There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 61 It’s time to fight!

Feng Xiuyong took the lead in reporting, followed by reports from other secretaries of the Secretariat, and then the senior generals of the Han army.

Although Nie Yu's Han army is still a makeshift team, it has been set up after all, and the basic organizational officers are also being continuously improved.

He Shunan, Bai Nan, Chen Younian and Xu Sanlang were promoted to commanders. The military positions of Qianzong and Qianzong could not be left vacant. In addition, soldiers were recruited to expand the army, and the positions of grassroots officers such as battalion commanders would also be expanded.

The Secretariat thought of this as early as the beginning of recruiting soldiers, and then spent several days to draft a detailed military system.

The draft was revised several times, and some military regulations of the Qi Family Army in the "Jixiao Xinshu" were selected. It was then combined with the actual situation of the current Han Army before it was finally finalized.

(To be honest, the military law of the Qi family army is really strict. Whipping is considered light, and beheading is a routine operation. However, the combat effectiveness honed by them is also really strong. The ratio is often 1:1100, 3:2000...)
The four commanders, He Shunan, Bai Nan, Chen Younian and Xu Sanlang, took the lead in reporting, and the captains of each battalion who were qualified to attend the meeting also reported on the training situation of their respective battalions.

Nie Yu would ask with a smile from time to time: "How's the food in the army lately? Are you used to it?"

Most of the captains of the battalions below are from good families. Although they are illiterate, they are sincere in their hearts.

Nie Yu treated them very well, providing them with three meals a day, enough food, and meat every day. Naturally, they also respected General Nie Yu very much.

"General, I'm used to eating here. The food in the army is very good. We have meat every day and plenty of rice!"

"Great General, compared to the parents of me and the others, you treat us the best. We have meat every day, and three meals a day. I, Old Liu, never dared to imagine that I could eat three meals a day. I am so full and happy!"

"Haha, General, Fatty Liu is indeed the strongest and most sturdy among our Han army."

Seeing that several captains under the army were starting to talk nonsense, He Shunan coughed twice and said, "Ahem, Fatty Liu, Old Third Li, what kind of nonsense are you talking about! The general is asking you a question, not bragging."

Nie Yu smiled and said, "Haha, it's okay. Today is the Spring Festival after all, so we don't have time to rest, but there's no need to be so nervous about holding a year-end summary meeting."

"The general is benevolent and righteous!"

The four commanders including He Shunan bowed in unison.

Nie Yu could just laugh it off, but they couldn't really take the meeting as a chance to relax.

Upon seeing this, the captains of the various armies below also bowed.

"The general is benevolent and righteous!"

Nie Yu only offered symbolic condolences regarding the actual situation of the army, but he would visit the military camp for inspection almost every few days.

He would either follow the drills or eat with the recruits, and would chat with them from time to time, asking about their family matters. Even if a soldier was punished according to military law, he would personally apply medicine to the other person.

If it weren't for these trivial matters, why do you think Nie Yu is so busy every day?
Applying medicine to the new soldiers who were punished, eating and exercising with them, this method was first used by Wu Qi in the Warring States Period. When Wu Qi sucked out pus from the soldiers, his mother said, "My son is dead!"

Later, this soldier died in battle for Wu Qi. The method might be a little too shady, but it was easy to learn and use. In order to fight against the Qing Dynasty, Nie Yu did it without any hesitation.

Nie Yu not only emulated Wu Qi from the Warring States period, but also a certain bald man from the Republic of China. He set up his own ancestral shrine in the barracks, forcing officers and soldiers to kowtow to it after daily drills. He also established a military allowance in the name of the general, granting extra allowances to those who excelled in drills.

Don't say that he is going backwards in history. This is also for self-protection. If he doesn't do this, the army will easily become the generals' private soldiers during training.

In this way, the modern formations in the military system, combined with the military discipline of the Qi Family Army, are enough to quickly transform any army into an elite and powerful force ready for battle. Then, in the name of the general, he can widely grant favors to the troops, so that they know who they are fighting for and whose wages they are eating.

"As long as everyone eats well, that's all that matters. The treasury isn't financially secure right now, but even if it were, this general wouldn't shortchange the troops. If any of the army's cooks dare embezzle military rations, please expose them and they will be executed without mercy!"

Nie Yu emphasized it again, specifically for the captains below, which again touched the hearts of the straightforward generals.

"Cough cough!"

Feng Xiuyong saw that it was almost time, so he raised his hand and coughed twice. "General, I have something to say."

"Mr. Feng, please feel free to speak up." Nie Yu asked.

Feng Xiuyong said: "General, it's time to fight."

"Mr. Feng, do you have any ideas?" Nie Yu asked with some confusion.

Feng Xiuyong continued, "General, today is both the Spring Festival and the first Spring Festival since the Qing Dynasty changed its reign. Perhaps most people don't know this, but I, a former staff member of the Qing Dynasty's governor, know this clearly. Even Chen Fuzheng (Chen Xinghuai) and his men should be aware of this. Last year was the final imperial examination of the sixtieth year of Emperor Qianlong's reign, and it was also the imperial decree announcing to the world that Emperor Qianlong would abdicate the throne to the fifteenth prince, Aisin-Gioro Yongyan, this year."

"Jiaqing?" Nie Yu said subconsciously.

Feng Xiuyong was stunned: "What Jiaqing?"

Chen Xinghuai was also a little confused. Jiaqing sounded like a reign title, but the new emperor's reign title should have been issued in the capital today, and it would take some time before it would be known in Jingzhou.

Nie Yu shook his head and said without trying to hide it: "It's okay, just keep talking."

Although Feng Xiuyong was suspicious, he didn't say much. He continued, "The new emperor of the pseudo-Qing Dynasty will inevitably change the reign title to Jianxin. However, our Han Dynasty has already seized half of Jingzhou and killed many pseudo-Qing officials, including the Jingzhou prefect. We also repelled the Hubei governor and massacred the entire city of Jingzhou. This is definitely unacceptable to the pseudo-Qing Dynasty."

"Last year, there was no trouble because the Qing dynasty was changing its throne, and it was also the cold winter, making it unsuitable for military action. But this January, if nothing unexpected happens, the new emperor of the pseudo-Qing dynasty will be established. Whenever a new emperor ascends the throne and encounters rebellious rebels within his jurisdiction, he must eliminate them with drastic measures, otherwise the new emperor's authority will be difficult to establish."

"Therefore, in my opinion, the Qing army will definitely come to fight by the third month of summer at the latest. If they come quickly enough, they may even march into Jingzhou in February!"

After hearing this, Nie Yu understood what he meant, and at the same time he also wanted to say, you don’t have to worry about whether Jiaqing will use drastic measures after he ascends the throne.

Because the old dog Qianlong couldn't afford to play anymore, he made a bold move of passing on the throne but not the power. He abdicated and became the Empress Dowager, and carved a seal of the Emperor Emeritus. He continued to hold all the power and treated Jiaqing as a puppet of the emperor.

Therefore, Jiaqing no longer had any authority. Three years had passed since he passed on the throne, and people only knew Qianlong, but not Jiaqing.

Even after Qianlong passed away and Jiaqing came to power, his authority was weakened. There was even a cook named Chen De who ran to assassinate the emperor in the street after listening to the nonsense of a fortune teller.

The most amazing thing is that the assassination was almost successful.

Because all the guards had run away, no one dared to stop them. Jiaqing was so scared that he covered his head and ran around. However, there was one guard who didn't run away and reacted quickly, kicking the cook over.

Speaking of which, even the authoritative "Ten Perfects" Emperor Qianlong was no exception. Many years ago, Emperor Qianlong held a banquet and found that there was an official he did not know. After asking, he found out that he was a ruffian who sneaked in to eat and drink for free.

These two were actually fine because they were discovered as soon as they came out and didn't cause much noise.

During the Xianfeng period, there was a master who sold steamed buns named Wang Kuer. He was really awesome!
He saw that no one was selling steamed buns in the palace, and he picked up a token from somewhere, and then used it to enter the palace to sell steamed buns. The guards did not dare to stop him, thinking that it was arranged by a noble, and the noble thought it was arranged by another noble...

He sold his buns for two years. All the civil and military officials, guards and concubines in the court had eaten his buns except Emperor Xianfeng. When the incident was discovered, Xianfeng was furious and ordered him to be beaten with 100 boards and expelled from the palace.

Then, the guard who was beating him with a stick deliberately hit him lightly because he had only eaten steamed buns for two years. Later, Wang Kuer opened a steamed bun shop using the steamed buns in the palace as a gimmick.

After hearing what Feng Xiuyong said, Chen Younian immediately stood up and shouted, "Don't worry about whether it's March or February. If the Qing dogs dare to come, we will kill them without a single trace of armor left."

"General, I and others are willing to be the vanguard!"

He Shunan, Bai Nan, and Xu Sanlang bowed in unison in response.

Nie Yu was still pondering, but after hearing this, he smiled and said, "Okay, if the Qing army comes, then we will fight!"

　Good, my hand is swollen successfully!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)