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

Gu Cheng sighed and said, "Who would have thought that Yang Yuting would dare to intercept and embezzle military funds from various places, causing unnecessary rifts between our colleagues on the front lines and damaging our friendship for no reason."

"Now that all these things have come together, I finally understand everything." Sun Liechen was full of malice. "First, he withheld the food, pay, and equipment funds for my Shanhaiguan garrison, forcing me to borrow equipment in secret to make ends meet. Now he has taken away the special funds for the construction of the Jinzhou camp. This kind of relentless pressure has made him lose all sense of propriety as a colleague."

As he spoke, his eyes became even more determined, without the slightest hesitation. "In the past, I always gave in, thinking that we were both serving the Fengtian Army, and I should leave room for maneuver in everything. But he just kept pushing his luck and never knew how to restrain himself."

Since that's the case, I no longer need to consider past relationships. I'll rush back to Fengtian today and make sure all these long-standing issues are clearly explained to the Commander-in-Chief!

As he spoke, he said he would go back to the brigade headquarters with Gu Cheng to carefully check the allocation documents, the bank redemption vouchers, and the details of the losses caused by the camp's shutdown, etc. He wanted to take these evidence to see the commander-in-chief so that no matter how clever Yang Yuting was, he would have no way to deny it.

As soon as Gu Cheng and his group stepped out of the work shed, they saw dust billowing in the distance as a large procession of carriages and horses approached.

At the front was the Wang family's car, followed closely by several trucks loaded with supplies. The names of various merchants were affixed to the truck beds, and a dozen servants were holding the sides of the trucks, carefully protecting the goods on board. These were the belongings of several well-known grain merchants, medicine merchants, and carpenters in Jinzhou City.

Seeing Wang Yuyou and Jiang Yingrong step out of the car, a smile immediately appeared on his face: "Miss Wang, Sister Rong, what brings you here?"

Wang Yuyou was dressed in a plain cheongsam, followed by two maids carrying food boxes. She had gentle eyes and stopped when she saw Gu Cheng and the others come out. She quietly instructed the servants to steady the carriage.

Jiang Yingrong was still dressed in a Western-style dress and was talking to the grain merchants beside her when she turned her head and caught sight of Gu Cheng and Zhang Tingshu. She immediately waved cheerfully and strode forward, with the merchants behind her following closely behind.

Sun Liechen glanced at the scene, then gave Gu Cheng a half-smile. He grabbed Zhang Tingshu, who was about to step forward, and whispered mischievously, "Come on, come on, you have no sense at all! These young ladies are bringing supplies with the merchants. Let's not get in the way. Let's go back to the brigade headquarters with Sixth Master to check the receipts and make room for them."

Zhang Tingshu instantly understood and nodded with a smile, replying, "Yes, I'll listen to Sixth Master! Jingchuan, let's go back and organize the documents first. You take good care of the merchants and the two young ladies, don't neglect them."

After saying that, he winked at Gu Cheng and quickly got into the car with Sun Liechen.

Before leaving, Sun Liechen rolled down the car window and shouted, "Jingchuan, they've put in a lot of effort, so you should take them to see the construction site properly and not let them down!"

The car sped away, kicking up dust. Gu Cheng shook his head helplessly, strode forward, and cupped his hands in greeting to Wang Yuyou, Jiang Yingrong, and the group of merchants, saying with a smile, "I'm sorry to have troubled you all to make this special trip. The camp has just started construction, and there are many things to do. I'm sorry to have troubled you all."

"Commander Gu, you're too kind!" The leading grain merchant quickly returned the gesture with a cupped hand. "You're building this camp to protect Jinzhou and our people. It's only right that we do what we can. We heard there was a food shortage at the construction site, so a few of us chipped in to express our gratitude."

Wang Yuyou stepped forward and added softly, "Commander Gu, today is the first day of work at the camp. We'll be working under the sun every day from now on, which must be very hard. So, Sister Rong and I contacted a few familiar merchants in the city. They were all very helpful... and prepared some dry food, soups to cool us down, and some medicines for daily use, hoping to be of some assistance."

As she spoke, she gestured for the servants to lift the tarpaulin of the carriage—the carriage was piled with various foods, cloth, two boxes of medicine, and even some fresh fruits and pork.

Gu Cheng felt a warmth in his heart, filled with gratitude: "Thank you all for your kindness. With your support, the construction of the camp will surely be much more efficient. How about this, I'll take you all to the construction site so you can see that your supplies have been used effectively."

Everyone readily agreed, and Gu Cheng led them slowly along the construction site.

As he walked, he pointed to the construction area in front of him and patiently explained: "This is the barracks area. It is constructed with rammed earth and blue bricks, which can withstand the impact of artillery shells. Heating sheds and medical sheds will be built later."

That's the foundation for the armory. It was deliberately chosen to be on higher ground to prevent rainwater from soaking it. Once completed, it will store military equipment and supplies, protecting Jinzhou's defenses.

When the craftsmen and soldiers along the way saw Gu Cheng leading the group over, they all stopped what they were doing and bowed respectfully.

Seeing this, Wang Yuyou whispered a few instructions to the maids beside her. The maids then carried food boxes and distributed mung bean soup and dry rations to the craftsmen and soldiers. Wang Yuyou also personally picked up a bowl of mung bean soup and handed it to an old craftsman who was covered in sweat, saying gently, "Grandpa, you've worked hard. Please have some soup to cool off."

The old craftsman quickly accepted the gift with both hands, repeatedly expressing his gratitude: "Thank you so much, young lady! Thank you so much, Commander Gu! With your concern, all our hard work and toil are worthwhile!"

Jiang Yingrong walked to a foundation, squatted down, touched the compacted soil with her hand, and turned to ask Gu Cheng, "Jingchuan, is this foundation solid? There's been a lot of rain lately, we hope it doesn't get washed away and delay the construction."

Seeing her serious expression, Gu Cheng smiled and said, "Don't worry, we've added sandbags to reinforce it and dug drainage ditches. Even in a heavy rain, the foundation will remain stable. Moreover, the soldiers are doing on-the-job training, familiarizing themselves with the camp layout while building. Once the camp is completed, they'll be able to adapt to defense much faster."

Looking at the bustling scene before them and listening to Gu Cheng's introduction, the merchants nodded in approval.

The grain merchant smiled and said, "Commander Gu has considered everything very thoroughly. With you here, we are relieved! If we still lack grain later, we will definitely do our best to procure it."

"Yes, yes, we will do our best to support the construction of the camp!"

Other merchants echoed this sentiment.

Gu Cheng loudly expressed his gratitude: "Thank you all for your kindness. It is a blessing for the people of Jinzhou to have such enthusiastic merchants as you, and it is also an honor for me, Gu Cheng."

He turned to look at Wang Yuyou and Jiang Yingrong beside him, his eyes full of warmth, "I must thank you both even more. If it weren't for you taking the lead, so many merchants wouldn't have been willing to lend a helping hand."

Wang Yuyou's cheeks flushed slightly, and she smiled faintly: "We didn't do anything special, we just wanted to help you and Jinzhou. You work so hard every day, you should also take care to rest more and not ruin your health."

Jiang Yingrong patted his arm: "That's right, you're the backbone of the camp. If you fall, who will take charge? By the way, Jingchuan, may I have a word with you in private?"