Section 004 I am Zhang Xueliang (4)

  Meng Xiang held his breath, submerged underwater, and his skin contracted from the cold stimulation, breaking out in goosebumps. The icy water also cooled down Meng Xiang's originally scorching hot head by a lot.

  As soon as Meng Xiang used up all his air, he hastily poked his head above the water surface, panting heavily with rough breaths, shivering and pale-faced from the cold.

  Tan Hai and others couldn't bear it in their hearts, gathering around to persuade him: "Commander Meng, what's the point of this? If you really can't hold on, just take a puff first to ease up!"

  Meng Xiang panted with difficulty, muttering to himself: "There's no free lunch in the world... indeed, there's no free lunch in the world. Since I'm Zhang Xueliang, I have to accept his heavy smoking habit..."

  He took another deep breath and sank down again, his upper and lower teeth chattering violently like a sieve.

  Tan Hai and others were all bewildered, thinking that Zhang Xueliang was unclear in his mind due to forcibly restraining his opium addiction. At this time, a servant rushed in hastily and said to Madame Shou: "Madame Wuzi, the Japanese Minister to Beijing, Yoshizawa Kenkichi, and the Japanese Consul General in Shenyang, Shigeru Yoshida, have come to visit the Grand Marshal."

  Mrs. Shou sneered, "These Easterners have indeed come to probe for information." Her expression was stern and calm, and she gave orders in an orderly and composed manner, "Deputy Tang, you stay here and take care of Han Ying, Commander Cui, you lead the guards to defend the General's residence; everyone else follow me to meet these two people. All the ladies, hurry up and get dressed, make sure to look radiant and elegant. No one is allowed to cry! Nor are they allowed to show a sad face! Absolutely do not let the Japanese see our weakness! And no one is allowed to mention Han Ying's situation, just say he is busy with military affairs and has no time to receive guests. Yue Qing (the Sixth Lady's name was Ma Yue Qing), go prepare some champagne, saying we want to celebrate the General's good fortune and narrow escape from disaster. Does everyone understand?"

  Tan Hai, Cui Chengyi and all the female relatives chorused: "Understood!"

  Mrs. Shou and others left the bathroom to flatter the Japanese, while Tan Hai accompanied Meng Xiang in his bitter struggle against opium addiction. Immediately, several doctors rushed over, led by Zhang Xueliang's personal doctor, Ma Yangwu. Ma Yangwu saw Meng Xiang's miserable appearance, shivering with fear, and hastily prepared an injection for him. Meng Xiang originally felt dizzy and disoriented, but when he saw the syringe in Ma Yangwu's hand, he suddenly came to his senses and shouted, "Don't give me a shot!" Ma Yangwu hastily said, "General, don't worry! This is a sedative." Meng Xiang knew that there was no magic cure for addiction and that one could only rely on willpower. He refused to let the doctor inject him with anything, fearing he would become addicted to something even more terrible than opium. However, after hearing it was a sedative, he reluctantly agreed. Ma Yangwu gave Meng Xiang an injection of sedatives and had him take several sleeping pills. Meng Xiang slowly felt his eyelids growing heavy and his mind becoming foggy. He had been struggling against the pain of opium withdrawal just before, and now, exhausted, he quickly fell asleep as soon as the medicine took effect.

  When Meng Xiang woke up, it was again the quiet midnight, he had slept for more than ten hours, his stomach growled with hunger, and he saw himself lying on a warm and soft big bed. Tan Hai stood at the door, devoted to his duty. Meng Xiang got out of bed, feeling only that his stomach was rumbling. Tan Hai immediately said to the outside of the door: "The commander is awake! Quickly prepare food." Meng Xiang stretched his limbs, feeling weak and powerless all over, and couldn't bear it.

  Several maids from the mansion, who had been waiting quietly outside the door, immediately brought in several steaming dishes and a large bowl of rice. Meng Xiang didn't stand on ceremony, picking up his chopsticks to devour the food with gusto. Shou Furen and Zhang Zuoxiang walked back in, both looking relieved at Meng Xiang's behavior. Zhang Zuoxiang praised him enthusiastically, "Han Ying, you've made a firm decision to quit your opium addiction, that's truly admirable! With this kind of determination, you're capable of shouldering this heavy responsibility, and the late general can rest easy in his grave." He turned to Shou Furen, "Madam, have the Japanese noticed anything?"

  Mrs. Shou said with a serious expression: "Fang Ze Qianji and Yoshida Shigeru are both suspicious, they have been trying to find out the general's situation in a roundabout way, and also want to get information from me, but I managed to evade them."

  "Madam, you've really had a hard time."

  Madam Shou said: "It's nothing, it's all for Han Ying, for the foundation of the Northeast. Assistant General, you also need to work harder."

  Zhang Zuoxiang said, "As for my own duties, what's the point of talking about being overworked?" He asked Meng Xiang, who was wolfing down his food, "Han Ying, how is your body? When can you come out and take charge of things?"

  Meng Xiang shook his head: "I want to quit my opium addiction, and all military and government affairs will be handled by you, Auxiliary Commander, for the time being. Also, I don't want to see any outsiders during this period." On one hand, Meng Xiang really wanted to quit his opium addiction and didn't want to completely succumb to the poison of opium. On the other hand, he had a guilty conscience, after all, he wasn't the real Zhang Xueliang. If he went out to meet people now, he would definitely reveal his true identity. It was better to temporarily stay hidden and avoid contact with others for the time being, at least until things cooled down a bit.

  Zhang Zuoxiang furrowed his brow and said, "Alright. Han Ying, if you want to take on this heavy responsibility, you really can't indulge in opium anymore. For the time being, I'll take care of the military and government affairs in the Northeast, as for the matters at the Zhang residence, that will have to trouble Shou Furen with."

  "Good! Although the commander is not here, we cannot be disorderly. We must unite as one and work together to support the foundation left by the commander."

  Zhang Zuoxiang nodded and said to Meng Xiang, "Han Ying, you rest well and get rid of your addiction. I'll take care of everything outside, don't worry." After finishing speaking, he gave a military salute to Meng Xiang and left. Shou Furen also bid farewell to Meng Xiang and Tan Hai before leaving. In the room, Meng Xiang had just eaten his fill when that numbness and itching sensation suddenly surged through his body again. Having experienced it before, he wasn't too flustered: "Prepare ice water!"

  Tan Hai saw Meng Xiang's expression change greatly and knew that his opium addiction had relapsed. He hastily ordered the servants waiting in the room: "Quickly prepare ice water! And go invite Doctor Ma to come!"

  Meng Xiang hastily and anxiously rushed to the bathroom, dropping his bowl and chopsticks along the way. Before the servants could prepare everything, he quickly jumped into the bathtub. Tan Hai and the servants poured ice cubes into the bathtub. Meng Xiang held his breath, sinking to the bottom of the water, and the icy coldness helped him expel a lot of toxins and calm down again. Meng Xiang made an effort to think about the proper matter, clarifying his thoughts in order to shift his attention. He combined his historical knowledge and began to carefully ponder in his mind:

  I am Zhang Xueliang, and I am now Zhang Xueliang. The Zhang Zuoxiang from just now was one of the old marshals of the Fengtian clique who fought side by side with Zhang Zuolin to conquer Northeast China, and he was also Zhang Zuolin's sworn brother. He is highly respected in the Northeast for his military and political abilities, as well as his integrity and selflessness. During Zhang Zuolin's lifetime, Zhang Zuoxiang was the second most important person in the Northeast. What's more, he was loyal to both Zhang Zuolin and me, and my wife Yu Fengzhi is even the goddaughter of Zhang Zuoxiang's second wife. It seems that from now on, I must reuse Zhang Zuoxiang. Alas! There are thousands upon thousands of military and political figures in the Fengtian clique. Now that I have become Zhang Xueliang, I will definitely reuse those who are loyal and talented. However, it is difficult to gauge people's hearts, and I do not know who is loyal and who is treacherous, who has real talent and who is just a useless ornament. Even though I am familiar with the history of the Republic of China, it is impossible for me to clearly distinguish between these people. For now, I can only reuse this "Assistant General" Zhang Zuoxiang.

  Zhang Zuolin had six wives, his original wife was Zhao ChunGui, the mother of Zhang Xueliang, but she has passed away. The third wife, Dai Shi, has also passed away. Now there are still five wives left: Lu ShouXuan, Xu PengHuang, Shou Yi, and Ma YueQing. Fortunately, these wives are all understanding and won't bring me any trouble. Among the wives, Shou FuRen is the most capable, so it's best to leave household matters to her from now on. I will also have to show respect and courtesy to these "aunts". By the way, Zhang Zuolin had eight sons and six daughters, and Zhang Xueliang was the eldest son (Zhang Xueliang also has a sister with the same parents). Later, I'll get along well with those younger brothers and sisters. As for Zhang Xueliang himself, I remember he had an original wife named Yu FengZhi, and this guy wasn't decent in his relationships with women either. Historically, he had two concubines and a bunch of mistresses. Fortunately, these women are not around me now. This is the most troublesome thing! Later, I'll slowly deal with the pile of women he left behind for me. He also left me several children, alas, this is also a very tricky matter.

  Meng Xiang poked his head out of the water, took a deep breath and dove back down, continuing to think:

  It's really tough! I never knew the taste of opium addiction was so unbearable. It seems that becoming Zhang Xueliang is not without a price, first and foremost is to deal with this guy's opium addiction. I must get rid of my opium addiction, otherwise how can I achieve great things? As the saying goes "Heaven will destroy his body and use up his energy before giving him a great responsibility", if I can't get through this, I'll really become a big smoker. Actually, becoming Zhang Xueliang is not bad, now that his parents are dead, in modern terms "having a car and a house, with both parents deceased", this guy is simply the number one official second-generation and rich playboy of China during the Republic of China era, having guns, cannons, land, and tens of thousands of followers, looking handsome, being called one of the four great beauties of the Republic of China and one of the four great young masters of the Republic of China, with a bunch of women, is a super rich playboy... Oh my! What am I thinking about? Since I've become Zhang Xueliang, it's not like I'm here to flirt and enjoy myself. I'm not that Ruo Xi · Ma Er Tai, who traveled back in time just to engage in an ugly love triangle with the fourth master and eighth master, which is simply vulgar and wasteful. I am a dignified and upright man, I must achieve something great, otherwise how can I live up to heaven's arrangement? Right! I will achieve something great!

  Meng Xiang stuck his head out again, taking deep breaths as his mind spun rapidly at the same time.

  I must make a big move, so what should I do now? What time is it now? Ah, yes, the Huanggutun incident just happened, and Zhang Zuolin was killed in an explosion. Zhang Xueliang returned to Shenyang last night. I crossed over into Zhang Xueliang's body on June 18th, 1928, so today is June 19th, 1928. The day Zhang Zuolin was assassinated was June 4th, which happened to be Zhang Xueliang's 27th birthday. According to historical records, Zhang Xueliang will take control of the Northeast and negotiate a ceasefire with the Nanjing Nationalist Government, implementing the Northeast Flag Replacement Plan. This means that the Republic of China will nominally complete its unification, and the Beiyang government will be thoroughly replaced by the Nationalist government. After all, Zhang Zuolin was the head of the last Anfu Military Government of the Beiyang government. Next, Zhang Xueliang will become the new "King of the Northeast", but his good days won't last long. In just three years, the Kwantung Army will launch the "September 18th Incident". Originally, Zhang Xueliang abandoned the Northeast without firing a shot, causing tens of millions of compatriots to become slaves for 14 years. The Japanese also established the so-called "Manchukuo" in the Northeast. As for the original Zhang Xueliang, he was sent by Chiang Kai-shek to lead 300,000 troops from the Northeast to suppress the Red Army in the northwest. Later, on December 12th, 1936, he launched the "Xi'an Incident" with Yang Hucheng, forcing Chiang Kai-shek to unite with the Communist Party to resist Japan. But in the end, he didn't get any good results and was placed under house arrest by Chiang Kai-shek. He was later taken to Taiwan and continued to be held under house arrest. It wasn't until Chiang Kai-shek's death that the original Zhang Xueliang gained his freedom, but he was already 75 years old. In the end, he spent his later years in Hawaii. This guy's life was quite long, living to be 101 years old. A long life is also one of Zhang Xueliang's "advantages".

  At this thought, Meng Xiang couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine:

  No! I absolutely cannot follow the old path of Zhang Xueliang, going through the motions and doing things by the book. To start with, during the September 18th Incident, he didn't fire a single shot and abandoned the entire Northeast and its tens of millions of people to the enemy - that's something I could never do! As for what came next, eliminating the Chinese Communist Party? No way, I don't have the guts to go up against the founding generals of the Republic on the battlefield. But by then, having lost my power base, I would be completely at the mercy of others. Suppressing the Communists is something I couldn't do; not suppressing them, Chiang Kai-shek would definitely not let me off the hook. And if I didn't launch the Xi'an Incident, China would still be plunged into civil war. But if I did launch it, I'd have to spend half my life in prison! So, I absolutely cannot follow the old path of Zhang Xueliang! I must make my own choices, change history, and create my own history! Yes! As former Israeli Prime Minister Sharon said, what's the point of studying history? Why not create your own history instead? That's right! I want to create history!