Chapter 49: Ye Shao's New Military Class

  After Nie Shicheng left, Ye Zhiwei soon returned to the Lutai military camp. Looking at this simple barracks, he thought that in the future, Nie Shicheng would practice here and become famous throughout the world as the commander of the Wuwei Army. The Wuwei Army was later renamed the Front Army of the Wuwei Guards, and during the invasion of China by the Eight-Nation Alliance, it was the only main force that the Qing government could rely on. They fought to the death, and in the end, even Nie Shicheng, the commander of the army, sacrificed his life for the country. The Wuwei Army, which had been gathered together solely through Nie Shicheng's personal charisma, also collapsed as a result, ending up being disbanded and reorganized. Politics is dirty.

  On the contrary, it was not that Ye Zhikuan looked down on Yuan Shikai's new army at Xiaozhan, but rather that his new army was not up to par compared to the Wuwei Army in terms of weapons and equipment, troop strength, combat effectiveness, and heritage. Therefore, the Wuwei Army was renamed the Wuwei Front Army, while Yuan Shikai's new army was renamed the Wuwei Right Army. Unfortunately, all four armies - the Wuwei Front, Rear, Left, and Central Armies - trained by the Qing dynasty after the First Sino-Japanese War were defeated when resisting the Eight-Nation Alliance. Only Yuan Shikai hid in Shandong and refused to enter Beijing to resist the foreigners, which led to the signing of the Boxer Protocol. As a result, "in the mountains there is no old tiger, only monkeys claiming to be kings." In retrospect, how many times did Yuan Shikai's Beiyang New Army resist foreign invasions? Instead, they recklessly rampaged within their own territory, ultimately exhausting themselves in civil wars. Compared to Nie Shicheng, who bravely resisted and made a heroic sacrifice, Yuan Shikai was not even worth a single hair in Ye Zhikuan's eyes.

  Ye Zhi Kui thought to himself that he was about to become the leader of this army, and his heart couldn't help but be stirred with excitement. He secretly vowed that he would not let the Wu Yi Army fall behind in the path of future generations. In this life, he wanted to lead this army to achieve great military exploits, and gain a reputation even greater than before.

  After returning to the camp, Ye Ziku ordered his personal soldiers to gather all the generals and discuss the matter of training troops.

  The various generals received the news and soon rushed to the scene. Ye Zhiwei sat at the top, looking down, seeing a crowd of people below, with new and old faces mixed together. Among them were some who had originally followed Nie Shicheng but were left for Ye Zhiwei to use, such as Zhou Dingchen, Hu Dianjia, Yang Muti, Yao Liangcai, Feng Yihuo, Xing Changchun, etc. According to history, a considerable number of these people would have died in battle during the invasion of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

  Yu Yongjun's old subordinates: Bao Butong, Song Pinglan, Wu Dashan, Jiang Zikang, Feng Guozhang, Wang Shizhen, Wen Baishan, Jian Renshiwu, Tu Fu and others.

  There are newly recruited graduates of the Beiyang Military Academy: such as Duan Qirui, Li Chun, Wang Yingkai, Chen Guangyuan, Bao Guiqing, He Zonglian and so on. These people are the most.

  There were talents recommended by Li Hongzhang and others: such as Ruan Zhongshu, Wang Huaiqing, Yan Dunyuan and so on.

  There were also several German naval officers including Kuk.

  Ye Zhongchi, as the commander of the Zhili province, not only trained new troops but also commanded all the troops in the province. On one hand, he had already ordered to select elite soldiers from various troops to come to Lutai; on the other hand, he continued to recruit new soldiers from Dagu and other places. Finally, they merged with the Hu Yung Army, expecting to gather about 30 battalions of soldiers, making a total of approximately 17,000 officers and men, 4,000 longmen, and a total of about 20,000 people, forming the Wuwei Army.

  "We all come from different parts of the country, some of you are my old subordinates, while others have just joined my army. But now we stand here with only one name: Wu Yi Jun; for one purpose: to forge a new-style army that can rival those of foreign powers, using our blood and sweat to create a legacy in history! We are all pioneers, with no experience to draw from, and outsiders who mock us, saying that China will never be able to train a new-style army. But I, Ye Zhi Gui, do not believe it! Even if the road ahead is uncertain and fraught with obstacles, as Chinese people, we must resolutely charge forward, brave and unyielding, and create an elite force for today's China! Create a new-style army that can stand up to the strong powers!"

  All the generals were infected by Ye Zhiwei's words, no matter what their original purpose was for coming here. At this moment, as children of China, they felt the same way, thinking that since the Opium War, China had been repeatedly invaded and oppressed by powerful countries. Resonating with each other, they were all excited and couldn't calm down, full of energy and enthusiasm, looking forward to being able to join this army.

  Ye Zhi stopped for a moment, took out the official document, and continued: "This time, our Wu Yi army is fully equipped according to the latest German infantry division. The organization includes headquarters, infantry, artillery, cavalry, engineering troops. The headquarters has departments such as the garrison office, training department (with attached infantry, artillery, and cavalry schools), grain supply bureau, military equipment bureau, military medical bureau, transportation bureau, and reconnaissance bureau."

  Everyone held their breath in anticipation, knowing that what came next was about their own appointment, and dared not guess.

  Ye Zhi Kui continued to read: "The troops were divided into four wings, front and rear, left and right (travel), led by Zhou Ding Chen, Hu Dian Jia, Yang Mu Shi, and Jiang Zi Kang." The four old men all smiled and nodded when they heard this, continuing to listen.

  "And each wing has two divisions (regiments), each division has two infantry battalions (each battalion is divided into four companies, each company has three platoons, and each platoon has six squads, with a total of over 1,100 people); The artillery, cavalry, and engineering units are all under one division. The commander of the artillery division is Feng Guozhang, the commander of the cavalry division is Xing Changchun, and the commander of the engineering division is Wang Shizhen. I will distribute the rest of the list to each person later, let's work together, dismissed."

  Yeh Chih-kui finished expressing his opinions and I walked with him, after Yeh Chih-kui left, the crowd began to discuss and speculate about their own appointments. Before long, each person received their appointment, Tuan Chi-jui was appointed as the commander of the first division of the infantry brigade, and other graduates of the military academy took on roles such as company officers, sentry officers or instructors. The talents recommended by Li Hung-chang were mostly civil officials and were assigned to work in the headquarters. Yeh Chih-kui's original followers were mostly appointed as battalion commanders, brigade commanders and other high-ranking positions. For a time, everyone was beaming with joy, congratulating each other happily.

  Ye Zhiqi led Jian Rensheng to his own camp, asking: "Is there still no news about Cao Kun?" Ye Zhiqi also attaches great importance to Cao Kun. From a historical perspective, this man is somewhat greedy for wealth, but he is loyal and has a strong sense of justice. He would rather drink thin gruel than become a traitor. Using people's strengths, Ye Zhiqi ordered Jian Rensheng to put him on the priority list to find.

  Jian Ren said with a bitter face: "Ye Shao, this Cao Kun is only found to be a lieutenant of the Yi Army who entered Korea to participate in the war. After the Yi Army returned home, some troops were disbanded, and Cao Kun was among them. Then he disappeared without a trace."

  Ye Zhi Kui heard this and could only sigh.

  At this time, Cao Kun, who was unable to get what he wanted from Ye Zhiwei, returned to his hometown of Tianjin's Dagushan, took out the radish he had bought from Ye Zhiwei and sold it as ginseng everywhere. However, he was recognized by a pharmacist and discovered that he had been deceived. Cao Kun was so disappointed that he wanted to cry but couldn't. Fortunately, his wife listened to him tell the whole story and then heard about how he met Ye Zhiwei in Korea. She advised: "You're not cut out for business, why don't you go join Ye's army? He's currently training new troops in Lutai and needs people. At least he appreciated you back in Korea."

  Cao Kun muttered to himself, feeling a bit embarrassed. He thought: I know Ye Shao, but I don't know if Ye Shao still remembers me. After some thought, he decided not to worry about it and considered it as an opportunity, so he would go the next day.

  After discussing with his wife, she agreed and thought for a moment before saying: "There are still two old hens at home, you can catch them tomorrow and send them to Lord Ye, after all, when asking someone for help, one must bring gifts." Cao Kun thought that he had just returned home and was going out again, so he couldn't help but hug his wife, and the couple spent a happy night together. The next day, Cao Kun set off towards Lutai with two old hens in hand and a pair of panda eyes.

  Ye Zhikui was talking to Jian Ren when a soldier came to report that an old acquaintance from the Korean army had arrived at the gate of the camp and wanted to surrender. Ye Zhikui thought for a moment: An old acquaintance from the Korean army, it's been a long time since we last met, so he ordered the soldiers to lead him in.

  Before entering the door, I heard the sound of a hen clucking from afar. Soon, a man in his thirties walked in with two old hens under his arm, and Ye Zhi Kui had to hold back his laughter.

  When I saw him, he looked familiar, and suddenly remembered this person. He hastily looked around, pretending not to know him. Ye Zhi Kui had no impression at all. How could he see clearly in the firelight that day? Cao Kun threw the old hen on the ground, made a bow and said: "Ye Shao, do you still recognize your subordinate?"

  Ye Zhi stood up and asked: "Who are you?"

  Cao Kun replied: "On that day, Ye Shao was in Korea and praised his subordinates. He didn't dare to forget it, and today he came to join him."

  Yè Zhī Kuí let out a sound, and excitedly replied: "Oh, it's you! You're that... uh... what was it again?" Yè Zhī Kuí had long forgotten the matter, but fearing an awkward situation, he pretended to remember.

  Cao Kun replied: "I, Cao Kun, also known as Zhong Shan, was a lieutenant in the Yi Army on the eve of the Battle of Bailingmiao. I had the chance to meet Ye Shao once."

  As soon as Cao Kun said that, Ye Zhiwei really remembered it. Wait a minute, he asked excitedly: "Are you Cao Kun?"

  Cao Kun solemnly replied: "What I said is true, no fake!"

  Ye Zhi's heart secretly felt a thrill of excitement and let out a silent whoop, it was truly a gain without any effort.