Zhonghe Bridge is an important bridge in the eighth district, and it is the main land transportation route between the towns and villages near Egong City, Qinyu City and Pingzheng County for a hundred years.

On one side is the eighth district, and on the other side is the Senlin, Senzhi and Pingdong Delta.

Walking along the banks of the Pingdong River via the Zhonghe Bridge, there are many warehouses of produce and seafood and several flat weaving and knitting factories run by hipsters. The most famous of this generation is the Mickey Mouse Soy Sauce Factory, which produces a very popular seasoning that can be said to be in short supply.

Further on is the Mori Tan area, which is famous for its supply of charcoal.

Due to the convenience of waterway transportation, many carpenter rely on waterway rafts to deliver wood from upstream, so there are many woodyards along the river. In order to improve efficiency, the Li family's "Hexing" wood mill not only transports by water, but also by land.

The brother and sister found that more than 20 large trucks of their transport team were full of timber, and they had been waving a long line to Xima Bridge, blocking the section from Delta to Zhonghe Bridge, and the riverbank in front of the wood factory became a "giant wooden beach".

Rich families burn coal, ordinary people burn firewood, and poor families can only burn grass or tree bark for cooking.

The "Hexing" wood mill is the largest wood mill in the area, and many people who pry the bark for a living are busy on the "giant wood beach". They only need labor, no capital, and they can dry the bark and sell it as firewood to make a living.

It is not easy for anyone to make a living in troubled times.

The stewards of the woodyard turned a blind eye and let them pry. However, I heard that the residents who live nearby are fighting for each other, and there are frequent beatings caused by snatching tree bark.

"Uncle Wang, is my dad here?"

The little girl ran to the gate of the woodyard with a familiar car, and the steward who was directing the unloading of the wood was taken aback, and hurriedly met her and asked, "Young master, miss, how did you come here?" ”

Li Weimin helped his sunglasses, looked back at the person who plucked the bark, and smiled casually: "Coming." ”

This is a gathering area for soldiers and military families of the Pingchuan faction, mixed with fish and dragons, there are everyone, plus there was an accident just some time ago, Wang Bo had palpitations, and while beckoning the two of them in, he buried his grievances and said: "Young master, you should call Ah Cheng when you come out, the world is so chaotic, you can't do it next time you go out." ”

"Yes, I'll take notice."

"The master is drinking tea with Boss Wu, Boss Qian, and Mr. Zhang inside, and you can't leave people outside, you go in by yourself."

"Go ahead and leave us alone."

The Li family only sells timber, does not process woodware, and does not build ships like many woodyards along the river, and the factory building in the yard is empty, except for a large sawmill.

The office is on the left side of the factory, and there are three Ford cars parked at the door, and several drivers leaning on the car to smoke and chat, and when they saw the two of them entering the compound, they hurriedly snuffed out the cigarette butts.

I didn't want to stay at home to recuperate, so I came here.

Li Guanyun was taken aback, considering that there were outsiders and the two of them were not small, so they could only ask the two of them to say hello to the elders as if nothing had happened.

Good things don't go out, bad things spread thousands of miles, almost everyone knows about being arrested by Pingchuan soldiers, a middle-aged man put down his cup and asked with concern: "For the people, is the injury serious, take off your glasses and let your uncle see." ”

Wu Shounan is not only a friend of the Li family, but also a real fellow villager, and his hometown in the mainland is in the same township and village, but he came to Saigon more than ten years later than the Li family.

He was born into a family of scholars and is fluent in English and French. Opened Cheung Yuen Rice Mill in Sai Kung, purchased rice for processing white rice, and sold it to Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Macao. At the same time, it also operates Daguang Petroleum Company, acting as an agent for Texaco and Mobil's petroleum products, and its business has developed rapidly and greatly.

Can't be rude in front of the elders, Li Weimin took off his glasses and stood beside his "father": "It's no big deal, it's not a big deal, it's not sensible for the people, so the three uncles are worried." ”

"It's okay, we're still waiting to drink your favorite wine."

Wu Shounan nodded slightly, then turned around and sighed: "Brother Guanyun, the tiger father has no dogs!" has a responsibility for the people, if he hadn't tried his best to carry things down, Mr. Ma wouldn't have one or two people to protect. ”

Boss Qian thought so, nodded again and again: "Yes, a big disaster is coming, and it is not easy to do this." Courageous, responsible, and with unlimited future for the people. ”

The Li family is this only seedling, counting on him to inherit the family business and inherit the ancestry, Li Guanyun didn't think so, shook his head and smiled bitterly: "The good thing is that the newborn calf is not afraid of tigers, and the bad thing is that it is not deeply involved in the world and does not know the severity." The ancients did not stand under the dangerous wall, so they didn't want to take on such a responsibility. ”

"Dad, I was wrong."

"It's good to know your mistakes, and this time it should be a lesson."

"Yes."

Boss Qian opened the "Yun Xing" in Saigon, specializing in department stores, covering several provinces in Vietnam, and there are six large trucks that usually deliver goods. Boss Zhang opened "Yuanfa Foreign Company" at No. 71 Huayuan Street, dealing in department stores, "Paris Night" perfumes, Frante wines and other goods, and the business is not small.

There must be something going on when they got together, looking at the newspaper on the table, Li Weimin realized that it should be discussing the current situation.

Wu Shounan noticed his gaze and asked with interest: "Weimin, what do you think of the battle situation in the north, and where do you think we should go next?" ”

Without waiting for him to speak, Wu Guanyun picked up the cup and said, "He just came back from the United States, what does he know." ”

Boss Zhang lit a cigarette and said solemnly: "Brother Guanyun, the authorities are obsessed with bystanders, and the people are outside, so they may see it better than us." Besides, the back waves of the Yangtze River push the front waves, we can work for a few years, and these family businesses will be handed over to them after all. ”

"yes, ignore your dad, tell me what you think."

When they came back from the United States, unlike other people's children, they either went to Hong Kong to study or went to France for further study. Li Guanyun didn't say anything more, and looked at his son with a smile, wondering what he had to say.

If you want to do a career, you can't do without the support of the Chinese, and only by gaining the trust of the Chaozhou Gang can you win the Cantonese Gang, the Hakka Gang, the Minnan Gang, and the Hainan Gang. Only by gaining the trust and support of the Five Gangs Association can we further win over the Nong and Hmong people, who are fierce and dare to fight and kill.

Although he clearly understood that he didn't have the "spirit of the king", and it was impossible to make people willing to do it with you just by saying a few words, Li Weimin still pondered for a moment, straightened his thoughts, and analyzed it in detail:

"The battle situation in Dien Bien Phu is not optimistic, it can be two or three months at the fastest, half a year at the slowest, and sooner or later it will be captured by the Viet Minh. There are three reasons for this conclusion: first, the French army is a pure rabble, and the composition of the Foreign Legion is too complex, Germans, Africans, and Algerians. In addition, the Vietnamese and Lao soldiers, whose personnel composition is equally complex, will not know the soldiers and the soldiers, and it will be difficult to form a joint force, and perhaps even command will become a problem. ”

Wu Shounan groaned: "It makes sense, go on." ”

"Second, morale is not as good as that of the Vietminh. The Foreign Legion fought for money, the Baoda army did not even have much money, and the Viet Minh had organization and faith, especially belief, this thing was very strong, they knew what they were fighting for, they were not afraid of sacrifice, even at all costs, in the face of such an opponent, the French army was defeated and invincible. ”

Boss Zhang sighed: "Those who win the hearts of the people win the world, ** is such a defeat." ”

Li Weimin took a deep breath and continued: "Then the Korean War is over, and Beijing can free up its hands to support the Vietminh." And the United States managed to get out of North Korea with great difficulty, and it is impossible to enter the war again. What's more, the situation in Vietnam is different from that of North Korea, where France is a colony, and the United States is not willing to fight with China again, but also has to take into account international morality, at most give some assistance, and the possibility of sending troops is very small. ”

The newspapers are saying that the United States will never sit idly by, but he has a completely different view. Boss Qian stared at him and asked suspiciously, "Are you sure?" ”

"Uncle Qian, the little nephew is by no means untargeted. Seven years of war proved that France could not establish a Vietnamese government comparable to that of the Viet Minh. Before I returned, the New York Times quoted a veteran observer as saying that if the United States adopted a Korean War-style intervention stance, the Vietnam War would be dragged out by the Korean War for a longer period of time and at a greater cost. ”

This is not that later generations of netizens are idle and have nothing to do to discuss national affairs, but it is directly related to the life of the family.

Wu Shounan took the cigarette from Li Guanyun and said worriedly: "If Dien Bien Phu is lost, it will be difficult for Hanoi to keep it." The lessons of the interior and the DPRK are there, and the Viet Minh army will definitely move south, and the army will be defeated like a mountain, and Saigon will be in danger! ”

Li Guanyun sighed secretly and asked in a low voice, "Brother Shounan, you mean to leave?" ”

"If the soldiers are coming to the city, won't you leave?"

"It's easy to go, it's the key to where to go. What's more, the business is all here, what can you do after you leave? ”

"There is no endless road, if you prepare early, at least you can recover some losses, it is better than staying here and being slaughtered."

……

Everything you say and I say is all about how to get out of this place of right and wrong, which shows that they have no confidence in the French army, and they have already made up their minds to leave.

Li Weimin smiled and suddenly said, "Dad, Uncle Wu, in fact, we don't need to be so anxious. One is that the Vietminh did not hit Saigon so quickly. Second, the United States is unwilling to go to war with China, because China has just finished the Korean War and is in ruins, and it is also unwilling to go to war with the United States again. If nothing else, Beijing will restrain the Vietminh, and the United States, the Soviet Union, Britain, and France will not go to Geneva for a meeting, and perhaps the situation will soon turn around. ”

"Virtuous nephew, do you mean that it will be like North Korea, one south and one north, divide and rule."

"There is a possibility, and it is very likely, that at least they will be separated first, and a timetable will be given as North Korea did at the beginning, and a general election will be held in a few years to form a coalition government. Of course, it will not be easy to form a coalition government, but it will give the South a respite, and the North will need time for the Vietminh to digest the fruits of victory. ”