"Extra, extra! The hero of the Northern Expedition, General An Yi, gave a speech at the Normal University yesterday with great success. It will be moved to the playground of Peking University this afternoon. People from all walks of life in Beijing and Tianjin will gather in Yanyuan. The number of listeners will exceed an unprecedented one hundred thousand..."
"Sell newspapers, sell newspapers! Ta Kung Pao publishes the full text of General An Yi's speech. It's so exciting that you can't miss it!"
"...General An expounded new views on disarmament and development, and was unanimously praised by celebrities from all walks of life in Beijing and Tianjin..."
"Sell newspapers, sell newspapers! The Times publishes General An Yi's new views on Japan..."
"Big news! "Shenbao" and "Eastern Outlook" exposed eight major crimes of Guangxi warlords smuggling opium, corruption and oppressing the people of the two lakes..."
In the conference room of the main building of Tangshan Hot Spring, Guangxi coach Li Zongren angrily threw a large stack of newspapers and two "Eastern Outlook" magazines on the wide table, glanced around the room full of generals, and finally stopped at Chiang Kai-shek, who had a look of astonishment on his face.
Face:
"Destroying my good reputation, spreading rumors and causing trouble... The unwarranted insults and slanders are despicable! This is a despicable conspiracy, a big conspiracy! On behalf of the Wuhan Political Branch, as well as the 280,000 soldiers of Guangxi, Hunan and Hubei who are waiting for danger,
We urge the central government to immediately investigate the culprits behind the scenes, severely punish those who spread rumors and confuse the public, and restore the reputation of our soldiers’ innocence!”
Li Zongren, Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang, Li Jishen and Yan Xishan gathered together for a meeting early in the morning. They had a hurried lunch at noon and the meeting continued. Only Li Zongren was hurriedly called out by the confidential secretary half an hour ago. After returning, he
Angrily, he held up a large stack of newspapers and magazines and threw them in front of everyone.
Feng Yuxiang, Chiang Kai-shek and Yan Xishan were all confused and looked at each other. Then they all cast their surprised eyes on the face of the furious Li Zongren. Seeing that Li Zongren had no explanation, he still looked at Chiang Kai-shek with gritted teeth, as if he would not give up until he explained clearly.
They all picked up the major newspapers and magazines on the table and read them carefully.
Shockingly, I discovered that in addition to the rave reviews of An Yi's speech, all the above articles disclosed in detail the various misdeeds of the Guangxi army in the half-year rule of the two lakes. Various articles ruthlessly criticized the Guangxi generals Hu Zongduo, Tao Jun, and Xia Wei.
Many of the articles also pointed the finger of criticism directly at Guangxi coach Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi.
Chiang Kai-shek, Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang raised their heads almost at the same time, looked at each other's half-smiling, slightly mocking expressions, and then lowered their heads to read the newspapers and magazines in their hands.
Li Zongren saw that everyone looked confused and confused, including the suspected mastermind Chiang Kai-shek, who was also reading the newspaper carefully. He pondered for a moment, sat down, and glanced at everyone in the table with suspicious eyes, trying to guess who was there.
Against yourself?
After more than ten minutes of awkward silence, Feng Yuxiang put down the third newspaper, pointed at one of the sections and sighed loudly:
"It's incredible, how could this newspaper write in such detail? There are even details about the secret intrigues between the Seventh Army and the Nineteenth Army... I can't believe that these two teams actually fought for a mere ban on smoking.
There was an endless dispute over the position of the director, and they almost came to blows. They said that in the end, Brother De Lin intervened and transferred the salt tax to the Seventh Army and the tobacco and soil tax to the Nineteenth Army. This solved the problem.
Tsk tsk! Look, everyone, here, what happened to Tao Jun, the commander of the 18th Army? He actually shouted, "I would rather kill three thousand by mistake than let one go." This is unseemly. If this is true, the people of Wuhan
It’s no exaggeration to call him a ‘butcher’! Brother De Lin, can you tell me what’s going on?”
Li Zongren was originally annoyed by the overt and covert fighting among his three generals, so he finally settled the disputes of interests for the three of them, and took care of Bai Chongxi's face, even at the expense of the interests of the generals at all levels of his direct line of the Seventh Army, and used "E people to govern"
"E" was used as an excuse to mediate between Bai Chongxi's brothers, Hubei generals Hu Zongduo and Tao Jun, and their direct relatives Xia Wei and Zhong
Who knew that the conflicts between Zu Pei and other Guangxi generals would be exposed in such detail in the blink of an eye? Why didn't he become angry because of his face-saving attitude? At this time, he heard Feng Yuxiang's gloating inquiry with a gun and a stick, and he was full of resentment.
It was not easy to vent, so I could only bite half of the cigarette and smoke heavily. My livid face was extremely ugly in the smoke.
Yan Xishan thought of Li Jishen and Bai Chongxi's public attack on him for not paying the Guangxi army's salary in the meeting yesterday afternoon, and he was so angry that he had no place to vent his anger. Now that he had caught this perfect opportunity, how could he let it go so easily, so he spread out "Eastern Outlook"
, looked at Chiang Kai-shek with a rather surprised look:
"Jie Gong, today's reporters are really pervasive, and this rumor is well crafted. You see, it says that the emerging warlords Hu Zongduo and Tao Jun are proud to return to their hometown in fine clothes. They are tyrannical in their hometown, publicly avenge private revenge, and secretly launch Zhang Zhiben
He served as the puppet chairman of Hubei Province, and invited Yan Lisan, Zhang Nanxian, Shi Hengqing, etc. to serve as directors of the Department of Civil Affairs, Finance, and Construction. Unexpectedly, these old gentlemen's upright and honest style were praised by the people, so they were criticized everywhere.
The two Tao people restrained and retaliated. They also said that the high-ranking officials of the Guangxi clique would marry wives and dotes upon them when they arrived in Wuhan. They would have fun day and night and enjoy themselves to the fullest. As revolutionary soldiers, they actually rented a house for prostitution at the Yangtze River Hotel on Minsheng Road and had sex with the boss.
Hotel's old warlord Fang Benrenlang
Fang Benren offered them the best delicacies and beauties for their enjoyment, and secretly provided some shares in exchange for Hu and Tao to support his Yangtze River Hotel, and openly changed the urban planning roads under construction.
…
Look, here, Hu Zongduo actually supported a free-spirited little woman as the head of a school. In order to increase tax revenue and sources of cigarettes, Tao Jun dared to send large troops to Xiangfan and Laohekou to seize prosperous commodities and cotton.
The trading market is about to go to war with Henan Governor Yue Weijun's department... This is incredible! This rumor maker must be a little too courageous, right?"
"Total nonsense! This series of reports is definitely a big conspiracy with ulterior motives. The purpose is to cause local chaos, deny the legitimate leadership of the Wuhan Political Branch, and alienate the relationship between the military and the people. The means are very bad and the intentions are extremely despicable. I recommend that the central government immediately form a
The investigation team will investigate thoroughly!"
Li Jishen, who was on the same boat as Li Zongren, also finished reading the newspaper in his hand and said loudly with a dark face.
Yan Xishan smiled slightly: "Brother Ren Chao, don't be so arbitrary. Here is an article about you. Not only does it not criticize, but it also praises Brother Ren Chao for his series of effective economic stimulus policies to restore people's livelihood in Guangdong. It deserves me
Let’s learn from it!”
Li Jishen was stunned for a moment, then quickly took the "Eastern Outlook" magazine from Yan Xishan, found the article and read it carefully.
Chiang Kai-shek saw that the things he wanted to do but had not had time to do were actually done so well. Although his face remained calm, his heart was filled with joy. As long as there was an opportunity to attack dissidents, Chiang Kai-shek would never let it go.
, not to mention the public opinion that is so sensational and lethal?
The five newspapers and three magazines in front of me are almost all the most influential news media in China today. They are far more convincing and influential than the "Central Daily News" of the Central Party Committee of the Kuomintang. What they expose is also one of his important opponents, Li Zongrengui.
Oh, why don't you make Chiang Kai-shek completely satisfied and happy?
Chiang Kai-shek smiled slightly at Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan. When he saw Li Zongren staring at him with bright eyes, he coughed lightly, put away his smile and said seriously:
"It's time to conduct a thorough investigation to set the record straight! After the meeting, Zhongzheng sent a telegram to Nanjing to have the central government and the Central Party Department jointly form an investigation team. They immediately went to Wuhan to carry out in-depth and detailed work. According to the rumors in the newspapers,
A thorough investigation will be carried out to clarify the facts and give the officers and men of the two lakes and Guangxi armies a clear conscience."
Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan nodded in agreement with joy. Feng Yuxiang smiled meaningfully at Li Zongren and said: "Brother De Lin, you don't need to pay too much attention. The pure will become pure and the turbid will become turbid. There is no limit to the world of selflessness in your heart! As long as the investigation team goes to Hunan
Traveling around Hubei, I can solve any problem
It is clear, Brother De Lin, just rest assured. When the time comes to find out the mastermind behind this monstrous talk, everything will be easy to handle. If Brother De Lin feels it is necessary, Brother Yu and Brother Baichuan can also send a few clerks to join the investigation team.
, how about adding some strength and playing a supervisory role?"
"I completely agree with Brother Huanzhang's suggestion. As long as Brother De Lin deems it necessary, I can immediately select a few candidates to join the investigation team. We are all revolutionary troops. We will all be prosperous and suffer losses! How can we be careless about such a big event...
..." Yan Xishan still didn't know Feng Yuxiang's true intention, so he immediately echoed and expressed his attitude.
Li Zongren suddenly understood and knew that if this investigation team could be formed, more shady stories would be uncovered, especially since Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan seemed to be fair, but in fact they had the intention of adding insult to injury. Li Zongren immediately realized his recklessness, but
The words had been spoken and there was no way to change them, so I had to look at Li Jishen and solemnly ask for his opinion: "What do you think, Mr. Ren?"
"I believe that there are many important issues that the central government and we all need to go all out to solve. It is not appropriate to use limited manpower and material resources on minor matters. They should first be dealt with by the Political Propaganda Department of the Wuhan Political Branch, Seventh, Tenth
9. The Political Department of the 18th Third Army jointly formed an investigation team to thoroughly investigate the source of the rumors. If necessary, it would be better to ask the central government to help solve the problem."
As Li Jishen matured in his old age, he also heard the true intentions of Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan, and very safely solved the dilemma for Li Zongren.
Chiang Kai-shek gave Li Jishen a thoughtful look and nodded magnanimously: "Then let's take Brother Ren Chao's advice. Last night, Zhongzheng received a telegram from Nanjing. More than 60 Hubei compatriots who were in Beijing knelt outside the gate of the central government to express their wishes.
, brought up the many crimes committed by the Guangxi Clan in Hubei, and even called the central government to carry out a crusade!
It is said that the leader was a man named Fang Ziqiao. This person did not know where he recruited many outdated officers from Hubei to support him. Thousands of Nanjing citizens watched, and dozens of Chinese and foreign reporters gathered for interviews. The impact was extremely bad.
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China responded to the call last night and ordered the Military Police Headquarters to disperse them. However, this incident should serve as a warning. The Wuhan Political Branch should vigorously promote the positive image of the revolutionary army. At the same time, it should also rectify military discipline, strictly clarify its political stance, and not fall behind.
The population is real."
This remark sounded generous, but in fact it was a slanderous and arrogant insult that made Li Zongren itchy with hatred. However, he could not get angry in front of everyone, so he could only grit his teeth and sulk secretly.
After finally calming down his turbulent emotions, Li Zongren immediately noticed something fishy. He didn't know how the "Shenbao", "Times", "Daily News" and "Oriental Outlook" weekly magazines, which were originally only published in the Yangtze River Basin, were delivered so quickly.
Arrived in Pingjin area?
When Li Jishen saw Li Zongren hurriedly checking the dates of the newspapers and magazines in front of him, he also realized the problem. He quickly picked up the "Daily News" in front of him, pointed to yesterday's date marked on the masthead and told everyone:
"Everyone, please see, this is a Shanghai newspaper that was published in the Yangtze River Basin and several provinces of Fujian and Guangdong this year. It was printed just yesterday and is now available in Peiping today. Don't you think it's strange?"
Feng Yuxiang smiled, waved his hand and said: "It's not surprising. I know this newspaper very well. It sent a reporter to interview me a month ago. It has gained a reputation for being fair, open, accurate and objective. Before me, this newspaper was called Oriental News.
The society's newspapers and magazines also interviewed dozens of current celebrities such as Mr. Jiang Baili, Mr. Hu Shi, and Mr. Cai Yuanpei. Two weeks ago, they also interviewed
Brother Baichuan conducted in-depth interviews with the officers and men of the Third Army, and the serialized articles of the interviews have been published in their "Daily News". I heard that this news agency is located in the French Concession in Shanghai and is owned by Americans. Its employees include people from all over the country.
Many famous journalists are now under the jurisdiction of our central government, so it is not surprising that their newspapers and magazines are distributed here."
Li Zongren was shocked. He looked at the equally shocked Li Jishen and immediately realized that this problem was far more serious than he thought. The good reputation he had built up over the years was likely to be ruined. It could be seen from as far away as Peking and Tianjin.
With this series of negative news, one can imagine the dire situation in the Yangtze River Basin and Jiangnan region.
Chiang Kai-shek smiled slightly when he saw this: "Brother Huanzhang is right. As early as the beginning of the year, the Oriental News Agency also conducted two exclusive interviews with me. I heard that several popular reporters and several editors of the newspaper were friends with our young general An Yi.
Yes, if Brother De Lin wants to know more about the situation, you might as well wait for An Yi to come back from his speech tonight and ask him. I believe An Yi will tell Brother De Lin truthfully."
Li Zongren was startled again, as if he remembered something, he leaned heavily on his chair, stared blankly at the newspaper in front of him, and remained silent for a long time.
Li Jishen frowned, and suddenly recalled what An Yi said last night: "...the Guangxi army is no longer the revolutionary army in the early days of the Northern Expedition. There is nothing wrong with General Li Delin's ambition, but it should not be used as a military force.
Confrontation and endless exploitation of the people of the two lakes to achieve the goal will lose the support of the people, and the good reputation gained with blood and sweat will likely be lost due to unrealistic ambitions..."