Baidu otaku as Chongzhen

Chapter 198 The Actual Situation at the Grassroots Level

"Zhang Baihu, you are right. If that day comes, you can only use the same number of red barbarian cannons to bombard the opponent..." Yang Reform came to a conclusion, but this is a matter of the [-]th century Well, it's only the seventeenth century now, and the power of this artillery is too far apart. It's a bit too early to ask this question.

"The boss is right, the boss is right..." Zhang Weiyi couldn't stop flattering him. If the boss agrees with his words, it means that he is right, and the boss must have a good impression of him.

"Zhang Baihu, how's life going?" Yang Reform finished asking about the city defense, and decided to ask about this aspect of life, thinking that in the future, it is a fine tradition of our party to care about the lives of officers and soldiers at the grassroots level!
Talking about life, Zhang Baihu's face was a bit embarrassed. The salary of the Ming Dynasty was very low. If they lived on their salary alone, none of the senior officials of the court could support themselves, let alone low-level officers like them. Speaking of ordinary sergeants, it is common for civil servants to be corrupt and generals to eat up their quota.

"Going back to work, everything is fine, everything is fine..." At this moment, Zhang Weiyi absolutely did not dare to talk to this "noble man" about the low salaries of officers and soldiers. Once he talked about this matter, the entire civil and military officialdom would be corrupted, and the situation of empty quotas would be overwhelming. It will appear that once this "noble man" reports the situation to the emperor truthfully, how can he bear the temper of the young emperor now?Didn't explode yet?If you know that it was said by this little family of yourself, then you really are the world is big, but there is no place to stand on it!

Yang Reform didn't ask what the real situation was. After thinking about it, he had to suppress this hundred households, otherwise, he might not be able to get any real situation from him.

"You're fooling me like this? What do you mean everything is fine? What's so good about it? Tell me about it." Yang Reform stared at the Baihu.

Zhang Weiyi felt a pressure he had never felt before. This pressure was far greater than that put on him by his boss, a certain Qianhu.Zhang Weiyi took a few breaths, and said: "Going back to work, it's not a small lie. This day, the Son of Heaven, sympathizing with the sergeants, has given him much better treatment than before. Therefore, these days are still good." Zhang Bai After holding back for a long time, Hu Hu choked out such a sentence.

Yang Reform was baffled, when had he ever treated a sergeant kindly?In terms of treating them kindly, the soldiers at the pass here paid a lot of military pay, but the soldiers in the capital didn't pay a dime more.

"Oh? How do you say this?" Yang Reform asked puzzledly. Could it be that the corruption of the Ming Dynasty got better because he became the emperor?Do you have that much charm?

"Returning to the superior, the superior has heard of it. It is said that His Majesty has made an agreement with the civil and military officials. It is not allowed to exceed [-]% of the drift. If it is more than [-]%, it will not be pursued. If it exceeds [-]%, once it is discovered, it will be severely punished." Don't be lazy! So, now, the income of this sergeant is much better than before. This is always a concern, isn't it? What's more, it will not be held accountable within [-]%, which is already a great kindness. Are you looking for fun? You think so? So, it is all the blessings of the Holy Son!..." Zhang Weiyi is also a discerning person, and he can see that this person must have a close relationship with the emperor, so let's talk about the emperor kind words.

Yang Reform is quite depressed. I really seem to have made this agreement with the ministers. It was when I first became emperor. It seems that I really said that I would not pursue within [-]%, and asked the rest to be distributed to the soldiers. Unexpectedly , Someone still listens to my own words!Hearing what Zhang Weiyi said, Yang Reform felt a little proud again.

"This? It is true that there is such a thing. However, it is just a word of mouth. Your Majesty understands the hardship of being a sergeant, and also understands that the salary is indeed a bit low. That's why this happened. However, it is really possible. [-]% in the hands of ordinary sergeants?" Yang Reform asked.

This time Zhang Weiyi patted his chest as a guarantee, saying: "Go back to the boss, this, the small one can be guaranteed, the small one has a hundred and ten people, the salary was originally one stone a month, but now they are paid seven dollars. This, if you don't believe me, you can ask the younger ones, the younger ones will never dare to lie."

Seven buckets?Yang Reform roughly knew that one stone of grain in the Ming Dynasty weighed more than 100 catties, and the seven buckets weighed about eighty or ninety catties.These eighty or ninety catties of grain may just be able to feed a few people in their own family.However, people can't just eat food, they also need to wear clothes, housing, and other expenses such as salt, vegetables, and so on.

"By the way, what else can you get besides food?" Yang Reform asked again. This is a good opportunity to meet a low-level officer on the front line of defense. , Those ministers have said a lot.

"...Going back to work, in addition to food and salary, you can also receive one or two catties of salt every month, and you can also get fat jackets every five years, not to mention weapons and weapons, you will have everything you need, and from time to time during the New Year and holidays , and you can get some money, a salary, etc... At this time, the money is relatively rich..." Zhang Weiyi looked happy.

How does Yang Reform think, from Zhang Weiyi's mouth, it sounds like all the soldiers guarding the city are doing well!There are grains, salt, new clothes in a few years, and extra income during the Chinese New Year. According to him, this simple soldier is living in heaven!No worries about eating and drinking.

Yang Reform was skeptical, and said, "Is this true?"

Zhang Weiyi replied: "Back to the job, this is absolutely true! This has always been posted like this, how can a small person lie?"

Yang Reform feels that this is even more unreliable, has it always been like this?But in history, I have never heard of how high the salary of this soldier of the Ming Dynasty was.

"Housekeeper, ask someone to call all of Zhang Baihu's subordinates here. I have something to ask." Yang Reform stared at this Baihu. Although his clothes were a bit old, they were still decent, and he was not attire. Body, patches, etc., not to mention poor looking, looks like a decent officer, considering that he is a hundred households, and he is an officer, so he can't see anything, he should observe from his hands, so that it should be able to Get first-hand information.When I came up with an idea, I knew that seeing is believing rather than talking.

Hearing that this superior is so domineering, he dared to order his own soldiers without his own consent, what is this?On a big scale, this is suspected of rebellion!Any transfer of soldiers on a large scale has to go through the Ministry of War and the emperor. Such a "private" transfer of troops is a big taboo of the court!It's about beheading, ransacking the family and exterminating the family!Zhang Weiyi was dumbfounded. Due to the pressure from the superior, he didn't dare to say a word to persuade the superior, and he was also worried about the "private" mobilization of troops, in case someone got involved Well, if someone grabs the handle, I can't even become a hundred households!However, Zhang Weiyi rallied a few times, but he still didn't have the courage to say that he couldn't mobilize troops.

Wang Chengen received the emperor's letter and immediately directed the "bodyguards" to do things.Among the emperor's bodyguards was Qianhu, and Qianhu received the emperor's order without hesitation, and immediately went to command Zhang Baihu's subordinates, making the soldiers guarding the city so loud , although there are officers such as General Banner and Small Banner among them, they dare not speak out when they hold the Jinyiwei Qianhu badge and claim that the mission depends on their situation. What's more, my boss, Zhang Baihu Standing in front of that person, he didn't even dare to utter a word, so he had no intention of resisting, and obediently accepted orders.

Soon, the sergeants guarding the city gathered and lined up there, waiting for inspection.

Yang Reform walked over, and the city guards who had assembled were only thirty or forty people, not many soldiers.Yang Reform asked: "Zhang Baihu, didn't you say that you have more than 100 people under your command? Why are there so many people here now? It's not that you are eating nothing." 7 troops, actually only [-] to [-], excluding the old, weak, sick, and disabled, I am afraid that only half of the young and strong are good. Of this half, excluding the novice who is greedy for life and fear of death, and has never been to the battlefield, there can be [-] "Elite" is not bad.

Zhang Weiyi wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said: "When you go back to work, there are absolutely no small ones, no, no one who has nothing to eat, this, brothers can all testify, as for why there are only this few people, in fact, this Xuncheng, It was also done in batches, not all the soldiers came to patrol the city wall at the same time, so that at night, no one patrolled, so I only saw these three or forty people on the mission."

Yang Reform nodded. He was right. The city wall is a factory that cannot be shut down for 24 hours. It is more reasonable for the workers to work in two or three shifts.

Yang Reform was nodding his head, and someone in this team shouted: "On the job, Lord Baihu never takes the salary of his brothers, and he never pays for nothing. This, the young ones can testify..."

As soon as this person shouted, the others immediately followed up and shouted.

The "bodyguard" on the side immediately shouted: "Silence, silence! In front of the commander, no noise is strictly prohibited! Don't be presumptuous!" After being reprimanded sharply, the sergeants instinctively stopped shouting.

Yang Reform looked at it and thought it was a bit interesting. This Zhang Baihu, it seems, still has a good command of the army. He said that it was impossible for him not to get along with his subordinates.

"Zhang Baihu, you can do it! The soldiers under your command are well managed, and they all speak for you!"

"Small panic, small panic, I'm eating in the same pot with my brothers, and I really can't do anything if I want to take their things! Brothers are not well-off..." Speaking of this, this Zhang Weiyi also had a full face melancholy!
Yang Reform was a little surprised, but he didn't see that this was an upright official. Yang Reform took a few glances at Zhang Baihu, and took a closer look at his attire. The clothes were not very new, but they were very clean. , is also polished, and it can be seen that it is also carefully taken care of.For this person, I can't help but feel a little more favorable.

But looking at the clothes of his brothers, they are not very good. Except for a few officers who look like men, they are not bad at all. Others, the patched ones are very old, which is very common. Some people, The patch on his body can be described as a beggar's outfit. Yang Reform was very surprised to see it!This is the defender of Beijing City?The defender at the feet of the emperor?This is still from the city of Beijing, so if it was the defenders of other cities, how miserable would it be?Through the clothing of these soldiers, Yang Reform probably had some understanding of the combat effectiveness of the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, and his heart sank a bit. It is lucky that soldiers with this kind of treatment don't usually run away, let alone fight.

"Zhang Weiyi, didn't you say that there are fat jackets in this imperial court? Why do you brothers, all of you, never dress well!" Yang Reform couldn't help asking, but he probably knew the result , Nothing more than being lost, or embezzled, or the court has no money.

Seeing the messenger talk about this, this Zhang Baihu shed tears, wiped his tears, and said: "Returning to the messenger, it is not easy to be a guard of the city! The imperial court's rule is to change every five years." Clothes, but realistically, if you can change them every five years, that’s considered hard work. In fact, if you issue new clothes every [-] or [-] years, it’s because the higher-ups are sympathetic to those of us who serve as soldiers,... oh..." He said sadly This Zhang Baihu couldn't help crying.

Wearing a piece of clothing for five years?This, Yang Reform has a lot of doubts about this. If there are many clothes that can be rotated, it is barely credible to wear this clothes for five years. Wearing it for five years, this is difficult. I think back then, after a month of my military training, many people's camouflage uniforms were damaged. If this is the case, it means that these soldiers guarding the city did not dare to wear them. Going out for training, because training will speed up the wear and tear of clothes, which is even more insufficient to wear. Therefore, it can be seen that the city defense soldiers of the capital are basically in a state of no training.For this combat power, one can imagine that the Ming Dynasty was able to use the Beijing city to withstand many enemy attacks, which can only show one thing, that is, the Beijing city is high enough, thick enough, and big enough.

Yang Reform couldn't help sighing, life in the Ming Dynasty is really not easy!In the 21st century, even if you are a migrant worker, with a salary of one or two thousand a month, it is no problem at all to buy a few sets of clothes every year. It is basically certain that you eat meat every day. Compared with the defensive soldiers, they are really very happy.

The dozens of soldiers standing in front of Yang Reform all had red eyes when they heard their boss talk about the bitterness of being a soldier.

Yang reformed with emotion, so he adjusted the clothes of these soldiers with his hands, touched their patches, and felt that these soldiers were fresh people. This kind of living standard may represent the majority of people living in the Ming Dynasty. people.This is the most real life and the most real people in the Ming Dynasty.

Living is not easy!
"It's not easy! It's not easy!" Yang Reform touched the patches of the sergeants and sighed, it was really not easy to be a soldier in the Ming Dynasty!The enemy came, not to mention the life-and-death battle with the enemy, this life is quite difficult!

Yang Reform's method learned from later generations also moved these officers and soldiers. Such a high-ranking officer, regardless of his status, touched the patches on their bodies with his hands, and even expressed emotion. A small gesture moved these soldiers to tears.

Yang Reform made some inspections and found that although the clothes worn by this group of people were very tattered, their weapons were still polished. It seemed that they were often polished and well maintained. Yang Reform had a high opinion of Zhang Baihu. glanced.

Yang Reform didn't say anything, and he didn't know what to say. This is not to say that sending some meat or silver can get the job done. This move is related to the 10,000+ troops in Beijing, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses at the border. It would cost hundreds of thousands of pieces of clothing for one person to send. Even Yang Reform, as the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, felt unattainable in the face of such a large number.

Yang Reform feels that what he learned today is very valuable. He also feels that it is necessary to learn about other things about the officers and soldiers at the grassroots level. It is of great reference value when fighting.

"... Zhang Baihu, tell me, what difficulties do the soldiers guarding the city have in other areas? For example, housing, marrying a wife, you can tell them together today. He can change the situation? At that time, the sergeants in the world will also benefit from what you said." Yang Reform asked.

"...Here, mission? You mean a house? Marrying a wife? Don't hide the truth from the mission. It is extremely difficult for the sergeant guarding the city to marry a wife. Many of them have been bachelors all their lives. This is only a few buckets of rice per month. If you have perseverance, you can praise it for several years, or ten years, before you can afford to marry a wife! This is in the military camp, but you sleep in a bunk and eat in a big pot. You can’t talk about the house problem, and you have a family. , that's the trouble, alas... Anyway, it's like this, so-so, just make do with it..." Zhang Weiyi happily told the difficult thing about being a soldier. Anyway, everyone knows the situation of being a soldier, so just ask A person, you ask him how he is doing as a soldier?Nine out of ten would shake their heads. In the final analysis, this matter is that they can't eat well, don't wear well, let alone live, let alone marry a wife.

"Well... that's it!" Yang Reform thought to himself, this soldier of the Ming Dynasty is really not that good!In my era, although it was difficult to buy a house and marry a wife, it was not difficult to find a wife who didn't care about the house and salary to live in peace. Much happier.

Thinking of this, Yang Reform scolded himself secretly, why did he keep comparing his standard of living in the 21st century with soldiers from the Ming Dynasty?I'm really full and have nothing to do!However, the combat effectiveness of the soldiers in the last years of the Ming Dynasty can already be seen from the clothes. It seems that I still have to find a way!If this does not change, it is impossible for the Ming army to have combat effectiveness.Yang Fuming realized some things and felt that it was necessary for him to change this situation.

(End of this chapter)