Chapter 1

In the early morning, as the sun rose and its rays fell upon the sea, creating a shimmering surface, the fog in the Bohai Strait began to gradually dissipate.

At 9 a.m., a cargo ship flying the American flag sailed into the strait, heading northwest! This cargo ship, named the 'Dawn Goddess,' belonged to the American West China Group and had a displacement of 8,000 tons.

On the deck of the cargo ship, a young man in a gray military uniform stood at the bow, gazing into the distance! The sunlight shone on him, casting a long shadow on the deck!

"Damn it! Why is the history now different from before?" the young man cursed fiercely!

His name was Wu Haoxuan, and he was twenty years old. He had just graduated from West Point with excellent grades and was awarded the rank of second lieutenant in the U.S. Army! Originally, he planned to stay in the United States for a few more years, earn more dollars, and then return to China! However, the events that occurred now deviated from the history he knew, forcing him to abandon his previous plans and return to China early!

Perhaps, from the moment he was born twenty years ago, history had already changed!

Wu Haoxuan's ancestral home was in Licheng, Shandong. Of course, he was born in Northeast China! His father, the famous Wu Xingquan, also known as Wu Datongue, was one of the leaders of the Fengtian clique! In his previous life, Wu Haoxuan was a military history enthusiast, and his greatest hobby was to post radical comments on various military forums after work. Of course, that was just a way to vent! As a result, after a night of heavy drinking, he mysteriously traveled back to the late Qing Dynasty and became Wu Xingquan's son!

Wu Haoxuan didn't really care about this outcome! In his previous life, he had lived a rather miserable existence, and this time, he had a rare chance to start over, which he cherished immensely!

Four years ago, when he was sixteen, his father Wu Xingquan was already a senior officer in the Fengtian Patrol Camp. Like most Chinese people, Wu Xingquan hoped his son would become successful! To give his son a higher starting point, he went to great lengths to secure an opportunity for Wu Haoxuan to study at the Japanese Army Staff College! However, Wu Haoxuan directly refused and chose to go to West Point instead!

Although puzzled by Wu Haoxuan's choice to go to America, Wu Xingquan still managed to use his connections with the Qing Dynasty's envoy to the United States, Wu Tingfang, to get Wu Haoxuan into West Point!

Wu Haoxuan's four years in America were very fulfilling! Not only did he build a strong physique, but he also received systematic military education. Most importantly, during these four years, he successfully established a considerable fortune in America using his vacation time!

In the first year in America, Wu Haoxuan used the patent for nylon to collaborate with the DuPont family to produce stockings, which caused a sensation across America and the entire Western world! Countless European and American women went crazy over these thin, semi-transparent stockings! This brought Wu Haoxuan substantial profits! In the first year, his share of the profits was as high as tens of millions of dollars, and it continued to increase in the following years!

After making his first fortune, Wu Haoxuan started to play with oil! The discovery of the East Texas oil field in 1902 became a major news event in America! This oil field, with a reserve of ten billion barrels, attracted the pursuit of American oil and financial giants! The owner of the East Texas oil field was Wu Haoxuan. Later, he sold 51% of the shares to Standard Oil for 100 million dollars! He could still receive tens of millions of dollars in profits each year, and as the world's demand for oil increased, his annual profits would continue to grow!

In 1903, Wu Haoxuan once again collaborated with the DuPont family to establish a pharmaceutical factory to produce sulfanilamide! In an era without penicillin, sulfanilamide was a highly effective anti-inflammatory drug! Wu Haoxuan held 40% of the shares in the pharmaceutical factory, and in the first year, he earned 20 million dollars! This was like a gold mine, providing a steady stream of support for his ideals!

Besides these profitable industries, what Wu Haoxuan truly valued was an armory! In 1902, Wu Haoxuan and John Browning established an armory, with John Browning serving as the head of research and development! In the past two years, the armory had developed the M1903 rifle, the M1904 light machine gun, the M1904 heavy machine gun, the M1 submachine gun, and 60mm and 80mm mortars! However, the U.S. military was not very concerned about military matters, and the U.S. Army had only a few hundred thousand troops! The armory was in a long-term loss due to a lack of orders! Of course, Wu Haoxuan didn't care; he just needed the production technology for these weapons! Even if the armory continued to lose money, his financial resources were sufficient to sustain it!

A young man with blond hair and blue eyes, standing at 1.8 meters tall, approached Wu Haoxuan and asked, "Boss, how much longer until we arrive?"

"Almost there! We are already in the Bohai Strait. We will reach Yingkou by tomorrow afternoon!" Wu Haoxuan replied. This young man was named James, one of Wu Haoxuan's best friends from West Point! After graduation, he chose to work with Wu Haoxuan instead of joining the U.S. Army! James had excellent grades at West Point! However, there was no platform for them to showcase their talents in the current U.S. military! The entire country was obsessed with making more money, and the military was not a priority! With the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans as natural barriers and surrounded by weak countries, the U.S. was secure!

"I can't wait to become a general! Boss, you promised me at least a brigade to command!" James laughed.

"Of course! But we have to build this brigade ourselves!" Wu Haoxuan said. Although he had no troops under his command, the 'Dawn Goddess' was loaded with a large amount of military equipment, enough to form an infantry division!

"Boss! I believe we will establish an army that will震撼整个亚洲!" James said excitedly, waving his fist!

Wu Haoxuan smiled; he was also full of confidence!

The reason Wu Haoxuan was in a hurry to return to China was that the situation in the country had changed, or rather, exceeded his expectations! During his four years in America, he had always been closely following the domestic situation! His father, Wu Xingquan, had risen to the position of commander of the Fengtian Rear Patrol Camp and a reserve general, and was considered one of the four most important military figures in Fengtian, along with Zhang Yuting, Feng Lingge, and Ma Tengxi!

A month ago, in June 1905, the Qing Dynasty's Viceroy of Zhili and Minister of the Beiyang, Yuan Shikai, faced a large number of impeachments from censors. The royal family was very alarmed by the expansion of the Beiyang forces and began to take countermeasures! Most of the Grand Council also demanded that Yuan Shikai relinquish his power! In this situation, Yuan Shikai did not choose to back down but took a risky action!

On June 7, the Beiyang New Army's Second and Fourth Divisions surrounded the First Division, which served as the imperial guard, and forcibly disarmed them, taking control of Beijing! Yuan Shikai, under the banner of purging the court, arrested all the censors who had impeached him, and all the Grand Council members except for Xu Shichang, who supported him, were arrested. The residences of the royal family were also placed under strict surveillance!

Yuan Shikai's actions caused a huge uproar nationwide! Various provincial governors sent telegrams condemning Yuan Shikai for staging a military coup, demanding that he release the imprisoned officials and relinquish his military power! Otherwise, they would send troops to the capital to support the emperor!

The foreign legations were also dissatisfied with Yuan Shikai's actions, which destabilized China. If it weren't for the support of the British envoy to China, John Jordan, and his negotiations with other envoys, the powers might have already issued an ultimatum to Yuan Shikai!

Although the Beiyang New Army under Yuan Shikai was the most powerful in the country, it was difficult to control the situation with internal and external threats! However, he was already in a bind, and if he couldn't quickly turn the tide, his fate would be clear!

Wu Haoxuan, far in America, was greatly shocked upon receiving the news from China! He immediately changed his original plan and returned to China early! He also prepared a large amount of weapons to develop his strength during the turmoil in China! In times of chaos, a powerful army was the foundation for survival!

"Boss! San Francisco has sent a telegram. The machinery and equipment you need are ready and can be loaded onto the ship at any time!" A white man in his thirties, holding a telegram, walked onto the deck. His name was Davis, the CEO of the West China Group founded by Wu Haoxuan, and he was accompanying Wu Haoxuan to China to investigate the situation, especially in Northeast China!

"Tell San Francisco to wait for my message before loading the ship!" Wu Haoxuan said! To build a powerful army, a strong industrial base was essential! Using his American businesses, he could purchase a large amount of industrial equipment to establish a complete industrial system in China, especially in the Northeast, which was resource-rich but economically underdeveloped! These would be the guarantees for his ambitions!

"Sure, Boss! By the way, the exploration team we sent to Mexico has already set out! However, is there really a large amount of oil in the place you mentioned?" Davis asked.

"Guy, trust me, it's correct! Just like what we did in East Texas!" Wu Haoxuan said with great certainty!

"Haha! Davis, do you still doubt the boss? I completely believe he is God's bastard!" James laughed!

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