The next morning, Yuan Shikai led his family and gathered with the army to set off.

Yuan Shikai is very handsome. Although he is less than 50 years old, he is about to marry one wife and eight concubines. Among them, the fourth concubine, Min, has died, and now he has 8 wives and concubines. Now he has given birth to 14 sons and 12 daughters for Yuan Shikai, and only four daughters died young. At this time, only the eldest son Yuan Keding and the eldest daughter Yuan Bozhen became an adult. Yuan Keding followed Yuan Shikai's director, and Yuan Bozhen married Zhang Renjun's son, and the rest of the children are all around Yuan Shikai. In addition, servants, maids and other family members, a total of more than 360 people have formed a large family.

This time, Yuan Shikai had no intention of returning to Beijing, so he took away all his property, soft and other items. He used more than 60 carriages and more than 50 family members riding horses. The team was very large and 4,500 meters long along the Mian.

It is normal for local officials like the governor to take office and bring their family reputation, but Yuan Shikai's family has more, so the scale is naturally larger, but it is not a strange thing.

After joining the army, the troops headed south all the way. Of course, they could take the train to Baoding first. However, Baoding is the garrison of the Beiyang New Army. Although each of the six towns in Beiyang now has new garrisons, Baoding still retains the military camp. Yuan Shikai also has a house and some land here. At the same time, there are Beiyang Quick and Martial Arts School and Beiyang Army Quick and Flash School in Baoding, which imitates new-style army schools. Therefore, Yuan Shikai stayed in Baoding for two days, mainly to receive some friends who bid farewell to him, old subordinates, etc., and naturally he would welcome him and send him off.

On the night that Yuan Shikai had just arrived in Baoding, before he could sit firmly at his residence, his family came to report that Duan Qirui asked for a meeting, and had been waiting in the doorman for a long time. Yuan Shikai was slightly stunned, then nodded and said, "Call him in."

Not long after, the family brought Duan Qirui. When they saw Yuan Shikai, Duan Qirui immediately knelt down on the ground and worshiped with a great ceremony: "I have met Wei Shuai."

Yuan Shikai hurriedly got up, helped Duan Qirui up, and said, "Zhiquan, what are you doing? Get up quickly, get up quickly. Sit down and talk."

Duan Qirui sat down on the chair on the side, and another family brought tea. Yuan Shikai picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said, "Zhiquan came to me so late, what's wrong?"

Duan Qirui hurriedly sat upright and said, "Wei Shuai has worked hard all the way, and he is still here to ask trouble. It is really uneasy to delay Hui Shuai's rest."

Yuan Shikai waved his hand and said, "There is no need to say these words. I took the train all the way, and it is not a hard time to arrive. If you come to me, there must be something wrong, just say it."

Duan Qirui said: "Wei Shuai went to Liangjiang to take office this time, and the responsibility is heavy, so I am afraid the burden is not light."

Yuan Shikai smiled and said, "This is an appointment by the court, and no matter how heavy the burden is, you have to get rid of it."

Duan Qirui stood up, bowed and said, "I am willing to go to Liangjiang with Fushuai, and do my best to comfort Shuai to repay the favor of the goodwill of the meeting."

In the battle against East China, Duan Qirui did not respect Yuan Shikai's orders and responded passively, but was very active for the position of the governor of Henan. As a result, he made a quick move and was ambushed by the Volunteer Army. Not only did he be wiped out by the third town of Beiyang under his command, but even Duan Qirui was captured by the Volunteer Army. Although he was released later, his military position must not be maintained. It was still Yuan Shikai who ignored his past grudges and asked Duan Qirui to be an instructor in the Beiyang Quick Martial Preparation Academy to be considered a job to make a living.

Although he has no worries about food, Duan Qirui is also a person with great ambitions. Of course, he is unwilling to be an instructor for the rest of his life, so he has been looking for opportunities to return to the army. However, Duan Qirui also knew that although Yuan Shikai asked him to serve as an instructor in the Beiyang Quick Martial Preparation School, he was defeated by Yuan Shikai first, so he would definitely not get Yuan Shikai's trust again. If he wanted to return to the army, it would be far away. Duan Qirui was also very regretful. Why did he lose his vigilance at the beginning, but he did not obey Yuan Shikai's instructions. As a result, not only did he lose his troops, but his future was also ruined.

This time Yuan Shikai was appointed as the governor of Liangjiang, Duan Qirui also realized that his opportunity had come. Of course Duan Qirui did not know Yuan Shikai's plan. In his opinion, Yuan Shikai's southward journey was very dangerous, and he might even meet the warring forces in East China. However, it was because this southward journey was very dangerous that he had the opportunity to regroup. If he followed Yuan Shikai to Liangjiang at this time, he would definitely be able to regain his trust and reuse. Of course, it was very dangerous to follow Yuan Shikai to Liangjiang at this time. If he might even lose his life in Liangjiang, he would be willing to go south with Yuan Shikai. However, he would be in danger of wealth and honor. Only in this way can he show his sincerity. Even if he really lost his life in the end, he would be considered as rewarding Yuan Shikai. So Duan Qirui came to visit Yuan Shikai overnight and asked to go south with Yuan Shikai to Liangjiang.

In fact, Yuan Shikai also guessed 5 or 6 points for Duan Qirui's purpose of visiting this time, but Duan Qirui's ability to ask him to go to Liangjiang with him was considered sincere. After all, Duan Qirui could not know that he had reached an agreement with East China. In addition, although the danger was not great, the difficulties would never be missing. It was also when he was employed. Duan Qirui was known as the Tiger of the Beiyang, and his ability was second to none among the Beiyang New Army. If he could follow him sincerely, he could indeed become a great help to him. Of course, whether Duan Qirui would remain loyal to him can be slowly tested in the future, but now he can bring Duan Qirui with him first.

So Yuan Shikai nodded and said, "Zhiquan, do you know that this time I went south, but I will die for a lifetime. It is almost like helping the war. I have been favored by the court. Although I have no regrets in my death, if you want to follow me to go south, maybe you won't be able to come back. You have to think about it!"

When Duan Qirui heard Yuan Shikai's words loose, he immediately said: "I am willing to follow Fu Shuai, and I will never regret it if I die."

Yuan Shikai nodded and said, "Okay, it's rare that you have this intention. Since that's the case, then go back and pack your luggage. The morning after tomorrow, follow the army and be an aide by my side first. After arriving in Liangjiang, I will arrange your errands as appropriate."

Duan Qirui was overjoyed when he heard this and said, "Thank you, Weishuai." After saying that, he bowed to Yuan Shikai and left.

Two days later, the team set out again, Duan Qirui also completed the relevant procedures for the school and brought his family with him to show his attitude of giving up and following Yuan Shikai.

However, after leaving Baoding, there were no trains, and they could only rely on walking or chariots. Three days later, the team entered Shunde Prefecture. Although it was still in Hebei Province, Shunde Prefecture was the territory of East China and is now under the jurisdiction of Henan Province. At this time, Henan Province and the Southeast Military Region had received orders from Qingdao. Henan Province sent a guidance team to arrange marching routes, camping locations, and food supply along the way, etc. The Southeast Military Region sent a battalion of troops to march with Yuan Shikai's team, which was actually monitoring Yuan Shikai's movements along the way.

Of course, Yuan Shikai had no objection to this. Bi Jing was on the territory of East China, so of course he had to obey the arrangements of East China. Moreover, the arrangements of East China were very reasonable, and Yuan Shikai could not find any fault.

The roads guided by the East China *** to Yuan Shikai's team are basically in addition to the effectiveness, passing through the countryside, and trying to avoid the city as much as possible. First, the rural roads are relatively remote and there are few pedestrians, which can be conducive to marching, and at the same time, it is also easy to find places to camp and rest in the countryside. Moreover, after the East China ** occupy Henan, it also spent a lot of effort to repair the roads. Even the country roads were much better than the Qing court. Not only were the roads flat, but they were wide enough, and the surface layers were paved and compacted with cinders, and drainage ditches were built on both sides. Therefore, not only were they lighter to walk, but they would not become muddy roads even on rainy days.

After entering the territory of East China, Yuan Shikai once again ordered the army to strictly abide by military discipline and ensure that there was no offense. When camping at night, he ordered soldiers to stay in the camp and not go out. Violators were killed immediately. If they had any needs, they asked for guidance teams sent by Henan Province. Moreover, every night, Yuan Shikai personally patrolled the camp and arranged for Duan Qirui and Wang Shizhen to take turns to ensure that there was no accident. After all, no accident could be done in East China.

Of course, East China ** provides Yuan Shikai's team with sufficient supply along the way, and the food is also very rich, including rice, pastries, vegetables, fish and wine. Yuan Shikai's team can not only eat well, but also save a lot of effort, so the speed of the marching is faster than usual.

Yuan Shikai had a lot of contacts with the East China **, and he also knew about the East China **, and had been to Qingdao and Tianjin several times, but he had never been to the East China **, because it was in the countryside. This march was basically walking in the countryside, so Yuan Shikai could take this opportunity to carefully observe the customs and styles under the rule of the East China **, and have a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the situation of the East China **.
Chapter completed!