In any case, Zhu Yixi spared no effort to arm his only army and act as a kind of fire.
It was the fifth day of the sixth lunar month in the sixteenth year of Chongzhen.
The plague camp accommodated more than 40,000 plague patients throughout Xi'an Prefecture.
Similarly, hundreds of corpses were carried out of the camp every day.
Zhu Yixi personally presided over the funeral ceremony. The blazing flames took away the plague and made him feel a little dazed.
It is no exaggeration to say that very few patients in the plague camp recovered, and almost all of them died. Watching them die in front of his eyes made him feel that something was wronging others.
"This is the plague. The plague in the late Ming Dynasty almost determined the course of history!"
Zhu Yixi murmured in a low voice, looking towards the crowded plague camp in the distance. According to the registration information, there would be mass deaths in the next few days.
"Go and prepare more firewood. I'm afraid it won't be enough in two days."
"Yes!" Zhu Yi on the side hurriedly accepted with his hands in hand.
After two months of training by him, Zhu Yi and Zhu Shuang had matured a lot and knew how to read, so they were assigned to the orphan camp as captain and deputy captain, while the remaining eight people still served as personal guards.
Zhu Yixi nodded with satisfaction and said: "Remember, you must wear a mask and don't have any contact with them. The plague doesn't pick anyone."
"Understood!" Zhu Yi and Zhu Shuang agreed solemnly.
"Is everyone here?"
Zhu Yixi looked at the group of people standing in a square queue.
"Sect Master, everyone is here."
"That's good!"
Zhu Yixi nodded, then clapped his hands, and the boys came over carrying the box. He opened it directly, and there was shining silver inside.
"You guys have worked hard guarding the plague camp. This is your salary."
Hearing this sentence, the teenagers immediately started chattering. They didn't expect that even with food and accommodation included, they would still have money. They were all overjoyed.
"Line up and come one by one!" Zhu Yi hurriedly gave instructions.
The silver coins have all been cut, weighed, one by two, and neatly numbered.
Zhu Yixi was standing there, and when someone came up, he handed out a piece of silver.
"Thank you, sect master!" The leading young man, who was skinny, saw the affable Zhu Yixi and couldn't help but imitate Zhu Yi's tone and shouted affectionately.
"How can you talk!" Zhu Yi was dissatisfied. This belongs to his old Zhu family, so what do outsiders call him?
"Nothing!" Zhu Yixi didn't mind, he smiled and said: "You can call me whatever you want, as friendly as you want."
If the city of Xi'an wasn't nearby, Zhu Yixi would even be willing to consider all of these one hundred orphans as adopted sons.
Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang adopted more than a hundred adopted sons to conquer the world and serve as vanguards.
"Thank you, Master -"
"Thank you, Sect Master..."
The people behind him followed suit, and after a while, a box of silver, which was one hundred taels, was quickly consumed.
Every orphan who received the silver from his hands was happy and burst into tears.
We have been suffering from hunger and cold for many years, but has it ever happened like this?
"Who gave you enough food?" Zhu Yi walked over grandly and shouted.
"Sect Master——" everyone shouted in unison.
"Who gave you clothes to wear, a bed to sleep on, and money to give you?"
"metropolitan!"
"Who taught you how to read and earn your own living?"
"metropolitan--"
By the third question, the teenagers screamed even more, their faces bloodshot.
"Okay!" Zhu Yi nodded with satisfaction, waved his arms, and shouted: "Death for the sect master——"
"Death for the sect master -" the young men roared with all their strength, using all their strength.
The sound went straight to the sky.
Zhu Yixi nodded with satisfaction, then walked down, inspecting one by one, pulling his sleeves and patting his shoulders from time to time, making the orphans burst into tears with emotion.
Although the trick is old-fashioned, it is practical.
The habits of soldiers and generals in the late Ming Dynasty were too disgusting. It would be better to imitate Yuan Datou and personally pay the soldiers to directly establish an image in the hearts of the soldiers.
At noon, when he arrived at the epidemic prevention camp, the first thing Zhu Yixi checked was the military situation.
"Have you got the flintlocks ready?"
"Sect Master, a thousand flintlock guns are in place, and the men are practicing every day!"
As the chief instructor, Zhu Meng has mastered everything from the orphan army to the current epidemic prevention camp with ease and ease.
"But what about the other thousand people?"
Zhu Meng said doubtfully.
"In addition, these thousand or five hundred people are organized into an artillery battalion."
Zhu Yixi looked at the uniform team and felt quite satisfied. He said softly:
"The French cannon, the squatting tiger cannon, and the red cannon all need people. I will let the prince teach them how to become gunners."
"For the other five hundred people, let's use cannons for the time being!"
Sighing, Zhu Yixi said: "The blunderbuss is easy to use and more powerful, but it is slower."
The blunderbuss, that is, the matchlock gun, is actually complicated in action, and will function abnormally once there is tension on the battlefield, but its power cannot be underestimated.
Especially when no corners are cut.
"How about the armor?"
"After some repairs, about 1,200 pairs can be used."
"How is the practice of King Qianning's three-part shooting going?"
As early as the early Ming Dynasty, when Mu Ying was marching to the west, he was accustomed to using fire blunderbuss to shoot in three stages. The continuous firing of muskets drove the natives to defeat.
"Already practicing." Zhu Meng nodded seriously, and then said: "Sect Master, three-stage shooting may be suitable for bird cannons, but the flintlock gun is very fast, and five-stage shooting should be possible."
"You can try!"
Zhu Yixi smiled. He was very smart and couldn't help but said: "Such multiple shots will continue to sound, which is enough to form a powerful force. You must be able to use it."
"I understand!" A smile appeared on Zhu Meng's honest face.
Zhu Yixi immediately said: "Let them gather them, it's time to pay them."
"All assembled——"
Zhu Meng shouted hurriedly.
After a month of training, this group of soldiers formed a habitual reflex, and after a while, they formed a group.
Zhu Meng put his hands on his hips and cursed: "You guys are too late again. If you do this again next time, you won't be allowed to eat meat."
"Yes!" everyone wailed.
"Today, Inspector Zhu is coming to pay his salary. You should line up and come one by one."
At this time, everyone jumped for joy.
Even so, since they are all honest people, the queues are orderly.
Unlike the orphan camp, the monthly salary is one to two or five cents in silver and will never be in arrears.
Boxes of silver put smiles on everyone's faces.
Zhu Yixi's hands sent out the hair one by one, and along with the thanks, Zhu Yixi's hands also felt a little sore.
However, he persisted.
Zhu Meng then asked: "Who pays you?"
"Inspector Zhu!"
"louder!!"
"Inspector Zhu——"
With the shouts one after another, Zhu Yixi became more and more satisfied.