Dressed in a blue-and-black suit, a top hat, and a gem-encrusted cane, Barnes had a belly that was a little bigger than it was back then, and the freckles on his face glowed red, and it seemed that he had been doing quite well in the past few years.

"My dear Bruce, my old friend, it's so gratifying to see you in such good health!" Barnes stepped forward with a bear hug, his tone and movements were extremely exaggerated, but the taste in his mouth made Bruce frown.

Barnes had two mustaches and spoke with his chin tilted like all Englishmen, much to Bruce's discomfort.

Bruce said lukewarmly: "You didn't come to Edinburgh from London just to talk about my health problems, did you?" ”

The Indian servant brought the sweetened black tea, and Barnes took a sip and frowned: "I still prefer green tea that has not been fermented by the Chinese." ”

Bruce said angrily: "You can't buy unfermented Chinese green tea in Edinburgh, only Indian black tea." ”

Bruce magically took out two celadon jars from behind him, and then smiled, "Coincidentally, I brought it!" This is a gift from a Chinese friend, and I would like to pass it on to you, hoping to remind you of the good times in Weihaiwei. ”

Although he was very unhappy with Barnes, Bruce also had to admit that this gift was very satisfying, and when he was in Weihaiwei, he also developed the habit of drinking Chinese green tea, and after returning to the UK, he could not buy this fragrant green tea, only Indian black tea. However, out of resentment at Barnes for taking all the credit, and the traditional hostility of the Scots towards the English, Bruce just said coldly: "If you have any things, let's be straightforward, your habit of talking in circles in Chinese officialdom will obviously waste everyone's time." ”

Barnes was not angry, and sat down happily and said, "Dear Bruce, I have retired from active duty, and a Chinese friend wants me to go to China with you. ”

Bruce perked up: "Going to China? Do what? ”

Barnes smiled: "My Chinese friend, I want us to help him train a legion as good as the Huayong Battalion, I first thought of you Bruce, my good friend, we must be the best partners, aren't we?" ”

Bruce thought for a while and said, "The Chinese will not trust us, Mr. Luang Weili was the best example back then, isn't he excellent, not dedicated?" But he was ruthlessly squeezed out by the Chinese, and the same was true of Mr. Hannagen in Germany, Li Hongzhang only used him to build fortresses and batteries, but restricted his access to the army, the Chinese believe that 'non-our race will have different hearts', they will not believe in the professional ethics of foreigners at all, but it is a pity that their compatriots, those damned bureaucrats, have no other skills than rhetoric and unprincipled sending soldiers to death! ”

Both had spent a long time in China and spoke Chinese fluently, and the British army had special requirements for the officers who managed the Huayong battalion and the Gurkha regiment, that is, they must use Chinese and Nepali, which would make the managers feel familiar. Not only do they speak Chinese, but they also have a rudimentary understanding of Chinese culture.

The blonde woman walked in with a plate of seductive milky dessert and asked with a smile, "Mr. Barnes, would you like to taste my baked snack?" Barnes thanked him and took a piece of it, exclaiming, "That's amazing!" You won't find such delicious cookies in London. Can I have another piece? ”

Like all housewives, being praised for their skill is the happiest thing about them, the blonde woman smiled and nodded.

Barnes handed the tea to the blonde woman: "Mrs. Bruce, please help us make two cups of Chinese green tea, the unfermented green tea with your baked sweets is really the highest pleasure of life." ”

As the saying goes, Barnes entered the door with a lot of praise, which made Bruce's dislike of him much less.

Bruce asked, "Did that friend of yours ask us to help him train his troops, or train officers at the military academy?" ”

"Teaching at a military academy with an annual salary of 3,000 Chinese silver dollars, my dear friend, this is a lot of money, which can allow you to live the life of a rich man in China." Barnes triumphantly tapped his cane against the teak floor.

Compared to the UK, China's price level is very low, and the salaries of domestic servants are even more staggering, and 3,000 silver dollars can allow them to live a luxurious life that they would not dare to imagine in Britain. After staying in China for a long time, many foreigners are accustomed to the feeling of being served by others, and after returning to China, they generally do not adapt to the social environment where everyone is equal. Bruce and Barnes are no exception, they are used to being served in China, and they feel very lost when they return home.

"Is that friend of yours working for President Yuan Shikai?"

"No, it's Chai Dongliang, the governor of Anhui."

Bruce was a little lost: "Isn't it China's central political axe?" It's just a local political axe? ”

Barnes laughed and said, "China's central political axe will not understand the importance of professional ethics to soldiers, and he will not believe in the professional discipline of foreigners, and what that Chai Du Du admires most about you is precisely your high professionalism." ”

The blonde woman walked in with two cups of green tea, and the green tea leaves fluttered in the glass, bringing Bruce's mind back to China.

The blonde woman smiled and said, "My dear, I think you should take Mr. Barnes's advice and be there to make the most of your talents." ”

Barnes smiled and said, "Bruce, my old friend, pack your bags and go to China!" An old friend of ours was also there. ”

"Oh, who?"

"The commander of the Semur battalion of the Gurkha regiment."

Bruce's eyes lit up: "That old guy is also calling for that??? Work for Chai Dongliang? ”

Barnes smiled slyly, "The soldiers we trained are no worse than those of Suopan, right?" ”

Bruce shouted categorically, "Absolutely not! ”

The blonde woman asked, "What about your manuscript, my dear?" ”

Bruce smiled and said, "History will be rewritten, wait until I come back from China next time!" ”

???? Dividing line ????

Chai Dongliang of the Anqing South Battalion stood on the review stand in military uniform, and Fang Qingyu led people to distribute the new military uniforms to each soldier. The original German-style military uniform with buttons was eliminated and replaced with a new camouflage uniform with grass green with dark and brown spots and stripes.

There are two sets of military uniforms per person, which can be worn on both sides, one is grass green on the front and one is earthy yellow on the front, and both are white on the back. In winter, you wear white when you turn over in snow, you usually wear grass green, and you wear an earthy yellow set on special terrain such as loess slopes. The soldier's blue cloth head, which resembles the Indian Ahsan, was replaced by a magical large-brimmed hat, and each person was issued with a grass-green steel helmet with a neck guard in addition to the military cap.

In the past, the military uniform, with its golden buttons shining in the sun, was simply a natural target for snipers. And now the military uniform lies in the grass, the yellow earth and the surrounding environment are perfectly integrated, as long as the soldiers do not move, there is almost no possibility of being discovered.

The boots were all replaced with khaki leather boots, and the toe and bottom of the boots were padded with thin steel plates, even if they stepped on the iron nails, they would not be punctured, and many soldiers were reluctant to let go of their boots, this was the first time they wore shoes made of leather, and when they were young, they were either straw sandals or simply barefoot at home, and even the officers wore only thick-soled boots with cloth surface.

The new Han-style 1 rifle has a lean shape, and the soldiers look particularly energetic after changing clothes, and after months of hard training, they have almost been reborn, and their previous impetuous and numb expressions have been replaced by calm, resolute faces. Thousands of people gathered together were silent, with only the slight sound of the horses digging through the sand beneath the ladder.

Rows of new Makqin have replaced the original Grimm guns, which are prone to jamming, and the production of grenadier canisters has reached more than 100 per day, and this cheap and efficient weapon has now been armed with combat units at the squad level, and the quality of the imitation seven-five-barreled mountain guns is no less than that imported from France. Born from the Mauser 98K, the Han style 1 rifle is one of the leading rifles of this era.

Chai Dongliang looked at them and felt sincerely proud, this army that was originally raised by the private armed forces of the Manchu court as a guardian is now a modern army armed with nationalist ideas!

As the officer's starting gun sounded, the soldiers, dressed with new weapons and uniforms, conducted a live-fire exercise. The high accuracy and reliability of the Han Feng 1 greatly enhanced the shooting skills of the soldiers, and the snipers camouflaged with camouflage oil and camouflage military uniforms knocked down a target with each bullet.

Under the cover of artillery fire, the soldiers charged and crawled forward in the straggler line, and the barbed wire in front of the trench was cleared one by one by them with steel axes and multi-purpose bayonets. The soldiers in the back quickly laid a roll of barbed wire woven with small squares on the road to provide a safe passage for the soldiers.

The demining exercises of the sappers, the transmission and copying of the cavalry, and the assault were all done in a decent manner, although they were not as calm as the Gurkha regiments, but they were already very different from a few months ago.

Chai Dongliang's heart suddenly rose with pride, this army is already the most elite army in China, under the same number and equipment conditions, even the third town of Beiyang, which is known as the elite of Beiyang, may not be the opponent of the Anhui Revolutionary Army.

When all the instructors invited by the Anhui Noncommissioned Officers Academy are in place, and after a period of training, there will be 4,000 well-trained middle- and lower-level officers, and as long as there is no problem with the funds, it will be easy to expand the army, and it is nothing more than a matter of expanding the army to 20,000 or 30,000.

(To be continued)