Chapter 252: Fear of the Enemy

After resting a night in Ningyuan, Hong Chengchou, accompanied by Shen Shiyu and Wu Sangui, left Ningyuan for Jinzhou under the protection of five hundred personal guards. The three thousand cavalry Wu Sangui had brought were left in Ningyuan under Assistant Regional Commander Wang Shoufang; he himself followed Hong Chengchou north with only a hundred-odd personal guards.

He Qian and Li Lu had a small gathering with Wu Sangui that evening. During the feast, Wu Sangui revealed that because of his meritorious service in leading troops through the passes to suppress bandits, the court was preparing to promote him to Regional Commander of Ningyuan. Though He and Li felt both envy and resentment in their hearts, on the surface they heaped praise on Wu Sangui and expressed that they shared in his glory.

After personally escorting Hong Chengchou ten li out of the city, Li Zhiyuan turned back alone with his attendants. He Qian and Li Lu, citing busyness with drills, merely saw the new Supreme Commander off at the city gate.

Heading north out of Ningyuan, passing through several fortresses including Tashan City, Daxing Fort, Qingshan Fort, and Xingshan City, Hong Chengchou's party arrived at Songshan City, located forty li southeast of Jinzhou.

After meeting and exchanging courtesies with Liaodong Governor Fang Yizao and a host of civil and military officials who had heard the news and come to Songshan to wait, Hong Chengchou took up residence in Songshan. As expected, Zu Dashou did not come to meet with Hong Chengchou.

The reason Hong Chengchou did not go to Jinzhou but instead made Songshan City his seat for overseeing Ningyuan and Jinzhou was largely to avoid awkwardness.

Zu Dashou held the titles of Three Solitaries and Left Commissioner-in-Chief—by common saying, he had already reached the pinnacle of ministerial rank—while Hong Chengchou was a Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion and Imperial Commissioner Supreme Commander of Ji and Liao, equally among the foremost of ministers.

But the Great Ming had always honored civil officials above military ones—so how should the two men greet each other? Zu Dashou certainly would not kneel to Hong Chengchou, and if they exchanged equal bows, that was something Hong Chengchou, as a civil minister, could not accept. If Hong Chengchou took up residence in Jinzhou, in principle he would have to consult Zu Dashou on all matters great and small—how could Hong Hengjiu bear that?

Moreover, if Hong Chengchou entered Jinzhou, then Liaodong Governor Fang Yizao would have to vacate his yamen. But Fang Yizao likewise governed Liaodong with the title of Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion—in rank he and Hong Chengchou were both full first grade; it was only that a Governor's authority was now less than a Governor-General's. After weighing all considerations, Hong Chengchou made Songshan his place for handling daily official business.

"Ziyuan has long governed Liaodong, restraining himself and devoting himself to public duty, rising early and retiring late, toiling for years over frontier matters, so that Ningyuan and Jinzhou stand as firm as iron—truly a rare talent among our civil ministers. His Majesty has also spoken many times of Ziyuan's achievements and instructed me to cooperate fully with Ziyuan upon arriving at Ning-Jin, to build new accomplishments in Liaodong. I am newly arrived at Ning-Jin and know little of local affairs; I hope Ziyuan will favor me with much guidance!"

In the crude second hall of Songshan City's garrison headquarters, Hong Chengchou was conversing with Fang Yizao. Liaodong army supervisor Zhang Dou and Shen Shiyu sat flanking them as companions.

Whether in examination or official career seniority, Hong Chengchou surpassed Fang Yizao; these words were merely formal pleasantries—in his heart he did not hold Fang Yizao in high regard.

Fang Yizao had assumed the post of Liaodong Governor in the fourth year of Chongzhen but left after a brief tenure. It was not until the seventh year of Chongzhen, after receiving the Grand Secretary title, that he returned to Liaodong. Yet during his tenure he had no outstanding achievements, counting only as a passable official; his daily plans all relied on consultation with his son Fang Guangchen.

"Lord Hong flatters me! Your subordinate is ashamed! Having been commissioned to govern Ning-Jin for several years without any accomplishment; Lord Hong pacified the roving bandits within the passes, gradually stabilizing the situation in our August Ming's territory inside the passes so the people can work in peace—truly an immortal achievement! Your subordinate admires it immensely! Upon coming to Ning-Jin, your subordinate will naturally serve as your deputy; with Lord Hong's great talent, you will surely open a new chapter at Ning-Jin and relieve His Majesty and the court of their worries!"

Fang Yizao said, cupping his hands in salute.

Though inwardly he admitted he was not as capable as Hong Chengchou, he had after all been the unquestioned authority at Ning-Jin; now that a great deity had suddenly appeared above his head, Fang Yizao felt quite put out. Well acquainted with the proud and fierce generals of Ning-Jin, he hoped Hong Chengchou could resolve the chronic problem of the western Liaoning military families—yet in his heart he could not help but harbor a desire to watch coldly from the sidelines, hoping to see Hong Chengchou fretting in helplessness.

"When I had audience in the capital, I happened to hear that Grand Tutor Zu had sent an urgent dispatch to the Ministry of War, requesting large quantities of money, grain, and military supplies on the pretext of Jianzhou barbarians raiding the border. His Majesty ordered me to send someone to investigate upon arriving here—where are the Jianzhou barbarians raiding the border? How many troops have they gathered? Does Ziyuan know the details?"

After the pleasantries, Hong Chengchou turned the conversation to the main topic.

Using the pretext that the Jianzhou barbarians were gathering troops and armor intending to attack Jinzhou, Zu Dashou had sent a document to the Ministry of War requesting gunpowder, armor, and other military supplies to prepare against border troubles. But according to the history of his previous life, Zhu Youjian knew that Hong Taiji was dispatching large forces to plunder Mongol tribes to expand supplies and manpower, and was unlikely to have surplus strength to pick a fight at Jinzhou—so he had instructed Hong Chengchou to send someone to investigate clearly after leaving the passes.

Hearing Hong Chengchou's question, Fang Yizao was taken aback for a moment, then understood at once—Zu Dashou was playing his old trick again, finding excuses to demand money and goods from the court, then reselling them to make a fortune.

"The Jianzhou barbarians' nearest stronghold to Jinzhou is Yizhou, over a hundred li to the north. Reportedly several thousand Jianzhou troops are stationed there, mainly engaged in military farming and fishing and hunting in peacetime. At this time when the wheat is about to ripen, the Jianzhou barbarians should be busy preparing for the harvest—they likely have no leisure to raid the border, surely? Your subordinate has heard no news of an enemy massing for invasion!"

Though Fang Yizao felt inwardly uncomfortable about Hong Chengchou's arrival, on such matters of military importance he would not echo Zu Dashou. Moreover, this time Zu Dashou had not even informed him before privately sending a document to the court, which made him feel slighted—so he truthfully related what he knew. The army supervisor Zhang Dou at his side also nodded in agreement.

"Hmm, if that's the case, let's set this matter aside for now. Does Ziyuan know how many troops the enemy at Yizhou has? How many infantry and cavalry each? Has Jinzhou ever sent troops to attack? On my journey here, I observed that the terrain of western Liaoning is flat, most suited for cavalry assaults. Yuan Yuansu once spent enormous sums building a cavalry force of tens of thousands at Ning-Jin, and he claimed it was one of the finest armies in the realm. A hundred li is but a stone's throw away—with elite cavalry in hand at Jinzhou, how can one allow Jianzhou barbarians to snore beside one's bed?"

Hearing there was an enemy at Yizhou, Hong Chengchou's heart stirred, and he immediately realized this seemed to be an opportunity to pry open the situation in western Liaoning.

Though later generations had mixed opinions of Yuan Chonghuan, he had still done considerable practical work during his tenure as Governor of Liaodong. The Guan-Ning Iron Cavalry renowned in later ages was founded by Yuan Chonghuan back then—hence Hong Chengchou's question.

"Your subordinate is ashamed! I do not know the exact number of the enemy at Yizhou; reportedly it does not exceed three thousand, with captured Han Chinese farming for them. They have been farming military land around Yizhou for several years, and the imperial army has never fought them on a large scale. Grand Tutor Zu once said it was best for our forces to hold fast at Ning-Jin—the Jianzhou barbarians' cavalry is formidable in battle, and the imperial army should not lightly leave the cities to fight recklessly, lest they fall for the Jianzhou barbarians' bait. The officers and men of Ning-Jin naturally honor the Grand Tutor's orders above all; since the Grand Tutor had spoken, the imperial army made defense of the cities the priority, and almost no one led troops out to attack on their own initiative—hence the two sides rarely clashed!"

Fang Yizao replied, cupping his hands.

Though several tens of thousands of imperial troops were stationed in Jinzhou City and the surrounding fortresses, the small-scale skirmishes with the Jianzhou barbarians over the years had mostly ended in defeat. On the rare occasion of a small victory with a few dozen heads taken, Jinzhou would exaggerate it tenfold or more in reporting victory to the court, then seize the opportunity to demand rewards in money and grain.

The army supervisor Zhang Dou at the side opened his mouth as if to speak, but swallowed the words before they came out. Shen Shiyu, sitting across from him, took note of Zhang Dou's manner.

"Lord Hong, since Governor Fang does not know the inside story, there's no hurry on this matter—perhaps we can discuss it later. Your subordinate dares to ask the Governor: of the original tens of thousands of cavalry at Ning-Jin, how many remain now? Grand Tutor Zu's policy of holding fast at Jinzhou is beyond reproach, but what use is cavalry in defending a city? Based on the strength the Ning-Jin cavalry showed when they came through the passes to suppress bandits before, your subordinate feels they are already a strong army—how do they compare with the Jianzhou barbarians, I wonder? I hope the Governor will tell us truthfully!"

Shen Shiyu cupped his hands toward Fang Yizao and posed the question.