Chapter 1 The Changes After the Reform

Xu General's report was divided into two parts. One part was a very mainstream report to all the ministers in the Hall of Political Affairs, and the other part was in the Imperial Study, where Tan Xiaopei summoned the ministers he thought were related to Yunzhou, or important enough to be related to everything. This was also a change that occurred after Qu Yan began to reform the Imperial Censorate.

No one is perfect, and governing a region is inevitably fraught with troubles. The governors who were doing well in their localities were very averse to the procedure of reporting in the Hall of Political Affairs. There were always inexplicably people who would pop up to criticize this or that, and those people might just be voicing their opinions based on hearsay, without understanding the situation at the time. When Xu General was middle-aged, he was impeached during a report because he executed a low-ranking officer who made remarks about surrendering during a battle, and after the battle, he executed about three hundred members of several families in the city he was guarding who spread rumors or even intended to open the gates to surrender the city. By the time Xu Jing-tian had explained the whole matter in the Hall of Political Affairs, it was already dark. And the next day and the day after that, he had to endure similar torment… But now, during the reports in the Hall of Political Affairs, everyone refrained from asking questions face to face, and instead recorded the areas they thought were problematic and handed them over to the Imperial Censorate. The Imperial Censorate, after sorting and summarizing, would then decide whether to request a "hearing" to listen to explanations or accusations. After all, many highly specialized issues, such as military, economic, and technical matters, might seem problematic to outsiders no matter what they heard. The old general had cut the army in half. If he had to explain clearly why in court, it would probably be dark several times over.

And the atmosphere of the meetings in the Imperial Study was getting better and better. Tan Xiaopei rarely used that high and mighty desk to listen to his subordinates' opinions from a high position, and preferred that everyone sit on those soft chairs, spreading various documents on the coffee table to read and discuss those crucial issues at close range. The Imperial Study of the Eastern Peace Palace was not only possibly the highest-level professional conference room in this space-time that maintained formal equality, but also possibly the first conference room in this space-time to supply everyone with unlimited coffee when discussing issues.

At the beginning, it wasn't because he liked the taste, but because he needed to replenish his energy and needed something strong to refresh himself. And as he drank, he got used to it and came to like it. Compared to Ye Tao and Tan Weixin, who were more inclined to find fun in coffee, the Eastern Peace high-level group, led by Tan Xiaopei, all had a demand for coffee. Especially Grand Commandant Chi Xianping, who was so picky that he could taste the difference between different batches of coffee beans and different batches of roasting. In addition to various flavors of coffee, the Imperial Study even had a special person to prepare various other types of drinks and snacks for everyone. According to Huang Xuping's incomplete statistics, who was always able to display a scholar's leisure even in the most arduous work, the Imperial Study had seen no less than sixty kinds of drinks and nearly two hundred kinds of snacks.

A good communication atmosphere, coupled with delicious drinks and snacks… naturally, and the increasingly complex and arduous tasks of the kingdom, allowed the ministers to constantly refresh their continuous working hours. For Chi Xianping, Huang Xuping, Gao Zhen, Pang Rong, Qu Yan, and the six ministers who were frequently summoned, it was not uncommon to hold meetings all night long. And due to frequent late-night and all-night meetings, the routine court meetings, which were originally held strictly according to the so-called etiquette at the break of dawn, had become increasingly unbearable for these ministers, and they were even preparing to jointly submit a memorial requesting that the court meetings be moved back at least an hour…

This was the first time that Xu General had experienced this kind of atmosphere where state affairs were discussed in a relatively relaxed environment. After eating a piece of osmanthus cake, Xu General continued to talk about the problems he encountered when reorganizing the Yunzhou military: "...There is also a troop that needs to be formed, that is, a dedicated logistics troop. The main consumption of the troops scattered throughout Yunzhou is grain, which can be obtained locally, and the grain reserves in various places in Yunzhou are still relatively sufficient. As for the transportation of the equipment that needs to be replaced and the materials used to rebuild the barracks, I originally wanted to start, but that also requires something for me to transport. The Yunzhou armories are still learning, and I don't think they will be able to resume production in a few months. I'm afraid the first to be able to produce qualified military equipment will be Ye Tao's workshop. And with the start of the re-equipment, the transportation of a large number of materials is imperative. Yunzhou has a vast area, and it can't be like other places where a designated troop is allowed to supply another troop, because the round trip takes too long and is not worth the loss. In the short term, a dedicated logistics troop is conducive to the subsequent re-equipment and preparation of Yunzhou, and in the long term, His Majesty wants Yunzhou to build an elite army for Eastern Peace that can perform well in the war to seize the world. And an elite army can't be short of food and arrows, and can't be short of the consumption of various equipment. Fire oil bombs and fire star bombs, etc., the Blood Kirin Army used them very happily at the time, but the effect was really good. And once the Yunzhou army goes out of Yunzhou to fight, the supply line from the centralized production and storage place of military equipment to the front line is actually one thousand li or even longer. Such a long distance, ordinary laborers can't do it. Don't say that Yunzhou has this need to fight a big battle, the Blood Kirin Army has so few people, didn't they also form a logistics unit? They also said that they wanted to be able to send arrows and family letters to every soldier at any time... That's really nonsense."

Speaking of this, the old general glanced at Zou Shuangwen, who was sitting on the side respectfully listening to everyone's opinions. He was the lowest-ranking official present, and his current position was the Supervisor of the Blood Kirin Army. After Dai Yun left, the first to succeed as Supervisor was Qiu Haohui. Subsequently, Qiu Haohui was transferred to the northeast of Eastern Peace to form one of Tan Xiaopei's ideal main battle troops that could fight and dare to sacrifice – the Tianxuan Army – in Binghuo Valley southwest of Beining Pass. And Zou Shuangwen began to serve as the Supervisor of the Blood Kirin Army at this time. Although Zou Shuangwen's rank was not high, the position of Supervisor of the Blood Kirin Army was too special. The various regulations and norms constantly explored by the Blood Kirin Army are now being studied and learned by the Imperial Guards and the Ministry of War, and suitable ones are selected and promoted throughout the army. The Blood Kirin Army's experience and lessons are even richer in terms of army formation, organization, and equipment. Because of this, Zou Shuangwen has become someone who can drink tea with the highest level of Eastern Peace in the Imperial Study, and even his father, Zou Ying, who has been the city guard of Danyang for almost an unknown number of years, does not have this qualification.

Zou Shuangwen smiled embarrassedly and did not say anything. The Blood Kirin Army's funding was too sufficient, so sufficient that he sometimes felt that it was a bit of a sucker. The motion to replace the longbowmen's personal short blades was finally rejected, and the debate about whether the melee infantry armor that the Ye Clan Workshop had finally tentatively designed was good-looking or not came up again. No one disliked the armor's protection ability. After all, after considering weight, perspiration, comprehensive protection, and different situations such as protection against sharp weapons and blunt weapons, the armor's comprehensive performance was quite satisfactory. The son of the Minister of Justice convinced his father to hand over several death row prisoners to them for "execution." As a result, after a large group of them racked their brains and did a series of tests, those people were sent back to the Heavenly Prison "alive," which was a good proof. However, the commander of the melee infantry battalion, who had been training in melee combat for more than two months, still insisted on modifying the design of the armor, mainly targeting the unglamorous appearance... Compared to these, the Blood Kirin Army's logistics camp was only a very small problem. In order to ensure that family letters and various things sent from home could reach every soldier as quickly as possible, the Blood Kirin Army's logistics camp had put many ideas into practice. For example, no matter where the soldiers in the Blood Kirin Army were from, their families only needed to send things to the nearest Federal Express branch, and the inter-regional logistics was completely outsourced to Federal Express, with the Blood Kirin Army making a total settlement every three months. To send letters and packages to soldiers in the Blood Kirin Army, they were required to indicate the camp number, squad number, and personal number of the soldier on the letters and packages. When things arrived at the Blood Kirin Army camp, the logistics camp had a special sorting office to handle these things, and the primitive concept of postal codes was thus created. The Ministry of War was really considering promoting this method throughout the army. Although they could not be as wealthy as the Blood Kirin Army and undertake almost all the logistics costs, it was a good way to greatly improve the efficiency of letter delivery with coding. Not only the military, but even the Ministry of Revenue's Post Office was considering whether this thing was useful...

Of course, the old general didn't really dislike Zou Shuangwen. Xu Jing-tian valued all the officers who came out of the Blood Kirin Army. If it weren't for the large number of officers and non-commissioned officers from the Blood Kirin Army who stayed in Yunzhou, his army reorganization plan might not have been completed so quickly. The habits of the Blood Kirin Army officers were too good. They not only always did their work with great efficiency, but also always submitted neat and detailed written reports, with different levels focusing on different things, and clearly stating the difficulties encountered and the solutions. One or two people might not have much effect, but when an entire group thinks together, the effect is enormous. Not only that, but the training performance and discipline of the Blood Kirin Army's officers and non-commissioned officers alone, which served as an example, had镇住了 many other troops, saving the old general a lot of effort.

"The situation in Yunzhou is better than expected. But in the final analysis, it still comes down to one problem: money." The old general looked at Zou Shuangwen again. Indeed, this was the reason why the old general always couldn't help but lash out at this poor person in charge of the Blood Kirin Army. The more he wanted to build a stronger military force in Yunzhou within his capabilities, the more he was limited by Yunzhou's relatively weak finances and technology. "Now, the framework of several troops has been built, and the training is much stricter than before. But the re-equipment is a big problem. How should I put it, the money in the treasuries of Yunzhou is mainly spent on settling those retired soldiers, and the pressure on various places is very high. If it weren't for the support of the Dai family, waiting for the Ye Clan Workshop's branch to be completed and start work, or waiting for the training of those craftsmen to be completed, and weapons and armor didn't have to be transferred from other places, and the iron ore resources of Yunzhou could be fully utilized, the price should be able to drop a lot. But frankly speaking, with Yunzhou's current fiscal revenue, if there is no major change, it is almost impossible for the Yunzhou armies to quickly form combat effectiveness. The Dai family has taken out a considerable amount of silver from their own treasuries to support the transformation of the Iron Cloud Cavalry. From the perspective of the Eastern Peace military system, this is not in accordance with the principles. In order to avoid trouble, I borrowed this money from the Dai family. In addition, I also took a considerable amount of money from the road tax of the Road and Bridge Department. I never thought that road tax could collect so much. But even so, Yunzhou's financial resources can only guarantee the completion of the Iron Cloud Cavalry's re-equipment within two years, and the completion of the Iron Cloud Cavalry's entire training within three years, so that its combat effectiveness will reach a higher level. As for the other troops, I am also at my wit's end. After all, silver cannot be conjured out of thin air, so we can only ensure that one army forms combat effectiveness first."

The old general sighed and said, "My strength is insufficient. These messes will have to be cleaned up by the next Yunzhou Pacification Commissioner. By the way, I haven't heard His Majesty mention the candidate for the next Pacification Commissioner. Does the imperial court have any regulations?"

Tan Xiaopei smiled slightly and said, "Old Xu, don't worry, it must be someone you can trust. In these few days, there should be a decision."