North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 286 Three Famous Figures
"So now, how can we salvage this situation...?"

"I'm afraid... I'm afraid...!" Faced with Yang Xiuqing's question, Wei Changhui hesitated for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a sentence: "I'm afraid it's already beyond redemption...!"

"snort……!"

Yang Xiuqing was furious and reached out to grab the paperweight to smash Wei Changhui, who was kneeling on the steps.

But when he reached out, he realized he had already thrown the paperweight away.

Upon seeing this, Wei Changhui, who was crawling on the ground, quickly and respectfully picked up the blood-stained copper paperweight and wiped the bloodstains clean with his sleeve.

Then, with utmost respect, he knelt forward and handed the copper paperweight to Yang Xiuqing with both hands.

"Hmph...!" Yang Xiuqing showed no intention of taking it, instead letting out another cold snort.

"Incompetent fool, get out of here right now...!"

"As the Eastern King commands...!"

As if granted a general amnesty, Wei Changhui knelt down and retreated repeatedly until he reached the entrance of the main hall, at which point he stood up and left the East King Hall.

In front of Yang Xiuqing, Wei Changhui was even more respectful and docile than a lapdog.

But no one noticed the venomous and sinister look in Wei Changhui's eyes the instant he bowed and left the Eastern King's Hall…!
Compared to the Taiping Army, which had lost several generals and tens of thousands of elite soldiers, the Restoration Army in Guangdong once again ushered in a joyous moment.

When more than ten warships and over a hundred merchant ships unloaded the 60,000 Taiping Army soldiers led by Feng Yunshan in Guangdong Port, the entire port area was filled with red flags waving, gongs and drums beating, and firecrackers exploding... The scene was truly a sea of ​​people, extremely jubilant and festive!

Shi Dakai, who had been waiting there, stepped forward with a beaming smile and grabbed Feng Yunshan's hands!

"Mr. Feng, you've kept me waiting for so long...!"

Having escaped the gloomy atmosphere of Jinling, Feng Yunshan appeared much more cheerful.

A relieved smile appeared on his face as he tightly grasped Shi Dakai's hands: "I dare say, from now on, we can fight side by side again!"

Shi Dakai exclaimed excitedly, "Mr. Feng, it's wonderful that you've come to your senses and decided to leave the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom! From now on, we brothers will join forces and surely accomplish great things!"

Looking at the well-disciplined Restoration Army and the peaceful and prosperous streets of Guangzhou, Feng Yunshan couldn't help but sigh, "If I had known this would happen, I should have stayed in California and helped you take Guangdong. Why did I have to take this year of detours..."

"Haha...!" Shi Dakai laughed loudly, "Mr. Feng, didn't you also bring us a full 60,000 elite troops? You haven't wasted this year."

“Hehe…!” Feng Yunshan chuckled bitterly. “Even without me, Xiangzhen and the others could still muster an army of tens of thousands.”

“That’s not how it works!” Shi Dakai shook his head and said, “Without Mr. Feng’s banner, how could these 60,000 elite troops have willingly deserted the Taiping Army?”

……

After exchanging pleasantries, a grand banquet, unprecedented since the liberation of Guangdong, was held at the former Guangdong Governor's Office, now the Guangdong Military Government, to welcome the Taiping Army who had traveled from afar.

After several rounds of drinks, when everyone was flushed and their faces were warm, Luo Dagang, whose rank was second only to Feng Yunshan, couldn't help but ask Shi Dakai, "Brother Shi, let's be frank, what are your plans for our 60,000 elite troops?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Dakai put down his wine cup and said solemnly, "My lord has already made arrangements for this!"

"These 60,000 elite soldiers, selected according to the standards of my Restoration Army, who are willing to continue serving and fighting, are welcomed with open arms by my Restoration Army."

“Those who do not meet my Restoration Army’s standards, or who are unwilling to continue fighting, will all be sent to California to settle down. Each of them will be given land, housing, and even wives, and will live a peaceful life.”

Shi Dakai continued, "The truly elite soldiers who remain will be integrated into my Restoration Army, and their treatment will be the same as that of my Restoration Army officers and soldiers."

"As for the former Taiping Army officers, including Brother Luo, they will all enter the military academy of my Restoration Army to receive modern military education, obtain graduation certificates, and then assume military positions...!"

"Military academy...? Education...?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Dagang, Li Xiucheng, Chen Yucheng, and the others immediately showed displeasure on their faces.

Having anticipated this, Shi Dakai continued without changing his expression, "Yes!"

"Including myself, almost all officers in my Restoration Army must study at a military academy, master the modern military system and knowledge, and obtain a military academy graduation certificate before they can serve as officers."

Shi Dakai continued, "Not long ago, my Restoration Army established an officer school on Changzhou Island in Guangzhou."

"Brother Luo, although you are seasoned veterans with rich experience, times have changed!"

"Modern warfare is a combined arms war involving the army, navy, artillery, cavalry, engineers, logistics, and other branches of the armed forces. It can no longer be won by sheer enthusiasm and reckless charges..."

"Hmph...!" Before Shi Dakai could finish speaking, Luo Dagang grunted, "What do you mean by sending him to a military academy for education? Isn't this just like discarding a used tool after it's been used and then discarding it?"

“Outline…!” Feng Yunshan glared at him fiercely: “Stop talking nonsense, I dare to say that everything I’m saying is the truth.”

"Including myself, during my time in California, I also received a lot of military education at the California Military Academy and gained a lot."

Feng Yunshan continued, "The current Taiping Army, including you, relies entirely on brute force and bloodlust to fight. Do you even know what ammunition and logistical support are?"

Do you know what artillery firing parameters are?

Do you understand what the three-three infantry tactic is?

"Do you understand what combined arms operations are?"

"Do you conduct ideological work and mobilization for the officers and soldiers?"

Do you even understand what propaganda warfare and psychological warfare are?

……

Feng Yunshan's barrage of questions left the self-important Luo Dagang, Li Xiucheng, Chen Yucheng, and others completely bewildered.

Forget about figuring it out, they couldn't even understand what these words meant!

Luo Dagang, who had just been full of complaints, asked cautiously, "Prince Nan, what do you mean by all this? I don't understand any of it."

“Sigh…!” Feng Yunshan sighed softly, “Don’t tell me you don’t understand. If I hadn’t attended a military academy in California and received modern, formal military education, I wouldn’t be able to understand it either.”

Just as Feng Yunshan was about to give them a brief explanation, Shi Dakai laughed and said, "Today is a joyous day, let's not talk about such unpleasant things."

"Tomorrow, our Restoration Army is going to hold a live-fire exercise. Brother Luo, you'll understand if you see it for yourselves tomorrow."

"Uh...!" Luo Dagang still had doubts and said, "Brother Shi, you've been one of our old brothers for a while now, tell us the truth... this Restoration Army, really won't use us and then discard us?"

"Hahaha!" Shi Dakai couldn't help but burst into laughter: "How could my lord be such a petty and narrow-minded person?"

"How could I, Shi Dakai, be such a despicable, faithless, and unrighteous person?"

Shi Dakai laughed heartily, "Brother Luo, as long as you have sincerely joined our Restoration Army, you can rest assured!"

"Here, you can focus on making achievements and establishing your career. Those who make contributions will be rewarded and those who make mistakes will be punished. We will never mistreat any of our own people."

"My lord's magnanimity and breadth of mind are beyond your imagination!"

"My lord's vision and foresight are absolutely beyond anyone's imagination and are always correct!"

"As long as you follow my lord wholeheartedly, you will definitely achieve unimaginable feats...!"

……

Luo Dagang, Shi Xiangzhen, Li Xiucheng, Chen Yucheng, and other generals who had just broken away from the Taiping Army couldn't help but look at each other in bewilderment.

Hearing Shi Dakai say this, that mysterious "lord" must be at least a saint, if not a true god!
Having witnessed too much superstition and deception within the Taiping army, they naturally had considerable doubts about Shi Dakai's words.

Feng Yunshan said in a deep voice, "Do you think that what Gan Dan said is an exaggeration?"

"This...!" Luo Dagang, being a straightforward and outspoken man, couldn't help but ask, "King Nan, could it be that Brother Shi is exaggerating too much...?"

"Now that we've broken away from the Taiping Army, I'm no longer the 'King of the South.' Just call me Mr. Feng; it sounds better!"

Feng Yunshan continued, "In fact, what I have said is only one-tenth of that lord's true level, no, one-hundredth!"

"Is it really that exaggerated...?"

Li Xiucheng and Chen Yucheng, who had been listening silently, couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"Hehe!" Feng Yunshan shook his head and smiled: "It's no use saying more! Only when you truly meet that lord will you truly understand that there could be such an extraordinary person in the world!"

"I, Feng, once considered myself extraordinary, but compared to that lord, I am like a firefly compared to the sun and moon, utterly insignificant!"

Hearing the dignified King of the South, the man revered by the entire Taiping Heavenly Kingdom as the most intelligent and wise man, say such a thing, all the Taiping generals present looked at each other in astonishment.

At the same time, I became even more curious about that "lord" who was so far away.

……

The next morning, all the Taiping Army officers who had just arrived in Guangzhou were invited to observe the Restoration Army's live-fire exercises.

During this full-day exercise, the two regiments of the Restoration Army truly demonstrated to all the Taiping Army officers what modern warfare is all about!
Whether it was offensive tactics, defensive tactics, artillery tactics, cavalry tactics, or even the engineering drills, they all broadened the horizons of these Taiping Army officers.

When the three-three infantry tactics, with their seemingly chaotic and disorganized loose lines of troops, actually conceal profound secrets and achieve the greatest results with the least cost;
When the defending side uses machine guns, mortars, and advanced rifles to create an unstoppable barrage of bullets;
When artillery fully demonstrates its firepower with unimaginable range, rate of fire, accuracy, and explosive power;
When heavily armed cavalry easily broke through the enemy's defenses with carbines, revolvers, and grenades;
When engineers used unimaginable steam-powered engineering machinery to dig trenches, lay pontoon bridges, lay mines, and clear mines...!
All of this made these Taiping Army officers truly realize what modern warfare is!
Faced with such powerful tactics and firepower, their once proud bravery and fighting spirit were utterly insignificant!
……

After a full day of live-fire exercises, all the Taiping Army officers fell silent, their voices silenced.

Like Luo Dagang and other generals, almost all officers were outraged when they learned that all the soldiers under their command would be scattered and mixed into the Restoration Army, and that even the officers themselves would have to go to military academies for re-education.

They believed that this was the Restoration Army dismantling and discarding their former allies after they had served their purpose.

But after witnessing such a live-fire exercise firsthand, everyone was speechless. They were even eager to enter military academy to learn and master this entire modern warfare system.

After Shi Dakai deliberately held this live-fire exercise to broaden the horizons of all Taiping Army officers and establish his authority, things became much easier.

After a selection process involving 60,000 Taiping soldiers, excluding the old, weak, sick, and those unwilling to continue fighting, only 26,000 truly elite soldiers remained.

As for the 34,000 people, most of them accepted the arrangements of the Restoration Army, boarded merchant ships, and went to the distant other side of the Pacific Ocean to live a peaceful life.

For those who were unwilling to travel across the ocean, the Restoration Army also provided them with travel expenses and sent them home.

The remaining 26,000 elite troops were all scattered and mixed with the Restoration Army to form two new infantry divisions.

In this way, the Guangfu Army now had five divisions, as well as cavalry brigades, artillery brigades, engineer regiments, reconnaissance battalions, and other units directly under the military headquarters.

The Restoration Army, which was originally the Second Army, now has a force of 82,000. With the help of the naval fleet, it is entirely within their grasp to control the entire Guangdong province.

If Shi Dakai wanted to, he could easily seize neighboring provinces such as Guangxi and Fujian without any difficulty.

However, Shi Dakai followed the original instructions of his ancestor completely, using Guangdong as a testing ground to first build up the entire province, set a good example, and cultivate talent, laying the most solid foundation for seizing the country in the future.

Given California's current overall strength in terms of population, capital, and resources, acquiring more territory is not necessarily better.

The larger the site, the greater the human, financial, and material resources required to build it.

Even Shi Dakai himself has felt immense pressure these days.

Governing just Guangdong had already exhausted him. If he were to seize more or larger territories, Shi Dakai simply couldn't imagine how he could possibly sustain himself!

Unlike the Qing army and the Taiping army, they seized more and larger territories in order to exploit and oppress the people and obtain more soldiers, finances, and food supplies.

The purpose of the Restoration Army, however, was to develop a place once it was captured. It was not only to avoid exploiting the people, but also to invest a lot of resources to build everything up first.

……

After the reorganization of the Taiping Army was completed, all of the Taiping Army's officers, nearly a thousand in total, were sent to the newly established officer school to receive at least a year of formal education.

Everyone, including Luo Dagang, Shi Xiangzhen, Li Xiucheng, and Chen Yucheng, had to obtain their military academy graduation certificates before they could be entrusted with important responsibilities.

The instructors at the military academy were mostly outstanding officers selected from the Restoration Army, possessing both a solid theoretical foundation and rich practical experience.

Shi Dakai personally served as the principal of the military academy, and whenever he had time, he would personally teach classes at the academy.

Feng Yunshan also holds a diploma from the California Military Academy, and he frequently teaches at the academy, incorporating new strategies and tactics developed by Feng Yunshan in combination with ancient Chinese military wisdom.

But Feng Yunshan's main focus was not on this.

Since his arrival, Shi Dakai has handed over most of the government affairs to him, and he has been fully committed to promoting the construction progress in all aspects of Guangdong.

……

By the end of 1854, the military government, which had seized Guangdong for four months, had achieved a series of accomplishments in such a short period of time.

The modern governance system of Guangdong has been basically established.

In addition to state and county governments and various departments, the governance system began to penetrate into the grassroots level, and government agencies were also established in townships, almost exactly the same as the model village system that California had experimented with.

The government offices that were originally used by ordinary people to file lawsuits and seek redress have been transformed into brand-new police stations, procuratorates, and courts.

Furthermore, with the police station, the procuratorate, and the court as the main judicial bodies, a comprehensive investigation was conducted into all kinds of wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice in recent years, so as to set the record straight for those who have been wronged.

The civil affairs department is responsible for providing basic living security for the elderly, the infirm, and the disabled, distributing food rations monthly to ensure that even the most vulnerable members of society do not starve to death.

Dozens of public primary and secondary schools were established throughout the province. They not only taught traditional classical Chinese but also vernacular Chinese, and offered modern science courses such as mathematics, physics, and chemistry.

Municipal infrastructure in all prefectures and counties has been greatly improved, especially water supply and drainage projects, with major cities, led by Guangzhou, already showing initial results.

The province has a total population of 28 million, of which only 1.68 million live in urban areas.

One-third of the city's 1.68 million residents were using centralized water supply by the end of the year.

Turn on the tap and the tap water flows out on its own – this is a rare thing that has never happened before!

Moreover, this third of the population no longer needs to get up early to empty the chamber pot.

Every household has access to sewers, so people can simply flush away urine and feces with water, leaving everything clean!

Roads in various prefectures, counties, and townships are currently undergoing intensive repair and expansion.

Simultaneously, a wired telegraph line was also constructed, connecting Guangzhou directly to various prefectures and counties, improving communication efficiency and speed, and significantly enhancing governance efficiency.

After the initial completion of road and cable telegraph construction, starting next year, the entire province will invest in large-scale water conservancy infrastructure construction.

The focus of water conservancy infrastructure construction is on building reservoirs and irrigation canals to significantly increase the irrigated area. This will reduce drought and flood disasters while increasing arable land area and grain yield.

Various factories are also under construction near Guangzhou.

At the current pace, the first phase of construction for essential and important factories such as textile mills, agricultural implement factories, machinery factories, and cement plants will be completed and put into operation in succession within next year.

Guangdong's first newspaper had already been published and distributed throughout the province as early as October.

Newspapers educate the people, introduce them to the vast world outside, popularize basic scientific and technological knowledge, and publicize various government policies and measures.

……

In just a few months, Shi Dakai almost perfectly implemented the policies that Azu had instructed him to implement, achieving remarkable results and winning the hearts of the people.

The only thing that wasn't rushed into action was recruiting and training new soldiers.

Given the current situation of the Guangdong military government, no one can threaten the security of Guangdong.

Therefore, Shi Dakai was not in a hurry to recruit and train new soldiers.

Even if a large-scale war were to break out a few years later, given the popular support in Guangdong and the Guangfu Army's mature recruitment and training system, the army could be expanded to at least double its size, or even more, in just a few months.
-
While Guangdong was thriving and gradually moving towards stability and prosperity, Azu, far away on the other side of the ocean, had not been idle for the past six months.

In August, at the same time that Shi Dakai seized control of the entire Guangdong province, Azu welcomed her first son.

That's right, Fu Shanxiang gave birth to his eldest son with pure blood!

This is a big, chubby baby boy weighing seven pounds and two ounces, with a robust and chubby face and a loud, powerful cry!

Holding her newborn son, overjoyed, Azu turned to look at Fu Shanxiang, who was lying weak and powerless on the delivery bed, and couldn't help but feel guilty and sorry for her.

"Shanxiang, thank you for your hard work!"

"I'm fine! Everyone says I have big hips, which means I'm good at giving birth, and it really was a smooth delivery of this child...!" Fu Shanxiang leaned weakly against the headboard, forcing a comforting smile: "Grandpa, let's name our son, shall we?"

Having already made preparations, Azu looked down at his chubby son with a chubby face and laughed, "I estimate that by now, Shi Dakai should have already taken over Guangdong."

"This month, we have double happiness! Let's name our son Li Yue!"

“Li Yue…that’s wonderful!” Fu Shanxiang cried with joy, “Waaah, Grandmother, we have a son…our son…is named Li Yue!”

……

After Fu Shanxiang made a good start, in September, Vivian gave birth to Azu's eldest daughter.

This is a beautiful little princess who weighs exactly seven pounds!
Compared to his son, Ah Zu preferred his daughter, and he named his eldest daughter "Li Xiang".

"Xiang" is the abbreviation for Hunan Province. Women from Hunan are known for their affection, and Azu naturally hoped that his eldest daughter would be a beautiful and affectionate little princess.

In November, Daisy gave birth to her second daughter.

This is another beautiful little princess weighing six pounds and six ounces.

Overjoyed, Azu named his second daughter "Li Yu".

As the year draws to a close, Youma's due date is fast approaching.

If Ah Zu doesn't win, fine, but once he does, his children come one after another, immersing Ah Zu, who has become a father, in a state of joy for the past few months.

The good news didn't stop there. In the second half of the year, Victoria and Monica, who hadn't gotten pregnant for a long time, finally became pregnant one after the other.

This means that next year, Ah Zu will have three more children!
……

By the end of the year, all three people that Azu had arranged for Victoria to find had been found and sent to San Francisco, California.

Azu seemed quite curious about the three future celebrities and personally met with them.

In Azu's study, two children and a young man stood in a neat row in front of him.

"You are Thomas Edison?"

Azu stared at Edison, the youngest of the seven-year-olds, and asked with a smile.

“Yes…yes!” Little Edison answered somewhat timidly, “Governor…I am Thomas Edison!”

Young Edison couldn't understand why this high-ranking governor wanted to see him, why he was sponsoring his schooling, and why he had even condescended to meet him personally.

Looking at the uneasy Edison, Azu smiled and said, "Do you know why I came to find you and why I'm sponsoring your schooling?"

(End of this chapter)