While Long Qian was studying the reorganization of the armed forces for several days, the military situation in the whole country changed again.

On October 9, good news came from the southwest.

After leaving Guangxi, the Second Division did not settle on Guizhou first, but advanced Yunnan because Yunnan was stronger than Guizhou in terms of military strength. In addition, under the influence of Sun Wen's armed anti-Qing forces in Liangguang, Yunnan's alliance was also strong in opposing the Qing Dynasty. A large number of Yunnan students studying in Japan joined the League, including Yang Zhenhong, Luo Peijin, Tang Jiyao, Ye Quan, etc., who developed the power of the League in large numbers after returning to China, making Yunnan one of the provinces that were politically inclined to Sun Wen. At the beginning of 1909, Yunnan had set up the 19th town of the New Army, which had jurisdiction over the 37th and 38th associations and four standards.

After Long Qian led the fifth town to occupy Liangguang, he immediately ordered the intelligence department to strengthen its work in Yunnan. At the beginning of 1908, the Kunming Station was set up, and the investigation and infiltration of various factions in Yunnan began. However, after Long Qian quelled the Xinning Rebellion and raised troops against the Qing Dynasty, he repeatedly instructed the Second Division passing through the southwest to fight steadily and steadily, first effectively controlling Guangxi and then advancing westward into Yunnan. Therefore, under the situation that the good news of the Shandong and northern armies was spreading, and the main force of the southern army was like a bamboo and the Northern Expedition, the Second Division (at that time, there was only one complete formed brigade) stopped in Guangxi, and on the one hand, it recruited and suppressed the Qing army in Guangxi, and on the other hand, it formed a training Sixth Brigade, the first division took Changsha, and the second division was still stagnant in Guangxi.

After the Battle of Changsha, the Fourth Brigade was rebuilt. Lan Xinzhi reported a plan to march to the southwest: concentrate the main force of the second division from Guangxi to advance into Yunnan, and ignore Guizhou first. The first step is to solve the Yunnan problem. The Fourth Brigade did not have to return to Guangxi, but marched west from Changsha, knocked on the gate of Sichuan through Xiangxi, and captured Chongqing. The task of the 4th Brigade was not to attack Sichuan, but to contain the southwest and create conditions for the main force of the division to seize Yunnan.

The plan was approved by the headquarters after repeated study. However, the telegram signed by Long Qian instructed Lan Xinzhi that as far as military affairs are concerned, the two main infantry brigades of the Second Division plus the troops directly under the division do not have an absolute advantage in the battle situation, especially considering that the Sixth Brigade, a newly formed unit, seriously lacks the test of war and is not of great use, and it is also necessary to consider the impact on the Second Division after the Zhou Feng incident. Plus too long a logistical supply distance. It is very difficult to solve Yunnan militarily. But the core of Yunnan's problem lies not in the military, but in politics. It is necessary to make good use of the momentum of the Mengshan Army's great victory throughout the country and give full play to this momentum. To bring about changes within it that will benefit us, be believing. The local power of Yunnan (mainly the power of the Manchu Dynasty) and the power of the League will be shaken in the face of great changes in the situation in the country. To facilitate this vacillation. In order to facilitate a swift military solution. Long Qian especially emphasized that no matter who he is, as long as he is willing to cooperate with the Mengshan Army. All are given unity and entrusted with important tasks.

Long Qian talked to Situ Jun, Cao Minzhong and others several times about his worries about the Second Division. Among them is the concern that Lan Xinzhi will lead the army alone. But there was no other way to do it. However, Lan Xinzhi dispelled Long Qian's doubts in the process of pacifying the southwest, which was the main factor in his appointment as the commander of the southwest military region.

As expected by the top brass of the Mengshan Army, after the Southern Army seized Changsha, Yunnan was finally in chaos. Luo Peijin, the commander of the 74th Battalion, Liu Cunhou of the 2nd Battalion, Tang Jiyao of the 1st Battalion, Li Hongxiang of the 3rd Battalion of the 73rd Battalion, and Liu Yunfeng of the 19th Artillery Command took advantage of the momentum of the Mengshan Army to launch the Kunming Incident, killed the commander of the 19th Town, captured the city of Kunming, and the Manchu Qing officials such as the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou fled in chaos, and Yunnan established a military government, with Luo Peijin as the governor, and Yunnan declared independence from the Manchus.

It is said that after the Yunnan uprising, it should take a political stand, support the League or the Mengshan Army? A clear choice must be made. But the strange thing is that the Yunnan military government has not done so, which makes the Mengshan military headquarters very puzzled. At that time, Long Qian was ill, and Wang Zhifeng took it upon himself to send a letter with a forged signature of Long Qian to Kunming and forwarded it to Governor Luo Peijin, hoping that Yunnan would join the camp of the Mengshan Army. Wang Zhifeng did this to seek Situ Jun's opinion, and Situ Jun was frightened by Long Qian's illness at that time, and felt that it didn't matter if he did this, there were no sequelae. When the special envoy of the intelligence department went to Kunming and listened to the introduction of the Kunming station, he knew that Yunnan was divided into two factions after independence, one faction was headed by Luo Peijin and resolutely supported Sun Wen's Kuomintang Party. The other faction, led by Tang Jiyao and Liu Cunhou, believed that the Mengshan Army had achieved a general trend and must not be the enemy of the Mengshan Army. Neither of the two factions was convinced, and the more they talked, the more stiff they became, and there was a tendency to merge with each other.

This is probably the reason why Yunnan, although independent, is ambiguous in its political attitude.

Therefore, the special envoy found Liu Cunhou and Tang Jiyao and showed them a letter with the signature of Long Qian, saying that since Luo Peijin did not know the general situation, the headquarters of the Mengshan Army would definitely support Liu and Tang, hoping that they would effectively control the army in their hands, and make a plan when the Second Division of the Mengshan Army approached Kunming, and naturally they would not be able to run away from the treatment of the founding fathers in the future.

Liu Cunhou and Tang Jiyao were naturally very happy. said that he must act in accordance with the instructions of Long Dashuai. At this time, Feng Guozhu had already won the battle of Tingsi, and Wuchang was just around the corner. Liu Cunhou and Tang Jiyao are thinking about how to contact Mengshanjun. Now Long Qian's people have brought his handwritten letter, which naturally makes Liu, Tang and others who decided to change camps very happy.

After the Second Division entered Yunnan and approached Kunming, Tang Jiyao and Liu Cunhou devised a plan to invite Luo Peijin, Liu Yunfeng and others to Tang Jiyao's house to discuss the overall situation on the grounds that the Yunnan troops should sincerely unite to tide over the difficulties at the present time of the great enemy. Luo Peijin was not cheating, did not listen to Liu Yunfeng's advice, and happily went to the meeting, and was detained. Tang Jiyao originally wanted to kill Luo Peijin, but Liu Cunhou couldn't bear it, so he just detained the person. As a result, the troops loyal to Tang and Liu suddenly attacked, surrounded the troops of Luo Peijin and Li Hongxiang, and forcibly disarmed them. Then a liaison officer was sent to guide the 5th Brigade of the 2nd Division into the city of Kunming.

The Mengshan army pacified Yunnan without a fight. In the whole incident, Lan Xinzhi's Second Division did not kill a single person, but more than a dozen Yunnan troops died, and Li Hongxiang was killed in the incident.

This is on October 8th. It was the next day when the news reached Beijing. Long Qian, who had just properly resolved the reorganization of the Beiyang Army, was overjoyed when he heard the news, and immediately gave the number of the 22nd Division of the Yunnan Uprising Force in the name of the Mengshan Army Headquarters. Tang Jiyao was appointed commander of the 22nd Division, and Liu Cunhou was appointed governor of Yunnan.

In this way, there is another division out of thin air. Although the strength of this division is not yet known, it cannot be used immediately. However, the main force of the 2nd Division did not defeat Yunnan without bloodshed, so that the southwestern side, which was already overstretched, immediately became more comfortable, and even if Cao Kun's 13th Division, which was scheduled to be put into Sichuan, did not go up, the 2nd Division had the spare strength to march into Guizhou, threaten Sichuan from the south, and promote its transformation.

At this time, the Fourth Brigade advancing into Xiangxi had arrived at Youyang along Chenzhou and Yongshun, and fought several battles along the way. How could a local defense battalion be an opponent of the regular army? The Fourth Brigade has now entered eastern Sichuan. Rest among Youyang and stone pillars, and prepare to march to Chongqing. Situ Jun, who remained in Wuchang to take charge of the southern war, ordered the Fourth Brigade to suspend its advance, believing that after the Yunnan problem was resolved, Guizhou was already in his pocket. Lan Xinzhi, who ordered the entry into Kunming, to send no less than one brigade of troops north to Guizhou. forced Sichuan to take the most difficult side.

Now there is only one Sichuan left in the southwest problem. Situ Jun sent a telegram from Wuchanglian. It was proposed that the 3rd Brigade, which was replenished for rest and recuperation in Wuchang, end the recuperation. Advance west along the Yangtze River to meet the 2nd Division's march to Sichuan.

At this time, the major military regions had already been established, and the subordinate units of the military regions had been clearly defined. However, Situ Jun did not seem to wait for Cao Kun's division to go south, believing that the Sichuan problem could be solved by relying on the existing strength of the former Southern Army.

Long Qian, who was in Beijing, forwarded Situ Jun's telegram to Lan Xinzhi. Lan Xinzhi quickly replied, disagreeing with the opinion of the General Staff Headquarters, saying that at present the main force of the Second Division still needs to remain in Yunnan, and its Fifth Brigade can go north out of Guizhou, but the issue of the Third Brigade stationed in Wuchang in the southeast has not yet been completely resolved, and Li Yuanhong's 14th Division must not be moved lightly before it has been reorganized and moved south to Guangzhou, and suggested that Cao Kun's 13th Division immediately go south and be placed under the direct command of the Southwest Military Region. Even if Cao's division could not be dispatched in its entirety, it should at least start a brigade in advance within a few days, and after the brigade arrived at Hankou by train, it would immediately load its ships and sail up the Yangtze River to attack Sichuan. This is the best way to go.

Long Qian agreed with Lan Xinzhi's opinion. This telegram cemented Lan Xinzhi's position, and Long Qian believed that he had the overall concept that a theater commander should have. Therefore, Long Qian personally drafted a telegram on the war situation in the southwest and sent it to the General Staff of the Southwest Military Region at the same time, stressing that the southwest issue should be resolved steadily and that the idea of finishing the war in one battle should not be saved.

Long Qian again summoned Cao Kun, who had not yet returned to the Hengshui camp, briefed him on the situation in the southwest and conveyed the opinion of Lan Xinzhi, commander of the Southwest Military Region, on the use of the 13th Division. Cao Kun said yes. He put forward the idea of reorganizing the former 3rd Town into the 37th Brigade of the 13th Division, and suggested that Wu Peifu lead the brigade to go north in advance in order to complete the military plan of the headquarters for Sichuan. However, Cao Kun put forward a request for the arrangement of the two co-commanders of the original Third Town, and Long Qian agreed to Cao Kun's request and promised to transfer the two back to the headquarters for Hou Yong, but Long Qian emphasized that Cao Kun should personally lead the 37th Brigade when it went south, and Cao Kun could entrust Cai Ye to implement the formation of the 38th Brigade and the division headquarters, and the specific problems could be instructed by telegram.

After Cao Kun received the order, he left Beijing with Cai and Wu on the same day and returned to Hengshui.

After settling in the southwest, Long Qian turned his gaze to the northwest.

Let's talk about the Northwest. Shaanxi is the first province in the northwest, and the central city in the northwest is Xi'an, which is also the gateway of the Central Plains to the northwest. As early as after Yuan Shikai sent a telegram to return to the Mengshan Army, Shaanxi Province sent a telegram to support it, but the process was also full of twists and turns, full of drama.

Although Shaanxi is the political and military center of Northwest China. But the forces are not strong. In 1906, Li Hongxun, the governor of Shaanxi, reorganized the standing army formed by the former governor Shengyun into the second standard of the Shaanxi New Army, and he himself recruited more than 1,000 young and strong people to form the first standard. It's kind of a co-ordination shelf. The following year, that is, in 1907, the new governor of Shaanxi Enshou was ordered to expand the new army of a town, and he appointed Daotai Wang Yujiang to host the matter, but the money and grain were embezzled by the surname Wang, and the army was not formed. Until Long Qian raised troops against the Qing Dynasty, the so-called regular army in Shaanxi was two infantry targets with poor equipment training, and the imperial court did not award the number.

Shaanxi's military strength was extremely poor, but the strength of the Hui Party and the revolutionary party that subsequently developed its strength became stronger, and officials at all levels became more and more disillusioned with the center. In the first year of Xuantong (1909), there was a folk song on the streets of Xi'an, "No need to pinch, no need to count, Xuantong is only two and a half years." Qian Ding, a native of southern Shaanxi, and Zhang Fengxiang, a native of Xianning, were both members of the New Army, and they organized the "Military Research Society" as a cover to actively engage in anti-Qing work. The Mengshan army rebelled, Qian Ding, Zhang Fengxiang and others thought that the time was ripe, so an armed uprising was held at the end of August, and Wan Bingnan, the leader of the Elders' Association, actively assisted, and the rebel army successfully occupied Xi'an. Even the governor's yamen was captured by the Elders.

As a result, after several controversies, Zhang Fengxiang was appointed as the general commander of the "Qin Longfu Han Military Government", and Qian Ding and Wan Bingnan were the deputy commanders. Shaanxi can be regarded as "recovered". Like Yunnan, Shanxi after the recovery is facing the problem of taking sides, whether to move closer to the Mengshan Army or support the unstable Kuomintang Party? Fierce quarrels broke out within the "Qin-Long-Fu Han Military Government", Wan Bingnan strongly advocated surrendering to the Mengshan army, Qian Ding wavered, and Zhang Fengxiang advocated immediately contacting important members of the League to preside over the overall situation.

At the beginning of September, the Shaanxi people returned to Shaanxi on the order of Sun Wen. Took over the military administration of Shaanxi. But it triggered the change in Xi'an. At this time. The Qing court had abdicated, and the general trend of the Mengshan army to seize the world had been achieved, Wan Bingnan persuaded Qian Ding to detain Zhang Fengxiang and Yu Youren. On the second day after Yuan Shikai sent a telegram, he announced that Shaanxi would return to the headquarters of the Mengshan Army. Thereupon. Wu Nian's Seventh Division marched westward through western Henan. Entering Tongguan and successfully occupying Xi'an is also a bloodless process.

According to the instructions of the headquarters. After Wu Nian was stationed in Xi'an, he appointed Qian Ding as the chief of civil affairs of Shaanxi, and is currently reorganizing the Shaanxi army and reorganizing it into the 21st Brigade of the Seventh Division. The main force temporarily stopped in Xi'an and stopped the pace of westward expansion.

Situ Jun, who was sitting in Wuchang, believed that the situation in the southeast had become clear, and since the headquarters considered that there was no main force of the Mengshan Army to guard the vast area between the two lakes and did not allow the Third Brigade to enter Sichuan westward, it was possible to order the Third Brigade to stay in Wuchang for the time being. It can only be used after the Henan and Hubei troops are completely reorganized. However, it was suggested that the first division should immediately return westward, go north to Xi'an via Wuchang, and hurry up to march to the northwest.

Situ Jun analyzed the situation in the south and held that although the southeast was about to be pacified militarily, it was necessary to garrison heavy troops, and it was not enough to rely on a third division to be responsible for the military affairs of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Jiangxi provinces! Moreover, Fujian remained in a state of independence in order to achieve military occupation. At present, the Sixth Division, which has entered the hinterland of Jiangsu, cannot return to Shandong for the time being. However, the people of Guangxi were strong, and after the main force of the Second Division moved westward, there were still some localities that adopted a wait-and-see attitude and did not really surrender to our army. At least one main division should be stationed in the two lakes to cope with the changes in the south and southwest. To sum up, Situ Jun believed that the southern army was extremely empty, and at least one division of the old Mengshan Army should be transferred south to "fill the gap".

After Long Qian answered the call, he replied to Situ Jun with a long telegram. The overall plan for military reorganization was reported, and under the condition that the original six military regions plus one garrison region remained unchanged, the number of division-level units of the National Defense Forces would no longer be 17 (including the 22 nd Division in Yunnan) as agreed in Wuchang. In this way, the question of the emptiness of the South, which was considered by the General Staff, was about to be resolved. The Sixth Division can be temporarily stationed in Jiangsu, and after the two divisions of the Southern Military Region and one division of the Southwest Military Region are formed and deployed in place, the problem of troop shortage that the General Staff Staff is concerned about will be easily resolved.

Long Qian sent a telegram to Situ Jun that the order for the formation of the Grand Military Region and the appointment of its commander would be announced immediately, and that the General Headquarters would begin to set up a military commission to act as a substitute for the transitional stage before the establishment of the central government. After the General Staff Department was established in the Southern Military Region and Hu Zongyu took office, he immediately went north.

Situ Jun replied to the telegram and fully agreed with Long Qian's arrangements for military affairs, and especially reminded Long Qian to pay attention to the reorganization of the Beiyang Army and the southward movement of Cao Kun's 13th Division. He reported that Li Yuanhong was very cooperative and that it was most appropriate for him to be appointed commander of the 14th Division.

On 9 October, the General Headquarters of the Mengshan Army issued an order on the establishment of six military regions, including the northern and central regions, and announced the list of defense areas, garrisons, and commanders of the military regions.

Long Qian entrusted the deputy commanders-in-chief Lu Shan and Ning Shijun to be responsible for the reorganization and formation of the new division. This is a very important task that involves a large number of troop movements, changes of guard and personnel arrangements. However, Long Qian said that Lu and Ning were fully entrusted with the responsibility, and the plan would be implemented immediately after it was submitted for approval.

Lu Shan and Ning Shijun first put forward a reorganization plan for the Beiyang troops: the 12th Division was formed with the former Beiyang 2nd and 4th Towns, with division commander Feng Guozhang, chief of staff Zhang Qingyi (formerly chief of staff of the 25th Brigade), and 34th Brigade under the jurisdiction of brigade commander Chen Guangyuan; 35th Brigade: Brigade Commander Li Chun; The 13th Division was formed with the former Beiyang Third Town and Sixth Town, with Division Commander Cao Kun and Chief of Staff Qu Shushi (Chief of Staff of the 26th Brigade); Jurisdiction of the 37th Brigade, Brigade Commander Wu Peifu; 38th Brigade: Brigade Commander Cai Yi.

In order to control the two new divisions reorganized by Beiyang, Lu Shan transferred 30 battalion and company commanders from the Northern Army to serve as regimental chief of staff, battalion commander, and company commander of the two new divisions. At the same time, the Beiyang Army will transfer almost the same number of officers to serve in several new divisions of the National Defense Force, and their posts will generally not be lower than their original posts.

The formation of Cheng Erhu's 4th Division, Xiong Xun's 5th Division, Jiang Yiliu's 8th Division, Ding Xiaofu's 15th Division, and Gao Huzi's 16th Division will be placed in the second batch.

Lu Shan and Ning Shijun came up with the following opinion: After the formation of the 12th and 13th Divisions is completed, the 5th Division of Xiong Xun will be formed first, because the division will be used in the north, and after the decision was made to send troops to Mongolia, it is not enough for the old troops of the Mengshan Army to rely only on the 9th Division and the Independent Cavalry Brigade. The plan was to transfer a whole regiment from each of the 25th, 26th, 28th, and 29th brigades, plus the surrendered troops of the First Mixed Association of the former Beijing Division and the newly recruited recruits to first set up the shelves of the Fifth Division, and then go out of the customs for retraining as a reserve force for Lushan's advance into Mongolia. The relevant artillery, cavalry, and engineering units were all transferred from the Northern Army, and the Shandong side quickly transferred newly produced weapons to supplement the division. Considering that the guns of the Northern Army were originally made of Russian caliber, while the Shandong Army and the Southern Army were of German caliber, and that Shandong's military industrial strength was already considerable, the troops of the Fifth Division were equipped with German-made guns for logistical supply.

For this reason, Lu Shan and Ning Shijun's report to Long Qian suggested that the weapons standards of the National Defense Forces should be determined, and the existing Russian-made firearms and ammunition should be concentrated in Zheng Shuangqing's Ninth Division, and then gradually replaced with Shandong-made weapons when the conditions are met.

This was followed by the formation of the 14th Division, because the division's troops were mainly the former 29th Mixed Association and Li Yuanhong's uprising troops, and Lu Shan and Ning Shijun suggested that the formation of the division be entrusted to the chief of the general staff who was still in Wuchang.

Jiang Yiliu's Eighth Division will be formed on the basis of the First Division, and Lu Shan and Ning Shijun are also not responsible for the formation of the division, and will be handed over to the Southern Military Region.

The Fourth Division, the 16th Division of the Central Military Region, and the 15th Division of the Southeast Military Region, which were scheduled to be assigned to the garrison, were the last. Due to the serious shortage of soldiers and weapons, Lu Shan suggested that the 16th Division be formed in Shandong and the 4th Division should be formed in Gyeonggi, and the time should be a little later.

The 15th Division, on the other hand, was handed over to the Southeast Military Region for formation with reference to the methods of the 14th and 8th Divisions.

There is also a "legacy" of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and the 43rd Mixed Association established in Shanxi. After the Beiyang was electrified, the first batch of Shanxi announced that they would return to the Mengshan Army. The association is still in Shanxi, with only two incomplete bids. In view of the fact that the main force of the Mengshan Army was stationed in Shaanxi and there was no problem with the stability of Shanxi, Lu Shan suggested that the Shanxi New Army should be assigned to Xiongxun's Fifth Division, numbered the 14th Brigade, and immediately go north to Suiyuan, control the core of Inner Mongolia, and provide backup for the independent cavalry brigade of the Northern Military Region, which was scheduled to be used for the Outer Mongolian side.

Long Qian approved Lu Shan and Ning Shijun's plan.

After settling all this, Long Qian could finally start thinking about government affairs. (To be continued......)