The day of the tea ceremony was December 31, 1910, and the next day was 1911. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info

New Year's Day is a public holiday. In the morning, the Imperial Capital routinely held a New Year's military parade. Although it is not as good as the large-scale National Day parade every five and ten, the people of Beijing still bring their families to Chengtianmen Square to watch the neat phalanx of infantry and cavalry and the parade of floats from all walks of life, so as to have a festive time.

The emperor and a group of cabinet ministers and aristocratic elders appeared on the city tower to inspect the soldiers, and the subjects shouted excitedly below Long live the emperor and long live the empire!

Dongfang Se didn't go to join in the fun, and came to Xiangshan Qiyue Cliff early. The housekeeper of the villa entertained him with good tea and good food.

It wasn't until the evening that he waited for Liu Siyuan to return.

The prince led Dongfang Se into the book house, and the guests and hosts sat down. The two talked about literature and literature, which was very interesting.

Dongfang Se did not go around in circles, and openly and honestly presented the news of the coal mine, which won the great favor of the prince. He then cautiously brought up the matter of the Huaxun congregation's plea for pardon.

It's a pity that the two can't reach a consensus on this only one thing.

Whether it is Wu Rui or Jin Tong, they all think about pardon too simply. Although the destruction of the statue of Taizu was only done by a few people in Huajie, and even the court judgment determined that the others were deceived, no one among the nobles, officials, and ordinary people would seriously read the verdict, let alone tilt their inner scales in favor of them.

The word "perception" seems to be slim, but it is actually the desire of the people, and it is difficult to disobey.

Ordinary people only know that those rebellious ministers and thieves are disrespectful to Taizu who saved the nation from peril.

Can you still be a good person if you are disrespectful to Taizu? Surely the bad can't be more bad!

As soon as the prince listened, he shook his head.

Dongfang Se tried his best to explain, "Of course I know that it is impossible to overturn the case, but their sincere dedication to the coal mine this time shows their remorse, and their intentions can be seen by the sun and the moon, so they don't want to end up in the wilderness!" ”

Liu Siyuan still shook his head. Although he is a gentleman, he can clearly understand the major rights and wrongs.

"The TE pardon list was drawn up by the emperor himself, with the relationship between my family and the royal family, it is not difficult to exert influence, and it is not difficult to blow the wind, if it is an ordinary person, I will do this for you! But—"

Liu Siyuan hesitated slightly, "Let's say so!" Until the social impact of the three major cases completely subsides, it is impossible for Xu Guogong to express his position. Huajie Yuzhong does have the heart to report the news of the coal mine, and I am also very grateful, but a coal mine is not worth the Liu family to take such a big risk! ”

Dongfang Se's mouth was filled with bitterness, "But ......"

Shizi waved his hand and motioned for him not to say more, "If the existence of coal mines is confirmed, and the wasteland becomes a mining area, there will be immigrants, workers, roads, and factories. In order to meet the needs of food, clothing, shelter and living for these people, the mining area will soon become a town. There is also a high possibility that another prison will be built......".

Dongfang Se seemed to understand something, he had long heard that contracting prisons was the Xingliao Group's forte--opening prison coal mines and using prisoners as free labor...... But what does all this have to do with exiles?

Liu Siyuan said confidently: "When these are built, the wasteland will become the territory of Xingliao." As a token of appreciation, it is not uncommon to have exiles take up management positions in mines, prisons, or small towns.

In this way, they are no different from ordinary employees of the company, except that they cannot leave the mining town. Is it forgiven, or is it important? ”

Dongfang Se knew that the other party was not lying. The preferential treatment given to the exiles by the prince of Xu Guo on the territory of the Xingliao group is not worth mentioning at all. For the sake of the face of the backbone of his progressive party, it is not impossible to cash in. But Lin Qian's pursuit is not preferential treatment, but to leave that ghost place!

But at this moment, he could only nod in agreement, "...... There's some truth to what you're saying. ”

"It's not just a little reasonable, it's just too reasonable!" Liu Siyuan stood up with his hands on the desk, leaned forward, his face was close to Dongfang Se, his eyes were fixed on him, and he made empty promises on his lips, "Pardon - it is impossible now, but not necessarily in the future, if the situation changes, or they make new contributions, the chances are still very great!" ”

Dongfang Se knew that the other party was playing Wangmei's trick to quench his thirst, but he couldn't debunk it. He also wants to infiltrate the Wenyan Music Group and steal broadcasting technology.

"That's what you said!" He forcibly refused to show his displeasure on his face, took the initiative to expose sensitive topics, and invited the prince to sit down and discuss literary entertainment.

Dongfang Se proposed the idea of merging his own Dongfang Records into Wenyan Music Group, and Liu Shizi agreed in principle considering that the other party held a number of well-known signed singers and high-quality song copyrights. As for the specific merger negotiations and equity exchanges, they also need to send their own managers to negotiate in detail.

It was getting late, and the two had dinner together at the villa.

Liu Siyuan drank a little wine, his tone was a little relieved, and he took the initiative to mention Jin Tong, the author of "Wilderness Collection", and expressed sympathy for this talented young man who was innocently involved in the three major cases.

Shizi said casually: "Actually, his crime is relatively light, unlike those Datong parties, he can get a medical parole and live in the county near the penal colony, why bother to suffer in the wasteland!" ”

As soon as he said this, he was immediately grabbed by Dongfang Se's little tail, "Shizi, this is what you said!" Beihuang is the base of Xingliao Company, and Jin Tong is on medical parole, please leave it to you! ”

"Okay, you slippery!" Liu Siyuan tapped the other party a few times with his index finger, "...... Anyway, if you don't have a word, I'll help you! ”

Dongfang Se made a blank face, and said sternly: "Where is the son of the world helping me, it is clearly for the sake of the country!" ”

The strength of this sycophant is just right, and the prince smiled, "You, you!" ”

After dinner, the housekeeper personally sends the guests down the mountain. Dongfang Se felt a little more relaxed, and hummed a few words on the mountain road.

Although he didn't help Hua Xie ask for forgiveness, at least he could make Jin Tong suffer less.

The most regrettable thing is Lin Qian - if you want to meet again, I really don't know what year and month you have to wait. As soon as he thought of this, his mood couldn't help but become painful.

At the foot of the mountain to say goodbye to the housekeeper Laifu, Dongfang Se got into his car and did not go home, but asked the driver to take him to Chengtianmen for a circle.

After the establishment of the capital of Daqi, a series of urban transformations were carried out in Beijing, including the dredging and widening of sewers, the opening of Chang'an Avenue and the demolition and reconstruction of Zhengyangmen, and the construction of Xinhua Street in the north and south to open the Peace Gate...... Of course, the most eye-catching of these is the demolition of Chengtianmen Square.

In order to meet the needs of Taizu's "Great Military Parade", buildings such as the Daqing Gate, the Left Gate of Chang'an, the Right Gate of Chang'an, the Household Criminal Department, and the Warehouse Qipan Street were removed and transformed into Chengtianmen Square.

In the middle of the square, there is a tall and majestic "Great Qi Heroic Martyrs Monument", about 40 meters high, the center of the stele in front is a whole stone, engraved with Taizu's own inscription "Great Qi Heroic Martyrs are immortal" eight gold leaf characters.

On the original site of the Great Qing Gate, a statue of Taizu was built. Since the destruction of the statue of Taizu, there have been calls for the rebuilding of the statue from top to bottom, but they have all been suppressed by an inexplicable force.

Recently, there have been rumors that Jinshang intends to build a "triumphal arch" here to celebrate the victory of foreign wars in the past few years.

The street lights of the imperial capital have long been lit. The car drove past the brightly lit Chengtianmen, and Dongfang Se asked the driver to turn south and go to Zhengyangmen Street. When passing by the empty Taizu statue ruins, he took a few more careful looks, and many rebellious thoughts came to his mind.

Maybe I'm hating Taizu today, right? What happened on the night of his succession to the throne is still a secret from those in the know. The legend of forging the edict and getting the wrong position is very marketable among the people.

Perhaps it was because Taizu did not choose him that he was reluctant to rebuild the statue, but to replace it with a triumphal arch that symbolized his martial arts.

Even, if you believe that the Huajie people said to him in private that "the case of blowing up the statue was promoted by Chang Zhiqing, and Chang Zhiqing is the nail of the Military Intelligence Department", then why did he, who eats public dinner, agitate to blow up the statue of Taizu?

Maybe it's been a long time since this statue didn't look good!

No, you can't think about it any further, conspiracy theories don't make any sense!

The car drove past the Zhengyangmen Railway Station, a European-style building designed by the British, which is still the most passenger station in Daqi. The Panlong sedan squeezed through the surging flow of people with difficulty and entered the Zhengyangmen Street of "green poplar weeping willow horse cherry blossoms".

The main street is 20 meters wide. The east of the road is dominated by restaurants, pharmacies, dried fruits, and fresh shops, among which well-known restaurants such as Quanjude, Cheap Fang, Huixianju, Zhengyanglou, and Duyi are the places frequented by Dongfang Se.

Luxi is a bunch of banks, Royal Bank, Xingliao Bank, Agricultural Bank, Union Bank of Trade Unions, ...... There are also bookstores, photo studios, clothing stores, large department stores and other consumption places, which is one of the shopping meccas for women in Dijing.

At this time, the lights are on, and the vendors insist on going out despite the cold night, and the night market is becoming lively little by little. A tram passed in the middle of the road, and the tram driver touched the foot clock, and the "jingle car" made a "jingle bell, jingle bell" sound.

Dongfang Se asked the driver to drive the car into Dajiang Hutong, and did not stop when passing by the guild hall theater. The car slowly drove through the fruit market, cloth alley, embroidery street, and old ice cellar...... The alley became narrower and narrower, and Dongfang Se asked the driver to pull over and wait for him to come back, and he got out of the car and walked, turning into a narrower alley.

There are no street lights, residents can't afford electricity, and the alleys are dark.

It is no more than a kilometer away from the southern end of Chengtianmen Square, but those brilliant lights can no longer penetrate the dark night and bring light here.

It is home to the poorest population of the Imperial Palace, and houses countless low-level laborers who have poured into the city with dreams: workers who sell their strength, rickshaw drivers, waste pickers, beggars...... Most of them are in rags, with unkempt hair and dirty faces, and they do the most strenuous labor, earning only a meager income to make ends meet.

There is not a trace of the imperial city at the feet of the Son of Heaven here, "urban villages" and "slums" are the names given by the newspapers, and there are many places in the imperial capital for such "urban shame".

The houses here are only one floor, most of them are made of broken bricks and rotten wood, and as far as the eye can see, there are countless rickety human figures shuttling between the low walls and grass sheds, like big rats.

Dongfang Se frowned and passed by the rats until he reached the end of the alley. There was a light there, the only electric light in the alley.

It was the residence of Qiu Feng, the editor of the printing house he trusted the most.

Qiu Feng's dwelling was much cleaner than anywhere else in the alley, with three cabins, a bedroom, a study, a kitchen, and a small courtyard.

The gate was open, and it was crowded with people.

In the middle of the yard, bamboo poles were erected, and wires and light bulbs were raised. Under the light, there is a blackboard with the words "Learn to settle accounts" and "negotiation methods...... Chalk words like that.

Qiu Feng, a young progressive party member, dressed in a bloated padded jacket and trousers, stood in front of a blackboard and was lecturing to more than 30 poor men sitting on broken wooden benches.

“…… Last time, I told you that since you have started a trade union, you should not be afraid of struggle and be brave enough to fight for the interests of the working class. Someone asked me today, Mr. Qiu, what should I do if the boss doesn't agree to bargain with us, is it an immediate strike? No, let's talk about a salute before the soldiers, the strike is the last resort, and don't use it lightly until the end. So what are the ways we can force the boss to negotiate before the strike......"

Dongfang Se listened to a few words outside the door, and smiled dumbly, this Qiu Feng really will never give up.

Qiu Feng was once a member of the Datong Party and the Chinese Liberation Party, and he was the oldest of them. In the early days of its founding, there was a subtle quasi-vassal relationship with the Progressive Party. As a result, he was sent by the PLA to join the Progressive Party as a liaison between the two sides.

Because members of the Progressive Party could only join the only party, he nominally withdrew from the CPL.

As the Chinese Liberation Party and the Progressive Party drifted apart, the presence of liaison officers became more and more indispensable in order to communicate in a timely manner and avoid misunderstandings. Qiu Feng was active in the Progressive Party most of the time, and only maintained regular contact with the Chinese Liberation Party to inform both sides.

Huajie's planning of the three major cases completely concealed Qiu Feng; But while the case was being investigated, he was briefly detained, expelled from school, and lost his job as a secondary school teacher.

Fortunately, he had the status of a progressive party member, so the Military Intelligence Bureau was jealous, unwilling to be involved too much, and finally escaped.

The top brass of the Progressive Party was clear about Qiu Feng's political outlook and completely marginalized him. Since then, Qiu Feng's situation has become more and more embarrassing.

He was born in a rural area, his family was poor, and his parents and siblings needed to send money back every month to take care of him. Suffering from this difficulty, he greatly broke his fortune, his savings were all gone, and the marriage that had been negotiated was also blown, thanks to Dongfang Se's response, he got a position as an editor of the Press, and finally had no worries about food and clothing.

Dongse's salary for him was not low, enough to maintain a decent life. But Qiu Feng insisted on renting a house in the slums, first, because the rent was cheap, and secondly, "he could always have access to the toiling masses".

Seeing the boss come to the door, Qiu Feng was stunned for a moment, and stopped lecturing, "Dong...... Boss Dong? ”

Dongfang Se crossed the threshold, walked into the small courtyard, and nodded, "I have something to do with you." ”

Qiu Feng hesitantly looked at the "students" in front of him, of course the poor man would not embarrass him, one of the big men who seemed to be the leader stood up and said to the others: "Mr. Qiu has something, let's go back first, and come back tomorrow to listen to Mr.'s lecture!" ”

The poor men agreed in a hurry, said goodbye to Qiu Feng one by one, and rushed out of the narrow courtyard gate.

When the people were gone, Dongfang Se lightly closed the two black lacquered wooden doors in the small courtyard, and made a gesture of invitation to Qiu Feng, "Or come to your study to talk?" ”

Qiu Feng smiled bitterly, helpless against the big boss who was mainly anti-customer, "Okay, you go first." I'll clean up. ”

He packed up the bench, bamboo poles, and wires, pulled the light bulb back to the study, and lit it again, and the boss of the East had already lit the brazier by himself, pulled a chair and sat next to it, and started the fire.