20 years of the Republic of China

Chapter 608: Rumors of the Green Forest
That afternoon, Jiang Lianheng sent Wu Dashetou to the train station to serve as a personal witness, proving that Wu Laoer did not collude with any provincial government officials when he passed through Fengtian, nor did he plot a rebellion.

Although this move was a bit redundant, in extraordinary times, the two of them were doing their part.

The next day, the capital of Beijing sent a telegram to the whole country, ordering the removal of Marshal Zhang from all his military and political posts, including the Inspector General of the Three Eastern Provinces and the Governor of Mongolia and Xinjiang, and appointing Wu Dashetou as the Governor-General of Fengtian.

Wu Xiucai's intention to sow discord is obvious.

After the decree was announced, martial law in the provincial capital was immediately tightened.

As the captain of the duty team, Jiang Lianheng naturally had to stay quiet.

Although the people did not believe that Wu Lao Er could replace Marshal Zhang, they were also worried that the turbulent situation would cause the war to spread and affect the Northeast.

There has been no war outside the Great Wall for more than ten years.

Peace is hard to come by, and no one wants to take the risk of disrupting the status quo, so Feng Zhang's foundation has not been shaken.

Two days later, Marshal Zhang responded by telegram from his retreat area:

From that day on, the Northeast will respond to the call from the South and implement federal autonomy. All military and political plans outside the Great Wall will not be subject to the control of the capital, but will be voted on jointly by the parliaments of the three provinces.

…………

In Fengtian City, as soon as the official document on closing the border and exercising autonomy was issued, Jiang Lianheng was summoned to the Municipal Government Office by the martial law commander Sun Jiugong.

The Jiang family members did not understand what this meant, and were afraid of losing their backing, so they all gathered in the big house in the north of the city, waiting, hoping to get some inside information in time.

Looking around, I saw that all the family members were there, including Hu Xiaoyan, Dong Nanxi, Xue Yingqing, Zhao Guoyan, and even Sister Hua.

After waiting for three or two hours, Jiang Lianheng finally came back.

As soon as they entered the living room, everyone came forward to ask: What arrangements has the Marshal made, what decision has the provincial government made, and will the Zhi army reach Fengtian?

The words came out so fast like a string of cannonballs that it was hard to tell where to start.

Jiang Lianheng just waved his hand, took off his coat and handed it to Song Ma, then sat down leisurely in the main seat and lit a cigarette.

"Hey, everyone's here. We're all here today. Shall we have a meal tonight?"

Xue Yingqing rolled his eyes when he saw him so leisurely, and said angrily, "Don't keep us in suspense. Everyone is waiting for your news. Will you die if you don't smoke that broken cigarette?"

"Who is keeping us in suspense?" Jiang Lianheng said, "Didn't you see the provincial government's announcement? It's just a small matter. What else is there to ask?"

Li Zhengxi heard this and came over to ask, "Brother, what did Commander Sun ask you to do?"

Jiang Lianheng flicked the ash off his cigarette and said, "The capital has dismissed Lao Zhang from his post. Commander Sun wants me to mobilize the Chamber of Commerce and the Labor Union to issue a joint telegram to oppose the cabinet's decision. Other academic societies, farmers' associations, and hometown associations also have dedicated people in charge. This is also Lao Zhang's idea."

"Oh, after all this fuss, it's just pretending to be public opinion!"

Everyone suddenly realized what was going on and leaned back, all leaning on the sofa.

This kind of task is already familiar to the Jiang family, and it is nothing more than a cliché.

Jiang Lianheng said, "What do you mean by pretending to be the will of the people? This room is not the will of the people? Do you want Lao Zhang to step down?"

Everyone laughed and said that they not only did not want Zhang to step down, but they hoped that he would live a long life.

Finally, Jiang Lianheng said, "This time, all the guilds in the provincial capital jointly sent a telegram to boycott the resolution of the capital. Nanfeng is responsible for the Chamber of Commerce, and Guoyan is responsible for the boss. Let's run it well. Commander Sun said that in the future, our family will have two seats in the joint parliament of the three provinces. Please elect me and Nanfeng!"

Li Zhengxi suddenly asked: "Does this closure of the border and self-government have any impact on us? Why do I feel that there is no change? Old Zhang didn't listen to the orders from the capital before?"

"It's two completely different things!" Wang Zhengnan was excited. "Even if we didn't listen before, we had to save face. Once the border is closed and we become autonomous, we won't have to pay taxes. When the provincial government has money, it can either build roads or factories. With our connections, it won't be a problem for us to get a share of the profits."

Zhao Guoyan curled his lips and said, "That depends on whether we can win this battle. If Lao Zhang really steps down, we'd better prepare in advance."

Everyone nodded silently.

A new emperor appoints new ministers. The Jiang family has a shady background, so they are naturally worried that they will be purged after changing their power.

At this point, Jiang Lianheng's expression changed slightly. He leaned over to put out his cigarette, and after a long pause, he said, "Don't worry, Lao Zhang will not step down. I just heard from Commander Sun that the Japanese have made up their minds to protect Lao Zhang. The Zhi army doesn't have the courage to fight to Fengtian."

Wang Zhengnan laughed out loud, "Brother, when you talk about this, I just remembered that a few days ago when I went to the affiliated area, I saw a few devils holding up a big banner with the words 'Zhang Yuting Support Association' written on it. Wow, they care more about it than we do!"

When everyone was about to discuss, Hu Xiaoyan, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly took over the conversation.

"The battle can't be fought in Fengtian, so is there any news about Beifeng now?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the room took a sharp turn for the worse.

It is said that the bright moon in Qin and the bright pass in Han, those who went on the Long March of thousands of miles have not yet returned.

From the beginning of the war until now, there has been no news from Zhao Zhengbei. The brothers are carefree and although they miss him, they are not so anxious that they lose their appetite. However, Hu Xiaoyan and Sister Hua are very anxious. They have all kinds of thoughts in their minds and feel uneasy all day long.

Jiang Lianheng shook his head slowly and said, "Not yet."

"How can there be none?" Hu Xiaoyan complained, "As a brother, can you please pay more attention?"

"Why didn't I take it seriously? I've used all the connections I could. This is a war, not a joke. The frontline lost so badly, so many people lost contact, how can we find them just by looking for them? Besides, didn't you see the telegram that Wu Datou sent?"

Wu Laoer went to the Fengtian Army's retreat area to ask for an audience with Marshal Zhang, and actually asked a few questions on behalf of Jiang Lianheng. The next afternoon, he sent a telegram.

The telegram said that they had already informed the supervisory teams in Luanzhou and Yuguan and asked them to keep an eye on the movements of Officer Zhao Zhengbei.

However, the front line was in chaos. Many troops were dispersed and then temporarily reorganized and mixed. For a while, no news about Bei Feng was obtained.

However, Zhao Zhengbei's original unit number was found out - the second echelon of the Western Route Army.

Most of this force was disarmed by the Zhi army, and only a small part was blocked and annihilated.

Wu Datoutou was also a kind-hearted man, not a big shot. At the end, he said a few words to comfort Jiang Lianheng in his heart, advising him not to be anxious. Nothing is absolute. Zhao Zhengbei might not be killed. Even if he was captured by the Zhi army, as long as he was willing to spend some money to exchange him for a lower-level officer, it would not be a problem.

"I have already prepared the money, but the key is the people." Hu Xiaoyan repeatedly reminded, "You still have to ask frequently and can't be careless."

Except for Xue Yingqing and Zhao Guoyan, the rest of the people in the living room grew up together and were as close as brothers to each other, so they were naturally extra worried.

However, war is ruthless and military orders are as heavy as mountains. Even if Bei Feng is found, he will probably be implicated in the defeat of the Western Route Army.

Hu Xiaoyan didn't care. At worst, she wouldn't be a soldier. She just hoped that the people would come back safely. …………

After a few more days, all the Fengtian Army's strongholds inside the Great Wall were lost.

Gradually, the wounded on the front line began to return to Fengtian.

While Jiang Lianheng was instigating, operating, and threatening various guilds to jointly issue a telegram, he was also busy investigating all kinds of public opinions that were unfavorable to Marshal Zhang. At the same time, he had to run to the Military Affairs Office from time to time to inquire about Zhao Zhengbei's whereabouts.

To this end, the Jiang family specially donated a sum of "charity" to the provincial government to provide relief to the officers and soldiers injured on the front line.

As for where the money eventually went, Jiang Lianheng didn't care at all. It was just a small token of appreciation given when asking someone to do something for him.

However, as the wounded on the front line returned to Fengtian one after another, there was still no news of Zhao Zhengbei.

After waiting for a long time, they still didn't see the north wind return. Jiang Lianheng and others felt increasingly heavy in their hearts.

…………

Just at this time, the north wind had not yet returned, but the "literary wind" had arrived - the great poet Zhang rushed back to Fengtian first.

After all, a brother returned safely from the battlefield, so Jiang Lianheng naturally set up a banquet, brought "Pine Wind and Bamboo Melody", good wine and delicious food, and entertained the great poet Zhang.

In this Zhi-Feng War, Zhang Xiaokun also had a mission. He served as the captain of the Su-Lu Rangers, with several hundred men under his command. He was never seen on the front battlefield, so he switched to guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines.

It is called guerrilla warfare, but it is nothing more than cutting telephone lines, tearing up railways, and burying mines.

If the battle is won, he cannot be credited with anything; if the battle is lost, he cannot be blamed with anything.

This was such a dispensable role that no one took seriously, but Zhang Xiaokun took it upon himself to do it with a sense of mission.

Unfortunately, a sense of mission alone was not enough. After the battle, the great poet Zhang became a commander without troops. In the end, he was alone and fled back to the outside of the Great Wall by boat from Jiaodong.

When he met Jiang Lianheng, he felt speechless, so he drank in silence and sighed. It seemed that he was not only responsible for the defeat of the Fengtian Army, but also made a mistake in judging the decline of China.

After a long silence, Zhang Xiaokun suddenly raised his wine glass and sighed, "Brother, to be honest, I am going to say goodbye to you this time."

Jiang Lianheng almost spit out his food, and hurriedly said to comfort him: "Brother, it's not necessary. We lost this battle, and it can't be blamed on you, the captain of the team!"

Zhang Xiaokun said, "Hey, brother, you don't know that when Marshal Zhang was in the battlefield, he shot a regiment commander, and all the hundreds of people under my command were lost. If he gets angry, I won't have anyone to intercede for me in Fengtian. Even if it's not a capital crime, I'm afraid I can't be the battalion commander of the vanguard battalion."

Jiang Lianheng didn't know what to say, so he just poured the wine and said, "Don't think too much about the worst. Maybe Marshal Zhang has forgotten about you!"

"forget?"

Zhang Xiaokun was stunned, and then slapped himself in the face, saying, "If that happens, I will never be able to make a name for myself! Opportunities are rare, and if I miss this chance, I will never get it back. Who knows when the war will start again? The cycle of fortunes lasts for ten years, and now they are asking me to build railways again, right?"

"No, no, brother, you still have your military rank!"

"Well, a military rank alone is useless!" Zhang Xiaokun thought for a while and said, "No, when Marshal Zhang comes back, I have to find a time to show up in front of him, so that he won't forget about me!"

Jiang Lianheng didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he had to change the subject and said, "Brother, that's all for later. Marshal Zhang will have to wait for a while before he can come back. You should take good care of yourself in the next few days. No matter what, it's better than anything else if he can come back safely."

Zhang Xiaokun was feeling frustrated and just wanted to get drunk. After a few drinks, he suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, has your brother come back yet?"

"Oh, don't mention it. Several batches of wounded soldiers have returned, but we still can't find them."

"Maybe he made military achievements on the front line!"

"If that were the case, we would have found him. There is no news whether he is dead or alive. Let's drink!"

"That's true. It's not easy to do any job!"

Zhang Xiaokun's expression suddenly became serious.

Although the great poet Zhang had become a commander without troops many times and was not capable of leading troops in battle, he was still a man who had experienced battlefields for many years. He laughed and scolded on weekdays and seemed heartless, but he understood the tragedy of war much better than Jiang Lianheng.

When you go out, you can't see anything, and the plain is covered by bones.

He had witnessed the scene of blood and flesh flying everywhere with his own eyes. After a battle, there were always people who died and some who went missing, and in the end it all became a mess.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xiaokun turned around and comforted Jiang Lianheng with a few words.

The two brothers were talking in the room when they suddenly heard a knock on the door. They answered and it was Kang Zheng who walked in with an apologetic look on his face.

"General Zhang, are you drinking?" He smiled and rubbed his hands. "Well, I want to talk to our boss about something. It's urgent. Please bear with me!"

Zhang Xiaokun didn't care at all. He waved his hand and said, "Brother, go ahead and do your thing."

Jiang Lianheng, under the influence of alcohol, showed a little dissatisfaction, but said: "Brother Zhang is my sworn brother, if you have anything to say, just tell me, there is no need to hide it."

Kang Zheng thought for a moment, and seeing that his boss's expression did not seem to be falsely polite, he weighed it in his heart for a while, and then said: "Boss, Zhao Guoyan is downstairs, saying that a batch of goods that the company insured had a problem and was robbed."

"Robbery?"

Jiang Lianheng found this interesting. The goods guaranteed by Zongheng Insurance Company had not had any problems for several years.

When I heard the news, I suddenly didn't feel angry, but instead felt a little happy.

After thinking about it, he felt that this matter was probably related to the war, so he asked, "Is it the goods from the Jingfeng line?"

"Uh... no." Kang Zheng closed the door and leaned over to whisper, "It's our goods from outside the customs. I heard from Lao Zhao that it seems to be a business done by the 'horizontal handle' on the Jilin Province line."

Jiang Lianheng's face immediately turned cold when he heard this. He turned around and asked, "Who the hell is challenging us and daring to touch the Jiang family's goods? Who is the boss of them?"

Zhang Xiaokun was stunned at first when he asked this question, without waiting for Kang Zheng to respond. He could not help but glance sideways at his sworn brother, wondering how powerful this guy was outside the Great Wall.

Kang Zheng hurriedly explained, "Boss, I don't know what's going on with the insurance company. Why don't you go downstairs and ask Lao Zhao? He just mentioned that it seems... it seems that there are bandits rebelling over there."

"Rebellion? Whose rebellion?"

"This... is a rebellion against Marshal Zhang!"

Jiang Lianheng slammed the table and stood up. He was about to turn around and apologize and resign, but he saw Zhang Xiaokun's eyes roll, as if he had a plan in mind...

(End of this chapter)