Chapter Sixteen: Calculations

  "I will never forget that evening - although it was evening, the young governor's son seemed to reassemble a seemingly strong but already disheartened army with his oath like a holy spirit... Perhaps in my view as a German soldier, the gun in hand is used to protect people and is the duty of a soldier, but this was hard to imagine in China at that time. The young governor's son also fulfilled his oath with actual actions in future years..." - Friedrich, "My Days in China"

  "I came from a small town in Fujian, and I also studied at a private school. However, my father became addicted to opium and our family was reduced to poverty. It wasn't until Mr. Tan's detoxification medicine that my father was able to recover at the age of 18... 'The guns in our hands are for protecting the people!' This is the first principle that Mr. Tan taught us, and it's also why I've always followed him..." - "Warrior's Thorn - Liu Yu", by Liu Yu and Wu Tongxuan, 1932, Qiang Xue Book Society

  "The Hundred Battles Strategy" was the first military book I read, and it was Mr. Tan who explained this book to me. It can be said that he is my guide in war theory... It's hard to believe Mr. Tan's attainments in military affairs. The reason why the General Staff respects Mr. Tan's opinions is not because of his power influence, but more because they trust his judgment in military matters... --- "Golden Swords and Iron Horses - Yang Chao", by Yang Chao and Wu Tongxuan, 1934, Qiang Xue Book Society

  Standing on the carriage, looking at the soldiers around him waving their arms and shouting, Tan Yanqing's heart was turbulent, with an uncontrollable emotion stuck in his chest. He didn't know what his fate would be from now on, but if he could make these soldiers understand this simple truth, he wouldn't regret establishing the Imperial Guard.

  "Perhaps I will still have no choice but to leave in the future, but until the last moment, I will not abandon this land!" Tan Yanqian thought to himself.

  Tan Yanqing was well aware that in this era, some robbers still had "professional ethics". They were mostly forced to have no way out and become bandits. Their targets were all unscrupulous landlords and merchant teams. If they didn't have deep hatred, they wouldn't be too ruthless when taking action. As long as they paid a certain fee, they could let them go. However, such bandit organizations were rare, and most of them were brutal and inhumane, so there was no other choice but to thoroughly eliminate them in order to avoid future troubles.

  After this little more than half a month's journey, the guard corps really looks like an army. This road seems to be quite adventurous, but the opponents are just some scattered bandits with a small number of big knives and loose organization. These opponents can't make the guard corps grow into a real iron-blooded army, they're just used for warm-up exercises. Tan Yanqin has had a new view of this guard corps he created since that night on the carriage "pledge".

  "These soldiers are quite well-educated, they can all read and write. In this era, these soldiers can grow into an officer wherever they are placed. Although the quality is still a bit worse than that of the powerful countries' armies, it's enough in China. As long as they're given opportunities, they have great potential for growth." Tan Yankai began to ponder the future of these Imperial Guard soldiers on horseback.

  As far as Yan Xishan knew, the Beiyang clique that had dominated China for over twenty years was still nowhere to be seen. He remembered that even among the Beiyang clique, the quality of those officers was also poor, and in all aspects, they couldn't compare with the quality of his own guard troops, except for a small number of Beiyang officers who really wanted to achieve something.

  The instructor of these soldiers was a German, and during training, they tried to use German as much as possible, supplemented by their own assistance and cultivation. In the guard team, several very intelligent soldiers had already learned to use simple German phrases to communicate with Friedrich. Of course, it's far from enough to talk about fluent German, but they've only been in contact with German for less than a year! If we strengthen their training, send them to Germany to study, and after a few years, these soldiers will become real officers. I may not participate in the battle for hegemony, but if a systematic officer corps is cultivated, they will be an unstoppable force in the future!" Tan Yanqian thought to himself.

  It would still be many years before the outbreak of the First Sino-Japanese War and China's large-scale dispatch of military students to Japan. Although there were also dispatched students studying abroad in this era, it was expensive to study in Europe or the United States, and it was not easy to expect officials to take out so much money to cultivate students during this corrupt period. Of course, some far-sighted local officials like Li Hongzhang and Zhang Zhidong still allocated part of their budget to send students abroad, but the number was difficult to guarantee, and even fewer were allocated for military students.

  Tang Yanxi had this ability, in fact when Friedrich intentionally resigned as a teaching officer, he thought about the further study of the guards after they left the army, and also strengthened the German language training of the guards. When negotiating with Mauser Arms Factory, he thought of sending military students to German military schools through this channel. Of course, it is not appropriate for them to go to Germany now, not because Tang Yanxi was reluctant to spend money, but because these soldiers were far from qualified to study in a German military school, and their German language skills were not enough to cope with life in Germany.

  Tan Yanqing knew that in the history of later generations, there was a "Ri Ri Shi Guan Xì" (Japanese-trained officers), they studied in Japan, but most of them went to the anti-Japanese aggression side. Although the officers of the Japanese-trained officers were very talented and can be said to be the best military commanders in China at that time, the Beiyang Group's Yuan Shikai rarely used the personnel of the Japanese-trained officers, and they mostly went south to participate in the Xinhai Revolution. The Japanese-trained officers left a deep mark on the modern history of China's late Qing and early Republic periods, and Tan Yanqing only knew a rough outline. Especially the story of Xiao Fengxian and Cai E, which was widely spread, and Cai E was one of the best among the Japanese-trained officers.

  "If we can send the excellent talents from the Imperial Guard to study in Germany, the officers who come out will not be inferior to those of the 'Japanese-German Officer System'. After all, the Japanese Army's system was also learned from Germany. Looking at the history of the past few decades, the German Army has surpassed other military powers of the same era in all aspects. If they hadn't made too many enemies, they wouldn't have lost both world wars so badly. I wonder what achievements my 'German-Trained Officer System' will make in future history?" Tan Yankai thought to himself.

  These days, entering the borders of Jiangxi, they never encountered harassment from bandits. It's possible that their notorious reputation in Fujian was too great, and there must be connections between bandits in the two provinces. The bandits in Jiangxi may not have dared to provoke them because of their ruthless methods. Tan Yanqun's "merchant group" did not relax their vigilance, especially when camping outdoors. They set up sentries, built campsites, constructed simple fortifications, and even set up traps around the campsite to prevent being caught off guard in a sudden attack at night.

  At this time, Tan Yanqian was considering more about the development of the guard team after, and what was important was his own future. Although he was about to face the imperial examination, the result of the imperial examination was also very important to him, but Tan Yanqian really couldn't muster up any interest in the imperial examination, and simply relied on his excellent memory to memorize all the books that came into his hands, and when it came time to write an article, he would combine some of his own insights from later generations, and the articles he wrote were also quite stable, but what was important was that he knew which content to avoid, and he absolutely wouldn't write nonsense.

  "Third Master, I heard you went to Hunan this time to take the imperial examination?" a young soldier asked softly as he approached him.

  This young soldier, Tan Yanqun, knew that the 120 guards under his command were divided into two large teams and six small teams, with 20 people in each small team. From among them, one soldier with the best military quality was selected to serve as the leader of each small team. The soldier named Yang Chao was one of the leaders of the six small teams. Liu Yu, who had been secretly advising him not to kill anymore a few days ago, was also one of the leaders of the small teams.

  Yang Chao was able to leave an impression on Tan Yanqing not only because he was a squad leader, but also because Yang Chao was extremely young. He was the youngest of the six squad leaders, being two years older than Tan, and had also attended private school. Interestingly, his given name "Zi Zhan" was also the courtesy name of Su Shi. What's more impressive is that Yang Chao's language skills were exceptionally good, and up to now, every time the Imperial Guard held a German language proficiency test, Yang Chao's written and oral test scores were always the highest.

  "If we really need to send military students to Germany for further studies in the future, this kid is a good candidate!" Tan Yanqun thought to himself as he looked at Yang Chao. Although Yang Chao was now two years older than him, the past life of Feng Wenyu who possessed Tan Yanqun was 34 years old, and in his eyes, Yang Chao was still just a child.

  Tan Yanqun smiled slightly and patted a green stone in front of him, saying: "Zi Zhan, sit down and talk! This time back to Hunan, the most important thing is that I went to take this year's imperial examination, to try my luck. Zi Zhan, you also attended private school and can recognize characters, why didn't you continue studying for the imperial examination?"

  Yang Chaoyang smiled awkwardly and said, "The family conditions are not good, and there are still two younger brothers and a sister at home. There's no way to continue supporting my studies. Besides, I know my own abilities are limited, and taking the imperial examination is out of the question. When Father sent me to study in a private school back then, he just hoped that I could learn more characters, so that I can work as an apprentice in a store in the future..."

  Tan Yanqian nodded and said, "It doesn't matter. If you want to continue studying, there are also teachers in the Imperial Guard who can be consulted at any time. Your German is the best in the Imperial Guard, so smart, if you don't put down your books, maybe one or two years later, you can take the imperial examination and become a scholar... As for the cost of studying, you don't have to worry too much, as long as you can pass the imperial examination, I can provide you with some money to continue your studies..."

  Yang Chao hastily waved his hand and said, "Thank you, Third Master! To be honest with you, I originally joined the Imperial Guard because the monthly salary here is much higher than elsewhere. After arriving, I discovered that we can also study here, and you even invited a teacher to instruct us, including teaching us foreign languages... it's really too good for us. Everyone in the Imperial Guard says you're a prodigy with renowned scholarship, so of course, you'll have no problem passing the imperial examination. As for someone like me, however, I'm afraid I don't stand a chance..."

  Tan Yanqian smiled after hearing this, and felt that Yang Chao was quite down-to-earth. He thought it was a pity to waste such a good talent on the imperial examination. Noticing that Yang still had a book in his hand, Tan asked: "Zi Zhan, you're still reading books on the march, aren't you diligent? What's the book about?"

  Yang Chao immediately took out the book and said, "Third Master, this is 'Hundred Battles Strategy' that I am currently reading. It was Mr. Shen who recommended it to me. Although I also attended a private school, there are still some contents in this book that I don't understand. Just now, seeing you resting here, I took the liberty of bringing it over to ask for your guidance."

  Tan Yanqun took the book and flipped through it, saying to Yang Chao: "This 'Hundred Wars Strange Strategy' was originally unknown author, but later generations took Liu Ji, a famous military strategist of the Ming Dynasty, as its author to show its importance. The biggest feature of this book is that it takes Sun Tzu's Art of War as the classic, and uses ancient war history materials as examples. Each chapter centers on a military thought, collecting various types of war examples scattered in historical records from the Spring and Autumn Periods to the Five Dynasties, spanning 1,600 years..."

  Yang Chao said with excitement: "Third Master really read this book? No wonder Mr. Shen asked me to come and ask Third Master if I had any questions, although Mr. Shen recommended me to read this book, but there are many places he couldn't explain clearly, however, he said that Third Master must be able to answer my questions..."

  Tan Yanqian only then understood why Shen Jing had Yang Chao come find him - when handling official business in the Governor's Mansion, Shen Jing was translating foreign military articles and needed to use classical Chinese to quote and make annotations. He casually pulled out phrases from "Wujing Qishu" and other ancient Chinese military texts to revise and add suitable notes. At that time, Shen Jing was right beside him, seeing how fluently he could cite the original text of ancient military books, probably guessing that Tan Yanqian had put in effort in this area.

  "It's a pity that Shen Jing doesn't know that I'm just a bookworm who recites from memory, and quoting the original text is just about seeing who can recite it more fluently. But to explain it clearly is another matter altogether!" Tan Yanqian thought to himself after figuring out what was going on.

  Fortunately, Tan Yanqian himself had a solid foundation in classical Chinese literature and had also read "The Art of War" which helped him to get through Yang Chao's nonsense. It can be seen that Yang Chao is absolutely a person who has plans in his heart, otherwise he wouldn't have sung the right songs on the right mountains. Since he joined the army and carried a gun, Yang Chao put aside the Four Books and Five Classics and read military books instead. This idea is absolutely correct, and it can also be seen that he is a person with great ambition. Unfortunately, ancient military books like "The Art of War" are very difficult to read through, and even someone like him is far from being proficient. The most important thing is that the era has changed too much, these military books are classics of the cold weapon era, of course, in the hot weapon warfare era where firearms and artillery are the main weapons, these military books still have a strong vitality, but Tan Yanqian needs them to grasp more advanced combat thinking. As for reading military books, this path is not wrong, but don't be too obsessed with it either.

  "Zi Zhan, you've read 'Hundred Battle Strategies' or other military books, which is very beneficial for you. However, ancient warfare was mainly fought with cold weapons like swords and knives. Now, the Type 93 rifle in your hands has a range of over 800 meters, far surpassing most ancient long-range weapons. The German-made Maxim machine gun in the vehicle team is even more powerful; if two or three are set up at a critical pass with sufficient ammunition support, it would be like one man holding off an entire army. And then there's the Western-style artillery and large-caliber naval guns on warships sailing across the ocean - their power is unimaginable... With the advent of these weapons, modern warfare has undergone a complete transformation from ancient times..." Tan Yanqun said.

  "What does 'three gentlemen' mean? Are you saying that the military books left behind by our ancestors are no longer suitable for modern warfare?" Yang Chao asked.

  "No! From ancient times to the present, the nature of war has not changed much. It is nothing more than two sides fighting for some kind of benefit. Ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign, are all the same. The wars that have occurred in China and abroad over the past few decades, as well as the Taiping Rebellion, are no exception... The ancient military classics still have a very important strategic guiding role, but tactically, with the advent of modern weapons, they have become somewhat outdated... I see you're so devoted to reading military books, I'm afraid you'll have some ideas in the future. I suggest you read more foreign military books, maybe you'll gain some inspiration." Tan Yanqing replied.

  "The military books written by foreigners? Yang Chao had also mentioned it to Mr. Shen, but unfortunately, few foreign military books have been translated into Chinese. Mr. Shen and his team seem to be looking for suitable foreign language military books now, which may take some time!" said Yang Chao.

  "Zi Zhan, to be honest with you, I established this guard team not only to take care of the Governor's Mansion and my personal safety. In these chaotic times, no one can predict what will happen in the future. Although the guard team is small, the training you have received is among the best in the country. I made you read books and learn foreign languages after joining the army, which was not a waste of time. If your level is high enough, I will sponsor the top ones among you to study military affairs abroad in the future, and then serve the people and the country. I heard that your German is good, but it's still far from enough. You need to continue working hard, only then can you qualify to go abroad to study military affairs when I select personnel from among you in the future. This language barrier still needs to be overcome!" Tan Yanjin said with a smile.