XXIII. The Faces of the Underground Party (I)

It is a fool not to take advantage of the advantages -- this is the consistent way of thinking of the vast majority of Chinese.

Being able to sit and never stand, being able to lie down and never sit - this is another creed that the vast majority of Chinese agree with.

Therefore, for Ms. Xiao Se to suddenly make such an inexplicable request, let herself leave the Shanghai Tang of the Republic of China, which she had already preliminarily familiarized, and go to Beiping, where she was unfamiliar with her life, to engage in some kind of "Beijinger" skull, Wang Qiu's heart was really a thousand and ten thousand.

Therefore, almost without thinking, he started a haha with Ms. Xiao Se, and adopted the word "procrastination" for this troublesome matter.

In fact, in the previous internal discussions, Wang Qiu and his companions also considered many "shortcuts to wealth" in this era, and they were quite fascinated by them - such as the open-pit sapphire mine in Changle, Shandong Province, which is called "blue stone" by the locals, the world's largest "peace" diamond pit in Siberia, the Soviet Union, the gold treasure of the Padmanaba Swamy Temple in Kerala, India, worth more than 10 billion US dollars (21st century currency, of course), and the 40 tons of treasure on the Caribbean shipwreck "Lady Atoka...... At first glance, this plane seems to be full of treasures!

However, the burial sites of these treasures are all very far away from Shanghai, and there is a feeling that they are out of reach. Even the nearest treasure hiding place, that is, Changle in Shandong under the rule of Han Fuqu, was infested with bandits, drug lords, many black shops, and unbelievably bad law and order...... It is very easy for a single traveler to be robbed and killed on the road, even if he succeeds in getting there. How to buy it is another big problem: if there is no strong enough force to back it up, most of the "simple and hospitable" mountain people will think that it is easier to kill you and take money directly than to dig stones for money; If you pull all the time-traveling mercenaries over and show them off...... Are you the marshal of Han Fuqu and his soldiers and horses all dead?

-- It's not that you can't beat it. It's not really cost-effective to fight for this...... Ordnance, ammunition and pensions alone can make people lose money.

It wasn't until they opened a small grocery store that they were first blackmailed by the gangsters and warned by the Chamber of Commerce, and Wang Qiu and they came back to their senses - why did we have to travel so far to explore treasures? Is it just to pick up a bargain? If you want any gold, silver and jewelry, why don't you just buy it in Shanghai? Anyway, we don't have much else in our hands now, how much money is definitely needed, and no matter how expensive the purchase price is, what's the matter?

To put it mildly, as long as money can buy something. Even if you buy rice from the Republic of China era and ship it back for sale, you can make huge profits just as much!

And in Shanghai, an international metropolis, it is certainly not easy to make a lot of money. But it's not easy to spend a lot of money?! For example, Wang Qiu had just asked someone to buy 20 handicraft pistols for 100,000 yen in the Hongkou Japanese Concession, each of which was made of gold, silver, or ivory for the handle and body. It is also set with sparkling crystals, gemstones and diamonds. Extravagance and extravagance...... The intended use was to equip Cleopatra's court guards.

In this transaction, the Japanese boss who sold the guns thought that he had made a big bargain, because according to the Chinese market at that time, the price of a gun for ordinary people was about 100 to 300 yen, even though these guns are now made of real money, and the full purchase cost is less than 30,000 yen. And Wang Qiu also felt that he did not lose anything - because the 100,000 yen banknote, in terms of cost, it is estimated that there will not be even ten yuan yuan......

(Note that this book is set in the near future.) China will be stronger than it is now, but the renminbi will certainly continue to depreciate a bit. Please don't be surprised that cans of Coke are much more expensive than they are now, and a pack of instant noodles costs six yuan. ）

In any case, neither the British nor the Japanese in the 21st century seem to have the slightest psychological burden on harming their motherland in a parallel time and space and creating inflation in another shijie -- since the opening of the "Republic of China Copy", boxes and bags of "real" yen and "real" pound banknotes have been shipped to Shanghai through legal channels. Recently, 50 million central bank banknotes bearing the portrait of Sun Yat-sen (banknotes issued by the Chiang Kai-shek regime before the birth of fiat currency) have been put into the Shanghai market in the last century to "help" Chairman Chiang, who is commanding the fifth encirclement and suppression operation, to carry out "quantitative easing......

Thankfully, due to the weight constraints, most of these banknotes were used to purchase luxury goods such as furs, jewelry, and antiques, and did not cause serious market volatility for the time being. If the traversers had used them to hoard necessities such as rice, oil, and coal, they would have already created a panic in the market.

In addition, due to the development of the time-traveler in this time and space, it is likely to clash with all parties in Shanghai, especially the Japanese ronin who are causing trouble everywhere, Wang Qiu asked the former Prime Minister Kotori Yu Mashiro more cryptically before this embarrassing problem broke out.

And Kotori Yu Mashiro said very shamefully that as long as she is not allowed to charge into battle as a death squad and carry out a mortal mission, killing the Japanese in this time and space is nothing. After all, when she traveled through time and space in the past, she even killed the emperor - it is said that it was to save a few unfortunate people who had become palace maids or female officials, and the wormhole always appeared when they were "lucky" by the emperor...... Therefore, at that time, Kotori Yu Mahaku didn't even think about it, so he directly slaughtered the lewd man on the tatami mat who wanted to shout a warning, and it wasn't until later that he found out that he seemed to have committed the crime of killing the king......

What is even more exaggerated is that after learning of this, the modern Japanese emperor was not only not the least annoyed, but also greatly praised the "loyalty and bravery" of Ichitoriyu Mahaku...... At the same time, he also secretly said that if there is a chance to travel to the Heian period next time, it is best to cooperate with the Chinese time-travelers, find an opportunity to enter the court of Heianjing, and seize the sword, mirror, and magatama, the three "artifacts" that have long been lost in history.

“…… Since you don't mind killing the patrolmen, cops, and gangsters of this plane. And how could I mind killing the Japanese ronin and Japanese marines on the beach? Regarding Wang Qiu's temptation, former Prime Minister Kotori Yu Mahaku suddenly asked with some confusion, "...... Don't. Oh, my God! Do you even think ...... Am I the kind of fool who can't tell the difference between game and reality? It's ridiculous! Don't you look down on people so much!! ”

- It turns out that those more sophisticated professional time-travelers regard time-traveling as a live-action 3D online game, and the characters in it are NPCs set up by computers...... In this case, when killing monsters in online games, why bother with what kind of clothes the other party is wearing. What kind of background do you have? Could it be that Chinese Warcraft players will be open to the panda people in the game because the panda is a national treasure?

On the other hand. Most of the time and space connected by wormholes are far from the age of modern shijie, and those wormholes that can travel to the twentieth century can be counted with just one palm, even if they are all added up—Wang Qiu's "copy of the twenty-third year of the Republic of China" is already the latest to travel through the age since records began: the latest to travel through the wormhole before. The connection point is Japan in 1929......

So. Due to the distance between the times and backgrounds, and the time spent there will not be very long, the professional traversers naturally do not have much sense of substitution for Shijie on the other side of the wormhole. The "compatriots" on the other side of the wormhole also have no way to regard them as their own people.

And any country and government absolutely does not want its "special employees" to have such an erroneous concept -- if the ideological work is not done well, and the "human traitor" in the movie "Avatar" who colludes with the natives of another world and harms their own compatriots is made, it is a daxiao dialect......

However. In the final analysis, the time and space of the Republic of China on the other side of the wormhole. After all, it's a living shijie, not a stationary gaming platform. And the people of that era were not NPCs who only moved around in a fixed area and kept repeating the same conversation.

For example, General Political Commissar Hu Dexing, who was connected with the "future comrades," was carrying out his own activities.

――――――――――――――――――――――

In a dilapidated brick house in the Zhabei slum in Shanghai, a small group that has lost contact with the organization is holding a secret meeting.

“…… Although the situation of the Red Revolution in China today is very bad, I hope that the comrades will continue to strengthen our Party's conviction in this difficult situation: Our cause of transforming Shijie is just and can stand the test of history. And deciding who is our friend and who is our enemy is an important issue in our cause. Those who agree with our cause are our friends. Those who oppose our cause are our enemies. Treat your friends as warm as spring, and treat your enemies as cruelly as the autumn wind sweeping away the leaves! Wait a minute! Who's knocking on the door outside? ”

In the very dimly lit room with thick curtains drawn, the young host was in the middle of his talk, but suddenly heard a regular knock on the door, so he had to temporarily adjourn the meeting, and asked several other comrades to take out their knives and guns to raise their vigilance, and then tiptoe over to open the door.

After verifying each other's joint codes, General Political Commissar Hu Dexing, who was wearing a black priest's robe, pushed the door in, and glanced at the people in the room, but did not find the figure he was looking for, so he had to say to the host: "...... Comrade Xiao Wu, there are a lot of comrades who have come back this time! ”

“…… Anything that can be found, almost all of them have come, thanks to the funds you sent two days ago......" The young man rubbed his hands and laughed.

“…… What about Mansha? General Political Commissar Hu's next sentence went straight to the point and asked about the whereabouts of his female disciple, "...... Why didn't you see her? ”

“…… Mansha? At the mention of this name, the young man's face showed a complicated expression, "...... She went back to her hometown. ”

“…… Home? Alas, it must be her vampire lady again......" Hu Dexing sighed, put on his hood and walked out of the room......

――――――――――――――――――――――

In the room next door to the alley, there were bursts of men's roars, women's screams, and the cries of babies...... Gu Mansha sighed and covered her poisonous ears, stepped on a pair of half-worn high heels, and continued to walk in the dark alley.

This alley seems to have been dark and mossy with old brick walls since childhood. It's as if it's going to fall down in the next second.

Therefore, she had to keep her head down and walk carefully. From time to time, he reached out and pulled the cheongsam - only seventy percent new, and the color was already a little dull.

Thinking of her infamous life in the past few years, Gu Mansha sighed, and her face with heavy makeup also showed some fatigue. No matter how strong she is, she is only a weak woman after all, and she will be tired physically and mentally - she has given enough for this family over the years.

Although I know that the mother who sees herself as a shame. It must not be a good thing for someone to come to me today, most of it is for the bride price of my brother's marriage...... But the hateful thing is that he is so cheap. Still in such a hurry to send money.

Ending the sad memories and stomping her feet, she stood in front of a familiar door and shouted hatefully, "...... Mother! Open the door, I'm back. ”

-- No matter how much you hate your family's greed, selfishness, meanness, and ruthlessness. After all, this is the home that gave birth to her and raised her...... Even if it's a sacrifice of her youth. devoured her flesh and buried her happiness, the home that she was barely able to support.

Mrs. Gu opened the door and saw her eldest daughter Gu Mansha's appearance with heavy makeup, she immediately opened her mouth in disgust, but remembering her purpose, she had no choice but to soften her voice: "...... Sasha, why are you still smearing like that? Now you already have a man, too. It's time to be more dignified. ”

“…… Got a man? Dignified? Oh hehehe...... Are you kidding?!! ”

Gu Mansha was stunned when she heard this, and then she seemed to think of something interesting. laughed like a girl, but when she did it, it was extremely terrifying, "...... What do you think I am? That Boss Chen looked generous, but he actually refused to even give me a banquet! His wife is living a good life in the country. What am I? Not even an aunt's wife! It's just a woman who dances, drinks and sleeps, and is just a plaything for him to relieve his boredom and have fun in Shanghai. Rich man! It's not just that! ”

In front of her daughter's rampant laughter, Mrs. Gu was silent, just standing stiffly beside her daughter, wiping her apron with her hands from time to time.

She knew that Mansha had always complained about her, but she couldn't bear it, but what could she do? Seeing that he is going to have a happy event, the family has no money, there are two younger sisters who are not married, his son is not successful, and he has no job, of course, he can only count on Mansha to pay for it! Who told her to be a lowly? The family uses her money to accumulate virtue for her, and now she is so-so, isn't there a home? It's not good to be so mean all the time!

But she can't say this in front of her, otherwise she will lose her temper again...... Alas, look at how soft-hearted I am......

Seeing her mother's restrained and somewhat disdainful expression, Gu Mansha's heart was bitter and angry - with a "snap", she threw a stack of banknotes on the table and sneered: "That's all the money, take it!" Don't shout poor all day long, Boss Chen is not a kind man who is easy to fool! ”

Mrs. Gu shook her head secretly, but her hands neatly collected the banknotes, counted them carefully, and then said, "...... If you want me to say, you should also collect your thoughts and give birth to that boss, so that your life will be better. It's not a matter if it goes on like this, and the reputation of the family should not be ......."

Hearing this, Gu Mansha was so angry that her whole body was about to tremble. Have a baby? The reputation of the family? It's a shame that she still said it!

In such a chaotic world now, if it weren't for the fact that my father died too early, the family was too poor, and I had a younger brother and two younger sisters to pull, how could I go out to be a dancer as a female college student? In the bright dance hall, how many women have I seen the depravity, at first I was trembling, for fear that one would accidentally follow in their footsteps, at that time, how did I know that I desperately asked for money and cried poor, and never let myself care about the reputation of my family?

Ha! Now you want me to have a baby, why? Why is my Gu Mansha destined to be a mistress who will not see the light for the rest of my life, and my child should be an illegitimate child who has been looked down upon since childhood? You people who eat me, wear me, use me, and use my conscienceless bastards, but you can pretend to be serious people!

Hey, it's long overdue to see the attitude of this family towards his daughter, groveling to himself when he has money, and despising himself again and again when he has no money. What hope can you hope for your future?

Yes, the younger brothers and sisters always have to take care of themselves. As for whether her eldest daughter is happy or not, what does it matter?

After all, he has already become a rag with thousands of people riding across thousands of people, and in the eyes of this most particular mother, it is good to be a mistress and be raised. As for a few years later, who will pay attention to herself, a dirty woman who has smeared her family?

Forget it, anyway, this is zuihou once, she probably doesn't know that Boss Chen's jealous wife has already come to Shanghai with a group of mothers-in-law and maids to raid her own house, and she really has to smash everything before stopping, and tear your clothes clean! And the boss Chen, who took care of himself, had already been dragged back by his ears...... It's a shame that I happened to be not at home at the time, otherwise God knows what I would have been beaten!

The money sent today is actually a settling-in allowance given to him by General Political Commissar Hu -- giving this money to his family is tantamount to cutting off the dust. In the future, we must devote ourselves wholeheartedly to revolutionary work...... No one in this family has ever cared about themselves, so just treat it as if they don't!

Just when she was so self-pitying in her heart, Mrs. Gu's next sentence continued to sprinkle a lot of salt on her wounds:

“…… O Mansha! Mom really can't help it, when my brother gets married on the eighth day of the next month, can you not come? Although the in-laws over there are dilapidated, they are scholarly in the end. Your reputation has spread all over this area again, and when the time comes, I'm afraid that the faces of your in-laws will not look good......"

…… Gu Mansha didn't hear the rest of the words, she pushed away her mother, who was still chattering, and stumbled out of the alley. It's just that before I had time to run into the street, I felt that it was difficult to breathe, and my eyes were even blackened, and the air I inhaled cut my internal organs like a knife...... Her long-sick lungs seemed to be unable to withstand such stimulation anymore, and Gu Mansha immediately spit out a mouthful of blood foam and collapsed softly.

At the moment before losing consciousness, Gu Mansha, the former red-card dancer of "Greater Shanghai", seemed to have no strength to smile bitterly.

I just want a home that can really care for me, why is it so difficult?

However, at the moment when she fell, she seemed to see the anxious face of General Political Commissar Hu and heard his vague shout......

Well, there are still people in this world who care about themselves, but it's too late...... Gu Mansha, a tuberculosis patient, curled up weakly, let go of the burden in her heart, put down the mask of her smirk, and fainted softly......

――――――――――――――――――――――――――――

PS: Well, I admit that I just watched "Half Life" recently. (To be continued......)