Volume 1 Wuchang Vortex Chapter 41: Choice
Dense dark clouds were swirling over the river. The misty air was almost stagnant. No one could feel the wind. The suffocating pressure prevented many people from sleeping. After the lights were turned off, the only sound in the barracks was the creaking of the wooden beds as the soldiers tossed and turned.
In the baggage camp outside Baoding Gate, Ma Kui and Xiao Anguo kept lifting the black curtain to look outside, but the chaotic night made it impossible for them to see outside. The two looked at each other and found the problem. Before long, they both began to regard Yang Qiu, who was insignificant before entering Sichuan, as the backbone.
"Ma Kui, do you think he will not come? I heard that the river is blocked and the Chuyu ship is on the river. How can he come?"
"Don't worry, I have arranged a few brothers to wait by the riverside of the patrol station. They will report if there is any problem. Besides, Brother Yang is smart and may be able to find a way. Just wait a little longer..." Ma Kui said this but he was actually worried in his heart. After all, the sentry check outside was very strict tonight and going out was prohibited in all battalions. What's more, he was a battalion commander. Once he was discovered going out without permission, he would be in big trouble.
Xiao Anguo knew he couldn't be impatient, but he didn't see Yang Qiu's heart was always empty, so he simply squatted in the corner and lit a pipe. Seeing this, Ma Kui laughed and said, "Brother Xiao, you are already a flat treasury, and you are also paid the standard salary, why can't you change your habit of squatting in the corner."
"I am a peasant, not as educated as Brother Yang. I feel more at ease squatting here." Xiao Anguo laughed, took out a match, lit it, took a sip and continued, "Ma Kui, what do you think Brother Yang is up to? I don't like rebels, and I don't want to work for the Manchus, but I always feel uneasy with us being neither of us."
"I didn't say I don't want to rely on it..." Before Ma Kui could reply, a voice suddenly came from outside the house. After hearing it, the two of them excitedly opened the door, only to see Yang Qiu walking in with two young officers. They were stunned for a moment.
"One of our own..." Yang Qiu used his eyes to signal the two men to rest assured, and then introduced: "Yue Peng and Zhang Wenjing, both of them are assistant officers of our 42nd Battalion, and are now temporarily acting as battalion commanders."
"Yue Peng (Zhang Wenjing) has met Lord Xiao and Captain Ma."
Xiao Anguo and Ma Kui looked at each other secretly. It took only one month for Yang Qiu to win over two trusted people. They secretly admired Yang Qiu's methods and greeted each other in a hurry.
"Don't be polite, there will be plenty of time later." The baggage camp was Yang Qiu's "home", so he sat down immediately and said without being polite: "I won't talk about the situation outside. Everyone knows that the patrol camp will start to confiscate bullets from various camps tomorrow morning. The resistance in the army will definitely become more intense, so I conclude that there will be major changes within half a month."
Yue Peng felt the most directly about Yang Qiu's assertion. He had just said yesterday that something would happen to the Nanhu Artillery Battalion, and it happened today. Zhang Wenjing did not doubt it either. From what he saw with his own eyes at the Third Artillery Battalion, the current situation in the army had indeed reached a volcanic peak. When they started collecting bullets early tomorrow morning, the soldiers would definitely be even more dissatisfied.
Although Xiao Anguo and Ma Kui still had some doubts, they were born in the lower class and knew the soldiers' mentality better. The superiors did not trust them and were on guard against them like thieves, and they also owed them wages, so they became concerned even though they had no interest in doing it. If it weren't for Yang Qiu, they would not have wanted to do it anymore.
"Just now, Brother Xiao said that we can't rely on each other, and he was a little worried..." Yang Qiu glanced at the four people and smiled: "That's actually quite right. Unless we rebel, we really need to rely on each other."
Yue Peng vaguely guessed Yang Qiu's thoughts and said, "Are you planning to rely on those party members... to achieve justice?"
Yang Qiu nodded: "If what I predicted is true, once the mutiny occurs, the party members will definitely take the opportunity to incite the soldiers. I said that it is impossible for the soldiers to have a program in a hurry. They also need to find a reason for themselves. In addition, most of the soldiers sympathize with the party members and praise their anti-Qing ideas, so the two needs will definitely hit it off."
"But the influence of those party members in the army is all middle and lower level. They may be able to lead the troops to riot, but they will need someone to come out and stabilize tens of thousands of soldiers afterwards, so they will definitely choose a prestigious person from our army."
"Rui Cheng is a bannerman, so it's impossible for him to do that. Although Admiral Zhang Biao doesn't get along with Rui Cheng, he has been suppressing the party members for many years, so it's impossible for him to cooperate with him, so..."
"Sir, do you want to be the collaborator?" Zhang Wenjing frowned and asked quickly.
"Me? Haha..." Yang Qiu laughed and pointed at his nose and said, "If you, Wen Jing, were a member of the party, would you be willing to cooperate with Baturu, who killed their leader and was a loyal and brave man in the eyes of others?"
Zhang Wenjing shook his head and felt relieved. In fact, he asked this because he was afraid that Yang Qiu would take that position right away. After all, he had only been leading troops for a short time and his reputation was not very good. If he did it rashly, the soldiers might not be convinced and the situation would become even more chaotic.
"They will definitely look for Li Xietong!" Yang Qiu "asserted" again: "Except for those two, Li Xietong is the most prestigious person in the army. In addition, Li Xietong is usually kind and friendly to others, and treats his brothers well, so there is no other choice except him."
"Your Excellency, what you mean is that we..."
"Once there is a change, we will immediately control Hankou and Hanyang, and then wait for news from Wuchang." Yang Qiu said, "If they support Li Xietong, we will be safe and sound, but if they really want to act rashly, then I will not let them mess up the three towns!"
"Excuse me, sir." Zhang Wenjing asked, "You keep talking about defending the three towns. Why is that?"
Yang Qiu sighed, "The Qing Dynasty has come to an end. This is the general trend, but I am not optimistic about the Kuomintang. Even if they can successfully overthrow the Qing Dynasty, there has been no precedent of a republic in China for thousands of years. It's not that a republic is bad, but with low literacy rates and people not understanding a republic, a republic rashly can only lead to greater chaos in the country."
"The Beiyang government has a large number of troops, Yuan Shikai has been dormant for a long time, the internal forces of the party are complicated and mixed, and the contradictions and war disasters are simply irreconcilable."
"Everyone knows the importance of the three towns. Lord Zhang has devoted his life to building the industrial precedent and laying the foundation for the country's future. Once the Beiyang Army comes to attack, there will be a great loss of lives!"
"So... I have to fight for it once and keep it! Although I don't know where to go now, I know that I will never destroy the foundation of this country, let alone let the people fall into decades of war! If the party or the north can stabilize the country and lead tens of millions of Chinese people into prosperity, then I will definitely hand over everything and go overseas and never come back! And I also hope that you can supervise me... If I go against what I said today, then anyone can shoot me in the back!"
Yang Qiu's words were partly true and partly false, but they resonated with the people. They were all soldiers from Hubei, and they had long since given up on being loyal to the Qing Dynasty, but the idea of being a soldier and protecting their families was deeply rooted in their hearts. It's just...
"Including the security team and the baggage battalion led by Captain Ma, we only have five battalions, with less than 4,000 guns at most, and we lack heavy weapons such as machine guns and cannons. It may be no problem to protect Hanyang, but Hankou? ... The Beiyang's equipment and training level are far superior to ours, and there are naval forces that can be mobilized. If they really come, they must go south along the railway line to take Hankou first. If we want to stop them, I'm afraid..." As soon as Yue Peng expressed his concerns, Xiao Anguo immediately said, "The Beiyang's equipment is far superior to ours, but we are not bad either. Brother Yang has already ordered hundreds of machine guns and 300,000 rounds of bullets, which will be delivered soon!"
"real!"
Yue Peng and Zhang Wenjing looked at each other and were shocked again. Although foreigners were aggressively promoting , it was difficult for an individual to obtain something like a machine gun, not to mention hundreds of them at once! How many secrets does this young commander have?
Seeing that the two seemed unconvinced, Ma Kui quickly told them about Yang Qiu exchanging technical drawings for equipment. Yue Peng and Zhang Wenjing immediately understood why he wanted to protect the three towns.
"A deal... I took out the technology they wanted, and they gave me what they wanted." Yang Qiu didn't want to say more about this issue for the time being. If he couldn't resist the Beiyang and Hanyang was destroyed, everything would be meaningless, so he immediately became serious: "Machine guns and bullets are just external aid. It's hard to say whether they can arrive in time. We must rely on ourselves!"
"Sir, there is no problem controlling Hanyang, but there are 30 troops under Yang Kaijia in Hankou, I am afraid..."
Just as Yue Peng said this, Yang Qiu interrupted him: "I have received an order that the three towns will soon change their defenses. My 42nd Battalion will take over Hanyang, Hankou and Liujiamiao Station on the Beijing-Hankou Railway. Guo Erxing and Chen Shanyou will be back tomorrow, but I will continue to arrange for you two to serve as adjutants. As for whether you can control it..."
"Haha, it seems that God is helping us!" Yue Peng had nothing to say about Yang Qiu's "luck" and "prophecy". He glanced at Zhang Wenjing and smiled, "One is mean and sarcastic, and the other is a Manchu Tartar. If the two of us can't even beat them... we have no face to see you, my Lord."
After saying that, he turned to Xiao Anguo and said, "Now it depends on Captain Xiao."
His words drew all eyes to Xiao Anguo's face. After the bullets were collected tomorrow, only the soldiers on duty would be able to get three bullets. If something happened, they would not even be able to protect themselves. Therefore, how many bullets could be obtained from Chuwangtai became the key.
Xiao Anguo glanced at Ma Kui and said confidently, "Chuwangtai is on the side of Meiting Mountain. There is a road leading directly to Xunsi River. We can get there in a moment from my baggage camp. We can also arrange for a boat. I have also roughly understood the warehouse."
"Although Wu Zhaolin and Li Keguo led the left team of the engineering battalion to be responsible for defense, the lower echelons of the army are basically all party members, or sympathetic soldiers. Once something happens, they will definitely rush into the warehouse to grab the arms, so we have to act before them. As long as we can get the arms out before them, we can go directly into the river through Xunsi River and reach Hanyang. I dare not say how much, but it is still possible to get 3,000 Hanyang-made guns and a few hundred boxes of bullets. Now it depends..."
"Our baggage camp is not good at fighting, but we have unity among the people, and we have no bannermen soldiers. Except for a few people, everyone is unwilling to work for the Manchus! When the time comes, I can forge a transfer order and go to Chuwangtai to load goods in advance. With Brother Xiao as an insider, there shouldn't be any problem. Now all that's left is..." After Ma Kui finished speaking, he looked at Yang Qiu.
All eyes were focused on Yang Qiu again. Everyone believed his "assertion" and became nervous at this moment. This was no small matter. If there was no mutiny or riot, then all their arrangements would probably be in vain.
"Don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to give my head to the Manchus." Yang Qiu took a deep breath and suddenly took out two familiar pistols. He removed the magazines and pulled out the bullets one by one and put them on the table. Then he took out five silver bills and boat tickets from his pocket: "This is my final choice for you! One bill costs 10,000 yuan, and there is a boat ticket to Shanghai. When you arrive in Shanghai, go to Heshengyuan and tell them my name. Someone will arrange a boat to the United States."
The sudden decision made the four people present a little dazed. You looked at me and I looked at you for a long time without saying anything. Although ten thousand taels is not a lot, it is a windfall for ordinary people. It is a very good choice to avoid being involved in this quagmire.
In the silent room, Yang Qiu's palms were sweating. Since ancient times, human hearts have been unpredictable. One's own strength cannot intervene in this vortex, so help is needed! At this moment, a showdown is undoubtedly the best choice! The success or failure of the future may depend on this choice!
Yue Peng was the first to push the banknote back to Yang Qiu, and then he grabbed his own ticket and tore it into pieces: "Soldiers should fight! I will not accept being left behind for 20 years!"
"What you gave is too little, sir. The Manchus have done nothing good, but the gun factory has spent nearly 10 million. I don't want to see it all go into your pocket." Zhang Wenjing smiled and tore up the ticket.
Ma Kui and Xiao Anguo smiled at each other and tore up the boat tickets as well. "Brother Yang, you can't take all the credit! You are the hero who defended the three towns and expelled the Manchus, but you want to drive us away and lick the foreigners' asses! No, I have to be a little hero too."
Seeing four piles of paper scraps on the table, Yang Qiu's eyes suddenly became red. It was said that this was the last heroic era in Chinese history, and today he finally saw it. For a still vague dream and for the belief of overthrowing the Manchu Tartars, he was willing to go through fire and water.
"Then let's fight for our lives! Let's tell everyone that there are more than two ways to make our country strong and our people rich!" After putting away his gun with a few clicks, Yang Qiu said solemnly: "On the night of August 19 (Lunar calendar), we will listen for the signal of gunfire!"
