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

"You think I'm being too serious?"

Gu Cheng's gaze turned cold as he stared intently at Tang Yulin, refusing to yield an inch. "Military discipline is the foundation of an army, and the hearts of the people are the basis for defending a city! Your soldiers have violated military regulations by forcibly abducting women in broad daylight and disturbing the peace!"

As the garrison commander of Jinzhou, it is my duty to safeguard the peace of this region; moreover, as a staff officer dispatched by the Army Reorganization Department to the 11th Mixed Brigade, it is my responsibility to supervise military discipline and maintain order! Now that such a major incident has occurred in Jinzhou…”

At this point, he took a step closer to Tang Yulin, "What, are you planning to make me pretend to be deaf and dumb with you, and just give you the runaround?"

Enraged that a young man had publicly contradicted him, Tang Yulin immediately lunged at the man, his eyes blazing with fury, displaying the ferocity of his "two tigers."

"Gu Jingchuan! What do you mean by that? Do you dare to interfere with me? How I deal with my soldiers is none of your business, not a junior's!"

Well, it seems you old codger are really planning to go against me?

Gu Cheng slightly raised his chin, his tone growing colder: "You should know very well what I mean... I addressed you respectfully as 'Fourth Uncle' only out of respect for my family elders. You don't really think I, Gu Jingchuan, am afraid?"

Tang Yulin grew increasingly furious, but Gu Cheng gave him no chance to speak, continuing coldly, "These bad apples have already blown things up. All the people of Jinzhou are watching this. If you insist on avoiding the issue and hastily closing the case in private, what will the people think?"

Yes, as you just said, you don't care about the common people. What about the commander-in-chief?

At this point, his eyes grew even more fierce, staring intently at the other man without flinching. "The Commander-in-Chief just transferred you to Jinzhou to assist in the defense, and now he's already neglecting military discipline, even inciting public resentment. What about the face you've painstakingly maintained in front of the Commander-in-Chief?!"

Every sentence hits the nail on the head, every word reveals the key to victory or defeat.

Tang Yulin was so choked by his words that his chest heaved violently, and he trembled with anger.

He originally intended to rely on his seniority and use his position as brigade commander to suppress the matter, but he did not expect that Gu Cheng, who seemed to be smooth and easy to talk to, would show no mercy once military discipline and the people's hearts were touched. He directly confronted him to the end and even brought out the marshal, leaving him in a dilemma.

"You bastard, how dare you talk to me like that!"

Tang Yulin could no longer contain his anger; the violent nature inherent in him, that of a bandit, immediately surfaced.

You should know that he has always been known for his fierceness, and no one has ever dared to show him such ruthlessness.

The last one was only offended by some trivial matter, so he sent his men to cripple his hands and feet and throw him into the wilderness to be fed to wild dogs.

In a fit of rage, he slammed his hand down on his waist, looking as if he were about to kill someone at the slightest provocation.

Just as his fingertips gripped the pistol, a dark figure silently circled around behind him.

A sturdy gun barrel pressed precisely against his back, the biting cold seeping into his bones through his clothes.

Yang Song's face was as cold and hard as iron, and his whole body was filled with a fierce and fearless aura. His voice was deep: "Brigade Commander Tang, I am just a rough soldier. I don't know anything about elders or juniors, and I don't know anything about Fourth Uncle or Brigade Commander."

But if any bastard dares to lay a finger on our commander, I'll immediately pierce his body with a bloody hole, without hesitation!

The scene instantly fell into an absolute silence.

Tang Yulin felt a chill run down his spine. He glanced at the latter out of the corner of his eye and knew clearly that this burly man was not joking.

But he never dreamed that Gu Cheng's bodyguards would be so bold as to directly threaten the warlord's sworn brother with a gun. This was simply breaking a huge rule!

Tang Yulin gritted his teeth: "You bastard, I don't believe you'd actually dare to lay a hand on me!"

Sensing that he sounded a bit unsure of himself, Gu Cheng slowly said, "Fourth Uncle, as you know... my 105th Regiment just withdrew from the Shanhaiguan battlefield. Not only are the personnel lacking, but the equipment is also subpar."

A strange look flashed in Tang Yulin's eyes, completely unaware of what Gu Cheng meant by suddenly saying that.

But what happened next was something he would never forget.

The young regimental commander in front of him first gave his bodyguard a look, then leaned close to Tang Yulin's ear and said, "I don't dare to order the shooting of Fourth Uncle, but our regiment is poorly equipped, and only God knows if it might accidentally discharge—"

Seeing the other person's face twitch, his voice grew even colder, "Bullets don't have eyes. If a bullet were to accidentally discharge and injure you... then I'm sorry."

During the later Rehe Anti-Japanese War, the old man didn't fire a single shot at the Japanese devils. Instead, he packed up all his wives, children, and property and fled from Chengde all the way to Beijing.

Gu Cheng never thought highly of this blustering but cowardly good-for-nothing, and even considered swallowing up his 11th Mixed Brigade.

Although this kind of thinking can't be rushed and needs to be planned slowly... this old man dared to act arrogantly in front of me, so naturally I had to teach him a lesson.

At this moment, Tang Yulin's hair stood on end.

He had roamed the borderlands for half his life, acting arrogantly and violently... Even when suppressing his colleagues, he always had the upper hand. How could he have been so easily controlled by a junior, who actually threatened his life to force him to bow down?

He clenched his teeth so tightly that his cheeks were stiff and his eyes were filled with a fierce light, but he dared not make the slightest move.

"Jingchuan, these are all family, why do you have to make things so tense?"

Tang Yulin's tone softened quickly, and his previous arrogance vanished. "I am, after all, the brigade commander of the 11th Mixed Brigade, and a respected figure in the army. If I were to follow you to the gate and apologize to a crowd of people in front of me, and make a fool of myself in public, where would I put my face?"

How am I supposed to manage my subordinates in the Liaoxi army from now on? Shouldn't we discuss this?

He had completely given in, no longer using his elders or official position to pressure others, and only wanted Gu Cheng to leave him some dignity.

Gu Cheng took in the changes in his expression and knew that it was not advisable to push things to the brink.

Tang Yulin was, after all, Zhang Zuolin's sworn brother and a veteran of the Fengtian Army. If he were to be forced to lose face in public, it would only make him a target of criticism in the Fengtian court for being mean and bullying his elders.

He slowly concealed the sharp edge in his eyes, his tone softening slightly: "Very well. Considering the past relationship between the Commander-in-Chief and my uncle's friendship with you, I will not force you to stand up in public and suffer injustice."

Tang Yulin's eyes lit up, and he quickly looked at Gu Cheng.

"I will personally mediate and appease the grievances of the people. There is no need for you to show your face and preserve your dignity as brigade commander."

Gu Cheng's tone suddenly turned serious. "But I have one condition: you must not protect these troublemaking soldiers. Those who commit the crimes of abducting women and disturbing the peace must be dealt with according to military law. Those who deserve to be punished with military rods will not be let off lightly, and those who deserve to be detained will not be tolerated."