Chapter 22: The Oath of the Master

  When Yin Chang was brought before Zhao Bei, Zhao Bei had just personally handed over a military sword to a squad leader. The insurgent troops took over all the luggage of the Qing army and seized a large number of command knives. According to Zhao Bei's order, all officers above the squad leader were qualified to wear a military sword, and each officer's sword was personally issued by Zhao Bei. After receiving the sword, the officers had to stand in front of a red flag and swear allegiance to the revolution, allegiance to the republic, and absolute obedience to superior orders at all times.

  "I swear! As a loyal revolutionary soldier, I will always regard obedience to orders as my duty wherever and whenever! With sword in hand, I will dedicate myself to the country! In the face of danger, I will charge forward bravely! If I violate this oath, I am willing to accept military punishment! The person making this oath is ×××!"

  The officers stood under a red flag, holding their swords and following a staff officer in taking an oath. The oath was simple but enough to show their hearts. In front of them, the red flag fluttered in the wind with four golden characters shining brightly in the morning light: Iron Blood Republic.

  "Iron and Blood Republic", iron and blood are means, republic is the goal, a bright red military flag, entrusted with the future of this country, this nation!

  Zhu Daniu stood out among the officers, his tall stature particularly eye-catching. Due to his outstanding performance last night, he had been promoted to battalion commander by Zhao Bei. His face was flushed with excitement, and his loud voice almost drowned out everyone else's.

  After last night and this morning's reorganization, the insurgent troops have gathered more than 21,000 people. Considering that the total number of new army personnel from various provinces participating in this autumn maneuver and observation is only over 26,000, plus the fact that the 33rd battalion of Jiangsu's 9th garrison has not yet arrived from the Yangtze River, this number is quite impressive. The remaining few thousand people were completely dispersed and have fled northward. The insurgent troops did not pursue them but only dispatched reliable cavalry units to search westward in order to prevent the fleeing soldiers from spreading the news of the mutiny to the western regions.

  With the assistance of the Gongzhicheng Society, Zhao Bei quickly stabilized the troops and rapidly appointed officers at all levels. These officers included both members of the Gongzhicheng Society and Anqing military officials inserted by Zhao Bei. Although for now, this army cannot be said to belong to Zhao Bei personally, he believes that it won't take long before he can completely control this army. This will be his starting capital and a weapon to rewrite history. He absolutely won't let others take advantage of the situation, and if necessary, he will also use iron-fisted methods to integrate this military force.

  Zhao Bei stood with his hands behind his back, standing upright beside the military flag, watching as the row of officers took their oath in front of the red flag. After they put down their swords and nodded, he said: "Return to your posts!"

  The officers ran back to their respective troops and stood at the front of the ranks.

  Four Anqing officers did not leave, with their general's sword hanging from their waist belt, they stood upright under the military flag, the golden light of the morning sun shining on their uniforms, looking solemn and majestic from a distance.

  Zhao Bei walked up to the four of them, took a glance, and calmly said: "I won't say much more. What I needed to tell you has been told, now it's up to you to handle the rest."

  "Don't worry, Captain, we will definitely complete our mission!" The four of them shouted in unison.

  Zhao Bei took out a letter with a wax seal from his military uniform pocket and handed it to one of them, saying: "This is the letter I wrote to Commander Xiong, be sure to bring it together."

  "Yes! I'll definitely bring it." The man took the letter and put it in his breast pocket.

  "Remember, if you can't return to Anqing, turn back immediately and catch up with the main force. As for those big guns, if you can't bring them back, just abandon them." Zhao Bei exhorted them a few times, then nodded his head and said: "You may set off now."

  Four men bowed and retreated, lined up 500 soldiers, pulled twenty large cannons and gun carriages, and carried military flags to the Huangni Port dock. There were dozens of shallow wooden boats being prepared for departure, loaded with luggage. They were a detachment dispatched back to Anqing City, not only to deliver these heavy artillery to the Anqing rebel forces but also to inform Commander-in-Chief Xiong Chengji of the direction of the Huangni Port rebel army's advance.

  As the 9th Division of Jiangsu and the 8th Division of Hubei were here to participate in the autumn maneuvers, not to perform combat tasks, the ammunition carried with the army was not much. Most of the bullets were blank cartridges for practice, and there were very few real bullets. After the uprising, although all the ammunition was seized, after counting, each soldier could only get more than 20 real bullets on average. In comparison, artillery shells were relatively abundant, with an average of over 100 shells per gun, most of which were shrapnel shells and high-explosive shells with strong lethality.

  Zhao Bei decided to go on a western expedition, and although this proposal gained the support of most officers in the Hubei New Army and Jiangsu New Army, there were still some officers who were dissatisfied, with those from Anqing being the majority. In order to appease these people's emotions, Zhao Bei had no choice but to specially allocate twenty large cannons, which were handed over to the Anqing officers to take back to Anqing to support the insurgent troops in Anqing. The city of Anqing was abundant in ammunition but lacked large cannons, and the transfer of these twenty large cannons could greatly strengthen Anqing's defenses.

  This move immediately won the favor of the Anqing military officers, and the resistance to the Western Expedition was greatly reduced. Although Zhao Beisheng pitied those big guns, at this time, people's hearts and soldiers' hearts were first-class, and if they couldn't win over the soldiers' hearts, the Western Expedition would be overshadowed, and the troops would also show cracks.

  In fact, Zhao Bei's move also had a hidden intention, which was to use these big guns to strengthen Xiong Chengji's confidence in defending Anqing City. The more days Anqing was defended, the more days the Qing army would be delayed, and the resistance to Zhao Bei's advance would also be weakened.

  Of course, for his own western expedition, Zhao Bei must also make an explanation, so he wrote a handwritten letter and handed it over to the military officer to take back to Anqing. In the letter, Zhao Bei carefully analyzed the pros and cons of the western expedition and returning to Anqing, in short, one sentence: When the general is outside, there are some things that cannot be obeyed.

  Zhao Bei was not worried that Xiong Chengji would react violently to this, after all, he was the first meritorious general of Anqing's conquest, and without him there would be no military government of Anqing's recovery. Before departure, he had also mentioned the topic of "convenient action" to Xiong Chengji, who did not express any objection. As for returning to Anqing, that was only Xiong Chengji's first choice.

  In the end, this historical trend still needs to be driven by oneself, others can't be relied on, after all, they are not traversers.

  "The troops have all assembled, please let the vanguard officer inspect the troops!" Wu Zhenhan and Yang Wangpeng walked to the military flag, standing at attention and saluting.

  Zhao Bei returned the courtesy, his left hand pressing down on the hilt of his military sword, and with two men accompanying him, he walked up to the reviewing stand. He first paid respects, then after dropping his arm, he began to speak eloquently and passionately.

  "Comrades, I now formally declare that from this moment on, every single person present here, regardless of whether you are an officer or a soldier, whether you are from Jiangsu or Hubei, will all become members of the revolutionary army! From now on, we will live as revolutionaries and die as revolutionary ghosts! The revolution will not be accomplished until we struggle to the end! The revolution will not be accomplished until our military flag falls!... What is a 'revolution'? A revolution is an uprising, a revolution is violence! This revolution is not only a national revolution but also a people's revolution! Overthrowing the Qing dynasty is just the first step of the revolution; leading China to become rich and powerful is the ultimate goal of the revolution!... How many heroes have shed their blood and sacrificed themselves for this cause? Not for personal glory or wealth, nor simply for changing dynasties. They did it to awaken the sleeping masses, to save this dying nation, to save this dying country!"

  In front of the reviewing stand, a sea of black stretched out for over a mile from northwest to southeast, with more than 20,000 troops packed tightly into this small river valley plain. At this moment, everyone's expression was solemn as they gazed at the highest commander on the platform. Although not all of them could hear what he was saying, it didn't stop them from maintaining their standard posture, a habit cultivated over time through training under whips and clubs. For this posture, they had endured countless beatings from officers in peacetime. Last night's mutiny had been an opportunity for the crowd to vent their pent-up anger, but not all of them were motivated by "revolutionary ideals." Once their anger was spent, however, and they calmed down to think about it, every act - rebellion, killing officials, and insurrection - was punishable by death. They might as well see this revolution through to the end, overthrow the Qing dynasty, and have their crimes pardoned. Moreover, last night the officers had relayed a command from Vanguard Officer Zhao Bei: from now on, every revolutionary soldier, regardless of rank, would receive an additional two silver dollars in "combat allowance" each month until the war ended. Just for those two silver dollars, they had to see this fight through! If they won, they'd be hailed as revolutionary pioneers and heroes; if they lost, well, death was no big deal - they could always flee into the mountains with their guns and become bandits, earning themselves a reputation as "great kings."

  As for the thoughts of his subordinates, Zhao Bei and his senior staff also understood a little, so they also catered to their tastes. In addition to spreading some revolutionary principles, they also talked about the benefits at hand. Speeches should be tailored to different occasions and audiences. For those soldiers who were born into scholarly families, one must use revolutionary righteousness to move them, while for those soldiers who came from small farming backgrounds, not only must one use revolutionary righteousness, but also actual benefits to win over their hearts.

  "Comrades! We'll march westward, fighting as we go. Every time we capture a city, we'll issue a 'Recovery Ransom' of two silver dollars per person! Don't think it's too little! When the revolution succeeds and we confiscate the properties of the Eight Banners nobles, each of us revolutionary pioneers will get a share - silver, land, houses, none of these will be left out!"

  Zhao Bei took two steps forward, swung his arm and continued to incite: "Don't mention anything else, just talk about that 'flag salary'. Those flag people start receiving salaries from the moment they are born. What do they rely on? Isn't it because their ancestors occupied our Central Plains' prosperous world back then? It's relying on this ancestral privilege that these flag people can live a life of ease and comfort, not having to work at all, spending their days playing with birds in cages, because we are the ones working hard for them.

  What is a 'revolution'? A revolution is the redistribution of social wealth through violent means! What is social wealth? Social wealth is money, it's power!

  "In those years, the Eight Banners troops invaded the Central Plains, occupying our ancestors' rivers and mountains, taking away the silver, land, and women that rightfully belonged to us, making us serve as their oxen and horses. For over 200 years, we were treated like cattle, with all our blood and sweat squeezed out of us. Today, our revolutionary soldiers rise up in revolution and rebellion, precisely to take back what was stolen from us by the Eight Banners' ancestors - to seize back our silver, seize back our land, seize back our women! What is a revolution? A revolution is seizing money! Seizing fields! Seizing wives! These things originally belonged to us, now we're taking them back, with justice and righteousness!"

  When Zhao Bei said this, the emotions of the soldiers in the front row were mobilized, and they couldn't care about discipline anymore. The brave ones had already started whispering to each other, and those who couldn't hear what was being shouted from the reviewing stand at the back of the queue also asked the people in front of them. Although the crowd may not have understood the reasoning behind "revolution", everyone understood the meaning of "grabbing money, grabbing fields, and grabbing women". As the saying goes, "if one doesn't take care of oneself, heaven and earth will be destroyed". Since ancient times, hasn't every soldier who went to war been trying to make a career for himself? Not to mention others, in those years when Zeng Guofan's Xiang Army defeated the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and transported gold, silver, jewels, beautiful women, and silk back to their hometowns in Hunan, it was all loaded onto ships. They had turned Hunan into a small Jiangnan. Nowadays, whenever the people of Jiangning mention the Xiang Army, who isn't gnashing their teeth? It's said that Jiangning is still in ruins today because the Xiang Army looted everything from Jiangning. Moreover, it used to be said that Jiangnan produced beautiful women, but now if you go to Jiangnan and take a look, how many beauties can you find? On the other hand, since the Xiang Army returned triumphantly, the number of beautiful and charming Hunan girls has increased. Did those beautiful women all fall from the sky or something?

  In the past, when Chen Sheng and Wu Guang led the soldiers to rebel, didn't they shout "Are kings, princes, generals, and ministers born of a different breed?"? Why do those people eat well, dress warmly, and sleep with beautiful women? Isn't it because they hold military power and official seals? Now, we old men have grasped military power, next is to seize the official seal, with both military might and authority, gold mountains, silver mountains, beauties, and jade silks will be at our disposal.

  Honestly! This "vanguard officer" is a sensible person, he knows what we ordinary soldiers are thinking in our hearts. Following someone like him to make revolution has prospects!