Chapter 37

As night fell, the moon, like a bright mirror, hung in the sky, casting a clear, flowing light over the vast land. The entire city of Nanjing was bathed in the gentle moonlight.

In the former provisional presidential palace of the Republic of China, Gao Yang sat in his office, reviewing the list of candidates' scores from the Military Academy.

This former residence of the Viceroy of Liangjiang, which became the provisional presidential palace after the Xinhai Revolution, was known by the people of Nanjing as the place with the best feng shui in the city. Although Gao Yang did not believe in feng shui, he did not object when Zhang Qian suggested setting up the Inspector-General's residence here.

After more than three months of紧张的整修和翻新，Gao Yang officially moved in a few days ago. This building, with a history of several hundred years, was extremely luxurious and exquisite inside. The garden within the compound featured terraces, pavilions, and water pavilions, reflected in the green pines and cypresses. Artificial hills, strange rocks, flower beds, potted landscapes, wisteria, and bamboo were scattered throughout.

Surrounded by a forest of strange rocks, the garden had a pond of clear green water at its center. A gentle breeze blew, causing the dew to roll back and forth on the lotus leaves like jade plates. The lotus flowers swayed in the wind, and the ancient and elegant beauty of the garden made Gao Yang linger.

After dinner in the modern world, Gao Yang came to the Inspector-General's residence in 1925 and quietly sat in his office, flipping through the list of candidates' scores sent by Colonel Brandt. In the quiet environment, only the sound of pages being turned could be heard. When he saw the familiar names on the list, Gao Yang couldn't help but laugh out loud. His laughter was so loud that it startled the birds in the trees outside, causing them to fly up in a panic.

After a long while, Gao Yang calmed down, picked up his water cup, and drank slowly to soothe his emotions. The entire security system inside the residence was manned by bio-soldiers, so Gao Yang didn't have to worry about any leaks.

Many of the names on the list were from the fourth and fifth terms of the Whampoa Military Academy in the original timeline. These well-known names made Gao Yang very happy.

To Gao Yang, political parties and ideologies didn't matter. As long as you were Chinese, he was willing to take you in! Gao Yang's military strategy was similar to that of the modern U.S. military, emphasizing overall strength and firepower. With powerful strength, he could crush any opponent. The so-called famous generals were mostly those who excelled in battles where the weak defeated the strong, which Gao Yang didn't need.

As long as he had enough talent and wealth, Gao Yang could rely on the strong industrial production capabilities of the modern world to arm his soldiers from head to toe, enough to sweep through all the armies in this timeline! Moreover, Gao Yang had the ultimate weapon, the Origin Point! What Gao Yang needed were a large number of regular officers.

As for officers leading troops in rebellion, Gao Yang wasn't worried at all. In Gao Yang's military plan, the real decision-makers in the army were the non-commissioned officers (NCOs), who were the backbone of the army! NCOs educated in NCO schools and ordinary soldiers who studied every night had at least some discernment. There had to be a reason to rebel, right? Gao Yang had never mistreated his own people in terms of pay or treatment!

Most importantly, the soldiers Gao Yang recruited were mostly from good families with wives and children, and their families were also enjoying Gao Yang's benefits! If just talking could incite soldiers to abandon their generous treatment and leave their families to rebel, what was the point of everything Gao Yang had done? If such a thing really happened, the most likely outcome would be that the NCOs would lead the soldiers to eliminate the officers who wanted to rebel!

Gao Yang gently put down the list of scores and walked out of the office to the front garden. "The moon tonight is really beautiful," he muttered to himself. After standing in the courtyard and admiring the moon for a long time, Gao Yang returned to the office and handed the list to Arno, who had been following him. "Tell Colonel Brandt to announce the list tomorrow." He looked at the Origin Point on his wrist. "It's almost midnight? Oh no, I'm late tonight." Gao Yang hurriedly activated the time travel and returned to the modern world.

At this time, in a Chinese-style courtyard not far from Xuanwu Lake in Nanjing, Lieutenant Colonel Zhang Xinghai, former battalion commander of the 6th Army, was preparing his luggage for school.

"Instead of being a good battalion commander, you're going to be a student. That's really embarrassing to say," Zhang Xinghai's wife, Kong, said as she packed his luggage, nagging incessantly. Zhang Xinghai, busy organizing his items, was too lazy to argue with her and ignored her.

Seeing that her husband didn't respond, Kong's voice immediately grew louder. "Why don't you say something? We could barely make ends meet with the business at home, but you insisted on joining the army. Fine, you're a man, and you can do what you want. But what are you doing now? A battalion commander can make a lot of money, but you just quit. Running back to be a cadet, you..."

"Shut your mouth!" Kong was scared by her husband's angry roar and fell silent. The child sleeping in bed was woken up by the noise and started crying. The couple quickly stopped arguing and comforted the child. After the child fell asleep again, Zhang Xinghai's anger had subsided.

Looking at his wife, who was silently folding his clothes with her head down, Zhang Xinghai sighed and sat next to her, throwing the clothes on the bed. "You're from a scholarly family, so why are you as ignorant as a street woman?"

Seeing the child, he lowered his voice. "You don't know anything and you talk nonsense. What do you mean a battalion commander can make a lot of money? Do you want to get me killed? Do you know how many officers have been executed recently? Seventeen! All of them were arrested and executed the next day! The highest-ranking one was Colonel Li Zhengcheng, the logistics chief of the 19th Division, who was a close confidant of Governor Gao since the capital. He was still executed. I'm just a battalion commander, what am I?"

He took a breath and smiled at his wife, who looked panicked. "I'm fine. I've never taken a penny from the army. Unlike those guys, who are so bold. Now all the money is controlled by the Governor, and they dare to sell the army's weapons! They're asking for death. Two others were executed for embezzling a few hundred dollars in food money! I've realized that if you want to get rich in the army, you're on a dead-end path."

Excited, Zhang Xinghai took out a cigarette and lit it, continuing to his wife. "I'm not stupid. Why would I quit being a battalion commander to go to military school? It's because I've seen it coming. Governor Gao is setting up this military school to cultivate a group of truly loyal confidants. We who followed Governor Gao before can only get more money, but in terms of career, if I can become a brigade commander, it would be a miracle. Just wait and see, when these cadets graduate, it will be their world."

He took a deep puff of the cigarette. "Why would I lose face by going to military school with a bunch of young guys? It's for our child! I'm thirty years old, and I've never been wrong about people. Governor Gao is the one who can rule the country! He's rich, capable, decisive, and ruthless, and most importantly, he's young! The ones who can compete with him, Sun Dapao is dead, Yushuai has no chance of a comeback, and Zhang Dashi is old, and his son, well, he's not even half as good as Governor Gao! The others like Lu Yongxiang, Sun Chuanfang, Yan Xishan, and Feng Yuxiang are not worth mentioning. When Governor Gao finishes sorting out all the affairs, it will be time to deal with them!"

He stubbed out the cigarette and continued. "I only had a child at twenty-eight. For the sake of our child, I don't care about losing face! Entering the military school means becoming a student of the Son of Heaven. Among these young guys, I'll be the leader! When our child grows up, we won't have to worry about his background. In the future, those uncles and aunts who took our business will come crying to me!"

Kong looked at her husband, who was clenching his fists, and was speechless.

In a villa in a mining town in the modern world, Gao Yang hurried to his bedroom and took out his phone to start editing a text message. "How was your day? Did you have fun? Where did you take the photo you sent yesterday? I really want some ice cream too." The recipient was Xiao Shuijing!

That's right, Gao Yang wanted to pursue Xiao Shuijing. His method was to take it slow, handling things in 1925 during the day and returning to the modern world for dinner at night. Every night after 11 PM, he would start texting Xiao Shuijing, and he never interrupted, no matter how late it got. Over time, the two had become increasingly close.

In the waiting room of KBS TV in South Korea, Zheng Xiujing was sitting on a chair, bored, occasionally checking her phone. Her team leader, Song Qian, asked curiously, "Xiao Shuijing, who are you waiting for? You've been acting strange lately. Is something going on?"

Zheng Xiujing sat up straight and covered her mouth, giggling. "No, it's just that Song Qian-sshi has been acting strange lately, not staying in the dorm for several days." Song Qian's face turned red, and she quickly said, "No, I've been staying in the dorm every night. How would you know if you don't stay in the dorm?"

"Ha ha." The girls laughed and teased. At this moment, Zheng Xiujing's phone vibrated. She pretended not to care, opened it, and a smug smile appeared on her face as she typed a reply. "Hmph, I was just about to go to sleep. The ice cream was at a Western restaurant on the second floor of the Seoul Tower Square. It was delicious, but too expensive! How was your day, oppa? Are you still working?"

Lying in bed, Gao Yang smiled lightly at Zheng Xiujing's reply. She was being playful. He quickly replied, "Such delicious ice cream must be eaten. When I go to Seoul next time, you have to treat me. I just finished work."

After receiving the text, Zheng Xiujing pouted and replied, "Why should I treat you, oppa? You should treat me."

Gao Yang's reply came quickly, "Okay, since you keep asking, I'll treat our most beautiful Xiao Shuijing to ice cream."

"Hmph," Zheng Xiujing's lips curled up, and just as she was about to reply, a chorus of exclamations came from her side. "Wow... the most beautiful Xiao Shuijing." The others, who had been playing around, had gathered around her, looking at her phone.

She quickly put away her phone, and her cheeks turned red. "Wow..." the other girls teased her.

After waiting for a long time without a reply, Gao Yang sent another text, "Are you sleeping? Rest well. Don't worry, I'll definitely treat you to ice cream. Good night, sweet dreams." After sending the message, Gao Yang turned off the light and went to sleep.