"Mr. Wu, please introduce yourself. I am the counselor of the British Consulate in Nanjing. Brown, it is a pleasure to meet you."
Wu Peifu also shook hands hurriedly: "Mr. Brown, I am honored to meet you, but from your voice, I can't tell that you are British at all!"
Brown also smiled and said: "I have lived in China for more than ten years. I have almost forgotten what London is like, but I know Nanjing very clearly. I have fallen deeply in love with this land."
After Wu Peifu invited Brown to the office, he introduced Cao Kun to Brown. After shaking hands, Brown smiled and said: "After so many years in China, I have always thought that Mr. Wu is a very promising leader. You have strong leadership skills."
"At the same time, you are good at handling various relationships and have strong strength. Perhaps you should play a greater role in China. In this regard, the UK is willing to fully assist you."
"Mr. Brown is ridiculous. Wu is now in dire straits internally and externally, and has reached the end of his rope. How can he dare to have any extravagant hopes?"
Brown smiled and shook his head: "Mr. Wu, your troubles are just trivial matters. The British Empire is willing to provide help and can solve any difficulty."
When Cao Kun heard this from the side, he was also secretly happy. He was worried that he would not be able to compete with Fengjun. If there were British people behind him to help, he would be much more confident. So Cao Kun smiled and said: "Ziyu, the British
On the one hand, I am sincere and sincere, this opportunity must not be missed and will never come back again!”
Wu Peifu also nodded, and then said: "Mr. Brown, I wonder what you need me to do?"
"It's very simple. I hope Mr. Wu can support the Southeast Mutual Guarantee. As long as you agree, the British Empire can immediately provide you with half a million pounds in military expenses and a large amount of arms and supplies."
Before World War I, half a million pounds was equivalent to almost five million oceans. Although the pound has shrunk after World War I, this amount of money is not a small amount.
However, Wu Peifu did not show joy on his face: "Supporting mutual protection between the Southeast and Southeast will lead to a crusade from the Feng army. Although these five hundred thousand are a lot, I am afraid it will not be worth a few artillery shells on the battlefield. Henan is located in the Central Plains, and there are no
The danger can be defended, but I'm afraid it won't be able to stop the rolling iron flow of Fengjun."
"Mr. Wu, maybe you shouldn't stay in Henan."
"What does Mr. Brown mean?"
Brown smiled slightly: "China is too big, and the gap between the north and the south is very big. If it is forcibly unified, there will only be constant wars. If Mr. Wu and Mr. Cao are willing to go to Nanjing, use the Yangtze River as the boundary, and divide the north and the south, this will be the best solution.
Good choice.”
When Cao Kun heard Brown's words, he was also extremely happy. This coincided with his idea, so he smiled and said: "Ziyu, the Fengjun Army is powerful, but with the natural dangers of the Yangtze River, they can't get through it at all. As long as the south is managed well,
, we now have a place to settle down."
Brown also smiled and said: "Indeed. When necessary, the British Empire's Far East Fleet will provide help and blockade the Yangtze River. In addition, as long as Mr. Wu agrees, we can hand over the tariffs of the southern provinces to you."
Wu Peifu sat silently in his seat without saying a word. Cao Kun couldn't wait any longer. He hurriedly advised: "Ziyu, although he is half the country, he is still the country at least. Don't be too stubborn!"
Wu Peifu shook his head firmly: "If you don't succeed, you will be benevolent, but no matter what, you can't be a sinner who divides the world. Wu can't afford this infamy!"
Cao Kun still wanted to persuade him, but Wu Peifu no longer wanted to hear it: "Shuai Cao, you'd better go to Nanjing first. I will choose the opportunity to act."
Although Wu Peifu was single-handedly promoted by Cao Kun, he couldn't help but grow up, and Cao Kun was so angry that he had no choice but to leave Luoyang and go all the way south to Nanjing.
After arriving in Nanjing, Cao Kun received an unprecedented welcome. As a highly respected senior figure, the number one industrialist Zhang Jian personally brought celebrities from Jiangsu and Zhejiang to welcome Cao Kun. Qi Xieyuan and other military and political officials also came, which surprised Cao Kun the most.
What's more, Britain, Japan, and France all sent their consuls general here, and they were very polite to Cao Kun.
Especially the social atmosphere became even more lively. Cao Kun was also overjoyed. He swept away the gloom and said loudly: "Union-provincial autonomy is the trend of the times and the wish of all people. In modern countries, public opinion is the most important thing in everything.
Zhang Tinglan and other warriors only want to show off their strength and will not end well if they are tied to them. The southeastern provinces should be autonomous."
“Long live autonomy!”
“Public opinion cannot be violated!”
…
Amid the cheers of the crowd, Cao Kun was welcomed into the original Liangjiang Governor's Mansion, where Sun Wen was sworn in as the interim president of the Republic of China.
After Cao Kun entered the palace, Qi Xieyuan and others suddenly said together: "Please ask Marshal Cao to serve as the very president to lead the south and realize federal provincial autonomy. We will swear our loyalty to the death."
"Everyone, how can Mr. Cao be the president despite his virtues and abilities? I think we should choose someone else, Gaoming, right?"
Qi Xieyuan hurriedly took a few steps, arrived in front of Cao Kun, and said hurriedly: "I would like to ask the world, besides Cao Shuai, who else is more suitable? Please be sure to consider the well-being of the hundreds of millions of people in the southeast. Don't
No more refusal."
The old man Zhang Jian also smiled and said: "Zhong Shan, do your part, you are the only one who can lead everyone to fight against Zhang Tinglan!"
"Yes, yes, Zhang Jilao is right. We don't recognize anyone except you!"
"Yes, please take office as President Cao!"
The speed at which these people changed their words was indeed astonishing, and they had already begun to call the president. Cao Kun was very willing, but he still had to pretend to save face.
"Everyone, it's okay to let me take up the post, but Cao has one point to make. I am all for the great cause of self-government for the people in the southeast. As soon as Beijing agrees to the request, I will resign immediately and will never stay in office!"
Cao Kun reluctantly ascended to the throne of the Supreme President out of "reluctance", Qi Xieyuan became the Minister of War and concurrently served as the Nanjing Garrison Commander, Zhang Jian became the Speaker of the United Provincial Council, and others also received awards.
, a grassroots team of the small imperial court in Nanjing was established in a short time.
Cao Kun is not confused. He knows that among the direct line, Wu Peifu is the strongest and the most capable. Although there are some difficulties now and he has problems to deal with, if he wants to deal with Zhang Tinglan, he must be Wu Peifu.
Therefore, Cao Kun publicly announced that as long as Wu Peifu could support him, he would immediately become the vice president. In addition, Cao Kun also made great efforts to win over the warlords in the Southwest and Guangdong and Guangxi. The letters of appointment were all given away as if they were free of money.
Compared with the liveliness in the south, the north is relatively quiet. Regarding Cao Kun's inauguration as president, there is no official statement at all. This makes everyone in the world fall into deep thought. What kind of trick is Zhang Tinglan playing? Before taking any action,
The screams were so loud that the south really rebelled, but he had no voice. Isn't this a big joke?
Just when no one could guess what was going on, a fleet of ships had quietly arrived in Haizhou in the morning light, which would later be known as Lianyungang, the starting point of the famous Longhai Railway. The fleet totaled It consists of eight warships and 13 transport ships, carrying more than 5,800 well-equipped soldiers from the 1st Division and 2nd Brigade. They are going to carry out the first landing operation in Fengjun's history.
The fleet was personally commanded by Shen Honglie, while Zhou Zijian was in charge of the landing force. From sea to land, it was definitely a brand new combat mode. They didn't know what would happen, and their minds were spinning. , there was faint sweat on the palms of my hands.
However, when they appeared off the coast of Haizhou, the expected interception did not appear. The people at the port thought it was a fleet of a great power, and they were still pointing and praising it from afar.
Zhou Zijian and Shen Honglie were overjoyed to see that the guards were so unguarded. The soldiers immediately boarded the boat and rushed to the beach as quickly as possible. While these people were dumbfounded, Feng Jun fired a shot. , successfully controlled the port. Then the transport ship docked and unloaded all the weapons and personnel on it.
Zhou Zijian also set foot on hard soil. For him, a landlubber, taking a boat is really a challenge. In fact, many people in Fengjun have already vomited. After all, northerners are not used to taking boats, and Fengjun is still There was no time to form a full-time Marine Corps, so they had to make do with infantry.
But fortunately, everything went smoother than expected. After Fengjun took over the port, he quickly took control of the train station. There was almost no resistance in the whole process. The army all surrendered and ran.
Zhou Zijian rushed to the train station with his troops and horses. When he saw that there were many carriages parked inside, his face immediately showed joy.
"Brothers, hurry up and get on the train. Haizhou is nothing. Taking Xuzhou is the real achievement. Everyone, work harder!"
Zhou Zijian and the others boarded the train excitedly and headed west as fast as possible. Along the way, the Beiyang Army seemed to have seen a monster. They never dreamed that the enemy would come from the east. This is not a big deal. What a joke! Caught off guard, Feng Jun reached the outskirts of Xuzhou with almost no effort.
Xuzhou is the key point between the north and the south, where Jinpu Road and Longhai Road converge, and is the northern gate of Jiangsu. Needless to say, its importance goes without saying. Although Qi Xieyuan knew that the Fengjun army was powerful, he also deployed four divisions in Xuzhou. According to His wishful thinking was to buy enough time even if he couldn't defeat Feng Jun.
The commander of the 19th Division, Bundo, was in charge of the defense of Xuzhou. In response to the possible southward movement of the Feng Army, he lined up four divisions in a line and built a solid defense line, aiming to block the Feng Army's southward movement.
However, he had calculated everything and never expected that Fengjun did not go south from the north, but suddenly appeared from behind. Artillery shells continued to explode in the middle of the Beiyang Army, blowing everyone around them into pieces, and the fortifications were destroyed. All the precious artillery pieces were turned into parts.
In a hurry, countless Beiyang troops died under Feng Jun's guns. By the time Bondo got the report, Feng Jun had already invaded the train station. Two artillery shells suddenly fell on Bondo's headquarters. There was a violent explosion, so frightened that Bundor suddenly shrank under the table.