Chongzhen Chat Group

The next day, officials at all levels in Beijing rushed to the Forbidden City. When we met on the road, they were all laughing and joking. The reason was for no other reason than that the emperor had returned triumphantly. This first court meeting must be about giving rewards based on merit. This is a good thing, so I must be happy.

Sure enough, as they expected, everyone arrived and the court meeting began. After the formalities were completed, Emperor Chongzhen, who was sitting high on the throne, first glanced at the civil and military squads below, especially at the ranks of military generals. It was obvious that there were many missing people. The young man sneered slightly in his heart, and then said with a smile: "This war in the Liao Dynasty, our Ming Dynasty was united and our soldiers dared to fight, so we can achieve such results. I am very relieved!"

After finishing his opening remarks, he set the tone of the court meeting. Then, he asked Cao Huachun, the eunuch in charge of the ceremonial department, to personally read out the merit list of the Liao campaign. Of course, the credits that can be cited by Cao Huachun are all relatively large. No matter how specific the details of the credits are, it is naturally impossible to discuss them with the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty at the court meeting. Otherwise, this big court meeting could last for several days and nights.

After a long while, Cao Huachun finished reading out the contents of the merit book. Then Emperor Chongzhen issued an edict to discuss merit rewards. In the past, the general framework had been set, that is, Sun Chengzong returned to Beijing, Lu Xiang was promoted to governor of Liaodong, etc. Now it is down to the details, such as adding other false titles to protect his son, granting titles to his parents, etc. reward.

In addition, the new military division general Cao Bianjiao was granted the title of General Zhenlu, and division supervisor Feng Dehua was promoted to a fourth-grade eunuch. He was the eunuch in charge of the newly established military supervisor, who was responsible for managing the military supervisors at all levels in the army and was directly responsible to Emperor Chongzhen. As a result, the young Feng Dehua became one of the top eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty through the war in Liao Dynasty. His power is also very powerful, directly chasing the eunuch who is in charge of the imperial horse supervisor.

There are also rewards from other people. Anyway, this court meeting is all about rewards for the time being. Happiness, envy, and jealousy are the mainstream.

After the Lun Gong reward ceremony was completed and all the recipients present received orders to thank them, Emperor Chongzhen still smiled and said loudly: "In this battle, the new army is the main force to destroy the captives. In the battle of Hupiyi, the slave chieftain company will be decent." The resistance cannot be organized. It can be seen that it is right to carry out military reform according to the new military system. Therefore, I have decided that nationwide, the military reform must be persisted to the end. The completion of the reform will be For the assessment of governors and governors in various places, if anyone is slacking off or derelict in the military reform, I will never give mercy..."

The military reform policy has been implemented across the country before, but it has always been relatively mild, and there was no time limit or special requirements for the officials in charge. But at this time, Emperor Chongzhen made demands that became more stringent and required that the restructuring be completed nationwide. This means that the reform of the military system, coupled with the reform of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, must be accelerated.

Regarding this point, because it has been implemented before and is profit-oriented, even if the emperor emphasizes it again, everyone accepts it and does not find it awkward. However, Emperor Chongzhen immediately changed the subject and said with a serious face: "This campaign to conquer Liao was actually not complete. I believe you all know that in the battle of Zhenjiang Fort, our Ming army was defeated. The entire army was wiped out, with few survivors..."

Hearing this, all the civil and military officials felt their hearts skip a beat. Seeing how great the victory in Liao was, they thought the emperor would not mention it and just brushed it off. After all, if we emphasize this, it will no longer be flawless as if the emperor's imperial convoy was personally involved in the expedition. But the emperor still mentioned it!

The atmosphere at the scene suddenly became solemn, no one was smiling anymore, they just listened quietly to the emperor's words.

"...In the battle of Zhenjiang Fort, all I ask is to back up the Yalu River and prevent the remaining Manchus from escaping to North Korea. The Manchus and Qing Dynasties are all vulnerable. If there is a war, you can stick to your treatment, and I will definitely send reinforcements. But, what is the actual result?" When Emperor Chongzhen said this, his face was very stern, and his tone became a little harsh, "It was just a charge by the remaining Manchus, and the entire army was wiped out, without even a decent resistance. This is a meritorious service. Where are the future armies and the glory of our ancestors? Where are our ancestors' ability to defend against enemies? Where have they gone?"

The court meeting was quiet, with only the emperor's rhetorical questions heard. In this battle of conquering Liao, if the army led by the emperor and the Manchu army fought extremely hard, then everyone can understand that the battle of Zhenjiang Fort was a complete defeat, and there will not be much disturbance in their hearts. But the key now is that the army led by the emperor directly defeated the enemy in front of him like an overwhelming force, and it was also the main force of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. It was the army led by the most famous slave chiefs, who had always been brave. The unscrupulous Hauge turned the tables on him and defeated the Ming army in Zhenjiang Fort with overwhelming force. The contrast was a bit big!

Now that the emperor is so angry, it is understandable that the civil servants and generals present do not think that the emperor is mean or unkind!

At this time, they heard that Emperor Chongzhen was angry and furious. Everyone did not dare to speak, but just listened: "... You may not know it, but I only found out after investigation that these people were impassioned in front of me. Everyone expressed to me that they were capable of killing the enemy, but in fact, the march to Liaodong was already showing signs of dragging and tiring. In order to take care of them, I gave them easy tasks. As a result, they arrived at the Yalu River. They thought about building fortifications, but instead surrounded Zhenjiang Fort, and then just had fun. They accompanied the army with fine wine, food, and even women for fun, without any military discipline. After meritorious deeds, this is after meritorious deeds? Where is the face of the ancestors? Or else? After my great achievements in the Ming Dynasty..."

The emperor was very angry, and the ministers in the underground were also in an uproar. They naturally knew that when they first set out for the expedition, these meritorious deeds were followed by strong demands. The emperor had made it clear, so they also prepared their own food and supplies. Originally, everyone thought that they were going to Liaodong to take credit, but no matter what, they must at least have some ability to take credit. Now, according to what the emperor said, these people don't seem to be going to fight, but are instead going to enjoy the mountains and rivers? With such an army, no matter how incompetent the Manchu Qing Dynasty is, it is impossible for them to be invincible. In this way, this army will be completely wiped out and will be cleaned up.

Listening to the emperor's angry roar, all the civil and military officials thought so, and all understood the emperor's anger. This can no longer be described as being angry and not fighting, hating iron for not being able to become steel. If the army led by the emperor at that time was not the New Army, Guan Ning Army or Dongjiang Army, but relied on the descendants of these nobles, wouldn't it mean that even the emperor would be implicated!

After venting for a while, Emperor Chongzhen's mood seemed to be calmer, but his face was still serious and his tone was serious, but his voice was slightly lower and not as loud as before: "I thought that after the meritorious service, I must Now that we have to rectify it, what do you think?"

After these achievements, it cannot be described in ordinary words at all. It is reasonable for the emperor to think of rectification. Wen Tiren, the chief minister, was the first to come out and seconded the opinion: "I think that your majesty is wise and has such great achievements, which makes me unworthy of the merits of the Ming Dynasty!"

Many other ministers also came out to second the proposal.

Among them, some people are speaking truthfully and discussing the matter; but some people are just catering to the holy will and flattering the emperor; others are jealous of their achievements and want to add insult to injury...

As for those who are present, naturally there are still meritorious deeds, and seeing that their own interests are about to be harmed, under normal circumstances, they will definitely defend themselves. But unfortunately, the performance of those pig teammates who went to Liaodong was really embarrassing. Especially when compared with the main force of the emperor's army to destroy the captives, their performance was even more unsightly. Even after they had also achieved meritorious service, they were a little embarrassed to be with them.

Above the court, the crowd was furious. One can imagine how the entire Ming Dynasty would react after word spread! When all these factors are added up, basically after the remaining meritorious deeds, no one dares to refute or plead, and all of them have their tail between their legs.

Seeing the consensus reached at the court meeting, Emperor Chongzhen changed the topic and said: "However, after all, his ancestors have made great contributions to our Ming Dynasty, and I cannot be sorry for the spirit of their ancestors in heaven..."

Having said this, he paused, which made those who had made great achievements suddenly show hope one by one. They looked at the emperor, feeling relieved and obviously grateful at the same time.

"...Therefore, I have decided that the meritorious service must be strictly assessed!" When Emperor Chongzhen said this, his eyes slowly glanced at the honorable men, and he said firmly, "The previous assessment must be changed. Considering the strength of the new army, I decided..."

Everyone listened attentively and wanted to know how the emperor wanted to change it?

"... After achieving meritorious service in the future, you must enter the Military Beitang to study. According to the level, local thousand households and below must pass the assessment of the Junior Military Beitang, and those with higher hereditary titles must pass the Junior Military Beitang and enter the Ming Senior High School Wu Beitang continues his studies, and only those who pass the examination can receive the honor of their ancestors. Sirs, does this make any sense?"

Emperor Chongzhen spoke very seriously before and acted very angry. This made people have high expectations for the emperor's next steps, or that there would be big measures. But these civil servants and generals present did not expect that this time the emperor raised the board high and then put it down gently.

The reason why I think so is that in fact, the Ming Xungui, that is, the hereditary official positions after meritorious service, actually had assessments. Even Qi Jiguang, the military god of the Ming Dynasty, went to the capital for assessment when he inherited the hereditary official position passed down from his ancestors.

It's just that the previous assessments only focused on old practices such as riding and shooting. Not to mention how serious the fraud was, the assessment content alone was no longer suitable for the war requirements of the new era. Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen took advantage of this opportunity to make such a request.

Many official positions in the Ming army were hereditary. In the past, this couldn't be said to be a problem. After all, ordinary people do not know how to fight, but military households and official positions are hereditary. At least the skills of fighting are passed down from generation to generation. Compared with ordinary people, they are definitely better at fighting.

However, in the eyes of the rulers of the early Ming Dynasty, this system might be acceptable, and indeed it was acceptable at that stage. However, it has been nearly three hundred years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty. This hereditary system has serious problems, which restricts the combat effectiveness of the Ming Dynasty's army. Especially in today's era, where firearms are gradually replacing cold weapons, combat methods and techniques are all new and fresh as dynasties change. In a hereditary situation, the acceptance of firearms is even lower. This can be seen from the fact that the nobles do not test firearms.

Among the reforms in the military system that had been implemented before, the arrangement of hereditary official positions was the one that faced the greatest resistance. For many hereditary disciples, even if they go to the Metropolitan Procuratorate, they will still be far inferior to what they were before. The reason why the military reform promoted previously was relatively mild was also because of the arrangement of these hereditary positions.

After meritorious deeds, you cannot beat them to death with a stick, otherwise shouting and killing after meritorious deeds, and arranging meritorious deeds in a simple and crude manner will greatly reduce the desire for meritorious deeds of people with lofty ideals in the Ming Dynasty, and lack of attraction, which will also be a disservice to the Ming Dynasty. Such destruction!

Hereditary, at least in ancient times, cannot be abolished. After all, the throne is the greatest merit and the greatest hereditary. This is different from the national conditions and environment of later generations and cannot be generalized. Emperor Chongzhen had a clear understanding of this.

All in all, the merit system and the glory of merit still need to be maintained. But the requirements for meritorious service must be further strengthened. Now combined with the strength of the new army, it is much better to propose that after meritorious service, he must enter the Armed Forces Hall to study. Moreover, due to emotions and reasons, by passing the Military Beitang assessment, one can learn useful knowledge without having to go to the battlefield, and can obtain the abilities required by the hereditary official position. This is an acceptable plan for most people.

Therefore, when Emperor Chongzhen announced his plan to deal with the merits, the civil and military officials in the court meeting did not show much resistance. With the support of the first minister Wen Tiren, they easily reached a consensus. This matter is settled like this.

However, this also involves another issue, that is, the high-level military service hall can only be located in the capital, but the junior military service hall cannot be like this. Therefore, after discussing in court, Emperor Chongzhen decided to set up a junior military preparation hall in each province to train middle and low-level officers of the Ming Dynasty in each province, and also to assess meritorious service.

At this point, on the road to military generals, an advancement route similar to the imperial examination has been formally formed. As long as the generals of the Ming army want to make a difference, they must aim to enter the Armed Forces Hall for further study. And to enter the Armed Forces Hall, it doesn't mean that you can get in if you want to. There are assessment requirements and thresholds.

Because the junior military preparation hall and the reform of the military system are all based on the new army as a template, therefore, in conjunction with this, there is also the supervisory army department. Emperor Chongzhen issued a clear edict, and it was no longer limited to eunuchs. Otherwise, it would definitely affect the Ming Dynasty's national policy of encouraging fertility.

Thanks for the reward from Nervous Hope and Magical Prague!