Chapter 205: Miscellaneous Affairs

Mr. Hou was standing in the Second Hall of the Anqing Garrison Office, watching Pang Yu hold three iron mesh sheets of varying sizes, with over a dozen more laid out on the table. Mr. Hou also picked up a few to examine. Each sheet used lock rings of different sizes, with weaving patterns of one-in-four and one-in-six. Some of the lock rings were not even smooth and felt rough to the touch, slightly cutting the hand.

Pang Yu looked up and asked Mr. Yu on the other side, "These are the samples they produced in three days?"

"To answer the General, the few sheets you hold, sir, are actually the larger ones. They had all done some work earlier and are fairly practiced, so they could produce these in three days." Mr. Yu hesitated a moment, then added, "Zhang Manshou from Tongcheng also brought samples. He once made scale armor for the Zhuang Squad in Tongcheng. He says chain mail is far more time-consuming to make than scale armor."

As he spoke, he handed over the ones Zhang Manshou had made. Pang Yu glanced at them; they were indeed somewhat better than the other makers', but only marginally so — after all, Zhang Manshou had also spent his time making farming tools before this.

"Did you bring the collected Roving Bandit arrowheads?"

Pang Ding behind him brought over a bag and dumped its contents onto the table — all broken arrow shafts, with six or seven different shapes in total. Pang Yu picked up the arrowheads one by one and measured them against the lock holes on each piece.

Chain mail's defense relies on the lock rings; the gaps must be smaller than common arrowheads. That was the first thing to check in terms of form. Mr. Yu and Pang Ding stood to the side, watching as Pang Yu finished testing one piece and replaced it with a new one. Mr. Hou, on the other side, took the tested ones from Pang Yu's hands.

After testing and comparing each piece, Pang Yu put them away and said, "Have the Arrow Squad find half a pig carcass with ribs for testing. Any that can stop light and heavy arrows at thirty paces — let all those iron workshops make them. Tell them the acceptance standards: weight between twenty-five and thirty jin, arrows at thirty paces must not penetrate the armor, and it must resist waist saber cuts at close range. As long as they meet this standard, we will take as many as they make, with payment in silver adjusted slightly by weight."

Mr. Yu thought for a moment and said, "Is this not somewhat hasty? This time, sir, you have thrown out an order for nine hundred chain mail coats. Every iron workshop in Anqing wants a piece of it, so quality will inevitably be uneven. This subordinate believes we could have them each produce samples, select the qualified ones after evaluation, and award the work to the lowest bidder."

Pang Yu shook his head. "To be honest, I used to think the same way — I even considered requiring them to produce identical lock rings, then setting up a workshop at the Garrison Command to handle the weaving exclusively. But now it seems that is hard to achieve."

In a place like Nanzhili, most handicraft goods surpassed those of the north, but when it came to military equipment specifically, there had been no demand for years, and no resources had been allocated in this area. Expecting them to suddenly reach northern standards in a short time was perhaps somewhat idealistic.

Pang Yu tossed down the few sample pieces in his hand. What these smiths had produced in three days was only the size of a chest piece. Without mobilizing every smith in Anqing, it would be utterly impossible for him to complete nine hundred suits of armor in a short period.

Mr. Yu opened his mouth, then in the end said nothing. Pang Yu noticed.

"Sir, if you have something to say, speak freely. In our Garrison Command, we do not deal in empty words; we only look at whether what you say makes sense. Especially in matters concerning war preparations, rations and pay, and training — the yamen may speak empty words, but the army absolutely cannot, because if you speak empty words in peacetime, in battle you will have to pay with your own life."

Mr. Yu, hearing this, bowed and said, "This humble one feels that a suit of armor costing thirty to forty taels, handled so perfunctorily — that is thirty to forty thousand taels of silver. It is truly a pity."

His face was full of pained regret, as if it were his own silver being spent. Pang Yu had given him silver before, but had never seen him spend any; he seemed to feel the pain of spending even more keenly than common folk.

Pang Yu rubbed his forehead. "I do not wish to spend silver this way either, but we cannot wait. Intelligence from all sides indicates the Roving Bandits are entering Henan in large numbers. No one knows when they will come to Anqing — perhaps they will not come, perhaps they will come tomorrow. I have inquired everywhere in Nanzhili; there is no ready stock to buy. As for placing orders — never mind whether out-of-town iron workshops dare to make armor, I have not even heard of anywhere that excels at it. For now, we must make do. By the standard I just stated, make as many as can be made."

Mr. Yu's face crumpled into a knot. He breathed in with a hissing sound for a moment. "Then, General, why not make some scale armor? It is easier to forge and can likewise be repaired."

"I have discussed this with you before. My battalion primarily operates along the Great River. Scale plates damage the skin; one must add a layer of padded cotton clothing or the like underneath as a buffer. In the summer heat, one cannot wear heavy armor that way — I fear it is not very suitable."

"But winter will soon be here." Mr. Yu kept his head lowered and said quietly, somewhat timidly, "In winter, it can be worn. If the Roving Bandits enter Henan, they will almost certainly come before next spring. Our scale armor could also be used into early summer."

Pang Yu pondered for a moment, then looked carefully at Mr. Yu. "What you say, sir, seems to have some merit."

Mr. Yu had originally been somewhat nervous, since his view differed from Pang Yu's. Now, hearing Pang Yu's words, it seemed his own opinion had moved his superior. His heart eased, and he continued, "Most importantly, this scale armor is quicker to produce than chain mail. After the smiths forge the scales, apprentices can drill the holes, and women can do the weaving and lining."

Pang Yu's expression shifted. "Sir, have you been to the iron workshops to observe?"

"For the tasks you assign, sir, this humble one naturally must devote heart and soul. I spoke with that Zhang Manshou from Tongcheng. These past few days, I have spent the daytime in the iron workshops and know the general situation. For scale armor iron plates to be usable, they must be hammered repeatedly, making them both sturdy and light. Afterward, holes are drilled at the four corners of the scales, then they are threaded and woven into shape, and finally the lining is added. The time consumed is mainly in the iron plates, which require the smith's own hand, but even the forging is cheaper than those lock rings. After that, one can largely recruit apprentices to learn and do the work on the spot. As long as the smith's working hours are not delayed, it can be done quickly. In contrast, look at chain mail — everything requires the smith's hand. Whether one-in-four or one-in-six, it is all extremely tedious. Right now they are still weaving flat sheets; later they must be shaped, and then there are the shoulder, neck, and arm connections. Unless one is an experienced hand, I fear it is hard to complete even one suit in a month. It will not meet your urgent need, sir, and it costs a great deal of silver..."

Mr. Yu had opened his floodgates. Clerk Hou and Pang Ding kept looking at him, and repeatedly gauging Pang Yu's expression.

Pang Yu waited until Mr. Yu had finished, then smiled with satisfaction. This Mr. Yu had only been in charge of armor for about ten days, but one could see he had put in real effort, and he had put forward his own insights — he was not the sort who did things rigidly.

After reflecting for a moment, Pang Yu asked, "Sir, are you from Zhuji in Zhejiang?"

Mr. Yu quickly replied, "This humble one is from Zhuji."

"What posts have you held before, sir?"

Mr. Yu said respectfully, "This humble one served as a clerk in the Works Office and Household Office in Zhuji, and later went to the Revenue Section of the Prefectural Office, where I studied under two gentlemen from Shaoxing for five years."

"So that is how it is." Pang Yu nodded. In his memory, Shaoxing indeed produced this type of practical-affairs talent. What differed from Pang Yu's impression was that this era had not yet reached the Qing Dynasty level where Shaoxing private secretaries were everywhere under heaven, but whether in the imperial court or the localities, there were already large numbers of Shaoxing men helping officials handle practical affairs. In the Ministry of Revenue in the Capital in particular, such accounting personnel were basically monopolized by Shaoxing men, and skill transmission also remained within Shaoxing circles — this was the foundation upon which the Qing Dynasty Shaoxing private secretaries formed.

But the proposal Mr. Yu put forward differed considerably from Pang Yu's original plan. Along the Yangtze River line, chain mail had the best overall utility. Scale armor became unusable once summer arrived, especially from May to August. Pang Yu had tried it himself: if one put on heavy armor in the sixth month, after standing for ten minutes one basically had no combat effectiveness left.

The weight was at least forty jin, and Tongcheng had even produced suits of sixty jin. This placed enormous pressure on marching, and donning it was quite time-consuming. When facing Roving Bandits who were primarily cavalry, if a surprise attack like the one at Shucheng occurred, these Heavy Armor Soldiers might collapse before they had even finished putting on their armor.

Mr. Hou coughed once, breaking the silence in the hall. He said to Pang Yu in a low voice, "If we make this scale armor, then in hot weather these soldiers will be unable to take the field. We cannot very well equip each of them with an additional suit of chain mail — would that not cost even more when the time comes?"

Pang Yu raised his eyes to look at Mr. Hou. "Then what is Mr. Hou's suggestion for how to make them?"

Mr. Hou froze. He had only wanted to oppose Mr. Yu's proposal; as for how to ultimately solve the problem, he had not considered it.

Mr. Yu said composedly, "There is another issue with chain mail. This subordinate asked the old hands in the Garrison Command. It must be regularly derusted. It is damp here by the Great River; if stored in stacks, it will rust together. The soldiers must constantly polish it, which expends a great deal of the troops' energy."

Mr. Hou had not thought of this and could not refute it for the moment. He could only withdraw in silence.

Pang Yu did not press the question either. He sank back into his own intense pondering. The men under him now were at two extremes: those who could fight were all illiterate, and those who were literate had not the slightest ability to fight. All military affairs were handled by these clerks. When it came to matters concerning the direction of army building, he had no one to consult with.

"A snap decision it is, then." Pang Yu stood up and said, "First, meet this year's urgent need. Make scale armor exclusively. You, sir, will lead the men to determine the specifications for the scales. With skirt armor attached, weight forty to forty-five jin. Stop arrows at twenty paces, stop javelins at five paces, resist slashing at close range. Make three sizes — large, medium, and small — none to exceed forty taels in price. Begin equipping from the Hundredth Chief Company; once they are fully equipped, move on to the next. Have all the iron workshops in Anqing, Tongcheng, and Wangjiang produce them. Pay silver for each piece upon acceptance. Strive to produce nine hundred suits in two months; at the latest, complete the number in three months. As for chain mail, inform those smiths that next year's procurement will focus primarily on chain mail. If they wish to take on future business, let them practice and familiarize themselves on their own. The standard is what I just stated. Next year, whoever's samples are best, I will give the work to them."

Mr. Yu's opinion had been adopted, and his face showed considerable excitement. Pang Yu, however, turned to Mr. Hou. "Mr. Hou, please draft the document. Mr. Yu will have overall charge of armor procurement matters. Guo Fengyou will lead the Personal Guard Unit to handle acceptance, assisted by Yang Xueshi. Acceptance must be done with real blades and real bows. Pang Ding will be responsible for disbursing the silver."

Mr. Yu was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. According to past yamen rules, when a matter was assigned to oneself, one person managed it from beginning to end — that was precisely the time to profit. Yet Pang Yu had divided all the authority.

Pang Ding and Mr. Hou, however, were accustomed to this and showed not the slightest surprise.

Pang Yu looked at the three men. "What other military supplies need replenishing?"

Pang Ding immediately replied, "Sir, the weather will soon turn cold. Aside from the veterans of the Zhuang Squad, the other new recruits still lack winter clothing. We have newly recruited five hundred infantry in Anqing. Excluding the one hundred seventy killed or wounded at Tongcheng, we still need to purchase one thousand three hundred twenty-three sets of winter clothing, and must replenish five hundred sixty long spears, one thousand two hundred spearheads, and three hundred seventy waist sabers."

"Have we received the allocation issued by Circuit Intendant Shi?"

Pang Ding kept his head lowered and said, "Seven hundred long spears were allocated. Three hundred thirty are unusable. As for the rest, their weight differs from what our battalion uses. Five hundred waist sabers — two hundred unusable. The cotton armor has not yet arrived, but the total allocation is only two hundred. In addition, there is the matter of thin foil: we need to purchase five thousand jin of copper stock and one thousand jin of tin stock..."

Pang Yu waved his hand. The expense of maintaining troops far exceeded their pay alone. A new battalion required silver everywhere. After the initial investment in equipment and arms, there were still monthly outlays for pay and wear and tear. If the army expanded to two thousand men, armor alone would cost eighty thousand taels. Although Pang Yu had just raised a large sum of money, he still felt he could not sustain it and could only equip half the men with armor. The equipment and pay allocated by the court were both insufficient, especially in arms, forcing him to invest his own resources.

"So many items — write them all into a document for me. Do not wait for me to ask before you speak."

"This... this subordinate does not know accounting."

Pang Yu glared at Pang Ding. At present, Pang Ding managed both military supplies and concurrently served as accountant and cashier. He truly had no other men available, but Pang Ding had previously been only a pharmacy assistant, and it seemed his ability indeed fell short.

"From now on, you will be the quartermaster. Have Liu Ruogu select two reliable account clerks, of Anqing local registration, and bring them tomorrow."

Pang Ding breathed a sigh of relief. He did not wish to juggle so many responsibilities either, living each day in fear and trepidation, most afraid of being unable to answer when Pang Yu asked.

Pang Yu waved for them to withdraw. Alone in the hall, he sat dazed by the desk for a while, idly flipping through the schedule on the table. He would soon have to convene a meeting of the Centurions. He needed to adjust the army's organization, then replenish the lost troops and equipment. Those due for promotion must be promoted. The force would reach one thousand three hundred men — it seemed the barracks would again be insufficient. He could not count on Shi Kefa for this matter; it would probably cost more silver.

After rubbing his forehead, Pang Yu called out toward the outside. Guo Fengyou immediately ran in.

"Notify the Centurions of the meeting. Also, send someone to inform Chen Company Commander of the Water Camp to come see me in the Main Hall at the first quarter of the xu hour."