Chapter 77: Lure Them with Profit, Show Them the Ladder

Zhu Youjian paused in thought for a moment, still inclined to give the titled nobility of the Great Ming a chance.

If they truly proved beyond help, then it would only be reasonable that they were absent when the ships of the new world set sail.

Zhu Youjian spoke again, his tone far more casual.

"Convey another verbal edict to him for Us."

"Tell him: We find it rather dull, reading and practicing martial arts alone every day. We wish to find some sons of the noble houses to enter the palace daily, to exchange views on literature and martial arts, and liven things up a bit."

"However, having lived long in the inner palace, We do not know which young men among the capital's families can be put to great use. Have him look into it for Us."

At these words, a trace of imperceptible surprise flickered through Gao Shiming's eyes, but it quickly returned to calm as he bowed his head and accepted the order.

"This subject obeys the decree."

Zhu Youjian said no more, only casting a deep look across the river at the Duke of Ying's residence.

Duke of Ying, ah, Duke of Ying. We are about to model Ourself on the Zhengde Emperor.

Yet We wonder, can you truly serve as Our waist and gall?

He withdrew his gaze, handed his bow to Xu Yingyuan, and turned to walk toward the grand parade ground.

"Let's go. It is time to assess the rankings of today's drill."

"After the assessment, as discussed last time, extra food will be distributed according to rank."

On the grand parade ground, over a dozen steaming cauldrons were arrayed in a single line.

The rich aroma of meat mingled with the scent of millet rice, drifting through the air and making the soldiers who had drilled for four hours swallow their saliva incessantly.

Zhu Youjian walked up to one of the cauldrons, and instantly every gaze focused upon him.

He took the large ladle from the cook, stirred the pot conscientiously a few times, turning up the millet rice from the bottom, then checked the pot beside it where the pork had been stewed to tenderness. Only after confirming there was no issue did he nod to Xu Yingyuan.

"Call the roll."

"Aye!"

Xu Yingyuan cleared his throat, and a young eunuch with a shrill voice beside him immediately raised his voice and shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Today's drill evaluation, first place: Sun Yingyuan's squad!"

"Second place: Chen Qiliu's squad!"

"Third place: Wu Jisi's squad!"

As each name was read out, the squads called upon stirred with a small commotion, all stepping forward with heads high and chests out to receive their meals first.

Not only did they get a full bowl of millet rice, they also received an extra small ladle of pork stewed to utter tenderness.

But as the rankings continued downward, the cheers from the squads stepping forward gradually diminished, and the vast majority of squads seemed slowly to grow accustomed to it.

Zhu Youjian frowned, turned and called Xu Yingyuan over, and instructed, "Starting tomorrow, refine the rewards. Raise the first-place pork portion to five taels per meal, and distribute the subsequent ranks in descending tiers. Do you understand?"

Xu Yingyuan thought for a moment, then asked, "Is Your Majesty concerned that the squads in the middle ranks will not strive hard enough?"

Zhu Youjian gave a soft laugh, surprised that the fellow had shown an unusual flash of insight today.

He nodded, said nothing, and simply turned his head back to look at the parade ground.

Motivating human potential is also a science — it is simply a social science.

You must give them enough desire to climb, but at the same time, you must give them enough hope.

Lure them with profit, show them the ladder — it is nothing more than this.

Soon, only the last five squads remained standing on the parade ground, their faces instantly turning as grim as if they had lost their parents.

At that moment, the young eunuch calling the roll suddenly changed his tone and shouted in a drawn-out voice:

"Fifth from last: Li Baotian's squad!"

At these words, from among the squads eating on the parade ground, a burst of utterly undisguised, uproarious laughter suddenly erupted.

The laughter was full of schadenfreude and contempt.

Zhu Youjian raised his eyebrows and cast an amused glance at Xu Yingyuan beside him.

Xu Yingyuan immediately leaned in and said with a fawning smile, "Your Majesty, last night this slave pondered that Your Majesty's purpose was to spur each squad to vie for the lead."

"Since there are rewards, there ought to be punishments as well. Only thus can they know shame and then summon courage."

"This slave took the liberty of devising such a method. If... if it is unsuitable, this slave will change it tomorrow."

Zhu Youjian nodded noncommittally and said only one bland sentence: "Taking the initiative to think of how to handle matters well is a good thing. We have taken note of this thoughtfulness of yours."

Having received praise, Xu Yingyuan was instantly overjoyed, and his waist bent even lower.

As for the last few squads whose names had been called, amid the crowd's jeering laughter and hisses, every man's face flushed crimson, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to burrow into.

They stepped forward in silence, receiving only millet rice, with not a trace of pork.

A few soldiers who looked rather simple-minded still gazed longingly at the scraps of meat left in the nearby pots, turning their heads back repeatedly, until their squadmates dragged and pulled them, unwilling, back into formation.

Seeing this scene, Zhu Youjian nodded inwardly to himself.

It seemed the method of directly linking reward and punishment to face and profit was indeed universally applicable across all ages, with extremely high compatibility.

Yet, mere harshness was not enough.

Having only a big stick, without a carrot, would not do.

After some days, he must find a pretext to hold a grand, non-competitive feast for the entire army, letting every man eat meat and drink wine.

In this way, combining kindness with severity, making rewards clear and punishments definite, with both stick and carrot applied in full measure, could one slowly train truly fine horses.

When that time came, if they were punished again, their first thought would be to reflect on whether they themselves had not done well enough, rather than directing their resentment at their master.

Only after the very last squad had received their "extra meal" amid heaven-shaking hisses did Zhu Youjian, satisfied, mount his horse in one fluid motion.

"Companion Gao, let us go. Return to Qianqing Palace and go over today's schedule together."

The party rode off at a gallop and soon left the clamorous parade ground behind.

However, not long after they had left the encampment, a faint commotion suddenly arose again from behind them, mingled with angry shouts and curses.

Zhu Youjian reined in his horse and stopped, his brow furrowing slightly.

Gao Shiming dared not be slow. He immediately dispatched a junior eunuch in his retinue: "Go quickly and find out what has happened!"

The young eunuch acknowledged the order and whipped his horse back the way they had come, swift as an arrow.

Before long, he hurried back, his face not overly anxious.

"Your Majesty! It was several File Leaders from Wu Fangrui's platoon. While eating, they grew resentful and said… said that their Platoon Officer is usually lazy himself and slack in drill, which is why the whole platoon suffered this humiliation."

"After a few heated words, they nearly came to blows! But they have been pulled apart now, and the File Leaders and the Platoon Officer have all been seized on the spot."

A trace of an amused smile appeared on Zhu Youjian's face.

It seemed that for these simple, honest ancients, the effect was perhaps a little too intense.

But this was exactly what he wanted to see.

Resentment meant there was motivation to change the status quo — that was entirely a good thing.

"Let Xu Yingyuan handle it according to standard military law."

Zhu Youjian showed no anger. He merely left these words in an indifferent tone, then gave his reins a flick and galloped swiftly toward Qianqing Palace.