Because Wang Mingyuan and Ning Shijun were there, they passed through the sentry and entered the compound without being informed, and the courtyard was full of soldiers in a hurry, saluting Ning Shijun and Wang Mingyuan when they passed by, but no one paid attention to Xu Shichang and his party who were wearing a full set of official uniforms. This aroused Hu Lan's anger, and he glared at Wang Mingyuan and said, "The dragon is also big, right?" Lord Xu is a holy envoy! If he doesn't come, just look at you soldiers, do you still have the court in your eyes? Are there any military officers? ”

Before Wang Mingyuan could speak, Xu Shichang said, "The soldiers only receive the orders of the general, and they don't hear the decree of the imperial court, haven't you heard of it?" Admiral Long governs the army strictly and has the style of an ancient famous general. Admirable. Xu Shichang looked at the soldiers in the courtyard, but there were signs of preparing to pull out, which diluted the unhappiness caused by Long Qian's slackness.

"My lord, the Admiral lives in the backyard. I don't think that's the case, so please go to the reception room of the headquarters to rest, and I'll go and inform the Admiral. Ning Shijun said to Xu Shichang and Yang Shixiang.

"No, since Admiral Long is sick, I should pay a visit. Wait a minute, Lianfu, let's go over. ”

"It's fine. The will of the imperial court is already roughly known. I accompanied Master Xu over. Yang Shixiang looked at Ning and Wang, "The two generals should leave one of them to greet Hao Qincha." ”

"Mingyuan, you can accompany Master Xu over. Ladies and gentlemen, please come with me. Ning Shijun threw a color at Wang Mingyuan.

"Long Qian congratulates the holy and bows to be healthy......" was supported by Ouyang Zhong, and Long Qian, who was wearing civilian clothes, still knelt down.

"Saint-Ann. Ah, Admiral Long, get up quickly, if the Queen Mother knows that you are sick like this. I must be in a hurry. Xu Shichang made a gesture to help Long Qian.

It looked like Long Qian was really sick, his face was sallow, and his forehead was sweating. The doubts in Xu Shichang's heart suddenly disappeared. He didn't know that Long Qian's sick appearance was the result of swallowing a small pinch of bullets an hour ago.

After Long Qian sat down, Xu Shichang and Yang Shixiang also sat down, but Wang Mingyuan stood behind Long Qian.

After a few greetings, Long Qian took the lead in turning to the topic.

"Lord Xu, you came to Jinan in person. In addition to urging the subordinate officers to command the troops to the south. Does the Queen Mother have anything else to explain? Long Qian wiped the sweat from his forehead with a towel and asked softly.

"There is no other special purpose. Before leaving, the Queen Mother and the Emperor told them to march quickly. Don't let the thieves sit on ......," Xu Shichang replied. While looking at the furnishings in the house.

"Empress Dowager Lao bothered. Xiaguan's illness is really not at the right time. Lord Xu. The lower official went to the electric military department, but he never received a reply, and the lower official mentioned several items. Has the court ever agreed? ”

Yang Shixiang scolded secretly in his heart, this kind of thing can be said directly! If it was in the past, it would have been a big sin to lose your head, and dismissal would be considered light. It seems that the prestige of the imperial court has really been discredited. I don't know if Yuan Weiting is in the situation of Long Qian, how will he fight against the imperial court, and be as tough as this?

"Admiral Long," Xu Shichang sank his face, "As courtiers, we can't blackmail the court, what's the difference between that and the rebellious ministers and thieves who started up?" ”

Long Qian coldly pushed back, "Long Qian's request for three instructions is really a necessary condition for the Fifth Town to send troops!" Why did it become a threat to the court in the eyes of Lord Xu? The fifth town is the soldiers of Shandong, and the family members are all in Shandong, in order not to let them have worries......" said Long Qian coughed violently, and Wang Mingyuan, who was standing behind him, hurriedly went to beat him on the back.

"In order not to make them have worries, the imperial court promised to retain the post of Admiral Long Qian and not send troops to Shandong, what is too much? The army was pulled out, resulting in thousands of miles away, and the cost of two huge silver dollars, which army did not consider the problem of money? Do you want to rob and be a thief along the way in Fifth Town? Since the establishment of the fifth town, the imperial court is only responsible for military salaries, and it cannot be paid to term, and all equipment and military uniforms are all self-raised in Shandong, is it the same for the other five towns in Beiyang? Now why not transfer the fifth town to the south and ask for a little money? Lord Xu, if you think that Long is taking the opportunity to blackmail, you can remove Long from the position of control and choose another talent. After a long pause, Long Qian talked about his dissatisfaction in one breath.

If you could be successfully removed from your position as commander, the imperial court would have already taken action, so why did you send me to Shandong? Xu Shichang scolded in his belly, but now is not the time to deal with Long Qian, Lafayette is very protective of this person, and the fact that the fifth town was built by this person is there, unless the imperial court uses all the forces of Beiyang to force it, it is impossible to easily seize its military power.

"Admiral Long misunderstood Xu." Xu Shichang coughed dryly, "Of course, the imperial court takes into account the difficulties of the soldiers of the fifth town, and the Empress Dowager Shengming has clear instructions on the conditions proposed by Admiral Long, first, the position of Admiral of Shandong will be kept for you and will not move." Second, during the Southern Expedition of the Fifth Town, the imperial court did not send any soldiers and horses to Shandong, unless there was a situation in Shandong that the imperial court could not tolerate. Third, the Military Aircraft Department has ordered the household department to allocate 500,000 taels as the military expenses of the fifth town's southern expedition. Now Admiral Long is satisfied, right? ”

"That's all there is to it. Long Qian was grateful to the Queen Mother for her protection. It's just that this military spending, what is 500,000 taels enough? Is it called Hanako? It's not that the lower officials don't understand the difficulties of the imperial court, and the weapons and ammunition ordered from Huayuan Industry alone are more than this, this is to fight, not to play. Even if you use tens of thousands of people to play, 500,000 taels of silver is not enough, right? What's more, the imperial court has always owed the military salary of the fifth town, Ouyang, I forgot, how much is it in total? Long Qian ignored Xu Shichang's darkening face and turned his head to look at his adjutant.

"Lord Qiyu, a total of 657,000 taels of silver are owed." Ouyang Zhong replied casually.

"That's it. Even Mingyuan also complained to me. I had ordered the Ninth Association to assemble, but the officers and men who demanded the salary stopped him, and it took a great deal of effort to run to Jinan and cry to me. Lord Xu, they are all soldiers and horses of the imperial court, so why can't they be treated equally? It's just a matter of raising weapons and equipment by yourself, military salaries are related to the stability of the army's heart, and since ancient times, the emperor is not bad for hungry soldiers, so you have to let the soldiers pass this breath, right? ”

Before coming, Xu Shichang verified with the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Households, etc., that the figure of the military salary owed to the Fifth Town was accurate, and he also knew that Dao Long Qian would definitely take the opportunity to ask for it. It was agreed that the Shandong Domain would pay on behalf of the Shandong Domain, and in the future, it would be deducted from the tax money paid to the imperial court. "This military aircraft department has already made up its mind. Lord Yang, the arrears of military salaries were paid by the Shandong Domain, and the tax and silver deductions were paid back before the year. ”

Because Long Qian had talked to him from the bottom of his heart before, promising to stay in Shandong with most of the opening fee he had asked for from the imperial court, let's say sixty percent. Yang Shixiang hoped that Long Qian would ask the court for more silver. Nowadays, there are more and more places to spend money in Shandong, although because of the rise of industry, the industrial and commercial tax has doubled, but the launch of various undertakings, money is needed everywhere. Even before receiving the telegram from the Ministry of War, Long Qian discussed with himself the establishment of a securities company. is planning to list ZTE Industrial. For this. Yang Shixiang specially sent people to Shanghai to learn about the stock exchange, which is said to be a good way to make money.

Yang Shixiang tasted great happiness and satisfaction from the construction, which he rarely experienced before coming to Shandong. Now the elders of Shandong praise themselves, and the officials evaluate their performance every year. "That's fine. But. Lord Xu still has to leave a note for the official. ”

As soon as this sentence came out. Xu Shichang's heart was cold, Yuan Weiting's judgment was good, this Yang Lian Mansion really betrayed Beiyang!

"Notes? Could it be that Lord Yang still can't trust this official? ”

"That's fine. Yang obeyed the order. Of course, Yang Shixiang saw Xu Shichang's dissatisfaction, but he didn't care. Previously, his younger brother Yang Shiqi had written to reproach him for some of his practices, but Yang Shixiang felt that estrangement from Yuan Shikai Group was not necessarily a bad thing, especially for the Yang family. Long Qian once said a meaningful and meaningful sentence: it is better not to put eggs in one basket. Yuan Shikai's position is being challenged like never before, and he has heard a lot of news about Tie Liang's attack on Yuan Shikai, part of which was given to him by Long Qian, and it is estimated that the old guy Yiqiao revealed it to Long Qian. Deliberately distancing yourself from the Yuen Group is not necessarily a bad choice.

"The arrears are over, what else does Admiral Long want?" Xu Shichang asked again.

"Lord Xu, the imperial court only gives a fee of 500,000 yuan, it's too little, and it's hard to obey your fate. Lord Xu, you are a soldier who knows the soldiers, and raising soldiers is not just about paying. This food, clothing, shelter, transportation, guns and ammunition, which is not money? More than 10,000 soldiers and horses traveled thousands of miles to the south, and how much did it cost millions? ”

Xu Shichang raised his hand to stop Long Qian, "Long Commander, you said that 500,000 is not enough, how much do you want?" ”

"At least 5 million!" Long Qian stretched out his palm and shook it in front of Xu Shichang.

"This is simply knocking on the bamboo pole of the imperial court!" Xu Shichang was furious, "Long Qian, are you worthy of the Queen Mother's trust in you by doing this?" In a town in Beiyang, the monthly fee is less than 200,000 taels, and you want 5 million! ”

"Lord Xu, did the 200,000 taels you mentioned include the cost of weapons and equipment? Does it include the cost of live-fire training for officers and soldiers? If the fifth town is stationed in Shandong and does not move, it will not do anything, and it will not even be able to use 200,000! But this is to go to war! Do you want to buy ammo? As I just said, Lord Xu is a person who knows the soldiers, could it be that the army is far away, and the cost can be calculated at home? Do you want to hire a civilian vehicle? Besides, the officers and soldiers are fighting with the bandits, and death and injury are inevitable, do you want to be compassionate and settled? Lord Xu, this time the Fifth Town is on the expedition, and the court judges that it will take a few months? Lord Xu, everything is about 'fairness', and if there is injustice, there is a sound, and everything is the same. Since the imperial court used the fifth town to quell the rebellion, it is that it believes that the fifth town is the imperial court's armed forces, which can be formed from the fifth town, and how can it be treated equally with the rest of the towns in Beiyang? If the imperial court thinks that Long Qian is inconsiderate of the financial difficulties, it can cancel the order and send other towns to Tainan instead. Maybe you won't even be able to use 500,000! ”

"You! The holy decree has been given, how can it be changed at dawn? The Fifth Town will also have to send troops, and it will have to be done without troops! Xu Shichang was furious.

"Why should Lord Xu be angry? All right. Since this is the case, Long Qian forced his troops to send troops. However, due to the lack of military spending, it is probably inevitable that the seizure of local areas will occur. This is an excerpt to the Queen Mother, and all expenses must be borne along the way. In order to prove that Long Qian's subordinates did not falsely report military expenses, didn't Lord Xu bring an entourage? Let them follow the Fifth Town south to be the overseers. ”

Having said this, Yang Shixiang couldn't be silent anymore, "Retreat and calm down!" Otherwise, the province will raise another 1 million taels for military use. However, in the future, the imperial court will also have to offset this military expenditure. ”

Without waiting for Xu Shichang to express his position, Long Qian immediately pushed back, "1 million is not enough!" Raise at least another 2 million! This is based on a three-month counterinsurgency, and if it drags on for a long time, the cost will need to be increased. ”

Xu Shichang brought 1 million silver with him when he left Beijing, and he opened 500,000 yuan to bargain, but he didn't expect Long Qian to be so difficult. It is not possible to reassign other troops, and it is impossible to avoid Long Qian, if he provokes a military mutiny, he will definitely be unlucky, the imperial court is deeply worried about the chaos in Hunan and Jiangxi, and it is his mission to send the fifth town out, not to mention that there are other chaos, even if it has been delayed for a long time, he can't take responsibility. He turned his face to pretend to admire the calligraphy and painting on the wall, and tried to restrain his anger, "That's it. It's up to you to ask for it. I brought 1 million, and the rest was supplemented by Shandong. On the side of the court, I made it clear as it was. ”

"That's good. The lower officials are also for the peace of the place and the livelihood of the department. Yang Gong. There are these 1 million in hand. I'll send troops first. How much is missing. I'll contact you again. ”

Finally agreed on the conditions for sending troops, Xu Shichang calmed down for a while, "Since that's the case." When does the dragon domination send troops? ”

"Tomorrow! The Striker's Ninth Association will be able to depart tomorrow. ”

This is still like words, Xu Shichang calmed down a lot. Long Qian said to Ouyang Zhong, "Map." ”

Ouyang Zhong immediately took out a map from the cabinet and hung it on the wall.

"Lord Xu, you must know the latest situation in Hunan and Jiangxi, and I hope to tell you about it."

This is a reasonable request and a positive attitude, Xu Shichang put aside his unhappiness and got up to stare at the wall on the wall, which was a national map showing the main states and counties.

"The anti-cowards are still concentrated in the triangle of Liuyang, Pingxiang and Liling, but their main forces seem to have entered Jiangxi, and the exact news is that Shangli Town has been occupied. The latest telegram said that about a group of bandits was moving towards Pingxiang......" Xu Shichang said, pointing to the map.

"What about the deployment of officers and troops?"

"Wu Chongxi, the governor of Jiangxi, and Cen Chunbei, the governor of Hunan, have mobilized the patrol battalion of their own province to attack, but the team is moving slowly, and the military department has already reprimanded the two provinces by order. The Hubei New Army, which had participated in the Zhangde Autumn Exercise, had already returned to Wuchang, and Zhang Biao commanded part of the troops of the Eighth Town to march towards Changsha, because the anti-Kou shouted the slogan of defeating Changsha, and the situation in Changsha was unstable and could not be lost. The Ministry of War asked your troops to penetrate directly into Jiangxi and intercept the rebels from the east. Compared with Hunan, Jiangxi's troops are even weaker, and the miners in the Pingxiang area have been instigated by the bandits, and there are already signs of instability. ”

Yang Shixiang sneered in his heart, Shandong is thousands of miles away from Jiangxi, and it will take a month for the rapid march of troops to reach the battlefield. If the rebels are strong, where can they wait for the Shandong soldiers? It seems to be nothing more than an excuse. Long Qian has this attitude again this time, and his future is worrying. This gave him a chance to get the patrol in his hands......

"Understood. Please rest assured. Fifth, calm lives up to the high expectations of the imperial court. Long Qian said.

The dispatch of troops was thus agreed. Xu Shichang left, and he had to discuss other matters with his entourage. Long Qian hurriedly recruited the main backbones who stayed in Shandong to hold a secret meeting, and he changed his mind again and decided to leave Fang Shengyuan behind.

Attending the meeting were Fang Shengyuan, Chen Chao, Ning Shijun, Ye Yanbing, Song Jinguo, Jiang Yun and Wu Nian.

"The seven of you form the Shandong Military and Political Committee, with Fang Shengyuan as the director, Ning Shijun and Chen Chao as the deputy directors, and the rest as members, to coordinate and handle the military and political affairs of Shandong." Long Qian looked at the seven people, "Mr. Fang is the main leader in government affairs, and Shi Jun is the leader in military affairs. Major military and political matters are involved, and the consent of more than half of the committee is required before implementation. We will not interfere in the normal government affairs of the government, but the army must be firmly in our hands and no one else will be allowed to get involved. The rest of the business such as Huayuan and ZTE should be firmly grasped in their hands, Zhou Xuexi and Zhang Lianfen can be relied on, Xu Jianyin has been very sick recently, I want to take time to see him. A group of officials, including Bai Ruifeng and Wu Yong, are inclined to our Mengshan Army, so we should not easily doubt and exclude them. You must know that in the face of this unprecedented change, everyone is facing a new side, and the more prosperous our cause is, the more they will be separated from the imperial court. It's Yang Shixiang, this time the attitude in dealing with the Qin Cha is still biased towards us, so we must unite and win over this group of people. Mr. Fang has to worry about this matter. As for officials, we must engage in all corners of the world, and do not draw the ground as a prison. Mr. Yue Zhi, the work of rural self-government must not be interrupted and will continue to be carried out steadily. In addition, in terms of finance, you have to consider it as a whole, Jin Guo, and the payment of large amounts of expenses must be signed and approved by Fang and Chen. Do you understand? ”

"Understood. Rest assured, Commander. Song Jinguo replied solemnly.

"In this southern expedition, it may be difficult for the main force of our Mengshan Army to return to Shandong in a few years, so you shoulder the important task of consolidating and developing the Shandong base area, and do not slack off! Don't let me have nothing to do! ”

"Please rest assured, we will definitely live up to the trust of the handsome." Fang Shengyuan was in a stirring mood and said in a trembling voice.

"Shi Jun, Yan Bing, don't care about the face of the government, let go of the expansion and development of the army, train the troops well, and build the left-behind troops in Shandong into elite soldiers whose combat strength is not inferior to the main force. Military matters are left to the two of you. In case of an unforeseen eventuality, we must deal with it calmly, adopt various strategies to break through, concentrate the main force to fight a war of annihilation, let him come a few ways, I will only go all the way, and I must not divide my troops to resist. Just knock him out one or two ways, and the situation will change in your favor. In addition, in case the end of the war starts, as long as you hold out for a month, the main force will definitely return to Shandong. ”

"Please rest assured, Commander, we will guard the Commander's hometown and wait for the Commander to return." Ning Shijun and Ye Yanbing replied in unison.

"Jiang Yun, the intelligence and counter-intelligence work will be handed over to you, and you must prepare for the worst. If necessary, it can be dealt with categorically, and after I leave, it will be very different from me, and the forces of all parties will definitely move stupidly and try to get involved in Shandong. Especially Beiyang and the Alliance, you must be careful. Consult the committee for instructions on major affairs, and make decisions on general matters immediately, don't drag the mud and water, and let small changes cause big disasters. ”

"Yes." Jiang Yun is as concise and crisp as ever, and cherishes words like gold.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the world will be in turmoil. We must seize every opportunity, take advantage of the momentum, and work together to lay the foundation for the great cause of our Mengshan army! (To be continued......)