Seeing Yang Du arrive for a visit, Lu Huitian dispensed with pleasantries and simply said, "Please sit."

Yang Du felt a bit unaccustomed to such a simple greeting. The accommodation Yuan Shikai had prepared for Lu Huitian was comfortable, with a Western-style layout. The living room had sofas with soft cushions made of a comfortable fabric—a sturdy silk-cotton blend. Yang Du didn't know this was a new product recently released by the People's Party, which was selling well in the luxury market in the North.

The room was quiet. Lu Huitian poured tea for both of them personally, then sat down calmly, looking at Yang Du with focused attention, waiting for him to state his purpose.

This reception method was different from the old bureaucratic habits of the Beiyang clique. There was no condescending bluster, nor was there that reserved aloofness attempting to keep people at a distance. Lu Huitian's focused attitude showed he took Yang Du's visit seriously. Yang Du felt a strange new sensation: Lu Huitian didn't care about Yang Du's status; he respected the Yang Du who was here to do business.

It was a kind of respect Yang Du was very unaccustomed to. It was also the first time someone treated Yang Du the person seriously, or rather, treated the Yang Du who bore responsibility seriously.

*This is a man who gets things done!* Yang Du sighed inwardly.

Yang Du knew that many people in the People's Party held high positions at a young age without relying on connections. Intelligence reports said their party chairman, Chen Ke, was currently only a thirty-year-old "middle-aged man." In the Beiyang clique, the only person who could compare with Chen Ke was probably Yuan Shikai himself. At thirty, Yuan Shikai, as the "Imperial Resident of Korea for Commercial and Diplomatic Affairs," was ostensibly the overlord of Korea.

Aside from him, among the remaining Beiyang generals, Yang Du was considered very young. In this year of 1910, he was only 36, yet he was a member of the cabinet. Theoretically, a central government position was more prestigious than a local one—if the People's Party was willing to recognize this current central government.

But the Lu Huitian before him had established his status as a senior cadre of the People's Party through solid achievements. Although it wasn't clear exactly what Lu Huitian had done, just from these two encounters, Yang Du could see Lu Huitian's characteristic of extreme focus on work. This was not a man easily dealt with.

"Mr. Lu, I came this time to ask what the People's Party truly intends to do. If it is convenient, please tell me plainly." Yang Du asked straight to the point. In Yang Du's experience, this kind of question usually yielded two types of answers: those with their own hidden agendas would talk around the subject, and those who were merely messengers would repeat what had already been said.

Lu Huitian's answer was simple. "I have already explained the purpose of my visit to Lord Yuan. Were you not present, Mr. Yang?"

Hearing Lu Huitian kick the ball back, with a hint of accusation in his tone, Yang Du smiled slightly. "Mr. Lu, both our sides have an agreement; I know a bit about that. But in the current situation, many things are changing. So I really want to know if there is anything Mr. Lu finds inconvenient to say to Lord Yuan face-to-face. If so, I can pass the message for you."

Lu Huitian did indeed need someone to pass a message. He said frankly, "Mr. Yang, our side's attitude is that we hope the previous agreement between both parties can continue to be maintained. However, there are many changes right now. I don't know if Mr. Yuan has told you, but we wanted four provinces, and let Mr. Yuan take the other regions as he pleased. But at that time, the other regions were still under the Manchu Qing system. None of the provinces had the nerve to challenge us. Now we are beginning to dedicate ourselves to restoring commerce, just as we now wish to conclude a commercial trade agreement with Lord Yuan. A problem arises here: if someone does not attack us militarily but maliciously obstructs the People's Party's normal commercial activities, do you think we should strive to promote the restoration of commerce?"

"Then what does this have to do with Lord Yuan?" Yang Du asked.

Lu Huitian replied, "Since Lord Yuan reached an agreement with us, he has an obligation to abide by it. We do not move against other provinces because we believe Lord Yuan has the ability to maintain the normal operation of the country. If Lord Yuan does not have the ability to maintain it, then we can only think of our own solutions. After all, every group needs to protect its own interests. Don't you agree, Mr. Yang?"

Yang Du fell silent for a moment. He had studied law and had his own concepts of rights and obligations. However, Yang Du was, after all, a figure of the old school. In the old system, there was no concept of reciprocity. Reciprocity meant hostility. As for rights and obligations, such things were even more of a joke. Superiors had power over inferiors, and inferiors had obligations to superiors. That was all there was to it. Possessing both obligations and rights simultaneously was a toy for the upper echelons within the same system; it was not an issue for two forces like the People's Party and Beiyang, which were actually in a state of enmity.

For a moment, Yang Du was a bit disappointed. Perhaps he had overestimated the People's Party; these young people were just using this as an excuse to coerce Yuan Shikai. Too many agreements in history had ended this way: seemingly sincere cooperation, but under the conflict of interests, both sides started harboring sinister designs, and eventually, the agreement was torn up. Yang Du had thought the People's Party would be different, but now it seemed they were nothing special.

"Mr. Yang, do you think we want to break faith?" Lu Huitian asked.

This question hit the nail on the head of Yang Du's thoughts. Almost as a conditioned reflex, Yang Du immediately replied, "Mr. Lu, what are you saying?"

Lu Huitian smiled. "Mr. Yang, everyone thinks a bit more for themselves. This is human nature. Now that we are asking Beiyang to fulfill some obligations, Beiyang surely feels we are looking for trouble. Everyone is out for their own interests; we are very clear on that. We brought a commercial agreement when we came, and this agreement is not beyond Beiyang's power. If Beiyang feels this agreement is unfair, or because of immediate problems you cannot temporarily fulfill obligations, I think you can say so directly. We can just talk it over. We encountered problems, so we came personally to see Lord Yuan to clarify these matters face-to-face. This is our sincerity. If it's a case of thinking the other party is breaking faith just because one is not satisfied inside, that is not an attitude for cooperation. Contradictions are everywhere. To resolve contradictions, better communication and exchange are needed to understand where the contradictions lie and how they need to be coordinated and improved. What do you think, Mr. Yang?"

Lu Huitian's words were a bit hard for Yang Du to parry. He pondered and said, "Mr. Lu, your words are inappropriate. It is not that Beiyang does not want to fulfill its obligations now, but that the time is not yet ripe."

"Then is it convenient to tell us when the time will be considered ripe? There must be a rough timeframe so we can adjust our own arrangements," Lu Huitian answered crisply.

Hearing this, Yang Du fell silent. He could not make decisions on these matters; even Yuan Shikai himself might not be able to. But Yang Du could not answer like that; saying so would validate the People's Party's claim of "unwillingness to fulfill obligations."

*The People's Party members are so hard to deal with,* Yang Du felt he somewhat understood why Lu Huitian could become the head of a province at such a young age. Lu Huitian's words were not aggressive at all, even reasonable, leaving ample room for others. But such solid "truth" could only be met with truth. Yet, telling the truth had never been a tradition of the Manchu officialdom, nor a tradition of the Beiyang upper echelon. Yang Du wanted to tell the truth, but he held no power, so he couldn't say it.

After another silence, Yang Du had to change the subject. "Mr. Lu, let us first discuss the commercial cooperation you mentioned. What do you think?"

He thought Lu Huitian would complain a few times, but Lu Huitian's response made Yang Du's jaw drop again. As if he hadn't considered the previous topic at all, Lu Huitian said one word sincerely and brightly: "Good."

Yang Du immediately felt his heart lighten. Being pragmatic is a very difficult choice. It requires not only the power to give orders but also a grasp of the whole matter. Ordinary lobbyists deal in empty talk or get entangled in certain seemingly clear personal interests. The People's Party's approach of directly laying out the actual interests that required effort from both sides forced Beiyang into a somewhat awkward position. Such a method made Yang Du envious.

What made Yang Du even more envious was that Lu Huitian, such a young man, had very high political savvy. Leaving aside his stance, the economic theories he proposed undoubtedly hit the key points of the present day. Although Yang Du was loyal to Yuan Shikai, he was not just after a personal official position; he hoped to establish true achievements in this era. Among the political figures he had met, Yuan Shikai undoubtedly had the greatest aptitude and potential.

Discussing cooperation was pragmatic; discussing economics allowed for some theoretical talk—at least that was what Yang Du felt. Soon, Yang Du understood just how "theoretical" the People's Party was. Regarding commercial operations, Yang Du was not an expert. Lu Huitian only spoke of basic theories—production, transport, sales—and then analyzed them against Beiyang's current situation. Yang Du quickly discovered the problem: when Lu Huitian discussed losses, he actually included the exploitation at each level. Moreover, the key point Lu Huitian proposed was reducing the amount of exploitation.

Yang Du interrupted Lu Huitian, "Mr. Lu, this is incorrect. Since it is business, commercial circulation is naturally the main thing. While exploitation exists, it is absolutely not as rampant as you say. Do you distrust Beiyang that much?"

Lu Huitian looked at Yang Du with a strange gaze. "Mr. Yang, you would know the problem if you operated this yourself. If the scale of business were small, I wouldn't mention it. Those involved in the layered exploitation wouldn't care for such petty trade. I won't say much, but if this wool business reaches ten thousand tons a year, that is twenty million jin. If one wen is added per jin at each passing hand, it doesn't seem like much, right? Twenty million jin is twenty million wen, which is twenty thousand taels of silver. Do you think anyone who handles it would let go of this profit? What if it's one hundred thousand tons a year? An extra wen per jin means two hundred thousand taels of silver. Just setting up checkpoints for layered exploitation—one layer adds two hundred thousand taels. Who in Beiyang do you think can withstand such temptation? And that's only speaking of collecting one extra wen per jin. If ten extra wen are collected per jin, calculate it yourself, Mr. Yang."

Yang Du understood mathematics. Because he understood, a casual calculation told him that an extra ten wen per jin on a trade of one hundred thousand tons of wool a year would mean twenty million taels of silver. Currently, Beiyang's annual fiscal revenue had fallen to less than sixty million taels. If this business could be done this way, Beiyang's finances could be balanced.

"This doesn't look like much either," Yang Du finally said.

"That is because you are the seller; naturally, you feel it isn't much. We are the buyers; we definitely cannot bear it. If we cannot bear it, we will not do the business. As long as this high exploitation exists, no one will buy the wool, and no one will earn this money. Perhaps Beiyang feels they can control it, then they might as well try," Lu Huitian laughed.

Yang Du frowned and thought it over. If it was truly as the People's Party said, there were simply too many places to make money in the middle of a trade. As long as the intermediate exploitation could be controlled so that both wool sellers and buyers could profit, just the commercial tax alone would be a huge stable profit. It was a very simple principle. If the Beiyang government collected only five wen of commercial tax per jin of wool, and if it reached one hundred thousand tons, that would be one million taels a year. This total tax revenue was acceptable.

"I will speak to Lord Yuan about this," Yang Du said seriously.

Lu Huitian responded with a bright smile, "That would be wonderful."

Yang Du could no longer discuss anything else. The immense profit of the wool business made him somewhat restless. He simply rose to take his leave. He hurried back to the Cabinet Office where Yuan Shikai was, looking preoccupied throughout the journey. Yang Du requested to see Yuan Shikai immediately.

Yuan Shikai also understood mathematics. Listening to Yang Du explain the profits of the wool business and the intermediate taxes, Yuan Shikai said coldly, "Bookishness. Accounts are not calculated that way."

Hearing this, Yang Du immediately felt a chill in his heart.

Yuan Shikai said helplessly, "Huchan, although that Lu Huitian is young, what he says makes sense. Things down below are much more difficult than you think. It is not something you can accomplish just because you want to."

"Lord Yuan, if the state receives tax revenue, what can't be done well? Surely the various Military Governors within our Beiyang don't lack even this bit of insight?" Yang Du asked.

"Huchan, are you trying to checkmate me?" Yuan Shikai gave a bitter smile.

Wait, this startled Yang Du. He hurriedly explained, "Lord Yuan, I absolutely have no such intention."

After Yang Du said this, he saw Yuan Shikai sigh with a smile. "Huchan, I know you mean well. But if the wrong person is entrusted with this matter, it is bound to cause great chaos. Before I decide on the personnel, you are not allowed to mention this to anyone. Remember that."

Although he didn't know exactly what Yuan Shikai planned, Yang Du answered decisively, "I will remember."

"Alright, regarding Lu Huitian's purpose this time, what have you heard?" Yuan Shikai asked.

Yang Du recounted Lu Huitian's talk of "the rights and obligations of both parties to the agreement" and the suggestion Lu Huitian made before leaving about holding regular consultation meetings. Yuan Shikai just listened quietly. It was only after Yang Du finished that Yuan Shikai asked a few more questions, then instructed Yang Du to talk more with Lu Huitian over the next few days and extract whatever inside information he could.

Once Yang Du left, Yuan Shikai let out a long breath. In fact, Yuan Shikai was not indifferent to the wool matter. Cold hard numbers were more credible than any passionate speech. The People's Party's suggestion was not without merit; rather, it had too much merit.

Yuan Shikai was not ignorant of overseas affairs; he had heard that the British wool spinning mills were doing good business. It was just that he couldn't get a hand in this trade before. Additionally, the wool business concerned Beiyang's policy towards Inner and Outer Mongolia. Starting to do this rashly would instead lose the element of surprise in bribing the princes of Inner and Outer Mongolia. After discussing with Wang Shizhen yesterday, Yuan Shikai had already decided to transfer Duan Qirui back. He would have him lead troops to Inner and Outer Mongolia first to conduct the final negotiations with those princes. At that time, purchasing wool would be an excellent bargaining chip.

"Chen Wenqing really knows what makes money!" Wang Shizhen had made this comment yesterday. Yuan Shikai had to admit that these words were very reasonable. Since that was the case, Beiyang had even less reason to let Chen Ke earn this money for nothing.

After several days of consideration, Yuan Shikai finally had Lu Huitian take a message back to Chen Ke. Beiyang would resolve the Fujian issue before April 1911. As for trade between the two sides, it could be discussed later. But regarding territory, Yuan Shikai explicitly stated he did not wish for Chen Ke to interfere in the affairs of other provinces. Yuan Shikai believed that both sides could hold a routine meeting every six months. This counted as his expression of greatest "sincerity."

After Lu Huitian brought this news back, the Hubei Provincial Committee had mixed reactions. This mission had not achieved anything substantial; instead, it had been saddled by Yuan Shikai with a big restriction that the People's Party should not interfere in Fujian affairs. Some comrades even thought Lu Huitian's mission was a failure.

It was Xie Mingxian who spoke up. "I think this mission was very fruitful. If the status quo is maintained, our heavy chemical products can continue to be sold to Beiyang. And at least we have the suggestion for routine meetings; many conflicts might be resolved through negotiation. It's better than quarreling when things go wrong and become unmanageable."

Lu Huitian thought so too. This negotiation was less about achieving very concrete negotiation results and more about giving Yuan Shikai a reminder that some things could be resolved through consultation. Given Beiyang's very low execution ability, the pressure Beiyang felt was far greater than that of the People's Party. It was still necessary to give Yuan Shikai some encouragement.

The comrades ultimately accepted this explanation, and Lu Huitian managed to pass this hurdle.

In October 1910, the first session of the Party School and Cadre School in Hubei Province basically concluded. After relatively systematic education, the Hubei Party Branch and the cadre team had at least unified their thinking. Chen Ke decided to return to Anhui to attend to the work there.

Lu Huitian felt a sigh of relief. Ever since Chen Ke decided to stay and work in Hubei, his pressure had been consistently immense. Even though Lu Huitian had adjusted his thinking and engaged in study, Chen Ke was the Party Chairman after all, possessing enormous authority. Up to now, Chen Ke had acted under the guidance of supporting the Hubei Provincial Committee's work, but if Chen Ke felt Lu Huitian was incompetent for the Hubei job, a single word from him could convene a Party Committee meeting to remove Lu Huitian.

Although Chen Ke's work in Hubei was to institutionalize the organization, Chen Ke himself still possessed power that transcended the system. This was not something that could be completely ignored simply by saying "improve the system."

Before leaving, Chen Ke proposed to have a talk with Lu Huitian. *What must come, will come,* Lu Huitian thought.

"Secretary Lu, within our People's Party, we do not talk about feudal political tactics. I have emphasized this repeatedly. Since I have emphasized it, I think we two should have a heart-to-heart on this issue." Chen Ke was as frank as ever. "Be honest, have you always been afraid I would remove you?"

"Did you not have this thought, Chairman Chen?" Since Chen Ke said to have a heart-to-heart, Lu Huitian threw caution to the wind. Chen Ke working in Hubei gave Lu Huitian immense psychological pressure. Lu Huitian had persisted until now, always solving problems through his own efforts, and he was nearing his limit. Seeing that Chen Ke truly didn't intend to solve work differences by changing commanders, he relaxed inside, but instead developed a strong dissatisfaction towards Chen Ke.

"Comrade Lu Huitian, good question!" Chen Ke laughed. "Can that kind of simple and crude method truly solve work problems?"

"Definitely not," Lu Huitian replied. Seeing Chen Ke's attitude remain gentle, the dissatisfaction in his heart grew even more, and his tone became intense. "But why didn't you say so earlier, Chairman Chen?"

"Indeed, you have been wronged." Chen Ke nodded in agreement.

Hearing Chen Ke say this, Lu Huitian suddenly felt a stinging in his nose, and his eyes felt hot.

Chen Ke handed him a towel. Lu Huitian felt that crying at his age was a bit too childish. But the more he wanted to stop the tears quickly, the more they wouldn't stop. Holding on until the end, Lu Huitian choked out, "Chairman Chen, is it okay if I cry a bit?"

"If you want to cry, cry it out thoroughly. Does sobbing a few times like a woman help?" Chen Ke laughed. But seeing Lu Huitian's face full of grievance, Chen Ke's eyes also reddened. "By the way, I didn't mean to discriminate against women."

Although the joke was lame, it unexpectedly touched Lu Huitian's funny bone. He wanted to laugh a couple of times, but as his mood relaxed further, a sudden sorrow rose from within, and Lu Huitian covered his face with the towel and began to weep aloud.