Republic of China, 1922: Rise from the Post-Zhili-Fengtian War

"Look at this, the order to reorganize the troops has been issued, but they still don't look like soldiers at all!"

The speaker was Yang Song, the bodyguard assigned to him by Feng Delin.

The man was tall and strong, an accurate marksman, and also had excellent martial arts skills.

It is said that before he joined the army, he was a Taoist priest in Laoshan.

When he went down the mountain to buy things, he saw foreigners bullying the people, so he beat the foreigner to death with a few punches and kicks.

Then he followed the group that ventured to Northeast China to western Liaoning. Just then, the 27th Division was recruiting soldiers. Feng Delin saw that he was exceptionally skilled and had an upright character, so he took him in as his personal bodyguard.

After Feng stepped down, he stayed at home; when he heard that his old superior was looking for a bodyguard for his nephew, he came to report for duty without saying a word.

Such a burly man naturally had a loud voice, and the soldiers by the campfire immediately stopped chatting and turned their heads to look at him.

"What are you doing? What are you yelling about!"

At the shout of the platoon leader, several drunken soldiers staggered to their feet. Some grabbed rifles haphazardly and slung them over their shoulders, while others swayed precariously, clutching knife handles, all the while cursing under their breath.

These soldiers may look brash, but anyone with a discerning eye can see that their steps are unsteady, and they are all show and no substance. They can't even perform the most basic defensive posture correctly.

Gu Cheng reined in his horse and sneered.

He had long anticipated the incompetence of the Jinzhou garrison, but he hadn't expected even the strategically vital checkpoints to be in such a state—

The air was thick with the smell of alcohol, weapons were scattered about... there was absolutely no military discipline whatsoever;

With their current state of affairs, let alone guarding against the Zhili army's spying, they could even give the local bandits with a bit of influence a run for their money.

Yang Song noticed the anger in his master's eyes, immediately spurred his horse forward, and looked down at the platoon leader: "By order of the Commander's Office, Gu Jingchuan, Chief of Staff of the 11th Mixed Brigade, is to go to Jinzhou to take over the defense. Open the checkpoint immediately and let him through!"

Upon hearing Gu Cheng's name, the platoon leader was taken aback and immediately turned his gaze, his expression full of surprise:

He was at most in his early twenties; his fair-skinned and composed appearance made him look less like a soldier and more like a refined high school teacher.

But a message did come from above, saying that the commander-in-chief had given the order:

The government dispatched a high-ranking official who had studied abroad to Jinzhou to act as the head of the delegation.

The platoon leader, recalling the order to "strengthen the army and improve military skills," began to have doubts.

Tang Yulin's 11th Mixed Brigade hadn't arrived yet, but Commander Gu had already arrived... The brothers wanted to have some fun before anyone from above came, but they were caught red-handed.

He suppressed his panic and drunkenness, and gave Gu Cheng an awkward military salute: "Sir, it's not that I'm being paranoid, but you have to show me the transfer order before you can let us go, otherwise... otherwise, we won't be able to explain it to our superiors."

Gu Cheng's expression remained unchanged; he merely raised his chin slightly and looked at Gao Tianqi beside him.

Gao Tianqi immediately understood, dismounted, took out a neatly folded transfer order from his briefcase, walked quickly to the platoon leader, and slowly unfolded it.

The transfer order bore the official seal of Zhang Zuolin's Marshal's Mansion, with neat handwriting clearly stating, "The original commander of the Jinzhou garrison, Mu Haisheng, is hereby dismissed. Gu Cheng is appointed as the Chief of Staff of the 11th Mixed Brigade and the Acting Commander of the Jinzhou Garrison, to take full control of Jinzhou's defenses and to rectify military discipline."

The platoon leader rubbed his drunken eyes, leaned closer to take another careful look, and was immediately terrified, turning pale. He was now completely sober, and his legs involuntarily cramped.

He hurriedly put away the transfer order and handed it to Gao Tianqi with both hands. He then bowed repeatedly to Gu Cheng, apologizing, "Your subordinates were truly blind, unaware of Commander Gu's arrival... Please don't hold it against us!"

As he spoke, he sternly rebuked the brothers who were still standing there in a daze, "What are you all standing there for... line up immediately and welcome Commander Gu!"

Hearing this, everyone was startled and stood in a disheveled line, but still looked crooked and disorganized.

The platoon leader gritted his teeth, glaring at the group of good-for-nothings, and could only force a smile at Gu Cheng: "Regimental Commander, I'll send someone to inform the old regimental commander immediately, so he can come and fetch you into the city in person!"

Gu Cheng interrupted him: "Don't make a sound."

The sentry post is in such a state; he'd like to see the real situation in Jinzhou... If he sent someone to inform them in advance, who knows what kind of show that guy would put on for him.

The platoon leader was taken aback, but then realized that the new regimental commander was going to conduct a surprise inspection!

Fearing something might go wrong with his old superior and he would be implicated, he quickly nodded, "Yes, yes, yes... Your subordinate will lead the way!"

Gu Cheng refused again: "You have defense duties to perform, why are you abandoning your post? Besides, I have seen everything about you and your brothers—"

"Considering that the order to reorganize the troops has not yet been communicated throughout Jinzhou, I will spare you for now. However, if I see or hear you drinking and making merry while on duty again, you will be dealt with according to military law without any leniency!"

After saying this, Gu Cheng stopped looking at the pale-faced platoon leader, turned his horse around, and led his men straight towards the gate of Jinzhou.

As soon as you enter the city gate, a smell mixed with dust, smoke, and a faint musty odor hits you.

Gu Cheng's gaze slowly swept over them, his brows furrowing imperceptibly:

Before he came, he had thought that the situation in Jinzhou must not be optimistic—Jinzhou, as a strategic location, was a gathering place before the war.

When the Fengtian Army retreated to Shanhaiguan, several battles broke out along the Luanzhou-Jinzhou line due to the pursuit of the Zhili Army. Even today, a neutral zone between Zhili and Fengtian remains between Luanzhou and Jinzhou, and the atmosphere is still tense.

However, once he arrived at the scene, he realized just how devastating the war had been to the city.

The city wall collapsed in many places, and the road surface was severely damaged with potholes.

Many houses were damaged, and tattered clothes and belongings left behind by fleeing civilians were everywhere, even affecting the passage of their small group of troops.

There weren't many people on the street. Occasionally, a few people who hadn't managed to escape would pass by, and they all looked to be in tattered clothes.

These people noticed Gu Cheng's group from afar and hurriedly darted into the surrounding alleys, fearing they would be conscripted.

Looking at the city in ruins, the group remained silent. As they neared the Jinzhou regimental headquarters, Zhang Tingshu, walking beside Gu Cheng, whispered, "We've been in the city for so long, why haven't we seen a single patrol?"

Gu Cheng did not answer.

In fact, he noticed this earlier than Zhang Tingshu:

Unlike the relatively peaceful Fengtian City, Jinzhou was the front line of defense against the Zhili Army, and it was also frequented by several bandit groups. Logically, its defenses should have been strengthened.

However, the defenses inside and outside the city were extremely lax, and it did not resemble a major military town at all.

Gao Tianqi interjected, "Regardless, let's talk about it once we're in the regimental headquarters. We..."

But before he could finish speaking, he let out a puzzled "Eh," and the others couldn't help but follow his gaze—

A man in his early forties, leading three or four soldiers, came running from the side of the regimental headquarters' courtyard wall.

The man was covered in sweat, which mixed with the yellow dust on his body, making his face somewhat blurry.

His old military uniform was wrinkled beyond recognition, and it was clear that he had just been working. He only tidied himself up when he noticed the new regimental commander approaching, and then hurriedly ran up to greet him.

"Commander Gu! This humble servant is Mu Haisheng. I was unaware of your arrival at this hour. Please forgive my failure to greet you properly!"