My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 416 The Protectorate of Andong

After Yang Sizhong submitted his memorial, Su Ze quickly submitted his own in agreement. This time, the emperor and the cabinet had no further objections and directly approved the memorial.

The Protectorate General of Andong was only nominally powerful; in reality, Duan Hui and Li Chengliang's positions remained unchanged.

Oh no, the biggest change should be that their administrative center was moved from Liaoyang, Liaoning, to Changchun, Jilin in later years.

The more Su Ze thought about it, the more he felt that Yang Sizhong's move was truly brilliant.

The establishment of the Andong Protectorate was a newly created institution. Its capital, Changchun, was not even under the complete control of the Ming Dynasty. The territory of the Andong Protectorate was entirely copied from the Tang Dynasty map, which was "never before seen".

For the emperor and the cabinet, such a newly established institution was a convenient and easy thing to do.

If it succeeds, everyone will be happy; if it fails, the expansion will be a failure, but it won't have much impact on the imperial court.

Such an organization can be bolder in hiring, without being bound by seniority and prestige.

And this setting is quite ingenious.

With the Protector-General of the Protectorate in name only, neither Li Chengliang nor Duan Hui could effectively combine military and political power.

Frontier expansion naturally requires military commanders to take the lead and be given a certain degree of military autonomy. Therefore, Li Chengliang was appointed as the deputy protector-general and was not under the control of Duan Hui.

Duan Hui, as the Protectorate Commander, was in charge of civil affairs, which Li Chengliang could not interfere with.

These two had a long-standing feud while in Liaoyang, but they still managed to maintain stability there, making them a reassuring combination.

This only shows that Yang Sizhong truly has the wisdom to select and appoint people.

For Li Chengliang and Duan Hui, this was a very strong temptation.

If the Andong Protectorate handles this matter well, its future will be very different!

Even this suspended Grand Protector is bait to lure them forward; the two will surely try their best to achieve something.

Su Ze now understood why only 80 prestige points were needed to accomplish this task.

If I had consulted Yang Sizhong earlier, wouldn't I have been able to save these prestige points?
Su Ze sighed; the ways of officialdom truly are a never-ending learning process!
Ministry of official affairs.

Tang Jinxing felt a mixture of joy and worry.

The good news is that the task entrusted to me by my fellow villager Li Chengliang has been completed successfully, and the results are quite good.

The worrying thing is that the effect seems to be too good, and Li Chengliang has also been drawn into it.

What's even more worrying is that he was summoned to the office of Zhang Siwei, the Wenxuan Lang, as soon as he arrived at the Ministry of Personnel today.

Tang Jinxing didn't know why Zhang Siwei had summoned him, but he had a bad feeling.

After exchanging pleasantries, Zhang Siwei said:
"There is a shortage of talent in Liaodong, and they have repeatedly written to the court requesting assistance."

"Now that the Minister has proposed the establishment of the Andong Protectorate, all departments and government offices must send personnel to support it."

"Minister Yang has called your name. The Andong Protectorate is short of a military officer in charge of agricultural settlements. Go and take up your post now."

Upon hearing this, Tang Jinxing almost collapsed to the ground!
He knew how remote the Andong Protectorate was, but he never expected to get involved.

Tang Jinxing looked helplessly at Zhang Siwei, who also sighed and said:

"Your name contains the character for 'prudent conduct,' so how come you don't understand the principle of being careful in your words and actions?"

After saying this, Zhang Siwei handed the appointment document directly to Tang Jinxing and ordered him to report to Liaoyang within a specified period. Then, he was to follow Li Chengliang's troops north to set up the Anbei Protectorate headquarters.

After Tang Jinxing left in a daze, Zhang Siwei sneered again.

Su Zegang submitted a memorial requesting the northward expansion, and Tang Jinxing, a fellow townsman of Li Chengliang, spread rumors about Duan Hui in the Ministry of Personnel, hoping that Minister Yang would send Duan Hui to oversee the northward expansion.
Could Zhang Siwei not see through Li Chengliang's tricks?

If Zhang Siwei could see it clearly, then Yang Sizhong, the Minister of Personnel, must have seen it even more clearly.

How could you petty scoundrels possibly control or manipulate Minister Yang?

Tang Jinxing is the most ridiculous. If you don't want people to know, then don't do it in the first place. He didn't know that the rumors he spread had been heard by Minister Yang.

How can you be allowed to work in the Ministry of Personnel?

Zhang Siwei snorted coldly, then his brows furrowed again.

Zhang Siwei hadn't expected that Su Ze and Li Chengliang would have such a close relationship.

Unbeknownst to him, Su Ze had already woven a vast network, and his circle of connections was even larger than that of himself, a mere civil official.

Zhang Siwei couldn't help but feel anxious.

Su Ze and Zhang Siwei were both students of Gao Gong. Whoever could inherit Gao Gong's political legacy would be able to enter the cabinet and become a Grand Secretary.

But now it seems that Su Ze doesn't need this step anymore.

But if that's the case, wouldn't I be suppressed by Su Ze for the rest of my life?

Should we secretly befriend the border general to impeach Su Ze?

Zhang Siwei shook his head. Gao Gong hated his disciples fighting each other. If he did something and it got out, it would cause his master to dislike him, and he would lose more than he gained.

But what if we let this continue and the Soviet faction really spreads throughout the government and the country?
Zhang Siwei frowned, but he had no better solution. He suppressed his frustration and continued with his work.
-
"Commander, our Zhenbei Army is heading north!"

Hearing Xia Zhongxiao excitedly tell him the news, Li Rusong felt a little disappointed.

Xia Zhongxiao was a native of Jiliao Military Town, so he naturally chose the Zhenbei Army.

Now that the Annamese army has marched south, news of Zhu Shikun's achievements has reached the capital. The "New Yuefu Daily" even dedicated a page to reporting on Zhu Shikun's military exploits.

Following this, some scholars adapted Zhu Shikun's story of scouting and killing enemies into plays, and these new plays quickly caused a sensation in the capital.

Li Rusong was well aware that the Duke of Cheng's mansion was behind this, trying to elevate Zhu Shikun to a high position.

But as a soldier, who doesn't want to make a name for themselves?
Seeing that his peers had already made great contributions, and now the Zhenbei Army was about to head north, how could Li Rusong not feel frustrated?

Xia Zhongxiao said cautiously:

"Um, Master Ban, what about your father?"

Li Rusong nodded and said:
“I’ll write to my father right away and ask him to take good care of you.”

"Thank you, Commander!"

After the news of the establishment of the Anbei Protectorate spread, his fellow soldiers from the Zhenbei Army came to visit him in droves.

The reason is quite simple: his father, Li Chengliang, was appointed as the deputy protector-general, and the Zhenbei Army's northward march was under the command of the Anbei Protectorate.

Xia Zhongxiao said:
"Ban Zheng, all I need is for my uncle to give me a chance to fight!"

Li Rusong nodded; those who came to ask him for help basically all made this request.

Xia Zhongxiao said:
"Ban Zheng, do you want to talk to your uncle and ask him to transfer you to our Zhenbei Army as well? You'll have a chance to make a name for yourself if you serve under him."

Li Rusong thought for a moment, then shook his head. He had chosen the Khmer Rouge Army because he admired Qi Jiguang, enjoyed studying cavalry tactics, and didn't want to be under his father's protection.

A true man should rely on his own abilities to achieve success!

Just like Zhu Shikun.

Thinking of this, Li Rusong felt even more depressed.

It's all because Commander Qi is too mighty. Now that the grasslands are at peace, I don't know when my cavalry will be able to put them to use.

Xia Zhongxiao suddenly said, "It's a pity that graduation will be delayed again."

Logically, their class should have graduated by the end of June.

However, the Annamese army is fighting in Guangxi, and now the Zhenbei army is about to head north. The Ministry of War is also having a headache about how to handle this graduation assessment.

July happened to be the start of the new term of military academy students' enrollment, so the Ministry of War simply submitted a memorial to the court, requesting a postponement of the graduation of this first term of military academy students.

The emperor naturally approved, but the result was that they would postpone their graduation until the end of the year, until the cabinet and the Ministry of War could come up with a reasonable graduation assessment.

No wonder the cabinet is having a headache.

In a normal plan, the graduation assessment for the military academy would consist of a military strategy exam and practical training exercises, and then students would be ranked according to their scores.

However, the first batch of military academy students were too special, as they happened to be there when the new Beijing garrison was established, and they were already officers in the new army.

Now that the Annamese army has gone to the battlefield, conducting such a test is far too frivolous.

There is a huge difference between an officer who has experienced actual combat and an officer who has not, both in terms of military theory and practice. Using this method to assess them is really unfair to military cadets who have never been on the battlefield.

Upon hearing this, Su Ze realized that the original timeline was the same.

The military academy was established not long ago, but it was caught up in several wars. Many of the academy students had just left the battlefield and were already commanders of a brigade or battalion.

The first batch of students in the Martial Arts Academy were the luckiest, as they had several opportunities. It is likely that in the future, when people mention the first batch of students in the Martial Arts Academy, they will praise the abundance of talent in this batch.

But in Su Ze's view, it was just that they had good luck.

The second batch of martial arts students were not so lucky.

The second cohort of martial arts students who entered their second year this year were not so lucky.

They also had to go to the new army for internships, but once there they could only serve as adjutants, following behind their superiors during their internships.

Moreover, all the military ranks in the new army are filled. They will have to wait until the previous batch of senior soldiers are promoted, or until the court launches the next round of new army building, before they will have a chance to obtain a regular position.

Therefore, this graduation assessment is actually more aimed at the later batches of martial arts students.

For the first cohort of martial arts students, the graduation assessment was more of an honorary achievement.

Xia Zhongxiao said:
"Class monitor, you have no idea how fierce the competition is for new students to enter the martial arts academy this year!"

Li Rusong nodded, saying that the first episode was lucky again.

Many noble families and hereditary generals were unwilling to send their sons to the first batch of military academy students, believing that this was a new tactic by the court to control their succession of titles and positions.

But now everyone has realized that the future of military academy students is very bright, and when they wanted to send their children over again, the Ministry of War changed its mind.

According to the Ministry of War, the Military Supervisory Bureau no longer accepts nobles and sons of military officers who are over twenty years old.

Before entering the Military Academy, one must take an examination. If one fails the examination, one must first study at the Military Academy's preparatory school.

The difficulty of the assessment naturally increased, meaning that if you wanted to study at the Martial Arts Academy, you had to graduate from the preparatory course first.

This further increases the difficulty of reading.

I've even heard that the preparatory course for the Military Academy now requires an exam. Does that mean we have to go to the Military Academy primary school first?
This is too outrageous.

Li Rusong was unaware that in later generations, this was the normal channel for cultivating talent. Their first batch of martial arts students were the truly absurd ones; they didn't even need to wait for assignments after graduation, and became commanding officers in the army as soon as they left the school.

Xia Zhongxiao said:
"I heard that some nobles were going to cause trouble and try to force their way into the Military Academy, but Dean Su found out about it."

"and then?"

"Dean Su told the deputy supervisor, and I heard that the deputy supervisor summoned these nobles to the Duke of Dingguo's mansion and scolded them. They promised that they would never dare to do it again."

"Ha ha!"

Li Rusong also thought that these nobles were out of their minds. He even thought that Duke Dingguo Xu Wenbi was protecting them.

If Dean Su were to impeach them, these nobles would likely face severe punishment from His Majesty the Emperor.

The Military Affairs Bureau is headed by His Majesty himself; it's not a place for them to run wild!

Li Rusong then thought of Zhu Shikun. How could there be such a big difference between people who were both sons of noble families?

Xia Zhongxiao then said:

"Now families with children of school age are rushing to send them to the preparatory school of the military academy. On the contrary, those children who are about to come of age are now cursing the court for being unfair and for age discrimination."

Xia Zhongxiao scratched his head and asked:

"Was this all planned by Dean Su? I'm not very bright, what do you think, Class Monitor?"

Li Rusong nodded and said, "That must be the case! These adult nobles and military sons have fixed ideas and views, and many of them are useless playboys. If they enter our Military Academy, they will only corrupt the atmosphere of the Military Academy."

"Let younger students attend preparatory courses and cultivate them from a young age; this is the kind of talent our military academy needs."

"Moreover, strength needs to be cultivated from a young age, and the body needs to be nurtured from childhood. I heard that the Dean of Studies has been providing milk to the preparatory students since early on, and meat is also provided in abundance. His Majesty has spent a lot of silver dollars from the Imperial Treasury for this."

Xia Zhongxiao quickly said:
"I see! Dean Su is amazing! You even thought of this when the Martial Arts Supervision Preparatory School was established?"

Li Rusong didn't know whether Su Ze did it intentionally or unintentionally, but this Dean of Studies was always known for his skill in strategizing, and many of his plans were laid out years ago.

For example, commoners could enroll in the preparatory course for military service.

When the Wujian Preparatory School was first established, it allowed local residents to recommend students for admission. The first class of the preparatory school admitted many children from ordinary families.

Many of these students came from impoverished families and were able to complete their preparatory studies thanks to the stipends and free meals provided by the preparatory program.

Actually, there were also children from poor families in the first two sessions, but they were mainly students who entered through the military examinations, and the number of them was not large.

However, nearly one-third of the students in the first batch of the preparatory course for military academy were from commoner families.

Upon further reflection on Dean Su's plan, Li Rusong felt it contained profound meaning and was definitely something that had been planned long in advance.

As the military academy became more and more formalized, it became necessary to enroll in the preparatory course of the military academy. However, the preparatory course of the military academy had already reserved a certain number of places for children of commoners.

Thinking of these nobles, who painstakingly planned to establish the Imperial Guard around His Majesty in an attempt to increase their influence, only to have their plans thwarted by Dean Su, who tore open a gap in the military system for commoners to rise through the ranks.

Li Rusong couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

Trying to outsmart Dean Su is a waste; all those nobles combined wouldn't stand a chance!
(End of this chapter)