Aoki Xuanchun stayed in Niujiabao that night, and talked with Song Biao all night, until the next morning, when Song Biao saw him off all the way to Nandian, and when he left, he reluctantly gave Song Biao his favorite book "Persuasion of Learning" by Fukuzawa Yukichi, and encouraged Song Biao to continue to work hard for the fate of China and Asia.

In last night's talks, Aoki expounded his ideas on China-China relations, modern nationalism, and the future of Asia.

Song Biao was almost a simple listener that night, as if he was being taught by Aoki Xuanjun, the great spy who was said to be the father of China's intelligence work, and if he wanted to, he could have had an eloquent argument with Aoki Xuanchun here, but he didn't do it.

On the earthen building in Nandian, looking at the back of Aoki Xuanchun's departing military horse team, seeing the vague shadow gradually disappearing on the black soil of Kanto, Song Biao faintly had a trace of indescribable sorrow.

He actually hoped that all of this was possible as Aoki preached, but it was clearly not the case.

Aoki Nobusumi based the concept of Sino-Chinese relations on a pattern dominated by the Chinese language, and tried to rebuild the Asian order with the Chinese as the main and China as the auxiliary, which was impossible for any Chinese to accept, Sun Yat-sen, Zhang Zuolin, and Yuan Shikai...... None of them will accept it.

We are Chinese, and even if we are weak now, we will not help Xiao Yuben lead Asia.

Therefore, it is inevitable that China will fight again.

Song Biao rolled up this "Persuasion of Learning" and held it in the palm of his hand, thinking back on every fragment of the entire history, he could only say that the book was actually still in the struggle period of invading and aiding China at this time.

The wise people of Yuben must have understood that either there is no leader in Asia, and if there is, it must be China, unless Yuben can occupy the whole of China.

During the Meiji period, the thinkers of the company were still talking about popular topics such as "If you want to lead Asia, you must first lead China," and after World War I, the soldiers of the company officially came to the conclusion that "if you want to conquer the world, you must first conquer China."

Song Biao must be a very smart man, and his thinking logic has always been very concise, cutting straight to the heart of the problem, and he stubbornly believes that the root of the problem lies in the struggle between the two sides for the leadership of Asia.

I firmly believe that the Chinese are ignorant and backward second-class peoples, who have lost their qualifications to lead Asia, and that other ethnic groups in Asia are not civilized, and only they are worthy of the heavy responsibility of leading Asia, but their understanding and actions of "leading Asia" are basically crude plunder.

In short, Song Biao is the kind of guy who can always lift weights.

He gently patted the palm of his other hand with the book of "Persuasion" in his hand, and muttered softly: "Xiao Yue is really crazy, well, they have always been a very crazy nation, and they will not be stable if they don't die." ”

When Song Biao made this emotion, Aoki Xuanchun was very happy on the distant mountain road, he thought that he had found the most suitable person, and there was a student in China who could resonate with him, and he really didn't understand Song Biao's heart.

If Aoki knew that his one-night conversation would only result in such a result, he would definitely find a small tree with the crooked neck and hang himself, and apologize for his death to the empire he loved.

When he walked down the tulou, Song Biao, who was relaxed, yawned a few times in a row, sleepy.

Li Dayun, who had been following him, immediately proposed: "Big boss, that grandson has been arguing with you all night, or let's find a room in the inn to sleep all morning, and make sure that no one can disturb you." ”

Song Biao threw the book "Persuasion of Learning" in his hand to him, and said: "Put the book away, find a dictionary to read it a few times in the future, and call Zhao Tingzhu and them over, and hold a meeting in the office at two o'clock in the afternoon, and the regiment commander and battalion commander will be present." ”

He raised his wrist and glanced at it, it was only half past seven in the morning, and he still had a few hours to sleep.

Song Biao returned to Niujiabao to take a nap, and when he woke up at noon, he first pondered in his office, he had been thinking about the recruitment of recruits for the past few days, and was only interrupted by Aoki Xuanchun yesterday.

It was precisely because of the arrival of Aoki Xuanchun that Song Biao actually made up his mind, and he finally decided to re-recruit those new young men to join the army, rather than continue to select his subordinates from the three thousand bandits.

He believed that he would one day overthrow what Aoki Nobuyun had envisioned, and he would trample under his feet the trend of thought that Toyotomi Hideyoshi had left to him to invade the mainland, so he needed those new young soldiers who could accept his ideas and usher in the new era with him.

It has been half a month since he returned to Hunjiang, and Song Biao has called everyone together for a meeting for the first time, and everyone attaches great importance to it.

Because Song Biao had been thinking silently, the brothers didn't dare to make a sound after they arrived at the office one after another, but just sat silently at the conference table.

After all, everyone is from bandits and horse gangs, and although they sit here and dare not speak, they all belong to the sitting posture, and it doesn't look like a regular military meeting at first glance.

After Song Biao thought clearly about his plan, he raised his eyes a little and saw the crooked scene in front of him, and his heart was a little uncomfortable, like eating a fly, although he adopted a three-step strategy for his troops, that is, first to develop into a combat unit, then to develop into a nationalist army, then to develop towards the revolutionary army, and finally to develop towards the national defense army.

Song Biao's plan was like this, but the scene in front of him really made him very unhappy, so he sat up straight and glanced around coldly, and said: "Your sitting posture and demeanor at this time really remind me, tell me that this unit of mine was originally a mixed brigade of bandits. ”

What he said was prickly, soft and spiky, which made the brothers startled, and they hurriedly sat up straight like Song Biao.

Song Biao stood up and looked around the conference table more strictly, and said: "Sit up straight, if you don't need to flip through the information and check the map, put your hands on your legs, your legs are not allowed to cross, you are not allowed to separate the front and back, sit together in a horse step posture, your feet are parallel, and the vertical ninety degrees are on your body." If you feel that this posture is too old-fashioned and hard work in the future, you can ask for leave and not come to the meeting. ”

Everyone only felt a chill on their backs, and cold sweat flowed down, and they always felt that it must be Aoki Xuanjun's little old devil who stimulated the big boss.

Song Biao looked around left and right, and saw that everyone was still sitting below standard, and there was a conference table blocking it, and he couldn't see it clearly, so the surname Suo beckoned Li Dayun and others to come and ordered them to move the conference table away.

Waiting for the people below to move the conference table, Song Biao sat down on the chair by himself, sat down in strict accordance with his requirements, and said, "We will have a meeting like this in the future." I have always demanded a lot of my troops, but they have also developed step by step. In the past, I demanded that my troops have qualified combat effectiveness and regular training, but now, on this basis, I want to ask you to have nationalist thinking and to become regular soldiers. Both the officers of Zoon and Russia had gone to military school, and they had to study hard for at least ten years in order to become the best officers. There is not a single general who does not like to appoint such officers, you have not studied in a military school, but war is the best military school, and the army is the best military school, I hope that you can continue to grow in the war and the army, keep learning, and eventually be better than them. If you have such thoughts, I suggest that you better go out and jump into the Heigou River to wash your cold head and think clearly, you must understand that you win the opponent not because you are better. Sun Tzu said that only by knowing oneself and knowing one's opponent can one not be defeated in a hundred battles, but in fact you do not know your opponent at all. ”

Everyone listened to the lesson in silence, and this lesson seemed to wake everyone up very well, making them understand that they were still far from Song Biao's requirements.

Song Biao stopped talking, and looked coldly at everyone present, from Zhao Tingzhu to Zhang Yahu, from Yang Tiesheng to Chen Wu, all the way, the five regiment commanders are here, but there are not a few battalion commanders, because their army is extremely lacking in excellent officers, so they can only adopt the method of regimental management of the company and the company of the squad.

But at this moment, Li Fugui hurriedly ran in, and wanted to talk to Song Biao by ear like before, and he felt something was wrong when he was halfway through, and Yang Tiesheng, who was sitting opposite him, looked at him again and again.

Li Fugui is a smart person, and when he saw the formation, he knew that Biao Ye was angry, although he didn't know the reason, he was still stunned for a moment.

Song Biao turned his face to look at him and asked, "You didn't have a military salute, did you?" Why, looking down on me as a division commander, thinking that I am a Russian soldier in exchange for a military rank and position is worthless? ”

Li Fugui complained again and again in his heart, and said secretly: Which grandson provoked my family Biao Ye, for the first time in his life, Biao Ye even made me angry.

He hurriedly stood up and saluted: "Tell the big boss, wrong, tell the teacher, Guo Changfeng Guo Siye came with a team of twenty-three people, just waiting at the Nandian Inn, the horse shopkeeper sent a message over, saying that he had done the hospitality work, I don't know whether to invite them up, or you will go to greet them in person?" ”

Song Biao continued to glance at Li Fugui and said, "Go out and do thirty push-ups first, remember the lesson of this time, and then run to the inn and tell Guo Siye that I am holding a regular military meeting and invite him and his people to attend the meeting." ”

Li Fugui replied respectfully: "Small, wrong, subordinates understand." ”

Song Biao continued to add expressionlessly: "Sixty push-ups, go ahead." ”

Li Fugui was already crying with a sad face, and said, "My subordinates listen to orders." ”

He scolded the guy who angered Biao Ye a thousand times in his heart, thinking to himself, which one was cut a thousand times, really when our Biao Ye is not Biao, right, he actually provoked it so badly.

He could only run to the door speechlessly, and in front of the guards guarding outside, he did sixty prone times at the door, tired like a pig, and he had to continue to get up and run, for fear of a second of delay.

Since Guo Changfeng is coming, Song Biao is not in a hurry to hold a meeting, and uses this time to teach the brothers a good lesson, so that they can be strict with themselves from today onwards, lest the troops grow into a tree with a crooked neck.

Half an hour passed, and Song Biao sat motionless and straightened on the chair, glaring at the nine brothers in front of him, five regiment commanders, and four battalion commanders.

Guo Changfeng probably heard some news from Li Fugui, and knew that it was really unfortunate that he came, and he actually encountered the moment when Biao Ye was mad, so he took more than 20 brothers into Niujiabao and followed Li Fugui all the way to the front of the office.

All this was completely different from what Guo Changfeng initially expected, he originally thought that even if Song Biao didn't beat gongs and drums to greet them, he would come to Nandian to greet them in person, right?

This is good, he didn't even come out of the Dazhai gate of Niujiabao, and he walked all the way to a place like the office.

When he entered the door, he clenched his fists and said with a smile: "Master Biao, Guo led the team to take refuge this time, and asked Master Biao to take him in." ”

Song Biao turned his face to look at him sideways and said, "Fourth Master, I am teaching my subordinates, you sit next to you first, wait for my meeting to finish, let's talk slowly, I'm sorry for you and your brothers, I hope you and your brothers Haihan, I will set up a few tables of wine and banquet in the evening to accompany you." ”

Guo Changfeng was stunned, he didn't know which play Song Biao was singing, so he could only nod stiffly with a smile on his face, and sat down at the table to listen under Li Fugui's hospitality.

It was only at this time that Song Biao asked Zhao Tingzhu and the others: "You say, why do I keep emphasizing that the troops should wear formal military uniforms, even if they are Russians and Xiao Yueben's military uniforms, they must be worn first?" ”

Zhao Tingzhu was afraid that the others would answer incorrectly, so he hurriedly replied loudly: "Tell the division commander that let the officers and men of our army wear military uniforms, so that all the officers and soldiers can understand that we are soldiers, and we are definitely not a mixed bandit brigade." ”

Song Biao asked, "Do other people understand this truth?" ”

"Understood!"

Everyone replied in unison, but they hated Aoki Xuanjun's bastard in their hearts, and they didn't know what Aoki's bastard said to the big boss at night, which made the big boss so stimulated.

Song Biao said: "In addition, I want you to establish a sense of confidence and honor from the beginning, proud of your identity, you are a regular army, you have guns and cannons in your hands, machine guns, military uniforms, and sabers, and your monthly military salary is enough to feed a family of seven or eight people." In Kanto, you are people with status and status. Yes, our Qing Kingdom does look down on military households, and my fathers and fellow villagers also say that our soldiers are food, and they are here to mix rations. Some people say that a good man is not a soldier, and a good iron is not a nail. But you ask them to think about how they would have fared without us. Without us, they would have been the same as now, saying that they and the Russians were running rampant in the Kanto region, killing everywhere, and no one dared to come out to protect them. From the court to the people, they look down on military households, so the soldiers raised by the court are a group of rice buckets, all of them can't get along, and they can only go to mix up the rice buckets, they are all a group of incompetent rats, do you want to be the same as them? ”

Zhao Tingzhu took the lead and shouted: "You must not be the same as them." ”

Song Biao picked up the gold-inlaid Chashik saber given by the commander-in-chief of the Tsarist Far East Army beside him, erected it in front of him, and said: "Dignity and reputation are won by strength, earned by yourself, and proven in war. Everyone knows that the Russians have always looked down on us, but now which Russian [***] people dare to look down on me and our Manchurian infantry division? The honor that I and you have received is beyond the reach of the vast majority of Russians, and the total number of troops wiped out by one regiment is greater than that of the entire Russian Second Army. Facts have proved that you can be the best soldiers in the world, don't compare those rice buckets and wastes of the Great Qing Kingdom with you, you have to compare with the Russian army, you have to compare with the army, you have to use the standards of Russia to measure you, and ask you. In this world, neither Russia nor Ben's army is the most powerful, it is the German army that is even more powerful than them, and one day, you will have to measure yourselves, demand yourselves, and train yourselves by the standards of the German army. If you can do this, no one in this world can despise you. Therefore, I ask you to be a soldier and my subordinates with confidence and dignity. ”

Listening to these words, everyone seemed to finally understand why Song Biao was angry, maybe it didn't have much to do with Aoki Xuanjun's bastard.

Everyone was silent, each thinking about Song Biao's words, and in a trance they understood some truths, and they were also grateful and happy, and they were annoyed by it, and they felt more and more proud and strict.

Song Biao glanced left and right and said, "If you understand what I said, you will hold a meeting after you go back and convey my words to every subordinate word by word." ”

The brothers immediately said in unison, "Yes! ”

Song Biao nodded with satisfaction and said, "Then let's start talking about business, I called you all here today to discuss the recruitment of new soldiers." When Xue Changqing returned, he brought me a telegram from the headquarters of the Tsarist Far East Army, urging our division to recruit full troops as soon as possible, fulfill the obligations and duties of our army, ensure the transportation safety of the Hunjiang River and Huinan areas, and eliminate bandits in the two places. Considering the serious shortage of officers in our division, His Excellency Commander-in-Chief Kuropatkin personally approved the order that a number of senior officers of the Russian army will be appointed as instructors and staff officers of our division, and a special training class for non-commissioned officers of the Manchurian infantry will be formed in our division. This is a very good thing, and as well, we can really speed up the recruitment process now. The official establishment of our division is about 23,000 people, which is analogous to a main division of the Chinese army, and there is currently a shortage of 20,000 recruits, so the pressure on our new recruitment work is very great. In principle, I will set up a fourth-class soldier system, and those who have just joined the army will be fourth-class soldiers, that is, probationary soldiers, and their monthly salary will be three silver yuan, and those who have passed the training for three months will be regarded as third-class soldiers, and their monthly salary will be increased to five silver yuan, and those who fail to meet the requirements will be eliminated; Recruits have been enlisted in the army for one year, completed four phases of training, and those who passed the examination were second-class soldiers, and their monthly salary was increased to eight silver yuan. The conditions for the promotion of a first-class soldier are two years of enlistment, and the term of a second-class soldier is one year, and after passing the examination, he is officially promoted to a first-class soldier, and his monthly salary is increased to ten silver yuan. ”

Zhao Tingzhu immediately proposed: "Division commander, the current military salary of our department is 30 foreign yuan per month, if according to this assessment system, the military salary of the vast majority of our soldiers will be reduced to 8 foreign yuan per month, the gap is too big, I am afraid it will be difficult for the brothers to accept?" ”

Song Biao said: "In addition, a special soldier level will be set up, which will be specially awarded to veterans who have participated in many wars and have certain tactical command qualifications, and will be given a military salary of 20 silver yuan per month. All the brothers who had participated in the two battles of Qiandongling and Nandiantun, as well as the Battle of Heigoutai and the Battle of Jiangjiayao, were separately assigned as special soldiers. Now that he has left the front line, it is not as dangerous as before, and the monthly salary of twenty silver yuan a month is almost enough. The monthly salary of the Eight Banners Battalion of the Great Qing Dynasty is only seven or eight taels of silver, and it is only five or six taels of silver that is deducted and distributed to everyone, and the monthly salary of the newly formed and trained new army is less than four taels of silver, and our income is several times that of theirs, which is indeed very high. If you think about it, the Russians can't pay us all the time, and maybe they will have to rely on the Manchu court to pay for it in the future, can they give us such a high military salary? Obviously not, although we have some savings in our hands, but there are many places to spend money, so we still have to try to save a little. ”

The brethren nodded their heads.

Song Biao said: "After this military salary grading system is determined, we can officially recruit new soldiers." My idea is to openly recruit new recruits in the six localities of Hunjiang, Tonghua, Fushun, Shenyang, Huinan, and Huichun, and each locality will send a special recruitment team to the country, and the requirements will be relatively stricter than when they were recruited in Shenyang last time. It is roughly divided into two categories, the first category is a relatively high level of education, has attended a private school for more than five years, is familiar with this part of the scriptures and history, requires under 22 years old, in good health, and directly participates in the special training class for non-commissioned officers after enlistment; The second category is those with a low level of education, who can basically be literate, and those who have studied in a private school for one or two years can also be under 25 years old and in good health; The third category is completely illiterate, but the physical condition is particularly good, the reaction is very agile, and even has practiced martial arts, superb equestrianism, or marksmanship is very good, this category can also be recruited separately under the age of 25. In general, the height must not be less than one hundred and sixty-five centimeters, or consider the factors of fighting bayonets. The first category and the latter two categories should be recruited separately and directly in the name of the special training class for noncommissioned officers in the Kwantung region, and the duration of study is one year, with three months of study in the army first, and then concentrated study in batches. I'm personally in charge of recruiting people, and Zhu and Tiesheng have some experience in this area, so you and I are in charge of this matter together. ”

Everyone nodded in unison, they had just been trained so badly, no one dared to say a word at this time.

Song Biao continued: "Another thing, all of you here, including all the company commanders and platoon commanders below, must be transferred out in turn to participate in the special training class, you must be mentally prepared, and those who are illiterate should seize the time to study, and may have to open a cultural class for you first, and if it is delayed for a year and a half, you must finally participate in special training, or even long-term training." You are here today to remember what I said, I am not one of those wretches of the imperial court, I am not afraid of the troops of foreign devils, and you are not allowed to be afraid. I want to be stronger than the foreign devil's troops, and you must be stronger than the foreign devil's generals. In your words, I am a biao master with great ambitions, if you want to follow me and dare, then you must go all out, one day, I will let you glorify your ancestors and live forever. ”

Zhao Tingzhu listened to these words, both excited and nervous, among these people seated, basically only Zhao Tingzhu and Yang Tiesheng are not too worried, their cultural level is still alive, especially Zhao Tingzhu, the others are really embarrassed, Zhang Yahu barely studied in Shandong for a few years when he was a teenager, and Chen Wu and Hu Dalin are typical examples of illiterate characters.

Song Biao thought about it for a while, made sure that he had nothing else to emphasize for the time being, and finally remembered one thing, got up first and said: "If there is nothing else, today's meeting will be held here temporarily, and the next weekly military meeting will start at 9 o'clock in the morning and arrive at 8:45 a.m." In addition, in this unit, the seat is the honorific title, the division commander is honored by the division, and the title is unified from top to bottom, and this rule will be the rule in the future, the division commander and above the rank will be called the seat, and the rest will be honored by the chief. ”

"Yes!"

Everyone nodded at the same time, a little surprised in their hearts, and they didn't know what to mean by "seat" as an honorific title.

Song Biao didn't know about this.