Chapter 30 Section 30

"Zhongyuan", surnamed Yan, named Dunyuan, is the eighty-first grandson of a high disciple of Confucianism, and lives in Changshu for generations.Yan Dunyuan traveled with his father in Zhili since he was a child. He was a proud disciple of Wu Rulun, a famous ancient prose writer of the Tongcheng School, and was also appreciated by Weng Tonghe.In the 23rd year of Guangxu, Yuan Shikai was training soldiers at Xiaozhan. In order to curry favor with Weng Tonghe, he tried many ways to get close, so he recruited Yan Dunyuan into the scene.Originally, he wanted to use him as a channel to make friends with "Changshu Prime Minister", but unexpectedly he became Xu Shichang's inseparable right-hand man.

Xu Shichang was Yuan Shikai's chief of staff at the small station, and his envoy was called "General Staff and Battalion Office", and all rules and regulations must come from this department.Although there are "Infantry Drill Codes" and "Array Service Orders" translated from Germany and Japan, the text is jerky and unreadable.Xu Shichang was sitting in the city of sorrow, not knowing what to do by surprise. He heard that Yan Dunyuan was an outstanding student of Baoding Lianchi Academy, so he temporarily handed over this pile of "heavenly books" to him to sort out.Yan Dunyuan carefully searched for the style of writing, and asked the original translator for advice on what he didn't understand. After understanding the meaning, he rewritten it separately, and the result was not only smooth but also concise.

Xu Shichang was overjoyed, and Yuan Shikai had already agreed with him.The two corresponded with Yan Dunyuan, who was not yet thirty, and they were either called "Brother Zhong" or "Yuangong", and they always respected each other. During the Reform Movement of 1898, Yuan Shikai became the governor of Shandong in one fell swoop, and Yan Dunyuan was naturally a must-have assistant. His official title was "Counselor of the Right Wing of the Wuwei Army", and he guarded Dezhou together with the veteran Gong Yuanyou.By the time Yuan Shikai was supervised by Li Hongzhang, Yan Dunyuan had also been promoted to Taoist priest and served as the general office of the military preparation department of the supervisory office.

It has been another five years since returning to Luan. Beiyang generals Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang, Cao Kun and others have all been replaced with red caps because they were awarded the title of "Vice Dutong".Yuan Shikai felt that Yan Dunyuan could not be wronged, so he specially guaranteed him to act as the commander-in-chief of Daming Town, and to serve as a clerk as a military post in the guard, which was an exception.Yan Dunyuan's top hat has been changed, and he has not yet assumed office. As soon as he received Zhang Yilin's telegram, he immediately went to Beijing. The plan for the large-scale autumn exercise was drawn up on the train.

On this day, Yuan Shikai had moved back to the Beiyang Office. When Yan Dunyuan arrived, he notified Xu Shichang and started talking first.After hearing what he said, Yan Dunyuan immediately started to write, and when Xu Shichang was invited to come, his plan for autumn exercises had already been drafted. "Wei Ting, there is a way to tell you to take a look!" This edict was less than thirty words long: "Take Cen Chunxuan as the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, adjust Zhou Fu as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, and Ding Zhenduo as the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang."

After Yuan Shikai finished reading, he didn't say a word, but said: "Juren, look at Zhongyuan's method." Xu Shichang took a look, and saw that it was written: "The purpose of the inspection will be to make the dispatching and commanding of the officers, and the actions of the sergeants to practice, and experiment one by one, and the results of daily supervision and training, the level of education of each department It must also be brilliantly prepared, and the hall is the most distinct. The countries of the East and the West spare no expense, and those who hold it every year, sincerely believe that one more battle will lead to one more improvement; after one joint exercise, one experience will be added, it’s not a coincidence!"

"Very good!" Xu Shichang nodded deeply, "It's very beautiful." "You read next." Yuan Shikai said: "There are still good articles." Xu Shichang continued to look down: "Last year, the towns of the Kinki Army were recruited, and the Huicao Hejian has already caused a sensation all over the world. Under the No. 1 order, it is especially unprecedented, and it allows the viewing and listening of the four directions." "That's right, that's well said! There is a hint of showing off, and the empress dowager must like it." Xu Shichang put down the outline of the plan, looked at Yan Dunyuan and said, "Listening is worse than seeing! Zhongyuan, I'll listen to you."

"Let's talk about the establishment first. I want to divide the northern and southern armies into confrontation. The northern army mobilized troops from the fifth town of Shandong, the sixth town of Nanyuan, the fourth town of Zhili, and the first town of Jingqi to form a joint formation; The army consisted of the whole army of the Eighth Township in Hubei and the mixed cooperative group in Henan. The total number of people was 34,000." "I think Nanpi must agree." Xu Shichang smiled, "He has long been eager to try. The control of the two armies, the southern army is of course a young man, what about the northern army?"

Yuan Shikai and Yan Dunyuan both laughed.The so-called "Auntie" refers to Zhang Biao, the leader of the New Army in Hubei. His wife is Mrs. Zhang's maid and is regarded as a goddaughter, so Zhang Biao has the nickname "Auntie". "Northern Army Command!" Yuan Shikai inquired, "How about Duan Zhiquan?" "I agree!" Xu Shichang said: "Naturally, Zhongyuan must take care of all the affairs of this parade." "Zhongyuan," Yuan Shikai asked, "what do you mean?" "It's incumbent." "That's good! Let's finalize the case like this. I have talked with Qing Tai Zijiu, and we all agree."

Sure enough, the performance was accurate, and the Empress Dowager Cixi praised it very much.Seeing this situation, those "du lords" consciously gained the upper hand, and with Xu Shichang and Duan Fang's dredging, it was nothing too much. As soon as Yuan Shikai came out of Beijing, the compilation of the new official system went smoothly, and by the end of August, it was roughly a foregone conclusion.Xu Shichang acted in front of Qu Hongji for Yuan Shikai because he hoped to continue his work. At the same time, he persuaded Tie Liang to ask for the award of "Minister of Military Parade" Guan Fang, and called Yuan Shikai to meet him, and told him how to handle the parade seriously, so as to show The imperial court reorganized the army and trained military forces, hoping to regain its glory.Empress Dowager Cixi agreed one by one, so Yuan Shikai re-entered Beijing on the first day of September.

He was summoned on the second day of September to talk about the new official system in addition to the exercises.Yuan Shikai didn't dare to say more, but Yikuang took the opportunity to play: Yuan Shikai is also a minister who was ordered to co-edit, can you let him take a closer look at the draft while he asks for instructions, and if there are any incompleteness, there is still time to correct it . This is not impossible, the Empress Dowager Cixi agreed.Therefore, Yikuang convened a meeting in Langrun Garden with the qualification of "approving the official system by the general director".And Yuan Shikai had sent invitations long ago, and hosted a banquet at the Beiyang Public Office to entertain the colleagues of the Bureau of Abridged Official System, from the prince to the recorder, and invited everyone equally. On such occasions, banquets are held and performances are performed as usual, but the troupe that should be passed on is not Hui troupe or Qin Opera, but a new play by "Chunliu Club", commonly known as "Civilized Drama", and the title of the play is "The Korean Martyrs Across the Sea". . The plot of this play is: North Korea's diehard party scrambles for fame and fortune, making a mess.A martyr spoke to a stubborn minister, thinking that if the law does not change, North Korea is about to perish, and the stubborn minister only cares about vested interests and refuses to reform.A minister intervened during this period. On the one hand, he advised the martyrs not to be reckless, and on the other hand, he advised the ministers, if a strong enemy is in front of us, if we don't change the law, how can we survive?The minister did not listen.Afterwards, Japan marched into the army, and the King of Joseon was forced to abdicate. The martyr gave a tearful speech and jumped into the sea to die. The play is certainly on point.The actors have been instructed and realized the meaning of it, and the performance is meticulous, which is very touching. In civilized dramas, as usual, there is an important role named "Old Scholar of Speech", who plays the role of a martyr who crosses the sea. The speech was impassioned and full of voices. Some people were moved to tears during the meeting, but Yuan Shikai kept smiling all the time. It was revenge. The pleasure dictates.