Chapter 421: The winner will benefit. Wu comes to pay homage

On the second day of the second month of the 16th year of Chongzhen, under the envious eyes of everyone, Wang Tao, deputy general of the Dengzhou Army, received a new appointment and led 9,000 troops to guard Hejian Prefecture.

By this time, the court had not given Shandong any orders or recognition. Li Meng's responsibilities for garrison were still Shandong and Lianghuai. However, Jiaozhou Camp prepared and planned on its own. When the Tartars invaded, the inner tent and chief consultant Sun Chuanting mobilized the village guard team and the armed salt deputies from various places to Jinan Prefecture in various villages to use it as the general reserve team.

This force was nearly 20,000, although it was not used in the end, it was equivalent to indirectly conducting an exercise and focusing on training in the regular army for nearly two months.

To a certain extent, these mobilized guard teams and armed Yanding reached the level of new recruits in Jiaozhou camp. When preparing for the troops stationed in Hejian Prefecture, they happened to choose the right one among these people.

Although the army turned to Shandong, there were still two thousand people from the old camp in Botou Town, Nanpi County, on the edge of the canal. The defenders of Hejian Prefecture wanted to use these two thousand people as the backbone to add 7,000 new recruits. This is a big non-compliance with the rules. In the short term, this is a disobedience to the king's laws, and in the short term, this is a direct rebellion.

Shandong's troops, horses, food and grass are allocated and supplied by the old camps, which is also a means to avoid the troops stationed in their garrisons. The warehousing and transportation systems of the garrisons are borrowed from the warehousing and transportation systems of the garrisons. Although it is a unified central plan, it also has the convenience of local transportation.

This is different from the Ming army. Except for a few troops that can receive money, most of the officers and soldiers raised money on their own. To put it bluntly, they were blackmailing or looting. The local area was miserable, and the conflict between the military and civilians was extremely great, while the Jiaozhou camp avoided this drawback.

But the officials and gentry of Hejian Prefecture never felt happy about the situation where they did not need to supply their own food, fodder and military pay. However, they were very resistant. Before Li Meng returned to Shandong and after returning to Shandong, someone had always come to express that he wanted to do his best to Lord Li's army.

The two battalions stationed in Botou Town, now they received enough military supplies for them to use for half a year, but they were still sent here continuously. The officers and soldiers of the two battalions jokingly claimed that they were guarding the warehouse.

In addition to the show of goodwill by officials and gentry, a large number of civilians gathered around the Hejian Prefecture garrison. After that great victory, cleaning the battlefield gave many civilians a benefit. These civilians who evade officers and soldiers on weekdays were like bandits. Only then did they realize that there were also good soldiers in this world who did not harass the people.

Moreover, these soldiers and horses from Shandong recruited civilians and men to do their work, and they paid in real terms. In this era, there was a job that could supplement the family's income. Moreover, Jiaozhou Camp had just defeated the Tartars. The people in the northern Zhili area had experienced the passage of the Tartars a few years ago. The officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty fled. The officials fled, and the people also fled. The Tartars were really invincible, but they were defeated by the Shandong soldiers. Wouldn't the Shandong soldiers be even more invincible? Besides, everyone has seen the spirit of the soldiers in the Jiaozhou Camp.

When the young and strong men in Hejian Prefecture saw this style, they heard that the soldiers of Jiaozhou camp could get enough food and pay, and as military families, there were some tax exemptions. There were also various economic and local preferential treatments, and each of them was thinking about it. Although they were good men but not soldiers, if the army was good enough, there would naturally be good people to surrender.

The current situation is quite interesting. Although Shandong does not need personnel or supplies, the noble and noble people of Hejianfu, the people of Hejianfu in Beizhili, still sent them enthusiastically, and they did not feel extremely frightened.

However, there is also a disharmonious episode. The work supervisor of the Tianjin Firearms Craftsman's yamen came to Jinan and went to the General's Shogunate in Zhendong to ask for people.

The Ming army's heavy firearms are of poor quality and power, which is a different matter. The annual output is really a lot. There are three manufacturing centers. One is that there are a large number of Western firearms and related craftsmen in Guangdong, Macau and Nanyang. The input and casting are relatively simple. The other is Nanzhili, which is the center of South China. There will naturally be preparations. The biggest one is the firearm craftsmanship yamen in Tianjin.

In the north, fighting against refugees and the Tartars, as well as defense operations against Mongolia from the nine sides. This is the most important part of the Ming Dynasty's military activities. In addition to the firearms, the supply of firearms, is the craftsmanship firearm camp in Tianjin.

Those who served in the camp were all so-called craftsmen, which were almost the same as the lowly family of prostitutes and butchers. They could not escape from good lands. Except for the exquisite utensils in the capital, these craftsmen were still very attentive to make exquisite utensils in the capital. The treatment of other places was like slaves, and officials and workers' supervisors were also greedy for a lot. This work efficiency and sense of responsibility were naturally not worth mentioning.

The quality of firearms is extremely poor and the output is extremely poor. This is the entire situation of firearm manufacturing in Tianjin. After the Qing army came south and captured the three guards of Tianjin, they directly captured all the craftsmen who made firearms and let them follow the army. Even if it is a burden, they must be with them. Although the useful place is to repair the muskets of Korean musketeers, these craftsmen will definitely be of great use after they are brought outside the pass.

After the Tartars' troops were completely wiped out in Hejian Prefecture, these craftsmen were not allowed to go home. These craftsmen were also of great use to Jiaozhou Camp, which lacked skilled craftsmen.

When the Mongol Yuan was raging the world and spreading the east and west, whether it was the East and the West, most of the cities were massacred after the attack. The only ones that were spared were beautiful women and various craftsmen, which can be seen as an incredible wealth.

This is also one of the war bonuses obtained by Jiaozhou Camp after the battle, and it is the most immediate benefit. These craftsmen thought that they would be rescued by the government army and would be sent back to Tianjin to do their jobs again. The craftsmen had nothing to be happy about. They could actually have enough food in the Tartar camp. This is much better than the status of a half-slave in Tianjin, so the Tartar soldiers were wiped out, and many craftsmen were not happy.

However, the emotions of these craftsmen immediately became high. The middle and senior officers of Jiaozhou Camp attached great importance to technology. Everyone knew how nervous the manpower was in the weapons manufacturing bureaus in Laiwu and Jining. After searching north for the four battalions of the remaining enemies, they found these craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty. They were really jealous and immediately reported to the headquarters.

General Li Meng of Zhendong immediately made a decision. None of these craftsmen could be put back, and they brought all back to Shandong. The craftsmen were sent to accept the craftsmen.

After he went there, he didn't say anything false. He first slaughtered pigs, sheep, white flour, cakes, and then he paid a five-talent silver fee for each person. Then he recorded the relatives and family members of each craftsman who were still in Tianjin, and promised that Shandong would take them over and settle them.

Such treatments are much better than those of the Tartars, so the craftsmen are naturally willing, and Jiaozhou Camp also promised that although the craftsmen work in the official weapons manufacturing bureau in Shandong, they also have piece-based wages and will never be exploited and bullied.

The efficiency and quality of Tianjin's firearms workshops are extremely low. The big reason is that these craftsmen have no enthusiasm for labor. They have no rewards for the things they produce when they are beaten and scolded. How can they be energetic?

The promise made by Shandong can be said to be exactly the itchy point. This way, the performance of the craftsmen can be described as rushing to come, fearing that Jiaozhou Camp will not allow them to go to Shandong.

After returning to Jinan, Sun Hedou, Guo Dong and Ding Xu originally planned to have a good New Year in Jinan City, but they were busy all the time, taking advantage of this great victory to be another opportunity for the Spring Festival. Carnival and relax.

But it was said that all the craftsmen from the Tianjin Craftsman Camp were brought to Shandong. The three of them were overjoyed and there was no need to pass this year. They were busy accepting and relocating these craftsmen.

These skilled workers who have been passed down from generation to generation have the same enthusiasm for labor, but they are more suitable to enter the manufacturing industry than those farmers and soldiers. What Jiaozhou Weapon Manufacturing Bureau lacks is this kind of labor with technology, experience, and large-scale production experience.

Although it is incomparable to industrialization in later generations, the workers and craftsmen of the Jiaozhou Weapon Manufacturing Bureau are also completely different from farmers. In the production of weapons and various equipment, they are trained from scattered farmers and civilians to disciplined and cooperative workers.

People who come out of the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau often understand the various combat instructions and combat techniques of the Jiaozhou Camp very quickly and deeply understand them, pay more attention to teamwork, and are the best source of troops.

Therefore, the recruits most loved by officers at all levels of Jiaozhou Camp are young people who came out of the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau. These people can quickly become backbones in the army.

However, the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau cannot compete with the army and agriculture for labor. The number of craftsmen and workers has always been very small. Not only does it adjust the treatment very high, it also easily refuses to let young people go out to join the army. Although the young people in the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau are very enthusiastic about joining the army.

Another place that can produce similar military sources is the iron ore in Laiwu and the coal mine in Yanzhou Prefecture. The miners in these two places are also particularly popular with the military, but the production of these two places is directly the source of raw materials for the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau. The joint management of the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau and Lingshan Trading Bank also requires production and the number of workers, and people cannot be released.

All aspects are fighting for local manpower for weapons manufacturing so fiercely. Although the weapons manufacturing bureau is strictly controlled, the limited manpower can meet the huge demand of Jiaozhou Camp, but it is still difficult and extremely embarrassed. There is no chance to do some technological innovations and other things.

This time, more than 4,000 skilled craftsmen were really a timely help. They immediately improved the manufacturing capacity of Jiaozhou Camp to a higher level. Why didn’t the three men in the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau be ecstatic?

As the saying goes, several companies are happy and some are sad. When the three leaders of the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau were counting and receiving them here, the supervisor responsible for Tianjin's firearm manufacturing was bleak.

Before the Tartars came, the civilians and the semi-slave craftsmen could not run away, but these dignitaries ran faster than the other. This was the case with the worker supervisor. He ran to Tongzhou City early to hide, but the Tartar army was annihilated. When the worker supervisor returned to Tianjin, he found that he could not start work.

Not to mention the more than 4,000 robbed craftsmen, there are still young people like apprentices left in Tianjin. These people are not in the archives and the Tartars do not know, so they escaped.

Using these young apprentices can support production for a period of time. The key to the problem is that these young people, their families, and the families of craftsmen have been relocating and leaving during the time when the labor supervisor returned to Tianjin.

You should know that craftsmen do not have complete personal freedom and cannot leave the location of the craftsmen without authorization. However, there are no defenders in Tianjin, and the city defense is also extremely damaged.

How dare this foreman, servant and others, dare to fight against the victorious Shandong soldiers? In addition to picking up the families of those craftsmen, Shandong sent envoys and troops to pick up and drop off the families of those craftsmen. They also vigorously recruited apprentices who were capable of working. These Shandong soldiers were like wolves and tigers, and even the officers and soldiers from Northern Zhili hid far away, let alone these foreman and servants.

Under such relocation, the entire Tianjin three guards became increasingly deserted, but the imperial court was increasingly urging to the point of being armed with the army.

This worker supervisor has no choice but to spend money to transfer his job. Now he is a hot potato, no one wants to take it. And without craftsmen, there will be a big mess sooner or later. Everyone is still counting on the worker supervisor to take this responsibility!

The only way for this work supervisor to be forced to do this is that Shandong does not conform to the rules and regulations, so he might as well come to the door to talk about the rules and regulations. If the other party is willing to collect money, then give it a heavy gift, and maybe things will turn around.

I remembered that in order to find an errand outside, I gave Wang Chengen and Cao Huachun almost 80% of my savings, so the work supervisor became more and more anxious.

Although the oil and water in the firearm manufacturing are not as rich as that in the tax and mining supervision, you can withdraw silver to buy raw materials. When you take weapons from all over the country, you can blackmail the silver to drive craftsmen to do private work. There are many benefits, but now it is not the time to protect this job, but life is saved.

"I would like to ask this guy to help you. Our family has been waiting here for two days. When will General Li have time to let our family come in and see you? There is an important business!!"

The firearm supervisor Kao Ren smiled and secretly handed a silver ingot to the guard leader of the General's Mansion in Zhendong with a smile, while cursing in his heart. It is said that when he met the admiral of the East Factory, the bachelor of the cabinet, and the ministers of various departments, he stuffed silver to the doormen. This is a common practice. It would be so troublesome to see a local general when he came out of Beijing.

He was whispering to himself, and the guard leader threw back the silver ingot and said with a cold face:

"Old-in-law, don't be too tempted to do it. Does my boss have time to see you? It's not our subordinates who can decide. Please submit a post and register your name to ask for a meeting according to the rules!"

Turning back to see that there were already long queues of guests asking for the general's house, Si Kaoren's face suddenly became bitter. He took a step forward and whispered:

"Brother, our family came from a job in Tianjin. The distance is long and the urge was tight. If the general doesn't meet, our family's head will be settled. Please be fine. Please open the back door and pass it down. Is it okay? Our family will definitely give you a generous gift!"

The guards of the General’s Mansion in Zhendong are the responsibilities of the personal military camp. These officers and soldiers in the personal military camp have great futures, so they will naturally not seek such small profits.

The personal soldier leader at the gate was staring at Sikaoren for a few glances. The firearms supervisor thought that something had turned around, so he quickly reached into his pocket and was about to take out a gold ingot. However, the personal soldier leader walked away again, which made Sikaoren puzzled for a long time. What he didn't expect was that the personal soldier leader received a message from the mansion's butler Luo Xi, saying that he was staring at the eunuch from Tianjin and not letting him leave.

The leader was also puzzled. Since he had not met, why would he not let him go? So he took a few more glances...

Since the victory was confirmed, the gentry and tribes in Shandong, Lianghuai and Henan have begun to congratulate them with various reasons, and some people have also come to Jiangnan and Fujian.

Li Meng met the powerful and big businessmen in these places as soon as possible, and they were smiling and polite. Although there may not be any contact at the moment, they were communicating with each other and would meet each other in the future.

After the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the various arrangements in the capital were the same. Meeting these guests from the visiting places made him tired and irritable. By February, he had already selected to meet the guests.

When Si Kaoren was entangling with the leader of his personal soldiers, he was watching Li Hong exercise in the backyard. Since that competition, Wang Hai has arranged several veterans from the personal soldiers to be teachers. At the same time, the housekeeper Luo Xi and Guo Dong's wife have separated the backyard and the inner courtyard to avoid collision.

Now the backyard is a martial arts field for Li Meng and Li Hong and his son. Li Meng was doing pull-ups while holding the horizontal bar. He only bought this kind of equipment after he became a general. When he was in the army, he was excellent in this skill in the army.

Under the supervision of an instructor, Li Hong jogged around the yard, so the child would not exercise too much. However, his face turned red.

Since Li Meng returned to Shandong, in addition to victory among the inner house and his confidants, Li Hong is indeed the descendant of the general. Such a naughty and playful child, once he received military training from the warriors, he immediately became regular and diligent, which is very evident.

At least Li Meng has successors. This is undoubtedly confirmed.

Outside the backyard wall, there was a sound of horse hooves, someone dismounted and reported it, and a personal soldier conveyed it. Soon a messenger strode in and stood attentive as soon as he entered the backyard and reported:

"Master, the Male Team Laiwu messenger returned home to report!"

Li Meng got off the horizontal bar, and the personal soldiers next to him handed over the towel. Li Meng wiped his sweat and took the letter. According to the rules, the soldier checked the fire paint on the letter to the recipient. After he was accurate, he stood attentive and bowed. Li Meng tore open the letter and took out the letter paper inside.

The handwriting written in the letter is neat and has a very good calligraphy foundation. It is the letter from Ding Xu, the mining supervisor. These are from the eunuchs in the inner court. Most of them have higher education levels than the average level of scholars in this era and various specialized official documents training. Ding Xu is naturally the same.

Li Meng walked under the eaves and read the letter in three lines. After pondering for a moment, he nodded and greeted loudly:

"Five personal soldiers on duty come here!!"

At least two hundred personal soldiers were on standby on the periphery of Li Meng's place. As soon as he finished speaking, five personal soldiers ran over and Li Meng ordered:

"Just outside the main gate, an eunuch from Tianjin came from Tianjin. He politely arrested him and took him to the military camp beside the south gate!"

The five personal soldiers were a little puzzled, but the command of the commander was everything. They immediately stood at attention and ran out quickly. In fact, the order was issued very interestingly and they arrested politely. The five personal soldiers thought about it and took off their weapons to avoid anything rude.

"Mr. Yuan, please note that Sun Hedou, Guo Dong, and Ding Xu, the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau, is now sent to a craftsman. Treat it as Ding Xu's example back then, so that his talents can do their best to use it for my own purposes!"

Yuan Wenhong quickly wrote down the letter beside him, and Li Meng said again:

"This letter was sent to Laiwu with the carriage shipped by Sikaoren, and sent a few more people to escort him. I just received a reply from Laiwu. Ding Xu had dealt with this Sikaoren. Although he was a little more despicable, he was said to have a lot of experience in craftsmen's production and technology. Such people are still able to do their best in Shandong, so they will not let them go."

So that's the case. The chief clerk Yuan Wenhong then understood why Li Meng sent Kuaima to Laiwu the day before yesterday. Although this person was fine, the way of realization was too interesting. Yuan Wenhong held back his laughter and bowed to assign this task.

After calculation, Tianjin's firearms and weapons manufacturing power, craftsmen and craftsmen have moved almost from December to February, and most of them have moved to the heart of Shandong. Now, even the leader who urges these craftsmen and craftsmen to be working, the worker supervisor Kaoren was sent to the Weapon Manufacturing Bureau in Laiwu. Since he is talented and has delivered it to him, Jiaozhou Camp will not let it go.

Now, in Shandong dialect, Jiaozhou Camp has "shoulder" the power of firearms and weapons manufacturing in Northern Zhili, and there is not even a single piece of scrap left.

The imperial court in the capital wanted to arm more local troops. If the current local troops were to maintain combat effectiveness, they had to give them enough weapons and equipment. However, the most important thing was that Tianjin's production area had been lost. If you want to supplement it, you could only go through Nanzhili, Guangdong and Shanxi.

Among these available locations, Shanxi has many troubles in land transportation and the output is quite limited. Southern Zhili and Guangdong have sufficient inventory and production capacity. The main problem is the canal, which is firmly pinned by Jiaozhouying. If you want to transport it, you must all depend on Jiaozhouying's expression.

Inadvertently, Li Meng's hands pinching Daming's neck added another bit of strength, and his lifeline was controlled by Shandong. The sounds made by Shandong in the world were also more rough and louder than before. When he was not strong enough, he kept a low profile and was strong enough. Why not be domineering?

As long as you are clear-headed, that's enough...

But for Li Meng, the unexpected guest was not the already dazed supervisor, Kaoren, but the envoy sent by a senior official in the capital.

At noon on February 20th, I could already see some spring in Jinan. Li Meng's family and his family all had lunch in the inner hall, but they ate seafood. This era is different from the so-called fresh seafood that can be eaten even in Gansu. In Jinan, it is not easy to eat some seafood.

Denglai Prefectures are some distance from Jinan. On the way here, fish, shrimps and crabs are often prone to rot. Moreover, the special transportation of places is too expensive, so Li Meng's style of doing things is simple, so he naturally would not do this luxurious move.
To be continued...