?"

All the ministers bowed their heads and remained silent.

Old Zhu snorted coldly and stopped talking.

Soon Xu Yungong arrived with 24,000 soldiers from the Shenji Camp.

Zhu Yuanzhang led all the civil and military officials to cheer them on.

This alone made countless soldiers tremble with excitement.

Who else gets this kind of treatment?
The soldiers, who were already looking forward to this operation because of the generous rewards, were even more excited.

I can't wait to get to the disaster area and do something.

Afterwards, the soldiers arrived at the dock, boarded the transport ship that had been prepared long ago, and sailed downstream to the disaster area.

Before long, the news that the imperial court had sent the Shenjiying to fight the disaster and save the people spread.

Shocked the world.

(End of this chapter)