How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 52 Wei Zhongxian's First Battle Against Ligdan Khan! (Please add to your favorites and read on!)
On the 18th day of the twelfth lunar month, in Xuanfu Town.

Outside the west gate of the inner city, torches crackled, casting flickering light on people's faces. Hundreds of Jingjun soldiers pushed heavy carts out of the gate, their wheels leaving deep tracks in the frozen earth. The cart lids were lifted—a blinding flash of silver! Hou Shilu's retainers had already formed a semi-circle, desperately blocking the staring soldiers from view.

"Listen up, all of you!" Hou Shilu's thunderous voice cut through the cold wind. "Eunuch Wei has raised enough money for us—a full six hundred thousand taels! That's enough for each of you to get five or six taels!" He pointed his whip at the sea of ​​heads. "As usual! All of you get to the parade ground and line up by battalion, by company commander, by flag corps! Eunuch Wei and Governor Zhu will personally distribute the pay!"

The crowd erupted in a buzz, only to be pinned down by his next words: "Pay your wages according to the roster! Pay the real soldiers! Five taels each! The rest, once we've slaughtered that dog of a Tartar, Tiger Mound Rabbit Khan, Eunuch Wei will ask His Majesty for it!" He suddenly grinned, "And add five white steamed buns—a gift from Eunuch Wei!"

"Long live!" The starving soldiers yelled until their voices were hoarse, and the fierce light in their eyes instantly turned into burning loyalty.

Hou Shilu cracked his whip: "Go!" The crowd turned sharply and surged toward the drill ground.

In the darkness, lanterns carried banners lining the camp. Soldiers, like ants returning to their nests, huddled together following the signs. Wei Zhongxian, surrounded by eunuchs, entered the arena in a silver cart. Zhu Zhifeng followed closely behind with his standard-bearers. Du Xun, the eunuch in charge of Xuanfu, helped Wei Zhongxian onto a wooden platform, several white lanterns illuminating his large, pale, treacherous face.

"Brothers of Xuanzhen!" Wei Zhongxian shouted as he swept across the drill ground, "I, Wei Zhongxian, am here by His Majesty's decree to pacify the army!" He pressed his hand down to quell the commotion, "His Majesty knows your suffering! His Majesty said, the silver—we'll scrape together every last penny for you!" He suddenly raised his voice, "His Majesty also said! Xuanzhen and Jizhen are the same! For every real Tartar head chopped off, you'll be rewarded with a hundred acres of land, your military status elevated to the Imperial Guard! Double pay! All pay will come from the Imperial Treasury, without fail!"

He took a breath and glanced at the throng of heads below: "That bastard Hudun Tu Khan has brought tens of thousands of Tartars to deliver their heads! What do you say—what do we do?!"

"Kill!" The roar shook the torches wildly.

Carts of hot steamed buns were pushed in, their steam mingling with the aroma of wheat. Wei Zhongxian waved his hand: "Distribute pay! Eat your buns!" He turned to Hou Shilu and hissed, "General Hou, you take charge! I'll be in charge right here in Xuanfu. Let's see how many heads that Tartar leader has to lose!"

Hou Shilu said urgently, "Sir, weapons have no eyes. Why don't you leave first..."

"Leave?" Wei Zhongxian's eyes narrowed. "If I leave, who will keep an eye on the silver for His Majesty? Who will watch over you beheading the Tartars?! This silver was brought from the wealthy families in Xuanfu Town. If we can't exchange it for enough real Tartar heads, won't we be devoured alive when we get back?"

……

Outside Yihai Hall in Tsinghua Garden.

Hundreds of iron pots were set up in the snow, the aroma of fatty meat mixed with the fragrance of rice and pepper filling the air. Tens of thousands of soldiers surrounded the pots and campfires, slurping down their rice from rough porcelain bowls. Emperor Chongzhen sat cross-legged between You Shiwei and Sun Zushou, holding a chipped bowl, slurping up rice soaked in hot meat broth.

"Changping is better at guarding the mausoleum, after all." Chongzhen asked vaguely, chewing on a piece of mutton, "Are there any definite numbers of actual troops?"

Yu Shiwei held the bowl, his Adam's apple bobbing: "The official number of soldiers is 15,000, but the actual number is... around 9,000."

Chongzhen nodded, then looked at Sun Zushou: "What about Jizhou?"

Sun Zushou put down his bowl: "The official number of soldiers is 120,000, but the actual number is... 80,000."

"Eighty thousand plus nine thousand, plus ten thousand Imperial Guards." Chongzhen wiped his mouth, his eyes reflecting the leaping campfire. "With one hundred thousand elite troops at my disposal, why should I fear the Tartars?" He suddenly smiled. "I understand the matter of empty salaries. Without actual pay, where do the actual troops come from? It's not your fault."

You Shiwei's eyes welled up with tears, and Sun Zushou clenched his fists.

Chongzhen continued, "However, I need to ensure my brothers receive full rations and pay, so I must first clarify the actual number of troops. After all, the court is poor! There are 590,000 troops in the nine border regions and thirteen garrisons. Even if we sold the Forbidden City, we still wouldn't be able to raise enough to provide them with full rations and pay!"

"Your Majesty, I will definitely make sure to count the exact number of people in Changping Town!" You Shiwei said with a look of shame, as he had indeed embezzled a lot of silver.

Sun Zushou, wiping away tears, said, "I guarantee with my life that there will never be a vacancy in the entire Jizhou garrison again."

"Long live the Lord!"

At this moment, Sun Yingyuan, who was in charge of guarding Tsinghua Garden, rushed over, his tin cans rustling loudly. "Xuanfu beacon fire! Three plumes of black smoke!"

You Shiwei and Sun Zushou both stood up abruptly.

Emperor Chongzhen remained calm, slowly swallowing the last mouthful of broth, and laughed, "Is it Tiger Mound Rabbit Khan? He's here to deliver a head during the New Year. It's really hard on him. Issue an edict to transfer the Imperial Guard Rear Camp to Tsinghua Garden."

...On the nineteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, in the early morning, west of Xuanfu Town.

A biting wind whipped snowflakes against the battlements, causing the fur collar of Wei Zhongxian's sable cloak to flutter wildly. He clung tightly to the cold bricks, his eyes fixed on the city below—a dark mass of Mongol cavalrymen roamed the snow-covered plains like a pack of wolves, while the golden-roofed tent of Hudun Tuhan was faintly visible on the distant slope.

"You dog Tartar..." Wei Zhongxian spat out a puff of white breath.

The wide moat below the city had long since frozen into a mirror of ice. A troop of Mongol light cavalry suddenly spurred their horses and accelerated, the horseshoes scraping against the ice with a piercing, sharp sound. The cavalrymen leaned low to their saddles, their horn bows drawn taut, the arrowheads gleaming coldly in the morning light.

"whoosh whoosh"

Arrows rained down on the city walls! Several heavy arrows clattered into the crenellations in front of Wei Zhongxian, their fletchings buzzing and trembling.

"Grandpa, be careful!" Du Xun rushed forward to pull him away.

"Get out of my way!" Wei Zhongxian kicked him aside, his shrill voice cutting through the cold wind, "Liu Yingkun! Beat him up!"

Behind the city wall stood a line of at least two hundred Jingjun arquebusiers in dark blue armor. Liu Yingkun's single eye peered through a crack in the wall, fixed on the cavalry charging across the icy river. He slowly raised his withered hand: "Jingjun brothers... hold your ground... anyone who dares to fire indiscriminately will be killed without mercy!"

His "no mercy" was not just empty talk! Behind each of the Jingjun arquebusiers stood a Jingjun swordsman and axeman, swords drawn, supervising the battle one-on-one!

"put!"

"Tum! Tum! Tum!"

More than a hundred streaks of fire suddenly erupted from behind the sheep and horse wall! White smoke billowed, and lead bullets swept across the ice like splashed water. The leading Mongol cavalrymen crashed into an invisible wall, men and horses falling to the ground! Blood mist exploded amidst screams, staining the ice red. Warhorses neighed and collapsed, throwing their riders far away.

"Divine Arrow! Fire!" Hou Shilu roared, brandishing his sword from the city wall.

"Buzz!"

A barrage of rockets, trailing fiery tails, slammed down from the city walls and plunged into the cavalry following behind. The horses neighed in alarm, and the formation was thrown into chaos.

"Suicide squad! Charge!" Zhu Zhifeng shouted, his voice almost cracking.

The breach in the sheep and horse wall suddenly burst open! Over a hundred men wrapped in tattered cotton-padded coats, wielding twelve-foot-long spears, pounced out like hungry tigers! The spear tips gleamed coldly in the snow, thrusting straight at the Mongol soldiers struggling on the ice.

"Pfft!"

As soon as a Mongol soldier managed to stand, a spear tip pierced his throat! Blood spurted three feet high. The suicide squad, like wolves among sheep, thrust with spears and smashed with maces. Screams echoed across the ice, limbs and severed parts flew everywhere, and blood quickly congealed in the cold wind.

"Good!" Wei Zhongxian slammed his fist on the battlements, sending pebbles raining down. He whirled around, his big finger pointing to a row of open silver chests behind him: "See that! Plenty of gleaming silver! You've guarded it! It's all yours! Ten more taels each! His Majesty's reward!"

"Long live the emperor!" The soldiers guarding the city wall had bloodshot eyes, and they fired even more densely and rapidly.

"Raise the flag!" Wei Zhongxian's shrill voice pierced the clamor. "Raise our family's flag!"

Four strongmen of the Imperial Guard responded with a resounding roar, carrying a three-zhang-long (approximately 10 meters) white waxwood pole on their shoulders as they ascended the city tower. The gilded flaming pearl atop the pole gleamed dazzlingly in the morning light, and the crimson banner unfurled with a "whoosh!" The gold trim billowed like dragons in the wind, and beneath a square gold seal in the center of the banner was a line of jet-black seal script:
"By imperial decree, Wei, the supervisor of grain transport in Xuanhua and Datong and the head of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, was appointed to oversee the grain transport."
Before Tiger Mound Rabbit Khan's golden tent, a centurion rushed back in a disheveled state, half an arrow shaft stuck in his shoulder: "Great Khan! The Ming dogs have laid an ambush! Dozens of warriors have been killed!"

Hu Dun Tu Han snorted coldly, not even looking at the centurion, but squinting at the city wall with a pair of binoculars, and then staring blankly for a moment—the red-gold banner was fluttering in the north wind, and the square gold seal and seal characters on the banner were clearly dazzling in the morning sun!
What kind of flag is this?

He put down his binoculars and turned to look at Lama Choerji beside him: "Master, do you see that red-gold banner embroidered with a golden seal?"

“I see it, that’s… that looks like…” Lama Choerji’s voice was hoarse with disbelief, “The flag of the Directorate of Ceremonial? Wei… Wei Zhongxian?!”

(End of this chapter)