Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 202 Instigation
In the barracks, there were dozens of tables and chairs, and dozens of soldiers in scarlet military uniforms were sitting in front of the tables.
Chen Qi Ce stood in front of the crowd, with a black painted wooden board beside him.

Chen Qice took a talc pen and started writing on the black painted wooden board. Soon, the word "Ming" was written on the black wooden board.

Chen Qice put down his stone pencil, looked at the soldiers below, and said

"The character we are learning today is Ming"

"Ming means light"

“The word ‘Ming’ has the sun on one side and the moon on the other. When the sun and the moon rise, there is light between heaven and earth, and we can see things clearly between heaven and earth. This is Ming.”

Chen Qi Ce started to explain, while the soldiers below sat quietly at the table.

Although no one of the soldiers below spoke, some of them twisted their bodies as if there were insects crawling on them, looking extremely uncomfortable, while others stared at the blackboard above, but in fact they were already daydreaming and no one knew what they were thinking about.

Chen Qi Ce saw the situation of the people below, but he didn't care and continued to speak

"This word Ming is also the name of our dynasty. Our Great Ming court is like the sun and the moon hanging in the sky, shining brightly on our Han territory and protecting our Han people. In the past, our Great Ming Taizu led our Han heroes to drive out the Mongols and recover our Han homeland. Our Great Ming is the court of the Han people in this world."

"We Han people have lived in the Central Plains for generations. Our ancestors wore Chinese clothes, established etiquette, and educated the world. That's why we are also called China. The so-called Hua..."

At the back of the barracks, a burly soldier who was bored and yawning constantly suddenly became alert after hearing what Chen Qice said.

"The so-called Hua is the Ming Dynasty court"

As soon as Liu Wang finished speaking, Zhang Rong, who was a tall and strong man not far away and was originally daydreaming, immediately interrupted and said
"The so-called barbarians are the Qing Tartars"

As soon as the two finished speaking, the soldiers in the field shouted
"The so-called expelling the Tartars and restoring China means following the imperial court to kill the Tartars and recover the territory of our Ming Dynasty."

After everyone in the room finished shouting, they suddenly burst into laughter. The original dullness in the room was swept away, and for a moment it was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
These days, when Chen Qi Ce and others were teaching people calligraphy, they would repeat these words almost every day.

Regardless of whether the soldiers in the camp understood the meaning of these words or not, everyone could say them with their eyes closed.
"General Chen, we will definitely follow the imperial court to kill the Tartars, so please stop reciting. This is not how Monkey King's Tightening Curse is recited. General Chen, please put away your magical powers."

Liu Wang made a gesture of putting his hands together in salute, with a bitter look on his face. When the soldiers below saw Chen Wang's appearance, they burst into laughter again.

Seeing everyone laughing, Chen Wang stopped pretending to be nice and started laughing too, with a smug look on his face.

Chen Qice saw the soldiers below making a fuss, but he was not angry. He just shook his head and chuckled, and said

"It seems that you brothers really remembered it. If you can remember this, then my efforts these days will not be in vain."

Chen Qice pressed his hands down slightly, and waited until the laughter subsided before continuing to speak.

"We join the army to get food and salary, but once we go to the battlefield, our lives may be in danger at any time. If it is just for the salary and money, there are many ways to make money in this world. Why do we have to join the army and fight with our heads on the battlefield?"

The soldiers below were all stunned when they heard this, and they all looked confused for a moment, but Chen Qice ignored them and continued to speak.

"Why do we have to join the army? Because since the Tartars entered the pass, they have treated our Han people like cattle, sheep, slaves and servants. These Tartars have occupied our Han land and killed our Han people. That's why we have to join the army and fight against the Tartars."

"We must let those Tartars know that we have countless heroes among the Han people in the Central Plains, and we will not allow them to run rampant."

Chen Qice looked at the soldiers below who were looking at each other in bewilderment, and continued to speak.

"Why do we keep talking about expelling the Tartars and restoring the Central Plains? Because these few words are the reason why we join the army and fight. We join the army not only to get paid and eat food, but also to protect our Han people and drive those Tartar barbarians out of the Central Plains."

"Don't think this is a joke."

"You are all rebels. According to the imperial court's laws, you are all guilty of unforgivable crimes. The reason you are still able to sit in this room is because of these words!"

Chen Qice's expression suddenly became serious, and his eyes swept coldly over the soldiers below.

When Liu Wang and other soldiers below heard this, their faces changed. Although they usually did not mention it, they did not forget their identities as defeated soldiers.
Chen Qi Ce did not care about the expressions of the people below and continued to speak

"The Qing army was defeated, and the imperial court also captured nearly a thousand Eastern Tartars. When it comes to martial arts, horse riding and archery, these Tartars are all experts. Ask yourself, even if you fight one-on-one, how many of you can defeat these Tartar soldiers?"

"These Tartars were captured by the imperial court, and some of them want to beg for mercy and serve. If we take them in, the imperial court will immediately have nearly a thousand more elite cavalry."

"But His Highness personally issued an order to execute all the real Tartars, while ordinary soldiers like you were all re-incorporated into the army. Do you know why His Highness did this?"

The soldiers below looked at each other in bewilderment. After a moment's silence, Liu Wang spoke hesitantly.

"Because those people are Tartars from outside the Great Wall, and we are Han people from the Central Plains?"

Chen Qice looked at Liu Wang below and suddenly spoke loudly:
"Yes, it is because you are all Han Chinese."

"Your Highness the Regent is the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and the father of all Han people in the world. Your Highness the Regent is the parents of the family, and we Han people are the children of the family."

"You surrendered to the invaders first, and followed the Tartars to attack the imperial court. This is an unforgivable crime, but in the final analysis, you are my Han people. Even if children do something wrong for a while, they can be forgiven after being beaten and scolded by their parents. This is why Your Highness's court has shown leniency."

"But the Tartars are different. They are not from the Central Plains. Since they entered the Pass, they have been burning, killing, looting, and abusing the Han people. So Your Highness must be furious and kill all of these Tartars."

Chen Qice spoke in a cold voice. He looked at the silent soldiers below and continued to speak.

"Some of you were originally from the Ming army, some were originally rebels, and some were originally bandits. It doesn't matter, because no matter where you came from, you are all my Han people after all."

"Your Highness once said that although the Shun thieves and the Xi thieves rebelled against the Ming Dynasty, in the final analysis, these two people are still Han people. Even if the world is eventually taken away by these two thieves, it is still the Han people who call the shots."

“For example, if a family wants to divide up land, and brothers fight over it, no matter who wins or loses in the end, the land will still remain in our family.”

"But now there are evil thieves who are taking advantage of the quarrel between brothers in our family and want to seize all our land and property. Those Tartars are the evil thieves who are taking advantage of the opportunity to rob our land and property!"

"All the land in this world was passed down to us by our ancestors from generation to generation. Now there are evil thieves who want to take advantage of the internal strife in our family to seize our land. What do you think we should do?"

"Of course, these evil thieves should be killed."

"We will kill anyone who dares to steal our things."

Suddenly, a shout came from the soldiers below. Everyone looked at the excited soldiers, and some unfamiliar soldiers nodded slightly.
Chen Qi Ce above did not wait for others to speak, and shouted

"Yes, it is time to kill those evil villains!"

"The Tartars led their troops into Guangdong last time, intending to occupy the province, but were defeated by your Highness's troops. However, the Tartars are still unwilling to give up their evil intentions, and are gathering troops in Fujian Province to spy on them."

"Your Highness has already offered a reward. If you kill a Han soldier who has colluded with the rebellion, you will get two taels of silver. If you kill a real Tatar, you will get ten taels of silver!"

"As men in our army, we should immediately gain fame and fortune. The imperial court has already distributed the rewards to each army. This battlefield is like a sea of ​​gold and silver. How much you can gain depends on your own ability."

As soon as Chen Qice finished speaking, Liu Wang's eyes suddenly lit up, but soon he muttered in a low voice:
"I, Old Liu, have heard a lot about this bounty, but how many of them will end up in our hands? In the end, they will still be taken away by you high-ranking officials."

Although Liu Wang was mumbling in a low voice, his voice was no different from complaining loudly. Everyone in the field immediately focused their attention on Liu Wang.
Liu Wang was also calm and composed, sitting at the table, as if he didn't feel anyone's gaze at all.

Seeing Liu Wang's fearless look, everyone turned their eyes away and looked at Chen Qice above.

Chen Qi Ce saw that everyone was looking at him, but his expression remained unchanged. He looked at Liu Wang below and said:

"Liu Wang, has the army deducted any of this month's pay?"

"The camp requires you to train every day and promises you meat every two days, but there is a shortage."

"It's only this month, who knows what will happen in the future"

Liu Wang grumbled to himself when he saw Chen Qi Ce's look, but he didn't refute it in the end.

When everyone heard what Chen Qice said, they nodded in their hearts. In order to appease these defeated soldiers, the court immediately issued a month's salary after the reorganization. In addition, they had enough rice during these days, and they could even have some meat every two days. This treatment was indeed much better than before.
But no one dared to hold out much hope for this. In order to get them to fight for their lives, the imperial court would naturally be more tolerant at the beginning, but who knows what will happen in the future?
According to everyone's experience, as long as time passes, the army will definitely return to its previous state. There is no general in the army who does not drink the blood of the soldiers.

Chen Qi Ce ignored the silence of the crowd below and continued
"Now, the military pay is distributed by me, Chen Qice. I have no control over other matters, but in this Tengxiang Army, I, Chen Qice, dare to guarantee you that in the future, both the military pay and the reward will be paid in full. If anyone dares to take your pay, just come to me, Chen Qice."

"I, Chen Qice, swear today in front of all of you brothers that if I, Chen Qice, act unfairly in the future and embezzle your military pay, anyone in the army can come and twist my head."

The soldiers below were all stunned when they saw Chen Qice's serious expression. They had heard many times of being given official titles and promised to work hard, but Chen Qice was the first one who dared to guarantee that their military pay would not be withheld.

Chen Qi Ce ignored the shocked faces of the people below and spoke again

"Brothers, when you go to the battlefield, just kill the enemy with all your heart. With me, Chen Qice, here, you will not be short of a penny of silver!"

"The day after tomorrow, our Tengxiang Army will move out to fight. Our Tengxiang Army will be the vanguard and will most likely be the first to engage in battle with the Tartars. The imperial court will give you all the money, food and salaries. Do you have the confidence to defeat the Tartars?"

Chen Qice looked at the silent soldiers below and winked at a soldier in the crowd. The soldier was about to lead the shouting, but before he could open his mouth, Liu Wang beside him suddenly spoke up.

"Since we are going to break camp and fight the Tartars, do we not need to learn to read anymore?"

Liu Wang's words interrupted the atmosphere in the barracks. Chen Qice glared at Liu Wang who seemed unaware, but he had no choice but to speak.

"Yes, when I go to war, the journey is inconvenient, so I will stop learning to read."

Liu Wang below heard this and threw away the talc pen in his hand. He looked delighted and said:

"That's good. As long as I, Old Liu, can't scratch on this board, it won't be that hard to kill ten more Tartars."

The soldiers below all nodded in agreement when they heard this.

The Gui Regent court is really weird. It's fine to let them practice, but they actually ask them to learn to read every day. They don't have to take the exam to become scholars, so what's the point of learning to read? Isn't this a waste of time?
Now, in the Tengxiang army, they have drills in the morning and literacy classes in the afternoon. It is said that literacy classes should be easier, but the soldiers would rather go to the drills than take the literacy classes.
The missionaries forced them to write and draw on the wooden board all day long, and kept talking to them about Chinese barbarians and Tartars, which made them dizzy.

The reason why the soldiers could blurt out Chen Qice's words just now was because of this daily literacy class.

The missionaries kept repeating it in their ears every day, and it was hard for them to forget it.

The soldiers were extremely reluctant to learn to read, but they had no choice. Learning to read was a mandatory requirement in the army. They could daydream in the barracks, but they had to be present.
Those soldiers who dared to skip classes, whether they were small flag generals or ordinary soldiers, were all beaten with sticks. After being beaten several times, everyone had no choice but to obey orders.

Chen Qice glanced at Liu Wang, who looked delighted, and then continued speaking.

"Okay, Liu Wang, this is what you said, I will write it down for you."

"You don't need ten. This time, as long as you, Liu Wang, can kill three real Tartars and write ten words, I will personally submit a memorial to report your achievements and guarantee you a position as the general flag."

Now in the Tengxiang army, a team of ten people is assigned a small flag, a team of fifty people is assigned a general flag, a team of a hundred people is assigned a hundred generals, and above them are the generals, captains, and thousand generals.
After Chen Qi Ce finished speaking, without waiting for Liu Wang to speak, he looked at the people below and spoke loudly:

"This is not only for Liu Wang, but also for other brothers in the army. As long as you make contributions, you will not only be rewarded with silver, but also promoted."

"Didn't you complain that your monthly salary was less than that of the Longxiang and Wuxiang armies? All of you were defeated by the Longxiang and Wuxiang armies. How can you have the nerve to take the same salary as the Longxiang and Wuxiang armies?"

"But now the opportunity has come. This time, His Highness said that as long as your contribution in this expedition to Fujian is not inferior to that of the Longxiong Army, your monthly salary will be the same as that of the Longxiong Army, and it will also be raised to one tael per month."

"I have already made a promise to His Highness that he will prepare the salary for our Tengxiang Army as soon as possible. I have already invited you to receive the monthly salary and reward. Do you have the confidence to defeat the Tartars and win this salary for our Tengxiang Army?"

As soon as Chen Qice finished speaking, before he could signal the people he had arranged in advance to move forward, the soldiers below started to shout.
"Kill the Tartars and receive salary"

"Kill the Tartars and receive the salary..."

All the soldiers in the barracks started shouting, and for a moment the only sound was the shouting of killing the enemy and getting silver.
Outside the barracks, Ma Bao and other generals stood at the door, listening to the shouts and screams coming from the barracks in front of them. They were all stunned for a moment.
Ma Bao looked at the soldiers who were shouting and making noise in the room. He was silent for a long time, waved his hand to signal everyone to disperse, and then ignored everyone's reaction and left directly to the back.
Hao Shangjiu and the others were at a loss for a moment when they saw Ma Bao leave in silence. After a while, they dispersed with different expressions.
At the entrance to the training ground, Ma Yingyuan looked at Ma Bao, who was standing under the tree with a frown on his face, and couldn't help but speak.

"Father, this Chen Qice..."

Ma Yingyuan stopped talking suddenly, with a worried look on his face.

The imperial court sent someone to directly manage the army's money and food, which had already made everyone in the army dissatisfied and vigilant. However, seeing Chen Qi Ce inciting the soldiers today, Ma Yingyuan became even more worried.
Originally, they scoffed at Chen Qi Ce and others forcing soldiers to learn to read, thinking that these people were wasting time, but today they discovered the real intention of the court's move.

The imperial court ordered all soldiers to learn to read. The real purpose was to use the opportunity of learning to read to let a group of missionaries win the hearts of the soldiers.
Chen Qi Ce now controls the money, food, and rewards. If he were to take away the hearts of the soldiers, who would be willing to listen to them in the future?

Ma Yingyuan had already seen the dangers involved, but he didn't know how to speak up. His worries were justified, but he couldn't speak openly about them.

The imperial court was openly trying to seize the military power of these generals, but they could not resist at all, because after all, this army should belong to the imperial court.
Ma Bao was silent for a long time, but he ignored Ma Yingyuan beside him and turned to look at Ma Ziyuan behind him and said

"Ziyuan, didn't you say that Chen Jianjun asked you before if you wanted to be a missionary?"

"From now on, you will stay with Chen Jianjun and do whatever he says."

"Dad, I'm afraid this plan won't work. The imperial court is clearly trying to seize power in the army. Even if my second brother follows Chen Qice to become a missionary, I'm afraid the imperial court won't let him stay in the Tengxiang Army and take over the position of missionary."

"If the court sends my second brother to the other two armies as a military supervisor, it might cause the other two armies to be hostile to our Tengxiang Army..."

Before Ma Yingyuan finished speaking, he was suddenly interrupted by Ma Bao's cold voice.
"Call me General Chen. Who are you to dare to call me General Chen by his name?"

Ma Bao stared at Ma Yingyuan beside him and scolded him coldly, then walked away directly, leaving only Ma Yingyuan and his brother who looked shocked.
In Tengxiang's army, Chen Qice, Kuang Hong and others seemed to be alone. They still led the missionaries to the army every day and constantly encouraged the soldiers.
No matter what the generals of the Tengxiang Army thought, no matter what they discussed in private.
As the city was fully stocked with food and grass, on the fifth day of December, the army of Guangzhou finally set out from the city and headed towards Fujian Province.
(End of this chapter)