Chapter 14 Battle! (This chapter is free)

The capital, the residence of Chief of General Staff Liu Yun, is located outside Desheng Gate. In the high-walled courtyard, there are green trees and red flowers, strange rocks and green ponds, and clever pavilions and corridors.

Under the warm sunshine, four children, no more than two or three years old, were toddling in a small pavilion in Yishui surrounded by weeping willows. Two young women were looking after them, and several maids were standing outside the pavilion. Beyond that, there were

Several servants with revolvers hanging from their waists.

Children communicate with each other in their own way, including simple words, babbling sounds, and various body language that adults do not understand.

A young woman is wearing a long Western dress, with a petite figure, bright eyes, white skin, and a happy and bright smile on her face. From time to time she teases the little cuties who are tangled on the ground. Another person with complexion

'Slightly darker, but with a kind of healthy beauty. She was wearing a traditional cheongsam. Although she was looking at the children with happy and loving eyes, after all, some ladies were reserved and just sat on the stone bench with Mrs. Zhu - also

She is Rong'er, the wife of Major General Zhu Tao, Director of the General Staff Intelligence Division - as she speaks, she is Chun'er, the 20-year-old wife of Lieutenant General Liu Yun, Chief of the General Staff. Among the four children, there is a pair of twins who are hers. Her brother is named Liu.

Ping, his sister who was born three minutes after him is named Liu Yuchun.

"Mrs. Zhu, look at how well the children of our two families play. If they can be together more often in the future, they will really be considered childhood sweethearts."

Mrs. Zhu pulled little Liu Ping, who was hugging her two-year-old daughter, and said, "It would be even more beautiful if we could make an engagement in the future. Look, how much Liu Ping likes my Zhu Xin."

Mrs. Liu smiled and said: "My Yuchun and your Zhu Liefeng are quite a match. That's what I have in mind. I just don't know what your husband and I mean. How can we women be in charge?"

Before Mrs. Liu finished speaking, Liu Yun's laughter was already heard behind her: "What kind of decision does Madam want to make? Isn't it enough to be the hostess here?"

Mrs. Liu quickly stood up and saluted: "Master, you are back."

Liu Yun supported her and said, "Didn't I tell you not to do this kind of ritual? It's been four years and you just can't change it."

"Concubine..." Mrs. Liu had just finished her words and quickly changed her words: "Chun'er dare not disobey etiquette."

Mrs. Zhu said with a smile: "My sister just can't adapt, but Chief of Staff Liu likes this kind of sister, right?"

As early as three years ago, Mrs. Zhu - Rong'er and Mrs. Liu - Chun'er had met at a private banquet of the Liu family. They hit it off and they became Jinlan. From then on, the ladies of the two families often visited each other.

, and from time to time she would bring her children with her, just like sisters.

Liu Yun pointed behind him and said to Ronger: "Your master is here too, why don't you be more honest?"

Rong'er took her son and daughter and said with a smile: "I'm the same whether he's here or not - Kuai, Xiaoxin, Liefeng, call me uncle."

Little Zhu Xin mumbled "Pig Pig...", which made the adults burst into laughter.

Zhu Tao came over and picked up Xiaoxin, pinching her little nose: "Xiaoxin, tell daddy, do you like Brother Ping?"

Xiaoxin shouted again: "Brother Ping, it's... a pigeon..."

Zhu Tao asked again: "Can you be Brother Ping's bride from now on?"

Xiaoxin held her thumb in her mouth, hesitated for a moment, and muttered: "Okay...not good...ok..."

Chun'er picked up Liu Ping, pointed at Xiaoxin and said, "Did you hear that my sister has promised to be your bride, are you happy..."

Liu Ping shouted resolutely: "Happy, sister..."

After saying that, he opened his mouth and smiled stupidly.

When Xiaoxin saw Brother Ping laughing, she also laughed. Yuchun and Liefeng on the ground were confused and looked at them blankly. After thinking for a while, they started laughing without asking the reason.

Liu Yun looked at this scene and suddenly thought of the home he had left in another time and space. The figures of his daughter Liu Qianhua and his wife Xiao Wen seemed to appear in front of him again. He closed his eyes and shattered the image that was about to take shape. Already.

For those who have abandoned the past and continue to think about the past, it is not only a betrayal of the present, but also an insult to the past.

Chun'er whispered in Liu Yun's ear: "Master, what do you think of this idea?"

"What?"

"The children of our two families, Mrs. Zhu and I both think they are pretty good. I don't know what you mean..."

Liu Yun knelt down, hugged Yuchun and Liefeng, squeezed their little faces, and said with a smile: "Let nature take its course."

At this time, a servant hurriedly ran over, bent down beside Liu Yun and said: "Report to the master, Prime Minister and Deputy Minister Wen Yi wants to see you..."

In the living room of Liu Mansion, Liu Yun asked all the servants and maids to leave, and only met with Wen Yi together with Zhu Tao.

Wen Yi was currently wearing a black suit and a bow tie. He had thrown away his fake braids long ago. His hair was smooth and combed back. He held a top hat in one hand and a civilized staff in the other.

European and American gentlemanly demeanor.

Liu Yun and Zhu Tao wore general uniforms imitated from the German Army, with navy blue as the main color, and general rank badges with golden tassels hanging on their shoulders.

There is a gold dragon pattern collar pin on the collar - this is the privilege of officers. The cuffs are embroidered with silver dragon patterns, and the outer belt buckle is decorated with silver unicorn. The two of them are holding

The center of his military cap shines brightly, it is the military emblem established in 1891 - a golden coiled dragon.

The three of them dispensed with politeness and sat down around a square table. Everyone poured tea by themselves. Liu Yun helped Wen Yi put away his hat and civilized stick. He turned around and said, "Wen Yi, what news is there in the cabinet? Come and hear it."

listen."

Wen Yi sipped tea and said slowly: "Today I accompanied Prime Minister Weng to the Zizhengyuan. As soon as I entered the door, Tan Sitong and his gang came up to make a fuss about holding a parliament this year. The Prime Minister explained for a long time before asking them to calm down; and then

The hereditary princes and nobles protested against the clearing of their fields. The Prime Minister said that the matter should be brought to the Supreme Court and sent them back. Then they listened to Liang Qichao's speech, which lasted for three hours. During this period, half of the noble MPs left and the other half

The congressman dozed off, and among the civilian congressmen, some were applauding and some were scolding. I think recruiting him into our Central Democratic Party is a hopelessly correct decision. When the congress is held in the future, with his speech ability, not only our seats will be

It will increase a lot, and the atmosphere in Congress will be much more lively..."

The Zizhengyuan mentioned by Wen Yi is the product of the "preparatory constitution" in 1891. It existed as the basis for the future parliament from the beginning. There are two types of members: "popularly elected" and "officially appointed". "Elected members" are also called

"Public members", a total of 100 people, are elected by members of the provincial consultative bureaus and approved by the governors of each province. "Imperial members" are also called "noble members", and they must be hereditary princes and nobles from the clan and foreign vassals and according to the new title system

According to the principle of reciprocity, the number of military merits and merchant nobles awarded is also 100. Since the first annual meeting of the Zizhengyuan was held in March 1892, Wen Yi and other cabinet officials of the "Liu Yun Clan" began to present themselves to the parliamentarians

Talented people won over princes and dignitaries, and after careful planning, the Chinese National Democratic Party, referred to as the Chinese Democratic Party, was established in January of the following year. By the time the third regular session of the Zizhengyuan was held in 1894, the Chinese Democratic Party already had 68 civilian members.

and 35 aristocratic members, gaining the power to influence the overall situation in the Zizhengyuan. At the same time, the Chinese Democratic Party has also developed greatly in local areas. Its branches are located in provincial cities, prefectures and even county towns, covering two-thirds of the provinces in the country.

The District Consultative Bureau is controlled by Chinese Democratic Party members, and the other third of the provincial and district consultative bureaus also have a certain number of Chinese Democratic Party members. The goal of the Chinese Democratic Party is to hold the National Congress scheduled for 1896.

Obtain an absolute advantage in the National Assembly to firmly hold power.

Liu Yun waited for Wen Yi to finish speaking, then took a folder, opened it and pushed it in front of Wen Yi: "This is this year's emergency military budget. You keep it for now. When things happen, you can submit it to the cabinet for discussion immediately.

, and be sure to get the Council to pass the bill to impose new taxes.”

Wen Yi browsed over and nodded: "No problem, if we reduce 'government' spending, suspend capital construction investment, impose new taxes on the wealthy, issue war bonds, and have the Propaganda Department launch a fundraiser, this budget can still be raised."

.”

Liu Yundao: "This is only within this year's plan. If the war does not go according to our plan and is delayed until next year, or our army suffers unexpected events, then there will be a new budget."

Wen Yi waved his hand: "You can rest assured and carry out your plan. We have a large group of brothers from our cabinet with us in terms of finance, so you don't have to worry about it. Besides, after these four years of political and economic reform, although it cannot be said to be fundamental,

The nature of the war has changed, but this country's material and financial resources are enough to support a modern army that is the number one in East Asia to fight a war of national annihilation."

"A war of annihilation? That's good, but I think that this annihilation of a country does not necessarily mean annexing territory and enslaving the people, but gradually destroying the self-esteem and self-confidence of its citizens, controlling its economic lifeline, and completely destroying it culturally and economically.

Surrender to us-----"

"You will never be able to stand up again."

Wen Yi interjected, Liu Yun nodded, and said: "So I think the result of this war is a treaty. No matter who wins or loses, we must rely on negotiation to finally solve the problem. If we win a big victory

, then we must force the other party to sign a treaty that can bring us the greatest benefit and harm it the most."

"I believe your army can bring us this treaty." Wen Yi said.

"Would you like to take a look? I will go to Tianjin next Monday to inspect the Second Imperial Guard Division. If you are free, come with us," Liu Yundao said.

"Let me take a look..." Wen Yi took out the memo and flipped through it. "There is a meeting the day after tomorrow. It's not very important. Let me just tell Prime Minister Weng and I will let you know if it works."

"ok."

Tianjin Zizhulin Barracks.

The headquarters of the 2nd Guards Division is located here. In addition to the headquarters offices and a home for the families of officers, the barracks also houses the regiments directly under the division headquarters, with a total of nearly 9,000 officers and soldiers.

The Imperial Guard is the essence of the four-year imperial military reform. Its basic combat units are the Imperial Guard Division and the Imperial Guard Brigade. As of April 30, 1894, it had been organized in the Zhili Military Region centered on Zhili Province.

Completed four Guards divisions (No. 1 to 4 Guards Divisions), three Guards brigades (Capital Guards Brigade, Guards Hussars Brigade, Guards Teaching Brigade), two Guards Marine Regiments (One Regiment and the Guards Teaching Brigade)

Second Regiment). In addition, the standing army, which is trained based on the Imperial Guard, has also developed to three divisions (No. 1 to 3 Infantry Divisions), of which the 1st Infantry Division and the 2nd Infantry Division are stationed in the Liangjiang Military Region, and the 3rd Infantry Division is stationed in the Northeast.

military region.

The establishment of the Guards Division was initially based on fighting against the Japanese divisions, striving to outperform the opponent in terms of firepower and logistical supply capabilities under the same strength conditions. However, as the Qing army's organizational reform progressed, the Japanese army's establishment also changed accordingly.

The change.

Take the Qing Imperial Guards First Division, which was established in 1892 and is now fully staffed, as an example.

The 1st Guards Division is composed of division headquarters, division-affiliated units and three Guards infantry brigades (the 4th, 5th and 6th Guards Brigades).

Division-directed teams include:

The division artillery regiment has five artillery battalions, three of which are equipped with German or French 150mm heavy artillery, two battalions are equipped with 75mm field artillery, and it also has a guard infantry battalion, a transport battalion, and an artillery reconnaissance company.

The regiment has 2,364 men and is equipped with a total of 27 150mm heavy guns and 36 75mm field guns;

Guard regiment, the same ordinary infantry regiment, with a total of 1,641 people;

The cavalry regiment, the whole regiment uses war horses to maneuver, and is organized like an ordinary infantry regiment, with the addition of a war horse maintenance company, with a total of 1,659 people;

The baggage regiment has three baggage battalions and one guard company, with a total of 1,180 people;

The Engineer Regiment has three engineer battalions and one guard company, with a total of 1,483 people;

The reconnaissance cavalry battalion has one more horse maintenance platoon than the ordinary infantry battalion, with a total of 432 people.

The Guards Brigade is composed of the brigade headquarters, the brigade-affiliated team and three Guards Infantry Regiments.

The brigade team includes:

The artillery battalion has three artillery companies, one guard platoon and one baggage platoon. The battalion has 255 people and is equipped with 18 75mm mountain guns;

Guards Battalion, the same ordinary infantry battalion, with a total of 426 men;

The baggage battalion has three baggage companies and one guard platoon, with a total of 352 people;

The engineering battalion has three engineering companies and one special equipment company, with a total of 453 people;

The reconnaissance company is the same ordinary cavalry company, with a total of 110 people.

The Guards Infantry Regiment is composed of the regiment headquarters, the regiment directly affiliated team and three Guards Infantry Battalions.

The team directly under the regiment includes:

The artillery company has three artillery platoons, a total of 65 people, and is equipped with 6 57mm mountain guns;

The machine gun company has three machine gun platoons, with a total of 65 people, and is equipped with three 37mm ten-barreled Gatling cannons;

Guard company, the same ordinary infantry company, with 110 people in the company;

The baggage company has three baggage companies, with a total of 101 people.

The Guards Infantry Battalion is composed of the battalion headquarters, the battalion directly affiliated team and three Guards Infantry companies.

The battalion team includes:

Machine gun platoon: It has three machine gun squads, with a total of 20 people, equipped with 3 7.92mm Maxim machine guns or 10-barreled Gatling machine guns;

Guard platoon: the same ordinary infantry platoon, with a total of 32 people;

Logistics platoon: a platoon of 32 people, responsible for the transportation and distribution of supplies for the entire battalion.

In addition to the company headquarters, the Guards Infantry Company has three platoons, each platoon has three squads, and each squad has 10 people. The squad leader uses a 7.63 mm revolver, and the soldiers use a 7.92 mm Mauser 88 rifle. The platoon has a platoon leader and a correspondent.

1. All use revolvers. The deputy platoon leader is the squad leader, and the whole platoon has 32 people. The company headquarters includes the company commander and adjutant, 2 correspondents, 5 snipers (using the Austrian Mannlicher 20-shot rifle), and the cook

3, 1 medical officer, and 1 accountant. The company has 110 people, including 105 combatants, and is equipped with 90 Mauser rifles, 5 Mannlicher sniper rifles, and 19 revolvers.

Each Guards infantry battalion has a total of 426 people, including 372 combatants, equipped with 300 Mauser rifles, 15 Mannlicher sniper rifles, 68 revolvers, and 3 Maxim machine guns or ten-barreled Gatling machine guns.

Each Guards Infantry Regiment has a total of 1,641 people, including 1,400 combatants, equipped with 1,020 Mauser rifles, 53 Mannlicher sniper rifles, 246 revolvers, 9 machine guns, 9 57mm mountain guns, and 37mm mountain guns.

3 ten-barreled Gatling cannons.

The Guards Infantry Brigade has a total of 6,555 personnel, including 4,981 combat personnel (excluding engineer battalions, supply battalions and brigade headquarters). The entire brigade is equipped with 3,510 Mauser rifles, 179 Mannlicher sniper rifles, and 30 machine guns.

There are 27 57mm mountain guns, 9 37mm ten-barreled Gatling guns, and 18 75mm mountain guns.

The Guards Infantry Division has a total of 28,581 people. The division is equipped with 12,750 Mauser rifles, 610 Mannlicher sniper rifles, 99 Maxim or ten-barreled Gatling guns, 99 57mm mountain guns, and 37mm ten-barreled Gatling cannons.

33, 54 75mm mountain guns, 36 75mm field howitzers, and 27 150mm heavy howitzers. At this time, even the most elite 1st Guards Division and Guards Teaching Brigade in the country did not fully meet this standard, and

The average compliance rate of heavy equipment of other divisions and brigades is less than 25%: the 2nd Guards Division does not have 150mm heavy artillery, the division artillery regiment is only equipped with 24 75mm field guns, the entire division is only equipped with 35 machine guns, and the 3rd Guards Division is equipped with only 35 machine guns.

The division's entire artillery equipment consisted of 38 57mm mountain guns and 17 75mm mountain field guns, without a single machine gun. The newly formed 4th Guards Division did not even have a gun or a machine gun.

The combat effectiveness of the Imperial Army's Standing Infantry Division is slightly lower than that of the Guards Division. There is no cavalry regiment in the division's direct team. The artillery regiment is a four-battalion system, equipped with 36 75mm mountain guns and 18 75mm field guns. The brigade artillery battalion is equipped with 57

There are 27 mm mountain guns. The regiment's artillery company and machine gun company are equipped with 37 mm ten-barreled Gatling machine guns, three for each company. The division has 26,536 people and is equipped with a total of 11,730 Mauser rifles and 557 Mannlicher sniper rifles.

branches, 99 machine guns, 81 57mm mountain cannons, 66 37mm ten-barreled Gatling machine guns, 36 75mm mountain cannons, and 18 75mm field guns. At this time, the most elite infantry division in the army's standing army was equipped with heavy equipment.

The standard compliance rate is less than 80%, and the average compliance rate of heavy equipment of other divisions and brigades is less than 35%. The 2nd and 3rd Infantry Divisions are not equipped with machine guns and multi-barreled rapid-fire machine guns at all. All the 3rd Infantry Division

The artillery equipment is only 27 57mm guns and 16 75mm guns.

At the same time, the Japanese Army division was organized into a four-unit system, that is, the division had two brigades, which had two infantry regiments, the infantry regiment had three infantry brigades, and the brigades had four infantry squadrons.

A machine gun squadron (eight Maxim or ten Gatlin heavy machine guns), the infantry squadron has three infantry squads, and the infantry squad has three rifle groups. The division also has an artillery regiment, a baggage regiment, and an engineer regiment.

The artillery wing has 36 75mm field guns and 12 120mm or 150mm heavy howitzers, and the wing has a wing artillery squadron.

(4 57mm mountain guns) and a rapid-fire artillery squadron (4 37mm ten-barreled Gatling guns), with a total strength of 28,500 people. The entire division is equipped with 104 machine guns, 16 37mm ten-barreled Gatling guns, and 57mm ten-barreled Gatling guns.

There were 24 mountain guns, 36 75mm field guns, and 12 120mm or 150mm heavy guns. At this time, the Japanese army had a total of 6 standing divisions (1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th Divisions) and 1 close

Guards Brigade, of which the 1st Guards Brigade and the 3rd and 5th Divisions are the most elite. Except for the number of machine guns in these three units, which only reach 50% of the quota, other heavy weapons configurations fully meet the standards. The remaining four divisions have

The average compliance rate for heavy weapons is about 40%, of which the number of machine guns in each division is only about 10% of the quota.

It can be seen from this that at full strength, the heavy weapons firepower of the Imperial Guards Division is much higher than that of the Japanese divisions. In terms of supply capabilities, the Japanese divisions organized a baggage regiment, while the Imperial Guards Division except for

In addition to establishing a baggage regiment at the division level, corresponding baggage units are also set up in brigades, regiments, and battalions, and their continuous supply capabilities are better than those of the Japanese army.

The Imperial Army's standing infantry divisions are inferior to the Japanese divisions in terms of quantity and quality of long-range artillery, but the quantity and quality of other heavy firepower are superior to the Japanese, and their supply capacity is the same as that of the Guards Division, but higher than the Japanese.

At this time, Major General Zhong Xiahuo, commander of the Second Imperial Guard Division, was gathering with Lieutenant General Liu Yun, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, Major General Wu Dingguo, Director of the General Staff Training Division, and Wen Yi, the Undersecretary of the Prime Minister, in the living room of the division headquarters, drinking tea and fruits, and discussing the exercise.

.

"Mr. Zhong, what program have you prepared for us this time?" Wen Yi asked, sipping tea.

Zhong Xiahuo said: "How about the artillery firing with live ammunition?"

Liu Yundao said: "Old Zhong, this is your territory, you can do whatever you want. However, we are not here to go through the motions, so we don't need those frivolous things."

Zhong Xiahuo smiled and said: "How can you do that? I am still a human being if I want to play tricks on you. I will arrange for the artillery regiment to go."

Zhong Xiahuo called the adjutant, gave some instructions, and then said to everyone: "Okay, the live ammunition shooting will start in two hours. Everyone said, should we have lunch at the division headquarters first or go down to the troops to take a look?"

Liu Yun put on his military cap: "What are we going to eat? Let's go down to the army. This lunch will be taken care of at the grassroots level. We will eat what the soldiers eat, okay?"

"The Chief of General Staff has said, if there is anything that can't be done, let's go and go to the Cavalry Regiment. Dinner will be served in half an hour, so let's inspect the food situation at the grassroots level." Zhong Xiahuo called the guards,

Just as he was about to set off, an officer stationed in the division headquarters of the Intelligence Division hurriedly walked in, holding a folder in his hand and standing at attention: "Report to the Chief of General Staff, the Intelligence Division has an urgent call."

"read."

"Yuan Shikai sent an urgent message today. The Yandong Xuedao 'rebellion' party has captured Jeonju, the capital of Jeolla Province, on June 5. The Korean Imperial Guards who went to rescue were severely damaged. The King of Korea has sent an envoy to Yuan to discuss China's dispatch of troops to peace."

Regarding the chaos, Yuan asked the government to give clear instructions. Today, the cabinet is holding an emergency meeting to discuss the matter. He hopes that the chief of general staff will return to the capital as soon as possible for planning. Director of the Intelligence Division of the General Staff Headquarters, Zhu Tao, Guangxu 20

June 7, 2018.”

Liu Yun nodded: "I understand, you can go down."

Wen Yi patted Zhong Xiahuo on the shoulder: "I don't like this live-fire exercise, but your cannons will soon perform on the battlefield for us, for the people of the country, and for the whole world. Don't mess up the performance and get thrown away."
Chapter completed!