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

Chapter 96 The reorganization of the Beijing garrison has been remarkably effective, and the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and the Ministry of War have issued sharp warnings!

Zhu Youjian needed to find someone to arrest the Grand Canal Commissioner and then retrieve the surplus grain, the stolen grain, the replaced grain, and even the grain that had never been collected and was only kept in the ledgers. Then he remembered the Tang Prince's heir apparent, whom he had long forgotten.

When he summoned Zhu Qisheng and his son Zhu Yujian, the two were very excited and prostrated themselves on the ground to perform the grand ceremony of three kneelings and nine kowtows, tears streaming down their faces.

"Your subjects, Zhu Qisheng and Zhu Yujian, pay their respects to Your Majesty the Emperor!"

"No need for formalities, we're all family. Cheng'en, go and bring over two small brocade stools," Zhu Youjian said softly.

"Thank you for the seats, Your Majesty!" The two sat down cautiously, only daring to sit on one side of their bottoms.

Zhu Qisheng stared blankly at the ground, his eyes vacant; Zhu Yujian's eyes flickered slightly as he secretly observed the emperor out of the corner of his eye. Zhu Youjian was also openly scrutinizing the two unfortunate father and son.

Zhu Qisheng was only in his early forties, but his temples were already gray. He was indeed not good-looking, with a fleshy growth on his lower lip, which made him unpopular with the Tang King. He was not the Tang King's legitimate son, and the Tang King's wife died young without children. The Ministry of Rites forcibly made Zhu Qisheng, the Tang King's eldest son born out of wedlock, the heir apparent, thus creating this tragedy.

Perhaps due to being imprisoned and abused for too long, Zhu Qisheng exuded a cowardly and timid air, lacking any of the demeanor of a prince.

Zhu Yujian was twenty-six years old. He was quite handsome, with a tall and imposing figure and a commanding presence.

"I had Uncle Tang send you two here on the condition that you will probably not have the chance to inherit the throne of Tang in the future. Do you hate me?" Zhu Youjian said calmly.

“We have no complaints. It is already a blessing that my father and I have survived. As for the title of King of Tang, why would we dare to dream of it? The title of Crown Prince is a burden and a disaster for my father. We would rather not have this title.”

"Your Majesty's benevolence in rescuing us, father and son, is an immense favor. We are too busy repaying Your Majesty to possibly hate you. Such ungrateful and despicable behavior is something we would never do. We only regret that we want to repay Your Majesty, yet have no way to do so. We live day to day in the mansion Your Majesty bestowed upon us, consuming Your Majesty's funds and resources, doing nothing, and our hearts are filled with immense torment."

Zhu Youjian couldn't help but smile at Zhu Yujian's sincere expression. He composed himself and said, "Don't rush. I plan to lift many restrictions on the imperial clan, allowing them to move freely, hold official positions, and engage in business. The reason I called you two here is to appoint you to official posts."

Zhu Yujian blushed slightly when he realized his little scheme had been easily seen through. Having been imprisoned for so long and rarely speaking to anyone, being able to express his needs subtly was already quite an achievement for him. His father, Zhu Qisheng, was in an even worse state; he seemed to have lost most of his speech abilities and spoke haltingly.

"Have you and your father studied the Four Books and Five Classics? Are you skilled in archery and horsemanship? What are your plans for the future? What are your aspirations?" Zhu Youjian asked.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, I have no great ambitions, I only wish to live a peaceful life. But I do not wish to waste Your Majesty's resources. I am well-versed in the classics and historical texts, and can compile books for Your Majesty; or I can support myself by becoming a teacher." Perhaps he was being a little too self-deprecating, Zhu Qisheng hesitated for a moment, and continued, "I have also read the *Horse Classic* and *Chen Fu's Agricultural Treatise*, and can farm and raise horses for Your Majesty."

Good heavens! Locked up with nothing to do, so you spend all your time reading, huh? Zhu Youjian was very pleased with Zhu Qisheng's sensible attitude. "Since that's the case, you'll raise horses for me. I appoint you as the Lieutenant of Fengguo, with an annual salary of two hundred shi (a unit of grain), and appoint you as the Superintendent of the Shuntian Prefecture. Do a good job, and if you do well, I'll promote you and give you a higher rank." Zhu Youjian habitually offered empty promises.

Although he was only a low-ranking official of the ninth grade and held the lowest rank among the imperial relatives, Zhu Qisheng was still very happy. This was a transformation from a useless person to a useful one, from imprisonment to freedom, which was of great significance to him. However, since he had never done any work, despite being well-read, he had never actually done anything, and he felt somewhat lost.

"And you?" Zhu Youjian asked Zhu Yujian.

"Your Majesty, I am willing to serve as a military general and attend to Your Majesty's needs!" Zhu Yujian said loudly.

"Can you ride a horse and shoot arrows? Are you skilled with spears and broadswords?" Zhu Youjian asked.

"Your Majesty, I am skilled in archery and horsemanship, and I am proficient in using a spear, a waist knife, and a musket. I have also thoroughly studied military books such as the Six Secret Teachings, the Three Strategies, the Essentials of Military Classics, and the Treatise on Military Preparedness," Zhu Yujian said confidently.

"Have you ever killed anyone or led troops?" Zhu Youjian asked, squinting. Zhu Yujian was momentarily speechless, then lowered his head and said, "No."

"War is a matter of vital importance to the state, a matter of life and death, and must not be neglected. Theoretical military talk is ultimately unacceptable. Since you have the ambition of a general, I order you to start as a junior officer, leading a hundred soldiers. Are you willing?" Zhu Youjian said.

"Your subject obeys!" Zhu Yujian said loudly, his face resolute.

"Hahaha, good! You truly are a descendant of the Zhu family!" Zhu Youjian said, putting his arm around his shoulder.

Zhu Yujian was stunned, not expecting His Majesty to be so unrestrained. Zhu Youjian, still worried, instructed him, "Go to the Beijing Garrison as a battalion commander first, but you may not be able to handle the job. You should observe and learn more, and humbly seek advice from the veteran soldiers."

The current Governor-General of the Beijing Garrison is the Duke of England. The Duke of England has made great contributions and is extremely loyal. I will ask him to take care of you, and you should also cultivate a good relationship with him.

You're different from ordinary soldiers; you're well-read. Once you adapt to military life, things will get better. I look forward to the day you grow into a high-ranking general. Military life is tough; I hope you can persevere.

"Your Majesty's instructions will be remembered by me, and I will certainly live up to Your Majesty's expectations!" Zhu Yujian said with red eyes.

"Come, I'll treat you to a good meal. After you're done, come with me to the Beijing garrison for a military review," Zhu Youjian said.

In the afternoon, Zhu Youjian was invited to inspect the troops at the Beijing Garrison. Zhang Weixian had repeatedly requested permission to fight but was refused. He felt that the emperor looked down on him, so he wanted to show off the results of his reorganization of the Beijing Garrison.

Wang Zaijin was also present. He was in charge of the military administration of the Beijing Garrison. In theory, he should have been responsible for the construction and maintenance of the Beijing Garrison, while Zhang Weixian was only responsible for commanding troops.

Qin Liangyu and Zhu Xieyuan also arrived. To be precise, the assessment of the effectiveness of the reorganization of the Beijing garrison was conducted by the two of them. Zhu Youjian was just there to watch the show; he knew nothing about military matters.

Zhang Weixian was initially overwhelmed by his lack of experience in leading troops. He approached Wang Zaijin, humbly inviting him to participate in the reorganization of the Beijing garrison and the training of the new army. However, Wang Zaijin, still angry after being tricked by the emperor, refused. Zhang Weixian then visited him frequently, practically wearing down Wang Zaijin's doorstep, until he finally won him over.

With Zhang Weixian holding off the pressure from the nobles, Wang Zaijin fending off the open and covert attacks from the civil officials, and Zhu Xieyuan, the Minister of War, focusing his attention at the top, the reform of the Beijing Garrison finally proceeded smoothly.

Today, the Beijing garrison has been fully equipped with firearms, mainly consisting of wagon and infantry firearm battalions, supplemented by a small number of elite cavalry.

Currently, the Five Armies have 39643 registered soldiers and 4703 elite soldiers; the Divine Pivot Battalion has 29929 soldiers and 2935 elite soldiers, meaning there are fewer than 3,000 combat-ready cavalry; and the Divine Machine Battalion has 29818 soldiers and 2954 elite soldiers.

The five military camps were reorganized into light and heavy vehicle camps. The Shenshu Camp was a cavalry force equipped with tiger-squatting cannons and three-eyed muskets as its main weapon. The Shenji Camp was an infantry and firearms camp, which basically abandoned melee combat and focused on pure firepower output. It was a highly mobile super infantry force capable of traveling sixty li a day, and was used as an emergency replacement for the cavalry. There was no other way; the Ming Dynasty was really short of mules and horses.

The three elite battalions began their exercises according to orders. In an instant, guns and cannons roared, smoke filled the air, and the ground shook. In a daze, Zhu Youjian felt as if he had traveled back in time. Except for the lack of high-explosive characteristics, Zhu Youjian felt that the firepower density of this army had reached the level of modern times.

The infantry battalion consists of 1,300 men, with 100 Weiyuan cannons, 100 Yongzhu cannons, and 600 three-eyed guns. All men are equipped with cotton armor!

Each battalion consists of one light vehicle battalion and one heavy vehicle battalion, with more than 2,000 men in each battalion. They are equipped with 200 muskets, 1,000 three-barreled muskets, 200 large and small breech-loading cannons, and 50 other types of cannons including the Hongyi, Shenfei, and Mielu cannons.
Zhang Weixian's reorganization of the Beijing garrison was remarkably effective, prompting sharp repercussions from the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and the Ministry of War. The 20,000 artisans of the Southern Garrison of the Embroidered Uniform Guard worked in shifts, crafting firearms, ammunition, and propellant. In the three months since the beginning of the year, the Beijing garrison alone has used 200,000 jin of gunpowder for training, and it is estimated that maintaining a relatively low level of training will require at least 300,000 jin annually.

From the beginning of this year to March, the accounts of the various departments regarding the Beijing garrison have reached 1.3 million taels of silver, and 10,000 elite troops have been assembled. It is estimated that maintaining these 10,000 elite troops annually will require 600,000 taels of silver for military pay, firearms maintenance, and other expenses. Zhu Youjian is both happy and somewhat suicidal.

Sending 10,000 men out to suppress peasant uprisings is like using a weapon to kill them; but if you use them to skin wild boars, they'll probably be ruined in no time!
(End of this chapter)