Chapter 558 Minzhong Pavilion rises from the top of the mountain
Youzhou.
In the east wall of the outer city, a high pavilion rose from the ground. At the top of the pavilion, Wu Huaiyu, the governor of Youzhou, rang the big bell.
The first time I hit it, the sound was low.
The sound of the bell spread far away. Wherever the bell sounded, all the officials and people of Youzhou stopped what they were doing. Whether they were people walking on the road or those busy doing things, they all stood in awe, and then bowed towards the place where the bell rang.
A boy on the roadside asked his father in confusion, "Aye, why don't you leave and why do you have to bow?"
The man pushing a cart selling roasted sweet potatoes and boiled corn on the roadside looked solemn. He rubbed his son's head, "Because this is a death knell. This bell is a sign of respect and mourning for the deceased."
"Who died? Is it the governor of Yacheng?"
"Don't be ridiculous, this death knell was tolled by Governor Wu personally for the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty who died in the last battle of Yehuling, guarding the country's gate against the Turks," the man told his young son, where the bell rang in the east of the city.
, is a newly built attic named Minzhong.
Around the Minzhong Pavilion, a Minzhong Temple will be built, in which monuments and pagodas will be erected, and tablets of the Tang soldiers who died in the Battle of Yehuling will be placed, and sacrifices will be made at all times to commemorate them forever.
These are the notices that the Metropolitan Governor's Office announced throughout the city a few days ago, including today the Metropolitan Governor himself rang the funeral bell in Minzhong Pavilion to start the memorial activities.
Although the man is just a civilian in Youzhou City, he also knows that the peace and stability at the end of this year cannot be separated from the dedication and sacrifice of these soldiers, and he must be grateful and remember them.
clang.
Another bell rang, this time very high-pitched, which meant that those soldiers sacrificed their lives for the country and deserved respect.
In the Battle of Yehuling, the Tang army lost more than 3,000 soldiers, and many more were injured and disabled.
Now the corpses of every fallen soldier have been transported back to Youzhou from outside the Great Wall, and the Ming Zhong Temple has been suspended. After offering sacrifices and memorial services, Wu Huaiyu will send people to take their corpses back to their hometowns, so that their souls can return to their hometown and their fallen leaves can return to their roots.
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This was a considerable additional expense, time-consuming and labor-intensive, but Wu Huaiyu insisted and specially approved the money and silk.
Because they deserve it, and they deserve it.
Along with the bodies of the soldiers, there will also be their belongings, as well as their pensions and rewards for killing the enemy.
Wu Huaiyu even wrote a short condolence letter to the families of each fallen soldier, more than 3,000 letters, all handwritten by himself, and he wrote them day and night for many days.
He also promised that if any of these soldiers had orphans who had no one to care for them, he would be willing to help raise them. If there were elderly people who had no one to care for them, he would also be willing to fulfill his obligations.
The third bell was very heavy.
The whole city of Youzhou was solemn and mourned together.
These days, the Youzhou Governor's Office has been publicizing the heroic deeds of these soldiers. Even the traffickers and foot soldiers can understand that it is this group of young soldiers who protect Youzhou.
It was they who came out of the border in an emergency during the twelfth lunar month of winter and fought in the ice and snow of Yehuling. They fought fiercely with a Turkic army that was several times their own. They fought bloody battles for three days and three nights, killing more than 50,000 people and capturing more than 10,000 prisoners.
They achieved an impressive casualty ratio of one to twenty.
After this battle, more than 3,000 heroic souls rested outside the Great Wall, and more than 2,000 soldiers were permanently disabled and had to retire from the army.
Yehuling was a great victory. Wu Huaiyu's rewards had even come down. He was granted the title of Grand Governor and the Protector of Andong. He was granted the title of 400 additional households. He was also rewarded with 10,000 pieces of silk. He also received the hundred hectares of land that Luo Yi had confiscated and several buildings.
Manor etc.
Everything is still, and only the death knell is ringing between heaven and earth.
The little boy also followed his father in bowing to Minzhong Temple.
When the bell stopped ringing, everyone did not immediately regain their composure.
In the newly built market shops, the shopkeepers of each store took out the white lanterns prepared in advance and hung them at the door.
Some people even took out paper money and scattered it, and some burned it at the door.
Someone is crying.
Youzhou fell into solemnity and sorrow. The war in Yehuling was not unrelated to the people of Youzhou. The bloody battles and sacrifices of those soldiers were not anyone else's business.
Wu Huaiyu proposed that the soldiers and civilians of Youzhou come together to mourn the fallen soldiers, hoping to make everyone more united.
This is a common home, and when facing foreign enemies, we all have a community with a shared future.
In this way, the soldiers will have a higher sense of honor and mission, and they will understand better why they are fighting, not just for fame and fortune. And the people will understand the protection of the soldiers, and they will naturally be able to share the same hatred and the enemy, and the soldiers and civilians will help each other.
"Yeah, I want to be a soldier when I grow up," the little boy suddenly said.
The man selling sweet potatoes and corn from the cart said, "Not everyone is qualified to be a soldier. Soldiers are the guardians of the saints. They are a brave and noble group of people. If you want to be a soldier, you must not only be brave and strong, but first of all
You have to have more wealth at home, and then more children,”
"I will definitely be tall and brave when I grow up." said the little boy.
But the man just rubbed his head and continued to push the car forward. However, he no longer shouted today and just walked slowly along the street silently.
To ordinary people, the Fu soldiers were a group of people who were at a high level. He used to think that they were people from two different worlds, but today, he felt that these people were actually very close to everyone.
There were more than 600,000 soldiers in the Tang Dynasty, and all of them had to be at least rich peasant landlords. They had to prepare clothes and horses. Even when fighting, they not only had to prepare their own clothes, food, swords and arrows, but also horses and retinues.
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Compared to Western countries such as Persia, Rome, and Frank, the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty were their knights and nobles.
In order to support their families, ordinary people do not rest for a moment. How can they be ready to go to war at any time? They even often participate in training camps. Not to mention that practicing martial arts consumes a lot of money. Not only do they eat a lot of food, but they also often have to eat meat, not to mention.
He said that he needed a horse, and even one was definitely not enough. He also had to practice archery and spear training. Unless the family was a small landowner, they would not be able to afford it.
Anyone who can be selected to join the army must have an unusual family. They are either officials and nobles, or they are powerful nobles. They must be at least a small landowner, and they must have many brothers in the family, otherwise they will not be able to do it alone.
But being able to become a guard in the imperial army has a bright future. Not only will you have military land, but you will also be free of rent, and you may even have the opportunity to be rewarded for your meritorious service, and even be honored as an official.
Being a soldier, like studying, is something that the poor cannot afford.
To study, you have to hand over the study, buy paper, pen, ink and inkstone, buy books, and go out of work to support yourself. Moreover, it does not take just one or two years to study, or even ten or eight years is not enough.
Why is martial arts not like this?
Ordinary people can only live a life of hard work.
"Aye, I don't want to grow up selling sweet potatoes. I also want to be a soldier. In the future, I will go to the Minzhong Temple and have the Grand Governor ring the bell for me."
The little boy didn't wait for the Governor to ring the bell for him, but instead waited for his father to shudder, "Don't talk nonsense."
"You and I don't have that much luck, but being able to sell sweet potatoes is a blessing brought to us by the Governor."
After Wu Huaiyu rang the bell, he walked down to the Minzhong Pavilion. This place used to be a temple, and it was also home to the third-level sect. After Wu Huaiyu came, he abandoned this place and now it is changed to the Minzhong Temple.
The temple has not yet been built, but it contains the remains of more than 3,000 soldiers.
Walking among the remains of these fallen soldiers makes people feel heavy. During the war, we could not care about individual lives, but at this moment we can truly feel the harm of war.
This winter, Youzhou will no longer be disturbed by Turks, and this New Year, everyone will live a stable life, "Go, return your soul to your hometown, go back to the place where you were born and raised, and go back to your parents,"
After leaving the Minzhong Temple, Wu Huaiyu returned to the Governor's Mansion in Yacheng.
The Youzhou Governor's Mansion was promoted. Not only Wu Huaiyu was directly promoted to the Grand Governor, but all the officials in the Governor's Mansion were basically honored this time. They were all promoted. Although most people's current ranks have not changed for the time being, at least their positions were directly promoted.
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Opportunities like this are rare.
The upgrade of the Youzhou Governor's Office and the new establishment of the Anton Governor's Office have added a large number of official positions. The emperor has told Wu Huaiyu that the imperial court will arrange half of them, and Wu Huaiyu will arrange the remaining half himself.
He can either be promoted from the lower prefectures, or he can conquer them directly.
Wu Huaiyu now issues appointment certificates every day, not only recruiting many scholars from Hebei, but also directly arranging many of his ministers to the two governments.
If you know your roots and know your roots, you can promote talents and appoint them to their best.
After the war, Youzhou was filled with a positive atmosphere with some excitement, mixed with some sadness, and was very busy.
The New Year is approaching, and there are more things to do after the war, including various aftermaths, compensation, and comfort. "Cui Dunli, the minister of the Ministry of War, has already set off from Chang'an and is on his way to Youzhou. He is still on the way, but he has already sent a letter to the inn to send him off quickly.
Come, ask us to prepare for the verification of the battle achievements in the battle of Yehuling, and ask for the verification of heads and corpses, both the enemy and ourselves..."
Wu Huaiyu waved his hand to interrupt Duan Shen, "This is the proper procedure. If you need to cooperate, you can cooperate."
"Don't you believe us? Besides, our governor's office has also verified it several times. Now the head and body have been abandoned in the ditch of Yehuling for so many days. Even though the weather is cold and the ground is freezing, it will not rot for a while.
But how can this crow eagle, wild wolf fox, and even tiger mice be counted? They are willing to count it seriously, and they must be sorry. "
"Don't worry about whether it's right or not. Let's cooperate in the verification. The result is their business," Wu Huaiyu was very calm. The results of the battle at Yehuling were amazing, but there was no false report and he was not afraid of investigation at all.
Even if the number of corpses cannot be determined by inspection by then, there is no need to worry.
"We'll just wait for them to come forward and cooperate fully,"
"Now that they haven't arrived yet, you have to take care of another important matter first. Find out the identity, place of origin, military merit, etc. of the fallen soldiers, and set up files one by one. We must send people to send their bodies back to their homes as soon as possible.
To their families, the Governor's Mansion will first give them their merit rewards, pensions, and funeral expenses. After they are delivered to their homes, the situation at their homes must be truthfully checked and registered.
When the time comes, we will still have to take care of those who are lonely, widowed, old and weak,"
Despite these, the imperial court actually had its own set of systems and regulations, but the imperial court had its own procedures, which took time. Wu Huaiyu still wanted to do things faster. The grief of his family members dying in war took time to heal, but family life needed more money and food support.
Especially at this sad time, even if many soldiers' families are in good condition, they are still the backbone of the family. Their death will inevitably have a great impact on the family and even cause difficulties.
"Brothers who are disabled, we must also pay out pensions as soon as possible. We must find ways to help those who are disabled and retired."
Wu Huaiyu paid more attention to these wounded and killed soldiers than ever before, perhaps because he was standing in a higher position.
"Also, the Minzhong Temple in Youzhou should be built as soon as possible. Yehuling Badgerzui, a Martyrs' Shrine should be built on the battlefield, and a monument should be built."
Duan Shen wrote them down one by one,
"Brothers who survived, don't forget that arrangements need to be made for disbandment and rest, and the court has to verify the merit books. The rewards will not be issued for a while, but our own seizures can be distributed to the brothers as usual. In addition, we can advance
I will give you a reward in advance, and I will deduct it after the official reward is given. The Chinese New Year is coming soon, let me have a warm and prosperous New Year for my brothers."
"Last time we sold the more than 10,000 Turkic prisoners and the captured livestock. Except for the war horses, which were kept for military use, the rest of the livestock were also sold. From these sales, 100,000 guan was sent to Chang'an to the saints and saints.
The imperial court has left another 100,000 guans to the Youzhou Governor's Mansion and the Andong Governor's Mansion, how much is left?"
"After excluding what has been used, and then deducting the two hundred thousand, there will be about three hundred thousand guan left,"
"Is there still so much?" Wu Huaiyu thought for a while, "This time we have dispatched more than 30,000 troops in Youzhou, so let's distribute the remaining 300,000 guan to the soldiers. Those who are alive will die in battle.
All the wounded and disabled will have a share. To put it simply, don’t divide the border troops, government troops, camp troops, city soldiers, and disciples. Unite these, no matter how big or small the official position is, one person will be given ten guans first, and the rest will be
Then according to the official position, different military conditions, etc.
Send them all away.”
Duan Shen was a little surprised, this was a large amount of money.
"There are about 300,000 yuan left, all of them should be given away?"
"Send it away,"
"If you don't ask the court for instructions? What if you are held accountable?"
"This is what our Youzhou soldiers captured from the battlefield prisoners. It should belong to the soldiers. Now we have used half of it for military use and handed it over to Chang'an and Liufu. Only half of it has been distributed. Is this still wrong?"
"Then why not just pay them based on their official rank?"
"Stop talking so much, just go and do it."
Each person was given ten guan of money first, which was considered a considerable welfare reward for every soldier who participated in this battle. Official rewards did not include this.
Duan Shen smiled and wrote down Huaiyu's arrangements, but did not leave in a hurry.
"The imperial court newly established the Andong Protectorate, elevated Youzhou to the Grand Governor's Palace, and appointed Duke Wu to serve as the Grand Governor of Youzhou and the Protector of Andong, as well as the commander-in-chief of the march on Heng'an Road. There is no intention of letting Duke Wu return to the court immediately.
?”
"The Northern Expedition has not started yet, what should I do now?" Huaiyu also knew very well that he would not go back immediately. In fact, staying in Youzhou was not bad. Apart from missing his wife and children in Chang'an, everything else was fine.
"Next year's Northern Expedition, can Duke Wu become a marshal?"
"The leader of the Northern Expeditionary Army will be my teacher Yongkang Gong. This was decided long ago."
"Actually, everyone thinks that after the Battle of Yehuling, next year's Northern Expedition, Duke Wu will be more suitable to be promoted to the commander-in-chief of destroying the Tutu,"
Wu Huaiyu glanced at Duan Shen and said, "The imperial court has its own arrangements. We in Youzhou have already received enough benefits from this victory, so don't be greedy anymore." He reminded Duan Shen not to make any small moves, especially in Chang'an.
After Cui Dunli, the Minister of War, and others arrived.
"Don't let the court think that we in Youzhou are arrogant and have become the top of a mountain."
