On July 9, Shandong officially received a secret letter from Beijing. Duan Yongqing, a staff officer of the Military Orders Department of the Ministry of the Army, who participated in the formulation of the plan for the "Zhili Hui Exercise," immediately reported the plan for the gathering of Tieliang's troops. Xing Dongyun personally took the plan that he had firmly remembered in his mind from Tianjin to Qingdao by sea, and then took the train to Jinan, where he reported to Fang Shengyuan and Ning Shijun the overall plan for the military build-up of the War Department.

At this time, the edict on the reorganization of the Shandong Patrol Battalion into the 11th Town of the New Army was not issued.

"Is this going to be used against us? The huge forces of the four towns participated in the exercise, right at our doorstep, but they didn't notify us......" Ning Shijun muttered to the map.

On the evening of 10 July, the day after Xing Dongyun sent the information, Ning Shijun held a secret meeting at the Jinan Patrol Army Headquarters, which was attended by Fang Shengyuan, Chen Chao, Wu Nian, Song Jinguo, Jiang Yun, and other major leaders who remained in Shandong to study the increasingly urgent situation.

At this time, Shandong had already received instructions from Long Qian to establish the headquarters of the Mengshan Army and the reorganization of the Shandong Column into the Shandong Army. Ning Shijun first enriched the command structure of the Shandong Army, and vigorously strengthened Ye Yanbing's Sixth Division, which was facing the Beiyang Army, and all the ungraduated students of the Wubei Academy were assigned to the troops, and the reserve forces of Yizhou and Caozhou completed the assembly in the name of the exercise and were incorporated into the Seventh Division of Wu Nian.

"You have to prepare for the worst." Fang Shengyuan said, "After getting rid of Lao Yuan, the center can be regarded as pulling out a thorn." It makes sense to deal with us. Liangbi has returned to Beijing, which is a bad signal. I propose that all preparations for the start of war be made at once, and at the same time the Shandong Army and all its departments should be organized into telegraph commanders. Request approval. ”

"This Feng Lun is really uneasy. It is better to suggest that the commander transfer Lao Feng back to Shandong. Wu Nian, who was dismissed from his post but actually still commanded the Second Brigade, also attended the meeting. After learning of the Xinning killing incident in Guangxi, Shandong also felt the pressure of public opinion.

Wu Nian's suggestion was a bit off-topic, but several people understood that Wu Nian still pinned his hopes on Guangdong to launch at the same time.

"It's too far away, so let's rely on ourselves." Chen Chao said, "Don't count on Guangdong. He's got enough trouble there. ”

"Is it a provincial mobilization? Completely arm the 7th Division? Song Jinguo asked, "According to the last mobilization exercise, it took at least ten days, and with the organization of a large number of people, it was too slow. If the Beiyang Army marches in multiple ways, Yan Bing will not be able to deal with it. ”

"Gotta get ahead of them!" Ning Shijun slapped the table hard. "I've had enough of these days. After enduring so many years, it's time for an end! Let's divide the work, Lao Fang, you are in charge of the stall of the official mansion, and Mr. Chen and Lao Song are in charge of logistics and mobilization. Yan Bing and Wu Nian and I are ready to fight. Jiang Yun, you take care of the transmission of intelligence and surveillance. Let's do it. ”

July 11th. Long Qian, the only 10th town unit left in Suixi, received an urgent telegram from Shandong. This was the first time that the Mengshan Army had used it for major intelligence transmission after experimenting with radio.

“…… In accordance with the order of the General Headquarters, Ye Yanbing's 6th Division has been basically reorganized, and the 16th, 17th, and 183rd Brigades are under its jurisdiction. A total of nine regiments and the main artillery force were assembled on the front line of Dezhou to resist the attack of Beiyang along Hengshui and Dezhou to Shandong. At present, the 16th Brigade has been fully deployed in Dezhou, the 17th Brigade has occupied the existing positions on the Lingxian and Deping lines, and the 18th Brigade of the division's reserve has assembled north of Yucheng and is ready to go north to support the 16th Brigade at any time. Wu Nian's 7th Division is being vigorously replenished, and 1,900 reserve soldiers from Yi and Cao Prefectures have been recruited, and only the 19th Brigade is relatively substantial, and it is planned to be transferred to the front line of Wuding, relying on the Yellow River to resist the possible partial divisions in Beiyang. The 20th Brigade is still in the process of being formed, and it is necessary to mobilize more than 5,000 reservists from the remaining states, and to recruit a large number of people, and in order to gain time, ask for permission to mobilize the whole province......"

The next day, Long Qian called back to Shandong, "I will not mobilize the whole province for the time being." But be prepared for everything...... Do everything to rely on your own plans, and you can't rely on the support of Guangdong or even the northeast. To ensure Jinan as the strategic goal. It is inappropriate to divide the forces equally, and it is necessary to concentrate the main forces to annihilate the enemy all the way as a basic strategy...... Everything is based on the actual situation, and when it is critical, we should be good at making decisions and do not need to ask for instructions. ”

Long Qian stopped the mobilization in Shandong, apparently considering the reason for the war. During this time, he has been thinking about this issue, rashly raising the banner of opposing the Qing Dynasty, and needs a reason that can be explained to the whole army and the whole country.

Naturally, the Lushan Department outside the Guanwai needs to be contacted. The radio stations were sent over, but the communication with each other was unstable, probably due to technical reasons. Long Qian personally drafted the instruction telegram to Lu Shan, and asked Wang Zhifeng to select capable personnel to carry the secret letter to the sea to go out of the customs, so as to be foolproof.

In the early morning of July 13, Long Qian telegraphed Lushan, "The outbreak of war should begin in Shandong. Your unit's mission is to keep a close watch on the Beiyang Army in the area of Mukden and Shanhaiguan. Once the war starts, your troops should use resolute means to defeat the enemy in Mukden and occupy Mukden and Shanhaiguan. The main force of the Beiyang Army was stranded in the north of Zhili, so that it could not attack Shandong with all its might. ”

Long Qian's plan was to immediately occupy Guangzhou with the former Fifth Town Guard Battalion (which had been reorganized into the Mengshan Army Headquarters Guard Battalion) and the Guangzhou Security Corps that stayed in Guangzhou, arrest the main officials of the Qing court and establish the Guangzhou Military Government as the base camp of the Northern Expedition. Wang Mingyuan's 3rd Division (just an empty number) was left to defend Guangdong, with the patrol battalion as the basic strength to complete the reorganization, and after clearing the interior, it served as the general reserve of the Southern Army.

The main force marched north in two ways, with the first division of Fengguozhu (formerly the fifth town) north out of Shaoguan, to attack and advance to Hengyang, with the second division from Guinan, after occupying Nanning and Guilin to basically control Guangxi, out of Guangxi into Hunan, capturing Baoqing and the first division of Changsha, after capturing Changsha, they marched north together, and captured Wuchang in one fell swoop.

The main enemies of the Southern Army were Zhang Biao's 8th Town and Li Yuanhong's 29th Mixed Association. It was judged that the number of troops was less than 20,000, but with the support of the Hanyang Arsenal, the department had sufficient weapons and ammunition, and was the main obstacle to the Northern Expedition.

To this end, Long Qian prepared to scatter the special detachment he had trained for three months, and ordered Shi Ji Peng to lead the detachment to set off in makeup, arrive at the three towns of Wuhan in advance, and plan the northern expedition of the army. But this plan was opposed by Situ Jun, who thought that Long Qian was simply whimsical. More than 100 people went out of Wuchang before putting on makeup? How do I carry the weapon? How can the contact be effectively guaranteed? Long Qian also felt that it was too child's play. But he still wanted to see the actual combat results of the special brigade, and firmly believed that the special brigade trained by him would receive miraculous results when put on the battlefield.

This is just a small episode. Long Qian's attention was, of course, on the main force of the Southern Army. He firmly believed that the Northern Expedition with the two main divisions of the Southern Army did not need Wang Mingyuan's third division to join in order to occupy Wuchang. Wuchang is known as the thoroughfare of nine provinces and is the hub of water and land transportation in the country. Moreover, it has a fairly good industrial base, and the occupation of Wuchang will enable it to obtain arms replenishment nearby and be invincible.

The Manchu Qing Dynasty had been building the Guangdong-Hankou Railway since 1898, but in 1906 the Lu-Han Railway was officially opened to traffic, and the Beiyang Army had already used the railway during the Zhangde Autumn Exercise. But to this day. Only the branch line from Guangzhou to Sanshui is open to traffic. The main line was built by Hubei, Hunan and Guangdong respectively, and it is said that only the section from Changsha to Zhuzhou in Hunan has the appearance, and the construction from Wuchang to Changsha, Zhuzhou to Shaoguan and Shaoguan to Guangzhou is still far behind. There is simply no hope of transporting troops by rail.

Long Qian planned to set up a nationwide provisional government after the Southern Army occupied Wuchang and promulgated the main program for the establishment of New China. Military victories and political justifications would shake the position of the provinces. The southern provinces will see the wind and rudder. A large number of people joined the anti-Qing camp. Even if the situation in Shandong is unfavorable, after the Southern Army occupies Wuchang, it will greatly shake the Beiyang Army's will to fight and force the Beiyang to divide its forces to deal with it. Next. That is, a joint operation with Shandong to strive to defeat or eliminate the main force of the Beiyang Army in Henan, and the overall situation will be decided.

This idea was fully approved by Situ Jun, Feng Guozhu, and Wang Mingyuan.

"Well, that's about it. Mingyuan, you are in charge of Guangzhou, Situ, you are in charge of formulating the specific plan and presiding over the headquarters on my behalf, Guozhu, you immediately assemble your troops, and secretly assemble the troops in Shaoguan. Min Zhong, you can find Mr. Hong, that newspaper is not very useful, you ask Mr. Hong to draft a manuscript for me, of course, it is an anti-Qing article, this article is very important. At the beginning, Wu Sangui rebelled against the Qing Dynasty, and he still wrote a good article. Long Qian made an inappropriate analogy.

"The commander is wrong, how can Wu Sangui compare with the commander?"

"Since ancient times, kings have been defeated. History has no mercy. There is nothing that cannot be compared, if we fail, maybe I will be the second Wu Sangui. ”

"No, we won't fail. Shandong and Guangdong are all expected by the Qing court, but the Lushan Northern Army is definitely a strategic surprise army, and there are only a few divisions in Beiyang, and they can't take care of their heads, they are doomed! Jiang Yiliu, who served as the chief of staff of the First Division, said with a smile.

"No, you must not underestimate the enemy. We counted a lot of troops, but there were too many recruits, and the officers lacked experience in big wars. Although your first division has been expanded to three brigades and nine regiments, its actual combat strength is definitely not as good as that of the old five towns when it went south. The arrogant army will be defeated, so it is better to be cautious. Situ Junzheng said, although he asked Long Qian, "The commander is going to Guangxi?" ”

"Exactly. I immediately went to Zhou Yi in Guangxi to explain the tasks of the Second Division in person and inspect the pre-war preparations of the Second Division. ”

"Commander, there is a situation," Cao Minzhong looked at the people in the room and thought that there was no need to avoid it, "Commander, according to the news that Xiao Qihai sent back last time, Feng Lun was definitely involved in the killing of prisoners, and he was worried that the commander would seize this matter. Also, there were unknown people in Zhou Yi's headquarters, and Xiao Qihai suspected that he was from the Qing court. ”

"That's why I'm going to Guangxi. If you are replaced, no one will be able to deal with it. The Tenth Town was a poisonous ploy by the Qing court to separate us, but it also gave us a reason to openly expand our troops. Of course they were going to send someone to the tenth town, but I was surprised if they didn't. "The Mengshan Army has just unified the new number, and Long Qian is still used to calling the second division the tenth town," Many officers participated in the Guangzhou Conference and the Shaoguan Conference, and the news has not leaked, indicating that there is no problem at the top level. What's more, there is the Youth Army Federation that you have been boasting about, who would dare to rebel? ”

"Then you have to bring enough guards." Cao Minzhong was a little worried.

"You think seriously. I don't believe the troops will mutiny. Long Qian smiled lightly, "The Xinning incident needs to be over, the big war is imminent, it is not good for Feng Lun to carry the burden, it is easy to get a thousand troops, and it is difficult to find a general." He didn't believe that Zhou Yi and Feng Lun would have problems, and the Manchu Qing Dynasty was exhausted, not to mention that they were high-ranking generals who were familiar with the strength of the Mengshan army, and even the battalion commanders and regiment commanders below were also full of confidence in defeating the Manchus and establishing a new country. Moreover, their families are all in Shandong.

"Commander, take my guards with you. Min Zhong was right. There's nothing wrong with being careful. Feng Guozhu said. The guard company he mentioned refers to the former Ninth Association Guard Company, Long Qian's guard battalion is in Guangzhou, and the division headquarters guard battalion has not yet been established after the formation of the First Division, and it is the former Ninth Association Guard Company that is currently responsible for the security of the organs of the First Division.

"No, I don't. Give me a company from the riding standard. Of course, Long Qian wanted to choose the cavalry company, "Don't go to anyone, there are many things, I can go." ”

"Commander, what are you going to do with this?" Situ Jun asked.

"I know that. With the war imminent, military discipline must be tightened, and the parties involved must be dealt with. But I don't want to put everyone at risk. "It is impossible for Long Qian not to deal with the Xinning killing incident. The French missionaries became eyewitnesses, and the pressure could not be suppressed. If we do not deal with it seriously, it will bring a huge stain to the history of the Mengshan army.

"I suggest that Feng Lun be transferred back to the headquarters, and I don't believe he is not involved." Wang Mingyuan said. "Lao Feng has too many problems. This time. It's not appropriate for him to be left alone. ”

It is said that Feng Lun is at least to be appointed as the brigade commander, and the second division is advancing north, and Feng Lun is the number one general under Zhou Yi. Of course, you have to stand alone.

"Well, I know what to expect." Long Qian wanted to have a good talk with Feng Lun, as a veteran of the Mengshan Army, a new regime is about to be born, everyone will be the founding fathers, we must cherish the honor, and don't make big mistakes before the founding of the country.

Xu Siwei went to Guangxi with Long Qian, but Long Qian did not allow it. He said to Xu Si, "There is about to be a showdown with the imperial court, do you know what I am most worried about now?" ”

Xu Si was stunned by the rejection. After a long time, he said, "It's just that I'm afraid that the revolutionary party will scold you for being a capricious villain." ”

"That's half right." Long Qian smiled, "I'm not afraid of the revolutionary party, I'm afraid of the people." ”

"The people are a piece of." Xu Si actually burst into a foul language, "History is written by literati, not by the people." Like you said, Yongzheng is actually a good emperor, but why does he have a bad reputation? Because he offended the gentry by engaging in what kind of official gentry paid food in one piece, he left an infamy. Even Emperor Yang of Sui may not be as unbearable as the history books say. ”

"Then you say, how do the gentry view my anti-Qing?"

"I don't know. But the gentry have long been tired of it, there is no need to argue, you can see if you look at the current newspapers, the court is really difficult, the left and right are not, public opinion is so free, and they are still scolding the dictatorship of the court, and I don't know what democracy is. ”

That's a good question. By the way, if I succeed in this anti-purge campaign, what are you going to do? ”

"Listen, you mean to drive me away? That day, Qiu Jin had a long talk with me, and I said that you would never be the emperor. She seems to know our relationship, and asked me where I will end up in the future, I said that I don't know the way, the decision is not up to me, just like work, you drive me away, what can I do? ”

"Oh? She didn't ask what to do with the League or the Restoration Society? Qiu Jin asked Long Qian several times, but Long Qian was just vague, not that he deliberately fooled Qiu Jin, but that he was not sure whether the bigwigs of the alliance would cooperate with him.

"I asked, and I said I didn't know what to do. One thing is for sure that you don't hate the League. Why don't you answer my question? ”

"Xiao Si, it's not that I drove you away, but that you should have your own career. Even if I become president, I can't do it for life, so what's the difference between me and the emperor? I really thought that when I put up the shelf of New China and straighten out the power relations, I would step back, run an entity well, and become a monopoly. ”

"You're already a Monopoly. Don't Huayuan and ZTE have your shares? The descendants of the heirloom have no worries about food and clothing for several generations. Xu Si's mood was much better, and there was a smile on his face.

"No, the money is not mine, it belongs to the Mengshan Army, and it belongs to this country. Besides, I won't leave any money for my sons. Xiao Si, I found that you like to do charity, civilized countries have a perfect charity system, and when the country is established, we must also establish a charity system and establish a public charitable organization. How about donating all the money I earn from running a business, except for my personal consumption, to your organization? ”

The reason why I say this is because Xu Si went out with Long Qian when he was in Guangzhou and "picked up" a wandering orphan, when the child was beaten by a group of beggars, Xu Si couldn't look past it, and asked the guards to disperse the beggars. Which child wants to go with Xu Si, he doesn't seem to be from Guangdong, his accent is Hunan, and he doesn't know how to go to Guangzhou. The child looks like he is seven or eight years old, very pitiful, blind in one eye, and dirty. Xu Si instructed the guards to buy some cooked food for the child nearby, and the child's gobbling up made her sad.

The problem of how to accommodate this orphan became a problem. There is an orphanage run by a church in Guangzhou, Xu Si seems to have heard some legends, and resolutely forbids Long Qian to send his children to an orphanage run by foreigners, and it is inconvenient for him to take care of it, so he was finally handed over by Long Qian to the Fifth Town Hospital and became the youngest soldier in the Mengshan Army.

"Far from it. I really don't know if there is a supreme ruler in Chinese history who can swim in Yilin Spring. If you want to return, you may not be able to do so. Besides, you haven't overthrown the Manchus yet. ”

"Ha Lu Ha, you will win. Look at it. Long Qian was arrogant, "After so many years of preparation, it is impossible to say that it will not succeed." ”

Xu Si looked at the man in front of him with some obsession, he didn't shave this morning, and his temples were already black. If he had overthrown the Manchus, would today's conversation have gone down in history? Will he also be written into history? (To be continued......)