Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 358 The Drawn Bow
Pei Yuan did not refuse after hearing this, "Then I'll bother you, Eunuch Lu."

As he spoke, he glanced at the military officers behind Lu Ting, and especially glanced at the deputy general Xu Tai.

Lu Ting just introduced a bunch of people to Pei Yuan. Wow, half of them are Zhu Houzhao’s future godsons.

The most promising one among them is probably the deputy general Xu Tai.

There is also a Jiang Bin, who should also be in the army to suppress the rebellion, but no one knows where he is now.

Xu Tai took over his father's job and became the commander of the Yulin Vanguard. Later, he was sent to Xuanfu as the deputy general.

Although this guy has a similar temperament to Zhu Houzhao, he is not a very likable person.

Specific examples are as follows.

Right Imperial Censor Lu Wan reported, "The bandits were roaming around Weihui and other places. Deputy General Shi Yuan made great contributions in killing and capturing them, but Deputy General Xu Tai was attacked by the bandits, resulting in many casualties. Lieutenant General Li Jin also relied on Tai to survive. They should all be investigated and punished."

What it means is: Others can win, but Xu Tai, this loser, can’t, so get rid of him quickly!

The specific examples are as follows.

Xie Chen, the 13th Supervisory Censor, reported that "Commanders Yang Yi, Xiong Wei, and Jiang Yi were ineffective in fighting the bandits, Cheng Zhao watched Wang Gao die without going to rescue him, and Deputy General Xu Tai became arrogant after his victory. They should all be severely punished."

What it means is: Although everyone else lost the fight and only Xu Tai won, this is not a reason for him to show off, let’s deal with him quickly!
The specific examples are as follows.

Right Imperial Censor Lu Wan and others reported, "Deputy General Liu Hui and Lieutenant General Wen Gong defeated the bandits in Guan County and beheaded 178 people. Because Liu Hui and Gong fought bravely against the bandits, they are different from Xu Tai and Jiang Yi who were cowardly, so please reward them and encourage them to work harder."

It means: Hey, Xu Tai didn’t go up this time, let’s deal with him quickly!

Xu Tai: I fucking...

Although Pei Yuan knew that this guy was a potential stock, he had no plans to make friends with him for the time being.

Confucius, who lived two thousand years ago, had already seen through this kind of people.

"If you are close to me, I will be disrespectful. If you are far away, I will complain."

have nothing to say.

Lu Ting and Pei Yuan walked into the big tent hand in hand, and saw piles of sand on the ground with messy stone markings.

Pei Yuan pondered for a moment and remembered that when he tried to persuade Lu Ting before, he had drawn a map to explain the situation to him.

Unexpectedly, Lu Ting brought this method into the army.

This type of military sand table appeared early in China. A more similar model was when Ma Yuan in the Eastern Han Dynasty piled rice into a mountain to analyze the terrain.

An earlier prototype was the competition between Mozi and Gongshu Ban, who used a belt to simulate a city and engaged in a battle of wits and courage.

At that time, people in some places were still living in trees.

Pei Yuan glanced at the ground and said nothing.

Lu Ting then led Pei Yuan to take a seat. Many military officers felt it was a bit strange to see Pei Yuan and Lu Ting sitting at the same high position.

Since Lu Ting took over the army, the Bazhou Army has begun to decline.

Liu Liu, Liu Qi and the others discovered that things were exactly as Pei Yuan had told them.

The places that were easy to attack had been ravaged by them and were no longer able to support their huge army.

Those places that had not yet been captured by them were crisscrossed by rivers, which was very unfavorable for their main cavalry to fight.

Moreover, the further south they went, the fewer horses they could get, and the lost combat power could not be effectively replenished.

So the harder their lives became, the easier Lu Ting's life became.

In fact, even if Lu Ting was not replaced and Gu Dayong was still in that position, the Bazhou Army would gradually weaken under the siege of the imperial court.

Because the bonus period of making a fortune by disrupting order has passed.

However, Lu Ting and Bai Yu's well-timed attack was regarded as the turning point of the Bazhou army's decline because of its good timing.

Therefore, a sneak attack on the miscellaneous troops in the rear and Bai Yu's fierce advance in which he defeated 30,000 enemies and killed six people in battle were regarded as the key decisive battle of the counterattack.

Afterwards, Lu Ting chased the Bazhou army all the way and blocked them at the riverside. It seemed that this great victory was about to fall into his hands.

Faced with this eunuch with a promising future, the military officers naturally tried to curry favor with him.

Pei Yuan saw that there were still a lot of official documents spread out on the table. He knew that these people must have been discussing something just now, so he smiled and said, "I came at a bad time. I hope it won't delay military affairs."

Upon hearing this, Lu Ting immediately laughed and said, "What are you talking about? You came at the right time."

Now that you're here, why should I discuss anything with those idiots?

Pei Yuan glanced at an open document, pretending to pick it up and read it casually, then his eyes quickly moved around, catching the reactions of everyone present.

Some people showed displeasure on their faces, some acted as if it had nothing to do with them, and some looked at Lu Ting's reaction.

Pei Yuan took note of the expressions of these people, and then looked at the contents of the official document.

Seeing this, Lu Ting reached out and flipped through the documents, throwing out one and saying, "Take a look at this later."

Pei Yuan took it and took a look. There were all sorts of notes on it concerning food and wages.

Pei Yuan felt a headache when he saw it.

Seeing Pei Yuan's hesitation, Lu Ting felt that he was embarrassing him. He shook his head and sighed inexplicably, "I'm afraid there will be problems in the court."

"Oh, what did you say?" Pei Yuan became interested and picked up the memorial to take a few more glances.

Lu Ting was afraid that Pei Yuan didn't understand, so he explained to him, "This time, the court allocated a large sum of money from the Ministry of Revenue to supply the army's logistics, and then let Yang Tan, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, take charge of this matter."

"Yang Tan took silver from the Taicang warehouse and distributed it to various prefectures and counties, asking them to buy food and fodder to support the army. Some prefectures and counties that the army might pass through during the march also saved up money in advance."

Pei Yuan read a few lines and still couldn't figure it out. Hearing this, he asked, "Is there any problem with this?"

Lu Ting said, "Yes."

Pei Yuan was puzzled, "Is it because the money paid by the court is not enough?"

Lu Ting shook his head and said, "How is that possible? During the two years that Liu Jin has been in power, he has accumulated more than three million taels of silver for Taicang. This time, in order to replenish logistics, the court distributed more than two million taels of silver to the prefectures and counties along the way."

Pei Yuanmo calculated that the logistics cost was more than 2 million and the military expenditure was 900,000, which was basically equivalent to the money Liu Jin had saved in the past two years, all of which had been spent.

No wonder there was a horse donation a while ago.

Pei Yuan asked again, "Could it be that the officials along the way are unwilling to put in the effort?"

After Pei Yuan finished speaking, he felt that the possibility was not high.

Although the army to suppress the rebellion was commanded by the eunuch Lu Ting, the commander of the army, Lu Wan, also held the title of Right Censor-in-Chief. Any official who dared to delay the logistics of the army could be dealt with immediately.

Lu Ting answered, "Not really. The court promised that as long as the Bazhou bandits were pacified, all the officials in charge of the military pay would have their salaries raised by one level, and one of their sons would be allowed to study at the Imperial Academy. The officials below are also very dedicated in their work."

Pei Yuan found this very strange. The imperial court had not robbed them of their money, and their subordinates were willing to work, so how could there be any problems?
"Is the army short of food and money now?"

Lu Ting didn't mind the fact that someone was watching, and he just took out a book and threw it to Pei Yuan.

Pei Yuan took a look and saw that it was a book recording the amount of baggage and the storage location.

Pei Yuan felt that he was intervening too deeply, so he immediately declined, saying, "This is not something I should be watching."

Lu Ting said directly without caring, "The army is now full of food, piled up like mountains, and fodder is stored everywhere." Pei Yuan was relieved and smiled, "I thought there was a problem with the army's food. Isn't this a good thing?"

Seeing that Pei Yuan didn't realize the problem, Lu Ting continued, "According to the system of our Ming Dynasty, when the army marches in prefectures and counties, the local prefectures and counties will collect corvée labor to supply the army with cooked food. Now there is too much food to eat, and a lot of it has gone bad. The hay for feeding horses has been gradually accumulated, and now there are tens of millions of bundles."

Pei Yuan didn't know why this eunuch was so concerned about food, so he asked, "So?"

Before Lu Ting finished speaking, he continued, "Each bundle of grass weighs thirty kilograms. According to the quota, each horse also has three liters of bean feed per day."

Pei Yuan couldn't help but take a breath when he heard this.

"How can I finish this?!"

When the two numbers of tens of millions of bundles and thirty kilograms per bundle were roughly multiplied, Pei Yuan was immediately greatly shocked. *
This is more impactful than saying there is too much food to finish.

Lu Ting said, "Of course we can't finish it. A lot of fodder rots and burns every day."

After that, Lu Ting asked Pei Yuan, "Do you think this is normal?"

Pei Yuan was speechless. It was impossible for this to be normal.

When has our Ming Dynasty ever been so prosperous?

Lu Ting rubbed his brows and muttered, "So, I always feel like something is going to go wrong. I wonder if we will be blamed for something."

The "we" that Lu Ting mentioned was naturally not him and Pei Yuan, but Lu Ting and the military officers present.

Perhaps it’s because his own interests are involved.

Even the military officers slowed down their movements and listened attentively.

Pei Yuan was a little annoyed. He was here to complete a mission, not to open a dungeon.

Why are the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty so troublesome?

Pei Yuan thought about it briefly.

First, let’s rule out the possibility that the Ministry of Revenue acted out of kindness.

Secondly...

Pei Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly.

Second, it all makes sense.

The Ministry of Revenue has been frantically releasing money using the silver from Taicang, and the next step is to exempt grain and reduce taxes.

Once this combination of punches is launched, won’t the Ming Dynasty immediately fall into an unprecedented economic crisis?
So what is their purpose?

What benefit can I get from it?

Pei Yuan was just thinking about it when Lu Ting asked, "Brother?"

Pei Yuan came back to his senses and said with a smile, "I have some clues."

Lu Ting was overjoyed when he heard this, and quickly asked, "Brother, please tell me what's going on so that you can help me solve this puzzle."

Pei Yuan smiled and said, "The bow has been drawn, but it has not been aimed yet. It will not work if you say it out loud. But don't worry, Eunuch Lu. The Ministry of Revenue is not targeting you."

Pei Yuan's eyes also swept over the generals present, "You are not the target either."

Lu Ting first breathed a sigh of relief, then half-jokingly asked, "Can't I tell you?"

Pei Yuan thought that there were several of Zhu Houzhao's future godsons at the table, and he didn't want to cause too much trouble, so he said, "It will only add to your troubles."

Lu Ting was about to make an unprecedented contribution, and now he was in a good mood. When he heard that it was none of his business, he smiled and said, "Well, since it's none of my business, I'm too lazy to worry about it."

Afterwards, Lu Ting asked someone to urge for wine and food, and soon someone began to place wine and food in the tent.

The imperial army was fighting internally, and wherever they went, they had to rely on local governments for supplies, so naturally they needed skilled chefs.

Pei Yuan had been sleeping in the open air all the way, relying solely on dry food for survival. When the wine and meat came, he didn't bother to be polite with anyone and started eating right away.

Lu Ting had been out of the capital for some time, so it was inevitable that he missed the palace. During the breaks between toasts, he would ask about things in the palace from time to time.

After all, he was an eunuch, and no matter what achievements he made, he still had to return to the palace.

Pei Yuan had nothing to hide, so he told the emperor that he wanted to replace the Seven Tigers in the palace with outstanding and capable people from the old Hongzhi period.

This is no longer a secret in Beijing, and it does not count as betraying Gu Dayong and Qiu Ju.

Lu Ting had heard some rumors before, and now after hearing it from Pei Yuan, he felt more confident.

Lu Ting wanted to ask some deeper questions, but he also knew that this was not the right time to talk.

After the wine and food were served, Lu Ting said to the military officers, "My dear brother has come from afar and is tired. It is time for him to have a good rest. We have all had wine today, so we will not discuss anything. Let's all go our separate ways."

Upon hearing this, all the generals stood up and said goodbye.

After everyone left, Lu Ting went outside the tent to take a look, ordered someone to guard the door, and then asked Pei Yuan seriously, "So, the position of the Chief of the Imperial Household Department was chosen between me and Xiao Jing?"

Pei Yuan had almost finished his meal. He also wanted to exchange views with Lu Ting on the political situation, so he said bluntly, "Xiao Jing has a better chance."

Lu Ting frowned slightly and said unhappily, "I have the merit of pacifying the bandits in Bazhou, so is that not possible?"

Pei Yuan sighed and said to Lu Ting, "I'm afraid it will be difficult to achieve this achievement."

Lu Ting was surprised when he heard this, "What do you mean?"

Pei Yuan said to Lu Ting, "I have received the latest intelligence. The Bazhou Army is planning to storm Tuanfeng Town and seize the warships there before heading south."

Lu Ting's frown suddenly relaxed, and his expression instantly became joyful. "Those bandits are going to abandon the land and flee to the sea?"

Pei Yuan said calmly, "That's right."

Lu Ting immediately asked in confusion, "We said that we would force the Bazhou Army to the river. Wasn't it for this day? As long as we let the Bazhou Army's bandits abandon their horses and choose boats, which they are not good at, then they will die without a burial place, right?"

Pei Yuan paused for a moment and said to Lu Ting calmly, "You are right. Even if Tuanfeng Town has boats, it is impossible for tens of thousands of people to escape by boat. Even if the Bazhou Army wants to abandon land and flee by sea, they can't take anyone else with them except for the thousands of their most elite soldiers."

"As a result, only one in ten of the Bazhou Army's soldiers who are capable of fighting will remain."

Lu Ting laughed and nodded repeatedly.

Pei Yuan continued, "Northerners are not good at sailing. Even if they capture some people who can sail along the river, when the northern rebels get on the boats, their fighting power will inevitably be greatly reduced, and I'm afraid that less than half of them can fight."

"The ships in Tuanfeng Town have not been inspected for many years, and the Ministry of War has not built new ships for a long time. Even if the Bazhou Army seizes the ships and runs away, some will inevitably capsize and run aground, and then another 20 to 30 percent will be lost."

"Am I wrong?"

Lu Ting smiled and said, "Do I need to ask more about my brother's abilities?"

Pei Yuan asked suddenly, "If the warships of Tuanfeng Town are robbed, and the Bazhou bandits drift away with the waves, traveling hundreds of miles downstream in a day, I would like to ask whether Eunuch Lu has prepared enough warships to pursue them?"

"Huh?" Lu Ting's smiling face froze for a moment.

Pei Yuan asked bluntly, "Then may I ask, Eunuch Lu, with such an undermanned and weakened army, let alone the Admiral Caojiang, the Imperial Censor of the Jiangnan Region, and the Jiujiang Army, even if my entire Qianhu Division were mobilized, they would be destroyed in one fell swoop. How could you be awarded this unprecedented achievement?"

Pei Yuan stared at Lu Ting, whose smile was gradually disappearing from his face. "Let me ask you again, Eunuch Lu. If this is the case, what use does the court have for you? What use does the emperor have for you?"

* (There is no doubt that after suppressing the Bazhou rebellion, the Ministry of Revenue still recovered 260,000 taels of silver by selling off the remaining food and horse fodder at a reduced price, even though most of the remaining food and horse fodder were rotten and unusable.)
(End of this chapter)