Pax's Alternate History Snippet repository.

[Imperator Pax]

April 1922
The telegram circular was a formal denouncement, a ritual that had to be observed it seemed. Maybe it was a chance to still see things headed off, maybe it was a warning shot... maybe it had just become habit at this point. He would have truthfully, much more preferred to be discussing scoping infantry rifles for scouts, and field reviews.

Even the machine gun field review would have been better than all of this... but he was in command, and the noise in Peking had to be seen to. "What do we know?"

"It started with an argument over money. So far as we can tell from there it turned into a spat over the cabinet appointments , and devolved from there." Waite replied.

"What's the recommendation?" He wasn't asking Waite his attention turned to Shansi's governor.

Yan nodded, "We should call up the reserves, if for nothing else but as an abundance of caution in the event that there is some repeat of the Restoration Crisis." Ponytail's attempt to restore the Manchu, the Qing dynasty to power. There were rumors going around Zhang Xun, and Zhang Tsolin had been making common cause, and both had had their power bases and their commands based in the maritime provinces.

There were a handful of nods from the short committee. Bill was absent, being down in southern Qinghai on an engineering project, and could be spared. Eighth division was absent, watching the border. Lee was absent for the same reason Shang was, also on border duty. "The Aircraft mission has approval as well?"

"Yes they can leave for England," Talk to De haviliand about his proposed improved racing plane, and its wooden frame with its new construction technique with balsa wood and the like, "I know Powell has a thing for that," That the balsa plywood manufacture "That its something readily available to the MAK." Waite declared, "cultivation will be a problem," He meant here in china, "but I admit that aluminum stamping while probably the future in the long run is not there yet. We would need very heavy pressing machines, and I don't expect a sufficiently great prototype inside of five years... and even if the stampings were there, we need more robust engines, and we are certainly not there in terms of a design, never mind in producing such an engine so I would call it ten years, maybe fifteen."

Thus, the argument was that a wooden composite frame like the racing design seemed the best option... and that was mirrored in land transportation. The suspension system for their trucks, and cars originated from a racing car from the Austrian in charge of the laboratory and workshop. Even more similar were the insistence of armament, it was just a rehash of talks before the telegrams had gone out, "The rapid firing cannon, we will have to replace the pom poms." They had done their job, but the experience showed that while they had worked they were now long quite long in the tooth and needed to be succeeded by flatter shooting longer range cannon rounds, which had been said a week earlier "1st​ Division and 3rd​don't have their full complement of combat cars," He noted, "if we call the reserves it will tie up the lines and slow the transfer of machines."

Yan paused to consider that, and with the preface of the concerning disruption of the capital still warranted being at a state of readiness overall and that those battalions of the 1st​ and 3rd​ Divisions still awaiting their allotments should be kept at home. The conflict, if it did turn into a repeat of the attempted restoration would be different because of the increased numbers. The difference though was that they held Zhengzhou properly. There was no, had been no attempt to contest their control of the city, or its rail line. The regulars stationed at their garrison in the city were in place, and unassaulted... this was not the manchu restoration where they had had to scramble... but it was also much earlier in the year, and that boded ill potentially. "If cautionary words will not be heeded,"

"Then the troops will be mobilized for war." Waite agreed. "Allen?"

"Will you be heading back to Taiyuan?"

"Yes," Yan replied, "I will prepare the Guard division, and insure we have our patrols increased and that we are at readiness."

Waite nodded, "I've the brigade here, and Dawes will bring up 1st​ and 2nd ​Brigades."

That would leave him with the mobilized portion of the 1st​ division, and the 5th​ and 6th​ Brigades and the generals commanding them. That was the problem with their war planning, and expectations... they had talked about months earlier that Sun was acting squirrely, and the likelihood the southern doctor was going to act a fool.

Yet the war plan remained the same having been uncorrected or unaltered. 5th​ and 6th​brigades were intended to support the Szechwanese front by supporting3rd​ and 8th​ divisions. Those divisions would remain on the border, and the hunanese were supposed to be watched...instead they were looking at pivoting towards Zhili and Honan... and they still weren't clear exactly what in the hell was going on between the Fengtien and Zhili in all of this.

A few hours later he was making the final adjustments to the table of orders.

Percy had wasted no time in searching him out, but this was not the manchu restoration for all comparisons that might have been drawn to it. The crisis in and around the capital was a hot mess, there was no denying that, but things were very differentthan they had been a few years earlier.

"Xian operates on three lines," He told the englishman who had grandly stated he was an observer as if this were a war from before the guns of august had opened. He hoped Percy had just been making light of the situation or that it was just Percy talking. Allen did not like the possibility that Percy's observer status might hold official endorsement from King George's government and this might well be Curzon looking at the provinces in the west as separate from the beiyang authorities, "The regular army, the reserves, and the National Guard." Xian maintained a national guard bureau with each of the provinces maintaining their own guard units for emergencies that could be federalized much as with home.

"Yes, like the states."

The model yes, now that they were acting on this scale, but also because of the promulgation of the provincial constitutions which had established executive and legislature formally in 1920... the judicial bench was proving harder to establish but they would get there. "The regular army has its active units,"

"Those men of the first line,"

True. In the old system there had been two lines, the army and its reserves. "1st​ is presently being reinforced, by brigades, they'll watch the flanks, and pin the enemy in place." It was not 1917, he had vastly more officers to distribute the weight to, men to bear the load of operational weight, "I've read Iseburo's report, and we've substantiated it."

"The numbers?"

"Yeah," Allen replied, "Zhang, and Wu," Fengtien and Zhili more broadly, since it was not just their personal commands involved, it was more than that, "Have been recruiting."

"I understand your man Powell has been hiring laborers to migrate to the Americas, and there is talk of an Africa railway." Percy remarked. "I imagine the lucky ones will get on the ships... Zhang has a lot of modern artillery, John Allen... its going to be bad. You'll be going to the front then?"

An Englishman's talent for understatement Allen mused, then replied with the short answer, "With 1st​." He replied.

"I've instructions to serve as observer," Percy, nor the Legation in Tietsin ever formally stated exactly to whom in Beijing they had informed that they were sending observers... though it wouldn't been out of character for the British Legation to have informed both sides of the fractured Beiyang that they were doing so. In April 1922 as the crisis erupted into serious fighting no one thought to ask, nor was it really that important, only that it was a return to the oddities as they would be thought of by future generations of the long 19th century. "if I can be of use I'll be along with you then."

 

[Imperator Pax]

April 1922
The rain was holding off, but it was relatively crisp this morning being in the low fifties and breezy. The army was used to digging though. Field entrenchments were emphasized, and had been emphasized even before the Europeans had gone to war. Allen's attention was on the opposite side of the river... farther south, far further than he could see and really it was the map of china he was visualizing.

This was a mess... for reasons not related to field conditions. It was the political realm not so much the physical one where the problem lay. The cadre had been hoping that in the fall the beiyang wings would all consent to holding elections and electing new members to the national assembly... and here they were half way through April and the Zhili clique was shooting at the Manchurian wing of the government.

His field headquarters was dominated by information carried by papers and telegrams that were in some cases months old. The circulars that Zhang had issued denouncing Wu, and Cao Kun were just one stack. Then there had been Wu denouncing the background chatter of the Chinese portion of the mission to Washington. The movements of the southern doctor. Tan Yankai, and Zhang Xun's movements were both being watched. The latter had met with Duan in Tietsin back in March, though they hadn't considered that terribly important at the time... not with Tankai's movements in Hunan which had largely had its beiyang aligned troops pulled out.

"Japan has no intention of moving one way or another."


Which was a small god damned mercy, and it was meant as an optimistic statement "Yes." He replied to Percy's statement. The brigadier commanding 6th​ Brigade and his chief of staff appeared behind the Englishman. Both men saluted crisply, "Hunanese report?" He asked thinking of Tan Yankai, and what his clique must have been up to given the much more active fracas down south and along the coast that likely had him much busier... or at least a different sort of busy

"The southern rebels are not doing well," The little bird replied quite smug at his statement. "I would be very surprised if they progress much further..." The brigaider general had been promoted up from 2nd​ Battalion of 1st​ Division, and his Chief of Staff had been also at Zhengzhou in 1917.

Hunan didn't have great roads to begin with, it never had, but there was a reputation among the people for a martial character, such that the Hunan militias had bragged about it to the British during the taiping rebellion, "What do we know about the present fighting colonel?"

"Current traffic suggests in addition to cantonese encouragement for Hunan's local commanders to resist the guomindang," There was no secret amongst the men that Sun had been brought up to be fond of the Taiping... there was plenty of American literature who'd fancied the southern rebel cause then, and lambasted British assistance to the Manchu as interfering in the natural course of history... but it was provincial ism at play. The men were quick to tar the southerners as rebs, and the papers decried the southern provinces as a haven of banditry in nearly every issue, "that the 1st​ naval squadron has also failed to come to the doctor's aid. If current chatter is accurate then the squadron may actually turn against them."

"Really?" Well that was interesting news, it would bear looking into. "Anything else on the naval front?" Allen questioned; the second naval squadron was further north... not that that would meaningfully effect Xian. Even if their river boats could get up the river, and get to here...there was unlikely any threat to their defensive position. The reinforcing of the defenses here meant they could prevent the aged boats from forcing further inland.

All of this had started with complaints about Liang's government, which had fallen in January, but the problems had all been more than this. All those stacks of telegrams in his field headquarters were built on grievances that had been building up. It was why he continued to watch the south. It was why3rd​ and 8th​ Divisions under Lee and Shang were kept in their existing deployments as 2nd​ and 4th​divisions were mobilized.

"Current intercepts suggest they also intend to remain uninvolved."

That was reassuring... mostly because this was a whole mess as it was. "They supported Wu in Hupeh last year," When the squadron had sallied up the river to fight in Hupei, which had lead to more comparisons of the Taping rebellion, even if it hadn't been nearly as bloody. The colonel took the invitation to expound, well prepared to review the conditions of the previous summer campaigning and the various connections officers of note held across the beiyang ranks and what had resulted in Duan Qirui's ousting from power.

"Zhang has criticized Wu for being too close to the Legation in tiestin," It was a wonder the Englishman hadn't said 'our legation' just now but Percy had had a point... Zhang [Tsolin] had called Wu a lot of things though the likes of puppet, doll, toy soldier were probably the harshest things he'd said in a circular that had reached public consumption. "Which is of course poppy cock, I should say." He added. "I really think its about money."

That was itself quite likely... though Allen also wouldn't have been surprised if Cao Kun wasn't in talks with the British about the loans. The financial situation wasn't amazing, and the former premier and the Communications clique had been fighting until Liang had replaced Jin as premier. Liang, of the communications clique, had been denounced shortly after that had happened... but rather curiously ... well the truth was Wu seemed to have elicited some personal spite from Zhang Tso-lin that made this conflict within the Beiyang seem ... seem petty save that both sides had massed a hundred thousand soldiers.

For all the complaints of the need for fiscal responsibility this would waste vast sums of money in the fighting between Fengtien and Zhili, and it would also reduce revenues as the fighting scared the peasantry, and townsfolk.

"In the interest of levity Mr Graves Zhang is much closer to the legation than Wu is," The lieutenant colonel observed, "That does not of course preclude this from being a matter of money,"

Percy before the war probably wouldn't have appreciated the glib comment, but the little bird had been with he assaulting force in 1917 then just a lieutenant, "Yes, that is true... and the Legation has other concerns."

"Alston, not about this I take it?"

"No, we would very much like this to be calm. There is a conference in Italy... it started about the same time all of this mess began," Not really, not by how John Allen would have reckoned counting this starting, but troops had been emplacing on the 10th​, the same day as the conference of Genoa had officially opened. "The Germans and Soviets formed a treaty of mutual recognition."

Allen bit down the expletive, but he would have sorely liked to curse. "I must imagine the Frogs aren't happy?"

"No," Apparently the new leadership of the French had already been grating on the Foreign Office , their government had likewise been upset right before the conference had opened and undergone a change in leadership, which had caught the brits off guard... and from the sound of it though he didn't mention it as such Lloyd George had gone and pulled a Wilson by deciding to handle the conference himself with inadequate support.
--
Notes: And of course its this kind of intervention which is what serious starts depleting Zhang's treasury, Zhang's insistence on expeditionary and often ill thought haying off ambitions disrupts his otherwise exemplary economy. Manchuria was doing very well under his governance but not so well as to support him being able to excercise power unilaterally. The end result of this becomes mass inflation because of reckless expenditures over the next several years.

 

[Imperator Pax]

April 1922
Wu's formal recognition of hostilities had come very late, weeks late, and with little indication of a serious attempt to dissuade the situation by political means... and thus it had confirmed that it was to be resolved by military force. That lack of denunciation though had not prevented him from positioning his troopers across Zhili province, and predicting deployment of Fengtien forces... and of course facing the reality that since Duan had been deposed there had been a sizable manchurian contingent in the capital environs. By the logic of the Huai army writings of the Taiping, that should have conveyed to Fengtien sufficient advantage as the 'host' of the battle for contesting the capital... but the Huai army of the 1860s had never had to fight a modern army engagement and Peking was very hard to defend without making preparations to resist.

Those weeks however had given the Foreign Office, and the Legation presence time to respond. It had also been weeks where Japan's legation had been slow to say anything, and then refuse to take sides in the crisis... Alston as his britainic majesty's minister plenipotentiary had recommended them to remain aloof from this scuffling. They'd already been hoping to do just that, and Wu's formal circular establishing his recognition of a state of hostilities didn't change that. They were going to remain at an elevated alert status. What Alston had not stated was Percy's official status. Allen watching one of the combat cars making its way through the street was unsure what Percy meant to gain by being here. "German gun?" He asked.

"Originally," He replied, the mechanics of the self loading system not his area of study, but it had invited some tizzy of mechanical deluge from the red legs, "From before the war," He continued, but it hadn't been ready, and not at market before then. The Combat Cars would carry a variety of armament such that the intention was a driver, a gunner and 11 dismounts. That was feasible for stand up fighters like the 1st​,and 3rd​ but the talk of mechanizing Infantry Divisions ...it wasn't feasible for them. 'The Leg' Infantry were to follow on and hold positions that Rifle and he supposed 'mechanized' infantry would punch through on, "The german cartridge it fired was anemic for our purposes so the Swiss Cadre insisted the cartridge be lengthened and shell weight increased, it was a lesson we learned after the visit to Russia."

"Ah." was all the Englishman remarked. Then after a moment, as Allen silently contemplated the map of northern china on his table, paying the armored vehicle no more mind as it rounded the bend, and staring at the suburb of tietsin where Zhang had established his own headquarters spoke up again, "does it meet satisfaction then?"

"It kills folks pretty well." He replied bluntly. "Yes its satisfactory for that Percy, we wouldn't have approved mounting it on the cars and issuing them to 1st ​if it didn't." Graves took the moment to acknowledge that, and how the experimental technical section worked in the evaluation of equipment. "The shell is about five inches, its not quite double the muzzle velocity of Becker's gun running American powder," He continued. "We're not entirely confident that its enough high explosive," At least with the current HE composition load, "to bust a pillbox, but its something."

"All due respect John Allen, bandits don't generally lay concrete and wire."

"The bolsheviks are bandits," He replied tersely, "Small bandits might not have concrete but bigger ones will do what they can." Alston in Tietsin with the Legation had continued to speak of the need of vigilance, for which he was supported by Churchill back in England with regards to Lenin. The Cadre didn't need reminding of that, they knew that. They knew that very well, and Percy's reminders on Alston's behest were rather annoying in their would be schoolteacher tone. He paused to take a pull from the dark coffee on the desk, and continued to eye Junliangcheng to the northeast on the map. It was where Zhang had established his headquarters of Fengtien, which put him in easy distance, a comfortable walking distance to speak to the legations as he liked.

"With his gendarmes he could have placed himself in Peking proper." Percy remarked.

Zhang could have certainly. His actual movement of troops had begun after Sun had begun moving into Hunan...and it was possible Zhang had expected Sun to either have more success or that that was meant to draw off Wu's troops further to Hunan. The Communications clique had lampooned Wu's suppression efforts in Hunan as wasteful of money that the national treasury simply could not afford the brief government of Liang had when it had come in cut funding to Wu's expedition in the province. "Sun started marching soon after Liang's government collapsed." Liang had been succeeded by bringing Yen... which seemed to suit the State department fine, but Liang's dismissal again had been something to set Zhang off as a personal slight, "He got off the line in early February."

"More than enough time for you to mobilize." Percy replied unnecessarily because that was self-evident... the fighting in Hunan had forced him to cut short both the consolatory funeral responsibilities and talks with Iseburo over the soviet problem to the North west. For that, Allen could say he resented Sun's expedition regardless of how much real threat it posed to the southern frontier.

Which was of course how things had started. Sun's march into Hunan required a readiness, and a statement. The cadre's official statement, written by a newly minted lieutenant general of the corp of engineers had outlined to the public, Xian's public, through the newspapers why the mobilization was occurring and what was going on. Yan had published a concurrent statement for his own province but the crux was that such an uprising would disrupt harmony. It didn't matter if Sun's march succeeded or if this was to be another failed rebellion it would make a mess of things.

The other matter was for the army active or reserve components alike how procedural the call up had become. Percy was correct that having been able to start issuing orders back in February had meant that by the point in which Wu and Zhang had moved their troops around the cadre had had the time to ready 1st​, 2nd​, and order 3rd​ and 8th​ Divisions to hold fast.

"You're going to authorize an expansion of the army."

It wasn't a question, so Allen didn't immediately respond to it, "Not as such," He replied, officially there were 7 provincial constitutions. Shansi, Shensi, and Western Zhili and then the western commanderies ... plus Tibet. "We were going to expand anyway. Expansion of the Guard," A brigade for Tibet, a brigade for Western Zhili, "the problem is this kind of common cause making caught everyone off guard."

"Yes," Percy paused, "From what we have been able to put together, it goes something like this, Sun is supposed to become president." That made sense, "Liang is supposed to come back in as Prime Minister,"

"I can understand that much, and the others."

"Duan would return as Dujun of Zhili, and from what I am to understand the provinces of Jiangxi, Jiangsu and Anhui would pass to the care of Zhang Xun. I am to assume that other provinces would be doled out to other Anhui generals who were supposed to be involved."

What obviously those men hadn't counted on was the squadrons at Shanghai and Canton deciding to support Wu and make a nuisance of themselves to the attempts to move troops north. "And?"

"And you're going to authorize the expansion of the army. You did it in response to the Manchu uprising, and now there are the bloody bolsheviks on the border as well."

"Why is that a problem for you Percy?"

"its not. Bloody hell John Allen, but you think that crack at the King's Honors was a joke, and even if it was drink caused to spill from the lips of men. Its what people, good people think. You were Yuan Shikai's friend, but people at home," He meant Londoners and the British of good breeding, from the right schools, and so forth, "See the problematic things about it all. The East India men were given leave, were asked to collect taxes by the Mughals. They were a company, and the old Empire is gone spare, Yuan is dead, the Qing went away before that and you can pretend that your private army is part of the country, but there is so much German there that they'd rather you're Prussia in the orient than admit you look like an east India man who has no need to answer to parliament."

From what he understood they'd never amounted to enough for Wilson to care, and Harding didn't seem to actively care because they weren't asking him for anything. The British concern was therefore... well annoying he supposed because they cared and the President of the United States did not care what they did. "Should I expect a problem from Curzon?"

"Personally, of course not Lord Curzon has no personal enmity with any of you... Even if you hadn't been there when the King was shot, you went to Russia, and have friends for it, including the personage of the King..."

"But?" He asked. "I assume it has something to do with your ham-fisted analogy." Especially since he'd never had a monopoly, and he was half tempted the likes of Forbes had never enjoyed a monopoly in the China trade in the US... Wilson had wanted free trade with China... well free trade with everyone Harding... Harding was too scared of the world beyond the shores, and wanted to do with things... which was no way to live, "I've made the decision to live here Percy, as has the majority of the cadre certainly all the ones that remain today. You can make your comparisons to the East India company but parliament granted me no monopoly, and I wouldn't have accepted one." The protest though was for other reasons, drawing the line in the sand to layout he didn't like the comparison... and the Cadre didn't like the comparison. Curzon could claim he didn't have any personal enmity, but the he talked about, and shit he went around doing as Foreign Secretary did tend to get the blood up all the same offense intended or not.

 

[Imperator Pax]

May 1922
The notes of hostilities would keep the officers of the General Staff very busy. Not so much of the novelty but such that Fengtien military advisers had clearly updated the Manchuria doctrine with lessons learned from the European war... to a degree. Zhang had expended shells on impressive hours long bombardments, likely only stopped by shell shortages.

This had been mirrored by Wu as well...and had Wu been an artillery officer (or Zhang for that matter) then the artillery would have been better served. Most of the shelling had been reported as ineffective, poorly directed, though extremely lethal to infantry with the misfortune to be caught out in the open. It was no surprise that from there, that the bulk of the casualties stemmed. Still it could have certainly been worse, something he had commented on to Percy.

The deployment of so many men had entailed pulling second and reserve line forces, and commanders not prepared for high intensity action. Allen knew what the claimed paper strength of troops was being stated to be. Zhang no doubt had a slight numerical advantage in ratio... but it was early may now in Zhili and with the crowds on the railroads moving supplies would be easy to bog down and loose track. Desertion was likely to be the biggest issue, indeed that would prove itself once the conflict turned.

He'd already taken more than one telegram warning about how that needed to be addressed, how it posed a threat to public security. He would pass that to Cullen. Posted here as he was to Zhengzhou in the event of the opening of hostilities either with the southern doctor or a conflict with less likely the honanese gentry required his focus... and yet, he still could not help but think of matters which were also within his official remit. The cadre did not particularly care for either the weimar democracy or the French. The idea of the Weimar lot making common cause whatever the reasoning with the Bolsheviks under Lenin was infuriating but that was half a world away... and he, and the MAK under Powell and the other smaller cadre bodies involved more strictly in international trade wanted things Germany had.

Faced as they were with problems here there were more immediate concerns though, "Its a modern sort of war,"

That was true, and he responded to Percy's comment bluntly, "Yes." It was that, and Percy did seem still a bit surprised about it.

"The observers say Zhang's troopsare not as well disciplined as their Zhili counterparts."

He recalled the zouave drills that Beiyang sixth brigade had conducted in the summer of 1917, "Wu has always been quite severe on the parade deck," He replied tiredly reaching for the steel mug on his campaign desk, "From the sound of it they were quick to turn this into an artillery duel." The problem was that by rail it was an hour to Peking from Tietsin even with a slow train. "Less experienced troops, troops who didn't know to dig in probably caught the artillery early." And that was probably enough, it was a reminder at least that going forward there would be enemies with much better artillery than lesser bandits had access to. "The Truth is Percy, in ten years China has doubled the number of nominal divisions in operation. Perhaps more so depending on how many divisions the south claims to have this week, but there were thirty odd divisions when Yuan Shikai died." Never mind the wide ranging numbers of brigades across the old empire, and of course the free floating battalions which had no organized higher organizational element out in the provinces.

In 1917 Duan had leveraged fifty thousand men... Fengtien, and Zhili had been busy since both sides numbered more than double that in the same theater area... that was to say the troops that both could put up in the vicinity of the capital. So yeah, everyone had more troops now, but large swathes of those were freshly raised green formations...and in a country that didn't have an effective system of conscription and readiness nor an ability to inspire the ranks for a national cause... and those green troops just didn't have a durable morale to stand and take losses... and the truth was the observers on the front said that the artillery actions were a mix of old and new.

Percy took a pull from his mug of black coffee, that previously had rested on the corner of the map, "There are some missionaries talking to Wu,"

Allen perked slightly, "Oh?" He asked, that was news, but not terribly surprising. He supposed that the more things changed the more they stayed the same, but on the other hand it might well be something that Zhang would latch on to, "What do they have to say?"

"Just that they think that Wu should make peace with Zhang. They're urging an end to hostilities, both to Wu but also to the Legation. That we should be trying to find a resolution to this." With almost a quarter of a million men in the field between Zhili, and Fengtien never mind the population of Zhili and Peking ... the population of civilians Chinese and foreign alike.

It might well have been nothing, but the conference in Washington had been a prominent background event in the lead up to this debacle. Not so much for China's interest in a Navy, but for that made a useful talking point for both sides, indeed the conference had attracted internationally much attention from all brand of tittering sorts.

Ships were to be decommissioned, and legally at least there was to be a parity between the Royal Navy and US Navy. Not that Allen could ever see congress seeing the reason to spend up to that tonnage, it was the opposite for the Brits they would spend up to that tonnage... and for good reason, there had been shocks to the British during the war. Their position on the treaty limits were also the more sensible if Congress could see sense they would have recognized that for the US, and in the interest of the economy it made more sense to build up to the treaty limits or at least closer to it in order to gradually let off steam from the war economy not just throw cold water on a hot engine.

None of that was a problem for China, not even Japan being confirmed third of world navies. Japan had also agreed to revert Shantung back in February ,but that had not stopped subsequent telegrams for lampooning the legation sent to Washington for the treaty and to represent China's interests... but that was always easy for the faction out of power to do in a democracy. To complain about something that they had no hand in, regardless of the objective.


It was however not the cause of this fracas, in fact it had probably been a minor contribution to it at best, because Wu and Zhang neither were navy men. It was true that Wu had employed China's navy recently, and again in the present fighting possibly in the south the chinese navy had no business given the present state of finances to be contemplating buying battleships or trying build yards that might build them. Money though was the spark that had lit the tender, because Liang had wanted to negotiate, for what had then gotten him accused of treason.

Allen made noise of acknowledgement in the back of his throat finally.

"You shouldn't be out in the front, frankly none of you should."

"Why, the King, and his wizard had no issue of us going over the border to save his cousin," He pointed out, "Black Jack had to be kept in the rear by presidential order I'll allow, but in the Philippines, and in grandfather's day nothing of our command," save perhaps the technology employed, "Is unusual."

"Most generals do not carry rifles John Allen," Allen would not point out his rifle while at hand, was on a rack with the others and his job was at the field table, or reading telegrams. "even allowing those ones who fought in Africa it is just not done in this day and age... and its not an emergency. Not really." The Englishman declared, "Neither Zhang, nor Wu have looked towards the west," A pause, "towards your lot."

"And it isn't them to which we're concerned of having to resort to our guns." Despite that both Zhili, and Fengtien both were Beiyang wings, but then so had the Anhui for all that had prevented a fight between.

"Dr Sun,but even your own staff officers say he can't make it this far."

A chatter he did not like, Allen disliked when officers became insistent that the enemy couldn't do something because the math was against them. "Fools get lucky all the time, and don't like listening to the odds," And soldiering was a profession where luck was important to have, "And I don't want the boys shocked if Sun does get lucky." He changed the subject, "Will Wu make peace with Zhang?"

Percy paused ,and nodded in catching the corollary, "If he does that would I think stop the southern doctor in Hunan." Or would if Sun were smart, but more likely the hunanese resisting the 'northern expedition' would throw Sun back. "As to talks, I should hope so, and I think from the talk Wu is amenable to peace." The real question would be the terms, and what both sides could agree to agree about. "This whole thing started about money you know."

"It was the spark at least. Liang was insistent that the fighting in Hunan was unbearable expense," Something that Wu might have been able to tolerate being said if Cao had had time to smooth ruffled feathers, as during Duan's premiership he had made the same argument to the then Beiyang chief... but Liang had also made other comments which had not made the communications clique man very popular. "I can't imagine this is any better."

It wasn't the truth was it was worse. Wu's use of field artillery ... it was hard for Allen to describe 3rd ​division's guns as heavy, but they were relative to what the Jade Marshal had available had been brought on to a brigade about five thousand strong. The Fengtian had included cavalry and the force had been well equipped with new rifles. It hadn't been some backwoods militia...

And the artillery hadn't cared. That bit of butchery had problem been contributory to Zhang's bad luck in this affair. That he'd lost good well equipped troops because they hadn't been expecting the artillery... which Allen admitted was odd given Zhang's great and known fascination for all the modern contrivances of war.

 

[Imperator Pax]

May 1922
The newspapers had been delivered with a full spread of pictures. There was a lot of talk about what things would be like a few months and largely ignoring the fighting in the east around the capital.

In 1920 they had already started the process of land resettlement. Homesteads. The military budget increases and other 'standards' as they were called in euphemism for the annual expenses. Part of it was to insure that Xian didn't grow too large to be unmanageable. The same with other cities were in place as well, but with more than two million people Xian was a 'proper metropolis' akin to other great cities Percy would admit, that included the strasse and czech town with their cafes that evoked parts of the old Hapsburg grandeur. It gave unto the capital, provincial or otherwise depending on the speaker, an international character.

It just reminded him of the disintegrating central authority. Percy's comments of late had been doing that a lot, and the truth was that as May dragged on it was a reminder that Xian's authority grew stronger with the war that had come to Tietsin and to the outskirts of the capital. Percy was busy on the cable and the telephone with the Legation. Much as Seymour must have felt there was a palpable notion of decline to the government of Peking, and Allen wondered if it actually mattered if Wu or Zhang carried the day. Both men had grand ideas, but he wasn't certain either had the resources or the support of other men to make good on them... and truthfully he suspect both men if given the rope would hang themselves trying to do exactly as Duan had done in taking expeditions south.

"Zhang made common cause with the doctor," Percy pointed out, then pushing on, going far as to observe that after Yuan Shikai's death the last remnants of central control by the government had withered away. The ties on provincial military authority weren't even worth calling threads.

For all the good throwing in with the doctor seemed to be doing Zhang, "And Sun is being hammered upon by the Hunanese," He replied. Jun was likewise doubtful that Zhang was anything more than an ally of convenience to Sun... or perhaps worsewas that the common cause being made was because factions at Zhang's court had pressured him to do so, which the dujun brindled at. They didn't have proof of that, but it wouldn't have surprised them. "The fighting in Hunan can't keep up."

"You're saying that?"

"For the same reasons the previous marches into that province have failed," He replied, Sun, like Duan… or really Wu and Duan and Yuan all going back the past nearly a decade hadn't prepared for a lengthy campaign. There was no knockout blow to deliver, and every campaign mounted 'atomized' provincial leadership further, pushing down to county officials and gentry desperate to hold on to what they had built... and most of those men had had family who'd lost much when the taipings had rebelled so Hunan had a long history of being in the fray. "Those rail lines are vulnerable to men who have the experience to know that, and from north or south," It was the only way to effectively, "to bring in shells and cartridges." Xian's southern frontier with Szechwan was an array of blockhouses and fortified positions. The merchants who had done their business to support Kansu's independent brigades as they roved over the border had built more solid shoppes and larger permanent towns expanded as those brigades were demobilized in place of permanent formations which rotated regularly through. That was another change. Those towns on his southern border paid taxes to Xian's revenue service, "There also isn't much of a tax base down there, with bandits, and the armies having to requisition what they need." He took care not to call it a no man's land for Percy's sensibilities. "Hunan may not be Szechwan, Percy but its a mess of a country all the same."

"Cao Kun has always been opposed to those southern marches."

"Yes he has," Allen replied, and that had along with the financial pressure of Liang insisting that the treasury just couldn't bear the burden of the expedition had encouraged Wu to bring his troops back north and home... "Its expensive keeping troops in the province, and Sun has no military experience," His failed rebellions had never involved him in a military leadership role despite all attempts to heap military ranks on the doctor it still didn't make him a general. "this expedition of his is an amateur venture that will fail for any number of reasons." But most likely given the reports of ambushes it would be because Sun couldn't sustain the losses and would have to retire back south or have his entire force melt away and desert. A problem which had beleaguered the much more disciplined beiyang troops season after season from Yuan Shikai's time, through Duan, and Wu's most recent venture south. "But that he has no support among the local authorities," and no way to legtimize himself among the provincials was arguably the most damning Allen suspected... the greatest benefit in those early days in moroland had been the support of local chiefs, and of course the friendship between the pashas and the united states and that as a result the caliph of islam had written urging muslim support for the mission of the United States. Whatever affection the pashas had felt for the United States, Allen had to suspect it was just as much dislike for Spain that had impacted that support.

"You're not going to move then?"

Percy had attended morning drill. The men on their morning run, which as expected Allen and his own staff had joined in, as the Englishman had sat aside for. The run wasn't anything arduous, up the hill, down the hill across a path that wasgreen and treed carefully tended. Percy had been a bit more discomforted by the pistol and rifle practice of the men that had followed but the battalion from 1st​ had to keep ready. "No, the situation is tense," And the province south of them, south of Zhili and Zhengzhou was taut as a spring.

Honan's gentry had always complained, had been a concern five years earlier when Zhang Xun had raised the banner of manchu restoration in the capital... and it was perhaps only the numbers that both Beiyang wings had brought against one another that kept Honan's gentry quiet. "The paper," Percy remarked is talking about railway work." The inter urbans were necessary, but you needed regular roads as well. Heavy freight was best moved long distances by rail or by canal, "And about concerns from the rains."

"Get on with it Percy."

He'd been expecting it. "I was just going to say that your man Powell has mentioned canal work."

"Not for here he hasn't, and if so just for flood control." The ARC talk was a headache but the Cadre discussion had been very very clear in its conclusion that was apolitical can of worms they didn't want to entangle themselves up in. Railway expansion was one thing, but the canal project in the east of the country too much of that was beyond their borders. It was that geographic reality which had cemented the determination. "Powell may speak of another canal in middle America if he likes, and he may expand upon port works in middle America, and may talk of Africa as well, but that talk will be tempered by reality."

It was not twenty years ago. The French would inevitably bluster on but Harding's talk of things was less the present issue than the coming apart of the seams of the Beiyang...and even without that. "You just don't want to invest in Honan do you?"

"No, I expect if we tried without there being a solid figure there, we'd end up with a fight." The honanese gentry would resist an attempt to expand resist the idea of control... and would probably start shooting even without that kind of overreach... never mind if they did actually try and tell them what to do. They couldn't afford that. Honan was not their problem, and they had enough on their plate with the chaos in Szechwan.

Percy gave an exaggerated sigh. "There are questions about Africa now to," Allen had not really concerned himself with the Dark Continent, he remembered the Chicago expo of course that had shown him the first Chinese Opera, but that wasn'tthe same... and it had been to West Point not long after... and studies, and then Asia. It had been Asia which had come to dominate his life, Powell had almost left the cadre after Chafnee's death and now represented the much broader international model of the cadre's collective.

"The company is talking about it," He wasn't about to tell Percy that half of the reason he had voted affirmative to the plans was that he viewed war in Europe inevitable. There was going to be another war, maybe not an explosive outbreak as August of 1914, but another one would come... Versailles was nothing more than breathing space. "There is a lot of planning. We're going to be very busy going into 1925. Powell is talking to Morgan, and Ford's tire guy the outline he put together looks good." Even though with him here with the troops he hadn't had the time to focus on it. "China's population is still recovering from the wars of the previous century, our cities no longer are bound to farming season," Even though an astute person would easily recognize that putting the elections where they were was a due consideration of the farmer's time. "We have a lot to do Percy, and there is business in Africa to be done."

"You think the tariffs are a problem."

"I think they're stupid, and so do most the rest. France is a mercantilist country," They were backwards and uppity to use someone else's words, France was a gold-plated turd, "Their finances are abysmal, and I don't consider it prudent to extend them any considerations. Not after the way they've shown their ass."

"They are a great power John Allen."

"Only because England thinks so, and because you loan them money to keep their lights on." Percy protested that Morgan was doing the same, "Misplaced affection," As the elder Forrest had put it, "I've read the transcripts of France talking about its navy, a navy that France can neither afford nor build efficiently." He headed off the the question that opened, "We can do neither, and nor do I expect a government in Peking stable enough to expand ports anytime soon. Any, canal work we do will be to exercise control over the season inundations. We will clean up, and dredge the channels, but for the moment we are not talking about anymore than that."

"And in 1925? For the latter half of this decade?"

Well that was going to be complicated, Powell seemed to be intent on trying to push a boulder up the hill by talking about Free Trade. He had friends in the wider English-speaking world, in the dominions, but seemed to be running into the problem where Lloyd George's government was being recriminated about for having too many businessmen and not enough gentlemen.

--
Notes: So one of things that makes its appearance in the post war years (and you also see this after ww2) are recriminations on both sides of the pond. There are still francophiles in positions of power and in the ascendancy in places in both England, and in the US (indeed when we get to WW2, Eisenhower plays an even greater role in policy than Pershing does in terms of shaping support for France in US national policies) but there are a lot of recriminations against England and the US in French press, and a lot recriminations against France in the english speaking world after 1919, and especially in the 20s and early thirties and the cadre is not immune to that.

This will be relevant when Patton, and also MacArthur show up later on. In addition to Stillwell, and Pershing and Wood among others. [George the Fifth, and Lenin both die earlier of their respective injuries in this work than they did in history]

 

[Imperator Pax]

May 1922
The conflict on the coast, the shooting part, had ebbed a bit. In the south things were still a bit spicy but largely out of the Shanghai public's eye... but drills and readiness continued. Maybe the hot part of this was done, maybe it wasn't.

To skim the papers from home was all he really he had time for. He was glad they came. This was not like the Philippines where news from home was scant, and the papers were a comfort to the men... or at least a reprieve from boredom. Still active duty, even if just being border pickets was tedious more often than not and it kept him from other duties that were building up waiting for him back in Xian. Allen folded the paper and put it aside. The telegram from the legation told him less than from Percy, and he was keen to let the Englishman carry along, "I don't know if you should really be that concerned."

"Your man doesn't want von Lettow for his the business side of things, he wants him back in Africa." Percy remarked. The German General had been a point of contact for handling import and export of goods for the Cadre in Germany... part of an effort to rebuild trade relations destroyed by the war's outbreak, and then the resolution of the war.

"Or he wants to expand trade into Liberia."

"He wants to bring the Ashkari," which were the Black German Soldiers, "and rather truthfully the whole bloody colonial troop is what he wants to do."

"Liberia is a small country, and did a lot of business with Germany before the war," He observed placidly, "And I would remark that while Powell does mean to have the man put field gray back on, that the Cadre does want to invest money in Liberia."

"There are talks of a concession."

"Percy, I will be blunt. I think Versailles was a damned disgrace, and while I will put most the blame for that on the French, and for Wilson lacking a proper constitution," being a weakling when the times got hard, much as he'd shown when he'd bent to the party apparatus in 1913 early in his time as President, "I recognize that rubber is a very valuable commodity, and one that Liberia is more tempting to be involved income the future. "If you're complaining to me because this puts us at odds with British interests to development of the country I'd recommend your side put up the money to start development of a rail line, because Powell is ready to put a thousand miles of rail down on schedule." That the Schedule was for the fiscal year of 24 was not something he was going to come out and say unless he needed to. "Now the canal thing... that's another matter."

It was about that time the sharp rap on the door interrupted, for which he was actually quite grateful. "Sir." The report came in and he took it and the lieutenant colonel who had delivered it swiftly back.

"The mobilization report."

It wasn't a question. He nodded.

Xian's reserves and national guard component was a hundred thousand men in the ranks. 2nd​ and 4th​ Divisions were more active, but Fifth less so than those two. Three more divisions representing a nominal forty five thousand more men. Then twenty five thousand more across the support and logistical brigades.

In theory, in the business of numbers the reserves were comparable in size to either Zhili and Fengtiens commitment to the fighting in and around Peking. The active component of the army was another five divisions supported by brigades of their own. Such a number he would have considered ... he wasn't sure he could have fathomed such a force being feasible never mind economical a decade earlier... but that was what the European war had entailed. What the expansion of demand and prices driven to what would have before the war been mad prices. "the army has expanded."

"And will expand more, John Allen. I'm not blind, and as annoyed as you might be by the comparisons to Prussia you can talk about Free Trade and need to avoid customs duties all you like, but what it sounds like is the German Bund, the abolishing or prohibiting of taxes across provincial lines." The British were leery of such talk. The men back in London some of them anyway... but others men like Churchill was looking at Kirghiz as way to keep Lenin hemmed in. It wasn't that the British liked the idea of interior barriers they didn't... it was the internal armies that some members of the Foreign Service were expressing problems with. "But lets be honest, you have a khaki electorate... those when they go to vote in November will say the army has to be bigger. That's what they'll vote for."

There was no single center of authority in Szechwan to their south, and as a result every petty county headman made to charge a tax for passing through. Szechwan's myriad bandit kings readily involved themselves with Shanghai's green gang. That presented another problem. "You want to say whatever your point is?"

"If you eliminate the trade barriers between provinces, that will be well received, but it bears in mind that even if people like it, someone is going to make those cracks about you being quite prussian... because the only other example they can make is the comparison that they don't want to make. Before the mutiny the Company had the most readers and writers in Persian of anywhere." Allen assumed that was discounting the Persian court, and the Mughals obviously, but it didn't matter, "I don't imagine you'll have a problem with a mutiny... I think the men in London's clubs admit that all of you will live out your lives here. You'll never go back and take your money and buy country homes, and you'll never sit in parliament... and that I think is what scares them more. You'll never be nabobs, because your fathers, and grand fathers were soldiers... and you all of you were those gray jackets too well. So its so much easier for them to say your Prussian and not a loose company, certainly not now... when its not longer just collecting taxes for Peking to squander, and lets b e honest they are squandering the money that the customs service collects mostly."

 

[Imperator Pax]

May 1922
Percy had told them there would be peace talks between Fengtien and Zhili, but the solidified front had given him enough peace of mind to turn his focus to the work that lay ahead. Every time there were 'war scares' like this civilian affairs went on the back burner. It was still early in the campaign season so something could still go wrong. Not the least of which was that Hunan sat where it did south of Zhili, and in May a new dujun had been appointed. "Wu managed a double envelopment, by means of that old mongol standby of a feigned retreat." Dawes remarked, "A lot of that was the ground,"

The result was that on the 5th ​of May the 23rd​ Division had put into Tietsin, which had probably secured the legation's decision to support Wu tentatively as the victor in the contest of arms. Dawes was right a lot of the fighting had been determined by the ground around the fighting. The combat hadn't been as atrocious in bloodshed as that of the fighting in Europe, but artillery had laid waste the better part of two divisions, Wu was sitting on forty thousand odd prisoners in the vicinity of the capital... and and then there were were the wounded to count on both sides. "They'll exchange prisoners... the ones that don't switch sides." Cole remarked with a hint of disgust from where he was sitting by the window, "They'll have to hash things out, but Zhang will probably withdraw north of the wall, and grumble about it.

It was at that point the conversation turned away from the north and towards Hunan. Hunan's gentry, and how favorably the new Dujun might be received.

Cullen had been thumbing through the fanciful recounting put to print of the adventures in Russia with amusement. With May upon them there was far less concern than there had been a month earlier, and thus time for such distractions. The rescue of the romanoffs was a popular subject, and prone to absurd inflations and hyperbole, but no amount of directing attention to the official war diary made the English reading public less engrossed by the brave struggle against red bandits intent on murdering King George's cousin or the tsar's helpless family

The novel had benefitted its author, probably an officer from 3rd​ Allen suspected with the timing of its publication. It had been published and had arrived at stands just before the King's honors the previous year... and when ole' George the Fifth had been shot the public had been in an outrage. It was just one of several novels which largely all chronicled the adventure, and part of a still broader genre of 'eastern adventure novels' that had cropped... for rather since George had been shot, and in concern for the King's health there had been a great deal of review of England's own involvement in Russia after the revolution.

Not enough introspection that Allen expected real action, "Perce got blindsided like the rest of the brits did he?" Cole asked.

"Sounds like it," He replied to the question, Rapallo was actually what he was here about, the talk of Genoa had been far less of interest to the cadre... that was not to say that the Cadre had had no interest in its proceedings but here they had had initially far less interest for it had seemed like to be nothing more than the French showing their asses to the world. Then of course as if to prove that pronouncement the French government had been replaced by an even more stupid one. Powell certainly that thought was the case in his cables. "And Stockman is already talking about his surgery," And for that matter the study of diseases, epidemiology. "And then there is Powell."

"Percy?" Cullen questioned, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah, but I've seen the British proposal," From the British Liberian Development Corporation, "And its not realistic for what they have. My bigger concern is he's busy all over, and this talk of canals and harbor dredging risks overplaying his hand,"

"Liberia isn't very big," he clicked his tongue quietly, "bout the same size as Honduras." Cullen observed referring not to geographic size but population. "And its not just about rubber, I figure he's looking to develop iron ore as well, but if he can get rubber trees to grow like he says they can...it'll be a boom. If he's got the state departments blessing then...well that will help."

It would. Liberia was a small country, and maybe Powell did have the means to do it, but there was still the question of money in all this. "Percy thinks that Powell has some absurd idea of depeopling what was German East Africa and having an exodus of people move into Liberia."

"Cattle ranches," Bill acknowledged, "From what he's written Liberia could support it, and he's talking about bringing the German black soldiers to settle in, he thinks it'll convince the both sides of it." It was the sort of thing that the Brits would never contemplate... "And Powell has the money to swing it cause of the war," and because the Germans had lost. Liberia also made a tempting measure not only did rubber have the potential to be a big boom but also that coffee was a going to be in demand, as would other crops, "Liberia is hard up for money, got whacked for their trade with the Germans, and didn't have great finances before... Phineas," Bill's navy lawyer brother, "does figure that State would rather the trust pushes the money into the country than risk the Brits trying to come in... but he's not sure how far State really wants things to go."

"Is there a problem in Middle America?"

"No the state desk down that way is whole hearted in their support," There was a pause, and some ruffling of papers moving around them en gathered around the table, and then some grumbling. "He's covering some of it with Morgan but from what I understand from Phineas there is concession talk. I think state wants the Liberians to be bailed out."

That in the end was the thing. That was something any of them could have done. Pierpont Morgan, or even Firestone had that kind of money as a result of the loans and business done during the war and their own dealings normally. Liberia, or most of the countries of Africa, or South America spent money like water... and the finaces of some of the other countries of Asia were shaky themselves... then of course there was Europe. The break up of the old empires, and the reknitting of the quilt of the world, the new borders, made for a mess. The marketing campaign to push adoption in Europe was to answer both a short term economic gap but in the longer term make preparations for a future conflict. "The Serbs have what 26 rifles in service?"

"Across half a dozen cartridges, Romania is only slightly better. The Czechs have friends stateside and got the likes of Skoda, which benefits us from a licensing standpoint." That the czechs had decided against their own in house rifle design, meant there was a chance there, it was a pity that their magazine fed design wasn't likely to win either, "The Serbs on the other hand are starting to get worried about their other neighbor," He meant Italy. Revisionists in the country had been giving speeches for at least two years about driving the serbs back, and the racial inferiority of slavs, and all that such. It sounded like a lot of hot air, but they weren't having to hear it directly," That's part of the reason we're getting where we are. The three of them have agreed in principle to 8mm Mauser, if we get no where else there is setting up ammunition manufacturing and selling some rifles."
--
Notes: Through the end of the year this will likely be updated twice a week. This will make things much easier on me, and then we will go back to standard Saturday updates in the new year

 

[Imperator Pax]

June 1922
Allen didn't presume to distinguish how England's peace time list was supposed to work. He did understand that the war had required vast numbers of men to be called to the colors, and he hoped never to be put in a position where conscription should arise. That being said Percy in his khaki was a sight that bordered on the absurd, particularly with the old workhorse webley along.

It couldn't be helped though.

Sentries from first stood with fixed sword bayonets, looking sharp... both the men and the blades from where they were posted, but Zhengzhou was safe. Zhengzhou had been growing rapidly in the last years of the Qing, and that had continued under Yuan Shikai, under Duan, and it had remained as part of Zhili because the Beiyang consensus from 1913 on as the cadre had continued to invest money into the city.

With 1st​ division present, and at strength the populace was relaxed, and their comfort seemed to be supported as news filtered in of peace talks brokered by the British. Percy was outranked by a number of men some years his junior including a number of men who had been young at the time of the 1917July action.

Yet those same officers still participated made time to participate in the physical readiness of the men, and to make every effort to uphold the professional officer standards, and the technical aspects of the profession they belonged to. With morning drills completed fully half of Allen's staff both those of his peace time officers and the men from the 1st​and the brigade supporting his base of operations were enjoined in study groups that included table top war gaming of scenarios. Something that could be done because the rail hub was safe.

Zhengzhou was the largest cadre city in Western Zhili, more than a million people and had outgrown the still critically important city of Shijiazhuang to the north... where a division sat its eyes focused on Baoding and its military apparatus. The threats though were what they were. The possibility had Zhang Xun managed to rally people to Zhang Tsolin's attempt and the other Zhang had reached Baoding forced them into the conflict, but it hadn't played out that way.

Allen lifted the black tea and drank, before looking at the report. Without active shooting to be done men had paper work and study to be done. It was to keep the men busy, officer and enlisted alike. The Regimental Scout Snipers had been expected to shoot matches for qualification, and Allen had half a mind that even deployed as they were the 1st​ Regiment should carry those qualifications out. Admittedly most of those men had found their normal gray jackets preferable to potential fighting in Zhengzhou to their issued mottled green camouflage jackets which had been issued on the presumption of deploying to fight in Szechwan and among trees not from city streets. Gray worked quite well for night fighting, actually better than black, and the men found that the reduced muzzle flash of the issued rifles with the Maxim derived 'silencer' made them quite effective at evading detection despite using relatively short rifles firing even full power service rounds.

Allen looked up, it wasn't a conversation he really wanted to have with Percy around. For all the British liked to speak of their riflemen and their mad minute, their officers got awful damn squeamish when the realities of the American experience of the Philippines came up and the lessons learned. Allen's current chief of staff was a full bird colonel more than a dozen years Percy's junior. "I can have something arranged for the men sir." He replied looking at the report. The comment was innocuous enough and barely stirred Percy from his own reading,. The RSS qualification for 1st​ included a patch of a sword piercing a wolf's jaws, the same patch was sown on the Colonel's day uniform sleeve, even though technically his tenure with the Scouts had predated the formal adoption of it. The Colonel's rain proof 'field jacket' was also slung over the back of his chair such that the patch was visible for anyone looking at the sleeve.

There had been disagreements over a number of things for rules and regulations, particularly over the best way to organize that. Typically, in following with precedence in the states the regiment carried a numbered sewn patch to the uniform on the sleeve. There had been arguments that that should be abandoned except for dress uniforms and thus not present in the field at all. For the time being soldiers of first regiment as with other regiments carried their Regiment and Battalion on their sleeve, and in the case of specialist formations distinct unit patches, or branch insignia.

The red leg, blood stripe, was like with other branch service colors had been done away with except in dress uniforms long ago... though it did still lead to some confusion with other Beiyang units for the different colors used by other services in the neighbors.

Percy idled over, "The legation thinks there is an agreement, that they can get Zhang and Wu will stop throwing their men at each other. That we've found the spot on the map to freeze the lines of control... you know..."

"That's what the wires tell me," He replied, his stack of telegrams every morning was substantial and covered more than just the Legation in Tietsin.

"I don't think Zhang ... I don't think Zhang came into this war expecting a real fight."

That was possible, Allen was willing to admit. Zhang had been dismissive for years of Wu's abilities as a soldier despite his long tenure in the Beiyang army. He'd underestimated the resistance... that seemed pretty self evident here. It was a mistake that they endeavored to not make. "I assume that he must have said something to garner that."

"From the back channels, the coalition he was apart of was supposed to prevent hostilities... sort of like how Duan's coalition prevented a protracted conflict in 1917."

... a part of him could understand how that thinking might have come together, "Zhang Xun was a part of that coalition. And Sun as well."

"Yes... and even though the Germans have been beaten I think that gave Alston some pause about what he should cable to London." There had been accusations during the Manchu Restoration that Zhang had been pro German, some of the Royalist party was pro German, and Sun had opposed initially the declaration of war against Germany. Of course for as much as the Foreign Service complained, Allen did feel that part of the problem was they read too much into how much of the late Qing law code at least those parts that had been aimed at modernizing, and the army had borrowed from Prussian sources. "I think it stopped Alston from moving."

"Maybe," Allen replied, "Japan didn't seem to know what to think." But a part of him wondered if that was because they had lost too many senior experts of state ... the old man's death came to mind this had been getting underway not long before they'd buried Yamagata. Had that frozen them? Or had it just meant there were now too many arguing cliques in foreign policy. "Harding seems to have thought it needed to play out, that interfering with the natural order isn't advisable."

"That was the American position for the Taiping rebellion as well, that supporting the Qing was a mistake." That history should have been allowed to run its course.