On the afternoon of August 4th, Yuan Su had just met with Chen Wenian and Zhao Shanhe to finalize the list of 500 handymen and 300 workers recruited by the First Mixed Brigade. It only took four days.
The recruitment of 800 people was completed within a short period of time. This cannot be said to be efficient, but because there are too many people who came to apply. Screening and inspection were carried out like an assembly line. No matter how many unqualified people were screened out, they would still be the same.
We still recruited a lot of people who met the standards. After all, the so-called standards are not too high.
Not long after Chen Wenian and Zhao Shanhe left, Du Yu quickly came in and informed them that Wu Like, the head of Linyu County, wanted to see them.
Yuan Su thought Wu Li was here to talk to him about the project, so he casually asked how many people had come in total. When discussing this matter before, many relevant people would accompany him. Just yesterday, even Funing County Magistrate Tao came to visit him.
Came here for a visit.
Du Yu replied that there was only Wu Like, and his expression looked strange. Yuan Su pondered for a moment, and then asked Du Yu to invite Wu Like to the room to meet him.
After a while, Du Yu led Wu Like to the door of the room. Du Yu did not come in, but stood outside the threshold and made an invitation gesture to Wu Like. Wu Like lifted his folds, crossed the threshold and walked in.
The look on his face was very heavy at first glance, and he could faintly see the sweat on his forehead.
"Master Wu is here? Come on, please take a seat." Yuan Su did not get up, but sat behind the table and said to Wu Like with a smile.
After Wu Like reluctantly exchanged greetings and asked questions, he sat down with a worried look.
"Look at Mr. Wu's face, is there something important here today?" Yuan Su asked tentatively.
"Well...it's not an important matter. I've just been thinking about something in my mind in the past few days, so I took the liberty to come and bother Mr. Yuan. I hope Mr. Yuan can give me some advice. [ ]" Wu Like smiled awkwardly.
said.
"Mr. Wu, you are serious, just speak out." Yuan Su said with a smile but not a smile.
"Since Mr. Yuan took office as the Commander-in-Chief of Disaster Relief, the situation has gradually stabilized, and it is just around the corner to completely resolve this disaster. Because of this, recently... I have heard that Mr. Yuan seems to be trying to settle scores... Of course
, The officials in Linyu County and everyone in charge of Shanhaiguan defense have indeed committed crimes of dereliction of duty, but at least they hope that we will correct our mistakes when we know them, and we have actively cooperated with Mr. Yuan during this period..."
"Master Wu!" Yuan Su interrupted Wu Like in a moderate tone.
"Uh, Mr. Yuan, please give me your instructions." Wu Like quickly changed his attitude and asked respectfully.
Yuan Su is not a fool. Even if he is indeed an outsider, he can still grasp seven or eight points of the situation in Linyu County. The first point is that Wu Like's so-called "gossip" does not exist at all. How can it be?
Not to mention that he had not received the slightest hint of it, not to mention that he had not even begun to settle accounts after the fall, so how could he make Wu Like panic?
It is conceivable that the only explanation is that Wu Like deliberately used this incident as an excuse to test his tone.
But then again, Wu Like's painstaking fabrication of excuses can also confirm a fact, that is, Yuan Su's series of hints to the gentry class headed by Wu Like in the past few days were effective. Even though
Others still half understand and half don't understand. As long as Wu Like understands it well, that's enough.
"You and I are both aware of what you just said. There are only two of you and me here. If Mr. Wu really has any concerns in his heart, he might as well speak frankly." Yuan Su put on a calm posture and said nothing.
Said unhurriedly.
"Master Yuan is indeed wise, but what I said before is not groundless. I am just worried that Master Yuan's plan in the near future will be self-defeating, so I have to make a special trip to visit Master Yuan alone. [ ]" Wu Like said sincerely.
"What if it's self-defeating?" Yuan Su narrowed his eyes slightly and asked with some seriousness.
"I dare to ask Mr. Yuan, do you plan to punish the guardian envoy after the disaster is calmed down?" After a brief hesitation, Wu Like said the matter bluntly.
Yuan Su fell into silence again. He had hinted it many times earlier, naturally in the hope that Wu Li might realize this. To be honest, he did not covet the Shanhaiguan Guardian's territory at the beginning, but when he discovered that it was clear that
When he had an excuse and a connection to take advantage of this disaster relief opportunity to drive away Wu Chenglu, the seeds of ambition gradually took root and sprouted.
Linyu County, Funing County and Beidaihe County, which are under the jurisdiction of the Shanhaiguan garrison, actually belong to Yongping Prefecture. However, during the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, soldiers interfered with the government. The empty shell of the government of Yongping Prefecture has long been unable to restrain local separatism. Even
Strictly speaking, Luanzhou is also under the jurisdiction of Yongping Prefecture, and now together with the three counties of Tongyong Town, it has become the defense area of Yuan Sudong's Zhili Protectorate.
It won't be long before China's so-called "defense zones" in the future will also be "jurisdictional areas."
As early as a few years ago, Wu Chenglu was still a high-ranking official with a large number of soldiers. However, in the past few years, the opponent actually went from being a high-ranking official to a small warlord with only a few thousand people. It can only be said that this person has become weak.
For a long time, either they have never paid attention to the competition for power, or they have not realized the rapid changes in China's situation.
Regardless of the reason, in Yuan Su's view, Wu Chenglu was even less worthy of mention than Wang Huaiqing. Back then, he was able to drive away Wang Huaiqing without any bloodshed with a force of 400 men. Today, he can also drive away Wu Chenglu.
In addition to the difference in power and strength, the more important point is Beidaihe County under the control of the Shanhaiguan garrison. Since the Qing Dynasty opened Beidaihe as a summer gathering place for foreign expatriates in 1998, many foreign parishes suddenly emerged here.
, and soon became a veritable foreigner town.
Foreigners who can obtain residence rights and buy a house in Beidaihe are either rich or powerful. Foreigners with status, status and capital from all over the world have formed intricate relationships here. In addition, today's European
The situation is extremely tense, which naturally makes people from various countries living in Beidaihe quite at odds.
With Wu Chenglu's moral character, it is impossible to handle relations with foreigners from all over the world. Judging from inquiries during this period, Wu Chenglu's attitude towards Beidaihe was as if he was indifferent, as if Beidaihe was a foreign concession.
Presumably Wu Chenglu himself knew very well that he could only maintain the situation in Beidaihe in this way.
For Yuan Su, he not only established a relationship with the British, but also had a clear vision of the changes in the international situation. He was fully confident and capable of handling the complicated relations in Beidaihe. Of course, the point is not who can handle it well.
The key point in relations with foreigners is who can use their relations with foreigners to fuel the flames.
After a lengthy silence, Yuan Su suddenly laughed and asked noncommittally: "Master Wu, do you think Wu Chenglu should not be held responsible for this matter?"
Wu Like was stunned and didn't know how to answer for a moment. From a legal perspective, Wu Chenglu was indeed guilty, and not only Wu Chenglu was guilty, but even the officials of all sizes in Linyu County, including himself, could not escape their responsibility.
.However, from a conventional perspective, this disaster is not a world-shattering disaster at all. When talking about this matter behind closed doors, everyone understands it tacitly.
After a slight pause, Yuan Su quickly put away the smile on his face, and said seriously but not seriously: "If I were you, Mr. Wu, I would not consider the prospect of the Shanhaiguan Guardian Envoy now, but
Pay more attention to your own gains and losses."
There was a lump in Wu Like's throat, and he couldn't help sweating on his forehead. On the one hand, it was the weather getting hotter, and on the other hand, it was the anxiety deep in his heart. After a while, he spoke in a solemn tone:
"What Mr. Yuan said is absolutely true. If you can't protect yourself, how can you spare the time to take care of others."
Yuan Su stopped and said matter-of-factly: "Mr. Wu is half right and half wrong. 'You can't protect yourself' depends on the specific time. You might as well tell Mr. Wu directly that this time Yuan will preside over
During the disaster relief, Master Wu was the only one who assisted Cao Cao. As for the other Master Wu, he only held a big smoking gun all day long. Not only did he have no opinion in everything, but he also did nothing."
Hearing this, Wu Like felt slightly comforted. In addition to wanting to find out Yuan Su's specific plans, he came here this time to determine his personal situation.
Although he was more or less aware that Yuan Su was deliberately trying to win over him a while ago, what's more, Yuan Su's tone was that it was absolutely impossible and unnecessary to "eliminate the roots". If he wanted to get rid of the guardian envoy Wu Chenglu, it would be impossible without the support of local forces.
Is it easy to do? However, he still needs to hear Yuan Su's personal promise so that he can have a psychological guarantee.
"I am very pleased to hear Mr. Yuan's words. Wu has been in Linyu County for more than ten years. He only knows how to sort out his duties. As for most other things, he does not dare to expect. It is just that as the saying goes, 'City Gate'
If a fire breaks out and affects the fish in the pond, why does Mr. Yuan need to handle this matter so seriously?"
"Master Wu, last night I received a statistics from below. In the past month, the number of refugees who starved to death at the pass exceeded 2,000. The number of 2,000 is still recorded. I believe
The real number is far more than two thousand. This is human life, not money or food." Yuan Su said seriously.
"this……"
"Are you trying to tell me that killing thousands of people is nothing? Everyone who has read this knows the words 'human life matters'. Let me ask you, what does it mean that human life matters?" Yuan Su asked aggressively
road.
"Master Yuan, I understand this truth. It's just..." Wu Like said hesitantly.