Chapter 4: The Army Headquarters

Thus, Wu Shaoting followed the young clerk to the corridor beside the courtyard. On the way to the officer's office, he asked the clerk, "May I ask for your esteemed name, elder brother?"

Wu Shaoting smiled and replied, "I would not dare to forget. Therefore, esteemed guests, I shall take my leave first."

"Master Wu, this is the place." Lin Zhaoren invited Wu Shaoting to step forward first

The minor official repeatedly said, "Lord Wu, please this way; I will lead you."

"I am unworthy of such praise, I am unworthy of such praise. Master Wu is a distinguished graduate from overseas, and it is only right that Master Wu takes care of a humble official like myself in the future," Lin Zhaoren said repeatedly.

Wu Shaoting furrowed his brows; he did not have much impression of Zhang Haili, but he was quite familiar with Chen Lianbo. Upon careful consideration, it seemed he had seen this name on a traitorous website. Chen Lianbo could be considered a magnate in Guangzhou, having amassed considerable wealth by taking advantage of the foreign officials' assistance. During the May Fourth Movement, Chen Lianbo even formed a merchant militia, brutally suppressing the patriotic student movement; he even attempted in 1924 to overthrow the revolutionary government of Guangzhou with the merchant militia to establish a merchant regime.

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Lin Zhaoren, upon seeing this, quickly advised, "Lord Wu, you should not take it to heart. Both Lord Zhang and Lord Chen are formidable figures, and even the governor must give them some regard.

"Zhang Tang, does he know your identity now?" Hu Zhixin inquired

Wu Shaoting entered the main hall of the officer's office. Directly in front of him was a counter, behind which sat two officials, one dressed in official robes and the other in a modern military uniform

Wu Shaoting felt as if he owed this Lord Chen a huge sum of money that had not been repaid, what kind of attitude is this However, fortunately, he remained calm, took the suitcase from Lin Zhaoren, and took out all the documents and certificates, laying them out one by one on the counter

Hu Hanmin smiled and said, "This is only natural"

Wu Shaoting carried his luggage and walked in. As he reached the front courtyard, he saw several officials in official robes chatting idly with two Chinese men dressed in suits at the steps of the main hall.

Wu Shaoting let out a cold laugh and said nothing more

Randomly, he wrote down his temporary address in Guangzhou on a piece of paper and handed it to Wu Shaoting

Lin Zhaoren entered and greeted with a smile behind the counter: "Lord Chen, this is Lord Wu, who has just returned from studying in Germany. He is a military academy student and has come to report today"

Lord Chen sighed, pushed aside the documents in his hand, raised his head to glance at Wu Shaoting, and mechanically asked: "Resume, identification, graduation certificate, consular guarantee."

Oh. Please wait a moment while I look for your file. Upon hearing that Wu Shaoting and Wu Changchun were not directly related, Master Chen naturally did not take it seriously. After saying this, he slowly got up and walked to the back, rummaging through a pile of cabinets.

However, it is strange that, after all, this is a military institution, yet there are not even any guards at the entrance

Wang Shouzheng nodded and said, "In that case, it would be best to keep in touch with him more in the future"

Wu Shaoting silently cursed, and due to the fluctuations of his emotions, he couldn't help but let out a soft "hmph"

Who were those two stylish foreigners earlier?" Wu Shaoting asked again.

These two pretentious foreigners, one old and one young, spout a phrase or two in French at every turn, which is as jarring as a dead fly in a bowl of rice soup, and it truly sounds disgusting

The officials and those in suits also saw Wu Shaoting. They noticed that Wu Shaoting was dressed simply, his hair in disarray, and even some hair had grown on his forehead, which led them to feel disdain. One of the officials coldly shouted, "Where are you from? Do you know what this place is, just because you have entered?"

Oh, these two are both assistants who work for foreigners in the concession. The older one is Zhang Haili, who works at the French Bank; the other young man is named Chen Lianbo, and he is even more remarkable. He originally managed his family's silk company while also serving as an assistant for both HSBC and Citibank. He is truly thriving.

The previous clerk quickly came out with a smile to mediate the situation. He first laughed and joked with the two foreign gentlemen, saying: "Lord Wu has traveled a long way across the ocean, so it is inevitable that he has picked up some dust from the journey. Please do not take offense, gentlemen."

The Army Yamen is located at the end of a street in the western suburbs of Dajiaochang. It took a rickshaw driver a full half hour to reach this place. After paying the fare, the driver kindly helped Wu Shaoting carry the luggage to the entrance of the yamen. The architecture of this yamen still retains its ancient charm, featuring a vermilion gate and powder-white courtyard walls. On the beam above the door hang four large characters in regular script: "Army Yamen"

Wu Shaoting left the dock, hailed a rickshaw, and headed directly to the Guangdong Army Headquarters

However, the sergeant dressed in the new-style military uniform observed Wu Shaoting carefully from head to toe, revealing a very interested expression. He smiled and nudged the nearby Mr. Chen, saying: "Old Chen, he has returned from abroad and is indeed a future pillar of our country; how can we neglect him?"

Hu Hanmin smiled slightly and said, "I still do not know his background. However, while on the ship, he discussed some revolutionary ideas with me, which I found quite enlightening. What we currently lack are comrades serving in the military. Since he has revolutionary inclinations and is about to be assigned a military position, he is precisely the type of person we should strive to win over."

Wu Shaoting, originally from Anhui, graduated from the Guangzhou Army Primary School and then advanced to the Guangzhou Army Military Academy. He was recommended by Wu Changchun, the commander of the Fifth Brigade, to study at the Higher Officer School in Munich, Germany. "As Lord Chen read through Wu Shaoting's resume, he murmured to himself, 'What is your relationship with General Wu Changchun?'

Wu Shaoting politely declined, saying: "I still have to rush to the yamen to report in. Once everything is settled, I will host you all again."

One of the older middle-aged men, sporting a French-style mustache, chuckled coldly and said: "Today's étudiants (French, international students) are becoming increasingly undécents (fastidious). Your study abroad represents the Ladignité (dignity) of our Great Qing Empire. Just look at how you all have returned, as if you have just survived a shipwreck."

At this moment, the two Chinese men in suits showed no regard for Wu Shaoting's face whatsoever

Another young man joined in the laughter, saying: "Yes, and the book, yes (exactly), in this posture, who knows if he is a fourbe (deceiver)"

The official in the ceremonial robe was lowering his head to organize documents. Upon hearing the words, he did not even lift his head, merely responding with a hint of impatience: "German military academy exchange students? When did we ever send anyone to study at the German military academy?"

So it is Lord Wu. You really should have sent a telegram while on the ship, so that we could send someone to the dock to welcome you. It is truly disrespectful. The official from earlier quickly nodded and bowed, trying to ingratiate himself.

I did not disclose my identity to him, but he should have roughly guessed it. This is of no concern; a young man like him, even if he does not engage in the revolution, would not betray us!" Hu Hanmin said confidently

Wu Shaoting nodded slightly, noting that the term here refers to an official title, equivalent to an office clerk. He smiled gently and said politely, "So it is Brother Lin. I hope you will take good care of me in the future"

Certainly, the subversive actions ultimately ended in failure, after which Chen Lianbo remained active in places such as Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Following the outbreak of World War II, he consistently aligned himself with the pro-Japanese camp, advocating that Hong Kong should be "peacefully" ceded to Japan

Hu Hanmin defended Wu Shaoting by saying: "Zhenzhi has just returned to the country after a long journey across the ocean lasting several years, so there are still many matters to attend to. Let Zhenzhi go for now." After saying this, he turned to Wu Shaoting again and reminded him, "Zhenzhi, after you report back properly, remember to send someone to inform me, and I will write down an address for you."

The two pretentious foreigners, upon witnessing this, laughed derisively in their hearts, assuming that this international student could not understand French, and they took pride in their supposed superiority.

The small official replied with a smile, "Lord Wu is too polite; I am Lin Zhaoren, a clerk in the yamen."

Hu Hanmin, Zhu Zhixin, and others then bid farewell to Wu Shaoting here

After Wu Shaoting disappeared into the crowd at the dock exit, Wang Shouzheng could not help but tug at Hu Hanjun's sleeve and asked, "Zhantang, is this person reliable?"

Hearing the pompous official tone, Wu Shaoting felt uncomfortable in his heart. He replied, without being servile or overbearing: "I am Wu Shaoting. In the 30th year of the Guangxu era, I was recommended by the esteemed General Wu Changchun to study in the German Empire after attending the Army Military Academy in Guangzhou. Today, having completed my studies, I have come here to report."

"Excuse me, sir, how do I get to the officer's office?" Without waiting for the young clerk to steady himself, Wu Shaoting, with an expression of nonchalance, asked first.

Wu Shaoting despises such traitorous lackeys, who, relying on their service to foreigners, bully their own compatriots with false authority. However, he does not wish to dwell on these matters with them for now; a gentleman's revenge is not too late even after ten years. Sooner or later, these traitorous lackeys will face the consequences.

"Paternal uncle of the same clan," Wu Shaoting replied

Lin Zhaoren led Wu Shaoting through the corridor and arrived at the second courtyard. As soon as they entered, the atmosphere became lively, with people coming and going, all engaged in official business. Some were in military uniforms, while others wore official robes. At the end of one side of the courtyard stood a three-room building, with a plaque hanging above the door that read "Officer's Office"

He is truly a complete traitor to the Han people

Upon hearing this background, everyone immediately reined in their previous disdainful attitudes. They were all minor officials, and once these high-achieving returnees from overseas were assigned their positions, their official titles were naturally higher than their own, so they did not dare to offend them