In Wuchang, the celebration meeting was naturally not absent. Li Yuanhong personally awarded medals to Wang Longzhong and other officers and soldiers of the Hubei Relief Army, and separately rewarded the second battalion with 100,000 yuan, hoping that they would continue to bravely fight against the enemy and make more contributions to the revolution.

  At this time, Wang Longzhong, as the head of the association, did not intend to stay in Hubei and wanted to return to Hunan.

  Wang Longzhong's intention to return to Hunan was not a sudden decision. Firstly, he had lost trust in Huang Xing since the reorganization of the troops aiding Hubei and Hunan. From then on, Wang Longzhong was unwilling to follow Huang Xing's orders from the bottom of his heart. Secondly, after all, his hometown Hunan was where he and his troops were rooted. He felt it necessary to lead his troops back to Changsha to find Tan Yankai and others to reason with them about Jiao Duzheng and Chen Duzheng. Otherwise, if Tan Yankai and the others solidified their positions, it would be too late for him to return.

  That night, at the celebration banquet set up by the Hubei military government, Wang Longzhong bypassed Huang Xing, the commander-in-chief, and directly asked Li Yuanhong, the governor-general, to resign.

  Li Dazhao was indeed frightened by the Beiyang Army in Hankou. Although the Beiyang Army has stopped military action due to the destruction of supplies, it is unknown what the situation will be like next. Who knows when the supplies will be replenished and Hanyang will become a fierce battlefield again? Therefore, he disagreed with Wang Longzhong leading the Aid-Hubei Army to withdraw back to Hunan. It should be known that Wang Longzhong now has more than three regiments. After incorporating Liu Yutang's remaining troops, this guy has as many as five regiments and nearly 4,000 soldiers, not to mention Gan Xintian's 2,000 soldiers who are also following him. Such a force of 6,000-7,000 soldiers who have received regular training and combat testing is the capital for survival at this critical moment. How could Li Yuanhong bear to let them return home?

  Besides, there is another thing that Li Yuanhong is very clear about. This counterattack on the Han River was originally lost. Moreover, according to the reports of his own spies in the wartime headquarters, the loss was quite thorough and chaotic. But in the end, it was thanks to the bravery of these Hunan soldiers who launched a surprise night attack that they were able to turn defeat into victory, reversing the entire situation and barely stabilizing the current situation in Hanyang. How could he let Wang Longzhong go at this time? If they leave, who will guard Hanyang?

  Li Yuanhong hastily promised to make up for the military expenses and ammunition, hoping that Wang Longzhong could stay in Hanyang for a few more days.

  But Wang Longzhong was unmoved, still insisting on leaving. In his heart, it was clear that he had been out for over a month, and waiting any longer would be futile. If Tan Yankai and the others solidified their positions as governors of Hunan, he would have no opportunities left. Therefore, no matter what promises Li Yuanhong made, Wang Longzhong refused to budge.

  Later, Sun Wu and others from the Hubei military government also came to persuade him, and Huang Xing, who had just learned of the news, rushed back to Wuchang from Hanyang overnight, strongly advising Wang Longzhong to consider the overall situation, but none of these efforts were effective.

  Wang Longzhong did not expect that he would be valued so much by the Hubei military government, although his determination to return home was unchanged, but on the surface, it was not good to make things absolute.

  "Commander Huang, you know that we are all out here to revolutionize and fight against the Manchu dynasty. But who would have thought that I, Wang Longzhong, had just led my troops out of Changsha to join the revolution, only to have Tan Yankai turn around and kill our Commander-in-Chief Jiang and Chen? At first, I thought it was clear-cut, but after a month on the front lines, fighting against the enemy and losing nearly 2,000 brothers, not one comrade has stood up to say a word about the killing of Jiang and Chen. Not even Tan Renfang himself. You should know that when Wuhan was in danger, we came to ask Commander-in-Chief Jiang for help, and he didn't hesitate for a moment, sending all his reliable troops to our aid. If not for him, Mei's forces would have been able to move against us with just one battalion. But now that Jiang and Chen are dead, does Tan Renfang say anything about avenging them? Not at all! Are they not fellow revolutionaries who fought against the Manchu dynasty? Were they traitors? So, is it a case of 'no comment'? 'No knowledge'? 'Pretending to be deaf and dumb'? Fine, I'll take care of myself. I'll lead my own troops back to Changsha and demand justice for Commander-in-Chief Jiang and Chen. Commander Huang, don't say anything, don't try to persuade me. Although I'm a rough man, I understand reason, and I speak straight from the heart. My temper is big, and I may have offended you before, but you are magnanimous and don't hold grudges. I know you're not here just to do official business, but to truly join the revolution. So, I won't completely dismiss your face. I'll leave my nephew's second battalion behind to follow your orders. If something happens to me this time when I return to Changsha, and I end up like Jiang and Chen, killed by those scoundrels, please take care of Wen Zheng for me. This child has been following me since he was 12 years old, running errands for me all these years. I won't bring him back to Hunan to muddy the waters. Please, Commander Huang, take care of him!"

  After finishing speaking, Wang Longzhong stood up with tears in his eyes and gave Huang Xing a big bow. Then he shut his mouth and closed his eyes, not allowing Huang Xing to open his mouth to persuade him.

  Huang Xing saw that Wang Longzhong had made up his mind and couldn't be persuaded, so he stood up and said: "Commander-in-Chief Wang is indeed a man of great passion and integrity. If Director Jiang and Director Chen knew about this in the afterlife, they would probably turn a blind eye too. I understand now, and with that, I bid you farewell."

  That night, Wang Longzhong convened a meeting of all officers above the regimental level to inform them that he would be returning to Hunan with his troops, while the Second Regiment would remain in Hubei and continue to take orders from Huang Xing, the commander-in-chief.

  After the meeting, Wang Longzhong kept Wang Zhenyu behind: "Wen Zheng, Uncle Master is returning to Hunan this time, with an uncertain future and a difficult outcome. He had no choice but to leave you in Hubei, do you have any opinion on this?"

  Wang Zhenyu still admired Wang Longzhong's rough yet refined approach, and he knew that the chances of success this time were low. After all, history textbooks didn't even mention this operation, which meant it was a failure.

  He nodded: "Uncle, this little brother is not worth much even if he goes back. It's also good to stay in Hubei. In case something happens, Uncle, you can run here and at least there are so many brothers around. But uncle, do we have to go back to Hunan to argue about this?"

  Wang Longzhong shook his head: "Uncle Ye is also helpless, Tan Yanxin is a formidable person. Friends from Changsha have written to say that Governor Tan is very good at buying people's hearts, and he either eliminates or sends the old subordinates of Jiao and Chen to the front line in Hubei. At this rate, it won't be long before he solidifies his position as governor, and we can't even hope to take his place. We're lucky if we can avenge ourselves. If I continue to stay in Hubei and don't return, by the time the war is over and I return to Hunan, what's left for us uncle and nephew will be nothing but scattering. Uncle Ye has been a soldier since he was 15 years old, after so many years, if he really doesn't lead troops anymore, he can only go back to his hometown in Baoqing Prefecture to farm and collect rent. Farming is not bad, it's much more relaxing than being an official. I'm just afraid that these petty people will still harm me when the time comes, and Uncle Ye will become a fool."

  Wang Zhenyu also knew that once the struggle for power began, there was no room for retreat. He nodded and said nothing more.

  Wang Longzhong again exhorted him a few words, mainly to take good care of the troops and grasp training.

  On November 24, Wang Longzhong, the commander of the first division of the Hunan Army, and Gan Xintian, the commander of the third division, officially announced their withdrawal from Wuhan back to Changsha.

  Hubei Military Government's General-in-Chief Li Yuanhong was extremely angry upon learning of this and sent a telegram to the Hunan Military Government in Changsha, using severe language to demand that Hunan Military Government's General-in-Chief Tan Yankai severely punish such cowardly behavior. This is probably the biggest joke during the Xinhai Revolution. Tan Yankai himself did not know how to face this powerful army rushing towards Changsha, and Li Yuanhong actually wanted him to punish them - he was speechless!

  Wang Zhenyu has also been quite annoyed lately, although his outstanding performance in the Battle of Hankou has made him a well-known figure nationwide and an excellent representative of the military officers. However, the wheels of history are still stubbornly following their original trajectory, with the only difference being that due to the Butterfly Effect of the Yu Dai Men Night Raid, Duan Qirui took away the command of the First Army from Feng Guozhang twenty days earlier than in history. Moreover, under various pressures, the Qing government also agreed to a temporary ceasefire three days ahead of schedule, thus avoiding Li Yuanhong's embarrassing situation of rushing to Wuchang 40 miles and Wan Yaohuang chasing after the governor-general to get him to sign the ceasefire agreement.

  But these have nothing to do with Wang Zhenyu, and the most fundamental problem remains unsolved - what should I do with myself after the revolution?

  Following the uncle Wang Longzhong, no need to think, it must be a dead end, because there is no such person in history. In other words, this time Wang Longzhong ran back with the banner of avenging Jiao Du and Chen Du, but it's definitely not going to work. Politics is like sailing against the current, if you don't move forward, you'll fall behind. Next, I estimate that Uncle will have to leave the political stage. Following him is no better than following Lu Diping, at least when Little Lu becomes the Chairman of Jiangxi Province, I can still get a position as a division commander or something, and even if nothing else works out, being an Education Minister is not bad either. No need to mention getting ahead of time to stir up the education industry, grabbing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and seeing who dares to compete for this big turd in the future.

  Following Tan Yankai, this person seems to have done quite well in the Republic of China, at least he didn't sink into obscurity and remained a big shot until his death. However, as the cheap nephew of Wang Longzhong, it's not worth mentioning that they could be on an equal footing. Even if Tan Yankai really trusted himself and reused him, how much future would he have? Don't look at Old Tan playing three times in Hunan during the Four Warlords period, and still occupying a position in the subsequent National Government. But that's because he was the boss, even after bankruptcy, he was still plotting to rise again, but as an employee, how could he follow him like this? Moreover, Old Tan's later direct subordinates, such as Cheng Qian, Zhao Hengti, and Tang Shengzhi, were all unreliable after Old Tan's death. Would he also follow them to become unreliable? In fact, the Hunan Army during the Republic of China period did not make a name for itself at all, it completely became a high-quality soldier source for various warlords, and it was true that Zhejiang people paid money, Guangdong people made revolutions, and Hunan people sold their lives. Therefore, following Tan Yankai is basically not considered, neither big nor small has any future.

  What to do when facing the chaotic world ahead? Whether it's Yuan Shikai or Sun Yat-sen, I reckon if I were to go and rely on them now, they wouldn't even give me a straight look. With just this bit of military achievement and these troops, I can still fool the common people. These big shots must have a standard for judging each person's usefulness, and my current situation definitely won't meet their standards. Alas...