Thirty-eight
After Yu Si, the master of the Chu Jiang gang, introduced Yan Wei and his party to Chu Lian Tian, the big master, Chu Lian Tian immediately stood up and left his seat. From a distance, he clasped his hands together in greeting and smiled as he approached everyone. After several rounds of polite conversation and tea, Yu Si, the master, whispered the purpose of Yan Wei's visit to Chu Lian Tian's ear.
Looking at Chu Lian Tian's expression, which had not changed from the beginning, no one could guess whether he was happy or angry, and whether he would be willing to assist with the request made by Yan Wei and others. It seemed as if his subordinates were telling him about the weather in Jingzhou City today, making it impossible for anyone to make any judgments based on his expression, and thus prepare for the next response.
Yu Si told Chu Lian Tian in a low voice for a long time, and it can be seen that he reported all the affairs of Yan Wei and others to Chu Lian Tian in great detail.
Until the last word of the Fourth Master was finished, Chu Lian Tian's face, which seemed to be carved out of wood, finally changed. He nodded slightly and leaned forward, leaving the back of the Taishi chair, looking at Yan Wei and Wu Han Hui with a warm expression: "Just now, my fourth brother has already told me about the purpose of Director Yan and Director Wu. I apologize that our Chu Jiang Gang is small and weak, and I am not capable. Therefore, the two of you have more heart than strength, and we are unable to do it. However, thank you for still taking a look at our Chu Jiang Gang. I am willing to represent our gang to provide labor services for your army's passage. I am willing to offer 500 silver coins as a reward to our country's soldiers who fought bravely on the battlefield! Please accept this gift." After finishing speaking, he leaned back in his chair and waved his right hand, and the door servant went down to prepare the silver coins.
Wu Hanhuai looked at Chu Lian Tian and raised his right arm, saying: "Chu's family doesn't need to rush to greet us with silver. We were entrusted by the party and the country to take on this important task, and we didn't come here as defeated soldiers or bandits looking for a free ride from the Chu Jiang gang. Although I, Wu Hanhuai, am an insignificant official, I still have some influence within the Military Bureau. Our Deputy Director Dai is kind to his subordinates and willing to make friends with you folks in the jianghu world. If you, Chu Lian Tian, can put national interests first and are willing to befriend our 32nd military unit and the Military Bureau, we would appreciate your assistance. I, Wu Hanhuai, will personally report back to Deputy Director Dai about the contributions of the Chu Jiang gang to the nation. In return, I can promise that the Military Bureau will award you the National Special Contribution Award, with a prize of 20 gold bars!"
It seems that Wu Hanhui was arguing with Chu Liantian again. Judging from the exchange rate between gold and silver at that time, Chu Liantian's move was a generous contribution of 500 silver dollars, but Wu Hanhui's promise of twenty small gold bars exceeded that by more than double! Wu Hanhui's intention was clear: he wanted to make it clear to Chu Liantian that they were not just freeloaders, and the Chujiang gang had to put in effort!
Fu Daojun and Old Ren, who came together, were shocked to hear this! One of them was 500 silver dollars, and the other was 20 small gold bars! This adds up to enough for a whole battalion's military expenses for half a year! The National Army representative, representing the government's Military Affairs Bureau, didn't think much of money, but unexpectedly, a local gang was also so financially powerful!
Chu Lian Tian clearly felt the pressure from Wu Han Hui. That sentence about making friends with the 32nd Military Regiment and the Military Bureau made him feel even more uneasy! It seemed that if they helped this time, they would be friends, but if they didn't follow their own Chu Jiang Gang, wouldn't they not only offend the Military Bureau but also turn against the 32nd Military Regiment?! Although he wasn't very familiar with what the 32nd Military Regiment was, as long as it was a regular army with the word "regiment" in its name, he couldn't afford to provoke them! So, he forced a smile on his face, but in his heart, he resented the Military Bureau for being too ruthless! Wasn't this pushing people to their deaths?!
"Wu, Yan, our gang has its own difficulties, and the underworld has its own rules. Now this Jingzhou city is no longer a place where our Chujiang gang can call the shots. Our entire gang of over 1,000 brothers, young and old, are all relying on me, their leader, to find them a way to make a living. And I, as their leader, am now also just trying to survive under the Japanese occupation. Moreover, our gang is still just a gang, and we have always maintained a delicate relationship with the authorities, never daring to confront them directly. Now that Jingzhou city is under Japanese control, I have repeatedly warned my brothers in the gang: if the National Army needs our support, we must provide it; but when dealing with the Japanese army, we can only pretend to cooperate - no one is allowed to become a traitor!"
Chu Lian Tian sighed and continued, "But now you two are forcing us to confront the Japanese army. I don't know how we will deal with them after you leave. The Japanese have recently taken control of all the docks and ships in Jingzhou, big or small, public or private. They require all ships leaving Jingzhou to report to them. It's not that we, the Chu Jiang gang, are unwilling to help our national army, but now our six major docks inside and outside the city, as well as over a hundred large and small ships, have all been seized and strictly controlled by the Japanese military. We really can't do anything to help!"
Wu Hanhua took the tea cup from the table, took a sip, and looked at the tea bowl: "Chu Dazhang's family, you said that now Jingzhou City is not your Chujiang Gang's turn to call the shots, this statement is absurd! You listen carefully, this Jingzhou City has never been a place where local gangs have the final say! And it will absolutely not be your turn for the Chujiang Gang to call the shots!"
Wu Hanhui's words had barely left his lips when even Yan Wei felt that Wu Hanhui was being too arrogant, not putting the great power of the other side in his eyes! If they heard this and didn't take it well, with a single order they would immediately turn against him! Heh heh! It's likely that even Zhao Zilong of the Eastern Han wouldn't be able to escape being killed!
Actually, Yan Wei didn't understand these gangs very well. These gangs were originally formed by some scoundrels and rascals who gathered together, and their biggest characteristic was that they bullied the weak and feared the strong! Since ancient times, gangs have been bullying the common people and oppressing the countryside, but it's rare to hear of any that dared to openly defy the authorities. Wu Huanhui clearly understood this principle, and he also knew that when dealing with these gangsters, sometimes you couldn't give them too much face! The policy of the authorities in dealing with gangsters has always been a combination of punishment and deception. In the end, as long as they could get by, it was fine. Don't look at the Japanese flags flying on the city walls of Jingzhou now, those who mix with the underworld should understand that this world ultimately belongs to whom!
It's just as Yan Wei imagined, if it weren't for Chu Lian Tian, the head of the household, who was still calm and composed, suppressing the dozens of people in the hall, someone would have already rushed out to settle the score. But unexpectedly, after Wu Han Hui finished speaking, the hall fell into an eerie silence! Not even one person stood up to shout a few words in support! Yan Wei seemed to understand something at this point - what it means to be an official and what it means to be a commoner! However, when he secretly glanced at Fu Dao Jun, he saw that his expression was still passable, but his right hand had instinctively reached for his waist. It seems that not just Yan Wei is unclear about the difference between being an official and a commoner!
But little did he know that at this moment, Fu Daojun was not only moved by Wu Han's bold use of his official power, but also deeply moved by Yan Wei and Wu Han's respect and care for their own party. Yan Wei, who was in charge of important tasks, was able to put aside party differences and personal safety to send troops to rescue him at the moment of life and death, naturally following the chairman's consistent anti-Japanese strategy, which is a great virtue. And look at Wu Han's attitude towards Chu Jiangbang, who is laughing proudly on the banks of the Yangtze River, he is also showing great respect for himself!
Lao Ren couldn't help but bitterly smile to himself: "If I had even half the qualifications of being a member of the Military Bureau, I wouldn't have to spend my days in this Jingzhou city on guard against everyone except myself! It's clear that if your name isn't right, then your words won't be smooth either - that's absolutely true!"
Look at this Military Affairs Bureau's director, he really takes his official position as a precious thing! Chu Lian Tian burst out laughing and said: "Director Wu, you people doing special operations may be representing the imperial court, but after all, you are also half of those who make a living in the Jianghu. It's better to leave some leeway when doing things! Let alone now that my Chujiang gang really can't help, even if it were normal times, we Jianghu people wouldn't cooperate with your officialdom anyway! Who doesn't know that you officials switch sides faster than flipping over a hand?!
Upon seeing this, Wu Han even secretly thought about how to find an excuse to get rid of the ignorant Chu Jiang gang in the future. However, Yan Wei continued, "Chu Da Zhangzhuang, Director Wu has a lot of national responsibilities and is slightly hot-tempered, but I am not doing special operations work, just a very ordinary military officer. Moreover, since taking on more important official duties, I have been staying in the division, army, and command departments, responsible for the security work of the general headquarters. I have never led troops to garrison locally, nor have I ever dealt with your Jianghu gangs. However, I also think that some of Chu Da Zhangzhuang's words are not very reasonable."
"Oh, go ahead and say it." Chu Lian Tian had finally spoken the harsh words, but his heart was also racing with anxiety. After all, following the Japanese as a traitor was something he would never do, and besides, Chu Lian Tian didn't believe that a small country like Japan could be arrogant for long! So if they really were going to completely turn against the government and military now, it wouldn't bring any benefit to the Chu Jiang gang at all. Seeing Yan Wei open his mouth, he secretly felt relieved, thinking that Yan Wei would be able to ease the tense atmosphere that was on the verge of collapse.
Yan Wei looked at Chu Lian Tian and smiled, "If it were any other Jianghu organization that didn't cooperate with the imperial court, perhaps they could still fool the common people. But as far as I know, your esteemed Chu Jiang Sect has been cooperating with our government for generations, seven or eight lifetimes ago, when was it not?"
Chu Lian Tian laughed and said, "It's a matter of time, back then it was just business, nothing more than making more or less money. But now you're asking me to do something that'll get my head chopped off!"
Yan Wei still looked at Chu Lian Tian and smiled: "Chu Da Bang Zhu, you are treating the interests of the country and nation as a business deal! I don't believe you can say this again! From Wuhan to here, we have been leading a large group of children through the mountains for over 400 miles! With just dozens of our troops, we managed to take down no less than 500 Japanese soldiers along the way! Let's not mention any fancy words about sacrificing one's life nine times, but both sides have brothers who stayed behind in this foreign land without even a decent grave!"
"Let's put it this way, if we two don't die, when we get back, who knows, maybe we'll be promoted and get rich! Don't even mention that. What do you think our soldiers under us will gain from this deal? Silver? Gold? Or women? I think they won't even get a single candle made of yuanbao wax!"
Yan Wei was about to speak, but Chu Lian Tian saw him suddenly stand up and show his right palm to stop himself from speaking. He continued: "Chu Da's family, people live for a lifetime, grass and trees have one spring, can't talk about everything as a transaction! The country is in chaos, who will account for it? What money will be made? Japanese yen? You want to hold him in your hand without feeling the heat of making a profit! You said this time I followed Wu Chuang into the pit, what achievements and benefits do we have? It's better to take advantage of being alive now and ask you, Chu Da's family, for some travel expenses back home!"
"Look, Chu Dahan, it's true that being an official is all about seeking wealth, but we can't be bothered with that now! We're too busy thinking about how to complete our mission and get these kids safely to Chongqing. We've even thought that if we succeed, we'll just retire and not take on another task like this again. If you still have this attitude, then I suppose we have no choice but to leave these dozens of children with you. You're wealthy and influential, so it won't hurt you to provide for them. Just help the country out by taking care of them for now, and when they grow up, you can use the boys as your underlings and sell the girls to brothels to make some money. Isn't that a good business deal? You're always eager to do business and calculate profits, so this shouldn't be a bad investment, right?"
Chu Lian Tian felt a mix of emotions after hearing Yan Wei's words, wanting to both laugh and cry at the same time. He thought to himself: "These two are incredibly skilled! One is good at intimidating and deceiving, while the other is even more impressive, just like those thugs from Tianjin! What kind of National Army Central Military commander is this? Even more ruthless than me!" However, after some thought, he felt that Yan Wei's ability to speak to him in such a way was also a form of giving him an out. In any case, the logic still lay with the other side. So, smiling at Yan, he said: "Commander Yan, please take a seat. Let's discuss this properly. After all, this is just a gang, not my family. This matter involves the lives and deaths of over a thousand brothers in the gang, so let me consult with them first, okay?"
"No way!"
Yan Wei's "no way" made Wu Hanhuai jump in fright! Just as Chu Lian Tian was being forced into a corner by Yan Wei's eloquence, why did he have to be so aggressive? It seems that Guan Zhen's soldiers are really unreasonable and unscrupulous, even more so than our Military Affairs Bureau!
Fu Daojun and Lao Ren also secretly resented Yan Wei for speaking and doing things without giving others any face, and couldn't help but shake their heads in secret.
Yan Wei looked at Chu Lian Tian, whose face was quite unsightly, and smiled: "Chu Daren, I think all of you heads of the Chu Jiang gang are almost all here in this hall! Do we still need to discuss this matter?" After speaking, he turned his head and waved his hand: "We can't discuss it. If we do, it will make our Chu Jiang gang seem unrighteous and ungenerous! During the Shanghai Resistance War, Mr. Du of the Green Gang provided troops and funds to help our Nationalist and Communist parties fight against Japan with blood and fire. Who saw him negotiating with anyone? My old superior, Yang Ju, would get excited whenever he heard about fighting against the Japanese and wouldn't even eat his meals! He raised a big flag and led his troops out, I reckon he didn't negotiate with anyone either. Our Chu Jiang gang dominates the Yangtze River region, let's not be looked down upon by those two big gangs under heaven!"
Yan Wei's words were to this effect, and the crowd in the hall finally let out a sigh of relief. Chu Lian Tian was even more afraid that Yan Wei would be stripped of his dignity and unable to show his face afterwards, but seeing Yan Wei's intention, he also felt relieved. But suddenly hearing Yan Wei say that the arrogant Shanxi Ting Yu Long Yang family's young master was actually his old superior, he was shocked into a cold sweat!
Actually, now it's just Yan Wei and the two National Army officers who come to negotiate with themselves, and they still have their own twists and turns. If it were really Shanxi Tingyulang Yang Jue who intervened in this matter, let alone someone from the Jiangbei most powerful gang coming to see them personally, even if they just sent a letter to their doorstep, they would only be left with how to follow orders! Looking at the entire underworld of Jianghu, Chu Lian Tian couldn't think of anyone else Yang Jue would put in his eyes except for maybe giving some face to Shanghai's Mr. Du!
"It turns out that Tīng Yù Lóng Yang was Major Yan's former superior, and who would have known that when Young Master Yang made a name for himself in the Battle of the Great Wall against the Japanese army, Major Yan was by his side serving as his aide!"
"Not bad, at that time we were indeed fighting side by side in the Great Wall battlefield, only I was ordered to guard another position and couldn't follow General Yang. General Yang often told us that if we encountered trouble in the future, we should seek help from friends on the rivers and lakes, and if necessary, use his name to ask for assistance. If people respected the Yang family's reputation and remembered our shared roots, they might be willing to lend a hand.
Yan Wei saw that Niu had already blown things out of proportion, so he decided to go all out and disregard his own life! After all, whenever he chatted with familiar colleagues about General Yang, everyone said that General Yang was kind and loved his soldiers like sons. He was generous and valued relationships and righteousness. Moreover, this was for the party and the nation! And it was still an order from General Yang himself! Not to mention anything else, just looking at General Yang's face, I reckon he wouldn't pursue the matter of me borrowing his name to get things done."
"Absolutely! What uncertainty is there? Since Young Master Yang had already given his instructions, Colonel Yan should have clearly told us from the beginning! Why go around in such a big circle and waste energy?! Since Colonel Yan has explained to us with reason and emotion, and has followed Young Master Yang's side as one family, and Young Master Yang has also promised to give you such convenience, our Chu Jiang gang will fully support all actions of our national army this time!"
