RPAGF Chapter 090 Morale
Chapter 090 Morale
Hong Chengchou adopted a humble and courteous attitude, holding Liang Jun's hand and asking about his well-being for a while before inquiring about the garrison situation in the city.
Liang Jun, a mere centurion, rarely even had a seat in front of Magistrate Fang Yongzhong. Yet today he was received by a high-ranking official like Hong Chengchou, and his gratitude was beyond words.
In front of Hong Chengchou, he answered every question and carefully explained the defenses of Hancheng. He also took the initiative to share information he had gathered from various sources for Hong Chengchou's reference.
After listening carefully, Hong Chengchou was very satisfied.
Liang Jun is a capable man, and he manages his military households in a well-organized manner. As for the defense of Hancheng, he has implemented many countermeasures in recent days, which is quite good for a centurion.
But that's not enough.
Hong Chengchou stood up and told Liang Jun that he wanted to personally inspect various parts of the city, especially the defensive arrangements on the city walls. Liang Jun readily agreed.
Fang Yongzhong, standing to the side, moved his lips slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but ultimately remained silent. The three then left the county government office, led by Liang Jun, to inspect the city's defenses.
After touring the city, Hong Chengchou's impression of Liang Jun improved even more. The actual situation of the city's defenses was just as Liang Jun had described; it was rare to find a centurion who did such a practical job.
"Liang, the centurion!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
"In your opinion, can Hancheng be defended?" Hong Chengchou asked casually as he looked around from the city wall.
Liang Jun hesitated for a moment, then clasped his hands and said, "This humble servant only knows how to serve the country, to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty, and to His Majesty. As for whether this city can be defended, this humble servant will do his utmost and serve the country with his life."
"Good! What a noble act of selflessly serving one's country!" Hong Chengchou smiled, increasingly pleased with Liang Jun. This Liang Jun was honest and reliable, a man of use, and at that moment, he was precisely in need of capable people.
His gaze swept over the garrison soldiers not far away.
Although the soldiers Liang Jun brought seemed to be much worse than the men he had brought, not only in terms of equipment, but also in terms of age.
The older ones look to be in their forties or fifties, while the younger ones look to be only sixteen or seventeen.
They wore tattered battle robes and carried out old and worn-out weapons. Even Liang Jun, a centurion, was only slightly better off than these military households. In contrast, the five hundred garrison soldiers brought by Hong Chengchou were much more presentable.
However, Hong Chengchou was aware of the current state of the garrison system and knew that the Ming Dynasty's garrison system had long since become a mere shell of its former self. It was already a remarkable achievement for Liang's army to be able to gather so many people.
Besides, although these people didn't look like much, Hong Chengchou noticed the look in their eyes. They didn't seem afraid at all. They stood there with their backs straight and their lips tightly pressed together, just like Liang Jun, showing no lack of courage to fight for their country.
Feeling a pang of emotion, Hong Chengchou thought: If all the garrisons in the world were like Liang Jun and his men, how could there be bandits rising up everywhere in half of Shaanxi!
His gaze lingered on one of the young soldiers. Hong Chengchou stepped forward, sized him up, and finally his eyes fell on the man's tattered battle coat.
The wind was strong on the city wall, and it was only early spring, so it was very cold. The boy was chilled by the wind, his cheeks turned white, and his body trembled slightly involuntarily.
"How old are you?" Hong Chengchou asked.
"Reporting to...Reporting to my lord...This humble servant is sixteen..." The boy straightened his chest and replied in a trembling voice.
"Sixteen years old? Sending someone into battle at that age is like an army of bandits attacking; aren't you afraid?"
"I'm not afraid!" the boy answered without hesitation.
As soon as he spoke, he puffed out his chest: "I am a full-fledged soldier! And a hereditary captain! Don't underestimate me, sir. On the battlefield, the gun in my hand is no joke!"
Hong Chengchou was quite surprised by these words.
He never expected that this seemingly ordinary young man would actually have a hereditary military rank.
The military household system of the Ming Dynasty was divided into two types: regular soldiers and surplus soldiers. Although both were military households, their nature was completely different: the former were the backbone of the garrisons, while the latter were just the family members of military households.
Moreover, this young man also holds the hereditary position of General Flag Officer, a seventh-rank official position that commands fifty men in the army. In terms of rank, he is on par with County Magistrate Fang Yongzhong.
"Good! Good!" Hong Chengchou smiled and patted the boy on the shoulder.
When his hand landed on the boy, he could clearly feel the boy trembling with excitement. Without a word, Hong Chengchou took off his cloak and casually draped it over the boy's shoulders.
"My lord..." The boy was taken aback and was about to say something.
"It's freezing cold, dress warmly." Hong Chengchou interrupted him sternly, patted him on the shoulder again, then turned to Fang Yongzhong, who was following behind, and said, "Fang Yongzhong!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
"Go! Bring three thousand taels of silver and bring it here immediately."
Fang Yongzhong was taken aback, but quickly responded and turned to make the arrangements. Then Hong Chengchou summoned his personal guards and ordered them to take some of the supplies they had brought, including battle coats and weapons, and bring them over.
Before long, the silver and goods arrived. Hong Chengchou piled them aside, glanced around, raised his voice, and shouted to everyone:
"You are all fighting for the country and defending Hancheng. I, Hong Chengchou, as an official appointed by the court, have come here in person with the intention of sharing life and death with you and ensuring that Hancheng will not fall! You are not only subjects of my Great Ming, but also loyal and brave soldiers of my Great Ming! I, Hong Chengchou, cannot bear to see soldiers who lack food and clothing, are not warm enough, and are not full, yet still have to go to the battlefield to fight."
He pointed at the objects and continued loudly, "You all see these things, right? Even the emperor doesn't starve his soldiers, so I, Hong Chengchou, will certainly not let you risk your lives in vain! Guards!"
"My lord..." Hong Chengchou's personal guard captain quickly responded from the side.
Hong Chengchou pointed to the items and said, "Distribute all of these! Each soldier will receive ten taels of silver, and all missing armor and weapons will be replenished! Fang Yongzhong!"
"Your humble servant is here."
"Do you know what to do?"
"I understand. If there are any deficiencies, I will make up for them all."
Hong Chengchou nodded and continued, "From today onwards, the soldiers defending the city will be provided with three full meals a day, with no shortage of meat! Make sure everyone is well-fed and warmly clothed. After we defeat the enemy and hold Hancheng, I will definitely submit a memorial to the court to request rewards and honors for everyone!"
When Hong Chengchou said this, not only the garrison soldiers, but also the constables and able-bodied men who were assisting in the defense of the city, their eyes lit up.
Looking at that pile of things, especially the tall stack of gleaming silver, the burning desire in everyone's eyes was impossible to conceal.
After the garrison system deteriorated, the lives of the military households became extremely difficult. The imperial court stopped allocating funds to the garrisons. While the higher-ranking military households managed to get by, the ordinary military households had long since fallen to a state worse off than even farmers.
Even though border troops nominally received rations and pay, the tight finances of the imperial court, coupled with the consistently unfavorable situation in the Liaodong war, led to the Ming Dynasty investing heavily in the Liaodong battlefield, resulting in repeated reductions in rations and pay for other border troops and a sharp decline in their treatment.
Logically, the border troops should receive two taels of silver per month, which would amount to twenty-four taels per year. However, not only is the arrears in pay severe, but even the pay that is actually paid has decreased from the initial two taels to only four qian. Calculated this way, at most, they can only receive less than five taels of silver a year.
But now, Hong Chengchou directly gave each person a reward of ten taels of silver, which was no small sum. The soldiers might not be able to save up that much even after several years, but now it was right in front of them.
When Hong Chengchou's personal guards, following his instructions, had the soldiers line up to receive their silver, many felt as if they were in a dream when the heavy silver was actually in their hands.
Some people couldn't believe it was real and couldn't help but pick up the silver, put it in their mouths, and bite it hard. Then, seeing the bite mark on the silver, they showed an expression of ecstatic joy like fools.
That's not all. The garrison troops included conscripted yamen runners and able-bodied men, and even their equipment was replaced.
The tattered battle robes were replaced with new ones, which made him look much more energetic and warmer; the weapons in his hands were also all replaced with better ones. Even if there were some shortcomings, Magistrate Fang Yongzhong found a way to procure them from the county treasury or have the replaced battle robes repaired, which finally met Hong Chengchou's requirements.
The money was distributed, the equipment was replaced, and steaming hot food was served. Seeing that the food in the bowls wasn't watery but solid, and even contained meat, everyone beamed with joy.
After a hearty meal, with their pockets full of silver, the men's spirits were completely transformed. Seeing their high morale and refreshed appearance, Hong Chengchou nodded in satisfaction and smiled with relief.