Chapter 41: Democratic Regime

  Since the "Divine Eagle" entered Xiaowang Village, Wang Jicai has been busy all day long. Although no one assigned him any work, he still ran to the training troops whenever he had time. Either asking if there was anything that needed help or following along when others were busy.

  When Chen Jifang and Zhong Dingcheng came to his home to look for him, the enthusiastic Mr. Wang had just returned from the militia training ground and was preparing to rest in an armchair.

  Two battalion commanders were led directly by Wang Fu to Wang Jicai's presence, startling him into standing up from his armchair.

  "Ah, both officials have time to come to my humble abode today. Wang Fu, serve tea!" Wang Jicai welcomed them with a smile.

  Chen Jifang didn't exchange pleasantries with him and directly got to the point. Wang Jicai had not immediately responded after hearing that the troops were going to establish a regime like this in the locality.

  "Since ancient times, there have been armies and territories. I can understand the thoughts of the two officials, but now that Xiaowang Village has become a tiny place, it's also under the nose of the Japanese...” Wang Jicai simply stroked his beard and stopped talking.

  Misunderstood, this old man thinks he is a warlord. Chen Jifan saw that he was not opening his mouth and secretly thought it would be bad.

  It turned out that Zhong Dingcheng was quick to see the opportunity, and he hurriedly said: "Mr. Wang misunderstood, our organization is to eliminate the invading devils, not to occupy territory. However, since the national army withdrew from many places, they have become areas where no one is in charge. On the one hand, when the devils come, the common people have no mainstay; on the other hand, local bandits are rampant, and the lives and property of the masses cannot be guaranteed. Moreover, with the development of the troops, the logistical pressure is getting heavier and heavier, and both personnel and food are severely restricting the expansion of the troops. Therefore, the battalion commander and I came to visit Mr. Wang today, please give us a solution."

  "Who is in charge of this democratic government?" Wang Jicai finally managed to squeeze out a sentence after half a day.

  "Mr. Wang is indeed a seasoned veteran, and his questions hit the nail on the head. As Old Zhong said earlier, establishing a regime is not to satisfy anyone's personal desires, but rather to benefit the people while also considering the troops. In short, we fight for the sake of the people so they won't be bullied by the devils, and establishing a regime is to better strike at the devils, making life even better for the people." Chen Jifang added.

  "This old man understands that your noble act of bringing benefits to the people will be remembered forever by any Chinese person with a conscience. What I want to ask is, can this regime protect the interests of the landlords?" Wang Jicai continued to press on.

  "As long as the benefits are obtained through legitimate channels, democratic governments will protect them. However, we resolutely stop the behavior of exploiting peasants by usury or unilateral increase in land rent." Chen Jifang actually didn't understand these things and could barely say a few words with the help of some later generations' marginal knowledge.

  Zhong Dingcheng said bluntly, "So, Mr. Wang, we are military men and don't understand this aspect very well. We propose a general direction, please consider it, Mr. Wang. We think this regime truly belongs to the people and should represent the interests of the vast majority. In making laws, there should be laws that take into account all aspects, no matter who violates them, they will be punished, and the troops are no exception."

  "Alright, what can I do then?"

  "We want to ask Old Man Wang to take the lead in getting things started in the dozen or so villages where our troops are stationed. For example, let's first establish new village committees in each village, with members elected from various social strata within the village. Then, each village can come up with its own set of rules and regulations, which we can modify if they're unreasonable. Finally, we'll use these rules to manage all aspects of village affairs, such as resolving disputes among villagers, maintaining law and order, collecting grain taxes, organizing militia, etc. Once things are in order in each village, we can then have each village elect a representative to form an overall governing body. What do you think?" Zhong Dingcheng seemed to understand more than he was letting on.

  Wang Jicai saw that the two battalion commanders were sincere and had come prepared, so after some thought, he nodded in agreement.

  After leaving Wang Jicai's home, the two did not return to the camp, but instead drove the jeep out to prepare for Li Xiangtao's working village. The village of Xiao Wangzhuang was only a dozen miles away, where Hu Yunfeng led the second company to garrison.

  The arrival of the two battalion commanders made Hu Yunfeng very happy. He welcomed them into the regimental headquarters while pouring water and handing it over to them.

  "Two battalion commanders have arrived, what are your instructions?" Hu Yunfeng said with a smile.

  Zhong Dingcheng said: "You little devil just came out on your own for a few days and became so slick? How's your troops? Any difficulties?"

  Hu Yunfeng heard about asking for work and immediately put away his smile to answer seriously: "There are no difficulties for the time being, it's just that we have become a fast-paced police officer."

  "Oh, interesting, tell me what's going on?" Chen Jifan perked up at this.

  Hu Yunfeng began to speak with a worried expression, originally the masses here were not very enthusiastic about fighting against the devils, but after the troops arrived, they truly achieved zero harm and even used their spare time to help the villagers with some work. The villagers gradually regarded the troops as their own people. Then the regimental headquarters sent students to help with mass work, which had an even better effect. Now the second company not only has sufficient soldiers but also many militia have registered.

  "Great!", Chen Jifan interrupted, "Why are you still making a face?"

  "Regimental commander, you don't know what happened. At first, everything was going well, but then the second company returned to headquarters and clashed with the little devils. Li Xiangtou stayed behind, and after the troops came back, I was busy with the repair work of the troops and didn't have time to take care of the mass work. Who knew that this kid would cause trouble that left me speechless."

  "What's wrong?" Zhong Dingcheng asked.

  "Has this kid broken discipline?" Chen Jifan also asked.

  "No, this kid organized a peasants' association, saying that all the broad masses of peasants should unite and fight for their own interests, and then they would start to struggle against the landlords."

  "Fight for the landlord?" Chen Jifan thought he was still driving a tractor. What kind of timing is this, and you're still playing that set?

  Zhong Ding Cheng was delighted, "Talented indeed! Old Chen, the student you brought from Wuhan is truly a talented individual. At such a young age, he has already gained the support of the people. Now we have someone to take over the government."

  "This kid is indeed a talent, in Wuhan he only said a few words and I felt it, at the time I thought there were party members around him influencing him, and they were high-level party members, as for whether he himself joined the party or not, I'm not clear. But if things go on like this, it's absolutely not going to work. Little Hu, how did you handle it?" Chen Jifang asked.

  "What else can we do? The troops came to the village, and these landlords also gave strong support. We can't just take people away, right? We understand the law, and we won't do what the city management does."

  Chen Jifan said: "You're doing the right thing, but this can't go on like this. If the contradictions between the landlords and the peasants intensify, we'll be in a difficult position if we're caught in the middle. With a great enemy before us, unity is of utmost importance. So, put aside the affairs of the regiment for now and come with us to find Li Xiangtao."

  When Chen Jifan arrived, Li Xiangtao was bent over the desk, writing hastily. He wanted to organize his work for this period of time and submit it to the deputy battalion commander for review. For some reason, the battalion commander didn't seem too enthusiastic about him, but the deputy battalion commander appreciated him very much.

  Li Xiangtao was so excited at the thought of being able to display his talents here that he became completely absorbed, and didn't even notice when the camp commander arrived.

  "Comrade Li Xiangtao, what are you busy with?" Zhong Dingcheng asked in a tone that tried to imitate the leader's.

  "Regimental commander? Deputy regimental commander? Battalion commander?" Li Xiangtao was somewhat incoherent, presumably because the other's arrival was too unexpected.

  "Sit down, we heard you're doing well and came to take a look." Chen Jifan said as he pulled everyone to find a place to sit.

  "We've read your suggestions for the military department and think it's a great idea to establish an anti-Japanese democratic government. We'd like to hear more of your thoughts in person." Chen Jifang said straightforwardly.

  Li Xiangtao was eloquent, and when he heard the battalion commanders' suggestions for himself, he was very excited and spoke fluently: "The benefits of organizing a government are obvious. After the Nationalist Party left, these places became a stateless state, scattered sand, each only caring about their own land. What's more, some landlords even took advantage of the situation to raise rents and usury, making many farmers' lives very difficult. In this situation, it is unrealistic to expect them to rise up to support the resistance against Japan."

  "It seems that you have made an effort this time, but to change the situation, we need to talk about methods. We cannot encourage peasants to go and beat up landlords, which can only intensify conflicts." Chen Jifang said with a critical tone.

  "But where did the landlord's property come from? Didn't it come from exploiting the peasants? Now that the peasants have become aware, they want to take back what belongs to them. What's wrong with that?" Li Xiangtou became agitated.

  Zhong Dingcheng took a look at the situation and said to Li Xiangtuo, "Don't get agitated, Comrade Li Xiangtuo. The issue should be viewed this way: the landlord contributes land, the peasants contribute labor power, and both parties have the right to participate in the distribution of the harvest results. It's just a matter of negotiating the ratio of distribution. Moreover, landlords aren't born as landlords. As far as I know, many landlords live frugally and work hard. We can't encourage the illegal expropriation of people's property; otherwise, no one will go back to work, and everyone will go to overthrow the landlords. Now our common enemy is the Japanese devils. Whether it's the landlord or the peasant, we are all Chinese, and Chinese affairs can be resolved through negotiation. Fighting the Japanese devils is the main contradiction. Isn't that right?"

  Zhong Dingcheng's words were old and steady, Li Xiangtao couldn't refute them for the time being, and stood there without speaking.

  Chen Jifang spoke up: "Comrade Li Xiangtao, you can speak from the standpoint of the peasants, which shows that you are at least a man with a conscience, and your work ability is evident to all. However, everything must be considered in the context of the Anti-Japanese War. The problem between landlords and peasants has existed for thousands of years and has never been solved. In the past, when peasants could no longer make ends meet, they would rebel, resulting in great damage to production. You are an educated person, you should know this. Can't we use the power of the government to enact laws to regulate the distribution of interests between the two parties?"

  Li Xiangtao did not speak, the battalion commander's point of view was not unreasonable. He felt that the level of these soldiers was higher than theirs, but on the other hand, his friends in Wuhan had also said something good, and Li Xiangtao fell silent for a moment.

  "Are you a Communist Party member?" Chen Jifang suddenly asked. "It doesn't matter, no matter which party, as long as they are sincerely anti-Japanese and good to the common people, we will unite."

  Li Xiangtao shook his head regretfully, "No, they said they would need to observe for a while longer. Later, when the battalion arrived in Wuhan, I heard you were capable of fighting against the devils, so I signed up."

  "In fact, the Communist Party is no longer engaging in class struggle now. In the North China guerrilla zone, they are currently carrying out a rent and interest reduction movement, which both protects the interests of the broad masses of peasants and takes care of the interests of the landlords. Although everyone's contradictions have not been fundamentally resolved, they will not be intensified. Moreover, there are more National Army soldiers in the troops, who may have fought against the Red Army in Jiangxi before, so it is unclear for the time being between the KMT and the Communist Party. Therefore, I suggest that you should not propagate this in the team to avoid causing discord, do you understand?" Chen Jifang's tone was relatively mild.

  "Two battalion commanders, I remembered what you said today, and I'd like to discuss my views on establishing a regime."

  "Alright, let's hear it?" Zhong Dingcheng encouraged.

  "I want to set up a committee in the village, with villagers electing their own members to be in charge of finances, militia, women's work and other tasks. The committee will then elect a leader, who will serve for a fixed term before being re-elected. The village work team can provide guidance but must not interfere." Li Xiangtao finished speaking and cast a sideways glance at the battalion commander.

  "No problem, the second company is stationed in this village, if you have any difficulties, you can discuss with the captain of the second company."

  Hu Yunfeng hastened to express his stance: "Yes, during elections, troops can help you maintain law and order."

  "There's one more thing, I and Su Xuechang have discussed it before, we want to ask for instructions from the headquarters," said Li Xiangtao.

  "You said."

  "We are 15 people from Wuhan, all of whom have received an education. We want to set up a primary school here and gather the children in the surrounding area to teach them literacy. We hope the camp headquarters can provide some financial support."

  Li Xiangtao said this, Chen Jifan, Zhong Dingcheng and Hu Yunfeng looked at each other, thinking that they were ashamed, how could they have forgotten this? A hundred years of trees and people, what's the use of just driving away the little devils? If all citizens haven't received basic education, the country will still be backward, and being backward will lead to being beaten by others.

  "No problem!" The three replied in unison.

  Li Xiangtao did not expect the leaders to react this way and was stunned on the spot.

  "You and Su Xuechang come up with a plan, the battalion will provide whatever money is needed, and if houses need to be repaired, the battalion will send troops. As for the matter of political power, you first try it out in this village, summarize some experience and report back to the battalion, then we'll promote it in other places."

  "Don't worry, Captain! I'll definitely work hard!" Li Xiangtao stood at attention, excited.

  "We're leaving, you need to take care of your body, exercise more and eat more." Chen Jifan said finally.

  "Yes! Thank you, Captain, for your concern." Li Xiangtao's voice was somewhat choked.

  After leaving Li Xiangtao's place, Chen Jifan and Zhong Dingcheng asked Hu Yunfeng some questions about the Second Regiment, made a record of it, and then returned to Xiaowangzhuang.

  Two days later, Wang Jicai brought what he had written to the camp headquarters for instructions.

  The material mainly mentions how to formulate the problem of military grain collection and militia service based on the local area, which is very detailed and operational, but it does not mention much about how to organize the regime.

  "Mr. Wang, I have something to say but I'm not sure if I should say it or not?" Chen Jifan decided to lay his cards on the table.

  "Director Chen has something to say, it doesn't matter what he says, I will listen carefully."

  "Mr. Wang, the 'Divine Eagle' has today, with your strong support, we will always remember your contributions to the anti-Japanese cause. But why did we form an army to fight against Japan? And why do ordinary people support us? We formed an army to fight against the devils not for personal gain or power, but to protect the Chinese people from their harm. And the reason ordinary people support us is because they think we can bring them hope, if we cannot make their lives better, then what's the point of eliminating the devils?"

  "Director Chen speaks directly, I'm listening."

  "What we mean is that the landlords should first discuss and agree on reducing rent and interest, and also the anti-Japanese democratic government in each village must have peasant representatives participating, but this will inevitably harm your interests, please forgive us, Mr. Wang."

  "As for this matter, you two have underestimated me. You still treat me as an outsider even though I'm an old man, it's truly regrettable." Wang Jicai said, looking up at the beam of the house.

  "If we juniors have done anything wrong, please forgive us," said Zhong Dingcheng.

  "Think about it, you two officials. Do I have anywhere else to go? This is my home, where my ancestors are buried and where my troops are stationed. I am inseparable from the 'Divine Eagle'. Since we are on the same side, don't be polite with me. Even if you need me to sell off my property, I won't bat an eyelid. You're underestimating me."

  Wang Jicai made a statement and things became easier, everyone carefully considered the plan proposed by Wang Jicai again, decided to start with Xiao Wangzhuang, Wang Jicai went to each village to mobilize, in coordination with Li Xiangtao and other students, and local people jointly established an anti-Japanese democratic government.

  There are many things in politics, Chen Jifan doesn't understand much, and the troops need to worry about all aspects, so Chen Jifan simply temporarily doesn't care about them, as long as they don't make trouble.

  The first to get started was Xin Zhuang, where Li Xiangtao worked. The village committee was established first in the village. Next was Xiao Wang Zhuang, and the work in Xiao Wang Zhuang went very smoothly, after all, it was the location of the battalion headquarters, and people's awareness was higher.

  However, in some more distant places, the establishment of anti-Japanese democratic regimes was not smooth, and the reason was actually a collision with the special branch of the Communist Party of China stationed in Chuzhou.