As a young marshal, it's reasonable for me to have 300,000 private troops, right?

As soon as Qi Fan was sent back to the Marshal's Mansion, Zhang Zuolin came to greet him, his face full of anxiety.

He grabbed Qi Fan's arm and, ignoring the people around him, ripped open half of his clothes and carefully inspected him inside and out.

Seeing that it was just some superficial injury and nothing serious, Zhang Zuolin breathed a sigh of relief, his heart finally at ease, and gently patted Qi Fan on the back of the head.

"You little brat, you've got more guts than your old man! You even dare to beat up those Japanese devils."

His tone sounded reproachful, but his eyes held an undisguised admiration.

Qi Fan looked up at Zhang Zuolin, still unsure of his father's true attitude towards the Japanese. He dared not easily reveal his disgust, so he could only give a perfunctory reply with a flicker in his eyes.

"They provoked us first, we can't just stand there and take the beating, can we?"

"That's right!"

Zhang Zuolin was amused by his words and reached out to ruffle his hair, becoming even more satisfied with his eldest son.

"Alright, alright, you're exhausted after a long day. Go back to your room and rest."

Qi Fan replied, "I understand," and turned to walk towards his own courtyard.

Unbeknownst to him, deep within the shadows of the Marshal's Mansion, a figure dressed in an inconspicuous black robe was taking advantage of the chaos to slowly slip out of the mansion's gate, his body hunched over.

The figure was very cautious, deliberately choosing to travel through narrow, dark alleys, avoiding patrolling guards and passersby. After many twists and turns, the figure finally entered Japanese territory and stopped in front of a secluded small Western-style building. After scanning left and right to make sure no one was following, the figure pushed open the door and went inside.

Inside the Western-style building, Kikuchi was sitting by the window, slowly brewing Japanese tea. The sound of boiling water being poured into the teacup was soft and pleasant.

Hearing the door open, he didn't even look up, a knowing smile playing on his lips.

"The Fourth Madam is punctual."

The newcomer slowly removed the hood of her black robe, revealing her long hair to be that of the fourth concubine, Xu Shuyang.

The gentle demeanor she once displayed at the Marshal's Mansion was gone, replaced by a chilling coldness.

"Mr. Kikuchi, you must have invited me to a place like this so late; surely it wasn't just for a cup of tea?"

Kikuchi raised his hand and pushed the brewed matcha in front of her, the rim of the teacup steaming gently.

He looked up at Xu Shuyang, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

"Fourth Madam is a smart woman. Some things don't need to be said too explicitly. I'm sure you understand why I've called you here."

"I don't know." Xu Shuyang said coldly, leaning forward slightly as if to get up.

"If Mr. Kikuchi is just trying to make fun of me, then I won't play along."

"Wait." Kikuchi reacted quickly, reaching out to press down on her wrist, his tone carrying a subtle but palpable pressure.

"I know you've been secretly arranging for assassinations against Zhang Xueliang. Fourth Madam, I believe we can cooperate."

"What did you say?!"

Xu Shuyang froze, abruptly pulling his hand back, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

She believed her assassination plan was flawless and she had kept it completely secret. How could Kikuchi have found out?

After the initial shock, she quickly calmed down, staring coldly at Kikuchi, and asked him a question, word by word.

"What makes you think I would cooperate with you?"

Kikuchi seemed to have anticipated this response, and he slowly spoke again: "Because we also want Zhang Xueliang dead."

"Once Zhang Xueliang dies, we will do everything in our power to support your son in succeeding Zhang Zuolin. At that time, not only will you retain control of the Marshal's Mansion, but we will also provide you with exclusive assistance such as firearms and supplies to help you firmly secure your position."

Xu Shuyang's breath hitched, and his eyes flickered violently.

She clenched her fists tightly, her mind racing as she weighed the pros and cons. Her wariness gradually faded as she looked at Kikuchi, replaced by a hint of wavering. She was slowly making up her mind.

The police station incident was resolved satisfactorily and did not cause any further trouble.

The next morning, Zhang Zuolin dragged Qi Fan directly to his headquarters.

Qi Fan leaned against the door frame, bored out of his mind, watching Zhang Zuolin sit behind his desk handling government affairs. It was really not interesting.

He simply wandered around the office, touching the map hanging on the wall and fiddling with the bronze ornaments on the table.

After Zhang Zuolin finished processing an official document, he looked up and saw Qi Fan wandering around the room aimlessly, so he called out to him.

"Liu Zi! Come here!"

Upon hearing the sound, Qi Fan slowly approached.

"What are you doing?"

"Mr. Bai Peiyan once told me that you're not suited to sitting in a study, but rather a brilliant talent capable of making decisions immediately. Tell me, what do you want to learn? Military affairs or political affairs are both fine."

"I don't care, either way is fine."

Qi Fan shrugged. He already had the advantage of being a propheter due to his time travel, so learning anything was just a formality for him.

Seeing his nonchalant attitude, Zhang Zuolin was not angry.

"Alright! Your old man will find you a reliable teacher right away to properly mentor you!"

After saying that, Zhang Zuolin got up and walked out, leaving Qi Fan alone in the office.

He walked straight to the adjacent conference room, pushed open the door, and saw a dozen men wearing high-ranking military ranks sitting together, discussing military affairs in a serious atmosphere.

Upon seeing Zhang Zuolin enter, everyone immediately stood up in unison and saluted, saying, "Greetings, sir!"

"Please sit down."

Zhang Zuolin waved his hand, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, and asked bluntly, "Are you all here looking for a job?"

"Yes, sir!" the crowd responded in unison.

Zhang Zuolin's gaze fell on a young man with a sharp face and keen eyes. If Qi Fan were here, he would recognize him at a glance as Yang Yuting, the future chief of staff and core strategist of the Fengtian Army.

Which school did you graduate from?

Yang Yuting stepped forward, gave a standard military salute, and answered in a deep voice.

"Sir, I graduated from the 8th Infantry Class of the Army War College!"

Zhang Zuolin nodded, not asking any further questions, and then turned his gaze to a tall, dark-skinned man standing next to him, who was standing very upright.

"And you?"

The man stepped forward and saluted, his voice booming, "Reporting to you, sir, I graduated from the Army University's graduate program!"

"Not bad." A hint of satisfaction flashed in Zhang Zuolin's eyes as he asked, "What's your name?"

"Reporting to your Excellency, my surname is Guo, and my given name is Songling!"

"Guo Songling? What a great name!" Zhang Zuolin clapped his hands and made the decision immediately.

"You're the one! I'm just grabbing you for a last-minute business trip. Come with me!"

After saying this, Zhang Zuolin turned and walked out before Guo Songling could react.

Guo Songling was stunned for a moment, then quickly followed, and the two went straight back to the office.

At this moment, Qi Fan was sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, holding a cup of coffee in his hand, leisurely sipping it, acting like a young master.

Seeing Zhang Zuolin enter with a tall, dark-skinned man, he put down his coffee and sat up straight.

Seeing this, Zhang Zuolin pointed at him, both angry and amused: "Hey! You little rascal, you sure know how to enjoy yourself here!"

After laughing, he turned to Guo Songling and introduced him: "This is my rascal, Zhang Xueliang."

Then he turned to Qi Fan, his tone solemn: "Liu Zi, the teacher I found for you is Guo Songling. From now on, you will learn military affairs from him. Learn from him well, understand?"

Qi Fan nodded, and Zhang Zuolin gave Guo Songling a few more instructions, such as "Take good care of him" and "Don't spoil him," before turning around to attend to his own business.

Only Qi Fan and Guo Songling remained in the office.

Qi Fan looked the big, dark-skinned man up and down, and couldn't help but mutter to himself: So this is Guo Songling... I have to say, this guy is really something, he's good at training troops and fighting battles.

But he was too arrogant, haughty, and unwilling to be subordinate to others. In his past life, Zhang Xueliang trusted him so much and gave him important responsibilities, but he turned around and rebelled without showing any mercy.

Upon thinking of this, Qi Fan's goodwill towards Guo Songling plummeted to rock bottom.

Qi Fan looked down on this two-faced, ungrateful wretch, no matter how capable he was. Who would dare to entrust their back to such a person?