Chapter 60: The Last Decision of the Great Qing Dynasty

  Haha......

  The laughter in the combat conference room was like a tidal wave, and Xiao An'guo even wiped away tears from his eyes, saying: "Commander, your hand is really amazing! In the blink of an eye, we became the right-wing army of national defense, and took advantage of the situation to put Li Xie Tong on the throne of Hubei governor. Isn't this making them embarrassed?"

  "What can be done about it?" Zhang Wenjing said with a smile: "Tens of thousands of notices have been posted all over the streets, and now everyone in Yangxia knows that Li Xie has taken office as the governor of Hubei, and Commander has taken office as the commander-in-chief of the Right Route Army. If they have the ability, let them come and tear them down."

  " Wen Jing, isn't this making things difficult for me? Even if we tear them down, what can be done about it? I've already ordered people to post several at the concession gate, and foreigners all know about it. Moreover, Wenwen and Wang Guangxiong have sent out a national telegram, and the names of Commander-in-Chief and our Right Route Army will surely spread throughout the country within two days."

  "Zi'an, you......" Zhang Wenjing gasped: "Too bad!"

  Song Ziqing attended this kind of meeting for the first time and didn't dare to be presumptuous, but he really admired Yang Qiu's move. Because everyone was very clear that with his previous reputation and current connections and prestige, he absolutely couldn't rush to the front. So everyone had been worried about the name and status of this new-born army. But now it's good, before the other side has reacted, this side has already settled its own name and position, and by issuing a notice to pacify the people and sending out a national telegram, they even dragged in the name of Director Li, so unless the other side comes up with something strong, they can only swallow their pride.

  But will it work? Not to mention that the naval camp is still in Jiangli, with red eyes preparing to make a name for itself as a pioneer, just the chaotic situation within Wuchang City where the dragons are without a leader, it's feared that it will take several more days to settle down, by then the whole country would have known about it, and the Nationalist Party will have to weigh the consequences of slaughtering revolutionary heroes again!

  The northern army is coming, and the elite Beiyang troops will definitely be deployed. Yang Qiu's purchase of so many machine guns has clearly exceeded defensive needs, so he must have thought it out long ago to fight a good battle! As long as they can make a name for themselves in this war and forge an iron army, then... where can't they go?

  "Send someone to cross the river." Yang Qiu raised his hand for everyone to immediately quiet down and said: "Tell them, Zhang Biao is entrenched in Liujiatang, seriously threatening Hankou. Our army's military equipment is severely insufficient, there is no military funding, and not enough soldiers either. They can't just watch as Hankou falls again, can they?"

  Song Ziqing smiled: "The commander is right, but they will definitely not believe us so easily, so we need someone who dares to speak up and cannot be controlled by them."

  "Still need to calm down, mix a bit, mouth bigger, voice louder!" Zhang Wenjing said, but he himself first patted his head and laughed: "Look at me, how did I think of Commander's treasured rolled pork?"

  The crowd burst into laughter again, and even Yang Qiu was amused. After taking a deep breath to calm down, he said calmly: "Let Shao Big Brother and Wen Jing handle the communication with the other side. Also, select a few people to take charge of customs and police affairs. We can't rely on Hu Rui Lin and his men for these two matters. Once the Wuchang affair is settled, I estimate we will be given the name of a military government branch. Therefore, some things must start to be organized now, and our top priority is still to take down Zhang Biao as soon as possible!"

  "I sent someone to disguise themselves as a railway worker and scout ahead." Everyone became serious when it came to the main topic, and Yue Peng spread out the map on the table, pointing and saying: "The remnants of Zhang Biao's troops that are holed up in Liujiatun number over a thousand, mostly from the city garrison, Ma Biao and his personal guards, as well as some people from the 29th battalion. Due to their hasty retreat, they lack military equipment, and the soldiers who returned said they only saw 5 large cannons and 2 machine guns."

  Liu's temple is less than 10 kilometers away from the northernmost Japanese concession in Hankou. The terrain outside the train station is open and flat, but inside it's winding roads, with railway workers' dormitories and warehouses on both sides, and several trains parked at the railway bureau. Machine guns can't shoot into the blind spots, and Zhang Biao has also seized the trains, probably thinking of escaping in the chaos if they're defeated. So I think we should first prevent them from escaping. I've already ordered people to dig up a section of track to cut off their retreat, shake their morale, and wait for the right moment to strike. Then we can use our numerical superiority to attack from three sides, leaving only the side near the river open.

  "Sneaky, you're too sneaky......" Zhang Wenjing and Yue Peng were the most familiar with each other, patted him encouragingly: "Are you planning to let Wang Guangxiong's naval camp wait there, and when he feels safe, all cannons will fire?"

  Yue Peng smiled silently, raised his head to look at Yang Qiu, but found that he seemed to be looking along the Beijing-Hankou Railway towards the north, which made his eyebrows jump violently! Could it be that he wanted to go north and fight a field battle with the Beiyang?! Relying on the defense of Hankou might still have a glimmer of hope for victory, but fighting against the Beiyang who were accustomed to outdoor battles would allow them to fully exploit their artillery advantage... which was no different from seeking death!

  He didn't guess wrong, Yang Qiu indeed wanted to take a gamble, but after weighing the pros and cons, he sighed: "Zi'an, Zi'qing. You two should be the best officers in our Right Route Army. I ask you, if we face the Beiyang's two divisions, three mixed brigades, and Sa's naval fleet, how long can you hold out?"

  "Two towns, three cooperatives and an additional water conservancy!"

  Yang Qiu didn't notice that everyone's face had turned pale, to be honest if it wasn't for his foresight, probably anyone in this era, even the best of the Hubei New Army, would have changed color upon hearing these names. Earlier he was thinking about whether he could make a bold move and strike first, but after struggling with the idea he gave up, with so few men it would be suicidal to engage in a battle against the Beiyang Army, let alone that the situation in Wuchang was still unclear. For now, the only thing he could utilize was his familiarity with the complex southern city alleys, after all, street fighting was a difficult problem even for later generations.

  "Commander, forgive me for speaking bluntly, but the Beiyang warlord is unmatched in the country, so unless we rely on Hankou to exhaust his energy and seek survival in the midst of death, I can't think of a second way!" Although he didn't know why he would say this, Yue Feng immediately spoke out his thoughts without hesitation.

  "Yes." Yang Qiu sighed and muttered to himself: "If I had a year's time, what would I be afraid of the Beiyang?"

  Song Ziqing, with sharp ears, heard this sentence and slightly raised his eyebrows, finding that the atmosphere in the conference room had become somewhat heavy. He smiled and said: "We'll come up with a plan to deal with Zhang Biao first at tomorrow morning's meeting! Who knows, maybe after a big attack, Zai Yu won't dare to show up!"

  The crowd's laughter made Yang Qiu realize that he was a bit out of place, and with gratitude, he glanced at Song Ziqing and smiled: "As the saying goes, it's easy to get an army of thousands, but hard to find a good general. Getting your help is a blessing for the three towns."

  "Commander is overpraising." Seeing the atmosphere ease up a bit, Xiao Anguo hastily changed the subject and said: "Commander, what do you think of Colonel Yue's plan?"

  "It's going to be like this!" Yang Qiu's large hand pressed heavily onto Liu Jiamiao.

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  Inside the Xiyuan Gate of the Forbidden City, Little Yellow Gate looked up at the starry sky and glanced at the still brightly lit Grand Council, oh no, it's called the Cabinet now, and let out another yawn.

  From noon till now, people have been coming and going without stopping, each with a solemn expression. Now that it's almost midnight, shouldn't there be no one left? Xiao Huangmen was just about to slip away to find a place to take a nap when a crisp and powerful footsteps came from outside. After seeing the newcomer clearly, he quickly knelt down: "Baili Ye, congratulations."

  Zaitao didn't have the heart to reason with a small yellow gate, and he casually threw the whip in his hand to Liang Biyu and Li Jingmai, who had returned from Yongping overnight, and strode into the Neige. As soon as he entered the door, he saw Prince Regent Zaiyi, Shanqi, and Yüwei discussing in a low voice, even Minister of the Navy Zaiyong was also gathered on the side, and hurriedly said: "How is it? How is Wuchang?"

  Zai Tao, although young, was a minister of the Military Consultation Department, which is equivalent to the General Staff Department in European countries. He led the mobilization of troops across the country and had great power, so everyone saw him hastily stand up to greet him. However, he did not like these tedious formalities and did not even want to greet them, and asked again: "I heard that E Jun's army rebelled, is this true? This Rui Cheng is really despicable!"

  Zai Xun hastily pulled him once: "It's a telegram sent by Zhang Biao, the commander of the Hubei Army. He said that Wuchang has been occupied by the rebels and Rui Ceng's life or death is unknown. There are also people causing trouble in Hankou and Hanyang."

  "Where is Zhang Biao?"

  "Zhang Biao has retreated to Liujiatun, seized the train station and is waiting for reinforcements."

  Although Zai Tao is not a decent person in peacetime, he has some small talent in military affairs. As soon as he heard that Zhang Biao had captured the Liujiatun Railway Station in Hankou, he nodded and said: "This guy still has some foresight, but the elite of the Hubei Army are not ordinary, there must be a bloody battle, who will lead the troops to go?"

  "A decision has been made and Yin Chang has been ordered to lead troops to Hubei to suppress the bandits, but the mobilization of those troops is still being considered."

  "Yin Chang?!" Zai Tao snorted in his nose, full of disdain. But he couldn't intervene in this matter, and it also involved that person from Henan. It wasn't easy to let the tiger out of the mountain. Just hearing that these old men were still deliberating on sending troops, Zai Tao stomped his foot in anger: "Just pull out the Beiyang Sixth Division, I don't believe little Wuchang can withstand it."

  Shan Qi had always disliked Zai Tao's frivolity, but this time the disturbance was not trivial. The Hubei Army was the second largest new army in the country after the Beiyang Army, and it was a matter of great importance. After coughing twice, he said: "The six divisions of the Beiyang Army and the Imperial Guard need to defend the capital, how can they all be pulled out? This matter still needs to be carefully considered."

  When he saw Shan Qi speaking, Zai Tao dared not say much, only saying: "Don't worry about how to deliberate, at this moment a large army must be dispatched immediately along the railway to support Zhang Biao. If Liujiatun Railway Station is lost, even if Yin Chang arrives, it will take more time and effort."

  "Wait for Taotao, I have ordered Sa Zhenbing to lead the naval forces from Shanghai and set off. At most five days later, they will arrive in Wuchang."

  Zai Xun had just finished speaking, when Zai Tao said: "Having only a naval force is not enough. We should order the Henan governor Bao Fen to dispatch the 52nd Brigade from nearby Xinyang to Hankou. The 52nd Brigade is currently in Xinyang, not far away. They will join forces with Zhang Biao at Liujiatun Station and immediately attack Hankou. As long as we capture Hankou, once our main force arrives, Hanyang and Wuchang will be nothing to worry about."

  "Haha...... After all, Zaitao's brain is useful. In my opinion, this can make those rebels know the imperial court's determination to conquer, shake their military morale, and also gain time for mobilizing other troops." Shan Qi stroked his imperial beads and asked: "How about the Yongping side?"

  "I have ordered a temporary halt to autumn maneuvers, all troops are standing by in their original positions, and the Second Garrison is also ready and packing up to head south."

  Upon hearing Zai Tao's words, Shan Qi nodded and picked up the list of troops from each town. After careful consideration for a moment, he said: "The Second Town cannot be moved. The tens of thousands of troops in Yongping are mixed together like fish and dragons, and at this time of multiple troubles, we still need to guard against them. I think it's better to dispatch the First Town, Fourth Town, and Fifth Town as the main force, and also dispatch the 3rd and 11th Mixed Brigades to follow. Order the 52nd Banner to be the vanguard and quickly support Zhang Biao. What do you all think... is this feasible?"

  "Deploying troops is not a problem, and Yun Chang commanding the army is also not a problem. But the candidate for the commander of these three armies...". Yu Wei swept his eyes across the crowd, and everyone knew what he meant. These three towns are all directly under the command of that "patient" in Henan. Will this external deployment be...

  "Alright, let Rongchang lead the 4th Division, Mixed Brigade 3 and Brigade 11 as the central army, let Feng Guozhang lead the 5th Division as the second army, and I will personally lead the 1st Division of the Imperial Guard to garrison Beijing!" Zaotao was an impatient person and didn't like these old men's dilly-dallying, so he decided to take matters into his own hands. Regent Zaifeng was originally a careless person, thinking that Rongchang and Zaotao were both his own people, and Feng Guozhang was also one of the more obedient ones in the Beiyang Army, so he agreed to this plan.

  In the face of Hubei's sudden "rebellion", this time the Qing dynasty's response was extremely swift. From receiving the news to the next morning when the sky was still dim, Zaifeng, who had stayed up all night, had already stamped the imperial seal on the mobilization order, but at that moment he himself did not know that this swift suppression would be the last decisive action of this central empire which had lasted for over two hundred years.

  However, Puyi, the emperor who should have been the highest decision-maker in this country, was still sleeping sweetly in his nanny's arms and did not know that his kingdom had already shaken violently, nor did he even know what happened when the war opened its curtain.