Cao Jixiang served as the eunuch in charge of the imperial horse?

Upon hearing this news, Chen Yichen took a breath. This guy was a more dangerous person than Wang Zhen.

At most, Wang Zhen relied on the imperial power to pretend to be a tiger's power, but Cao Jixiang supported his family's private army in captivity, and his ambition eventually expanded to the point of deposing the emperor.

Originally, the chief officer of the department was in charge of seals, mainly managing the utensils, ceremonial guards, rain gear and other objects. The affairs were numerous and chaotic, and the most important thing was that he had no real power. Now he was transferred to the Imperial Horse Supervisor and actually controlled tens of thousands of imperial guards in the capital.

In addition, Guo Deng, the former eunuch in charge of the imperial horse, always had a fatal flaw in plotting rebellion, that is, the four guards of Tengxiang were the personal army of the emperor. If they wanted to call on them, they could only rely on cheating and the identity of the Supreme Emperor Zhu Qizhen.

Cao Jixiang is completely different. His methods and ability to control soldiers are far more than Guo Deng. He can use the relatives of the Cao family and Mongolian servants to give the four guards a sneak attack to replace the pillars of the Tengxiang guards until the emperor's influence in the army is eliminated and controlled in his own hands.

But the problem is that Cao Jixiang was originally under Wang Zhen's sect, and later defected to the Empress Dowager Sun, which was equivalent to standing opposite to Emperor Jingtai Zhu Qiyu. How big the emperor is, even such "enemy" can be used, Chen Yichen really feels difficult to understand.

"Eunuch Wang, I have been out of the town for a long time, and I may not know much about the situation in the palace. I will take the liberty to ask more questions."

"Isn't Eunuch Cao the Queen Mother's man? How could he serve as the chief seal of the Imperial Horse Supervisor?"

Hearing Chen Yichen's question, a playful smile appeared on Wang Cheng's face, and then replied meaningfully: "Geunuch Chen, is Eunuch Cao really the Empress Dowager?"

A simple answer made Chen Yichen realize it suddenly. No wonder he had always been wondering before the Gong Bian, why was Zhu Qiyu able to set up a net of heaven and earth with the commander of the Jinyiwei Lu Zhong, relying on Cheng Jing's temporary control of the East Factory information, waiting for Zhu Qizhen to rebel and take the bait.

It turns out that Cao Jixiang had already defected to Emperor Jingtai!

Thinking of these words, Chen Yichen showed a self-deprecating look on his lips. The direction of history can be changed, but none of the characters who can leave their names in history books are good people, and they can still find their own stage after all.

This is true for Shi Heng, and so is Cao Jixiang.

"Gemaster Chen, Wuying Palace has arrived, so you can go in first."

Wang Cheng's words made Chen Yichen come to his senses, and he bowed and signaled: "Thank you, Eunuch Wang, for leading the way."

"You are welcome, please, Mr. Chen."

At this time, Emperor Jingtai Zhu Qiyu in Wuying Hall sat high on the top dragon chaise, with mats placed on both sides, and a group of central important officials were respectively arranged. For example, the cabinet chief Chen Xun, Duke Zhongguo Shi Heng, Duke Zhongshun Wu Jin, Duke Zhongshun Wu Jin, Secretary of the Ministry of Personnel Wang Zhi and others.

As for the Minister of Rites Hu Yi and Minister of War Yu Qian, they did not attend such a celebration banquet in Wuying Hall. They would reward the soldiers of the three armies instead of the emperor.

However, after Chen Yichen entered the hall, he saw a strange face sitting next to Wang Zhi, the Minister of Personnel. Being able to attend this celebration banquet and sit next to the Tianguan of the Ministry of Personnel means that at least six ministers must have the identities of the chief officials. Is there any major personnel changes in the court?

Of course, now is not the time for Chen Yichen to solve his doubts. After he came to the center of the hall, he went to Zhu Qiyu, Emperor Jingtai on the dragon throne, and performed five bows and three bows, shouting: "I Chen Yichen pays homage to Your Majesty. Long live my emperor, long live my emperor, long live!"

From the moment Chen Yichen stepped into Wuying Palace, Zhu Qiyu kept his eyes on him. It hasn't been seen for almost two years. The bitter cold and Fengshuang outside the frontier left many traces on Chen Yichen's face, especially the beard on his chin, which completely disappeared from his tenderness.

"Chen Qing, thank you for your hard work in the battle outside the border."

Zhu Qiyu said this with mixed feelings. He admired Chen Yichen's ability and the other party's great military achievements in expanding territory. However, as a double-edged sword, the better Chen Yichen performed, the more urgent the sense of crisis he brought to him. He didn't know how to perfectly control and use this "sharp blade"!

"It is the duty of the meritorious minister to serve His Majesty."

Chen Yichen did not show any arrogance of winning the victory in the return of the court. On the contrary, he showed more cautiousness in front of Emperor Jingtai Zhu Qiyu.

Regarding Chen Yichen's restraint and caution, Zhu Qiyu could vaguely detect the other party's intentions, so he could only sigh secretly, and then said with a smile on his face: "Chen Qing's conquest of the three guards of Wurianha this time has opened up the territory for our Ming Dynasty and protected the peace of the nine sides. It can be said that he has worked hard and made great contributions."

"Give him a seat!"

Of course, the emperor did not go to the imperial platform to meet the emperor. The palace servants placed the seats in the chief position on the left, allowing Chen Yichen to sit in front of the Minister of Personnel Wang Zhi and the Chief Minister of the Cabinet Chen Xun. It was above ten thousand people!

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness."

Chen Yichen did not refuse to be polite. When it was time to keep a low profile, he had to show a cautious side. But being too humble and cautious will encourage the arrogance of political enemies and villains. Chen Yichen did not forget the monarchy that had caused a lot of controversy in the court, and would inevitably be mentioned as he returned to the capital.

Before getting up, Chen Yichen took the risk of losing his manners in the middle of his seat and looked directly at Zhu Qiyu sitting on the dragon chaise. Compared to his vigorous vitality two years ago, he had lost a lot of weight at this time and had a sickly pale face.

Chen Yichen didn't know if it was caused by elixirs or if Zhu Qiyu and the folk prostitutes were excessive indulging in love. In short, this was not a good sign.

After returning to the seat, the following are all kinds of courtesy in the officialdom. After all, those who can sit here are all the masters of the court. No one can understand what they should say and what they should not say. They pick up all the nice things and praise Chen Yichen as if there is no one who has ever been there before.

Faced with these compliments, Chen Yichen just smiled and gave a toast, and did not take it seriously.

After three rounds of drinking, everyone present was slightly drunk. Emperor Jingtai Zhu Qiyu seemed to have regained the feeling of getting along with Chen Yichen at first, and relaxed a lot and asked with a smile: "I don't know how to reward Chen Aiqing made such a great contribution."

"Or Chen Aiqing, you can tell me what you want, as long as I can do it, I will be as satisfied as possible!"

Chen Yichen didn't know whether the emperor was drunk or was joking. Anyway, such words were treated as drunken words. A smile appeared on his face and bowed to Zhu Qiyu and replied: "Mongolia in Monan can be incorporated into the territory of the Ming Dynasty because of the bloody battle between the soldiers of the Liaodong Army. I dare not be greedy for merit."

"If Your Majesty wants to reward Yu Chen, it is better to reward the soldiers who fight. They are the real heroes."

After listening to Chen Yichen's story, Zhu Qiyu nodded subconsciously. It was indeed extremely difficult to fight the bitter and cold land outside the border, and the meritorious soldiers could not let the hearts of the medieval soldiers feel cold.

So he waved his hand and made a promise: "What Chen Aiqing said makes sense. I and the court cannot treat the soldiers who fought for the country unfairly. Please tell me how to reward the three armies?"

Originally a joyful reward question, but the next scene was completely beyond Chen Yichen's expectations. None of the central officials present received the words of Emperor Jingtai Zhu Qiyu, as if they had not heard it.

What's the meaning?

Chen Yichen didn't drink much, and was a little confused at this time. In theory, this kind of reward for returning to the court was not determined to go through a formality. Everyone in the court happily thanked the emperor for his grace. The soldiers at the bottom got some rewards and could go home to improve their lives for their parents, wife and children.

As a result, the emperor had already spoken, but the officials below did not make a pre-requisite for the reward. Can't they give an answer?

Such low-level mistakes should not appear in the Forbidden City.

After a long silence, Shi Heng, the Duke of Zhongguo who was sitting opposite Chen Yichen, spoke with a difficult face: "The soldiers have worked hard and made great contributions. I suggest that no matter the official position, they will be given an additional monthly salary to reward the hardships of the three armies."

One month salary?

Chen Yichen was a little suspicious that he had heard it wrong.

The general salary of soldiers in the Ming Dynasty was about one tael a month. During the war, there were subsidies such as settlement fees, which looked like one tael a day and five cents a month. According to the past practice of returning a large army, not to mention rewarding ten taels or eight taels, five taels of silver cannot be reduced. As a result, only one tael a day and five cents are rewarded now?

Moreover, this is one or two or five cents in the name of the court. It can really be put into the hands of the soldiers. Chen Yichen probably has to fold the silver reward in half. In addition, he can use waste paper such as Baochao and old materials in the warehouse to offset the money. In fact, it is worth five cents.

Even as the Duke of the Ming Dynasty, Shi Heng climbed up step by step from the border. It would be fine if the civil servant didn't know the tricks inside. Could it be that he, a general, still know that this little reward of silver is not enough? How did he say it?

Perhaps feeling the dissatisfaction and anger in Chen Yichen's eyes, Shi Heng's expression was extremely embarrassed, and he actually couldn't say anything about it.

Conquering the three Guards of Urianha and setting up prefectures and counties in Mongolia in the southern desert was indeed a great achievement. But the problem was that I got it, and then I kept it and built it later, and the money was like flowing.

Not to mention anything else, the five acropolis standing out of thin air on the grassland, plus the supporting Great Wall and beacon fortresses, the imperial finance allocated astronomical figures after the construction took place in more than a year!

If the northern front could barely be maintained, the southern Jingyuan Bo Wang Ji went deep into the hinterland of Myanmar, and according to the later territory, he had already attacked the Assam state of India, and also restored the Dema Saxuanfu Division established during the Yongle period. Military expenditure was almost dragged down the imperial court.

You should know that after more than ten years of orthodox dynasty by Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty has long been no longer full of treasury after the reign of Renxuan. It is on the verge of financial bankruptcy every year. The court could not even take out the money for rewarding soldiers, but Shi Heng led a group of honors and military generals to argue, which was why he received a monthly salary of silver.

But the problem is that Shi Heng can't tell these things in person. Zhu Qiyu has been addicted to elixirs and women recently, and has not been concerned about the affairs in the court. He directly confessed that the court has no money to reward him. Isn't that equivalent to publicly slapping the emperor in the face?

Zhu Qiyu is not the kind of completely "stupid" emperor, but he was troubled by Yi Chu recently, which made him a little neglect the government. Feeling the wrong atmosphere in Wuying Hall and the change in Shi Heng's face, he roughly guessed the reason.

So he picked it up high and put it down gently and said, "Then according to Duke Zhongguo's advice, he will reward the soldiers with a monthly salary of silver."

"Your Majesty is so kind that the soldiers will definitely be loyal to the emperor and die!"

Chen Xun, the chief minister of the cabinet, flattered him in a timely manner and cooperated to bring this matter over.

Everyone present knew it well, but Chen Yichen felt a little angry. But the emperor had already made a golden word and could not bargain at the celebration banquet. Chen Yichen could only suppress his inner dissatisfaction and force himself to change from battlefield habits and adapt to the rhythm of the officialdom.

However, rewards can be less, but rewards from military merits cannot be less. The Ming Dynasty has formulated a "first merit system" since the Zhu Yuanzhang era, which means relying on seizing the enemy's head in exchange for credit and rewards.

Moreover, for the Northern Barbarians and the Southern Barbarians, they also feel that the value is different and the price is clearly marked. A head of the Mongolian cavalry can receive a reward of fifteen taels of silver, and the small flag is promoted to one level. If it is to kill the head of the Southern Barbarians and the head of the civilian thief, then three Southern Barbarians or five thieves can be promoted to one level, and the reward of silver is greatly reduced.

The advantage of establishing a reward and punishment system for the "first merit system" is that it can maximize the fighting spirit and morale of the soldiers, and inspire them to fight bravely on the battlefield to reward all the achievements. The disadvantage is that it will induce some extreme evil deeds, such as "killing good people and taking credit for merit", etc.

Especially in the end of the dynasty, after the central government's supervision declined, beggars, refugees, and even remote towns may be massacred by officers and soldiers, and people will be given heads to exchange for credit with the court.

This is why, the famous saying "Bandits are like combs, and soldiers are like combs" appears. Sometimes officers and soldiers are more terrifying than bandits!

Of course, during the prosperous period of the dynasty, all forces were in a balanced state, and civil servants and eunuchs could play a good role in supervising the army. It was rare to kill good people and take credit for merit. I remember that Chen was strict in governing the army and had extremely strict definitions of the military achievements. Every head that required the imperial court to reward was a real Mongolian warrior.

These silver rewards are the hard-earned money earned by the soldiers of the Conquering Army and Liaodong Army. They must not be owed or deducted!

So after everyone finished speaking, Chen Yichen said, "Your Majesty, now the soldiers have won the victory and return to the court. Soon, the troops of Fujian Guards and Shandong Guards will leave Beijing and return to their original garrison."

"I dare to ask, the first-level military merits reported will be worth 416,850 taels of silver rewards. When will the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War allocate them to the soldiers?"

After two years of wars, Chen Yichen led the conquest army almost won nearly 50,000 Tartars' heads, which theoretically could be exchanged for 600,000 taels of silver rewards. As a result, the court intermittently searched and only gave tens of thousands of taels to pass, and there was no sound again.

Chen Yichen knew that the celebration banquet was inappropriate, but he was not a border general. After entering the officialdom, he had been in the central officialdom for many years. He also knew that if he didn't have money now, he would never get military merit money in his life after the soldiers of the conquest army returned to their original garrison.
Chapter completed!