On September 15, 1913, the 13th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, the streets of Nanjing were filled with hunger, emitting a disgusting stench, and the beggars stretched out their bony arms to everyone who passed, and often saw the hungry people spitting out a stream of fishy yellow water, and then died quietly.

After a month of siege by the Beiyang Army, the million-strong city has become a ghost.

In the former Liangjiang Governor's Mansion of the Qing Dynasty, and now in the Nanjing Left-behind Mansion, Gao Ming is holding on to an osmanthus tree and is about to vomit out the bitter gall, and his old face is wrinkled like a dried wild chrysanthemum.

The first time I took a plane, Gao Ming was scared enough, and he prayed like a god and Buddha countless times along the way.

The plane he was riding in was an improved version of the "Feng Ru IV", which was a great improvement over its prototype "Feng Ru III", and the powerful power of the V-12 cylinder Eagle engine made it far behind all the planes in the world.

Feng Ru's four-seater two-seater aircraft has a flight distance of more than 150 kilometers and a maximum ceiling of 900 meters, while at present, foreign planes are still high-grade toys that can only fly 30 or 40 meters high and fly a distance of two or three kilometers.

He Haiming, the acting commander of the Yuan Army, personally patted Gao Ming on the back and asked with concern: "Gao Dudu, are you okay?" ”

Gao Ming waved his hand hard, and said weakly: "It's okay, I can't die." ”

After exhibiting everything he had eaten three days ago, Gao Mingcai, with He Haiming's support, reluctantly walked into the signing room with trembling legs.

"Let's take a sip of water." He Haiming handed over a cup of hot water with his own hands and said apologetically: "Now that there is no tea, I can only ask you to drink white water." ”

Gao Ming said in a faint voice like a mosquito: "White water is good, white water is good." ”

After a long time, Gao Ming's pale face regained a trace of blood, and his voice gradually became a little louder.

"Gao Dudu, what are the instructions of Vice Chairman Chai?" He Haiming asked eagerly.

The tragic situation in the city of Nanjing and the tremendous pressure he was under had brought He Haiming to the brink of collapse, and he dreamed that a high-ranking figure of the Kuomintang could take up the burden.

"Chai Du ordered you to lay down your weapons and accept the reorganization of the political axe" Gao Ming felt that he had no strength at all, and he didn't want to say a single superfluous word.

"Accept the adaptation? Drop your weapon? He Haiming suddenly thundered like five thunders: "Why? We have sacrificed so many comrades, and now we are going to lay down our arms and surrender? ”

"It's not for you to surrender, it's to accept the reorganization of the Jianghuai Army, this is the decision of the Kuomintang Council, are you a member of the Kuomintang? Where is your party name? Gao Ming's big hat was just buttoned up.

He Haiming's lips twitched for a long time, his eyes were a little red, he slapped the table and shouted: "Stick to Nanjing and fight the reactionary Beiyang political axe to the end, this is Mr. Sun's order!" ”

Gao Ming looked him up and down for a long time, and said coldly: "Mr. Sun has already announced [***], what I am telling you now is the resolution of the Kuomintang Council, if you regard yourself as a party member, implement it." ”

"However, the order was given by Mr. Sun???"

"Mr. Sun was originally the chairman of the board, but now he has nothing to do with the Kuomintang after the automatic [***], if you still think that you are a party member, and you still think that the Eighth Division is the army of the Kuomintang, just carry out the order." There was no room for relaxation in Gao Ming's tone.

He Haiming gritted his teeth and said, "You traitors! Shameful traitor! Then he yelled outside, "Someone! Grab him for me! ”

Gao Ming drank water from the teacup, didn't even bother to look at him, and picked out a sneer of disdain at the corner of his mouth.

??? Dividing line ???

In two days it will be the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Anhui and Jiangxi provinces will give gifts to the people according to the custom. Two catties of moon cakes per person, a bag of ten catties of flour, and a catty of vegetable oil. From provincial capitals such as Anqing and Nanchang, to treaty ports such as Wuhu and Jiujiang, to the poor rural areas, residents are lined up with household registration books to receive Boxing gifts, and everyone is beaming. The owner of Buzhuang, 50-year-old Yu Deshui, wearing a poplin robe inside and out, and a melon skin hat is also queuing.

"Yu Dongjia, you are rich!" An old man arched his hand and said, "Oh, Zhang Xiucai, I'll give you a greeting!" After Yu Deshui saw the old man, he hurriedly and respectfully called a thousand.

Zhang Lao Xiucai said with a smile: "Now that the Republic of China is over, there is no need to use the fame of this Xiucai to show off, so as not to make future generations laugh." ”

Yu Deshui hurriedly shook his head and said, "You are now a teacher in a public primary school, a dignified gentleman, who dares to laugh?" Maybe you'll be promoted to a headmaster! ”

"Yu Lao Dong's teasing, teasing!" Zhang Laoxiu breathed with his hands and said triumphantly.

In China at the end of the Qing Dynasty, the school was a great place, not only when the military officials arrived at the school gate, but the civil officials got off the sedan chair and the military attachés dismounted, and those who dared to make trouble in the school would be immediately impeached by the Imperial Council and the Imperial History, and the dismissal of officials under verbal and written criticism was light. Where is the school? That's the school palace, where the saints educate the world, who dares to be contemptuous?

In the early years of the Republic of China, this trend was still inherited, and it was even more than that, and the foreign students who returned to China brought the concept of Westerners back to China. The school has become a kingdom of reading power where wind can enter and rain can enter, and emperor Lao Tzu cannot enter. The teachers at the school are not only well-paid, but also have a very high social status. There are many university professors who earn 200 or 300 yuan a month, and elementary school teachers can earn at least 20 yuan, which makes many officials salivate.

The same is true of Chai Dongliang's ruling areas, where primary and secondary schools and technical schools are only responsible to the General Administration of Education under the Military Advisory Office, and the education funds are directly allocated by the treasury, and at the same time a part of the social donations are accepted. In the school education, there is not only a new style of Western learning, but also the education of traditional Chinese culture, Confucius and Mencius and Laozhuang are gathered together, and the international students and the old Xiucai and the people start their own classes and are safe with each other.

Primary and secondary schools are already powerful enough, universities are even better, they are only responsible to the school's board of directors and board of supervisors, the Military Advisory Office only has the power to audit accounts, and cannot interfere in curriculum setting and teaching methods. The Military Advisory Office does not even have the power to check accounts, so they do not spend money on political axes at all, and they also provide round-trip travel expenses and settling-in allowances for outstanding students free of charge. If you don't need your money, why should you take care of it?

In Anhui and Jiangxi, as long as higher education institutions do not break the law, it is better for local political axes to be less involved, and the province's self-deprecation is not interesting. The Anqing Army Non-commissioned Officer School is a place to train junior officers, and the Anqing Army University and the Wuhu Naval University, which are under construction, are the cradles of future generals.

Chai Dongliang has always coveted Humboldt University in Germany, but unfortunately his relationship with the Germans has not been very good, otherwise he would like to dig Humboldt University back and even his ancestral grave. Chai Dongliang very much agrees with the founding policy of Humboldt University in Germany, which is known as the "mother of modern universities".

Teaching and research go hand in hand, which is the key to the success of Humboldt University, and academic freedom ensures that the university is not disturbed by the outside world. Feng. Humboldt and Alexander. Feng. The Humboldt brothers advocated the principles of solitude and freedom of university organization. Loneliness means not being swayed by political, economic, and social interests, and distancing itself from them, emphasizing the autonomy of the university in management and academics. In Humboldt's view, freedom and loneliness are interrelated and interdependent, and there is no freedom without loneliness. The entire external organization of the university is based on these two points.

Before the Second World War, Humboldt University was the center of the world's academic community, and the 29 Nobel laureates were the best reward for Humboldt's founding policy. Germany has been defeated many times and can be reborn again and again, and Humboldt University has made great contributions.

Chai Dongliang also figured it out, institutions of higher learning have their own mature management systems, and the involvement of the political axe will only add to the chaos, and the more they manage, the more the university will be like a yamen. Counting on the master in the yamen is tantamount to asking for fish from the wood. As long as the graduates of the military academy recognize themselves as the nominal principal, then no matter who they are, they will not be able to turn the sky.

In Chai Dongliang's ruling area, the instructors enjoyed a very high social status, and the people in line greeted him like Zhang Laoxiucai, which made the old man more and more proud.

Yu Deshui saw that he was about to be at the front, and he took out the household registration book from his arms, ready to receive the Boxing Gift. Suddenly, I saw my eldest son running over with sweat on his head.

"Dad, the tax bureau is here for us, let you go back quickly!"

Yu Deshui's face turned pale suddenly, and he thought for a long time before he said: "Our taxes have been paid in full, why is this tax bureau still here?" ”

The commercial tax in Anhui and Jiangxi is not lighter than that of the pre-Qing Dynasty, but it has canceled all kinds of exploitation such as consumption and envy, and has withdrawn the centicard to cancel the centigold, so that the actual tax burden of the merchant is much lighter, but the tax evasion and tax evasion are also investigated very strictly, so Yu Deshui was suddenly frightened.

"Dad, that's not the case, it's the tax bureau that sent us money, so that you can go back and use the seal!" The eldest son waved his hand.

Yu Deshui was stunned: "What's the matter?" ”

"The people from the tax bureau said that this year's political axe's financial budget has not been spent, and there is still a balance, so we will be refunded a month's tax, and this year only 11 months' tax will be collected, and we will be exempted for one month. Go back and tell you slowly, you go back to stamp first, people are still waiting! ”

Yu Deshui was stunned for a long time, his lips trembled and he said to the people around him: "Who of you has ever seen the government send money to the people?" I've lived to be over 50 years old, and this is the first of its kind in the world! ”

In the distance, there was the sound of gongs and drums, and a group of middle school students were marching with banners in the lead, holding boxes. Yu Deshui saw that this was money for those displaced people in Jiangxi to raise winter clothes and repair houses.

Yu Deshui took off the seal from his waist and handed it to his son: "Go, donate all the money returned by the tax bureau to those students." What are you still doing? Go ahead! ”

Zhang Laoxiucai muttered to himself: "Cang Liao knows etiquette, food and clothing are enough and knows honor and disgrace, and Guan Zi's words are honest and I don't deceive!" Yao Tianshun said, Yao Tianshun said! ”

(To be continued)