A Love Never Lost Episode 38 Recap
> A Love Never Lost Recap
Yang Kaizhi showed signs of advocating for revolution. Youmin immediately wanted to detonate a bomb, but Ma Buzhou struck his wrist holding the hammer first, then restrained and took him away. Yang Kaizhi stated that the main force of the Beiyang Army was concentrated in Wuchang, leaving the capital defenseless. Now was the time to surprise attack the capital and take it without bloodshed. Yang Kaizhi decided to divide into three routes to directly strike the capital.
Zhang Shaoceng and Lan Tianwei were both willing to risk their lives to follow him. But just then, the Ministry of the Army in the capital sent a telegram ordering Yang Kaizhi to return to Zhenkou immediately and lead the Sixth Town to suppress the Shanxi rebels. It was clear that the capital feared Yang Kaizhi leading the Sixth Town the most, so why suddenly grant him control of the Sixth Town? Yang Kaizhi knew something was amiss.
Then someone reported that all train cars had been taken away, and without trains, their advance on the capital would surely be delayed. Yang Kaizhi suspected someone had leaked information. He decided to go all the way—once the bow was drawn, there was no turning back. If he couldn't take the city with strategy, then he would do so with blood.
He had just arrived at the Twelfth Town and had to bid farewell to Zhang Shaoceng and Lan Tianwei again. The new Prime Minister, Yuan Shikai, arrived in the capital for his post, with a grander procession than the emperor. Liang Xiang returned home and unexpectedly saw Zhu Laixi crying at his house. Overnight, Shanghai had switched flags and turned against the Qing. Zhu Laixi's patrol camp was swayed towards revolution by two deputy leaders.
Zhu Laixi did not want to revolt, so the two helped tidy him up and sent him to Pier 16 to catch a boat home. But Zhu Laixi no longer had a home, so he came to the capital to seek refuge with Liang Xiang. The current situation was more severe than imagined. Liang Xiang had already learned that Yang Kaizhi intended to unite with Zhang Shaoceng and Lan Tianwei to launch a surprise attack on the capital.
Yuan Shikai was now the new Prime Minister. If the sky were to fall, he would be the one to hold it up. Deputy Commander Zhou appeared at the Sixth Town, holding a confidential order from Yuan Gongbao, claiming he was sent by Yuan to "rescue" the Sixth Town. When Yang Kaizhi returned to the Sixth Town, Li Renjun presented his appointment—Yang Kaizhi had been appointed by the court as the Governor of Shanxi, responsible for suppressing the Shanxi rebels.
Before heading to Shanxi, Yang Kaizhi summoned all officers above company level for a meeting. Before the meeting, Yang Kaizhi and Li Renjun had a private conversation. Yang Kaizhi urged Li Renjun to go with the flow, while Li Renjun advised him not to act recklessly, warning that Yang Kaizhi's every move was under higher surveillance. Even so, Yang Kaizhi was determined to stir up the officers of the Sixth Town to launch a revolution.
Yuan Gongbao had already ordered Li Renjun back to the capital. Knowing he couldn't persuade Yang Kaizhi, Li Renjun simply returned to accompany Xiao Fenglan. From then on, all responsibilities fell to Deputy Commander Zhou. Zhou ordered that after Yang Kaizhi’s speech, all company commanders were to meet him at the station. But almost no one reacted to Yang Kaizhi’s speech. After it ended, Ma Buzhou entered the room and shot Yang Kaizhi dead.
Yang Kaizhi didn't even get to finish reading the letter Xie Shuhong had written to him. By the time Gu Maichen returned, Yang Kaizhi was already lying in a pool of blood. Li Renjun and Xiao Fenglan returned to Beijing. Instead of reporting to the Ministry of the Army immediately, Li Renjun first went to the Liang household to inform Liang Xiang of Yang Kaizhi’s death.
The three of them had once gone to Tokyo together, but now they were one short. Duo Mei served tea to Li Renjun and Liang Xiang. When she learned that Yang Kaizhi was dead, her face turned pale in an instant. A living person, gone just like that—anyone would be shaken. In such turbulent times, even knowing it was a road to death, Yang Kaizhi still chose the path of revolution without hesitation. Few were as fearless as him.
