Things were unfolding in a way that Helian Chen neither knew nor could have guessed.
Helian Chen simply thought, "This time it went so smoothly!"
That old fox, Dugu Xiong, so easily gave him one-third of the military power.
Of course, Helian Chen wasn't entirely unaware: Dugu Xiong's gaze towards him was a bit off, critical yet tinged with affection.
There is also some expectation within the love!
As the son of a concubine born to a woman named Hu Ji, Helian Chen's terrible family background meant he didn't receive much affection from his family.
To him, his elders were more like the culprits who brought him disaster.
If Helian Chen had a normal parent-child relationship, he could have guessed something from Dugu Xiong's complicated gaze.
But Helian Chen didn't have that!
Therefore, Helian Chen completely missed Dugu Xiong's subtle hint!
"Perhaps Dugu Xiong is quite clever, and he is truly loyal to the emperor and loves his country!"
Knowing that consolidating military power was a sage's plan, he readily agreed.
Helian Chen could only tell himself this, and then happily accepted the soldiers and began to train them using Xie Yuan's method of military training.
Actually, back in Yuezhou, Helian Jue obtained a training manual from Xie Yuan and then sent a copy to Dugu Xiong.
However, no matter how good the method is, it will still fail if it is not properly implemented.
Putting aside everything else, Dugu Xiong couldn't even manage to provide full military pay.
Dugu Xiong was not the kind of evil person who would exploit soldiers; he never embezzled military pay.
Sometimes, he would even use his own money to subsidize the soldiers.
However, Dugu Xiong was not alone; he had many mid- to high-ranking generals under him.
Compared to the illiterate and simple-minded soldiers, Dugu Xiong valued the generals more.
Water that is too clear has no fish.
Dugu Xiong was not corrupt, but he did not stop those mid- to high-ranking generals from profiting from the soldiers' blood.
As long as things don't go too far, and as long as there's no mutiny or other serious incidents, Dugu Xiong will generally turn a blind eye.
If someone goes too far, Dugu Xiong will single them out as an example to deter others.
In this way, it can both intimidate other generals and make the soldiers who are unaware of the inside story think that the general is a good person.
Helian Chen: ...Damn hypocrisy.
His Empress once said that the army is a place where rules are strictly observed.
We must have iron discipline.
If you want your soldiers to fight for you, you must not let them down, abandon them, or deceive them!
Military pay must be in full, rewards and punishments must be clearly defined, and compensation and benefits must be adequate.
You must resolutely uphold the rules you set yourself!
Therefore, after Helian Chen took over the 30,000 troops that had been divided from Dugu Xiong, he began to strictly follow the "rules".
The first item is to reissue the military pay.
"Reissue? You can reissue this?"
On the parade ground, the soldiers stood in neat rows, and they were all somewhat taken aback after hearing the words of the unfamiliar general on the high platform.
Even the captains and lieutenant generals were dumbfounded.
Replacement?
Helian Chen just arrived and hasn't even checked the accounts yet, so how does he know we've embezzled our rations?
Helian Chen: ...Does this even need to be investigated?
There's no need to investigate; just look at the dilapidated state of the military camp and the emaciated soldiers, and you can guess what's going on.
Of the 100,000 Northwest Army soldiers, approximately 20,000 were elite troops.
These 20,000 elite troops were naturally treated the best, and there was never a shortage of food and pay.
This is Dugu Xiong's true "family fortune".
Most of the soldiers were poor, downtrodden men.
Being able to barely get enough to eat was considered lucky; they had encountered a general with a conscience.
Many more people don't even have enough to eat.
Only when preparations for war are imminent can we eat our fill; otherwise, as long as there is no war, we are basically only half full.
They didn't even have enough to eat, let alone meat.
Even young adults in their twenties would look malnourished from years of such toil.
These soldiers were basically just there to make up the numbers.
Once on the battlefield, they'd be cannon fodder anyway.
Helian Chen toured the military camp and, without even checking the accounts, knew exactly who he had taken over.
Well, they're basically no better than the old, weak, sick, and disabled people that the Empress obtained from the Ministry of War back then.
Even so, let's learn from the Empress's style and "rectify" things properly.
"These are provisions that the sage has selected from his private treasury and distributed uniformly according to a three-month allowance for each person."
Helian Chen pointed to the large boxes beside him.
The lid of the box had been opened, revealing a box full of bright yellow copper coins.
"It's money! It really is money!"
"Heavens above, have you opened your eyes? The military pay is actually being paid back?"
"Three months! A full three months, and the full amount!"
"...The sage is wise! Long live the sage!"
Among the crowd were "plants" planted by Helian Chen.
Seeing that the soldiers were dazzled by the copper coins, he quickly shouted at the top of his lungs.
The shouts of the "shills" brought the soldiers to their senses.
Yes, a sage!
As General Helian just said, it was the sage who took the money out of his own pocket.
Just like General Dugu in the past, if there were festivals such as Mid-Autumn Festival or New Year's Day, he would also pay out of his own pocket to buy a few pigs so that everyone could also have some meat and celebrate the festival.
But a sage is a sage, much more generous than General Dugu; he directly paid the army three months' worth of back pay.
Such a sage, why don't you kneel down and express your gratitude?
In an instant, the training ground resounded with cheers like waves, "The sage is wise!" and "Long live the sage!"
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