The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 391 Mo Tianxi is dead

Li Yaoting said, "Because of concerns about your brother and sister's safety, our people in Xuzhou have quietly brought them out without asking for permission."

Hearing that his second brother and sister who stayed in his hometown had been brought out, Teng Yuzhao felt relieved.

It is entirely possible that the foreigners were targeting his younger brother and sister, especially since the Japanese were among them. It is absolutely possible that they would do something despicable like holding his family hostage and using it to threaten him.

What's more, Li Hongzhang had already heard the news.

Now that his younger brother and sister are safe, he no longer has anything to worry about.

Seeing that Li Yaoting seemed a little nervous about taking his brother and sister out without asking Teng Yuzao for permission, Teng Yuzao said gratefully.

"Hanhun, your security department did a great job on this matter. I want to thank your people in Xuzhou."

Teng Yuzhao did not blame his people for taking Teng Yuzhao's family out without permission, and Li Yaoting secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

After the war broke out, Teng Yuzao never brought his younger brother and sister out of the house. He just had his second younger brother sent out to study. This made Li Yaoting feel uneasy, but fortunately it did not make Teng Yuzao unhappy.

Li Yaoting hesitated and said, "Marshal, it's just..."

"Your sister didn't have any requests, but your brother insisted on joining the Vanguard Army, saying that he wanted to follow the Marshal to fight the foreign devils. Our people can't do anything about it, as they are still in Jiujiang."

Teng Yuzhao was not surprised by the news that his second brother was going to join the army. In his memory, his second brother had always been a troublemaker since he was young. How could he live in peace when he saw that his elder brother had become famous?

She had never asked to join the army in the past because she had to take care of her younger sister. Now that her own people had sent her younger sister to Zhang Zhidong, and her older brother was there, she could naturally get away.

"Okay, you can arrange for someone to send him to Lu'an and hand him over to Assistant Li. You can only tell Assistant Li about my brother's identity. His identity must be kept secret. I don't want him to receive any special treatment. In the army, military achievements still have to be relied upon."

"Let Assistant Li arrange for my brother to study in the school attached to the camp. He has studied in a private school, so he is qualified to enter the school attached to the camp."

"Also, I will write another letter to my brother. You can send someone to give it to him. I will remind him in the letter that he must also hide his identity."

It is not a bad thing for this younger brother to join the vanguard army. He may be able to help me in the future, but the prerequisite is that he must be able to stand firm in the army.

After explaining his brother's affairs, Teng Yuzhao saw that Li Yaoting had no intention of leaving, so he asked again.

"Hanhun, if you are Tiger and have something else to say, just say it."

Li Yaoting took a deep breath and said carefully, "Marshal, there is indeed one more thing I need to report to you."

"Last night, when Li Zixiong's troops from the Third Battalion of the Imperial Guards were blocking the foreign cavalry, Li Zixiong shot Mo Tianxi to death in the name of being afraid of the enemy and shaking the morale of the troops. I'm worried..."

Wu Peifu had discussed this matter with Teng Yuzhao during the day, and the charges against Mo Tianxi were the same as those mentioned by Li Yaoting.

Although Teng Yuzao felt a little bit reluctant, he didn't take it too seriously. The matter they were connecting with was too important, and it was a good thing to have one less hidden danger.

At this time, Li Yaoting mentioned it again and reported it to him personally, which showed that Li Yaoting had seen some problems with this matter.

Teng Yuzao smiled nonchalantly and said, "Hanhun, Ziyu has already told me about this matter. Last night, there were ambushes in front of us and pursuers behind us. The situation was indeed a bit tense. It is normal for Mo Tianxi to feel panic."

"Li Zixiong, in order to stop the pursuers, he got a little angry in a hurry, which is understandable. I have already told Ziyu that Mo Tianxi will still receive pensions as a soldier who died in battle."

Seeing that Teng Yuzao had lightly revealed the matter, Li Yaoting hurriedly said, "Yes, Marshal, I am a little worried that Commander Hu will have objections. This Mo Tianxi is an old subordinate of Commander Hu and is said to be always brave in battle. I didn't expect that he would be afraid last night. We cannot allow him to disrupt the morale of the army at that time."

Seeing that Li Yaoting understood his thoughts, Teng Yuzao nodded and changed the subject.

"Hanhun, this time Liu Yuanshou and his men are going to Hubei to form the Seventh Mixed Brigade. You must properly place your men!" Li Yaoting said hurriedly, "I have already selected two people. Once the trip begins, they will go with Liu Xietong."

The Liu Xietong that Li Yaoting was referring to was naturally Liu Yuanshou.

"Marshal, there is one more thing I need you to know."

Teng Yuzao nodded and motioned for Li Yaoting to continue.

"The Vanguard Army Support Associations and Strong Country Societies in various places have mostly developed well, especially the Strong Country Societies in Guangdong and Hankou, which have set the best scale for starting the war. The Strong Country Societies in Hankou even found the Ta Kung Pao and published an article in the newspaper to explore the path to a strong country."

"However, how can the funds they raised be delivered to the Vanguard Army? I heard that some businessmen even want to donate directly to the Vanguard Army. I would like to ask the Marshal for instructions."

How to hand over the funds to the Vanguard Army is indeed a problem. This money is to support the Vanguard Army in fighting against the Eight-Nation Alliance. In theory, it should be directly remitted to the Zhili Governor-General's Office.

But the problem now is that although Teng Yuzhao is the Governor-General of Zhili, he is not in the Zhili Governor-General's Office, and because he is mainly in the military, his control over Zhili is very insufficient. Many people are worried that the funds received by the Zhili Governor-General's Office will ultimately not be able to be handed over to the vanguard army for use in the war of resistance.

"The money in Hankou can be transferred by the Ta Kung Pao. Go and discuss this with Assistant Director Li and ask him to find a reliable bank and open an account in my name. Publish the information in newspapers and periodicals in various places, and the money can be remitted there."

That night, news about Hu Dianjia came.

Hu Dianjia had just taken over the position of the three battalions of the independent column when the two armies of the Allied Forces, which had arrived on a rapid march, arrived at Dongxianpo and Yanjiachang.

The coalition forces did not rest for a long time. Just one hour later, they launched a fierce attack on the position of the 3rd Mixed Brigade.

Although both sides were not yet firmly established, the 3rd Mixed Brigade had not had a good rest since breaking out of the capital, and after continuous forced marches, the troops were already very tired.

Due to the hasty response, the combat effectiveness was inevitably greatly reduced. Under the cover of fierce artillery fire, the coalition forces quickly broke through the defense line of Yanjiachang.

Although Hu Dianjia organized two counterattacks, he still failed to regain the lost position and had to retreat to Matou Town.

Although the Japanese and Russian coalition forces were blocked in the direction of Dongxianpo, due to the loss of Yanjiachang, Dongxianpo had to retreat and is now retreating to Shiting, trying to stop the coalition forces there.

According to the report from the frontline troops, the coalition forces attacking Yanjiachang included British, American, French, Japanese and other countries, with a total of about 60,000 to 70,000 troops and more than 200 cannons;
The coalition forces attacking Dongxianpo were composed of Japanese and Russian troops with a total number of over 50,000. They discovered that the Japanese troops along this route were numbered the Fifth Division and had only a few dozen cannons.

No German troops were found in either of these two coalition forces.

Due to his poor performance in combat, Hu Dianjia requested to be relieved of his post as commander of the 3rd Mixed Brigade.

In addition, Hu Dianjia also asked Teng Yuzhao to lead the guards to escort the seized materials across the Nanjuma River as soon as possible. He was worried that the coalition forces occupying Yanjiachang would directly attack Zhuozhou and block Teng Yuzhao's way to Laishui.

"Hu Dianjia is going to make a big mistake!"

After receiving Hu Dianjia's report, Wei Jinghai rarely called Hu Dianjia by his name, and it was obvious that he was furious.

Wu Peifu on the side just stared at the map in silence, but Li Jinyu on the side could not bear it anymore and spoke angrily.

"Thanks to the Marshal for trusting him and entrusting him with such a crucial task."

If the coalition forces occupied Zhuozhou and then occupied Duntai and Gongxinzhuang several dozen miles southwest, they would immediately block Teng Yuzhao's way to the west.

The distance between Teng Yuzao and the Duntai and Gongxinzhuang is more than twice the distance from Zhuozhou to there.
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(End of this chapter)