Volume 1 Wuchang Vortex Chapter 50: The Day of Rise (V)
“Boom…”
Amid the rumbling of artillery fire on the opposite bank, Yang Qiu looked at his watch with a serious expression. In the parallel world, it took about an hour from the first shot to the first cannon. In this world, it also took about an hour for the baggage battalion to rush out of Chuwangtai and cross the river along Xunsi River. In other words, if everything went well, Xiao Anguo and Ma Kui should have succeeded by now, but why haven't they appeared yet?
The fireballs that flashed from time to time in the sky above Wuchang City tore apart the prosperity of the three towns for more than ten years. Countless people were awakened by the loud noise. Some people began to pack up their belongings and prepare to escape, some people jumped and shouted to join the revolutionary team, and incidents of looting, burning, rape and abuse also occurred frequently. More ordinary people held their children and families, hid behind thin door panels, and shivered helplessly .
The more than one hundred soldiers behind him were established by Lei Meng with the 42nd Regimental Law Enforcement Team as the core. Some of them were transferred from the baggage battalion by using his power, and more were the most diligently trained and most similar-minded soldiers in the three battalions. Although they were still a law enforcement team in name, through the hints of Lei Meng, Hu Laosan and Bingwen, everyone already knew what had happened, so all eyes were focused on the back at the camp gate.
Two powerful M1911 pistols were strapped to the outside of his thighs, his leather boots were polished enough to reflect the moonlight, and his brand new military uniform matched his tall stature. Just his back gave people a sense of majestic and uprightness.
It was as if he was the sharp spear that could pierce the sky, or the magic needle that dared to support the heaven and earth!
Countless soldiers awakened by the sound of artillery rushed out of the dormitory and asked each other in a panic, but when they saw the lonely and towering figure standing at the camp gate, they all shut their mouths.
"stand at attention!"
Bingwen shouted, and all the soldiers reflexively put their legs together. Even the baggage and engineering teams, who had only been here for less than half a month, were infected and straightened their backs involuntarily. The entire camp was silent, and even officers such as He Xi did not dare to say a word. Everyone was waiting...
He did not turn back immediately, but continued to look at Wuchang City, looking at the fireballs that kept rising up, his heart was broken! He did not care about those party members, nor did he care about the life and death of Ruicheng and others. What made him sad was that the prosperous three towns were finally going to be baptized by blood and fire. The last bit of vitality on the land of China was being ravaged and consumed! And tonight was just the beginning. There would be more than a month of Yangxia bloody rain! And there was also the fire that destroyed Hankou by Mr. Feng! Could he save it all?
"History has always only recorded the victors, the glory and splendor." Yang Qiu slowly walked to the center of the army, his eyes swept across the faces of each soldier, and said slowly and solemnly: "Some of you are soldiers of the new army who won with knowledge, and some are brothers from the security team. I want to ask you, apart from a few words of description, can you find more descriptions of the people who were massacred and the compatriots who were ravaged in the war?"
"No!"
"Many of you may be wondering why the loyal and brave Lord Baturu, a running dog of the Manchus and a traitor, would care about the safety of the common people. But do you know why I am in this situation today?"
"My fellow brothers, Bingwen swears to heaven, although I am young, every word I said today is true. If any brother finds out in the future that I have lied, I am willing to commit suicide to apologize." Bingwen stood in front, and his opening words shocked everyone. No one expected that this baby-faced young man, who was maliciously called a pedophile by many people, was so courageous. When he told the story of Yang Qiu's entry into Sichuan, his promotion to the commander of a flag, and his failure to seek revenge after he was assassinated in the street, and even the fact that he let Song Jiaoren go, the soldiers began to whisper to each other.
It turned out that this "loyal and brave Baturu" was passive in everything, and even missed the opportunity to hunt down the party members for revenge for the sake of national justice! Su Xiaohu was the first to ask: "Master Biaotong, if this is the case, why don't you explain it to everyone?"
"God is watching what you do. If you have a clear conscience, why do you need to explain to others? Besides, aren't there many people who like to rely on their mouths nowadays?" Yang Qiu smiled, walked to the front of the army, and spoke in a high voice again: "I am a soldier. From the moment I put on this military uniform, I swore to be a good soldier! Defending my country is my dream. But this country is not the country of the Manchus, but the whole of China! Including the three provinces in the northeast, including Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Tibet! As long as there are Chinese people, I will protect them!"
"This is a soldier's duty and also the highest honor! Today, in front of you and me is the home that I need to protect! It is the Three Towns! It is Hubei! Here are millions of my compatriots, my relatives, and your relatives!" Yang Qiu pointed at Wuchang, where the sky was already red, and walked swiftly and spoke loudly: "I know what happened tonight, and some of you know it too! The Qing Dynasty was immoral, ceded territory and paid indemnities, lost power and humiliated the country, and the foreigners were rampant in the southeast and humiliated my compatriots. Since change is going to happen, then as soldiers, why can't we shoulder the responsibility of protecting tens of millions of compatriots and take the initiative to seek change?!"
Yang Qiu took off his military cap, revealing his short hair without braids: "The brothers on the other side have already started to act! So what about us? Will we continue to be the running dogs of the Manchus? Or will we be their slaves?! When the army from the north comes, will you stand up or be a coward?! You... can choose for yourself! I have only one choice! I am a Han Chinese, and even more a soldier! The moment I picked up the gun, what I wanted to protect was not the Manchus, but 400 million brothers and sisters! I never force others, and I will never attack my comrades. Those who want to leave!... ...Leave the bullets and guns, and each person will be given 20 yuan to return home by themselves."
Lei Meng opened a small silver box, revealing envelopes of silver dollars. Then he took off his hat, pulled out his bayonet and cut off his braid: "Sir, I, Lei Meng, don't know anything, but my home is here!" After him, more than a hundred selected soldiers also cut off their braids.
However, this is not enough...
"I don't want to work for the Manchus anymore. I just want to learn from you and be a good soldier who defends my country!" After a moment's silence, Su Xiaohu was the first to step forward, took the bayonet from Bingwen and cut off his braid.
"Those Manchu Tartar officers never treat us as human beings! I don't want to be dogs for the Tartars anymore!"
"Don't be a slave, surround your homeland!"
"The four words of a soldier are command and obedience. Sir, just give the order."
Amid the shouting, one, two, three... except for a few officers like He Xi, all the soldiers cut off their braids, and their flying hair covered the entire parade ground. The passionate words aroused everyone's blood!
Yang Qiu turned to He Xi, looking at him who had not yet gone to fight. His sharp eyes made him tremble for no reason. After thinking for a while, he gritted his teeth and drew his sword. He swung the blade violently, then saluted and said, "Sir, from today on, this hundred-plus pounds of He Xi is in your hands. You can beat him or kill him without regret!"
"I will never regret it!"
All officers and soldiers took a step forward.
