Did he trick the young marshal into becoming sworn brothers and then go south to Huangpu Military Ac

The Ford sped along the bumpy dirt road.

The carriage was dark. Lin Qi leaned back in his seat, repeatedly reviewing the conversation from tonight in his mind, making sure there were no obvious logical flaws.

The fiancée's lie was made up on the spot, but it could withstand scrutiny.

There was indeed a very powerful Chinese family in San Francisco that would soon perish in a fire.

Even if the Third Miss sent people to investigate, they could only find a bunch of vague and confusing accounts.

What he lacks most right now is time.

Once the German equipment arrives next month, the arsenal will be fully operational, and the new army will take shape. At that point, no one in the south will be able to challenge his position. Even if they find out his background, they won't be able to do anything about it.

The car drove into the gate of the Ishii Arsenal.

The factory area was brightly lit, and thick smoke billowed from the chemical workshops containing three acids and two alkalis.

Lin Qi pushed open the car door, jumped out, took off his long gown and put on a coarse cloth overcoat, and strode towards the workshop.

He cast aside all thoughts of personal feelings and power struggles.

Only the roar of machines is the most authentic sound of this era.

……

The black smoke over the Ishii Arsenal has been billowing for seven days and nights.

The newly built lead bath tempering furnace outside the rough processing workshop burns day and night, distorting and deforming the surrounding air with its high temperature.

The workers, wearing only thin shirts and bare-chested, had sweat and coal dust washing over them, leaving muddy crevices. No one complained; the cash they received on time was more effective than any words of comfort or reprimand.

Lin Qi stood in the newly opened chemical workshop, wearing a yellowish coarse cloth acid-resistant suit. The pungent smell of ammonia and nitric acid mingled together, hitting him directly in the head.

A row of simple wooden drying racks in front of me was covered with a layer of pale yellow granules.

This is the first batch of granulated single-base smokeless gunpowder produced by the arsenal.

Lin Qi picked up a few pellets of gunpowder, rubbed them between his fingertips to feel their hardness and dryness. The acid purified by the rudimentary method was ultimately not pure enough, and the residual acid rate of this batch of gunpowder could only be barely kept within the safety limit.

If the German trading company's equipment doesn't arrive soon, this dilapidated factory will reach its production capacity limit.

He casually tossed the gunpowder back onto the shelf. Lin Qi took off his acid-proof suit and tossed it to the apprentice beside him.

The gate was pushed open, and Chiang Kai-shek, dressed in a crisp military uniform, strode in, his military boots making a rustling sound as they stepped on the muddy ground covered with iron filings.

He had just come out of the Grand Marshal's Mansion.

These past few days, Chiang Kai-shek has been riding high. He has already warmed his letter of appointment as chairman of the preparatory committee for the Whampoa Military Academy. Everyone in Guangzhou's military and political circles knows that he, Chiang, is now the most sought-after person in front of his teacher.

He walked up to Lin Qi with a smile on his face.

"Brother Tuozhi, the smell in this factory is too strong. It's amazing that you can keep watch over it day and night."

Lin Qi walked to the basin and washed his hands with alkaline soap to remove the residual acid from between his fingers.

"Brother Chiang Kai-shek, why are you here in this chaotic place instead of preparing for the establishment of the military academy on Cheung Chau Island? The military academy is to be located on Whampoa Island, where everything is in need of rebuilding and there's a lot to do."

Chiang Kai-shek sighed, took out a cigarette case from his pocket, pulled one out, and handed it to Lin Qi.

Lin Qi waved his hand and pointed to the flammable materials all over the room. He quickly put the cigarette away.

"Renovating school buildings and leveling the playground are all manual labor tasks, so just assign them to the staff."

Chiang Kai-shek lowered his voice, his tone revealing a hint of sincerity: "I've come today because there's a very important matter I need to discuss with Brother Tuozhi. If this matter isn't resolved, I won't feel at ease as the principal."

Lin Qi dried his hands and sat down at an old wooden table against the wall.

Chiang Kai-shek sat down, leaning slightly forward.

Preparations for the military academy are basically complete, and the first batch of students will soon be recruited nationwide through newspaper advertisements. However, he has been unable to sleep these past few nights, tossing and turning.

He was wary of Lin Qi.

Lin Qi's power in the south expanded too quickly. He controlled the only arsenal, and what was even more dangerous was that Lin Zichao, a leader of the upright faction, treated him like a son or nephew. This background and his skills made him extremely uneasy.

Chiang Kai-shek had a very clear plan in mind: for the military academy to continue operating, it needed a constant supply of guns and bullets from the arsenal. If Lin Qi remained detached from the military academy, acting only as a high-ranking military industry expert and a source of wealth, and if the two disagreed one day, Lin Qi could directly cut off the military academy's ammunition supply, leaving him, the principal, as a figurehead.

We must completely drag Lin Qi into this mess and tie his interests to the military academy and to ourselves.

"Brother Tuozhi."

Chiang Kai-shek looked at him earnestly: "The military academy is about to advertise for admissions, but I am all alone and powerless. There are too many people in headquarters eyeing this lucrative opportunity, the Wang family, the Hu family, and those Guangdong army generals, who doesn't want to place their own people in the military academy? I need Brother Tuozhi to come out of retirement and help me keep things under control."

Lin Qi picked up the cold tea on the table, took a sip, and his expression remained unchanged.

"Brother Kai-shek, you're joking. I'll just keep an eye on the lathes and gunpowder in the factory. What would it look like if I got involved in the power struggles at the military academy?"

"otherwise."

Chiang Kai-shek emphasized, "Without Brother Tuozhi's military-building philosophy, this military academy would just be an old-fashioned camp. I just went to see the teacher."

Chiang Kai-shek paused, staring intently into Lin Qi's eyes.

"I strongly recommend to you, sir, that Brother Tuozhi be appointed as the vice principal of the Whampoa Military Academy and concurrently as the director of the Logistics and Supplies Department."

Lin Qi's eyes twitched slightly.

When Chiang Kai-shek brought this up with Mr. Chiang, he had to put in a lot of effort.

……

Two hours ago, in the Grand Marshal's study.

After hearing Chiang Kai-shek's request, the gentleman frowned deeply and slammed the brush in his hand onto the table.

"Nonsense."

The man's voice was filled with anger: "A few days ago, I personally offered him the position of principal, but he firmly declined, citing his lack of leadership skills and theoretical knowledge. Not only that, he also strongly recommended you to me. Now you want me to issue you an appointment letter, making him your deputy? What kind of person do you take Tuozhi for?"

The gentleman knew what he was doing. Lin Qi was not greedy for power or influence. He even refused a marriage alliance with the Song family for the sake of the revolution. How could such a noble and virtuous man condescend to be a vice principal?

Chiang Kai-shek stood before the desk, his back ramrod straight.

"Please calm down, sir. It is precisely because of Brother Tuo's noble character that Kaishen has taken the liberty of making this request."

He then spoke earnestly: "The military academy is newly established and is in dire need of funds and weapons. Brother Tuozhi is in charge of the arsenal. If he were to hold a deputy position at the military academy, he would not only be able to legitimately oversee logistics, but also directly instill his advanced concepts of modern infantry-artillery coordination into the students. Kaishen is not very knowledgeable and may hinder your grand plan for building the army. Only with Brother Tuozhi's assistance can Kaishen feel at ease."

Chiang Kai-shek's words hit the nail on the head.

Building an army, training a new army with faith and knowledge of modern tactics, is Mr. [Name]'s greatest obsession at present.

The gentleman remained silent for a long time before leaning back in his chair.

Recalling Lin Qi's righteous and awe-inspiring figure refusing marriage in the restaurant that night, and then looking at Chang Kai-shen with eager eyes in front of him.

"That's enough."

The man sighed: "Taku is proud and unwilling to get involved in factional infighting. I can't force him. Since you've brought this up, go to the Shijing factory and find him yourself. If he agrees, I'll issue the letter of appointment. If he doesn't agree, then let's not talk about this again."

Upon receiving this confirmation, Chiang Kai-shek immediately rushed to the arsenal.

The chemical workshop had a pungent ammonia smell.

Chiang Kai-shek selectively recounted his conversation with his teacher at the Marshal's Mansion, deliberately omitting his teacher's anger and only emphasizing that his teacher also strongly agreed.

"Brother Tuozhi, this military academy is the culmination of our hard work."

Chiang Kai-shek's face was full of eagerness, even with a hint of pleading: "You can just hold the title of vice principal. You don't need to worry about military and political affairs; leave it all to me. You just need to teach students about modern military industry knowledge and manage logistics. With you, this true god, sitting in charge on campus, those outside who want to interfere will have to think twice."

Lin Qi put down his teacup.

Long, slender fingers tapped lightly on the scratched wooden table.

Old cunning bitch.

Lin Qi mentally labeled Chiang Kai-shek.

This was a brilliant move of using someone else's strength against them. By using his own endorsement, he could both intimidate his political enemies at home and legitimately obtain weapons from the arsenal.

A flat refusal?

No, military academies are the incubators of core power in the South in the future. Without intervening in military academies, his industrial system will not have its own armed forces to protect it.

Being a school principal is unsuitable; a tall tree catches the wind and easily becomes a target for various warlords and politicians, and one must also guard against the infiltration of comprador capital behind the scenes.

The position of vice principal was practically tailor-made for him.

They have power, but no burdens.

They don't have to bear the political responsibility for defeats on the front lines, nor do they have to deal with those tedious diplomatic formalities.

But he could legitimately take control of military supplies and arrange courses.

Once the first batch of students graduate, it's uncertain whose command these young officers, armed with guns he made and trained in tactical manuals he compiled, will actually take.

While his mind was racing with calculations, Lin Qi feigned an extremely helpless and troubled expression.

He let out a long sigh.

"Brother Chiang Kai-shek, you're putting me on the hot seat."

Lin Qi frowned: "I'm used to being carefree. I hate all those rules and regulations in school. You're putting the vice principal's title on me, isn't that forcing a duck onto a shelf?"

When Chiang Kai-shek saw that Lin Qi did not give up outright, he knew there was a chance and quickly struck while the iron was hot.

"Brother Tuo, please consider this as a sacrifice for the sake of all living beings and for the oath we swore with blood that night. I would not be satisfied or at ease if anyone else were to take the position of vice principal, except for you."