In late August, the petition for a school boycott, a market boycott and a march initiated by the "Baolu Comrades Association" had spread throughout Sichuan, and the turmoil that lasted for more than two months had led to the stagnation of all industries and the paralysis of administration.

On August 24, the general meeting of shareholders of the Sichuan-Han Railway Company was held again, and Pu Dianjun and others on the stage cried before they could say anything, and thousands of people in the audience were sad and helpless, and the tears did not stop, and soon the tears were like rain, and the crying shook the whole city.

The next day, the leaflets distributed by the general meeting of the railway shareholders were spread to all parts of Sichuan, calling on the people of the whole province to unite to resist donations and taxes, and the alliances in various places responded to the call, and the turmoil in various parts of Bashu suddenly escalated.

At a time when this chaos was frequent and the revolution was about to break out, Zhao Erfeng, who was urgently appointed by the Manchu court as the acting governor of Sichuan, rushed back to Chengdu from the Kang-Tibet region, and after entering Chengdu, a battalion of border troops accompanying him began to take over the city's defenses.

The leaders of all walks of life in Sichuan, who had gathered in Chengdu, were shocked and hurriedly ordered all actions to be stopped, and the members of the League, who were extremely active in leading the direction of the struggle, quickly went underground.

Zhao Erfeng in several years of Kang-Tibet counterinsurgency war, known for his iron blood, from Xichuan to Lhasa, one by one rebel groups were exterminated, Zhao Erfeng three words can stop the night cry of Tibetan children, the border army he led is brave and fierce, invincible, even the British who are bewitched and instigated behind have to persuade the rebels to withdraw to India to avoid its edge, such a decisive fierce man, how can not make all forces panic and fear?

What is even worse is that the various forces in Sichuan, which have been carrying out various campaigns all day long to keep the railway, and who are busy up and down in the dark, suddenly discovered that the barren north school field has taken on a new look and is heavily guarded, and the flaming red banner embroidered with golden flying leopards in the "Zhenzi Battalion" of the border army under Zhao Erxun has been erected high, and nearly 1,000 well-equipped elite soldiers from two battalions have suddenly emerged from the big camp. It is rumored that 18 Krupp guns and a large number of guns and ammunition have been transported back to Chengdu from the fifteen-mile wharf in the eastern suburbs, and now all of them have been hoarded in the Zhenzi camp.

Even if Xiao Yimin, the leader of the Zhenzi Battalion and Zhao Erfeng's closed disciple who supported the Baolu Movement, did not betray the revolution, Zhao Erfeng only needed to remove Xiao Yimin and replace him with a confidant general to take over the Zhenzi Battalion, which would pose a serious threat to all units of the New Army inside and outside the city.

The leaders of the railway company and the Baolu comrades thought everywhere and secretly contacted Xiao Yimin, but Xiao Yimin was always left by Zhao Erfeng's side.

Xiao Yimin, who received the order a week ago, hurriedly left Chengdu and rushed to Ya'an, and according to the usual practice, Zhao Erfeng, the minister of Jingbian and the new governor of Sichuan, who had just left the battlefield, returned to Chengdu.

On the morning of 29 August, Zhao Erfeng urgently summoned Pu Dianjun, chairman of the Consultative Bureau, Luo Lun, vice chairman of the Consultative Bureau, Zhu Qinglan, Yin Changheng, commanders of the New Army, and other generals and colonels, as well as representatives of the Sichuan-Han Railway Company, to listen to the opinions of all walks of life, inquire about the situation in various localities, and finally said very sternly: Everything can be discussed, but all violent actions must be stopped, and Sichuan must not be chaotic!

Xiao Yimin, who participated in the meeting as the leader of the Zhenzi Battalion, stood behind Zhao Erfeng from beginning to end, and in the face of the inquiring eyes of Luo Lun and others, he just nodded slightly to indicate that he was not good at talking at this time.

Seeing that Xiao Yimin did not change his attitude, Luo Lun and the others were very determined, went back to convene the core meeting, and after fierce debate, they reluctantly reached an agreement: temporarily stop all armed actions, and continue to exert pressure on Zhao Erfeng in the form of peaceful demonstrations (processions) and petitions!

However, how could the local alliances and gang organizations that had already killed the red eye stop here?

Two-thirds of the counties in Sichuan have been completely paralyzed, and the green forests and heroes who occupy the mountains from all walks of life have taken the opportunity to go out to fish in troubled waters everywhere, burning, killing and looting, countless grain depots, military depots and civilian houses have been burned down, and the unarmed people in the counties have gone bankrupt and suffered heavy casualties, and the "Baolu Comrade Army" who have defeated the garrisons in various counties have faced such a big head, and under the strong demand of the people everywhere, they can only fight against the bandits who have become more crazy. There is nothing that can be done in the face of a situation that is completely out of control.

Xiao Yimin, who was forcibly dragged to a secret meeting of the Consultative Bureau, was deeply disappointed by the fact that he had been claiming to be peacefully demonstrating.

In front of many representatives of various forces who demanded that he take a stand, Xiao Yimin wrote an article on the spot, and with a wave of his enthusiasm, he was anxious about the current chaos that has swept the whole of Sichuan and the grim situation of continuous heavy casualties, and called on all parties to remain rational and seek a final solution in the form of dialogue and consultation; at the same time, he also issued a stern condemnation and warning to the bandits in various parts of Sichuan, and called on the people in all parts of Sichuan to take up arms and unite to defend their homeland.

Before leaving, Xiao Yimin quietly suggested to Pu Dianchen, Luo Lun, Yang Shukan and Zhu Qinglan who saw him off:

"I have an idea, and I must keep it secret for me after I say it: I think it is completely possible to find a way to intercept the taxes paid by Sichuan to the Manchu court to make up for the losses in all aspects, but the situation in this province must be stabilized first, otherwise everything is empty talk."

Pu Dianjun and the others immediately opened their mouths, and immediately convened a core meeting, the participants had long been panicked in the face of the out-of-control situation and the unknown future, and they were all in high spirits when they learned of this wonderful method, and they must know that Sichuan pays more than 40 million yuan in taxes every year, so much money can be repaired on the two Sichuan-Han railways, not to mention that things have been eroded to this point, what else is there to fear? If the imperial court really wants to force everyone to have no way out, it's a big deal to unite and fight with the imperial court!

A few responsible persons of the League went back to close the door and applauded the case, and withholding the taxes of the Manchu court under the slogan of defending the interests of the people in Sichuan was the best revolutionary action, and it was definitely better than the railway to win the support of the broad masses of the people. Isn't it the best struggle strategy to mobilize the whole of Sichuan to resist donations and taxes, and then accomplish the great cause of the revolution?

Yang Shukan was so excited that he "scolded" Xiao Yimin for being insidious and cunning, and then immediately drafted a telegram with his comrades, reporting the latest situation and Xiao Yimin's suggestions to the headquarters of the League for instructions.

Compared with other chaotic counties, the provincial capital Chengdu and more than a dozen surrounding counties have calmed down in a blink of an eye, students have finished their turbulent "holidays" and returned to school, hundreds of teahouses throughout the city are still thriving, businessmen continue to open their doors to do business, the troops that used to be seen everywhere have returned to the barracks to continue training, and the police are once again leisurely roaming the streets.

More than 1,000 workers shirtless or in blue-gray canvas overalls were building the final road in the north school yard, and drum-shaped stone piers were thrown high in the sound of the trumpets of more than a dozen men, making a heavy crashing sound every time they fell.

A group of generals and guards climbed the newly built fort in the northern section of the western city wall, looked around, sighed, and envied the brand-new battalion in front of them.

Zhao Erfeng overlooked the entire well-organized and well-equipped camp, and asked Xiao Yimin around him from time to time what were the novel buildings? What does it do? And how was it built?

Xiao Yimin reported one by one, detailing the design and construction of the water tower, the guard tower, and the arsenal, and attributed all the credit to the construction company and the German military attache Sharpler.

Zhao Erfeng nodded frequently, and finally pointed to the more than 1,000 workers on the main road who were sweating like rain and asked, "These are all people from Huaxi Company?" ”

"I can't hide anything from the teacher, these 1,200 people are still nominally construction workers of the Huaxi Group Engineering Company, and most of them have undergone basic military training, and once the war requires, they can be used as infantry and engineering soldiers by changing into military uniforms and carrying guns." Xiao Yimin replied with a grin.

Zhao Erfeng was quite comforted: "Yiming did a good job, in this turbulent period, you are sensitive and skilled in times of peace, you are one step ahead of everyone, and you are smart and beautiful, which is very comforting to the teacher and much more at ease." Now that the Kang-Tibet war has come to an end for the time being, with Zhong Ying leading his troops to defend Lhasa, there will be no more major troubles in a few years, and the battalions of our border army have returned to their garrisons one after another, and there is no longer much need for too much equipment investment, so let's leave the Krupp artillery and 10,000 shells in the new arsenal, seize the time to form an artillery battalion, and strive to form a combat force within half a year. As for the batch of Mauser long rifles, you left 3,000 and all the guns and ammunition in case the situation in Chengdu suddenly changed, and the rest were sent to the 'Tai'an Battalion' in Ya'an, and Qi Luo was responsible for sending them to the battalions of the border army, and the missing guns and ammunition could be purchased in the Ya'an factory. ”

Xiao Yimin hurriedly thanked: "Thank you, teacher!" ”

Zhao Erfeng gathered his long white beard that was blown by the wind, and asked Xiao Yimin to accompany him on the city wall, and a group of generals followed him from afar, looking around and talking in a low voice.

Coming to the newly built guard bunker in the northwest corner, Zhao Erfeng saluted back to the four sentries who stood and saluted, bent down and drilled into the very cleverly hidden bunker, looked carefully, and finally touched the spotless German MG08 heavy machine gun, and looked very satisfied:

"I can't imagine that you have run the whole battalion so tightly, two thick German-style fortresses are arranged in front of the battalion, four fortresses are hidden on the side and rear, one side is surrounded by water and two high walls, if you really fight, I am afraid that the new army will attack with all its might, and it will not be able to shake it within three or two days, if you drag out the eighteen Krupp guns, no matter how many enemies come, they can only be defeated."

Xiao Yimin smiled, stepped forward to help Zhao Erxun get out of the hidden fortress, walked up to the north city wall and continued to introduce the steel mills, power plants and foundries in the north, and then pointed to the south, and whispered to the metal products companies, clothing and leather goods factories, hardware factories and other enterprises that produced rifle parts and assembled pistols.

When the conversation was rising, the army of the Governor's Office hurriedly reported: "The patrol army gathered at the east gate to gather people to make trouble, and Zhu Qinglan, the commander of the new army, is mobilizing troops and suppressing it. ”

Zhao Erfeng's face sank suddenly, his long eyebrows trembled, and his eyes were like electricity: "Order General Zhu to arrest the troublemakers into the camp in the eastern suburbs, and you take a team of guards to help quickly, if you resist, you will be killed!" ”

"Yes—"

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