Travel through the Qing Dynasty and become emperor

Chapter 485 The South China Sea Incident
Beijing, in the Zhengda Guangming Palace, the imperial meeting this morning was extraordinary. Yesterday, a telegram was issued from the cabinet and the military department. All officials above the second rank and military attaches with the rank of general came to Beijing to participate in the meeting. Guan Xuqing was dressed in a clean dragon robe , staring at the more than 200 officials present with a stern expression, and did not speak for a long time.

There was no sound in the main hall, not even daring to make a sound with a cough.

Guan Xuqing took a look at Feng Xianghua, and said to everyone: "Today, there is an important matter that needs to be reported when you are summoned to the palace. Feng Xianghua should be the one to talk about this matter."

Feng Xianghua took a few steps forward, turned around and said loudly to everyone: "Yesterday, the military department received news that the troops of Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia had mutinied. Yuan Shikai conspired to seize the military power of these three provinces. Go to Beijing City, Qing Jun's side!"

Before the words were finished, there was an uproar at the scene. People looked at each other in blank dismay, and they shouldn't believe the news they heard.

"The chief of the general staff, Xu Shichang, will tell you about the situation of the rebels." Feng Xianghua glanced at Xu Shichang.

After Xu Shichang came out of class to salute the emperor, he cleared his voice and said to the people: "Yuan Shikai officially issued a combat announcement last night, that is, on May 1902, 5, declaring that the emperor was blinded by the courtiers around him and deliberately suppressed and excluded him." The officials and armies of the three provinces in the South China Sea raised their troops this time to serve the Qing emperor’s side and return power to the people.” He sneered and continued, “Yuan Shikai’s ambitions have been clearly revealed through this announcement. All other excuses are false , he was nothing more than a conspiracy to seize the highest power of the empire and challenge the imperial power. According to reliable sources, Yuan Shikai used his birthday to murder Fan Xuecheng, the commander of the Ninth Army stationed in Singapore, forcibly imprisoned the Governor of Malaysia Duan Qirui, and Feng Guozhang, Governor of Indonesia, forcibly imprisoned 23 provincial officials and military and political leaders who were invited to the Yuan Mansion that day. Fortunately, there is no news of these people being killed. After the mutiny, the rebels quickly went north and occupied Vietnam Province , and drove straight in, and the soldiers pointed directly at Leigu, an important town in Burma. Wherever they passed, the rebels accumulated at a snowballing speed, and now have more than 238 troops. One hour after Yuan Shikai made the announcement, the United States passed through the Australian military base to send Singapore transported a large amount of arms and materials, so far, although the United States has not issued a statement of public support for Yuan Shikai, it can be seen that Yuan Shikai has reached some kind of secret agreement with the United States and arms dealers beforehand.”

After finishing speaking, Xu Shichang turned his gaze to the emperor.

Guan Xuqing's eyes flickered, he stood up slowly from the throne, glanced at everyone present, and said in a gloomy voice: "Yesterday, May 1902, 5, this shameful day must be remembered forever. Launched a surprise attack and openly declared hostility to the Empire. This is the first time since the founding of the Chinese Empire that there has been a military rebellion of this magnitude. The attack on Vietnam yesterday caused serious damage to the Imperial Navy and Army. I regret to inform you that, Many soldiers and civilians lost their lives. In addition, it was reported that many fishing ports and ships in the South China Sea were also attacked by torpedoes.

Last night, the rebels launched an attack on Malaya.Last night, the rebels attacked the Sihanoukville military port.Last night, the rebels attacked the island of Java.The rebels have taken sudden offensives throughout the South China Sea region.The facts of yesterday and today speak for themselves.The people of the Empire have formed their own opinions and know full well that the security and survival of our nation is at stake.I now issue an order to take all measures for the defense of the empire and the safety of the lives of the people of the empire.At the same time, I want our entire nation to forever remember the nature of this attack on us.No matter how long it takes to defeat this premeditated invasion, the people of the empire will definitely win an absolute victory with their righteous forces.

What I am saying now is that not only will we do our best to defend ourselves, we will also ensure that this form of treachery never again endangers us.US hostilities already exist.It goes without saying that our people, our territory and our interests are at serious risk.I am confident that our armed forces, with the unwavering determination of our people, will prevail.After a period of governance, the flood has been effectively controlled and the victims have been properly resettled, but the serious impact of this disaster has already existed, and now there is an annoying rebellion, and the empire is facing a serious crisis. Challenge, but I believe that neither natural disasters nor man-made disasters can shake the foundation of the empire. I and the people of the empire have never been weak in the face of any major incident. I hope that you can unite the army and the people and work together to overcome this disaster. Let the rebels disappear from the empire's territory forever! "

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live!" The civil and military ministers knelt down together.

Guan Xuqing stood on top of the red rhinoceros, his expression showed the domineering and self-confidence unique to an emperor!
After the meeting, Guan Xuqing left Feng Xianghua, Xu Shichang and other senior military generals behind, and said lightly: "Tell me, Yuan Shikai has already raised the flag, how did you prepare?"

"Your Majesty, since Yuan Shikai's announcement, we have secretly moved the troops from the southern provinces to Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangdong in batches. At present, more than 50 troops have been assembled there, as well as armored corps, air force for reconnaissance and bombing. Formation, everything is ready, just wait for your order, and go south to suppress the rebellion." Feng Xianghua paused and said: "In Yichen's view, Yuan Shikai is just bluffing, and most of the Singaporean army is under Fan Xuecheng's subordinates. He killed Fan Xuecheng and took it by force. The morale of the army will not be very stable, and no one is willing to really work for him. There are also the armies of Malaysia and Indonesia, which were usurped by Yuan Shikai's conspiracy, so this battle will not be costly. With how many bullets we have, it is just around the corner to capture and kill the rebellious leader Yuan Shikai."

Liu Buchan also said: "Yes, I also obeyed the emperor's will and ordered the Nanyang Fleet to go south in advance and stand by on the islands of the South China Sea. The Hainan Fleet has also assembled. According to the news from the Ministry of the Navy, Yuan Ni's subordinates are in charge of the Singapore Fleet. As well as the two fleets stationed in Malaysia and Indonesia, there are about thirteen main battleships, and there are about thirty cruisers, gunboats, torpedo boats, etc. that can participate in combat. We are naturally familiar with the tactical arrangements of these warships. It's not a problem to beat them."

"Your Majesty, give the order." Xu Shichang, Chief of the Army General Staff, Wu Peifu, Chief of the Army Equipment Division, Lin Jianzhang, Chief of the Navy General Staff, and others all impatiently waited for the emperor's order.

Guan Xuqing turned his attention to Zhao Bingjun: "Is the military intelligence network ready?"

Zhao Bingjun said respectfully: "The entire military network in Asia has been prepared. Following the emperor's will, we will keep an eye on the changes of officials from all over the world. In particular, we have made a list of officials who had close ties to Yuan Shikai. People will carry out key monitoring, and if there is any change, they will be arrested immediately and wait for the emperor to fall."

"Okay! Yuan Thief's rebellion is a great disgrace the empire has never seen before. I will take advantage of Yuan Ni's rebellion to clean up the officialdom of the empire. Over the years, the empire has been busy with the aid plan to the east. I believe that there are many officials A person as daring as Yuan Shikai, this time will catch all these people!" Guan Xuqing's eyes suddenly became extraordinarily bright, and people still remember the last time the emperor showed this kind of gaze, it was during the World War five years ago, Every time the empire faced a major decision, his eyes would glow brightly, which showed that the arrogance and self-confidence in his heart had risen again. "This war is different from the past. Our enemies are all soldiers of the Chinese Empire, but they were deceived or coerced by Yuan Shikai and joined the ranks of the rebels. Therefore, when fighting, we must attack the city and attack the heart. Above all, you must be merciless to those obstinate diehards and eliminate all evil. In addition, when you formulate your combat plan, try to keep the war away from the residential areas of the people as much as possible, and try to avoid casualties of innocent civilians. The combat plan of the Admiralty should also take into account The flexible use of wolf pack tactics. In short, this war must give full play to the power of the empire's high-end weapons, and take rapid, decisive and powerful blitzkrieg strikes against the enemy. With the advantages of high-end weapons, the rebels have no way to fight back. Subdue in one fell swoop."

"twitter!"

Guan Xuqing said to Feng Xianghua again: "The specific commander, Xianghua, if you propose a candidate, I will listen to it."

"Yes." Feng Xianghua knew that the emperor would ask, and he had already thought about it in his heart, so he said: "Your majesty, I think the navy can appoint Lu Rongting. This person commanded effectively in the Hong Kong campaign and completed the occupation of Hong Kong cleanly. For the sake of safety, should I send him to fight again this time?"

"Well, this person does have extraordinary commanding skills. I hope he won't disappoint me this time, so let's imitate him."

"Cha." Feng Xianghua, Liu Buchan, and Lin Jianzhang received the order together.

Feng Xianghua paused for a moment, and then began to play: "However, the main battlefield of this war is still in the army, and the selection of army commanders must be treated with caution. After research by the military department, we believe that Guangdong and Yunnan and Guizhou should be recruited at the same time. Sending troops to the south to form a pincer offensive against the rebels, since two armies were dispatched separately, I wonder if there can be two commanders for this land war, and the overall combat plan should be subject to the arrangement of the Ministry of War."

"Who do you think of?"

"I boldly recommend two young men, one is Feng Yuxiang, the commander of the No.17 Army stationed in Shaanxi, and the other is Cai E, the commander of the No.11 Army stationed in Yunnan and Guizhou."

Guan Xuqing immediately became interested and said: "Xianghua, you recommended it well. The empire wants to boldly use young generals and let them receive training in the war so that they can become talents as soon as possible. Tell me about the situation of these two people, I will listen to you." on."

(End of this chapter)