Reborn as King of South America

Chapter 406: The Young Marines

He Linshu, Yang Jiannian, Chen Binshi and Wang Jinyong are all descendants of Nanyang Chinese.

Among them, Chen Binshi's father Chen Jinzhong and grandfather Tan Tock Seng were famous Chinese businessmen in Singapore in their early years. In 1873, Chen Jinzhong immigrated to Hon Country at the invitation of Li Mingyuan and served as the Deputy Minister of Commerce of Hon Country.
In 1880, influenced by the storm of administrative rectification in the mainland of China, Chen Jinzhong, together with hundreds of officials of various ranks who were from Southeast Asian Chinese businessmen, including Zhang Fanglin, voluntarily donated more than % of their property to the central government to show their support for the country's internal rectification actions.

In 1881, Chen Jinzhong's second son donated taels of silver in his personal name to build several large hospitals in Songjiang Prefecture and Xinjing Prefecture, which were immediately praised and promoted by the central government.

Starting from 1880, the Chen family donated a total of about 400 million taels of silver. The descendants of the Chen family members also withdrew from the fields of ocean shipping, grain, and cloth sales, and turned to the army, navy, and politics.

After a decade of subtle development, the label of the richest Chinese in Singapore that was attached to the Chen family in the early years no longer exists. When ordinary people mention the Chen family again, their first impression is that it is a family of meritorious service, with both father and son being elites and pillars in the political and military circles.

The Chen family's current achievements and glory are all due to the control and leadership of Chen Jinzhong. However, as the New Year of 1889 approached, Chen Jinzhong, who had just turned 1888, was in deteriorating health. Feeling that he did not have much time left, Chen Jinzhong resigned from his post as Minister of Commerce in July 7 and concentrated on recuperating at home.

"New Year's Day is coming soon. When will Ding'an, Ziyi, Xiufen and the others come back?"

Chen Jinzhong, supported by the servant, sat on a chair and asked after taking a few deep breaths.

"My fourth brother, sixth sister, and seventh sister sent a telegram saying that they will set out the day after tomorrow and will arrive in Chang'an in about a week."

Chen Binshi stood behind his father, gently patting Chen Jinzhong's back while speaking softly.

"A week has passed in the blink of an eye. Doctor Zhou diagnosed me yesterday and said that my body will last for another two to three years if I rest."

After sitting in the recliner and resting for a while, the expression on Chen Jinzhong's face gradually returned to normal, and the tone of his voice became much calmer than before.

"The Chen family has four sons and three daughters in three generations. Your eldest brother, third brother, and fourth sister, two of them died in infancy, and one died of a serious illness in Singapore, Southeast Asia. The remaining four brothers and sisters, the sixth and seventh are girls, and have married outsiders, so they can't help the family much. Your fourth brother Ding'an grew up in the local area since he was a child. He has an open mind and has always wanted to be a teacher in a school. He has no intention of pursuing a career in politics. After counting, among the three generations of the Chen family, only you have studied abroad and served in the navy. Therefore, after a hundred years of your father's life, the burden of developing the Chen family will fall on your shoulders alone."

Chen Jinzhong placed his right hand on his son and told him, "Binshi,
You are the second son of the Chen family and the heir to the title of Viscount Yifeng. You must seize opportunities in the navy and not let the honor of Viscount Yifeng, which your father has spent half his life to obtain, fall into your hands!"

"I will remember my father's teachings and will not slack off in the slightest!"

Chen Binshi hurriedly supported his emotional father and responded seriously.

"You have always been calm and steady, not as alert as the three young men Linshu, Jiannian, and Jinyong. Therefore, if you want to make further progress in the navy, you must put aside your airs as a son of a noble family, pay more attention to the situation of the officers and soldiers on the ship, take the initiative to communicate with them, and help them solve the problems in the army and in life. In this way, even if you don't have outstanding performance in combat command, you can still achieve good results with the support and trust of your subordinates."

"It is the responsibility of the Navy's Publicity Department to understand the family situations of the officers and soldiers at the grassroots level on the ship. As a captain of a light cruiser, would it be considered as exceeding authority to interfere in the private affairs of the officers and soldiers at the grassroots level?"

Chen Binshi couldn't bear to refute his father's teachings, but he still expressed a puzzled question in his heart. "Binshi, you really should learn from Xu Zhixuan, Yang Guangrong and other young people who studied abroad. When the local navy was first established, most of the generals and soldiers at all levels came from middle and lower class families. This is completely different from the Western powers, where naval officers are mainly children of nobles, and officers and ordinary naval soldiers are clearly divided and do not interact with each other."

Chen Jinzhong sighed and patiently taught: "The navy and the army were both created by your majesty. The two armies have been established for more than 20 years. Your majesty goes to the Naval Officer Academy and the Army Officer School every year to attend the graduation ceremony of military cadets and personally present swords and graduation certificates to outstanding graduates.

In terms of background and busyness, how can you, a captain of a light cruiser, compare with His Majesty?

Even when Your Majesty is busy with many things, you still often take time to inspect and comfort the army and navy. Among the more than 100,000 officers and soldiers of the army and navy, Your Majesty is familiar with not only the officers above the rank of general, but also many outstanding colonels, and His Majesty can tell their names and backgrounds.

The members of the German Officer Training Corps all said that the local army and navy were united, well-trained, and had high morale. In fact, the local army and navy could have achieved today's victory. In addition to the superficial factors of timely replacement of weapons and equipment and sufficient logistical support, the most important thing was that Your Majesty always paid attention to the army and navy. If Your Majesty had not loved the soldiers like his own sons and always cared about the efforts of the middle and lower-level officers and soldiers, even with the best equipment, they would not be able to exert the combat effectiveness they have today. "

"I am a dull child, but I just woke up after hearing what my father said today."

Chen Binshi recalled Li Mingyuan's inspections of the army and schools, and the scenes in the naval base and the Naval Academy where he clearly identified many grassroots officers and called out their names, and he suddenly understood.

"Although my father did not serve in the military, his experience in the military and politics is similar. A general or commander does not necessarily have to have superb command skills in battle, but must have the ability to unite the middle and lower-level officers and soldiers and reasonably arrange different positions according to the characteristics of each subordinate."

Chen Jinzhong wanted to do his best to pass on his political and life experiences to his son in the last two years of his life, so he tactfully talked about many topics that he had previously been taboo about.

"Your Majesty is in the prime of his life. According to your current physical condition, you can continue to rule for at least 30 years. Within 30 years, even if a constitutional monarchy is implemented, with your Majesty's prestige, military and political affairs will still be decided by you alone.

As for naval affairs, Chen Sen and Li Han have less experience and military exploits than Luo Linshan, Zhao Yongzeng, Wang Dashan, Wang Xiaoshan and other army generals. The reason why Your Majesty chose them as the two heads of the Navy is because senior naval generals are scarce, and the only candidates who meet the selection criteria for the Minister of the Navy and the Chief of the Navy General Staff are Chen Sen and Li Han.

Based on my father's experience in business and politics for more than 30 years, although Chen Sen and Li Han are the two chief officers of the navy, the final decision-making power still lies in your Majesty's hands."

Chen Jinzhong took the ginseng tea handed over by his son, drank a sip, and continued: "Under Chen Sen and Li Han, the former Navy Counsellor, the new Atlantic Fleet Commander, Major General Hou Taiyuan, and the former Marine Corps Commander, the new Pacific Fleet Commander, Major General Feng Guoan, are transitional figures. After three to five years, young officers with overseas experience will grow up, and the candidates for the two Navy chiefs and the two fleet commanders will be selected from the overseas officers.

At present, there is a phenomenon of a gap in the officers of the local navy. This phenomenon has a certain negative impact on the comprehensive combat capability of the navy. However, for the overseas naval officers of your generation, it is a rare opportunity to rise to a higher position. As long as you show your due ability in the joint military exercises between the army and the navy after the new year and in the next few years of service, you may be promoted to rear admiral, or even become the commander of two fleets or the chief of two navies! "

Speaking of the core, Chen Jinzhong stared at his son seriously and reminded him again: "The joint military exercises between the army and the navy and the opportunity to compete for the main battleship can be said to largely determine your ultimate future in the development of the navy in the next few decades!

The election for the captain of a battleship and the joint military exercise between the army and navy are equally important. You must not miss this precious opportunity due to negligence!"

"I will keep my father's teachings in my heart. I will work hard and never let my father down!"…………

(End of this chapter)