Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

Reward those who have made contributions!

Only by rewarding merit and ranking the meritorious officials can the two key figures embark on a long journey together.

The main position.

After finishing a cup of honey water, Jiang Zhao picked up a piece of brocade and glanced at it.

"Since entering the border in September, it has been 150 days. The situation on the border is changing day by day."

Jiang Zhao looked down and slowly said, "In addition to the pacification of He, Lan and Le prefectures, and the expansion of Hui, Sui, Xining, Huang and Kuo prefectures, there were also the heroic deeds of beheading the king and capturing Dong Zhan alive, which were very gratifying. All of this is thanks to the hard work of everyone."

"To this day, Mu Zheng has retreated, and the Western Xia is in turmoil. The border is now as stable as Mount Tai."

"It just so happens that General Bo has entered the border region and can temporarily guard the frontier. It is also time to determine his merits."

As soon as he finished speaking, dozens of people were startled, their faces showing relief and joy.

Why did they risk their lives to fight on the frontier?

The purpose is, of course, to achieve merit and be rewarded accordingly!

After about twenty breaths, the murmurs gradually subsided.

“Therefore, the merits will be officially determined,” Jiang Zhaoping said.

As he spoke, Jiang Zhao looked to the right and scanned the dozens of generals one by one, then asked, "In terms of battle merits alone, which of these generals has made the greatest contribution?"

As a rare scholar well-versed in military strategy, Jiang Zhao would formulate strategies and take overall control whenever he commanded troops.

This destined his achievements to be unparalleled, with no one able to rival him.

Even if someone were to kill the king or capture Dong Zhan alive, it would be difficult to shake him in the slightest.

However, aside from the head coach, there is considerable controversy regarding the ranking of achievements.

Scholars often belittle each other, and aren't military generals no different?

Moreover, when it comes to ranking merits, the difference in rewards for even one person can be enormous.

Some controversy is inevitable.

As the head coach, he has the right to act arbitrarily and unilaterally determine the ranking of merits.

But anyone who isn't a fool can't act arbitrarily.

The matter still needs to be discussed.

At the very least, the results should be announced in full view of everyone.

Who deserves the most credit for the military general?

The right row of military officers, numbering several dozen, all looked toward Gu Tingye, Wang Shao, and Yao Si.

All three of them achieved strategic feats.

Gu Tingye led 30,000 troops in a surprise attack on Xiliang City, cutting off the Xixia's grain supply route. He also joined forces with the main force of Xihe to encircle and attack Xixia, expanding the territory to Huizhou and Suizhou. He was the core figure in the expansion of the territory.

Wang Shao commanded 30,000 troops to guard the three prefectures of He, Lan, and Die. His military strategies spanned the three prefectures, and he managed to hold off Mu Zheng and Dong Zhan's 60,000 elite troops, killing more than 10,000 enemies.

In addition, he also had the merit of expanding the territory of Diezhou and capturing Dong Zhan alive.

Whether viewed from a macro perspective or focusing on specific achievements, his accomplishments are quite remarkable.

Yao Si commanded 5,000 troops to guard a region, laid out fire channels, and shot and killed the ruler of the Western Xia Kingdom with stray arrows.

The killing of Li Liangzuo in battle left the Western Xia preoccupied and internal strife erupted.

Without exception, all of them were achievements that helped advance the overall situation.

Which is better or worse?

After about three breaths, Wang Shao bowed and withdrew from the competition for the greatest merit: "My achievements are shallow, so I will not compete with Generals Gu and Yao."

Commanding 30,000 troops to guard the rear, he captured Dong Zhan alive, and his achievements were outstanding.

It could involve territorial expansion, but simply guarding the rear would certainly not be enough to be considered a major achievement and would be difficult to convince the public.

As for capturing Dong Zhan alive, that was merely an add-on.

Even if he voluntarily withdrew, he would still rank third among military generals, which is not bad!

Jiang Zhao nodded and looked at Gu Tingye and Yao Si.

Yao Si's expression was solemn, his brows furrowed, clearly indicating some hesitation.

To be honest, when he first went to guard the North Gate, he only wanted to risk his life to gain some merit. He never expected to be able to kill Li Liangzuo.

Having suddenly achieved a tremendous feat, Yao Si noticed the gazes of many people and was at a loss for what to do.

Should we fight for it, or not?

He deserves the highest honor, so I reckon he'll be granted a noble title.

To the right, Gu Tingye pondered for a moment, then bowed and was about to step back.

In terms of sheer influence, beheading a king in battle was indeed quite impressive.

If Li Liangzuo had not been killed in battle, expanding the territory would have been much more difficult.

In historical records, the feat of beheading a king in battle is often classified as a remarkable achievement, and many of these achievements are even designated as the greatest merit.

Making way for newcomers is not necessarily a bad thing.

However, just as he raised his hand, someone interrupted him in time: "General Gu!"

A gasp rang out, and dozens of people turned to look at Gu Tingye, then at the person who had called out.

Gu Tingye was startled and turned to look.

Liang Zhao, the eldest son of the Earl of Yongchang!

"Your collar is messed up," Liang Zhao reminded him.

Gu Tingye sighed inwardly, nodded, spread his hands in a gesture of respect, and straightened his battle robe.

Many military officers also looked at Gu Tingye.

Clearly, they preferred Gu Tingye to Yao Si.

Firstly, Yao Si could not win the hearts of the people.

To kill the king in battle is undoubtedly a first-rate achievement.

Ultimately, it was just a matter of stopping people at the North Gate and luckily killing Li Liangzuo.

If we really want to talk about it, it was Minister Jiang's decision to stop people at the North Gate, so shouldn't most of the credit go to the commander-in-chief?

The stray arrow struck Li Liangzuo; the crossbow that could break through was something that Shidao had offered.

If it weren't for the treacherous crossbow, Yao Si wouldn't have been able to kill Li Liangzuo from a distance of three or four hundred paces. Shouldn't some of the credit go to Zhong Shidao?

In other words, Yao Si was merely the executor of the assassination of Li Liangzuo, not the decision-maker.

Killing the king in battle is certainly a significant achievement, but it's not as impressive as one might imagine.

At least, that's how it is with Yao Si.

In essence, their role was no different from that of the soldiers who killed Xiang Yu.

If a mere executor is credited with the greatest achievement, how can that convince the masses?

In contrast, Gu Tingye played a core, even decisive, role in blocking food supplies and participating in the expansion of the two states.

If the supply lines are not cut off, Li Liangzuo will certainly not be driven to a desperate situation.

Secondly, if Gu Tingye were to receive the greatest credit, the reward he would receive would certainly be even greater.

Yao Si was the one who made the greatest contribution, and the reward he received was exactly what he deserved for being the one who made the greatest contribution, and it might even be significantly less than it should have been.

After all, how could an unknown person expect to receive such a huge reward all at once?

In the past, when Wang Shao expanded his territory to four prefectures, he was rewarded with the title of Earl of Taiyuan.

Yao Si deserves the most credit, but there's no one else in the court who can possibly surpass that level of achievement, right?

But Gu Tingye is different.

Gu Tingye was a core member of the Grand Secretary's team and a representative of military nobles.

Once Gu Tingye is rewarded, many military officers and nobles will surely advocate for a larger reward for him, and even civil officials will be more willing to help.

When a new emperor ascends the throne, he also needs to win over military generals and nobles, and Gu Tingye is one of the targets of this effort.

The new emperor will surely bestow even greater rewards.

Although both were credited with the greatest contribution, Gu Tingye's reward was far greater than Yao Si's.

In frontier warfare, the higher the maximum amount of merit a person can achieve, the greater the rewards their subordinates will receive.

Gu Tingye deserves the most credit, and everyone can benefit from it.

Yao Si deserves the most credit, but given the nature of civil officials, the reward will definitely be reduced, and everyone else will be implicated.

Given their compatibility, whether considering their own interests or simply to win over the masses, the generals all hoped that Gu Tingye would be credited with the greatest merit.

If Liang Zhao didn't call out to Gu Tingye, others would.

Rewarding based on merit is said to be based on merit, but in reality, it is obviously not enough to simply consider achievements.

Upon hearing the shout, Yao Si's expression turned solemn. He immediately understood the key point and quickly bowed, saying, "Lord Gu should be credited with the greatest merit."

Gu Tingye clasped his hands in a fist salute, then turned back to clasp his hands in a fist salute to the crowd, acknowledging the credit for the first achievement.

"it is good."

Jiang Zhao nodded calmly.

In fact, the generals were right.

If Gu Tingye had been credited the most, he would definitely have written a separate letter to the capital to speak well of Gu Tingye.

If Yao Si deserves the greatest credit, he should be rewarded accordingly.

There are distinctions between close and distant relationships, and no one can escape them.

"Marquis Ningyuan deserves the most credit, followed by Yao Si, and then Wang Shao."

"How should we assess the merits of the rest?"

Jiang Zhao looked at Bao Shun, Zhong E, Zhang Ding, Guo Kui, Zheng Xiao, and Yang Wenguang.

These six men were the main generals and the ones who would give him the opportunity to discuss his achievements.

All other subordinate generals and commanders, large and small, were reported in writing, and the main generals made the final decisions.

After all, apart from the main general, the remaining subordinate generals and commanders did not have particularly outstanding achievements. According to the court's style, even if they were a few ranks lower, their rewards would be roughly the same.

"It is up to the commander-in-chief to decide," Zhang Ding said, bowing respectfully.

Everyone knew the true extent of their achievements.

Instead of wasting time, let the head coach make the decision.

"If you have any questions about my ranking, please feel free to raise them on the spot." Jiang Zhao nodded, then looked at the six people.

All six people held up a salute.

“Offering sacrifices is the next best thing,” Jiang Zhao said.

Of the 100,000 troops stationed there, at least 80,000 to 90,000 were from the Yulongke tribe, which meant that Bao Shun's achievements were considerable.

As a surrendered Tibetan leader, Bao Shun's achievements were merely a shield, and he would hardly see any change in his official position.

This means that even if Bao Shun is ranked above the others, it will not affect the amount of rewards given to the others.

"Very good." The group nodded in unison.

“General Zhong is next,” Jiang Zhao continued.

Zhong E commanded 10,000 troops for a long time, expanding the territory to five states and participating in four of them, all of which were major forces.

"Very good." The group agreed.

"Zhang Ding is next."

Zhang Ding led 10,000 troops and decisively defeated Diezhou, capturing Dong Zhan alive.

The two main generals who decisively defeated Diezhou were Zhang Ding and Wang Shao. With fewer people sharing the credit, the significance of their achievement increased.