Chapter 90

Hu Conglu smiled shyly and took out a cigarette from his pocket, handing it to Zhang Xinghai. After both of them lit their cigarettes, they walked together towards the camp headquarters.

The 2nd Regiment was entirely stationed in the suburbs, and they had not requisitioned any civilian houses, only using large combination tents. The weather was fine, and apart from the abundance of mosquitoes, living in tents was not a problem for the army. Gao Yang strictly prohibited disturbing the civilians.

As they entered the camp headquarters, the battalion commander Hu Bo, who was writing some documents, looked up and grinned, saying, "Oh, Chief Advisor Hu has come. What wind has brought you here today?"

"Hehe." Hu Conglu smiled and then took out the order and handed it to Hu Bo.

After Zhang Xinghai and Hu Bo finished reading the order and exchanged glances, Zhang Xinghai, with a cigarette in his mouth, said in a deep voice, "Little Hu, what are you planning to do by mobilizing troops?"

Hu Conglu sat down on an ammunition box and said softly, "It's a direct order from the military governor!"

As soon as he said this, Hu Conglu clearly felt the two men in front of him tense up, and the atmosphere in the room became serious.

Feeling a bit nervous, Hu Conglu straightened his back and said solemnly, "The military governor has personally ordered the arrest of the Green Gang boss, Mr. Huang! He must be brought to court!"

Zhang Xinghai frowned and asked, "Do you want him alive?"

"Yes, alive," Hu Conglu nodded in response.

"Mr. Huang is the inspector of the French Concession. If we arrest him, what about the French...?" Hu Bo said with a worried expression.

Hu Conglu interrupted Hu Bo and said sternly, "Battalion Commander Hu! I don't care what the French think! I only know that I must complete the order given by the military governor!"

Hu Bo smiled awkwardly, looking a bit embarrassed. Being scolded by a lieutenant made him feel quite embarrassed, but he couldn't argue with what Hu Conglu said.

Seeing the tension in the room, Zhang Xinghai quickly laughed and said, "Alright, alright, we're all working for the military governor. Chief Advisor Hu, tell us what you need us to do."

Hu Conglu also realized he had overstepped and smiled apologetically, saying, "This is what I'm thinking: select a group of elite soldiers to secretly enter the French Concession. Before I joined the officer academy, I came to Shanghai once. It's not difficult to secretly bring a group of people into the French Concession. We can also bring weapons, but it will cost more money!"

Seeing that the two men in front of him had already extinguished their cigarettes, he quickly took out cigarettes from his pocket and offered them to the two men, lighting one for himself as well, and continued, "When I report the plan to Chief Advisor Weixi, I will request a fund for the operation. That's not important."

He exhaled a smoke ring and continued, "Once the men and weapons are inside, we will set up an ambush near Mr. Huang's residence. At 3 a.m., when people are the most drowsy, we will storm in and capture Mr. Huang alive!"

Hu Bo frowned and said, "Storming in is easy. Our elite soldiers can easily handle those thugs. But..."

Zhang Xinghai interjected, "But how do we get out after we succeed?"

Hu Bo nodded and continued, "The operation must be quick. There are patrol teams in the French Concession! Although we're not afraid of the French, completing the military governor's task is the most important. But we should also try not to cause trouble for the military governor."

Hu Conglu nodded and said solemnly, "Yes, capturing him won't be difficult. The protection of Mr. Huang's residence in the French Concession cannot stop our elite soldiers. The problem is the French. My plan is to complete the operation within 10 minutes. Last time I came to Shanghai, I learned that the French night patrols are not very active and mostly stay in the barracks. I calculated that it would take them at least 20 minutes to receive the news and arrive at Mr. Huang's residence!"

He stood up from the ammunition box and continued, "We will complete the task within 10 minutes and immediately retreat towards the Suzhou River! The remaining soldiers of the 1st Battalion will set up defenses on the Chinese side of the Suzhou River and prepare boats for the retreat. If we succeed, we will all retreat together. If we are caught by the patrol teams..."

Hu Conglu's eyes flashed with a cold look as he said sternly, "Then we will open fire! We will bring everyone back, alive or dead, and I will personally report to the military governor!"

Zhang Xinghai stood up and patted Hu Conglu's shoulder, smiling and said, "Don't worry, the young men in our battalion will definitely complete the task on time. I will lead the operation myself tonight. Now, let's plan the specific details of the operation."

At this moment, in the headquarters of the garrison command, Weixi was finishing a meeting and was working on his new army reorganization plan.

Weixi sat in his chair, holding a fountain pen and continuously drawing and modifying his plan. This time, he had to deal with twelve new divisions! The workload was enormous.

He needed to split the reinforcement battalions of the 6th and 19th Divisions, but he couldn't just send the new recruits away. He also needed to transfer veterans from the old units to the new units to serve as backbone personnel. How many to transfer and from which units, all these decisions needed to be made by Weixi!

In addition, there were weapons and equipment, various military supplies, daily expenses, garrison camps, and the formulation of soldiers' salaries and benefits, among other tedious tasks, all of which needed to be arranged by Weixi. His head ached as he continuously pulled at his hair.

Other issues were manageable, but the most important was the lack of officers! With such a large expansion of the army, there was a severe shortage of both senior and junior officers!

For senior officers, it was easier to handle; Gao Yang could directly make the arrangements, as this was his right. But what about the large number of vacant junior officer positions? Could he just promote veterans?

Brandt, who was helping him, walked over with a document and smiled, "Still worrying about the officers?"

Weixi put down his pen, opened the cigar box on the table, and lit one for himself and Brandt, saying with a slightly depressed tone, "With such a large expansion, there are not enough qualified officers! I don't know what to do now."

Brandt sat down and smiled, "There's one thing you haven't considered."

"Hmm?" Weixi looked at him in surprise.

"Our situation, the German mercenaries' contracts will eventually expire. What will happen then? How many do you think will renew their contracts? Also, I've noticed that Governor Gao is no longer willing to recruit more German mercenaries. What will we do then?" Brandt said with a serious expression.

Weixi rubbed his forehead and said, "I know! We have given Governor Gao a lot of help in the early stages. However, it's clear that Governor Gao cannot continue to use us as the main officers! After all, we are foreigners! As they say, 'Those who are not of our kind must have different hearts.'"

"We, the instructors, can probably stay a bit longer, but what about those currently serving in the army? Should they return to Germany?" Brandt asked in a deep voice.

Weixi stood up, feeling frustrated, and said, "Let's not talk about this now. There's still some time. We'll deal with it when the time comes. For now, let's focus on how to solve the officer problem."

Brandt smiled and said, "Actually, the officer problem is not difficult to solve."

"Hmm? What's your idea?" Weixi's eyes lit up as he asked eagerly.

Brandt stood up and smiled, "You forgot, the Nanjing Military Academy has over a thousand students. They are all excellent junior officers and are the ideal candidates in Governor Gao's mind."

Weixi was taken aback and then shook his head, saying, "No, no, they are just rookies who have only studied for a few months! They are not ready to take on officer positions!"

Brandt laughed, holding his cigar, and said, "You've been here longer than me, but you don't understand the Chinese as well as I do! You think they are rookies because you are using the standards of the German army to measure them! That doesn't apply here! We can't even recruit enough students!"

He paused and continued, "And the most important point is..." looking at Weixi seriously, "You don't understand Governor Gao!"

"What do you mean?" Weixi asked in surprise.

"I can't explain it in detail, but I can tell you that if you submit a report suggesting that the students from the Military Academy be promoted to junior officers in the new divisions, it will definitely be approved!" Brandt said with a serious expression.

Weixi fell silent.

"Now, Governor Gao's army is already deeply influenced by the German army. They are all our students! Our influence in the army has reached a point where even Governor Gao must take it seriously!" Brandt said with a hint of frustration.

Weixi fell silent for a moment and then suddenly said, "Is it also because of this that Governor Gao is making the navy fully British?"

Stock nodded slightly, "Not entirely, but it is a factor!"

In the modern timeline, Gao Yang was queuing up in a milk tea shop, which was very crowded at this time. Gao Yang, with the mindset of a tourist, relaxed and took a panoramic photo of the milk tea shop with his phone. After waiting for about ten minutes, he ordered a milk tea and some Hong Kong-style pastries, found an empty seat, and started eating.

After finishing the pastries, Gao Yang walked around the streets of Hong Kong, holding his milk tea, just like a tourist, enjoying the sights. Whenever he saw a beautiful spot, he would take a photo with his phone. When he saw a pretty girl in a revealing outfit, he would glance at her, but then pouted, thinking that she was far inferior to his girlfriend, Little Crystal. In the eyes of someone in a passionate relationship, only their lover is the best.

Gao Yang finally saw the legendary triads. Many of them were selling pirated goods or setting up street stalls, and most were middle-aged men. If it weren't for the tattoos and scars on their bodies, Gao Yang would never have believed they were the legendary triads!

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