Chapter 676: The So-Called Momentum

After finishing a pot of tea, Chen Wuji nearly lost even his pants.

The gains from this battle were almost entirely distributed among the various military units; what truly ended up in his hands, aside from the small amount seized on the battlefield, was nothing else.

Moreover, this does not include the upcoming merit and reward distribution, but once the military merit rewards are concluded, the things he has been painstakingly putting together during this period are likely to run out.

However, Chen Wuji did not take this matter too seriously.

In this battle, each military unit suffered significant losses, and indeed needs some pacification.

Since Chen Wuji raised his troops, he has emphasized military provisions and military merit, with everything based on the military merit rank system; large-scale enfeoffment and rewards have rarely occurred.

But since Xie Fengxian and others have proactively raised this issue, it shows they have noticed changes in the army and indeed need some additional benefits. As the commander-in-chief, Chen Wuji must provide convenience at the slightest sign.

Other matters were discussed smoothly, except for the issue of establishing designation number standards, where opinions diverged.

Xie Fengxian and the guest commander Tang Yu believed that, setting aside special cases like the Sinful Soldiers Army and Hu Bugui, under normal circumstances, designation numbers must be reserved for elite troops and not easily obtained by all units; the threshold must be high and the standard strict.

They wanted everyone under heaven to know that whenever this banner is raised, it signifies elite warriors and valiant generals, and must make the enemy tremble with fear.

Hu Bugui, however, took a middle-of-the-road approach, believing it was sufficient as is and need not be overly difficult.

As for Chen Li and Lv Ji, Chen Li said little, while Lv Ji bluntly said, I can accept anything.

With just one sentence—I can accept anything—he left everyone speechless.

This discussion ultimately turned into a contest between Xie Fengxian, Tang Yu, and Hu Bugui.

Both sides held their own views, and naturally, no clear winner emerged.

The ball rolled to Chen Wuji's feet, and he kicked it back, telling them to ponder it further in private.

He also wanted to seriously consider the matter himself.

The designation number issue seemed trivial, but it actually involved the entire army's morale and future potential.

With these two points, even a small matter becomes significant.

After the commanders left, Xu Zengyi, who had been keeping a low profile beside Chen Wuji, asked, "Sir, why didn't you say anything about the designation number matter?"

During the heated debate among Xie Fengxian and others, Xu Zengyi acted out of character, saying nothing at all and simply observing.

"I have some things I haven't figured out yet, so it's inconvenient to speak lightly," Xu Zengyi said.

Chen Wuji felt curious, "Sir, what haven't you figured out?"

"How to make the designation number serve a greater purpose," Xu Zengyi said.

"People chasing fame and profit is normal; countless have fallen for these two words. For a military unit, however, the designation number is its life—something all soldiers must protect."

Chen Wuji nodded, "If it weren't so, they wouldn't have specifically raised this matter today."

"In fact, I actually lean more toward Xie Fengxian and Tang Yu's view: designation numbers should not be easily given," Xu Zengyi said.

"But I'm thinking, once designation numbers are awarded, how can we use them to boost combat power further, making soldiers fight more bravely to protect their designation number? Or put another way… to instill loyalty to the designation number in soldiers, forge military spirit, and… I need to think more."

"Then just give benefits!" Chen Wuji said.

"Increase rewards, and increase other benefits in all aspects."

Xu Zengyi slightly shook his head, "But simply giving benefits will, over time, inevitably breed arrogance and complacency in a unit. History has many examples: the invincible units at the founding of dynasties later became useless wrecks, even worse than ordinary provincial troops in a commandery county."

"Increase inspection and evaluation!" Chen Wuji said.

"This can involve civil officials and the central army, regularly inspecting a unit's quality and combat power. If standards aren't met, strip the designation number and reduce other privileges."

"Or, rotate the designation number—no need to fix it to a specific unit. Those who perform well keep it and enjoy its benefits; those who don't, hand it over respectfully."

Xu Zengyi's eyes brightened, "Your lordship's thinking is thorough. However, it's better not to rotate the designation number, otherwise it may be hard for soldiers to identify with it, weakening their loyalty."

"That doesn't matter," Chen Wuji said, "even if loyalty is insufficient, soldiers will still be stirred by competitive spirit, achieving much the same goal. But since you think it's better not to, we can skip it."

Xu Zengyi pondered for a moment, then asked, "If a campaign fails, should the designation number be abolished?"

"If it's not a human-caused disaster, record it, and it may affect evaluation, but there's no need for a blanket cutoff," Chen Wuji said.

"I think this matter should be handled case by case: if it's the commander-in-chief's fault, punish him and increase the impact. If it's due to the soldiers, we must assess whether the scope is large or small, and treat specific situations accordingly."

In fact, Chen Wuji's mind already held a very mature system for this.

This incentive system, whether for work or study, has thoroughly permeated half his life back home.

Even if Chen Wuji hasn't studied this system closely, its methods are deeply familiar to him.

But now that this decision rests in his hands, specific problems need specific treatment; we still need to go through the process of pooling collective wisdom, listen to everyone's opinions, and synthesize them.

Da Yu has never used this system in the army historically; calling it a blank slate is not an exaggeration. If implemented, what reaction it would provoke, Chen Wuji doesn't know—he needs the opinions of Xie Fengxian and others.

Xu Zengyi recorded in full the conversation just now between the two, "Please, my lord, review it—any omissions?"

Chen Wuji carefully examined those suggestions, "Since we've discussed nearly everything, let's also clarify rewards and penalties while we're at it."

"This way, Hu Bugui's suggestion can be directly ignored; they don't need to discuss it further. Raise the difficulty of obtaining designation numbers, but once obtained, benefits in all aspects can be tilted. If the designation number remains stable, benefits can also increase layer by layer."

"By the way, we might also work on ideological construction… that Lu Chuan seems quite suitable for this."

What Xu Zengyi just said reminded him of this.

As a proper red-blooded youth, he had actually forgotten this entire set of combined measures.

This is truly unacceptable.

Fortunately, it's not too late yet; everything can still be done in time.