Through fire and water, I shall surely come to your aid!

Within the city of Daming Prefecture, there were various military camps, but the main parade ground was located outside the city walls. This was simply because land within Daming Prefecture was exceptionally valuable, and the garrison stationed here was remarkably large.

The garrison here differed from that of Dongping Prefecture. The imperial army of the Great Song Dynasty was divided into two distinct categories: the Forbidden Army, which currently numbered a little over eight hundred thousand, and the Regional Army, largely composed of disaster refugees and criminals, numbering around four to five hundred thousand.

The garrison in Daming Prefecture consisted mostly of the Forbidden Army with very few regional troops. In Dongping Prefecture, the opposite was true—the regional army dominated, while the Forbidden Army was scarce. If one were to travel further to Yanggu County, the Forbidden Army was entirely absent, as Yun Liwan commanded entirely regional forces.

In essence, the Forbidden Army was primarily stationed at vital border passes and major strategic cities, with a significant portion garrisoned around the capital of Dongjing. Naturally, personnel from the regional forces were periodically selected to replenish the ranks of the Forbidden Army.

Aside from these two main branches, certain regions also maintained militia units, many of which held official government designations.

Upon stepping out of the prefectural yamen, Su Wu immediately collected his reward for capturing the Liangshan outlaws—a hefty sum of over sixteen hundred strings of cash.

Finding the military camp outside the city was not difficult. Accompanied by Wu Song, Su Wu waited only a brief moment inside the main commander's tent.

Before he even caught sight of the man, a booming voice rang out, "Which one of you is looking for me?"

Suo Chao walked in. He was not particularly tall, appearing somewhat stout instead, with a round face, large ears, oversized lips, and a thick, sprawling beard.

At first glance, he did not look particularly ferocious, failing to fully match his reckless moniker of "The Impetuous Vanguard."

Su Wu raised his hands in a salute. "Su Wu, Chief Constable of Yanggu County, greets Inspector Suo."

Suo Chao cast a sizing glance his way before bursting into a hearty laugh. "Ha, ha... What a fine fellow! And another fine fellow beside him. The two of you clearly possess martial arts skills, don't you?"

Su Wu smiled. "If the Inspector is itching for a spar, we can save it for another day. You must have already seen the handwritten note from Lord Zhongshu. The situation brooks no delay."

Suo Chao did not seem hurried in the least. With a smile, he said, "That Dongping is someone I know a thing or two about; he is not an easy man to deal with. Had some weakling been sent instead, I would have known this affair would be terribly difficult. But looking at the two of you, I suddenly feel this task might not be so hard after all."

Clearly, Suo Chao had already been pondering how to handle this matter and well understood its complexity.

Understanding his drift, Su Wu immediately chimed in, "If a real fight breaks out, Inspector, you can rest assured. With my brother and me to lend support, coupled with your formidable prowess, that Dongping will be no match for you."

"I heard you slew a tiger single-handedly, and you even captured with your own hands the Liangshan outlaws whom Lord Zhongshu despises to the bone. You are undoubtedly a man of fierce valor. I shall go muster the troops right now."

Suo Chao rose to his feet immediately, and soon the sound of a battle drum echoed across the parade ground.

Su Wu walked outside to observe. This was his first time witnessing the elite, regular combat strength of the Great Song Dynasty up close, and he was determined to learn their methods.

His first shock was the exceptionally high rate of armor issuance among the Song Forbidden Army. Across the parade ground stood two battalions numbering around a thousand men. Whether it was the hundred-odd cavalrymen at the front or the several hundred infantrymen behind them, virtually all of them wore heavy armor.

Watching Suo Chao issue rapid-fire commands—first conducting roll call, then ordering three days' worth of rations to be carried, followed by an immediate departure—Su Wu noted the impressive efficiency. Once they moved, they moved swiftly; banners rose and fluttered fiercely in the brisk wind.

As Su Wu and Suo Chao rode side by side at the vanguard, Su Wu asked, "Are all the troops under Daming Prefecture such elite soldiers?"

Suo Chao answered with characteristic directness, waving a hand. "Out of more than thirty thousand troops under Daming Prefecture, barely a thousand can truly be called elite. Did you think everyone was equipped like this? If so, that would be wonderful. But alas... sigh..."

***

Su Wu understood and prompted, "Please speak your mind, Inspector..."

"We are all military men, so there is no harm in speaking plainly. Everything—food, clothing, and daily expenses—is exorbitantly expensive here in Daming Prefecture, yet the soldiers earn meager wages. If a man relies solely on his grain allowance and standard pay, how can he possibly feed an entire family of old and young? Forbidden Army or regional troop, which one of them doesn't want to pick up extra work wherever they can?"

Suo Chao was describing the widespread reality within the military of the Great Song.

"Can soldiers engage in other trades?" Su Wu asked, though he was well aware of the answer.

The Great Song was somewhat peculiar in this regard: the larger the city and the greater the concentration of troops, the higher the cost of living. Yet, urban soldiers earned little more than their rural counterparts.

This created massive problems. Serving as a soldier in a place like Yanggu County allowed one to scrape by comfortably as long as the full grain and pay rations were distributed.

In a major city, however, even receiving full pay left one living a life inferior to a stray dog.

Suo Chao continued, "How could they not seek other livelihoods? Bricklayers, stonemasons, makers of kites and lanterns, dyers of cloth—wherever there is odd work to be found, are the corners not crowded with soldiers? Do you know which trade is the most coveted?"

"I cannot say I do..." Su Wu nodded, feeling very much like a country bumpkin entering the city to broaden his horizons.

"It would shock you to hear it. Many high-ranking officials and wealthy aristocrats hire private guards and household retainers. Whichever soldier manages to get picked for such a post is truly free from worries about food and drink."

"This... Can they actually do that?" Su Wu expressed profound shock. It was one thing for officially enlisted soldiers to take on casual labor, but to serve as private guards and domestic servants for wealthy households?

How on earth could military discipline be maintained?

Suo Chao waved a dismissive hand. "Whether it works... hasn't it become the reality? You can't very well let people starve from one meal to the next. If the army mutinies, how many heads would the commanders have to lose?"

Su Wu turned his head to look back at the thousand-odd men marching behind them.

"What you see here... is the fragile balance I have managed to maintain through sheer effort—scraping together money, striving for merits, seizing every reward..."

Suo Chao spoke with resignation, clearly harboring deep resentment toward the current state of affairs.

Perhaps a large part of the reason behind his moniker "The Impetuous Vanguard" lay right here. The "Impetuous Vanguard" meant he was fiercely courageous in battle, eagerly rushing forward wherever fighting was to be found.

Whether suppressing bandits, catching thieves, or conducting military drills, he was always anxious to prove himself. Why? Because maintaining this thousand-man force was agonizingly difficult.

If you wanted your subordinates to willingly serve as elite troops for you, weaponry and equipment were only secondary; you had to genuinely ensure they lived slightly more prosperous lives, free from worry over their families' daily meals, while having enough to eat themselves so they could train and build strong physiques.

Viewed in this light, Suo Chao's burdens were truly immense.

Inevitably, Su Wu thought of another place, one where the cost of living was even higher and soldiers were even more numerous. He asked, "Could it be... that the capital of Dongjing is even worse?"

As the question left his lips, Su Wu had already guessed the answer.

Suo Chao smiled bitterly. "Dongjing? Have you never been there? Serving as a soldier in Dongjing during the early years—the founding era of the dynasty—was certainly a fine profession. But nowadays? Compared to Daming Prefecture, it is far worse."

"Sigh..." Su Wu could only sigh. In a Great Song Dynasty like this, many tragedies were hardly unjust...

***

Suo Chao suddenly spoke up again, "I heard..."

"What has the Inspector heard?" Su Wu asked.

"I heard it was you who specifically named me before Lord Zhongshu. I must thank you for that. Going on this expedition means merits are to be won, rewards will follow, promotion will be easy to discuss, and money is to be earned..."

As he spoke, Suo Chao looked at Su Wu and cupped his fists in a slight salute.

No wonder Suo Chao's attitude upon their first meeting had been so agreeable. Ultimately, courtesy demands reciprocity: you treat me with respect, I treat you with respect; you help me, I help you.

Su Wu naturally returned the gesture. "Think nothing of it..."

Suo Chao pressed on, "Once this matter is concluded, we shall be colleagues, shall we not?"

This question hit straight to the heart of the matter.

Su Wu saw no reason to conceal his intentions any longer. "Prefect Cheng has indeed given his promise..."

"Of course it is you. You won your prefect's trust, which is why he entrusted you with such a major assignment. Once Dongping is removed, a capable general will surely be sent to replace him in Dongping Prefecture. Your prefect is a protégé of Privy Commissioner Tong; in the Imperial Privy Council in Dongjing, Privy Commissioner Tong's word naturally carries absolute weight. Managing a matter like this is not difficult."

Suo Chao proved himself a true veteran of high-society officialdom; his intelligence network was sharp. As for the Privy Council, it roughly functioned as the Central Military Commission of the Great Song Dynasty.

In the Great Song, the chasm between civil officials and military officers was vast. While civil officials rose through imperial examinations, military officers relied entirely on patronage—specifically, elevation by civil officials.

"So... Inspector Suo is offering pointers and teaching me the methods of military administration?" Su Wu experienced a sudden epiphany.

Suo Chao's brief remarks were essentially teaching Su Wu how to govern an army: one must look after the livelihood of ordinary soldiers while genuinely maintaining a viable level of combat effectiveness.

In this Great Song Dynasty, there was no other way; Suo Chao's method was the only one that worked.

"Ha, ha..." Suo Chao laughed, his thick beard parting and closing on either side.

"Many thanks, Inspector Suo." Su Wu cupped his fists once more.

"If I ever face a difficult plight in the future and come looking for you, you must come to my aid as well!" Suo Chao said with a smile.

"Through fire and water, I shall certainly come to assist!" Su Wu felt the formation of a friendship that, though born of complexity, was remarkably straightforward and direct.

"Very well! Once this undertaking succeeds, we shall drink until we are dead drunk!" Suo Chao declared in a booming voice, returning the salute.