Imperial warlords: Cannons are the only truth

Ding!

Congratulations, host, on completing the "Reclaim Qingcheng" mission and receiving a valuable reward—the Welfare Edition Conquest Gift Pack.

Shen Moshen then clicked to take a look.

Item Name: [Welfare Edition Conquest Gift Pack].

Gift pack contents: 20 regimental-level ammunition and fuel replenishment kits, 1 welfare version D army tank battalion, 30 battalion-level tank fuel replenishment kits, and 30 division-level military ration supply kits.

What really caught Shen Moshen's eye was this welfare-themed D Army tank battalion.

[Welfare Version of D Army Tank Battalion]: It consists of 1 command company, 3 light tank companies and 1 medium tank company.

其中，指挥连配置2辆指挥坦克、1辆四号坦克、4辆三号坦克以及7辆2号坦克。

Each light tank company consists of a command group of two Panzer III tanks, a light tank platoon of five Panzer II tanks, and three medium tank platoons, each consisting of five Panzer III tanks.

The medium tank company consisted of a command group (2 Panzer III tanks), a light tank platoon (5 Panzer II tanks), and three medium tank platoons (5 Panzer IV tanks per platoon).

The entire tank battalion is equipped with a total of 102 tanks.

(Note: This configuration is a replica of the actual organization of the D Army tank battalion on October 1, 1938.)

As expected of the generous welfare version of the Conquest Gift Pack!

The contents of the gift package are really amazing.

With this current team, putting everything else aside, Shen Moshen will definitely have no problem sweeping through Youzhou and becoming the governor of Youzhou!

"Sir, what should we do with these people?" An officer looked at the group of Qingcheng gentry who were still squatting in the corner.

"Commander Shen! Marshal Shen! Baldy Feng deserves to die for treason and collusion with the enemy. We were all forced to play along under his tyranny..."

"When I learned of Marshal Shen's murder, I almost cried all my tears!"

"However, Feng the Bald is very powerful, and I had to go to the banquet against my will for the sake of my family's lives!"

"Yes! We were all forced into this! Baldy Feng is greedy, bullies men and women, and commits all sorts of evil deeds. His arrival in Qingcheng was a nightmare for the people of Qingcheng!"

"Marshal Shen is the true upright and just magistrate of Qingcheng!"

When everyone saw the look in Shen Moshen's eyes, they immediately rushed to state their positions.

Some people even burst into tears on the spot...

“These people…” Shen Moshen completely ignored the impromptu performance of these opportunists, and a “warm” smile appeared on his face.

"They are all prominent figures in Qingcheng, and more importantly, they are all quite wealthy!"

"Copy them all. I'm a bit short on cash right now."

As for these people......."

Shen Moshen stroked his chin and looked at the crowd who were too frightened to utter a word: "They're all no good either. Let them go down and keep Baldy Feng company."

"Commander, you are wise! None of these people are good!" Lieutenant Li immediately added insult to injury, saying, "This humble officer is willing to serve you faithfully and follow you to the death."

"Forget it." Shen Moshen patted Lieutenant Li on the shoulder: "I wouldn't dare use an adjutant as 'flexible' and 'loyal' as you."

Then Shen Moshen turned around and walked downstairs without looking back.

"Leave no one behind!"

Shen Moshen's parting words instantly plunged Lieutenant Li and the group of Qingcheng gentry into an abyss...

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After regaining control of Qingcheng, Shen Moshen immediately came up with a new plan.

As a transmigrator with the support of a system, it would be a disservice to his transmigrator status if he didn't make a name for himself in the chaotic world of this other world.

After receiving all of the original owner's memories, Shen Moshen gained a deeper understanding of the situation in the Great Qian Empire.

The Great Qian Empire of this world is currently in a chaotic period of warlordism.

With imperial power waning and internal and external troubles raging, the lives of ordinary people were filled with unbearable suffering.

With warlords constantly fighting amongst themselves, human life became the least valuable commodity.

The biggest warlord in the Great Qian Empire was Xie Kangnian, who held the emperor hostage in the capital and commanded the feudal lords.

Xie Kangnian personally participated in the formation of the Daqian New Army. The commanders of the first twelve divisions were all promoted by Xie Kangnian.

Later, Xie Kangnian also took control of six divisions of the Royal Guard.

In this way, all twelve provinces of the Great Qian Empire, plus several special cities, became Xie Kangnian's territory.

Looking across the entire Great Qian Empire, there is absolutely no other warlord who can rival Xie Kangnian.

Therefore, Xie Kangnian, as a cabinet minister of the Great Qian Empire and commander-in-chief of the three armies of the Great Qian Empire, became the most powerful person in the Great Qian Empire.

However, Xie Kangnian's aggressive and arrogant behavior gradually aroused serious dissatisfaction among other major warlords.

Two years ago, Xie Kangnian also used the excuse of an empty national treasury to completely cut off the allocation of military funds to those outside the Xie faction.

In other words, apart from the twelve divisions that Xie Kangnian personally promoted and the Royal Guard, the salaries of the other twenty-four divisions registered with the Imperial Military Affairs Department were suspended.

In short—the national treasury is broke! The military pay that should be paid to the registered regular divisions can only be issued on IOUs.

Here's where you need to be careful: they're talking about writing an IOU!

According to regulations, regular divisions registered with the Imperial Military Affairs Department should receive military funding from the Empire; they acknowledge this, but they simply cannot come up with the money!

Other local warlords naturally understood Xie Kangnian's intentions—to invest more money in their own elite troops.

This also exacerbated the dissatisfaction of other warlords with Xie Kangnian.

However, despite their dissatisfaction, the other warlords could only dare to be angry but not speak out in the face of Xie Kangnian's immense power, and on the surface they still had to give Xie Kangnian enough face.

Therefore, the warlord forces in the Great Qian Empire can be broadly categorized into two major camps: the Xie faction and the non-Xie faction!

The Xie faction's territory extends from the capital city to twelve provinces.

Basically, the most prosperous areas of the Great Qian Empire were under the control of the Xie faction.

Therefore, some people jokingly refer to warlord forces outside of Xie's faction as "stepmothers"...

Shen Moshen's province of Youzhou was outside the Xie faction's sphere of influence.

Furthermore, Youzhou was not only located in a remote area, but its economy was also very backward.

So, even though Zheng Kuiyong expanded his 33rd Division from 8,000 men to more than 30,000 while he was alive, it's not surprising.

However, the equipment of the 33rd Division was truly underwhelming.

As the most elite unit in Youzhou, the 33rd Division could barely manage to equip each soldier with a rifle.

The number of light and heavy machine guns and artillery pieces was very limited.

However, the 33rd Division, as Zheng Kuiyong's direct subordinate force, was an invincible force within Youzhou.

After all, there are over 30,000 guns right there!

Many soldiers in the small warlord armed forces that were incorporated by Zheng Kuiyong and existed as security forces were actually armed with machetes and shotguns.

The 398th Regiment, which only had about 500 men and was wiped out by Feng Dexiang, was essentially a security regiment.

Back when Shen Moshen was kicked out of the capital and sent to Youzhou, Zhao Daqiang, the head of the Qingcheng Security Corps, happened to die while he was out of the city suppressing bandits.

Therefore, out of a desire to value talent, Zheng Kuiyong allocated several hundred guns to arrange for Shen Moshen to be stationed in Qingcheng, and assigned the Qingcheng Security Regiment the designation of the 398th Regiment.

Of course, this number is the kind that cannot be found in the Imperial Military Affairs Office.

The reason it's called the 398th Regiment is simply because it sounds good and the number is auspicious.

Furthermore, assigning Shen Moshen's regiment the designation of the 398th Regiment would tell others that Shen Moshen's regiment belonged to Zheng Kuiyong's inner circle.

Zheng Kuiyong planned to find an opportunity to give Shen Moshen, a top student from the Imperial Army Military Academy, an important position.

However, the 33rd Division has never had a vacancy for a regimental commander.

They then came up with a compromise: to first arrange for Shen Moshen to stay in Qingcheng.

Unexpectedly, man proposes, God disposes; Zheng Kuiyong, in the prime of his life, was gone without a trace.

It was precisely because of Zheng Kuiyong's care that Feng Dexiang had been able to hold back until today before finally taking action against Shen Moshen's 398th Regiment.

Otherwise, Feng Dexiang would have already started fighting Shen Moshen, who showed no respect for him!