December 5th.
Andre brought a new batch of German equipment back to Chongqing. The equipment was quickly transported to Dazhou and armed the 1st regiment.
In addition, the machine guns and mortars of Zhao Youguang's 12th Brigade had also been strengthened, and the equipment of the 3rd Battalion of the 3rd Regiment had also been replenished.
The 20 fighter planes of the Air Force were also transported back. Previously, the Air Force had used the propeller aircraft provided by Britain for training.
In this era, airplanes were very simple. Their armor was extremely weak, and they were propeller type. They could fly at an altitude of several kilometers and were very inflexible. There were many problems.
Cai Hu only ordered 20 planes because of the data of the new fighter planes developed by Krupp.
In this era, the control of a fighter jet was very simple, but it required brave and meticulous soldiers to learn, and it was best if they were scholars.
Due to the many problems, Cai Hu gave each soldier a monthly salary of 60 yuan and a set of five packs of soap every month.
Now, the soaps from Chongqing were synonymous with money. They were very popular in the market and became a hard currency like currency. They were even more powerful than Beiyang's paper money. This was equivalent to a monthly salary of 160 yuan.
This monthly salary was equivalent to the monthly salary of Cai Hu's deputy regiment commander. Even the county head's monthly salary could not reach this level.
With a high monthly salary, this group of air force soldiers had no worries. After all, Cai Hu had promised them that once they sacrificed their lives for the country, they would be given 1000 yuan as a family allowance. Their families would be protected by the government and given the title of "Martyr." Their children would be able to enter public school for free.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The war machine of the entire new brigade was activated. Now, the monthly salary of each soldier of the new brigade had been raised to 5 yuan. With the continuous training and the increasingly rich food and nutrition supply, everyone was in high spirits.
Shooting, bayonet, cross-country marching, they were all very strong.
What Beiyang Army? The new brigade was very confident that even if they encountered the Japanese, they could defeat them with the same number of troops.
…
A month later.
On January 6th, which was just after New Year's Day, a piece of shocking news swept across China.
Zhang Xun brought 3000 plaited soldiers and rode the train north to the capital. He chased Duan Qirui away and forced Li Yuanhong to resign.
On the same day, the last emperor of the Manchu Dynasty ascended the throne again. The dragon flag was hung high in the capital, and the Manchu ministers wore official robes to attend court.
In history, Zhang Xun had been restored in the middle of the year. The reason why it had been delayed for so long was probably because Cai E had tried to mediate between Li Yuanhong and Duan Qirui. However, Zhang Xun still seized the opportunity and successfully restored himself.
Emperor Xuantong gave a series of orders.
One of them was the appointment of Cai Hu.
"Appoint Cai Hu as the governor of Sichuan. He will control all the troops in Sichuan and be conferred the title of first-class marquis!”
When Cai Hu saw the telegram, he wanted to laugh even as he sat on the sofa. The governor of Sichuan sounded quite tempting. He was in charge of the military and political affairs of a province and had a lot of power.
However, with Cai Hu's current strength, he didn't need him to make an empty promise. If he could do it alone, why would he be someone else's dog?
Moreover, even if he wanted to find a leader, he should find a powerful big shot to protect him first. However, Cai Hu would never allow himself and his subordinates to keep a pig's tail, provide for them, and choose women for them.
Cai E also received the appointment of Emperor Xuan Tong of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, appointing Cai E as the Governor of Sichuan and Yunnan.
Cai E immediately rejected the appointment. Soon, Sun Dapao issued a statement to defend the constitution and called on the provincial governors and those with strength to go north to fight against the rebels.
Cai E and the other provincial overseers immediately responded, but each of them had their own thoughts and their progress was very slow.
As for Cai Hu, after receiving the news of Sun Dapao's speech, he ordered the 1st Regiment to take the military card and quickly attack Yibin.
At the same time, he ordered the chariot battalion, the air force brigade, and the Jianghe Fleet to prepare for the first level of battle.
The Jianghe Squadron had already gathered all the warships and gunboats, carrying 20 small advanced steam turbine-powered troop-carrying ships, waiting for the 1st Regiment to arrive at Yibin.
Cai Hu immediately sent a message to the entire country and expressed his opinion.
"In modern times, the five Tartars of the Qing Dynasty, the Opium War, the Jiawu War, and the invasion of the Eight-Nation Alliance have dragged the calamity-ridden Huaxia into a sea of misery time and time again. I, Cai Hu, will lead the righteous guardians to the north and pull out this malignant tumor!”
"This time, I, Cai Hu, will put the interests of the nation first. I will get rid of the fake emperor and return China a great land!”
" What first rank marquis? What Sichuan governor? He's just a bait. The Chinese dragon is going to awaken, and the Han Dynasty is going to revive. We will do it at this moment. In order to return the world to peace, I, Cai Hu, and my subordinates will not hesitate to sacrifice their lives…"
Cai Hu spoke thousands of words on the phone, and he spoke to his heart's content. In an instant, all the newspapers in Nanjing, Shanghai, Northeast, Taiyuan, Guangzhou, and Chengdu published Cai Hu's speech on the front page. There was also a big photo on it, which was Cai Hu's handsome photo in military uniform.
The reporters in Chengdu even took photos of the 1st Regiment's cross-country force, as well as photos of the warships at Yibin Port.
"Good job, the Southwest Young Marshal is awesome. I want to join the army in the Southwest!”
"Yes, the Manchu Tartars have been harming us for so long.”
"Young Marshal is so handsome, and his words are so stylish!”
…
On the streets, some young men and beautiful women were furious when they saw the news and photos in the newspapers.
When the big shots of the provincial overseers saw this newspaper, they did not believe in Cai Hu's strength. After all, it was not that easy to go north.
Zhang Xun had deceived Li Yuanhong and Duan Qirui. He had relied on the orders of the central government to travel unimpeded. Now that Cai Hu wanted to go north, he had to cross the defense zones of countless warlords. Would these warlords let Cai Hu pass so easily?
The provincial overseers were not optimistic about Cai Hu's actions. They felt that Cai Hu was still young and impetuous, and was a little unafraid of tigers.
…
The Yangtze River.
Cai Hu had already boarded the light cruiser " Southwest Tiger ". This time, the Jianghe Fleet was fully deployed, escorting 20 advanced steam turbine-powered troop-carrying ships and a reinforced regiment to the east, followed by two cargo ships.
The two ships carried 100 tons of rice, 5000 boxes of canned beef, various vegetables, fruits, life-saving medicine, ammunition, fuel, and 300 military cards.
There were more than 5000 people in the first regiment. If one person ate one kilogram of rice a day, that would be 5000 kilograms a day, which would be 150 tons a month.
Cai Hu estimated that this battle would be completed in less than a month.
This batch of rice was a gift from the Japanese. Why not eat the Japanese's rice and do something to earn reputation?
Moreover, Cai Hu's primary target was Zhang Xun's base camp, which was the northern part of Jiangsu Province, a large piece of territory centered around Xuzhou.
The industrial and economic development of this territory was not bad. It was also an important rice-producing area. It was rich in various resources and had a large population. It could be used as a bridgehead for Cai Hu in East China. It could threaten Shanghai and Nanjing in the south and Beiping in the north. It was a good territory.
Along the Yangtze River, Cai Hu encountered many warships and gunboats, most of which were Westerners. They were already familiar with the existence of the Jianghe Fleet in the Yangtze River, so they were much more restrained. Even the officers and soldiers on the British warships saluted Cai Hu.
As for the Japanese warships and gunboats, they had their tails between their legs. When they saw the military flag hanging on Cai Hu's warship and the mark of the Southwest Tiger on it, they quickly left dejectedly.
At this time, the navy of Beiyang was weak. After inheriting the broken ships of Beiyang, the national treasury could not be compared to the Manchu Dynasty. The poor relied on loans to survive. Those broken ships also stayed in Bohai Bay. For example, in the Yangtze River, there were at most a few backward mini armed merchant ships. The largest was only a few hundred tons. Their armor defense and firepower were not good.
When they passed by Hunan and Hubei, the armed merchant ships of the local warlords saw the two huge cargo ships and the advanced troop-carrying ships. They were all envious. If it were not for the Jianghe Fleet, they would have rushed over to take a bite.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。