Chapter 482: Uproar

On the twentieth day of the first month, at the Grand Canal northwest of Dezhou.

Pang Yu stamped hard on the frozen river surface a few times; the feedback felt extremely solid. He exhaled and raised his head. A long cavalry column was crossing the river. This unit was the cavalry of the Shaanxi Provincial Commander's Standard Troops, considered the elite among the personal troops.

Pang Yu carefully observed the column. About two hundred cavalry of the Qin Army Governor's Standard rode with practiced ease, their bearing and posture relaxed. A small portion wore iron-inlaid cotton armor, while most wore cotton armor. Their equipment was fairly uniform. The accompanying auxiliary troops were roughly at a one-to-one ratio. The remaining three hundred cavalry were slightly inferior.

Having been in the army for a long time, Pang Yu could assess a unit's quality with a single glance. The simplest method was to look at their banners. The household retainer banners within this Governor's Standard unit were complete, well-ordered front and rear. On the march, both combat soldiers and auxiliary troops moved under the guidance of the banners, and he saw no one leaving the ranks without permission.

"Sir, Liu Zhongtang summons you for a discussion."

Pang Ding muttered beside him, "You've only been out a short while, and he's already asked three times."

Pang Yu waved his hand, rubbed his face to soften his expression, then hurried forward. Liu Yuliang's carriage was within the Capital Battalion column, but positioned at the tail end of the Capital Battalion, very close to the head of the Anqing column, making it convenient for Pang Yu to go back and forth.

He quickly reached Liu Yuliang's carriage. Pang Yu dismounted and approached the window curtain. The household servant attending nearby immediately drew back the curtain, revealing Liu Yuliang's gaunt, thin cheeks.

"General Pang, if a banner of Tartars were to come, on this open plain, could the troops presently here withstand them?"

Pang Yu thought seriously. The Qing army was fairly balanced in all aspects; their greatest strength was mobility. He didn't know about beyond the passes, but when they entered to plunder, their siege capability was generally mediocre. He replied, "In reply to the Zhongtang, as long as the formation is completed, this officer's unit can withstand one banner of Tartars."

"Oh, I see. And what if it were two banners?"

"Two banners..." Pang Yu hesitated briefly, glanced slightly up at Liu Yuliang's expression, which seemed very expectant, and then replied, "As long as the formation is completed, this officer's unit can withstand two banners."

Liu Yuliang visibly breathed a sigh of relief. "General Pang, then these Tartars coming from Jinan — exactly how many banners are they?"

"The Zhongtang is perceptive. It is four banners, plus some Outer Vassal Mongol troops. These Western Invaders have mediocre combat strength, but excel in fine horsemanship."

"These Western Invaders are still cavalry after all. Must not be underestimated, absolutely must not be underestimated." Liu Yuliang frowned for a moment and said, "How can we ensure complete safety?"

Pang Yu's mind raced. He didn't know exactly how many banners this Chief Grand Secretary wanted to defend against, or whether he simply didn't want to leave Dezhou at all. Pang Yu didn't even know the Chief Grand Secretary's true opinion of Sun Chuanting.

Currently, the command structure of the King's Army was chaotic. Liu Yuliang was originally the Imperial Inspector and should not have interfered in command matters, yet he directly commanded the Capital Battalion and Pang Yu's two units.

In the past two days, the imperial approvals and ministry directives arriving from court had repeatedly addressed him as Supervisor and issued military orders directly to him.

Sun Chuanting bore the title of Governor-General of rally to the king, but Liu Yuliang was the Chief Grand Secretary. Sun Chuanting dared not truly ignore the Chief Grand Secretary's opinions. With the two marching together, Sun Chuanting always had to seek Liu Yuliang's opinion before issuing orders, rendering the command system inefficient.

Therefore, Sun Chuanting proposed that Liu Yuliang advance north first, dividing the troops at hand and giving them to Liu Yuliang. These included five hundred cavalry of the Qin Army Battalion of the Standard under Zheng Jiadong, one thousand horse soldiers from Datong Garrison, and one thousand firearm soldiers from Yansui Garrison. Among them, Zheng Jiadong's unit had just arrived.

From what Pang Yu observed, most of the troops Sun Chuanting assigned to him were auxiliary troops. Only two hundred from the Qin Army Battalion of the Standard could be considered elite. The quality of the Datong Garrison horse soldiers was also low; they basically had no armor, and their military discipline and bearing were extremely poor, looking not much different from Roving Bandits. Taking them away had little impact on Sun Chuanting. Including Pang Yu's Southern Troops, although they had achieved respectable battle results, they were mostly infantry and likely did not fit Sun Chuanting's tactics, so taking them along as well had no effect.

Sun Chuanting had asked Liu Yuliang to advance north to Cangzhou first. Nominally, it was to go to Cangzhou to intercept, but in reality, it was using a bunch of miscellaneous troops to send Liu Yuliang away so he wouldn't be a hindrance.

This bunch of miscellaneous units, plus Zhou Yuji and Pang Yu, gave Liu Yuliang over six thousand troops under his command. But the fact that he was asking such questions now clearly showed his heart was still uncertain.

From Dezhou to Cangzhou was over two hundred li. Sun Chuanting had deliberately arranged to travel west of the Grand Canal, while he himself went to Wuqiao. The Qing army was moving along the Shanghe line and could not possibly threaten Liu Yuliang. Yet Liu Yuliang constantly feared the Qing army would descend from the sky. The Qing army had been invincible for years. Except for occasionally gaining the upper hand in small-scale engagements, the Ming Army almost always fled at the mere sight of them.

Moreover, the Qing army moved swiftly. Traveling in the field, Liu Yuliang was constantly in fear. They had only marched a few li from Dezhou, and he had already summoned Pang Yu to question him three times.

"In reply to Your Excellency, if it is purely defense, infantry is more useful than cavalry. The Eastern Invaders have many cavalry, but now they are laden with many people and carriages and cannot gallop at will. The number of troops they can use for encirclement attacks will be even fewer. As long as we send out the mounted retainers from each garrison to conduct far and near reconnaissance and maintain vigilant security, once the Jurchen Slaves approach, the infantry will form square formations or circular formations to hold firm. This officer can guarantee that the Anqing Battalion can protect Your Excellency's safety."

Liu Yuliang gave an "Oh." Pang Yu stole a glance at the Chief Grand Secretary. The worried look on his face had not faded. It seemed Pang Yu's words had not had much effect.

Liu Yuliang dismissed Pang Yu and had his personal soldiers summon Zhou Yuji. He did not tell Pang Yu to leave, so Pang Yu had to wait nearby as well. In just a moment, Zhou Yuji arrived at the carriage.

"Just now, General Pang said the Eastern Invaders have a multitude of cavalry. This old man believes that hits the crux of the matter. We must use cavalry to counter cavalry to ensure complete safety. The current cavalry force is still too small." Liu Yuliang hesitated for a moment and said, "Have all battalions halt. Send relay horses to find Sun Doutang and have him transfer another thousand cavalry to this old man."

Pang Yu was stunned. Everyone knew that Liu Yuliang's force was not meant for fighting, and Liu Yuliang himself shared that understanding. Yet now he was incessantly demanding troops from Sun Chuanting, and the moment he opened his mouth, he invoked Pang Yu's name.

Zhou Yuji glanced at Pang Yu, unsure whether he believed Liu Yuliang's words, but he still relayed the order to halt the advance and sent commands to all the accompanying units.

The Anqing Battalion's command system was well-developed. Besides military orders, they quickly used the clerk officer system to steady morale. The troops rested in place. Fire soldiers searched for firewood nearby to prepare for boiling water and warming themselves by the fire.

Having just marched a few li from Dezhou, this six-thousand-strong army halted again. None of the battalions knew what was happening, and discussions buzzed everywhere. The six-thousand-strong army thus waited on the official road along the west bank of the Grand Canal. Nearly the entire morning passed, and they could still see the city walls of Dezhou.

Those cobbled-together units were all small camp heads. The military officers in command did not know the reason for the halt and dared not come directly to ask the Chief Grand Secretary, so they sent men to inquire of Zhou Yuji. Fortunately, they had just set out and provisions were still ample, so no chaos had erupted yet.

It was past noon when the relay horse bearing a message finally arrived. Pang Yu immediately hurried to the vicinity of Liu Yuliang's carriage.

The moment Liu Yuliang saw Pang Yu, he said, "Sun Doutang just replied, asking this official to go to Wuqiao County for a combined camp."

Pang Yu and Zhou Yuji both waited by the carriage. Liu Yuliang wore a contemplative expression. After a long while, he finally said, "As the saying goes, united we are strong, divided we are weak. It is not advisable to overly divide our forces. Then this official cannot well refuse his goodwill. We shall go to Wuqiao."

Having said this, he lowered the carriage curtain and paid no further attention to the two men. Pang Yu and Zhou Yuji exchanged a glance. Neither spoke. Each turned to direct their troops.

Only then did Pang Yu understand. Liu Yuliang simply did not dare go to Cangzhou, nor did he dare remain motionless in Dezhou. Ultimately, he still wanted to stay with Sun Chuanting's main army for greater security.

In this way, Sun Chuanting's effort to simplify the command structure had been wasted. Liu Yuliang was still traveling alongside him.

But with this maneuver of Liu Yuliang's, leading six thousand troops in circles like headless flies for an entire day, having just crossed the river only to turn back again — within the vast mass of six thousand men, privately circulated information would become distorted and warped, breeding much doubt and suspicion. Morale had not been high to begin with, and now it was even worse.

After Pang Yu finished briefing the officers, no one knew how to respond. Pang Yu waved his hand, telling the officers to figure it out themselves.

Pang Ding beside him looked at the column before them and said in a low voice, "Young master, I don't know how this Zhongtang is as an official, but in warfare, he's a complete layman. I think... he's not even as good as me."

Pang Yu let out a scoffing laugh. "With Jinan fallen, the imperial approvals the Emperor sends back grow ever harsher. The Zhongtang is not entirely without pressure now. But he fears both suffering a defeat and being criticized by the Emperor for being perfunctory. Calling him a fence-sitter wouldn't be an overstatement. In waging war like this, he truly is inferior to you. But we still need things from him. You must show respect to the Zhongtang. Pack up and move out for Wuqiao."

Wuqiao County, Jingzhou, Hejian Prefecture, Northern Zhili. This place had suffered military chaos a few years ago. Li Jiucheng and Kong Youde's Dengzhou Troops had slaughtered and burned the city empty. Just as it seemed to be recovering slightly, the Qing army came again. This time, it was breached by the Qing Left Wing. The county seat was nearly reduced to white ground, and the common people were almost entirely dead or wounded.

The corpses within the city went uncollected. Each battalion had its own concerns and none set up camp inside the city. The camp heads who arrived first camped outside the city, leaning against the city wall. Liu Yuliang arrived late, but given that he was the Chief Grand Secretary, Sun Chuanting had Li Guozheng's unit of the Governor's Standard vacate a section of camp ground and invited Liu Yuliang into a relatively safe position. But Pang Yu did not receive this treatment and could only set up camp in the southeast area of the city.

Yan Ancestral Sacrifice was to remain defending Dezhou, so naturally the Shandong Provincial Commander's Standard Troops and the River Defense Troops did not come. But the other armies arriving at Wuqiao County were fairly well-ordered. Cao Bianjiao, Wang Pu, the Qin Army Governor's Standard, the various Xuan-Da Garrisons, the Supervisor Battalion, and Liu Guangzuo were all present. The border troops the court could muster were basically all here. Adding Liu Yuliang's miscellaneous troops, there were over twenty thousand men again, a vast expanse of camps outside Wuqiao city, looking somewhat imposing once more.

Beyond Pang Yu's expectations, Liu Yuliang received several consecutive imperial approvals and Ministry of War directives. Pang Yu did not know the contents, but the Chief Grand Secretary's attitude underwent a major shift. Perhaps under pressure, he began proactively inquiring about Pang Yu's battle plans.

Hope rekindled in Pang Yu's heart. Currently, the various battalions had rested and reorganized in Dezhou and received a sum of military pay. Because of Yan Ancestral Sacrifice's coordination, grain supplies were also guaranteed in full measure. No battalion went hungry. The King's Army was in decent condition.

Pang Yu had not completely given up, because the opportunity before him was simply too good. According to his thinking, they only needed the Liao Garrison to assemble. The main army would use Dezhou as a logistics base, control the line of Ningjin and Leling, and flank or intercept the Qing army moving north. With fifty to sixty thousand Ming troops threatening their flank, the bloated Qing army at Jinan would move very slowly. Secondly, they would use the Dengzhou front to pin down the Qing Right Wing. Everything was aimed at delaying the Qing army's march progress. If they could not intercept them, they would strictly defend the river channel at Cangzhou.

As long as they could delay until the rivers thawed, the difficulty of the Qing army's return north would multiply. Then the initiative in the war would shift to the Ming Army's side. But all of this required the various garrisons to act in unison, simultaneously pinning down each part of the Qing army's marching column. Moreover, they had to be willing to send out their household retainers, who possessed the strongest mobility and offensive power. Otherwise, they would instead be easily defeated in detail by the Qing army. This required Sun Chuanting to coordinate the various garrisons.

He did not know how Liu Yuliang would communicate with Sun Chuanting. He could only wait to see the effect at the meeting.

On the twenty-first day of the first month, the King's Army once again raised the command tent for a council. This time, Yan Ancestral Sacrifice was absent. Seated in the seats of honor were Liu Yuliang and Sun Chuanting, with Liu Yuliang still in the position of primacy. Sun Chuanting asked Liu Yuliang to speak first, but the Chief Grand Secretary was polite this time and told Sun Chuanting to speak first.

Sun Chuanting first took out the Ministry of War directive he had just received and relayed the Ministry's requirements. The directive was the same old refrain, telling everyone not to merely chase from behind for show, but to go around and intercept from the front. Currently, Gao Qiqian was in the south, so the force that could intercept from the front was this King's Army on the Wuqiao route. Sun Chuanting specifically elaborated on this section, indicating that his main operational intent was to intercept from the front, so that each garrison would know what to expect.

Next, Sun Chuanting briefed them on the Qing army's movements, confirming they were advancing north via two routes: Shanghe and Wuding. Then came Sun Chuanting's assessment: this force from Jinan would take the old route of the previous force and cross the river at Botou. If not Botou, then it would be Cangzhou.

After the situation briefing was complete, it should have been time for the specific deployment. For the various garrisons and battalions, this was the most important part. Even Pang Yu felt somewhat nervous.

Everyone's attention was focused on Sun Chuanting. Just as Sun Chuanting was about to speak, Liu Yuliang beside him suddenly stood up solemnly. He looked around at the assembly, then strode to the center of the great tent.

The civil and military officials filling the room watched the Chief Grand Secretary in astonishment as he stopped in the middle of the tent, then bowed deeply and performed a solemn salute in all four directions. Those in the hall dodged aside, some kneeling to return the salute, creating a moment of chaos.

Having completed his salute, Liu Yuliang raised his head, looked at the assembled military officers, and said earnestly, "This old man has traveled all the way from Zhending and seen not a trace of cooking smoke, only stinking corpses strewn across the wilds. Worse still is Jinan, a land of imperial lineage, where thousands of gentry and commoners had gathered and thrived for a hundred years, yet were slaughtered nearly to extinction in a matter of days. The princely fief has fallen into enemy hands. To see and hear of it, one cannot help but feel grief and fury to the point of despair. The ferocity and vicious cruelty of the Eastern Invaders such as this is truly unheard of since ancient times. If we allow such fiends to return north just like this, with what face shall we return to court? With what face shall we meet the gentry and people of Zhili? On behalf of the suffering commoners, this old man here beseeches you, generals, to avenge this blood-deep enmity for them!"

Pang Yu also dodged to one side. As he did, he kept an eye on the scene: most of the military officers wore expressions of shock and uncertainty. Even Sun Chuanting stood frozen on the spot.

……

The meeting ended, and Pang Yu had understood nothing. He could only return to his own battalion encampment first.

Because of Liu Yuliang's performance, Sun Chuanting had not laid out a concrete deployment. Pang Yu guessed that it ran counter to the direction of Liu Yuliang's speech, and that the two probably needed to communicate privately and reach an understanding before issuing specific battle plans.

Pang Yu was reading the latest dispatch bulletin. The Qing army was moving north, its line of march directly facing the Shanghe-to-Wuding sector, which did not overlap with the Left Wing's route.

Pang Yu therefore did not agree with Sun Chuanting's judgment that they would cross the river at Botou. The Qing army would avoid overlapping routes as much as possible, so as to secure better logistical support through plunder. Pang Yu thus needed to confirm the Qing army's route as preparation for subsequent operations — though of course, it would be best to simply block them at Leling.

At that moment, Tu Dianli hurried over and whispered into Pang Yu's ear, "My lord, it seems there's a mutiny. The General Officers from all the camps have surrounded Liu Zhongtang's Central Army." (Note 1)

"Surrounded?" Pang Yu looked up in astonishment. He had never imagined this. Provisions were ample, and there had been no prior sign of trouble — yet a mutiny had suddenly erupted. "Why have they surrounded him?"

"I had just gone to Liu Zhongtang's to collect the dispatch bulletin. All I saw was chaos. Some officers and men from the various camps were shouting curses outside the Central Army. I saw the general situation and hurried back to report first — I didn't probe for a clear understanding."

"What exactly was the situation outside Liu Zhongtang's encampment?"

"They were all officers and Household Retainers from the various camps, every one of them bearing weapons. From what I heard of their cursing, it seemed they were saying Liu Zhongtang was forcing them to go to their deaths."

It finally dawned on Pang Yu that Liu Yuliang's performance that afternoon must have spread to the various garrisons and camps, and in that short time had fermented into this situation.

After a long moment of stunned silence, Pang Yu muttered, "Who the hell are we even fighting."

……

Note 1: Historically, Liu Yuliang's kneeling incident occurred on the 24th near Qing County. Due to Liu Yuliang's reckless actions, the military officers of the various camps mistakenly believed that Liu Yuliang was trying to force them into a decisive battle with the Qing army. They then raised a clamor and surrounded the Central Army, showing signs of mutiny. The mutiny was later quelled only after Sun Chuanting communicated with each garrison and camp one by one, clarifying that only small-scale ambush and interdiction operations would be conducted. Liu Yuliang, however, lost all his authority as a result. This also shows the degree to which the Government Troops feared battle.