Not only are there rewards for killing enemies, but there are also rewards for being wounded. But it has to be the front of the body. Being stabbed in the back seems like running away, right?
In the Ming Dynasty, military merit rewards included: killing an enemy soldier (obtaining his head), the general would be promoted one level, or receive fifty taels of silver.
To put it bluntly, for soldiers who want to be officers, this is a process of fighting monsters and upgrading: soldier - five households - forty households - one hundred households - one thousand households - general - guerrilla - lieutenant general - town commander - deputy general - general - governor - governor-general (left and right).
Of course, since it is a choice between two, some people only want money and don’t want an official position.
In the Ming Dynasty, the most famous guy who wanted money instead of an official position was probably Man Gui.
This guy was a Mongolian, and he was very good at riding and shooting. After joining the army, he beheaded and cut off many heads and ears every time he participated in the battle.
I don't know if it was because of his family's financial difficulties or some other reason, but he sold his heads for silver. He worked until he was a middle-aged man and finally got a small position as a general.
If he hadn't been lucky enough to be noticed by Wang Xianggan, the governor of Ji and Liao, this guy would still be chopping heads to make money in Xuanfu! If he didn't die, he would probably become the richest man in Xuanfu by chopping people until he retired.
Of course, fifty taels of silver was indeed a considerable fortune at that time. Converted into later currency, one tael of silver was about six hundred sixty or seventy taels. Fifty taels, well, that was nearly forty thousand yuan.
The key point is that prices were not high at that time. Fifty taels was almost enough to buy a small courtyard in a bad location in the capital.
Therefore, beheading military merit is still very tempting. Behead one person and you will get 40,000 yuan, behead two and you will get 80,000 yuan, behead ten and you will get 80,000 yuan.
However, it is very difficult to earn military merit by chopping off heads, and there are many disadvantages. We will talk about this later.
"Xiong Jinglie, it's your turn." The eunuch put away the imperial edict, took a step back, and extended his hand to give way.
Xiong Tingbi bowed and strode forward. Several personal soldiers mounted their horses and prepared to make the announcement around the stage.
"The Eastern Tartars are as brutal as wild beasts. They will slaughter anyone who breaks into a city. Shenyang and Liaoyang have already witnessed this. Now that the city is sealed, the enemy will attack. There is no way to retreat. All we can do is fight to the death to ensure food and clothing for our wives, children, and families..."
Xiong Tingbi's voice was much louder than that of the eunuchs, and combined with the repeated shouts of his personal guards, the officers and soldiers in the training ground could hear it clearly.
"A country has its own laws, and the army has its own regulations. Violators will be severely punished..."
"Those who fear death and refuse to move forward will be killed!"
"Kill those who desert the battlefield!"
"Those who disobey orders will be killed!"
"Screaming rioters, kill them!"
"Those who disrupt the morale of the army will be killed!"
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The ruthless and cold "kill" on the stage, the "kill" repeated in front and behind, is like a cold wind piercing the face, making people feel awe-inspiring.
After being shocked, Xiong Tingbi took two steps back and asked the prefect Gao Bangzuo to come forward and speak.
Wang Huazhen had been temporarily suspended from his post due to Sun Degong's rebellion and was confined to his residence by the Imperial Guard. At this time, the highest-ranking civil servant in Guangning City was Gao Bangzuo.
Although Sun Degong's men had confessed through interrogation and Sun Degong was convicted of rebellion, Gao Bangzuo still felt conflicted about the emperor's decree.
So, he came forward and said nothing more, but just showed the officers and soldiers the python satin, silk and silver taken from the warehouse and distributed them as rewards.
Of course, the reward for killing the enemy must be mentioned. In addition to the court's stipulated reward of fifty taels for killing a Jiannu, the Guangning government also offered an additional reward of five pieces of silk.
What follows is the highlight, which is also the power granted to Xiong Tingbi in Zhu Youxiao's secret decree, to kill people and establish his authority.
It goes without saying who to kill. It was naturally the rebel generals like Sun Degong who voluntarily handed over their heads.
The bloody heads were hung on high poles and placed in the parade ground, which greatly intimidated the Ming army officers and soldiers defending the city.
Fear can sometimes make people helpless, but it can also inspire great courage. Of course, there is always a brave man when there is a great reward.
Xiong Tingbi was quite good at using both kindness and force.
Of the 36,000 defenders, 6,000 were strong men recruited from the city. After a day of emergency training, they were able to stab and chop people with guns and knives. Then they were assigned to various units and trained while fighting.
At the same time, the people in the city were also mobilized. The militia were responsible for carrying supplies and rescuing the wounded, while the elderly and women were responsible for providing food and hot water to the defenders during wartime.
Three of the city gates had been blocked, making it impossible to escape. This desperate struggle undoubtedly intensified the morale of the Guangning City military and civilians, who shared a common hatred for the enemy.
After more than two days of preparation, Xiong Tingbi strengthened the city defenses, trained soldiers, assigned officers to guard the city areas, and set up street fighting fortifications. His confidence in repelling the Later Jin army increased greatly.
While still able to communicate with the outside world, Xiong Tingbi sent another thousand troops to escort some weapons and military supplies to Youtunwei, as the backbone force to suppress, supervise and stabilize the garrison.
At this time, the Eastern Tartars broke through Xiping Fort, rested, and began to march towards Guangning City.
Let us remember these names, as well as the Han heroes who died heroically in the Battle of Xipingbao and the 3,000 Ming soldiers who died in the battle without even leaving their names.
Luo Yikuan, deputy general of the Ping Liao Army, was a man of strong character and upright character, and had made many military achievements.
When the Battle of Guangning began, because the Liaodong Governor Wang Huazhen followed Sun Degong's advice, Luo Yikuan had to guard Xiping Fort alone with 3,000 troops.
The Eastern Tartars first attacked Xiping Fort to lure the Ming army to come to their aid, and then in the Battle of Shaling, through the sabotage of the traitor Sun Degong, they inflicted a crushing defeat on the Ming army.
Afterwards, the Eastern Tartars launched an all-out attack on Xiping Fort. Luo Yiguan personally led his troops to hold the fort, bombarding the Eastern Tartars with artillery, causing them heavy losses.
Later Jin sent a rebel general, Li Yongfang, to persuade him to surrender, but Luo Yiguan refused sternly, saying, "Don't you know I am a righteous man?"
The enemy and our army fought fiercely all day long. Luo Yiguan was hit in the eye by a stray arrow. Although he could not fight, he still did not leave the city wall and continued to command.
Finally, the defenders ran out of gunpowder, arrows and stones, and the city was breached by the Eastern Tartars.
Luo Yikuan bowed to the north on the city wall and uttered his last words: "I am exhausted!" Then he committed suicide by cutting his throat.
After the city fell, fierce fighting in the streets continued for a long time. Lieutenant General Hei Yunhe, Commanders Chen Shangren and Wang Chongxin, and 3,000 defenders died heroically.
……………..
"I am exhausted!"
Thousands of miles away in the imperial palace in the capital, Zhu Youxiao stood in front of the sand table for a long time, staring at Xiping Fort for a long time without looking away.
Thinking of the historical figure who knelt facing the capital and then calmly committed suicide, his brief last words seemed to echo in his ears, and his eyes became moist and his nose felt sore.
Trying hard not to shed tears, Zhu Youxiao secretly made up his mind: I will never let these heroes who shed their blood on the land of Liaodong bleed and cry.
Xiping Fort was an isolated city, desperately defended, and was defeated by the Later Jin in the field. There was no hope of reinforcements, and even he could not change that. As for Guangning City and Youtunwei, I will never let you repeat the same mistakes.
Zhu Youxiao turned his gaze and stared at Denglai on the sand table and Pi Island close to North Korea, his eyes narrowed slightly.
As a time traveler, Zhu Youxiao certainly doesn't have only Xiong Tingbi as a chess piece.
Zhu Youxiao had already made arrangements to launch attacks from all sides to harass the Later Jin, preventing them from concentrating their full strength on attacking Guangning. Calculating the time, it was almost time.
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