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As the night fell, there were no more people walking on the streets of Tianjing City. In 1854, the nightlife in China wasn't abundant. Who would come out to play in the dark?
Besides this very normal factor, the other thing that prevented people from going out was the military control implemented by the Taiping army in the whole city. The patrol team went through every block, fixed post, mobile post, and password. Even those who wanted to bluff their way through couldn't pass through the layers of security measures. Those who were caught violating the curfew had a miserable ending. After this strong control measure was implemented for nearly two years, no one tried to break the curfew again.
Just after the patrol team passed by, in the residential area of the Taiping army soldiers, two nearby doors opened slightly. A black shadow darted out from one of the doors and flashed into the other. Then, the two doors closed silently.
The one who ran out went directly into the inner hall of the other room. The two people waiting inside stood up. The leader asked in a low voice, "Adviser Ye, did anyone see you?"
Adviser Ye answered in a low voice, "Don't worry, the people living here are all brothers of the Taiping army. The patrol team isn't too strict."
In April 1854, Yang Xiuqing finally allowed the Taiping army soldiers to reunite with their wives. The officers and soldiers in the field troops didn't have such treatment. The officers and soldiers in Tianjing City could finally buy houses in Tianjing City and live with their wives and families. The one who ran out without permission was Ye Shan, the former head of the combat training section in Zhang Yingchen's army. The neighbor he went to was the home of Lui Hai, the head of the logistics section in Zhang Yingchen's army. These two were old brothers of the Taiping army. They joined Vézé's army in Hunan. They took their families to join the Taiping army. At this time, they also enjoyed the policy of reuniting with their wives. The one who welcomed Ye Shan with Lui Hai was Vézé's bodyguard, Yang Can.
Lui Hai was taking a big risk. If Yang Can was caught, it would be big trouble. But he couldn't care about that now. Seeing Ye Shan arrive, Lui Hai immediately said, "After the King Of The East seized the military power, he immediately arranged a lot of people into the army. More than half of the original officers were dismissed, and the General Staff Department was immediately disbanded. Now, all the staff officers have been demoted to the position of foot soldiers. "
Lui Hai's anger was not only his, but the anger of all the staff in the army. After two years of operation, the system of the General Staff Headquarters was finally recognized by the troops. A unified system, unified training, and selection criteria. Every soldier knew the system and operation of this army. Of course, any system of operation would bring about all kinds of contradictions, but these contradictions were internal contradictions among the people. When the staff officer system was completely smashed, at least the staff officers were mobilized in an extremely effective manner.
Ye Shan's point of view was the same as Lui Hai's. As the head of the Combat Training Division, Ye Shan could see how backward the traditional Taiping army's training and organizational model was. "Those who were sent here don't know how to fight at all. They think they're masters, and their subordinates are their private subordinates. They don't care about all kinds of training and only gather gangs. As for the soldiers that they don't think are on their side, they find all kinds of excuses to attack them. Normal military training has been completely interrupted for more than a month. If it goes on like this, our army will be finished. "
Listening to the two former staff officers' complaints, Yang Can's heart finally calmed down. Vézé and Zhang Yingchen's troops had been out of contact for more than four months, so Vézé didn't know the real situation in the army. Although the information provided by the two former staff officers contained a lot of personal feelings, what they said also described the general situation in the army.
After complaining for a long time, Ye Shan finally asked, "Brother Yang, what does the Chief of General Staff want us to do?"
Yang Can glanced at the two, then said, "The Chief of General Staff wants you to maintain the brothers in the General Staff Department. No matter how bad they are now, the system of the General Staff Department can't be completely destroyed. As long as we hold on for a few more months, the Chief of General Staff will find a way to reunite us! It won't do if we lose our morale at that time! "
"Can we return to the army?" Ye Shan said excitedly. He didn't expect that Yang Can could bring such good news. As long as the army returned to Vézé's command, the system of the General Staff Department would naturally be rebuilt. At that time, these former staff officers would naturally be reinstated.
Lui Hai's face also lit up, but he was also worried, "But the King Of The East is so strict …"
Yang Can didn't know what would happen in the future, but since Vézé ordered him to bring the message, he naturally had to act according to Vézé's arrangement. Yang Can said confidently, "Since the Chief of General Staff said so, he will definitely bring everyone back. Think about it, the Chief of General Staff is the Prince Of Qi. The King Of The East can't refuse the Chief of General Staff's face. I think the most important thing now is to let our brothers in the General Staff Department have confidence! "
"Don't worry, as long as the Chief of General Staff says so, we brothers won't lose our people in the General Staff Department!" Lui Hai answered firmly.
Ye Shan also had a firm attitude, "That's right, please rest assured. I, Ye Shan, won't let the General Staff Department fall apart no matter what!"
After talking for a while, Ye Shan left Lui Hai's house secretly, sneaking back to his own house. Yang Can stayed in Lui Hai's house.
At dawn the next day, when all the brothers hurried to work, Yang Can left Lui Hai's house and sneaked back to the Prince Of Qi's Mansion.
After contacting the General Staff Department in Zhang Yingchen's army, Vézé was finally relieved. What he was most worried about was that Yang Xiuqing would purge the General Staff Department first. Once the General Staff Department collapsed, the commanders of each army would be isolated and easily disintegrated. However, the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing obviously didn't understand the system of the General Staff Department. He fiercely attacked the commanders according to the traditional method. This could strengthen the power of the disbanded General Staff Department. History proved that the people in the opposition were the most idealistic. Under the pressure of reality, it was easier for the people in the opposition to gather with a certain idea.
This was just one of the efforts made by Vézé. He quickly left the city according to Yang Xiuqing's order, bringing Yang Xiuqing's nephew, Chen Delong, to catch up with the main army outside the city. Vézé didn't leave immediately. He and Chen Delong entangled with the Ministry of War for several days. After solving the army's food problem, they set off for Changzhou.
After introducing Chen Delong, the trusted deputy chief of staff, to the generals of the General Staff Department, they were polite on the surface. Knowing that Chen Delong was here to learn from Vézé and didn't need Vézé to do anything, Wei Changrong immediately suggested that Chen Delong go to the first part of the General Staff Department, the Department of Culture and Education, to study and learn.
Wei Changrong talked eloquently and boasted about the basic learning content of the General Staff Department. Chen Delong had never come into contact with this knowledge and was stunned by Wei Changrong's words. The other generals of the General Staff Department smiled when they heard this.
An expert tricked an outsider. It was always accurate to trick an outsider. Wei Changrong was right. This knowledge was necessary for the members of the General Staff Department. However, there was a completely different relationship between mastering this knowledge and mastering power. He sent Chen Delong to learn and promised that once he mastered it, he would immediately hand over more power to Chen Delong. However, in order to master this knowledge, the generals of the General Staff Department were exhausted to the point of vomiting blood. Relying on Vézé and the Department of Culture and Education's desperate training of integrating theory with practice, it took them more than two years to barely pass. However, Wei Changrong didn't mention practice at all and only asked Chen Delong to learn theory. The generals were quite confident in themselves. Unless everyone made a mistake and Chen Delong was a rare genius, he wouldn't be able to learn anything.
After casually dealing with Chen Delong, the General Staff Department eliminated the interference of outsiders and continued with the meeting. Lei Hu smiled and said, "Looks like the King Of The East is going to extend his hand into our General Staff Department! Prince Qi, what are you thinking? "
"First of all, no one is to leak what I'm going to say next. Got it? "Vézé said.
"Got it!" Looking at Vézé's actions, the generals tensed up. They knew very well that what Vézé was going to say next was definitely something big.
"The King Of The East is going to proclaim himself Long Live!" Vézé threw out the biggest news.
Everyone was stunned. Even the most uneducated commoners knew that "Long Live" represented the Emperor. The generals of the General Staff Department knew even more clearly what it meant to proclaim himself Long Live. The King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, was now 9,000 years old. The Heavenly King, Hong Xiuquan, was Long Live. Vézé had criticized the Heavenly King, Hong Xiuquan's incompetence more than once in the military. With sufficient mental preparation, there was no need to discuss what the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, meant to proclaim himself Long Live.
Vézé's gaze swept across everyone's faces. Wei Changrong's thick eyebrows were tightly knitted and he seemed to be deep in thought. Hu Chenghe, on the other hand, had a mocking expression on his chubby face. Ke Gongyu and Ruan Xihao's youthful faces were filled with confusion. Lin Asheng's skinny face was completely shocked. The other generals were only surprised, but they weren't too affected.
Vézé continued, "I don't need to say anything more about whether something will happen to the King Of The East if he does this. At this time, us brothers must be closely united. As long as our hearts are in the same place, we won't have to worry about any mishaps happening to us. "
These words hinted at all kinds of hidden possibilities in the future, but they didn't surprise the generals. It was normal for something like proclaiming himself Long Live to happen. It would be abnormal if nothing happened. Wei Changrong raised his thick eyebrows and said loudly, "Chief of General Staff, is the King Of The East going to the end?"
"No matter what, he has to proclaim himself Long Live!" Vézé answered.
"Then we have no other choice. Naturally, we will follow the Chief of General Staff!" Wei Changrong immediately expressed his stance.
Hu Chenghe wasn't so forceful. Although he knew that Wei Changrong suddenly addressed Vézé as the Chief of General Staff, it was a clear sign of strengthening this small group, but he didn't expose it. Hu Chenghe looked left and right first, then said, "Chief of General Staff, once this matter succeeds, it will be a huge matter. We have to come up with a plan now, right? "
"There are many plans to come up with, but the most important one is that the system of the General Staff must not be affected!" Vézé had already confirmed his thoughts long ago. Now that the people attending the meeting were basically the subordinates Vézé trusted, he didn't want to hide anything anymore.
Standing up, Vézé looked down at the group of brothers. After looking around, Vézé saw that everyone's gaze was on him, then said loudly, "Brothers, the reason why you are sitting together with me today is because everyone is rebelling. Brothers, you have all said that you believe the Lesser Heavens can be built. Then I want to ask you brothers, what do you think is good about the Lesser Heavens? I think that if the Lesser Heavens can really be built, it's because in the Lesser Heavens, no one can bully others! I think that the reason why the Zhu brothers are rebelling is because we have been bullied for too long, and we have had enough! We will never be bullied again! "
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