It was late at night when they returned to Siping from Niujiapu, but Zhang Xiluan couldn't sleep. He Rui was indeed trying hard to show his strength, hoping to gain Zhang Xiluan's recognition. But what shocked Zhang Xiluan the most happened in Niujiapu: after playing, the children in the village took out *wowotou* [steamed corn buns] kept warm by their body heat from their bosoms and gnawed on them.

In his 40 years outside the pass, this was the first time Zhang Xiluan saw little dolls from ordinary rural families able to use *wowotou* as snacks. It seemed He Rui's claim of leaving 70% of the grain to the people was actually true.

He didn't sleep too well at night. When Zhang Xiluan woke up, it was already broad daylight. Seeing Zhang Xiluan get up, Adjutant Liu hurriedly reported that He Rui had already sent someone to inquire and delivered an invitation. Seeing it was noon, Zhang Xiluan smiled. "Let's go to the banquet."

At Huaqing Tower, after three rounds of wine, Zhang Xiluan spoke of Duan Zhigui. "This Duan Zhigui loves mahjong passionately. Every day, he plays from morning to night with officials in the capital; official business is done at the card table. Truly absurd."

He Rui had already heard from Adjutant Liu about Yuan Shikai wanting Duan Zhigui to be the Governor of Liaoning [Fengtian]. He just smiled slightly but didn't interrupt.

"As for Little Duan, he's even more promising now. Refusing to shoulder responsibility when things happen—no wonder among the Dragon, Tiger, and Dog of Beiyang, Feng Guozhang was entrusted with heavy responsibility." As Zhang Xiluan spoke, his expression became increasingly unhappy.

The so-called "Little Duan" naturally referred to Duan Qirui. Zhang Xiluan was Yuan Shikai's sworn brother, so it was proper for him to call Duan Qirui "Little Duan."

After talking about Beiyang matters for a while, Zhang Xiluan changed the subject, speaking of Jilin Governor Meng Enyuan and Heilongjiang Governor Zhu Qinglan. He Rui continued to listen quietly without interrupting.

After Zhang Xiluan finished talking about these two, a burst of unwillingness suddenly rose in his heart. He asked, "Brother He Rui, I've been rambling on for so long. I suddenly remembered you said Cai E is not to be feared, but the Great President will be crushed by the general trend. I wonder how my brother views the current situation?"

"Answering Lord Zhang. This subordinate said in the newspaper interview before that the reason Yuan Gong wants to proclaim himself Emperor is to obtain legitimacy through the title of Emperor, and then realize his ambitions. But governors everywhere have already negotiated and cooperated with local forces. At this time, China's situation has turned into a pattern where the central government relies on customs duties, while localities rely on tax farming. Yuan Gong's direct troops are definitely not something Cai E can compare with, but during the war, will the provincial governors step up tax payments to the central government, or withhold them? This subordinate believes they will definitely withhold them. To maintain the Beiyang Army, Yuan Gong can only rely on issuing public bonds and printing more banknotes. In troubled times, people hoard gold and silver. Those who get banknotes will naturally want to exchange them for silver. Does Yuan Gong have that much silver?"

Zhang Xiluan pondered for a long time, then said unwillingly, "The Great President can ban the exchange of banknotes for silver."

"This is useful domestically, but customs duties have already been mortgaged to foreigners; how could they agree? As long as the Diplomatic Corps of various countries forces Yuan Gong to restore exchange, will Yuan Gong agree or not?"

Mentioning foreigners being so arrogant in China, Zhang Xiluan said very unhappily, "If they do that, so what if he doesn't agree?"

He Rui answered indifferently, "Then the Diplomatic Corps can inform Yuan Gong that they support the Republic and oppose Yuan Gong proclaiming himself Emperor."

Zhang Xiluan was speechless for a moment, the indignation in his heart vanishing in an instant. What He Rui said was very cold, but it made Zhang Xiluan understand that Yuan Shikai proclaiming himself Emperor was really digging a pit to bury himself. Once Yuan Shikai took the step of proclaiming himself Emperor, the monarchy itself became Yuan Shikai's soft underbelly, which anyone could exploit. Others didn't need to defeat Yuan Shikai; as long as Yuan Shikai continued to consume strength for the sake of the monarchy, the heavy financial pressure would cause the Beiyang clique under Yuan Shikai's command to disintegrate from within.

If the monarchy were abolished, all parties could return to the original situation. Everyone, including the Beiyang governors, felt this was acceptable. Even if the price of doing so was abandoning Yuan Shikai, the Beiyang governors would accept it.

Having figured this out, Zhang Xiluan made up his mind. He dismissed the attendants, leaving only himself and He Rui.

On the morning of the 30th of the twelfth lunar month [New Year's Eve], Zhang Xiluan boarded the train back to Fengtian. Everyone saw him off. Returning to the headquarters, Xu Chengfeng wanted to see He Rui privately. He Rui called the core members together. In such a situation, everyone knew something big was about to happen. Xu Chengfeng had no scruples and asked directly, "Governor, there are rumors that the Great President wants to replace General Zhang?"

He Rui laughed. "There is indeed such a thing. Lord Zhang is very disapproving of this."

"Then what does Lord Zhang intend to do?" Xu Chengfeng asked with shining eyes.

Seeing the other young soldiers were much the same, He Rui was really amused. "In two months, how much can we expand the army? What is the training level of officers, and the training level of troops?"

"We have already made a plan to expand the army to three regiments!" Regimental Chief of Staff Zhong Yifu answered immediately.

He Rui pressed, "Then after the troops change equipment, how long will it take for the troops to become familiar with the use of weapons and equipment? What is the situation of the bandit investigation in Liaoning?"

The young officers looked at the usually silent Hu Xiushan. Hu Xiushan replied, "Governor, I have already arranged a reconnaissance plan. Part of the reconnaissance can only be done after entering Liaoning."

"Then how many rural cadres do we have available for deployment to start land reform immediately after entering Liaoning?"

Wu Youping only now confirmed that He Rui really might replace Zhang Xiluan. After a little thought, he answered, "We can allocate 2,000 rural cadres to cooperate with the troops to carry out land reform in the localities."

Before He Rui could continue asking, the usually reticent Hu Xiushan asked, "Governor, if we go south, we must leave a regiment to guard Siping. Our current number of troops is indeed very insufficient. If we want to take over the entire area outside the pass, we must have four divisions, twelve regiments."

"Why four divisions? Three divisions are enough," Xu Chengfeng didn't quite agree.

Hu Xiushan answered calmly, "If the central government dispatches a division out of Shanhai Pass, we need a division for defense, while mobilizing other troops to come for reinforcement."

Although Hu Xiushan was usually silent, these few sentences left the other young soldiers speechless. When the youths imagined the future, the figure of the Beiyang Central Army indeed occasionally appeared on the horizon of their thinking. But those were vague shadows, existing only on the edge of imagination.

The youths all admired He Rui's far-reaching vision. Everyone had actually considered slightly whether He Rui would say such things. But when a classmate of their own grade pointed out such a reality, Xu Chengfeng and the others all felt a shock in their hearts. Xu Chengfeng even suddenly felt a kind of self-blame, wondering if he was like Lord Ye who loved dragons [claimed to love dragons but feared the real thing].

Looking at the shock of his young subordinates, He Rui laughed. "Comrades, did we get to where we are today by relying on knowing some incredible big shot? Did the hundreds of thousands of people in Siping support us because Lord Zhang gave an order, so the people willingly walked with us to this day?"

The young officers hesitated slightly, then answered immediately, "No!"

"Then what we need to do is obvious. Siping is not a special place. The suffering faced by the people of Siping is no different from the suffering faced by all people outside the pass. The life expected by the people of Siping is also the expectation of the people outside the pass. The so-called 'great events' are composed of one small event after another. What we have done in Siping is exactly what we will do outside the pass in the future. Everyone has participated in such a process and accumulated a lot of experience. If you have any doubts, raise them."