Chapter 3: Future

Luo Yaoguo also quietly gave his superior a glance. This Commander Huang had a broad face and large ears, sporting a handsome mustache shaped like the character "八". His complexion was dark, and his pair of eyes exuded shrewdness and a rebellious spirit

Unexpectedly, Luo Yaoguo did not say a word, yet this uncle saw everything. By the way, Luo Yaoguo's courtesy name is Fuwen, which means assisting Sun Yat-sen, and it was given by his uncle Luo Yiqun.

I, Luo Yaoguo, have met Commander Huang. Luo Yaoguo stood at attention with a crisp "snap" and performed a splendid military salute

Gao Shaojie looked up at Luo Yaoguo's refined demeanor and, feeling somewhat disappointed, shook his head and said: "If Brother Fuwen has no good solutions, it is best not to provoke this group of soldiers; if a mutiny occurs, it will be difficult to handle the aftermath"

"Should we coax him? How do we handle this soldier?" Gao Shaojie's drunken remarks truly surprised Luo Yaoguo

Huang Dawei here is quite energetic, and the command center is also kept spotless. Although the staff members seem to have nothing to do, each one is full of spirit. According to my uncle, this Commander Huang has a rather bad temper and often scolds those below him upon meeting. It seems that sometimes a good scolding can indeed be effective

They have all been in the military for about ten years, having basically been part of several different units, and each of them is well-informed and experienced. Therefore, they look down on us, the officers who have just graduated from school. Moreover, most of them have connections to gangs, as many of the lower-ranking soldiers in the Guangdong army are members of the Hongmen. This group of people is like a docile donkey; you must coax them and absolutely must not provoke them.

Oh, where do these old veterans come from?" Luo Yaoguo filled Gao Shaojie's glass again and continued to probe for information.

After completing the formalities at the headquarters, Luo Yaoguo went to Ruifulou with Gao Shaojie to build rapport and to understand the situation of the supplementary battalion. After a few cups of liquor, Gao Shaojie's conversational skills opened up, and through this seemingly somewhat dull officer, Luo Yaoguo learned quite a bit. For instance, this company commander Gao Shaojie, whose courtesy name is Wenyang, is a Malaysian Chinese, 22 years old, a graduate of the Yunnan Military Academy this year, and has just joined the Guangdong Army last year.

Uncle, don't you want to command a troop? This time, the army should be heading south to fight in Fujian soon, right?" Luo Yaoguo furrowed his brows and began to analyze the situation for his uncle: "The troops have just suffered a defeat, and morale is low. Many officers are likely calculating their own interests; some may leave the ranks to observe, while others might seek to ally with Chen Jiongming. At this moment, it shouldn't be a problem for you to request a battalion from a few commanders, given your influence, right?

Oh no! It turns out that the president of West Point is MacArthur! He is the one most despised by the Communists! It seems that the path to joining the Communists is completely blocked now, so I have no choice but to honestly follow Chiang Kai-shek. At least I can secure a position as an advisor in the presidential office, and I won't have to worry about food." With this thought, Luo Yaoguo shook his head helplessly

"Hmm, it's acceptable." Huang Dawei sat upright behind his desk, slightly raised his head, and cast a sharp glance at Luo Yaoguo.

Currently, the Northern Expedition Army has three main sources: first, the Second Army of the Guangdong Army led by Xu Chongzhi; second, the Fuzhou Army led by Li Fulin, who hails from the Green Forest; and third, the First Route of the Guangdong Army led by Huang Dawei, who studied at the Royal Military Academy in Belgium. Among these three forces, the highest quality is found in Huang Dawei's First Route of the Guangdong Army, where most officers are graduates of regular military academies. The Fuzhou Army has the lowest combat effectiveness, with its officers predominantly being Green Forest heroes. As for Uncle Luo Yiqun, the so-called chief of staff, he appears to be nothing more than a figurehead, and it seems no one seeks his counsel.

The command post of the First Route Army was located within a middle school in Ruijin. Upon entering this command post for the first time, Luo Yaoguo felt quite well. During these days, with the assistance of his uncle in facilitating connections, Luo Yaoguo, still serving as a senior advisor to the Northern Expedition Army, reported daily to the Northern Expedition Army headquarters and took the opportunity to see if there was anything he could advise on. In contrast to this First Route Army command post, the atmosphere within the Northern Expedition Army headquarters was rather bleak. Xu Chongzhi had established his command post alongside the Second Army headquarters within the county government of Ruijin. The front yard of the county government housed the command post, while the back courtyard served as Xu's residence. Apart from observing a group of idle advisors who spent their days idly chatting and telling risqué jokes, Luo Yaoguo also faintly heard the sounds of silk and bamboo instruments and the clattering of mahjong tiles. After several days, he had not even seen the face of the commander-in-chief, Xu Chongzhi.

"Uncle, my health has improved now." Luo Yaoguo climbed out of bed, pulled over two chairs, offered the better one to his uncle, and sat on a rickety, wobbly chair himself

I am deeply grateful to the Commander for the cultivation. Upon hearing that it is a supplementary battalion, Luo Yaoguo was not particularly disappointed. The so-called supplementary battalion is essentially a new recruits' camp. During this period, the First Route Army has recruited some local youths from Jiangxi in Ruijin, forming a supplementary battalion of three hundred men, which is temporarily under the command of the First Route Army Headquarters, and no battalion officers have been appointed yet

After listening to his nephew's analysis, Luo Yiqun slightly nodded his head: "You guessed it right about attacking Fujian. Commander Xu has a solid foundation in Fujian, and many militia leaders give him face. Moreover, he has already sent Gong Shizeng to Fujian to contact Wang Yongquan. As for your desire to lead troops, well, I can think of some ways to help you. I still have some influence in this regard, but have you decided which unit you want to join?"

Since you are the nephew of Chief of Staff Luo, I, Huang, naturally have to take care of you. How about this: I have a supplementary battalion in my first division, and I am currently short of a battalion commander. If you do not mind, I will appoint you to this position. What do you think? Huang Dawei's words were cold, not mentioning Luo Yaoguo's West Point diploma at all, as if appointing a battalion commander for a supplementary battalion was entirely based on the favor of Luo Yiqun.

"Shaojie." Huang Dawei raised his voice slightly to call over a somewhat dull-looking major officer: "This is Luo Yaoguo, your new battalion commander." Huang Dawei then pointed at the major and said: "He is Gao Shaojie, the company commander of the third company of the replacement battalion. From now on, the two of you must work together to lead the replacement battalion out, do you understand?"

"If only I could have a troop in my hands, even a battalion would suffice." Luo Yaoguo thought to himself as his eyes darted around: "This time, we should be going to fight in Fujian. I wonder who is in power there now? Let me think... Oh, I remember now, it's someone named Li Houji. That sounds like an easy target; he seems to be a soft persimmon. Thankfully, it's not Sun Chuanfang. The key now is to assemble a troop. If I have a troop, I might be able to act a bit more imposing in Fujian, and later, I could have some leverage when following Old Jiang."

"Hehe, Brother Fuwen has returned from America, so he naturally knows nothing about the conditions of our Republic." After having quite a bit to drink, Gao Shaojie’s dull gaze surprisingly revealed a hint of wisdom: "It’s not just our supplementary battalion that needs to be placated; which warlord today isn’t trying to win over their subordinates to support them? Old Dou Sun Yat-sen has to appease the big shot Chen Jiongming, and Big Shot Chen has to win over a group of loyal followers. If one is not careful, the subordinates will either revolt or switch sides."

"Fu Wen, what scheme are you concocting again?" Uncle's voice suddenly rang in my ears, but this time it was not hoarse; rather, it was somewhat light-hearted: "After recovering from a serious injury, you still need to focus on recuperation and not always think about leading troops."

Upon hearing that there was a way to lead troops, Luo Yaoguo's spirits immediately lifted significantly, and he showed no signs of having sustained serious injuries: "Uncle, do you think that unit is better?" The Northern Expedition Army is currently composed of three main factions. If given the choice, Luo Yaoguo could select either Xu Chongzhi's Second Army of the Guangdong Army or Huang Dawei's First Route of the Guangdong Army. However, he had no desire to join the Fu Army, which was made up of bandits.

After contemplating his own future, Luo Yaoguo began to consider the future of the Northern Expedition Army. According to his knowledge, the Northern Expedition Army originally had 30,000 troops; however, after retreating from northern Guangdong, it had disintegrated. Among them, the most formidable force, the First Division of the Guangdong Army, consisting of 7,000 to 8,000 men, had returned to Chen Jiongming's side. Currently, the strength of the Northern Expedition Army should be less than 20,000, with supplies cut off and a lack of food and ammunition. If this situation continues, it is likely to disband. As for a way out, Luo Yaoguo thought of two options: one is to follow the example of the Red Army in establishing a base in Ruijin and engage in land redistribution by fighting the local tyrants. However, it seems that Xu Chongzhi is also incapable of such actions, so the only future left is to enter Fujian and fight to the death.

Luo Yaoguo is also familiar with the basic situation of the supplementary battalion, which currently has 300 officers and soldiers, divided into three companies. The commander of the first company is Wu Ziliang, courtesy name Zhonglou; the commander of the second company is Li Shunen, courtesy name Fengming; and the commander of the third company is Gao Shaojie. Each company has three platoons. When it comes to the nine platoon leaders and the twenty-seven squad leaders below them, Gao Wenyang just shakes his head.

Thinking of an American diploma, Luo Yaoguo was once again searching his mind for military knowledge, and he was startled by what he found! There was a plethora of information on infantry tactics, artillery tactics, cavalry tactics, as well as communications, logistics, engineering, and so on. Haha, it seems that God is quite responsible.

The so-called route, as known from the memories associated with this body, corresponds to the organization of the journey. The Guangdong Army originally had ten routes, among which this first route had the best quality. This is also related to Huang Dawei, who was very energetic and adept at flattering Chen Jiongming. Regarding Huang Dawei, there seems to be no impression in Luo Yaoguo's later memories, suggesting he was likely a minor figure.

"Let us go to Huang Yisun's First Route." Upon mentioning this, Huang Dawei and Luo Yiqun could not help but nod in agreement, saying: "Huang Yisun graduated from the Royal Military Academy of Belgium. He prefers to employ officers who have graduated from formal military academies. In his ranks, you will find either graduates from Baoding or Japanese officers, while most of the troops below the regiment level are descendants of overseas Chinese who graduated from the Yunnan Military Academy. Moreover, Huang Yisun has always held a favorable view of you, a graduate from an American military academy. If you take a position in his First Route, you will certainly receive significant attention. Furthermore, the First Route has a solid foundation and is easy to expand; as long as this battle is fought well, it would not be a problem to expand it into an army."

This is the backbone of our Northern Expedition Army, Commander Huang Yisun. Uncle Luo Yiqun has now changed into the uniform of a lieutenant general, yet a charming smile that undermines his authority still lingers at the corner of his mouth

Brother Fu, you have no idea how troublesome these people are. Gao Shaojie, slightly tipsy, had a flush on his already dark face: "These dozens are all troublemakers from various units. They took advantage of the establishment of the supplementary battalion and were all sent here. These individuals do not listen to orders at all; all they do every day is drink, gamble, and bully the new recruits. The three of us from the military academy simply cannot control them.

With this battalion, we will be able to take advantage in the upcoming Fujian campaign. I estimate that Fujian should not be difficult to conquer, as Commander Xu is quite familiar with the region. There are still many forces in northern Fujian operating under the banner of General Sun. If the opportunity arises, it is very likely that our battalion will be expanded into a regiment or even a brigade. At that time, we will have our own unit in the army, as well as the means to secure our livelihood.