Chapter 135

"Full pay can encourage the soldiers' fighting spirit."

"To secure their loyalty, land must also be granted."

Outside Jinling City, Lin Dao surveyed his surroundings; all were fine fields after harvest.

Countless straw stalks, neatly bundled, were placed in the fields.

"The fields around Jinling City are all good fields."

Lin Dao looked at the irrigation canal not far away. "Premium paddy fields."

The fields in the Northern Regions have long suffered large-scale destruction.

Especially the water conservancy facilities, unrepaired for years, have lost their original function.

The Southern Land has a crisscrossing water network and numerous rivers.

Moreover, it has very complete water conservancy facilities, which are also well maintained.

Even encountering continuous drought, it can still have a decent harvest.

"I have heard."

Lin Dao walked along the field ridges. "I hear the Jiangnan Region mostly plants cotton and mulberry, but these premium paddy fields near Jinling City actually grow grain."

Following beside him was Ruan Dacheng.

Hearing Lin Dao's words, Ruan Dacheng immediately realized this Grand Commander did not understand these matters.

He kindly explained, "These fields all belong to the meritorious nobles' prefectures."

"They mainly grow refined rice, sent to the various prefectures for enjoyment."

"As for the villas planting cotton and mulberry, they are all in the distance."

"I see." Lin Dao realized. "Special supply."

The refined rice produced in these fields is mostly used to supply the meritorious nobles' prefectures' maidservants, servants, concubines, and distant branches.

The true masters eat special tribute rice, just like the Jia Family in Dream of the Red Chamber.

Those truly good things, the vast majority of Ming Dynasty commoners have never even heard of.

Let alone seen or eaten them.

These meritorious nobles, supported by the blood and sweat of countless commoners.

When the Wild Boar Skins went southward, they unhesitatingly shaved their hair and changed clothes, offered up their own fields, wealth, and women, to preserve their own dog lives.

"Let me tell a joke." Lin Dao quipped. "The land of fish and rice, Jiangnan, lacks grain."

Ruan Dacheng very appropriately echoed with a laugh.

Such words were indeed a joke in the past.

But Jiangnan at this time is the actual reality.

Most of Jiangnan's fields are now used to plant cash crops.

The field owners use these cash crops for export, exchanging them for massive wealth.

As for the commoners having no grain to eat, what does that have to do with these tribute-rice eaters?

The soaring grain prices in Jiangnan stem from local fine fields not planting grain, turning instead to plant cash crops.

"I want to grant land to the soldiers."

Lin Dao reached out, pointing at the many fine fields before him. "Grant these meritorious nobles' fields."

Ruan Dacheng stood respectfully to the side, waiting for Lin Dao's next words.

"Specific standard: a soldier's household is limited to thirty mu."

"Military merit gained on the battlefield can receive reward silver, or be used to exchange for fields."

"But the maximum shall not exceed two hundred mu."

"From now on, all fields are forbidden from transaction and trade; consolidation is strictly prohibited."

"Fields beyond those granted to soldiers are primarily for rent."

"Likewise, each household can rent at most two hundred mu of land."

"Wanting to have fields belonging to one's own household."

Lin Dao spoke calmly. "Only military merit can grant fields."

In principle, Lin Dao would not seize self-cultivating farmers' fields.

But in this Great Ming, in principle there are no longer self-cultivating farmers.

These self-cultivating farmers were the main force of the Ming Dynasty's tax grain; long unable to bear years of marrow-sucking exploitation, they are either ruined and dead or have joined the wandering rebels.

The land has all concentrated in the hands of the imperial clan, meritorious nobles, local gentry, landlords, imperial villas, and other powers.

Lin Dao will seize their land, then rent it to the commoners.

Rent is forever only rent; wanting to truly own it, then go fight in battle.

One thinks, for the sake of owning land, there will be plenty of people willing to fight desperately on the battlefield.

Historically, the Wild Boar Skins had only a hundred-odd thousand men, yet could sweep across the whole realm's hundreds of millions of people.

The sole reason: these hundreds of millions were unwilling to die for nothing!

Lin Dao is now willing to give these hundreds of millions benefits; once they are truly mobilized, one mouthful of spit per person could also drown the Wild Boar Skins.

On this side, Ruan Dacheng listened with heart and soul trembling.

He is a smart man; from between the lines of Lin Dao's words he could hear that this one intends to emphasize the military.

Military merit land grant has been brought out; this is to oppose all the scholars under heaven!

Very simple, he Ruan Dacheng also knows, the land for military merit grants has to come from somewhere.

Those are all fields in the hands of scholars!

Seizing a man's wealth is like killing his parents; Lin Dao is going to kill the parents of all scholars under heaven~

"Brother Jizhi."

Lin Dao replied sincerely, "I entrust the matter of arranging the rented fields to you."

Ruan Dacheng's face showed a bitter smile.

When you need me, just call me Brother Jizhi.

To save his life, he had already handed over his family's wealth, leaving only one manor.

He originally wanted to find a chance to escape back to his hometown, but now Lin Dao had arranged such a post for him.

If he didn't do it, he feared he would struggle to survive.

If he did it, once the news spread, he would have no place to stand among the scholar class.

Seeing he did not respond, Lin Dao's brows furrowed slightly, "Hmm?"

Ruan Dacheng, caught in his dilemma, shivered and immediately saluted, "Grand Commander, rest assured, I will certainly handle this matter properly!"

He thought of those unlucky ones still undergoing torture to extort military pay.

Serving the rebels is still better than being dragged off to be tortured for pay.

Although it was strictly blockaded, news from Jinling City still inevitably spread out.

In Anqing, not far away, a mutiny was brewing. Anlu Deputy General Liao Yingdeng, who was plundering the four wildernesses, slaughtering villages and exterminating towns, and even wanted to attack the prefectural capital, upon learning the news, immediately conferred with his subordinate generals, Guerrilla General Wang Zhengguo and Li Zichun.

The few of them believed Jinling City was the gathering place of the world's wealth, better than this broken village by ten thousand times.

Move the army there to take a look.

If we can loot a haul, even better; if not, we'll join the rebel army, and with the troops in hand we can surely scrape some benefits.

After deciding, Liao Yingdeng led three thousand men, Wang Zhengguo and Li Zichun each led one thousand, and from Anqing they rushed downstream toward Jinling City.

Liao Yingdeng's troops had been in arrears on pay for years, they couldn't even eat rice; military discipline was nonexistent.

Along the way they burned, killed, and plundered, committing every evil, doing things even more bandit-like than bandits.

Their news quickly reached Lin Dao, who immediately led five thousand troops out of the city to meet them in battle.

This was the first large-scale frontal battle for the troops under his command; military morale was inevitably beating the drum.

Lin Dao was rich in experience regarding this: "Whoever beheads one enemy soldier, reward ten taels of silver, record one turn of military merit."

One turn of military merit can be exchanged for one mu of land, ordinary dry field, worth approximately seven or eight taels to around ten taels.

Superior paddy fields require five turns of military merit, that is, worth fifty taels.

A dozen large crates were moved out and placed before the army formation.

The crates were opened, inside all were gleaming silver dollars.

Under the sunlight, these flashing silver dollars bloomed with a soul-stirring luster.

"The opposite side has five thousand men, here there are fifty thousand taels."

Lin Dao did not stint: "I look forward to you being able to take all my reward silver!"

The originally somewhat apprehensive soldiers' courage instantly rose.

Usually they shout slogans that shake the heavens, now is the true moment to serve the Grand Commander with their lives.

For the silver, for the land, for the Grand Commander!

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

Ali away, Liao Yingdeng looked into the distance.

"What's going on?"

He could hardly believe it: "Why does the opposite side have so much iron armor?"

The bodyguards beside Lin Dao wore custom-made, near-artifact full-body armor.

Ordinary soldiers wore stamped half-body armor like the Qi Huo Army.

Two thin steel plates stamped and drilled, connected by cowhide thongs.

On their heads they also wore steel helmets stamped from thin steel plates.

Holding long spears made of seamless steel pipes, with sabers and hammers hanging at their waists.

Looking from afar, under the sunlight a bright metallic luster of armor.

"Could it be fake?" Guerrilla General Wang Zhengguo also gazed into the distance, "Where in the Jiangnan region would so much iron armor come from?"

"Never mind, let's clash first and see."

Liao Yingdeng's troops fundamentally did not know what kind of troops they were facing.

Although Lin Dao's troops lacked training, their equipment was extremely fine.

Every man wore iron armor; this is treatment only household servants get.

Under the high rewards of silver plus land, morale was soaring.

As soon as the two sides clashed, Liao Yingdeng's side was suppressed.

The sabers and spears in their hands were useless against the armor worn by Lin Dao's troops.

They could only go for the limbs, throat, and face.

But how could it be that easy.

The soldiers in an excited state, blades and spears sharp, fought fiercely and ruthlessly; after killing enemies they even cut off heads on the spot.

Such a cruel scene also deterred this bandit army.

Going into battle to kill is just to seek a meal; is there a need to fight this desperately?

Seeing the situation was bad, Liao Yingdeng personally led his hundred-odd household servants to charge the formation, trying to turn the tide.

The household servants' combat power was very strong, even gaining a local advantage.

But the enemy's imagined rout did not appear; instead they surrounded them from all directions.

Dense stainless steel spears stabbed chaotically; the household servants were poked into blood holes one by one.

Some fierce and brave household servants rolled on the ground and rushed over, wildly hacking with their blades.

But they were soon hammered to death by the soldiers who had taken down the hammers.

Individual martial prowess is quite powerless in this kind of situation.

Facing the stabbing of dozens upon dozens of long spears, even a martial arts master would have to kneel.

"Beast!"

"Fucking beast~~~"

Liao Yingdeng on horseback, seeing the flags of Wang Zhengguo and Li Zichun gradually receding into the distance, cursed with a broken mouth in anger.

These two bastards didn't come to rescue him, but instead ran away directly, truly beasts!

The warhorse was stabbed to death, and Commanding Officer Liao fell to the ground.

Before he could climb up, over a dozen long spears stabbed into his body.

Liao Yingdeng's armor was very good, so he didn't die for the moment.

While struggling, two men rushed up, pressed down his head, and the blades in their hands directly began to saw his neck.

Endless fear and pain made Liao Yingdeng struggle madly.

Over a dozen long spears almost failed to pin him down.

Until a hammer struck his helmet, only then did he completely calm down, and his neck was also sawed through.

Facing the routing bandit army, the red-eyed soldiers tied the severed heads they had taken at their waists, and carrying their weapons, chased all the way like madmen.

The bandit army in rout had never seen such an opponent who could run and chase so well.

Many bandit soldiers who couldn't run anymore knelt and begged for mercy, but were stabbed and hammered to death without any hesitation, their heads taken.

They fled all the way to the river bank, and in panic jumped into the river to swim to the opposite shore.

Lin Dao achieved a great victory in this battle.

Except for a very few who luckily escaped, most of the bandit soldiers became military merit war spoils.

Another small portion drowned in the Great River.

Lin Dao fulfilled his promise, the reward silver was distributed on-site, not a single tael was short.

"To win a war in the late Ming, only three conditions are needed."

"Have money!"

"Have money!"

"Still fucking have money!"

(End of Chapter)