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Emperor Guangxu was also in a dilemma. Whether it was Xu Geng's son or Weng Tonghe said, it was correct, but how to choose was decided by him. In the past few years, although he had taken power, the major affairs of the court were still firmly in the hands of Cixi. If the Eight Banners soldiers who supported Cixi were transferred to Xi'an, Emperor Guangxu believed that he would definitely be able to control the new army of the Imperial Guards. Once he controlled the military power, he could calmly take away the power from Cixi's hands.

However, if this is done, the disadvantages are obvious. Emperor Guangxu was very clear about how much combat power the Eight Banners soldiers who only knew how to walk the dog and fight cocks had left. He asked them to go to Xi'an to die. Moreover, it was possible that the front line would be completely destroyed. If that were true, the final result would be as Xu Geng said. The Sichuan Army would march straight into the capital and directly approach the capital. The Qing Dynasty's country and country for more than 200 years would be destroyed. If the new army of the Imperial Guards were sent to Xi'an, even if the situation could not be reversed, at least it would be able to avoid further deterioration. However, in this way, he would lose a good opportunity to grasp power. Maybe there would be no such opportunity in his life. Therefore, Emperor Guangxu was very difficult to make a decision.

"What should I do? Do I need power or country?" Emperor Guangxu asked himself.

"Your Majesty, please make a decision quickly! It's more than 2,000 miles from the capital to Xi'an. Even if the new guards march with all their strength, it will probably take more than half a month. It's still hard to say whether the defenders in Xi'an City can last for half a month. If Xi'an cannot defend, the consequences will be unimaginable!" Xu Geng urged. The new guards are infantry. Although there are many mules and horses, the speed of long-distance marching is not very fast because of too much baggage. Therefore, Emperor Guangxu must make a decision early.

"Your Majesty, think twice before you act!" Weng Tonghe also persuaded. As Emperor Guangxu's teacher, Emperor Guangxu knew very well and knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As long as he could seize power, even if he negotiated with the Western Sichuan Army, no matter how much the price he paid, it would be completely worth it! This is much better than being a puppet emperor.

The military ministers were also divided into two factions, supporting Xu Gengshen and Weng Tonghe's views, and quarreled. The entire Golden Palace was as lively as a vegetable market. Emperor Guangxu frowned when he saw it, but he didn't say anything. Now he could not make a choice himself, let alone rely on others.

"Emperor, once the western Sichuan army arrives at the capital, everything will be over! I am still young at night, and the revival of the Qing Dynasty will still need the emperor in the future!" Xu Geng said again.

Emperor Guangxu was shocked all over. He understood what Xu Geng was meant. He was only twenty years old this year, and Empress Dowager Cixi was fifty-six years old. Even if he was longer than his life, Empress Dowager Cixi was not his opponent! He was not in a hurry to fight for power or something. Even if he missed this opportunity, after Empress Dowager Cixi died, power would naturally belong to him. But if he was defeated this time, the western Sichuan army came to the capital and overthrew the Qing Dynasty, he would become the king of the country. If he wanted to fight for power or something, it would be useless.

After understanding these things, Emperor Guangxu immediately made a choice.

"Shut up! As first-rank officials of the court, what kind of morality do you have to do like this? Xu Geng obeys the orders, and you will go to the new guard army to announce my orders immediately. The new guard army of 100,000 must set off immediately and head to Xi'an to resist the attack of the western Sichuan army, and try your best to win!" Emperor Guangxu ordered loudly.

"The emperor is wise! My new army of the imperial guards will definitely be able to win the championship!" Xu Geng immediately flattered. Seeing that the matter was over, the other ministers had to shout that the emperor was wise and no longer quarreled. Only Weng Tonghe was a little disappointed. He knew that if he lost this opportunity, Emperor Guangxu would not have such an opportunity again. As an imperial teacher, he did not want his disciple to be just a puppet emperor.

The new guard army had 100,000 people equipped with weapons imported from Britain, including Li Metteford rifles, Maxim heavy machine guns, 105mm light howitzers, etc. In terms of equipment, no one in the Qing army could compare with them. Even the new army in Zhili and Hubei army could not compare with them. The new guard army's soldiers were all from the Eight Banners of Manchus and Mongolians and Han, and were loyal to the Qing Dynasty. The commander of the new guard army was also Fengshan, a famous general among the Manchus. Although he was only 31 years old this year, he had done very well in everything since Emperor Guangxu formed the new army and was already quite talented.

After receiving the order from Emperor Guangxu, the new guards immediately set out to Xi'an. However, the journey was long, and it would take at least ten days for them to arrive from the capital to Xi'an. In order to make the defenders of Xi'an last ten days, Emperor Guangxu even personally ordered Zhu Hongzhang, Wei Guangtao, Zhu Shijun and Zhao Wenkai to ensure that they must stay until the reinforcements arrive. As long as they succeed, they are all heroes of the Qing Dynasty, and it is no problem to be promoted. If they fail, then they will wait to be executed by the nine clans! Such an order forced Zhu Hongzhang and others to defend Xi'an for life, which caused great trouble to the Western Sichuan Army.

In the next few days, the Western Sichuan Army launched a fierce attack on Xi'an. However, the defenders were very tenacious. In addition, the high walls of Xi'an City were thick and there were no shortage of cannons and heavy machine guns, which caused the Western Sichuan Army to hit the wall several times. Although it also caused great losses to the Qing army, its own losses were not small. In a few days, the Western Sichuan Army had already suffered more than a thousand casualties. This was the loss that the Western Sichuan Army had never suffered before since the annexation of the Ma family army.

The Western Sichuan Army on the Eastern and Southern Sichuan Army made great progress. During the Jingmen Battle, the Qing army was defeated again under the attack of the instructor of the Western Sichuan Army, the newly formed Ninth Division, as well as the First Brigade and the New Third Division of the Western Sichuan Army who joined the battlefield from the northwest. However, Zhang Zhidong seized the opportunity and led the main force of the Qing army, more than 100,000 New Army and tens of thousands of Green Camp troops, to flee back to Wuhan before the encirclement of the Western Sichuan Army was formed. Although the Western Sichuan Army annihilated many Green Camp troops, the main force of the Qing army in Hubei was still alive. The large army of the Western Sichuan Army also marched towards Wuhan under the leadership of Chief of Staff Xiong Wu.

On the southern front, the Western Sichuan Army had successfully occupied Guiyang, and the troops were aiming directly at Kunming. It was just around the corner. Wang Wenshao, the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, was also indecisive at this moment, and he didn't know whether to defend Kunming or flee to Guangxi in the east.

"Young Marshal, Chief of Staff, we have been besieging Xi'an for several days, but there has not been any progress yet, and the morale of the troops has been greatly affected! Otherwise, we will launch a general attack tomorrow! No matter how much casualties are spent, we will definitely be able to take Xi'an!" Zhao Bowen found Wang Yuze and Cai Yun and asked for a fight.

Wang Yuze shook his head: "Captain Liu Zhiye has led the main force of the First Cavalry Army to occupy Tongguan. The Qing army in Xi'an has become a turtle in the jar, and they will undoubtedly be defeated. In addition, the progress on the Eastern and Southern battlefields are very large, so there is no need for us to pay extra casualties. When the situation becomes clear, I believe that the defenders in Xi'an will take the initiative to make a choice by then."

"Yes, blog posts, fighting requires not only courage, but also patience. Since Xi'an is not easy to chew and we don't have the weapon to siege, we might as well wait for the Xi'an defenders to make their own choices to see if they break through or surrender. Anyway, it is very beneficial to us!" Cai Yun also said.

"Young Marshal, Chief of Staff. After receiving the news from the headquarters, the Qing army's 100,000 new imperial guards had set off from the capital five days ago and headed straight to Shaanxi. The headquarters reminded us to pay more attention!" Wu Huiyao reported with a piece of intelligence.

"Okay! I said why the defenders in Xi'an are so calm? It turns out that they know that reinforcements are coming!" Wang Yuze suddenly realized.

"The new army of the 100,000 Imperial Guards is known as the most powerful army of the Qing army! I think we can concentrate our troops and fight a field battle with the 100,000 Imperial Guards. Let's see who is more powerful. Although the new army of the 100,000 Imperial Guards is large, it is definitely much better than Xi'an!" Cai Yun also said.

"Young Commander, Chief of Staff. Give an order! Our Second Cavalry Army promised to defeat the new army of the 100,000 imperial guards of the Qing army!" Zhao Bowen was also excited and asked for battle again.

"It's certain to fight. But how to fight has to be long-term plans." Cai Yun did not immediately agree to Zhao Bowen's request for battle.

"Uncle Cai, Commander Zhao. I suddenly had an idea, I don't know if it's OK!" Wang Yuze suddenly said.

"What's the idea?" Cai Yun asked. Wang Yuze has grown up very fast over the past period of time and has many wonderful ideas that made him very amazed. If Wang Yuze did not want to inherit the great cause of western Sichuan, he would be very likely to become an outstanding military strategist in the future.

"The main defenders in the capital are the New Guards and the Eight Banners soldiers. Now the New Guards are heading straight to Shaanxi, and the only ones who defend the new army are the Eight Banners soldiers. This is an excellent opportunity for us!" A smile appeared on Wang Yuze's face, and his eyes were even more shining with ambition.

"Do you want to attack the capital for a long distance?" Cai Yun was shocked. Wang Yuze's plan was undoubtedly too bold.

"Yes! Just give me two brigades of troops to go out of Yulin, pass through Suiyuan and Chahar, and come to the capital in one fell swoop!" Wang Yuze said excitedly.

"No, this is too dangerous!" Cai Yun said flatly.

"Uncle Cai, there will be no danger. The Qing army is now extremely empty. I will take two brigades of cavalry to set off, and there will be no danger. At that time, as long as I can successfully reach the capital, it will inevitably shock the Qing army. We can take this opportunity to defeat the Qing army in one fell swoop!" Wang Yuze insisted. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to subscribe to (this site) and reward. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
Chapter completed!