The sixth-floor club of the Garden Hotel is also a mysterious and noble place for Huang Shaohong, who knows some of the inside stories that ordinary people can't know, but with his identity and influence, he still can't be among them, let alone have the opportunity to gather with senior officials of the British government in Hong Kong and world-renowned chaebol celebrities to have a drink. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Wong was impressed by the fact that the young Zheng Yi not only had the qualifications for club membership, but was also popular with senior officials of the British government and business tycoons in Hong Kong.

It was not until the helmsman of the Cheng family, Cheng Lanting, arrived with the Chief Justice of the British Government of Hong Kong to toast him that Huang Shaohong truly realized the transcendent status of the Cheng family in Hong Kong.

Celebrities such as Hong Kong Governor Clementi, Swire & Co. Taipan Swiler, and Williams, the major shareholder of Jardine Matheson & Co., who had just returned to Hong Kong from India, met in the private room next door, and the person they were talking about at the moment was Zheng Yi, a rising star who sold millions of pounds in arms in just half a year.

Zheng Yi, who originally made it to Hong Kong's high society only because of his father, has now become a business wizard praised by high-ranking officials of the colonial government and business tycoons, and truly has convincing ability and capital.

The one who felt it the most was Williams, who had just returned from India.

The 20 British-made 75 mountain guns and shells that were being transported back to Hong Kong by cargo ship were urgently sent by Williams from the Indian arms depot at Zheng Yi's request, and he had just learned that the 20,000 Belgian rifles that Zheng Yi sold to the warlords of Gui Province had actually been bought from the Belgian arms depot through the connections of Governor Clementi, and the transaction price was three marks lower than the supply price of the Mauser rifles of the Lu Lin Company, but the selling price was three marks higher than the minimum wholesale price of the Lu Lin Company.

Therefore, Williams admired Zheng Yi very much and hoped to establish a closer cooperative relationship with Zheng Yi, so Williams did not hesitate to ask Zheng Lanting, who had just returned to the wine table, to accompany him to the private room next door to toast Zheng Yi and Huang Shaohong, a great warlord from Gui Province.

Zheng Yi and Huang Shaohong very politely exchanged greetings with Williams, the major shareholder of Jardine Matheson, and raised a glass to drink.

After sending off his father and Williams, Zheng Yi finally had time to eat, and seeing that Huang Shaohong was still full of emotion, Zheng Yi smiled and quipped:

"Now many people know my brother's great reputation, and if my brother has time in the future, he might as well come to Hong Kong more often, and he will definitely gain a lot."

Huang Shaohong shook his head again and again: "Brother Xian, don't laugh at me, I know how many catties I have, don't talk about a governor of Gui Province, even if the commander-in-chief comes in person, the British who are high above may not be in his eyes!" ”

Zheng Yi laughed and refilled a glass of wine for Huang Shaohong: "Brother's words, the younger brother does not agree, over time, the elder brother will be able to create a new world." ”

Huang Shaohong sighed and looked at Zheng Yi who was pouring wine for himself: "Brother Xian, I want to hear you tell the truth, how long do you think my Gui family can last?" ”

Zheng Yi put down the wine bottle and sat down slowly: "Brother, don't be discouraged, although your army is quite passive on the battlefield of the Two Lakes, you should see that General Delin has flown to Changsha, and General Jiansheng's Thirteenth Army has also returned, as long as General Xia Wei and General Hu Zongduo in Wuhan deal with it properly, there is still room for recovery in the whole situation." ”

"The little brother vainly deduces that the biggest variable at present is not actually in the Lianghu area, but the restless Cantonese army, no matter what, the backyard can't catch fire!"

Huang Shaohong smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Guangdong Province will definitely not be able to keep it, alas! The next thing is on our own, I will go back tomorrow, no matter what, we must keep our nest, otherwise we will not even have a chance to make a comeback. ”

Zheng Yi is not as pessimistic as Huang Shaohong.

Judging from the current situation, as long as the Gui Department shrinks its forces and stubbornly defends Gui Province, it will still be able to hold on.

Zheng Yi did not know how Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi failed in history, but according to the analysis of the current situation, Li Zongren had already cheered up and flew from Guangzhou to Changsha to command all armies to resist stubbornly.

In addition, Bai Chongxi's descendant army, the 13th Army, has now returned to the Yueyang area by train, and it definitely has the strength to fight with Lao Jiang's army and Zhu Depei's two armies, even if it can't hold the Lianghu area in the end, it can return to its own hometown Gui Province.

That night, Zheng Yi and Huang Shaohong talked all night, until the next morning, when Huang Shaohong was sent away, Zheng Yi still firmly believed that the Gui army could hold Gui Province.

The ensuing development of the situation is basically consistent with Zheng Yi's speculation.

Due to the vigorous mediation of Wang Jingwei and Chen Jiongming, the Cantonese army, which was rebelled by Chiang Kai-shek, stopped advancing after expelling the Gui army from the boundaries of Guangdong Province, and did not continue to chase and attack the Gui army as in history.

Bai Chongxi, who fled to Hanoi for refuge after losing the battle at Lianghu in history, was in a greatly improved situation, and rushed directly from Hanoi to Guilin, where he worked side by side with Li Zongren, who led the remnants to retreat to northern Guizhou, and Huang Shaohong, who stayed in Nanning, continuously sent weapons and equipment purchased from Zheng Yi to the front line, and finally withstood the fierce offensive of the four armies of President Jiang, He Jian and Zhu Depei, with a total of 120,000 troops, and preserved the vitality of the Gui army.

At this critical moment, Feng Yuxiang's Northwest Army and Yan Xishan's Jin Suijun finally saw the true face of President Jiang clearly, and quickly abandoned their differences and moved towards unity.

As soon as President Jiang saw that the situation was not right, he no longer had the time and energy to pursue and fight the Gui army, eradicate the grass and eradicate the roots, and had to transfer troops to the north to deal with the all-out attack that the Northwest Army might launch at any time.

In order to break the alliance between Feng and Yan, President Jiang constantly sent special envoys to Taiyuan while dispatching troops to confront the whole front, and made every effort to pull Yan Xishan into his camp, and at the same time appeased Tang Shengzhi, the commander of the vacillating Hunan army, and bribed and lured the generals under Tang Shengzhi's command.

As a result, the situation in the world changed rapidly, and a large-scale civil war could break out at any time.

At this critical moment, Zheng Yi left Hong Kong again and rushed to Shanghai, on the one hand, he used the massive amount of grain that had arrived one after another to make profits, and on the other hand, he conspired with his brother-in-law Feng Jingzhai and sent personnel to the Central Plains and Jin Province and other places to establish contacts with warlords of all sizes, and to sell weapons and equipment at extremely favorable prices.

The time soon entered May, and the Guangdong-Guizhou War broke out suddenly.

Wang Jingwei and his faction, who had always hoped that Guangdong and Guizhou would unite against Chiang, were so anxious that they jumped up and down, and Chen Jiongming, who was guarding Hong Kong, was also at a loss for what to do about the situation that suddenly got out of control.

Zheng Yi, who was reselling grain in Shanghai, received telegrams of inquiry from his father and the Zhigong Court one after another, and had to give up his business and return to Hong Kong.

The night before Zheng Yi was about to leave Shanghai, Kong Xiangxi, accompanied by Feng Jingzhai, suddenly arrived at Huafeng Company in the French Concession and handed the handwritten letter from President Jiang to Zheng Yi, who was full of shock.

After reading President Jiang's handwritten letter, Zheng Yi pondered for a long time and finally nodded, and promised to go to Nanjing with Kong Xiangxi.