"Boom-"

A large-caliber artillery shell exploded on the river, and the two parts of the soldiers who were facing each other on the wharf immediately started to stir, followed by another shell whistling, and the mist raised by the explosion poured the two parts of the officers and men on the wharf all over their faces, and the confrontation team immediately became chaotic, and the part of the officers and men wearing gray military uniforms could no longer care about confronting the Sichuan army in green military uniforms, and shouted in a sad voice, "This warship is coming," and rushed to the wharf in a blink of an eye, and fled without a trace.

On the ground and steps of the pier, there were shoes that had been trampled on and rifles that had been discarded in a hurry when the Hubei troops fled for their lives.

Xia Jiong, the commander of the Sichuan Army's spy company who led the team to seize the dock, was stunned for a moment, brandished his pistol, and suddenly shouted: "Spicy next door, which turtle son dares to escape, immediately engage in military law, don't blame Lao Tzu for ignoring brotherhood today...... The whole team, the whole team...... Attention! Raise your gun, face the warship, and keep on guard...... "Brothers, the brigade seat is watching us from above, the turtle grandson Ejun who came to fight for our territory is also looking at us, and the people of Yichang are also looking at us, don't lose the face of our Sichuan army, if anyone dares to take a step back today, Lao Tzu will immediately smash his braincase!" ”

Another shell fell close to the edge of the wharf, and the explosion stirred up a column of water as high as 10 meters, and the splashed water curtain once again flew towards the more than 80 Sichuan officers and men who were waiting on the wharf.

The wet officers and men clenched their steel guns and stared at the gunboats 500 meters downstream, and the young faces of the water-stained young men turned white with nervousness, and many of the soldiers showed panic in their eyes, but none of the officers and men fled in fright like the Hubei army just now.

Yang Sen, the commander of the 1st Division of the Sichuan Army, who heard the sound of artillery, rushed to the Nancheng Gate Tower, lay on the city wall and held a telescope to observe nervously, and more than a dozen lieutenants and officers around him saw the situation on the river clearly, and immediately scolded the barbaric shelling of the warship, some praised the brothers of the spy company who were sticking to the dock "just want it", and some anxiously shouted that "the shell landing point is getting closer and closer to the wharf", and the anxious adjutant Zhang Yuanpei was so anxious that he jumped up, and finally ran to his brother-in-law Yang Sen and suggested loudly:

"Brigade seat, the Oriental devil dares to do the first day of junior high school, we dare to do the fifteenth, please give the brigade an order, the subordinates are willing to take a battalion of brothers to immediately surround the Yichang Imperial Pavilion, tie all the people to the dock, and see if the battleship of the Oriental devil dares to open fire!"

As soon as this remark came out, it immediately received a warm response from all the captains.

Guo Rudong, the chief of staff of the brigade, was so frightened that he hurriedly stopped it, ran to Yang Sen, who was dark-faced, pointed to the warship downstream, and said loudly:

"You see, the naval guns of the Oriental devils don't dare to really fight, and the subordinates see that they have fired three cannons in a row in the past five minutes, but they all hit the water outside the dock, which is obviously a warning, if we really tie up all the Oriental people in Yichang, I'm afraid it will make things out of control!"

Yang Sen hurriedly observed again, saying that the warship had just fired a cannonball, and the shells still fell on the river outside the wharf, and the violently surging waves turned over a small wooden boat tied to the wharf, and the dull explosion sounded loudly, frightening thousands of Yichang soldiers and civilians who were nervously watching on the shore into exclaiming in unison.

The curtain of water fell on the empty wharf again, and the more than 80 Sichuan officers and men who were soaked still remained motionless, neatly facing the explosion of the shells close at hand, holding the steel guns tightly, and standing majestically in the face of danger, which touched countless soldiers and civilians, and won the earth-shattering applause and countless respects of the crowd on the shore.

Yang Sen put down the telescope thoughtfully: "That's really the case...... But we can't be frightened, can we? If we withdraw from the dock, the Oriental devil will definitely have to inch in, and the tail of the hand will be long! Not to mention anything else, if Mr. Xiao knows that we are soft in the face of the Oriental devils, we must not peel off the skin of you and me? No, we have to think of a way as soon as possible...... Lao Guo, what are your good ideas? ”

Guo Rudong pondered for a moment: "It's better to be like this, my subordinates rushed to the north of the city to discuss with Brigade Commander Liu Chengfu, he is fighting with Wang Xuanming, the commander of the Fifth Mixed Brigade of the Hubei Army who led his troops to share the fruits, maybe the two of them will have a way, at this time, our Sichuan Army and the Hubei Army should put aside their differences and agree on the outside world, I believe that the two of them will focus on the overall situation." ”

"Okay, you go! I guess they also got the news, let them help with ideas, don't fucking try to compete with us for territory and spoils. ”

Yang Sen tore off the wind and discipline button, took off the soft training military hat and wiped his face, and raised the binoculars again to take a closer look.

Guo Rudong quickly left, rushed down the city tower, flew on his horse, and the rest of the officers threw themselves on the city wall, looking worriedly at the dock and the ships downstream.

A few minutes later, Yang Sen, who had calmed down, suddenly figured it out, he turned around abruptly, and ordered loudly: "Order a regiment, give up the guard in the city, and surround Lao Tzu with the Imperial Hall and the expatriate area, as long as the gunboats of the Oriental devils dare to bombard Lao Tzu's brothers, Lao Tzu will destroy all the Oriental people in Yichang City!" ”

"Yes!"

The surprised adjutant Zhang Yuanpei turned around and rushed down the city tower.

The rest of the staff officers and guards were already stunned, everyone was worried about their brigade commander, they knew the fiery temper of the brigade commander Yang Sen, if the warship dared to open artillery and kill the brothers of the spy company on the dock, Yang Sen would definitely destroy all the Orientals in Yichang City, if the matter really came to that point, I am afraid that there would be a war between the two countries.

"Look! Another gunboat from the Oriental devils—"

Everyone hurriedly looked at the downstream river, and sure enough, they saw a gray-black warship breaking through the waves, and the twin fast guns placed in the bow and the huge guns located in the amidships pointed to the dock from afar, and the plaster flag flying high on the ship's tower was extremely conspicuous.

The two gunboats quickly converged, formed a parallel array, and slowly sailed towards the waterway near the south bank, and the many gun ports on the gunboats moved slowly with the forward movement of the ships, always aiming at the more than 80 Sichuan officers and men on the pier who were not afraid of death.

"Shut up Lao Tzu—"

Yang Sen roared, glared at a group of frightened subordinates around him, and finally stared at Song Zhimian, the commander of the machine gun company: "You immediately return to the barracks, bring all the 80 mortars, shells, and heavy machine gun companies, and set up them along the embankment east of Linjiang Street for Lao Tzu, I will let the engineer company cooperate with you, and then concentrate all the 60 mortars and gunners of each battalion in your hands, as long as the Oriental people dare to fire at our brother, you will bomb him from a son of a bitch, and all the responsibility will be borne by Lao Tzu, understand?" ”

"Understood!"

Originally, Company Commander Song and his company deputy replied in unison, and their voices changed a little under the shock.

Yang Sen kicked out in annoyance: "Don't go yet!" Staff Officer Duan, a few of you go together, bring the order flag, and pay attention to Lao Tzu's banner! ”

"Yes!"

The officers at the head of the city disappeared nearly half in a blink of an eye, Yang Sen raised his binoculars again to observe the river, and saw that more than 80 elites under his command, under the leadership of the company commander Xia Jiong, were holding the wharf majestically and fearlessly, listening to the exclamations and praises of thousands of people on the riverbank, Yang Sen couldn't help but praise in a low voice:

"Xia Jiong, the turtle son, has given Lao Tzu a long face, as long as you have withstood this period of time, Lao Tzu will immediately give you a third level promotion when you come back......"

The two ships slowly separated on the channel near the south bank, one going upstream, the other downstream, and soon put on a posture of east-west attack.

Liu Xiang, commander of the 1st Brigade, who rushed to the 1st Brigade after hearing the news, led dozens of cavalry to rush to the steps of the wharf and shouted an order for all the soldiers and civilians to leave the river bank immediately. When the people heard that the Sichuan army was likely to fight with Xiao Yueben's gunboats, where were they still in the mood to gather around to watch the excitement? Without being driven away by the Sichuan officers and soldiers, they shouted in fright one by one, and fled desperately into the city in groups.

Liu Xiang had already climbed the city tower, ran to Yang Sen's side, hurriedly observed the river, and then complained angrily: "Brother Zihui, you want to kill people!" Why did you forget the joint instruction of Mr. Xiao and the military seat before the attack? If I really hurt a few people, you and I can't bear it! ”

Yang Sen smiled: "Chengfu, if I let Yue himself bombard my brother to death, and I don't dare to make any resistance, do you say that Mr. Xiao, who has always been true to him, will he be able to spare me?" ”

Liu Xiang was stunned, and couldn't help but think of the commander-in-chief Xiao Yimin's tough attitude towards the foreign powers, as well as the process of recapturing the docks and warehouses occupied by the British and Chinese expatriates through various ingenious means over the years. Until now, the British, who dominate the world, have not dared to take revenge, and even the tyrannical man himself on Chinese soil did not dare to be presumptuous in Sichuan.

Looking at the annihilation smile on Yang Sen's broad face, Liu Xiang couldn't help but sigh slightly: "It's better not to expand the dispute, the military seat and the chief of staff will arrive soon, and the junior brother has already sent someone to send a letter of protest to Ogasa Yoshihara, who is the secretary of the department, presumably I will take it seriously." ”

Yang Sen pointed to the two gunboats that met again on the river in the distance and smiled: "Don't look at the little boats that are menacing, I bet they don't dare to fire on our Sichuan army, just now I was still thinking that if Xiao Yueben started to fire the first cannon, our brothers would also run away in embarrassment like those spineless Hubei troops, maybe the cannonballs will really fall on our brothers' heads!"

"You see....... is now a stalemate, and it is quite surprising that our more than eighty brothers have insisted on occupying the dock without retreating, and the two gunboats of the army have not fired any more guns. By the way, what about the brigade commander Wang Xuanming of the Hubei army? Why don't I come with you? ”

Liu Xiang remembered Wang Xuanming's frightened look when he heard the bombardment of the dock by the warship, and couldn't help but shake his head again and again: "I ran away, it is estimated that I saw that our two brigades dispersed the local rebels and occupied the entire Yichang City, which would not leave them any benefit.

"Before leaving, that guy solemnly advised us not to offend Yue himself, saying that Sichuan has the Three Gorges natural danger to block the revenge of the Yue army, and both sides of the Yangtze River in Hubei are full of innocent people who have no river defense protection, and asked us not to bring disasters to the people of Hubei

"This time, if my warship doesn't come, I'm afraid they will still refuse to leave, he won't look at the order signed by Duan Qirui I showed, it is estimated that Wang Zhanyuan, the overseer of Hubei, has come together with Feng Guozhang, and many people don't want our Sichuan army to occupy Yichang!"

Yang Sen put away his smile and was just about to exchange his views on the current situation in the country with Liu Xiang, when he saw Chief of Staff Guo Rudong arrive with a middle-aged man in a short suit and leather shoes, followed by two soldiers wearing the uniforms of the Marine Corps, and behind him were more than a dozen trembling local Mingliu elders in Yichang.

Yang Sen and Liu Xiang hurriedly tidied up their military appearance, and they both greeted each other and greeted Ogasa Yoshihara, who was said to be the commander.

With a smile on his face, Ogasa Yoshihara greeted him twice, turned sideways, and introduced the two officers to Liu Xiang and Yang Sen, the two arrogant officers had cold eyes and were full of provocation, although they needed to look up at the tall Yang Sen and Liu Xiang, they did not fall into the disadvantage at all.

Yang Sen and Liu Xiang glanced at each other, turned to Ogasa Yoshihara very tacitly, and did not look at the two invincible officers again, so angry that the two stocky and sturdy officers gritted their teeth.

(To be continued)