Volume 1 Wuchang Vortex Chapter 39: Prepare to Change Defense
"How can this be possible? How can this be possible!"
It was finally cooler in the fall, and Rui Cheng, who was used to taking a nap, had just undressed and gone to bed when he heard someone report that something had happened in Nanhu. He was so scared that he hurriedly put on his clothes while saying angrily, "These rebels really deserve to be killed. They have brought trouble to the army!"
Liao Keyu saw that he was anxious and angry, and there seemed to be murderous intent between his eyebrows. While buttoning his shirt, she reminded him: "Don't worry about your health. The world is getting more and more chaotic now. You must be very careful when dealing with the riots in the army. Think more about me when you encounter problems. Kill fewer people and leave more options for yourself in the future."
Ruicheng was usually a bit henpecked, and his anger gradually faded after hearing his wife's words. In addition, there were rumors recently that Sun Yat-sen had sent his brother to Wuhan to prepare for an uprising during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Although he didn't believe it, where were those rebels? How powerful were they? If something changed, would he be able to control the situation?
Rui Cheng walked into the hall with a series of bad thoughts in his mind. Before he could sit down, Zhang Biao rushed in from outside: "Sir, have you heard about the incident at Nanhu?"
"They said a few ruffians were causing trouble, snatching weapons and running away."
Seeing Rui Cheng's understatement, Zhang Biao was not willing to let go of this good opportunity, and said anxiously: "It's not just the soldiers causing trouble! Those people snatched sabers and bullets and fled from the camp. At the end, they even said wildly that the rebels would rebel soon and seize Wuchang City and kill all of us officers. In my humble opinion, what happened today is by no means accidental! Although have run away, there are still many people who followed suit. If you don't show your power this time and don't kill a few of them, the arrogance of the rebels will grow day by day. If this continues, how can we deal with it?"
"Besides, in a few days, the Swiss side will bring the remaining troops of the 31st and 32nd Battalions into Sichuan to suppress the bandits. If you don't take this opportunity to eliminate the rebels, what if they take advantage of the opportunity to invade and cause trouble? So you better give the order quickly!"
Hearing Zhang Biao getting more and more anxious, as if Wuchang was about to turn upside down, Rui Cheng was at a loss. According to his previous thoughts, he would definitely kill people, but his wife Liao Keyu's words just now made him cautious all of a sudden, and asked: "Master Zhang, if we investigate strictly, will it... cause resistance among the soldiers and cause a big chaos?"
Zhang Biao, who was sitting next to Rui Cheng, had a cold light in his eyes and said quickly, "No, I have led the troops for many years and I can still control them. The officers are all loyal and brave. As long as you give the order, I promise to do it cleanly and there will be no trouble."
Zhang Biao spoke so quickly and urgently that Rui Cheng found it strange. Over the years, they had many conflicts in their efforts to regain military power, but now he called him "sir" and asked him to give orders. What did this mean?
Seeing Zhang Biao's fierce eyes, Rui Cheng suddenly understood, and cold sweat immediately broke out on his back. This son-in-law wanted to take this opportunity to kill someone with a borrowed knife and push himself into the crater! He hurriedly pretended to think and shouted: "Go, find Master Zhang, the governor has something important to discuss with you."
Zhang Meisheng, who had been waiting outside, heard the call and hurried in: "General Zhang is here too. Your Excellency asked me to come here. What instructions do you have?"
Ruicheng quickly told Zhang Meisheng about Nanhu and Zhang Biao's suggestion for a purge. Zhang Meisheng had followed him for many years, and immediately understood what he meant. He asked, "Master Zhang, you have led troops for many years and know the situation in the army very well. In your opinion, if something happens, can this town and this association really be trusted?"
This sudden question caught Zhang Biao off guard. He didn't dare to make up stories when things were going to get serious. He quickly said, "Flowers and plants can also wither, let alone the army. But the weapons are in the hands of the officers, so we are not afraid."
Zhang Meisheng responded with a few "hmm, hmm" and "oh, oh" sounds, pretending to think seriously. After a while, he said, "Master Zhang is right to investigate and arrest them severely. Otherwise, the hidden dangers cannot be eradicated. As the old saying goes, 'Until Qingfu is dead, the troubles in Lu will not end.' If these rebels are not exterminated, Huguang will not have peace for a day. But now that the troublemakers have escaped, where should we start?"
Zhang Biao's face darkened when he heard this. Zhang Meisheng obviously wanted to help Ruicheng and didn't want to give this order. He said, "That's not difficult. Just arrest the people who these soldiers often come into contact with and interrogate them carefully."
"Your Excellency is right, but the soldiers often come and go between the camps, and there are so many of them. What if they mistakenly arrest a good person and cause a mutiny?" After Zhang Meisheng asked, Ruicheng nodded quickly and said, "Meisheng said a lot. In your opinion, what should we do now?"
"From my students' point of view, if the rebels want to cause trouble, they must be in the city. Since those soldiers have escaped, catching them will only alert the enemy. So it is better to send people to search the city carefully and try to catch the bandit leader and destroy the center! As for the army..." Zhang Meisheng smiled at Ruicheng: "Your Excellency only needs to order the temporary confiscation of bullets, and it won't be a problem."
Rui Cheng slapped his thigh immediately and said, "Mr. Mei's plan is brilliant. Without bullets, the gun is just a firewood stick." Without waiting for Zhang Biao to react, he shouted, "Come here, pass on my order to temporarily collect the ammunition of each battalion and put it into the warehouse. No mistakes can be made."
After he finished speaking, he deliberately glanced at Zhang Biao and said, "Sir Zhang, the situation has been chaotic recently, and the Governor's Office should also strengthen its defenses to prevent any unexpected events."
Zhang Biao's face turned black. Originally, he wanted to take this opportunity to let Rui Cheng order the purge of the army, so as to avoid the trouble of doing it himself. Moreover, if something happened, he could put the blame on the governor and remove the stone of power in one fell swoop. Unexpectedly, the other party did not accept it. He simply threw his sleeves, agreed to strengthen the defense of the governor's office and turned away.
Rui Cheng was so angry at his overbearing behavior that he cursed loudly, saying, "How dare a son-in-law plot against me? How despicable!"
"Don't get yourself hurt by being angry, sir." After Zhang Meisheng finished his advice, he thought about it and said, "Although Zhang Biao's intentions are worthy of death, there is still some truth in what he said. The activities of the rebels have been frequent recently, and Sichuan has caused such a big incident. It is not impossible that the disaster will affect the three towns."
Rui Cheng felt a chill down his spine at this remark. He remembered Liao Keyu's words and said quickly, "Mr. Mei, pack up everything in the mansion these days. Exchange all the silver and floating wealth into bills to avoid any trouble. Oh, and exchange the autumn tax that has just been collected into silver bills just in case."
When Zhang Meisheng nodded and left the Governor's Mansion, Yang Qiu and He Xi also hurried to the command post of the 21st Mixed Brigade.
When he arrived at the command post, he found that the commanders of all the battalions had arrived, including Liu Wenzhi and Wang Anlan, but also Chen Shanyou and Guo Erxing, who had been forced by him to rest at home for more than half a month after falling ill. When they saw him, both of them had unfriendly expressions, and even He Xi was hated.
"What time is it? Are you still messing around?!" Li Yuanhong put down the phone and saw the three people still cross-eyed. He was also furious and shouted: "You two have led troops for many years, don't you know the rules of the army? Do you still need me to teach you personally?"
Even though Guo Erxing was arrogant, he did not dare to talk back at this moment, let alone Chen Shanyou who followed Vita's lead. He quickly stepped aside and dared not say anything. Seeing that everyone kept their mouths shut, Li Yuanhong said, "Do you know everything about Nanhu?"
"I understand. Sir, please tell us what to do." Wang Anlan quickly clasped his fists.
Li Yuanhong was actually terrified. The most taboo thing in the army was purges . Fortunately, Zhang Biao said on the phone that Rui Cheng did not agree and only ordered the confiscation of ammunition. He felt relieved and said immediately, "Something happened in the artillery camp. Guns and bullets were taken away. It's really appalling! But this incident has reminded us..." He glanced at everyone and continued, "Since the soldiers have been owed wages for many months, it is normal for them to resist. You guys need to appease them at this moment. Don't punish them physically!"
"The situation is difficult, and as soldiers, we must not get involved... Do you understand?" Seeing everyone nod in agreement, Li Yuanhong was slightly relieved and turned to Yang Qiu: "Guo Erxing, Chen Shanyou! It is normal for Yang Qiu to establish his authority when he takes office for the first time, but you two, as captains, don't want to help and instead follow him in making trouble. How can this be? You will be fined for three months and must return to the camp tomorrow. Do you have any questions?"
Three months' salary was nothing to the two of them, but being scolded in person was a bit embarrassing. However, they didn't dare to talk back, so they could only blush and glare at Yang Qiu before nodding.
"The Governor's Office has already assigned the patrol camp to collect the ammunition from each camp... If there is a conflict, please be patient! Keep your soldiers under control and don't cause any trouble for me." Li Yuanhong looked a little tired, and waved his hand and said, "Yang Qiu stays, and everyone else goes back."
Unexpectedly, Li Yuanhong wanted to keep him alone. After seeing that everyone had left, Yang Qiu hurriedly asked, "Sir, I wonder why you kept me here?"
Li Yuanhong glared and said, "Yang Qiu, you are so brave!"
Yang Qiu was confused by the sudden anger and felt a little scalp-challenged. He pretended to be terrified and said, "This is my first time leading troops. I don't know where I went wrong. I hope you can give me some advice."
Seeing that Yang Qiu was frightened by him, Li Yuanhong narrowed his eyes and asked, "I heard that you brought back two light machine guns from the gun factory. Is that true?"
It turned out to be this matter. Yang Qiu quickly took out the excuse he had prepared long ago: "Sir, the commander just wants the soldiers to be familiar with a few more types of firearms. I have already filed this matter with the gun factory. The machine gun is also broken and cannot be used..."
"You don't need to say more. You didn't handle this properly." Li Yuanhong glared at him and interrupted him. "Although it's broken, I asked the gun factory. If I meet a master, it can be repaired. Besides, machine guns are heavy weapons. At this moment, the rebels are making trouble everywhere, and Nanhu has such a thing. If you lose it, how can I explain to the Governor?"
"Sir, this Nanhu Lake... I don't know either."
Yang Qiu spread his hands and looked bitter, which made Li Yuanhong secretly laugh. However, it was indeed unsafe to leave the machine gun in the barracks, especially at this time, so he thought for a while and said, "I know you mean well, but now is a time of trouble. You should return it for now. As for training soldiers... just let them go to the gun factory to learn every day, but never bring them out again. Remember?!"
Finally, the plan to train machine gunners was not ruined. Yang Qiu breathed a sigh of relief. As soon as he agreed, Li Yuanhong took a document from the table and handed it to him, saying, "I have heard about your methods. Command and obedience... Not bad! I am afraid that your military orders are now unimpeded in the 42nd Battalion."
Is the old man really confused or just pretending to be confused? Is he deliberately testing me? Yang Qiu took the document and didn't even read it. He said in a timid voice, "Sir, don't scare me. I can't do anything about it. Fortunately, I heard about the training methods of the German army when I was in school. I can't take it seriously if I learn it now."
"Alright, I'm not blaming you. The army is different from other places. We must follow orders. I remember when I was under the strict teacher... Oh, let's not talk about it!" Li Yuanhong shook his head, as if he didn't want to talk about his time under Yan Fu and Sa Zhenbing in the Beiyang government. He pointed to the official document and said, "You did a good job with the admiral the day before yesterday. This is the official document just issued by the court. One battalion of the 31st and 32nd regiments will set off for Sichuan in 10 days. The general Rui Fangrui, who is familiar with the geography, will lead the troops to suppress the bandits."
"After they leave, we will have to readjust our deployment. The Admiral has already decided that the 30th Battalion of the 15th Brigade and the 41st Battalion of the Mixed Brigade will have to be re-deployed. Your 42nd Battalion will be stationed in Hanyang, Hankou, and Liujiamiao Station. Is there any problem?"
Yang Qiu's heart sank. Hadn't he waited so long just for this transfer order to arrive? ...It was finally here!
However, he did not answer immediately. Instead, he frowned and said, "Sir, I have three battalions in one regiment, but I have to garrison in three places. Among the three places, Hanyang and Hankou are separated by a river. If something happens, I am afraid I will not be able to take care of them. Can you suggest that the 15th regiment send a battalion to garrison Liujia Temple? This will also relieve my pressure."
"No." Li Yuanhong had no room for negotiation on this matter. He said, "The 15th Corps needs to be transferred back to Wuchang. This matter cannot be discussed."
"I obey your command." Yang Qiu saluted and said with a worried look on his face, "Sir, you know I have only been leading the troops for more than a month. Although I have sorted things out recently, there is no guarantee that there won't be any mistakes. It's not that I am afraid of the responsibility, but Hanyang is of great importance. If it is destroyed, I will have more than a hundred heads to chop off."
Li Yuanhong knew that he was telling the truth. Three battalions were in charge of three places, which was really stretched. But Wuchang was too important. After the 31st and 32nd Battalions entered Sichuan, they didn't know when they would be able to return. So he walked and thought for a few steps before saying, "How about this? Temporarily transfer the Mixed Engineering Team and the Supply Team to Hanyang and let you lead them. In addition, Ma Dabiao's security team will also be temporarily assigned to your unit and returned when the two battalions return. How about that?"
The baggage train of the mixed brigade?
Yang Qiu was stunned. This was the first army to revolt in the true sense! Many history books in later generations always confuse the Eight Towns Baggage Battalion with the Mixed Auxiliary Baggage Team, which was actually the first uprising. This is actually wrong. The Eight Towns Baggage Battalion is an independent unit responsible for the baggage and foster transportation tasks of the entire army, while the Mixed Auxiliary Baggage Team belongs to the artillery battalion under the Mixed Auxiliary, which is very different.
It's really annoying to have such a team for myself!
But Yang Qiu did not dare to disobey, for fear that the old fox would see something. Besides, it would always be a happy thing to add two companies plus a security team equivalent to a battalion. Unfortunately, the old guy in the artillery battalion still refused to let go, so he pretended to be embarrassed and acted for a long time before he gritted his teeth and agreed.
After explaining some matters that should be paid attention to in the mobilization of the army, Li Yuanhong walked towards the backyard, but he stopped suddenly as soon as he took a step, looked at Yang Qiu meaningfully and said: "Chen Hua, I know you are young and full of energy, but... you should forgive others when you can! In this world, today's life and death feud may lead to cannibalism tomorrow."
