Volume 1 Wuchang Vortex Chapter 11: Loyal and Brave Baturu
"Selling newspapers, selling newspapers!"
"All Sichuan revolutionaries were captured, and the imperial court conferred the title of 'Loyal and Brave Baturu' on Yang Qiu."
"Give me one."
At the Hankou Wharf, the little newsboy shouted twice when he heard someone asking for a newspaper. He quickly took the money and handed over a newspaper. But when he looked up, he saw a burly figure boarding a passenger ship heading south from Chongqing.
Miao Yuan quickly walked into the cabin and handed the newspaper to Song Jiaoren, who was disguised as a laborer.
"This evil villain!" Miao Luo, whose pretty face was painted with something and looked much darker, leaned over to take a look and immediately clenched his teeth. For some reason, his mind resurfaced with the scene of being molested by Yang Qiu that day.
"Sister, don't mess around!"
How could Miao Yuan not know what his sister was thinking? Seeing her gnashing her teeth, he quickly gave her some advice before turning around and asking, "Mr. Song, I'm afraid this man is really going to the court. We are in Hankou now, and he will probably be back in a day or two. Do you want me to..."
Seeing the eldest brother making a machete gesture, Miao Luo felt resentful in his heart. He told me not to do anything rash, but he was more anxious than anyone else, so after his beautiful eyes flashed, he quietly squeezed into the crowd next to him.
Song Jiaoren and Miao Yuan didn't notice Miao Luo leaving. Although the newspapers had written in black and white that Yang Qiu was named "Loyal and Brave Baturu", he never forgot what happened that day. After thinking about it, he shook his head and said, "When I left Sichuan, Huang Xing called me and asked me to return to Shanghai as soon as possible to take charge of the situation. We will not interfere in this matter. The comrades in the new army should know what to do."
"yes."
Miao Yuan nodded, glanced at the newspaper and thought it was a pity. No matter what, Yang Qiu was really a character. If he could be won over to his side... Forget it, he was named Baturu by the Qing Dynasty, and he also killed Wang Yishi. The Sichuan Comrades Association almost collapsed because of him. This grudge could not be resolved.
After shaking his head to clear his mind, Miao Yuan thought about the dry food he had not bought just now, and was ready to let Miao Luo go down again. However, as soon as he turned around, he found that his sister was gone, and his heart immediately skipped a beat.
"Mr. Song, Luo'er..."
Brothers and sisters are connected by heart, Miao Yuan didn't care about anything else and grabbed Song Jiaoren to ask him. The latter's face changed slightly, and he rushed to the side of the ship, only to find that the plank bridge had been removed and the passenger ship had started. In the distance at the dock, Miao Luo's back was mixed in the crowd and gradually disappeared.
…
"Hey, isn't this Brother Yang?"
As soon as the wheels rolled into Hankou, Yang Qiu heard a joking greeting on the carriage. Several soldiers standing guard with guns on their backs surrounded him and said, "Brother Yang, you have to treat us to a good drink this time."
"Why?"
Yang Qiu, Xiao Anguo and the others were all surprised. The soldier on guard quickly took a newspaper from the back and said with a smile: "Brother Yang, you are now the 'Loyal and Brave Baturu' conferred by the court. This is an official title. Shouldn't you treat us?"
Loyal and Brave Baturu?!
Yang Qiu didn't quite understand the complicated official hierarchy of the Qing Dynasty, but he was familiar with this term that often appeared in later dramas with pigtails. It probably meant a warrior, which meant that he was named a loyal and brave man of the Qing Dynasty.
I don’t know if I will be the last person in the Qing Dynasty to enjoy this title.
"Brother Yang, you are really capable. Now your story has spread all over the country. It has been reported in newspapers in Shanghai and Guangzhou. Yesterday, someone from the newspaper found Master Zhang and wanted to see you. I heard that even Master Yuan from Zhili sent a telegram to the Admiral to congratulate him."
These words made Yang Qiu feel as if every hair on his head was about to explode. Shanghai, Guangzhou, Zhili! This meant that the name of "Yang Qiu the thief" had spread throughout the land of China.
What about the loyal and brave Baturu? When you turn over the sign, it says "Manchu running dog and cannon fodder".
Fortunately, after thinking about it for a few days in the car, Yang Qiu, who was open-minded by nature, had already anticipated that this matter would not end so easily. It would be useless to feel sorry for himself. It would be better to be optimistic about every day, so he did not argue.
The soldiers who wanted to watch the show had no more topics to talk about when they saw Yang Qiu's expression. They could only say, "Captain, Brother Yang. Lord Zhang and Lord Li have been waiting for you at the Admiral's Mansion for a long time. They asked you to go see him as soon as you return."
"Okay." Xiao Anguo responded and asked Ma Kui to lead everyone into the camp. After giving instructions on settling the wounded and providing relief to the dead, he immediately took Yang Qiu to the dock.
Since the Governor's Mansion was in Wuchang, Yang Qiu had to take a ferry at Hankou Wharf first. However, as soon as he stepped on the boat, he felt a sudden chill on his neck.
This feeling was not the first time. It happened to me when I was on a mission in my previous life. I also had the same feeling when I was being stared at in front of the Sichuan Governor's Mansion, so I immediately turned my head and looked back.
A figure beside the dock caught Yang Qiu's attention, but the owner of the figure shrank very quickly and disappeared in the crowd in the blink of an eye. Xiao Anguo, who had already been in a state of panic, was also startled by Yang Qiu's sudden turn around and asked quickly, "Brother Yang, what's wrong?"
"fine."
Yang Qiu always felt that the figure seemed familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen it. He was afraid that Xiao Anguo would worry, so he waved his hands and said it was okay.
The military is different from the civilians. In order to increase the connection between the three towns across the river, there is a special ferry for soldiers and officials to travel, so they arrived in Wuchang very quickly. After getting off the boat, they saw the personal guards of the governor's mansion who had received the news and came to greet them early. After a few casual words, the two of them rushed to the governor's mansion under the leadership of the personal guards.
"Evil villain, you are so sharp!" On the other side of the Yangtze River, Miao Luo finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Yang Qiu disappear in the distance. After cursing angrily, he turned around gracefully and quickly disappeared in the crowd.
…
Just as he reached the gate of the governor's mansion, Yang Qiu heard a burst of laughter coming from inside. When he got to the courtyard, he saw a man in his fifties with a big beard and ruddy complexion, dressed in tight clothes, practicing martial arts. Several bodyguards beside him were cheering him on. However, the short and fat man with a big belly on the left was frowning, as if thinking about something.
"Li Yuanhong."
When Yang Qiu saw the short and fat man, who had just visited the Xinhai Memorial Hall, he recognized him immediately. Fortunately, he had met Song Jiaoren before, so his face remained calm. As for the man who was practicing martial arts, if he was not mistaken, he should be the commander of the new army who had saved Zhang Zhidong, the Hubei Governor Zhang Biao.
Seeing Xiao Anguo and Yang Qiu coming in, Zhang Biao immediately stopped his fists, took the towel from the maid to wipe the sweat off his face, then waved away the outsiders and walked over with Li Yuanhong.
"Your subordinate Xiao Anguo (Yang Qiu) greets the Admiral and the Commander."
"An Guo is back, hurry up and answer me." Zhang Biao enthusiastically pulled Xiao An Guo aside and said with a smile: "I heard that An Guo you have practiced a few moves, how about fighting with me?"
"Everyone in the three towns of Hanjiang doesn't know that you are very skilled. An Guo doesn't dare to do that."
"Oh? An Guo is not laughing at me for bullying the weak, haha..."
"Your Excellency is joking."
Seeing that Zhang Biao and Li Yuanhong were only busy chatting with him and had no intention of paying any attention to him, Yang Qiu secretly laughed in his heart. The two old foxes were warning him, so he stood aside obediently and said nothing. On the contrary, Xiao Anguo was a little embarrassed and said, "Sir, if it weren't for..."
"Anguo, you don't need to say anything." Zhang Biao stretched out his hand to interrupt Xiao Anguo, and then said: "I have learned about your entry into Sichuan this time. You did a good job and did not bring shame to the reputation of my new army."
"That's because of your good teaching. How dare An Guo take credit for it?"
Li Yuanhong walked up to Xiao Anguo and patted him affectionately, saying with a smile, "Anguo, you don't have to be polite. Before you came back, the governor had already discussed with me that from today on, you will be transferred to Chuwangtai to serve as Pingku. Do you think it's okay?"
Chuwangtai? Pingku!
Not to mention Xiao Anguo was shocked, even Yang Qiu pricked up his ears.
Even if Yang Qiu was not a soldier of the New Army, he knew that Chuwangtai was the arsenal of the Hubei New Army, and it was said to be the largest in the country! The reason why the Wuchang Uprising was successful was not because of how many people in the Hubei New Army followed the uprising, nor was it because of how powerful the Kuomintang was.
In fact, according to the information, the top leaders of the Kuomintang only knew that an uprising was going to happen in Wuchang, but most of them were not optimistic about it, because there were too many troops there and they were not sure how difficult the uprising would be. The accidental explosion before the uprising also led to the destruction of the command center in the Wuchang area. The ultimate success was entirely due to a small number of grassroots Kuomintang members. Moreover, from the process, it did not look like an uprising, but more like a mutiny, because nearly half of the soldiers at that time abided by the military code of conduct and did not participate. It was not until Li Yuanhong was carried out at the end that the morale of the army was stabilized.
The ultimate success of this uprising was largely due to the seizure of the Chuwangtai armory, otherwise the rebels would not even have enough bullets.
Because Chuwangtai was so important, Zhang Biao specially sent the "engineering battalion" who were said to be his confidants to garrison there. However, the engineering battalion station was actually quite far away, and usually only one team (equivalent to a company) was stationed there, so Chuwangtai also had its own management personnel, whose head was called Pingku. Although most of the people below were civilian management personnel and there were only a few dozen soldiers with guns, they were equivalent to the Biaotong in the army in terms of rank! In terms of importance, they were even higher than the Biaotong, because almost every bullet in and out had to be signed by the governor, the admiral, and Pingku, so they could almost be regarded as Zhang Biao's confidants.
Being able to rise from the most marginal baggage camp to be appointed as the Chuwangtai Pingku meant that the admiral had already regarded him as a confidant. Xiao Anguo rubbed his hands excitedly and quickly knelt down to express his gratitude. Even Yang Qiu was happy for him with a look of joy on his face.
After Li Yuanhong personally helped Xiao Anguo up and pulled him aside to talk, Zhang Biao then slowly walked up to Yang Qiu in an official manner.
"Are you Yang Qiu?"
"Your Excellency, the commander is none other than Yang Qiu from the baggage camp."
"Get up."
Before Yang Qiu could say thank you after he stood up, he noticed two sharp rays piercing straight at him. He thought to himself that Zhang Biao was not as incompetent as described in history books. At least his eyes were very sharp. It seemed that these old guys were really capable. It was a pity that Zhang Biao met two generations of people who had experienced the most absurd things in the world. Moreover, Yang Qiu's military experience in his previous life made him know that even if the soldiers were infected with the bad habits of the officialdom, they did not like their subordinates to be tacky in their hearts, so he did not avoid or blink, but just stared at each other quietly.
In his heart, Zhang Biao was secretly sizing up this young man who was almost a head taller than him. He didn't have the delicate appearance of a scholar, but he had broad shoulders and long legs, and solid arms. He must have practiced kung fu, and when he stood there he looked like a sword drawn from its sheath.
If Yang Qiu avoided his gaze, he might not like it, but the straight-backed gaze made him see himself as a young ranger, with his talent revealed. He couldn't help but like it secretly in his heart, and he no longer regretted blurting out that day to reject Rui Cheng and let him be the captain of the 42nd Battalion.
However, we still need to remind ourselves when necessary.
"Haha...it's been a while since anyone dared to look me in the eye." After looking at each other for a few times , Zhang Biao raised the corner of his mouth imperceptibly, broke the silence first, walked to the desk, picked up a copy of the document, pretended to take a look at it, and said, "Very good..."
"You might as well just say no." Hearing the lingering sound, Yang Qiu knew there was more to come. He just started to grumble in his heart when he saw Zhang Biao slamming the table hard. He suddenly changed his look with wide eyes and said, "The escort of military equipment is of great importance! You are not careful and just want to be a hero. And the Sichuan matter is under the jurisdiction of Sichuan Governor Zhao. Why do you, a mere baggage soldier, want to get involved?"
