Chen Guangshou had a deep talk with Mao Xueren in Xiangtan County for one day, and early on the second morning, under the arrangement of Liu Guochun, he took three entourages and led a peasant association cadre named Zhou Guisheng to Shitan along the Lianshui. This day happens to be the market day, the Shitan ruins near the Lianshui are full of villagers in a radius of dozens of miles, the bazaar is very lively, firewood and grass, mountain goods, animal skins, traditional Chinese medicine, as long as it is the treasure in the mountain, you can find it here.

The bazaar looks lively, and the sounds inside are quite diverse, such as the bamboo knocking of white grain pills, the shaking of iron for repairing umbrellas, the rattle bell for selling dumpling bait, and the rattle for picking groceries. ', 'Lutetium - mend the pot!' ', 'Hair cake, cold hair cake, white sugar cold hair cake......'

Wushi Mountain is twenty miles away, Chen Guangshou, who just wanted to buy some gifts, has been eating chili peppers these days, and suddenly heard that there is a white sugar cold hair cake, and suddenly his index finger moved, and he had to eat a bowl of white sugar cold hair cake before leaving. Chen Guangshou is an adult, not to mention the entourage, even Zhou Guisheng, who led the way, is also a young man, seeing that Mr. Chen from the capital likes to eat Xiangxiang specialties, but he is happy to pay for himself.

It's just that the white sugar cake is cool, but after such a delay, it has been dark when I walk to Wushizhai, but fortunately, there is also a local peasant association organization, and the group spent the night at the home of a local peasant association cadre. Since he is a cadre of the peasant association, his natural family background is not good, the house is a thatched roof and a wall of soil, and the yard is a load of firewood (three rooms in the front, three vertical rooms at each end of the horizontal house), and the old yellow dog in the family barked a few times when he saw the living. When I got closer, I saw that he was wearing a long shirt, and he walked away under the reprimand of the master.

There are distinguished guests from afar. The cadres killed two chickens and cooked a large pot of rice. I went out to get two jars of wine as a hospitality, and during the banquet, I learned that Peng Dehua's house was two miles away, and Chen Guangshou, who knew that the matter was almost done, was of course drunk, and when he woke up the next day, it was already dawn. When he got up and didn't see Zhou Guisheng, he asked his entourage, and the entourage said that Zhou Guisheng went to Peng Dehua's house with the cadres of the peasant association, saying that he wanted to help bring people over.

When Chen Guangshou woke up, in a house in Pengjiawei, Lao Zhou, a cadre of the peasant association, was saying hello to Peng Dehua's father, Peng Minyan: "Old Peng." You're okay, a gentleman from the capital, saying that he is an old friend of your family, and he wants to see your family's Zhong Lingzi. It looks like he wants to bring your Zhong Lingzi to the capital to ask for a good job. ”

In the morning, the peasant association Lao Zhou came up, Peng Minyan thought he was talking about the division of land by Liu Sixty's family next door, but he didn't want to say such a shadowless thing, the croppers were very honest, he looked at each other at the moment, and said: "The fine man doesn't tell lies, and the eggplant doesn't play false flowers." Cadre Zhou, you will come and take a walk in the morning. Drank too much last night? ”

"Where is it, Lao Peng, where do you think I look like a flat ghost?" Lao Zhou just laughed. He didn't believe that the Peng family had a relationship in the capital at first, but Chen Guangshou said that Peng Dehua's nickname was Zhong Yanzi, so he had to believe it. Now I see that Peng Min doesn't believe it. It feels funny. He pointed to Zhou Guisheng next to him and said: "This is a cadre from the county government, he came from the county seat to accompany others, and they slept in my house last night." Coax you to have a fake. Quickly call your bell out to meet the guests. ”

At the beginning of the new dynasty, clerical tax collectors wore either police uniforms or green official robes. Replace it in the front clear. These people walked in the countryside, it was very impressive, but the officials of the new dynasty were on the side of the poor. In the past few years, the people have liked and trusted these people very much. Zhou Guisheng didn't wear an official robe when he came, only wore the cardigan button-down shirt that ordinary farmers often wear, and closed discount pants with a wide crotch, outsiders didn't know that this was an official, but Peng Minyan knew that this was the people-friendly clothes of the county official, so he immediately stood up and bowed to Zhou Guisheng.

It is etiquette to bow in an official robe, Zhou Guisheng did not wear an official robe at this time, he just avoided it, and only said: "Uncle Peng, what Cadre Zhou said is right, the gentleman from the capital lives in Cadre Zhou's house, and he couldn't find the way last night, so he didn't come to the door to ask for a meeting." The gentleman who came is surnamed Wu Jianbai, don't you have any relatives in your family who go out to Beijing? ”

"I know what relatives have gone to the capital?" Peng Minyan was very helpless, and the dry cigarette he was smoking was also knocked out by him. He didn't believe in this kind of good thing of falling ingots from the sky, but when the matter came, he still asked people to find his son who was busy working outside, and asked his second son Peng Jinhua to call a relative who had seen the world.

"Hello Mr. Wu." The whole Peng family stood at the door and saluted Chen Guangshou and a few people, and then respectfully introduced him into the main hall. After a morning's arrangement, the square table that was originally placed here was moved, and the Peng family didn't know where to get a table of eight immortals, as well as two Taishi chairs, which made the entire main hall very incongruous.

In addition to the peasant association Lao Zhou and Zhou Guisheng and Peng Minyan, there are also uncles and uncles of the Peng family, but the person who received Chen Guangshou and Chen Guangshou to talk was not surnamed Peng, but surnamed Xiao, the brother-in-law of the head of the family Peng Minyan, his profession is a rural doctor, and at the same time he opened a private school, but this is already a matter of the previous dynasty, after the new dynasty junior primary school education began to be marketized, his private school became bigger and bigger, and there were more and more students, and the medical industry became a part-time job, and the private school became the main business.

After everyone was polite, Chen Guangshou began to lie with a smile: "My surname is Wu, the word is Jianbai, the name is from Shaoxing, Zhejiang, and I am a saint on Hongfu, and now I am a sesame petty official in the capital." In the next teenager has an old friend, surnamed Zhang, has not been in touch for many years, but they are very close to each other, his early years into the revival army, Shenwu was injured and died in battle the year before, before his death had written a letter to me, saying that he had a comrade-in-arms before his death, was a native of Xiangtan, Hunan, and entrusted him to take care of the future when the comrade-in-arms died.

Or at that time, when the army was about to be launched, he only wrote half of the letter, so he only left a general address, and the name of Peng Dehua and Zhong Lingzi. I have not received this letter in the past few years, and the letter was forwarded by my deceased friend's family at the beginning of this year. ”

Chen Guangshou took out the forged and unfinished letter from his arms while lying and handed it to Xiao Yunqiao in front of him, and then said: "My old friend letter said that his comrade-in-arms had said that Dehua was brave and studious, generous and loyal, and had the talent of a horizontal sword and a general, and asked me to look for him. Help them apply for military schools to serve the country's ......"

Chen Guangshou talked eloquently. The more Peng Minyan listened, the more confused he became, and the Peng family's generation was all in the mountains. I have never been to the county seat, where are there any old friends and comrades-in-arms, if this thing is true, it can only be the manifestation of the Yihua Temple on the horns. He watched his brother-in-law staring at the letter, and he wanted to see if he didn't know how to read.

After Chen Guangshou finished speaking, he picked up the tea and drank the tea, and after Xiao Yunqiao finished reading the letter, he returned it with both hands, and only said: "Mr. Wu has traveled thousands of miles from the capital to this barren mountain and wilderness, and it is really hard. It's just that Dehua is sixteen this year. When I was young, my family was poor and only went to private school for two years, and the rest of the time I took care of housework, or went out to work, saying that I wanted to go to the military school, which ......"

"We must worry about this, the most important martyrs in the DPRK, entrusted by the martyrs, and the DPRK will not dare not do it." Chen Guangshou said. "Besides, there are martyrs' places in the military academy examination every year, and Dehua is eager to learn. That will surely live up to expectations. After he said that, he looked around at the people, "The Holy One spared the people and ordered the landlords to divide the land, although it can improve the livelihood of the poor, but the poor families want to get ahead." I still have to read. Today, the school has implemented five-year compulsory education, and the fundamental reason is that the children of the poor can go to school.

Since Dehua is sixteen years old, he has long passed the age of studying. If you can't do this, you will have to work as a farmer for the rest of your life. All uncles want to lick calves. Why bother to see that this child will never come out? There is no tuition fee for attending a military school, and there is no need for food and clothing. You can also have some pocket money every month. After graduating in a few years, when he joined the army, he was not a soldier but an officer, no matter how small the salary was in a month, it was five taels, and there was no money for food in the army, plus the salary, at least sixty-five taels a year. If you stay in the army for a few years, you can take the entrance examination to a higher military school, and if you can be admitted and graduated, you will be an eight-rank officer if you come out again. ”

For poor families, there is nothing more touching than economic accounts, as soon as Chen Guangshou said that he could have five taels of silver a month, Peng Minyan's mind buzzed, his son was tired and tired in the coal mine in the past few years[Note 1:], and he only got 900 wen a month. He only felt that the road that Mr. Wu pointed out to his son was very promising, but he was worried that he would die early, and the imperial court drove away the Tartars and fought with the Orientals, and fought the Orientals and the Westerners, so the war was endless, in case it ......

Peng Minyan didn't want his eldest son to die early, but he couldn't say this kind of thing at this time, and when his brother-in-law asked him to call his son out to meet the guests, he ran to the backyard again. At this time, Peng Dehua, who had just rushed back from outside, was still in a dizzy state when he was wearing a new dress to meet the guests, he saw his father coming, and was about to ask what happened but heard his father say: "Zhong Yanzi, a gentleman came here today, saying that he was going to take you to the capital to study at the military academy, can you go?" ”

"Where?" Peng Dehua, who was well-dressed, couldn't close his mouth in shock, and he said: "Go to the capital and study in a military school?" ”

"yes." Peng Minyan was also confused, and when he talked about the capital, he was reluctant to give up, and then said: "Yes." Mr. said that after a few years of study, you can become an official, and you can get five taels of silver a month. ”

"I'm not going!" Peng Dehua didn't know why, and such a voice came out. But after speaking, he became realistic again, and said, "It's not blue and white-eyed, right?" And what about the money for school? I've heard people say that it costs a lot more money to go to school. ”

"It's not blue-eyed, this gentleman is an official in the yamen of the capital, and he is accompanied by Lao Zhou of the peasant association and people from the county yamen." Peng Min said: "He said that he didn't want any money to go to the military academy, and he still had pocket money to give." You better go, if you don't want to be a mustache, you can go. ”

The imperial court changed the land and divided the land, Peng Dehua is still thinking about how to plant the land well, and he didn't think about whether it was a matter of farming for a lifetime, but now listening to his father's wake-up up like this, he suddenly felt that if he wanted to do not farming in this life, this was indeed the only way out. When he was hesitating, Peng Minyan pulled him to the main hall and asked him to salute Mr. Wu.

Chen Guangshou went to Beijing this time to be entrusted by Yang Rui to come out to find someone, Mao Xueren is the first, Peng Dehua is the second, he is very curious about what Yang Rui said about the talent of a general, what a person who can cross the knife is like, and he doesn't want to stand in front of him is just a young man who is a little wooden, short and thin, and even has a hunched back. Although it is difficult for him to imagine that the person in front of him will become a general in the future, he is convinced of Yang Rui's vision.

After Peng Dehua's salute was finished, he asked in a harmonious voice, "Huaiqi, are you willing to join the army?" ”

Chen Guangshou asked, and the people in the room looked at Peng Dehua, but they didn't want him to say: "I will go if I only fight foreigners and not poor people." ”

When he said this, everyone laughed, and Chen Guangshou laughed too. Lao Zhou of the peasant association said with a smile: "The year before last, there was a famine, and the hungry people were eating steaks, and it was Huai Jue who led the way. The landlord frightened that the revival army was coming, and everyone was afraid. Later, although the peasant association held a meeting and told everyone, Dehua was not there. I thought that the Baath Army was fighting the poor. ”

Lao Zhou of the peasant association laughed, but Xiao Yunqiao was worried that the reason why his nephew would say such a thing was not actually caused by the trouble the year before last, but that this Wushizhai was originally the garrison of Chen Youliang's general Yihua at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. It took more than ten years to settle down.

The countrymen did not understand the general trend of the world at that time, and only knew that this Yihua was peaceful and peaceful, and stood on the side of the poor, so they respected it very much. When Dehua was young, he often listened to Yi Hua's stories, and naturally he had no good impression of Zhu Yuanzhang and the Ming army. And this dynasty is the former Ming, although the emperor is from Hunan, but he is still Zhu Hongwu's bloodline, he is worried that Dehua has not handled this matter well, but it is a big disaster.

Xiao Yunqiao was worried. After several questions and answers between Chen Guangshou and Peng Dehua, the atmosphere in the room began to be lively, and at Peng Minyan's request, Peng Dehua bowed to Chen Guangshou. However, Chen Guangshou was only half-accepted, and he didn't dare to be a teacher, but only a brother. After this behavior. He also gave the pen he was carrying to Peng Dehua as a greeting gift. The greeting gift was given, and the attendants outside the house brought in all kinds of gifts on the donkey's back. Now Peng Minyan felt that he was dreaming, and this dream lasted until a few days later, his son left home with Mr. Wu, who fell from the sky.

"Zhong Yanzi. I went to Mo Xiang's house...... "Three days later, in the morning, seeing that his newly-dressed son was about to follow Mr. Wu, Peng Minyan was very reluctant, and the younger son also dragged his brother's hand or he would leave.

"It's nothing, it's not wrong." Xiao Yunqiao on the side comforted that Chen Guangshou had explained a lot of things to him in the past few days, and he no longer had the previous worries. "Now that the train is convenient, Huai Jue will come back once a year."

Xiao Yunqiao persuaded and other uncles also persuaded him, but Peng Dehua, who hadn't walked a few steps, suddenly turned over and grabbed his father's hand, shook it a few times before kneeling away.

Coming to Wushizhai slowly, but when he went back, it was very lumpy, although he had a meal with Liu Guochun in Xiangtan County, but Chen Guangshou and his people still arrived in Hankou five days later, he originally wanted to buy a ticket to return to Beijing immediately, but the local State Security Bureau gave him a message, saying that the child he was looking for had been found.

"Are you sure it's this person?" Chen Guangshou went out of Beijing to find three people, and Hubei was the most unsure, and he didn't want to find the people below.

"Yes, sir. It should be this person. Zhou Zhongzhen, director of the Wuhan Municipal State Security Bureau, said. The whole Huang'an County was born in November, over five years old, under ten years old, the surname Lin is called Yurong boys we all look for, one of them is the most unusual, said that when he was born, not only many magpies flew in the Baiyang Mountain woods in the mountains behind the Lin family, but also countless birds with many names also flew in; And on the day of the full moon, there was a gentleman who admired him, saying that this son was 'glorious today, and he was also [note 2]' ......"

As soon as Zhou Zhongzhen said, 'He is in Huaiyin', Chen Guangshou's heart was shocked, this time out of Beijing, Yang Rui asked him to find two generals and one male, and this person from Huang'an, Hubei Province is another general. Of course, the shock in his heart was not that the person had found it, but that he was shocked Why did Yang Rui know everything? Based on his experience in observing and employing people in the past few years, after talking with Mao Xueren, he felt that Mao Xueren was indeed eloquent; And Peng Dehua, although he is honest, but he is very smart, is it that his will is rare among his peers, and he has carefully cultivated not to mention generals, at least he will succeed. This last Lin Yurong is actually a talent in Huaiyin. This...... Is Mr. a fairy, can he pinch it?

After Zhou Zhongzhen finished speaking, Chen Guangshou was absent-minded, he had to stop and wait for Chen Guangshou to come back to his senses, and only after a while did he hear Chen Guangshou say: "Then help me arrange it, I'll go over and take a look." ”

"My lord, this child's father, Lin Qingming, has just been repossessed for land reform, and he is not very supportive of the government, so it is difficult for adults to ensure their safety." Zhou Zhongzhen said. He knew Chen Guangshou's identity, and he was very worried that something would happen to him in his jurisdiction, if he was like Lord Tao Huanqing, it would not be a pity for him to die.

"How much land has been taken from his family?" Chen Guangshou smiled dumbly, along the way, there is no one who has nothing to do with land reform.

"It seems to be less than twenty acres. Although the compensation is fully compensated, Lin Qingming is a businessman, who used to work as a bookkeeper on a steamer, and now runs a dyeing workshop at home, and values money, and only wants to use all the money from the cultivated land to open a workshop......"

Zhou Zhongzhen said as Chen Guangshou smiled again. He said: "You can arrange it, if he is doing well, then it is not a problem to find a bank to lend him a sum of money, if the business is not good, you can also help in business." This is just a matter of less than a thousand times, and it is not difficult to do, and it is not difficult to do. ”

Chen Guangshou insisted on going to Huang'an to have a look, and Zhou Zhongzhen had to arrange it immediately, but he was afraid that something would happen to him, so he arranged four guards for him in a row. Chen Guangshou was also an investigator of the Industrial Bureau of the Ministry of Industry because of his status, so he asked these people to follow in civilian clothes, while Peng Dehua arranged to live in Hankou first, and at the same time asked people to give him some questions to do, so that he could find out.

Chen Guangshou thought that he would be invincible with the identity of an investigator of the Industrial Bureau, and he didn't want Lin Qingming's Lin Jiawan to live in a single clan, and every family in this clan had land, although most of the people's land was fully supplemented, but the hatred of losing land was still there, and the people of the peasant association and he had just entered the village, and every house was closed, and the dogs in the village were also barking wildly, which made the cadres of the peasant association not embarrassed.

"Comrade, you can go back first." Chen Guangshou looked at the cadres of the peasant association who came with him and said.

"Okay, you have to be careful." The cadres of the peasant association only knew that Chen Guangshou was an official sent down from above, and he came to see the dyeing factory, and it was really not good to accompany the Lin family with the current appearance.

"It's okay, I'll take a look." Chen Guangshou said with a smile. After the peasant union cadres left, he entered the village by himself.

"Who is the master looking for?" Seeing the cadres of the peasant association leaving, and then seeing Chen Guangshou wearing a long robe, he was a Sven man, and finally a decent man in a blue and black long shirt drank those barking domestic dogs and came out to speak.

"Oh. The gentleman pleased. Chen Guangshou was very polite, took out a famous post, and said, "I am an industrial investigator of the Industrial Bureau under the Ministry of Industry, and I heard that there is a Mr. Lin here who has run a dyeing factory, and he came here to investigate. He said that he was afraid that the other party would not know the details, and then added: "The Ministry of Industry still wants to hold an industrial conference, if your factory is qualified, then the future is immeasurable." ”

An official would actually find the dyeing factory here, the old man on the other side was a little puzzled, he looked at Chen Guangshou carefully before reaching out to take his name post, at this time Chen Guangshou hit the snake and asked on the stick: "Didn't ask Mr. your surname?" What to call it? ”

"Your surname is Lin, how did Mr. know that there is a dyeing factory in my Lin Village?" For some reason, an official from the Ministry of Industry came to the door, and the man surnamed Lin was still a little suspicious, so he couldn't help but ask more.

"Mr. Lin, the imperial court rewards industry, and it's not a matter of one or two years, the industrial conference in the first year of Shenwu, only more than 700 people in the country participated, which is really too little. Now that it has been developing for several years, the Ministry of Industry wants to hold an industrial conference, so it wants to invite more people to participate in order to revitalize the national industry. Although your factory is secluded, it is also organic, as long as it is organic, how can the government not know about it? Chen Guangshou had already heard the 'bang' of the diesel engine at this time, and he was familiar with this sound.

After he finished speaking, he smiled again: "You have a diesel engine, not to mention that your factory has also invested thousands of taels of silver, which is much better than the tofu workshop of the first industrial conference, and the tofu workshop does not even have a power machine." ”

It is reported that a soy sauce workshop in Hunan took out a loan of 100,000 taels at that time, and this year the soy sauce was sold to the United States and won the award. The temptation of business made Master Lin forget about the peasant association cadre just now, and he said very politely: "Mr. Wu is sluggish, please here, please here." The contemptible Lin Qingming, the dyeing factory is run by the contemptible people. ”

Hearing that the person in front of him was Lin Qingming, Chen Guangshou couldn't help but look at him, and only felt that he was an ordinary rich country gentry, and there was nothing strange about it. After the two politely drank tea in the living room, Lin Qingming went to see the dyeing factory, and before anyone entered, a child holding a bamboo stick and acting as a prancing horse came out of the house. This kid was very flexible, and he was about to hit someone, but he threw himself around and hid on Lin Qingming's side, and then stared at him very curiously.

"Master Wu, this is a dog, very ignorant...... Lin Qingming said and said to the child: "I haven't seen Master Wu yet." ”

Chen Guangshou liked it when he saw this child, especially the two thick eyebrows on his little face, which were very heroic. (To be continued......)

PS: Note 1: Because the government stood on the position of the people, Mr. Peng did not flee to Xilinwei, Xiangyin County, to repair the embankment after taking people to eat a large household in 1913

Note 2: See XX Full Biography, p2