Chapter 237 Tan Sitong

Wei Jichen certainly did not sleep with Maud that night. He wanted to tear apart Maud's arrogant appearance step by step and get into her heart, but he also knew that he couldn't rush it.

When he left, Wei Jichen checked Maud's friendliness towards him, which was only 40 points. Although it was still far from 90 points, it was much better than the initial 10 points.

The next day, Wei Jichen took Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui and others to Haikou. The coastal artillery was dismantled by the Japanese. Wei Jichen reported to Wang Wenshao and asked him to send the cannons over quickly. At the same time, he dismantled the west wall to repair the east wall, improved some artillery of his artillery team, or exchanged them from other places in Liaodong.

The coastal artillery was the only defense system along the coast in this era. It was not unimportant, and it naturally attracted Wei Jichen's attention.

The original coastal artillery at Lushun did not cause much damage to the Japanese fleet. The main reason was that the Japanese attacked from both sides and the rear land was lost first.

This time, Wei Jichen learned the lesson of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 and redesigned the coastal artillery to increase the firepower against the rear.

There are countless trees planted in Lushun Haikou, among which willows are the most numerous. The old trees are swaying, and the fallen leaves are yellow and withered, falling to the ground one after another. In the breeze, the withered willow branches are swaying in the wind, just like the Qing Dynasty today.

Li Hongzhang spent a huge amount of material and financial resources on Lushunkou, but in the end it was all in vain, Wei Jichen thought with emotion.

Under the yellow fallen leaves, Wei Jichen found several men standing there.

One of them was a middle-aged scholar, with a dignified appearance and a celestial spirit, as if he did not belong to the human world. Wei Jichen immediately felt a good impression. This was the first time he saw such a person since he came to the Qing Dynasty, and what surprised Wei Jichen a little was that this scholar actually wore a sword.

In the Qing Dynasty, people were relaxed and at ease with the military. Not to mention the literati, even the military commanders, few rode horses, most rode in sedan chairs, few carried swords, and most carried money. This man was obviously dressed as a scholar, but he was wearing a sword, which was rare.

However, Wei Jichen was a martial artist, and he saw some clues. This scholar walked vigorously and powerfully, and he had his own standards. He was not wearing a sword for show, but was a real swordsman.

"Who could this be?" Wei Jichen was very surprised that there was such a person in the Qing Dynasty.

Look at the person next to him, who is eight feet tall, with protruding muscles like iron lumps, and has endless strength. What's more shocking is that he holds a Qinglong Yanyue sword, which is probably no less than 100 pounds.

Wei Jichen was very surprised, his eyes flashed, this is a master.

The two people behind him should be book boys, each of them holding a guqin.

"General Wei, do you want to drive this guy away?" Wang Huaiqing looked at the four men with vigilance. They were wearing swords and knives and looked like martial artists. In Wang Huaiqing's mind, they were extremely dangerous.

Wei Jichen smiled and shook his head and said, "This place is not far from the military restricted area. We can't drive them away for no reason. Let them go."

Wang Shizhen didn't care. With his own people protecting him, could the four men hurt General Wei?

"General Wei, in my opinion, it would be better to add a few fixed artillery positions here. In this way, a lot of shooting blind spots can be reduced. If the enemy ships want to enter the port again, they will have to pay a heavy price." Wang Shizhen said seriously. Before coming, he had already done various investigations and was confident at this time.

Duan Qirui obviously disagreed and smiled and retorted: "Lord Wang only considered dealing with targets at sea and forgot to deal with targets behind him. We have limited funds and must be foolproof. Therefore, I suggest that General Wei does not need to add more artillery positions. Just lay more mines in the seaport like Dagukou to form a mine array."

Both of them came from the artillery team. Duan Qirui saw with his own eyes how his artillery positions fell into the hands of the Japanese in Weihaiwei. Therefore, his mentality had changed a long time ago. He believed that fixed artillery positions would not play a big role. If possible, mobile positions would be used.

Wei Jichen was very pleased to see his two beloved generals arguing with reason. The wife said that the wife was right and the husband said that the husband was right. He was afraid that the generals under him would be dead.

"Okay, okay! Let's discuss this matter together when we go back." Wei Jichen saw that the two were arguing and had to speak up to be a peacemaker.

"Huaiqing, have someone spread out military blankets and set out food and wine. We'll continue our patrol after lunch." Wei Jichen was a little hungry, so he said with a smile.

Wang Huaiqing responded and ordered his personal soldiers to spread out food and wine under an ancient tree.

After sitting down, Wang Shizhen and others were a little reserved, but Wei Jichen stood up and personally poured a glass of wine for each of them.

Wang Shizhen and Duan Qirui were both shocked and stood up in fear, saying they dared not to.

Wei Jichen solemnly toasted them first, and then said: "Pinqing and Zhiquan have worked hard for my Dingliao Army these days, and they deserve this cup of wine from me, Wei Jichen."

Xu Daobang and Ma Jinxu are all veterans. It is no problem for them to set up camp and lead troops to war, but it is a bit difficult to ask them to train troops with Western military tactics. The infantry drill manual and artillery training matters compiled by the Dingliao Army were compiled by Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang and others together with German instructors.

Wang Shizhen is a person who does not like to show off, but no matter how big or small, as long as Wei Jichen gives him, he will do his best. When Wei Jichen asked him to compile a book about the origin and achievements of the Dingliao Army, he immediately understood Wei Jichen's meaning.

The compiled books not only portray Wei Jichen as a wise and courageous general, but also vividly describe how Wei Jichen cherished his soldiers and treated them like brothers, making the soldiers believe that Wei Jichen was not only their food and clothing parent, but also their absolute leader. , and strive to cultivate the soldiers' sense of absolute obedience and loyalty.

No wonder this man could become the Dragon of Beiyang in the future, but he was not as keen on power as Feng Guozhang and Duan Qirui, and he won Yuan Shikai's trust.

Wei Jichen felt happy in his heart, and when the wine was dry, he felt a powerful aura.

At this moment, a burst of tragic poetry came over.

"There is nothing in the world that can overcome the sorrow of autumn. When Xiang Canghao takes a rest, 40 million people will shed tears. Where is the divine state in the world!"

Wei Jichen turned his head and saw the scholar just now weeping among the willows, drinking alone in front of the sea water. He was obviously feeling sad, probably thinking about the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 or something like that.

"These scholars can only write one or two sour poems and howl twice. In today's world, how many people like Wei Shuai have worked hard and tried their best to avenge their shame?" Although Duan Qirui What he said was a bit flattering, but it made sense.

In today's government, there are indeed too few people doing practical things.

Wei Jichen and others were all wearing casual clothes, so the scholar didn't know that Wei Jichen and others were officials, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to say, "Where in the world is China?"

Wei Jichen smiled and said nothing, just raised his glass and drank.

Soon, there was another sad and sad sound from the piano. Wei Jichen turned around and saw that the scribe was already sitting cross-legged on the ground, playing the piano.

Now, Wang Huaiqing was not happy. Everyone was drinking happily here, but the scribe played such a sad song. Anyone would be a little depressed.

"That sour scholar, if you want to play the piano, go and play, and don't bother us drinking and talking." Wang Huaiqing shouted loudly.

"Yeah!" The big man standing next to the scribe opened his eyes, his eyes flickering, and his eyes were as bright as the scorching sun above nine heavens, staring at Wang Huaiqing.

Wang Huaiqing was like an angry leopard, staring back without any sign of weakness. The two of them stared at me, and I stared at you, neither letting the other go, not even blinking, and they were still slowly approaching.

Wei Jichen wanted to try the big man's martial arts, but did not say anything to stop him.

Wang Huaiqing and the Han Dynasty had never met before, so why did they become so tense when they met that a war was imminent? The biggest reason is that I met an opponent and wanted to compete.

The two were already standing face to face, with Wei Jichen and others looking at them solemnly.

Bang!

Two big feet stamped on the ground, making a shocking sound, like a heavy hammer hitting the ground. The ground was overwhelmed and trembled.

Needless to say, Wang Huaiqing was the most powerful general in the Dingliao army, otherwise he would not have become the captain of the personal soldiers. When Wei Jichen was injured, he was walking as fast as he could with that on his back, without any pressure. He did not expect that the man opposite him could be so powerful.

I saw the two people stretched out their right hands and clasped each other tightly. Their arms were covered with veins, like earthworms.

"Ho!"

The two of them shouted loudly at the same time, like a tiger roaring, shaking the eardrums.

There was a heart-stopping sound of joint friction, and the eyes of both of them were filled with light, which was breathtaking.

It seemed like there were only two people left in the whole world.

This was a contest of brute strength. The two men were breathing heavier and heavier, and their faces were as red as drunkenness.

"Hey!" Wang Shizhen yelled softly, because he found that Wang Huaiqing's right hand was being pressed down bit by bit.

Interesting, Wei Jichen's heart moved slightly.

"rise!"

The big man bit his lip tightly and roared, and the angry veins swelled. Wang Huaiqing was even worse. On his arms, neck, and forehead, the veins were like the branches of an old tree. His eyeballs were bloodshot and bulging out of their sockets.

Seeing that Wang Huaiqing was about to be knocked to the ground, the scribe next to him said loudly: "Brother Wang, why should you hurt your harmony?"

"Young Master is right!" The man lost his strength, Wang Huaiqing's body lightened, and he said hoarsely: "I lost."

The two stared at each other, noticing the admiration and excitement in each other's eyes, and suddenly felt a sense of sympathy for each other.

"Wang Huaiqing!"

"Wang Wu!"

Wei Jichen on the side heard the man calling himself Wang Wu and was delighted. Could it be that the scribe was Tan Sitong.

Tan Sitong was one of the people Wei Jichen respected in the late Qing Dynasty.

"I am smiling to the sky with my horizontal sword, leaving behind my liver and gallbladder." He is proud and confident.

Tan Sitong had the pride of an ancient righteous man and the magnanimity of a chivalrous man. He learned swordsmanship from Wang Wu at the age of 12, and began to travel the world with swords at the age of 20. He traveled up and down the Yellow River and north and south of the Yangtze River. He was also a comet in the ideological circles of the late Qing Dynasty. In his short life, he left a lasting legacy. An article written by Xia Renxue exudes the light of thousands of feet and sweeps away the power of clarification.

"Meeting is fate. If you don't think a certain wine is too weak, why not come and have a drink." Wei Jichen thought to himself and was not slow to speak. Seeing Wang Wu and Wang Huaiqing cherishing each other, he couldn't help but laugh out loud and said to the scribe, whether it is Tan Sitong or not , this person is very popular and worth making friends with.

The scribe put away the piano and handed it to the bookboy beside him. He walked over quickly and said with a calm smile: "In that case, I'll bother you sir."

Only then did Wei Jichen take a closer look and saw that he was in his thirties, wearing a moon-white gown and a black warrior uniform. He had his left hand on his waist and a sword in his right hand. He had thick eyebrows and handsome eyes, which were as bright as lightning. He had a look that stood as tall as a mountain and looked arrogant. The awe-inspiring righteousness of the God of Death.

"Could it be that Liuyang Tan was resurrected?" Wei Jichen asked, squinting his eyes.

Tan Sitong was curious, and didn't expect that his identity had been guessed. When he walked not far away, he saw that Wei Jichen had a majestic demeanor in his gestures, without any pretense, but naturally revealed.

Who is this person? Although he is young and handsome, he has the appearance of a dragon and a tiger. When he looks around, he actually has a momentum of swallowing mountains and rivers and looking down on the world.

"It is Tan, may I ask who you are, brother?" Tan Sitong gently clasped his fists to Wei Jichen and said with a smile.

"Why do we have to know each other before we meet? Just sit down and drink." Wei Jichen gently pointed to the ground and said calmly.

Wei Jichen knew that Tan Sitong was an outstanding figure in this era. He criticized the monarchical system and the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues, and believed that for those tyrannical and despotic monarchs, not only do they not have to die for them, but they can also be killed by everyone.

Tan Sitong is different from Kang Youwei. Tan Sitong's character is like that of a knight in ancient times. He can die for justice, for his ideals, and sacrifice himself to death. Kang Youwei is far inferior to him.

"Is the Fengju sword in your hand, brother Tan?" Wei Jichen asked curiously.

You know, the Fengju sword is an old thing of Wen Tianxiang, so Wei Jichen naturally wanted to see it. He heard in his later life that Tan Sitong cherished this sword as if it were his life and never left it, so he guessed that it was this sword.

"Brother, you are also a sword lover!" Tan Sitong smiled slightly, and when he saw that there was also a long sword next to Wei Jichen, he handed his Fengju sword to Wei Jichen.

Wei Jichen was a little stunned. Such a precious thing, people who just met each other, Tan Sitong completely gave it away with confidence.

"Thank you, brother Tan, for borrowing the sword to see." Wei Jichen's hands moved quickly. Anyone who encountered such a famous sword would be excited.

Buzz...

With a dragon roar, Feng Ju was pulled out by Wei Jichen. The sword body was like autumn waves, and the hilt showed the traces of time.

"Good sword!" Wei Jichen stood up, holding the sword with one hand, and began to dance.

"...Kill one person every ten steps, leave no trace in a thousand miles,..." Wei Jichen sang while dancing.

This sword dance technique was learned from the Qin general when he returned to Qin. Unexpectedly, it was used today. Everyone was dazzled and excited.

"Wei Shuai is indeed not an ordinary person. He can even know such an ancient sword dance technique. Is he the heir of that family?" Duan Qirui thought secretly in his heart.

The Duan family has been passed down for many generations. Duan Qirui first thought about this aspect, but he heard that Wei Shuai was of ordinary origin.