Reborn as King of South America

Chapter 242: Patriotic Spirit
ps: Thanks to classmate Xiaobaicaidunmogu for the 2000 Starting Coins and classmate Wolaohaigou for the 100 Starting Coins for their support!
In order to stand out in the competition for the position of commander of the Second Division, Ye Chenglin must have a mixed force that is obedient and capable of fighting. Therefore, after staying in Sierra Grande for a week, Ye Chenglin plans to leave here and go to other Indian tribes to check the specific situation of recruiting soldiers.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, Ye Chenglin, accompanied by his deputy Li Tianxi, Xiao Zhangsan and two platoons of soldiers, arrived at the headquarters of the Kiquit tribe, one of the thirteen major tribes in Patagonia.

“Brother Li, send a few brothers over to inform Chief Jingudan that we are here.”

Riding on a tall horse, Ye Chenglin tightened the reins, controlled the horse's speed, and spoke.

"Yes, my lord."

Li Tianxi turned his horse around and ran back more than 20 meters, found two agile and flexible soldiers, gave them a few instructions, then changed direction and returned to the front of the troops.

"Sir, I have sent two brothers over. Should we rest outside for a while and wait for the two brothers to come back and report before entering the Indian settlement?"

Li Tianxi asked.

"Well, let's go in later."

Ye Chenglin nodded.

"Master Ye, you and Chief Jingudan will soon be a family. There is no need for so many rules for a future son-in-law to visit his father-in-law. I think we should just go in directly, so as to avoid having Chief Jingudan's daughter waiting for you anxiously."

Ye Chenglin has a cheerful personality and is generous and free-spirited. When he was in Nanyang, he had a good relationship with peasant armed leaders such as Xiao Zhangsan and Li Tianxi. Among the officers sent to Patagonia this time, Ye Chenglin specially selected two who had just returned from serving in Nanyang as deputies. Therefore, for old friends who have known each other for more than ten years, although Ye Chenglin's current military rank and position are one level higher than the two, in daily interactions, they still talk to each other as friends.

It was not groundless that Xiao Zhangsan made fun of Chief Jingudan's youngest daughter, because some time ago, when Ye Chenglin and others were returning from reconnaissance in an area controlled by white Argentinians, they encountered a group of more than ten Argentinian militiamen. At that time, they were surrounding more than twenty Indians and teasing one of the Indian girls.

As they were not far away, Ye Chenglin recognized the identity of the Indian girl. She was the youngest daughter of the chief of the Kikwit tribe in Patagonia and was very much loved by Chief Jingudan. Ye Chenglin had seen her once during his last visit to the Kikwit tribe.

The Kiquit tribe has a strong influence in the Patagonian tribal alliance. Saving the daughter of Chief Kingudan will not only strengthen the relationship between the two sides, but also conform to the spirit of patriotism advocated by the Han government.

Since the era of the Principality of Rio Grande do Sul, the activities of inheriting and promoting the excellent cultural spirit of the Han nationality have been carried out vigorously.
Abolishing the bad habit of foot binding, prohibiting Han women from prostitution, abolishing the kneeling ceremony, improving Han clothing, building schools... one reform plan after another was promulgated in the form of government decrees. After ten years of subtle dissemination and influence, most Han people accepted the new lifestyle advocated by the government. Moreover, in terms of spiritual culture, without the restrictions of the enslavement and brainwashing ideology imposed by the Qing government, ordinary people gradually regained their self-confidence. When facing the South American whites who were defeated by the National Defense Forces, they did not fear and be afraid like the people in the Central Plains with pigtails, but regarded them as equals to the Han people.

Ordinary people have a strong ability to adapt. After being isolated from the influence of the mainland under the rule of the Qing government, the Chinese immigrants who accepted another open, peaceful life in Hanguo were quickly assimilated by the lifestyle and cultural ideas of the previous batch of immigrants and began to become completely different from the people under the rule of the Qing Dynasty. When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they have enough food and clothing, they know honor and disgrace. Li Mingyuan knew that empty slogans alone could not make the people sincerely trust the government. Only when the people have clothes to wear, food to eat, land to farm, and a stable life can they accept the government's slogan of reshaping the Qin and Han national spirit and establish a clear and correct national concept.

A country, a nation, and a leader are the core contents of national spiritual education. After the Han government successively issued a series of books describing the construction of national spirit, represented by "On My Beliefs", some scholars quoted classics and summarized the various spiritual constructions advocated by the government as the spirit of the patriot based on historical records of the pre-Qin period.

The original meaning of "national scholar" refers to the most talented and well-educated people in a country. However, in the Han Dynasty, ordinary citizens had the opportunity to receive compulsory education, their knowledge and cultural literacy were improved, and their status and identity became the main body of the Han country. Therefore, the application objects of the national scholar were expanded to the national class of the Han Dynasty, and the spiritual connotations of loyalty to the emperor and patriotism, courtesy and martial arts, self-reliance and self-respect, elimination of evil and support for the weak, cultivation of literacy, and respect for knowledge were derived.

The spirit of the patriot is consistent with the idea in the book "On My Beliefs" written by Li Mingyuan, and it has become the normative standard of the national spirit of the Han Dynasty. Moreover, due to the absorption of some Confucian ideas and propositions in the Spring and Autumn Period, the spirit of the patriot is more inclined to the gentleman in the classical Chinese sense. In terms of spiritual and cultural education, it can have a subconscious influence on the people and make them feel that the spirit of the patriot has an innate sense of justice. Then, when the country faces war, ordinary citizens and soldiers will rely on the spirit of the patriot to expand territory and expand the living space for the country and nation, and develop a sense of justice and sublimity to fight for the country. Finally, they will exert tenacious combat effectiveness in the war and win the war.

The spirit of the patriot has the most far-reaching influence in the national defense forces. Ordinary soldiers rely on the explanations of political propagandists in the army to learn the content of the spirit of the patriot, while officers, after clarifying the connotation of the spirit of the patriot, strictly require themselves and their subordinates in daily life.

For example, the Second Division of the National Defense Force had a captain company commander who was very brave in combat. During the review and assessment last year, he had excellent military performance and met the standards for promotion to major. However, after he submitted his officer promotion materials, they were rejected by the Army General Staff.

Upon learning that his promotion application was rejected, the captain, who felt wronged, went to the General Staff to seek an explanation. However, when he met a lieutenant colonel in charge of the review of officer promotions, he was refuted by the other party with the words "You beat your wife for no reason and played with unmarried white girls, and you lack the sense of honor and responsibility of a soldier." He was so embarrassed that he blushed and felt embarrassed.

The National Defense Force is the core armed force of Li Mingyuan's country. Every soldier and officer who joins the National Defense Force has a high social status both economically and politically.
Enjoying the generous treatment provided by the Han national government and shouldering the responsibility of defending the country, Li Mingyuan often emphasized that the troops should set an example for ordinary citizens and act with high standards and strict requirements. The requirements on their personal qualities should not be relaxed just because some officers have good military qualities.

An excellent soldier must possess good personal qualities. An officer with poor personal qualities who bullies the old, the young, and the corrupt is not only not a qualified soldier, but will also bring discredit to the National Defense Force and undermine its lofty status in the hearts of the people.

The next day after the captain who went to the Army General Staff to ask for an explanation returned to the military camp, the commander of the Second Division, Zhao Yongzeng, who received the news from the General Staff, rushed to the military camp and severely reprimanded him. In order to warn other officers, he not only ordered him to marry the white girl and treat his wife well in the future, but also demoted his rank to lieutenant and temporarily managed the company with the rank of lieutenant.

Regarding personal marriage, the Han government adhered to the principle of voluntariness and allowed a man to marry multiple wives. Therefore, after the captain accepted Zhao Yongzeng's reprimand without daring to say a word, he first returned home to sincerely apologize to his wife, and then prepared enough betrothal gifts to marry the white girl with whom he had a relationship, and the matter was slowly resolved.

In order to recruit young and strong Indians as soldiers, it was necessary to establish good relations with the tribes in Patagonia. Moreover, out of the sense of honor of a Han officer, rescuing a girl who was molested by a white man was also a matter of course. Therefore, Ye Chenglin called on his men to step forward and expel the Argentine white people. Then things developed in a very clichéd way as a hero saving a beauty, and the Indian girl developed a liking for the tall and strong Ye Chenglin.

When he came to the Kikwit tribe again and heard Xiao Zhangsan mention the Indian girl with two long braids and a string of shells on her head, Ye Chenglin had an idea: "Why not marry her home?"

The exam is approaching and time is limited, please forgive me.

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(End of this chapter)