Listening to Yang Du's disheartened answer, Liang Qichao was a little surprised, and he was speechless for a while.

Liang Qichao and Yang Du are very familiar friends, the two first met in the "book on the bus", after Yang Du studied in Japan at his own expense, and Liang Qichao met in Yokohama, Yang Du felt that "national affairs are sad and unknowable", and Liang Qichao's "Juvenile China Says", do "Hunan Youth Song", which contains the sentence "If the Chinese country dies, unless the Hunan people die", Liang Qichao was admired, and Yang Liang became the best in the world.

Although Yang Du and Liang Qichao, who followed Yuan Shikai together, parted ways for a time because of the relationship between the "Hongxian Empire", the dispute between the two did not affect their personal friendship.

"Yang Hanzhi stopped Liuzhou, this is to start concentrating on the operation of Liangguang." Yang Du flipped through the newspaper and looked at it, and smiled bitterly, "He still really wants to be this 'high-tech warlord'."

"Whether it's a high-tech warlord or an imbecile warlord, as long as you want to be a warlord, the country will not be at peace." Liang Qichao sighed.

"Xiang Chenggong is gone, no one can dominate my China, in the future, warlords will be everywhere, wolf smoke will be everywhere, and it will be much better for Liangguang to get a high-tech warlord than those imbeciles." Yang Du said, his eyes fell on another piece of news, "He Duan Zhiquan sent Fu Liangzuo to supervise Xiang, saying that it was to respond to the public opinion of 'Hunan people governing Hunan', although his intentions are good, I am afraid that the effect will backfire." ”

Hearing Yang Du's casual analysis of the current situation, all of them hit the nail on the head, Liang Qichao couldn't help but secretly admire it in his heart.

"Why did the Lady say that?"

"Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi have already harmed Hunan enough, if he really wants to end the war for the people of Hunan, he shouldn't send another master to add to the chaos and make the water more muddy." Yang Du sighed and said, "It's a pity that Xiang Chenggong didn't listen to me and didn't give Yang Hanzhi full military power as soon as possible, so that the war and disaster in my Sanxiang land were connected, and the people were miserable." ”

Listening to Yang Du's words, Liang Qichao couldn't help but sigh.

Since Zhang Jingyao entered Hunan to serve as the envoy of Xiangnan Town, the Zhang brothers have planted private property in Hunan, greatly expanded the private army, issued paper money indiscriminately, expropriated and extorted money, and looted the people's wealth to the point of no return, not only harming the grassroots people, but also the gentry and wealthy businessmen. After Tang Tianxi entered Hunan, the degree of his misconduct was no worse than that of Zhang Jingyao. In order to grab territory and financial resources with Zhang Jingyao, Tang Tianxi launched a large-scale melee in Hunan.

Zhang Jingyao has always had the support of Duan Qirui, he doesn't take Tang Tianxi, Zhao Hengti and others in his eyes at all on weekdays, and is waiting to pick up Yang Shuoming's ready-made cheap after the southern provinces are pacified, and become the overseer of Hunan. But he underestimated the ambitions of Tang and Zhao. After the restoration of the Republic of China, Tang Tianxi immediately telegraphed the whole country, saying that the purpose of joining the ranks of southern warlords was to "oppose the imperial system", and now that he had "restored the republic", he announced that he would regain the jurisdiction of the Beijing government, and asked the Beijing government not to send troops to attack him. Duan Qirui of course welcomed Tang Tianxi's attitude, and specially instructed Yang Shuoming not to attack Tang Tianxi. After Tang Tianxi relieved his worries, he was overjoyed, but also had the dream of supervising Hunan, and he united with Zhao Hengti to oppose Zhang Jingyao everywhere, which eventually led to the two sides fighting each other.

The melee between Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi brought great disasters to the people of Hunan....... More than 70 counties, no land, no disaster, 30 million people's homes, no home, no ......", "The Tang army went first, Zhang Jun followed, the Tang army swept by, Zhang Jun plundered, and Yin, and killed. "In particular, Zhang Jingyao's department burned and looted in Zhuzhou and Liling, and more than 100,000 innocent people died, "this military disaster, especially in Liling and Zhuzhou, the most tragic two places, Liling experienced fire robbery, the most intense time, the fire spread from the town to the countryside, for half a month, more than 100 miles around the place without seeing traces of people for more than 20 days, the war ended, and only 28 people were left in Liling County." "After several street battles in Zhuzhou, there is no family, from Zhuzhou to Pingxiang Railway, men, women and children, corpses are piled up like a mountain, and the train can not cross the ......", "In the area outside Yueyang Nanguan, the Tang army set fire to more than 1,000 houses...... Where the Tang army was stationed, the doors and windows, the walls, the beams and corners, and the halls and pavilions were all demolished......"...,

In 1918, Hunan's "Republic of China Daily" described the tragic situation in the province as follows: "...... It is not counting that a number of Hunan people have died, but they also have to pay a number of property, and the war has come and gone, and the war has reached this day, and Hunan, which was once golden, has become a situation where the earth is scorched and the people are scorched. At present, in addition to the high-ranking Hunan people, who can also enjoy some small leisure blessings, the rest of the Hunan people, some died on the shores of the mountainside lake, some are exiled in foreign lands, the color of the scorched earth is everywhere, and there is nowhere to find a complete residence. The people standing on the scorched earth are not crying out for cold, but also crying out for hunger, and the people hidden in the dwellings are not for cooking, but also for the corpses to be cut, and there are also the divorced women, looking at the autumn wind and weeping, and the old mother leaning on the Lu and looking at the son. The list goes on and on. ”

The people of Hunan gritted their teeth and hated the atrocities of Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi, and sometimes there was a folk song saying: "White-faced Tang, white-faced Tang (referring to Tang Tianxi, who has done a play), killed my chickens, ate my geese, and ruined my grandmother." "Dignified Zhang, Yao Shunyu Tang (all names of Zhang Jingyao's brothers), one, two, three, four, tigers, leopards, jackals"

In order to put an end to this terrible suffering, the people of Hunan began a vigorous campaign to "expel Zhang Tang," and all the enlightened forces inside and outside Hunan Province were united. The Hunan gentry with social status took every opportunity to complain about the crimes of Zhang Jingyao, Tang Tianxi and others to various political groups and on various political occasions, and worked hard to publish various publications (such as "Hunan", "Xiangsheng", and "Tianwen") to widely publicize Zhang Tang's various atrocities in Hunan to all the people; Hunan students jointly boycotted classes and sent representatives to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other places to petition; Faculty and staff from the provincial city of Changsha also joined the petition. In less than a month, the notoriety of Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi was already known to the whole country, and the All-China Federation of All Walks of Life, the All-China Federation of Students, and overseas student groups all expressed their solidarity and demanded that the Beijing government conform to public opinion and expel Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi.

What is surprising, however, is that the Beijing government, controlled by Duan Qirui, has taken a helpless attitude in the face of surging public opinion, and has done nothing about the scuffle between Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi in Hunan

The behavior of the Beijing government made the Hunan gentry, students, and even ordinary people extremely disappointed in the Beijing government, and the people of Hunan were not willing to be ravaged and chose the road of "expelling Zhang Tang by force" and organized armed attacks on Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi on their own, and some local Hunan troops also joined in. Wherever Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi's troops went, the vast number of peasants used hoes and flat shoulders as weapons to cut off traffic and seize baggage, and wherever the Hunan army went, the people took the initiative to supply supplies in an endless stream, and "the losers gathered freely and fed the Wangwu", so that the Zhang Tang bandit army suffered a heavy blow and had to retreat in several major cities.

At a time when the armed struggle to expel Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi was in full swing, the "Hunan people governing Hunan Province" that the people of Hunan had put forward spontaneously was also put on the agenda. Tan Yankai, the new governor of Hunan Province, issued a national telegram and publicly proposed that "Hunan people govern Hunan Province": "The autonomy of all provinces is the common psychology of our people,...... The Hunan people used troops this time, the pure Hunan people saved Hunan Province, and the Hunan people were unanimously determined to govern Hunan Province...... Kai and all the people,...... Based on the public opinion of the Hunan people, it was decided that the local system for participating in the deliberations of the National Assembly should adopt the system of elected governors and counselors, and that provisional regulations should be formulated and promulgated for implementation. ”

Later, Tan Yanmin telegraphed the whole country several times, announcing "Hunan autonomy" and advocating "inter-provincial autonomy" across the country; Celebrities from all walks of life in Hunan, representatives of various social organizations, and journalists were invited to hold a joint meeting to discuss the plan for "Hunan autonomy."

The reason why Tan Yankai did this was also a last resort, the Hunan army was able to drive out Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi, but it did not have the strength to protect the whole Hunan province, Zhang Jingyao belonged to the old man of Duan Qirui's Anhui line, and Tang Tianxi had already shown his allegiance to the Anhui system, and the expulsion of Zhang Tang had undoubtedly offended the Anhui system, so Tan Yankai had to resist with the method of "inter-provincial autonomy", and planned to use the public will of all Hunan people to stop the force of the Anhui system outside the provincial gate; Moreover, Yang Shuoming's Jiangxi army has pacified Liangguang Yunnan and has become a powerful warlord force in China that can compete with the Anhui system, Tan Yankai wants to use the name of "inter-provincial autonomy" to attract Yang Shuoming to join, and use Yang Shuoming's military strength to resist Duan Qirui. Tan Yankai believes that if Yang Shuoming wants to go north to compete with Duan Qirui, he will inevitably take Hunan, and judging from what Yang Shuoming did during the pacification of the two Guangzhou, compared with Duan Qirui, Yang Shuoming is obviously much more open, so the only way to prevent the invasion of Anhui forces into Hunan is to appeal to the "Hunan autonomy" of the entire public opinion of Hunan. …,

On the one hand, he ordered the Beijing government to "reprimand" Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi and recognize Tan Yankai's status as governor, and on the other hand, he took over Tan Yankai's slogan of "Hunan people governing Hunan Province" and ordered Fu Liangzuo (Duan Qirui's brother-in-law) from Qiancheng, Hunan to lead the army into Hunan and serve as the Hunan overseer.

And Yang Du, who has always been extremely concerned about his hometown Hunan, of course knows what Duan Qirui's intentions are.

Duan Qirui has been extremely worried about Yang Shuoming, who is currently serving as the patrol envoy of the two Guangxi and has the support of the navy, although Yang Shuoming has agreed to the proposal of the two to join forces, but Duan Qirui is not at ease, the reason why Yang Shuoming's Jiangxi army did not march into Yunnan after pacifying the two Guangzhou, Duan Qirui also guessed that it was because the Jiangxi army needed to rest and recuperate in continuous combat. At this time, the war in Hunan will inevitably affect Yang Shuoming's rear, which can be used to contain Yang Shuoming's military strength and make him have no time to be distracted.

After Zhang Jingyao and Tang Tianxi were defeated, Fu Liangzuo was able to enter Hunan and pacify it in one fell swoop, so that Hunan could become the sphere of influence of the Anhui system, and at the same time, it also became a springboard for the Anhui system to go south and a barrier to prevent Yang Shuoming from going north.

"Actually, Yang Hanzhi has the strength to end the war in Hunan, but he is still in Liangguang," Liang Qichao said, "Isn't he really interested in Lao Tan's proposal of 'inter-provincial autonomy'?" ”

"What about 'inter-provincial autonomy'? The so-called 'inter-provincial autonomy' is nothing more than two levels of meaning, that is, each province formulates its own provincial constitution and organizes its own provincial government to govern its own province in accordance with the provincial constitution; second, on the basis of the autonomy of each province, each province selects and appoints representatives to formulate an inter-provincial constitution so as to realize the unity of the country. Yang Du replied, "Actually, this is a very realistic choice, and it is better than such a warlord melee." If he Yang Hanzhi chooses inter-provincial autonomy, now is the right time. ”

After listening to Yang Du's answer, Liang Qichao nodded unconsciously.

For many Chinese in later generations, they only know "centralized power", and the term "inter-provincial autonomy" has always been quite unfamiliar, and what they do not know is that this national system was once simply and rudely labeled as "the fig leaf of local warlords whitewashing their secession conspiracy" because of the sharp conflict with the "Northern Expedition unification" line of the leader, and was thrown into the eighteenth layer of hell, and it will never be able to turn over.

In fact, the Chinese have this kind of "federal" national ideal, which has been around for a long time. After the success of Xinhai ** and the establishment of the Nanjing Provisional Government, it was clearly stated: "The system of the United States of America should be a model for our country and other days." "After Yuan Shikai unified the north and the south as the president, the Progressives controlled public opinion and held high the banner of centralized power; The party was afraid of Yuan Shikai's rule, so they did not make any specific provisions on the relationship between the central government and the provincial governments at all levels in the "Provisional Covenant Law". After Yuan Shikai dissolved the National Assembly, the Progressives also began to advocate the expansion of provincial autonomy. After the establishment of the Republic of China, the national ideal of federalism has become quite influential among Chinese intellectuals, such as Zhang Shizhao, who has repeatedly said that "all the provinces of our country can be linked to each other, and there is no obstacle to the unity of the country."

Since Xinhai**, the theory of federal autonomy has become one of the most popular political trends in Chinese intellectual circles. After Yuan Shikai became emperor, the theory of federal autonomy fell silent for a while, after which the ** party members made a comeback with the support of the Japanese, raised the flag against Yuan in the south, and made it clear that the establishment of a centralized republic was also established. From the republic to the imperial system, people saw the danger of excessive centralization, and the danger of warlord melee after the collapse of the "Hongxian Empire" pushed the theory of federal autonomy to an unprecedented climax.

At the level of local small and medium-sized warlords, large and small military leaders hope to rely on "autonomy" to keep the "armed unification" of the big Beiyang warlords out of the provincial gate; At the popular level, it is hoped that "autonomy" will end the catastrophe and the danger of warlord warfare caused by the continued instability of the country; At the level of intellectuals, the upper-class line of national salvation has been followed for many years, and nothing has been achieved, but there is a danger of causing great chaos in the world, and Chinese intellectuals hope to rely on "autonomy" and try to follow another middle-level line of national salvation. …,

As an excellent politician with a deep understanding of the current state of Chinese politics, Yang Du certainly knows the pros and cons of this.

"The reopening of the Congress is imminent, but he Duan Zhiquan has made such a stupid move, I am afraid that there will be good fruits to eat." Yang Du said.

"Congress reopens, what do you think?" Liang Qichao heard Yang Du mention the reopening of the Congress, and immediately asked.

"If Congress can't be opened, it doesn't make sense to me anymore." Yang Du looked at Liang Qichao, smiled, and said, "But you, Liang Rengong, can show off your skills." ”

Liang Qichao heard the irony in Yang Du's words, he just smiled and didn't say anything, but a trace of pride and confidence involuntarily flashed in his eyes.

He did not tell Yang Du that the reason why the parliament was able to reopen had a lot to do with the cooperation between his research department and Duan Qirui.

Although Duan Qirui was born in the military, he also knew the importance of literati, and Duan Qirui studied in Germany and admired the representative system of the West. Duan Qirui also hoped to implement the representative system in China, so he started a close cooperation with the research department headed by Liang Qichao and Tang Hualong a long time ago.

The predecessor of the Graduate School was the Progressive Party, which was the second largest party after the Kuomintang at the time of the National Assembly, and developed from the constitutionalist faction in the late Qing Dynasty and had quite a strong foundation in various places. After Yuan Shikai failed to restore the imperial system and died, Liang Qichao gave Duan Qirui great support in guiding public opinion with his brilliant pen, and even scolded his own teacher Kang Youwei. After Duan Qirui came to power, the cooperation between the Department of Research and Duan Qirui can be said to have entered the honeymoon period. The provisional Senate established during Duan Qirui's "quelling of the turmoil" was established with the support of the research department, and Duan Qirui's intention to reopen the National Assembly was also vigorously responded to by Liang Qichao, and the system and even the election methods of the new National Assembly were also single-handedly created by Liang Qichao and others.

The wishful thinking of Liang Qichao and other research department bigwigs is like this: after the "Hongxian Empire" and the southern rebellion, the original forces belonging to the Kuomintang, including Sun's China ** Party, have collapsed and become unformed, and although the Department of Communications has strong financial resources, it is not like a political party, and it does not have much political ambition.

As the head of the research department, Liang Qichao hopes to truly show his political ambitions after the victory in the parliamentary election, and wash away the shame caused by the failure of the radical "Wuxu Reform" and the national turmoil.

"There are a few things that need to be paid more attention to by Zhuo Ru when the Congress is reconvened this time." Yang Du saw what Liang Qichao was thinking in his heart and reminded him.

"I want to hear about it." Liang Qichao restrained his thoughts, and a look of concern appeared on his face.

"Duan Zhiquan is a person who can be a general, not an emperor, let alone an emperor," Yang Du said, "Although he proposed to reopen the Congress, what he wants in his heart is a Congress that can listen to him, and I think Zhuo Ru should know this in his heart." ”

Liang Qichao listened to Yang Du's words, was slightly stunned, and then nodded a little reluctantly......,