On November 18, the Wuchang People's Army failed in its counterattack on Hankou, but the strength on the battlefield did not delay the political competition. On November 19, Li Yuanhong officially telegraphed in Wuchang and announced the formation of a provisional central government! The Provisional Central Government consists of the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Communications, the Ministry of Military Affairs, and the Ministry of Justice. Wu Tingfang was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the candidates for the ministers of the remaining six ministries were decided by the representatives of the provinces after deliberation.

On November 20, the provinces that had become independent recognized the Wuchang military government as the provisional central government. At the same time as the power was turned on, all parties began to fight openly and secretly for the remaining six ministers. Among them, the members of the First Cadre Alliance headed by Chen Qimei are the most active. While angry that Li Yuanhong was careless, he was also particularly concerned about the distribution of rights.

"Xu Shaozhen actually openly contradicted Chen Qimei and proposed that you be the Minister of Military Affairs of the Provisional Central Government."

Sanniang sorted out the telegrams and nominations collected by the telecommunications office, and said in surprise.

"It's not surprising that the good old man is repaying the favor and really wooing us. How did he come to be the governor of Nanjing, he knows best! Let's go in the left ear and out the right ear, just don't take it seriously. Xu Shaozhen is a good man, loyal and honest, and will never easily offend people. His life in Nanjing is no better, this proposal is just talking, and there is no need to take it seriously. ”

Hu Rui plucked his ears and responded with a smile. I was secretly proud in my heart, and it was a success for Xu Shaozhen, a good old man! This shows that the alliance has successfully taken the first step towards those capable and capable doers who are able to do things! In the future, if it goes well, the alliance will slowly be divided and absorbed after unification.

"Dashuai, you can see the million opening fee......"

didn't wait for Sanniang to say something. Guan Ziqing, the master of Shaoxing on the side, pinched a draft haode telegram and asked cautiously.

"Do it! Master, our money did not fall from the sky, now the second phase of the Anqing Manufacturing Bureau project has been launched, the supporting coke plant in Ma'anshan has also placed an order, and the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau in Shanghai is also resuming production, and money is needed everywhere! If I remember correctly, there were 3 million silver coins stored in the treasury of the Wuchang Domain before the revolution. After the Wuchang Uprising, the two provinces of Hunan and Hubei each raised 1 million silver to support Wuchang. That's a stock of five million before and after. This is not counting the donations of the local squires and people in Wuchang. The opening fee of one million is less than one-fifth, which is not trivial for him Li Yuanhong! ”

Thinking of the price of Welsh anthracite pit dad, Hu Dashuai is not angry! We can't run for nothing, can we? I know that you are in Wuchang war. You don't need to bear the military expenses, you give a million opening fees. The cost of coal and munitions for the Navy was reimbursed. It's always okay, right?

"Dashuai, this can't be......"

As soon as he heard this, Guan Ziqing was so anxious that he was about to cry. What he said is right, but after more than a month of fighting, even if there are gold mountains and silver mountains in Wuchang, they have already been emptied! Originally, the purpose of sending troops to rescue Wuchang was to gain prestige and enhance the status of the Anhui Revolutionary Army in the country. But before this army was dispatched, he asked for a million promotion fees. If this thing gets out, the reputation will stink! After all, Wuchang is the land of righteousness!

"Master Guan, send it out as soon as the telegram is ready, the soldiers over there in Wuchang are tight." Sadly delayed. By the way, add that sentence, HSBC bank transfer, as soon as the money arrives, we will send troops! You have to give money first, don't talk about anything if you don't have money! ‘

Hu Rui clapped his hands and said through gritted teeth.

"Eh......"

Seeing that he couldn't persuade himself to be handsome, Guan Ziqing sighed all the way and walked out.

"Poof, the local tyrant you fought this time is big enough! Directly from Huang Xing's hands, this can be regarded as offending the high-level of the Alliance! ”

Sanniang watched Guan Ziqing walk out with a sigh all the way, and couldn't help laughing.

"Even if Sun Cannon himself came, I did it! Hmph, you want me to get sick, and you don't want to pay a penny, how can there be such a cheap thing! At least the money for the supply of arms and coal water will be reimbursed first! Instead of letting them eat, drink, prostitute and gamble and be corrupted, it is better to purchase more arms and ammunition, so that the Manchus can be brought down as soon as possible! ”

Hu Rui pursed his lips, full of 'righteous words'.

"You've got a high-sounding reason!"

Sanniang smiled lightly and pinched Hu Rui's ears and laughed.

"Ahem, that's right! By the way, let's take a look at this, about the formation of the Anhui Provisional Military Government. The Intelligence Department is busy enough to keep an eye on everywhere. ”

Hu Rui pulled Sanniang to his side and sat down, and handed over a thick stack of manuscripts.

"Officials of first-class institutions such as the Political Bureau, the Yamen, and the governor's subordinates are selectively retained?! weishenme still needs to use this waste?! There are almost no things these people can do! ”

Sanniang couldn't help frowning when she saw this.

Before Anqing's move, the Swallow Gang's foothold in Anqing was the restaurant in the downtown area. During this period, Sanniang had a lot of dealings with local former Qing officials, what kind of virtue these people are, and Sanniang knows best.

"There's no way, we don't have a reserve of administrative talents at all. Besides, there are so many organs and units, and there are some people who are also blind to the situation after taking office, and they don't understand the situation at all, and they still need to explore it again. At present, the whole of Anhui, including Anqing, is temporarily hung by military control. It's okay for a while, but after a long time, the market will be chaotic. Besides, now that the provisional central government has been established in Wuchang, the plaque of our military government must be hung up! Let's make do with it first, hold up the oranges, and then find a way to replace them little by little when our own administrative staff is trained. Besides, this will change the dynasty and remove all the officials of the former Qing Dynasty at once, and it is inevitable that the local people will die and be sad. ”

Hu Rui patiently explained.

He understood what Sanniang meant, and in the end, he was also very unaccustomed to the officials of the former Qing Dynasty! But there's no way, didn't the Rabbit Family Jianguo also retain a group of chairmen? Retained but not reused, coupled with the Independent Commission Against Corruption with the Ministry of Intelligence as the backstage, these people also had to be restrained.

"So you mean to involve the Ministry of Intelligence in the name of the Independent Commission Against Corruption in the formation of the Provisional Military Government?"

Sanniang will soon understand, both to use and to prevent!

"Uh-huh. Retain, but not reuse! The Ministry of Intelligence has one more task, and if it is found that officials at all levels are in disorder, they might as well kill a few. If you come and go like this, these people will be much more honest. ”

Hu Rui sneered, his face a little hideous.

Corrupt officials are a problem that cannot be avoided by any dynasty or any securities, and it is unrealistic to say that they are completely eradicated. But at least you can knock and knock and control it.

"Good. I'll leave it to me! ”

Yan Nuxia raised her eyebrows, slapped the table, and said arrogantly.

Hu Dashuai next to him had a headache, how could this girl immediately turn back into the big boss every time she mentioned killing!

"Sanniang, wait until you're done with this. Let's go home, shall we? ”

Adjusted the mood. Hu Rui whispered with blazing eyes. The price here is discussed. Naturally, it means to see parents. During this time, I was busy preparing for the formation of a provisional military government, and I was going to send troops to Wuchang, so I didn't have time to spare. The old man over there lived in Hu Rui's small villa in Wuhu, and he was already waiting impatiently.

“……”…… (Dividing Line)

Li Yuanhong and Yuan Shikai declared the failure of the "peace talks" in the Hankou Russian Concession, and a new round of onslaught by the Beiyang Army followed.

On the riverside, the Beiyang Army in blue-gray military uniforms. Pedal big scalp shoes, neatly lined up. On the temporary pier by the river, dense wooden sailboats were huddled together, waiting for soldiers to board the ships. After the Beiyang Army took Hankou. Artillery positions were set up on Turtle Mountain. Eighteen shiny German-made Type 1904 75mm field guns were pushed into the preset artillery position, arranged in a geometric and regular manner, and the muzzles of the black holes were aimed at Wuchang on the opposite bank. Artillerymen carried boxes of ammunition filled with 75-mm shells, piled up behind the emplacements. The commander of the artillery battalion determined the coordinates by means of a sextant and a gun sight, zuihou.

"All artillery groups are in place, the shooting is loaded, and the whole battalion is calibrated with 1 round!"

The battalion commander of the artillery battalion stood in the artillery sight, brandished his saber and shouted loudly.

With the waving of the small red flag, the fort set up by the Beiyang Army on Turtle Mountain was quickly enveloped in smoke and dust. With the roar of the shell explosion, Huang Chengcheng's shell case was withdrawn from the barrel.

"Calibration, three rapid shots from the whole battalion!"

With the roar of the commander of the artillery battalion, the muzzles of the 18 75 field guns of the artillery battalion flashed with fire, and the Wuchang shrapnel on the opposite side flew horizontally......

"Marshal, the Qing army has boarded the ship and is ready to cross the river!"

In the command tower of the cruiser Haichou, Tang Qianming held up the Zeiss eight-fold telescope that had just been distributed, and said excitedly.

"See, wait, it's not time to make a move."

Standing in the conning tower, holding a Zeiss telescope and looking at the river through the narrow observation slit, Hu Rui responded lightly. But the Adam's apple, which twitched with excitement, and the action of licking his lips, had betrayed him. As a military man, he and the war were attracted to each other.

Tang Qianming continued to observe the river, and said no more.

As the shelling continued, hundreds of wooden sailing boats on the river began to untie their cables and raise their sails, and the Beiyang Army carrying full ships marched towards the opposite bank.

"The clear dog is here!"

A sharp shout sounded in the devastated Wuchang People's Army position. The front of the position was full of craters and broken human limbs, and Lu Chai and Zhu Ma were blown up and mutilated, each burning.

"Brothers, the three towns of Wuchang have lost two towns! We have nowhere to retreat, fight with the Tartars! Eighteen years later, he is a good man again! ”

I don't know who shouted it, and it quickly resonated on the battlefield. The civilian officers and soldiers who were already in rags raised the Hanyang-made and old sleeves in their hands and echoed loudly. Everyone only knew that it would be a battle for Zuihou, whose cry was filled with blood and desolation.

"Boom"

With a bang, a 75 shell exploded in front of the position. The cast-iron projectile exploded, and scattered fragments pierced through the sandbags that had been twisted, cutting through the human body and spreading the death wantonly.

"Dodge the cannon!"

A civilian army officer raised a revolver in his hand and greeted loudly.

"Boom"

A second shell exploded at his feet, and the mutilated head was lifted off by the wave of air, breaking away from the already minced body, mixed with blood and shrapnel, and merging into the land where he was born and raised.

"Dada......"

As the shelling weakened, the wooden ships of the Beiyang Army got closer and closer. Makqin, who was mounted on a wooden ship by the Beiyang army, opened fire. With a rate of fire of more than 600 rounds per minute, a rain of bullets poured directly ahead. The soldiers of the People's Army in the front-line trenches were caught off guard and were swept down in a large row, and Yin Hong's blood was lost from his body little by little with his young life.

"Fire, don't let the Manchu dogs come to the shore!"

A bearded veteran waited with bloodshot eyes and watched sadly as the 7.92-millimeter bullet pierced through the dirty, torn uniform and into the soldier's body. With a shout, he pushed away the Heavy whose head had been smashed into pieces and turned Martini's 10-barrel hand-cranked rifle.

After the Wuchang Uprising, it relied on more than 30,000 rifles of various types in the inventory of the Chuwangtai Armory. At one point, the People's Army expanded to more than 40,000 troops. However, due to the rapid expansion and the failure of the Hanyang Iron and Steel Plant, the quality of the soldiers declined rapidly, and the shortage of arms and ammunition became more and more scarce.

"Marshal, the Beiyang Army has already waded ashore. Isn't it time for us to make a move? ”

Tang Qianming put down the Zeiss telescope in his hand and asked cautiously.

"Wait a little longer. The Wuchang People's Army has not yet been pushed to the limit. The Beiyang Army has not yet been rolled out. ”

Hu Rui still had a calm face, and the staff members standing next to him, except for Sanniang, everyone else was puzzled.

A mobilization fee of one million was received, and the navy's Yangtze River Fleet was dispatched, and the ten transport ships behind it were also pulling the reorganized Fourth Division and a large amount of baggage. Xingshi came to Wuchang with all the people, and the whole fleet actually anchored in Jiangxin to watch the play. Looking at the Beiyang Army and the Wuchang People's Army on the opposite side, you are fighting to the death......

"On the bayonet. Brothers, if you have eggs, fight with tartars! ”

A platoon commander of the Wuchang People's Army, who witnessed the tide of the Beiyang Army, rushed towards the real land, and raised a Hanyang made with a bayonet. He cried out in grief.

As soon as the words fell, he took the lead in rushing out, holding a rifle, and roared towards the Beiyang Army, which was getting closer and closer. However, before he could run to him, he was hit in two ends by the dense strafing fire of the Maxim machine gun.

"White-knuckle combat! Commander Tang, it's time to get started! ”

Witnessing the fierce white-knuckle battle on the battlefield, Hu Rui nodded, smiled cruelly, and ordered.

"Sound the battle alarm and prepare for battle on the starboard side!"

Tang Qianming, who couldn't hold back, yelled and gave an order.

"Dangdang......"

A terrible battle alarm sounded throughout the fleet, and the sailors, beckoned by the gunner, rushed to the storage room and ran towards their gun emplacements. Lift the canvas cannon jacket, pull open the heavy bolt, and load the heavy shells into the Tianjin cannon chamber.

"Starboard salvo!"

The signal soldier on the flagship Hai Chip dutifully conveyed the order in the language of the flag, the whole fleet had more than 40 guns of more than 100 mm, and the scale of a single side salvo was enough to shock the earth in China at that time, and such lethality was terrifying.

"Where's the heavy artillery?! Tell me, where did this heavy artillery come from?! ”

Feng Guozhang's face in the command room was pale, and the huge explosion was almost deafening. He slapped the pencil in his hand on the map, ignoring the dust on his head, and yelled angrily.

"Junmen, it's the Yangtze River Fleet! Hu Rui, the governor of Anhui, brought the Yangtze River fleet to support the people's army in Wuchang! ”

A staff officer replied with his head guarded and shouted at the top of his throat.

"Yangtze River Fleet ......"

Feng Guozhang's heart 'chuckled', and it suddenly cooled.

The previous Wuchang Provisional Military Government did not have a navy, so the Yangtze River defense line was naturally useless. Without the navy, the Yangtze River moat is not a matter at all, and the cannons on Turtle Mountain can directly hit Wuchang! Therefore, Feng Guozhang didn't even care about the role of the navy in the offensive and defensive battle of Wuchang, and he didn't care about the navy's Yangtze River fleet sailing to oil before. At present, there are many so-called "governors" and "commanders" in China, but there are few who really have chassis and guns! No one can start the navy of a central enterprise, except for his own Lord Yuan.

"The horse stumbles, ......"

Thinking of the Beiyang Army that was crossing the river, Feng Guozhang muttered to himself with a dead face. (To be continued......)