Chapter 418: Sharp Vanguard

"Young master, this time it's to serve the King, the Tartars are no joke, going all the way to the northern lands, and we still don't know if it'll be easy to keep the boats."

"Keep what boats, it's just fighting some Tartars."

At the Tongcheng Branch Intendant Office, Shi Kefa was still discussing matters in the rear hall. Pang Yu waited in the main hall with Pang Ding. He extended one finger and said, utterly unconcerned, "After the second year of Chongzhen, they never stay past the passes more than two months. We hurry to Xuzhou as fast as we can, then wait and watch there. When the Tartars start pulling back, send the cavalry to take a few heads, file the dispatch report, and the mission's done. We won't engage the main Tartar army."

"What if those Military Commanders insist we go fight?"

"I've got heavy troops in my hands now — which Military Commander can force me to do anything?" Pang Yu glanced toward the rear office and lowered his voice. "Once the banknotes are in use, I won't have to watch anyone's face."

Pang Ding's eyes darted around. "So we're not keeping the boats?"

"How can we not keep the boats? Otherwise, when every place along the Qingjiang is short of boats, why would I send a single outpost of the Water Army to serve the King?" Pang Yu slapped a hand down, grabbed Pang Ding, and pulled him close to his ear. "I said one outpost, but it's really just five boats. You think they can actually haul any supplies? I've already got grain stored in Xuzhou — this is still about saving our lives. You have to arrange the movements of these few boats well. Don't let them get too far from my position. They're only useful when it's time to run. You think the Tartars are a joke?"

Pang Ding rubbed his head. "But I've never been to the northern lands — how would I know where's closest?"

"That's why you need to pick boats that are familiar with the grain-transport routes, and find some trackers in Xuzhou. They go back and forth on land and know where the nearest points are. You personally arrange these few boats. I don't trust anyone else with this."

"So when does the young master plan to set out?"

Pang Yu released him. "We have to move immediately. The Tartars entered the passes on the twenty-second of the ninth month. The news has taken half a month to reach us. Tongcheng to the Capital is two thousand three hundred ninety-seven li. Marching with the mixed column of the Personal Guard Division won't exceed forty li a day. Uninterrupted marching means sixty days — by the time we reach the Capital, the Tartars will have already left the passes. I can only take the cavalry and go ahead. According to the march plan drawn up by the Adviser Division, cavalry marching sixty li a day will take roughly twenty days from Tongcheng to Xuzhou. That's already one month and five days. By then the Tartars should be in the southern part of Beizhi — that is, Baoding Prefecture and Hejian Prefecture — right in the thick of their looting. We'll then have to continue marching through Shandong. The cavalry will go ahead from Xuzhou, roughly sixty li a day, another thirteen days to Dezhou. After two days of rest, that's one month and twenty days. The Qing army should be turning back north from the Hejian Prefecture area. Dezhou is two hundred seventy li from Hejian Prefectural City. The Qing army, laden with the wealth and captives from their plunder, will certainly be slow. If we push a little faster, we'll just catch their rear. So the timing is exactly right — we can't afford a single moment more of delay."

"Then why is the young master bringing the infantry of the Personal Guard Division?"

"The Adviser Division asked the same thing. But I'm not going to tell them it's for saving my life. What if the Tartars are enjoying their looting and decide to stay an extra ten days or half a month? That little bit of cavalry of mine wouldn't be enough to fill the gaps between their teeth. Someone like Xu Lengzi standing there is a lot more reliable than a few scout cavalry. The Personal Guard Division always has to be kept close — otherwise why call it the Personal Guard Division?" Pang Yu tilted his head, thinking. "The Personal Guard Division, marching forty li a day, will take about thirty days to reach Xuzhou, then another twenty to Dezhou — and that's not even counting rest. By the time they reach Hejian Prefecture, the Tartars will be long gone. Even if they go, they won't see any real fighting. But it's still better to bring them along. Just treat it as a long-distance march exercise."

The main hall of the Branch Intendant Office was in chaos. The news of the Qing army entering the passes over two thousand li away had shaken more than half the Ming Dynasty. Pang Ding glanced back — Shi Kefa still hadn't come out. He lowered his voice to Pang Yu. "Young master, every time you go to war, those plans of yours never go smoothly. This time it's fighting Tartars. I just feel something's off. Why not just put on a show in Xuzhou and not go any further north?"

Pang Yu shook his head. "That won't do. We seized the docks on the Great River, cleared the river, issued banknotes — we've made too much noise. We've inevitably offended a whole crowd of people. If we don't have some battle achievements to back us up, will the court keep indulging us?"

"Then... with all these troops in Nanzhili, are we the only ones going to serve the King?"

"There's another. Here he comes now."

Pang Ding looked toward the main gate and saw Xu Strengthening walking in with a hurried expression. The moment he entered the main hall, he looked up and spotted Pang Yu, his face instantly brightening. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed his household retainers, strode into the hall with the fierce, wary gaze of a hawk, grabbed Pang Yu by the arm, and dragged him toward the side room used by the Advisors.

Before Pang Yu could even react, he was already at the doorway. Xu Strengthening stuck his head in to check — no Advisors inside — and only then stopped at the door. When he turned back, his face was full of worry. He seized Pang Yu's arms with both hands and wailed, "Worthy Brother Pang, this time you and I absolutely must travel together. We must not split our forces under any circumstances. That's a hundred thousand Tartars!"

Pang Yu hurriedly said, "Elder Brother, don't worry. Your brother here feels the same. When we brothers unite our hearts, our sharpness can cut through metal. We'll make those Tartars sorry."

Xu Strengthening's expression had just begun to ease, but upon hearing the last two lines, he grew tense again. "Worthy Brother, you must not think that way. You're a young man — perhaps you haven't heard about the wars of those earlier years. Of all the General Officers who went to Liaodong, Regional Commanders alone numbered in the dozens. No matter how skilled and battle-hardened they were elsewhere, the moment they met the Tartars, they lost their heads. All beaten to death."

"So that's how it is. Then what does Elder Brother suggest we do?"

"We stall!" Xu Strengthening ground his teeth. "If they insist we serve the King, the moment Circuit Intendant Shi dares mention serving the King, I'll dare to demand Mobilization Silver. Fighting Tartars isn't like fighting roving bandits — don't we still need Settlement Pay? Marching rations are hard to arrange on the road — people won't even open their city gates. The supplies have to be delivered to camp before we move. And the mules and horses to haul the marching rations — I'm here today precisely to demand grain tax in kind."

"Then exactly how much silver are we asking Circuit Intendant Shi for?"

"Mobilization Silver, at least ten taels per soldier. Settlement Pay, ten taels — no, twenty taels. That's ninety thousand taels right there. Then what else — three months of marching rations. At two jin per soldier per day, that's six thousand jin a day. For three months, that's... that's..."

Pang Yu quickly added, "Five hundred forty thousand jin."

"Right, five hundred forty thousand jin. October and December have two extra days, so add another twelve thousand jin." Xu Strengthening muttered to himself, "That makes it, uh, this..."

"Five hundred fifty-two thousand jin. Your younger brother suggests Elder Brother round it to a whole number, so Circuit Intendant Shi doesn't get it wrong."

"I'll follow Worthy Brother's advice — five hundred fifty thousand jin. We won't even bother calculating the forage; commuting it to silver is fine too. And we still need to make up the ten thousand-plus they owe me from this year's grain tax in kind and commuted tax." Xu Strengthening suddenly lowered his voice. "Elder Brother will tell you a trick. Since the second year of Chongzhen, every time the Tartars enter the passes, they stay at most a little over two months. By the time Circuit Intendant Shi scrapes together all this silver and grain, the Tartars will have long since left the passes."

Pang Yu looked at Xu Strengthening with some surprise. This Regional Commander, so utterly careless about drilling troops and fighting battles, had actually studied the Tartars' battle records carefully and reached the same conclusion as himself. It seemed these Ming General Officers weren't unintelligent after all.

Seeing Pang Yu's expression, Xu Strengthening said with a hint of pride, "Your elder brother trusts you enough to tell you this. Worthy Brother, you must not spread it around. If those higher-ups get wind of the truth, they won't be so forthcoming with the silver and grain. On this trip, we not only need to get the silver and grain in arrears from this year, but also secure next year's in full. Let's agree on this now — once the silver and grain are in hand, if we don't return it, neither of us returns it. Neither of us loosens our grip. Your elder brother's word is as heavy as nine cauldrons. Worthy Brother, you must trust me. As for the Tartars, leave them for the Northern Troops to fight..."

"I, your brother, am not afraid of Tartars!" Pang Yu suddenly raised his voice. Xu Strengthening stared at Pang Yu in shock, and out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of Shi Kefa's figure appearing behind the hall, with Yang Erming following behind.

"This, not afraid..." Xu Strengthening hurriedly tried to organize his thoughts. Caught off guard, his slogan hadn't yet taken shape. Just as he was getting a thread of an idea, Pang Yu cut him off with another loud shout.

"So what if there are a hundred thousand Tartars? Our Great Ming has more than a hundred million people. As long as every man fights bravely, we'll make sure the Tartars come but never return!"

Xu Strengthening's train of thought was disrupted. He watched Shi Kefa step up into the hall, still unable to piece together a forceful slogan.

The dark, gaunt Shi Kefa arrived in the hall and praised, "General Pang truly lives up to the name of a famous commander who awes the Great River."

Only then did Pang Yu turn his head with a startled look, as if he had just noticed Shi Kefa's arrival. He hurriedly saluted and said, "Just now, your subordinate was discussing the matter of serving the King with Regional Commander Xu. My emotions ran high for a moment. If I was insolent, I beg Your Excellency not to take offense."

Shi Kefa waved his hand magnanimously. "This official feels no differently. Shocked to hear the Tartars have once again violated the border, I wish I had wings on my body so I could reach the border wall in a single day to defend the Divine Capital."

Xu Strengthening finally recovered his wits and hastily added, "Your subordinate thinks the same."

Shi Kefa nodded encouragingly. "The Tartars have entered the passes via two routes — Qingshan Pass and Wall Ridge. This time their momentum is ferocious, aimed straight at the Capital. Their wolfish ambition is utterly vicious. If the troops everywhere were like you two generals, why worry that the Tartars won't be destroyed?"

Xu Strengthening immediately added, "As the saying goes, before troops and horses move, provisions go first. It's always best to prepare in advance. This journey to serve the King is no less than two thousand li. Equipment, silver, and grain are no small amounts. It's not easy to gather them in haste. To avoid the same predicament as last time, your subordinate proposes that the silver and grain be issued first to settle the troops' hearts."

As Xu Strengthening finished, he shot Pang Yu a series of meaningful looks. Beside them, Yang Erming, who had been nodding in greeting to Pang Yu, darkened at the words "silver and grain." Pang Yu found it a little amusing. This young man had been a county magistrate for a few years now. Though he had grown a bit taller, his demeanor had already been worn into that of a little old man. With the Tongcheng garrison growing daily, just securing grain tax in kind had already cost him considerable mental energy. Now, with talk of serving the King, the silver and grain would certainly be raised nearby in Anqing, and Tongcheng was the closest place — which meant a huge new expense out of nowhere.

Shi Kefa naturally understood Anqing's supply capacity as well. Looking somewhat troubled, he said, "Regional Commander Xu speaks reasonably. However, the Ministry of War has already ordered Xuan-Da, Shanxi, and the Liao Garrison to serve the King, but has not mobilized our Yingtian Troops. Though this official is impatient, we must still wait for the Ministry of War's order token. As for the matter of silver and grain, this official will naturally report it clearly and request Military Commander Zhang to decide."

Suddenly, Pang Yu burst out with a furious shout, "The Tartars are invading the Divine Capital — a warning signal is a military order!"

Shi Kefa and the others all stared at him in shock. Pang Yu's face was full of righteous indignation. "With the Tartars' brutality, Beizhi is already plunged into misery. Millions of common people are desperately hoping — one more troop means one more chance at victory. What did we study texts and practice martial arts for? To kill rebels and serve the country! In times of crisis, how can we sit and watch? This is not the time to discuss silver and grain. This is the time to see a subject's loyalty, to see a military man's conscience! Your subordinate feels exactly as Your Excellency the Circuit Intendant does — I only hate that I have no wings. But this urgency in my heart is truly unbearable, and I lack Your Excellency's cultivation in calming the mind. Even without silver, even without grain, your subordinate will immediately lead the Anqing Army to serve the King."

Xu Strengthening's mouth hung wide open. He had never seen Pang Yu's performance at the Tongcheng county office and had never imagined he could speak such words — linking serving the King to loyalty and conscience, and saying he didn't want silver or grain, just to see who would dare stop him now.

Shi Kefa also looked utterly bewildered. The news of the invasion had come urgently; he hadn't anticipated this. He was still waiting for Zhang Guowei's orders. This was going to fight Tartars — he hadn't expected any General Officer to go willingly. Some haggling was inevitable. Just moments ago in the rear hall, he had been worrying about whom to mobilize. Now Pang Yu had already volunteered, but the timing put him in a difficult spot.

"This... leaving Tongcheng means entering the garrison posts of the Fengyang Governor. To go rashly like this..."

Pang Yu lowered his voice again. "Your subordinate is temporarily commanding bandit-suppression troops, originally meant to reinforce various regions. Fengyang is also under Grand Coordinator Xiong's jurisdiction. Military Commander Zhu would have no reason to object. Perhaps he is even preparing to serve the King and is hoping we'll come. Last time, Military Commander Zhang also volunteered to serve the King — it will surely be the same this time. To avoid delaying Military Commander Zhang's departure date, your subordinate volunteers to serve as the sharp vanguard and go ahead. I beg Your Excellency the Circuit Intendant to grant permission!"

Yang Erming stole a glance at Pang Yu. Having been in Tongcheng for a long time, he had heard all about Pang Yu's past exploits at the county office. Listening to Pang Yu now, he first invoked the Emperor and the common people, and now he was invoking Zhang Guowei. Last time, it was Zhu Dadian who rushed ahead to serve the King, forcing Zhang Guowei to follow. If this time, because of obstruction, Zhang Guowei fell behind again, the responsibility would fall on Shi Kefa.

By now, Shi Kefa, just like Xu Strengthening, stood frozen in the hall.

Beixia Pass in Tongcheng — the vital route from Anqing to the north, the place where Pang Yu had first led troops into battle.

A portion of the cavalry was already stationed here, waiting only for the order to march. The Logistics Team's carts still streamed endlessly along the official road from the south.

Yang Guangdi rode his horse at a slow run on the official road outside the north wall. He stood in the stirrups on his toes, both hands free of the reins. In his left hand, he held a cavalry bow. His legs rose and fell with the galloping rhythm of his mount, Big Fire, maintaining a steady posture as he controlled the horse's speed through shifts in his body's center of gravity.

After completing a circuit, he rode back through the wide-open city gate into the pass. A group of scout cavalry standing along the street cheered in unison. Yang Guangdi jumped off his horse and said excitedly to the teammates coming to greet him, "Yu Er Ge, what do you think — is my riding passable now?"

"Looks like you've gotten familiar with this horse. Once you're a bit steadier, you'll be able to shoot arrows. Passing the mounted archery test adds five Mace to your monthly pay — set by Lord Pang himself. But you still need to work on your arm strength. Your arrows have range but no depth, and your accuracy isn't enough either. The root is still insufficient arm strength. Mounted archery makes it even harder to kill anyone."

Yang Guangdi felt a bit deflated. He turned back and patted Big Fire's neck a few times. At least there was progress. In this Scout Cavalry Banner, he was the skinniest, and his strength truly wasn't a match for the others.

A burst of cheers came from the other end of the street. The scout cavalrymen turned to look and saw a group of bare-chested artillerymen gathered around a small cannon, making a ruckus about something.

Yang Guangdi looked over and said, "That's our Commander's Artillery Commander. I heard he came from the workshop. He's an educated man — he can fix anything related to cannons."

"If the barrel bursts I don't believe he can fix it." Yu Er Ge curled his lip, but said nothing more. Yang Guangdi knew this Yu Er Ge looked down on the other branches, and on other cavalry too — even within the Scout Cavalry Banner he didn't find every face agreeable — yet he alone never cursed the artillery.

He glanced over again and saw that Company Commander from the workshop had also stripped to the waist. In the army you could drink when not in battle, and Yang Guangdi often saw him holding a big bowl while drinking, not looking the least bit like a scholar.

A rider ran past the artillerymen. Yang Guangdi looked closely — it was none other than his own Banner Commander, carrying something in his hand.

The men all dodged aside to clear the path. Sure enough, when the Banner Commander reached them he didn't rein in, but jumped straight off the horse's back; the empty mount charged forward on its own.

The Banner Commander didn't even glance at the horse. Facing the group of scout cavalry, he said, "The Martial Academy's Field Artillery Test Team issued some firelocks and insists every unit use them — says it's an order from the Military Office. I had no choice but to draw one. Which of you wants it?"

Yang Guangdi craned his neck to look. It was a slender, long Fire Lance, with a length of Fire Rope still clamped in the dragon's head.

No one spoke. Firelocks had a bad name in the army; word was they often burst the barrel and injured the shooter. None of the other officers or men wanted to use them. Seeing that no one else would take it, Yang Guangdi naturally kept his mouth shut too.

"Your mothers — none of you want it, is that it?" The Banner Commander swept his gaze over them. "Who came last in the last archery test?"

Every pair of eyes swung in unison toward Yang Guangdi. Before Yang Guangdi could react, the Fire Lance was already flying at his face; he hurriedly caught it. Right after, a cloth pouch came flying over too. He caught it and saw the pouch was divided into three sections.

"The test team said this gun outranges the bow and is more accurate than the bow. It's yours now. On the road I'll teach you to load and fire." As the Banner Commander finished speaking, his mount came trotting back on its own. The Banner Commander grabbed the reins, vaulted onto the horse, and roared at the men, "By order of Battalion Commander Chen, the Scout Cavalry Banner is to leave Beixia Pass at once and scout the road toward Luzhou — we're going to kill Tartars."

With a cheer, everyone mounted up together. Yang Guangdi, holding an extra Fire Lance in his hands, still hadn't found a suitable place to stow it, and was the very last to clamber onto his horse's back.

He had just settled into the saddle when he heard the Banner Commander bellow, "Scout cavalry!"

Yang Guangdi, together with the rest, howled in unison, "Ta Bai — ride!"

The Banner Commander, both hands off the reins, rose high to stand in the stirrups, body leaning slightly forward. His mount slowly picked up speed and led the charge out through the north gate of Beixia Pass.