Newborn 1927

Yang Jiefang did not publicly state his position, seemingly indifferent to the tense standoff between the opposing sides. The provincial government's main focus remained on relocating disaster victims from Shaanxi. Only the upper echelons knew that the arsenals were producing various combat supplies at full capacity, and the troops were undergoing rigorous training, with over 20,000 elite personnel drawn from local security forces for intensive training. Clearly, Yang Jiefang had been preparing for war.

After dinner, Aunt Chu came up to Yang Jiefang and said in a low voice, "I want to talk to you about something."

Yang Jiefang nodded, left his children behind, and went to the study alone with Aunt Chu, asking, "What is it?"

"The organization asked me to talk to you!" said Aunt Chu.

Yang Jiefang pulled Chu Gu down to sit and said, "Go ahead and tell me! I'm listening."

Chu Gu said, "You should know that Chiang Kai-shek is our party's greatest enemy. He is now besieged on all sides, and it is the time to strike hard. The organization hopes that you can step forward, take advantage of the enemy's internal contradictions, and use the anti-Chiang forces to completely defeat him."

Yang Jiefang countered, "Do you think the anti-Chiang Kai-shek alliance can defeat the Central Army?"

Chu Gu said, “The two opposing sides are currently evenly matched. Our entry into the battlefield can play a decisive role in the final victory. In short, if we join the Central Army, the Central Army will win; if we join the anti-Chiang Kai-shek alliance, the Central Army will surely be defeated.”

Yang Jiefang said, "Don't forget, there's also a young marshal named Zhang in the Northeast, who commands a large army and is well-equipped!"

Chu Gu said, "Hasn't he remained neutral? Even if he joins the war, he might not necessarily side with the Central Army."

Yang Jiefang said, "You're thinking too simply. The Northeast Army will definitely join the war, and it will firmly stand on the side of the Central Army."

Chu Gu asked curiously, "How can you be so sure?"

Yang Jiefang couldn't claim to have God's perspective, so he made up a story: "That young marshal Zhang was also a romantic! Madame Chiang Kai-shek in Nanjing was the woman he loved but couldn't have. He would never be her enemy."

Chu Gu frowned and said, "How can matters of state be discussed with such sentimentalities? You must be making this up."

Yang Jiefang laughed and said, "Sometimes, men are just that simple. Nothing can compare to the white moonlight in their hearts, to the nation and the world. Throughout history, how many heroes have loved their country more than their beloved!"

After a moment's thought, Chu Gu said, "So what? With our fighting strength, why would we be afraid of the Northeast Army? Even if the Northeast Army joins the Central Army, we still have a great chance of winning."

Yang Jiefang shook his head and said, "There is no chance of winning. Have you heard the saying? Success comes from one, but failure comes from two or three. The three forces of Yan, Feng, and Li seem strong, but they are actually very unstable internally. As long as that 'one' can divide and disintegrate them, they will collapse from within. Wasn't that the result of last year's Jiang-Gui War and Jiang-Feng War? If I choose to join them, after they collapse, I will be caught in a pincer movement between the Central Army and the Northeast Army."

Chu Gu gritted her teeth and said, "What if we add the assistance of our party? Wouldn't we still be confident of victory?"

Yang Jiefang immediately shook his head and said, "Absolutely not! If your party doesn't jump out, I can still deal with these warlords. Don't be fooled by their current fierce fighting. It's just an internal party conflict. If one side loses, they can simply step down and that's it. This is fundamentally different from the conflict between the KMT and the CCP. Believe it or not, once I'm labeled a Communist, these warlords will gang up on me. My current strength is not enough to contend with them."

After a moment's thought, Chu Gu said, "But many comrades in the Party hope that you will stand firmly on our side, join us, and become our comrade. Breaking with Chiang Kai-shek would be the best pledge of loyalty. I'm worried! What will they do once they lose hope in you? It's really hard to predict."

When Yang Jiefang first joined the Party organization, there were only a handful of Party members in the entire Jiaodong region. Under his protection, after more than two years of development, the Shandong Party organization had grown into a considerable force. With their increased strength, they naturally desired more influence and even attempted to influence the political landscape. Once some people optimistically overestimated their own power, they would harbor inappropriate thoughts and do things that were beyond their capabilities. Yang Jiefang unconsciously frowned, falling into deep thought.

Aunt Chu continued to comfort him, "Don't worry, it hasn't come to that yet. I know you'll stand on the side of our Party sooner or later. I'm no stranger either. Can you give me a definite answer? When will you be able to openly stand with our Party?"

Yang Jiefang replied, "I'm waiting for someone. Once that person arrives, I will not only stand on your side, but I will also hand over command of the entire army."

Aunt Cha asked again, "Who are you talking about? Where is he?"

Yang Jiefang replied, “He is a man who can save the entire Chinese nation! I know where he is, but I can’t say it now. You will understand when the time comes. What we need to do now is to do as much preparation as possible and wait patiently.”

Yang Jiefang wouldn't say it outright, and Aunt Chu didn't press him for details. Yang Jiefang became wary and continued, "Aunt Chu, I entrusted the Military Discipline Inspection Department to you so you could secretly protect the Party organization from sabotage. But it seems that being too well protected isn't necessarily a good thing. To prevent those I'm trying so hard to protect from turning against me, I hope you'll tighten your grip a bit and keep a closer eye on things!"

Chu Gu nodded and replied, "Don't worry! I'll be careful. Actually, it's normal for comrades to have different opinions. Generally speaking, the Party organization won't do anything that would hurt our own people and please our enemies because of the opinions of a few individuals." Although she said this, she was actually racking her brains, trying to figure out how to appease the different voices within the Party.

After their conversation, the two lingered for a while. Before going to bed, Yang Jiefang went to Mu Yanshu's room. Judging from her due date, Mu Yanshu was about to give birth. These past few days, Yang Jiefang had been by her side every night. In the middle of the night, Mu Yanshu woke Yang Jiefang. She said, "My stomach is starting to hurt. Is the baby about to come out?"

Yang Jiefang jumped up, saying as he dressed, "Whether it's true or not, let's get to the hospital first." After he finished dressing, he helped Mu Yanshu get dressed as well. Then he went out to arrange for the driver to prepare the vehicle and called the hospital.

The people in the mansion were quickly alerted, and Chou Gu ran out to help Yang Jiefang get Mu Yanshu into the carriage. Mu Yanshu had bound feet, which made walking difficult in the first place, and now, with her large pregnant belly, she was completely unable to walk on her own.

When they arrived at the hospital, the staff had already made preparations for their arrival. After getting out of the car, Mu Yanshu was immediately placed on a transfer bed and wheeled into the delivery room. The time from the onset of abdominal pain to a successful delivery is usually quite long. Yang Jiefang, having experience before, wasn't in a hurry and sat waiting at the door. His aunt stayed by his side. The hospital offered to arrange a room for the two of them to rest, but Yang Jiefang refused.

As dawn approached, drowsiness crept in, and Yang Jiefang began to doze off. A commotion erupted, and another woman in labor was wheeled in. Yang Jiefang turned his head and saw Liu Qianchu, one hand on the transfer bed, looking at the person on the bed with concern. He knew without asking that the person on the bed was his wife, Zhang Wenqiu; he hadn't expected her to give birth on the same day.

When Zhang Wenqiu was wheeled into the delivery room, Liu Qianchu noticed Yang Jiefang was also there and quickly came over to greet him. Yang Jiefang said, "Don't worry! With Dean Liu here, Secretary Zhang will be fine. Just wait patiently." Liu Qianchu said, "You're here too. Is Madam Mou giving birth inside?" Yang Jiefang replied, "Yes. What a coincidence. Come, sit down! Let's chat."

"You two chat," said Aunt Chu. "I'll get you some water." She turned and walked to Wang Xuncai, who was in charge of guarding, and said, "Tell the brothers to keep a close eye on things and not let any unrelated people get close!" Wang Xuncai knew that Yang Jiefang and Liu Qianchu must have something important to discuss, so he nodded and replied, "Yes."

Yang Jiefang spoke up, "Tell me, can someone like me join your party?" Although Liu Qianchu's identity had never been publicly revealed, it was an open secret to Yang Jiefang. Liu Qianchu didn't hide anything and casually replied, "Of course. Whoever it is, as long as they have the will and take action, they can become a qualified party member."

Yang Jiefang said, "I came from a bandit background." Liu Qianchu replied, "That's not important." Yang Jiefang continued, "I've married several wives." Liu Qianchu frowned; this was precisely what drew criticism. He hesitated slightly before replying, "To be honest, your personal conduct has indeed caused quite a bit of controversy. But your situation is special. You didn't use coercion, nor did you buy them with money. Each of your wives came from the heart, voluntarily. They have no objections, so what can we outsiders say? In China today, many men take concubines… Your high position makes you particularly controversial. People always like to be strict with others but lenient with themselves; those who criticize you behind your back aren't necessarily of high moral character. If you genuinely want to join our Party, I think this matter can be handled specially."

Yang Jiefang didn't really care about Liu Qianchu's answer, but it did satisfy him. He continued, "If I join your party, it would be equivalent to your party controlling Shandong and northern Henan, possessing over 200,000 well-equipped and well-trained troops. Given the current situation in the country, what do you plan to do?"

Liu Qianchu replied, "Many comrades within the Party hope that you can raise the banner of anti-Chiang Kai-shek revolution and establish a revolutionary regime with the working class as its core leadership. Then, mobilize the entire working class nationwide to join the revolution and seize national power by armed force." Yang Jiefang asked, "How many working-class people are there in the whole country? Are they capable of seizing power by armed force?" Liu Qianchu replied, "Isn't Shanghai a successful precedent? It shows that although our working class is weak, it is possible to succeed if properly organized." Yang Jiefang said, "Shanghai's success was full of chance. Other cities cannot replicate Shanghai's model. Even if it were Shanghai, another armed uprising would have no hope of success."

Liu Qianchu, not wanting to argue about this topic, changed the subject, saying, "Don't you have over 200,000 troops here, controlling over 40 million people? The Northern Expeditionary Army only had 100,000 troops when it launched its northern expedition, and it still succeeded, didn't it? The enemy then was also very powerful, just like now. They are not united internally, so we can adopt a strategy of defeating them one by one. Feng Yuxiang in the Northwest has studied in the Soviet Union and is someone we can win over. If we join forces with him, we can first defeat the Central Army, the largest armed force, and then eliminate those reactionary warlords one by one. With your 200,000 troops as a foundation, and by widely mobilizing the workers, the probability of success is still very high."

Yang Jiefang then asked, "Then how long do you think it will take me at least to completely defeat the Central Army and all the reactionary warlords?" Liu Qianchu was taken aback; he hadn't thought about this question carefully and fell silent for a moment. Yang Jiefang continued, "From the start of the Northern Expedition in Guangzhou to the capture of Beiping and the completion of the Northern Expedition, it took two years. Do you think I can completely defeat the Central Army within two years?" Liu Qianchu shook his head blankly and said, "I'm afraid it will be very difficult."

The current Central Army is far stronger than the Beiyang warlords of the past, and its internal structure is much more stable. How could it be completely defeated in just two years? Yang Jiefang wouldn't tell him that the September 18 Incident would break out a year later. If he were to engage in a full-scale war with the Central Army, it would only allow Japan to reap the benefits. His army was prepared for the War of Resistance against Japan, not for a civil war.

Yang Jiefang continued, "You should be able to see that our army's development momentum is unmatched by the Central Army. Our current combat strength is already on par with the Central Army. If this momentum continues, what do you think the scene will be like in three to five years? Once I have an overwhelming advantage, I can end the war quickly and decisively, minimizing the damage caused by the war. Delaying it is in my favor, so why should I be in a hurry?"

Liu Qianchu nodded and said, "You've thought things through very far! I was too hasty." Yang Jiefang smiled and said, "What we need to do now is to bide our time and accumulate strength. When the time is right, I will sweep across the world and bring peace and prosperity back to the Chinese people without your prompting."

Liu Qianchu nodded slightly, sincerely admiring, "I never imagined you would have such profound insights at such a young age! I truly hope you can become one of our comrades soon." Yang Jiefang patted Liu Qianchu on the shoulder and laughed, "Old Liu, we share a common goal—to build a powerful new China. Doesn't that make us comrades?" Liu Qianchu smiled and replied, "Yes."

Aunt Chu, carrying two cups of tea, came over at just the right moment and said, "Thirsty? Have some water first." Having talked so much, they were indeed a little thirsty, and each picked up their teacups to drink. Aunt Chu then said, "It's getting late, would you like to eat something first?"

Liu Qianchu took out his pocket watch and looked at it, saying, "It's already this late, why is there still no movement inside?" Yang Jiefang comforted him, "Giving birth isn't like drinking water, it doesn't happen that quickly."

No sooner had she finished speaking than the door to the delivery room opened from the inside. Yuan Zhifu poked her head out and said, "Madam Liu has given birth! It's a girl." Liu Qianchu was overjoyed and said, "Good! It's good that she's given birth. A girl is good too!"

Yang Jiefang pressed, "What about Yanshu? How is she now?" Yuan Zhifu replied, "She's about to give birth too. Dean Liu is helping her induce labor." Yang Jiefang muttered to himself, "We were here first, so why is she being born later?" Yuan Zhifu laughed, "You can't calculate things like childbirth like that. Alright, don't worry, just wait patiently!" After saying that, she ignored Yang Jiefang's reaction, turned around, went inside, and closed the door.

Yang Jiefang patted Liu Qianchu beside him and said, "Congratulations! Old Liu, you've got a daughter!" Liu Qianchu smiled and said, "Same to you." Yang Jiefang reminded him, "You're a top student from Yenching University, hurry up and give your daughter a nice name!" Liu Qianchu replied, "I've already thought of a name. Regardless of gender, I'll call her Liu Siqi..."

Yang Jiefang was stunned for a moment, then finally remembered who they were. Mother Zhang Wenqiu, daughter Liu Siqi, oh, Liu, it's you all!