"The angry crown is leaning against the railing, and the rain is falling..."
Amidst the melodious and exciting music, a young man was kneeling on the ground with his upper body naked on the large screen, sweating profusely, gritting his teeth, and a look of perseverance on his face. A trembling old woman was holding an embroidery needle on her wrist.
As he was being carried away, drops of blood seeped out from the man's back. After a while, four big words appeared on his back: Serve the country with loyalty.
There was sparse applause in the audience, and it soon spread throughout the audience.
This is the New Oriental Cinema located next to Anhe Xincun in the French Concession, where China's first talkie film "Man Jiang Hong" premiered.
On New Year's Day in the 19th year of the Republic of China, 19 movie theaters all over Shanghai opened at the same time, and the sound film "The River is Red" produced by Oriental Film Company was screened at the same time. The whole Shanghai beach was excited.
Oriental Film Company was established in April last year as a subsidiary of Oriental News Group, with a registered capital of US$100,000. The general manager is Chen Jianxuan, the former editor-in-chief of Oriental News. Oriental Film Company has made extraordinary moves. Since its establishment, it has started to operate in the French Concession and the Public Concession.
At the same time, 19 cinemas were built, the latest sound film production equipment was purchased from the United States, and US$10,000 was spent to shoot the first large-scale sound film in China, "Man Jiang Hong".
"Man Jiang Hong" is based on the story of Yue Fei's resistance to the Jin Dynasty. It begins with his mother who was a young soldier in the army carving "Serve the country with all loyalty" on her back and ends with the twelve gold medals. The whole movie is divided into two episodes, each episode is 90 minutes.
There are climaxes one after another, from the initial battle to defend Tokyo,
The great victory of Qingshui Pavilion, the great victory of Longwan, and the defeat of the enemy at Nanba Bridge began. Each scene attracted continuous applause from the audience. When the film finally showed the victory of the four Northern Expeditions and the unprecedented victory of Zhuxian Town, many people cheered loudly.
, I was so excited that I shed tears on the spot.
If you look at it from the perspective of future generations, the production line-up of this movie can be called luxurious, and both the protagonist and the supporting actors have left a very deep impression on people. Director Sun Yu was born in Chongqing, and went to Shanghai with his family when he was young.
Sun Yu came into contact with movies for the first time in the theater. In 1914, Sun Yu entered Nankai Middle School to study. After graduation, he was admitted to Tsinghua School and became obsessed with it.
He studied film and poetry, and later studied drama and film in the United States. He was the first artist in my country to receive professional film education abroad. After returning to China in 1926, Sun Yu took over the filming of several martial arts films, which received a good response. After the establishment of Oriental Film Company , Chen Jianxuan recruited talents, and many famous directors and actors signed contracts, including the talented Sun Yu.
In the film, Yue Fei is played by Wang Shaohua, a history assistant at Jiangnan Institute of Technology. He is 23 years old and a native of Kaifeng, Henan. After graduating from Peking University last year, he took a train south and rushed to Jiangnan Institute of Technology to apply for a job as a history assistant in "Man Jiang Hong".
》After the crew was established, they went to the academy to select male
Actress Wang Shaohua was spotted by director Sun Yu for her tough temperament, bronzed skin and handsome appearance, and took the starring role. In addition, the roles of Niu Gao, Yang Zaixing, Yue Yun and other generals of the Yue family were also cast by a group of people who had never been exposed to them before.
The actors who have experienced the movie performed it just right and won the hearts of the people.
For example, Yang Zaixing, played by Warrant Officer Xu Yifan, a graduate of the Infantry Course of the Non-commissioned Officer Base, has two impressive scenes. One is that Yang Zaixing rides an invincible horse, dashes left and right into the enemy formation, specializing in Jin Wushu, and kills him.
Jin Wushu cut off his beard, discarded his robe, and fled in embarrassment. His brave and invincible image appeared on the screen. Secondly, Xiao Shanghe fell. Yang Zaixing, who was the vanguard at that time, could only hold on to Jin Wushu's brigade to avoid the advancing army.
The main force of the Song Army in the battle was completely wiped out. Yang Zaixing's pre-war mobilization fully expressed the tragic and heroic spirit of the Song Army's defense of the country and its inevitable retreat. Many viewers burst into tears when they heard Yang Zaixing's words - "Here
For everyone who dies, no one will remember your name. Except for your family members, not many people may know and be sad, but sometimes we must die, and sometimes, death is more valuable than life!"
Xu Yifan is a native of Cangzhou, Hebei Province. He has a handsome appearance and is extremely skilled in riding and martial arts. He is a good soldier who is favored by Xiao Wuwei, the commander of the independent division cavalry regiment. He will be promoted to a high-ranking position after he goes to the non-commissioned officer base for further training. The reason why this time
There is an allusion to being selected by the crew of "Man Jiang Hong" to play Yang Zaixing. Xu Yifan graduated from the non-commissioned officer base and was about to return to the army. He was so proud that he
Yu came to the riverside and galloped around, unknowingly showing off his riding skills. As a result, he was discovered by Sun Yu, who was casting actors everywhere, and immediately asked him to play the role of Yang Zaixing. Originally Xu Yifan was unwilling to do so, but later he was asked by the director of the base, Yang Bin, to play the role of Yang Zaixing.
The political task was completed, so he reluctantly agreed. This time he played Yang Zaixing and became an instant hit. I don't know whether it was a blessing or a curse for him.
The climax of the whole play comes at the end, when Zhuxian Town achieves an unprecedented victory, Yue Yun "people are bloody men, horses are blood horses", Yue Fei goes into battle in person, and he, who has never drank, said boldly in front of the army, "This time I kill the golden man, until the golden man is killed."
Break into the Huanglong Mansion and have a drink with all the gentlemen!" At this moment, the friendly forces on the left and right suddenly retreated silently, twelve gold medals were issued one after another, and the voice of the lonely and tall Yue Fei gradually disappeared in the endless night.
"...The shame of Jingkang has not yet fallen; the hatred of the ministers, when will it be extinguished? Driving a long chariot, trampling through the Helan Mountains. The ambition is to eat the meat of Hulu; laugh and drink the blood of the Huns. Start from the beginning, clean up the old mountains and rivers, and face the sky."
The film ended with the impassioned singing of "Man Jiang Hong". As the subtitles appeared, the lights in the luxuriously decorated cinema came on one after another, and the audience burst into applause. The main creative staff took the stage for three curtain calls, but still could not satisfy the audience's enthusiasm. In the end, they had to cheer in unison.
The film's theme song "All the Rivers Are Red" was sung to show respect. The audience stood up and sent the cast and crew away respectfully, with eager faces on their faces.
On the street outside the cinema, a car carrying Huang Jinrong and Cheng Ziqing passed slowly.
"I didn't expect the movie "Man Jiang Hong" produced by Oriental Film Company to be so popular. It traveled to more than ten places and there were long queues in front of every cinema. When did we Chinese become so rich?" Cheng Ziqing shook his head.
, said with some confusion.
Huang Jinrong looked at the flow of people waiting to watch the movie from the street to the end, and sighed: "Sound movies are indeed not comparable to silent movies. Last night I was invited to attend a movie viewing party held by Oriental Film Company, and talked with nearly a hundred people from the public.
Celebrities and well-known journalists enjoyed the film together. After the film ended, everyone was in shock for a long time and could not extricate themselves. In the end, they all stood up and applauded, causing a huge sensation.
All the newspapers published today were full of applause, saying that "Man Jiang Hong" is an epoch-making movie in China and even the world, and a milestone in the history of film. If you don't go to the cinema to see it in person, you will regret it for the rest of your life. Of course, it will be a box office success.
Come on. The silent films we have invested in and filmed in the past few years have all been so profitable, let alone this big-budget sound film with an investment of 10,000 US dollars."
Cheng Ziqing curled his lips: "Isn't that guy An Yi backing him up? I heard that much of the filming and production of this film was done in Old Nanchang, and there are many bloody ancient war scenes in the film.
With the Central Cavalry Division Zhang Chengzhu sending troops to participate, they have an inherent advantage in production. Isn't An Yi afraid that his principal will cause trouble for him?"
Huang Jinrong smiled faintly: "Ziqing, it seems that you are still worried about An Yi's injury to your junior brother last year. Listen to me and forget all these unhappiness. The current An Yi is far from being someone you can mess with.
.
Not to mention that he is highly regarded by the Central Committee and has a harmonious relationship with the elders of all parties in the party. Now he holds military power and controls one party. Let’s just talk about these 19 movie theaters. On the surface, they are owned by Oriental Film Company, but in fact they are owned by Oriental Film Company.
The complex composition of shares, Yu Qiaqing, Feng Jingyao, Kong Xiangxi, Song Ziwen, and even
You, Uncle Du Wu, are all involved in it. Otherwise, do you think that a newly established film company has so much real estate and funds to build a theater? Now that "Man Jiang Hong" has caused a sensation, wealthy businessmen across the country must be trying to find ways to compete with An Yi.
His relationship with him has made him rich, and his nickname of the God of Wealth is not for nothing."
Cheng Ziqing was unwilling but helpless. It took him a while before he made up his mind: "Okay, I will find a way to send someone to contact him to see if we can work together to make a fortune. Now the opium and white flour business has been taken over by Du Wu.
My uncle has a monopoly, and the brothers in our department are having a hard time, so it seems it’s time to compromise."
Huang Jinrong nodded with satisfaction: "That's good. By the way, when you go to see him, it's best to mention it and see if we can build sound cinemas in Suzhou and Hangzhou and other places to screen movies produced by Oriental Film Company. I'll watch it.
From now on, the leaderless situation in the Shanghai film industry will come to an end. Without their generous efforts, it would be difficult for the film to get ahead."
After saying that, Huang Huangrong closed his eyes slightly, leaned on the backrest and fell asleep.
…
At this time, An Yi didn't know about the popularity of "Man Jiang Hong", or even if he knew, he didn't take it to heart. After half a month of silent efforts by him and his brothers, the Fifth Army Headquarters finally succeeded in the overwhelming political situation in China.
The establishment was completed under the cover of controversy and the flames of war ignited everywhere.
At midnight on January 10, the 19th year of the Republic of China, an ordinary 300-ton inland river passenger ship transported An Yi and his group of more than 100 generals to Yichang Pier. Before that, the weapons and equipment of the three divisions, including 3 million rounds of various
The ammunition has been quietly transported to Jingzhou, the two legion transfer stations in Yichang, and the Gu Changfeng 44th Division stationed in Shashi has completed the reloading and artillery regiment deployment seven days ago, and the entire division has begun its month-long actual combat exercises.
The square courtyard in the Yiling Camp in the north of Yichang City, hidden among the green trees, once again became An Yi's headquarters. More than ten senior generals, including Yichang Camp Director He Guoguang and Secretary-General Zeng Kuangqing, gathered together.
Gathered together, they are listening to the war zone situation report from the Corps Chief of Staff Zhao Rui.
Zhao Rui, who has accumulated rich experience through several battles, looks strong and steady. His words with a slight Shandong accent are clear and honest, and he is unhurried. It only took ten minutes to complete the relevant orders of the Central Military Commission, the communication of the plan and the summary of the national war situation, and then in
With the cooperation of the two combat staff officers, they walked up to a large podium more than 30 centimeters high and began to introduce all the situations in the fifth theater to the attendees while facing the map.
Zhang Hongluan, who had just received the appointment letter of deputy commander of the Fifth Army signed by Chiang Kai-shek before the meeting, Deng Bin, deputy commander of the 44th Army, and Zhang Cunzhuang, chief of staff, sat at the lower right of An Yi, with He Guoguang, the camp director at the lower left.
, Secretary-General Zeng Xuanqing, Commander of the 51st Division Fan Shisheng and other division commanders were all staring intently at the huge theater map due north, and everyone's attention was following Zhao Rui's concise explanation.
"...Based on the summary and analysis of the intelligence departments of the 16th, 17th and 51st divisions, combined with the verification by the headquarters intelligence office over the past week, it has been fully proved that the operational direction of the five divisions of the Northwest Army is the correct direction of our fifth theater.
The front line from the north to the northwest, especially the sudden occupation of Laohekou by a division of the Northwest Army on New Year's Day, where only one northern Hubei militia group maintained defense, is enough to prove to us that the Northwest Army's exploratory actions have begun.
Because important places such as Zhumadian, Suiping, and Yancheng on the eastern front were completely captured by our Second Army, Tang Shengzhi's troops, which were at the end of their strength under heavy siege, fell apart. The Northwest Army was timid of our offensive and political influence and did not attack our Second Army.
The Fifth Army Corps defense area will launch further military occupation, and it is expected that
, before the opposing anti-government alliance is formed, the Northwest Army will not launch a large-scale military offensive against our fifth theater, and our fifth army will still have at least twenty days of strategic preparation time." Zhao Rui finished his explanation and replied.
He sat down at his original position and handed over the right to speak to Commander An Yi.
An Yi said to He Guoguang politely: "Senior, please introduce the political situation in western Hubei and surrounding areas."
He Guoguang nodded and put on his reading glasses: "Everyone, our western Hubei is still a stable place. However, the continuous changes in the surrounding areas have made the situation in the entire war zone tense. Since January 1, Liu Wenhui held a welcoming ceremony in Chengdu (
Zhaoming) to challenge Chiang Kai-shek (Chiang Kai-shek), the situation in central Sichuan suddenly changed, and the three major military forces showed signs of rapid split. In the future, our camp will form a working group to go to Chongqing, where General Liu Xiang lives, to start work. The details will be reported to you later.
A large area from northern Sichuan to Hanzhong to Xi'an was in turmoil due to heavy snowfall and a year of continuous famine. According to the information reported by the Central Party Committee, the Henan, Shaanxi, and Gansu regions were starved to death. Only in Shaanxi Province, no less than two million people died of starvation. And because of the northwest
The army blocked the hunger
The people's journey south to western Hubei caused popular dissatisfaction and riots in Henan, Shaanxi and Gansu. The reason why the Northwest Army did not take further action after completing the military trial of occupying Laohekou was largely due to the popular riots in southwestern Henan and southern Shaanxi.
."
The generals nodded frequently and agreed with He Guoguang's analysis. He Guoguang took off his glasses and continued: "Based on the above reasons, the camp also agrees with Chief of Staff Zhao's opinion. It is initially predicted that the Northwest Army will have no time to go south within a month, and all the troops in the camp will hurry up."
We will closely cooperate with the various military operations of the Fifth Army at all times, and provide strong cooperation in all aspects such as intelligence collection, political propaganda, combat mobilization, and material requisition."
An Yi took the lead in applauding to express his thanks. When the applause fell, he made a request to Zeng Kuangqing: "Brother, can you apply through the Party Affairs Office and the Political Department to request the Central Party Headquarters to mobilize all political forces that can be mobilized in the northwest? In Zhengzhou and Luoyang,
Tongguan, Xi'an, Xianyang and other counties and cities launched a massive anti-hunger and anti-warlord propaganda campaign?
The increasing grievances of the intellectuals, students, and business people launched a vigorous political denunciation against the Northwest warlords, encouraging the victims to break through the Northwest Army blockade and go south to western Hubei, and then put pressure on the Northwest Army garrisons along the way, striving to open one or two openings.
It serves as a life-saving channel for transporting disaster relief food and medicine to western Gansu, Shaanxi and Henan, thus playing a role in winning over people's hearts and disintegrating the Northwest Army."
The generals immediately began to discuss, and Zeng Kuanqing asked worriedly: "If millions of victims go south again, can we cope with it? We are not worried about military maintenance. What we are worried about is food, medicine, clothing and various other supplies."
Huge pressure on project resettlement.”
"These are not big problems. The grain purchased from the United States in the past half month has been gradually shipped to Nanjing Pukou, Hukou, Wuhan and other places. Within half a month, another 70,000 tons of flour and corn will be shipped to Jingzhou, Yichang and counties in western Hunan.
Military depots and garrison warehouses. After our initial
According to preliminary calculations, if the victims in the northwest can go south, the number will not exceed 500,000 at most. Let alone whether the garrisons in the northwest will continue to block the blockade. It is only that with such cold weather and long escape route, it is estimated that the victims can enter western Hunan alive.
Less than 30 percent.”
An Yi felt sad and spoke in a low voice, but it made the generals in the hall sigh. However, he also saw the wonderful trick in An Yi's strategy - attacking the heart first and causing chaos to the enemy.
Zeng Kuangqing communicated with He Guoguang in a low voice for a moment, then turned to An Yi and replied loudly: "After the meeting, the Political Office of the Camp will immediately prepare a specific report and submit it to the Central Party Headquarters. This strategy is feasible. If done well, the Northwest Army will serve the people well."
Failure without war will lead to chaos. I believe that the Central Party Committee and the Commander-in-Chief will agree to this plan and fully cooperate with it."
An Yi turned to Director of the Political Division Zhan Dao and Director of the Intelligence Division Liu Qing: "After the meeting, please draft an application message and submit a request for cooperation directly to Secretary-General Chen Lifu in the name of the headquarters."
"yes!"
Zhan Dao and Liu Qing answered in unison.
An Yi asked Zhang Hongluan, He Guoguang and others on the left and right if they had anything to add. Seeing that everyone was in agreement and had nothing to say, he straightened his spine and solemnly scanned the circle with the generals:
"Everyone, since the mission of our Fifth Army Corps is relatively special, the Yichang camp also shoulders an important mission. All preparations currently being made are work that can only be done but cannot be said. Therefore, we request all departments of the camp to stop all military matters from now on.
Propaganda in various areas, let alone any comments on the military garrison in various places.
The Fifth Army Corps has jurisdiction over all armies and divisions. From now on, it will stop accepting all interview requests. It is strictly forbidden for any local officials, journalists and representatives of all walks of life to enter the military management area. All armies, divisions, and garrison headquarters will be established starting tomorrow.
The special detective department, headed by the Chief of Staff, with the consent and guidance of the Political Department and the Intelligence Department of the headquarters, launched a rapid investigation within its jurisdiction.
A secret, severe counter-espionage operation. All persons involved, no matter which region, which department, which force or even which country they belong to, are required to be quickly and secretly escorted to the Corps Headquarters, General Yin Jinan's Yichang Water
The security brigade will fully cooperate with the actions of all military divisions and dispatch eight anti-smuggling speedboats along the Yangtze River to take charge of escort and transportation tasks.
Everyone, if you have any difficulties, please bring them up. If you have any needs, you can discuss them with the supervisors of the headquarters after the meeting. The headquarters will provide maximum support in terms of funds, materials, transportation and other aspects to ensure the efficiency of unified actions.
Finish."
None of the generals expected An Yi to suddenly come up with this. After listening to An Yi's serious words, they all remembered their own negligence in counter-intelligence and anti-espionage for more than half a year. At the same time, they knew very well that An Yi's strategy was to take advantage of rare opportunities.
After a month of low-key adoption of a strategy of purging the internal forces and actively preparing for war, a month later, I'm afraid a war will come.
It was already two o'clock in the morning when the meeting ended, and the participating generals left in droves. An Yi invited Zhang Hongluan, Yin Jinan, and Gu Changfeng to the living room in the backyard, where they placed a table of simple meals and continued the discussion.
After discussing military affairs in western Hunan and the situation of the victims, Zhang Hongluan proudly informed An Yi:
"Since November last year, various taxes in Western Hunan have increased steadily. Rich gentry in various counties have also set up wood, grain, cotton and linen processing workshops. The expansion of roads has also led to many people buying cars and trucks. Appeasement in Western Hunan
male
The monthly income of the Tax Administration Bureau from smoking and anti-smuggling activities alone has reached 1.3 million yuan. Together with industrial and commercial taxes and forestry and animal husbandry taxes, the monthly income has exceeded the 2 million yuan mark, providing provision for our army and road construction in western Hunan.
Have sufficient funds.
These gratifying situations, which were unimaginable before, have greatly increased the confidence of our soldiers and their strength. When next spring begins, a large number of private workshops will enter the tax period, and the Xiaoxiang Cigarette Factory, two thermal power plants and three smelting plants will be built.
If it is put into production, the entire tax revenue will be doubled."
An Yi cheered with joy. Gu Changfeng, who had already grown a beautiful mustache, said with a smile: "Senior's territory is a long-term rest and recuperation place. It is different from the junior divisions' garrison. It has only been a month since I came to Jingzhou.
Being able to receive a monthly station subsidy of 50,000 yuan from the local government is unbelievable in other places in the middle and lower reaches, but it is incomparable to the Yichang waterway occupied by Jinan, the 16th Division and the Yichang Garrison
The headquarters can extract more than 1.6 million yuan in taxes every month from the anti-smoking, anti-smuggling and goods transit taxes. This is achieved after canceling all agricultural taxes, poll taxes and other exorbitant taxes. Yesterday afternoon, the juniors came to Yichang.
From boarding the dock to entering the headquarters in Jinan, every one of the soldiers I saw along the way were standing tall and arrogant. It looked like they were not only eating well and drinking well, but also had a huge increase in income, which made people jealous!"
Everyone laughed, and Yin Jinan quickly explained: "Don't talk nonsense, Tiger Head. Seventy-five percent of the monthly tax will be delivered to the old Nanchang Taoist uncle on time, as will the twelve newly added patrol speedboats in the past few months."
From this payment, my 30,000-odd brothers in the 16th division and the garrison have the same normal military ranks as everyone else. The only advantage is that they eat better."
An Yi said to Gu Changfeng: "One of the biggest reasons why Jinan's brothers have such a good mental state is that they have always implemented the spirit of the model camp and unremittingly strengthened political and ideological education. This is what the newly formed Forty
The fourth division needs to be strengthened.
In seven days, the headquarters will organize an inspection team to Jingzhou to inspect and evaluate the work of your 44th Division and General Fan Xiaoquan's 51st Division, and bring a condolence payment of 100,000 yuan. If you can't do it,
I won’t give you any consolation money, but I will also remove the political training section chief and even the party representative who accepted your fate.”
Everyone smiled, but Gu Changfeng knew that An Yi was serious. Today's meeting impressed Gu Changfeng deeply. He understood that with the growth of the army, An Yi's status and methods have also reached a new level.