Master Yuan, start!

Seeing Song Qing's attire, the two were shocked.

"Brother Song, Dexing'a has already escaped." Jiang Guiti knew that time was urgent, so he made a long story short: "Shanhai Pass can no longer be defended, let's get out of the city quickly!"

"Sir Song, what are you planning?" Liu Shengxiu said, his forehead sweating as he held his sword in his hand. "Are you planning to surrender to the thief Yuan?"

"It's come to this point, there's no point in saying more."

Song Qing didn't want to explain more, or perhaps he had already made up his mind when he saw Yuan Xiangcheng angrily scolding Yi Lin in the stone pass that day.

The bomb that Yi Lianmu Yao Huaiyou dropped; De Xing'a's escape; the shock of the Shanhaiguan city wall being blown up to the sky, every event hit Song Qing's chest like a sledgehammer.

Seeing Song Qing's confused expression and dull eyes, Liu Shengxiu stopped trying to dissuade him and took a half step forward, saying, "Since that's the case, may I borrow Lord Song's token?"

After saying that, without waiting for Song Qing to speak, he reached out and pulled off the troop mobilization token from Song Qing's waist.

9 Immediately, Liu Shengxiu bowed and left, while Jiang Guiti remained beside Song Qing.

Liu Shengxiu was from Hefei and had been drawn from the Huai Army. Naturally, he was unwilling to surrender to Yuan Shikai. "Old Marshal" Li Hongzhang had established a stronghold in Guangdong and Guangxi, so returning would be better than being captured.

Song Qing was different. He came from the suppression of the Taiping Rebellion and fought under the Hunan Army, Senggelinqin and Zuo Zongtang. He was transferred to Lushun by Li Hongzhang during the Guangxu period.

He was not from Anhui, nor was he a direct descendant of Li Hongzhang. Even if he went south, he would not be able to find his place in the Huai Army.

If we take age into account, Song Qing is three years older than Li Hongzhang. How could he be a military leader under his command?

As for Jiang Guiti, he was from Song Qing's "Yi Army" and could only choose to advance and retreat with Song Qing.

3 In early spring, Song Qing walked down the city wall with his chest and breasts bare in the zero-degree temperature.

The defenders, who had no intention of resisting, gave up the last bit of perseverance in their hearts after seeing this scene, threw away their weapons, knelt down and raised their hands in surrender.

"Commander Song has surrendered!"

"Kneel down and surrender your weapons and you won't be killed!"

"Jiashen people don't fight Jiashen people!"

The Wehrmacht soldiers quickly spread throughout the city, shouting out the news with all their might.

The city was filled with noise and the roars of tens of thousands of people quickly spread throughout the city, reaching the ears of the hot air balloon troops in the sky, the cabins of the South China Sea Fleet on the coast, and the National Defense Army camp outside the city.

The news of Dexing'a's death was finally reported. As the person in charge of defending the city, his death forced the last few thousand bannermen who resisted stubbornly to lay down their weapons and were placed under strict surveillance.

However, Liu Shengxiu left early. He took Song Qing's token, gathered thousands of people in the city, and quickly opened the rear gate and headed south.

"Sir Song." Yuan Xiangcheng helped Song Qing up from his kneeling position. "I didn't expect to see you in such a state after not seeing you for a few days."

"A scholar should be looked at with new eyes after three days of absence," Song Qing said bitterly. "Moreover, Wei Ting is far from an ordinary man. Whether it's the Kongming lanterns carrying people into the sky or the Hunan Army's traditional method of blowing up the city, it's enough to show that Wei Ting is a master of military tactics."

Song Qing's words of praise did not excite Yuan Xiangcheng, because defeating an old and corrupt Song Qing was far from worth his excitement.

If Song Qing had known how to command the army, he would not be the commander of a town and a mere nominal admiral at the age of 70.

You should know that Zuo Zongtang, who also fought in the suppression of the Taiping Rebellion and the suppression of the rebels, was appointed Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu at the age of 60, and at Song Qing's current age, he was even the Minister of Military Affairs.

Because Li Hongzhang was a Jinshi, he was promoted faster and became the Governor of Huguang when he was less than 50 years old.

In the original time and space, when Song Qing was blocking the Japanese army in Liaodong, it was similar to defending Shanhaiguan today. He did not send troops to cut off the enemy's retreat, did not build strongholds in advance, did not send scouts, and just sat there with tens of thousands of troops waiting for the Japanese army to attack.

Yuan Shikai fought for more than 40 days in Shengjing, Liaoyang, Niuzhuang, Jinzhou and other cities. Song Qing never ordered to spy on military intelligence in advance from the beginning.

　"Sir Song, Brother Song." Yuan Xiangcheng untied the firewood tied to Song Qing's body and said, "You have made an indelible contribution to the National Defense Army's capture of the city in two days."

As soon as these words were spoken, Sheng Fei, who was following behind Yuan Xiangcheng, first coughed lightly, then turned his head to face elsewhere.

Wang Shizhen pursed his lips tightly, trying not to make any sound.

Song Qingchu was a little surprised when he heard this, but after thinking about it for a while, his face turned red. However, he did not dare to glare at Yuan Xiangcheng, so he could only lower his head and feel depressed.

The red color extended from the face to the neck, and was very conspicuous in the cold wind.

I've already apologized, do you have to humiliate me like this? Song Qing felt a little regretful.

But he didn't know that Yuan Xiangcheng was speaking from the heart and had no intention of sarcasm.

What Yuan Shikai was fighting now was not the Qing Dynasty's version of the War of Resistance Against Japan, but the War of Liberation. He had to strive for more autonomy and seek larger land for development within the framework of the Qing court.

If he went south and encountered stubborn defenders who would not give in to his enemies, he might not be able to enter the pass safely even if he sent all 6 National Defense Forces.

Not only will their own side suffer heavy casualties, but the local defenders will also suffer significant damage.

There were no powerful local factions in the north. After the fight between Yuan's army and the anti-Yuan army, it created opportunities for the Greens in Shaanxi and Gansu and the Russians in the north.

Fortunately, the Qing Dynasty "cooperated", and the commanders stationed outside the Great Wall were either in office but did nothing or were good-for-nothings.

Yuan Shikai only encountered some obstacles when attacking Shanhaiguan, leaving behind more than 2,000 corpses. If he had been replaced by someone who was good at defending the city, even if he had given half the effort, he would not have been able to capture this magnificent pass so easily.

If the Hunan Army came to defend the city, then this plan of blowing up the city through underground tunnels would certainly be strictly guarded against, and people would be sent to patrol the city day and night to guard it.

“I know that although Ronglu tacitly allowed you to temporarily command the four armies in Jiashen, he did not fully trust you and even sent De Xing’a to act as a military supervisor.

Even if we don't count the deaths of the old four 4...6) bannermen, Liu Shengxiu also had a subtle rebellious attitude towards you. The artillery of the Jiashen Four Armies were all depreciated items when the Huai Army was disbanded, and the muskets were also purchased through the Tianjin Machinery Bureau at that time.

Therefore, although you are named the commander of the Jiashen Fourth Army, you can actually only command the front army, and the other armies are somewhat powerless.

A general in command of a force should be in name only, so I understand your grievances."

Jiang Guiti wanted to stand up and retort that he was not disobeying Brother Song's orders, but Song Qing stopped him with a look.

Song Qing raised his head and looked at Yuan Xiangcheng with a complicated look, not knowing how to answer.

He questioned himself, wondering why he had surrendered. Was he infected by the words spoken within Yuan Shiguang's stone gates, tired of this fratricidal war? Or was he constrained by so many factors that he simply wanted to leave it alone?

No one knew what was going on, and Song Qing himself was not sure, so he could only remain silent.

"I'm here to help you relieve the grievances in your heart." But Yuan Xiangcheng didn't give up. Instead, he clapped his hands and said, "Mingye, bring Dexing up!"

With a "bang", De Xing'a's body, which was burned black by the flames, was thrown in front of Song Qing and Jiang Guiti, splashing a cloud of dust.

De Xing'a would never have dreamed that even after he died, Yuan Shikai would still use his body to maximize his profits.

Of course, he probably won't be dreaming now, but he doesn't know whether the road to Naihe Bridge is easy to walk on.

"This is the ugly side of the Bannermen: they are garrisons but do not serve their country. They only indulge in pleasure on weekdays, but flee quietly when faced with military action.

Even the Dexing Alians, whose ancestors entered the country, were unwilling to defend it to the death. Tell me, is there any hope for the bannerman's world?"

Now not only Song Qing, but even Jiang Guiti understood the meaning of Yuan Xiangcheng's words.

The Bannermen’s world is beyond salvation, so who will restore order?

Yuan Xiangcheng did not force the two to speak. Instead, he asked the guard camp to make a simple wooden board and placed De Xing'a on it.

Six men carried the coffin, without side panels or a lid, a coffin without a country, without a heart, without a sky, and without a land, toward the kneeling captives of the Jiashen Army.

"Look, Uncle Si Ling and Lu Si are searching? This is the commander of the Central Army, De Xing'a. He was killed in the explosion while escaping."

"Everyone, look, this is De Xing, the last one to defend the city and the first one to escape."

"Look, look, freshly roasted wild boar skin."

I don’t know how Mingye came up with these funny words, but in any case, he simply and quickly publicized Dexing A’s “heroic deeds” of escaping before the battle.

The six soldiers carrying the coffin walked back and forth between the front, left and rear armies of Jiashen, which made them realize clearly what kind of person the general who led them before was.

Many soldiers from the front, left and rear armies couldn't help but curse loudly when they saw this scene.

They were not scolding the National Defense Army, but scolding De Xing'a, scolding him for being as cowardly as a tiger and for fleeing before the battle.

"Lord Song should have been given full command long ago."

"De Xing'a shouldn't have been asked to arrange for the defense of the city."

How could the lower-level soldiers know who was in command of the battle to defend the city? They only knew that since he was stationed at Shanhaiguan, De Xing'a had acted like the most powerful person in the city and had been interfering in all kinds of affairs.

Because of his status as a bannerman, others did not dare to stop him, and some even tried to please him.

But now, everyone can see De Xing'a's true nature, even though he is burnt black at this moment.

For a time, friendly dialects widely circulated in the north, such as "naosun", "xinqiu", "bangchui", "lao BK's", and "danzi'er", spread among the crowd.

"Cen Na Chi Lao"

There were even Suzhou and Shanghai accents.

When the six people carrying the coffin walked while shouting the jingle and arrived at the Jiashen Central Army, which was mainly composed of bannermen, they were not greeted by shouting and cursing.

Although some people were dissatisfied with De Xing Axin, they did not speak out; while others felt sympathy for their fellow human beings and were extremely sad.

There were even a few people who saw Dexing'a being treated like this after his death. Their hands were clenched until they turned white, and their nails dug into the soil. When the six people turned in front of them, they suddenly jumped up and cursed at the six people carrying the coffin.

"Fuck you! I grew up in Beijing and have never seen anything as abject as this. It's fine if they don't bury him, but they're actually parading his body through the streets."

After saying this, the man rushed towards the coffin-carrying team, but the national defense troops guarding this place had already spotted him. As soon as the bannerman left his original position, he was shot dead on the spot.

Seeing people being shot, there was a slight commotion among the captured Bannermen, but it was quickly calmed down by the surrounding National Defense Forces who shouted slogans such as "Don't be afraid, we will only shoot if you stand up."

Song Qing watched the entire coffin-carrying process in its entirety. His heart was pounding and his chest was heaving. He felt as if all the anger that had been suppressed in his heart for many days was finally released, and he felt extremely relieved.

After being suppressed by De Xing'a for so many days, today I can finally get back at him in front of everyone and clear my reputation.

Yes, Song Qing did not think that his fighting skills were very trendy. He believed that it was Yili Luanshui, Liu Shengxiu and others who were dragging him down, either openly or covertly.

Yuan Xiangcheng could roughly guess what Song Qing was thinking. Song Qing, who had fought for most of his life and had never been promoted to governor or governor-general in the original time and space, actually dared to take the initiative to go to the Northeast to assist in military affairs when the Japanese army invaded Liaodong.

During the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, the Japanese army invaded Northeast China. Everyone knew that Shengjing and the capital were in danger, but how many people dared to volunteer?

At that time, Yuan Shikai, who was in Seoul, had fled back from Korea. Everyone knew that the attack of Japan's hundreds of thousands of troops was no joke.

However, Song Qing dared to take the initiative to take on the task, which shows that he had no clear understanding of his military command ability.

However, Yuan Xiangcheng also has a use for such a person. As long as he can persuade him and make him loyal, he can use him as a backbone to recruit tens of thousands of Jiashen Fourth Army in Shanhaiguan.

Naturally, the more soldiers and horses, the better.

A ragtag army is also an army. The National Defense Army has not yet expanded its military and urgently needs a large number of troops to stabilize the post-war order in Northeast China.

The Jiashen Fourth Army was the best helper. They were of the same origin as the National Defense Army and naturally had a comradeship.

As long as Song Qing could take the lead in surrendering and organize the prisoners, the 7-strong army would march south and the capital would be within their grasp.

"Sir Song, will you join the Ming or abandon the dark?" Yuan Xiangcheng pointed to the banner with the Chinese characters "National Defense" above his head. "It's up to you, brother."

Song Qing glanced at De Xing'a with disgust, and after calming down his excited emotions, he immediately knelt on the ground.

"I, Song Qing, have been wandering for half my life, and I only regret that I have never met a wise leader.

Weiting, if Master Yuan doesn't abandon me, I'm willing to serve as your master! "