Chapter 48 The Moon of Yesteryear
The eggplants planted this year are ripe. Xie Ning handed the golden-brown fried eggplant fritters to Wang Cheng, asking him and Xiao Yang to deliver them to the factory.
In the end, Blind Wang followed Xie Ning. He was different from Liu Ping, who was involved in a gang but later left the Black Dragon Gang to follow Ninth Master, where he had a promising future. Therefore, Liu Ping and Xie Ning had a cooperative relationship.
In the previous explosion, Liu Ping sent men to cooperate with Xie Ning to annihilate the Japanese troops in the Japanese residence and then clean up Xie Ning's trail. Xie Ning provided them with time bombs. As a result, in addition to the explosion in the Japanese area, an explosion also occurred in Hongkou Park in Shanghai, resulting in many Japanese casualties during the celebration.
After this incident, Ninth Master not only escaped being a wanted criminal, but also received praise from his superiors.
His family's hatred was settled, but the national vendetta remained unavenged. It wasn't that he didn't want to join Liu Ping in punishing evil and eliminating the Japanese army and traitors; if it were the old him, he would have definitely joined Liu Ping.
But now he has selfish desires. He yearns for stability. If he dies, Wang Cheng will have no way to survive. He is no longer young, but Wang Cheng is still young. He hopes that Wang Cheng can learn more words and do accounting so that he can become an accountant and support himself.
Blind Wang was very shrewd; he wouldn't be so foolish as to try and scheme against Xie Ning. Who was Miss Xie? Everyone respected her, and he understood that Xie Ning held the highest position.
Moreover, Xie Ning was very busy, either spending all his time at the factory or holed up in his study. He would only occasionally sit on the swing in the yard to relax. The swing was made by Cai Huai, who said that Xie Ning liked to hold the children and swing on the swing when he went to the orphanage. Xie Ning was most relaxed at that time.
So Blind Wang set his sights on the student technicians in the factory. In Blind Wang's eyes, these students were much more capable than the private tutors at the end of the alley. Therefore, he encouraged Wang Cheng to help the students with their work while delivering meals. They would get to know each other over time, and then he would ask the students to teach Wang Cheng a few words, thinking that they would not refuse.
He knew his younger brother well; he was a reliable and honest man who would never hesitate to help others, even if he couldn't do heavy work, he could still do some trivial things.
Thinking about the page of addition and subtraction calculations that Wang Cheng had finished writing last night, Blind Wang's eyes narrowed into slits with joy, and he worked even more diligently. When he looked up and saw Xie Ning and Aunt Liu enter the study, he picked up his hoe and planned to turn over the vegetable garden in the yard. Aunt Liu said that they should plant some radishes and cabbages to eat in winter, so they would be fresh.
That evening, Cai Huai and Zhang Mingyuan returned together for the first time ever, whereas normally one of them would have to stay behind to look after the factory.
Zhang Mingyuan placed the telegram on the table: "The army commander has been promoted to commander-in-chief, and the former commander-in-chief has been transferred to the position of chairman of Fujian and director of the Pacification Headquarters."
Promotion is a good thing, but the three men did not show much joy on their faces. After all, it meant that the 19th Army would be facing off against the Red Army, and a battle between the two was inevitable.
Cai Huai glanced at Xie Ning secretly. Xie Ning had previously expressed her dislike for civil war, saying that the guns she made should not be pointed at her own people. But now... the army commander had sent a telegram saying that another batch of weapons should be sent as soon as possible, and it would be the best batch. This could not be kept from Xie Ning.
Xie Ning leaned against the desk and took a sip of tea. She was also unhappy, but she knew that this was inevitable. However, it did not stop her from making sarcastic remarks now. "In terms of combat power, if the 19th Army in the Chinese army says it is second, I'm afraid no other army would dare to claim to be first. The army commander and the commander-in-chief have always adhered to the concept of resisting Japan and saving the country, and they also opposed the policy of pacifying the country before resisting foreign aggression."
With differing political views and such a formidable army, do you think the higher-ups will feel at ease?
You should know that the 19th Army is not a core unit. "I can't say more than that."
Cai Huai and Zhang Mingyuan exchanged a glance, their expressions turning somewhat grim. On the way back, Cai Huai couldn't help but ask, "Is Changning trying to sow discord?"
Sitting in the passenger seat, Zhang Mingyuan felt a twitch in his forehead. "It can't be called sowing discord. Since the battle a few months ago, the 19th Army's reputation has been growing, and its combat effectiveness is well-known. Those who are brave and resourceful but intimidate their superiors are in danger. This time, transferring the 19th Army to Fujian to 'encircle and suppress' the Red Army may seem like a move to pacify the internal situation, but in reality, it is a two-birds-with-one-stone strategy."
In the past, Zhang Mingyuan would never have trusted Xie Ning, but he was in charge of a small arms factory, which was being done behind his superiors' backs, indicating disloyalty. Therefore, he cared even more about the attitude of his superiors.
Xie Ning's words served as a wake-up call for him. The wise are not perplexed, the benevolent are not worried, and the brave are not afraid. He was just a man with some intelligence.
The telegram arrived in Commander Cai's hands before the letter, because the factory was a secret, so he specially arranged for another radio station to make contact.
“Jingran, those who are brave and resourceful but overshadow their lord are in danger. The 19th Army is too prominent.” Although Commander Cai had expected this, he still couldn’t help but feel uneasy when things really came to this.
Jiang Jingran remained noncommittal. He did not explicitly state the reasons behind the central government's dispatch of them to Fujian, only saying, "Zhenru plans to resign at the end of the year."
"What? He's the Vice Premier of the Executive Yuan!"
"So what? When Zhenru opposed the policy of compromise and ordered us to fight against the Japanese army, we could already foresee what the future would be like. With differing political views, he would inevitably be ostracized by Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Jingwei. It would be better if he faced difficulties at every step, but I'm afraid his life would be in danger. Moreover, given Zhenru's personality, he couldn't have stayed in that kind of atmosphere."
It is clear that the higher-ups do not have good intentions towards the 19th Army. Weakening it is a small matter; if the entire army is wiped out, what will all their efforts over the years amount to?
Commander Cai pondered for a long time, "We now have a strong military force, and if it really happens... it's not impossible to succeed."
"No!" Although Jiang Jingran had this intention, they were not deeply rooted in this place. Even if they had a small arsenal to strengthen their military, they could not resist the central government. After all, the central government was internationally recognized and supported by European and American countries. As long as the central government provided enough military funding, other factions would swarm in and devour the 19th Army. Two fists could not fight against four hands.
Therefore, he simply said, "Before its feathers are fully grown, it cannot soar high."
However, this did not mean they would sit idly by and wait for their doom. The two discussed until late at night, the moonlight falling on the treetops like a hazy silver veil. When Jiang Jingran finally left, Commander Cai could not help but ask, "Is Chen Zhenru coming to our 19th Army?"
Jiang Jingran glared at Commander Cai with annoyance, "If he really comes, who will he kick out? He has already decided to go to France."
Commander Cai was not annoyed; on the contrary, he breathed a sigh of relief. He shared the same political views as Chen Zhenru, but he looked down on the other party's military capabilities. However, if the other party really came, it would be difficult to refuse him, and he was not offered a high position. It was really troublesome.
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