In a large conference room separated from the west of the middle of the Wuying Palace, which is also called the map room by the staff officers of the General Staff of the Wuying Palace, the staff officers of the wartime base camp who returned to the capital from the Shanxi front are reporting to Chongzhen about the battle with the Chahar Division.

In the center of the map room is a long table that is almost oval, and in the center of the long table is a sand table depicting the area north of the capital, east of Yanshan, and within the Great Wall. The above area has been revealed to occupy only a small part of the whole sand table, and it is obvious that if the whole sand table can be completed, the entire East Asian continent and the seas of Japan, Ryukyu, Taiwan and Southeast Asia will be included.

There is also a 60 cm blank table for the week of the sand table, which is used for everyone to hold meetings. The long table is made of fine Northeast walnut wood, and the table top has been painted with a few coats of varnish, and you can see the unusually beautiful patterns.

Zhu Youzhen sat on the upper seat in the north, and on his right hand sat Sun Chengzong, Mao Yuanyi, and other staff members who had returned from the front. On his left hand side are Yu Zhigao, Sun Yuanhua and several newly promoted staff officers.

Mao Yuanyi briefly stated the battle experience, and wanted to report the list of meritorious personnel in this battle to Chongzhen, but he was interrupted by the emperor before he started.

Zhu Youzhen waved his hand at him and said: "Wait a minute, I want to hear first, the logistics department's bereavement of the bereaved families of the martyrs, the burial of the fallen soldiers, and the arrangements for the wounded soldiers after they recover." ”

Liang Simian, who was transferred from the head of the Ministry of War to the director of the General Logistics Department of the Army, immediately got up and said after hearing the emperor's words: "According to the pension system for the surviving families of martyrs recently approved by the cabinet, a one-time pension will be issued to the surviving families of martyrs, and a pension will be paid on the basis of the annual salary of the martyrs during their lifetime, and the total annual salary of three years will be paid.

If the position of the martyr who died in battle was lower than that of the general flag, a pension for three years shall be paid on the basis of the annual salary of the general flag.

In addition, for the immediate family members of the martyrs who are still alive, such as parents, wives and children, condolences will be paid in accordance with the standard of the general flag annual salary. When the martyr's parents died, his wife remarried, and his children reached the age of 20, the payment of condolences was suspended.

On the basis of this standard, we have paid one fifth of the martyrs' pensions. It is expected that the payment of pensions in Gyeonggi will be completed by the end of November, and that all martyrs' pensions will be completed by the end of December. ”

Zhu Youzhen suddenly frowned and said, "It's over after sending the money?" The state has no responsibility for the bereaved families of martyrs? ”

The emperor's questioning made the unprepared Liang Simian suddenly a little stunned and speechless, he immediately thought about it and added: "In addition, if a military attache above the general flag is sacrificed, he can inherit his father's position after his son becomes an adult or his daughter recruits a son-in-law." ”

Zhu Youzhen shook his head again and said: "What we are building now is a new-style army, this kind of official succession system of father and son will only destroy the combat effectiveness of the army, and I will not allow this kind of thing to happen again."

Besides, the martyr has given his life to defend the Ming Dynasty, so his descendants have the right to enjoy the peace defended by his father, and I will not forcibly send the children of the martyrs to the battlefield again, that would be too cruel.

We will set up a boarding school in the capital, where all the children of martyrs can enter directly to study, and we will let them choose what they want to do in the future.

If someone still wants to join the army, then the Army and Navy Military Academy will give priority to admitting the children of martyrs. But what level they can reach in the future depends on their own efforts, and I will not use official positions to reward the descendants of the martyrs. ”

Sun Chengzong nodded and said to Chongzhen: "Your Majesty's words are indeed very good, and the minister also seconded it. Liang Simian immediately reacted and said: "Then the minister will add a provision on preferential treatment for the children of martyrs to enroll in school, and apply to the cabinet." ”

Zhu Youzhen nodded at him and said: "For the martyr's wife, if you are not willing to remarry and have no property in the family, you can recruit the military weapons supervisor, the workshops in the palace, or the primary schools in the city..."

Liang Simian continued to say: "The Black Mountain where the Baozhong Huguo Temple is located, not far from the capital, the mountain is gentle, and it is surrounded by plains. The minister has asked the Ministry of Industry and several masters to design this mountain, which can be used as a martyr's cemetery and a place to show loyalty. This is the first draft of the design, and I would like to ask Your Majesty to take a look at it. ”

Zhu Youzhen took the drawing handed by Liang Simian and looked at it carefully for a long time, before nodding with satisfaction and said: "The design is very good, the stone needed to build the cemetery can be mined from the big stone nest of the three mountains, and the best stone must be used..."

Chongzhen's mood was just better, but after listening to Liang Simian's talk about the arrangements for the wounded soldiers after they recovered, his face turned ugly again.

“… Wounded and disabled soldiers who defend their country are not wasted people, you can't throw people into the backwoods and let them starve to death to complete the mission. If so, who will want to go to the battlefield to defend the country in the future? ”

After being reprimanded by the emperor, Liang Simian explained with a slightly red face: "Your Majesty, the prices in the capital are high, and so many people who are disabled due to injuries cannot arrange work to earn a living, so the imperial court can only be responsible for support, and the logistics department does not have so many funds."

The good land in the vicinity of Gyeonggi is also owned, and only in the slightly remote countryside can there be enough land for cultivation so that these homes can be self-sufficient. ”

Zhu Youzhen was silent for a while, and then said: "Although some of these disabled soldiers are not dexterous enough, some of them are still very young, and they can re-learn the culture and do some simple work.

Moreover, the cold winter in the north is not conducive to recuperation, so I simply built several sanatoriums in the south, such as West Lake, Taihu Lake, Nanjing and other places with beautiful scenery in the south, which are not only suitable for recuperation, but also suitable for recuperation.

In addition, there are some wounded whose disabilities cannot interfere with life, but are no longer suitable for returning to the battlefield, and I think that I can let them retire, and then select a few outstanding teachers to serve as military school teachers, and as for the others, they will be arranged to be assigned to the newly established patrol police stations in various places.

In particular, in the provinces south of the Yangtze River, the world has been in peace for a long time, the wind of extravagance has risen greatly, and the people's hearts have also been greatly corrupted. I have heard that many slippery officials in the south not only associate themselves with the underworld forces on the streets, but also often coerce new county officials who have no followers to control local lawsuits.

I have long intended to implement the patrol system throughout the country, so you can report to the cabinet and discuss with the cabinet to first take back the local security power to the imperial court. Regarding the cost of relocating the wounded, I will ask Lu Qi to transfer a special fund of 200,000 yuan to the logistics department first, which will be used specifically for the resettlement of the wounded. ”

Hearing that the emperor was willing to come up with private money, Liang Simian naturally agreed to Chongzhen's request, and he assured the emperor that he would soon get a plan to resettle the wounded.

After Liang Simian sat down, Zhu Youzhen signaled Mao Yuanyi to submit the list of heroes of the troops participating in the battle. It took Mao Yuanyi a full hour to complete the report.

Zhu Youzhen looked at the documents submitted by Mao Yuanyi and listened to his introduction to these meritorious soldiers. After listening, Zhu Youzhen also closed the document in front of him, and he said quietly: "I feel that this list of meritorious service awards is not properly formulated, and it is better for the front-line command to investigate and formulate a new one." ”

Before Mao Yuanyi could speak, Sun Chengzong had already stopped in front of him with some anxiety and said: "Your Majesty, how can this list be inappropriate, the people on this list have been verified by the ministers one by one, and there will never be anyone who is confused." In this time of internal and external troubles, the heroes must not be rewarded, Your Majesty. ”

Zhu Youzhen pressed the document of the list of meritorious personnel with his left hand, looked sideways at Sun Chengzong and said with a smile: "I don't say that you have made a false report, but I think you have omitted it."

On this list, there are 319 meritorious personnel, but there are only 11 ordinary soldiers, 13 small banners, 23 general banners, and low-level officers and men below the general banner, which is less than one-sixth of the entire meritorious personnel.

Although I have never been on the battlefield, I also know one thing clearly, no matter how well the general commands, ordinary soldiers are required to fight the battlefield.

According to my understanding, in this battle, the highest military rank among the martyrs was only 100 households, and the casualty rate of ordinary soldiers was the highest, but the proportion of meritorious service was the lowest, do you think it is appropriate? ”

Sun Chengzong, Mao Yuanyi and others were silent for a moment, the list they reported to Chongzhen was already the most conscientious one reported by the Ming army in history. But if you measure it by the emperor's standards, it is indeed too far behind.

If the General Staff and the New Army had not been formed, they would certainly have refuted the emperor's words too pedantic. Since ancient times, victories on the battlefield have been based on the courage of generals and the excellent planning of civilian officials, as for the role of ordinary soldiers, only about one Qi Nantang would agree with Chongzhen's statement.

However, after the establishment of the General Staff Headquarters and the New Army, all the newly established military orders and regulations were mainly aimed at strengthening the discipline of ordinary soldiers and the command and combat capability of low-ranking noncommissioned officers.

It was precisely with these two points that the General Staff Department reformed the old army of the Ming Dynasty, hoping to establish a new-style army that was completely subordinate to the orders of the imperial court and change the old army system of soldiers into generals.

Sun Chengzong, Mao Yuanyi and others naturally didn't want their efforts to be in vain this year, so it was naturally impossible for them to refute the questions raised by Chongzhen.

After a moment of silence in the room, Mao Yuanyi finally came forward and said after seeing the hint given to him by Sun Chengzong beside him: "Dare to ask Your Majesty, then what kind of changes does Your Majesty think should be made to the standard of this list of meritorious personnel?" ”

Zhu Youzhen's gaze turned to the list of meritorious personnel in front of him, and he rubbed the cover of the list with his hand for a while before he spoke: "7 to 3, ordinary soldiers below the general flag should account for seventy percent of the meritorious personnel, and generals above the general flag should occupy thirty percent.

In addition, a medal system, special merit medals, meritorious service medals, heroic model medals, and war medals have been established. The meritorious service medal is divided into one, two and three classes, and is divided into gold, silver, and bronze three classes, and other medals are almost in accordance with this design.

All in all, as long as you have defended the country, you have contributed to the country, and the country will be rewarded.

This reward does not necessarily have to be reflected in materials and official positions, but the important thing is the country's recognition of the actions of the soldiers, which is honor and commemoration..."