Chapter Seventeen: A Talk with You

  "After the spring began, it hasn't rained again. From the Spring Festival to now, every day has been sunny. If it continues like this, the spring harvest will be bad!" An old farmer said while chatting with Zhang Yu, not knowing his true identity. He took a cigarette from Zhang Yu and lit it up, taking two big puffs before saying: "Young people's cigarettes are good. May I ask if you're a government official or a businessman?"

  The old farmer pointed to the three off-road vehicles on the cement road. In Shaanxi Province, infrastructure construction is booming, and many cars are traveling on the roads. The old farmer has seen many buses, trucks, engineering vehicles, etc., but he has never seen the kind of off-road vehicle that is currently parked by the side of the road. The tall and powerful vehicle has a very distinctive black paint job, wide tires, and a high chassis, proving that this car is somewhat unusual. If the old farmer had read the popular automotive weekly magazine published in the autonomous region, he would probably have known that the vehicle in front of him was another new product from the regional automotive industry - the Asia-Mercedes-Benz off-road vehicle, produced by the Asia Group's Chongqing First Automobile Manufacturing Factory.

  This time Zhang Yu came to Shaanxi to take a stroll, his ride was the Land Rover off-road vehicle produced by this factory for high-ranking commanders of the People's Liberation Army, of course, more are facing domestic and foreign markets, the selling price of several thousand yuan per vehicle is not low. Of course, the previous reason is that the army is not convenient to use a sedan, the former Jeep has been eliminated, the Hummer car displacement is too large, so the Land Rover off-road with good off-road performance and comfortable ride became the best choice.

  The military's demand greatly stimulated the automotive R&D team of Asia Mei Group, and after much effort, they finally developed the Land Rover and Sharp Step sedan. Of course, following the usual practice of Asia Mei Group, the sedan was first launched in the international market. However, Jeep has already started to enter the US market, and it is expected that the global sales of Land Rover will also be imminent. Nevertheless, providing off-road vehicles for high-ranking commanders, important government departments, etc., this order is enough to keep the Chongqing factory busy. In the future, the vast civilian market will be even more charming. However, Zhang Yu, sitting in his new car, felt that the pleasant feeling of the new car was already overshadowed by the ominous sign of drought after getting off the special train at Yan'an Railway Station and driving around in his new car. The provinces of Shaanxi, Gansu, and Shanxi, which had not seen rain for several months, might erupt into a large-scale drought, and this feeling lingered in Zhang Yu's heart, leaving him no mood to appreciate the beauty of his new car.

  "Oh, I'm just a businessman! I heard that the mulberry trees grown here are quite good and have a great growth momentum. The trees planted 23 years ago grew very tall and bore fruit in just two years, and this is already the fifth year, with several consecutive bumper harvests, which is really impressive! As a businessman, I naturally pursue profits, so I came to take a look and see if it's possible to transplant your mulberry trees to my hometown, and then contract out a few hundred acres..."

  The old farmer waved his hand to interrupt Zhang Yu, who had not finished speaking. He took a puff of smoke with half-closed eyes and said: "Young man, this tung oil tree is good. We have planted some in front of and behind our house, as well as on the barren land. The effect of planting it together with other tree species is not bad. However, the fruit of this tung oil tree has strong vitality and high yield! It's precisely because of its high yield that its price is cheap, and only the government buys it. Planting dozens of hectares of it is not as profitable as planting one or two hectares of corn. So everyone plants it on land that doesn't matter much. On the one hand, it conserves water and soil, prevents soil erosion, and beautifies the environment. On the other hand, having it is better than leaving the land barren. The fruit can be sold for a good price at the end of the year!"

  "Does Mr. Lao mean that no one will take fertile land to plant leprosy trees?" Zhang Yu asked relentlessly.

  "Heh heh, I told you earlier. The fruit of this camphor tree isn't worth much money, who would want to make a living from it? Moreover, this tree has a strange disease, that is, it's resistant to fire, drought, and high temperatures. The more barren the land, the better it grows. If you were to plant it in fertile soil, its reproductive ability would scare you to death."

  The old farmer pointed to the distant mountains and said, "The Loess Plateau used to be gullied all over with yellow earth, but now it can't be seen. What can be seen are rows of hemp trees that have grown two or three people high, their branches and leaves dense and about to connect into a piece. If things go on like this, in another five years the Loess Plateau will return to green.

  "Look at that? Those barren hills were originally thought to be worthless, but after planting the windbreak trees, they became valuable. The roadsides don't dare plant windbreak trees because their vitality is too strong, it's better to plant poplar trees or something! In short, these windbreak trees are worthless, except for contributing to the environmental changes of this loess plateau, I really can't find any other advantages!"

  The large-scale cultivation of the windbreak tree is aimed at solving the problem of soil erosion on the Loess Plateau. Xinjiang, Gansu, Mongolia, and Suiyuan are all planting it in desert areas. This monster from the 30th century has improved varieties, with a yield of 800-900 kg per mu. The result of large-scale cultivation is that the fruit is almost worthless, and during the harvest season, purchasing units calculate its value by the ton. Even though it's an energy crop with high oil content, which can produce many chemical products after processing, the autonomous region currently has limited processing capacity for this tree species. The supply and demand relationship is severely unbalanced, causing the tree to become a dispensable crop in farmers' minds. Having it only serves to green the environment; some households don't even bother to harvest, letting the fruit rot on the branches, allowing the windbreak trees to grow and die on their own in worthless land.

  "Don't you know that this tung tree can be refined into diesel oil? Can be processed into various chemical products?" Zhang Yu realized that the tung tree had become a role similar to theirs at that time, that is, it was dispensable for humans. However, he still wanted to figure out more about the situation.

  "I know! But we also know that the warehouse in the chemical plant still hasn't used up last year's goods!"

  The old farmer's words completely stunned Zhang Yulei. The autonomous region's camphor tree chemical technology is not yet mature, and if the ability is sufficient, it is estimated that the camphor tree will become a gold rush. Once the supply and demand relationship is balanced, the enthusiasm of farmers will be immediately ignited, and they will all switch from growing grain to growing camphor trees. The key to maintaining a balance between supply and demand lies in the processing capacity of chemical companies. If it's too high, it's not good for agriculture; if it's too low, it can't produce enough chemical raw materials. This issue still needs careful consideration. However, from the current situation, the camphor tree's processing capacity is limited, which is beneficial to agricultural development. The extent of its ability still requires further research.

  "And another thing, this tung oil tree is a bit strange! Last year was a good harvest season, but the growth of this tung oil tree wasn't very good. You see, it hasn't rained for several months this year, and this damn tung oil tree has actually become more thriving than ever! It's just like what that agricultural technician said back then, they really do love harsh environments with plenty of sunlight, dry weather, and little rainfall, which is actually beneficial to them!"

  "Old man, I see your Mandarin is quite impressive, it seems you're an educated person?"

  After Zhang Yu handed the third cigarette to the old farmer, he finally believed a small secret that General Dai Chengyong of the Second Army had told him: men in Shaanxi are particularly good at smoking. Two unfamiliar people can quickly become close friends as long as they exchange cigarettes. Plus, they are originally enthusiastic and hospitable. If you really get to know Shaanxi people, don't worry about running out of topics, just worry about not having the courage to keep talking.

  "Me?" The old man chuckled and pointed at himself, shaking his head with a smile as he lit up a cigarette. Zhang Yu's cigarettes were specially supplied by the Yuxi Rolling Factory in Yunnan, so they tasted exceptionally good. The old man treasured this third cigarette dearly. "I'm our village chief, I was trained in town last year, and all the students in our village can speak Mandarin too. Although I'm over 50 years old, learning Mandarin is no problem at all!"

  Zhang Yu smiled and nodded, gesturing to the two guards behind him to bring over two stools. After they were seated comfortably, the two men sat down to talk slowly. Zhang Yu still didn't believe that his boasting skills were inferior to those of the old man from Shaanxi.

  "Just now, the old man said he's afraid there will be a severe drought this year. I've heard that in places like Shaanxi and Shanxi, when droughts occurred in the past, people had no food or water and could only flee, but who can escape the drought-stricken areas? Everyone was left with nothing to eat, wear, or drink, and countless people starved to death. Selling children became a common occurrence. In short, many lives will be lost. How can you mention the possibility of a drought without being afraid at all?"

  "Hmph, drought? Even a super massive earthquake wouldn't scare me. Why? Because we have the people's government, what is there to be afraid of!" The old man said this, then pulled over his hoe and stroked it, saying: "Before the people's government came, we were required to plant opium instead of grain. If we didn't starve during a disaster year, that would be strange. But after the people's government came, not only did they teach us to cultivate the land, reduce taxes, and build water conservancy projects... but also established an emergency material reserve bureau in every county. Our county head said, even if our county had three to five years of severe famine, we wouldn't starve to death. What do you think we have to be afraid of?"

  "In that case...", Zhang Yu hadn't thought of a good answer to this question in his haste. After thinking for a while, he said: "If people from other provinces come here to escape the famine, will there be enough food to eat? The government might go and rescue the people from other provinces who are fleeing from the famine, so does your family have enough food to get by? What about water?"

  Zhang Yu's series of questions didn't stump the old man at all. After taking a puff of smoke, he said: "You just keep walking along this road, and within two miles you'll see a big reservoir - that's our village's communal water storage. We've been closing the sluice gates to store water since last month, and we have more than enough!"

  "Besides, we also have a reservoir made of sand and cement in front of our own house, which is not only for raising fish and ducks but also serves as our lifeline water source in times of crisis. Our warehouse still has over 3,000 catties of wheat and corn from last year's harvest, as well as over 300 catties of soybeans and other grains. Moreover, there are only two elderly people at home. The son and daughter-in-law have gone out to work, so they don't have to worry about food and clothing. The grandchildren are all attending elementary school, living an even more comfortable life. If anyone wants to starve our autonomous region to death, the heavens would have to be extremely dry for many years..."

  "That's right! Over the years, we've accumulated a lot of grain reserves. The four provinces of Guizhou, Yunnan, Guangxi and Sichuan in the autonomous region are all blessed with good weather, and if there's not enough to eat, we can just transport it by rail or road. With the people's government in place, there will always be surplus food. But, old sir, you still haven't answered my other question, so I'll ask it another way. Suppose Shanxi and Henan, adjacent to Shaanxi, experience a severe drought, and many refugees flood into the autonomous region, the government will surely come forward to provide relief, what will your attitude be?"

  "When the Haicheng earthquake occurred, we were united in supporting each other. Although Shanxi was not yet part of the autonomous region, people from Shanxi are also a part of us Chinese. Who doesn't have their own share of bad luck? We should help each other out, why make such a fuss!"

  Zhang Yu smiled and nodded, as the saying goes, "poor couples have a hundred worries". When the autonomous region's government is rich and the people's lives are prosperous, natural disasters seem less frightening in the face of strength. Imagine if there was no wealthy reality, but another time and space where warlords were rampant, I estimate that in this Republican era, how many people would be displaced and lose their lives in the mountainous regions of Shaanxi, Gansu and other places including northern China.

  "That old fellow, do you think our autonomous region should merge with the surrounding provinces? In other words, should the people's government become the leader of our China? Do you think the current state of division in China should come to an end?"

  Zhang Yu asked a question that had been troubling him for a long time. To say that unifying China, the Fifth Army Group has already been formed and will have combat effectiveness by mid-1928. The navy and air force have also made great progress. The Guangzhou Military Government, Sun Chuanfang, Wu Peifu, Zhang Zuolin, Yan Xishan, etc. are not worth worrying about. The autonomous region has enough military strength to launch a war of liberation for the whole of China. War is naturally not worth worrying about, but the problems after unification are the key. With over 1 billion square kilometers of land, a population of over 570 million people, nearly 20,000 kilometers of coastline, and over 4 million square kilometers of maritime territory, should this vast land be ruled by the Revival Party, guarded by the People's Army, and governed by the People's Government? The problem is not as simple as eating, drinking, and defecating.

  "I know that for those who do business traveling all over the place, the most important thing is to have a peaceful environment. If you can't live in peace, who will take care of your business? In my opinion, the People's Government is quite good, it's a government that truly cares about the people; the People's Army is also a true model of civilization and martial valor; and the Revival Party is also a very good party. But I always feel like something is missing..."

  "Old man, you might as well say it, this autonomous region's law does stipulate that citizens have the freedom of speech!"

  "The answer to this question, you have to ask yourself. For me, an old Shaanxi native, to say something unpleasant, it's that the people's government doesn't have any real men, everything they do feels like they're afraid of this and that. It's just like when they said they wanted to govern the Loess Plateau, they had to go through all sorts of experts investigating, on-site evidence collection, scientific analysis, experimental proof and so on, and after a long time they finally came up with something real. Can't they just let us people follow them directly? They always put too much emphasis on the people, too much emphasis on economic construction, those people in Beijing have too much of a warlord mentality, while our autonomous government has too much of a bookworm mentality..."

  "Can't you put it more simply, for example, in what aspects do you think the people's government is not masculine enough?"

  "In what aspect, I think it's about the military expedition. Those who listen to the radio and read newspapers know that Zhang Zuolin in Northeast China, Wu Peifu in Beijing, Sun Chuanfang in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, etc., are nothing but people who can make a big fuss for their own interests. What's scary about war? The People's Army has the real power to unify China and free it from the bullying of imperialist powers. But what happened? They had to be bullied to the extreme before they jumped up to make trouble, without realizing that such actions would hurt the people..."

  "So your meaning is that for this government to be truly good to the people, it should unify China as soon as possible and turn all of China into a place like the current autonomous region?" The old man's words struck a chord in Zhang Yu's heart. He had always wanted to unify China as soon as possible and achieve the key step towards national rejuvenation, and not waste his own reborn fate.

  "That's what I mean. If I were twenty years younger, no, ten years younger, I would have gone to thrash those people's congress representatives one by one. When would they consider the happiness and well-being of people outside the autonomous region? You businessmen who travel all over the place should go thrash them too. Why not unify the country instead of letting those warlords continue to harm the people in those regions? If they do things this way, even if unification is achieved step by step in the future, who will genuinely follow the government? Of course, no one says the government has to do things this way... our autonomous region's laws don't say it's a capital offense to refuse to rescue someone..."

  The old man's words were like a knife, cutting into Zhang Yu's heart one by one. Indeed, his purpose in coming to Shaanxi this time was naturally to prepare for another expansion of the People's Army. According to the General Staff Department's plan, the scope of this expansion was limited to most of Outer Mongolia, Suiyuan, Shanxi, and Henan. In other words, the People's Army would launch military operations in these areas with the Second Field Army as its main force, with the aim of incorporating these regions into the autonomous region.

  However, the old man's words deeply reminded him that at a speed like the People's Army, which was as slow as an old woman grinding a knife, if they really wanted to unify China and achieve national rejuvenation, wouldn't it take almost another decade? The People's Army would often merge into a new area and quickly improve the local poor and backward situation, greatly changing people's fate. Unfortunately, each time the autonomous region expanded its scope was limited, from only one province in Guangxi to more than ten provinces covering half of China, the autonomous region took fourteen years. If they were to unify at this slow pace, who knows when they would complete the great unification? What is the purpose and significance of rejuvenating China? Not just Zhang Yu, but many Rebirth Party members had some doubts.

  Before leaving the old man's field, Zhang Yu gave him a cigarette and said he wanted to thank him for chatting with him for half an hour. The old man wasn't sure if it was really because of this that he thanked him, but Zhang Yu's heart was very clear. He was very grateful for the old man's words and also thankful that he reminded himself to find his way back.

  From Xi'an to Yan'an, China Railway First Group has completed the construction of this railway line. To go to the farthest base of the Second Army Group - Yulin Base, Zhang Yu and others still have a long way to go from Yan'an. The combat troops of the Second Army Group are the 3rd Division, the 10th Division, and the 8th Division. For some reason, the 10th Division stationed in Hunan will be transferred to the combat sequence of the Fifth Army Group, and the newly established 13th Division of the Land Army will become a new member of the Second Army Group.

  The 8th Division of the Second Army Group will hand over the defense task of Hubei to the 14th Division of the Fifth Army Group and return to Shaanxi. At that time, the 13th Division will be left to guard Shaanxi, and the Second Army Group can have two main force divisions to perform combat tasks. The newly established Fifth Army Group consists of the 10th Division, the 14th Division, and the 15th Division, which will be responsible for the defense of the Lianghu region.

  The Third Army stationed in Yunnan and Guizhou, including the First Army in Xinjiang and Gansu, except for the first division that cannot be publicly exposed, left behind the defensive forces necessary to defend Xinjiang and Yunnan, namely the second division and the sixth division. The Seventh Division, Ninth Division, and Tenth Division of the army, even including the Fourth Division or Eleventh Division of the Fourth Army, are all powerful forces capable of executing tasks.

  That is to say, Zhang Yu has a lot of cards in his hand that can be played, and he has the ability to concentrate six divisions with nearly 80,000 troops. As long as there are sufficient supplies and logistics, he has the ability to launch a large-scale military operation, without considering the assistance of the air force and navy. It is not a problem to take down forces such as Yan Xishan, Wu Peifu, Sun Chuanfang, Chen Jiongming, and Long Jiguang in one breath. As for Zhang Zuolin, the warlord of the Fengtian clique who has been flirting with the Japanese, it would be very easy to take him down.

  At this point, Zhang Yu immediately dispelled the idea of going to Yulin base for inspection. The off-road team turned back to Yan'an train station immediately. Zhang Yu needed to meet with Dai Chengyong of the Second Army Group as soon as possible. He just didn't believe that the army, which was cultivated at a cost of hundreds of millions every year, only ate and did not work. Who was more capable, who was better at warlord infighting, before showing off himself, Zhang Yu needed to let the army make preparations for its debut.