The military pay came, and the soldiers cried. I have been waiting for many days and months, and the family has no rice to make a pot. If the wife and children don’t pay the pay, they will really not be able to live.

Hong Chengchou also cried. The Ming army had 130,000 elite infantry and cavalrymen in the entire Guanning Jin defense line. That was said to be a fool. He said this to Huang Taiji and Chongzhen. To this day, all the civil and military officials still thought that there were 130,000 elite Ming soldiers in Ji Liao area.

The court paid the salary according to the heads of 130,000 soldiers. In fact, only Hong Chengchou knew how many people there were.

In fact, to the death, the Guanningjin defense line is less than 80,000 people.

Have the rest gone there? Have you been given a salary? You can say that or not.

At this time, the Ming Dynasty was so bad that Zhang Wenheng, deputy director of the Dog Traitors Academy of the Qing Dynasty, once told Huang Taiji: All civil and military officials were bought by money. The civil and military officials were not scheming, and the military did not have courage. Those who control military horses would overcome military money; those who make equipment would reduce official money. Soldiers were living in poverty and equipment would not be practical. What was the intention to use their lives? Whenever they went to war, they would take advantage of the king and plunder. As the saying goes, "Tartars, thieves are combs, and their own troops are as good as combs." How good are there for many soldiers? Moreover, eunuchs are powerless, like money and flattery, and rewards and punishments are unwilling to do things. Good officials who are not in charge of work are unwilling to stand up. They are both lying in the middle and outside, and everything is very bad.

Could it be that Hong Chengchou is also paying a vacant salary? No, it doesn’t.

The court paid military pay according to the heads of the soldiers on the Guanning Jin Defense Line every year, so it could maintain a war army. Is this amount of military pay enough? First of all, the maintenance of military weapons, the replacement of materials, and the miscellaneous expenses in the army, so the court ignored all these.

What to do? The court could only think of a solution. Since Yuan Chonghuan, he could only take the method of lying about the head. At this time, Hong Chengchou had indeed had 130,000 soldiers under his command, but there were only less than 80,000. The remaining 50,000 people were driven home to make a living.

Take Guanning Iron Cavalry as an example. Why can Guanning Iron Cavalry fight? It is not that they are so loyal to the court, but that most of the soldiers of Guanning Iron Cavalry were recruited from the entire Liaodong and western regions. Once Jiannu broke in, the wives, children and young people of these soldiers were affected.

In other words, the soldiers fought not for the Ming Dynasty, but for their own homes. Because their families were all here, they were much more brave when fighting.

At this time, Hong Chengchou had less than 80,000 under his command, and although the remaining 50,000 people were under the jurisdiction, they all made their own way here. Because the border could not support them.

Yang Guozhu, the general of Xuanfu, at this time, he led his subordinates to station in Rufeng Mountain on the Guanningjin defense line. Yang Guozhu, a loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty, vowed not to surrender to Huangtaiji and was shot to death by arrows.

Yang Guozhu's troops had 23,000 troops under his command. In fact, there were only 15,000 troops. The remaining 8,000 soldiers were dismissed here to make a living.

At this time, he was leading his subordinates to re-enlist these scattered soldiers. Because the military pay brought by Zhu Cixuan had already arrived.

Taoyuan Village is located in the small village north of Songshan, with several families sparsely located. There is a middle-aged man carrying a bow and arrow on his back and a turtle dove in his hand.

Although it was early spring, the weather in the north was still cold. Even by the end of February, snowflakes even rose. The abnormal weather caused the crops to fail year by year.

Even the wild animals on the mountain seemed to have been hiding. The man searched for a day but couldn't even find a damn hare.

In fact, the wild animals on the nearby mountains were almost hunted, and there was something to fight there. Everyone's life was not easy. The man was named Wu Mingzhi, and he was originally affiliated with the soldiers under Yang Guozhu, the defender of Ji Liao.

The army layoffs and could not afford to support people like him, so they were sent to make a living. Wu Mingzhi was a bachelor, and his family was not hungry if they were full.

At this time, he was holding the turtle dove that was not as big as a palm in his hand and went to another family in the village.

This man is named Hu Jingyi, who is Wu Mingzhi's best friend. Hu Jingyi has two daughters and a wife who is ill in bed. He is also a soldier under Yang Guozhu. The two of them came to Taoyuan Village to settle down together.

The soldiers who were sent down were all voluntarily. Because there was no salary in the army, Hu Jingyi could not support his family, so he could only sign up for the resignation. Wu Mingzhi and him were good brothers, so they also came with him.

The thatched hut and wood-room make this shabby family look particularly bleak. The thatched hut made of mud is very small, and the whole family squeezes it here.

The constant coughing sounds of his wife on the hospital bed made Hu Jingyi's heart feel like a mess. The two children, the older ones, were fourteen or five years old, could find someone to marry in a few years. The younger ones were only five or six years old. The eldest daughter was called Dani, and the younger daughter was called Xiaoni.

The eldest daughter is well-behaved and sensible, and she takes care of the housework at home. At this time, the two children were staring at their father and the younger daughter's stomach, and there were groans from time to time.

There was no rice in the house and put it in the pot. Hu Jingyi sighed, walked to the corner of the wall, lifted the rice jar, and it was empty inside.

"Dad, I'm hungry." The little daughter looked up at him with a thrill of eyes, and Hu Jingyi's heart aches.

He went up the mountain to chase the wild boar half a month ago, but the wild boar failed to catch it and injured his leg. The old injury had not healed at this time and he was limping while walking.

"Good daughter, Dad will go up the mountain to catch rabbits for you." Hu Jingyi wanted to go out. He reached out to touch the bow and arrow hanging on the wall, which was his weapon. It was originally used to fight Jiannu, but at this time it became a purpose for hunting.

"Dad, it's so dark, your feet are not yet ready yet, don't go out." The eldest daughter advised sensiblely.

The wife also advised her in a burst of coughing, "Cough, her father, it's so late, you go there. Xiao Ni is so ignorant, it's all my fault for being so ignorant, which has dragged the whole family down. Cough, I might as well die, so as not to implicate you..."

Hu Jingyi sighed: "My mother, how can you say such things? With you, this is a family, and that child can have no mother. Well, my foot is almost done. I will wait for Brother Wu and I to go up the mountain to try my luck tomorrow. Maybe we will get two big wild boars and sell them for some money to get medicine for you. The doctor said, "You are cold evil entering your body, and you have to work hard. As long as you keep your care, you will get better."

"Brother Hu, I'm back." As he was speaking, Wu Mingzhi's voice sounded outside.

Hu Jingyi went over to open the door, and Wu Mingzhi patted the snowflakes on his shoulder: "This bird's weather is full of spring and it's still so heavy snow that it's not going to make people live."
Chapter completed!