Chapter Thirty-Four: Preliminary Compilation

  The north wind blows, and the gloom disperses; after the rain, the sky clears, and the air is fresh.

  After the recovery, Jiucheng was shrouded in the winter sun, refreshed and rejuvenated. The iron-blooded Republican flag on the city head fluttered in the wind, making a rustling sound, and from afar, it looked like fire, blazing red.

  Not far from the west gate of the city, in front of the Dao Tai government office, a flagpole was erected with two flags on it. One was the Iron Blood Republican Flag below and the other was the Guangfu Hui's association flag above. Zhao Bei's General Command Department was set up here, and the Military Advisory Department of the Insurrection Army was also located here.

  The headquarters was heavily guarded, and strangers were strictly prohibited from entering or leaving. Only officers from the General Staff Department and the Command Department were allowed to move freely in and out. This arrangement was made by Zhao Bei based on his historical experience. In this era of assassins and rampant killings, whether for personal safety or for the sake of China's future, Zhao Bei's personal safety was of utmost importance.

  In front of the headquarters was a main street, before the recovery this was a bustling commercial street, but after last night's battle, the shops here were also destroyed by the Qing army, looking somewhat deserted, with only some beggars sunbathing on the side of the street.

  A cavalry team came galloping over, not very fast, and the infantry following behind them lined up on both sides of the street with guns in hand. As soon as the officer gave the order, they began to carry out their sentry duties. A moment later, another cavalry team galloped over, and the first person was none other than Zhao Bei, the commander-in-chief of the Republican Army.

  After these few days of practice, Zhao Bei had already mastered the skill of horse riding, although he still didn't dare to gallop at full speed, but a slow run was manageable. He didn't ride fast, and naturally, the other cavalrymen didn't dare to either. The sound of horseshoes echoed "dang dang", with a hint of helplessness amidst the lightness.

  Early in the morning, Zhao Bei led his guards and several staff members to inspect the entire city, both to comfort the people and to stabilize the military. Now that Jiujiang has just been recovered, restoring social order, capturing hidden spies, recruiting revolutionary youths, rectifying military discipline, collecting grain and fodder... all these tasks cannot be delayed, and the staff under him are also inexperienced, everything requires Zhao Bei's personal attention, it can be said that he is busy to the point of exhaustion. Just after finishing the inspection, a military meeting is about to be convened.

  Upon arriving at the Commander's Department, Zhao Bei jumped down from his horseback, holding the whip and standing at the entrance. He called a staff officer over and pointed to the two stone lions outside the door, saying: "Move the stone lions away, they are symbols of imperial power and official authority, our revolutionary army doesn't bother with this sort of thing." After finishing speaking, he strode directly into the government office.

  The signing room of the yamen was too small to hold a large meeting, so this military meeting was held in the main hall. Zhao Bei had gathered all officers above the rank of battalion commander, as well as many members of the Huizhou gang, so there were many people present. The soldiers moved out all the furniture from the main hall and set up several rows of benches according to Zhao Bei's arrangements, using ammunition boxes to create a makeshift podium. On top of it was placed the wooden plaque that had originally hung in the main hall, with the words "Fairness and Honesty". When the time came, Zhao Bei stood on top and spoke, while everyone else listened from below, somewhat like a leader holding a meeting in later times.

  Today's agenda mainly includes two items, one is to expand the army and the other is to reorganize the troops. The current rebel army still uses the late Qing new army system, with a division (division) under the jurisdiction of two brigades (brigades). In Zhao Bei's view, this system is not flexible enough, he plans to reorganize the troops completely according to modern concepts, and organize them into divisions, brigades, regiments, battalions, companies, platoons, and squads. The scale of the brigade will be reduced, with one division under the jurisdiction of three brigades, and one brigade under the jurisdiction of three regiments, and so on. With the strengthening of infantry firepower, it is inevitable to reduce the size of the troops. Rather than reorganizing later, it's better to do it now.

  Apart from this reason, Zhao Bei also had a deeper intention, which was to thoroughly disrupt the regional concept of the troops, and mix soldiers from different provinces. This would also help him control the army. However, this idea needed to be discussed with the officers, and if everyone strongly opposed it, Zhao Bei wouldn't force the mixing. After all, stability came first, and they had to consider the convenience of daily training and command. In those days, Putonghua was not yet widely promoted, and even Jiangsu dialect alone had several variations.

  "Attention!" the officer shouted.

  The officers lined up in front of the main hall, standing at attention and saluting. Although their uniforms were not yet uniform, their postures had been unified, and they looked quite neat.

  Zhao Bei returned the courtesy and walked into the main hall, followed by everyone else.

  "Please take a seat! Today, everyone has been invited here to hold a meeting in order to reorganize the army. Everyone is free to speak their mind and work together as one. If you have any opinions, please express them directly and don't keep them hidden in your heart. Below is the initial reorganization plan drafted by the General Staff Department. According to this plan, our army will be divided into two combat groups..." Zhao Bei didn't waste any words and immediately got to the point as he stood on a makeshift podium made of several ammunition boxes.

  Anqing city was broken, Huangni Gang uprising, recovering Jiujiang, and establishing the Republican Army. Many achievements are in front of us. Now Zhao Bei's prestige is high, and his momentum is strong. So, without much ado, within a short half hour, everyone reached a consensus and passed Zhao Bei's reorganization plan, integrating the insurgent troops into the First and Second Divisions of the Republican Army. As for expanding the army, even before Zhao Bei gave orders, some officers had already taken the initiative to do so. In response, Zhao Bei once again emphasized the importance of discipline, stressing that lower-level officers must absolutely obey their superiors, and no one can act on their own without orders from above. This is also the source of the revolutionary army's combat effectiveness. Privately recruiting soldiers is a major taboo for the revolutionary army.

  As for the mixed compilation of troops, it can be tried on a small scale, grind and match officers and soldiers, see the effect and then say, and immediately establish a special team to study local dialects, sort out the text, and use it to train military officers.

  Seeing that everyone had no objection, Zhao Bei said: "Now, this military meeting is officially over. Everyone returns to their troops, rectifies military discipline, and the entire staff of the General Staff stays behind to discuss specific reorganization matters."

  "Report!" Yang Wangpeng stood up, now he is the second echelon commander, the number two man of the rebel army.

  "Speak." Zhao Bei nodded slightly.

  "We have a question and would like to ask the Chief of Staff to clarify."

  "What's the question?" Zhao Bei glanced at Lan Tianwei, who was sitting below him. This secret member of the Alliance is now the chief of staff of the rebel army. Although Zhao Bei did not intend to hand over his troops to the Alliance, under current circumstances, it was still necessary to unite all forces that could be united. Moreover, Lan Tianwei was a Japanese-trained military officer with good military skills, and many things could be done on behalf of Zhao Bei.

  "Why was a telegram sent out yesterday to promote Yuan Shikai as the Grand Leader of the Republic of China? He is a fake Qing high-ranking official, not a revolutionary comrade. Even if Sun Mr. from Tongmenghui who has won over public opinion is not promoted as the Grand Leader, Tao, the president of Guangfuhui, would also be a suitable candidate. We don't understand. Was the telegram drafted by the General Staff? Please ask Chief of Staff Lan to enlighten us." Yang Wangpeng glanced at Lan Tianyu sitting in the front row.

  Lan Tianwei was somewhat at a loss, Wu Zhenhan who sat beside him originally intended to stand up and respond, but Zhao Bei waved his hand, indicating that Wu Zhenhan didn't need to explain. He then calmly said: "This has nothing to do with Chief of Staff Lan, the telegram was drafted by me personally and sent in my own name. The words inside are my intention, and have nothing to do with all the officers of the General Staff."

  Yang Wang Peng shifted his focus and said: "Then please, Commander-in-Chief, enlighten us. Revolutionary comrades shed blood in battle, but the fruits of war are handed over to others, we really can't understand it. Moreover, that telegram was issued in the name of the Commander-in-Chief personally, which seems somewhat inappropriate. The Commander-in-Chief has also said that revolution is everyone's business."

  This is coming straight at me. Zhao Bei stood with his hands behind his back, scanning Yang Wangpeng and the people from the Qunzhixueshe sitting next to him. He had mixed feelings towards these people - he loved their unwavering revolutionary stance, but hated that they didn't follow him wholeheartedly. This was understandable, after all, Zhao Bei was a latecomer to the revolution, and compared to pioneers like Sun Wen, Huang Xing, and Tao Chengzhang, his influence and prestige were far inferior. If not for the fame he gained from the Huangmudang Uprising, plus the slogan "Rob money, rob land, rob women" that won over the grassroots soldiers, he probably wouldn't even be able to control his own troops now.

  "Warlordism, warlordism, this trend is not good at all. Isn't this bullying me who rose to power from scratch? Without me, the great revolutionary tide would have had to wait for another three years." Zhao Bei felt a sense of having no one to share his thoughts with, but this idea could only be hidden in his heart and couldn't be spoken out loud.