Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 335 Heroes
In the north of Guangzhou, it rained lightly last night. The clouds and mist were faintly visible in the Baiyun Mountain. It was late spring now. The grass was growing and the birds were flying in the mountains. In the midst of the lush greenery, a tall tomb rose from the ground.
The tomb in the mountain is like a pagoda, up to ten meters high. The entire tomb is built on the mountain and carved directly from the mountain. The surface of the tomb is painted with gold lacquer, with five large characters engraved on it: "The Great Ming Heroes Monument".

The center of the mountain was hollowed out to form a stone stele, and the surrounding areas were carved out layer by layer, like terraces, with stairs leading up the mountain between each layer.

At this time, the various platforms in the mountains were already filled with gray-white stone tablets.
After Zhu Lang returned to Guangdong Province after his victory in Fujian and Zhejiang last year, he began to have people build this cemetery. Now, a year has passed, and the cemetery has only been roughly built and has not been fully completed.
The steps leading up the mountain have been paved with stone slabs, but the square in front of the tomb has only been paved with stone bricks for a small part, and the rest is still a muddy ground.

At this time, the square in front of the tomb was already full of people. On the platform in the front were Zhu Lang, Qu Shisi, Jiao Lian and other officials from the Military Affairs Office. Behind them were ministers from the court such as Zeng Ying and Liu Yuansheng. Further back were teams of imperial guards in scarlet uniforms.

The sky was filled with dark clouds, and suddenly a clear bell rang in the mountains. Upon hearing the bell, the imperial censors in the court and the missionaries in the army immediately joined the crowd. The noisy sounds in the field soon disappeared, and there was silence.

Although Zhu Lang ordered Lu Daqi to prepare the sacrificial ceremony, there was no precedent for this sacrificial ceremony to be held at the cemetery of heroes.

There were sacrifices to heaven and earth, sacrifices to the ancestral temples and the altar of grain, and sacrifices to the Temple of Literature and the Temple of Martial Arts, but there was no ceremony to sacrifice to ordinary soldiers.
For ordinary people, good men do not want to be soldiers. Even ordinary people look down on soldiers, let alone perform sacrifices in a serious manner.

Lu Daqi discussed with the Ministry of Rites for a while, but could not make up his mind, so he had to go to the palace to ask for instructions. Zhu Lang naturally did not know how to prepare, so he directly took out the process of offering sacrifices to the cemetery in his previous life.
Both sides of the mausoleum square were already filled with wreaths, all of which were donated by various government offices in the court.

The first one in the middle was presented by Zhu Lang. On the wreath ribbon was written the words "Respectfully presented to the heroic soldiers of the army by the Regent Gui of the Ming Dynasty"
The wreath in the middle is huge, while the wreaths on both sides are a few sizes smaller.

The first one on the left reads "Respectfully presented to the military heroes by Qu Shisi, the Grand Secretary of Zhongji Hall of the Ming Dynasty", the second one on the back is signed by Lü Daqi, the Grand Secretary of Jianji Hall, and the wreaths on the right are signed by Jiao Lian, the Duke of Xuan, Ma Bao, the Duke of Huai, and other military officials.
The wreaths on the first step are signed by individuals, while the wreaths on the second step are donated by the six ministries and various government offices.

On the second step, the first wreath on the left reads "Liu Yuansheng, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and other officials of the Ministry of Personnel present to the heroes and martyrs". Behind it are wreaths from the six ministries of the court, including the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War, as well as the Inspectorate and other government offices.
The wreath on the right was presented by the Longxiang, Wuxiang and other armies in the imperial court. The words on it are the same as those on the government offices, except that the word "heroes" was replaced by the word "comrades".

The clear sound of the bell echoed in the mountains. After the bell rang three times, thousands of people in the field stood in silence. Zhu Lang, who was at the front of the platform, led the military officials such as Qu Shisi and Jiao Lian to walk up the mountain.
In the cemetery, Zhu Lang took a stone tablet from Li Chengzhi and placed it in a hole that had been dug on the ground.

The stone tablet in front of Zhu Lang was only a palm wide, with a few small characters in the middle: "Liang Sheng, the general of the Longxiang Army of the Ming Dynasty". In addition to his name, the stone tablet only had basic information such as his hometown and date of birth. There was nothing else.
Zhu Lang actually didn't recognize Liang Li, a general. The title of General Wulue was only a fifth-rank officer, and it was awarded posthumously. It was impossible for Zhu Lang to recognize these low-ranking generals.

Today's grand ceremony, in addition to offering sacrifices to the tombstone, will also move the soldiers who died in the southwest expedition to the cemetery. Liang Sheng was one of the soldiers who died in the southwest expedition.
In front of the mausoleum square, all the officials and soldiers of the court stood in place. The Regent above shoveled up the soil and erected the stone tablet, while the officials and soldiers below also stood in place silently, looking at the Regent above.

Behind Zhu Lang, Qu Shisi, Jiao Lian, Li Dingguo and other officials of the Military Affairs Bureau also took shovels and moved a stone tablet into the cemetery.

It took a full quarter of an hour to erect the monument, and the crowd was silent for a quarter of an hour. At this time, there was no censor to check the discipline, but the field was completely silent.

Zhu Lang led the officials of the Military Affairs Office to set up the stone tablet and then walked back to the platform. At this time, the ceremonial officer in the field also shouted loudly:
"Your Highness presides over the ceremony, and all officials in the court and soldiers pay tribute to the heroes."

Zhu Lang took the long incense stick from Li Chengzhi's hand and inserted it into the giant tripod displayed in front of the square. The officials and soldiers behind him followed the instructions of the ceremonial officer and began to bow and salute.

Zhu Lang just stood in front of the giant tripod, and the ministers behind him bowed three times. After the ministers bowed three times, the sacrifice was considered complete.

All the officials below returned to their seats. Zhu Lang also walked to the front of the platform and spoke loudly. A group of Jinyiwei soldiers stood on all sides and spread the words of His Royal Highness the Regent to all parts of the venue.

"The whole country is in danger, the barbarians from the east are invading from the south. Since the isolation of Guangdong Province, the court has been at war almost every day. Fortunately, thanks to the bravery of the soldiers, the court has been able to defend half of the ruins, leaving a piece of pure land for the Han people."

"Since I ascended the throne, there have been hundreds of battles in the past three years, and a total of 5,632 soldiers have died in the army. Now they are all buried here."

"Ancients said that everyone has to die, some people's death is lighter than a feather, some people's death is heavier than Mount Tai. Which is lighter and which is heavier? A brave man who dies for profit is lighter than a feather, while expelling the Tartars and protecting our Han country is heavier than Mount Tai."

"All the soldiers marched with righteousness, fighting to the death to protect the Han Chinese Plain, staining the battlefield with blood. This is more important than Mount Tai!"

"The heroes of the army protected the Han people during their lifetime, and after their death they will be worshipped by the people of the world forever"

"Not only will I be commemorating the heroes of the Ming Dynasty today, but I will also lead all the officials and troops in the court to pay tribute during the Double Ninth Festival."

"From today on, all the soldiers in the court who fought on the battlefield and sacrificed their lives for the country, regardless of whether they were generals or soldiers, will have their names engraved and moved to the cemetery to be worshipped forever by the world."

"From today on, the spring and autumn sacrifices at the Heroes' Mausoleum will be presided over by the Zhu Ming royal family. I swear to all the soldiers today that as long as the Ming Dynasty survives, the incense of our Han heroes will continue!"

There was silence in the field, only Zhu Lang's voice kept echoing in the field. The field was silent for a moment. No one knew who took the lead, but suddenly a loud shout was heard in the field.

"Dying for His Highness"

Then, all the soldiers in the field suddenly shouted loudly.
"Dying for His Highness"

"Dying for His Highness"

A deafening shout suddenly resounded throughout the field. The soldiers below looked at the vague figure in the bright yellow dragon robe in front of the platform, with scorching expressions on their faces.
The imperial guards of the court, even the two direct imperial guards of Longxiang and Wuxiang, were all ordinary civilians before they joined the army.

Before they joined the army, they were just ants and common people in the eyes of the gentry, but now the emperor, prime minister, duke, who were previously unattainable to them, have to pay homage to them.
They knew that everything before their eyes was not given to them by any emperor, any great official in the court, or any general, but was brought to them by the prince in front of the platform.
There were many emperors in the Ming Dynasty, including Chongzhen, Hongguang, Longwu, and none of them were not emperors. But who has ever bent down to look at these ants and common people?

From today on, there can only be one prince, and only one emperor in this world. The rest are and can only be traitors.
Thousands of soldiers shouted in unison, and the huge sound waves echoed through the mountains, shaking the dew on the branches and leaves in the forest.
Li Guo stood on the platform, looking at the soldiers shouting wildly below, but a trace of shock flashed in his eyes

Li Guo looked to the side and saw that the officials of the Military Affairs Office beside him, whether it was the civil officials like Qu Shisi or the military officials like Li Dingguo, all of them had slightly changed expressions.
Li Guo hadn't reacted yet, but Ma Bao beside him suddenly shouted

"Dying for His Highness"

Ma Bao's voice was naturally no match for the cheers of the whole audience. If Li Guo had not been close to him, he would not have even been able to hear Ma Bao's voice.

But as Ma Bao began to shout, Ma Jinzhong, Hao Shangjiu and other Tengxiang generals in the court also suddenly began to shout loudly.

When Jiao Lian and the others saw Ma Bao suddenly shout, they were all shocked. But then Jiao Lian, Li Dingguo, Li Guo, Shi Lang and other military officials, regardless of their rank, all shouted in unison.
Liu Yuansheng, Gu Yuanjing and other civil officials below looked at the military officer who suddenly shouted beside them. They were stunned at first, and then their faces turned pale.

Zeng Ying, who had just returned from Fujian Province, looked at the enthusiastic soldiers in the field with a dull expression on his face and muttered to himself:

"From now on, all armies in the court will become your Highness's private armies."

In front of the cemetery square, a huge shout went straight to the sky, shaking away the dark clouds in the sky. In a small brick courtyard in the south of Guangzhou, Zhu Lang was leading a group of civil and military officials from the Military Affairs Office to comfort the wounded soldiers in the army.
Zhu Lang had previously requested that the court arrange for a visit to the wounded, but many officials in the court had submitted a petition to dissuade him from doing so, saying that it was against the rules of etiquette.
But Zhu Lang was not moved at all. To erect a monument to commemorate the fallen soldiers was to ensure the glory of the soldiers after their death. But for the soldiers, the more practical thing was the treatment they could enjoy at this time.
Zhu Lang not only had to comfort the wounded, but also took the retired wounded back to the various armies and taught them the experience of the war in front of the soldiers of the various armies.

It is not important whether these old soldiers can tell useful experience or not. What is important is to let the soldiers in the army see the plight of these wounded and retired old soldiers.

Zhu Lang wanted to let the soldiers of each army know that even if they were injured in battle and could no longer serve in the army, the court would not abandon them.
Soldiers are paid when they join the army, provided with medical care when they are wounded and retired, and worshipped by the people after they die. Only in this way can the soldiers be free of worries and fight for the court wholeheartedly.

In the courtyard, in late spring, the crabapple trees are in full bloom.

Zhu Lang sat at the stone table, with Qu Shisi, Jiao Lian and other officials from the Military Affairs Office behind him. Opposite the officials were a dozen soldiers in scarlet military uniforms.

These soldiers were old and young, but without exception, they all had injuries. Some of them had broken fingers and palms and could not hold a sword, while others had difficulty walking with crutches.
The stone table was not big, and only six people could sit on it. Qu Shisi and Jiao Lian sat beside Zhu Lang, and the remaining three were all wounded soldiers. Lu Daqi, Li Dingguo and other soldiers sat on wooden chairs around the stone table.

There were peanuts, rice cakes, sesame candies and other kinds of pastries on the porcelain plate on the stone table. Zhu Lang took a handful of peanuts and pushed them in front of Liu Bao and others on the opposite side.
Liu Bao was the representative of the wounded soldiers. When he saw His Highness the Regent take action, he instinctively stood up and saluted, but Zhu Lang waved his hand to stop him.
Zhu Lang looked at Liu Bao's empty left sleeve and said

"Which battalion are they from?"

"In reply to your Highness, this flag was originally the general flag of the Longxiong Army."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Lang looked at Jiao Lian beside him and said with a smile

"Jiao Lian, these are your soldiers"

Liu Bao saw Jiao Lian coming and his face was also excited. He said

"Sir, I am the captain of the guards under General Zhao Xing. I was injured in the arm by the Tartars while defending Guangzhou, so I withdrew from the army."

Jiao Lian was filled with emotion when he heard this. Since the great victory in Fujian Province, no one had called him the general for a long time. Before Jiao Lian entered the court, he was the general of Guilin.
Zhu Lang asked about the origins of several soldiers. The commanders of all armies were present, and the atmosphere soon became relaxed. Zhu Lang talked about the friendship between the soldiers, and then he continued to speak.

"How is your livelihood these days? I think you need to have enough food and clothing."

"The court sends us food and salary every month. We are no longer able to join the army to fight the enemy, but we still receive food and salary from the court. We really feel ashamed of it."

Zhu Lang heard this, but waved his hand and said softly
"How can I feel guilty about this? You have fought for the court and the people of the Ming Dynasty and have been injured. The court should take care of you. Don't worry. No matter what happens in the court, you will never be short of food and wages."

Battalion soldiers are different from garrison soldiers. Garrison soldiers can at least return to their garrison after they are unable to fight, but battalion soldiers have nowhere to go after they are injured.
Now the imperial guards in the court are all recruited soldiers. In order to maintain the morale of the imperial guards, the court naturally also made some arrangements for the wounded soldiers.
If soldiers of the various armies are injured in battle and can no longer fight with the army, they can receive a sum of money for retirement and 80% of their original salary after retirement. This salary will be paid for ten years.

Take the Imperial Guards as an example. The salary of an ordinary soldier in the Imperial Guards is one tael of silver per month. If a soldier is injured and leaves the camp, he can still receive eight cents of silver from the court every month.

After the soldiers were wounded and retired, the court still had to support them for ten years. This seemed like a huge burden, but in fact the court did not spend much on wounded soldiers.
For soldiers of this era, there is basically no such thing as retirement. As long as the soldiers can still hold a knife or a gun, they basically have to continue to serve in the army.

Unless someone like Liu Bao and others was injured and unable to pick up a weapon, they would quit the army.

However, the sanitary conditions of this era were worrisome. On the battlefield, soldiers like Liu Bao and others who were seriously injured would die from subsequent infections even if they did not die at the time.
Over the past three years, the Ming court had lost more than 5,000 soldiers in battle, but at this time, less than 1,000 wounded soldiers survived and retired from the army.
Zhu Lang looked at Liu Bao and others opposite him and spoke again

"You are all meritorious servicemen in the army. The imperial court will never sit idly by and ignore you."

"If anyone dares to withhold your food and wages, you can go to the county government to file a complaint. If the county government ignores your case, you can go to the military to seek justice from the missionary. I will seek justice for you."

Upon hearing this, Qu Shisi and other ministers beside him also looked serious.

There was silence in the field. At this moment, Li Chengzhi was holding a pipa and placed it on the stone table.
Liu Bao, who was sitting at the table, saw the pipa on the table and immediately looked at Li Chengzhi who was standing beside him. Li Chengzhi also nodded slightly when he saw Liu Bao looking at him.
Liu Bao was silent for a moment, then he gritted his teeth, stood up and knelt on the ground.
He Wuzuo, who was standing opposite, saw Liu Bao and the others suddenly kneel down, and his expression changed immediately. He Wuzuo was in charge of the Inspectorate.

His Highness just mentioned the military pay, and Liu Bao and his men knelt on the ground. Could it be that someone in the court was blind and really withheld the military pay of these wounded soldiers?
He Wuzuo and other court officials at the table looked nervous, but Liu Bao ignored them and spoke directly

"The monthly salary of the court is paid on time every month, and there has never been a shortage. We, the soldiers, have received great grace from Your Highness, and we should not ask for more. But now we have one thing that we would like to ask Your Highness for mercy."

"Although we, the remaining soldiers, are no longer able to fight for Your Highness, we do not wish to continue to be supported by the imperial court."

"When we followed His Highness to defend the city, His Highness said that after repelling the Tartars, everyone in the army would be given 50 acres of land."

"We dare not ask for too much. Ten acres or five acres is fine. Your Highness may grant us a few acres of thin land so that we can support ourselves."

Qu Shisi and others on the opposite side were relieved to hear that the soldiers had no shortage of food and wages. However, when they heard Liu Bao mention the issue of dividing the land, the expressions on their faces changed immediately.

Before the ministers could speak, Zhu Lang spoke directly.

"Why ask for more? This is what you deserve."

"The land grant should have been issued last year, but the court was constantly at war, Fujian Province had just been pacified, and the southwest was in turmoil again, which delayed the matter. This is my fault."

"Don't worry, I have already informed the troops of this matter that day. The court will never break its promise. After I return today, I will have people start to handle it."

Zhu Lang ordered Li Chengzhi to help Liu Bao and others up from the ground. When the wounded heard that the court was going to grant them land, they were delighted.

The soldiers in the army were happy, but the ministers such as Lu Daqi beside them looked solemn. However, Zhu Lang ignored the ministers around him and chatted with the soldiers about family matters.

After the request for land grant was passed, the soldiers did not make any more requests, and the atmosphere in the field also eased. Zhu Lang chatted with the soldiers for another quarter of an hour, and then returned to the palace.
After the soldiers proposed the grant of land, Qu Shisi and other cabinet ministers wanted to make suggestions several times, but seeing His Majesty the Regent chatting and laughing happily with the soldiers, they just couldn't find a suitable opportunity.
When His Royal Highness the Regent returned to the palace and the curtains of the imperial carriage fell, Qu Shisi and others completely lost the opportunity to make suggestions.

The ministers followed the emperor with great concern, and the actions of His Highness the Regent after returning to the palace confirmed the ministers' concerns.
(End of this chapter)