Ask your opinion about Wu.

"Although Wu is also a warlord, there are two things that are very different from other warlords. First of all, Guan Heyue is a great figure whom he worshipped all his life in the history of our country. After the failure, he didn't go abroad or live in the concession. ..... It is true that many people boast that he can practice the preface when he is out of power. Second, Wu has been an official for decades, ruling the territory of several provinces and leading hundreds of thousands of soldiers. He has no private savings, no land property and an innocent name. Compared with the warlords of the same period, it is finally commendable. " -Dong

There are many successful examples of scholar leaders in the modern history of China, such as Zeng Guofan and Li Hongzhang in the Qing Dynasty. Undoubtedly, Wu was one of them in the early years of the Republic of China.

Most Beiyang soldiers don't study, so Wu's scholar background has become an enviable resume. After Wu became the commander-in-chief, the military and political circles often used "Yu Shuai" and "Wu" to compliment him face to face, but they all called him "Wu Xiucai" behind his back, and he also readily acquiesced. American historian Fei Zhengqing obviously attached great importance to the cultural background of this Beiyang soldier and simply called Wu a "scholar warlord".

Wu in the Civil War

In the early years of the Republic of China, the word "Wu" could not be erased, and the name appeared in newspapers from time to time.

In those days, how awesome Wu was! He led his troops south, out of Zhili, Henan, Hubei, Hunan and bordering Guangdong.

Originally, Yuan Shikai had unified China by force, but Lao Yuan's "imperialist self-management" annoyed warlords of all walks of life, so Southwest China fought for a separatist regime. After the death of Lao Yuan, Duan led the cabinet and repeatedly ordered the provinces to cancel their independence and obey the central authorities. However, "as usual, the dust can't run away without a broom", so Duan ordered the army to go south. The northern army went south, full of vigor and vitality, the most acute of which was Wu's third army. Everyone knows that as long as the Commander-in-Chief gives the order, his disciplined army will be able to capture Sanxiang and then destroy Guangdong and Guangxi, and the dream of "unification by force" of the Beijing government is just around the corner!

However, just as the good news spread frequently, Wu suddenly stopped. He began to drink and write poems with the military and political dignitaries and gentry in the occupied areas strangely all day, and stopped talking about war!

Lao Duan was eager to join the army and go to the front, and awarded Wu Yi, a student of Surveying and Mapping Department of Baoding Accelerated School, the honorary title of General, encouraging him to destroy Guangdong and Guangxi and unify China. However, Wu is not buying it! After a while, he withdrew his troops without authorization and returned the great mountains and rivers laid by Beiyang Army to the south!

To tell the truth, it's really hard to say how to write a history of the Republic of China without Wu's blow!

When Wu stopped fighting in Hengyang, he won an excellent reputation, because his reason for stopping fighting was to call for peace, and so was the so-called "truce and peace". Why are you doing this? "If you cook beans on the wall, how dare you say so?" "Not KouQiu foreign invasion, why heavily defended? Can't fight for sovereignty outside and set up a defense line inside? " (Wu to the radio), so I quit!

Old Duan jumped up with anger: "The scholar rebelled!"

In fact, both the ruling and the opposition understand that Wu Xiucai, who has made great contributions, should be appointed as the governor of Hunan Province. Old Duan arranged others, which provoked the scholar to rebel.

Perhaps Duan didn't reward him for his meritorious service, because he was afraid that Wu, who was resolute, couldn't help it. While the Beijing government was speculating about Wu's strike, Wu's "four noes" came from Hunan:

No supervisors, no concessions, no foreigners, no foreign debts.

Sure enough, he never broke Wu's "temptation" in life. In that era of continuous dependence on foreigners, only those people dared to make such a commitment to the people of China publicly.