The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 613: Change Vest
Teng Yuzao looked at Yang Shiqi and said, "Go tell Bai Lansun that they have contacted me and asked me to send troops, but 300,000 taels of gold is too little. I, Teng Yuzao, don't need that little money. They want to pay 1 million taels of gold."

"If they insist on paying 300,000 taels of gold, then I want them to provide weapons, equipment and military pay. I will send troops as soon as I get the money. If they don't contribute, they can pay in batches, and I will also send troops in batches."

Although it was unclear how Teng Yuzao would send troops without provoking strong reactions from the government and the public, Yang Shiqi turned around and walked out of Teng Yuzao's office without hesitation.

Initially, Yang Shiqi only admired Teng Yuzao's military means, but after a series of things such as escorting the emperor back to Luan, building railways, and constructing new cities, he now has a respect for Teng Yuzao that is almost worshipful. He believes that Teng Yuzao will definitely handle those things and he doesn't need to worry about them.

Seeing Wei Jinghai, Wu Peifu, Liu Shijiu, Li Xianze, and even Tang Shaoyi, they kept exchanging glances and couldn't hide the excitement on their faces.

It is known that these people not only hope that the Zhi army will quickly join the war and want to show their prowess on the battlefield, but they also hope that Teng Yuzhao will fall out with the court and then push him to the top.

Teng Yuzao couldn't help but sigh inwardly. These people still viewed the matter of seizing power too lightly. What Teng Yuzao wanted was for things to happen naturally, which was very different from their ideas.

Fortunately, this day is approaching, otherwise Teng Yuzhao would really be worried that his generals would really stage a "Chenqiao Mutiny" one day.

There was no expression on Yang Shixiang's face, but Teng Yuzhao knew what Yang Shixiang was thinking very well. He had similar ideas to those generals and also hoped that he would take action as soon as possible.

Yang Shixiang even hinted to him that he should take advantage of the fact that Zhang Zhidong had just left Huguang and Zhou Fu had just left Liangjiang, and that they still had some influence there, to launch an attack.

With the support of these two people, it should be possible to quickly stabilize the important Liangjiang and Huguang areas. In addition, there is Xi Liang in Sichuan, whose attitude is unclear but who is at least grateful to Teng Yuzhao. The situation in Sichuan is also worth looking forward to.

However, Teng Yuzao did not comment on Yang Shixiang's implicit hint.

Ye Zugui just looked at him nervously, which made Teng Yuzhao feel more at ease.

He knew that he had basically pulled Ye Zugui over.

Ye Zugui specially took out the prescription for Teng Yuzhao to ask the General Administration of Medicine for trial production for his frequent angina pectoris. Now, the pills in his pocket have saved his life twice, otherwise he would have lost his life. Ye Zugui is very grateful to him for saving his life.

Even though it was a bit against his will, Teng Yuzhao believed that Ye Zugui would never do anything to harm him.

Only Xu Shichang was a little different. He looked at him with a worried look on his face.

Teng Yuzhao had no dissatisfaction with Xu Shichang. On the contrary, he was very happy in his heart because Xu Shichang was the only person who shared the same ideas with him.

Xu Shichang was also unwilling to cause domestic chaos, but he would never oppose his ascension to power.

Teng Yuzhao sometimes felt a bit of a headache about accepting these confidants and generals, but he still sighed and said.

"Don't be nervous or worried. Although we have decided to help the Russians deal with the Japanese, we will not openly oppose the imperial court."

"Although I don't care about the court's war with Japan and Russia on our land, I still have to save the court's face."

Sure enough, Teng Yuzhao's words immediately made Xu Shichang's expression relax.

"We just talked about Wang Decheng. Although Wang Decheng brought a small number of our people and no heavy weapons, this does not affect our ability to continue to make good moves."

Teng Yuzao looked around at everyone and said with a smile, "We originally arranged for Wang Decheng to go to the Northeast in order to wait until we started fighting the Japanese and Russians, and then they would attack them from behind to harass and disperse their forces, making it difficult for them to move freely."

"Now, we can let Wang Decheng continue to prepare for future attacks on the Japanese and Russians. We just need Wang Decheng to pull out some people and form an army. Then our troops will pretend to be Wang Decheng's people and join this army."

Wu Peifu nodded first and said, "Teacher's idea is good. Although it cannot be hidden from the Russians, it will prevent the imperial court, the Japanese and the British from finding any evidence against us."

Liu Shijiu also said, "Wang Decheng's troops are just a thin shell. After our troops are strengthened, they are just under Wang Decheng's banner. Anyway, everyone thought that Wang Decheng led his troops to rebel against our Zhi army and went to fight the Russians outside the Great Wall. Facing the Russians, the imperial court, which still wants to remain neutral, probably dares not do anything."

Yang Shixiang also nodded in agreement and then added.

"Marshal, this way, we can join the war without letting the Russians lose too quickly. It will just cost both of them more strength."

"But there is also a problem. I'm afraid both the Russians and the Japanese will notice the bandits behind them and the Boxers who have also gone up the mountain."

Teng Yuzao nodded and said helplessly, "It's hard to have it all. We can only ask those who are still in the mountains and forests and rely on Wang Decheng to stop their activities for a while."

Xu Shichang breathed a sigh of relief and said, "The Marshal's method is good. As long as the imperial court and the Japanese don't catch any evidence, even if they know that the Marshal has sent troops to fight, they can't do anything about it."

Teng Yuzhao's words made Wei Jinghai and Li Xiangze a little disappointed, but Li Xiangze still spoke.

"Marshal, this is a good idea, but unfortunately we cannot send too many troops, otherwise the imperial court and the Japanese may find a flaw."

Wei Jinghai also said, "Marshal, we can't cram too many troops into this shell, otherwise the Japanese will be scared. If they talk to the Russians about this, our plan will fail."

"But there are too few people going there, and it's not safe. We might even be used as cannon fodder by the Russians."

Teng Yuzao was very concerned about Wei Jinghai's statement and said after thinking for a while.

"Ningbo's worries are reasonable, but we don't have a complete plan right now. We can only ask Wang Decheng to order him to concentrate the main forces in Liaodong as much as possible in the mountainous areas around Benxi Lake. In case of an emergency, they can also support us from outside."

"In addition, troops stationed near Duolun and Jinzhou must always be prepared to respond to rescue efforts."

Wei Jinghai added, "We need to gather more wagons in Jinzhou, Shanhaiguan and other places, and mobilize some trucks when necessary, so that if a special situation occurs, we can quickly reinforce the two places."

The only thing left was to decide which troop to send to impersonate Wang Decheng’s green forest troops.

Teng Yuzao looked at Liu Shijiu and Li Xianze who were eager to try and said, "You should continue to prepare for war. This time, one brigade will be selected from Ziyu's Fifth Regiment and Mingguang's Eighth Regiment, and they will be commanded by Ziyu." Since the Zhi army had been expanding secretly, Teng Yuzao was also clear that the court army would not absolutely not increase the number of the Zhi army. If they wanted to expand the army, they could only find a way themselves.

The specific method is to increase the number of units. For example, Teng Yuzao has further expanded the establishment of the first, second, fourth, fifth, and eighth towns. Specifically, the original three-three system has been changed to a six-system. In addition, for organizations above the sentry level, not only are there guard forces, but also special task forces are added, and the word "spy" is added before the establishment.

As a result, the current military strength of these main towns has reached about 100,000 people. If the organization of these towns at all levels is compared with the new domestic army, it is equivalent to twice the organization.

Teng Yuzao also has a solution to the problem that such an organization will make the troops appear bloated and may even cause problems with command during wartime. He still uses his old method. The officers at all levels are double-staffed and can be divided into two units at any time if necessary.

Although Tieliang and Yuan Shikai knew that Teng Yuzao was playing a gray area, the Zhi army had to pay for its own military expenses and they had no way to control it.

Therefore, the several towns of the Zhi army now are almost equivalent to the several towns of the new army in other provinces. The strength of each brigade is more than that of an ordinary town of the new army.

Although only two regiments were drawn from Wu Peifu and Li Jinyu this time, plus the two battalions of Liu Shijiu and Li Xianze, the total strength was still over 40,000. After deploying the corresponding direct troops, there would be no problem in having a total strength of over 50,000.

Seeing that Liu Shijiu had closed his eyes, Li Xiance also wanted to stand up and speak.

Teng Yuzao smiled bitterly and said, "Don't argue. Your troops are stationed in a densely populated area. Once there is any unusual movement, it will easily attract attention, which will be detrimental to our concealment of our actions."

"Zi Yu and Ming Guang's troops are stationed outside the city, which is convenient for hiding their traces."

After listening to Teng Yuzhao's explanation, Liu Shijiu and Li Xianze looked at each other and smacked their lips, and no one said anything else.

Teng Yuzao also instructed Wu Peifu, "Zi Yu, your troops should first pull down Duolun in the name of exercise, and then draw an exercise area around the garrison. The cavalry town will strictly seal off the surrounding area and prohibit any civilians, officials or civilians from entering or leaving."

"Not only must we guard against the imperial court noticing that your Fifth Town is not in the camp, but we must also guard against the civilians who have been bribed by the Japanese and find out the situation."

Seeing the depressed looks of Liu Shijiu and Li Xiance, Teng Yuzhao couldn't bear it and said to Wei Jinghai without hesitation.

"Tell Zhou Shouchen not to push forward with the newly opened routes for the time being. Transfer the prepared airships here and use them together."

He also instructed Wu Peifu, "Open up a landing area for airships on the grassland to facilitate the movement of troops participating in the war and personnel from Duolun."

Then he turned to Liu Shijiu and Li Xiance, "When we fought the Eight-Nation Alliance, the foreign devils were not fully prepared, and we basically did not fight a direct offensive battle with them."

""You will all have to join the war sooner or later, and it is also necessary to learn more about the tactics of siege warfare for future participation in the war, so you are allowed to each send a standard unit and go to Zhangjiakou in batches in plain clothes. Ziyu will be responsible for sending your people to Duolun."

"Their weapons and ammunition were transported to Zhangjiakou for them by the Chief of Staff."

Upon hearing that Teng Yuzhao allowed their troops to join the war, Liu Shijiu and Li Xianze were overjoyed and agreed immediately.

Teng Yuzao sighed and said, "This time, although we have to secretly help the Russians, let them hold out longer, and consume more of the strength of both Japan and Russia, we can't really help the Russians. This time, our main focus is to train our troops."

"So, the three of you will also have to rotate your troops. You will be ordered to do the specific rotation time. And not just the troops, but also the corresponding staff officers will be involved. The troops that rotate back will pass on their experience to other troops."

"So that when we officially fall out with the Russians and the Japanese at the same time, we may have to face their joint resistance, and we won't be too flustered when dealing with it."

"Commander."

After Teng Yuzhao had finished giving instructions to several generals, Yang Shixiang said.

"Wang Decheng's unit must have a name. Calling it the Mountain Forest Team doesn't sound good. Using the Russian number will also cause trouble. You see."

Yang Shixiang’s reminder made sense. No matter what, the Russian military numbers could not be used, otherwise there was a possibility of being slandered as having surrendered to the Russians, which would be difficult to explain in the future.

Xu Shichang smiled and said, "That's easy. I think we should call it the Restoration Army, which means to restore the three northeastern provinces. It will be easier to explain when we overturn Wang Decheng's case in the future."

When Yang Shiqi came back again, he told Teng Yuzao that Bai Lansun said that they really could not come up with so much gold, but they were willing to pay 500,000 taels, but they wanted us to officially join the war.

Teng Yuzao smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "The Russians are still too poor. Tell them that I need them to provide 50,000 rifles and ten bases of bullets. We will transport the rations ourselves, and we will set up a military station in Zhangwu to be responsible for the transportation."

"I don't want 500,000 taels of gold either. I want them to pay 200,000 taels of gold first. After that, for every Japanese soldier we kill, they will pay 2 taels of gold. For every Japanese lieutenant we kill, they will pay 10 taels of gold, for every lieutenant we kill, 100 taels of gold, and for every general we kill."

"It's OK if there's no gold. I can collect francs, and all payments will be made by the Russo-Chinese Bank in Tianjin."

"Also, the Russians want to officially announce that they will return the three northeastern provinces after the war, retaining only the right to use and manage the Middle East Railway and leasing Lushun for a hundred years at an annual rent of two million taels. We hope to start negotiations with the imperial court as soon as possible."

"Alekseyev also announced that he had begun to recruit pro-Russian armed forces from Jilin, Liaodong and other places to form an army composed entirely of Chinese people to fight against the Japanese invasion."

"Remember, this restoration army must wear Russian uniforms, which will be provided by the Russians. When they are ready, we can rush to Liaoyang to join the battle at any time."

Just as Yang Shiqi was about to walk out the door, Teng Yuzao spoke again.

"You have to tell Bo Lansun that if they leak the news of our sending troops, I will immediately withdraw from the battle, not participate in their war with the Japanese, strictly follow the will of the court, and remain neutral."

"Also, our participating troops will not undertake any rear-end covering missions."

The Russo-Asiatic Bank was established in 1895 with its head office in St. Petersburg. Its founding banks included the French Hottinger Bank, the ABN AMRO Bank, the Lyonnais Trust Bank, the Paris Clearing Bank and the Russian St. Petersburg International Bank.

More than 20 branches were established in China, including four larger ones in Shanghai, Tianjin, Hankou and Guangzhou. In the 23rd year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, the Tianjin branch also participated in a loan to China, namely the Tianjin-Luoyang Railway Loan.
(End of this chapter)