Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 73 Discussion of Merit
The method of calculating military merit in the Ming Dynasty underwent several changes, but generally speaking it can be divided into extraordinary merit, first merit, and second merit.

The so-called extraordinary feats focus on the performance of soldiers on the battlefield, such as stepping forward first, breaking into the battle line, beheading generals and seizing flags.

The most important merit is the specific battle results, generally speaking, it means how many enemy heads the soldiers have chopped off on the battlefield. The imperial court will give soldiers different levels of rewards according to the region where the battle takes place and the identity of the enemy.

As for the secondary merit, it is a bit like a consolation prize for the wounded.

The Ming Dynasty Code states that "In the 35th year of Hongwu, it was decreed that when the government troops were fighting against the enemy, those who could perform extraordinary feats would be promoted by two levels; those who performed the best feat would be promoted by one level; those who performed the second best feat would not be promoted."

From this we can see that in the early Ming Dynasty, when calculating the merits and rewards for soldiers, there was a clear tendency to examine their battlefield performance, but after the Battle of Tumu, this situation underwent a subtle change.

Probably because it was difficult for civil officials who held great power to obtain first-hand battlefield information, the calculation of military merit in the middle and late Ming Dynasty gradually tended to focus on the first merit.

During the Chongzhen period, it didn't matter whether you were brave on the battlefield or not. As long as you couldn't chop off the enemy's head, it didn't matter at all. This was putting the cart before the horse.

There are people who question this system of rewarding merit, but faced with a power system dominated by civil servants, where even the emperor has to hide in the deep palace, what can the rest of the people do?
"Your Highness, there were only 25 heads captured in this battle, and many of them were damaged, even if you count Captain Li's death in the battle."

"He's not dead yet!"

"Yes, even if Captain Li eventually dies, he won't be able to be promoted to the next level."

Looking at Liang Yungou who was talking so eloquently, Zhu Cilang felt really annoyed.

Do you think he's unwilling to fall out with these idiots?

It's not that I don't want to, I just can't.

No matter what he thought in his mind, Duoduo was leading hundreds of thousands of troops outside the city, lurking covetously. He really didn't dare to fall out with these people at this time.

After all, for Zhu Cilang now, protecting Yingtian is the top priority.

"What about the other soldiers? Were they sent away with just a few hundred taels of silver?"

"Your Highness, this is already calculated according to the rules set by Qi Shaobao back then."

Liang Yungou looked so nonchalant that Zhu Cilang wanted to stab him right there and then, but when he thought about the overall situation, he had to suppress his anger.

"The rewards discussed by the Ministry of War neither considered the importance of the battle in Yingtian nor the bravery of the soldiers on the battlefield. We should reconsider this."

"Yes."

Zhu Cilang said this with a sullen face, and then Liang Yungou responded like a rolling pin and stepped aside.

It can be imagined that the next time he brings out the rewards discussed by the Ministry of War, he will probably only make slight changes in the details, and the "principle" issues will definitely not change at all.

After all, if rewards are distributed slowly, it will cause dissatisfaction among the soldiers, and isn’t Zhu Cilang the one who cares about these things the most in the entire Yingtian City?

If we go back and forth like this a few more times, are you still worried that we won't be able to come up with a reward plan that will satisfy the Ministry of War?

To be honest, the money and grain seized from the Xincheng Earl's Mansion is definitely enough to reward meritorious soldiers. Even the promotion of military officials can be decided by Zhu Cilang's words.

What's more, he wanted to get rid of this rotten system from the beginning, and there seemed no need to argue with these rotten wood here.

But everything has a process. In just a few days, Zhu Cilang had already exhausted all his energy to seize the military power. How could he trigger internal troubles when facing external worries?

Of course, it is definitely not his style to accept defeat, but everything just needs time to ferment.

"Your Highness, I have something to report."

Just when Zhu Cilang was feeling unhappy, Yue Qijie stood up.

As a frontier official who had led troops for many years, he naturally knew that everything Liang Yungou said was based on facts, but at the same time he also knew that this basis might be a sign of a struggle for power.

Honestly speaking, as a relative of Ma Shiying, he had suffered a lot of trouble from these people, but he really couldn't tear his face off in this situation, so he could only change the subject to prevent His Royal Highness the Crown Prince from having an outburst on the spot.

"The Yaofangmen defenders suffered heavy losses in this battle. Should we send more troops?"

After saying this, Yue Qijie looked at Zhu Cilang anxiously, and only felt relieved when he saw that Zhu Cilang looked normal.

It was unknown whether Yue Qijie's method of changing the subject had worked or whether Zhu Cilang had some plan in mind, but Zhu Cilang returned to his previous self. He would even smile and say a few words when the city's civil affairs were mentioned, asking everyone to work harder and not to cause any trouble over trivial matters.

Finally, when everyone dispersed, Zhu Cilang called out, "Mr. Qian."

Among the officials who still remain in Yingtian, Qian Qianyi can be considered the highest in terms of status and reputation, but when it comes to his closeness to Zhu Cilang, he cannot even catch up with those others.

So when Qian Qianyi heard this voice, he was stunned for a moment before realizing that it was someone calling him.

To be honest, the position of Prime Minister of the Ming Dynasty is not easy to hold.

The difficulty involved cannot be fully described in a few words, but there is a comparison that, although not appropriate, can still convey some of the idea.

There is an emperor who is ruling the country from behind the scenes.

The emperor may be able to hold out until the day when he returns power, but the prime minister probably won’t be able to see the day when he holds all the power.

If someone is unlucky enough to survive until the day when the emperor changes
I don't think it will end well.

Cough
Far away.

After the officials left, Zhu Cilang did not speak immediately, but stared at Qian Qianyi for a long time before speaking.

"Mr. Qian was already an official during the time of his grandfather."

"Yes, I am a Jinshi in the 38th year of Wanli."

"So he has been a minister for four dynasties."

At this point, Qian Qianyi seemed to have figured out the Crown Prince's intention, but when he was about to be a little humble and respond to the title of an old minister of four dynasties, he heard Zhu Cilang change the subject.

"Don't the old ministers of the Ming Dynasty have any sense of responsibility?"

"Your Majesty..."

Qian Qianyi didn't know how to answer, but his thoughts were racing.

Responsibility? What is responsibility?

What is there in Yingtian City that he can take responsibility for at this time?
Is it
But he had already refused.

correct!

Before, he was just a "fake prince" who had just escaped from trouble, so of course he would not agree to that.

But the situation now is different from the past. We have just repelled the attack of the Tartars, and we still have more than 100,000 troops in our hands. Coupled with Hongguang who abandoned his country and fled, isn’t it just like the situation after the Battle of Tumu?

Yu Qian!

Your Highness the Crown Prince wants me to learn from Shao Bao and go down in history!

"Master Yu, Master Yu."

Every time this name appeared in Qian Qianyi's mind, his heart warmed up. Later on, he even decided that after the Tartars were defeated, he would find a reasonable excuse to die.

In this way, his status in the writings of historians will certainly far exceed that of Wen Zhong.

"Your Highness, I, Yu Qianqianyi, ask you to inherit the throne and support the Ming Dynasty!"

what's the situation?
Zhu Cilang was confused.

His original intention was just to use the position of "Prime Minister" to tie Qian Qianyi down so that there would be less resistance in the future.

But who knew what was wrong with Mr. Qian's brain that he actually thought of letting him ascend the throne at this time.

Of course, under the current circumstances, Gideon would have climbed, but.
Is this what I'm talking about?!
(End of this chapter)