Chapter Twenty-Six: Electric Conduction

  The sound of gunfire on the south bank became less frequent, but soon intensified again. The cannons on the artillery platform thundered, but no shells flew to the north bank again. As for the revolutionary army's artillery on the north bank, they had already stopped firing to avoid unnecessary casualties.

  "It seems that the assault team has taken down the Golden Rooster Slope artillery. Alas, I'm afraid the second echelon won't get a share of the credit." Yang Wangpeng said with some melancholy, as he was only able to stand here and watch others achieve merit while leading the second echelon, whereas Wu Zhenhan, the commander of the first echelon, had led the assault team in crossing the Yangtze River.

  Yang Wangpeng did not know, of course, that this was Zhao Bei's deliberate arrangement. The Jiujiang Battle was the first head-on battle after the uprising, and the chances of winning were great. This opportunity to establish merit would naturally be left to his own direct line, as for Yang Wangpeng and those people from the Qunchu Xueshe, Zhao Bei had always been somewhat distrustful. After all, it was a small group, and its relationship with the Tongmenghui was too close. The "mountain topism" tendency had been exposed in these few days, which was clearly not conducive to Zhao Bei's digestion of this army.

  "Zi Lun, don't be jealous, there are still battles to be fought in the future, and your second team will still have opportunities to make achievements." Zhao Bei smiled at Yang Wangpeng, but in his heart, he was thinking about how to disperse the Qunzhi Xueshe or take control of its leadership with people he trusted. Everyone has weaknesses, and the people of Qunzhi Xueshe are no exception. As long as you find their weaknesses, you can divide this organization.

  Now Zhao Bei and the Qunzhixueshe have a common enemy, if this enemy falls, then perhaps it is their time to split. The Qunzhixueshe tends towards Tongmenghui theory, but history has proven that road does not work, so a split may be inevitable. Zhao Bei will not allow himself to be at a disadvantage in this struggle for control, and even less will he allow others to usurp the leadership of this army; if necessary, he will absolutely not hesitate to use force.

  Yang Wang Peng also smiled, but didn't speak, raised his binoculars to gaze out at the river, and after a moment said: "The fleet is back! The green flag is flying on the bow, the cannons have been taken down!"

  Zhao Bei raised his binoculars and took a look, then waved his hand and gave an order to one of the staff officers beside him:

  "Pass the order! The entire second echelon assembles and awaits orders, drop your luggage, and lightly advance. The garrison troops of the first echelon continue to defend Xiao Pukou, reinforce the artillery emplacements, monitor the downstream situation, if any ships dare to block the army's crossing of the river, fire a warning shot! If they don't listen to the warning, directly open fire and bombard!"

  "What if it's the foreigners interfering?" Yang Wangpeng asked. This was not an unfounded worry, just a moment ago during the intense battle, a small British warship with the Union Jack flag had been patrolling this stretch of the river, its cannons menacingly pointing at the northern shore, looking as though they would open fire at any moment.

  "What I'm saying is that it's foreigners! If Qing naval ships come over, fire directly without warning!" Zhao Bei said calmly.

  Yang Wangpeng exchanged a glance with another member of the Qunzhixue Society, took a step forward and said in a low voice: "Commander-in-Chief, the Ministry thinks it's not appropriate."

  "What's wrong?" Zhao Bei didn't turn his head.

  "If foreign warships are attacked by our troops, it may lead to international complications, which would be detrimental to the revolutionary situation. I hope the commander-in-chief will think thrice, for a small concession now can avoid great troubles later. In the future, when we overthrow the Manchu dynasty and establish a republic, we will still need the diplomatic recognition of foreign powers; otherwise, many things will be difficult to accomplish. The foreigners have been running amok in China for a long time, and it is not possible to drive them out overnight; we must plan carefully for the long term."

  "If it's a foreign warship opening fire and bombarding our ships crossing the river, can't we just passively take the beating? Zhao Bei put down his binoculars and glanced at several officers beside him. "Of course I know how international relations work! But I have to be responsible for the lives of my subordinates! Every revolutionary soldier's life is precious, absolutely cannot make unnecessary sacrifices." As he said this, Zhao Bei looked at Tian Jinfu, the guard commander standing aside.

  "Tián Jìnfū!"

  "Arrived!" Tian Jinfu walked up and stood at attention, saluting.

  "Go personally to the artillery camp and convey my order, saying that if foreign warships open fire on our ships crossing the river, regardless of which country's warship it is, we will return fire! If they do well, I will heavily reward them! However, if the other side does not open fire, we will absolutely not take the initiative to open fire, so as not to cause diplomatic disputes. Also, move a part of the artillery camp forward to the riverbank, where at close range, there will be a blind spot in the warship's firepower."

  "Yes!"

  Looking at Tian Jin's receding back, Zhao Bei quietly sighed in his heart. In the Xinhai Revolution in history, foreign troops did not directly intervene in the actions of the revolutionary army. This was indeed due to the correct diplomatic stance taken by the revolutionaries, but the main reason lay in the tense situation in Europe at that time. The powers were wary and suspicious of each other, so they could not form a unified opinion on their China policy. After the Wuchang Uprising, Japan and Russia advocated for intervention, while Germany was indecisive, and Britain, France, and the United States firmly opposed armed intervention, advocating for neutrality and observing from the sidelines. Therefore, the Xinhai Revolution was able to proceed smoothly without external interference.

  However, the situation is different now. Although the "Triple Entente" and "Triple Alliance", two military groups, have formally moved towards confrontation, the European situation has not yet reached a state of imminent explosion. All countries are still unprepared for war, and on the surface, Europe remains peaceful, manifesting in diplomacy as what is known as "gentlemanly demeanor". Therefore, Zhao Bei cannot completely rule out the possibility that the great powers will form a consensus and take an interventionist stance against the revolution. He must make comprehensive plans to avoid being caught off guard, after all, it is now 1908.

  Looking back, the Xinhai Revolution was indeed a model that skillfully combined "historical contingency" and "historical necessity". Although the Qing dynasty would have been overthrown anyway, if one historical detail had changed, it might not have been the Wuchang Uprising that went down in history.

  "The times create heroes!" Zhao Bei sighed, taking out his pocket watch to glance at the pointer, then gazing again at the fleet on the river, and said to the combat staff officer beside him: "Notify all officers of the headquarters that once the ships dock, follow me onto the ship, land in Jiangnan, set up the Forward Command Headquarters at Jinji Slope Fortress, command the main force to encircle from all sides, and launch a general attack on Jiujiang City!"

  ……

  Five hours later, under the intimidation of the artillery at Jinjipu Fort, more than a thousand new troops stationed in Jiujiang declared their surrender and opened the gates of Yue Shi Men and Jiuhua Men to welcome the revolutionary army into the city. The main battle of the Battle of Jiujiang ended here. The dragon flag on the city wall fell helplessly from the flagpole, and a large red flag with "Iron Blood Republic" fluttered in the wind and rain at the top of the city building.

  In the sporadic gunfire, Jiucheng City announced its liberation!

  The Qing army's heavy artillery and ammunition all fell into the hands of the revolutionary army, and most of the fake Qing officials in the city became prisoners under the revolutionary army.

  After suppressing the small number of stubborn forces in the city, Zhao Bei was escorted into the city by the guard troops and set up a temporary camp at the Dao Tai government office. He announced that he had taken over Jiujiang City. Half an hour later, the logistics troops set up the antenna, and Zhao Bei simultaneously sent out a telegram through the wireless telegraph station and the wired telegraph network in plain code, formally announcing that Jiujiang had changed its allegiance. The "Chinese Revolutionary Republican Army" was established, and it was decided to take an oath to revolt against the Qing dynasty on a chosen day. Zhao Bei appointed himself as the "Commander-in-Chief of the Hubei Government of the Chinese Revolutionary Restoration Military Government", with full authority to plan revolutionary affairs.

  The telegraph was personally drafted and polished by Zhao Bei, and it was completely sent out in his personal name.

  "...The foundation of the country lies in its people, and the path to a strong nation is only through republicanism! The way to achieve this is through revolution! Now, our revolutionary party has risen up against the Qing dynasty, not for personal grievances of one family, but for the prosperity of the entire nation!... The Manchu Qing dynasty is tyrannical, bringing disaster to the country and its people. Those who are corrupt and idle occupy high positions in government, while those who worry about the country and its people are relegated to the fringes of society. Heaven and earth are turned upside down, and both gods and humans are outraged! The time has come to mourn the people and punish the guilty! I only wish that all under heaven would unite as one, exert their strength together, and overthrow the Manchu Qing dynasty! Let the four classes of people be equal, and let us establish a republic!"

  ……

  "Yuan Shikai, a native of Xiangcheng, is a scion of a noble family and a brilliant talent who rose to prominence in Korea and wielded his power in the Beiyang region. He exhausted his mind and energy, widely recruiting heroes and talents, and was indeed the vanguard of foreign affairs and a model for constitutionalism. He can be called an extraordinary man of China and a good son of the Han family! Under his command were Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui, and Feng Guozhang, all of whom were talented individuals who could hold up the beams of the state. Only Yuan Shikai had the charisma to attract such national heroes and talents.

  Now that the national situation is difficult and the times are turbulent, apart from Yuan Shikai, who else has the ability and ambition to rule over these 400 million people? The military and civilians of Jiujiang City unanimously support Yuan Shikai's assumption of the position of Great Leader of the Republic of China! This oath is sworn before heaven and earth, and can be witnessed by the sun and moon!

  When Yuan Shikai emerges, the four seas will be calm, the world will be at peace, and the hearts of the people will return to him. What worry is there that China will not become strong?"

  Yuan Shikai doesn't want to usurp the Qing? Then force him to usurp the Qing! This is Zhao Bei's clever plan, and also his "speedy establishment of the Republic" conspiracy. Considering it's currently 1908, not 1911, even if Yuan Shikai didn't have the guts or determination to usurp the Qing, they would still use the Qing court's hands to get rid of him. Even if they couldn't get rid of him, at least they would make this great thief of a nation fade out of politics.

  There's no other way, since the times are not yet ripe, then one can only rely on oneself to push forward the development of the times.

  The times create heroes, but heroes don't necessarily have to be created by the times. The premise is that this hero can grasp the direction of historical progress.

  As a traverser, Zhao Bei is this hero.

  ……

  Because this telegram was sent on the 24th, it is historically known as "Jiong Dian".

  The electricity was released, and the whole world was shocked!