There are a lot of soldiers in military uniforms on the streets of Tokyo these days.
The families of the imperial guards almost all lived in the basic administrative districts of Dongjing City and the city's side and the surrounding cities. The city was called Fang and the suburbs were called Xiang and the countryside was called Li. Their main income was the salary of the soldiers. Because they lived close to each other, if they wanted to gather into an army, they could gather within three days as long as the military order was confirmed by the higher-ups.
This time, they had to wait for the guards to gather, and the deadline was fifteen days. During this long period of time, some people arrived first and wandered around the city.
The organizational structure at the top was completely changed, but the generals and soldiers at the bottom hardly felt any difference. Military orders still came from the commander, and military pay was issued by the Ministry of War, but the amount did not change; the resettlement allowance given before going to war also remained the same.
There are some differences. In the first few months, we were equipped with firearms and trained. It was very simple. It seemed troublesome at first, but it was actually much simpler than archery. Everyone was willing to learn. Professional soldiers’ jobs were to fight. To them, being able to use various weapons was like a craftsman’s skill. They were not afraid of learning well, but they were afraid that the master would keep some skills.
In addition, new winter uniforms were also issued to the military.
Yao Er and a group of soldiers were happily changing into new clothes when someone shouted: "There are words embroidered on them. What do they say?"
The ten generals could read, and they also looked at it carefully and read: Shen, Chen, and Li, the weaving factory
Yao Er immediately praised: Hey, there are always righteous merchants in the world. Merchants even make clothes for us. It's rare.
At this moment, the captain walked into the barracks and snorted: You know shit
Everyone stood up quickly, clasped their fists and bowed, saying: "Greetings to Captain Wang."
Wang Dutou waved his hand and said: "Mrs. Chen from the Shen-Chen-Li Chamber of Commerce, who you thought was given for free, has received a great favor from the government. They own half of the salt making and selling rights in the entire Shu area. You know how lucrative it is for salt merchants."
After all, aren't our warm clothes and adequate food provided by the government? Otherwise, how can we be called the Imperial Guards
Everyone suddenly realized what was going on and started talking. Someone said, "The merchant just gave us some clothes. We got such a big benefit. He should give us some money as a reward."
At this time, the salt and iron of the Central Plains dynasty were mostly monopolized by the government and were very expensive. Sometimes, salt was even included in the rewards for the imperial guards. People had long been accustomed to the high cost of salt, which was an important source of financial resources for the court.
Wang Dutou said: I heard that the merchants of Shen, Chen and Li have obtained the right to transport salt in Shu, and they also pay a lot of money to the national treasury every year. However, there are salt merchants who are willing to pay taxes and transport salt all over the world.
No matter what, the people from the Shen-Chen-Li Chamber of Commerce are really honest in making clothes. Wow, the shoulder scarf is made of silk, someone muttered.
The soldiers agreed with this statement and praised it highly. In the past, military uniforms came from different sources. Most of them were handmade by small families. The sewing skills of ordinary women were good or bad, and they could only cover the body and keep warm. But now the new clothes are made by special weaving workshops, and the cutting and stitching are very fine.
The outside is made of thick, wear-resistant linen, and some parts are made of leather. For example, the shoulders, arms, wrists, and the bottom of the collar are all spliced with a large amount of leather. This is the joint of the armor. Using leather instead of cloth pads can reduce the friction of the armor and make it much more comfortable.
The middle layer is a jacket filled with kapok for warmth, and the lining is sesame, which is soft and breathable.
After everyone put on the uniforms, they no longer wanted to wear the old uncomfortable uniforms. The new uniforms were neat and good looking. Everyone looked at each other and praised: Not bad, not bad!
After all, Emperor Guo Shao was born a military officer in the imperial guards, so he treated his brothers quite well. No one cared whether the generals above him had their military power stripped away. Anyway, the treatment of the lower-level soldiers had not decreased. They had good clothes and good food, and all kinds of generous treatment made everyone feel that the emperor had not forgotten them. After all, many common people still could not get enough food at that time.
At this time, the grand court was held. This was the last grand court before Guo Shao personally led the expedition to Pingxia. Hundreds of civil and military officials from Tokyo came to pay their respects in the hall. Outside the Jinxiang Hall, thousands of people saluted the majestic hall on the open ground. They were the entourage of the ministers who entered the imperial city, as well as some minor officials. Even the emperor could not see them.
The eunuchs in the hall and the civil servants on the platform outside read out the imperial edict of Emperor Daxu in public at the same time.
The general meaning is that the Central Plains had been very kind to the Dangxiang people, so the Tang Dynasty court allocated fertile and spacious lands such as Xiazhou to the Dangxiang people for living and farming. However, the leaders of the Dangxiang tribes were ungrateful, did not respect the imperial power, colluded with the enemy country, and betrayed the court, becoming a threat to the border, so they had to raise troops to punish them.
The Emperor of Daxu is the Son of Heaven, and is the ruler of the world by the will of Heaven. He governs the people of the four corners of the world. Those who do not respect the laws of Heaven and morality are unjust, and the king's army will punish them to enforce justice on behalf of Heaven.
The civil servant holding the imperial edict in both hands stood tall on the platform, speaking slowly and loudly, as if echoing between the magnificent towers and palaces on all sides. The momentum and tone were unquestionable. The emperor's power was granted by heaven, and every sentence was abducting the will of heaven. Since the imperial power was the will of heaven, the emperor's will was the most basic axiom. If the emperor said Xiazhou was unjust, it must be unjust.
A large group of people outside knelt down and shouted: God bless our emperor, long live the emperor!
Then came the second edict, appointing Empress Dafu as regent on behalf of the emperor and in charge of domestic military and political power during the emperor's absence from military campaigns.
After the imperial edict was read in the hall, the eunuch Wang Zhong stepped forward and sang: If you have something to report, please report it. If not, please dismiss the court.
At this time, the Minister of Works, Zan Jurun, stood up and said: Your Majesty, this is a great thing.
Everyone looked at him sideways, but they were not surprised. The court was full of etiquette and was very formal. Usually no one would report anything, and reporting something was a good thing. When everyone heard about the great good, they understood and looked curiously to see what the good thing was.
Zan Jurun took a few steps forward with a bowl of wheat in his hand and raised it to his head.
Eunuch Wang Zhong glanced at Guo Shao, and when he saw Guo Shao nod slightly, he walked down and took the bowl of food to the imperial table and put it down. Guo Shao looked at it for a while, but couldn't see what was so special about the wheat. If it could grow as big as a finger, it could be considered a good omen, but the food in front of him was just ordinary wheat grains.
The court officials also began to discuss this quietly. Zan Jurun said: Your Majesty, these wheat grains are not carefully selected, but just a cup scooped from the granary. Let's see if they are fuller than ordinary wheat grains.
After hearing what he said, Guo Shaojing nodded slightly and said: It is indeed as Minister Zan said.
Zan Jurun bowed and said: I have found a way to double the grain harvest.
At this time, the officials in charge of agriculture, such as the Imperial Observatory and the Ministry of Revenue, were the most surprised and asked questions. This was no joke. In order to ensure that the army and the people had enough food, farming had always been one of the most important things in all dynasties. The farming technology in the Central Plains had been done to the best of its ability and was very advanced. It stipulated the seasons and calendars, the irrigation of the ridges, the crop rotation, and even simple wooden machines such as wooden seed drills and winnowers. At this time, agricultural technology improved very slowly, and it doubled all at once.
Zan Jurun looked around with a rather excited expression, because everyone knew that this would be a great achievement, and even go down in history.
At a time when war was the most important issue, he could not wait to report this matter, and he was very excited. He immediately bowed and said: A while ago, Li Gong, the transport envoy of Pingxia, prepared gunpowder, and I, who was also the military equipment supervisor, went to the gunpowder workshop in the suburbs of Tokyo to inspect the affairs of the saltpeter pile with manure.
At this time, I discovered that the wheat fields around me that were fertilized with the waste from the workshop had a better harvest this year than anywhere else.
Someone couldn't wait to ask: Why
Zan Jurun said: The method of piling saltpeter with cooked manure is to pad straw in a large vat, mix manure lime, wood ash and decayed things, and then cover it with straw; then water it with urine water every day to ferment, and then scrape the saltpeter frost. But when the weather is hot, the manure in the vat is easy to breed maggots, which is not conducive to piling saltpeter. Therefore, the workshop craftsmen boil the manure before using it.
Farmers from nearby areas would go to the workshop to pick up waste materials, and would do their best to please the workshop workers, because the waste materials from the saltpeter piles could be used as fertilizer for the fields. These waste materials were cooked and fermented manure, which was more fertile than raw fertilizer.
Guo Shao didn't understand why mature fertilizer was more useful, but Zan Jurun said it in public, which meant it was definitely effective. Although it still needed to be verified by someone whether it could double the grain production, since it was a good thing, Guo Shao would not spoil the fun in public.
He immediately said: Our dynasty is producing armaments, but has discovered a way to benefit the people. This is a great blessing from heaven.
When the ministers heard this, they hurriedly agreed, "God bless our emperor!"
Guo Shao immediately praised Zan Jurun, but did not give him a reward right away. After all, Guo Shao's ideas were different from those of ordinary emperors. People who had been educated in the way they thought in their previous lives would not blindly believe in anyone or anything. He would first investigate clearly before making a judgment.
However, Guo Shao attached great importance to this matter.
The Central Plains Dynasty was an agricultural country. It had developed farming to a certain level and it was difficult to increase production. Modern agriculture has a high yield, which is nothing more than three tools: pesticides, fertilizers, and seeds. Fertilizer is a very important part. Chemical fertilizers were impossible to produce at that time. Basic synthetic ammonia required modern industry. If it could be increased in manure, it would take productivity to a higher level.
As the expedition was imminent, Guo Shao could not personally inquire about the matter. After retiring from court, he picked up a pen in the study in the East Palace and left a letter for Fu Jinzhan, asking her to inquire about the matter.
If the role of mature manure is truly understood, the Gunpowder Department of the Military Equipment Supervision Department will be asked to reform its organizational system and disperse the saltpeter workshops to various cities in the Central Plains to form a set of institutions. The manure in the cities will be used to pile saltpeter and provide fertilizer for the farmland around the cities.
After Guo Shao finished writing the letter, he asked the eunuch to put it in the study in the West Palace. When Jinzhan came out to handle government affairs, she would pay attention to Guo Shao's handwriting.
He had not put down the pen in his hand yet, and he scribbled on the paper, but he could not understand the principle of cooked manure. He studied computer science at that time, and he still lacked some general physical and chemical theoretical knowledge. He could not use the theories of that year to infer most common sense, and could only use the methods of the ancients. He could not get to the bottom of it, so he had to constantly verify and summarize his experience.