In the late 20s and early 30s, when the warlord melee was at its worst, the number of bandits in China exceeded 20 million. If the number of 40,000 people is calculated, about one in 20 Chinese is a bandit, so some foreign experts at that time called China a "bandit kingdom".

One of the Nationalist Government's greatest contributions to China was probably the suppression of bandits.

Especially in the northwest and southwest regions during the Anti-Japanese War, the big bandits were basically wiped out - the main means was Zhao'an. Bandits with more than 1,000 men were targeted, and a letter of appointment was sent, and the bandits were turned into regular soldiers, many of whom were sent to the battlefield of resistance against Japan.

Let's say that the bandits in the northwest have been extinct at this time, referring to those big bandits. There are still countless small bandits, and groups of three or five are the one who is the trouble, and those who can have a scale of 100 people can already be proud of the group.

In the northwest of Yongdeng County, the big stone valley is located at the junction of Jinzui, Tongyuan and Zhongbao Township, the mountain is dangerous, easy to defend and difficult to attack. More than ten years ago, dozens of bandits led by Bao Haicheng and Zhang Heng were entrenched here, killing people and goods, and doing all kinds of evil, until they were wiped out after the Central Plains War.

After the bandit gang of Bao Haicheng and Zhang Heng was eliminated, Dashiwa was quickly occupied by a group of swordsmen, and the leader of the bandits was called Ma Yongkui. In the Gansu region, where ethnic contradictions are very fierce, Ma Yongkui, as a Hui person, actually has bandits of the Han, Hui, and Mongolian ethnic groups living in harmony under him, and I have to say that he is a talent.

In the beginning, Ma Yongkui's gang consisted of only six people, and its development was extremely slow. And because he resolutely refused to eat the grass on the edge of the nest, the bandits were often hungry, and many of his subordinates were unable to bear the hardships and quit the gang on the way.

Until the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, Soviet aid needed to be imported through the Great Northwest, and the government intensified its crackdown on bandits along the roads. The disappearance of the great bandits and the transfer of warlord forces to the anti-Japanese front made the Silk Road prosperous again.

Ma Yongkui's spring came, and he grabbed the merchants on the highway.

In order to prevent being targeted by the government, he never killed anyone, and would leave some food and water for the robbed merchants to walk back to the county by themselves. After the size of the gang expanded to 150 people, Ma Yongkui no longer recruited new members, fearing that too many people would lead to encirclement and suppression by the government.

This guy used the money he had stolen to go to Inner Mongolia to buy horses, and got a lot of broken guns from the warlords, and even spent a lot of money to get a Makqin machine gun.

Not only that, Ma Yongkui also often distributed grain to the three townships around the bandits' den, which made the local gentry and common people very supportive of him, and even the tax collectors in the county had to give him some face.

According to the local people, Ma Yongkui was "protecting the territory and the people", and the gentry and ordinary people spontaneously covered for him and spread the news, and everyone from the county magistrate to the town mayor was quietly selling the stolen goods for him.

This kind of collusion between officials and bandits is very common in the northwest, because it is too chaotic here. A "benevolent" bandit like Ma Yongkui is definitely more popular than the government, which is more brutal and cruel to the people.

Ma Yongkui was playing chess with his master Pang You, when suddenly a bandit in charge of patrolling the wind came in and reported: "Big boss, there is good news, the commander has brought a foreign car!" ”

"Oh, what kind of foreign car?" Ma Yongkui asked.

The patrol bandit said: "It's the kind of foreign cart that transports Soviet supplies and drags a large wagon behind its buttocks." ”

Master Pang You smiled: "That's called a truck." ”

"Yes, yes, it's a truck," said the patrol bandit, "and it's already down the hill, and the commander has captured a few meat tickets, among which is a woman who is very smart." ”

Ma Yongkui frowned and said: "The person who can drive a truck is definitely not ordinary, shouldn't there be any trouble?" ”

Most of the caravans on the Ganshan side used mule carts and donkey carts, and a few used camels for long journeys. As for the trucks, they are basically related to the government and warlords, and they are often escorted by soldiers, and the bandits dare not provoke them.

Pang You asked: "What is the origin of those meat tickets?" ”

The patrol bandit shook his head and said, "I don't know. ”

Ma Yongkui turned his head and said, "Master Pang, what do you think?" ”

Pang You stroked his beard and said, "Take people up the mountain, and then search for what documents they have on their cars and bodies." If it is really a member of the government, then give it back. If you are a big businessman in the county or provincial capital, then take the opportunity to get a vote! ”

Ma Yongkui immediately made a decision: "Do what the master said!" ”

After another half an hour, Zhou Hexuan and the four of them were brought to sit on a chair with their bodies strapped.

The bandit leader who caught Zhou Hexuan up the mountain was called Zhang Debiao, and he walked in with a small blue notebook and said, "Big brother, master, this is from that guy." I'm illiterate, what do you see? ”

Ma Yongkui took it and swept it, almost didn't hold it steady, only to see seven big characters printed on the cover of the small book: Republic of China, general official certificate.

Ma Yongkui calmly opened it, the right side was still written with the Republic of China general's official certificate, and the left side was Sun Yat-sen's portrait. On the top of the portrait is written "The world is for the public", and on both sides is written "The revolution has not yet succeeded, comrades still have to work hard".

Continue to open it, is Zhou Hexuan's number, name, place of origin, age, ethnicity, general species, position and other information.

Generals: Army Aviation.

Position: Vice Chairman of the Committee.

Ma Yongkui swallowed his saliva and handed the general's official card to Pang You: "Master Pang, what kind of officer is the vice chairman of the Army Aviation Corps?" ”

Pang You glanced at the certificate, thinking that he was dazzled, rubbed it and looked again, and suddenly became paralyzed with fright. He stood up with his chair and said, "Quick, quickly untie Chairman Zhou!" Hurry, what are you still doing? ”

"Untie up, untie up!"

Ma Yongkui also knew that he had provoked a big man, so he asked in a low voice, "Master Pang, what is the origin of this person?" ”

Pang You smiled bitterly: "The chairman of the aviation committee is Chang Kaishen, and the director is Song Meiling, what do you say is the origin of the vice chairman?" This man is the deputy commander-in-chief of the Chinese Air Force! ”

Ma Yongkui's feet were weak, and he hurriedly ran to Zhou Hexuan's side, and personally untied the rope and said, "Oh, General Zhou, it's wrong, it's wrong, why did you arrest you?" I thought it was a Japanese spy! ”

Zhou Hexuan smiled and asked, "I look like a Japanese spy?" ”

"No, no," Ma Yongkui slapped himself and said with a smile, "Look at my mouth, I just can't speak, I should be beaten!" Haha, it's time to fight! ”

Zhang Debiao walked to Pang You's side and whispered: "Master, such a big man, you can't put it back, just kill it." ”

"Kill...... No, you can't kill it. That's Zhou Hexuan, it's the Zhou Hexuan in the newspaper. Pang Yu suddenly remembered something.

"Why can't you kill it? No one is alive, no corpse is dead, who knows that we did it. Zhang Debiao sneered.

Pang Yu said angrily: "You know a fart! That's Zhou Hexuan. ”

Zhang Debiao asked: "Who is Zhou Hexuan?" ”

Pang You said: "The book "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" that the pole head usually reads is written by Zhou Hexuan, haven't you heard that Mr. Storyteller told the story of Guo Jing and Huang Rong." ”

Zhang Debiao said: "It turned out to be a book, and it was nothing remarkable. ”

"You don't understand the affairs of scholars," Pang You shook his head and said, "With Mr. Zhou's current status, he was the Tianxia Sect in the Qing Dynasty, and he was very capable." At least half of the gentlemen engaged in historical research in China are his disciples, and they all do their studies according to his theories. Do you understand Wenqu Xing's descending mortality? ”

Zhang Debiao said: "I only know that the champion is the Wenqu star. ”

Pang You was speechless and said, "Then you should treat him as the champion." ”

When the two were whispering, Ma Yongkui had already personally untied Zhou Hexuan and the four of them, and apologized there.

Zhou Hexuan originally carried his general's official certificate with him for the convenience of passage in the northwest. At first, I didn't say it, I didn't know the situation of these bandits, but now that I saw that the bandit leader was an intellectual, he immediately put up a shelf, and he was very accurate in the fire.