Chapter 25: The Medal Awarding Ceremony

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  However, things didn't seem as complicated as Xu Shaowen had imagined. As soon as Xu Shichang saw Xu Shaowen approaching, he immediately ended his conversation with the other officials and smiled warmly as he walked over, lightly patting Xu Shaowen's shoulder and saying with a hint of reproach, "Wenyuan, how come you didn't see me, your elder uncle, when I was presenting the awards on stage? And why didn't you come to find me after we got off the stage?"

  At this time, the president of the Army University, Hu Longxiao, walked over from behind. He was one of those who had just gathered with Xu Shichang. Smiling at Xu Shichang, he said: "Xu Lao, don't blame your nephew, Wen Yuan is very ambitious, from his enrollment to today, he has never boasted in the academy that he is your nephew."

  Xu Shaowen smiled somewhat awkwardly, looking at Xu Shichang, not knowing how to respond. After all, he and Xu Shichang were both well aware of each other's thoughts, but the question was just how close this "nephew" of his really was.

  Xu Shichang knew what Xu Shaowen was thinking in his heart, and he nodded in approval, saying: "Wenyuan, I've always thought you were a man of integrity, and I admire that about you. In the future, if there's anything you need help with, don't worry, I'm not a stingy person. Whatever you ask for, I'll definitely do my best to assist you."

  Xu Shao Wen couldn't help but feel moved, he clearly knew that Xu Shi Chang's words were not just for his own ears, but more importantly, they were meant for the big shots around him. Although on the surface it sounded like an uncle showing concern for his nephew, from another perspective, it revealed that Xu Shi Chang had acknowledged Xu Shao Wen as one of his own and would definitely protect him.

  Hu Min'er warmly pulled over a middle-aged man wearing a luxurious silk robe, and smiled as she came to Xu Shaowen's side. "Dad, this is Xu Shaowen," she said.

  Xu Shaowen knew that the middle-aged man was Hu Min'er's father, Lu Junming, the supervisor of the Ministry of War. He bowed his head and said to Lu Junming with great respect: "I've seen Lord Hu!"

  Hu Mingyu's temperament was not like a military man at all, but rather that of a landlord or a big boss. He chuckled twice and said, "Xu Xian, my nephew, your uncle and I have been old friends for a long time. Moreover, today you young people are the main characters, we old guys are just here to make an appearance, no need to be so polite."

  Hu Mingyu said this, looked at Xu Shichang and said: "Xu Lao, this nephew of yours is really a talented person. My precious daughter has known him for less than a few days, and every day at home she praises how brave and upright he is."

  Hú Mǐn'ér heard her father say this, and suddenly became a bit shy, pouting and saying: "Daddy, don't talk nonsense, I didn't praise Wén Yuǎn every day, I just told the truth. It was Wén Yuǎn who stood up for me when I was bullied by Japanese people on the train."

  The officials and nobles gathered around heard Hu Min'er mention the Japanese, all of whom changed their faces. Xu Shichang asked: "Old Hu, how was Min'er bullied by the Japanese? You didn't tell us about this before?"

  When Hu Mingyu heard his daughter mention the Japanese, his face had already changed. He immediately signaled to Hu Min'er with his eyes not to say anything more. But now that Xu Shichang had asked personally, Hu Mingyu suddenly felt a bit awkward. In this unstable situation, whether it was the Japanese or Americans, or Germans and so on, any foreign powers were not easy to provoke.

  "Oh, maybe it was just a misunderstanding, so I didn't pay much attention to it." Hu Mingyu casually found an excuse to brush it off.

  Hú Mǐn'ér heard her father say this, and immediately became dissatisfied, with a face full of discontent and anger, blaming: "Dad, when I told you about this matter at that time, it wasn't like this, was it? Dad, I'm your daughter!"

  Hu Mingyu was somewhat annoyed when Hu Min'er returned from Baoding and told him that she had been bullied by Japanese people on the train. He was indeed furious, as the Japanese were so arrogant on Chinese territory, truly contemptuous of China's sovereignty. More importantly, he only had this precious daughter, and should take good care of her. However, after some calm reflection, since the Japanese had only teased Xiaolan and not actually violated his daughter, in these uncertain times, it was better to have one less trouble.

  Xu Shichang saw Hu Mingyu's face showing difficulty, knowing that the other party also did not want to offend the Japanese at this time. However, the more it was so, the more he felt unhappy in his heart. Although the Beiyang government now relies heavily on the Japanese, the Japanese have taken the Beiyang government's hopes as a means, and are becoming increasingly arrogant on Chinese territory, which will surely be a major problem in the future.

  "Wen Yuan, you tell me, what's going on?" Xu Shichang knew that Hu Mingyu didn't want to talk about this matter, so he turned to ask Xu Shaowen instead.

  Xu Shao Wen looked at Hu Ming Yu, then turned to look at Hu Min Er. Under her pitiful expression, he finally told Xu Shi Chang about what happened on the train that day in detail.

  Other officials and dignitaries present were outraged by Xu Shao's words, although a large part of this outrage was due to the occasion, but to some extent they felt dissatisfied with the Japanese people's arrogant behavior.

  "It's really a wolfish ambition, and it's clear at a glance!" said Hu Longxian, the president of the Army University, with a worried expression.

  Xu Shichang let out a long sigh, his face also looking very solemn, and said: "Recently there have been rumors that a fleet of the Japanese Navy has arrived in the coastal areas of Shandong. The situation in Europe is now very tense, with Britain, France, Germany and other major powers all focusing their attention on Europe."

  Xu Shichang's words were somewhat unclear, but everyone in the military and political circles present could make out what he meant. Originally, the interests of the major powers in China were mutually restrictive, with each country not wanting other countries' interests to surpass their own. However, due to the situation in Europe, the Western powers have withdrawn their attention, allowing Japan to take advantage of the opportunity to further encroach on rights and interests in China.

  "It was not long ago that the Germans had already informed President Yuan, preparing to hand over all of Germany's privileges in Shandong to China. This should have been a good thing," Hu Ming said with a tone of helplessness, "but who knew that little Japan would take advantage of the situation and intervene in Germany's transfer of rights in Shandong. Now look, little Japan has even sent warships over - everyone knows what this means."

  "It's obvious that the Japanese want to take over the Germans' rights in Shandong." Hu Longxiang shook his head and said.