Mengshan Army - now called the Qinwang Detachment of the Wuwei Right Army, but they still do not change their old name internally. After seven days of forced march, they arrived at the outskirts of Tianjin in the early morning of July 3.

Zou County's replenishment was quite smooth, in a hurry, Cao Kun's mobilized materials basically met Long Qian's requirements, perhaps inspired by the former opponent's generosity to go to the country, Cao Kun did not refuse Long Qian's request, and prepared hundreds of more sets of military uniforms, some of which Cao Kun let his troops take off from his body. Ordnance also satisfied the Mengshan Army to the greatest extent, with a total of 358 rifles and 135,600 rounds of ammunition allocated. Of course, there were also silver taels, and Cao Kun hastily raised 110,000 taels of silver from Yan and Cao Prefectures, all of which were handed over to the Mengshan army. Not only that, Cao Kun threw away his past grievances and hosted a banquet for officers above the commander of the Mengshan Military Battalion in Zou County.

Xu Shichang and the released Wang Shizhen marched all the way to Jinan with the Mengshan army before breaking up with Long Qian. Yuan Shikai did not show up, and Long Qian did not enter the city to pay respects to Yuan Shikai on the grounds of time urgency. Xu Shichang promised to pay the remaining silver taels to the remaining troops within two months, so he broke up with Long Qian outside the city, and he and Wang Shizhen hurriedly went to the governor's yamen to restore their lives.

Tang Shaoyi followed the Mengshan army to continue north. Tang Shaoyi admired the organizational skills shown by the Mengshan Army (Tang Shaoyi also called it), and the cavalry troops sent to the front station were always able to choose camps, houses, buy food and medicines, and everything was in order. When the brigade arrives at the intended station, it is generally already ready for the evening. You can usually eat hot meals. Just in case, though. The soldiers always carried two days' worth of dry rations in their bags in case of emergency. The cavalrymen could usually get to the house, but it was impossible to get nearly 2,000 people into the house, and there were always troops camping. Fortunately, it was summer and camping was relatively easy.

If Tang Shaoyi's organizational ability of the Mengshan Army was surprising, the marching power they displayed would be even more extraordinary. The troops set out from Zhengjiazhuang, changed their military uniforms and replenished their guns and ammunition supplies through Zou County, and then went straight to Tianjin along the official roads of Yanzhou, Tai'an, Jinan, and Dezhou. The daily marching mileage is more than 120 miles, showing a strong marching force far beyond that of the Wuwei Right Army.

It was also a hard march. Even in the rain. The troops did not rest for this, but marched in the rain. Tang Shaoyi asked Chief of Staff Ning in confusion, why don't you take shelter from the rain? The answer is to be in a hurry. Arriving at the battlefield an hour early is of great significance to our army.

The ability to march is the best embodiment of combat effectiveness. During this period, the training and organizational capabilities of the troops were fully demonstrated. Although Tang Shaoyi is a literati. But long in the military. This simple truth is still understood. He had horses to ride. I was still exhausted, and every day when I arrived at the campsite, I wanted to find a place to sleep. This team from Xiangma is carrying a load of dozens of catties. Walking for five or six hours every day, they always maintained a strict formation, and after camping every day, everything was in order. The officers met every evening, and the battalion and company commanders checked the food and lodging of the troops. What especially made Tang Shaoyi admire was that as the supreme commander, Long Qian basically did not ride a horse and followed the troops on foot. During this period, he sometimes helped soldiers carry guns and bags. Driven by him, the morale of the troops was high, singing military songs, and they went all the way north.

Now, I have finally arrived in Tianjin. Tang Shaoyi breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, his hanging heart had not yet been fully put down, and his mission had not yet been completed. That is, Long Qian's troops must be put into the battlefield to earn face for Shandong.

After the Mengshan Army accepted Zhao'an, Tang Shaoyi had a secret conversation with Xu Shichang several times, and the Mengshan Army left the old camp in line with Xu Shichang's intentions, if they raised the whole army to come out, Xu Shichang would not dare to call the shots - who dares to guarantee that they will not take the opportunity to wander elsewhere? Now the old camp is left, like a hostage, and it is very good. The second is that Mengshan Jun took the opportunity of King Qin to obtain identity replacement, but he did not really fight.

The current situation has been confirmed, not to mention him Tang Shaoyi, even if Xu Shichang or Yuan Shikai came in person, he would not be able to be the master of this army. Returning to the imperial court is not something that can be solved by changing clothes. In the past few days, Tang Shaoyi has seen that they have only one core, that is, their commander Long Qian, and those officers don't even mention it to the imperial court.

"Long Biaotong, our army has reached Tianjin, where to go next?" Tang Shaoyi asked.

"Of course, it's a war with foreigners. Mr. Tang, I have already sent a spy, and when we get to the top, we will know where to go. ”

Tang Shaoyi was shocked, when did they send spies to Gyeonggi? I have been in contact with the Mengshan Army for a while, and I am familiar with Long Qian. But the mystery shrouded in the other party is getting deeper and deeper. Tang Shaoyi did not doubt that Long Qian had the experience of staying abroad, but how did he build such a strong army in the poor mountains and remote areas? And how to find out the movements of the officers and soldiers? Including this time, it seems that Long Qian has long known about the development of the situation in Gyeonggi, and he is in the Lunan Mountains, how did he get the news? Yuan Shikai is shrewd, and his reaction is not as fast as Long Qian.

No one answered his question.

The troops continued to advance, and according to the guide's guidance, in the middle of the morning, the troops arrived at Yangliuqing, Long Qian ordered the troops to rest on the spot, and sent members of the staff section to investigate and collect information.

Collecting intelligence was originally the business of the Intelligence Section, but after Jiang Yun went north, Long Qian successively sent two groups of personnel into Gyeonggi, almost emptying the Intelligence Section. The General Staff Section had no choice but to replace the Intelligence Section in its task of intelligence gathering.

Yang Liuqing is located in the west of Tianjin, is a large market town, suddenly poured in a large number of soldiers, the head of the town naturally came to contact, learned that it is the division of King Qin sent by Shandong, the town is quite enthusiastic, according to the requirements of the troops, in addition to providing cooked and hot food, but also a large number of shoes and socks gauze and other things, medicine is also necessary, buy things here than Yanzhou conditions are much better.

Because it was summer, the troops could sleep in the open air. After the order was laid, the officers and soldiers could not wait to eat, so they slept with guns on the street - except for the guard posts. The food soldiers who bought the meat buns were called to sleep one by one, and the soldiers were extremely sweet. The officers and men, who had long been exhausted from the continuous march, let out a shocking snoring, and they would rather go hungry than get a good night's sleep.

The people of Jinmen, who have always liked to meddle in affairs, have inquired about the origin of this army.

"It's a soldier from Shandong, the king of Qin. Now the foreign devil is finished. Think about it. How many people there are in China, how many of them are there. ”

"Who knows how many days Lu Dao has been gone? I'm so tired that I can't even take care of eating__"

The people of Yang Liuqing pointed and pointed.

Tang Shaoyi was also concerned about the war in Gyeonggi, and he also had the duties of a "liaison officer", as soon as he arrived at the station, he followed Ning Shijun to learn from the mayor about the battle situation in Tianjin, as well as the nearest official and military station.

According to the agreement, the Qinwang detachment will be under the direct jurisdiction of the Ministry of War after entering Gyeonggi. This is an empty phrase, the military headquarters is still in Beijing, how can it command this small army? This is due to the haste with which the negotiations were downgraded. Now it looks. The Mengshan army should be handed over to the Governor's Mansion of Zhili. But listened to the mayor. Tang Shaoyi was also frightened: a large number of foreign soldiers had come ashore and were attacking Tianjin, and the fighting in the area of Zizhulin and Wubei Academy was fierce, and how many officers and troops were there in Gyeonggi. Who commands. Where is it. The white-haired mayor couldn't tell clearly, and the news was all heard. Just two days ago, though. There was once a soldier of Lord Nie Shicheng stationed in Yang Liuqing, and he only stayed for one night and left, where did he go? Naturally, it's in the city.

That is to say, Tianjin has not yet fallen! This news made Tang Shaoyi breathe a big sigh of relief. Tianjin has not been lost, and Beijing is naturally safe. Tang Shaoyi thought that Long Qian was right to march forward regardless of fatigue, at least he could earn some face for his lord in Shandong, the southeast mutual insurance was not violated, and the German and British troops in Shandong could not find an excuse to make trouble, and the court was easy to explain.

"Chief of Staff Ning, it looks like we're going to enter the city. This time to Tianjin, but thirty or forty miles, an hour to arrive. "Tang Shaoyi came to the spirit.

"How to fight depends on the commander's decision." Ning Shijun was preoccupied, and took Tang Shaoyi back to the temporarily established headquarters, and as soon as he entered the room, he saw Jiang Yun standing at the table and talking.

"Oh, this kid is back." He was relieved. The previous battle had already proved the value of the Intelligence Section, and since Jiang Yun appeared in the headquarters, the situation in the Jinmen area should have been figured out.

"That's what happened." After Jiang Yun finished speaking, he also saw Ning Shijun, turned around and stood upright, and saluted Ning Shijun.

"Okay, I'm glad I did." After returning the salute, Ning Shijun held Jiang Yun's hand.

"Shi Jun, Mr. Shaochuan, come and see." Long Qian beckoned the two of them over, "This is the map drawn by Jiang Yun, you can come and see." ”

"How many enemies are there?" After only glancing, Ning Shijun pointed to the map and asked.

"Ha, you're eyeing this too." Long Qian said with a smile, "This enemy is the first force to land, a messy coalition force, and the commander is named Seymour, a British vice admiral. According to Jiang Yun's intelligence, they should have set off with about 2,000 people, but after two battles in a row, they should have suffered losses. It is estimated at 1500~1600 people. They fought a battle with the Boxers and the official army in Langfang, and were supposed to go to Beijing to protect the embassy. But it was blocked. Thank God. They have now retreated to the Xigu stronghold, waiting for reinforcements. Long Qian looked at the map with a relaxed face, "They are separated from Tianjin by Nie Shicheng, so they don't dare to leave the stronghold." ”

Jiang Yun was very surprised, because he didn't get the name of the commander of the foreign army trapped in the Xigu stronghold, how did Commander Long know? Could it be that he set up a second intelligence system in Gyeonggi? Three days ago, Nie Shicheng's troops hit Xigu for the second time, and he was there. The number of the coalition army was told by an officer of Nie Shicheng's department, when Jiang Yun and one of his subordinates were "righteous people" and sent two loads of peaches to Nie Jun.

"Do you also know the situation in Beijing and Tianjin?" Jiang Yun was still thinking about it, and someone had already asked him. It was Situ Jun who asked the question, and as soon as he joined the army, he became the deputy chief of the staff section, which is also an outlier. Since the guards brought in this young man, Long Qian couldn't hide the joy on his face, and when he inquired, he realized that this young man who looked much younger than himself was actually the intelligence director of the Mengshan Army, and he had already infiltrated the Gyeonggi area.

Seeing Jiang Yun's puzzled expression, Long Qian smiled and introduced, "Situ Jun, deputy chief of the staff section." He joined the army after you left, no wonder you don't know him. Long Qian looked at Jiang Yun's gaze at Tang Shaoyi, "This is Mr. Tang Shaochuan, the overseer sent by Yuan Shikai." Ha Lu Ha, just kidding, now we're family. There is only one enemy, and that is the foreign coalition forces that landed. You just say, it doesn't matter. ”

Jiang Yun nodded, "I see." The situation is such that the Beijing side, dominated by the Wuwei Central Army and the Rear Army, is still besieging the embassy area in Dongjiaomin Lane. Artillery was used, but there was no sign of overcoming, resistance was strong, and the attack was like a farce. As far as I can tell, they won't be able to reach the embassy for a while. On the Tianjin side, the number of coalition troops who landed is unknown, but after fierce fighting, they occupied the military academy, which was actually destroyed, and it is said that there were as many as 3,000 cadets and were well equipped, but later it was said that the head of the military academy, a Manchurian named Yin Chang, fled, and the morale of the army was scattered. The more than 100 trainees who were reluctant to retreat were all good, fought with foreign soldiers with bayonets, and finally set fire to the ammunition depot and were all killed. ”

The atmosphere was solemn, including Tang Shaoyi. Jiang Yun paused, "Nie Shicheng's troops have been transferred back from the north, and the Martial Arts Academy has been recovered, but it is already in ruins. Now Nie Shicheng's troops are attacking the Zizhulin Concession with the cooperation of the Boxers. That's more or less the case. ”

"Okay, everybody's heard. Tell me, where are we headed? Long Qian glanced at everyone.

Lu Shan, Ning Shijun, and the four battalion commanders were all looking at the map and pondering, and Tang Shaoyi spoke first, "Long Biaotong, since there is still a fierce battle in the city, should we go into the city?" Accept Lord Nie's command? ”

Tang Shaoyi immediately felt a few cold gazes shooting, except for Long Qian and Ning Shijun, these senior officers of the Mengshan Army had always been cold to him, and their hostility was not removed.

"According to the agreement, your army will enter the battlefield and will be under the command of the military department__"

"Mr. Tang, I have not denied the agreement." Long Qian stood at the door with his hands behind his back, "But you don't know much about military issues. The operational purpose of our Mengshan Army is to annihilate the enemy's vital strength as the primary goal, and the order of operations is to first strike at a weak enemy who is isolated and helpless. The enemy of Xigu is not only an isolated enemy, but also a weak enemy. ”

"Commander, this group of enemies has a lot of numbers, the same strength as our army, and occupies a terrain conducive to defense, and a strong attack is not the best policy." Situ Jun said loudly.

"Yes, Situ is right, even if our army defeats this Xigu, I'm afraid it will hurt my muscles and bones," Lu Shan raised his head, "This enemy is too big, it's best to transfer him out." I asked to go to Xigu to see the terrain on the spot."

"There is a way," Jiang Yunman said, "My people caught a spy who sent a letter to the Xigu foreign soldiers, and the person is still in my hands." ”

"Really? Where is it? The officers present asked in unison. (To be continued......)

PS: A new chapter, please support book friends. Recently, there have been a lot of things, and they are all old books that have to be revised.