The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

The sudden appearance of the revolutionary army once again caught them off guard. By the time they tried to resist, the cold muzzles of guns were already pointed at their heads, and the situation was immediately under control.

"Don't move. Lay down your weapons and surrender. The revolutionary army will treat prisoners well." "Hands raised."

"If you have the guts, just shoot. Shoot at me. I don't believe you dare to kill innocent people."

A member of a secret society patted his chest and shouted arrogantly. He probably thought he understood the policy of the revolutionary army better and that the troops would not shoot at will. At the same time, he was also stalling for time, waiting for the foreign devils to come out to rescue him.

Seeing that the revolutionary army really did not open fire, these people, who were emboldened, also shouted loudly: "Brothers, human life is at stake. Who dares to kill innocent people? There are so many of us. If they have the guts, just let them kill us all. We still have countless brothers outside who will definitely avenge us. Don't be afraid if you are a man."

"Yes, don't be afraid, they won't dare to shoot."

"Yes, right now, you should rush out immediately. I don't believe they dare to shoot."

The man shouting was a desperate criminal, but not a fool. He pounded his chest, urging his men to test the revolutionary army's limits, while he himself was already scouting for a retreat. He was doomed to disappointment, however. The revolutionary army dealt with these troublemakers first. While their records weren't thoroughly investigated, many of their crimes merited two executions, and this information had been clearly communicated to the soldiers.

Seeing his men suddenly charging towards the revolutionary army, the Sixth Company Commander had no choice but to give the order to shoot. Instantly, gunfire erupted. The man who had initially shouted was shot in the head, his brains scattering to the ground. The others also fell to the ground, shot in various places. At such close range, a single shot sent blood splattering high and conspicuously.

This is the difference between the military and the police. The police focus on control, while the military focuses on killing. The police can be merciful when resolving internal conflicts, but the military, a violent machine facing war, will only become more violent.

Since the shots had already been fired, the revolutionary army was no longer polite and immediately attacked again. Another series of gunshots rang out, and the five or six leaders had their skulls blown off, with their brains and blood spilled all over the ground, which instantly stunned everyone.

"Everyone, stop moving. I'll shoot if you move." "Drop your weapons and put your hands on your head."

Now, those who thought they had not committed a capital crime squatted down with their hands on their heads, and only some who knew they would be killed if caught remained standing.

"You red bandits, you've killed so many of our brothers in the Gelaohui before, and now you're shooting and killing people wantonly. Do you have any respect for the law?"

At this time, the company commander looked at this person and immediately remembered his information.

The focus of attention suddenly started laughing.

Lei Hu, whose courtesy name was Chaoying, was born in Chengkou County in 1868. Chengkou County was located in the border area of ​​Sichuan, Shaanxi and Hubei. The area was poor, bandits were rampant, the people were living in dire straits, and business and travel were cut off.

Due to the rampant bandits in the county, not only were trade routes almost cut off, but the bandits who did not engage in production also required huge amounts of money and supplies to support them. Naturally, all these burdens were placed on the people of Chengkou County.

Lei Hu had eight brothers and sisters. He was given a courtesy name because his family was relatively well off, and he even attended a private school for two years as a child. However, after his father's death, Lei Hu's family fell into poverty, and he and his family were forced to rent land from a landlord to make a living. Unwilling to farm, Lei Hu, a man with a penchant for leisure, decided to become a bandit, engaging in "no-cost business," dreaming of an "ideal life" of "large chunks of meat, generous bowls of wine, and large scales for dividing gold."

Speaking of which, Lei Hu was really blessed to be a bandit: his cousin Lei Xi was a Sichuan Pao brother and eventually became a bandit, his uncle Lei Tai was the local bandit leader, and his brother-in-law Li Zhi was also a bandit leader.

With such a wide network of contacts and a natural talent for banditry, Lei Hu quickly rose through the ranks. He was first promoted to manager of his brother-in-law's band, and soon became the helmsman of a branch shed, a small bandit leader with a certain degree of independence and the ability to recruit his own troops.

It's fair to say that Lei Hu possessed a considerable talent for banditry. After becoming a small-time leader with over a dozen guns, he engaged in looting, smashing, burning, and even openly plundering, quickly expanding his band to over 200 men. We often use the saying "rabbits don't eat grass near their burrows" to describe bandits as those who don't cause harm to their hometowns. However, some bandits are inherently ruthless and unruly, so how could they truly be completely harmless?

In reality, Lei Hu's influence on Chengkou was so severe that even the surrounding counties became targets of his gang's plunder. To expand his power, Lei Hu committed nearly every crime, including extortion, kidnapping, and even extending his reach to Hubei and Shaanxi provinces.

Soon, Lei Hu was no longer satisfied with kidnapping. The kidnappings were limited to the county, and Lei Hu decided to "expand the wealth of the country". As his power expanded, Lei Hu and Wang Li began to grow opium on a large scale, openly robbing people on the road and looting houses. Lei Hu, who was getting more and more daring, even targeted the earthen fort and robbed the whole village. The most crazy

When the time came, the county town became the target of the Thunder Tiger.

Robbery is bound to be met with resistance. Lei Hu, in his pursuit of both plunder and to intimidate others, killed countless people and burned countless houses and properties. Lei Hu amassed a vast fortune through opium trafficking, robbery, murder, extortion, and other means.

It wasn't until the revolutionary army swept through Chengkou County with such force that Lei Hu abandoned his men and fled. Thus, the wealth he had amassed ultimately benefited the Forward Party and the revolutionary army. This truly exemplifies the truth of the Tao Te Ching: "Which is dearer, your name or your body? Which is more valuable, your body or your possessions? Which is more troublesome, gain or loss? Great love leads to great expense; great hoarding leads to great loss."

Lei Hu suffered such a huge loss that he naturally never forgot revenge and kept looking for information about the revolutionary army. He was eventually introduced to Japan by a "brother" who had the same goal.

Unexpectedly, the net of heaven is so wide that nothing can escape it. He was caught here before he even started to take revenge.

As expected of a ruthless murderer and arsonist, he's still so arrogant now. If such a person escapes, the consequences will be disastrous. The company commander quietly made a gesture, and immediately several guns were quietly pointed at Lei Hu. The company commander ignored him and turned to look at the Japanese who slowly walked out of the inner room. Why was he so sure they were Japanese? Because they were afraid of death, afraid of being mistakenly killed by the revolutionary army, and they put a menstrual belt on their foreheads.

Seeing that the Japanese were still as calm as old dogs, the commander of the Sixth Company shouted loudly: "I am under the orders of the Chongqing Military Commission, the Mayor of Chongqing, and the Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee. I am responsible for arresting these bandits, gangs, bullies and hooligans. Please do not act rashly and do not jeopardize the relationship between the two parties. Lei Hu is a remnant of the bandits who kill without blinking an eye. He is so rampant that killing him is not enough to appease the public anger. Come, tie them all up for me. If they resist, they will be shot immediately."

After saying this, he waved his hand, and several soldiers immediately put away their guns, took out the ropes and started to act.

"Whoever dares to catch me, I will fight him to the death."

Bang! Bang!

Two gunshots were heard, one hitting Lei Hu's arm and the other hitting his left foot.

"Lei, if you know what's good for you, surrender now, or I'll shoot you in the head."

Lei Hu was also very ruthless. His hands and feet were bleeding, but he gritted his teeth and said nothing. However, he did not dare to resist anymore. Instead, he stared at the Japanese.

At this point, the Japanese could no longer play it safe and had to step forward immediately. They now understood that their men had been discovered long ago, and that a sudden strike was made just as they were about to take action, rendering all their previous investments in vain.

"Baka! You're working like hell! Who gave you permission to arrest people? Why don't you let them go? Lei Sang is a friend of our Great Japanese Empire. You are not allowed to arrest him without our permission."

The leading Japanese man walked out slowly, came to the company commander, and waved the samurai sword in his hand in front of the company commander.

"Oh, I haven't asked you why you're dealing with bandits and hooligans here. This is Chongqing, our Chinese business. It has nothing to do with you Japanese."

"Baga, how dare you slander the Great Japanese Empire? I want to duel with you!" "Haha, consider your own identity before you speak. If you are just an ordinary Japanese ronin, you have no right to represent Japan. Even if you are a Japanese consul or diplomat, you have no right to interfere in our internal affairs."

"How dare you look down on the samurai of the Great Japanese Empire? I challenge you to a duel." At this moment, a massive kick landed on the Japanese warrior's chest, sending him flying two meters. His butt slammed hard against the ground, and he tumbled over, sprawled on the ground like a toad, his katana tossed aside. Then, the Sixth Company Commander leaped up, hooked his foot, and flipped the Japanese warrior over. He then stomped on his chest again. The commander was incredibly strong, and with this kick, the Japanese warrior struggled to hold his breath, his face flushing crimson and unable to speak.

Chapter 255: Thanks for the update!

The Sixth Company Commander was a veteran from the Special Forces. Zhang Yinghao had once said during his lectures that villains are often killed by their excessive talk. This Japanese guy was killed by his excessive talk. He never uttered a single word before taking action. Once he had defeated the enemy, or even killed them, he could say whatever he wanted.

"What the hell? This is our revolutionary army's territory, and you are not allowed to shout."

The remaining Japanese saw their leader being knocked down, and they all drew their samurai swords.

At this moment, the soldiers also raised their rifles, and the squad leaders and instructors also raised their pistols and pointed them at the Japanese.

The soldiers don't care whether you are Japanese or not. Anyone who attacks them is an enemy. They are trained in the military that there are only dead enemies.

Is the best enemy.

Although these Japanese were rampant, they did not dare to use their flesh and blood to clash with steel, and the situation immediately came to a stalemate.

The company commander of the Sixth Company stopped talking, just lifted his feet and returned to the front of the team.

The little Japanese struggled for a long time before he stood up, rubbing his chest, and slowly walked back to the Japanese side.

"My Japanese friend, I think you may have been instigated by these people to come here and cause trouble. But I want to tell you that the Yangtze River Basin is the sphere of influence of the British Empire. Chongqing is the territory of my revolutionary army. You are wantonly disrupting the commercial order in Chongqing, which is very dangerous and can easily cause misunderstandings among the British and American powers. That would be bad. Sichuan is now in rebellion, but the Qing Dynasty did not have the courage to intercept merchant ships reaching Chongqing. Although the business we do with you is not large yet, we are still willing to expand the trade volume with you. If you are interested, you can go to our commercial department to ask."

At this time, a comrade from the Rectification Committee stood up and spoke to several Japanese.

The Japanese, feeling relentless and chilled to the bone, calmed down. Those under the consulate's orders were certainly no fools, and they knew some inside information. This operation was undoubtedly a complete failure. However, the prospect of commercial cooperation seemed quite tempting. He turned to chat with his companions for a while, then solemnly approached the Sixth Company commander and bowed.

"I am Taro Ogawa, you are the revolutionary army, the warriors. We know your business policies and we are willing to be friends with you."

The company commander had long heard Chairman Zhang Yinghao say that the Japanese were good at superficial work and could bow so well that you would feel embarrassed, but what they were thinking was only known to them. Now seeing it, it was indeed true. They say that dogs bark but don't bite.

The dog that bites doesn't bark. Seeing that the dog was now silent, the company commander instantly became alert.

"Mr. Ogawa Taro, you're too polite. We in Sichuan have no ill will towards the Great Japanese Empire or the Japanese people. We should have more exchanges! I still have things to take care of here. How about you go back first, Mr. Ogawa?"

Seeing that the company commander didn't say anything, the comrade from the Discipline Inspection Committee continued speaking.

"Yoshi, I hope a little misunderstanding won't affect our friendship."

After saying that, Taro Ogawa immediately called a few Japanese and left quickly.

At this time, Lei Hu and his men were fed up and started shouting, "Ogawa-kun, are you guys going to ignore us?"

"We're working for you." "Ogawa-kun, help!"

Ogawa Taro stopped, turned around and bowed to Lei Hu, then turned and left. Seeing that the Japanese really had no intention of saving them, Lei Hu and the others started cursing.

"Little Japanese, fuck you immortal boss." "Japanese devils, fuck your ancestors."

Hearing the curses, Ogawa Taro did not look back but continued to move forward. After the Japanese had walked away, the captain of the Sixth Company gave an order and the soldiers rushed over to tie up all of them.

"Company Commander, you're amazing! You beat up this little Japanese guy, and he actually bowed to you. Is this Japanese guy born in the Year of the Dog? He just behaved after a beating?"

"Haha, they're not dogs, they're wolves, and hungry ones at that. With so many of us here today, they naturally won't act rashly and will immediately choose to be patient. You have to remember, a biting dog never barks, and it always bites you from behind."

Everyone was discussing this, especially the Japanese man's performance today. In the end, they all felt that this Japanese man's endurance was too great and that they could never learn from him.

The company commander led the team back only after he saw that everyone had been tied up. After handing over the people, he had to write a summary of the day's operations and a report on the Japanese's performance to report to his superiors.

After the operation, Lin Zhenghong immediately posted a notice announcing that counter-revolutionaries had sneaked into Chongqing with the intention of sabotaging the city. After being reported, they were rounded up by the revolutionary army. The Japanese, however, had spent so much time and effort in vain. During the martial law, the Japanese consul, Kei Yamazaki, could not find a single revolutionary party official in Chongqing.

Martial law hadn't ended yet. All those arrested were taken out of Chongqing, interrogated, and executed. At this point, Japanese Consul Katsura Yamazaki could only cry "Baka" in the consulate. After Ogawa Taro and his men reported what had happened, he was furious. So much effort and resources had been expended. They had intended to seize the opportunity to launch an attack when the British gunboats arrived in Chongqing, but they ultimately failed.

This failure left the Japanese Consul, Katsura Yamazaki, feeling devastated. He faced not only criticism from his superiors but also the possibility of dismissal. As for the news brought back by the ronin, regarding increased trade, Japanese goods were currently inferior in quality and low in price, but compared to American goods, they held little advantage. Furthermore, Sichuan and Chongqing were unusually peculiar places; Japan simply didn't have many goods to trade.

The British gunboat, like a tourist, stopped for a few days, then for some unknown reason sailed back upriver on the third day, seemingly as if it had never been there before. This made Zhang Yinghao feel a bit foolish and unintelligent, as he had no idea what the British were up to. At least Zhang Yinghao didn't bother to think about what the British would do. Fu Mier clapped her hands and held the lantern.

Zhang Yinghao had been pondering materials science for a while now. He wanted to know how many different types of atoms were in a substance. Chemical analysis was practically impossible for him at the moment, so he only knew one analytical method: spectroscopy. The tool used was also simple: a prism.

After finishing his work, Zhang Yinghao went straight to the school in the city. Now that the new government is growing in size, the number of schools has also increased. Generally speaking, there are schools for training party members and cadres of the Progressive Party, party schools, and military schools for training revolutionary army members.

schools, adult technical training schools and the general compulsory education system.

Zhang Yinghao's attitude towards old scholars was very simple. He didn't use them in the past, but later on, he had too few people of his own and could only use some old scholars.

If you want to build your own kingdom, you must cultivate your own cultural and intellectual class.

Zhang Yinghao really didn't have the courage to challenge the heaven-defying project of transforming the old literati. There were so many things to do now, and as for the old literati, Zhang Yinghao thought that if they were willing to follow, they could follow, and if they were not willing, they could just let them wither away with the old times. So he put all his strength into these new

On top of the cultivation of the education system.

Currently, the three educational systems aren't very different. They all offer a foundation of general education, supplemented by a few specialized courses. The military is Zhang Yinghao's foundation, and he's also lumping the industrial system he wants to build into it. This is essentially the same as adult technical training schools being built within the military academy system. After all, the military is generally prioritized, and military products are the most advanced and durable.

Now, Zhang Yinghao was going to explain atomic physics to these comrades. Zhang Yinghao was still outside the classroom when he heard the excited voices of his classmates. Just as he was about to go in, he saw a student running out excitedly. Seeing Zhang Yinghao, he immediately shouted excitedly, "Chairman, come and see! What you said is true. Every substance emits a different spectrum."

After saying this, he planned to drag Zhang Yinghao into the lab. He was delighted to hear that the Chemistry and Metallurgy Departments, three majors that form the foundation of industry—mathematics, physics, and chemistry—had solved the prism problem. He said happily, "Take me to see it quickly."

According to Zhang Yinghao's plan, the Revolutionary Army's military academy offered over a dozen programs, including mathematics, physics, chemistry, prospecting, metallurgy, and more. Zhang Yinghao couldn't quite decide whether this was a military academy, a university, or even a technical school. Expecting a group of people with only a year or two of education to immediately engage in advanced research was simply unrealistic. However, the necessary elements had to be present, and Zhang Yinghao could only encourage everyone to "learn by doing."

Zhang Yinghao wouldn't allow any of these outstanding comrades to return to the army. In his view, the current military can only win by fighting with guns; construction is the most difficult task. In the past, the Korean War was the pinnacle of light infantry, arguably the infantry's final glory, and a war where the power of the spirit was brought to its peak. Why were the subsequent US invasions of Kuwait and Afghanistan so unstoppable? Because by this point, spiritual power was no longer effective in the face of advanced technology.

The inferior the weapons, the more spiritual support is needed, and the more moving, tragic, and bloody the scenes will be. Take, for example, the group of martyrs alongside Li Yannian in "Meritorious Service," as well as martyrs like Huang Jiguang and Qiu Shaoyun—they are deeply moving and tragic. However, the more advanced the weapons, the more modern the warfare, the more aesthetically pleasing it becomes, the less spiritual support is needed, the less moving it is, and the more brutal it becomes.

Isn't the sight of thousands of missiles launching simultaneously beautiful? It's as beautiful as a painting. With a single button, you can take down an enemy thousands of miles away. Isn't that awesome? Do you need moral support? Such a war wouldn't be bloody, because there wouldn't be any remains. It would simply be brutality. How could there be any emotion? No more would one man's desperate efforts be defeated by a hundred. That's why Zhang Yinghao needed to work tirelessly to build up his troops, to prepare them for modern warfare as best they could, and not let his comrades risk their lives to stop the enemy's future aircraft and artillery. Naturally, there was no reason for Zhang Yinghao to send the outstanding engineering students he had painstakingly trained back to the army. Carrying guns is the way to war. In today's war, new recruits can face the test of war after just a few months of training.

However, without a modern scientific system, there would be no modern industrial system. Even the comrades carefully selected by Zhang Yinghao could barely accept concepts like cytology, but accepting chemical elements, atoms, and molecules—things completely invisible to the naked eye—was incredibly difficult. These things required a long period of indoctrination.

Zhang Yinghao now faced a vast array of challenges. Exploration, smelting, physics, chemistry, manufacturing, materials, and more—the knowledge that had taken decades, even centuries, for foreign nations to accumulate—he wanted to have his comrades study and experiment with it all in a remarkably short timeframe, understand the underlying principles, and then transform it into Chinese knowledge. However, this knowledge couldn't simply be crammed into one's head; it had to be applied, requiring extensive practice and ample time to digest. This, in turn, couldn't be rushed; it required time. Getting his comrades to accept this knowledge would require a significant amount of knowledge to shift their perspectives.

In fact, the greatness of a truly industrial nation lies in this: everyone learns the same basic knowledge. Just like in a previous life, everyone who took junior high school chemistry class knew that water is composed of hydrogen and oxygen, with a water molecule consisting of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. People had never seen hydrogen and oxygen atoms, but everyone knew this common sense, and there was no barrier to communication. Just as industrial nations of this era can design and manufacture machines, taking it for granted, China simply lacked the ability and foundation. At this time, China was starting from scratch. All of this forced Zhang Yinghao to feel helpless, even miserable.

Chapter 256:

Entering the lab, I saw a group of students in their teens, twenties, and even thirties gathered around a set of equipment, excitedly watching the staff conducting an experiment. The staff adjusted the gas lamp in the darkroom. Because the gas flame was pure, the flame was almost colorless. Then, they attached a few grains of salt to a platinum wire and placed it on the flame. The flame immediately took on a bright yellow hue. Light emitted from a narrow slit, passed through a prism, and cast a spectrum on the snow-white wall. No matter how many times they tried, the spectrum barely changed.

The staff then dipped a clean platinum wire in calcium salt, and this time the flame turned a beautiful brick red, and the spectrum immediately changed. They then experimented with copper, iron, and other materials, all of which exhibited different spectra and colors, much to the students' excitement.

Zhang Yinghao knew very well that each atom has its own characteristic spectral line, so the spectrum can be used to identify substances and determine their chemical composition. This method is called spectral analysis.

The students watched the miraculous changes with awe, their expressions so absorbed in the phenomenon that they didn't even notice Zhang Yinghao enter. This reminded Zhang Yinghao of his junior high chemistry teacher using phenolphthalein and litmus to test for acidity and alkalinity. He'd also found the color change in the beaker miraculous, but he didn't understand why. Many monks and nuns exploited this phenomenon to scam people in rural areas by telling fortunes.

"Students! Get ready for class!" Zhang Yinghao shouted.

Only then did the students realize Zhang Yinghao's presence, and everyone ran back to their seats and sat down.

Facing this group of students in military uniforms, Zhang Yinghao said, "Get ready for class!"

The squad leader immediately stood up and shouted: "Stand up!" Everyone immediately stood up and stood straight.

"Hello students!"

“Hello, teacher!” “Please sit down!”

The students sat down in unison, and everyone looked at Zhang Yinghao.

Zhang Yinghao began to speak: "We say we are materialists, and this world is a material world. If you close your eyes now, it is not dark. When you close your eyes, our classroom also objectively exists, and our world also objectively exists. So what is this world made of? This world is made of atoms.

Now let's study atoms. Everything in the world appears to be diverse, but the atoms that make up everything are relatively few, just over a hundred or so, with only about seventy or eighty being the most common. The reason we need instruments like spectroscopes is simple: each type of atom emits a different spectrum. By dispersing the radiation produced by atoms, each atom has only one spectrum in the spectroscope. Recording these wavelengths on a photographic plate creates a regular pattern of spectral lines, known as a spectrum graph. So, no matter what the appearance of the atomic material, its spectrum remains unchanged...

All the students looked at their teacher, their leader, with reverence. Not only did Zhang Yinghao hold a lofty position, but he also possessed knowledge that was unmatched by anyone else. More importantly, as Zhang Yinghao's students, those present were able to learn from him his unparalleled knowledge.

This alone filled them with pride. Although they didn't know where Zhang Yinghao's knowledge came from, it didn't stop them from admiring him. It was this man who had lifted them out of the misery of hunger and precariousness, giving them a hopeful life and the opportunity to learn knowledge unavailable to ordinary people.

Zhang Yinghao said solemnly to the students, who were filled with admiration, "Everyone knows that our gun barrels don't last long, and the lifespan of cannon barrels is even shorter. This is a materials science issue. If we want to produce high-quality steel gun barrels, we must know the formula of this alloy steel. Where does this formula come from? It's obtained through spectral analysis."

Zhang Yinghao didn't know if his students understood what he was saying, so he instilled the concepts first. He then assessed them and selected those he needed for more in-depth training. He then handed over the subsequent analysis work to these comrades. If Zhang Yinghao had to be involved in everything, he would be exhausted, like Zhuge Liang.

"Spectral analysis of metal elements is a scientific method for detecting material composition. There are approximately ninety metal elements. Common metals are few in number, but there are thousands of alloys formed from them. Different alloys contain different elements and structures, and therefore require different spectral analysis. Metal composition testing is a major factor in determining the performance and quality of metal materials. Therefore, we can use spectral analysis to detect the elemental composition of products.

We then conduct qualitative or quantitative analysis based on the resulting spectra, and then conduct experiments to create the alloy materials we need. Whenever possible, we try to use copper-based alloy bullets. We urgently need various strong and durable alloy materials, so we must diligently conduct research...

We must complete the industrialization path that took the great powers decades, even centuries, in the shortest possible time. To achieve this, we must possess industrial strength. The British, French, Americans, and even the Japanese are superior to China precisely in their industrial prowess. As long as our industrial strength doesn't completely overwhelm these Western powers, we will never truly defeat them. If we want to achieve national and ethnic liberation, we must have a strong industry; otherwise, we will forever be bullied...

These comrades had been in the revolutionary army for quite some time, and thanks to Zhang Yinghao's daily indoctrination, they already knew, or some had at least heard of, some knowledge of industry. However, most of them were unaware of the extent of the industrial gap between China and the Western powers.

"Chairman, what should we do?" a student asked.

Zhang Yinghao looked around, turned around and wrote eight big words on the blackboard: Study hard and make progress every day.

After writing, he turned around and said, "There's a sentence in the Analects: 'The Master said: At fifteen I was determined to learn; at thirty I was established; at forty I had no doubts; at fifty I understood the will of Heaven; at sixty my ears were obedient; at seventy I followed my heart's desire without transgressing the rules.'"