In Wuchang City, on the forbidden street between Wangshan Gate and Wenchang Gate, the Inspector's Office guard patrols back and forth, and when it is chaotic, it is natural to be more policed than usual. Outside the Huguang Governor's Palace, the Huguang Governor's Guard with loaded guns and ammunition and German-style equipment stood outside the Yuanmen.

In the luxurious and grand grand signing room of the Huguang Governor's Office, the "Gubeikou Great Wall Map" hung up by Zhang Zhidong when he was the Governor of Huguang more than ten years ago is hung high on the north front wall. This majestic Danqing, from Taiyuan to Guangzhou, now comes to Wuchang Yamen with the owner.

In the land of Huguang, the government and the people all know that the winding Great Wall and the towering Guanlou on the "Gubeikou Great Wall Map" are the favorite of Xiangshuai. Huguang's decrees were all issued in this big signing room, and the atmosphere in the big signing room at this time seemed a little strange.

Silence, deathly silence!

In the big signing room, the officials sat respectfully, and the sweat of beans flowed down their foreheads, not because of the sudden heat of the weather, but because of the ominous battle reports on the front.

Zhang Zhidong, who was sitting in the first seat, thought quietly, staring ahead with his eyes, and although the officials saw that it was not summer, there was also some sweat on Xiang Shuai's forehead.

At this time, a trumpeter shouted, "Report! Hurriedly ran into the lobby, first knelt down on one knee and bowed his head with both hands to present a telegram, the scribe hurriedly took the telegram, spread it out and saw that his face suddenly changed.

"The elder brothers of Jingzhou will raise an incident and kill the government in the government! Later, the general led his troops out of the inner city and dispersed the congregation of the brothers......"

"Report!"

“…… county, the party will do things ......"

"Newspaper"

…… One by one, the newspapers did not bring any good news, not only in Hunan, but also in many counties in Hubei.

“…… Recently, it has been said that the parties of Wuchang, Hankou, and Hanyang have been in frequent contact, and it is suspected that they will not seek rebellion ......"

The gray beard trembled slightly, Zhang Zhidong still looked ahead, this is another piece of bad news that can no longer be stopped.

"My lord, please also transfer to the standing army and return Wuchang to ensure that Wuchang is not lost!"

"Xiang Shuai, Yuezhou is chaotic and rebellious, and it needs to be considered in the long run!"

"My lord, after the Beiyang Naval Division fleet enters Han, we will make a decision......"

"Xiang Shuai ......"

The lobby of officials and staff members reverberated in the hall continuously.

Shang turned his eyes to the large desk in the center of the room. On the desk, there are stacked volumes and books that are more than a foot high. He picked up the one on the top of it, and it was an urgent telegram from the military aircraft department, which had been received for a few days.

As soon as Zhang Zhidong opened it, those lines of words jumped into his eyes.

"Mobilize the elite of the standing army to win the army in Liangjiang and Jiang, and enter and suppress the rebellion in Hunan Province!"

Alas!

After putting down the telegram Zhang Zhidong sighed in his heart, but he thought in his heart that the imperial court only allowed him to advance as soon as possible, but ...... When the chaos in Hunan Province started, he transferred the 4th battalion of the left wing and right banner of the standing army, and the 14th battalion of the auxiliary defense battalion to suppress it, but this hit a nail in Yuezhou.

"One is to damage my three battalions and foreign battalions......"

Thinking that the telegram mentioned that under Yueyang City, the first battalion of the standing army and the eighth battalion of the defense battalion, 2,500 people fell on the battlefield in a moment, how could this not make his heart ache to the extreme, and his heart was painful but also a little more afraid.

The Hubei Standing Army has only 28 infantry battalions, and although there are more than 100 battalions in the defense battalion, they have all been accustomed to foreign warfare for a long time, but only half of the long-term foreign battalions are only half ......of them. All localities are on guard against camps. ”

With a wave of his hand, Zhang Zhidong interrupted everyone's Jin Yan, as for the rest of the standing army of Liangjiang and the Beiyang Navy Division Haiqi and other ships arrived, let's talk about it!

Saying that, Zhang Zhidong, who was distraught, raised his feet and exited the big sign room through the side door.

Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan, who left the Three Buddha Pavilion Self-improvement School, each wore a thin bamboo cloth robe, and after many checks along the way, they checked the invitation of the Self-improvement School, and only then came to the gate of the Governor of Huguang, and the two said to the porter.

"The two of us are lecturers of the Self-Improvement School, and we have paid tribute to Master Zhang for the matter of the Self-Improvement Hall, please report on my behalf."

As he spoke, when offering his respects, Zhao Juexian did not forget to take out a few silver dollars from his sleeve, and the porter took the silver with a smile on his face.

The two lakes all know that adults have high hopes for the students of the Self-improvement School, and all the students who have the Self-improvement School visit and take the time to receive them, not to mention that they are the lecturers of the Self-improvement School, and they must be more willing to meet with Mr. Zhang. Thinking of this, the porter smiled and said to the two:

"Wait a minute, you two, I'll report to your lordship."

After a while, the porter came out and said politely.

"Two gentlemen come with me, and your lordship will receive you in the living room."

Entering the Huguang Governor's Mansion, Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan had just sat down in the living room for a while, Zhang Zhidong came, although he was worried about the affairs of Hunan, but I heard that the two lecturers of the Ziqiang School had important things to do.

And Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan couldn't help but be a little surprised when they saw Zhang Zhidong. And now this old man, wearing an off-white wide-sleeved cardigan summer cloth shirt, a pair of half-length wide-legged dark old silk trousers, not wearing a long shirt is already surprising, and there is a pair of slippers woven of linen and cloth under his feet. If they hadn't met in the living room of the Governor's Office, if they hadn't met before, Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan would never have believed that he was the famous Governor of Huguang, who was clearly an ordinary old man in the market with no status, at most he was just a poor old teacher in Sanjia Village! I have long heard that Zhang Zhidong is easy to escape, and it seems that the legend has its own basis!

When the two saw Zhang Zhidong cross the threshold, they immediately got up on the ground, bent down and bowed deeply to him, and then reported their identities.

"Zhao Jue, lecturer of the Dialect Gezhitang of the Self-improvement School, visited the adults first", "Li Tielan, the German lecturer of the Dialect School, met the adults!" ”

"Sit, sit down."

Zhang Zhidong said to the two descendants kindly, and sat down while talking.

"You two, I look at you a little familiar, but if you meet on the road, you won't recognize you."

It's the truth. Zhang Zhidong only went to the Ziqiang School six or seven times a year, and Zhao and Li were not famous teachers in the Ziqiang School, so of course it was impossible to leave a deep impression in his mind.

After instructing Yahuan to pour tea, Zhang Zhidong spoke.

"Recently, there has been some chaos in Xiangdi, you come to the Governor's Office to see me, what else is there? Since we are the lecturers of the Self-Improvement School, then we have nothing polite to talk about, just say anything directly! ”

Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan glanced at each other. Zhao Jue first straightened up, and said in a loud voice in Hunan's extremely strong official dialect.

"My lord, today the two of us have come to supervise the office, and we have come to visit your lordship; Second, we do have a major matter to report to our adults and ask for their support. ”

Zhang Zhidong's eyes flashed. From the bright eyes this time, Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan both saw that although Zhang Zhidong's appearance was old, his inner spirit was not old, and he was still as strong and healthy as in previous years.

"Teacher, students should tell the truth!"

Zhao Juexian looked at Zhang Zhidong with a solemn face, obviously lowering his voice, and the official words with Hunan accent became thick and low.

"I don't know what adults think about the affairs of Hunan Province!"

"The chaotic party in Hunan Province is plotting chaos, and the imperial army is not coming, and it will be peaceful in an instant!"

Zhang Zhidong, who had half-closed eyes, opened his mouth to reply, and at the same time looked at the two lecturers of the Self-Improvement Academy, why did they mention the matter of Hunan Province?

"My lord, if the Han people in the world are all against it, I don't know if the rebellion in Hunan Province can be quelled in an instant!"

Saying that, Zhao Jue straightened his chest first, and took another step forward.

"Suo Lu has lived in China for 260 years, and now the first righteousness of Xiang Province is shocked all over the world, and the people of the country are all indignant, and all the Chinese who are not in the heart of the ethnic group want to rise up, and so is my generation, in order to seek the restoration of the nation and save Shenzhou from the time of Lu sinking."

Surprisingly, when Zhao Juexian said these rebellious words, Zhang Zhidong stared at Zhao Juexian with a tense face, while listening to his endless speech like flowing water, without interrupting him.

And Zhang Zhidong's attitude encouraged Zhao Juexian, and he seized this rare opportunity and said firmly.

"Teacher, on the occasion of the recovery of the nation! Please also come forward to announce the reading power of the lake. ”

"Read!"

Zhang Zhidong's eyes widened and his face was raised at the same time.

"Huguang is the Huguang of the imperial court, how can you read power?"

Zhao Juexian hurriedly spoke.

"The court is the court of the Manchurians, and how can it be the court of our Han people!"

For a scholar who grew up under the influence of Confucianism, and for a court official who has been deeply favored by Guoen himself and held an important position for generations, although Zhang Zhidong knew about the difference between Han and Manchu, his expression was solemn, staring at the two people in front of him.

"My Zhang family has been deeply favored by the country for generations, how can I do such a disloyal thing!"

But Zhao Juexian smiled.

"My lord, I can understand it when I think so, but my lord needs to know that now the general trend is going down, and it is irreversible to restore the nation, I only advise my lord first, don't move against the tide, and then a misstep will become a hatred for the ages!"

The comer is not good!

As soon as he heard this, these four words suddenly appeared in Zhang Zhidong's mind, and his voice immediately became powerful.

"Bold! You and the rats dare to talk about rebellion before the court officials, and I'm not afraid that I will detain you and the other two! ”

"Don't be afraid!"

Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan were not surprised by the change in the atmosphere of the conversation, not only did they not feel afraid of Zhang Zhidong's reprimand, but they showed such generosity, and Zhao Juexian said calmly.

"If we die for the restoration of the nation, we will be famous for eternity! After his death, he will enjoy the four sacrifices of the Martyrs' Shrine, and this kind of glory is beyond the reach of others! ”

The generosity shown by the two made Zhang Zhidong calm down, and he looked at the two people in front of him.

"Do you think that just by relying on those bandits who gather in the rivers and lakes, you can become a conspiracy to rebel?"

Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan smiled, but Li Tielan, who had been silent, replied quite smugly.

"I don't know what your lordship thinks is the combat power of the bandit party in Hunan Province, and the standing army has lost thousands of soldiers under Yuezhou City, how can it be done by ordinary parties!"

Zhang Zhidong sniffed out a peculiar smell from this sentence, since the rebellion in Hunan Province, all parts of Hunan Province cut telegrams, investigated officials and detectives, and even the chaos for five days, the imperial court knew almost nothing except that the temporary guard of the Hunan Governor's Axe was the principal of Xiangtan School who had asked the court to commend him, Liu Kuiyi, and the captain was Lan Tianwei, a native of Huangpo.

On the contrary, he had no intention of interrupting them, so as to find out some news about Hunan Province from the words of the two people, and these two people went to the Governor's Mansion to lobby themselves regardless of life and death, so they naturally understood the affairs of the Liberation Society and Hunan Province.

"My lord only knows that most of the soldiers in the Guangfu Army in Hunan Province are party members, but how to learn military law and how to practice tactics from party members!"

With a flash of light in his eyes, Zhang Zhidong faintly smelled some unheard secrets from the mouths of these two people, could it be ...... Zhang Zhidong, who wanted to continue to hear some news, heard Li Tielan say there.

"My lord, now that the situation is recovering, please make a decision as soon as possible!"

Seeing that Zhang Zhidong didn't make a sound, Li Tielan and Zhao Juexian once again picked out the truth.

"Once the world starts, when the time comes, adults will have three strategies!"

"What is the three strategies?"

"The best policy, the lord announced that Huguang reading power can be the hero of the recovery of the Han Dynasty, what is the matter in front of him, and the name behind him! The middle strategy is to wait, as for the next policy, it is to resist stubbornly and be a loyal servant of Suolu! ”

Listening to their words, Zhang Zhidong completely understood that the person sitting opposite was no longer a simple and weak teacher, they were probably members of the Guangfu Rebel Party.

They should have been taken down immediately, but it doesn't feel appropriate to think about it, this will undoubtedly make what they just said public, which is not good for themselves, so it is better to keep silent for the time being. Thinking about it, Zhang Zhidong got up and said.

"The old man still has a lot of official business to do, go back!"

Without waiting for Zhao Juexian and Li Tielan to speak, Zhang Zhidong shouted outside.

"Sending off!"

After the two left, Zhang Zhidong alone recalled the meeting in the living room from beginning to end, the more he thought about it, the more wrong it became, and the more he thought about it, the more terrible it became. He called out to a cronie and whispered.

"Give you an urgent errand. You go to Zhang Biao and select 200 elite soldiers, divide them into two battalions, patrol them day and night, strengthen their vigilance, and pay special attention to the dynamics of the wharves at the key passes and the population offices of the various concessions in Hankow. These two battalions are under your command and will be formed in three days. ”

At this moment, a soldier ran over in a hurry, holding a telegram in his hand, and when he took the telegram, Zhang Zhidong's face showed some joy.

Jiangning wharf, never as lively as today, there are warships parked on the Yangtze River, the wharf is crowded with large and small tonnage of gray steel skeleton river wheels, in the roar of the diesel engines of the river ships, a group of new army, defense officers and soldiers with foreign guns on their backs stepped on the springboard, boarded the river boat, in the wharf is still a piece of gongs and drums, this is the army to go out on the road, in the eyes of everyone, only with the four big cruisers in the river can light the rebellion in Hunan Province. The military and political officials of Liangjiang gathered at the wharf, and some officials even rose up to compose poems to congratulate the army that was about to march on the victory in advance.

“…… In addition to the cruiser "Haiqi," there were three cruisers, the "Hairong," the "Haichou," and the "Haichen," and ......five gunboats, as well as five gunboats, which also arrived in Jiangning.

In the conference room of the Jianghuai Road Mining Company Building, young people in suits kept introducing the Qing army and navy forces gathered in Jiangning to everyone sitting in the conference room.

"In terms of the army, in addition to the main force of the standing left and right armies transferred out of Jiangning, among the 63 battalions of the defense army, the 21 battalions attacked Hunan by land and water."

The report of the trainee staff officer only made Chen Moran, Xiao Xinren, Cai Yi, and Jiang Fangzhen who were sitting in the conference room look much more relaxed, and Chen Moran's face showed a smile.

"The Jiangxi Fifth Route Defense Army moved its three routes, with two battalions of the Standing Army of the Chinese Army and the New Army, two battalions of the Left and Right Armies, and 17 battalions of the army, Anhui with one battalion of the New Army, 10 battalions of the defense and training army and Anqing and Wuhu, Guangdong with two battalions of the New Army, and 12 battalions of the Yong Battalion ......"

The Green Camp didn't even move!

The staff officer's report only made Chen Moran shake his head and sigh, he had seen those green battalion soldiers, typical beggar soldiers, pointing out that they didn't want to fight at all, the Qing army's combat effectiveness was the new army as the most, the brave battalion, the defense army, and the training army were second, and the last was the green battalion, and the green battalion couldn't even catch up with the patrol officers in the battle.

"What about Hubei?"

"After the defeat of the Hubei Yang Standing Army in Yuezhou, there was no further movement, and the Second Detective Department reported that Zhang Zhidong intends to wait for the Liangjiang and the naval division ships to arrive in Han before making preparations, and this is the information we have so far!"

"Dashuai!"

Jiang Fangzhen stood up and walked to the map.

"At present, the reconnaissance battalion of the headquarters has been mixed into Jiangning City, the first regiment of the first division has entered Ma'anshan, the eleventh battalion of the third regiment of the second division has been dismantled and sailed to Guangdong and Fujian provinces in 22 merchant ships, the first division is in Shanghai and Zhejiang, the third division of the Ma'anshan Mine Police and the construction engineering division, and the Huainan Mining Police and the railway police supplement the fourth division of the workers, and the equipment and salaries have been fully equipped! …… Now except for the 126,000 green battalions in the provinces, the new army, bravery, defense, and training troops in the provinces have gone to seven out of ten! The goal of mobilizing the Qing army with the Hunan uprising has been achieved, and the time is ripe for a large-scale uprising! ”

Thinking about the horror brought by the battle of Yuezhou to the government and the opposition, Jiang Fangzhen just raised the corners of his lips lightly, relying on a company of the Guangfu army, 600 student troops, 13,000 Hui Party and 4,000 new recruits, Yuezhou not only defended, but also beat the Qing army painfully, so that in order to quickly suppress the Hunan uprising, Liangjiang, Huguang, Liangguang, Fujian and Zhejiang all transferred their elites to Hunan to suppress, 70,000 troops...... At this moment, the troops of the nine provinces of Liangjiang, Huguang, Liangguang, Fujian, and Zhejiang were empty.

"However, the mobilization of troops in various provinces, the student armies and the party in various places need to face only the old and weak green battalions and a small number of defense troops and training troops, lock the enemy in the Yangtze River, trap the army in the two lakes, and then the land south of the Yangtze River can be recovered!"

When Jiang Baili said these things, listening to the words "all can be recovered", Chen Moran was thinking about another question there, as the countdown approached, he was about to face a thing, there was no ten-year "cold window", there was no ten-year "school examination", and some were just a leap of the dragon gate, what about after the dragon gate was skipped?

When Jiang Baili was making his final report, Chen Moran suddenly fell into an unprecedented uneasiness, and he even had a little fear, why was he afraid? Chen Moran couldn't help but be a little dazed, he knew that if he couldn't write a suitable answer sheet for the entrance examination after jumping into the dragon gate, then what would be waiting for him...... (I'm also nervous about the expectation that the protagonist of this exam is the protagonist, after all, everyone knows what this exam means.) Whether you can get a good score in the exam is probably what the protagonist is most worried about! Hehe! Ask for a commuter pass! ）

(To be continued)