Although the appointments of Yuan Shikai and Sun Yuanqi were announced at the same time, it is obvious that Yuan Shikai has been reported for a long time. No pop-up window update fast // telegram to Yuan Shikai, in addition to this letter of appointment of "go to office quickly" and "don't come to Beijing to see Your Majesty", there is an additional one:

"Another edict: Yuan Shikai is now appointed as the governor of Huguang, and all the troops of the province and the reinforcements from all walks of life are under the control and dispatch of the governor. Yin Chang and Sa Zhenbing led the land and water armies, and Yuan Shikai was dispatched together. Hurry to the incident in order to make a decision as soon as possible. ”

It means that the Hubei army and various reinforcements, Yuan Shikai can be mobilized at will; But the Beiyang Army in the hands of Yin Chang and the sailors in the hands of Sa Zhenbing, if Yuan Shikai wants to be dispatched, he can only discuss with Yin Chang and Sa Zhenbing. In the final analysis, the Beiyang Army is still in the hands of Yin Chang, and Yuan Shikai can only serve as Yin Chang's deputy. In this way, if Yuan Shikai takes over as the governor of Huguang, how many teams can he have?

Before breaking fingers, we must first understand the military establishment at the end of the Qing Dynasty. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, the new army units from small to large were:

Shed, a shed of 12 people, similar to the class of later generations.

Platoon, a row of three sheds.

team, a team of three platoons, similar to the company of later generations.

Battalion, one battalion and four teams.

Standard, one standard and three battalions, similar to the regiments of later generations.

Association, one association and two standards, similar to the brigade of later generations.

Town, one town and two associations, similar to the division of later generations.

Army, one army and two towns.

The four branches of infantry, artillery, engineering, and baggage are all in this kind of establishment, with the exception of the horse army, which is a company with two platoons and a row with two sheds.

In the actual compilation. A mixed association includes the 2nd Infantry Battalion, the 1st Artillery Battalion, the 1st Horse Battalion, the 1st Engineering Battalion, and the 1st Baggage Brigade. The total number of people is around 4,200. One town includes the 2nd Infantry Battalion, the 1st Artillery Battalion, the 1st Horse Army, the 1st Engineering Battalion, the 1st Baggage Battalion, as well as the Military Police Battalion and the Instructor Battalion, with a total number of about 11,800 people.

At the end of the Qing Dynasty, the national army was organized into 16 towns and 18 mixed associations, of which the equipment and training were the best in Yuan Shikai's six towns in Beiyang, which were all over Zhili, Shandong and Northeast China. As one of the two birthplaces of the New Army in the late Qing Dynasty, Hubei was stationed in the Eighth Town and the 21st Mixed Association, with a number of about 16,000 people.

On the eve of the Xinhai Revolution, Duan Fang entered Sichuan and took away a Xie; In addition, there are about 4,000 people stationed in various parts of the province. At the time of the uprising. Only about 8,000 people remained in and around Wuchang City, and half of them participated in the uprising. In the aftermath of the uprising, many soldiers loyal to the Qing Dynasty must have been killed or fled. The day before, Zhang Biao, the commander of the Eighth Town, packed up the remnants of his army and attacked Wuhan. Defeated and returned, there were many losses. The number of troops now in the hands of the Governor of Huguang is no more than 3,000 at most.

Let's talk about Hubei's reinforcements.

Hubei borders Henan, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan, Sichuan, and Shaanxi provinces. So the 17th Town of the Army and the 33rd Mixed Association stationed in Sichuan were widows and dead sons - there was no hope. The 39th Mixed Association stationed in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, was incorporated into the Second Army as a backup by the imperial court, and it was regarded as a famous flower.

Now the only ones that can be counted on are the 25th Mixed Association stationed in Changsha, Hunan, the 27th Mixed Association stationed in Nanchang, Jiangxi, the 29th Mixed Association stationed in Kaifeng, Henan, and the 31st Mixed Association stationed in Anqing, Anhui. These four mixed associations add up to 16,000 people at most, and each province can not leave any troops just in case? If they can send half of their military strength, Yuan Shikai can steal the fun. Even so. What is the quality of these reinforcements? What about armament? When will it arrive? Can you listen to the command? It's all a matter of scratching your head.

According to the latest news, the Wuchang rebels have been organized into four associations in advance. With this rabble at hand, how can you defeat them? Yuan Shikai didn't have any success in his heart.

After the outbreak of the Wuchang Uprising, the imperial court was organized into three armies, each of which was more than 20,000 people: the first army was formed by the fourth town, the third mixed association, and the eleventh mixed association, and Yin Chang led the south; The Fifth Town, the Fifth Mixed Association, and the Thirty-ninth Mixed Association formed the Second Army, which was commanded by Feng Guozhang and waited for dispatch; The Third Army was formed with the First Town and the Praetorian Guard, and Jaetao led the Gongwei Gyeonggi.

In Yuan Shikai's view, the Third Army was protected by the Manchus, and the Second Army was in the middle and waited. And the First Army was a knife against his waist. He led a rabble of less than 10,000 people to attack Wuhan, and was defeated, and the political enemies of the DPRK and China had just the opportunity to get rid of him, and the First Army could reap the benefits of the fisherman; Victorious, under the coercion of the army. It's hard to do much on his own, at most it's just a matter of taking a shot from the fire for the court. The future of his own fate is still unpredictable.

In such a dilemma, what should Yuan Shikai do? Refuse the olive branch extended by the imperial court and continue to hide in Huanshang Village for the elderly? No! He didn't want to, and he didn't dare.

In Yuan Shikai's heart, he still wants to do an earth-shattering career, instead of being a rich man in the countryside. Now the disturbance in Wuhan is his best chance to recover. If he refused, he might be in the hands of the Qing court. The imperial court can not only use this excuse to blame the government and the opposition for the revival of Yuan Shikai's voice, but also relieve the pressure exerted by various countries on this.

Therefore, after the imperial court sent Ruan Zhongshu to send an edict, Yuan Shikai's staff drafted a letter of gratitude according to his wishes, borrowed the big seal of the prefect of Zhangde to stamp it, and then sent it to Beijing. The text reads:

Under the order, I was ashamed. Fu Nian received the grace of the country, and he was ashamed to report it. My emperor's heir should be treasured, and he will be blessed with grace and honor. In vain to recuperate in the village, he failed to repay the service and drove away, read the edict, and increased his gratitude. At this time of difficulty, it is necessary to abide by the decree and go to the opportunity quickly. However, the minister was suffering from foot disease and has not yet recovered. Last winter, he took his left arm again, and he was in severe pain. This coefficient is a chronic illness for many years, and it is urgent to hope for a cure. However, although the gas has declined, the spirit has not yet fainted. Near-inbred autumn cold, phlegm and asthma for fever, dizziness and palpitations, trance. Although it is not possible to heal overnight, it is a symptom that it is easier to treat the old disease. Now that the military is urgent, how dare you ask for a reward, but the difficult situation is really difficult to support. The medical treatment has been postponed and the treatment has been accelerated, while preparing for the arrangement, as soon as it can be supported, that is, when the disease is in the way, by answering the high and generous Hongci in case of emergency.

In the middle of the recital. Yuan Shikai did not forget the old hatred. made Zaifeng and others sarcastic. When you tried to drive me home, didn't you say I had a foot disease? Now when the country is in trouble, why don't you mention my foot disease? I, Yuan, am not a person who comes and goes as soon as I am called, and is driven by you at will! Want to use me? I haven't recovered from my foot disease yet, so you can wait slowly.

But Yuan Shikai didn't dare to go too far, in case he provoked Zaifeng, that stunned Qing really dared to hide him completely. To put it mildly, among the 16 towns and 18 mixed formations of the army across the country, can't you find a general who can counter the rebellion? Could it be that without you Yuan Butcher, 40,000,000 people in the Qing Dynasty would have to eat even hairy pigs? Therefore, Yuan Shikai neither dared to refuse nor ask for leave in the excerpt. On the contrary, it has been repeatedly stated that my illness is not serious, and I also want to go out to work. As for why he didn't go out to work immediately? You know why.

Yuan Shikai is a hemp rod to beat a wolf - two are afraid, coincidentally, the court is also afraid of wolves and tigers: I am afraid that Yuan Shikai will not come out. caused the Wuhan rebels to sit big and go north to fight for the world; I was afraid that Yuan Shikai would come out, follow the example of Cao Cao and Sima Yi, and seek power and usurp the throne. In this case, there is room for both parties to bargain.

During the two discussions, Yuan Shikai did not wait passively, but actively fought for power, such as suggesting to the Qing court to treat the rebels seriously and fight steadily. Don't rush in, in order to gain Zaifeng's favor; Another example is to ask the imperial court to allocate four million taels of military expenses so that he can recruit troops and expand the number of troops in his hands; Another example is to use henchmen who have been vacant or dismissed, such as Wang Shizhen, Zhang Xiluan, Ni Sichong, Yuan Naikuan and others, to plump up their wings.

Compared with Yuan Shikai's calmness when he received the order, Sun Yuanqi's performance was much inferior. Because there was no news at all before the edict was issued, after Sun Yuanqi heard it, he was stunned and uncertain, and even wondered if the person who read the edict had made a mistake.

But how could the person who read it be mistaken? In addition to "temporarily acting as the governor of Sichuan." In addition to the letter of appointment, there is also a letter of authorization that "all the troops of the province and all kinds of reinforcements shall be dispatched by the governor", on which Sun Yuanqi's name is clearly written.

When Sun Yuanqi brought the two edicts to the study, Yang Du, Yang Yongtai and other staff members were also caught off guard. The assumptions and plans they had made before were almost all nullified at this moment, and they needed to be reversed.

By the time they have passed it on, it will be over. Sun Yuanqi scratched his head depressedly: "Huizi, Changqing, what do you think is going on?" There was no movement before, why did you suddenly let me go to Sichuan to be the acting governor? ”

Yang Du had already thrown the folding fan aside, held his head and thought: "As a cabinet minister, you have not heard any movement before, which fully shows that these two edicts are from the regent's dictatorship. The key is that it and Yuan Xiangcheng's appointment as the governor of Huguang are at the front and back, and your appointment is only 'temporary', which is a big article. ”

Sun Yuanqi said: "Regardless of whether there is an article in it, first of all, I want to ask a question: Can this errand be pushed off?" As you all know, I have been going around in the academic world, although I have been in the officialdom for so long, but I have never even done the prefect of the county or the prefect, how can I be the governor? And looking at the meaning of these two edicts, it is necessary to control the army and be responsible for supervising matters. I'm a halfway monk in officialdom, and I don't know anything about military affairs, what does this governor do? ”

Yang Yongtai shook his head: "Since it is the regent's Qiangang who is arbitrary, and there are two edicts in a row, urging you to go to the post quickly, I am afraid that you will not be able to push it off, unless you are ready to open a vacancy and return home." ”

Yuan Shikai was able to bargain with the imperial court, and that was because he was strong and had capital in his hands. Sun Yuanqi is alone, and there is no room for resistance at all. So in addition to acceptance, there is only resignation.

"Sitting at home behind closed doors, disaster comes from heaven", this time Sun Yuanqi was completely depressed.

Yang Du suddenly said for a long time: "Actually, Baixi, it is not a good thing for you to be the governor once. ”

"Where's the good thing?" Sun Yuanqi said sullenly.

Yang Du said: "When the adult entered the office, he served as the doctor of the Guozijian Doctor's Hall, and later served as the bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, the right waiter of the school, the envoy of Hubei University, the left waiter of the school, and the secretary of the school, until he entered the cabinet. In terms of promotion speed, it can be said that the clouds have risen straight up, and there is no stumbling; As you just said, I have been going around in the academic circles, not to mention that the chief officials in charge of civil affairs such as the county, the prefect, and the governor have never done it, and they have not even experienced the six departments of officials, households, rites, soldiers, criminals, and workers. How can you speak up in the cabinet? This time, the acting governor, as the highest military and political chief of the locality, is in charge of military and civilian affairs, commanding civil and military affairs, and assessing officials. ”

Speaking of which, Yang Du was also a little eager to try. As a staff member of the governor's staff, he can have access to the military and civilian affairs of the province, which is obviously much more interesting than dealing with the trivial matters of the school.

Sun Yuanqi said weakly: "I would rather stay in the school department for the rest of my life. ”

"If you don't become this governor, you won't be able to stay in the school department!" Yang Du spoke mercilessly.

Sun Yuanqi was a little annoyed: "Then you won't go to Sichuan, right?" Who doesn't know that Sichuan has become a mess now? ”

A lot of the information sent by the Far East Broadcasting Group was about Sichuan, and the staff members were well aware of the chaos in Sichuan, and when they heard Sun Yuanqi talk about it, they were all concerned.

Liu Shipei said at this time: "Adults have a good reputation among young students, and when you arrive in Sichuan, you might as well appease them first." As long as the young students are dismantled, the situation will inevitably be completely new. Sichuan itself has a total of 16,000 troops in the 17th Town of the Army and the 33rd Mixed Association, and a total of 4,000 troops from Hubei and Hubei with two standards in Sichuan. ”

Sun Yuanqi glanced at Liu Shipei: "Uncle Shen, the most terrible thing in the world is not that there are wolves outside the broken sheepfold, but that the wolves are inside the solid sheepfold. Hubei is a lesson from the past! ”

That's true. In real history, Zhao Erfeng, the last governor of Sichuan, was captured by Yin Changheng, the general office of the Sichuan Army Primary School, and beheaded in Mingyuan Building, Chengdu.

- Fortunately, Sun Yuanqi didn't know this historical fact, otherwise he wouldn't have agreed to go to Sichuan if he was killed. Since he didn't know, he was not so reluctant to serve as the governor of Sichuan. (To be continued.) )