Chapter 83 Meeting with Yuan Shikai
Yamagata Aritomo actively planned to attack Ximu City. Although the Chinese army in Ximu City was passive in preparing for war, they were not sitting still. Although the Hunan Army was not ready for battle for a while, a large amount of weapons and ammunition were continuously sent to the front line from the interior.
Wei Jichen did not dare to wait for Nie Shicheng to deliver the guns and ammunition like he did in Dagaoling. Feng Sheng'a was not so kind. If Wei Jichen went to receive them in person, he might be greedy and replenish his own army first.
Therefore, when Wei Jichen heard that a large amount of ammunition had been delivered to Ximu City from the rear, he hurried to the city with a battalion of troops, fearing that he would not get his share if he was late.
"Get out of the way, get out of the way!" Hu Zi led a scout to clear the way in front. When the team that came to receive the ammunition saw this situation, they all dodged to the sides, fearing that they would be hit by these people.
Why did the soldiers of the Border Guard Army and the Sheng Army avoid the soldiers of the Wei Army? It was because the soldiers of the two armies had clashed frequently in the past ten days.
Originally, Feng Sheng'a had intended to signal his soldiers to go to the Wei Army to cause trouble, but he didn't expect that he would get into trouble instead of finding trouble. The soldiers of the Wei Army, who had experienced bloody battles and walked through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, were not so easy to bully.
In a melee of more than 100 people, the Sheng Army had more than 70 people, while the Wei Army had only about 30 people. In the end, more than 70 people were chased and beaten by more than 30 people. There were countless people who were maimed and injured. If the soldiers of the Wei Army had not killed them, there might have been several people who were "killed in battle".
Even Feng Sheng'a didn't have the face to use such a record to cause trouble to Wei Jichen. It would be embarrassing to say that more than 70 people were chased and beaten by more than 30 people.
Since then, when the soldiers of other armies saw the soldiers of the Wei Army passing by, they avoided them from a distance. It was no more than this to retreat.
So now Hu Zi is running rampant, and few people dare to stop him. Although the faces of those who avoided him are angry, no one speaks. In the army, whoever has the biggest fist is the boss.
Wei Jichen followed behind leisurely, and behind him were the other three soldiers. He would not rest until the food, salary and weapons were replenished this time. If he waited until the next time, he would not know when it would be.
It didn't take long for Wei Jichen to come to the Qing army official who was rushing to the food, salary and weapons.
The official had just come from the rear and didn't know the details of Wei Jichen. He thought he was arrogant and barbaric and didn't follow the rules. He didn't know that if Wei Jichen followed the rules, he didn't know when he would be able to receive the food, salary and weapons.
"Brother, this is the food, salary and weapons that my Weizi Army should issue. Please check carefully and don't miss a single cent." Wei Jichen saw that the official was so stunned that he forgot to move, and he couldn't help but patted the table to remind him.
"Wei Zijun, wait, you said you are from Wei Zijun?" The official frowned first, then asked in surprise: "Is it Wei Jichen's Wei Zijun?"
Wei Jichen looked at the official with two small mustaches, short stature, and slightly thin cheeks, and said with a smile: "I didn't expect that you have heard of Wei's name."
The official squinted and replied: "My brother's name is the god of death, who in the world doesn't know it, who doesn't know it."
A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind. Although Wei Jichen is high-profile because of his prestige, he doesn't want to attract too much attention. This is a contradictory problem. It depends on how Wei Jichen grasps the degree.
"This big brother is too flattering. A little nickname is more than just a mention." Wei Jichen restrained his smile and said seriously.
The official looked at Wei Jichen's uniform of a second-rank military commander with envy, and sighed, saying, "My younger brother can lead troops to fight at such a young age, while I am still here to deliver weapons and food. There is a world of difference between us."
This official really knows how to take advantage of the situation. Wei Jichen just called him "brother" for politeness, but seeing how warmly he called him, one would think that the two sides have a deep friendship.
The more Wei Jichen looked at this person, the more familiar he felt, but he really didn't know him in his impression. It was really strange.
The official flipped through the list, and said with a smile, "You have a lot of troops and cannons in these two battalions."
He could guess the number of cannons just from the number of ammunition. He didn't look like someone who had never led troops to fight.
"Brother, may I ask your name?" Wei Jichen waited until he finished reading, and asked with a fist.
The official smiled faintly and said, "I am Yuan Shikai from Xiangcheng."
It turned out to be Yuan Shikai. No wonder he looked so familiar. I had never seen him in person, but I had seen his photos in some books in my previous life, so he looked familiar.
Yes, after Yuan Shikai escaped from Korea, he became a logistics officer who rushed to deliver food, wages and weapons.
There is a reason why Yuan Shikai envied Wei Jichen for being able to command troops.
It can be said that Yuan Shikai also had a deep understanding of the saying "Political power comes from the barrel of a gun". Zeng Guofan had the Hunan Army and Li Hongzhang had the Huai Army, so they were called "ministers of the revival".
Even his great-uncle Yuan Sanjia was able to achieve success because he had soldiers and horses in his hands. So what he dreamed of was to have a few "gun barrels" in his hands.
Long ago, when he was in Korea, Yuan Shikai plotted to seize the Qing Army of his "boss" Wu Changqing, but unfortunately he failed and became enemies with his old boss Wu Changqing.
After the Donghaekdo Uprising in Korea, as the "Korean Emperor", he thought that his opportunity to lead the army had come, but he did not know that he was tricked by the Japanese. The Japanese Minister to Korea, Oshima Keisuke, told him: "Gatei, you just Don't worry, please ask the Qing Dynasty to send troops at home. Our Empire of Japan will definitely not send troops. .
In order to gain power personally, Yuan Shikai was persuaded by Oshima Keisuke to actively contact the court and advocate that the Qing government send troops to North Korea. Unfortunately, the Qing army was still hot on its feet, and the Japanese army arrived soon after.
Yuan Shikai became anxious and hurriedly pretended to be ill and asked to return to China. Before getting Li Hongzhang's consent, he disguised himself as a civilian and fled back from Incheon.
After returning to China, Yuan Shikai naturally lost the official position of Minister stationed in North Korea to negotiate trade matters, because North Korea was occupied by the Japanese, and the Japanese invaded Northeast China. Why did the court still have this empty position?
After returning to China, Yuan Shikai wanted to lead an army to the front line and seize the opportunity to gain military power. However, Li Hongzhang was very dissatisfied with Yuan Shikai's return to China without obeying his orders, so he decided to let him go first and let him be a logistics officer rushing to provide food, pay and weapons. .
The reason why Yuan Shikai knew some marching and combat methods was because he helped North Korea train its army when he was in North Korea. However, from the fact that the North Korean army was defeated by the Japanese army, it can be seen that Yuan Shikai's ability to lead troops in war is indeed not very good.
It doesn't matter if your ability to lead troops is not very good, just like Liu Bang said, I don't know Han Xin in fighting, and I am not as good as Xiao He in logistics, but I am good at generalship, so I, Liu Bang, can conquer the world.
Yuan Shikai would interpret this old saying very well in the future, but now he is still a food and salary official without soldiers or generals.
Wei Jichen thought about the information about Yuan Shikai for a while. He had no choice but to call this guy a celebrity.
"It turns out to be Mr. Yuan, the Prime Minister and Minister of North Korea." Wei Jichen said with excitement.
"As for Prime Minister and Minister of North Korea, that is all in the past." Yuan Shikai said with a little embarrassment.
Wei Jichen waved his hand and said sincerely: "If Master Yuan hadn't been stable in Korea for more than ten years, the ambitious Japanese might have taken action long ago. Wei admired Master Yuan's methods very much, so he delayed it by himself. The war between China and Japan.”
What Wei Jichen said is not wrong. As early as 1884, the Japanese tried to take advantage of the Sino-French War to seize Korea. If Yuan Shikai had not commanded the Qing army to repel the Japanese army, the Sino-Japanese War might have broken out at that time. .
Yuan Shikai smiled lightly and said: "The past is like a passing cloud. It was all because of Yuan that North Korea was lost. This made Yuan very sad. Yuan really hoped that he could lead the troops to repel the Japanese attack like his virtuous brother in order to atone for his sins. Ah, young talents like Xiandi are the ones Yuan admires and hopes to make friends with."
Yuan Shikai was indeed good at winning over people's hearts. In this short period of time, his title to Wei Jichen changed again and again, from old brother to good brother.
Yuan Shikai was still waiting to say anything more, but his officials had already prepared food, wages and firearms for Wei Zijun and came up to report to him.
"Brother Xian, I admire you as a person and have added a little bit to this list for you. Please don't refuse, brother. This is just a small meaning from brother. As long as brother Xian can help on the battlefield, If the eldest brother gives the Japanese a good beating, he will be able to bear his kindness." Yuan Shikai whispered in Wei Jichen's ear.
Yuan Shikai, the official in charge of food, wages and weapons, was actually a position that was best to be filled by others. If he hadn't been overly ambitious and always wanted to lead troops, he would have become a rich man after just a few wars.
Wei Jichen didn't expect that Yuan Shikai would take special care of him. No matter what the reason was, it was a great affection. After Wei Jichen thought about it, he felt something was wrong. Why did he seem to feel grateful to Yuan Shikai.
It seems that this old Yuan's methods are really good. He is generous to the court and earns the gratitude of Wei Jichen.
Wei Jichen, who understood, still said with a grateful face: "Brother values me so much, if there is anything I need to say in the future, please let me know. I, Wei Jichen, will do my best."
Yuan Shikai said with a cold face: "My brother, Yuan just fell in love with you at first sight. My words of repayment will only chill Yuan's heart."
He is indeed a talented person who has experienced diplomacy. These words made Wei Jichen, who knew Yuan Shikai's details, feel a little warm in his heart.
Looking around, he saw that others were still waiting to receive food, wages and weapons. Wei Jichen had no choice but to cup his fists and said, "Brother is busy with business today. If he is free the next day, I will definitely pay him a visit and get drunk."
"My dear brother, walk slowly." Yuan Shikai replied with a smile and a nod.
Wei Jichen raised his hand, and a whole battalion of men and horses carried, dragged, and picked up all the food, wages, and weapons that had just been counted.
When Yuan Shikai saw that Wei Jichen's sergeants could execute orders and prohibitions with just one move from Wei Jichen without any hesitation, he couldn't help but feel envious. It would be great if he also had this army.