The story about Cixi's appreciation for famous Peking Opera actors is true. Cixi didn't just appreciate them; to be precise, she appreciated them singing well. But what she appreciated even more was that the families of these famous actors knew better than to wake them up when they were sleeping. Even if it was for something as major as singing for Cixi, the family wouldn't dare wake an actor who was clearly going to be late.

Wang Youhong told this story to Yu Chen to tell him that even a person of Cixi's supreme status could tolerate mistakes, but she would never be polite about failures to observe the rules set by a superior. Cixi was first and foremost a defender of the order of "distinction between superiors and inferiors," and Wang Youhong, who respected Cixi greatly, was also a defender of this order.

Hearing Yu Chen's extremely unreserved warning, He Sui was quite annoyed. In this era, actors, even famous Peking Opera stars, were considered low-class. He Sui was a dignified Jiangsu Assemblyman, a graduate of a British law school, and a famous member of the gentry in Wuxi. His family owned hundreds of mu of land, and they had factories and shops in both Wuxi and Nanjing. To be compared to an actor was a humiliation that made He Sui's face turn red, and then a bit purple.

However, it didn't take long for He Sui to give a hearty laugh, and his complexion quickly returned to normal. "Director Yu, this story is really interesting."

Yu Chen hadn't expected He Sui's self-control to reach this level. To recover his reason so quickly in the face of such rude remarks was impressive. He asked, "Assemblyman He, where do you find it interesting?"

He Sui almost blurted out: *If Cixi was so respectful of rules and so noble, how did she die after reading just one manifesto from Chen Ke?* But He Sui held back. It was common knowledge that Wang Youhong was afraid of the People's Party. The People's Party had recently caused Wang Youhong's plan to take a concubine to vanish into thin air with just a letter. Skillfully hinting at this topic would certainly not please Yu Chen, Wang Youhong's running dog. As the saying goes, before you beat a dog, you have to look at who its master is. Now that the master had been beaten, how could the dog feel any pride? But He Sui and his group were preparing to use the power of the People's Party to pressure Wang Youhong. Getting a moment of satisfaction now might alert the enemy.

So He Sui just smiled. "I just find it interesting. If you really ask me to say where it's interesting, I can't quite put it into words."

Yu Chen knew the meaning behind He Sui's words, and he smiled too. "Assemblyman He, for someone as rule-abiding as Empress Dowager Cixi, she still couldn't win against the People's Party who didn't follow the rules. I just remembered it and mentioned it casually. I only heard it from Governor Wang."

Since Yu Chen was this smart, He Sui didn't want to say anything more. But he suddenly felt something was off. Yu Chen's words were inconsistent. First, he talked about rules, and then he hinted that Wang Youhong actually had his own weaknesses. After carefully savoring the flavor, the faint mockery in He Sui's expression disappeared completely. He said seriously, "Director Yu, since Governor Wang is a rule-abiding person, we want to discuss this tax issue through the rules established by Governor Wang. Director Yu, you are Governor Wang's trusted aide, so I presume you can give me some pointers."

Hearing He Sui say this, although it fell far short of Yu Chen's expected standard, it barely passed. Yu Chen's intention was never to mock He Sui; mocking He Sui was meaningless. But Yu Chen had to speak this way. If He Sui wasn't smart enough, Yu Chen would absolutely not dare to cooperate with him in the slightest. Wang Youhong was not only a dictator to the Jiangsu Assembly but also a dictator to his subordinates. If He Sui wasn't smart enough, or simply harbored thoughts of confrontation, Yu Chen would absolutely not dare to have any dealings with him. What capabilities the Jiangsu Assembly actually had remained to be seen. But for the sake of maintaining the power he had so hard-won, Wang Youhong would not be polite about any "betrayal" by his subordinates. Yu Chen had no need to sacrifice his own interests.

Even though He Sui seemed to have understood the implication, Yu Chen still dared not let his guard down. He answered lightly, "Assemblyman He, Governor Wang said, 'Propertied classes, unite.' Since we are to unite, we must cooperate in good faith. Don't you agree?"

Hearing these seemingly light words, He Sui already had some ideas. "Then, Director Yu, if we show sincerity that Governor Wang can believe in, when Governor Wang asks Director Yu for a plan, we will still need Director Yu to put in a good word for us."

Yu Chen smiled faintly. "I was promoted by Governor Wang. In such matters, I naturally follow Governor Wang's lead. I resolutely support anything that benefits Governor Wang."

At this point, He Sui roughly understood Yu Chen's position and thoughts. Saying more on this issue would be useless, so He Sui rose to take his leave. Yu Chen didn't see him out; the two bid farewell in the room, and He Sui walked out of the Police Department gate by himself.

That evening, the Jiangsu Citizens Party held a meeting, and the intelligence collected turned out to be quite optimistic. All the high officials visited, either openly or secretly, supported the establishment of the Silk Company. Some with less depth even directly asked what the Silk Company planned regarding tax arrangements.

He Sui also recounted his conversation with Yu Chen today, including that "nondescript" analogy. Xie Siji gave a cold laugh. "This Yu Chen really knows how to talk."

"How so?" Li Yaoguang asked curiously.

Xie Siji sneered, "Yu Chen wasn't comparing us to actors at all; he was using Cixi to compare to Wang Youhong. And he still tries to play the good guy? We know perfectly well what kind of virtue Wang Youhong has."

Li Yaoguang pondered for a good while before nodding in sudden realization. He Sui had roughly figured out this key point during the day, but hearing Xie Siji say it, he felt a strong sense of jealousy. Xie Siji was indeed smart; he could understand the key point just by listening, while he himself lacked such sharpness.

"But this guy Yu Chen is cunning enough. He said it without really saying it. If we can persuade Wang Youhong, would he dare to put stumbling blocks in our way? An actor... Yu Chen is the real actor in front of Wang Youhong." At this point, Xie Siji couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Yu Chen's analogy is truly excellent, truly vivid."

As He Sui savored Xie Siji's words, his final doubts cleared up. Originally, He Sui thought Yu Chen was comparing the Citizens Party to actors, but he didn't expect Yu Chen was comparing himself to an actor. Understanding this, the bit of resentment he had towards Yu Chen vanished instantly. He couldn't help but wipe his face with his hand and smiled bitterly. "Brother Xie, you see it thoroughly. It seems I offended Yu Chen today."

"Eh, Brother He, Yu Chen is very cunning; you can't offend him. He started as a military judge, which is an offending job to begin with, yet he was never seen bending the law for personal gain. There are plenty of people who want his life, but Yu Chen is not only fine, he's rising rapidly. Do you think this is purely luck? If Yu Chen didn't understand Wang Youhong's mind and the interests of all parties, the grass on his grave would be tall by now. Such a person wouldn't care what others say at all."

"Then what do we do next?" Li Yaoguang interjected.

"Since we haven't visited Sun Renli, who manages the Tax Police, looking at it now, we might as well go visit him. Say whatever needs to be said and see what Sun Renli actually thinks," Xie Siji said.

The next day, when He Sui visited Sun Renli, he followed Xie Siji's instructions and went straight to the point about tax collection. Sun Renli, as expected, showed no signs of displeasure. He laughed heartily. "Brother He, I've been waiting for you to talk to me about this."

Sun Renli was only thirty-one this year, but he was three or four years older than He Sui and the others, so he didn't feel it was inappropriate to speak in the tone of an elder brother. He Sui dared not underestimate Sun Renli. When Wang Youhong was a Qing official, he hated revolutionaries with a passion. In Wang Youhong's eyes, students like He Sui were revolutionaries whose heads should be chopped off and hung on the Nanjing city gates. But this Sun Renli was a genuine graduate of a Japanese Army Academy. And Wang Youhong trusted him implicitly. It could be said that Sun Renli was absolutely Wang Youhong's confidant.

He Sui was very surprised that Sun Renli spoke so directly. "Director Sun, you must know that we really want to reduce this tax."

"Haha," Sun Renli couldn't help laughing at He Sui's words. "Brother He, if you supported a tax increase, I would find it strange. It's only right that you want to reduce taxes."

"Brother Sun, as the Director of the Tax Police, if you say you want to collect less tax, I won't believe it either," He Sui replied.

"Reducing taxes doesn't equal collecting less tax." Sun Renli stopped smiling. "That depends on whose hands the tax actually ends up in. If it doesn't end up in my hands, then no matter how much tax you pay, I don't feel it's of any use."

This remark was extremely interesting. He Sui didn't want to misunderstand it like he had with Yu Chen. After thinking for a while, he said, "Director Sun, does Governor Wang intend to rectify the tax collectors within the tax system?"

"Brother He is indeed smart." Sun Renli nodded with satisfaction.

He Sui dared not respond; he wasn't really a government man. The reason the main cadres of the Citizens Party could unite wasn't just because their families had significant investments in the silk industry, nor just because these young men were all returned students. As the saying goes, 'downy lips make for thoughtless slips'—for a group of young men under thirty to come out, there must be family support behind them. The major families of the Citizens Party all had one characteristic: although they hadn't let family members join the Revolutionary Party, they had all given money to support the Tongmenghui or the Restoration Society. If not for this background, how could the clan patriarchs let their own children work with children from other families?

These gentry families also had a fairly deep understanding of Jiangsu officialdom, at least before Wang Youhong took power in Jiangsu. The so-called 'officials and clerks'—'officials' naturally referred to the appointed officials, while 'clerks' included a large group of deeply entrench forces in the local areas, including tax collectors. Compared to this localized force, the officials sent by the court were actually outsiders. Wang Youhong rose through military merit. A few years ago, because the revolutionaries had infiltrated the New Army deeply, Duan Fang, then Viceroy of Liangjiang, could only rely on a group of Green Standard Army troops controlled by Wang Youhong to maintain order. Since the government had no money, and Wang Youhong's subordinates couldn't live on air, this unit took over Nanjing's tax collection. They transformed from pure Green Standard troops into "Tax Police." This also caused considerable conflict between Wang Youhong and the traditional tax collectors.

If He Sui didn't misunderstand, Sun Renli's words implied one thing: Wang Youhong, or at least Sun Renli, intended to thoroughly control the Jiangsu tax system and purge the old tax collectors.

Looking at the smiling Sun Renli, He Sui wanted to force a smile but couldn't. Jiangsu was wealthy and had a high proportion of owner-farmers. Big families controlled the local areas through clans and had immense influence at the grassroots level, including over tax collectors. Sun Renli spoke well about unifying tax collection, but the result of this unified tax collection would be a massive increase in Wang Youhong's ability to control the local areas.

Leaving aside how things would develop in the future, right now, the ones shouting for a change in tax collection were the Citizens Party. The ones demanding the establishment of a Silk Company were also the Citizens Party. He Sui was smart; he suddenly realized that while Wang Youhong seemed stubborn, he might not actually be so. Perhaps Wang Youhong had planned this long ago; his goal was to rectify the government's internal structure but suffered from a lack of excuse. The Citizens Party's tossing about gave Wang Youhong the best excuse. And while the old Jiangsu government system would certainly resent Wang Youhong, they would definitely also resent Assemblymen like He Sui.

Sun Renli didn't give He Sui time to ponder deeply. He laughed, "Brother He, the people down below just love to treat a chicken feather as a warrant arrow. If the top increases the tax by one wen, the bottom can collect ten wen from you. I've always felt that you brothers in the Citizens Party have responsibility and spirit. Since you've asked at my door today, I might as well tell you the truth. You can go ahead and form this Silk Company with peace of mind, and propose the resolution in the Assembly. This Jiangsu tax collection system ought to be changed too."

He Sui's mind was in chaos. Could Sun Renli's attitude represent Wang Youhong's will? If it could, it meant the Citizens Party's judgment of the situation was wrong from the root. This was a massive strategic error. No matter how exquisite the Citizens Party's tactics were, a mistake in strategy made them look like jumping clowns.

Barely composing himself, He Sui said, "Brother Sun, is Governor Wang just watching us toss about in the Assembly? If he had explained this to us earlier, wouldn't it have saved too much trouble?"

"If Governor Wang had said it earlier, I'm afraid you would have had wild thoughts. Moreover, the formation of the Silk Company can only be organized by you yourselves. If the government organized it, would you trust the government?" Sun Renli couldn't help laughing after he finished.

He Sui felt this laughter was particularly piercing; he had clearly been played. He gave a dry laugh but didn't know how to answer.

Sun Renli didn't mind these things. He continued to answer with a smile, "Brother He, knowing this now, I think you still might not believe Governor Wang genuinely wants to support your Silk Company. You might as well properly work out the articles of association. If you have ideas about tax collection, you might as well make a plan too. Then it will be easier for everyone to talk."

He Sui didn't know how he left Sun Renli. His mind was in chaos; the magnitude of the change in the situation was almost unacceptable. Until the Citizens Party cadre meeting, He Sui hadn't completely sorted this out.

Not just He Sui, but the main cadres of the Citizens Party were also greatly shocked after hearing what He Sui had to say. The feeling of being calculated against was truly terrible, especially since everyone had done so much useless work for this, even wanting to use the People's Party's power. Looking at it now, it was simply a humiliation.

Xie Siji was silent for a while before finally speaking. He asked Li Yaoguang, "What did the People's Party say about their bank in the end?"

Li Yaoguang didn't expect Xie Siji to bring this up. He was momentarily confused. After recalling for a good while, he answered, "The People's Party talked about the benefits of the bank, hoping our book transactions would be completed through their bank. For example, if we spend money to buy the People's Party's things, we give the money directly to the People's Party's bank in Nanjing, and we can take a check or something to pick up goods in the People's Party's territory. When they buy our things, they don't pay with real gold and silver either, but operate through bank accounts or something. Anyway, what they said was cloudy and misty; I didn't understand it too well either."

Listening to this, Xie Siji's brows had unknowingly knit together tightly. "Brother He, did Sun Renli mention banks?" Xie Siji asked.

He Sui was a graduate of a British law school after all. Hearing Xie Siji's words, he remembered that Sun Renli had indeed mentioned a few sentences. "Sun Renli indeed said a few words."

Hearing this clear answer, Xie Siji couldn't help but sigh. "Although I don't know exactly what charter Wang Youhong and the People's Party's bank have, we are a step too slow. Both sides are definitely going to do something with the banks."

"Uh?" Li Yaoguang was confused by this seemingly headless and tailless remark.