Chapter 176: The Prince's Kindness (asking for monthly ticket)
In fact, there were not many people from Guanzhong in the navy. Ding Xiaoer and others were just accidental people from Guanzhong, brought here by Su Dingfang and his men.

The backbones are mainly local people from Henan Province. Since ancient times, this place has been rich in brave and warlike men.

Old Li was walking through the tents, looking at the group of soldiers holding books and staring at the teacher in front of them with serious faces. He couldn't help but lower his head and ask, "Why are these soldiers so serious?"

"Your Majesty, you may not know that the prince ordered that a literacy contest will be held every month. Each team will select three winners, and then participate in the whole army competition to select three winners." Pei Xingjian explained on the side: "The winners in the team can get cattle and sheep as rewards; if they can get a place in the whole army competition, they can get money or official rewards."

Li Shimin nodded slightly. In this way, the soldiers' enthusiasm for learning culture could be understood.

Cattle, sheep, money, or official positions are all real things.

Unless he wants to lie down and do nothing - but who would join the army to fight for a future if he wants to lie down and do nothing?
"It's not just their enthusiasm for learning. I see that their enthusiasm for training is also very high." Li Shimin once again highly affirmed the morale.

"The soldiers have been looking forward to the expedition to Goguryeo for a long time." Su Dingfang said, "We should kill as many enemies as possible on the battlefield and make great achievements to repay the prince's kindness."

Li Shimin looked at Li Xiang in surprise. Su Dingfang realized that he had said the wrong thing and quickly added: "Of course, it is also for loyalty to Your Majesty..."

"Okay, of course I know that it is the Prince of Hengshan who makes the people of Dengzhou live a good life, not me." Old Li reached out and rubbed Li Xiang's head proudly.

He didn't say this out of jealousy, he really meant it.

After all, being able to let the people of Dengzhou drink broth was what Li Xiang had promised - and it is obvious that Li Xiang has fulfilled this promise in just half a year, which is beyond the reach of ordinary adjectives.

Old Su had no idea what to say, and Pei Xingjian was even more confused, not knowing how to answer.

Li Xiang didn't think too much about it, and he didn't think Li Shimin would be concerned about such a small matter.

"If it weren't for Aweng's order, I might still be accompanying the emperor in Luoyang." Li Xiang shook his head and said, "Of course, there's nothing wrong with accompanying the emperor in Luoyang, but being the governor of Dengzhou will give me a wider range of opportunities."

Li Shimin couldn't help but laugh after hearing this, and reached out to rub Li Xiang's head again.

This guy, even his pretense is so fresh and refined...

"This is easy to understand, after all, their families were all given land." Li Xiang smiled and explained to Li Shimin: "The soldiers who came first received their salaries; the 10,000 soldiers who came later were all given salt fields. In addition, our Tang Dynasty has a clear system of military merits. As long as you fight in battle and kill the enemy, you can get rich. How can the fighting enthusiasm not be high?"

Many bourgeoisie and intellectuals have a common problem, which is that they are out of touch with the masses.

Going to the battlefield would certainly result in death, but what was more terrifying was that one would be a tenant of the landlord for the rest of his life, struggling to dig for food in the fields for the rest of his life.

But there is a very cruel reality that not everyone is rich, and not everyone is born rich, and most of them are people at the bottom of society.

When I joined the army, dozens or even hundreds of acres of land were allocated to me. First of all, this was real land. Secondly, when fighting on the battlefield, you could get spoils of war when you captured a city, and you could put a head on your waist when you chopped off a head, which was proof of your military merit. If you accumulated it, you could even achieve class transition, from a poor and lower-middle peasant who was nothing, to a landlord.

So on a gray afternoon, the poor peasants who could not even afford food drank up the last mouthful of wheat porridge mixed with sand in their bowls, called a few friends and went to the conscription site to serve as soldiers.

When joining the Tang Dynasty army, one's background was not considered. Even if one was the son of a tenant farmer, as long as he joined the army, real land would be immediately distributed to his family. If he died on the battlefield, part of the land would be passed on to his son.

For the young masters in the city, these fields could be bought with just a little pocket money; the money they spent on a lunch in Chang'an Restaurant was enough for a poor farmer in Dengzhou to live for a year. They would also sneer, is it worth fighting for such a small piece of land, "fighting for the illusory national dignity"?
Under normal circumstances, this poor peasant would never have such an opportunity to achieve class transition.

But now, as long as he has healthy hands and feet, no disabilities, and can pick up a knife to kill the enemy, he can sell his life for a few dozen acres of land.

There is really nothing to be nostalgic about while living in this world. There may be several brothers and sisters to raise at home, and parents who have worked hard all their lives to raise them. For them, there is nothing that cannot be traded for their good life. After death, the family can inherit the permanent land. What's more - if you are still alive after fighting hundreds of battles, you can get military merit by killing a few more enemies and become a real official.

This is the system of the early Tang Dynasty, the core of which are the "equal-field system", "fubing system" and military merit system.

After reading this, you will probably understand what Li Zhi and Wu Zetian did to destroy these three core systems.

It is said that Li Zhi expanded the territory in the early period, but in fact it was Li Shimin who laid the foundation.

Once he used up all the veteran generals left by Li Shimin and destroyed the core system left by Li Shimin, it was inevitable that the army's combat effectiveness would plummet.

Of course Li Shimin understood. Real money was distributed to the salt fields and put in the names of everyone. Who wouldn't fight for the Tang Dynasty?

Perhaps it is politically incorrect to say this, but even if you don't fight for the Tang Dynasty, you have to fight for these salt fields. These are treasures that can be passed down from generation to generation.

What's more, during their training in the army, Li Xiang picked the best things to supply them and also guaranteed their promotion opportunities. How could these soldiers not fight for Li Xiang with all their heart and soul!

At least in terms of morale, it has definitely reached the top level.

"Yeah." Li Shimin pressed heavily on Li Xiang's shoulders.

"So, Aung, can I go to Goguryeo with you?" Li Xiang suddenly asked.

Li Shimin pinched his shoulder and said, "Fighting is not like treating someone to a meal. You are still young, so don't mess around. Listen to Aung and stay in Henan and Hebei to develop the coastal economic zones first!"

Hey, you old man...

Li Xiang thought to himself, you are looking down on young people again, right? Don’t bully the poor young man!
"Now is the golden opportunity for the army to conquer Goguryeo." Li Xiang began to flatter him without any hesitation. "Ah Weng is the best general in the world. Now that the emperor is leading the army in person, it is natural for my grandson to follow and learn from him."

He didn't feel it was embarrassing to lick Aong with his tongue, after all, the throne really was passed down to him.

"Hahahaha..." When Li Shimin heard Li Xiang's flattery, he couldn't help but stroke his beard and laugh.

The best general in the world? This is good!

In fact, Li Xiang was not bragging. After all, Li Shimin was the most capable warrior among all the emperors. An old man who was well-informed once commented on him as "Since ancient times, no one can match Li Shimin in military ability."

You may doubt other people's evaluation of Li Xiang, but this old man's military level... is hard to find an opponent in thousands of years, so the evaluation of his peers is still reliable.

Besides, Li Xiang also thought so from the bottom of his heart. After all, Li Shimin’s military achievements were there.

If he had become an emperor and could not run around, it would never have been Li Jing's turn to destroy the Turks. It would have been Old Li who would have gone into battle himself and grabbed the dance king Khan Jie Li to dance with him.

Since his eldest grandson said so, Li Shimin felt embarrassed to refuse.

After all, people are grateful for what they have received, and it is embarrassing to say nothing when someone praises you.

After thinking about it carefully, Lao Li felt that it was not impossible.

After all, he was a horse-riding emperor, and although future generations might not necessarily need to lead the army in person, they still had to know something about military affairs.

Otherwise, you will be completely in the dark and unable to make a rough analysis of any useful information from the front line. Wouldn't that make you blind and deaf?
But he was worried again, what should be done with the reform of Huanhai if Li Xiang was not in the Tang Dynasty?
"It's not impossible for you to follow me," Li Shimin said, changing the subject: "But if you follow me to Liaodong, what about the reforms in the Tang Dynasty?"

"Aren't there Quan Wanji and Feng Qing?" Li Xiang scratched his head and said, "With the two of them here, there will be no problem - if Grandfather feels that the two of them are not enough, he can bring in Second Uncle and Youngest Uncle. They are idle anyway, so they might as well go and help Quan Wanji and Feng Qing to keep things under control." "Regarding the trade of the Grand Marshal's Office, you can also call on Aunt Gao Yang. She knows everything about this and there will be no problem." Li Xiang added.

Li Shimin nodded and said, "Okay, let's do as you say."

After that, Li Shimin said, "You have to think about it carefully. Liaodong is a bitter and cold place, and the battlefield is not as comfortable as being in the rear. If you can't bear the hardship, you are not allowed to come back crying!"

"You said the same thing before you went to Shuozhou last year." Li Xiang glanced at Li Shimin.

Li Shimin:...

This grandson!
Say one word, and there are a hundred words waiting!

"Hmph." Old Li snorted and said nothing.

Pei Xingjian and Su Dingfang looked at each other and saw the emotion in each other's eyes.

Everyone knows that the Prince of Hengshan is favored, but no one would have thought that the saint would favor him to this extent!

The relationship between the two was just like that between an ordinary grandparent and grandchild, with no barriers or restraints at all.

When I returned to the Governor's Mansion... No, it should be called the Grand Governor's Mansion now.

In the Grand Marshal's Mansion, Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Gong were fighting over oysters.

Feng Qing was not in the Grand Marshal's Office, and he did not know the news of his upcoming promotion.

After all, the Chief Secretary of the Military Governor's Office was only a fifth-rank official position, while the Chief Secretary of the Grand Military Governor's Office was a third-rank official position that was easily promoted.

You should know that the Tang Dynasty was different from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The third rank was already the highest-ranking official, and higher ranks were generally not easily granted to ministers.

In half a year, Feng Qing had made a leap from a seventh-rank county magistrate to a third-rank chief of the Dengzhou Grand Military Governor's Office...

Speaking of which, it is somewhat like a fairy tale.

"Yizhen, Jingde." Li Shimin laughed and teased: "Why are you two still fighting over food?"

Seeing Li Shimin walking in from outside, the two stopped fighting over food, stood up and greeted Li Shimin.

"I have met your Majesty."

"Okay." Li Shimin motioned for them to sit down: "There are no outsiders here, so please sit down."

The two old guys didn't bother to be polite with Lao Li and immediately sat down and continued to grab food.

"Mr. Lu, Mr. E, have some of that." Li Xiang pointed at the scallops on the other side with a wink: "In fact, in addition to oysters, scallops are also good. The taste is similar, but the texture is better."

"Can it improve sexual performance?" Yuchi Gong asked concisely.

"No." Li Xiang answered truthfully.

"Then I won't eat it." Yuchi Gong answered concisely again.

Cheng Yaojin didn't care and immediately pushed the oyster in front of him to Yuchi Gong.

"You don't want to eat anymore?" Yuchi Gong asked puzzledly.

"I don't need this. I usually eat a lot of beef stew. I'd better have some scallops." Cheng Yaojin smiled and took the scallops from Yuchi Gong's pot.

"Oh, right, Prince." Cheng Yaojin looked up and said, "I brought Chouniu with me this time, as well as Jingren and the others. They all said they wanted to follow you to gain some experience, so I brought them all here and let you decide."

As they spoke, Li Jingren and a few others also came out from the inner room.

He first saluted Li Shimin, then rushed to Li Xiangshi and shouted "brother".

"Are you all here?" Li Xiang pressed them down and said with emotion, "I haven't seen you for a long time. You really want to kill me!"

This is a bit heartless. In fact, his mind is full of building Dengzhou and bringing benefits to the people. He really didn't think about his brothers.

But the brothers must have taken it seriously. Wei Daijia pounded his chest and cried.

Li Xiang was still complaining in his heart, "Why are you, a 12-year-old boy, here to join in the fun? The Navy is not a place for a child of your age to join in the fun?"

"Since all the brothers are here, I will treat you to something good today." Li Xiang said with a smile.

"What to eat?" Wei Daijia came back to his senses immediately.

"Let's have a seafood feast." Li Xiang rubbed his head.

As he said that, he turned to look at Lao Li: "Aunt, my brothers and I are going out to play——"

"Go, go--" Li Shimin waved his hands impatiently.

Li Xiang brought his brothers to the inner courtyard of the Governor's Mansion. After giving some instructions to Fu Bao, he helped them move stools and tables.

When sitting down, Li Xiang saw that Li Jingren looked obviously depressed.

"Jingren, what's wrong with you?" Li Xiang asked with concern.

Li Jingren sighed and shook his head heavily.

What happened? Li Xiang was completely confused. Was he boiled? Or what?

"Did someone cook this?" Li Xiang asked Cheng Chubi who was standing beside him.

Cheng Chubi patted Li Jingren on the shoulder and said sympathetically, "Brother, you don't know, this is what happened..."

(First update sent)

(End of this chapter)