At 0:00 on May 31, the 14th year of the Republic of China, Chen Zikun's eldest daughter was born in a hospital in Zhabei, joy and grief hit Chen Zikun's heart at the same time, looking at the baby crying in swaddling clothes, he seemed to see the future of the country and the nation.

When Yao Yilei asked him how to name his daughter, Chen Zikun, who had been worried about Tang Yan, who was still living in this hospital and was not out of danger, blurted out: "Just call Chen Yan." ”

Yao Yilei said: "What, Chen Fu, it's not good, it's not good, how can a girl be called by such a name." ”

Chan explained: "It's Yan, not Fu'er. ”

Yao Yilei said: "Why is it called Yan? In general, there is a saying. ”

Chen Zikun scratched his ears and scratched his cheeks, he couldn't say that he came according to the name of reporter Tang, but fortunately, Jian Bing, who was full of poetry, broke the siege in time, and said: "Our handsome acquisition is a joke in "Peony Pavilion", it turns out that Yin Ziyan is blooming all over the place, and it seems that it is all paid to the broken well, such a cute baby is like a blooming flower, but he was born in this poor, backward and bullied motherland, is this what it means, Dashuai?" ”

"Yes, I hope that when our Yan'er grows up, the motherland will become strong and prosperous, and there will be no more broken wells and ruins, but flowers everywhere, and high-rise buildings and chimneys will be lined up." Chen Zikun hurriedly answered. finally gave Yao Yilei to Hu Hong.

Maternity and baby need to rest, Chen Zikun and Jianbing withdraw from the delivery room, the hospital corridor is quiet, the bayonets of the guards in the courtyard are flashing with cold light, and the anti-smoking law enforcement corps dispatched a company to protect Chen Zikun's safety, because the news has been received that the concession authorities have imposed martial law, and the situation is even more tense.

"Is Reporter Tang out of danger?" Jian Bing suddenly mentioned.

"Not yet, there is too much blood loss, it still needs to be observed." Chan felt bad in his heart.

"I remember, her name is Tang Yan?" Jian Bing glanced at Chen Zikun, which was meaningful.

Chen Zikun did not evade, but looked at the stars in the sky and said: "Tang Yan is a hero, she is a female stream and faces the guns and bullets of the patrol, using the pen as a gun to fight with the powers, as a soldier, I am quite ashamed, this time the British massacre my compatriots, I want to do something to fulfill the responsibility of the Chinese." ”

Jian Bing said worriedly: "The foreigners' ships are strong and sharp, if they can beat it, they will have bulldozed the concession fifty years earlier, and relying on these hundreds of guns of the anti-smoking corps is tantamount to hitting a stone with an egg." ”

Chen Zikun said: "Conscientiousness is not the same as hitting a stone with an egg, I have my own measure, this time will be very busy, you have to take care of things at home." ”

Jian Bing didn't speak, he grabbed Chen Zikun's waist from behind, and pressed his face against his broad back, and the night was late, and the earth was shrouded in darkness.

"When will it be dawn?" Chen Zikun muttered.

……

The next day, the whole of Shanghai was boiling, people from all walks of life condemned the atrocities of the massacre of students in the patrol room, and the list of the victims and occupations were published in the declaration, and there were as many as 13 people, including college students, tailors, hawkers, cooks and helpers, etc., in the words of Shi Liangcai, no matter whether they were high or low, they were all outstanding sons and daughters of the Chinese nation, and on behalf of the declaration society, he donated 10,000 yuan to the families of the victims, and another 10,000 yuan to the seriously injured people as condolences.

On 31 May, all schools in Shanghai went on strike, merchants went on strike, and workers went on strike to make the strongest protest against the concession authorities.

On 1 June, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Beijing Government lodged a protest with the diplomatic corps demanding the release Chinese of the arrested students and workers to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.

The Legation was unprecedentedly united in its treatment of China, rejecting the protests of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and deeming that the concession authorities had dealt with them magnanimously enough, and that the Foreign Ministry's successive protests were like mud cows entering the sea, without any news.

On 11 June, when the people of Hankow were demonstrating in the British Concession, the British consul in Hankou brazenly ordered sailors to land and shoot at the people, killing more than 30 people on the spot and seriously wounding 100 others.

On 13 June, clashes broke out again in the British Concession in Jiujiang, and Chinese protesters stormed the British Concession and were shot at, resulting in heavy casualties.

On 23 June, a gathering of all the people was held in Guangzhou to hold a memorial meeting for the compatriots who died in Jiujiang, Hankou, Shanghai, and then began to march to the other side of Shaji, where they were fired upon by British troops, and British warships also opened fire, killing and wounding more than 200 Chinese on the spot, including several students of the Whampoa Military Academy.

So far, the concession authorities have not made any concessions, and their stance is still extremely tough, but the voice of the interim government in Beijing is getting weaker and weaker.

At the end of June, at the Zhabei Railway Station in Shanghai, two black cars were waiting in the square in front of the station, and several men in plain clothes put their hands in their pockets, scanning the crowd vigilantly from time to time.

A group of travelers in suits and leather shoes came out of the VIP passage and got into the car under the guard of the bodyguard, Zhang Xueliang, who was dressed in a snow-white suit, saw Chen Zikun sitting in the car, and couldn't help but smile: "Brother Kunwu, I haven't seen you for a few months, and I have grown a beard." ”

Chen Zikun had two mustaches on his lips, which were not very rich, and he smiled: "I am a beard and a clear ambition, and if I don't unify the country and eradicate the forces of the great powers in China, I won't shave my beard." ”

Zhang Xueliang smiled dumbly: "Then don't you have a beard longer than Guan Gong?" ”

Chen Zikun smiled and did not answer, and told the driver to drive.

Cars drove on the bustling and congested streets of Zhabei, constantly honking their horns, and the guards standing on the pedals drove passers-by with long bamboo poles, still moving slowly, like turtles.

Chen Zikun explained: "There are still strikes and strikes in the concessions, and Zhabei and Nanshi are prospering, which shows one thing, the prosperity of the concessions actually depends on the Chinese." ”

Zhang Xueliang said: "Since we Chinese can create the glory of the Han and Tang Dynasties, it shows that this nation is still excellent, but it is only because since the end of the Qing Dynasty, it has been bullied and oppressed by foreign powers, so it has today's predicament." ”

Chan shook his head, but didn't say anything.

Zhang Xueliang said: "By the way, where is the full moon wine?" Shanghai or Jiangdong? I've got a big gift for me. ”

Chen Zikun was just about to speak, when he suddenly heard someone shouting in the distance: "The people are dying, the students and workers are fighting, what is the government doing, our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, over and over again, will express regret and protest, I think it is better not to call it the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but to change the name to the Ministry of Protest." Then there was a burst of laughter.

Zhang Xueliang was also attracted, and like Chen Zikun looking at each other, the two pushed the car door out at the same time and quietly came to the place where they were giving speeches in the distance.

On the stage, there was a young man with a lofty spirit, wearing a white student uniform, who was giving a speech, he stretched out his hands and pressed it around: "Compatriots, do you think it's ridiculous, I don't think it's ridiculous at all, foreigners kill our fathers and brothers, it's like killing a chicken or a dog, they kill in Shanghai, Hankou, Jiujiang, Guangzhou, and dozens of people!" And what did our compatriots who died do but march peacefully on the soil of their own country, what crime did they commit to be murdered by this! ”

There was silence all around, and the young man's eyes were red, but his voice was still indignant: "The common people were wantonly shot by foreigners, but what is our government and our army doing?" The Provisional Government only knows about protests and protests, but they still know about protests, do you know what the army is doing? They're still drinking! Fuddle! There are millions of soldiers in the country, taking the people's fat and ointment scavenged from the common people, buying guns, guns, and airplanes, ironclad cars, but all of them are used on their own people, they fight for territory, grow opium, kill each other, but they are subservient to foreigners, kowtow and beg for mercy, do you know, just when our compatriots are dying and the whole country is sad, a certain warlord is still holding a grand full moon banquet for his daughter! ”

Zhang Xueliang stopped laughing, looked at Chen Zikun, and said in a low voice: "This kid must be **, so demagogic, it's all calculated on your head." ”

Chen Zikun said lightly: "If you can wake up the people, it doesn't hurt to be calculated." ”

The young man continued: "It is useless to count on this reactionary and rotten government, only when we unite the workers, businessmen, and students, continue to strike, boycott, and boycott classes, and exert pressure on foreigners, so that they can see that we are united and awakened, can we have hope for the Chinese nation." ”

Then he raised his arms and shouted: "Down with imperialism!" Down with the warlords! ”

The audience was infected and shouted one after another.

Chen Zikun didn't say a word, and pulled Zhang Xueliang away.

In the car, Zhang Xueliang's expression was very solemn, and he wanted to speak several times, Chen Zikun said: "Han Qing, do you think what that person said is very reasonable, we are all warlords, we can only fight wars and grab land, loot people's wealth, foreigners slaughter Chinese people like this, as soldiers, no one in my generation has a voice." ”

Zhang Xueliang said: "His words make me very angry, but when I think about it, I can't help but be ashamed, I serve hundreds of thousands of tigers and wolves, and the ordnance is the strongest in the country, but it is only used to fight in the east and west, fight Wu Peifu, fight Qi Xieyuan, confront Feng Yuxiang, and meet foreigners but are powerless, why is this?" ”

Chen Zikun said: "Because our soldiers can't beat others, from the Opium War to the Sino-Japanese War, and then to the Gengzi Change, the foreigners are so powerful that they will not end well, but the more this is the case, the more people bully us, Han Qing, you have to understand that in the international jungle surrounded by strong enemies, the great powers only respect the same kind with fangs, which is the same as they favor Japan, which is also Asian, because Japan defeated the Qing Dynasty, defeated Russia, and won dignity with blood and fire." ”

Zhang Xueliang pondered for a long time, and the hustle and bustle outside the car seemed to be cut off.

"Brother Kunwu, it's hard for me to make a decision, the power is in my father's hands." Zhang Xueliang hesitated.

Chen Zikun patted Zhang Xueliang on the shoulder: "Han Qing, I understand you, you just need to sweep the battle for me." ”

"Brother Kunwu, are you ......" Zhang Xueliang raised his eyebrows sharply.

"I have decided to send troops to reclaim the concession." Chen Zikun said calmly.