Time entered the ninth month. When the majority of the world's gazes were focused on the battle between Liu Guangshi and Zou Xu north of the Yangtze River, as well as the Heroes' Assembly held by the Fairness Party in Jiangning, a complicated storm was silently brewing in the southwest.
This was the second session of the first China People's Congress. Compared to the gathering of people from all over the world during the first session last year, the grandeur of the occasion and the attention of the entire world, the momentum of this session was comparatively more ordinary.
This was because the truly representative and ceremonial political framework had already been established with great fanfare in last year's session. Only a year had passed. This year's session seemed more like picking up the loose ends of last year's work, or even perfecting the details of the various frameworks. This kind of session naturally didn't attract the interest of the majority of people.
Last year, the first session was held at the beginning of August. This year, for some reason, the time of the session was chosen to be the same as the Jiangnan Fairness Party, at the end of August and the beginning of September. Thus, putting aside the trivial and difficult to understand proposals of the congress, the more interesting gossip in the southwest market became the news of the shameless Fairness Party and the Chinese army fighting for attention.
In this direction, we know that ever since He Wen announced the Jiangning Heroes' Assembly, within the Chinese army in the southwest, there has always been "He Wen is an ingrate", "leeching off his popularity", "borrowing chickens to lay eggs", "the Fairness Party is truly despicable", and so on. It was only in August that this kind of ridicule became increasingly obvious.
And in this kind of atmosphere, as if realizing the value of this wave of news, from July to September, all sorts of large newspapers in Chengdu used a certain amount of space to introduce the Fairness Party's matters from three thousand li away. These kinds of introductions naturally didn't contain detailed first-hand information. Most of them were descriptions of theories, programs, and general methods. A few daring newspapers even published articles comparing the methods of the Chinese army and the Fairness Party, as well as the differences in theories. Although it looked like they were describing the advanced nature of the Chinese army's framework, there were still many 'dissidents' in Chengdu, so this kind of conclusion naturally couldn't be said to be able to convince the masses.
All of this seemed like a logical and logical free discussion. And in these circumstances, some unscrupulous tabloids also published some tidbits of news drawn from the Fairness Party's information, and some even fabricated stories. For example, the sword duel on Mount Hua between the five Kings of the Party of Fairness, the Chakravarti King bullying men and women, Zhou Shang killing people like flies, and so on.
This normal atmosphere of public opinion continued until the end of August and the beginning of September, when the second conference was held. As the conference seemed to be held peacefully, the insiders saw through the ropes. A few sensitive topics still appeared on the proposal list of the conference. An inexplicable and oppressive atmosphere began to gather in Chengdu.
Several proposals on "land reform" were put forward by several representatives with business backgrounds. Then, it was gradually listed as the key discussion topic of the meeting. At the same time, some of the authoritative newspapers in Chengdu continued the wave of discussion about the methods of the Fairness Party and began to focus on the "livelihood" theory of the Huaxia army's so-called "four people".
It was the elephant in the room.
For the onlookers, this kind of discussion was not very interesting. It could not compare to the bloodbath of Zou Xu and Liu Guangshi, the traitors north of the Yangtze River, nor could it compare to the Jiangning Meeting that would decide the future of the entire Jiangnan. But in the southwest, the nerves of a certain group of people were suddenly stretched taut.
On the third of September, the sixth day of the conference, a few small incidents began to happen in the city. That morning, more than twenty village elders, village chiefs, and other people from all over the country gathered in front of the conference building in Chengdu. They knelt on the ground and cried out their grievances. They were accusing the Huaxia army veterans who had been assigned to the countryside of abusing their power and bullying men and women. There were detailed witnesses and testimonies for these accusations.
On the evening of the same day, a representative who had proposed "land reform" was assassinated by a murderer in the boulevard beside the guest road after the conference was adjourned. His blood splattered the ground.
A large number of lobbyists and inquirers had already begun to move in secret.
After the agenda of the fourth day was over, Ning Yi held a small family banquet in the courtyard beside the Mahākāśyapa Pond to entertain Su Wending, Su Wenyu, and a few other relatives and friends. After dinner, he had Wending and Wenyu stay behind as representatives. The three of them sat by the lake for a while.
In late autumn, the weather in Chengdu was pleasant. The evening breeze blew from the Mahākāśyapa Pond. Ning Yi spoke to the two of them and got straight to the point.
"… It's not easy for the Su family to have a few capable people. Even if we have to choose someone who can speak, just one of you is enough. Why are there two of you here? Do you want to obstruct the Earth's revolution? "
Hearing his direct words, Su Wending and Su Wenyu, who were now in charge of various matters, looked at each other with a bitter smile. Then Su Wending said, "How would I dare? Brother-in-law, Wenyu should have been the one to catch the able-bodied man, but I just happened to be nearby, so I was pulled along. To be honest, the people in the family are nervous and asked the two of us to come together. If we find out anything, we can report it back so that we can't lie. "
"I'm used to being petty …" Ning Yi shook his head and smiled.
Wen Yu, who was at the side, said, "This matter doesn't sound small. Brother-in-law, we naturally have no objections to what you want to do. However, we are also curious and want to find out if you really want to do it, and to what extent exactly."
"What do you think?" Ning Yi asked.
"Isn't it because we weren't mentally prepared?" Wenyu said with a bitter smile, "You mentioned the land reform a few times in the past, but this time, there were no signs outside at all. Look at those people outside, how unprepared are they? Before the conference, they originally thought that this matter wouldn't come to light. Who knew that it would suddenly come to light? Furthermore, the methods used in secret couldn't be suppressed at all, so they didn't know what to do. Now, there are all kinds of speculations in and out of the city. Some say that Brother-in-law suddenly wants to make a move, while others say that they are just not familiar enough with the games of the conference … "
"… Caught off guard. I think they're quite fast. " Ning Yi smiled. "What you said at the end is right. They are not familiar enough with the games of the conference, so they are not sensitive enough. But under such circumstances, someone reacted quickly and organized more than 20 people to complain. The evidence was prepared, and they even killed someone at night. I didn't expect them to be so fast … The uncles who came today didn't participate, right? "
Wen Ding shook his head. "They wouldn't dare."
"This matter of killing representatives will kill a group of people. No one will be able to escape once they are involved … The people outside are indeed not too familiar with our games. Or perhaps, after being friends for two years, they are starting to have nothing to fear."
Sitting in the pavilion by the lake, Ning Yi looked at the water and muttered these words. Beside him, Wen Ding and Wenyu felt their scalps go numb. They were silent for a moment.
Wen Ding said, "Then … Brother-in-law, how should we cooperate on this matter? Just how far will we go? Should we probe their thoughts, or … have they already decided? "
Ning Yi glanced at him. "… What do you think?"
The two looked at each other. Su Wenyu thought for a moment. "… Land reform. It may seem like a few words, but in reality, it will decide the fate of everyone in the Southwest. This matter is really too big. You suddenly threw it out. The general view outside is that you want to probe everyone's reactions. That's why there are so many people asking and lobbying in private. They want to know how far you plan to go … "
He paused for a moment. "In addition, the land reform and the detailed rules are the truly big issue. The news has already introduced the Party of Equity two months ago. They have already laid the groundwork for the land harvest. But if it is like the Party of Equity, killing and seizing property, the opposition will definitely be the greatest. Apart from that, everyone is concerned about whether there will be compensation, whether there will be any discussion of compensation, whether there will be a direct harvest, or whether there will be some changes in the middle, or whether there will be loopholes to exploit … "
Ning Yi smiled. "I'm asking what you all think."
Su Wenyu thought for a moment, then clenched his teeth. "Although the outside world says that you suddenly threw out a proposal to probe everyone's opinions and that there might still be room for maneuvering, I feel that you must do something. This is a signal. In July, you began to thoroughly investigate the problems of the army. Then, in August, you had the Seventh Army and the Second and Fifth Divisions of the Fifth Army switch garrisons. It seems like you are dealing with the corruption of the Seventh Army and the Fifth Army, but in reality, the Seventh Army has never been on garrison duty in the Southwest. In this place, it is still a complete outsider.
"… On the other hand, every one of the four subjects seems to be big but meaningless. Anyone would feel that it would be extremely difficult to implement, but Brother-in-law, you are not one to joke around. In the past, we lived in Little Cang River and Mount Liang. The land was not large, and later on, we lived in a temporary residence, so there was no basis for this sort of reform. After we left Mount Liang, we were constantly preparing for the war in the Southwest … but now that the war in the Southwest has come to an end, we have rested for more than a year. If we move forward, the vested interests that you speak of will begin to take root in the Southwest.
"I feel … that you are not willing to wait any longer."
At this point, Su Wending, who had claimed to be the able-bodied man, nodded. "In truth, I also vaguely have this thought, but I also have some misgivings. That's why Wenyu came over. I also wanted to ask."
"What misgivings?"
"You previously spoke of the problem of capital." Su Wending solemnly said, "You said that the development of the Huaxia Army will be based on capital and the development of capital. Sooner or later, the majority of people will lose their land. On one hand, you said that you want to promote this matter, but on the other hand, if you really want to promote its development, wouldn't carrying out land reform at this time run counter to it? After all, if everyone is given land, wouldn't there be fewer people running out?"
He said, "On the way here, I talked to Wenyu about the change of garrisons in August and the propaganda in the newspapers over the past two months. I also felt that you wanted to implement this link to the people's livelihood. But you also said that capital is a strong rule, so we must promote and make good use of it. Then the risk of land reform at this time … isn't it a little too great … "
Back when Su Tan'er had officially taken over the clan, Ning Yi had prepared a plan to go to the capital to help Qin Siyuan. After that, he had brought along Su Wenfang, Su Wending, Su Wenyu, and Su Yanping, who were relatively close to the Su family's second branch, Su Wenfang, Su Wending, Su Wenyu, and Su Yanping, to be nurtured by his side. In the early days, he had given them in-depth instruction and engaged in a great deal of conversation. Over the years, the four of them had their own areas of responsibility and had communicated less with each other. But when Wending and Wenyu finished speaking, Ning Yi still smiled and nodded.
He deliberated for a moment.
"Capital and landlords have always been at odds." Ning Yi smiled. "After the victory in the war of the southwest, the area around Chengdu began to be developed on a large scale. By this year, every inch of land was worth its weight in gold. Some merchants had begun to consider expanding into the surrounding areas, and a portion of the landlords had joined in. Some were willing to cooperate, and some were willing to raise the price … Before the meeting, I had instigated some discord, so a portion of the merchants felt that the Chinese military government would vigorously support the construction of factories, but many of the landlords were stubborn and refused to budge, so … they incited the representatives to directly start with the land reform agenda …
"Of course, they mainly wanted to test the waters. The words' land reform 'were too big for them to bear, but they could use it as a bargaining chip to get the landlords to compromise … but now that the proposal had been sent up, how could they possibly suppress it? I took it as pushing the boat along with the current, so the matter floated up … "
Su Wenyu blinked. "So Brother-in-law really did make a decision from the very beginning."
"The matter has only just begun. Although there's not much meaning in diverting everyone's attention, sooner or later, swords and spears will come to blows." Ning Yi smiled. "Throughout the ages, only a few founding imperial courts have been able to push forward a matter like land reform. The effects it brings are not necessarily all good. Just like you said, Wen Ding, if everyone is about to die of poverty, and suddenly everyone is given a plot of land, how will my factory hire people? But in the long run, if it succeeds, it will mostly have a good effect, because the essence of land reform is not about the livelihood of the people … "
He paused. "… about seizing power."
The night wind moaned, stirring up ripples on the lake. There were not many people in the pavilion, and Ning Yi's words were slow and gentle. But Wen Ding and Wen Yu suddenly felt their scalps go numb, as if a fire was burning around them.
"Since ancient times, the central government has ruled over the regions. This means that the imperial power does not descend to the counties, that the officials go down, and that the largest region, the countryside, is stabilized by the virtuous villagers. In truth, this is handing over a large portion of the country's authority. Of course, the political resources of the dynasties have been insufficient, so this is very reasonable … but now that we've reached this step of developing the wisdom of the people, we can consider creating a new situation.
"Wen Yu is very correct. Back in Little Blue River and Little Liang Mountain, although we shouted these slogans, we did not have the foundation to do so. When we began to rule over the southwest, we were always preparing for the war and did not begin to implement these policies … in truth, no matter how beautiful a policy is, there are no conditions to implement it …
"After winning the war in the southwest, we recovered several thousand soldiers and sent them to the villages. One after another, we sent teachers, doctors, circuit courts, and began to form militias to the villages. The essence of these things is to make preparations to abolish the power of the virtuous villagers. And now, this preparation … is somewhat forced, but it can truly be activated …
"Continuing to maintain the private ownership of land and maintaining its free flow can, in the short term, provide a breeding ground for capital and factories to develop, but this kind of development will cause many people to die … and once we can destroy the foundation of the virtuous villagers' rule and grasp the power at the very end of society, no matter what we do in the future, it will be much smoother and we will have more choices. This includes those peasants who have been given land. They will stand on our side, and when we fight our way out, more people will welcome us. As for the development of all these places, we can unify our plans and no longer have to look at the face of the private landowners …"
He faintly smiled. "After we conquered the southwest, we did not decisively and decisively divide up the land. The main reason was that in places that we could not manage, there was not much meaning in a hasty division of land. This was in itself a part of training soldiers and seizing power. Some people in the southwest saw that I had a gentle attitude and gave preferential treatment to some of the landowners who had stood on our side, believing that they could bargain with me. In truth, if it's just a little economic benefit, there is some compensation, but anyone who still wants to be a virtuous villager, or perhaps even a virtuous villager … only death awaits them.
"As for the capital that Wen Ding spoke of, it is a strong rule." At this point, Ning Yi paused, seeming somewhat sorrowful. "Capital truly is a strong rule. Right now, we cannot see its full power, but sooner or later, its high efficiency will sweep away everything else. When it reaches the most extreme of places, it will also precipitate its own problems, and then it will get out of hand. But before we can find a better rule to replace it, it is impossible to abandon it. What can be done …
"Besides having to constantly patch and vaccinate it with each generation, we can only first make a retreat that is not a retreat …
"Take back the land. When some people can't take it anymore, at least … go back to farming …"
In these past few years, Ning Yi had been promoting the development of investigating things and capital. Although he would occasionally talk about some problems in the future, he did not go into too much depth. At this time, Wen Ding and Wen Yu could not really understand the last few sentences, but they had long since gotten used to their brother-in-law occasionally saying some strange things. At this time, they looked at each other and did not say much.
In the pavilion where the cool breeze blew, Ning Yi took a sip of tea.
"… This time, the matter is very big. I'm not sure if it will succeed, but while the Huaxia Army can still kill people on the plains of Chengdu, it must be done. If the land reform succeeds, it proves that we have succeeded in seizing power … tell these uncles, no matter what the final rules are, be more self-aware. Don't … do anything that will make our friends suffer and our enemies happy … "
He faintly waved his hand.
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