Han ride

Chapter 382 Chongzhen is very helpless

"Chenzheng Beihou Li Xin pays homage to His Majesty, long live my emperor." Under the leadership of Wang Chengen, Li Xin went up to the city wall and gave a military salute to Emperor Chongzhen.

"Presumptuous, Marquis Zheng Bei, you are the emperor's courtier, you should kneel down three times and kowtow six times. Are you contemptuous of the emperor by saluting like this?" Before the Emperor Chongzhen could speak, Hou Xun stood up and pointed at Li Xin roared loudly.Seeing this, the rest of the ministers also looked unhappy.

Li Xin was secretly angry, and said with a sneer, "Li Xin is just a soldier. Now that he is wearing armor, it is naturally a military salute. When the Emperor Taizu was in power, he also saluted like this. Why do you have to change the way when you come to this lord? , Do you want to listen to Emperor Taizu? Or do you want to listen to you? Also, I, Li Xin, worship today's emperor, not you. The emperor hasn't spoken yet, when will it be your turn to speak. "

"Please, general. There is no need to be polite." After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen not only did not refute, but smiled instead.The heart of an emperor is so complicated. If Li Xin really knelt and kowtowed three times, Emperor Chongzhen would still think that Li Xin was pretending to be modest, but in fact he had other calculations in his mind.But Li Xin did things according to his nature, no different from other generals, at most he was a little domineering.It is natural for a general to be domineering if he has the ability.

"Lord Hou is prejudiced against General Li! Could it be that General Li shouldn't ask Master Hou for food and grass?" Wen Tiren cast a cold glance at Hou Xun.

Hubu Shangshu Hou Xun?Li Xin glanced at the old master, and on the way here, Li Xin checked the information of the court officials.It's just that Hou Xun never thought that Hou Xun would have such a big resentment towards him.In history, Hou Xun may not be known to everyone, but his son Hou Fangyu is very famous.

"I didn't rob your daughter-in-law, is it necessary?" Li Xin snorted disdainfully, and said with a sneer, "Lord Hou, you are the Minister of the Household Department, so the military salary and rations must be what you want! Since I served in the country, I have never received a penny from the Ministry of Households, and I don’t know when the salaries of the Marquis and the soldiers under his command will be delivered!”

"You." After Hou Xun heard this, his blood surged up with anger, his old face was flushed red, he didn't know what to do, he could only point his finger at Li Xin.

"Okay, okay." Upon seeing this, Emperor Chongzhen waved his hands and said, "Today, the Marquis of Zhengbei returned triumphantly and defeated Jiannu. I should congratulate him. Don't worry about these trivial matters. Li Qing leads thousands of troops. , Defeating the enemy chieftain, with a broad mind, you don't have to worry about small things." In fact, Chongzhen knew about Hou Xun's plight, and if it really counted, he had to ask Chongzhen for the food and salary!
"Minister Zunzhi." Li Xin accepts it when he sees it well. He can see that Chongzhen has no malice towards him for the time being, and naturally he doesn't want Chongzhen to have a lower impression of him.

"Marquis Zhengbei, aren't you afraid that I will keep you in the capital?" Emperor Chongzhen looked at the handsome Li Xin, and suddenly said jokingly.After Wen Tiren and the others heard this, they couldn't help but shuddered. His Majesty the Emperor didn't open his mouth, it was scary!Even if he can say this kind of words, what should Li Xin do if his answer is wrong.

"The emperor will not keep Li Xin in the capital." Li Xin said with a smile: "If the emperor is a cowardly lord, the emperor who has 10,000+ army envoys under Li Xin's command would not dare to do anything. If the emperor is a fatuous and incompetent person, Li Xin would not dare to come. , even if they come, the minister's strength is infinite, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's bravery, these few people are still no match for the minister, even if they are surrounded by thousands of troops, the minister is not afraid. What's more, the emperor is the lord of fortitude and heroism, I am determined to rejuvenate the Ming Dynasty, so I need people like this minister to serve His Majesty, so no matter what happens, I will not be afraid."

After Emperor Chongzhen heard this, his complexion changed, and he smiled bitterly for the last time. This Li Xin was really rude, but he had to admit that what the other party said was the truth.Li Xin's bravery has been spread all over the world, if this method is used, he really can't make him submit.After Wen Tiren and the others heard this, their complexions changed drastically, especially Wen Tiren, only then did they realize that they had made a mistake.Is it really easy for Li Xin to kill people in this situation?

"I see that your conquest army is the best of the elite. It seems that you are an expert in military training. Why don't you come to the governor's mansion and help me train soldiers?" Chongzhen pointed at the conquest army under the city, and suddenly said sternly .

In the late Ming Dynasty, Dadufu was the general name of the five Dudufu, namely, the Dudufu of the Central Army, the Dudufu of the Left Army, the Dudufu of the Right Army, the Dudufu of the Front Army, and the Dudufu of the Rear Army in the Ming Dynasty.Zhu Yuanzhang first set up the Grand Marshal's Mansion of the Commanding Army, and later changed it to the Privy Council, and then changed it to the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion to control Chinese and foreign military forces.

Chongzhen let Li Xin come to the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion, of course, he would not be as simple as a small soldier, at least he was the governor of several Dudu Mansions, which was far more prestigious than ordinary generals.Of course, the power in the hands of the governor at this time is naturally not as good as that of the general general.It seemed that Emperor Chongzhen had promoted Li Xin, but in fact, Li Xin had much less power in his hands.But what Emperor Chongzhen said was an imperial decree, or in other words, Emperor Chongzhen was tempting.

Li Xin thought for a while, then suddenly said: "Ten years later, yes, ten years later, I am willing to come to the capital to be the instructor of the Imperial Forest Army."

"Why wait ten years later?" Emperor Chongzhen was a little surprised. If Li Xin refused or made other excuses, Chongzhen would accept it, but Li Xin said it would be ten years later, which made Emperor Chongzhen very curious.

"Because I plan to destroy Jiannu in ten years." Li Xin naturally would not say that according to the news recorded in history, after ten years, the Ming Dynasty will perish, and Emperor Chongzhen can only hang himself in Meishan up.By that time, would Emperor Chongzhen still remember the words of today?How could Li Xin come to be a coach in name only?
"The general is brave. Once Jiannu met the general, he was repeatedly defeated. It was so easy to destroy Jiannu. Why did you say it would take ten years?" Emperor Chongzhen thought for a while and asked in disbelief.

"Your Majesty, I heard that a few years ago Yuan Chonghuan promised the Emperor to destroy Jiannu within five years, but five years have passed, and the power of Jiannu has not only not been eliminated, but has grown a lot. Isn't it?" Li Xin was a little funny Looking at Chongzhen.

"It was the collusion between Yuan Ni and Jian Nu that caused today's situation." Emperor Chongzhen's expression was not good. He still bears a grudge against Yuan Chonghuan, and he doesn't even know his mistake.

Li Xin shook his head and said: "Although I have an army of 10,000+, there are mostly Mongolians around me, so I have to be careful on defense. The ones who can really fight are only tens of thousands of horses; He is just a subject; the third and most important thing is that someone in the court who disobeys the subject will hinder him. The subject said that it is a very short time to defeat Jiannu in ten years." If Jiannu is so easy It is impossible to establish a dynasty after being wiped out.

"It really takes that long?" Emperor Chongzhen's face was gloomy, he still didn't believe what Li Xin said, thinking that Li Xin was just an excuse.

"Maybe it will be longer." Li Xin sighed and looked at Emperor Chongzhen. This emperor was diligent and rare in history.Exactly as he himself said.The king is not the king of the subjugated country, but the minister is the minister of the subjugated country.It's just that he was too concerned in the process of governing the country, but he couldn't bear it for a seriously ill patient.Immediately explained: "Your Majesty, this battle seems to be a contest of troops, but it is actually a contest of food and money. Let's say that there are 3 people in the Beibei Army. Does the Emperor know how much food and grass are consumed every day?" ?It is the sum of the 10,000+ army of the imperial court. Every time a war is fought, the ministers must be careful, and every grain must be counted. The war cannot exceed one month, otherwise the minister’s food and salary will not be able to support. But Jian slaves do not need it, he has North Korea For the food and grass supplied to him, Jiannu has also earned a large amount of food and grass from the Central Plains over the years, which is enough to cover the consumption of his own army. But the Central Plains is different. There are many wealthy merchants in the south of the Yangtze River. They use food to make wine, but what about the hungry people in Henan? There are starvation everywhere. Not to mention food, even tree bark is hard to find. Your Majesty, fighting a war is not that simple?"

"I don't need you to talk about this." Emperor Chongzhen's face was slightly cold.

"I came here this time because there was not enough food and grass in the army, and I couldn't go back to the grassland. I asked the emperor to allocate some food and grass. I can go back to the grassland. The slave Huang Taiji has left Xifengkou, and the minister is not in the grassland now. It is inevitable that Huang Taiji may Attack Mobei." Li Xin sighed, it was indeed difficult to deal with such a self-willed emperor.

"The Marquis of Zhengbei has worked hard. Although Yunzhong City is a big grassland city, it is probably much worse than the capital. Master Hou, why not rest in the capital for a few more days and see the scenery of the capital is also good." Wen Tiren suddenly laughed. He said: "There is no need to worry as long as the Northern Army is recruited. This minister will ask people to allocate food and grass and reward the three armies."

Wen Tiren is neither yin nor yang, and Emperor Chongzhen's face was flat after hearing this, as if he hadn't heard it.Wang Yingxiong and the others were also silent. Wen Tiren's intention was very simple, that he wanted Li Xin to stay in the capital, even if he was not killed, he was still under house arrest.

"I don't know which general in the court can sit in the command of the Northern Army? Hong Chengchou? The whole army of the Northern Army would like to eat his flesh. If it weren't for his incompetence, why would the Marquis abandon such a dangerous pass as Xifengkou to rescue him? As a result, Jiannu concentrated nearly [-] troops to attack Xifengkou. The general of the Marquis, Gou Tun, would rather die than surrender, and finally died in the battle at Xifengkou. Such an incompetent person wants to lead a tiger-wolf division like the Zhengbei Army? Lu Xiangsheng, Just a scholar, even if he has some ability, he is not expected to be a commander, because there are countless brave generals in this Marquis army, how can Lu Xiangsheng do it? As for the other Zu Dashou, Wu Xiang, etc., they even sent to the Northern Army I don’t even have the qualification to carry shoes.” Li Xin laughed loudly, pointed at Wen Tiren, and said with a sneer: “If it wasn’t for the great power of slavery, do you think I would be willing to lead the army to fight? How about traveling around the world with your beautiful wife and concubines in your arms? ? Mr. Wen, as long as you can find a convincing general, I, Li Xin, would like to stay in the capital."

"Okay, okay. Don't talk about it." Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand, frowned, and said: "Marquis Zhengbei is better off staying in Mobei, both Hong Chengchou and Lu Xiangsheng have things to do. "Emperor Chongzhen was suddenly depressed. He also wanted to let Li Xin leave the North Army and take this power into his own, but Li Xin's words woke him up.Although this Li Xin is very loyal to himself and the court.But the warriors below are not necessarily, and only Li Xin can hold them down.If Li Xin is transferred away, no one will be able to deal with the Northern Army.

This is like Mao Wenlong in Pidao back then. Yuan Chonghuan killed him with his front foot, but he couldn't play Pidao with his back foot.The same is true for Li Xin at the moment, even if Li Xin is left here, no one will be able to control the Beibei Army, so it is better to let Li Xin stay in the Zhengbei Army.Ten years is ten years, as long as the Central Plains are pacified, are you afraid of Li Xin?

When Emperor Chongzhen got angry, the people around him naturally couldn't speak.Everyone stands there.Waiting for Chongzhen's decision, only Hou Xun looked at Li Xin with angry eyes.He wished that a thief like Li Xin would die cleanly.It's just that Emperor Chongzhen didn't dare to do anything to Li Xin, and he couldn't do anything about it.

"Master Hou, you should go and prepare some food for the Beibei army!" Wen Tiren saw Hou Xun's expression, and there was a trace of gloating in his heart. This guy usually makes trouble for himself.Unexpectedly, in this place, meeting someone like Li Xin, even if he has all kinds of abilities, he can't use them.

"Marquis of Zhengbei, I want to send part of the Northern Zheng army into the Central Plains to wipe out the rebellion in the Central Plains. What do you think?" Emperor Chongzhen didn't seem to notice that the two ministers under his command were fighting openly and secretly, but said to Li Xin.

Li Xinxin sneered, this Chongzhen always said that he trusted himself, but in fact, he was not thinking of adding sand to his army, thinking of using various methods to weaken himself.Is it just that I am really so easy to bully?Immediately, with a respectful face, Chao Chongzhen cupped his hands and said: "Being able to serve the emperor, I think everyone in the army is happy. However, there is still a small problem here. Please also ask the emperor to look into it."

"Oh, then tell me." The corner of Emperor Chongzhen's mouth twitched, and he looked at Li Xin nonchalantly and said.As long as Li Xin agrees, all problems will be fine.

"Because I had too few soldiers and horses in my hands when I was on the grasslands, I raised the salary. According to my understanding, the salary of the northern army is a little more than three times that of the soldiers of the imperial court, and it is a full salary. There is no deductions. About three to four taels per person, or a lot; second, in the army, soldiers eat three meals a day, and each meal has meat, either mutton, pork, or beef. Thirdly, most of the gold, silver and treasures obtained during each battle must be handed over to the Northern Army, and part of them will be distributed to the soldiers and owned by the soldiers; Mistakes will be punished. The general’s bodyguards and soldiers are the same.” Li Xin said with his head down.But he didn't notice that Emperor Chongzhen's complexion was getting worse and worse.

How to calculate the military salary of the Ming army is based on Qi Jiguang’s calculation at that time. He recruited soldiers on the southeast coast and stipulated that each person’s annual salary was 18 taels.These are the recruitment prices for strategic locations. If you are not going to participate in important battles or are not in important areas, the recruitment price will be lower.There is even a saying that the recipients receive one cent of the Japanese bank.The annual salary is less than four taels.During the reign of Chongzhen, wars were frequent, a large number of people were displaced and had no food to support, and it became easier to recruit soldiers. In addition, the imperial court's finances were tight, and the military pay was much lower than that of the same period.If the upper and lower deductions are added, the soldiers will take even less.

Chongzhen could only sigh, and took a deep look at Li Xin, but saw that Li Xin's expression was flat, as if he had said a very ordinary thing.Only at this time did he know why Li Xin's army was so brave. It turned out that there must be brave men under heavy rewards. With so much gold and silver to support them, it's no wonder that the soldiers all sacrificed their lives for him.

"Hou Ye has 10,000+ soldiers and horses. If according to Hou Ye's current calculation, the military salary will reach hundreds of thousands per month. If other things are added, Hou Ye will spend more than one million taels of silver every month. Hou Ye Lord, do you have so much money?" Wang Yingxiong obviously did not believe that Li Xin would treat the soldiers so well.After careful calculation, he suddenly found that Li Xin's monthly expenses amounted to more than one million taels of silver. I am afraid that the fat land can't support it!
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen also nodded.Even if Li Xin's monthly expenditure is not more than one million taels, there is still seven to eight million taels. Every year, it is almost ten million taels of silver.However, during the Jiajing period when the country was strong and strong in the Ming Dynasty, the annual central fiscal revenue was only 80 million taels of silver; after Zhang Juzheng’s reforms in the early years of Wanli, it increased to more than 200 million taels; To meet military needs, it reached 400 million taels and became a fixed amount.Even in the reign of Chongzhen, since the war in Liaodong became more and more intense, they had to adopt the policy of "exhausting the resources to fish" and sending "Liao pay" and "training pay", etc., and the annual income is only more than 520 million taels of silver.Even so, the court was still unable to make ends meet.However, Li Xin has such a large territory that he can invest so much. Could it be that Li Xin has a bit of magic, or that the seven Shanxi merchant families under Li Xin's command are as rich as the enemy?Otherwise, how could he have so much silver?If Li Xin can be asked to donate some money, it may be able to alleviate the urgent need of the court.

As soon as Chongzhen thought of this, he looked at Li Xin, not to mention Chongzhen, but Wen Tiren and others also thought of this question.Li Xin is a rich man, and he actually supports so many troops.Presumably there is still a lot of gold and silver in the cloud. If it is sent to Beijing, the imperial court can breathe a sigh of relief.

(End of this chapter)