Volume 1 Wuchang Vortex Chapter 10: Visiting
"Brother Yang, this...what on earth is going on?!"
Bingwen was young after all, and although he identified with the party in his heart, Yang Qiu had treated him like a brother since he joined the army and had saved his life in Guang'an, so he was completely at a loss as to what to do. When he saw his master leaving, he immediately rushed to him.
Looking at Bingwen, who was breathing rapidly and had red eyes, Yang Qiu didn't know where to start.
"Brother, speak slowly. I don't believe that it was you who killed the leader of the party. There must be something strange going on at this moment." Xiao Anguo also led everyone over and surrounded him in three layers.
Yang Qiu also had a hard time. He did not deny killing Wang Tianjie, but he did not expect that guy to have a list of names on him! Seeing that everyone was staring at him, he sighed deeply: "Yes, I killed Wang Tianjie."
"What!" Bingwen jumped up suddenly. If he hadn't been thinking about Yang Qiu's kindness, he would have drawn his gun long ago.
Bingwen's bloodshot eyes made Yang Qiu's heart skip a beat, and he quickly told him everything that happened today, but he concealed the exchange of silver and the meeting with Song Jiaoren. After all, although he was surrounded by comrades-in-arms, people's hearts were hidden. The exposure of the silver was a small matter, but if the news of Song Jiaoren's secret arrival in Chengdu got out, it would be a real uproar.
Hearing Yang Qiu's calm tone and not sounding like a lie, Xiao Anguo, Ma Kui and others breathed a sigh of relief. Besides, Wang Tianjie deserved to die. He actually took advantage of people's unpreparedness to attack secretly. He deserved to be killed by mistake. Only Bingwen did not speak, biting his lip, not knowing what he was thinking.
Yang Qiu did not continue to explain. He knew that the more he explained, the more trouble it would cause. Moreover, he was indeed related to the leak of the Tongmenghui list after Wang Tianjie's death. Moreover, the gold bars that the Sichuan governor rewarded him with were also seen by many people. Therefore, he could not get rid of the label of "Qing court running dog and great hero" for the time being.
"Let's go back to Wuchang."
Xiao Anguo didn't want to say anything more. This trip had indeed caused too much trouble, so the best way was to leave this place of trouble as soon as possible. As long as he returned to his own place, at least Yang Qiu would be safer.
The convoy quickly returned along the same route. Although Xiao Anguo arranged Yang Qiu in a tightly secured carriage, he still did not dare to be careless. He specially placed the captured Hotchkiss on the front cart and kept his eyes wide open all the way.
Hearing the increasingly frequent gunfire in the city through the curtain, Yang Qiu sighed secretly and held the data machine he kept close to him in his right hand.
Did he really change history? Would the Railway Protection Movement change because of him? Without Sichuan's restraint, would the Wuchang Uprising still happen? Did he really want to flee overseas and become a rich man?
…
The Han River is located across three towns and connects nine provinces. It is a place with mountains of goods, overflowing population and numerous merchants.
In the late Qing Dynasty, this jingle was known to almost everyone in Hubei. It means that since the Han River was changed its course during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty to separate the three towns of Wuchang, Hankou and Hanyang, this place, which is the thoroughfare of nine provinces, has become a place where merchants gather by relying on its geographical advantages.
After the Taiping Rebellion, Li Hongzhang and other knowledgeable people discovered that the closed-door Central Empire had fallen too far behind, and launched a massive Westernization Movement. The collision and conflict between foreign Western ideas and traditional culture intensified social contradictions, but it also began to bring real benefits to the country, the most important of which was the rise of capital.
New industries began to spring up all over the country, and the capital power that had been suppressed for a thousand years made a leap forward. In the early days of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, the annual tax revenue of the Qing Dynasty was only 80 million taels, but before the Xinhai Revolution, the annual tax revenue of the country had reached a huge 200 million taels.
Among them, the three towns of Wuchang, the first batch of trading ports, developed rapidly. Relying on their geographical advantages, their annual trade volume exceeded 100 million, comparable to Shanghai. Their annual tax revenue reached a huge amount of 6 million. The American magazine "Harp" even openly called the three towns the Chicago of the East.
Wuchang was already bustling in the early morning. The various signs along the streets were eye-catching, with conservative words and pictures of scantily clad Western beauties. Horse-drawn carriages shuttled back and forth, pedestrians came one after another, beggars came in groups, blond-haired and blue-eyed foreigners could be seen from time to time, and even Japanese ronin wearing wooden clogs and samurai swords on their waists. The shouts of porters on the dock were even more frequent.
Across the river, black smoke billowed over Hankou and Hanyang. Hanyang in particular had become the representative of the Industrial Revolution of the Qing Dynasty because of its iron smelters and gun factories that were among the best in the entire Far East.
The entire Han River Three Towns is filled with a wonderful vitality.
only……
Inside the governor's office located on the riverside, the short and fat Li Yuanhong looked out the window. The bustling and chaotic scene not only did not make him happy, but instead made him sigh softly.
Zhang Biao, the governor of Hubei and the commander of the new army, who was dressed in casual clothes, had just come out of the inner hall when he heard Li Yuanhong sighing by the window . He immediately joked, "Song Qing (Li Yuanhong's pen name), we have known each other for many years. You come to my house so early in the morning to sigh. It seems that you are causing bad luck to me."
Although they were both disciples of Zhang Zhidong, Li Yuanhong did not dare to look down on Zhang Biao. This man was not only good at boxing, but also well-versed in military tactics. Moreover, he saved Zhang Zhidong's life and was also a well-known figure among the local officials. So Li Yuanhong quickly bowed and greeted him.
"There's no need for us to be polite." After asking someone to show him a seat, Zhang Biao asked, "Why did Mr. Song sigh just now?"
"It's all because of the trouble on the other side." Li Yuanhong pointed to the other side of the river, shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Last night, news came from the Governor's Office that Lord Rui Chengrui had withheld the operating funds of the gun factory this autumn, and also wrote to the court to close some branch factories again."
"A wolfish ambition!" Hearing this, Zhang Biao slapped his thigh and said fiercely: "Ever since Rui Cheng took the position of Governor of Huguang, he has been plotting against my new army and gun factory. Humph, as long as I am alive, I will not let him succeed."
Li Yuanhong also sighed slightly and said, "Now the party members are causing trouble everywhere. The previous Huanghuagang was just a warning. Sichuan is the real trouble. If Sichuan is unstable, the court will definitely transfer our troops to Sichuan. By then, I am afraid that the three towns will fall into the hands of the governor. Your Excellency, you must make a decision."
Zhang Biao was also having a headache. The person he trusted most in his life was Zhang Zhidong. In his opinion, the gun factory and the new army were the relics of Mr. Zhang, and he would not allow others to interfere and make them dirty. However, there were some problems he could not solve, that is, the cost of maintaining the operation of the new army and the gun factory was huge.
Zhang Zhidong, who previously served as the Governor-General of Huguang, once said, "The financial resources of one province cannot meet the urgent needs of the overall situation, and the military pay cannot be raised by Hubei alone." But the court turned a deaf ear to it and still let Hubei bear all the expenses alone. Two years ago, it finally led to financial difficulties and the closure of five factories including the artillery and carriage factories. The gun factory stopped manufacturing cannons and could only produce Hanyang-made firearms and a few other firearms.
Moreover, he was very clear in his position that the troubled times were not far away. As long as he could control the new army and the gun factory, no matter who was in power in the future, he would not be able to touch him. But the problem was that he was only an admiral and had no control over money and grain, so he had been suppressed by Ruicheng because of this matter.
"There will always be a way when you reach the mountain. Don't worry about it, sir. But is there any news about sending guns to Sichuan?" Li Yuanhong waved his hand and was unwilling to worry about the gun factory. Instead, he was more worried about Sichuan.
"Xiao Anguo is a steady man, Song Qing, don't worry, it's true..." Just as the two were about to discuss the Sichuan matter, they suddenly heard footsteps behind them. Turning their heads, they saw that the Governor of Huguang, Rui Cheng, and the Supervisor of Hanchuan Railway, Rui Fang, who had just been mentioned, had come together. They both frowned. It was no secret that they had competed for credit for the Hanchuan Railway. Why did they come together? And judging from their faces, it seemed like they had some big happy event?
Both of them felt a jolt in their hearts at the same time. Could it be that the imperial court was really going to remove their admiral and hand over the new army to this guy?
"Oh... Song Qing is here too."
"My two Excellencies, this is..." Zhang Biao and Li Yuanhong quickly stood up and greeted them.
"Haha..." Rui Cheng was a high-ranking official, so he sat down first. Then he took out a commendation telegram from his sleeve and said happily, "Today we are here to congratulate Mr. Zhang."
"Congratulations?" Zhang Biao glanced at Li Yuanhong, who was also confused, and asked, "I wonder what your Excellency means by this? I haven't even left the house these past few days, so why are you so happy?"
"Lord Zhang didn't leave the house, but he mobilized troops thousands of miles away, made plans in the camp, and sent out elite soldiers and brave generals to wipe out the Sichuan rebels in one fell swoop while transporting guns. This is a great achievement!" Rui Fang finished speaking, and then bowed and asked Rui Cheng: "Governor, am I right?"
"Haha, Lord Rui and I have the same idea on this matter."
The question and answer between the two made Zhang Biao even more confused. He hurriedly begged for mercy, "Governor, please don't beat around the bush with a rough guy like me. Just tell me straight."
Ruicheng seemed to be in a good mood. He smiled and asked, "Huchen (Zhang Biao's pen name), let me ask you, do you recognize Yang Qiu?"
"Yang Qiu?" Zhang Biao looked at Li Yuanhong next to him. Li Yuanhong frowned and thought for a moment before reminding him, "Sir, there is a man named Yang Qiu under Xiao Anguo in the baggage camp. He is from Hubei. His parents died when he was young. He lived with his uncle in Shanghai. I heard that he has been studying in a foreign school in the French Concession. He joined our army in May."
"That won't be wrong."
After listening to this, Rui Cheng slapped his thigh, handed the telegram to Zhang Biao and said, "Tiger ministers have a keen eye for talent. This Yang Qiu is indeed a Tiger Guard. He captured the revolutionary bandits alone in Guang'an, captured the bandit leader and more than 60 of his subordinates, and also seized a machine gun and more than 100 rifles. After arriving in Chengdu, he killed the rebel leader in the street and got a list of names. Now Sichuan Governor Zhao has arrested people according to the list. In five days, he has captured no less than 300 people, and killed more than 100 people! Most of the Sichuan rebels have been captured and brought to justice!"
"What!"
Not to mention the hot-tempered Zhang Biao, even the serious Li Yuanhong stared with eyes wide open in disbelief. He turned the telegram over and over, as if looking for the words "This is just a joke".
"Haha...you two adults don't need to read it." Rui Fang also laughed and said, "Now this matter has spread all over the country. The newspapers in Shanghai and Guangzhou have reported it. They all say that you two adults have a good way of managing the army, so you can produce such brave warriors. The Sichuan rebellion has been suppressed at this time. After hearing the news, the court has also issued an edict. It is possible that the memorial to commend you two adults and Yang Qiu will arrive soon."
"Isn't this a great joyous event?!"
"Happy event, happy event..." Zhang Biao and Li Yuanhong looked at each other and nodded repeatedly. This was indeed an unexpected big "happy event", but the problem was that the Hubei New Army would definitely be targeted by the party members. Now it was stormy and rainy. If there was such a commotion, wouldn't the three towns of Han River be in turmoil?
Before the two men could recover from their shock, Rui Cheng had already picked up his teacup and blew on it. He glanced at them and suddenly interrupted, "Hu Chen, the rebels have been causing trouble everywhere recently. I have noticed that the streets are often not peaceful. In addition, I am short of a patrol commander. I wonder if you two would be willing to temporarily transfer Yang Qiu to me to help me out?"
"Transfer Yang Qiu?!" Zhang Biao couldn't hide the truth, and his face changed immediately. Not to mention that Yang Qiu had already made great contributions and had a promising future. He might be able to get the coveted Hanyang Gun Factory and build the vacant infantry town. Moreover, even if there were no such things, he, the Governor of Huguang, should not have directly intervened in the new army. Although the Governor was in charge of military and political affairs in name, if he was allowed to intervene in everything, what would he do for himself as the Admiral? Where would he save face? !
Li Yuanhong was also dissatisfied because Ruicheng had other intentions than drinking.
The purpose of snatching people was fake. The real purpose was to take this opportunity to establish his authority in front of Zhang Biao. He wanted to take this opportunity to promote Yang Qiu to set an example and tell others who the real commander is, and completely break the embarrassment of being at a disadvantage in military issues for many years. If he succeeds, the already unstable morale of the army will definitely become even more chaotic!
But he couldn't find any other way at once. Besides, Ruicheng offered him a captain rank, so he couldn't be lower than that, right? ! Thinking of this, he became anxious. After a while, he glanced at Zhang Biao, who looked unhappy, and said with gritted teeth: "I thank you for your kindness on behalf of Yang Qiu, but you have already agreed to transfer Yang Qiu to the 42nd Infantry Regiment of our Mixed Corps. This has been announced to the army. It would be bad if I regret it."
"42 standard standard!"
Now Ruicheng's expression changed a little.
As the Governor-General of Huguang, he nominally controlled the military and political power of the two provinces, but now everyone knew who the new army belonged to, so he had been looking for opportunities to interfere in the affairs of the new army and wanted to take back the military power. However, he did not expect that Zhang Biao and Li Yuanhong would spend so much money to prevent him from interfering in the new army. His face suddenly turned gloomy, and he chuckled dryly and said, "Then this governor would like to congratulate Hu Chen for getting a tiger general ." After that, he waved his sleeves and left with a dark face without even saying hello.
Seeing Ruicheng leaving, Zhang Biao's eyes were burning and his ruthlessness was evident.
