Huai Army
Lu Yongxiang was born October 22, 1867, in Jiyang, Shandong, China. Impoverished as a child, he joined the Huai Army in 1890. In 1895 he joined the new Beiyang Army, rising to brigade commander. At the time of the 1911 Xinhai Revolution Lu was given command of the Beiyang 3rd Division.