"This Zhu fellow has rich expressions and loves to preach big principles. He must be a petty bourgeois, right?" Comrades from the People's Internal Affairs Committee began their summary meeting after concluding the initial interrogation of Zhu Danbi.

"Seeing how he volunteered to blow up our ammo dump and served as the principal of the Tax Police School, I thought this guy was just a die-hard running dog of the exploiting class, firmly supporting the exploiting class line. After being caught, he didn't beg for mercy or make a sound. I didn't expect to have misjudged him."

"The fanaticism of the petty bourgeoisie is just like a dick; it gets hard at the drop of a hat! Especially when they think they are fighting for some principle, they look decent enough. He still doesn't think he's wrong. I don't think we need to pay attention to him. The biggest problem with these people is that they can't stand loneliness. If we leave him hanging for a while, he'll become honest on his own."

"We've only tracked down the whereabouts of over 20 million jin of grain so far. Where did the other 20 million jin go? If this Zhu refuses to cooperate, a lot of things will be really hard to handle."

"If Zhu won't cooperate, the people will definitely cooperate. Let's ignore Zhu for now. We'll follow the line of the handlers on one side, and start investigating from those big landlords on the other."

"Land reform hasn't been completed yet. How willing would those big landlords be to cooperate with us? Should we put this matter aside for now?"

"If we want to put it aside, we have to report to Director Chai."

After the summary meeting, the comrades from the People's Internal Affairs Committee reported the recent situation to Chai Qingguo. Chai Qingguo smiled and said, "We can put this matter aside for now. Continue following the line of the handlers, but be ready to start investigating the big landlords at any time."

After sending off the comrades from the People's Internal Affairs Committee, Chai Qingguo did not continue working but leaned back in his chair to rest. Shortly after, a guard came in to announce, "Director Chai, Secretary Shang Yuan has arrived."

Shang Yuan and Chai Qingguo hadn't seen each other for a while. The Central Committee held a plenary session, and Shang Yuan went to Wuhan to attend it. Chai Qingguo was responsible for the advance into Henan. In a blink of an eye, they hadn't met for more than two months.

After a simple handshake, Shang Yuan, looking travel-worn, said, "Old Chai, are the troops ready?"

"They are ready. We can set off at any time."

"Then I'll leave now."

Seeing Shang Yuan so anxious, Chai Qingguo smiled and said, "We were preparing to listen to you convey the spirit of the Central Committee Plenary Session. You're going off to handle your own family affairs immediately; isn't that too rushed?"

Shang Yuan never liked to joke. He frowned and replied, "Has the ideological mobilization work been done for the troops? Don't let people think I'm returning home in glory."

Chai Qingguo originally wanted to ease the mood with a joke, but seeing Shang Yuan show no sign of relaxing, he half-jokingly said, "Secretary Shang, the comrades aren't that petty. Since it's work, they will treat it completely as work. They won't let their imaginations run wild. You can rest assured about that."

Shang Yuan heard Chai Qingguo's meaning and nodded vigorously. "As long as the comrades don't have other views, I will naturally handle my family's affairs well."

In the China of 1912, the vast majority of commoners had never seen a neat formation of a thousand people in their lives, let alone a thousand cavalrymen. Except for the scouts far ahead, Shang Yuan was at the very front of the column. He had been away from home for ten years. When he left, he was a newly minted *Juren* (provincial graduate) in his early twenties. At that time, Shang Yuan hadn't thought about participating in a revolution. His thoughts were the same as the ancestors of the Shang family: go out and serve as an official for the Qing Dynasty to bring glory to the family. Unexpectedly, when he returned, Shang Yuan was already a great hero who had overthrown the Qing Dynasty. The speed of the world's changes made Shang Yuan sigh with emotion.

The highest official position recorded in the Shang family genealogy was only a Governor. Shang Yuan's current position was equivalent to the Governor of Huaihai Province, and he was also a Central Committee member of the People's Party, equivalent to a minister walking in the Grand Council of the former Qing Dynasty. He was already the highest-ranking person in the Shang family genealogy. Moreover, the ancestor who became a Governor was only from a side branch of the Shang family, while Shang Yuan was a descendant of the main lineage. The current patriarch of the Shang family was Shang Yuan's biological uncle. Now, escorted by more than a thousand cavalrymen in a mighty procession to return home, this prestige was enough to be written into the Shang family genealogy.

Shang Yuan's relatives had long been notified that this currently famous member of the family was coming back. The People's Party Air Force had been frequently visiting Shang Family Village since the day before yesterday. Even though the Shang family was well-informed, they had never heard of these unheard-of machines that could fly in the sky. However, the People's Party messenger who came to deliver the letter told the Shang family patriarch that this was the Air Force clearing the way for Secretary Shang Yuan. Although still afraid in his heart, Shang Yuan's uncle, Shang Yisheng, could only believe it.

The Shang family had more than 60,000 *mu* of land registered with the government. In reality, the dozen or so villages around Shang Family Village all farmed Shang family land. The villagers heard that the high official of the People's Party, Shang Yuan, who had recently captured Guide Prefecture and controlled the entire Shangqiu area, was coming back. There were many onlookers along the way. Everyone had become slightly accustomed to the airplanes in the sky, but the spectacle of a thousand cavalrymen left the commoners without even the courage to say hello.

Shang Yisheng had already brought the main members of the Shang clan to welcome him. Watching the time it took for the planes in the sky to pass become shorter and shorter, Shang Yisheng knew that Shang Yuan was getting close. Sure enough, it didn't take long for a large group of troops to appear in Shang Yisheng's field of vision.

More than a thousand cavalrymen were like a long dragon, moving forward along the road. Shang Yisheng discovered a peculiar thing: the road in front of Shang Family Village was wide enough for four horses to walk abreast, but the cavalrymen rode two by two, sticking to the right side of the road, leaving the left side completely empty. Naturally, no one dared to fight for the road with Shang Yuan at this moment, but the People's Party troops showed no signs of bullying people. As long as one didn't deliberately fight for the road with Shang Yuan, the People's Party's march could actually not disturb the pedestrians on the road.

Seeing such a disciplined and orderly team, Shang Yisheng was not as excited as the others. For example, Shang Yuan's father-in-law, Wu Jiuling, was beaming with joy, constantly saying in the crowd how capable Shang Yuan was.

In the blink of an eye, the vanguard of the cavalry had arrived in front of Shang Family Village. The troops didn't stop but continued to advance towards the back of Shang Family Village. The Shang family relatives who came to welcome them didn't take it seriously. It wasn't until Shang Yuan and the others arrived at the village entrance that Shang Yisheng discovered that the People's Party had unknowingly surrounded Shang Family Village.

According to reason, Shang Yuan should have dismounted and walked when he saw his elders from a distance. However, Shang Yuan rode his horse directly in front of everyone. Sitting high on his horse and looking down at his own relatives, Shang Yuan didn't smile, nor did he intend to dismount. instead, he took a megaphone from a guard beside him and shouted loudly to his close relatives who were close at hand: "I, under the orders of Chairman Chen Ke of the People's Party, am supervising the land reform work in the Shang Family Village area. As the person in charge, I announce to you all that you are now under arrest."

The cavalry behind Shang Yuan had already taken down their carbines. As Shang Yuan announced the news of the Shang family's arrest, the cavalrymen raised their carbines in unison, the dark muzzles coldly pointing at the large group of people in front of them.

Facing the sudden change, Shang Yisheng's face turned ashen. He sneered, "Wangshan, are you crazy!"

Shang Yuan smiled bitterly, "Uncle, of course I'm not crazy. More than a month ago, I volunteered to Chairman Chen of the People's Party to personally solve the land reform problem of our Shang family. There are planes in the sky, and cavalry have surrounded the village; there is nowhere to run. Uncle, just accept your fate."

The welcoming assembly turned into an arrest assembly in the blink of an eye. The magnitude of this change was almost unacceptable to the Shang family. But the comrades of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army hadn't expected the big landlord Shang family to accept it anyway. The purpose of dispatching a thousand cavalrymen, including the Air Force, was to implement a one-time mass arrest. Cavalrymen had already jumped off their horses, twisted the arms of the Shang family relatives behind their backs, and handcuffed them. The main members of the Shang family in the local area were basically all at the village entrance; this was a clean sweep. These people were sent onto the carts following the cavalry. Shang Yuan seemed not to hear how the Shang family members shouted abuse and viciously cursed him. He turned around and said to the cavalry regiment commander leading the team, "Take them all back to Guide Prefecture."

The cavalry regiment commander saw this genuine act of placing righteousness above family for the first time and was deeply moved by Shang Yuan's revolutionary awareness. He saluted Shang Yuan seriously from his horse, "Yes!"

With Shang Yuan personally supervising the operation, the Shang family members didn't suffer much, nor were they injured. On the contrary, more than a dozen soldiers suffered minor injuries when capturing the young and strong men of the Shang family. Two days later, all members of the Shang family were sent into the newly built concentration camp.

Seeing Shang Yuan's ugly expression, Chai Qingguo couldn't help but say, "Secretary Shang, how about I handle the rest of the matters?"

Shang Yuan shook his head, "Old Chai, I appreciate your kindness, but I must handle this matter personally. You verify the work team's assignments quickly; we must grasp the implementation of land reform in the Shang Family Village area." After saying this, Shang Yuan paused for a moment before saying, "Old Chai, thank you."

Chai Qingguo smiled, "What are you thanking me for? If you really want to thank someone, go thank Chairman Chen; the pressure he withstood is much greater than mine. And this time wasn't bad; no lives were lost. If you insist on handling this personally, then it will be hard work for you."

That night, Shang Yisheng was brought into Shang Yuan's office. After the Shang family members were sent to the concentration camp, the troops delivered meals to them. Some people couldn't eat because of fear, but Shang Yisheng was very open-minded. After eating and drinking, he lay down and slept in the dormitory. Shang Yuan looked rather exhausted, while Shang Yisheng was full of energy.

Shang Yuan spoke first, "Uncle, I am responsible for the land reform in the Shang Family Village area this time. This emergency action has startled you."

Shang Yisheng showed no sign of anger. He just sneered, "Hmph, Wangshan, a little fright is nothing to me. Since you are the one handling this matter, Uncle feels in his heart that you still keep your family in mind. If you hadn't set up such a scheme, but that Comrade Chai led soldiers to our Shang Family Village, I'm afraid this village would have been flattened by him. So Uncle doesn't blame you for setting such a trap."

Shang Yuan felt a bit surprised. He knew his uncle Shang Yisheng was an extremely smart person, and also ruthless and daring. But he didn't expect Shang Yisheng to be smart to this extent. A helpless smile appeared on Shang Yuan's tired face, "Uncle, I followed you more since I was young, even more than I followed my father. You are a truly smart person."

"I never care whether outsiders say I'm smart or not; in this world, one has to survive first." Shang Yisheng smiled helplessly, "You grew up by my side, and I always wanted you to inherit the family business. Because of this, your brother didn't want to talk to me anymore. I think you should know this."

Shang Yuan certainly knew. The brother Shang Yisheng mentioned was not Shang Yuan's biological brother, but his cousin, Shang Yisheng's own son, Shang Yu. Regarding the candidate for the next patriarch, naturally, the eldest branch of Shang Yisheng's line would inherit. However, specifically which child of the eldest branch would inherit the family business was once a subject of fierce competition. The two most competitive ones were Shang Yuan and Shang Yu. Shang Yuan didn't want to make things difficult for his uncle, and he knew that direct refusal was the worst strategy. So Shang Yuan concentrated on studying to obtain an official degree. After passing the *Juren* exam, Shang Yuan asked the family for a sum of money to buy an official title and left his hometown. Hearing his uncle mention this again, Shang Yuan also felt quite emotional.

Shang Yisheng had no intention of showing goodwill to Shang Yuan. His face went cold as he continued, "Wangshan, I'm just curious. What kind of future are you planning to trade our Shang family for? I watched you grow up, I know what kind of person you are, so you don't need to tell any lies about being forced or helpless. I really want to know, what kind of sky-high wealth and honor could make you disown your own kin like this?"

Shang Yuan sighed, "Uncle, I was young and ignorant before. If you had told me back then that everything you did was just to survive, I wouldn't have understood. Now I really understand. Everything I do now is truly not for any glory, wealth, or honor. Everything I do, everything our People's Party does, is just to let China survive. Aside from this, we want nothing."

"Heh heh!" Shang Yisheng couldn't help but sneer repeatedly, "Wangshan, when did you learn to talk big like this? If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up; it's not the turn of us Shang family, these small shrimps. Our Shang family has accumulated this bit of family property over a dozen generations and several hundred years. Since your grandfather's generation, we haven't expanded our land anymore. Why? It's enough! We don't seek greater glory or wealth; we only seek to pass this land down to our descendants peacefully. Now there is Yuan Shikai as the Great President, and you People's Party making revolution. What does China's future have to do with our Shang family? Your father and your uncle are serving in the Beiyang government. I heard you have also made great contributions to the People's Party. We pay the taxes we should pay. Why can't you let our Shang family live our lives in peace?"

"Uncle, I know you bought our People's Party's wheat seeds, and I also know you bought our People's Party's iron farm tools. Do you say these things are good or not?" Shang Yuan asked.

"They are all good things." Shang Yisheng didn't act out of emotion to say they were bad.

"Our People's Party lacks neither grain nor iron farm tools, and we have airplanes in the sky and cannons on the ground. So, currently in China, we can hit wherever we want to hit. Because we are a few steps ahead of other forces in this regard. But the foreign devils are dozens of steps ahead of our People's Party. If 2 million foreign devils were to invade China right now, even if our People's Party went all out, including me, including our Chairman Chen Ke, and everyone went to the front line, I couldn't guarantee that we would definitely win," Shang Yuan said seriously.

"You are just alarmist talk." Shang Yisheng replied with a sneer.

Shang Yuan nodded heavily, "Uncle is right. It is impossible for the foreign devils to send 2 million people to invade China right now. But what about ten years later? Twenty years later? The foreign devils are moving forward step by step, while we stay here motionless. Now they are dozens of steps ahead of us; how much will they be ahead in twenty years? Uncle, I grew up with you and learned a lot from you. Although our Shang family hasn't tried hard to expand land in these decades, I also know a little about how much thought and effort you spent to keep the family business. Sailing against the current, if you don't advance, you retreat. Even trying to keep this family business is not that easy. When the foreign devils invade China twenty years later, the ones who will suffer will be wealthy families like the Shang family. Uncle, you said everything you did was to survive. I follow the People's Party dead set because I understood this with the People's Party. If we don't revolt, if we don't progress, China will definitely perish. As a Chinese, as a People's Party member, I have an obligation to serve China."

Shang Yisheng didn't directly refute Shang Yuan with sarcasm this time. After a while, Shang Yisheng suddenly slapped the table and laughed loudly. After laughing for a good while, he suddenly stopped smiling. With a kind of grief and indignation from the bottom of his heart, Shang Yisheng said, "Wangshan, you really have grown. These words you used to lecture me, I really can't find fault with them. But I want to ask you, when you die decades later, what face will you have to see your grandfather? What face will you have to see the ancestors of our Shang family?"

Shang Yuan's breathing seemed to stop all of a sudden. Even though it was already early winter, Shang Yuan unbuttoned the disciplinary button that had been tightly fastened, as if he felt hot. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before opening them. Shang Yuan's voice carried a deep determination, "Uncle, even when that day comes, I will tell Grandfather and the Shang family ancestors that I have a clear conscience."

A few days after this dispute, Shang Yisheng talked with Shang Yuan again in his capacity as the patriarch. The content of the conversation was not about land reform, but the conditions Chai Qingguo had promised before. Shang Yuan wrote an official document for Shang Yisheng stating that the land reform implemented by the People's Party in Shang Family Village only involved land redistribution and would not touch the Shang family's money, grain, or the various businesses and shops they had established. After repeatedly questioning and confirming these details, Shang Yisheng signed the "Shang Family Village Voluntary Land Reform Implementation" agreement with Chai Qingguo, Director of the "Longhai Railway Eastern Section Management Committee" of the People's Party. Shang Yisheng, the biggest landlord in Shangqiu, submitted just like that.

Chai Qingguo was quite flabbergasted by Shang Yisheng's cleverness. After the document was signed, Chai Qingguo naturally immediately accelerated the land reform work in Shang Family Village. When Shang Yuan requested it, Chai Qingguo said, "Secretary Shang, people say dragons beget dragons, phoenixes beget phoenixes, and a mouse's son can dig holes. I originally thought you were the smartest one in your Shang family, but now it seems there are plenty of smart people in your Shang family."

Shang Yuan smiled bitterly, "Old Chai, are you afraid my uncle is playing tricks behind the scenes?"

Chai Qingguo smiled bitterly, "Meeting such a smart person, can I not be afraid?"

Shang Yuan could understand Chai Qingguo's worry. He said helplessly, "Old Chai, let me ask you something. Have you heard how Chairman Chen comments on aristocratic families?"

"Chairman Chen wouldn't talk about such profound questions with a rough person like me." Chai Qingguo laughed.

Shang Yuan explained, "The so-called aristocratic families, if they are the kind that are completely rotten, everyone from top to bottom will think that the principles beneficial to them are the principles of the world. For aristocratic families that are not rotten, they certainly won't easily give up things like land. But they also understand that when they can't hold out, they shouldn't hold out stubbornly. However, there is one thing they will definitely insist on: they will definitely not let go of the legitimate opportunities for upward mobility provided under the new system. So what to do, who to unite with, and who to strike at—a smart person like you definitely knows."

Chai Qingguo laughed loudly, "Secretary Shang, not only am I not smart, I'm also very timid. According to what you just said, why do I feel like we should strike at the smart people and keep the rotten ones?"

Shang Yuan was left speechless by Chai Qingguo. He was tongue-tied for a long time before saying, "Why do I feel like I'm not being a good person on either side now?"

Chai Qingguo put away his smile, "Secretary Shang, right now I don't have the energy to worry about that much. I request that our Huaihai Province support a batch of local cadres to come over, the sooner the better. Letting our army build railways, fight battles, and govern the locality all at the same time—I can't hold out."

Shang Yuan immediately shook his head, "We in the local administration only want to poach people from the army. You want to poach people from our local administration in reverse? Don't even think about it."

"Personnel transfers are borrowed and returned. It's just using them for a while; why do you have to be like this?" Chai Qingguo clearly didn't want to give up.

Shang Yuan gave a dry laugh, "First, there are only too few local cadres in Huaihai Province, never too many. Second, I firmly oppose anyone from my family assuming public office. If someone makes such a request, Old Chai, you can tell him that Secretary Shang Yuan will absolutely not approve this kind of application."

Chai Qingguo nodded, "I got it. Then, Secretary Shang Yuan, take care on your journey."

While shaking hands with Chai Qingguo, Shang Yuan smiled and said, "I can get lost now that I'm useless, which isn't bad. I'll leave all the troublesome matters for you to worry about in the future."

After sending Shang Yuan off, Chai Qingguo issued an order: any cases appealing against the Shang family in the rural complaint meetings, as long as they didn't involve homicides, should be temporarily detained and filed for investigation and trial later. Although Shang Yuan repeatedly made it clear not to give special care to his family, land reform in Guide Prefecture had just begun. If they directly attacked the Shang family's past behavior, it would have some negative impact on the situation that had already achieved a breakthrough.

However, just after the order was issued, Gu Lu came to the door. "Director Chai, I have a different view on the order you issued."

"Let's hear it." Chai Qingguo asked while pulling out a chair for Gu Lu.

Gu Lu sat down calmly, "Precisely because the Shang family has submitted, we cannot turn a blind eye to the crimes they committed in the past. On the contrary, we must clear them up quickly. During the trial, we don't have to be severe or heavy, but we cannot fail to have a fair trial. If we do this, we won't be able to mobilize the masses. Moreover, if we are lenient with the Shang family, I always feel that the Shang family won't be at ease in their hearts either."

"I can understand the point about not being able to mobilize the masses, but why would the Shang family not be at ease?" Chai Qingguo was somewhat surprised by this statement.

"The Shang family acted very smartly this time; to survive, they handed over the land. Now, as ordinary laborers, the Shang family are also members of the masses. Just as we let the masses understand what revolution is and why we revolt, we also have to let the Shang family know what revolution is and why we revolt. If we treat the Shang family differently, the Shang family probably won't be at ease themselves, because we didn't treat them as our own people. So handling their illegal incidents should actually be done quickly. Even if the Shang family doesn't know now, when we deal with other landlords, expose the landlords' crimes, and conduct public trials, the common people will think, why not try the Shang family? The Shang family themselves will also be very worried: why not try us? It's just like a boil on the body; you have to let the pus flow out for that part of the body to heal." Gu Lu tried hard to explain, but he felt his language ability was limited, and his face turned a bit red towards the end.

Listening to Gu Lu's words, Chai Qingguo suddenly felt he understood Shang Yuan's comment on aristocratic families: "For aristocratic families that are not rotten, they certainly won't easily give up things like land. But they also understand that when they can't hold out, they shouldn't hold out stubbornly. However, there is one thing they will definitely insist on: they will definitely not let go of the legitimate opportunities for upward mobility provided under the new system."

"These scholars always hide things when they speak!" Chai Qingguo couldn't help but curse.

Gu Lu was stunned, "Director Chai, I've only attended school for less than a year."

"Comrade Gu Lu, I wasn't talking about you." Chai Qingguo had already made a decision. "Your suggestion is very good. Comrade Gu Lu, I will modify my order. We will not let any illegal acts slide. And every time there is a study meeting, the Shang family members have to go and listen too. The people should criticize when criticism is due, and struggle when struggle is due. But after the criticism and struggle, we must also explain clearly to everyone that the revolution is to destroy the old system, and we will investigate illegal matters to the end. But if it's a matter of personal squabbles, like he cursed you or you cursed him, let bygones be bygones. Everyone must live their lives well and build a better new life through labor."

Hearing Chai Qingguo's new order, Gu Lu nodded in agreement, "I think this will work. Struggle is fine, but we can't bully people."

Letting Gu Lu hurry off to work, Chai Qingguo called the comrades from the People's Internal Affairs Committee over again. "Comrades, prepare to restart the 20 million jin grain disappearance case now. You can start with the Shang family. They have close ties with the government in Shangqiu, have wide connections, and know a lot. They should be able to get a lot of intelligence."