Chapter 26: Old Matters of Heaven

  "Mr. Qiao, old man can see through this kind of secrecy, aren't you afraid?"

  Qiao Yu listened to him say that he had the idea of rebelling, his face didn't show any expression, as if nothing was wrong, which made Shi Shu Bao feel somewhat unnatural instead.

  "Shi Shu Bang, with your current status, are you afraid that I will report you? Even if I did, who would believe me?"

  Shi Shu Bang's mind was shocked as soon as he heard it, and he woke up. Qiao Yu was a person of great status, his family was very prominent in Sichuan, his father had been a high-ranking official, and he himself was the leader of the business community in Chongqing. Both the Qing government and the local constitutional party were vying for his favor. How could he possibly move him with just a small bookshop and a bit of speculation? It seemed that he had lived in vain for so many years, and he couldn't gain any advantage over this young man in terms of momentum.

  "Master Qiao, Old Man Shi has a past matter he'd like to share with you. My surname is Shi, my name is Shi Dingzhong, and I'm already 53 years old this year! Can the master guess some of it?"

  Qiao Yuqi heard the name without any feeling, but thinking of his age and the name, he suddenly remembered something, and immediately stood up, pointing at the old man in front of him, saying: "You, you are a descendant of Tian Guo Wing King Shi Dakai? Didn't they say that you died on the banks of the Dadu River back then? Are you kidding me?"

  Qiao Yu had seen many historical figures, but he was still very interested in the secrets that had passed for decades. There were many debates about the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement, but no matter which faction, they all seemed to have a admiring view of Shi Dakai, the Wing King. This Wing King was young and famous, clean and self-disciplined, and his military tactics were divine. Unfortunately, he died at the hands of the Qing army, perfectly fitting the characteristics of a tragic hero. Mentioning Shi Dakai always made people sigh in admiration. Was this thin old man in front of him really his descendant?

  "Mr. Qiao, back then my father had no choice but to surrender to the Qing army in order to save his younger brothers' lives. However, he also knew that he wouldn't be able to escape with his life. Fortunately, at that time one of his bodyguards found a child about my age and had him take my place. In the end, the child was suffocated to death by the Qing army using lime, while I was protected by several loyal bodyguards who helped me escape from danger. I was only five years old back then, and now when I think about it, I can barely remember what my father looked like. Having survived until now, if my father were to see how incompetent his child has become, he would probably be so disappointed that he'd stamp his feet and beat his chest!"

  Qiao Yurao listened with interest as Shi Dingzhong told the story of what had happened back then. When he finished, Qiao smiled and asked: "Shi Shuban, you tell me such secrets, aren't you afraid I'll report them to the Qing court?"

  "Mr. Qiao, I know you're a man of great accomplishments, but I'm a useless person. If I don't speak out about some things, they might be lost forever!"

  "Didn't work? How come I remember that for decades there have been people rebelling and rioting under the banner of Wing Wang, wasn't it you who did it?"

  Shi Dingzhong smiled wryly and shook his head: "How could it be me? I don't have that kind of ability. The few uncles are all veterans, covered in scars, and they're tired of the battlefield. They just want to live a normal life with me, get married, have children, and end their lives in peace. Those rebels are mostly from the White Lotus Sect, if there's any connection with me, it's just that they borrowed my father's name!"

  "You didn't come to me today just to tell me a story, did you? You want me to help you take revenge and overthrow the Qing court?"

  "Mr. Qiao, I hate the Qing government, but after all these years, the Qing dynasty is also nearing its end. The revolutionaries are causing so much trouble, and there are no capable officials in the local areas. With people's hearts changing, the Qing government is just barely holding on. It won't last long. Being able to see the downfall of the Qing will be enough to comfort my father and uncles who have passed away. I'm not young anymore, but over the years, I've come to understand many things. Throughout history, the rise and fall of dynasties has always been cruel. The Qing government is corrupt and won't end well. My uncles all got married and had children later on. Now they're all gone, and their kids have grown up. My son's name is Shi Yi, he just graduated from Speedy School. I also have two other sons, Su Ding and Yu Jianxiong, who both graduated from Speedy School together. I know you're a man of great ambition, so I want to entrust these children to you!"

  Qiao Yu was moved by Shi Dingzhong's recommendation of three military school talents, and the Sichuan Army Speed-Up School had graduated many famous figures such as Liu Xiang and Yang Sen, who were also the main forces in the later Sichuan warlord melee. These people are also very capable.

  He himself is currently in short supply of military personnel, so the training of patrolmen relies on people like Han Yong. However, Han Yong after all came from the old-fashioned army and has limited ability to accept new things. Training patrolmen is fine, but if he hopes to train a strong army, it will be beyond his power. Sometimes Qiao Yu can't help but take the field himself, but Qiao Yu has too many things on his plate, and in the future, the team will also expand and cannot be limited to the current situation. However, as an outsider, he is just a businessman and really can't recruit military school students.

  The Qing government is currently building a new army, and all graduates of military schools are being reused, otherwise there would not have been so many young governors and generals in the early years of the Republic. Therefore, those students from military schools are quite proud, they can go to regular troops, why come to a police patrol team? Moreover, Qiao Yu was also afraid of gossip, so he did not actively recruit, but after Shi Dingzhong said this, Qiao Yu suddenly felt that he should recruit some students from regular military schools. With these people as the backbone, it would be better to form a regular army.

  "Shi Shu Bang, your son and a few others, as long as they have the ability, will absolutely not be mistreated. Although they cannot enter the regular army for the time being, I believe it will change soon. They will definitely have a bright future ahead of them, and you can rest assured!"

  "Mr. Qiao, you said it would change quickly, are you saying that there will be a change in the world?"

  "Shi Shu Bang, I'd like to ask you a question. Don't you think that the princes of the Heavenly Kingdom back then knew that internal strife would severely damage their strength and might even lead to their downfall? Then why did they still end up clashing with each other in the end?"

  Shi Dingzhong's face involuntarily revealed a painful expression as soon as Qiao Yu mentioned the old affairs of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

  "I have also pondered for a long time, it's just the two words 'power', no one can put down their own power, everyone wants to expand their own power, as the saying goes, people see benefits but not harm, fish see food but not hooks, in the end there is no way back!"

  Shi Dingzhong was also a clever man, and after a moment's thought, his eyes lit up: "Mr. Qiao is talking about the current situation in the Qing dynasty, isn't he? The Constitutional Party is eager to gain power through constitutional means, while the Manchu nobles are holding on to power for dear life, neither side will back down, and they will inevitably clash. And the foundation of this world is in the hands of the gentry, once these people no longer support the Qing dynasty, this country will be completely finished!"

  Qiao Yu smiled and listened, without mentioning Shi Dingzhong's son, saying that the thin old man in front of him was not simple, able to see through the current political situation, absolutely not a simple person. Shi Dingzhong's mind suddenly opened up, and he also looked very excited: "Mr. Qiao, I observed that you have ulterior motives, but I've always been suspicious of why you're still at odds with the Revolutionary Party and the Gang of Old Men. Now I finally understand, originally you saw that the most powerful people in this world are these wealthy merchants and gentry, only by roping them in can one have the ability to contend for the world, while those gang parties are just a bunch of mobs, fundamentally unable to accomplish anything!"

  "It's both right and wrong. The gentry all have some property, they won't take risks unless absolutely necessary. So we still have to rely on those revolutionaries to fire the first shot, only then will the gentry take action, otherwise they won't budge!"

  "The old man had long seen that Mr. Qiao was a man of great deeds, and today I just knew that Mr. Qiao's deep strategy and broad vision were so thorough, I immediately wrote to my son to come to Chongqing to listen to orders, and also asked you to take care of him!"

  "Stone Book, you're not a simple person either. I'm short of a clerk here, would you be willing to help?"

  "The young master only needs not to despise me for being old and useless, I am willing. Also, I want to tell you another thing, that my father had hidden a treasure!"

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