The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 32 Gathering the morale of the army
Everyone then understood that Teng Yuzhao's high price for recruiting soldiers actually came with harsh conditions.

Li Yulin nodded and said, "Sir, if there are Boxers who meet the requirements to join the army, should we accept them?"

"want."

Teng Yuzao nodded affirmatively and said, "But as long as you meet the conditions and promise not to believe in invulnerability and not to participate in any Boxer activities, we will accept it."

"but."

Teng Yuzao glanced at the officers and students, and said in a grim tone, "Today I solemnly declare that anyone in the vanguard army who joins the Boxers will be punished by military law and killed without mercy, no matter who they are. This sentence must be made known to the entire army."

"I will obey your order!"

Everyone in the tent stood up and responded loudly.

Teng Yuzao waved his hand to let everyone sit down, and then said to Li Yulin, "There are two very important tasks that I will also assign to your camp office. First, the pensions for the fallen officers and soldiers in the future will not only be issued by the camp office, but starting with the pensions for the fallen soldiers and students of the Beiyang Military Academy this time, they will all be fifty taels, and this will be the norm in the future. The shortfall will be resolved by me, and the dead officers at all levels will be increased step by step, and it will not be just one year, but every year they will receive the same amount of silver as a pension until their direct elders pass away and their children grow up."

"We cannot let the blood of our soldiers be shed in vain. We must ensure that their families have a place to live and their children to depend on."

Teng Yuzao paused for a moment and then said to everyone in a resounding voice, "Don't think I'm just saying this casually. I can swear to God that as long as I, Teng Yuzao, am still alive, I will keep this promise today. If I break this oath, I will be hated by both humans and gods, and I will die without a burial place."

Teng Yuzao's words really shocked and astonished everyone. They all stood up and saluted Teng Yuzao. Wei Jinghai said excitedly, "Your grace is as great as the sky and the earth. From now on, all the soldiers in the army will fight bravely and have no worries!"

Li Xiance also said loudly, "Your Excellency's words, we will definitely inform the entire army, fight bravely and repay your kindness."

Seeing that he had achieved the desired effect, Teng Yuzao waved his hand for everyone to sit down and then said, "In addition, wounded soldiers will be given 500 to 200 taels of injury allowance depending on the severity of their injuries."

Teng Yuzao's decision surprised everyone again.

Not to mention the subsidies for the wounded, just based on the generous and long-lasting pensions, not only will the common people be eager to join the vanguard army, but even people from the friendly forces will probably want to join the vanguard army. But the amount of money is probably too much to imagine!

Li Yulin asked hesitantly, "Sir, if friendly forces join us, should we?"

"want."

Teng Yuzao answered very straightforwardly, "As long as they are not deserters and leave the army normally, and meet our recruitment requirements, we will accept them. If they are officers from the Wuwei Army, they can still serve in their original positions after being trained by the Camp Affairs Office after joining our Vanguard Army. As for officers from other troops, we will recruit them based on their abilities and will not promise them their original positions."

In order to expand the army as quickly as possible, Teng Yuzhao even wanted to recruit people from friendly forces, which surprised the officers and students in the tent. Although the premise was that these people had already left their troops, they still couldn't avoid being criticized.

Seeing that Li Yulin seemed to want to persuade him, Teng Yuzao waved his hand and said, "It's settled." "The second thing is that once a large-scale war breaks out, our vanguard army will suffer heavy casualties. It's okay if we are close to the city, but once we are far away from Tianjin, it will be difficult to deal with our wounded."

"As long as these wounded soldiers are treated, they will all be the backbone of the vanguard army. Each one of them is very valuable. We cannot watch them die in vain!"

"So, I ask you, no matter what means you use, you must find a way to recruit some doctors from the Beiyang General Hospital in Tianjin, including the teachers from the Beiyang Medical School, and pay them all salaries according to their supervisory ranks."

Li Yulin nodded and said, "Once the officers and soldiers in the camp know your thoughts, they will be grateful to you. However, it may be difficult to recruit these people into our military medical department."

Teng Yuzao nodded and said, "Of course. After all, they are safer there than in our army. But you must remember what I said. If necessary, you must bring them here even if you have to tie them up."

Teng Yuzao's words surprised everyone again. Teng Yuzao did not explain and continued, "There are also medicines. We need to purchase more trauma medicines, especially Chinese herbal medicines for trauma hemostasis and anti-inflammatory, and Western medicines such as aspirin."

After explaining things to Li Yulin, Teng Yuzhao then announced the appointment.

"All of you are students of the Beiyang Military Academy. You should all know that modern hot weapon warfare is completely different from cold weapon warfare. Not only are there more and more arms involved, but they are also becoming more and more complex and professional. Therefore, the role of staff officers is becoming more and more important, and even more and more irreplaceable. Therefore, I have set up a staff office in the new military reorganization plan for the Vanguard Army. Its mission is to assist me in formulating combat plans and coordinating the various departments in the army to coordinate unified actions. The rank of the chief of staff is equivalent to that of a captain."

"I am now officially appointed."

"A student left behind at the Beiyang Military Academy, Wei Jinghai served as the first Chief of Staff of the Vanguard Army."

When Teng Yuzhao suddenly called his name, Wei Jinghai didn't react for a moment.

Those who received German-style military education were well aware of the importance of the role of the staff officer, needless to say. But Wei Jinghai, like everyone else, thought that such an important position would fall to the platoon leader Liu Changfa. He never expected that the name that Teng Yuzhao suddenly mentioned would be his.

You know, he is just a student now, but he was promoted five levels in one step and directly reached the high position of a fourth-rank captain. How could he believe it?

When his side was in a weak position, Wei Jinghai resolutely abandoned the school's barrier and retreated inside the school, preparing to use the advantageous terrain to ambush the invading coalition forces. Not only did he clearly judge the enemy and our own situation, but he also used tactics very reasonably, which made Teng Yuzhao look at Wei Jinghai with admiration.

In addition, he knew Wei Jinghai very well. He not only had excellent grades and a sharp mind, but also had high prestige among his classmates. Promoting him to the position of Chief of Staff was not only a matter of talent, but also a way to quickly bring together these students who stayed on campus, so that everyone could see hope and integrate into the vanguard army as soon as possible.

However, the sudden announcement of the appointment made Wei Jinghai, who was sitting in his seat, open his mouth in surprise and stare at Teng Yuzhao in a daze.

However, Li Xiance, who was standing beside him, poked him, and Wei Jinghai finally came to his senses. He excitedly stepped into the middle of the aisle and shouted at the top of his lungs, "I'm here!"

Your support is the driving force of Zuima!
(End of this chapter)