The People's Party's telegram injected a trace of vitality into the gloomy city of Beijing, and several senior officials of Beiyang took the telegram to see Yuan Shikai with a hint of joy on their faces. It's just that Yuan Shikai didn't summon them directly, and these people were waiting in the small conference room.

"Is the People's Party crazy? He actually wanted to drive the British out of the Yangtze River. Just with a few broken boats, they dare to do this? ”

"If the British don't leave, will they dare to fight the British?"

"Let them fight, after beating the British, how can the British give up?"

Beiyang has never taken advantage of the People's Party, and the People's Party has always been very clever in avoiding conflicts with the foreign powers. It wasn't until this telegram that the British were regarded as enemies, and the senior officials in Beiyang were really ecstatic. All discussions revolved around a situation that was favorable to Beiyang.

"If the People's Party wants to pull hard, it has to be in the name of righteousness. Let's not be stupid with them, they want to fight the British, so let's make friends with the British. It's really sleeping with someone against the pillow. ”

"Those bear children just don't know the height of the sky!"

This is the consistent view of the Beiyang, and the increasingly hard-line posture of the People's Party not only does not help the prestige of the People's Party, but also pushes the British to the side of Beiyang. Beiyang was a complete defeat in this war, and if the People's Party was smart enough to turn to the British, the British would have abandoned Beiyang. This is a very common question of power.

After the Beiyang officials in Beijing received the news of the defeat of the Beiyang Army in Henan, many people thought of this. Many people are almost hopeless about the future of Beiyang. It was not until the People's Party did not know whether it was alive or dead that the whole country was electrified, and only then did the knowledgeable senior officials of Beiyang regain hope.

The Beiyang officials who got the news kept asking to see Yuan Shikai, but there were still a large number of officials who got the news because they didn't dare to see him because of their lack of identity. They also began to connect everywhere and spread the word everywhere. At least the entire War Department is aware of the latest good news.

Zheng Wenjie of the Intelligence Office of the War Department watched his colleagues happily talk about the current favorable situation, and he tried to pretend to be happy on his face, but his heart was full of suspicions.

The People's Party has never taken advantage, and Cheng Wenjie knows this very well. At that time, Chen Ke met Zheng Wenjie and others in Beijing, and at that time, except for Shangyuan, a county order that was about to be released, the other Qin Tongren, Xu Dian and others were basically peripheral personnel in Beiyang. As for the "remnants of the boxers", Chai Qingguo is even more inadequate. Zheng Wenjie and others are the really powerful party. That's why Zheng Wenjie tried to seize the real power of the Beiyang Socialist Seminar. He really didn't see any need for an outsider Chen Ke to dominate the situation.

Facts finally proved that Chen Ke had no intention of climbing the dragon and attaching the phoenix from the beginning. He left Beiyang with a group of peripheral personnel and went to remote Anhui to establish the foundation of the People's Party. If it was an ordinary person, even a very good person, it would be impossible to make Chen Ke's choice at that time. Judging from the results, Chen Ke's choice is completely correct. After that, any choice made by Chen Ke was a decision from what he looked at at the time, but as time went by, Chen Ke was always able to reap the greatest benefits.

This time, the People's Party has done what it has done in the past, and Cheng Wenjie is fully confident that the People's Party is doing its best to push the British down on the Beiyang side. Zheng Wenjie couldn't figure out what benefits the People's Party could gain by doing this. Even if the war in Europe is about to start now, how long can these wars be fought? After the Anglo-German peace talks, the People's Party offended both the British and the Germans, and Britain and Germany joined forces to deal with the People's Party, can the People's Party withstand it?

After thinking about it, he couldn't find the possibility of the People's Party's victory in the long-term strategy, but Zheng Wenjie turned back to the current situation. At present, Beiyang has been newly defeated, the People's Party has already fought the Yellow River, and the People's Party has ravaged Hebei and completely destroyed the last military power of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. If Beiyang can't completely hug Britain's thighs and quickly get loans and weapons from Britain, it won't last long according to the current situation.

Zheng Wenjie can think of these, and Beiyang, which is in a higher position than him, can also think of it. Yuan Shikai immediately received a telegram from the People's Party. He was not unreasonably happy, and neither were the core members of Beiyang. In dealing with the People's Party, as long as Beiyang follows the path given by the People's Party, there will be no good results. Yuan Shikai would never think that Chen Ke would despise the British, let alone that Chen Ke would be so stupid that he could not see that the British and Beiyang would reach an agreement on dealing with the People's Party.

"Why did Chen Ke choose this?" Since Yuan Shikai raised this question, the core personnel of Beiyang also frowned. Several of them are high-ranking and powerful people, so they naturally refuse to talk nonsense. Duan Qirui is a more generous person, and everyone doesn't dare to say it directly, but Duan Qirui still dares to say, "President, the People's Party is only afraid that it will attack our Hebei in the near future." ”

This is completely conceivable, if the People's Party is playing the trick of trying to capture the old and indulge, driving the British here in Beiyang on the one hand, and hitting Beiyang the other hand. If the British saw that Beiyang had no ability to contain the People's Party, they would have no choice but to accept the higher price of the People's Party.

Since Duan Qirui has pierced this layer of window paper, from Yuan Shikai to Xu Shichang did not say anything. The Beiyang Army currently has one million troops on paper, and the losses of 60,000 people are still within the acceptable range of the Beiyang Army. The People's Party's Henan Military Region has only 100,000 troops, and 100,000 people have attacked nearly one million troops.

After being silent for a while, Yuan Shikai asked Wang Shizhen, "Pingqing, how long will it take for us to mobilize 300,000 troops?" ”

Wang Shizhen didn't answer immediately, and after a while, Wang Shizhen asked: "President, we used to think that the People's Party said one thing and did another, and if the People's Party said what it did, it said less than it actually did. So how do we deal with the current situation? ”

These words were beyond the expectations of several other people, and Yuan Shikai was not able to understand Wang Shizhen's thoughts for a while. "What do you mean?" Yuan Shikai asked.

Wang Shizhen replied: "If the People's Party does not want to play with the British and us, but really does what they say, it wants to drive the British out of China, drive the foreigners out of China, and take back all China's sovereignty into China's hands." Looking at the BJP's words from this point of view, can there be a new explanation for what the BJP has done? ”

For the People's Party, Beiyang's evaluation has always been a "chaotic party", and Chen Ke, chairman of the People's Party, is scheming, sinister and vicious. Dealing with the People's Party, Beiyang always suffers, even in cooperation, Beiyang earns one, and the People's Party has to earn at least ten. Wang Shizhen's "new perspective", that is, the People's Party has always said and done consistently, did surprise the three people.

Wang Shizhen did not mean to let everyone play dumb riddles, he continued to explain: "When the former Qing Dynasty was there, the People's Party was committed to the people's revolution and overthrew the former Qing court. Before the Qing Dynasty abdicated, the People's Party still advocated the people's revolution. Later, an agrarian revolution was added. At present, the People's Party has a tough attitude towards the British, and what they are talking about is the people's revolution, the agrarian revolution, and the complete independence and liberation of China. I have read some articles by the People's Party, and Chen Ke said that the people's revolution he carried out was to overthrow the three mountains. Imperialism, feudalism, bureaucracy and comprador capitalism. From this point of view, Chen Ke would have made it clear what he was going to do. This person is stubborn in doing things, and he is a character who runs all the way to the dark. ”

Yuan Shikai and others were all heroes at that time, Wang Shizhen said that Chen Ke was stubborn, and Yuan Shikai, Xu Shichang, and Duan Qirui didn't think it was a derogatory term at all. To be stubborn is to be unswerving. After Wang Shizhen's explanation, the three of them felt that their understanding of Chen Ke had suddenly opened up.

"What does the appointment mean?" Yuan Shikai asked.

Wang Shizhen had already made a decision, and he said calmly: "I think Chen Ke really wants us to cooperate with the British, and he will not even attack our Beiyang during this period." Chen Ke is an overseas student and knows all about European countries. This man is afraid that he will only wait for the war in Europe to become fierce, and the British will not be able to look eastward, and then he will have a decisive battle with us Beiyang and the three mountains they are about to overthrow. If Chen Ke won when Britain was unable to look east, he would be able to fight against Britain with the strength of all China. At that time, the outcome was unknown. ”

"I don't know? Hum! Even if Duan Qirui respected Wang Shizhen very much, he couldn't help but sneer at this time, "Brother Wang, when Chen Ke can gather China's strength to start a war with Britain, our Beiyang will definitely be finished." What is not known about this? ”

Yuan Shikai was more able to calm down, he knew that Wang Shizhen was loyal to Beiyang, so he was not angry because of Wang Shizhen's words. "Pingqing, according to what you said, Chen Ke is confident that he will be able to win the world?"

"In my opinion, Chen Ke doesn't even think about taking over the world, he wants to destroy all the landlords and gentry in the world. Let the people who have been educated in the schools run by the People's Party be the masters of their own affairs. When the People's Party carried out the agrarian revolution, some people said that the People's Party wanted to seize the land and property of the world and give it to them. But over the years, except for the fact that land is nominally owned by the state and cannot be bought or sold, everyone under the rule of the People's Party has land to cultivate. The People's Party nailed the price of grain under their rule, and the price was one in the year of famine and good year. With this act alone, there were few deaths of starvation under the BJP. If the people, regardless of the reasons shouted by the People's Party, can live and work in peace and contentment, they will not rise up to resist. The People's Party has been in Henan for less than a year, and it has to conscript 100,000 soldiers, although the military salary given is far less than that of our Beiyang, but because of many guarantees, the good families south of the Yellow River have joined the army. Speaking of this, Wang Shizhen couldn't say any more, and could only sigh softly.

Beiyang's political interest in the People's Party was limited, even in Yuan Shikai. The purpose of reading the People's Party's books is also to criticize the People's Party. There is no intention of studying the detailed policies of the BJP. Therefore, when scolding the People's Party, Beiyang is foaming at the mouth, devaluing the People's Party to worthlessness. But in the face of the real achievements of the People's Party, including Yuan Shikai, they felt that they could not say anything.

Xu Shichang is engaged in civil affairs, and seeing that Yuan Shikai and Duan Qirui were silent, he forced a smile and said: "Mr. Pingqing, since the situation has reached such a point, how do you think we should fight?" ”

Wang Shizhen replied a little depressed: "The current plan can only be calculated." Since the BJP is going to fight a decisive battle, we might as well fight a decisive battle with the BJP. Taking advantage of the fact that the People's Party was persecuting the British, we borrowed another sum of money to build up an army of two million and train it rigorously. At the same time, the People's Party should inform all provinces in the world of its sincerity, and gather the strength of all provinces to fight a bloody battle with the People's Party. In any case, we must recapture Henan and Shandong. Even if the war situation is more critical, it will have to be delayed until the war in Europe is over, when the British can free up their hands to attack the People's Party. ”

Hearing Wang Shizhen say a feasible strategy, Xu Shichang felt a lot more relaxed in his heart. However, Wang Shizhen continued: "President, although the People's Party may not act morally, some of the policies they have done are not impossible to learn from. The stones of other mountains can attack jade, at least in China's current affairs, if the people can't cultivate their fields, the world will never be completely stable......"

"I see, Hirsor." Yuan Shikai interrupted Wang Shizhen's words with rare impatience, "You said that the People's Party will not attack at the moment, but will sit back and watch the British support us." How can this be determined? ”

"President, Yan Fu is about to return to China. We might as well let him mediate. Wang Shizhen gave the answer.

Yan Jidao went abroad for an inspection this time, and he was very unhappy when he left. How do we know that Yan Dao will not make trouble in it? Duan Qirui was very skeptical about this.

Wang Shizhen didn't speak, but Yuan Shikai waved his hand, "Yan Jidao is certainly inclined to have more apprentices in his heart, but this person is not ruthless enough to deliberately betray the old brothers of Beiyang. What the secretary said is very reasonable. Might as well wait for him to come back. ”

Duan Qirui was a little dissatisfied with Yuan Shikai's decision, "President, the current situation is so tense, we just wait, will the People's Party take the lead?" ”

Yuan Shikai had already made up his mind at this time, "The more critical the situation, the more we must be able to endure it." Needless to say, it was decided. ”

The high-level officials of Beiyang decided the strategy, and Yuan Shikai did not meet those officials who came to "report the good news". He walked agitated back and forth in his office for a while, and then came to the next room. The room was empty, except for the table, a map nailed to a large board. The map shows the various Chinese forces in different colors. Staring at the pink sign of the People's Party on it for a long time, Yuan Shikai suddenly called out to the guards, "Why don't you paint the piece of Henan?" ”

These words startled the guards, Henan has just been lost, who dares to paint it so quickly when they are full? However, the guard was also clever enough, and he hurriedly replied, "I will immediately order someone to draw it." With that, the guard walked up in three steps and two steps, and took the map off the board.

Yuan Shikai wanted to stop the guards, but then he gave up, Yuan Shikai didn't want to anger this clever young man. Sitting down in the empty room, Yuan Shikai remembered Wang Shizhen's words. Those remarks about the consistency of the words and deeds of the People's Party did open up another perspective for Yuan Shikai, but this cognitive perspective not only did not solve the mystery in Yuan Shikai's heart, but brought Yuan Shikai into a new confusion.

The People's Party has always shouted for the people's revolution and the working people to create history, not for the emperor and the generals to create history. Yuan Shikai is known as the "people's massacre", and there must be more than 100,000 working people who have been killed. At that time, the Beiyang Column swept away, and the "working people" who were highly praised by Chen Ke and the People's Party were not the opponents of the Beiyang Army at all, and their corpses were scattered all over the field under the fire of cannons and rifles. How is it that when such working people come to the People's Party, they suddenly become brave and good at fighting? Not only have the "working people" become brave and good at fighting, but these working people, who have always tried their best to resist paying taxes, have actually been able to pay taxes seriously.

Yuan Shikai's hometown is in Xiangcheng, Henan, and Beiyang's connections in Henan are by no means ordinary. Judging from the information obtained, the People's Party set a 30 percent tax after the implementation of land reform in Henan, and the people of Henan, including Yuan Shikai's hometown Xiangcheng villagers, honestly paid 30 percent of the tax. No one resists taxes, and even arrears are extremely rare. Yuan Shikai had never heard of ordinary people being so obedient.

"Working people make history, not emperors make history." Yuan Shikai silently recited this sentence in his heart, if this really continues, the People's Party relies on the support of the people, and I am afraid that it can really create the world of the People's Party. Why is the People's Party able to govern the people so obediently? And here in Beiyang, the common people must not understand the difficulties of the government?

Because of the smooth flow of information, the People's Party also knows about the "benevolent government" in Henan. In the supply and marketing cooperatives, cheap iron farming tools, including large-scale water conservancy construction, the villagers also openly mediated because of the conflict over water, and all the old feuds were written off, and water sources were only allocated according to the number of acres of cultivated land after the land reform. If there were no rivers in the area, the BJP would dig wells and build aqueducts, which greatly increased the area of irrigated land. Coupled with the general supply of "one-season wheat", there is no problem of no harvest in all parts of Henan.

The Beiyang spies surveyed the young men and women at the agricultural technology station to see where they came from. Yuan Shikai was shocked by the results of the investigation, and the teenage men and women, who could only be called half-sized dolls, were all peasants from the old territory of the People's Party, studied in the People's Party schools for several years, and after graduation, they were assigned to work in various rural areas with the army.

"Working people", the working people under the rule of the People's Party and the people under the rule of Beiyang seem to be two different people. The "working people" are willing to pay taxes and become soldiers, and after going to school, they are allowed to work wherever they want. Yuan Shikai thinks that he is no worse than Chen Ke, why can Chen Ke let these people work. But Yuan Shikai had to devote great strength to disciplining the people?

After thinking about it, he couldn't find an answer, and Yuan Shikai knew that it was impossible for Beiyang's subordinates to solve this mystery for themselves. He suddenly stood up and said to the guards, "You asked Premier Xu to invite Mr. Li Hongqi to meet me." ”

Li Hongqi, the teacher of Shang Yuan, a high-ranking official of the People's Party, may be the one who knows the People's Party the most in the whole of Beijing, or at least he is also the one who knows the truth of the People's Party. Yuan Shikai really wanted to understand the difference between himself and Chen Ke.

As soon as Li Hongqi entered the door, he was recognized by Yuan Shikai, this old man was dressed cleanly and decently, and his attitude was neither humble nor arrogant, neither amiable nor rejecting people thousands of miles away. Standing inside the house makes it feel very natural. The same is true when he greeted Yuan Shikai, the old man looked at it curiously, and he was not arrogant. Although Xu Shichang introduced him, Yuan Shikai didn't feel that the old man was any different from Xu Shichang and himself.

Beiyang has a commonality, that is, preferential treatment of literati, and the same is true for Yuan Shikai, he asked very seriously: "Mr. Li, I have a question, and I want to ask Mr. Li to help clarify my doubts." ”

Li Hongqi neither politely said that he couldn't do it, nor did he boast that he could do it, but quietly waited for Yuan Shikai to continue. This kind of performance made Yuan Shikai very satisfied, and he was actually very dissatisfied with the stinky temper of those literati. Yuan Shikai then asked, "Mr. Li has seen Chen Ke, and he should have heard of me. I don't know what Mr. Lee thinks about the difference between the two of us. ”

Li Hong replied in a soothing tone unique to the old man: "I have indeed met Chen Ke, but I have only met a few times. I am very familiar with the president's fame, but today is the first time I have actually seen it. The president asked me what was the difference between the two of you, and I really didn't know about it. If you rely on hearsay, it's just nonsense. So there is really no comparison with old decay. ”

"Mr. Li is too modest, you can teach a disciple like Shang Yuan, and you are highly praised by Premier Xu, so you are naturally knowledgeable." Yuan Shikai's evaluation of Li Hongqi was much higher, and seeing that Li Hongqi did not have any nonsense and deception, Yuan Shikai asked the real question, "Mr. Li, the People's Party always talks about the people's revolution, but I don't know how it is different from the benevolent government that we Beiyang is trying to implement. ”

Li Hongqi knew that if he couldn't tell the truth this time, Yuan Shikai would not let him go easily. The People's Party's annihilation of the three towns of Beiyang in Henan is known in Beijing, don't look at Yuan Shikai's politeness at the moment, if Li Hongqi can't satisfy Yuan Shikai, Zhulian's matter is definitely not a joke. After carefully guessing Yuan Shikai's intentions, Li Hongqi replied: "President, the politics of Beiyang is to order from above, and military orders and decrees are all formulated by the government in order to achieve a certain goal. The People's Party (BJP) is ordered to come out from below. The common people need to live a better life through labor, and there must be some things that the common people cannot do, and if the People's Party has done these things, the people are naturally willing to obey them. ”

"The people are short-sighted, and if they are ordered to come out from below, even if they benefit the people for a while, they may not last long. If you want long-term peace and stability, you naturally have to plan with knowledge. Yuan Shikai replied.

"The old man reads the books of Confucian sages, and Confucianism talks about self-cultivation, family harmony, governing the country, and leveling the world. The matter of governing the family is just to make it convenient for everyone, and the people are certainly reckless, but whether it is convenient to act or not, no matter how reckless the person is, can also know. If it is convenient, life will naturally get better. The country is the country, the country is the home, if the people of a country can feel convenient, wouldn't this life be easy. Therefore, whether it is a mouse eye or a long-term vision, if in the final analysis it is for everyone's convenience, there is no difference between making the top out and the order coming out from the bottom. ”

This remark is quite interesting, but it has aroused some interest from Yuan Shikai.