Chapter 575: Army Supervisor

In the main hall of the Anqing Fenshou Circuit Branch Office, Pang Yu slowly stepped down from the platform. The newly appointed Circuit Intendant Zheng had just finished holding his first session.

After the Anchi Military Defense Circuit was established, a separate Fenshou Circuit was no longer instituted; the Defense Circuit Intendant concurrently held the Fenshou Circuit post, with his seat in Chizhou. Every county seat within his jurisdiction had a Fenshou Circuit Branch Office, used as temporary lodging when the Circuit Intendant or Grand Coordinator came down on inspection tours. The branch office in the prefectural city was slightly larger, but in truth it was still just a front and back hall.

After the Roving Bandits entered Jiangbei, Anqing, situated at a strategic chokepoint, was in grave peril. Since taking office, Shi Kefa had essentially been permanently stationed in Anqing. Among the other counties, Susong, Taihu, and Qianshan lacked city walls, so his station was mainly in the prefectural city and Tongcheng County. The prefectural city compound here had been expanded; apart from lacking a guesthouse, its scale was already comparable to the Prefectural Office.

On the platform, aside from the newly arrived Army Supervisor and a few prefects, there were only Pang Yu and his elder brother Xu Strengthening. Brother Xu had been rushing about all year, and with the added worry and fear, he had grown noticeably thin. On the return journey, he had traveled the same route as Pang Yu. Back then, thinking he would return to Wusong after his meritorious service in the royal relief campaign, he had seemed to be regaining much of his weight. But then he received orders to return to his original defense post in Anqing, and his spirits immediately sank; he looked thin again.

Earlier, while he was away on the relief campaign, a band of water bandits had stirred up trouble again at Taihu. Xu Strengthening had hoped to be transferred to Suzhou to fight water bandits, as he had been in the tenth year of Chongzhen. Those water bandits were really just fishermen who did a bit of petty thieving; compared to the ferocious Eastern Invaders and Roving Bandits, the Taihu water bandits seemed like benevolent, kindly bodhisattvas.

Brother Xu's first priority was to return to his old nest in Wusong Town. If Zhang Guowei refused, his fallback was to go fight water bandits at Taihu. But Zhang Guowei granted him neither wish this time, because earlier, when Xu Strengthening and Chen Yuwang had both gone on the relief campaign, the Anqing region had been left empty. The prefectural city had nearly been taken by Geli Yan's gang. Had the New Courage Battalion not been available, the prefectural city would have been in imminent danger.

During this incursion by the Eastern Invaders, three grand coordinators had been beheaded — a drastic departure from the past. One could no longer escape trouble merely by losing office; it showed the Emperor's patience with his ministers was growing thinner, and he would take lives at the slightest provocation. Zhang Guowei therefore dared not take any risks. In his defense zone north of the river, Jiangpu and Liuhe were both county seats garrisoned by Jiang Ruolai, so holding the county seats was not a major problem. The surrounding area was also encircled by the Canal Transport Governor's defense zone. In the current climate of widespread collapse, even losing them would not be a grave offense.

The Anqing Battalion, however, controlled the Zhongjiang, with Roving Bandit activity all around it, and was also the site of the great Susong victory. It stood as a pillar of stability on the Zhongjiang, and the Emperor paid it extremely close attention. In the past, this had been a point in Zhang Guowei's favor.

The Anqing Battalion had illustrious military merits, so being mobilized for reinforcement was standard practice. Anqing was very far from Suzhou; temporarily mobilizing Jiangnan troops for reinforcement would yield half the results for twice the effort. Xu Strengthening, having already been permanently stationed in Anqing for several years, was the best candidate.

So although Xu Strengthening was reluctant, he still had to go to Anqing and continue partnering with his worthy younger brother Pang. Still, things were somewhat different from when he first came to Anqing, because the Anqing Battalion was now strong in troops and horses; he only needed to garrison the city, and at least his life was no longer in danger.

The only military officers on the platform were him and Pang Yu; the rest of the general officers were below the platform. Xu Strengthening was a Vice Town Commander with the titular rank of Town Commander. Having rendered meritorious service in the relief campaign, he would sooner or later be promoted to Regional Commander, but for now he was not yet one. His actual position already could not compare to Pang Yu's.

Pang Yu was now the officially appointed Anqing Regional Commander by the imperial court, though he had not been granted a General's Seal. During the relief campaign, he had dealt extensively with the Northern Border Army and had broadly come to understand the military system of the north. Although all were called Regional Commanders, the status of a Frontier Regional Commander was far higher than that of an Interior Regional Commander.

Before the mid-Ming period, Frontier Regional Commanders were directly subordinate to the Ministry of War and not under the control of local civil officials. After the mid-Ming, they came under the control of Supreme Commanders. In name, a Frontier Regional Commander could directly command the drilling and combat operations of all troops within his jurisdiction, and simultaneously oversee military farms, guard posts, and other affairs. The total troop strength in their jurisdiction generally numbered in the tens of thousands.

By the late Ming, the status of military officers had risen, but the tradition of civil officials controlling the military was deeply entrenched. Even in the Nine Borders military garrisons, control over military command authority was extremely complex and often required civil-military contention, rather than being uniform. Overall, however, Frontier Regional Commanders could contend with civil officials and were not entirely at a disadvantage. Some Frontier Regional Commanders also held honorary titular ranks, elevating their status through grade. In the Nine Borders, two held such additional titles: one was Wang Pu, the fastest runner, who held the title of Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent; the other was the local power broker of the Liao Garrison, Zu Dashou, who held the title of Grand Preceptor of the Heir Apparent, a rank of the upper first grade. Although Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei had high prestige, they lacked these additional titles, so their political standing could not match those two.

The real power of hinterland Regional Commanders was far less. Pang Yu's promotion to Anqing Regional Commander this time was an Interior Regional Commander established within an interior province, roughly equivalent to standing Regional Commanders like Liu Zeqing and Liu Furong.

The other battalions in Anqing were nominally not under Pang Yu's jurisdiction. Drilling and reinforcement still required mobilization by the Defense Circuit Intendant, and after rendezvous, a civil official generally still needed to lead the troops.

The lowest category of Regional Commander was the Expeditionary Regional Commander — temporarily established when someone was needed to lead troops, and dissolved once the battle was over. Compared to such expeditionary commanders, Pang Yu's standing Regional Commander position was much higher in status, with a fixed jurisdiction, namely Anqing Prefecture, but a gap still remained compared to Frontier Regional Commanders.

Xu Strengthening held the titular rank of Town Commander. Although Wusong Town was not part of the Nine Borders, it could barely be considered a Frontier Regional Commander, so when seated in the hall, his precedence still ranked before Pang Yu.

The two men stepped aside to let the new Defense Circuit Intendant Zheng Eryang descend the platform first. Zheng Eryang was a Presented Scholar of the forty-seventh year of Wanli. He looked quite old, probably in his sixties, but his complexion was ruddy and he had taken good care of himself. Having been an official for so long, he showed no discomfort upon arriving at a new office; everything came naturally to him. After descending the platform, he began meeting with the local gentry of Anqing.

Accompanying him was the Anqing Prefect Du Shengjia. Du Shengjia was a native of Fushun in Sichuan, and had previously served as County Magistrate of Nanling. Due to good performance, after his Examination Complete he was promoted to Anqing Prefect.

His disadvantage, however, was that he only held the scholarly rank of Provincial Graduate. According to past conventions, further promotion would be very difficult; Prefect was his ceiling. Lacking room for advancement in his official career, he lacked confidence when facing his superiors.

Pang Yu had dealt with Du Shengjia many times, and his impression was that Du was not as assertive as Pi Yingju. Prefect Du was now accompanying Zheng Eryang, introducing the local gentry and prominent families of Anqing one by one, indeed with a carefully obsequious, ingratiating manner.

A typical new official taking office needed to conduct a handover with the old official, but the situation in Shandong was critical. Shi Kefa had given instructions to Du Shengjia and hurriedly left for his new post; the handover was completed by Du Shengjia on his behalf.

Besides the gentry, several prefects from south of the Great River were also present. The county magistrates of Anqing Prefecture were lined up further back. Pang Yu had come directly from Shipai upon arriving; he had first paid his respects to Zheng Eryang and had not yet greeted these old acquaintances. Now he nodded to them all.

Yang Erming had grown a bit taller. His smile upon seeing Pang Yu was the most warm. Beside him was Yang Zhuoran of Taihu. This man was quite capable and rather deep, but he could cooperate on major matters. He gave a polite nod. Next was Zhu Jiaxiang of Qianshan. This man had received great kindness from Pang Yu, which had cleared him of suspicion of colluding with the bandits. His expression toward Pang Yu was the most respectful. The one after him was the Magistrate of Susong, Gou Tianqi. This man was a slick official who had often made trouble for Pang Yu in the past, but because Susong was situated at a strategic chokepoint, the two had been forced to deal with each other often, and over time, they had unknowingly become closely connected.

The remaining magistrates of Wangjiang and Huaining were mere acquaintances. Wangjiang was by the riverbank and faced the least threat from the Roving Bandits; its dealings with the Anqing Battalion were more with the Water Camp. Leigang was beside Wangjiang County, but that was a business relationship, and the mutual value provided was not particularly high. The Huaining County Magistrate was a county magistrate attached to a prefectural seat; Pang Yu basically got things done by going to the Prefect and rarely needed to deal with the Huaining County Yamen.

At that moment, Zheng Eryang stopped and spoke warmly with a member of the gentry. Pang Yu had also seen that man before — it was Liu Ruozai, the Principal Graduate of the first year of Chongzhen. After He Ruchong, he was the highest-ranking Capital Official from Anqing. After achieving Principal Graduate, he had been appointed as an Expositor-in-Waiting at the Hanlin Academy, and later served as a Court Diarist, meeting with the Emperor daily. He was a true intimate of the throne.

It was by Liu Ruozai's recommendation that Shi Kefa had become this Defense Circuit Intendant. Also, that ill-fated County Magistrate of Gucheng, Ruan Zhitian, had been recommended by Liu Ruozai through the Upright and Worthy Examination.

In the eleventh year of Chongzhen, his mother fell gravely ill, so he applied to resign from office and had been back in Anqing for over a year.

The Liu Ruozai before him had deep, dark eye sockets and spoke with a feeble voice, looking sickly and lethargic. Yet his status remained the highest in the hall. Zheng Eryang and Du Shengjia spoke with him the longest, with the most respectful demeanor, preferring to make everyone else wait. Because although Liu Ruozai had returned to his hometown, he still had the ability to deliver memorials directly to the Emperor. Zheng Eryang naturally could not afford to be careless. Pang Yu was currently expanding his army in Anqing, something difficult to hide from these gentry. He did not wish to invite trouble, so he was also extremely cautious around Liu Ruozai.

A thin voice said, "This one greets General Pang."

Pang Yu turned to look and saw it was the Army Supervisor Deng Chaoqin. The two had met for the first time up on the platform; someone had pointed Deng out to Pang Yu earlier.

Pang Yu hurriedly returned the greeting. This was his first time dealing with an Army Supervisor. This Supervisor Deng had been appointed the previous year, when Pang Yu was still garrisoned at Gucheng. An Army Supervisor naturally had to be with the commanding general. When Deng took up his post, he had probably first asked the Ministry of War for the battalion's location and gone directly to Xiangyang. By then, Pang Yu had already returned to Anqing to marry, and then left again for the relief campaign.

But Pang Yu's nominal Cavalry Camp was still stationed at Mianyang Port. This Army Supervisor had been left stranded in Xiangyang, unable to advance or retreat. After the Western Camp rebelled again, the Anqing Battalion troops at Gucheng split their forces to pursue. The Army Supervisor, unable to ride well, had followed Wang Zenglu's contingent to Fang County to give chase, then returned to Gucheng.

Pang Yu had not wanted an Army Supervisor in the first place and had been writing letters telling this supervisor to stay in Gucheng, saying that he himself might go to Huguang at any time to suppress bandits and they could rendezvous then.

Since Xiangyang and Anqing were too far apart, Supervisor Deng also dreaded rushing back and forth. He waited in Gucheng for a full half year, yet Pang Yu still showed no sign of moving toward Xiangyang.

An Army Supervisor was supposed to follow the general officer. Supervisor Deng had been in office for a year without ever meeting Pang Yu in person, and he truly could not justify this to the Directorate of Ceremonial, so he had rushed to Anqing.

Pang Yu had long since found out all about this Supervisor Deng's background. He was originally an Assistant Director of the Directorate of Palace Attendants. Among the Twenty-Four Yamen of the palace, places like the Directorate of Ceremonial and the Imperial Stables Directorate were considered yamen with real power, because their authority was not confined within the palace. The vast majority of other inner officials held little real power inside the palace. The Directorate of Palace Attendants was in charge of the Emperor's ceremonial regalia; it was hard to achieve results there, and there was little profit to be had.

But once assigned to a local post, acting on behalf of imperial authority, one's status became supremely transcendent, and one became a figure of real power. Among the tens of thousands of eunuchs in the palace, those who could be assigned outside were rare as phoenix feathers. That Deng Chaoqin could be assigned out as an Army Supervisor marked him as one of the outstanding ones.

For a general officer, this kind of Army Supervisor was not entirely a bad thing. An Army Supervisor could monitor the general officer, but at the same time could also serve as a check on the civil officials controlling the military, preventing civil officials from making trouble for these important battalions.

Gao Qiqian, who supervised the Liao Garrison, possessed superb political skill and wielded considerable power. In Liaoxi, he stood on equal footing with Fang Yizao. When he led troops out, he could control the battalions; even Lu Xiangsheng and Yang Sichang could do nothing about him.

When Deng was dispatched to supervise the Anqing Battalion, Pang Yu had just won the great Susong victory, and the court was just beginning to value the Anqing Battalion. By the time he now met Pang Yu, Pang Yu had already become the Anqing Regional Commander, and the Anchi Military Defense Circuit Intendant had also changed. Eunuch Deng, without ever having met Pang Yu, had already shared in the great merit of the relief campaign by riding on the Anqing Battalion's coattails.

But Deng Chaoqin also had some self-awareness. He knew that an Army Supervisor had power, but his status among the scholars was not high. So he did not join the conversation with the gentry, but stayed behind to talk with Pang Yu.

There was no fixed model for the interaction between an Army Supervisor, civil officials, and general officers; it often depended on mutual maneuvering. As for Pang Yu, after one trip on the relief campaign, he had met grand coordinators, supreme commanders, and ministers, and had even cursed out the Chief Grand Secretary of the Cabinet. No matter who came as Circuit Intendant or Army Supervisor, their actual influence on Pang Yu was minimal. With autonomy over funds and provisions, neither the Circuit Intendant nor the Army Supervisor could gain a dominant position.

But now was a critical period in the Anqing Battalion's development. Both its military and economy were parasitic on the existing system, still far from the point of breaking away. Pang Yu hoped to continue his stealthy growth without attracting the court's attention. Therefore, he still had to maintain politeness toward the Circuit Intendant, Prefect, Army Supervisor, and gentry, and avoid stirring up trouble as much as possible.

Pang Yu said politely, "This humble officer was drilling troops at Shipai and returned upon receiving orders. I had originally planned to pay my respects to Venerable Deng this afternoon, but here we meet instead."

"I should have met the General last year; I never imagined it would take a year for that wish to be fulfilled."

This sentence carried an undertone of complaint. If Pang Yu made no reaction at all, this Army Supervisor might think he held a dominant position. Just as Pang Yu was about to speak, Deng Chaoqin continued, "It is also the fault of those detestable Tartars."

"Pang and Venerable Deng were fated to meet here; we were bound to see each other eventually. Though we had not met before, this humble officer always felt a long-standing connection with Venerable Deng, and often found myself thinking of you spontaneously," Pang Yu said in a respectful tone. "Earlier, when passing through Hejian Prefecture on the relief campaign, I recalled that Venerable Deng is also from Hejian Prefecture."

Deng Chaoqin froze for an instant. After pausing a moment, he said, "It is hard on the General, amid the press of military duties, to still keep this one's humble personal affairs in mind. This time, Hejian Prefecture suffered calamity. Many of this one's fellow villagers, kin, and friends were killed or wounded. The surrounding area was looted, burned, and slaughtered clean by the Tartars. Thanks to the General's consideration, you sent people to provide relief funds and grain, and even gave silver to rebuild the ancestral shrine. The old and young of my clan all lived inside it and somehow managed to survive this year. The clan all speak of this one's goodness, but this one can only speak of the General's goodness. This one first thanks the General."

Zheng Eryang and the others in the hall were still conversing. Both men spoke in low voices. After hearing the words just spoken, Pang Yu lowered his head, assuming a pained expression.

In truth, when he passed through Hejian Prefecture, the Qing army was pushing north all the way and about to exit the border. Pang Yu himself had just been betrayed by Liu Yuliang not long before and was thoroughly despised within the relief army. He had been anxiously awaiting a turnaround and had absolutely no time to bother with matters concerning the Army Supervisor's hometown.

This matter had actually been handled by the Capital Secret Sentinel Office. The funds and grain invested had been considerable; the entire Deng clan had benefited. There was one thing Deng Chaoqin did not mention: his hometown clan had inscribed his name into the ancestral shrine. Eunuchs, with their incomplete bodies and no heirs, were generally not permitted into the ancestral shrine. This was actually very important to Deng Chaoqin. He did not mention it, perhaps for fear of losing status in front of Pang Yu.

Pang Yu sighed and said, "Venerable Deng supervises the army on behalf of Heaven, traveling far to the turbulent lands of the Central Plains. With your family suffering calamity and you unable to look after them, it would more or less hinder your official duties. This humble officer happened to be nearby; such a trifling matter was merely the effort of raising a hand. Venerable Deng supervises the Anqing Battalion on behalf of Heaven; you and I are fundamentally handling the same task. Enabling Venerable Deng to carry out his duties with peace of mind naturally smooths the affairs of the Anqing Battalion. This humble officer also benefits from it; in truth, I was helping myself. The word 'thanks' is undeserved."

By now, Zheng Eryang had finished meeting all the gentry and was about to see them out. Both men needed to follow along.

Deng Chaoqin looked at Pang Yu and nodded slightly. "As the General says, this one handles affairs for the Emperor. But the Emperor's affairs are by no means about opposing the General. What the Emperor wants his general officers to do is nothing more than suppressing bandits and pacifying the Liao region. He never dictated exactly how it must be done. In the end, we are handling the same task as Sir Pang. That is the major principle. How to pacify, how to suppress — those are minor details. If we discuss things together, matters will naturally go smoothly."