January 2, 1913.

"It's raining paper from the sky again! It's raining paper again!" The cheers of children rang out happily on the streets of Kaifeng. This was the People's Party's bi-daily airdrop of leaflets. The paper floating down was of good quality, printed with interesting news. After reading, it was suitable for papering windows or even as toilet paper, so adults and children alike came out to pick them up.

Zhang Zhenfang sat numbly in the main hall of the Henan Governor's Office. Occasionally, a few pieces of paper dropped by the airplanes would fly into the courtyard in front of the hall. A few days ago, Zhang Zhenfang would have ordered his men to collect and burn them, but now he was completely indifferent. The news that needed to spread had already spread widely enough; no new information could make the situation any worse. Zhang Zhenfang simply couldn't be bothered.

Zhang Zhenfang knew of the People's Party's toughness, but he had once thought the People's Party were humans too, and even toughness had a limit. Moreover, the People's Party was coming to Henan from afar. As the saying goes, a strong dragon cannot suppress a local snake; in the unfamiliar territory of Henan, the People's Party's strength should have been significantly discounted.

However, reality was always stranger than fiction. First, the People's Party's flying weapons scared the wits out of the Beiyang Army. These weapons, flying high in the sky and capable of dropping bombs on the ground, thoroughly terrified the Beiyang troops. The bombing raid over half a month ago had killed or wounded over two hundred Beiyang soldiers in one go. If it were a battlefield with guns and cannons, even with casualties, the Beiyang Army could at least return fire. Now, it was a one-sided beating, and the Beiyang Army's morale suffered a terrible blow.

Instead of rectifying military discipline, Duan Zhigui ran to Zhang Zhenfang that very afternoon after the bombing to demand money. He kept saying he couldn't stabilize the army's morale without money. Where would Zhang Zhenfang get the money for him? He had to persuade Duan Zhigui to leave.

A few days later, the People's Party's airplanes began dropping leaflets over Kaifeng city. The leaflets explicitly publicized the embezzlement of tax grain by the Guide Prefecture tax police and questioned exactly how much Zhang Zhenfang had pocketed from it. Most terrifyingly, the People's Party informed the Beiyang officers and soldiers in the leaflets that there was currently no silver in Kaifeng city. The Beiyang Army might not starve, but they would have to be loyal to the Beiyang government without pay.

The Beiyang Army was immediately incensed. Duan Zhigui ran to Zhang Zhenfang every day to demand money. Zhang Zhenfang tried to reason with him and appeal to his emotions, but it was useless. Duan Zhigui was impervious, repeating one sentence over and over: "If you don't give money, the Beiyang Army will mutiny."

By December 24th, the Beiyang Army suddenly abandoned the city defenses and gathered outside the Henan Governor's Office, demanding Zhang Zhenfang issue their pay. Zhang Zhenfang was terrified. Outside the Governor's Office, the noise was deafening. Zhang Zhenfang ordered his personal guards to go out and persuade them, but the Beiyang soldiers outside didn't give a damn.

"Who do you think you are!"

"Let Zhang Zhenfang come out!"

"Hand over the military pay Zhang Zhenfang embezzled!"

These presumptuous shouts crossed the high walls of the Governor's Office and could be heard clearly inside.

After a while of commotion, the shouting outside turned into, "If you don't give the brothers money, you're trying to starve us to death!" "Go in and rob them!"

Zhang Zhenfang was truly frightened. If a group of mutinous soldiers rushed into the Governor's Office, it wouldn't just be robbery; even Zhang Zhenfang's life might not be saved.

Fortunately, Duan Zhigui appeared at this time. He first stopped the Beiyang soldiers, then entered the Governor's Office to demand money from Zhang Zhenfang again. Left with no choice, Zhang Zhenfang gave Duan Zhigui 300,000 silver dollars, which barely quelled the disturbance. However, after this, less than 200,000 silver dollars remained in Henan's treasury. The treasury of the huge Henan Province didn't even have as much money as Zhang Zhenfang's private household. This couldn't help but make Zhang Zhenfang feel despair.

Yesterday, Duan Zhigui began mobilizing troops and commandeering trains, planning to take the Beiyang 2nd Division to Anyang. When Zhang Zhenfang asked Duan Zhigui why he was abandoning the city and fleeing, the response he got was, "This is a military secret. If Governor Zhang has an opinion, you can ask the Great President."

Facing Zhang Zhenfang's inquiry, Yuan Shikai's reply was, "The situation in Anyang is tense; the 2nd Division needs to be transferred to guard Anyang. Henan's defense can be coordinated by Zhang Zhenfang himself."

Seeing that he had become an abandoned pawn, Zhang Zhenfang completely despaired. At present, Henan did not lack soldiers. Between the tax police forces and the local New Armies organized in various places, there were probably forty to fifty thousand men. But these were paper tigers. Most of these troops were newly organized units; the soldiers had never received formal military training, and even their weapons and equipment were not fully outfitted. Zhang Zhenfang had absolutely no confidence in letting this mob fight the People's Party, who possessed airplanes and cannons.

Facing the current situation, Zhang Zhenfang's heart was like dead ash; he didn't even plan to try and salvage the situation. Zhang Zhenfang even thought self-destructively that the People's Party was the "enemy" after all; if they caught him, they would at least have to treat him with some courtesy. If he fell into the hands of the Beiyang Army, heaven knows what miserable situation he would encounter.

weighing the two evils, fleeing back to Beijing now would only lead to punishment by Yuan Shikai. Abandoning Kaifeng city and going to Anyang with the Beiyang Army would only result in constant extortion by Duan Zhigui. As long as the People's Party and Beiyang hadn't completely torn off the mask, the People's Party shouldn't take up arms against him personally. So there was still room for maneuver. After some mental struggle, Governor Zhang simply stopped worrying. He shouted, "Someone, make me a pot of tea."

The Beiyang Army ran very fast. Originally, Zhang Zhenfang thought it would take half a month for the Beiyang Army to complete their retreat, but he didn't expect that while packing their equipment, the Beiyang Army would also loot wantonly in Kaifeng city. Yet, they managed to board the trains and flee to Anyang in less than six days. Facing the crying and shouting in the city, and even sporadic gunfire, Zhang Zhenfang pretended not to hear. He just sat in the main hall of the Governor's Office, slowly sipping tea. The gates of the Governor's Office were tightly shut; no matter who knocked, they would not open.

On the morning of the seventh day, a squad of People's Party cavalry entered Kaifeng and sealed the gates of the Henan Governor's Office. By the afternoon, the main force of the People's Party swarmed in, completely occupying the entirety of Kaifeng.

It was naturally impossible for Zhang Zhenfang to commit suicide to martyr himself for Yuan Shikai. If he had that kind of blind loyalty, Zhang Zhenfang could have martyred himself for the Manchu Qing. However, Zhang Zhenfang was not prepared to surrender either. Since he couldn't run away, he sat carelessly in the empty main hall of the Governor's Office, preparing to severely denounce the People's Party's reckless behavior when their troops rushed in.

The People's Party troops opened the gates of the Governor's Office and then walked in openly and aboveboard. Zhang Zhenfang's denunciation had just begun when a few people dragged him to the backyard. They found an empty room, and the executioners silently inflicted a round of torture on Zhang Zhenfang. Finger presses, finger crushers, the tiger bench, chili water—after this round of corporal punishment, a tearful and snotty Zhang Zhenfang was dragged back to the main hall and pressed into the grand armchair he had originally sat in.

A document was placed in front of Zhang Zhenfang, and a brush and ink were prepared for him. On it was a list of the new government personnel for Henan. Originally, the Civil Governor of Henan was concurrently held by Zhang Zhenfang; now, the Henan Civil Governor was Chai Qingguo. All other positions were filled by a group of people Zhang Zhenfang didn't know, presumably cadres of the People's Party. However, among this series of names, Zhang Zhenfang saw a familiar one: the Director of the Henan Tax Bureau was actually Zhu Danbi.

"When did Zhu Danbi defect to the People's Party?" Zhang Zhenfang asked with a cold sneer. Remembering how Zhu Danbi had patted his chest guaranteeing he would blow up the People's Party's munitions depot, Zhang Zhenfang burned with rage.

"Sign it quickly," the People's Party interrogator said.

Zhang Zhenfang refused to sign. The executioner waited silently for ten minutes, then dragged Zhang Zhenfang to the backyard to continue the torture. Apart from the executioners remaining silent, the punishment was completely different from the last time. Waterboarding with ice blocks, electric shocks with a hand-cranked telephone—Zhang Zhenfang howled for another hour or so before being dragged back to the Governor's Office main hall again.

Although he hesitated this time, Zhang Zhenfang still refused to sign. The interrogator timed it for thirty minutes this time before dragging Zhang Zhenfang away for torture.

From January 8th to January 9th, Zhang Zhenfang's high-pitched singing rang out in the backyard of the Henan Governor's Office at regular intervals. Although Zhang Zhenfang was howling "Kill me!" and "Let me die!" by the end, the executioners remained wordless, timing the intervals and earnestly completing every task.

It must be admitted that this work was very effective. Zhang Zhenfang's ankles were swollen as thick as his calves. The parts of his body that had been tortured were shiny and oily, but not a single place had broken skin. The executioners also ensured Zhang Zhenfang wouldn't die suddenly by extending the intervals between each torture session.

By noon on January 9th, Zhang Zhenfang finally yielded. He signed his name with a trembling hand.

"Seal it!" the executioner said in a cold voice.

The great seal was right by Zhang Zhenfang's hand; someone helped him ink it. Zhang Zhenfang stamped the appointment order. Legally, the members of the People's Party officially became the officials of various competent departments in Henan. Due to the mental strain, Zhang Zhenfang fainted headfirst as soon as he finished stamping the seal.

When Zhang Zhenfang woke up, he didn't know what time it was. Anyway, pain, soreness, burning pain, itching, numbness—the sensations in each tortured part were almost completely different. But with the slightest movement, the pain everywhere either doubled or simply transformed into a different kind of agony. With a difficult groan, Zhang Zhenfang tried to sit up but fell back onto the bed. Only then did he realize he was actually in his own bedroom.

Hearing the commotion, the door opened. A People's Party soldier came in to take a look and then went out. A moment later, a person wearing a white coat walked in. Judging by his attire, Zhang Zhenfang thought he looked like a Western-style doctor.

"Governor Zhang, I am a military doctor, responsible for your health," the doctor said and began to examine Zhang Zhenfang's various tortured parts.

After the examination, the military doctor said, "No muscles or bones were injured. You'll recover in just over half a month."

Zhang Zhenfang suddenly felt a sense of shame. He couldn't even withstand torture that would heal in just half a month. However, this sense of shame made Zhang Zhenfang shudder all over, and the memories of the various tortures returned to his mind. Those sensations of soreness, numbness, pain, and itching, as well as the feeling of utter despair during the torture, instantly drove the shame away without a trace.

"What exactly do you want?" Zhang Zhenfang asked the doctor weakly.

"The Beiyang Army just finished looting Kaifeng. We are restoring order and helping the victims live a normal life. You ask what we want? We actually want to ask what *you* want?" the doctor replied coldly.

"If not for your People's Party acting recklessly in Henan, the Beiyang Army wouldn't have been like this!" Zhang Zhenfang tried hard to rebut.

"Then I suppose we also forced those people to embezzle military pay?" the doctor sneered.

"I entrusted that matter entirely to Zhu Danbi; it is his responsibility. Ouch!" While accusing Zhu Danbi, Zhang Zhenfang felt his body becoming increasingly uncomfortable and couldn't help groaning.

"You need to rest quietly now. Don't get agitated, don't talk; it's best to sleep. Otherwise, let alone half a month, you won't get better even in three months," the doctor said as he stood up, then left without looking back.

Only Zhang Zhenfang was left in the bedroom. The silence made him feel a strong sense of unease. He suddenly felt confused. Why did the situation turn out like this? The dignified Governor of Henan had become a prisoner in the blink of an eye. And the Beiyang 2nd Division had turned into a bandit army that looted the people and brought disaster to the country.

Everything was so sudden, yet everything was so logical. Even now, Zhang Zhenfang didn't feel that any earth-shattering event had occurred in Henan. According to the traditions of the Manchu Qing, neither the Henan government nor the army had done anything out of line. Everyone was just acting to maintain their own interests. Even now, in Zhang Zhenfang's view, Duan Zhigui couldn't be considered guilty of terrible crimes. Even if Duan Zhigui hadn't been the commander of the 2nd Division and someone else had done it, they would have just robbed a bit more or a bit less, done a bit more or a bit less; their actions would have been essentially the same as Duan Zhigui's.

So Zhang Zhenfang desperately wanted to understand the reason for this complete failure before his eyes. After thinking for a good while, Zhang Zhenfang felt he had suddenly seen the light. All the failures were, first and foremost, military failures. Since Duan Zhigui didn't dare to fight the People's Party, the only path left for him was to flee after looting Kaifeng. Originally, Zhang Zhenfang thought he and Duan Zhigui were not of the same ilk, and that he was Duan Zhigui's superior. But without Duan Zhigui's armed support, Zhang Zhenfang's position as Governor of Henan was just an illusion, a castle in the air.

"When the People's Party invaded Henan, I should have immediately mobilized all military forces to exterminate them. Since I didn't fight then, I deserve this now!" Zhang Zhenfang concluded.

Not far from Zhang Zhenfang, Chai Qingguo rubbed his eyes, which were red from lack of sleep. "The grain in stock is enough for Kaifeng and the surrounding people to get through this winter. The victim statistics have been completed; a table can be drawn up."

"Director Chai, the Abbot of Daxiangguo Temple wants us to give them some grain."

Chai Qingguo was furious upon hearing this. "These monks still want grain? How much of the land outside Kaifeng city belongs to this old bald donkey of an abbot? Tell him, if he wants grain, fine. Let him sell his land; trade land for grain."

After saying this fiercely, Chai Qingguo, his anger still unappeased, cursed, "Motherf*cker."

"Monks can even run nunneries; what kind of damn monk is this?" Gu Lu, his eyes also red from fatigue, couldn't help cursing too.

The Beiyang Army didn't just loot; arson was also inevitable. The brick and tile houses of the wealthy in Kaifeng fared a bit better, only losing some floating wealth. But the thatched cottages the common people lived in—while the Beiyang Army didn't deliberately go out of their way to loot them heavily, once a fire started, it burned down whole swathes. When the People's Party took over Kaifeng, several areas where ordinary people lived had already been burned to the ground.

It was almost the twelfth lunar month now, and the ground outside was about to freeze. Chai Qingguo immediately directed the People's Party troops to restore order and took out the troops' tents to settle the people. Fortunately, the Beiyang Army barracks and the tax police school were still empty, so tens of thousands of disaster victims didn't have to sleep on the streets.

Cursing the shameless cruelty of Beiyang and the greed of the monks wouldn't solve the problem. Chai Qingguo said, "While we have grain now, let's immediately start recruiting workers to speed up the railway construction. Once the railway is built, all problems will be solved."

The other comrades nodded one after another. With the railway, massive amounts of supplies could be transported from Xuzhou, one of the base area's current industrial centers. Not just supplies, but various machinery and equipment could also be transported. Based on the experience in Wuhan, Xuzhou, and other places, building a new city naturally cost a huge amount. But these expenses could also drive so many things. At least the Renminbi would be able to gain a firm foothold in Kaifeng. With currency support, the local economy would soon be integrated into the People's Party's system. The circulation of currency was even more efficient than military conquest.

And all of this was built on the foundation of industrial production. Without industrial machinery greatly increasing labor efficiency, relying solely on traditional manual labor to rebuild Kaifeng city would only bankrupt the People's Party's economy completely.

"Bring the aerial photos!" Chai Qingguo ordered.

A huge mosaic photo was quickly brought over. These photos didn't have high resolution, and because the vibration problem hadn't been solved during shooting, many images were blurry. However, the image of the railway could still be distinguished from the photos. When many photos were stitched together, despite numerous issues, a full view of the vast area between the Kaifeng railway and the railway approaching Shangqiu was presented before everyone.

Pointing to a piece of land west of Kaifeng, Chai Qingguo asked, "Who is the landlord of this land?"

The staff member checked for a moment and replied, "It's Daxiangguo Temple's land."

Chai Qingguo raised his head, smiling like a man-eating tiger. "Send someone to bring that old bald donkey here. Doesn't he want grain? Let's have a good talk with him about grain."