The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 630: Something Happened at Baoding Military Academy

Yang Shixiang suddenly slapped his forehead and said with some regret.

"Fortunately, thanks to the Marshal for thinking of this!"

Wei Jinghai now realized what Teng Yuzao was worried about. "Marshal, you are worried that once the court approves your resignation as president of the Zhi Army, the Army Department will most likely stop Xia Yuanshou's troops and may even incorporate them into the Shuntian Army!"

"Correct!"

Teng Yuzao nodded and sighed, "I do have this worry. Although the middle and senior officers in that town were all sent by us, they have been away from us for two or three years after all, and are even thousands of miles away from us."

Teng Yuzao took a deep breath and said, "The world is unpredictable, so we'd better be careful!"

"Okay! I'll arrange it right away."

As he spoke, Wei Jinghai quickly walked out the door.

"Commander."

Liu Changfa suddenly said, "Hu Daqiu's military police, Xu Ting's men, the navy's land forces and fleet, and the patrol police should also be prepared to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the opportunity to cause trouble."

Teng Yuzao nodded and said, "Of course we need to prepare the military police and police. I will notify Hu Daqiu, but Xu Ting is not needed for the time being."

Hu Daqiu's gendarmerie and Xu Ting's special assault force only obey Teng Yuzao, and this really requires Teng Yuzao's personal order.

"As for the patrol officers, I'll have to trouble the Lian Mansion to give Cao Jiaxiang a heads-up. I just have to find an appropriate reason."

Although Li Yaoting has placed many people among the patrol police and he can even command the patrol police, the patrol police are nominally under the jurisdiction of the Governor's Office, so this naturally has to be handed over to Yang Shixiang, the Governor of Zhishan.

Yang Shixiang nodded and agreed, "No problem, I will take care of Cao Jiaxiang's matter."

Teng Yuzao said, "Mr. Lian, there is one more thing. Since we have to deal with the Ministry of the Army taking away the command of the Zhi Army and resist the disarmament, I will resign as the president of the Zhi Army and will naturally no longer be responsible for the Zhi Army's military pay."

"They want to demand money, but the Army Department can't afford such a large sum of money. Tieliang won't come to me, but he will definitely come to you for it. You have to deal with this matter as well."

Yang Shixiang smiled and said, "Don't worry, Marshal, there is definitely no silver."

"But what if Tieliang wants to see your accounts?" Teng Yuzhao said with a smile.

"That's easy. I'll tell my subordinates that except for our own people, if anyone else comes to see me, they should say that I'm on a tour of the counties and won't see them."

"Also, I will order that no one can view the accounts of all government offices without my permission, otherwise I will question the relevant personnel."

"Marshal, I have another suggestion." Yang Shixiang said again.

"I suggest that not only should the Marshal resign as the President of the Zhili Army, but the Chief of Staff should also firmly refuse the appointment of the Army Department and even resign from the post of Chief of Staff of the Zhili Army first and announce the dissolution of the General Staff and its subordinate departments."

Wu Peifu nodded and said, "Mr. Lianfu is right. Since the Army Department will directly manage the towns, the General Staff will naturally be disbanded as well, so that we don't make trouble for pay. Tieliang wants Chief of Staff Wei to stop it."

As he was speaking, Wei Jinghai hurried in and said, "Marshal, Zhang Xiyuan and Director Li just sent telegrams from Baoding and Beijing respectively, saying that something has happened at the Baoding Army Officers School!"

"Zhang Xiyuan said that it was very inconvenient for the students to have to wear braids during training. After the training yesterday afternoon, I don't know which student suggested cutting off the braids, and then everyone cut off their braids together. Now, among the first batch of about 1,000 freshmen in the school, only a dozen Manchu students still have braids."

"Then, somehow, the Army Department got wind of the news in the evening. They not only sent a telegram to inquire about the situation, but also demanded that the students who cut their queues be severely punished, and that he, Duan Qirui and other related personnel be held accountable."

"Director Li's telegram said that he had just received news that the Army Department had ordered Wang Yingkai's Sixth Regiment of the Shuntian Army stationed in Zhuozhou to send troops to the Baoding Military Academy to escort Duan Qirui and Zhang Xiyuan to the capital for investigation. They would also hold the relevant instructors accountable and severely punish the students who cut off the debate!"

"Director Li also said that he had learned that Wang Yingkai had sent the Third Brigade Commander Ma Longbiao to Baoding to deal with the matter."

Wei Jinghai's words stunned everyone, including Teng Yuzao.

The reason why Teng Yuzhao was stunned was that he knew that the pigtail controversy did happen in the original history, but it should have happened five or six years later.

Not only has the military academy opened ahead of schedule, he has also personally reviewed the list of students for the first term. The student body has changed a lot. Due to their age, they are very different from the original first-term students, and many of them are not among them.

However, what Teng Yuzhao never expected was that the braid incident still happened!

The inertia of history is so powerful! This made Teng Yuzao secretly surprised!

What surprised and stunned the others was that all the Zhi troops had cut their queues, and that cutting their queues had already existed during the Wuwei Army period, and the imperial court had tacitly approved it.

Although not all new troops except the Zhi Army are required to cut their braids, it is not forbidden to do so. Only officers are required not to cut their braids. There is absolutely no clear requirement that military academy students are not allowed to cut their braids. But why is it so this time!

"Damn it, what is Tieliang doing?"

Liu Shijiu touched the back of his bald head and said in confusion.

Li Xiance said proudly, "Brother Liu, you have always been with the Marshal and you don't know the situation of the new army in other provinces."

"Except for our Zhi army, in other new armies, not only officers were not allowed to cut their queues, but soldiers were also not allowed to cut them. However, the new armies everywhere did not care much about it, and they would punish the soldiers who cut their queues and that was it. So although there were soldiers in other new armies who cut their queues, most of them still had queues. It is said that only Yuan Shikai's former Henan Army was better."

Wu Peifu also said, "Master, these military academy students will be platoon leaders when they graduate. According to the court's rules, a platoon leader in the new army is equivalent to a captain, which is the rank of the seventh rank. Cutting their braids is not allowed according to the requirements."

"But I heard that the instructors from our Zhijun's Beiyang Military Academy and our camp academy, including Zhang Xiyuan, are now wearing false braids."

"What is Duan Qirui's attitude?"

Teng Yuzhao touched the inch-long stubble on his chin and asked with a frown.

Wei Jinghai smiled bitterly and said, "Zhang Xiyuan said that Duan Qirui went to Henan to visit his colleagues in the Wuwei Left Army and said he would be back last night, but when he sent the telegram, he hadn't seen Duan Qirui yet."

Wei Jinghai smiled bitterly and said, "Marshal, there are some inconsistencies in Zhang Xiyuan's telegram. I think he is a little panicked."

(End of this chapter)