Yuan Shikai waved his hands repeatedly and said: "It's just a title, we can discuss it later. There are more important things to do now, so there is no need to say more about such small things."
Therefore, no one mentioned the naming of the new rifle again. However, although Yuan Shikai said so, the Beiyang veterans present still knew very well that many times the president would always retreat in order to advance. If he does not agree with his mouth, he may not necessarily mean it in his heart.
If you don't like it, wait for a while and present the matter in a low-key way, and 90% of the time you will agree.
Afterwards, everyone did not leave the scene, but continued to arrange soldiers to test the shooting performance of the new rifle. Duan Qirui, Cai E, Ban Zhichao and others all stepped forward to operate in person one by one, and even Yuan Keduan also used it on a whim.
He ran over to try it out. The German Bell took this opportunity to talk to Yuan Su alone about some issues about the new rifle.
Bell is not a professional military consultant. After all, he is still an arms dealer. As an arms dealer, it stands to reason that he does not want China to implement standard rifles so quickly. Even if it wants to implement standard rifles, it is best to purchase foreign arms. If it is like now
, he inexplicably purchased the copyright of a brand-new rifle from abroad, brought it back to produce and equip it himself, which was a big impact on his career as an arms dealer.
However, the most critical reason why he praised this new rifle in front of Yuan Shikai for its excellent performance and that it is very suitable for the current equipment of the Chinese Army is that he heard that all the parts of this new rifle are imported from Germany. In other words,
Even if you cannot trade finished arms, you can still trade raw materials.
The reason why he talked to Yuan Su alone was naturally to get some useful business information from Yuan Su, such as where the original factory of this rifle is, who the designer is, the scale of future production, etc.
.
At first, Yuan Su didn't understand what Bell wanted to know, but as the conversation between the two gradually deepened, he immediately realized Bell's intention. So, there was no need to beat around the bush, he used very simple language to hint Bell, as long as
If the price is reasonable or more services can be provided, I will try my best to find factories that produce new rifles and order raw materials from Bell.
Bell said that this matter could be discussed in detail, and then agreed with Yuan Su on the next meeting time.
After Bell finished speaking, Yuan Su stood there for a while, just waiting for everyone to finish testing the new rifle, and then headed back to the Presidential Palace. Maybe he could get to Zhang Boju if it was still early.
But only after a while, Li Bin suddenly walked over to Yuan Su and informed Yuan Su that the President was looking for him.
Yuan Su thought about it carefully and realized that there should be some unresolved issues. The issue of the new rifle's subsequent production needs to be carefully considered, not to mention the previous issue of deploying troops to Henan to support the suppression of Bai Lang's uprising.
He followed Li Bin and walked a few steps to the outside of the shooting range. Yuan Shikai was chatting with Ban Zhichao beside the road outside the shooting range.
After seeing Yuan Su coming, Yuan Shikai turned his gaze and took two steps towards this side.
"Ke Li, I was just talking to Ban Zhichao about the situation in Henan, and suddenly I remembered that you had a petition years ago, and I simply came to you to talk about it now." Yuan Shikai said first.
"It turns out that this is what happened. My nephew and cousin Zhang occasionally talked about this matter before, and they just catered to each other casually. Unexpectedly, cousin Zhang believed this matter to be true and even sent a special message to Kaifeng. A few days ago
Uncle Zhang also responded to the message about this matter, so that my nephew was a little bit stuck." Yuan Su said this deliberately.
Naturally, he does not want to be too active in front of Yuan Shikai. As the saying goes, if he expands his power too quickly, he will inevitably step into some minefields. Even if his development cannot threaten his uncle Yuan Shikai's dominance, if it affects
It is also not a good thing to reach the status of "Prince" Yuan Keding. There are many allusions to this kind of brother's feud in history. From the first time he went to Beijing to celebrate the New Year, he kept this in mind.
"So, you have no plans to go to Henan?" Yuan Shikai showed a somewhat strange expression and asked further.
"I have plans to go there. After all, Uncle Zhang is an elder. When he was in Zhili Province, he took great care of his nephew. As the saying goes, you should remember the kindness you receive from others. My nephew also hopes to help Uncle Zhang." Yuan Suzheng.
Se said. He said this not only to explain, but also to hint to Yuan Shikai that if he could remember Zhang Zhenfang's kindness, he would naturally also remember Yuan Shikai's kindness.
"If it's a private matter, then you can decide whether to go or not. But since you promised Xin'an to mobilize troops to aid Yu, then this matter is not a private matter. I have to say that Xin'an's previous handling of the chaos was really
It's disappointing. The high-ranking military army actually allowed some villagers to play around, how can it be unworthy?" Yuan Shikai said very seriously, and when he said the second half of the sentence, his tone was obviously a bit sullen.
"My nephew has heard about the civil unrest in Henan. The rebels rose up in large numbers and suddenly. In addition, there were revolutionaries operating among them. It was indeed a difficult matter. Uncle Zhang just said
If you fail for a moment, the thieves will end up being a mob. When the government gets serious, these thieves will inevitably become like birds and beasts." Yuan Su said consolingly.
"If it were really that simple, there should be consequences for being young. Nowadays, these rioters are getting louder and louder, not only in Henan, but also in the mountains and gorges. If this problem cannot be completely solved, I am afraid that people at home and abroad will question my fu.
ability." Yuan Shikai said meaningfully.
"My nephew is not talented, so he is willing to enlist in the war in Henan. Even if he is broken into pieces, he will solve these problems for my uncle." After hearing Yuan Shikai's emotion, Yuan Su straightened his body and said solemnly with a fearless attitude.
"You don't have to be so loud. After all, you are just starting out and have no practical experience at all. My idea is to let you go to Henan. I don't expect you to be of any help, but I just want to build up your momentum. On the one hand, I want you to go to Henan.
The purpose is to let the local authorities know that our Central Military Forces are absolutely unambiguous when it comes to taking control. On the other hand, we also want to give some deterrence to those rioters. However, you must remember that if something goes wrong with you, you will be thrown away.
But it’s the face of the Central Army.” Yuan Shikai said unhurriedly.
"Uncle, don't worry, my nephew will definitely live up to his trust." Yuan Su said firmly.
"I'm telling you, when you go to Henan, you either don't move around, or you make a show of it. In short, you must be measured and well-controlled." Yuan Shikai warned.
Yuan Su realized that Yuan Shikai was asking him to do a "face project", and it was not appropriate to leave this "face project" to others. Only by giving it to the president's nephew could he show his status as a central yang. Of course, he was also very
We understand that since it is a "face project", we must first do our best to save face no matter what. If you even mess up your face, that would be a real shame.
He believed that Yuan Shikai had no intention of letting his men engage in a head-on battle with the Bai Lang rebels. It was Lu Jianzhang and Chen Shufan who were responsible for suppressing the Bai Lang rebellion.
To be honest, this is really a good thing. His original purpose was to occupy a territory in Henan and use it as a forward support point to penetrate into the hinterland of central China. As for whether to fight Bai Lang, that is a secondary matter. If
If you can still occupy a piece of territory without fighting, that is of course the best choice. What's more, Bai Lang is moving to Shaanxi now. By the time he sends troops, Bai Lang may have already disappeared without a trace.
"My uncle's intention is very clear to me. My nephew will not say any more nonsense. He will definitely complete the tasks assigned by his uncle and will never dishonor the reputation of our Central Army." Yuan Su said sonorously and forcefully.
"It's good if you understand. Then, you can make arrangements for aid to Yu by yourself, and then we can contact you by telegram." Yuan Shikai nodded slightly and said.
"Uncle, my nephew has something else to ask for." Yuan Su added immediately.
"Oh? What's the matter? Tell me." Yuan Shikai asked.
"My nephew hopes that Jiang Baili can go with him this time when he brings troops to Henan." Yuan Su said seriously. He naturally hopes to take this opportunity to completely win over Jiang Baili to his side. Anyway, he and Jiang Baili had a good talk before.
The other party also has such thoughts, and now there is only one opportunity left.
"Jiang Baili?" When Yuan Shikai heard this, he raised his eyes and glanced in the direction of the shooting range. At this time, Jiang Baili and Cai E stood together and discussed the new rifle.
"It's like this. Not long ago, my nephew and Jiang Baili made a special trip to talk about some issues about military reform. My nephew thought that Jiang Baili was really insightful. Since we are leaving for Henan this time, and we need to handle some military affairs carefully, if we can get
Jiang Baili is beside me to give you some advice, I believe my nephew will be able to handle it more easily." Yuan Su didn't have many excuses, he almost told the truth.
"You'd better seek his personal opinion on this matter. Jiang Baili has just returned from Japan and is now handling some military affairs with General Cai Songpo. If he has no personal objections, then you can let him accompany you."
Yuan Shikai said without objection.
He didn't have a deep impression of Jiang Baili. He only knew that this man was Cai E's classmate. He had previously served as the principal of Baoding Military Academy and attempted suicide. Although he was a strange person, people who had experienced suicide might not have much potential.
Just let him go to Henan with Yuan Su.
Of course, from another aspect, he is aware of Cai E's recent big changes, and is afraid that Cai E will change his past attitude and make some unwise move. Although it is a pity for such a talent,
But in the face of the overall situation, we have to think more. So now if we can divide Cai E, we should divide him as much as possible so that this person can have some wings.
After Yuan Su left, Yuan Shikai pondered for a moment, and then ordered Li Bin to prepare the carriage and drive back to the Presidential Palace. Everyone on the shooting range was no longer interested in continuing to test the performance of the new rifle, and Duan Qirui asked someone to ask him.
After Yuan Shikai said hello, he excused himself and left. Cai E, Jiang Baili and other bureaucrats from the Army Department and Ordnance Department began to clean up one after another, and moved to the roadside of the shooting range one after another.
A few minutes later, everyone got on the carriage and returned one after another.
Yuan Shikai and Ban Zhichao were sitting in a carriage together. Taking advantage of this moment, Ban Zhichao said to Yuan Shikai some words that he had been hiding: "Your Excellency, the President, regarding your dispatch of Governor Yuan to Henan, I have to make a statement.
Some opinions.”
"oh?"
"Since you want to reflect the important position of the central army in the civil unrest in Henan, you can send another more experienced general to Henan. Why did you choose the young Governor Yuan? And based on Governor Yuan's previous statement
It seems that he may not be the kind of person who can calm down. If he acts too hastily due to impulse and repeats the mistakes of previous suppression, wouldn't it be worth the loss?" Ban Zhichao said in fluent Chinese.
"Haha, it turns out it's because of this incident." Yuan Shikai showed a meaningful smile.
"It seems that His Excellency the President has already made some plans, doesn't he?" Seeing Yuan Shikai so calm and composed, Ban Zhichao couldn't help but feel a little confused.
"Yuan Su is an enterprising young man after all. Being enterprising is a good thing, but if the enterprising spirit turns into ambition, it is not a good thing. The reason why I let him go to Henan this time is to see
Let’s see if he can listen to what I say. If he obeys my instructions honestly, then everything will be fine. If he insists on going his own way and causes any trouble, I will definitely have a reason to make him look good." Yuan Shikai didn't move.
Said loudly.
"I see. After all, the President is testing Governor Yuan again this time?" Ban Zhichao asked with a smile.
"I have made it this far because I never trust anyone." Yuan Shikai said speciously. After saying this, he glanced at Ban Zhichao very purposefully.
Ban Zhichao's face changed slightly, and then he laughed for a while along with Yuan Shikai.dd