At 10 o'clock in the morning of January 14, 1949, as three red signal flares were raised, thousands of cannons on the periphery of Tianjin began to fire at each other, and the deafening explosion sounded into a huge wave that made the earth tremble. The shock wave formed by the explosion of countless large-caliber artillery shells swept the pillboxes, fortifications, and human limbs of the Kuomintang defenders into the air like a hurricane...... Forty minutes later, artillery fire began to extend into the city, and the defenders' fortifications were completely destroyed. The 22 divisions of the Northeast Field Army of the People's Liberation Army, with a total of 300,000 troops, launched a general attack on the Kuomintang defenders of Tianjin under the unified command of Liu Yalou, chief of staff of the Eastern Field Army.

At 10 o'clock in the morning of the 15th, a regiment of the People's Liberation Army Dongye *** rushed into the Tianjin Garrison Headquarters, and Lieutenant General Chen Changjie and Lieutenant General Liu Yunhan of the 86th Army of the National Army were captured......

At the same time, the 151st Division, the main force of the Nationalist Army in the north of Tianjin, announced that it had laid down its arms and surrendered when it was surrounded on all sides and found itself in a desperate situation......

With the surrender of the 151st Division of the Nationalist Army, the Battle of Tianjin ended. After 29 hours of this battle, the People's Liberation Army completely annihilated 130,000 defenders of Tianjin, and for the Communists, most of the North China problem had been solved, and all that remained was Beiping, a lonely city.

At this time, the outer positions of Beiping City have all been lost, the defensive position of the national army is compressed on the first line of the outer city wall, there is no defensive depth at all, the city wall of the cold weapon era is only slightly thicker than the window paper for the more than 3,000 cannons of the People's Liberation Army outside the city, even if the finger is not broken, the American-made ** cannon can tear it in an instant.

Anyone with a discerning eye can see that it is only a matter of time before the Communists enter Beiping. At this time, the military and political circles in Beiping were full of panic, and everyone in the military and political circles was thinking about their own way back, and Chiang Kai-shek began to gradually transfer his cronies from Beiping to the south. The Beiping Station of the Military Command Bureau was no exception, and the stationmaster Wang Puchen and the deputy stationmaster Song Yuanhe were all close associates of Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Renfeng, and after they arranged the latent work, they all evacuated by plane, and Mao Renfeng transferred a person named Xu Zhongyao to take over as the stationmaster. This person was born in the Northeast Army, served as an agent under Yan Xishan, and later took refuge in Chiang Kai-shek. He is not a Xifeng special training class[1]

came out, naturally not reused by Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Renfeng. At such a critical moment, he was appointed as the stationmaster of Beiping Station, clearly showing the identity of a substitute for the dead. Of course, Xu Zhongyao himself understands, but he is helpless. At the banquet where the whole station staff gave the new stationmaster to pick up the wind, Xu Zhongyao actually cried in public, although he didn't say anything, but everyone knew the grievances in his heart, and now Beiping is a broken ship that is leaking everywhere and about to capsize, and it is in a stormy situation, and everyone knows what kind of ending awaits him.

After the explosion of the No. 8 courtyard in Jiaozi Hutong, Xu Jinge suffered from insomnia, he himself was strange, he used to be able to fall asleep with a pillow, and never dreamed, the quality of sleep was good, but since that day he has never slept well, as soon as he closes his eyes, he can see that when the explosion occurred, half of the roof of the small building was lifted into the air by the shock wave, that feeling is particularly exciting, particularly shocking. Xu Jinge is a professional killer, he has always regarded other people's lives as grass mustard, and has never had a psychological burden in the process of taking people's lives, when Boss Dai once praised Xu Jinge for having superhuman psychological quality, Mount Tai collapsed and did not change color, but Luo Mengyun's death made Xu Jinge's nervous system almost collapse. This is incredible, a girl with a flower-like face and a variety of amorous styles, a well-educated lady, detonated ** so resolutely and without hesitation, and turned her weak body into a wisp of green smoke in an instant...... When the most beautiful things are violently destroyed, I am afraid that even the devil will tremble.

After the explosion, Xu Jinge ordered the soldiers to search all the corners of the Zhao Mansion, but they did not find the "Orchid Bamboo Picture", and the painting was missing. The woman walked cleanly, her radio, codebook, papers, and the clothes she had worn all reduced to ashes in an explosion. Xu Jinge is an atheist, and he does not have any political beliefs, he only values responsibility, the responsibility of a soldier to the country, as for who will lead the country, whether the leadership is good or bad, that is not something he considers. He knew that the theoretical differences between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party were nothing more than whether to promote the Three People's Principles in China or communism, and the two parties were equally persistent in their beliefs. Xu Jinge was a soldier, and he was not interested in studying these boring theoretical questions, but Luo Mengyun's death made Xu Jinge feel the power of faith for the first time. This is a force that cannot be eliminated by any violence, it seems that Mr. Jiang and Boss Dai have not figured this out, in the face of thought and belief, violence is not omnipotent.

Fang Jinglin's gaffe made Xu Jinge fully understand in his heart in an instant, this person is definitely a member of the Communist Party, and he has a close relationship with Luo Mengyun, otherwise it would be difficult to explain that a person who has been engaged in secret work for many years would burst into tears in an instant. Emotional exposure has always been a taboo for secret service personnel, and Fang Jinglin will not fail to understand this, unless his reason is crushed by the huge emotional pain. Xu Jinge decided to pretend that he didn't know anything, this was not out of leaving a way out for himself, his idea was very simple, Fang Jinglin was his friend, he couldn't betray his friend, otherwise he would be a villain, he couldn't control the grievances between the Communist Party and the Kuomintang, Xu Jinge knew too well the torture methods of the Secret Bureau, if Fang Jinglin was sent there, he would really become a traitor to seek glory.

After returning from the scene of the explosion for two whole days, Fang Jinglin had been in a coma, and in a trance, he walked into a misty mountain field...... Lush peaks, sunset red cliffs, piano rhyme springs; On the other side of the mountain, there is a morning fog and sunset, a sultry spring drizzle, a half-slope autumn maple in full swing, a dreamlike light moon and sparse stars, and a soft goose feather snow......

In the constant changes of spring, summer, autumn and winter, Luo Mengyun, who had a delicate face, walked towards him gently, stretched her arms around his neck, her eyes were soft as water, blurry as a dream, she snuggled up to Fang Jinglin and joked, whispering......

Even in a dream, Fang Jinglin could deeply realize that Luo Mengyun was gone, and she disappeared into a dazzling fire like a dream. Fang Jinglin's tears were like springs, all of his thoughts were burning, in the dream, he held Luo Mengyun's hand and couldn't bear to leave, but Luo Mengyun moved his gaze to the vast distance, her body gradually became transparent, like ice cubes slowly melting in water......

A soft singing voice came ethereally, only to see the silence of the four fields, and the drizzle intertwined a misty warmth......

Fang Jinglin stood on the bank of the boundary river of life and death, calling out heartbreakingly, but he couldn't hear Luo Mengyun's echo, only to see the grass and trees in the distance, the fog was endless, the clouds and the vast earth were lonely together, and the river under his feet flowed silently, taking away his tears, his pain, and his despair......

When Fang Jinglin woke up from his slumber, he knew that he had completed a spiritual transformation, like a different person, he would no longer shed tears from now on, and his heart became as hard as a rock.

Xu Jinge came to the dormitory with a basket of fruits to visit Fang Jinglin, and the two just glanced at each other when they met, and each of them understood the message from each other's gaze. Xu Jinge asked expressionlessly: "Brother Jinglin, let me guess, what are you thinking at this time, I think your biggest wish now is to kill me with one shot, right?" ”

Fang Jinglin replied with a smile: "Seriously, I have this wish, and this day is not far away." ”

Xu Jinge lit a cigarette, looked at Fang Jinglin and said, "It is understandable, the victor is the prince and the loser, no matter what the winner does, he is defending the truth, because he has obtained the right to interpret the truth." As a loser, I have to admit it. ”

"There's another way, to solve all the things that should be solved before failure, this is also a good way, Brother Jin Ge, don't you want to try?" Fang Jinglin said provocatively.

Xu Jinge shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Then why bother? The ancients said that a gentleman would never speak ill of him. If you can't even speak ill of you, how can you harm your friends? Unless we are not gentlemen. ”

"You mean, one day, I hope I will be a gentleman too?"

"No, you misunderstood, I only said myself, but I don't ask you in return, otherwise we will become bargaining merchants, you know, in order to kill the enemy, I can shoot myself in the chest, am I afraid that others will kill me?" Xu Jinge stood up and saluted Fang Jinglin, "Take care!" Brother Jinglin, in the context of history, personal fate is insignificant, and going with the flow may be the best way, goodbye! After Xu Jinge finished speaking, he walked to the door.

"Brother Jin Ge......" Fang Jinglin shouted softly, but Xu Jinge stopped but did not turn back.

"Hundreds of thousands of troops have surrounded Beiping like an iron barrel, and the firing of thousands of cannons has already been marked, that is to say, we can hit any target in the city as needed, and will not damage the houses, the defenders in the city are like meat on the chopping board, a broken ship that is about to sink, are you willing to sink with this broken ship? Why not take a smarter approach? Do you want my help, Brother Jingo? ”

"No, there is no personal will in the war, the soldier takes obedience as his duty, the commander wants to beat me, the commander wants to surrender me, you can't get on the ship on which side is strong, you can't be like this, even if the ship is going to sink, I have no choice, just sink with it." After Xu Jinge finished speaking, he walked out of the door without looking back.

When Luo Mengyun detonated **, Wen San'er happened to be standing at the gate of the courtyard, he was dumbfounded by this loud noise, and he actually raised his neck in a daze, watching the broken bricks and tiles raised by the shock wave fall down, if it wasn't for someone next to him pushing him, Wen San'er was likely to be smashed in the head. He couldn't figure out why Miss Luo was so desperate? In Wen San'er's opinion, didn't Miss Luo just become a Communist Party? This is not a big deal, and there is no stolen money village to smash the open fire, and there is no digging of the ancestral grave of the emperor's family, how much of a sin? Wen San'er felt that if Miss Luo walked out of the small building at that time, found a teahouse with Xu Ye to have a good talk, and said a few words for Miss Luo, Xu Ye would not give himself this face. It's not been a year or two since I knew Miss Luo, I really didn't see it before, this little girl speaks softly and slowly, and has a soft temperament, I have never seen her blushing or arguing with others, but that day Miss Luo didn't know what kind of evil she had committed, and her head was hot, and she pulled the ** bag, is it worth it for this little thing? It stands to reason that the young lady of a big family should be more sensible than herself, and even she understands the truth, she Miss Luo is stunned and doesn't understand, as the saying goes, it's better to die than to live, no matter what part a person goes to, as long as his life is in anything, it is easy to do, and if his life is gone, it is not fragrant to eat anything.

Wen San'er sighed and remembered a very real problem, the Zhao family couldn't stay. I was invited by Miss Luo to pull the month, and now that Miss Luo is gone, it is time for me to roll up and leave. Wen San'er thought about it and decided to move back to the "Tonghe" car dealership, although he turned his face with Sun Erye when he moved away, and it was a bit embarrassing to go back at this time, but now, Wen San'er can't take care of the problem of his son, the key is to find a place to sleep, which is more important than face.

When Wen San'er walked into Sun Erye's living room tremblingly, Sun Erye was preparing bird food, and he cut a piece of lean pork into strips the size of meat insects with scissors, and hung it on a board covered with oiled paper, ready to feed the birds when it was half dry. This is the helplessness of the bird keepers in the capital, but all the precious birds like to eat live insects, but at this time it is the middle of winter, there are no insects to find, so they have to use lean pork cut into worms to deceive the birds. It seems that Second Master Sun raising birds is also counted as a Taoist.

Wen San'er bowed to Second Master Sun and said timidly, "Second Master, I'll say hello to you." ”

Second Master Sun raised his eyelids and glanced at Wen San'er, and suddenly stood up very exaggeratedly and saluted Wen San'er: "Ouch, isn't this Master Wen?" You sit, you sit. ”

Wen San'er was a little overwhelmed by Second Master Sun's enthusiasm, and he whispered, "Second Master, you...... You still call me Wen San'er......"

"What's this? Ye is Ye, you are my Wen Ye, okay, I heard that Wen Ye entered the General's Mansion, went out to take a car, followed by the guards behind his buttocks, and slept on the cash cabinet at night, you sit down, I will give you a big gift. Second Master Sun made a kneeling posture.

"Second master, don't scold me, I'm not sensible, I've offended you, you don't remember villains, don't be like me, I'll compensate the second master."

Second Master Sun sneered: "Wen San'er, I can see it, and there is no place to live, right?" At this time, I remembered that the second master was coming? Aren't you fucking from this 'bureau' and that 'bureau'? Aren't you going to arrest the second master and me as a traitor? Why did you come back with a scowl in the face now? ”

Wen San'er smiled and said: "Second master, I was just comfortable and comfortable, as the saying goes, the water is too big to go to the bridge, I, Wen San'er, tossed around outside and found that it really can't be done without your second grandson's cover, no, it's back again...... Ouch, second master, what are you doing with birds? How can you do this yourself? Talk to any guy, and I'll do it for you, these grandsons are too ignorant, you put it here, you put it here, I'll ...... it."

Seeing that Wen San'er was soft, Sun Erye's face turned from cloudy to clear, he pointed to Wen San'er's nose and said: "Wen San'er, you rabbit cub just said for a long time, just talk about this sentence, the water is too big to go to the bridge, this is true, if it wasn't for your kid running away that day, Second Master, I have to give your two mouths to 'curium', the wings are hard, aren't they?" Dare to make a mistake with the second master? I'm thinking about how to clean you up, okay, I won't be able to find you if I look for it again, and when I inquire again, I said that your kid went to the General's Mansion on an errand, okay, the upper of the shoe has changed the brim of the hat - you still step up to the sky? At that time, I said, Wen San'er's kid is a poor life, he can't enjoy any amount of blessing to him, he is born unlucky, he is a good general's mansion, you don't go to do nothing, as soon as you go, people will raid the house, you say, what are you not a mourning star? That is, the second master has a hard life, dare to hatch you bastard, the second master, I am not afraid of hatching a bastard to bite me......"

Wen San'er took the scissors and echoed Sun Erye while cutting the meat strips: "That's right, Second Master, if you really want to hatch a Wang Ba, I will go buy a chicken and stew a pot of dishes with Wang Ba to honor you, this is a famous dish, it is exquisite, it is called 'Farewell My Concubine'." ”

Second Master Sun was slapped on the back of the head according to Wen San'er, and scolded with a smile: "You little bastard, I'm afraid you won't be able to hatch a bastard no matter how you hatch it." ”

"That'...... Second master, I can move the cover back, you can start to hatch it. ”

"Well, give me half price, and walk the birds for me from tomorrow."

"Don't worry, second master, I will serve this bird as much as I want you, especially the two thrushes, the male is my grandfather, the female is my grandmother, and the eggs they lay are my brothers......"

"Fuck you, what's going on here? How did the eggs laid by your grandparents become your brother? That's your dad, do you understand? ”

"By the way, that's my dad, how did I forget this stubble? But second master, I have to give you a reminder, the Communist Party is about to attack the city, listen to the people who came back from outside the city, saying that the cannon pipes are like woods, one by one, and the muzzles of the cannons are as thick as water tanks, and you are not afraid that the cannonballs will kill my grandparents when you go to walk the birds at this time? ”

"Well, I understand, you kid is not afraid of blowing up the birds, but afraid of blowing up yourself, so let's do it, you don't care about walking the birds, as for accommodation, my room price here is a bit high, according to the day, a piece of ocean a day, if you are too expensive, you will live in the Six Nations Hotel."

"Don't pay the price, second master, I'm happy to walk the birds, I didn't say I wouldn't go, come on, I'm out of the way, anyway, people live to be 100 years old and die, isn't it just a cannonball? I've already thought about it, as soon as the shell falls, I'll be a hungry tiger pounce on the bird's cage, and I'd rather blow it up than blow up the bird, right? ”

"Fart, you still don't crush the birds to death when you press the birds for more than 100 pounds? You go and ask, how much is this pair of thrushes worth? Let's put it this way, ten Wen San'er can't match a pair of thrushes. ”

"Then I'll put the bird cage on my head, and that's it, right?"

"Wen San'er, use my bird as a steel helmet to block **, you kid is looking for a beating again, isn't it?"

Xu Jinge's mind has been very messy recently, and all kinds of unpleasant things are mixed together, which makes him very irritable. Now the situation in Beiping City is as dangerous as an egg, and it is a matter of time before the city is broken, and the military, police, and special systems in the city are in a state of panic, and those who have strong relations with Nanjing have all taken planes and evacuated early under various pretexts, and the rest are the real ghosts of the dead. Resistance is a dead end, and failure to resist is even more uncertain, especially for those in the gendarmerie and the secret service system, who live in fear. In the past, they brutally abused the arrested members of the Communist Party, and formed a mortal enmity with the Communist Party. Xu Jinge didn't really care, since he joined the military command, he had escaped death many times, and this dangerous experience had become the norm in his life, making him look down on the issue of life and death.

When he was in Chongqing, he watched an American movie "Hamlet", and after the movie, his colleagues in the Military Administration discussed Hamlet's famous sentence: Survive or destroy? That's still a problem.

When it was Xu Jinge's turn to speak, he said that as an agent, whether it is survival or destruction, this is not a problem at all, planning is in people, success is in heaven, everything must go with the flow, do your best and obey the destiny of heaven, everything in the world has a fixed number, it is useless if you are afraid of death, it is better to face death calmly.

I remember that at that time, Boss Dai greatly appreciated Xu Jinge's speech, praised him for his deep understanding of the essence of "Lao Tzu", and said, for example, "Lao Tzu" has "great white humiliation, generosity, late blooming, great sound, elephant invisible", with these five phenomena to illustrate the state of "Tao" of non-action. That is, the whitest is like dirt, the most square has no edges and corners, the largest and most valuable objects are always finished last, the best music has no sound, and the largest image has no image. What is the Tao? The "Tao" mentioned in "Lao Tzu" is the foundation of all things, and everything in the world is born from it. It's omnipresent, all-encompassing, all-encompassing. Second, to the world, the Tao is both silent and invisible. It is the highest and highest state of the ideal, which is very human achievable. Third, if the law of "Tao" is used to govern the world, then nothing will be done and nothing will be done, and victory will be won without fighting. From a certain point of view, Comrade Xu Jinge is already a person who has attained enlightenment, he has reached a certain state of life, and he is very human. If the comrades of the military command have the ability to think independently and the courage to face death calmly, like Xu Jinge, why should our cause not prosper? This is a blessing for the country.

Xu Jinge was very dissatisfied with Boss Dai's impromptu speech in private, he also read "Lao Tzu", the whole book is 5,000 words, and what is discussed is only the word "Tao", using the law of Tao to govern the world, then do nothing and do nothing, and win without fighting. Of course, Lao Tzu's "do nothing and do nothing, win without a fight" is about everything in the world to go with the flow, but just by going with the flow, everything will be fine and win without a fight? If you don't fight for everything, how can you "win without a fight" if you don't work hard? If according to this statement, Boss Dai can go home to retire, and the Military Command Bureau can also be disbanded, since doing nothing and doing nothing, you can win without a fight, then let's not toss and wait for the Japanese to withdraw from China themselves.

Xu Jinge is not afraid of death, but he is afraid of confusion, and he does not understand why things in China are always so complicated. In his view, there was no need for the Kuomintang and the Communist Party to form such a great hatred, and it is understandable that the two parties would face each other on the battlefield if they did not agree on political views, but it would be too much if the "scorched earth policy" and "assassination operation" against the Japanese and traitors during the War of Resistance against Japan were used against the Communist Party and other parties.

A few days ago, he collided with Ye Xiangzhi, director of the Operations Division of the Secret Security Bureau from Nanjing, who came to Peking to direct a major operation to assassinate former mayor He Siyuan. After the People's Liberation Army (PLA) besieged Beiping City, He Siyuan strongly advocated a peaceful settlement, and many celebrities in the military, political, and industrial circles of Beiping, including General Zhao Minghe, who had been dismissed, were involved and actively engaged in it. Nanjing was angered by this move and decided to take action against He Siyuan, specifically responsible for the head of the investigation and defense team of the Beiping Station of the Secret Bureau, Yang Piming, the head of the action team, and the killing means Yun Peng, Cui Duo, Liu Jiming and others, Gu Zhengwen proposed to use the regular ** to blow up the He house and Xu Jinge was responsible for the on-site command, Xu Jinge raised objections on the spot, thinking that this move was a villain's work, how could the dignified national ** do the thing of chickens and dogs? This is not the same thing as the assassination of the enemy traitors in the War of Resistance. Ye Xiangzhi seemed to be being hit by his subordinates for the first time, and he was immediately furious, and he was about to shoot Xu Jinge at that time. Xu Jinge has never suffered this kind of anger since he joined the military command, and even Dai Li has never reprimanded him, how could he take Ye Xiangzhi in his eyes? Facing Ye Xiangzhi, who was thunderous, Xu Jinge just said coldly: "Director Ye, if you have something to say, don't compare a pistol to me, otherwise you will fall first." ”

At that time, the stationmaster Wang Puchen was still there, he knew Xu Jinge's temper, if Ye Xiangzhi really took out the pistol, Xu Jinge really dared to strike first, and his shooting speed was unmatched by the agents of Beiping Station. Wang Puchen had already received the evacuation order at that time, so he did not want to cause a big mess before leaving, so he decided to pacify both sides and revoked the order to allow Xu Jinge to participate in the assassination operation.

Xu Jinge later heard that the assassination was finally carried out. At 3 o'clock in the morning on January 18, Duan Yunpeng installed four timed ** on the roof of He Siyuan's house in Xila Hutong, and at 4:50 a.m., He Siyuan's second daughter was killed on the spot, and Mrs. He was hit by four pieces of shrapnel and seriously injured, while He Siyuan himself was only slightly injured and sent to a German hospital for treatment.

Through this incident, Xu Jinge can completely judge in his heart that the Kuomintang regime has lost the hearts of the people, and he is afraid that he will not be able to return to heaven, and his mood is very conflicted.

The conflict with Gu Zhengwen also prompted Xu Jinge to make up his mind. Yesterday, Gu Zhengwen asked him to study the sabotage plan and "secret cut" of Beiping[2]

According to the plan drawn up by the Secrecy Bureau of the Ministry of National Defense, before evacuating each city, the national army must destroy power plants, waterworks, important bridges, tunnels, military installations, and other targets, and must not hand over the entire city to the communists. In addition, before the communist army entered the city, it was necessary to complete the "secret execution" operation of the detained political prisoners. Xu Jinge was disgusted by this, and he expressed his opinion to Gu Zhengwen: "Brother Zhengwen, I think it seems narrow-minded to do this, we are not fighting foreign invaders, why use the 'scorched earth policy'?" The Communist Party is also Chinese, so why is it necessary to take such an extreme approach? If Beiping is destroyed, it is the common people who are unlucky. ”

Gu Zhengwen disagreed: "Brother Jin Ge, you can't win the war with the kindness of a woman." ”

Xu Jinge asked rhetorically: "So can we win the war at the cost of destroying the city?" If it weren't for the fact that we lost, why would we evacuate? ”

Gu Zhengwen put down the folder in his hand, stared at Xu Jinge's eyes and said, "Brother Jinge, your thinking is wrong, if it weren't for the fact that I knew you, I really thought you were a communist." What is war? It is an extreme means of violence, which can be used in any way. In the 27th year of the Republic of China, we dug up the mouth of the garden and replaced the army with water, which was the act of a strong man breaking his arm, blocking the enemy at the cost of sacrificing hundreds of thousands of people, and destroying the enemy's strategic intentions, can you say that it is not necessary? ”

Xu Jinge retorted: "That's against the Japanese, not the Chinese, besides, whether this move is necessary is still up for debate, if more people are sacrificed than enemies, I think it's a bad decision." ”

Gu Zhengwen finally got angry: "Lieutenant Colonel Xu Jinge, I draw your attention, please look at the rank mark on my epaulettes, I am talking to you as a colonel." ”

Xu Jinge sneered: "I'm sorry, I really didn't pay attention to your rank, but...... Boss Dai is still a major general, I talk to him like this, no way, I just have this temper, I can't change it. After Xu Jinge finished speaking, he turned around and left.

Although hundreds of thousands of troops of the People's Liberation Army surrounded Beiping City tightly, the air was filled with a strong ** smell, and the war was about to break out, but the people in Beiping City did not feel this way. Since the Eight-Nation Coalition Army entered Beijing in the year of Gengzi, Beiping City has not fought for nearly 50 years, even if the "77 Incident" broke out in the 26th year of the Republic of China, the war occurred in the area of Lugou Bridge and Nanyuan, and Beiping City was not warned. After a long time, the memory of the war has gradually faded into the memory of the people of Beiping, and even has such an idea, Beiping City is a place to live, not a place to fight, no matter which way you are a god, it is best to go outside the city to fight, Daxing, Fangshan, Xishan, Tongzhou there are fields, who beat who is the ability, it is not about the people of Beiping, the people only care about life.

Wen San'er also thinks so, the war has nothing to do with him, and as for why the Kuomintang and the Communist Party have such a big feud, it is not something he should consider, Wen San'er just pulls a car to earn money to live. If you want to say that the dispute between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party has brought him any harm, I am afraid that the only thing is the loss of the housing in the No. 8 courtyard of the godson Hutong and the beauty of the month, and the drudgery of walking the birds in the morning, in addition, Wen San'er has no loss.

Sun Erye's birds are all in pairs, there is a pair of thrushes, a pair of larks, a pair of yellow birds, and a pair of blue indigo chins, these eight birds are divided into four cages, and Wen San'er carries two in one hand. The bird keepers in the capital walk the birds in winter for fear of freezing the birds, and the cages are covered with blue cloth and cotton covers, trying to create an illusion for the birds, thinking that they live in a yurt, regardless of the north wind howling outside, anyway, the yurt is as warm as spring, and there is food and drink. Wen San'er has no feelings for the birds, he is only interested in making money, if it weren't for saving half of the accommodation fee, why would he serve these broken birds? To Wen San'er's ears, the chirping of larks is no different from the drum noise of toads, anyway, they are all fucking panicking. Second Master Sun, this old thing is purely idle, let him pull a car for a month and try it? Zhun Bao doesn't have so many hobbies.

The river behind the Taimiao in the early morning is a place where there are piles of people walking birds, don't look at the army outside the city, it is a bloody battle if the city in Beiping is not good, the bird walkers don't care about that, they are still walking in all directions, shaking the bird cage with both hands, and humming the two yellow in their mouths.

An 80-year-old man sat on a stone bench by the river and told the people around him about the entry of the Eight-Nation Alliance into Beijing: "...... At that time, the front door building was guarded[3]

It's the emperor's Praetorian Guard, and those brothers are all masters, do you think, can you do the Praetorian Guard in two moments? Our neighborhood was a sumo wrestling camp back then, and wrestling was also considered a good hand, and when you throw people up, it's like picking up a noodle pocket, and three or five people can't get close, just this master, want to be a Praetorian Guard? There is no door, the first round let the examiner brush it down, the examiner said, as far as your three-legged cat kung fu, is not a little bit worse, who is the Praetorian Guard? Jumping over the ridge is like walking on the ground, the two-handed darts are piercing the Yang in a hundred steps, the eighteen weapons are like making chopsticks in the hand, and the head of the general in the million army is like probing the bag to take things, are you successful? Our neighbors were silent at the time......"

A middle-aged man carrying a yellow bird cage next to him interjected: "You are talking and talking about the plank, didn't you just say that the Eight-Nation Alliance entered the city and wanted to enter the palace but was blocked by the Praetorian Guards guarding the front gate?" ”

The old man stroked his long white beard and reprimanded: "Boy, are you or me?" If you don't, I'll have to go home and pick up my grandson. ”

Everyone was willing to let the old man go, and they all said: "Don't price, don't price, everyone is addicted to listening, don't you put this on the stage?" Don't be like this kid, you go on......"

The old man then got back to business: "I was exactly thirty years old when Gengzi was young, which was the age of blood and strength, my family lived in a grinding factory, very close to the front door building, and when I was at the most lively, I moved the ladder to the house, and I lay on the roof to watch." We can't recognize the military uniforms of foreign soldiers, we only know that those who look similar to us are Japanese soldiers, and the rest are curly-haired and big-nosed, real Western devils. These foreign devils didn't know that there were guards in the Qianmen building, so they swaggered down Qianmen Street to the north, and just walked to the archway, the guards' guns fired, good guys, more lively than the Chinese New Year's Eve artillery battle, the bullets flew all over the sky like locusts, and the foreign devils were put down more than a dozen at once, and the rest of the devils all lay down...... In fact, the guys in the hands of our Chinese soldiers back then were not soft, they were made in Germany, and there was also the kind of 'Maxim' machine gun that could be filled with water, and our emperor didn't spend less money to buy these guys, huh? Where's that? ”

"More than a dozen foreign devils were put down at once, and the rest of the devils all lay down ......," a young man reminded.

"Yes, all lie down, these foreign devils are very boring, since ancient times, wars are generals against generals, soldiers against soldiers, knives against knives, guns against guns, this is the rule, but foreign devils do not follow the rules, you should also use guns for other people's guns, you are dragging the 'Makqin' machine gun up to say hello, no, these grandsons don't play with you guns, people drag the cannon up, and they 'bang'' at the front door building Bang' is more than a dozen cannons, stunned to hit the front door building, this front door building just called the Boxer fire burned once, not burned clean, the wooden shelves are still there, this time down-to-earth, again. At that time, the fire burned half of the sky, those Praetorian Guards were really good, they were on fire all over their bodies and they couldn't retreat, they were burned like that, the gunfire never stopped, and some soldiers were burned so much that they couldn't stand it, so they jumped down from the arrow tower with a full body of fire, and shot in mid-air......"

Someone interjected: "What to fight?" In fact, Lafayette took the emperor out of Desheng Gate early, and it was all in Changping if it was not good at this time. ”

The old man didn't like to listen to it: "Oh, according to what you mean, Lafayette and the emperor should also go to the front door building to fight?" That's not what the emperor should do. Who is the emperor? That's the Ninety-Five, Zi Weixing descended to earth, and the foreign devils have hit the front door, what are you waiting for if the emperor doesn't run? Let the foreign devils catch it again, and put it in the well again, where will we put the faces of the Chinese? Lafayette and the emperor ran to Xi'an to be considered right, leaving the green mountains in the ......"

Wen San'er was listening to it, and someone patted him on the shoulder behind him, Wen San'er was frightened, and when he looked back, it turned out to be Fang Jinglin, Wen San'er snorted his waist to show respect: "Yo ho, it's Fang Ye, what are you...... Bird walking? ”

Fang Jinglin said: "What kind of bird am I walking, I have something to do with you, let's find a secluded place to talk." ”

"But I'm ...... It's late to go back, it's time for Second Master Sun to scold the street again, he doesn't think about me, he misses his birds, let's put it this way, which is a bird, it's the ancestors of me and Second Master Sun......"

Fang Jinglin urged impatiently: "Let's go, where is so much nonsense?" If Second Master Sun asks, you will say that I have something to do with you. ”

Wen San'er immediately shut up in recognition and walked with Fang Jinglin to a secluded place by the river.

"Master Fang, if you have anything to say, just ask, whatever I know, we pour beans from a bamboo tube, it doesn't matter if I don't know, I'll inquire again......"

Fang Jinglin was silent for a moment and said, "I want to ask you about the details of the day you saw Miss Luo, you can tell me carefully." ”

"Didn't I say that day? That's it. ”

"I want you to recall carefully, what was Miss Luo wearing at that time? What kind of expression? What does she say in every word? What are the furnishings like in the house? Don't worry, you speak slowly. ”

Wen San'er recalled carefully: "Miss Luo wore a purple cheongsam that day, and her expression was still the same as usual, and later I told Miss Luo what you said, ouch...... I can't remember that sentence......"

"I said that I should think more about my relatives, who are looking forward to her returning home safely."

"Yes, yes, that's it, I told Miss Luo."

"Well, what was her expression when she heard that? What was answered? ”

She turned around and whispered out the window, 'Got it, Brother Wen, let's go...... I didn't see any expression, Miss Luo turned her back to me. I persuaded her to go out with me, saying that Xu Ye would let me say it, and Xu Ye would have to give me some face. Later, Miss Luo talked about the painting again, do you still need to talk about it? ”

"No, you said it." Fang Jinglin looked at the sky, exhaled a long breath, and sighed, "Just left?" Didn't even leave me a word......"

Wen San'er is even stupid to hear it, after a long time, Fang Ye and Miss Luo are getting along? I really didn't see it before, if I wanted to say that, Fang Ye must also be a communist. Wen San'er felt very curious, he had always heard of the Communist Party before, but he had never seen it, but this time he finally saw a living Communist Party, and he didn't feel any different from ordinary people when he looked closely. Wen San'er felt that Fang Jinglin's identity should be verified, so he asked his question directly: "Master Fang, are you a communist?" ”

Fang Jinglin glanced at him in surprise and asked, "Do you look like me?" ”

"I can't see it, and besides, I don't know what the Communist Party should look like."

"Then you will see it soon, the People's Liberation Army is about to enter the city, Beiping will be liberated soon, and when the time comes, you poor people will be the masters of New China, Wen San'er, this day is coming."

Wen San'er muttered suspiciously: "Be the master of China? You mean, I'm going to be the master? ”

"It's the people who are in charge, and that includes you, of course."

"Master Fang, don't take me to play cymbals, whoever comes, I'm also a cart of goods, and no one can use words to sweeten and me, when the common people have to be managed, whoever manages it is the same, they all have to earn their own food, these decades, ** have changed a few stubbles,! It's not much of a difference, the Japanese and their grandsons haven't remembered the trick of issuing gold yuan coupons, although they can't pull out when they eat mixed noodles, but they won't be able to carry a sack of gold yuan coupons and can't buy food, let me say, whatever the **, it's all the thing. You just said that the Communist Party is coming, what happened to the people? Oh, I'm going to be the master, let's see, I have to pull the cart and I have to pull the cart, I still have to run the rut, I can't do anything, I don't believe you put my words here, if you say the wrong thing I will change your surname. ”

Fang Jinglin said lightly: "Wen San'er, you just wait and see." ”

After Xu Zhongyao came to the Beiping Station of the Secret Bureau, he has been watching from the sidelines. This person is worthy of being a veteran agent, and his eye for the environment is indeed unique. After a period of observation, Xu Zhongyao thought that among the staff of Beiping Station, there seemed to be only one Xu Jinge who was still a person, especially when he twice contradicted his superiors and refused to perform tasks that were detrimental to morality, showing a character that was not only superior, upright, and alone, so he consciously approached Xu Jinge, first Xu Zhongyao was the east, and invited Xu Jinge to eat roast duck in the "cheap shop". Xu Jinge didn't want to go, so he naturally wanted to invite back, the two became friends as soon as they came and went, especially when they were drinking, they talked more about three or two drinks, and the two of them had their own bitterness, so they complained together with the strength of the wine, and the most talked about was the corruption of **, Mr. Jiang's military incompetence, when he was young, he was born and died with the ambition of saving the country and the people, but now he is a villain, black and white are reversed. Xu Zhongyao's conversation went from shallow to deep, gradually from the deterioration of the current situation to the deterioration of his own situation, he went around and around, always consciously or unconsciously discussing with Xu Jinge whether there was a third route to take, and he only had to say the eight words "can you join the Communist Party". But with these eight words, Xu Zhongyao would never dare to say it first until the critical moment.

What kind of character is Xu Jinge? How could he not hear the stationmaster's voice, but he deliberately did not cater to Xu Zhongyao's temptation, not because he was afraid of things, but because he was very conflicted. It stands to reason that the party-state has reached the point of stormy weather, as an upright soldier should link his fate with the fate of the party-state, if he gains power, he will lean on which side, it is not a man's doing, Xu Jinge despises this kind of person who falls with the wind. That time, the attitude he showed towards Fang Jinglin was exactly what he said in his heart - you can't be like this, even if this ship is going to sink, I have no choice, just sink with it. But as time went on, Xu Jinge gradually became suspicious of his choice, and the problem was that the Kuomintang was getting worse and worse, and it was losing the support of the people little by little, pushing more and more people to the side of the Communist Party. As far as Xu Jinge is concerned, from the day he refused to participate in the pre-evacuation sabotage plan and the "secret decision" plan, he felt unprecedented disappointment and disgust with the regime. He was completely aware that his words and deeds had already been reported to Mao Renfeng by Ye Xiangzhi, Gu Zhengwen and others, if it was before, he Xu Jinge's ten heads would have moved. Whether it is the military command or the secret bureau, they will never tolerate rebellious behavior from within, you can eat, drink, prostitute and gamble, you can be corrupt, and you can even rely on power to bully men and women, but you must not have independent thinking and the integrity of refusing to be in the same stream, otherwise, your superiors will think that you are disloyal and have the signs of rebellious thoughts. He knew that the reason why he could still sit here and drink was because Mao Renfeng, Ye Xiangzhi and others had not yet freed their hands, and the current situation in Peking had made them anxious, so they couldn't take care of it for the time being.

Until one day in the stationmaster's office, Xu Zhongyao finally confided in Xu Jinge: "Brother, Beiping is the Communist Party, from the perspective of the future of the whole station, we should also say hello to the Communist Party, but it's a pity that we catch the Communist Party every day, and now we want to talk to the Communist Party, but we can't find the Communist Party." If you have any clues in this regard, you may wish to help me contact them. ”

Xu Jinge smiled faintly: "The Communist Party is still hard to find?" Beiping City is full of it. ”

Xu Zhongyao was overjoyed: "Your brother has a way?" ”

"I can find out, the question is, how do I talk about it? Tell the Communist Party that the Kuomintang is gone, so I joined the Communist Party, oh, called the uprising. Aren't you afraid that the Communist Party will treat us as villains who tend to be inflammatory? If so, I might as well sink with the Kuomintang ship. ”

Xu Zhongyao paced back and forth in the office with his hands behind his back, and suddenly stopped and said: "We can't just consider personal honor and disgrace, we must first consider the ancient city of Beiping, which belongs to all Chinese, the Kuomintang and the Communist Party are just two parties in China, and no one has the right to destroy this ancient cultural city, otherwise, we are sinners through the ages, and like the two iron statues on the edge of the West Lake, no matter how many years have passed, we will always be reviled by others." ”

Xu Jinge thought for a while and said: "According to the information I have, Chief Fu has already negotiated with the Communist Party, and Chief Fu understands these truths better than us. ”

Xu Zhongyao shook his head and said, "Even if Chief Fu and the communist army reach an agreement to peacefully resolve the Beiping issue, the danger still exists. First of all, Chief Fu has no authority to command the Secret Bureau system, he doesn't know the way of action and secret language of the Secret Bureau system, even if all the defenders of Beiping put down their arms and voluntarily accept the reorganization, as long as the personnel of the Secret Bureau do not cooperate, Beiping City is still in danger, we have a large number of hidden personnel and secretly stored ****, there are pre-formulated destruction plans, and some important targets have even been installed for a long time, just waiting for orders. Brother, so to speak, without the participation of the Beiping Station of the Secret Bureau, the defenders of Beiping would still lay down their arms and accept the reorganization, and the Beiping issue could still be resolved peacefully, and we cannot change this fact, but we can create another fact, that is, ...... Turning Peiping into a ruin is the problem. ”

Xu Jinge couldn't help but shudder: "Sir, I didn't expect this. ”

"Then it's time, you should think about it."

"Don't think about it, you are right, you must not only consider personal honor and disgrace, but also consider the problem from the perspective of all Chinese, to be honest, sir, I know very well in my heart that the Communist Party has already recorded an account for me, even if it can spare others, it will not spare me, and I have this psychological preparation." Please rest assured, sir, even if the Communists shoot me in the future, I will do my part to protect Beiping. ”

Xu Jinge walked out of the stationmaster's office, and in the long corridor, he lit a cigarette and thought about how to find Fang Jinglin, who had disappeared from the police station a few days ago......

At the other end of the corridor appeared Lieutenant Zhao Jianmin, Xu Jinge's assistant, who walked towards Xu Jinge step by step, stopped in front of him, and saluted Xu Jinge with a touch of his heel: "Sir, on behalf of the Ministry of Industry of Beiping City, I welcome the wise move of the chief!" ”

Xu Jinge asked in surprise: "Xiao Zhao, are you a communist?" ”

Jingshan of Beiping is located on the north-south axis of the old capital, south of the Forbidden City Shenwu Gate, north of the north of the city bell and drum tower, west of the Beihai, formerly called Coal Mountain, was originally a part of the Ming and Qing dynasties palace. With an altitude of 88.7 meters above sea level, the middle peak of Jingshan is the center of the inner city of old Beijing and the commanding height of the old capital. The "Wanchun Pavilion" on the middle peak is a yellow glazed tile square pavilion with triple eaves, where you can overlook the whole city. On both sides of the "Wanchun Pavilion" are two double-eaves octagonal pavilions, the east side is the "Zhou Appreciation Pavilion", and the west side is the "Fulan Pavilion". Look at the east and west sides again, and there are two double-eaves round blue tile pavilions, which are respectively "Guanmiao Pavilion" and "Jifang Pavilion". These five pavilions form a beautiful set of patterns. Looking to the north, behind Jingshan Mountain is the Shouhuang Palace, the Guande Hall and other buildings, which were originally the places where the emperor worshiped his ancestors.

A white-haired old man sat in the "Wanchun Pavilion" and told a group of young people about the ancients: "There are many stories on Jingshan, have you seen them?" At the bottom of the eastern slopes...... There's an old locust tree with a crooked neck. That was the place where Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself when Li Zicheng led his troops into Beijing. ”

"Ouch, old man, this is an old-fashioned story, isn't it the emperor hanging from the crooked neck tree? When I was a child, I listened to the elders say that my ears are calloused, do you want to have something fresh? A young man said.

Listening to the old Beijingers talk about the ancient times is a kind of enjoyment, which is a bit of a stand-up comedy, which often makes people laugh. If you ask him who Sun Yat-sen is, maybe some people don't know, if you mention the Chongzhen Emperor of the Ming Dynasty but don't know, say for a long time, or this crooked neck tree is too famous, how many emperors in Chinese history were hanged?

"Fresh? Yes, let's talk about this Jingshan, when Lafayette liked to move a rattan chair to sit in the 'Wanchun Pavilion', and make a pot of 'Biluochun' and small plums nonsense. Lafayette has a monocular, which was given by foreigners, and it looks like a rolling pin, and Lafayette likes it very much, so he will take it to see the scenery if he has nothing to do. This look can see that Lou Zi is coming, you think, this 'Wanchun Pavilion' is surrounded by scenery, and Lafayette's neck is like an axle and also turns on all sides, just like the screw into the buckle, turning and turning the neck and 'falling into the pillow', just looking for someone to 'spread a rake'[4]

, Someone came to report that the Admiral of Jiumen had taken the famous Kang Baye, and was escorting him from Jingshan Back Street to the Di'anmen Criminal Department, did you see it? It's that street...... As soon as Lafayette heard the spirit, he took a telescope and looked at it enough, Kang Baye is a short and fat man, and he is tied up like a zongzi at this time, and the whole child has not grown up, how can Lafayette look at it and how it is not pleasing to the eye, saying Xiao Lizi, just such a thing stunned the capital to the bottom of the sky? Kang Xiaoba wants to look pleasing to the eye, old lady, I may also sentence him to 'prison beheading', if I just beat this old lady, I can't spare him. Galeries Lafayette is not in a good mood, and his neck is 'pillow', so someone has to 'top the tank' for this matter[5]

Ah, so Kang Baye ate 'melon fall' for Lafayette's neck [6]

, was sentenced to death...... There is still the story of Jingshan, there have been two cannons on this mountain, the first time is the year of Gengzi, that year the official army and the Boxers joined forces, together to attack the embassy of the foreigners in Dongjiaomin Lane, and many people died after a long time, Nie Shicheng was angry and ordered Wu Yijun to set up artillery in Jingshan, planning to bombard this group of grandsons, and Lafayette was soft, did not dare to fire, this cannon is considered a white frame. Alas, the old ladies made a mistake, if it was bombarded back then, there would be no Dongjiaomin Lane at this time...... The second time was in the thirteenth year of the Republic of China, Lu Zhonglin forced the palace, and the emperor of Xuantong was limited to roll up and roll out of the Forbidden City within 20 minutes, otherwise the cannon on Jingshan would open fire, and Emperor Puyi of Xuantong was nineteen years old that year, so scared that he almost peed his pants, and he jumped out of the palace immediately without even being stunned, and never dared to come back...... Look, are there still fewer stories on Jingshan? ”

Xu Jinge stood on the commanding heights of Jingshan and looked at the whole city, at this time the sun had set into the western mountain, and the western sky was covered with crimson clouds, outlining the outline of the mountains, like a paper cut. The dark gray city wall of the Forbidden City, the corner tower of the eaves and arches, the high dark red palace wall of the Forbidden City, and the majestic Taihe Hall all show a suppressed grand charm. This scenery is very suitable for a desolate song, which tells the clutch rhythm of the past dynasties and the joys and sorrows of the rise and fall of the past dynasties. The themes of war and peace are intertwined in space, but they are far apart in time...... A peaceful and tranquil atmosphere enveloped the city of Beiping, and if it weren't for the frequent take-off and landing of planes at the temporary airport in Dongdan Park adding some wartime solemnity, people would not have felt that Beiping was surrounded by hundreds of thousands of troops at this time.

Xu Jinge sighed and groaned in a low voice: "The jade tent is empty, and the golden hat has been blown." Looking back on the east wind, it has become a ......"

Fang Jinglin followed the path to the top of the peak, and said casually: "If you don't prosper and die, how can you be ...... [7]

”

Xu Jinge lightly stretched out his hand to Fang Jinglin and said, "It seems that Brother Jinglin also likes Nalan words?" ”

Fang Jinglin held his hand and said: "Good words, sad and poignant, it makes people turn around, there is one thing, it's best not to think about it when you're depressed." ”

Xu Jinge didn't pay attention, he turned his head to look at the Shenwu Gate in the twilight, and chanted as if provocatively: "Who can thin the horse Guan Mountain Road, and when the west wind blows sideburns." People are gone, thinking about it, and there is no fragrant tree with black cry. With the general sweeping the window before the month, hold to the present day to say goodbye...... [8]

”

Fang Jinglin sighed: "Brother Jin Ge, you are really a character who does not admit defeat. Yes, we have won, our People's Liberation Army is about to march into Beiping, and the collapse of the Kuomintang regime is just around the corner, all of this is a foregone conclusion, but as far as my personal feelings are concerned, it does respond to the words you just chanted. With the general sweeping the window before the month, hold to the present day to say goodbye...... Brother Jin Ge, don't say dark words in front of the Ming people, besides, you and I are peers, and we know what each other is thinking in our hearts, needless to say. You didn't take advantage of my gaffe to ask for merit and reward, which is enough to prove that you are a good friend, Brother Jin Ge, I still owe you a favor. ”

Xu Jinge still looked into the distance, and his answer was not what he asked: "It's a pity, that's a good woman, Brother Jinglin, how good would it be if there was no civil war?" I feel sorry for you. ”

"Thank you! This is also what I said in my heart, they are all Chinese, who wants to fight in the nest? But Mr. Jiang insisted on fighting, and we had no choice but to accompany him. Brother Jingo, I know you're coming to me sooner or later, I've been waiting. ”

Xu Jinge pointed to the brightly lit Dongdan temporary airport and said: "Brother Jinglin, if I want, there will be my seat on these planes at any time, do you know the current market for a plane space?" Tell you, two 'big yellow croaker'. Our stationmaster Wang Puchen and deputy stationmaster Song Yuanhe left early, and just yesterday, Gu Zhengwen also left. I originally wanted to leave, but when I got to the airport and changed my mind, I decided to stay, Brother Jinglin, don't you want to ask me why I stayed? ”

Fang Jinglin replied calmly: "You always have your own reasoning, if you are willing to say, of course I am willing to listen." ”

Xu Jinge said awe-inspiringly: "There are two reasons, first, this civil war is really boring, I'm tired of it, you know, even if the defenders of Beiping all lay down their arms and accept the peaceful reorganization, as long as the secret bureau system refuses to participate, then the war in Beiping will still not end, and this ancient city is likely to become a ruin." As a sensible Chinese, we must consider the cost of war. Whatever the good reasons of each of us, this is a civil war at best, and no matter how brilliant the victory of the civil war is, it is also a great loss to the country and the nation, and I believe that this civil war should be stopped in order to preserve the vitality of the nation as much as possible. For this reason, all personal honor and disgrace can be disregarded. ”

Fang Jinglin silently stretched out his hand, and the hands of the two were clasped tightly.

"Thank you, Brother Jingo, and what is the other reason?"

"For the sake of the lives of all the people in the Beiping Station of the Secret Bureau and their future, I hope that after they lay down their weapons, your party will treat them well."

Fang Jinglin nodded solemnly and said: "On behalf of the Ministry of Industry of the Communist Party of China in Beiping, as long as you lay down your arms and accept the peaceful reorganization, we will treat all the rebels equally, and we will not blame the past." You have made great contributions to the peaceful liberation of Beiping, and the people will always be grateful to you. ”

"Your party can be so lenient, my colleagues and I should be grateful, and we are willing to serve New China!"

Fang Jinglin looked at Beiping City shrouded in twilight with a solemn expression and said in a low voice: "Brother Jin Ge, you and I met on the eve of the '77 Incident' in 1937, right? At that time, the war was imminent, the wolf smoke was billowing over Beiping, and the air was full of ** smell, although we had different political views at that time, but there was a certain consensus on this upcoming war, that is, to fight for the country and the nation, either victory or death. Brother Jinge, we did a good job in the War of Resistance Against Japan, and finally won the war, without dishonoring the Chinese. With regard to this war against aggression, neither the Communist Party nor the Kuomintang is worthy of history, the country and the nation. As for the rights and wrongs of this civil war, we may not be able to say clearly now, but sooner or later history will make a fair judgment. Brother Jin Ge, look at this city, since 1937 to the present, in the past 12 years, the people of Peking have had a few days of peace? For nothing else, only for the sake of the people of Beiping, it is time to end this war, the wolf smoke has dissipated, peace has come, and we have come together to build a free, fair, and democratic New China, what a meaningful thing it is. ”

Xu Jinge silently stretched out his hand, and the hands of the two were clasped tightly.

Xu Jinge looked at the mountains in the twilight to the west and muttered to himself: "It is indeed exciting that the wolf smoke has dispersed and peace has come, but the following problems also arise, and the ancients had a teaching: its rise is also vigorous, and its death is also sudden[9]

。 There is another change of dynasty, and I hope that you communists can break out of this cyclical law of history. ”

Fang Jinglin replied confidently: "This statement is inaccurate, it is not a change of dynasty, but the liberation of the people, and it is the first liberation of the world." ”

Beiping City under the mountain is lit up with thousands of lights, outside the ancient city wall, colorful signal flares come and go, drawing countless abstract patterns in the royal blue sky, like festival fireworks......

January 31, 1949, the third day of the first lunar month. The troops of the Fourth Field Army of the People's Liberation Army entered Beiping City from Xizhimen to hand over the defense to the Kuomintang army, and the staff of the People's ** of Beiping City of the Communist Party of China also entered the city at the same time to take over the municipal government. On all the gates of Beiping, PLA soldiers wearing green military uniforms and armbands of "Ping Police" stood guard, and the Kuomintang's "Blue Sky and White Sun" flag was replaced by the military flag of the People's Liberation Army fluttering in the wind at the head of Beiping City.

February 3 is the sixth day of the Lunar New Year in the old calendar. At 10 o'clock in the morning, four signal flares rose into the sky, and the PLA's entry ceremony into the city officially began. The troops entering the city were led by three armored cars, floats with portraits of Mao ** and Zhu De, and a military band, and set off from Yongding Gate. When the armored convoy marched to the front gatehouse, the welcoming crowd boiled, cheers and fluttering flags and portraits mingled into a sea of joy. The artillery units, tank units, motorcycle units, and cavalry units of the People's Liberation Army walked through Qianmen Street, and the last to enter the city was a huge infantry unit, the infantry held high red flags, and medals and military merit medals flashed on their chests......

Wen San'er is over the "Breaking Five" [10]

He went out into the street to pull a cart, and because of his loneliness, he was first frightened by the rumbling tank car and jumped into the alley, and after a while in the alley, he saw that there was no danger before returning to the street. In his limited life experience, it seems that the concept of a tank does not yet exist. Of course, this is not Wen San'er's business alone, there are really not many old and young masters in Beiping Hutong who have seen this thing, and the tanks of the Japanese devils don't seem to have entered the city back then. Wen San'er had heard that these soldiers were called the People's Liberation Army, and the sixth day of the Lunar New Year was the day they entered the city. Wen San'er was quite puzzled, let's go into the city when you enter the city, why are you so happy? Playing with such a big move? Could it be today's factory[11]

Did you get to Qianmen Street?

Wen San'er saw a PLA officer wearing a yellow tweed military uniform under the front door building, and there were two guards with box cannons beside him. He leaned over and asked, "Boss, do you want a car?" ”

The official smiled: "Thank you!" I don't need a car, I said brother, don't call me boss, call me comrade in the future. ”

"Hey, old ...... Comrade, you have just entered the city, and when you settle down, you have to take a car to visit the door or something, and you can't look for a car to sit on the street with your identity, there must be a person in the house who pulls a monthly fee, and when the time comes, you will say a ......."

"Thank you! Thank you! Goodbye, comrade! The PLA officer walked towards the team with his guards.

The business of this astronomical Saner is not very good, he walked from Qianmen Street to the south entrance of Wangfujing in ignorance, and walked through Tiananmen Square from the south entrance of Wangfujing, until he walked to the Xidan intersection, there were happy crowds everywhere along the road, it seemed that the people of Beiping City were all on the street, but none of them asked for a car.

In Wen San'er's eyes, this day is no different from ordinary days, but it is a little more lively on the street, which is not surprising, didn't it just "break five"? This year hasn't passed yet. If someone tells him that Beiping City has changed dynasties from today, he will not believe it.

Whether Wen San'er believes it or not, a new era has indeed arrived.

[1]

The special training class for military commanders was founded in 1938 and was located in Linli, Hunan, so it was referred to as the temporary training class. At the end of 1939, he moved to Xifeng, Guizhou to continue to run the third phase, referred to as the rest training class. Initially, the military called this class a special training class of the Military Commission, and Dai Li wanted to include this class in the Kuomintang Central Military Academy as part of the school, but was not approved. In the end, Chiang Kai-shek decided to include it in the scope of the Central Police Academy and named it the "Special Political Police Training Class of the Central Police Academy", referred to as the special police class. However, special training classes are still used within the military command, and they are distinguished by the name of the region where they are located. For example, the temporary training class, the Guizhou training class, the rest training class, the Chongqing training class, the Lan training class, and so on, among which the graduates of the temporary training class and the rest training class have formed a great influence within the military command.

[2]

"Secret Execution" is a secret word within the military command, which means secret execution and assassination.

[3]

The Qianmen Building, commonly known to the common people of Beijing, is actually the arrow tower of Zhengyangmen, before Zhengyangmen, north of the moat.

[4]

The old Beijing dialect "scattering rakes" means to find others to be angry.

[5]

In the old Beijing dialect, "top cylinder" for this matter is equivalent to being responsible for this matter.

[6]

In the old Beijing dialect, eating "melon luoer" means being implicated.

[7]

This sentence reflects the author's concept of the Mandate of Heaven, saying that the rise and fall of ancient and modern things are the Mandate of Heaven, expressing the author's state of mind that is tired of the world's disputes.

[8]

From Nalan Xingde's words "Yu Zhonghao".

[9]

"Its prosperity is also vigorous, and its death is also sudden" from "Zuo Chuan: The Eleventh Year of Zhuang Gong", Zang Wenzhong said: "Song Qixing! Tang and Yu are guilty of themselves, and their prosperity is also vigorous; The death of sinners is also sudden. Later historians believe that this phrase expresses a cyclical law of history - few people who have been thriving for a long time, and many people who have died quickly.

[10]

Northerners call the fifth day of the Lunar New Year "broken five", and according to northern customs, dumplings should be eaten on this day.

[11]

Visiting the factory was once the old custom of Beijingers for the New Year. During the Spring Festival every year, from Hepingmen Shunnan Xinhua Street to the intersection of Hufang Bridge, the two sides of the road are covered with temporary straw mat greenhouses, and the merchants of the capital gather here, and the tourists are like a tide, which is an important place for the Beijing people to celebrate the New Year.