Chapter 549: Old Wound

"Deputy Commander Wu's Clerk Officer, is that scar on your face an old wound from Wangzhuang?"

In the rear courtyard of the Anqing Cavalry Camp Vice Regional Commander's office, inside the Advisory Room's council hall, He County Yamen looked at Wu Dacai with concern.

Wu Dacai was just about to sit down; hearing this, he gave He County Yamen an ingratiating smile. "Indeed, a minor old wound from that time. It was nearly healed, but yesterday at home I forgot for a moment and accidentally scratched it open again."

Zhuang Chaozheng, beside him, said, "Should we have someone from the Military Hospital come and examine it again?"

"The Military Hospital still has many wounded and sick; I won't trouble them over such a trifling wound. My thanks for Commander Zhuang's concern."

After saying this, Wu Dacai exchanged a few polite words with Yang Xueshi, who sat at the head. Once He County Yamen nodded, Wu Dacai swept a glance over the people in the council hall. There was also Chen Rulie — they had seen much of each other during the imperial relief campaign, so he gave him a simple greeting. The rest were all clerks and the like, of lower rank than himself, so he did not greet them. One was an Artillery Commander, Ceng Yiyun, said to be getting a Thousand-Leader brevet, but Wu Dacai himself also held a Thousand-Leader brevet. Once Pang Yu's promotion to Regional Commander was complete, Wu Dacai would rise another rank as well, so he ignored Ceng Yiyun too and went straight to his own seat and sat down.

He County Yamen turned his head and looked over. "Just now, the Deputy Chief Clerk went to the Military Hospital to tour and comfort the wounded. The Advisory Room has already broadly outlined the bandit-suppression situation in the Central Plains. I will summarize it for the Deputy Chief Clerk. Before the Eight Bandits rose up from Gucheng, they sent part of their baggage train and servants to Fang County. Because our forces and the Huguang Pacification Standard had made early preparations and threatened the road from Gucheng to Fang County, the Eight Bandits then turned east and encamped. Cao Cao, Hun Shiwan, and over ten other camps in the Fangzhu area subsequently rebelled again. Our infantry entered the mountains in pursuit and routed the bandits' rearguard forces. Cao Cao's various units went west into the mountains, while the cavalry camp and the Huguang Pacification Standard's Household Retainers went east. The Eight Bandits seemed prepared; they split their old camp into seven or eight columns. Our camp routed two of those columns. The other columns assembled at Tang County in Henan. Geli Yan, Ma Shouying, and Ziweixing provided support at Tongbai. Several columns of Roving Bandits ambushed the pursuing troops. Our camp and the Huguang Pacification Standard both suffered losses, as already reported in prior dispatches. The Eight Bandits thus shook off the pursuit of all camps and joined forces with Geli Yan and other bandit chieftains north of the Yinghuo Mountain Area. Recently, they have been plundering in southern Henan and the northern part of the Canal Transport Governor's jurisdiction."

Wu Dacai had already read these military reports en route. The Eight Bandits' movements after heading east were highly methodical; whether going west or east, they must have prepared well in advance. Otherwise, bandit chieftains like Geli Yan would not have organized an ambush at Tongbai. The pursuing Anqing and Huguang cavalry suffered considerable losses. The bandit groups in the Yinghuo Mountain Area had originally been under attack by the Anqing Mountain Enemy Battalion. Once the Eight Bandits arrived, they all came out of the mountains, throwing southern Henan and northern Nanzhili into chaos.

Most of the large and small bandit camps that had previously been recruited to surrender in various regions rebelled again, exploiting the opportunity while the imperial relief army had not yet returned to plunder everywhere. The situation had almost reverted to its former state. Yang Sichang's Ten-Faced Net had completely collapsed.

However, the Roving Bandits' activities bypassed Anqing. The Roving Bandits in the Yinghuo Mountain Area, threatened by the Mountain Enemy Battalion, moved north out of the mountains one after another. The garrison at Gucheng routed some of the foot columns of Cao Cao and Hun Shiwan, seizing a large amount of baggage, but all the Mounted Bandits escaped. Anqing's battalions have already returned to Gucheng.

"As for Liaodong, after Supreme Commander Hong arrived in Liaoxi, he began organizing and training new battalions, mixing chariots, infantry, and cavalry. There is no new military intelligence from the Eastern Invaders for the time being." He County Yamen turned over the next sheet of petition paper. "I will be a bit long-winded. The reason for briefing on the enemy situation first is that after two major campaigns — the imperial relief and the bandit suppression — our battalion's General Officers felt there were many inconveniences during engagements. Therefore, the next topic is battalion organization. When Lord Pang was in the Capital, he sent back orders to improve battalion organization and to reorganize and replenish the troops, armor, and weapons of each camp. The Military Office has been assigned overall responsibility. I now invite Clerk Yang to explain to everyone."

Yang Xueshi, sitting beside He County Yamen, cleared his throat. "The Military Office, having received Lord Pang's order, has overall responsibility for improving and replenishing the battalion organization. In practice, these are two matters. We must first finalize the establishment before we can determine how many men, horses, armor, and weapons need replenishing. Lord Pang has issued a strict order that a plan must be submitted before he returns to Anqing. The Military Office leads this task, but the Military Office alone cannot accomplish it. The Advisory Room, the Household Office, the workshops, and all Thousand-Leader Headquarters involved must cooperate fully. That is why Clerk He has invited everyone here for a joint discussion."

Yang Xueshi flipped through the petition papers in his hand. Wu Dacai glanced at them from the corner of his eye. He knew that Yang Xueshi had previously been illiterate, but after this past year away, he did not know whether Yang Xueshi had learned privately. Yang Xueshi's gaze did not linger on the paper. Wu Dacai lowered his head to focus his sight and saw that Yang Xueshi's booklet contained only fragmented characters — likely prompt words written for him by a clerk. That meant he only recognized this much. Wu Dacai breathed a sigh of relief.

"The basis for battalion organization is our enemy. The Anqing Battalion has two enemies: one is the Roving Bandits, the other is the Eastern Invaders. Yet the two differ greatly. According to the reorganization outline set by Lord Pang, on the open plains of the north, an Army Thousand-Leader Headquarters should be able to resist an assault by one banner of the Eastern Invaders. In the terrain of northern villages and towns, it should be able to resist an assault by two banners, and possess the capability to take offensive action to delay their movements. When facing the Roving Bandits, a single Thousand-Leader Headquarters should be able to defeat head-on the camps of Giant Bandit chieftains such as Cao Cao, the Eight Bandits, and Hun Shiwan, and possess the ability to pursue the enemy's Old Bandits in rout. The Military Office has prepared two plans, which have been distributed to everyone in advance for review. The presiding officials of each office and camp have read them. Please speak frankly if you have any proposals."

A long while passed, yet no one spoke. The room was utterly silent. Wu Dacai stared at the petition paper, showing no intention of speaking first.

Seeing this, He County Yamen raised his head and first looked toward Zhuang Chaozheng. The Heavy Infantry of the Personal Guard Division had the highest cost, but its combat effectiveness had always been the most reliable in the entire camp. For an agenda item like revising the organization, it seemed more appropriate for the Personal Guard Division to speak first.

Just as he was about to address Zhuang Chaozheng, Wu Dacai across from him spoke up first. Wu Dacai raised his head, looked at Yang Xueshi, and said, "I have carefully read the Military Office's reorganization plans. Clerk Yang has put in tremendous effort. I generally approve of them."

Yang Xueshi nodded politely. As a veteran who had participated in the first defense of Tongcheng and a former master archer, he had always held high status in the army. He had started as a Relay Courier and his temper was not particularly good, but after being wounded, he had not participated in battle again. Over time, his temper seemed to have mellowed.

Wu Dacai continued, "I have two proposals here. In the first plan, it is proposed to expand the current Thousand-Leader Headquarters' two companies into three companies, with total strength exceeding two thousand men, and to add a directly subordinate Heavy Infantry Company for use against the Tartars' White Armor Soldiers. I propose not increasing the Heavy Infantry. Heavy Infantry is of little use against the Roving Bandits. As for the Eastern Invaders, I participated in the Wangzhuang battle. When defending a village, as long as the cavalry can block the Eastern Invaders' sudden raids, fieldworks can be built in a single night. The north is flat and open. If you encounter the enemy in the field, a single Heavy Infantry Company is of little use. Whether in open fields or villages, defense is still roughly in four directions. If you need to defend in place, well-drilled battalions are always the most useful. Better to set it as four companies. Each company can have fewer men — the cost is about the same as one Heavy Infantry Company — but it is better for attack and defense, more convenient for marching, and faster in pursuit."

Several General Officers in the council room raised their heads to look at Wu Dacai. Normally, for such military topics, the Clerk Officer merely attended. No one generally expected to hear them speak. Mr. Hou had always been that way before. But Wu Dacai would participate in any topic.

Yang Xueshi nodded and said evenly, "The Eastern Invaders have a full complement of horse and foot, light and heavy. The Roving Bandits are entirely light cavalry and light infantry. They are fundamentally different. If we must fight both types simultaneously, cavalry is the most suitable. We don't have that much cavalry, so we added Heavy Infantry to deal with the Eastern Invaders. When fighting the Roving Bandits, this Heavy Infantry is also useful, for example, at Susong."

Wu Dacai immediately followed, "At Susong, the Roving Bandits came to raid Anqing. After that, they never dared come again. It's always us chasing the Roving Bandits. Naturally, Heavy Infantry became far less useful. Expanding to over two thousand men under this plan, an Army Thousand-Leader Headquarters would have a subordinate Roving Cavalry Company and company-level Roving Cavalry Banners, totaling two hundred cavalry. The rest are all infantry. Now we're also organizing Heavy Armor. Not to mention long-distance marches, you have to bring it even on tactical marches. Marching becomes extremely inconvenient. On this imperial relief campaign, I was gone nearly a year. We fought for only a few days; the rest of the time was spent on the road. In the past, training focused on drilling hands and feet, weapons, and signals. After this campaign, what consumed the most effort was provisions supply. Heavy Infantry organized within a mixed battalion requires carriages to haul armor and weapons on long marches, and civilian porters to carry them on short marches. Moreover, the money and grain spent is more than double that of ordinary infantry…"

Zhuang Chaozheng, who had remained silent, suddenly said, "Heavy Infantry does cost more in money and grain, but in battle, they also kill the most. It's not just about killing more — they also help other battalions fight and kill. For example, Deputy Chief Clerk Wu killed quite a few Tartars at Wangzhuang, but that was because so many Heavy Infantry held the Tartars back, allowing you to fire off so many shots."

Wu Dacai caught on and hurriedly said to Zhuang Chaozheng, "The victory at Wangzhuang all relied on the Heavy Armor Soldiers of the Personal Guard Thousand-Leader Headquarters. I was merely saying that for an ordinary mixed battalion, adding Heavy Infantry is instead like drawing, drawing what…"

He County Yamen waited a moment, then said, "Does the Deputy Chief Clerk mean 'drawing legs on a snake'?"

"Exactly, exactly. Just as Clerk He said."

Zhuang Chaozheng placed both hands on the table. "Then what does Deputy Chief Clerk Wu think should be amended?"

Wu Dacai handed a sheet of petition paper to He County Yamen, and then another to Yang Xueshi. "Change one Thousand-Leader Headquarters to four companies. Do not assign Heavy Infantry to a mixed infantry Thousand-Leader Headquarters. Change it to a Self-Igniting Arquebus Company. Add a Self-Igniting Arquebus Banner Team to each company. Change each company's Fire Soldier Squad to a Self-Igniting Arquebus Squad, to be used as Light Infantry. They won't carry much armor and weapons…"

Zhuang Chaozheng interrupted again, "Heavy Infantry carries a lot of armor and weapons, but it's still not as heavy as cannons. Yet I've never heard anyone say we shouldn't bring cannons. One cart can carry a team's worth of armor and weapons. At Thirty-Li Post, we relied on Heavy Infantry to kill Tartars. At Tongcheng Post, we relied on Heavy Infantry to defend the city. At Wangzhuang, we ultimately relied on Heavy Infantry to hold the line. The Deputy Chief Clerk killed seven or eight Tartars — the whole army knows this. That is Lord Wu's valor. You won't find one man in ten thousand like that. Where would we find that many arquebusiers?"

The several men present all fixed their gazes on the tabletops before them. No one showed a mocking expression, but the atmosphere in the room remained somewhat strange.

Wu Dacai's face showed a trace of discomfort. By rank, Zhuang Chaozheng was half a step above Wu Dacai. In terms of official court rank, there was simply no comparison. Zhuang Chaozheng was a Mobile Corps Commander with the brevet rank of Assistant Regional Commander. Wu Dacai's name in the court military registers stopped at Centurion. The Document Team he later joined was established by Pang Yu himself and had no establishment in the office. Therefore, when facing these regular Thousand-Leaders, Wu Dacai was generally quite low-key and rarely argued with Thousand-Leaders during the imperial relief campaign.

However, Zhuang Chaozheng was clearly deliberately antagonizing him today. Wu Dacai immediately replied coldly, "I am just an ordinary Clerk Officer, and I've even broken my leg. Naturally, I cannot compare to Commander Zhuang. Heavy Infantry can kill elite guards, but at Wangzhuang, I also personally saw a teenage firearm soldier kill an Eastern Invader White Armor with one shot. Since both can kill, why not use firearm soldiers? They can be used for both attack and defense."

"Everyone also saw how the Martial Academy Firearm Team performed at Thirty-Li Post. How could they possibly attack, and how could they possibly defend? Probably unreliable on both counts."

Wu Dacai's anger flared. Without a moment's delay, he shot back, "The Wangzhuang Firearm Team was somewhat poor, but that was because they only had a few guns. If there were more guns, firing one or two volleys could kill that many. Just like how behind me there were many civilian porters, all throwing stones. If they all had Self-Igniting Arquebuses, naturally it would be different."

"If they are so useful, then why don't the other garrisons use arquebuses?"

"Then the cannons of the other garrisons are also useless. Why are our Anqing Battalion's Artillery so useful? Different people using them naturally yields different results."

Zhuang Chaozheng shot Wu Dacai a glance. "What difference? We are talking here about defending against one banner of Eastern Invaders in the north. You can't only think of villages and towns. What if you encounter them in the open field? Without Heavy Infantry to hold them off, how can arquebuses fire? You would collapse instantly."

"Then if we're talking about encountering Eastern Invaders in the open field, Heavy Infantry can't hold them off either. Otherwise, why didn't we dare leave the City Wall and head south at Tongcheng Post? Should we do away with Heavy Infantry too then?"

Zhuang Chaozheng and Wu Dacai stared at each other coldly. Chen Rulie and Ceng Yiyun fixed their eyes on the tabletop. He County Yamen had never fought in a battle; after listening, he still did not know who was right, and merely kept observing the expressions of the General Officers around the table.

……

Bang! A stack of documents slammed heavily onto the tabletop.

Wu Dacai pointed angrily toward the door. "Thinks he's the only one who understands warfare. Who in this office hasn't fought their way up from the battlefield?"

Inside the Document Team's Direct Office, Wu Dacai slapped the reorganization proposal onto the table. He picked up his teacup to drink, saw it was empty, and flung it back onto the table, where it clattered and spun twice.

Tang Sheng, standing in the corner, came over and picked up the teacup. Only when he lifted the kettle to pour water did he discover the kettle was also empty.

"The moment you enter the Direct Office, you should first see to the tea, water, and documents. You don't know to use your own head. When I guard a gate, not even Tartars can break through. When you guard a gate, you let just anyone in. What exactly did that Firearm Team teach you? No wonder Zhuang Chaozheng wants to disparage you firearm soldiers. The well water is next to Clerk Cao's desk!"

The several clerks in the Direct Office all remained silent. People passing by the doorway did not dare look inside.

Tang Sheng sullenly went to fetch water and carefully placed it before Wu Dacai. Wu Dacai picked it up, took a sip, set it down, and glared at the door for a long while before speaking again. "I didn't say we should cut his Personal Guard Thousand-Leader Headquarters. Does his family own all the Heavy Infantry under heaven? I was talking about a mixed Land Battalion. Carrying that much Heavy Armor, how do you fight? It simply won't work! I don't care what he thinks. Tang Sheng, note this down for me… Clerk Cao, note this down for this official. When the Document Receiving Office sends over today's minutes, if my words are not recorded, the Document Team is not to sign for receipt. I will write a memorial of suggestions to Mr. Yu myself. It's not only he, Zhuang Chaozheng, who can speak."

Clerk Cao, seated over on the other side, was the most senior clerk in the Document Team. He responded with an acknowledgment. Wu Dacai's anger had not yet subsided. He sat in his seat without speaking. The several clerks all kept their heads down, writing. Tang Sheng shrank back into the corner again.

After a long while, Clerk Cao rose to fetch water. He stole a glance at Wu Dacai's expression. Seeing it had eased slightly, after fetching the water, he picked up a ledger and approached Wu Dacai.

"Reporting for Lord Wu's information: after the imperial relief campaign, a large backlog of correspondence has accumulated. Some matters that could not be delayed have already been assigned and handled. For some important memorials of suggestions, this humble one has listed the summaries in this ledger. I request Daren to review them."

Wu Dacai let out a breath, reached out to take the ledger, flipped through two pages, then turned to Tang Sheng and said, "See how to properly handle official business? In the future, learn more from Clerk Cao."

Tang Sheng responded in a faint voice. Wu Dacai raised his head and said to Clerk Cao, "I will review these summaries carefully. Is there anything else that needs urgent handling today?"

"There are two items here. The first is a petition just submitted by the Military Hospital. They want to establish a military medical school to train more trauma-care Military Students. Daren already approved this on the return journey. It was sent to the Document Receiving Office. Clerk He's opinion is to establish a military medicine department within the Martial Academy, avoiding the need to start from scratch. It has been sent back to the Document Team for Daren's consideration."

Wu Dacai took it and looked it over. He had learned to recognize quite a few more characters on the journey. He County Yamen's written reply used simple words, and Wu Dacai could now basically understand it. This Military Hospital was originally founded by Wu Dacai, so it had always been subordinate to the Document Team.

"The requested premises, funds, and grain have not been altered. Clerk He feels that opening a separate medical school would make it difficult to determine the hierarchy for the additional supervising officer, involving too many other areas. So, placing a trauma department within the Martial Academy would make it the same as the other departments. This way, it can be set up more quickly. Send it back to the Military Hospital and have them revise it accordingly."

"The second item is that in the fifth month, Mr. Hou felt that the Military Hospital was not closely related to the Document Team and proposed transferring the Military Hospital to the Military Office. It had originally been stamped with the seal, but because it is under your jurisdiction, Daren Wu, it was sent back by the Document Receiving Office, saying they still request you to complete the signature…"

"Not signing." Wu Dacai was resolute. "Next item."

"Yes." Clerk Cao was not the least bit surprised. Completely unruffled, he continued, "This item is an internal team matter. Because the battalions must inevitably expand, there should be no small shortage of Clerk Officers in various places. The team will submit a request to open a clerk training class. The first cohort will be one hundred people."

Wu Dacai leaned lazily back against his chair and replied offhandedly, "Change it to two hundred. Have the Martial Academy help find a schoolroom."

Clerk Cao quickly noted it down and flipped to the next document. "This one is forwarded from the Central Army Secretariat."

Wu Dacai immediately sat bolt upright upon hearing this. This Central Army Secretariat was Pang Yu's directly subordinate document office, different from the Document Receiving Office — the Document Receiving Office handled administrative documents and affairs for the entire yamen, while the Central Army Secretariat only assisted with documents requiring Pang Yu's attention, and its head secretary was Mr. Yu.

"It concerns the Household Office's promotions and rewards for personnel from the various fortified villages in this rally to the king. This involves one Fort Chief Tan Erlin. Lord Pang previously issued an explicit order, kept on file in the Central Army Secretariat, appointing Tan Erlin to transfer as Fort Chief of Pozidun Fort. But the Pacification side says the matter of Tan Erlin being captured en route has not yet been settled, and Lord Wu has not signed off. Yet Mr. Yu has already issued the appointment. The Household Office is caught in the middle and asks Lord Wu to send someone to attend the deliberation."

Secretary Cao paused here. Tan Erlin's matter was originally a trivial affair. After the Battle of Yongding River, the Eastern Invaders fell into a period of chaos, and many people escaped from the Eastern Invader army. Quite a few followed the Anqing Battalion's march the whole way, and many even followed them back to Anqing. The screening was actually not very strict, because the Eastern Invaders had always looked down on the Southern Army. Pang Yu believed the Eastern Invaders would not have planned in advance to plant spies in the south, and moreover, purely in terms of distance, even if the Eastern Invaders had planted spies, they would have no way to transmit messages.

Everyone knew that Wu Dacai was the one refusing to let Tan Erlin's matter go. The Household Office dared not offend him, yet also dared not offend the Central Army Secretariat, so they sent someone to ask his opinion.

Wu Dacai's mouth twitched twice. If the Household Office had come to discuss the matter, he could have ignored it, because the Household Office had long been marginalized within the Vice Regional Commander's yamen — it was basically just an office managing the fortified villages. But the Central Army Secretariat he could not afford to offend.

"Holding a meeting just for a Tan Laizi, and shoving his Pacification Squad business onto me for what..."

Wu Dacai cursed under his breath. Before he could continue, Secretary Cao lowered his tone a little. "As it happens, the Dark Sentinel Division also has an old document involving Jiang Guan, the Vice Fort Chief of Qianshan No. 2 Dun Fort."

Wu Dacai looked up at Secretary Cao. Qianshan No. 2 Dun Fort was the very place where he had once stayed with Tan Laizi — Tan Laizi had been the Fort Chief.

Secretary Cao said respectfully, "Because Jiang Guan's son was still in the Roving Bandit camp, he colluded with an infiltrating Western Camp gang leader and passed a large amount of military intelligence to the Western Camp, nearly causing the Prefectural City to be attacked. The Fort Chief was absent when the incident occurred, and the yamen has not yet dealt with it."

Wu Dacai's spirits lifted. He reached out and grabbed the cane beside him, then stood up with a whoosh — so fast that Tang Sheng had no time to rush over and support him.

"Tang Sheng, go to the rear kitchen and order two more dishes. This official is eating at noon." Wu Dacai's face was full of satisfaction. He suddenly pointed at Secretary Cao. "This official recalls — was Xu Youyuan not also at Qianshan No. 2 Dun Fort?"

Secretary Cao blanked for a moment, then after recalling, said, "It seems he was indeed there, as a secretary."

"Tang Sheng, add three more dishes... and fetch two jugs of wine. At noon, the few of us in this room will eat together."

Tang Sheng said cautiously, "To get extra wine and dishes from the rear kitchen, one needs to give a reason. What should this humble one say?"

"You need to ask even this? Tell them we've opened a document class, so there are more people eating. Charge it to the Document Team's account. In doing things, you must pay attention to method. Learn more in the future — don't be so ignorant about everything." Wu Dacai then pointed at Secretary Cao again. "Secretary Cao, you will go on this official's behalf to the Household Office to deliberate the matter of Tan Erlin. Note down this official's opinion: Tan Erlin, due to his merit in provisioning grain at Xuzhou, is to transfer as Fort Chief of Pozidun. This is Lord Pang's explicit order. This official holds that Lord Pang sees clearly across ten thousand li — merit must be rewarded, and this must be carried out. There is nothing to discuss on this. But fault must also be punished. This Vice Fort Chief Jiang Guan was appointed by Tan Erlin back then. This official was present and heard it with his own ears. At the time, this official already felt Jiang Guan was no good man, only he had no authority over the matter then. And look, sure enough, trouble has occurred. Tan Erlin naturally bears implicated responsibility. Xu Youyuan was at Qianshan when the incident broke and is also implicated, but that will be discussed separately. Regarding Tan Erlin alone, this official's opinion is: Tan Erlin transfers as Fort Chief of Pozidun, but due to his implication in the Jiang Guan spy case, he is to be immediately dismissed from the post of Fort Chief and appointed as, appointed as..." Wu Dacai placed his fingers beside his ear, considered for a long while, then suddenly waved his hand. "A dun household. Yes, appointed as a dun household of Pozidun!"