Chapter 2 Chapter 2 The Amphibious "Big Brother" Li Yuanhong

About Li Yuanhong, the information we can get from our middle school textbooks is roughly like this: he is a clown, a douchebag who cannot be supported, but he is very lucky. But is this the truth? Li Yuanhong, courtesy name Song Qing, was born in a family of junior Huai Army officers in Huangpi, Hubei. Although he is a family member of a military officer, he is not as happy as most people. Before the age of 20, he had already experienced a life of misery that many people could not experience in their entire lives: barely enough food and clothing since childhood, he used to beg along the street; his mother lost his mother when he was a teenager, and his father lost his father when he was young; Arouse the hope of life for siblings.

Fortunately, the experience of suffering taught him to live, and the loss of his relatives taught him to be strong.This is the key reason why he was able to serve two terms as president of the Republic of China and three terms as vice president in the future. The pressure of life and the torment of suffering make Li Yuanhong poor but ambitious.Life was tough, but with his strong character, he got a very good diploma at the age of 25 through a work-study program. He successfully graduated from Tianjin Beiyang Naval Academy founded by Li Hongzhang. In school, Li Yuanhong achieved good academic performance, especially in the high-tech course-engine structure, which made him get the teacher Yan Fu, and the future Toutosa Town of Beiyang Navy who was also teaching at the school. Ice appreciation.Because Yan Fu and Sa Zhenbing had a lot of contacts in the navy, Li Yuanhong joined the navy as soon as he graduated as a supervisor. He was a technical grassroots officer and had a good start.

Later, Li Yuanhong participated in the Sino-Japanese War as an officer of the battleship "Guangjia" of the Beiyang Navy.What happened after that was mentioned before. Guan Dai (Captain) Wu Jingrong's will to fight was very problematic, and he actually ran away.As a result, although the "Guangjia" was not destroyed by Japanese artillery shells, it sank on the rocks.Li Yuanhong survived by luck. As a person who escaped from a shipwreck in the Yellow Sea, Li Yuanhong must have good athletic talent. If he was born today, he might be able to win a swimming medal in the National Games.

After the Sino-Japanese War was defeated, most naval officers were dismissed, and Li Yuanhong was not spared. Perhaps because he has experienced too many hardships, fate finally favored him once.At the lowest point of his career, he met his noble man Zhang Zhidong.Zhang Zhidong was training the new army "Self-Strengthening Army" at that time, and there was an urgent shortage of manpower, so Li Yuanhong followed Zhang Zhidong to Hubei.In doing so, he bid farewell to his naval career forever. Li Yuanhong himself came from a major and had a strong learning ability, so he was quickly appreciated by Zhang Zhidong and was sent to Japan for further studies.Li Yuanhong thus became an amphibious general who was proficient in naval and land warfare.After returning to China, Li Yuanhong became the commander of the "Self-Strengthening Army" mixed association, roughly equivalent to today's colonel brigade commander, and the second person under Zhang Biao in the Hubei New Army.

Due to his past misfortunes, Li Yuanhong was especially sympathetic to the sufferings of the people at the bottom.He is generous and frugal in his work and life.Li Yuanhong never did such immoral things, so he was very popular in the army. Li Yuanhong not only cared for the soldiers, but also cared enough for his subordinates. He was also able to lead troops and know how to fight. He was a general who came out of the battlefield, and his position in the army was very important. Beginning in 1905, the Qing Empire held a total of three military exercises. The Qing army participating in the exercise was divided into southern and northern armies to fight.

In the second largest military exercise (Zhangde Autumn Exercise), Yuan Shikai, Xu Shichang, Duan Qirui, Wang Shizhen, and Feng Guozhang were all present.Amidst the relaxed chatting and laughing of the other four fierce men, Duan Qirui led the elite new Beiyang army to appear on the stage on behalf of the Beiyang army. His opponent was the Hubei new army led by an unknown man named Li Yuanhong. On the battlefield, the little-known Li Yuanhong showed outstanding military qualities in pre-war deduction and deployment, command and dispatch before the battle. He commanded the inferior Southern Army to confront the Northern Army commanded by Duan Qirui in an all-round confrontation. On par.

Yuan Shikai and the others originally planned to watch the show in a relaxed manner while chatting and laughing, but they didn't want to kill Li Yuanhong halfway, but they couldn't relax.Li Yuanhong became a blockbuster and became a national famous general. Therefore, it is very reasonable for the Revolutionary Party to favor Li Yuanhong as the leader of the new government. First of all, Li Yuanhong knew soldiers and was a famous general. With his fame, he could frighten the imperial court, call on the world, and strengthen the prestige of the revolutionary army.Second, Li Yuanhong is a native of Hubei and has a high prestige in the army. He can call on his subordinates to join the revolution and reduce resistance.Thirdly, Li Yuanhong has a good relationship with the constitutionalists in Hubei. Through him, the constitutionalists can be firmly tied to the revolutionary warship.

Speaking of this, some people must object: "The textbooks say that when the uprising broke out, Li Yuanhong killed revolutionary soldiers. He is a counter-revolutionary. How can he be the leader of the revolution?" Is such that. Li Yuanhong headquarters office. At about nine o'clock in the evening on October 10, 1911, Li Yuanhong received news of the new army's uprising. As an official of the imperial court, as a pragmatic military cadre, suppressing the uprising is a normal job and a task that must be completed, so Li Yuanhong immediately commanded the nearby troops to suppress it, while he waited hard in the headquarters for news.

After that, he waited for two bad news.One is that the troops he sent in the past have defected; the other is that the rebel army has already captured Chuwangtai. It was unexpected!Li Yuanhong realized that this was an unprecedented rebellion movement, and he might not be able to control the scene.After a short but intense ideological confrontation, he made a very practical decision: not seeking meritorious deeds, not seeking innocence, but seeking self-protection. Therefore, Li Yuanhong transferred hundreds of nearby troops to his command, closed the gate of the camp, and prohibited entry and exit.At the same time, it was ordered: "If the revolutionaries attack, they will fight back, and if they retreat, they will not pursue them. Everyone stands still!"

At eleven o'clock in the evening, a mysterious person suddenly climbed over the camp wall and yelled loudly: "The revolution is successful, the Han compatriots come to support us, and attack the Governor's Mansion together!" It was later discovered that this person was Zhou Rongtang, who was sent by Xiong Bingkun Liaison to call other nouveaux uprisings. But Li Yuanhong would not give him a chance to work.The guards of the headquarters rushed forward and immediately captured Zhou Rongtang into the headquarters.Li Yuanhong didn't torture him severely, and said some frank and lenient words, but killed the unlucky Zhou Rongtang immediately.

This is the origin of Li Yuanhong's counter-revolutionary evidence. In fact, killing revolutionary soldiers can only show that Li Yuanhong is definitely not revolutionary, but it cannot be said that he is a counter-revolutionary.After all, when the overall situation was not clear, it was impossible for Li Yuanhong to tolerate a small soldier shouting and inciting the people around him to take his own life. Of course, this is not the way a person with advanced thinking, high morals and no fear of death should choose to deal with it.From this point of view, Mr. Li Yuanhong is also a member of the family who are greedy for life and afraid of death.But this is no wonder Li Yuanhong, after all, it is human nature to be afraid of death. A few hours later, the revolutionary army finished packing up Zhang Biao, and its firepower gradually shifted to the next target: Li Yuanhong, a powerful faction second only to Zhang Biao in the new army. The sound of cannons was booming, the flames were shining in the sky, the rebel army was pressing hard, the grass and trees were full of soldiers, and the morale of the army was unstable. Where should I go?Is it possible to use a few hundred people under his command to fight against a city that has already boiled?In a critical moment, Mr. Li was not so frightened by the tense situation that his mind became dizzy. He calmly remembered the truth he had learned after going through hardships: men should be ruthless to themselves and be their own saviors! Therefore, he decided to adhere to the truth that "a good man does not suffer immediate losses": he neither suppressed the revolution nor participated in the rebellion.Brothers, hurry up and let's go, let's find our way. In today's words, Li Yuanhong's decision is very practical.I believe that it was precisely because of his knowledge of current affairs that he was able to survive the subsequent bloody storm. Next, Li Yuanhong fled to the home of his subordinates for refuge.It was a restless night. On the second day of the uprising, when Li Yuanhong was still in shock, there was a sudden noise at the door of his house, and revolutionary soldiers came to the door. However, Li Yuanhong did not hide under the legendary bed in a panic, but hid in the room (hiding in the room——Zhang Nanxian's "Record of Revolutionary Knowledge in Hubei").In fact, Li Yuanhong was very fat.For him, it was an impossible task to stuff his fat body under the cramped old-fashioned bed in the late Qing Dynasty. After the soldiers entered the room and saw Li Yuanhong, they immediately fooled him with a sincere tone: "Mr. Li, we are all your subordinates. Today's patriotic actions are based on your usual teachings, so we will not harm you." Yes. The situation is extremely urgent now, please come out of the mountain to preside over the plan!" Before Li Yuanhong had time to think of an excuse, he was bound and surrounded by his company to the Advisory Bureau (provincial parliament) building. Cai Jimin, Xiong Bingkun, Wu Zhaolin and others who were waiting there told him: "Ruicheng and Zhang Biao have been driven out. Run, Wuchang has also been fully occupied, and the aftermath must be presided over by you!" But Li Yuanhong knew that although the Wuchang Uprising was successful, the strength of the revolutionary party could not cope with the Qing army's subsequent counterattack.If you follow the revolutionary party to work, it is called rebellion. Now that you have received the benefits of the revolutionary party, you will have to pay back with your head in the future. The risk factor is too high. Therefore, Li Yuanhong, who was full of worries, began to yell the famous historical saying that belonged to him: "Your generation is too troublesome, don't harm me! Don't harm me!" Li Yuanhong, the only "big brother in the lead" candidate, refused to cooperate. Naturally, the revolutionaries would not let him go and immediately put Li Yuanhong under house arrest.The revolutionaries know that the best way to deal with a person like Li Yuanhong who refuses to go on the road is to smash his pride and worries. On that day, the "Anmin Announcement" signed in the name of "Captain Li Yuanhong" was posted all over the streets and alleys of Wuchang, and "Li Dudu" became a household name immediately.Li Yuanhong instantly changed from a senior cadre of the court to a rebel of the court.Once you are pulled onto the "thief" boat, it will be difficult to think about it. "Li Dudu" was officially "taken office". One day later, Hankou and Hanyang fell into the hands of the revolutionary army.So far, the three towns of Wuhan (Hankou, Hanyang, and Wuchang) have all fallen into the hands of the revolutionary party.Subsequently, the various powers who were always paying attention to the Wuchang Uprising also declared "strictly observing neutrality".The revolution is going great! The change in the situation made Li Yuanhong finally dispel his worries about the strength of the revolutionary party.He once again made a decision that is aware of current affairs: Instead of being a prisoner of the Revolutionary Party and being regarded as a traitor by the court, it is better to simply put your future on the side of the revolution, and I will work with you! Li Yuanhong was already well versed in the military, and he had powerful military assistants such as the Gongjinhui and the Literature Society, and Tang Hualong, who joined the team and dealt with civil affairs, the leadership team of the Hubei Revolutionary Military Government was quickly established and operated efficiently. stand up. With the new army as the team, recruit more soldiers and prepare for war. Anmin tax exemption. The name of the country was changed to the Republic of China, and the provinces were called on to revolt. At this point, the Qing government finally ushered in an extremely powerful opponent of the revolutionary party—the Hubei Revolutionary Military Government.