Chapter 77: Second Northern Expedition 2

In the spring breezes of April 1928, the scent of gunpowder hung in the air. At the oath‑taking rally outside Jinling City, Principal Jiang clasped Li Yuxuan's hand, his gaze heavy: "Jingxing, this time you lead the vanguard, I hope you will be as unstoppable as you were during your first Northern Expedition."

Li Yuxuan stood at attention and saluted, his military boots striking the bluestone slabs with a crisp clack: "Very well, Young Master!"

"Alright, I'll say no more if it's too much," Principal Jiang patted his shoulder, "Go, take the Fifth Army and display our might."

"Yes, Young Master!"

Since the deployment in April, the Fifth Army has advanced north along the Jin‑Pu line, a torrent of iron rolling forward, unstoppable as a bamboo shoot split. When they set out from Xuzhou in Jiangsu, the soldiers still felt the chill of early spring. Passing Tancheng in southern Shandong, peach buds were just opening along the road. Crossing Taierzhuang and Lincheng, the wheat fields had already turned a fresh green. By the time they fought their way through Teng County, Yanzhou and Tai'an, the May heat carried the scent of ripening wheat, brushing the smoke‑blackened faces of the troops.

After a month of hard fighting, on May 1, 1928, the Fifth Army finally reached the outskirts of Jinan City. The garrison on the City wall fled at the first sight of wind, while the civilians dared not leave their homes; only scattered wisp of cooking smoke rose from houses, betraying a uneasy stillness.

"Chairman," the Adjutant hurriedly reported, clutching a piece of intelligence, his face grim, "Japan, under the pretext of 'protecting overseas Chinese,' has dispatched the Sixth Division and other units from Qingdao, already occupying Jinan's Shangbu. They have erected fortifications at intersections and alleys, and have seized the weapons of our patrol unit—this is blatant provocation!"

Li Yuxuan stood on the city tower, looking at the Sun Flag fluttering toward Shangbu, his fingertips turning white: "Are their overseas Chinese still in the city?"

"Most haven't withdrawn; they're said to be packing up."

"Wait." Li Yuxuan's voice was as cold as ice, "Wait until their overseas Chinese are evacuated, then we'll settle accounts with those wolf cubs." He did not want innocent civilians caught in the fire, nor give the Japanese army an excuse to enlarge the incident.

"Yes, Chairman!"

Two days later at dawn, the tranquility of Jinan City was torn apart by gunfire.

May 3, just after the hour of Chen, a sudden barrage of gunshots rang from the Shangbu direction. Li Yuxuan was studying siege maps in the command post when the gunfire erupted; his sidearm at his waist instantly unsheathed: "What's happening?"

The communications soldier scrambled in, his voice trembling: "Ch— Chairman, the Japanese army used a pretext to clash with our patrol unit and opened fire, killing people outright! The Shangbu side is already in chaos; they shoot anyone they see, civilian or soldier…"

"And more!" another staff officer burst through the door, eyes bloodshot, "The Japanese army broke into the Shandong Negotiation Office, brutally slaughtering Commissioner Cai Gongshi and 18 other diplomatic personnel… They cut out their tongues, gouged out their eyes; the deaths were horrific…"

"What did you say?!" Li Yuxuan clenched his fist hard, the sound of cracking knuckles ringing sharply in the dead‑silent command post. His vision went black, he nearly fell, steadied himself on the desk edge, and shouted, "How dare they?!"

The Japanese army's arrogance exceeded his imagination; they dared to massacre diplomats right under the Northern Expedition Army's nose—an insult to the entire nation!

"Notify all units of the Fifth Army to assemble at Jinan immediately!" Li Yuxuan's voice was hoarse as if rubbed with sandpaper, each word dripping with blood, "Seal off Shangbu; not a single fly may get out!"

"Yes, Chairman!"

Everyone in the command post was startled by the bloodshot veins in his eyes, a suppressed fury ready to erupt like a volcano about to blow.

No one noticed Li Yuxuan's hand on the desk edge trembling violently, his mind exploding with raging turmoil—

"It shouldn't have happened…" he muttered, his face as pale as paper, "Could this be the butterfly effect from my time‑travel? The Japanese army's full invasion of Huaxia was the September 18 Incident of 1931—when did Jinan experience this? History books don't record it. Damn it! If only I'd studied history seriously before."

He had been time‑traveled to this era for several years, cautiously nudging history, hoping to make the nation a little stronger, a little stronger, so it would have more confidence in the coming cataclysm. Yet now the Japanese army's atrocities are playing out ahead of schedule, and with even greater recklessness!

"Damn it!" Li Yuxuan hammered a fist onto the map, the Jinan City marker smashed to pieces, "We cannot let these Japanese troops leave Huaxia, no matter what!"

【5】 He recalled the decision made two days earlier, his heart feeling clenched by an invisible hand, pain choking his breath—

He recalled the decision from two days ago, his heart feeling as if grasped by an invisible hand, aching so badly he could barely breathe—

"Dammit! If I'd known, I would have stormed in on day one!" If I hadn't hesitated about the overseas Chinese, if I'd torn the veil earlier, would Commissioner Cai and the others have survived? Could the slaughtered soldiers and civilians have lived?

"Killing people right under my nose… I really deserve to die!" Li Yuxuan's voice trembled with tears, cursing his own 'caution' for the first time. He had thought he could control the situation, but forgot that the nature of wolves is blood‑thirsty; they can never be judged by ordinary logic.

Outside the command post, the rapid assembly whistle sounded, cutting through Jinan's gunfire and cries. Soldiers of the Fifth Army surged in from all directions, the Tank's roar shaking the ground, fighter planes whooshing overhead, and the Blue Sky White Sun Flag on the wings fluttering loudly in the sunlight.

Li Yuxuan inhaled deeply, wiping the moisture from his eyes with his sleeve, his gaze sharpening like a blade again. He stepped to the doorway, looking at the tide of troops surging toward Shangbu, his voice echoing through the entire command post:

"Tell the brothers," his voice was low yet carried the weight of a thousand pounds, "today we are not undertaking the Northern Expedition."

"First, grind these wolf cubs that broke into our homes into meat paste!"

Above Jinan City, the smoke grew ever denser. Sunlight pierced the clouds, shining on the Fifth Army's banner and on Li Yuxuan's blood‑stained fingertips. He knew that from this moment, history's course might veer completely off track, but he didn't care.

All he knew was that blood debt must be repaid with blood.