Tiger Guards

Chapter 109: Merits and Demerits
There was still some savings in Anyi City. At noon, the north gate was opened and Wuzhu coins were transported out of the city.

There were 100 people each from the Huben and Yulin armies, and they began to distribute money.

The Wenxi volunteers were too hasty and did not even have squad leaders, team officers, or captains of a hundred men.

Hu Ban and Pei Zheng were supervising in front, and every time someone received money, they would draw a line on the palm of their hand.

There is no registration required to collect the money this time, so the money can be distributed efficiently.

Around the time of Shen, the volunteers from Wenxi were sent back one after another, crossing the wooden bridge of Sushui River and returning to the county, towns and villages.

As for whether they are willing to respond to the call-up, it is no longer something Hu Ban can control in the near future.

There was a major change in the imperial court, and the government affairs of Wenxi County had to be sorted out first before it could take charge of the government affairs.

The people of Wenxi returned with a full load, so Hu Ban had no choice but to lead the county soldiers back first.

The people of Anyi were also afraid that the people of Wenxi would cause a rebellion, so they closed the city gates and only allowed the troops led by Guanqiu Yi to enter the city.

Even the brothers Zhao Jian and Zhao Yuan were unable to enter the city, and could only evacuate first with the hundreds of people gathered around them today.

In the palace converted from the county magistrate's mansion, five attendants quickly made decisions and dealt with various issues.

Zhao Ji took the initiative to make concessions and after dealing with the historical characterization of the four generals of Bai Bo, he reorganized the Hedong armies.

The first blow was struck at the county magistrate Wang Yi. All the original county soldiers were reorganized, and 700 strong men were selected to be the guards of the palace, under the command of the guard commander.

The remaining young and strong men were incorporated into the Huben Servant Army, which was renamed the Hubu Army.

The elderly, weak, and others were organized into garrison troops.

The clan bandit troops were also divided into two parts, with the strong ones selected to be incorporated into the Tiger Infantry Army and the rest into the Garrison Army.

Craftsmen of all kinds were gathered together and put under the unified control of the Chief Craftsman.

How far the Tiger Infantry Army can expand depends on the attitude of the local tyrants in each county.

But at present, there are 100 Yulin cavalry, 800 Huben cavalry, and 700 palace guards; Xu Huang's Hedong Knight Camp will also be filled up to 700 cavalry.

This is a conscription method that drains the strength of the powerful people in Hedong. If they suffer a devastating defeat like the Battle of Dongjian, the people of Hedong will not be able to recover for two generations.

The mass death of ordinary people is different from the death of children of good families or children of wealthy families from poor families.

Together with the 500 Xiongnu volunteers led by Qubei, a maximum of 2,000 cavalry could be deployed in field battles; before the defeat of the Xiongnu in northern Fen, the number of field cavalry would not exceed 3,000.

It is not appropriate to rebuild the five schools of the Northern Army at present, but we cannot allow the Tiger Infantry Army to dominate alone.

A subordinate Eagle Army was also established under the Yulin Knights, but it was difficult to fully staff the Yulin Knights, so where would the resources be to expand the Eagle Army?

As the sun was setting, the five attendants had moved to another venue and gathered in the small hall of the county magistrate's mansion.

After lunch, they gathered together to discuss.

After dealing with the thorny issues of military power and organization... each organization basically corresponds to the allocation of military pay.

The main purpose of the Wuzhu coins in the Wei family treasury was to pay military salaries.

As for the food problem, it was solved by the powerful people in each county.

Either they pay ten years of land tax as Zhao Ji requires, or they capture the fort and distribute the land among themselves after the court audits it.

The current grain reserves of Anyi, Wei and Fan families are sufficient to last until June.

If there is a locust plague in June, grain production will be severely reduced on a large scale, and people will starve to death on a large scale in winter and during the next year's lean period.

In the small hall, five people sat around, and their assigned officials took notes.

After the sensitive issue of military power was agreed upon, even the four Baibo generals had made their decisions. The next most crucial issue was how to hold the former nobles accountable and reward the heroes who had moved east.

Those who died in battle were posthumously honored, and those who were alive were given titles and promotions. The main discussion was about the living officials.

After all, it is easier to deal with the dead. If the living are not properly settled, they will make trouble with you, making you look disgraced and damaging the prestige of the province.

These former nobles were at best incompetent, and they often shed blood and died in battle, yet their prestige was high.

When discussing the achievements of the eastward migration, we cannot avoid mentioning the former officials and nobles.

Zhao Ji kept referring to the old ministers, but no matter how old and outdated the term was, they were still ministers, great scholars, and famous scholars. They were the embodiment of local public opinion and representatives. Their service in the court showed that the local people's hearts were with the court.

Zhao Ji was not crazy enough to kill officials and ministers, something that neither Li Jue nor Guo Si dared to do. If he dared to do it, the Huben and Hedong people would immediately explode.

Tai Chong, Ding Chong, and Liu Ai also had to take into account the positions of Zhao Yan and Zhao Ji. As they were all ministers, they suppressed the former ministers and saved at least ten years.

Even if they became the Three Dukes and the Recorder of the Secretariat, they might not have any power.

A simple solar eclipse, earthquake, or locust plague could cause the three highest officials to resign and step down.

Therefore, the way the Three Dukes recorded the affairs of the Secretariat was not stable at all, while the Three Provinces system was very stable.

In the future, if we encounter natural disasters or other public opinion issues, we can simply offer sacrifices to the Three Dukes, and it will not affect the continuation of the ruling line.

Seeing Zhao Yan's embarrassment, Tai Chong said, "Recounting the achievements of the heroes who migrated eastward is too complicated. It's getting late today, so why not discuss it tomorrow?"

Ding Chong also nodded, and Zhao Yan also wanted to agree, so he went to see Zhao Ji.

Zhao Ji has been weighing the pros and cons and feels that he does not have the conditions to kill the ministers at the moment.

If you want to kill the nobles, you must at least drive out the Xiongnu, open up Taiyuan, and then take over the Three Auxiliary Prefectures, let the nobles restore the throne and seize power, and then seize power. But in this way, you will have to deal with the mess yourself in the end.

The ministers were much more straightforward and could not be killed. Naturally, they would have no scruples or bottom lines when restoring power. They would naturally be brave enough to break the bottom line and use all possible means.

There is a delicate time point in this, that is, at the beginning of the restoration and seizure of power by the nobles, a direct bloody suppression will be enough to eliminate the ones that show up, without hurting the nobles as a whole.

But the ministers are the least afraid of death. Compared with physical death, they are more afraid of political death and death from public opinion that will bring them infamy.

Once the situation under his rule stabilizes and shows signs of improvement, these ministers will inevitably be in trouble.

Even the most understanding ministers would rise up in resistance.

It seems that he will encounter the problems that Cao Cao will face in advance.

His own foundation, the foundation of the Langya Zhao family, is far inferior to the combination of Cao Cao and Xun Yu.

The emperor was fifteen years old. Five years later, the basic situation improved, the emperor became strong, and the ministers had been dormant for a long time. With the alliance between the upper and lower levels and the relatively mature three-province system, his mission might have come to an end.

Just as Zhao Ji was concentrating on thinking, Zhao Yan turned around and saw that Zhao Ji's eyes were indifferent and mixed with sadness.

Zhao Yan was about to privately advise Zhao Ji when Zhao Ji said, "If the court can judge the Baibo generals based on their merits and demerits, why can't it judge the former ministers based on their merits and demerits? Merits are merits, and merits should be rewarded; faults are faults, and merits cannot be used to cover up faults. I don't know the details of the eastward migration, so the specific rewards are up to you all to decide. As long as they are not excessively generous and do not burden the court too much, I will not object."

"Minister Zhao is a man of great character!"

Ding Chong praised him, but Zhao Ji continued, "Hedong is now in ruins, and supporting the army is already a heavy burden. Therefore, we should be cautious when filling vacancies in the positions of ministers and nobles to avoid unnecessary expenses. For all ministers and nobles, only one-tenth of their salaries should be allocated. I will be no exception. I will donate my entire salary as a Palace Attendant to the military, and 90% of my salary as a General of the Central Guards."

You cannot blindly expand the team of ministers. If you have not held the corresponding positions, then you will always be a great scholar, a famous scholar, or a senior official, but you cannot be considered a minister or an important official.

Zhao Ji did not participate in the discussion on posthumous titles and rewards for the heroes who moved eastward, but only proposed donating 90% of their salaries to military affairs.

The court naturally cannot withhold your salary, but you must understand the court’s difficulties and donate 90% of it.

The ministers in the court donated 90% of the money. Will you, the people under you, donate as well?
The several attendants looked at each other and felt that Zhao Ji was more ruthless and was not afraid of the abuse and resentment from his subordinates.

Zhao Yan advised: "Officials and soldiers are struggling to support their families. If their superiors follow suit, their subordinates will suffer, which may damage the morale of the army."

"Officials with a rank of 200 dan or less may not donate; officials with a rank of 400 dan or less may not donate more than 30%; officials with a rank of 1,000 dan or less may donate less than 50%."

Zhao Ji bowed to Zhao Yan and said, "If we cannot advocate simplicity and lead by example, how can we inspire our officers and men to fight to the death? This corrupt, stale, and incompetent court should perish. No one is immortal, and no nation has ever been indestructible. If such a court is indifferent to the hardships of its people, I will not serve or risk my life for it."

Inside the small hall, the five attendants and seven temporarily assigned palace officials were all silent, and they did not think there was much of a problem with what they said.

They also collectively ignored Zhao Ji's words. Even the officials who were taking notes on the meeting deliberately ignored this sentence that was not conducive to publicity.

Zhao Yan didn't think there was anything wrong with it. It was just the spirit of Mencius.

If the imperial court treats you as a villain, don't blame the people for viewing you as a bandit.

Zhao Yan nodded in agreement with Zhao Ji's remarks, and Ding Chong followed suit, saying, "We should set an example ourselves and be a role model for the officials and soldiers."

Immediately, a palace official drafted an official document that was in line with Zhao Ji's proposal. After it was submitted, Zhao Ji and the other four people signed it one after another.

This official document will be sent to the Secretariat along with other approved official documents for archiving, copying, stamping, and publication, and will be executed by the Secretariat or the Nine Ministers.

(End of this chapter)