Late Ming Dynasty: So what if Emperor Chongzhen was inactive?!

Chapter 195 The Unlucky Yu Zigao Picked Up an Uncle
It was not easy for the three armies to gather. After a simple ceremony to commemorate the martyrs, Zhu Youjian took the opportunity to bestow titles on the battlefield. The first to be granted a title was Yu Zigao, that unlucky old man. It seemed that his luck had turned around and he became the luckiest person in this war.

He didn't fight the toughest battles but gained the biggest advantage. While the Jurchens were being chased by Sun Chuanting, Zhao Shuaijiao, Cao Wenzhao, Cao Bianjiao, and others, he commanded the first line of defense formed by the light chariot battalion and luckily killed the Jurchen Heshuo Beile Abatai.

According to the rewards set by Zhu Youjian before the war, a Heshuo Beile was equivalent to a Marquis. Of course, Abatai was killed by cannon fire, not by Yu Zigao himself. Therefore, no one was willing to attribute all the military merit of killing Abatai to Yu Zigao. The Ministry of War suggested a compromise: grant him the title of Earl.

It wasn't a matter of being stingy or not; rather, Yu Zigao's performance on the battlefield was remarkable, and there were many others with greater achievements than him. If he were to be granted a marquisate, the others would likely be dissatisfied. Yu Zigao, sensing the strong opinions against him, conceded and didn't dare to compete for credit, stating that he would be content with being a count.

Thus, Yu Zigao was granted the title of Earl of Light Chariot. At the foot of the square stele, Zhu Youjian received a wooden tray from the eunuch in charge of writing. On the tray was a set of dark blue bullfighting robes with a small silver button seal on it, which read "Seal of Earl of Light Chariot"!

Yu Zigao knelt on one knee, took the tray from the emperor's hands, and was so excited that tears came out of his eyes: "I, my Yu family has been granted the title of Earl, something even my father couldn't do!"

"It's not appropriate to make you a lieutenant general when you're already an earl. I intend to reinstate you to the rank of general. From now on, you must train your troops well and use them cautiously. If you make another mistake, you might lose the title you've earned," Zhu Youjian admonished.

Yu Zigao was so embarrassed that he could only give the emperor a shy smile: "Your Majesty, this humble general understands!"

Next is Zhao Lüjiao. Although Zhao Lüjiao did not kill the Jurchen prince in battle, his achievements in the defense of Beijing are obvious to all. Not considering the second battlefield in Liaodong, he can be considered the one who made the greatest contribution. Moreover, the old man has served the empire as a gatekeeper all his life, working diligently and conscientiously. His accumulated merits are enough to earn him a high honor.

If even a dishonest person like Mao Wenlong was granted the title of Earl, there's no reason why someone as loyal as Zhao Shuaijiao shouldn't be granted one. Compared to Yu Zigao, Old Zhao's title is much more respectable: Earl of Pingliao, with the seal of General Pingliao, and continued to guard Shanhaiguan.

Zhu Youjian held special respect for these generals who had clearly died in battle throughout history. Therefore, he was particularly polite to Zhao Shuaijiao. When he recalled him from Shanhaiguan and met him for the first time, he was so enthusiastic that the old man was somewhat flattered. When Zhao Shuaijiao was guarding the North Gate, he gave priority to supplying his cavalry battalion with various kinds of supplies.

Sun Chuanting was surrounded due to his reckless advance and was severely impeached. Even Zhu Xieyuan did not give him a good look. Under these circumstances, Zhu Youjian could not be too biased towards Sun Chuanting, so his title was lost. Therefore, theory is theory, and true generals are ultimately made in battle.

Even with his exceptional talent and solid foundation, Sun Chuanting still needed real combat experience to reach his full potential. After the battle, Sun Chuanting was still worried about his Yulin Guard and planned to return, but Zhu Youjian detained him, as he had many concerns about the situation in Shaanxi and wanted to discuss things with him.

Sun Chuanting's current position is strange. He is the governor of Yansui Town, which is theoretically just a civil affairs official and does not concern himself with military affairs. However, Yansui Town is a military and political town with basically no civil affairs units. The governor-general can handle both military and political affairs, but Sun Chuanting is too young and lacks the qualifications.

Zu Dashou finally got his comeuppance. Zhu Youjian rewarded him with the title of Earl and appointed him as the commander-in-chief of the 3,000-strong Jingying Garrison. However, the 3,000-strong garrison was now just an empty shell, as all the usable cavalry had been incorporated into the Shenshu Camp's elite vanguard. But Zhu Youjian didn't intend to completely eliminate him; he still allocated him 3,000 horses and 3,000 units, leaving him to assemble the remaining personnel himself.

If he had the ability to persuade the people of Jinzhou to come back and follow him, then he could. However, Zhu Youjian vaguely remembered that his younger brothers had died in battle during the suppression of the peasant army, so he allowed them to remain in their original positions without taking any action. This was also to divide Zu Dashou's power. He didn't trust Zu Dashou anymore; directly killing him or relinquishing his military power over a cup of wine would inevitably alienate people, so he couldn't go too far. However, although Zu Dashou's honorary status rose, his actual power decreased.

In the capital, a single brick could knock out several dukes. The soldiers of the Beijing garrison were actually quite frustrated, far less carefree than those who were sent to other posts. They used to be able to live a life of debauchery, but things weren't so good for them in the Beijing garrison now.

Zhu Youjian was actually somewhat helpless. The matter of strengthening the army was not progressing steadily, but rather it was in a state of improvement when it was put into action, and collapse again when it was not taken seriously. The same was true for other matters. From a historical perspective, a hundred years is just a short passage on a bamboo slip, and a person's life is just a few words.

But in the eyes of modern people, the passage of time is incredibly slow. A few years or a decade is enough to change the world. So when Zhu Youjian thought about having to drag the huge and bloated empire through a hundred years of hardship with his frail body, he felt panicked, exhausted, and utterly hopeless. He might as well just give up.

Man Gui's title of Earl was earned through accumulated merit, and of course, it also included a bit of the emperor's personal favor. As for Mao Wenlong, between being granted a marquisate and having his title inherited, he chose the latter, being granted a hereditary title, allowing his title of Earl of Dongjiang to be inherited indefinitely. Even Qin Liangyu was envious of this.

Qin Liangyu's title remained unchanged for the time being; she was still the Marquis of Zhongzhen. Her son, Ma Xianglin, was granted the title of Earl. No one had much objection to Ma Xianglin being granted the title of Earl; the Ming Dynasty was often more generous to its controlled tribes than to its own people.

Of course, it wasn't that the Ming Dynasty was foolish; bestowing titles upon the leaders of tributary tribes sounded prestigious, but in reality, they didn't enjoy the privileges of legitimate Ming nobles. Therefore, the local nobility of the Ming Dynasty didn't object too much. Tusi (chieftains) were considered post-tributary tribes, slightly better than tributary tribes, but they still retained administrative power and were more free than prefectures and counties.

Zhu Youjian's bestowal of a title upon Ma Xianglin was naturally not well-intentioned. He had brought eight thousand White Spear soldiers from his home, practically emptying out his hometown. Since he was already here, why not leave? The journey was so long, and all that running around would be exhausting.

Xiao Ma was also quite fixated on becoming a chieftain. He himself didn't want to be a chieftain, but the chieftainship in his family had been passed down through generations and couldn't be broken off with him. His ideal process was for his mother to continue as chieftain, and for his son to grow up and pass the position to the next generation. This would be troublesome for the old and bullying for the young, while he himself could just sit back and enjoy the ride.

Ma Xianglin had served as the head of the imperial guards for quite some time. Zhu Youjian had a good relationship with him, and now that he had returned, he was overjoyed. He also bestowed upon his wife the title of a third-rank imperial lady and restored Ma Xianglin's position as the commander of the White Pole Guard, allowing the couple to visit each other in the palace.

Ultimately, the Jurchens lost two Heshuo Beile and three Beile, while the Ming Dynasty gained three more Earls. In fact, Yuan Keli could have been granted the title of Marquis, but he refused.

Although Zhu Youjian did not bestow many titles upon his subordinates, many soldiers were promoted after the battle. Hundreds of thousands of taels of silver were also distributed as rewards for special and collective merits. Words are meaningless; only money is real. Although Zhu Youjian often made empty promises to his subordinates, he did more than just make empty promises.

(End of this chapter)