Chapter 12: Family Affairs and State Affairs

  The next day, Chen Jingyun woke up from his sleep and opened his eyes to see Luo Li's delicate face. Sleeping Luo Li looked like a child, very peaceful.

  He gently got up and turned around to look at the curled-up sleeping woman, a faint smile appeared on Chen Jingyun's face. He naturally felt a sense of tenderness towards this first woman he had in this time and space. He leaned down and lightly kissed her forehead.

  At this time, Luo Li also woke up in a daze and saw Chen Jingyun's movements trying to struggle to get up, but Chen Jingyun stretched out his hand and pressed down on her shoulders: "You continue to sleep! Don't rush today, take a good rest!"

  When Luo Li heard Chen Jingyun's words, she felt as if she was still in a dream and hadn't woken up yet. So she obediently closed her eyes again, thinking that it would be great if this dream never ended!

  But after closing her eyes for a moment again, she suddenly opened them once more, and her big eyeballs rolled around, but now there was no sign of Chen Jingyun in the room.

  "He seems to be different from the previous few maids!" Luo Li muttered to herself, her mind began to wander, he should like her, maybe he would take her as his concubine, shouldn't be like other young masters who wait for their personal maids to get old and then send them out, constantly replacing old with new.

  But as she thought about it, she began to worry again, what if Master really treated her like this in the future?

  Such worries all came together and couldn't be extinguished. The good mood that was there just a moment before instantly vanished without a trace!

  Chen Jingyun was naturally unaware of Luo Lian's wild thoughts, and he walked out of the room door, wearing a brand new military uniform and long leather boots under the service of two other maids. During this time, Chen Jingyun could naturally notice that these two little maids seemed to be distracted, and their eyebrows flowed out with a certain abnormality. These two little maids had always been Chen Jingyun's personal maids and were also broken-bodied. Last night, Chen Jingyun and Luo Lian's actions made them feel threatened, fearing that Chen Jingyun would forget the old ones if he got new people.

  Chen Jingyun, who understood the situation clearly, didn't say anything and went to Chen Yusi's courtyard after finishing her toilette, preparing to have breakfast with Chen Yusi.

  Of course, there's also the matter of marriage that needs to be discussed with Chen Yu. Although Chen Jingyun has a nonchalant attitude towards this so-called arranged marriage, his first wife doesn't like him remarrying, but he doesn't want to rush into it either, especially at this critical moment, and now the Lin family is also involved with Sun Daoren.

  As soon as I entered Chen You's courtyard, I saw that Chen You was already sitting upright!

  "Come, sit down quickly!" Chen Yu's wife saw Chen Jingyun at the door and immediately smiled: "Let me take a look, you've lost weight again! You just recovered from your illness, be careful with your body."

  "The child is unfilial, making his mother worried!" As for the Chen Yu in front of him, Chen Jingyun had always felt very strange. On one hand, he had respect for this elderly woman, but on the other hand, he also felt a sense of unfamiliarity. This feeling was not something that Chen Jingyun only had now, but it was how he had always felt before.

  Starting from the age of 14, Chen Jingyun began to leave home for school, first at a new-style school, then at a military academy, and later studying abroad in Japan. It can be said that Chen Jingyun's connection with his family was limited to letters very early on, and his relationship with his family members had become somewhat lukewarm after many years of not seeing each other.

  "Although military affairs are important, one must also cherish their own body. If it weren't for the fact that it's not suitable in a military camp, I would have liked to let Luo Li and the others follow you to Nanxiao Field to serve you!" Madam Chen said as much, but she also knew that what she said wasn't very realistic, so she changed her tune: "You've only just recovered from your illness, so for the next few days, I'll have Fu Gen send over some nourishing soup at noon to help you recover."

  Chen Yu said so, Chen Jingyun had no choice but to agree!

  After finishing breakfast, Chen Jingyun pondered for a moment before speaking up: "Mother, about the marriage with the Lin family!"

  When Chen Jingyun mentioned the marriage, Madam Chen smiled and said: "Don't worry, my son. I will personally take care of this matter and make sure it is done with great fanfare. You just focus on your studies, and I will take care of the wedding arrangements for you."

  But Chen Jingyun shook his head: "I'm saying, can't this marriage be put on hold for now?"

  "Let go?" Chen Yu was somewhat puzzled: "Could it be that my son is not satisfied with the Lin family's daughter? But didn't you say everything was fine just a few days ago?"

  At that time, Chen Jingyun didn't think that Chen You would act so quickly and settle the betrothal gifts in just a few days! However, it was not suitable to explicitly oppose it, especially at this critical juncture. Chen Jingyun did not want to arouse Sun Daoren's vigilance over such trivial matters, because to a large extent, Chen Jingyun's marriage to Lin's daughter was equivalent to an alliance between the Chen and Sun families.

  Chen Jingyun said, "The child's intention is that recently our military affairs have been a bit busy, and we may not be able to take out any time. The marriage will be put on hold for the time being, no need to rush!"

  When Chen Jingyun finished speaking, Madam Chen Yu carefully looked at him with a serious expression. After a while, her face turned solemn. In the past, after Chen Jingyun's father passed away, she took charge of the household as a weak woman and not only preserved the family business but also expanded the Chen family's industry significantly. Such a person was naturally not an ignorant old woman who didn't understand anything.

  "Isn't it because of official reasons?" Chen You's wife was somewhat worried: "But isn't my son deeply trusted by Master Sun?"

  "No!" Chen Jingyun naturally couldn't tell Chen You that he was preparing to rebel, so he just said: "Lord Sun still values me highly!"

  "What's the reason?" Chen Yu's expression gradually sank: "This marriage was properly arranged by three matchmakers and six betrothals, and the wedding date was also confirmed with Mrs. Lin as December 17 last year. If we were to cancel the engagement, where would the face of my Chen family be? Where would the face of my son be in front of the Lin family? Where would the face of Grandson Sun be?"

  Listening to these words, Chen Jingyun did not rush to defend himself. In his heart, he secretly thought that today was the 28th of August in the lunar calendar, and there were still three months until December 17th last year! Time is still sufficient. Since his mother has already settled everything including the betrothal gifts, backing out now would undoubtedly lead to a rupture with Sun Daoren.

  "After thinking about the phrase 'those who achieve great things do not mind trivial matters' several times in his heart, Chen Jingyun finally suppressed the anger in his heart and stood up: 'In that case, everything will be done as mother says!'"

  Having said that, he didn't want to stay any longer either, and immediately stepped out.

  This marriage is doomed! Chen Jingyun didn't believe it, and after he rebelled and completely broke with Sun Daoren, this marriage could still go on!

  All the way, after arriving at Nanchang Camp, Chen Jingyun's first thing to do was to inspect the military camp. During this time, he inevitably used his tactics to win over the ordinary soldiers, either by asking about their well-being or discussing trivial family matters, or sharing joys with them. After finishing the inspection of the military camp, Chen Jingyun then summoned several main officers of the Second Regiment!

  Actually, Chen Jingyun had been wanting to find an opportunity to talk to the four team officers of the second camp alone since a few days ago, and the reason for this was naturally to ensure their loyalty.

  When the 10th Division began to train, Chen Jingyun was an instructor officer assisting in training. After the 38th Brigade was formally established, Chen Jingyun became the second battalion commander until the beginning of the year. It can be said that this second battalion was trained by him alone. All officers below the team leader were personally selected and appointed by him, and he was more at ease with their loyalty. Because Chen Jingyun had previously excluded revolutionaries, when appointing subordinate military officers, those suspected of being revolutionaries were not used, but instead used many officers from the old army like Ma Cheng. Additionally, a small number of graduates from the Beiyang specialized military academies, such as Lin Chengkun, were also recruited. This situation is very similar to that of the 6th Division of the Beiyang Army.

  Therefore, the Second Regiment was not infiltrated too much by the revolutionaries. This is also an important reason why the revolutionaries tried every means to win over Chen Jingyun directly.

  As Chen Jingyun walked into the room, everyone inside stood up with a rustling sound. Chen Jingyun looked around and continued walking forward for several steps before turning back to face the crowd below, nodding his head slightly and raising his hand: "Everyone, please sit down!"

  At this time, the following people sat down again in a row.

  "These past few days have been chaotic, you all must be worried!" Chen Jingyun said casually while glancing over the crowd below after taking a small sip of tea.

  To the right of Chen Jingyun sat Ma Cheng, followed by Li Lianyang, a former military officer who had been selected to study at the Fujian Military Academy. Below Li was Chen Weihua, a fellow clansman of Chen Jingyun's from 500 years ago, and a classmate of Lin Chengkun's at the Beiyang Military Academy. To the left of Chen Jingyun sat Zhuang Dafu, a handsome and refined officer from Hubei Military Middle School, who had been expected to study in Japan but lost the opportunity due to various reasons and was later recruited by Chen Jingyun.

  As for the officer of this rear team, there is some meaning to it. This person's name is Lin Feitai, and he is only 18 years old. He has no military school background, and when he came to enlist, he originally intended to be a clerk. However, Chen Jingyun later discovered that this person was very knowledgeable about military affairs and quickly grasped various tactics. In less than half a year, he was recognized by Chen Jingyun and promoted, eventually being directly promoted to team officer. This person is considered to be one of Chen Jingyun's personally trained officers.

  "Since the Wuchang Uprising, everywhere has been in a state of turmoil. It's not very stable here either. We've all had a hard time these past few days!" Chen Jingyun was still thinking about how to broach the subject, although he remembered that these people were all personally promoted by him and trustworthy, but no one could guarantee what they were really thinking in their hearts, so until the last moment, Chen Jingyun did not plan to openly say that he wanted to rebel.

  At this time, Zhuang Dafu spoke up and said: "Sir, I don't know how things are going in Wuchang?"

  Because Song Shou was guarding against the chaos in Fuzhou City, while restricting military officers and soldiers from going out at will, he also intentionally blocked news from the Wuchang side, so the ordinary officers and soldiers below had no idea what was happening on the Wuchang side.

  Chen Jingyun said, "The Beiyang Army has already entered Hubei and is currently in a stalemate with the militia. However..." Chen Jingyun paused here, took a sip of tea, and continued, "We all know that the combat strength of the six divisions of the Beiyang Army is top-notch in terms of equipment and training. As for the Hubei militia, only the old Eighth Division can fight, while the newly recruited soldiers and those from the Huabei militia are not much stronger than the Green Gang."

  "So it seems that this Hubei militia is doomed to defeat?" Ma Cheng said with doubt.

  But Chen Jingyun shook his head: "Think about it, if the six towns of Beiyang come with all their might, how long can the Hubei militia hold on? Will there be a back-and-forth tug-of-war situation? Not to mention others, Liujiatun will never be lost, and Hankou may have been recovered by then!"

  "The adults said that the Beiyang Army was grinding and polishing, but Li Lianyang couldn't understand this."

  Chen Jingyun nodded: "This is a clear thing, the other day the imperial court appointed Yuan Zhongtang as the governor of Huguang, but Yuan Zhongtang didn't even bother to respond. Can't you guess what's on his mind?"

  "You reap what you sow!" Lin Chengkun said these four words.

  "That's right!" Chen Jingyun thought for a moment and said: "However, the overall situation in the country has changed from previous years. The whole country is in chaos, revolutionaries are rushing around everywhere, and it won't be long before the impact spreads across the country!"

  As soon as these words came out, the faces of several people below sank.