Chapter 77: Making a Ruckus
Night falls, and the dark gray gradually spreads across the sky, bidding farewell to the last remnants of sunset as night arrives.
In the alleys of old Beijing, the hawkers' cries gradually rise, and the rickshaw pullers run down the streets, wiping their sweat with a white towel hanging from their necks. The towels have become grayish-black after a day of wiping away sweat and dirt, but they still accompany the runners enthusiastically, shaking their bodies to tell people that today's harvest is not small.
The streetlights at the corner of the street were like they were about to die, emitting a dim light that flickered constantly, but this did not affect the vendors doing business on the street. Every place with a bit of light was filled with all sorts of stalls, selling snacks and trinkets, and the vendors were eager to promote their goods to passersby. Some pedestrians would stop and buy some snacks or play with the small toys, but as long as they made up their minds to buy, they would inevitably haggle over prices with the vendors. Occasionally, when a rickshaw driver splashed water on the ground, it would immediately trigger a round of shouting and scolding...
This is just another night in old Beijing, the sun rises and sets every day, people's lives remain unchanged, amidst the busy days, there are always some fresh international and domestic news to add to the gossip, since the masters of old Beijing are no longer the emperors taking turns on the throne, the masters of this city have been changing every three days, so there is always something to talk about on the streets, but what affects the ordinary people the most is still the imperialist powers.
Since the Chinese delegation made a show of refusing to sign at the Paris Peace Conference, there has been a chorus of approval across this great land. Whenever old and young masters gather together, they can't help but chat for a few sentences, and within three sentences, they will inevitably praise the delegation's actions. In short, it is enough that China said no to imperialist countries for the first time, which is quite impressive and has increased the dignity of the Chinese people. Even foreign devils who used to not give money to rickshaw pullers dare not make a sound now, and the rickshaw pullers can stand up straight, pat their chests, and scold them a few times. After being scolded by countless Chinese, foreigners still have to pay up. The Chinese people haven't been so spirited in a long time!
The ordinary people's spirit has changed a lot, and from time to time some of the bolder ones still dare to go to the concession area to take a stroll. Who says that places with signs saying "Chinese and dogs are not allowed" are off-limits to Chinese people? After the Paris Peace Conference, where the Chinese delegation walked out with their heads held high, everything that couldn't be done before is now being done, and all the places that couldn't be visited have been visited. Since we Chinese didn't sign any of those crappy treaties with the powers, then let the ordinary people enjoy their freedom as they please.
At this time, the foreigners in Shanghai were really stunned. They didn't know if the Chinese people had collectively gone mad or if their own country had actually agreed to the Chinese requests. Anyway, seeing the Chinese strolling around on the concession streets, they could only stare in shock, extremely shocked. The concession police who used to be very arrogant also disappeared without a trace. In the past, when they saw someone dare to enter the concession area, it was insults, beatings and intimidation. Now, even the fart they had let out before had no smell at all.
The Chinese people are enjoying the "return of sovereignty", enjoying the long-awaited freedom, but they have no idea that all this is actually not supposed to happen. At least in the eyes of warlords and foreign powers, these are acts that offend heaven's rules. But the warlords really had no way to respond, even foreigners didn't say anything, ordinary people didn't do anything illegal, could they just arrest everyone? They can only watch with their eyes open, even controlling the patrolling police in the city tightly, fearing that these unscrupulous guys might accidentally trigger the big bomb hidden behind the tranquility.
January 11, 1921, Beijing in the cold winter season was a vast snowy area, with heavy snow falling from the sky and covering the ground. The ancient city walls and narrow moat were frozen, emitting waves of cold air. Pedestrians on the streets found it difficult to walk, and where the snow had not been cleared, the sound of crunching echoed far and wide. Occasionally, one could still see beggars shivering with cold, constantly moving their limbs, or vendors who would occasionally breathe out white mist as they called out their wares.
A loud "boom" stunned everyone on the street, and before the Spring Festival, how could firecrackers be set off so early? But the sound was different from that of firecrackers, it was a gunshot. Passersby looked at each other, shaking their heads but not speaking, they all knew that this old Beijing hadn't heard gunshots for a long time, had something big happened? The merchants on the street who were closing their doors and windows all crawled out of their beds, soon everyone was talking quickly, although they were wearing cotton-padded jackets, but their mouths moved very quickly, everyone was guessing what had happened.
"Bang..." Another gunshot rang out, and this time the sound was clearly heard by everyone. Some people had already turned their bodies in a common direction, not far away from the Japanese-occupied area. The gunshot came from there, could something have happened? After a moment of speculation, many onlookers started running, more and more people joined the crowd and ran towards that direction.
On January 11, 1921, at around 9:00 am, two Chinese cigarette vendors entered the Dongjiaominxiang in Beijing. One of them had just set up his stall when several Japanese military personnel from the Japanese Embassy came to buy cigarettes. After smoking a few and praising their quality, they took several packs and put them in their pockets without paying, preparing to leave. The vendors tried to reason with them but were met with a fierce beating. One of the vendors, unwilling to back down, grabbed hold of the leader and shouted for help. The Japanese military personnel then pulled out a handgun and shot another vendor who had come to assist.
Then the cigarette vendor who was being dragged away by the Japanese suddenly resisted and after a brief struggle, the Japanese opened fire again. As a result, two people were shot dead, and the scene of the fight caused the cigarette stall to overturn, with various cigarettes scattered all over the ground, as well as two blood-soaked corpses. What's even more infuriating is that there were countless footprints on the two corpses, and the Japanese must have kicked them many times before leaving in anger...
In less than three minutes, the Chinese people who had set up stalls and gathered in Dongjiaomin Lane quickly dispersed after witnessing the tragic scene. The lane soon became a "forbidden zone" for Chinese people again. The truth about the two gunshots spread rapidly throughout the streets, but no matter how it was distorted, one fact remained indisputable: Japanese people had killed two Chinese people on the street.
Something even more desperate happened. The gunfire in the morning had not yet faded away, and the newspaper boys on the street were shouting "Extra! Extra! Paris Conference supports Japan replacing Germany... Extra!" The Chinese delegation, without consulting the "Central Government", made an impulsive decision to refuse to sign, causing extremely bad influence in the international community. As a result, the Beiyang government sent a telegram to the Paris Conference expressing support for the conference resolution, abolishing the full powers of the delegation and would soon organize other personnel in Europe to sign the contract...
So, things couldn't be simpler. Under the so-called Central Government's manipulation, the resolutions of the Paris Peace Conference officially "took effect", and all German rights in China were transferred to Japan, while the Chinese people's demand for restoration of national sovereignty naturally fell flat. But how could the Chinese commoners' news be as smooth as the Japanese? In complete ignorance, they once again entered Dongjiaomin Lane "strolling around", which was an act that violated heavenly principles and could be arbitrarily punished by the powers.
The powers have formally rejected the proposal of the Chinese delegation, which has also been declared illegal. The so-called "Central Government" recognized by all the powers has agreed to their unanimous decision, so the matter of two guns and two lives will naturally end with the Chinese taking full responsibility... If anyone is to blame, it's that the news was not transmitted quickly enough, so that in the morning people were killed, and in the afternoon the newspaper was urgently printed to inform society. But no matter what, this matter cannot be settled peacefully, nor should the Chinese take responsibility for it. Someone must pay the price for this.
January 13th, the sun had just lazily risen and was shining down on the earth with a lukewarm glow. The frozen Beijing made people feel even colder. The incident of Japanese killing Chinese on the street completely woke up the Chinese people. Some places are not suitable to go, some things are not really doable. While many were still enjoying warmth in their homes, sudden thunder-like slogans echoed through the streets.
"Down with imperialism, return China's sovereignty!" "Hand over the murderer, thoroughly investigate the truth of the matter!" "Down with..."
Slogans were shouted that shook the sky, and many people who lived on the street almost jumped out of bed to open their windows, braving the biting cold wind to see what was happening on the streets. Countless students pulled up huge banners, with powerful large characters written in white, each character connecting to form intimidating slogans.
The procession of demonstrators continued to grow, with students, workers, vendors, and residents joining in, even the vegetable-purchasing mothers joined the ranks. The massive procession marched straight towards Dongjiaomin Alley. Similar demonstrations took place in Tianjin, Shanghai, Hankou... wherever there were concessions, Chinese people held processions, ignoring whether it was a concession or a no-go zone for Chinese people. With banners raised and slogans shouted, thousands-strong processions stormed into the concessions, the thunderous chants not only left people's ears ringing but also made all Chinese people feel their blood boiling with excitement, while foreigners stood agog.
After the demonstration against imperialism, the next day was a demonstration against the Northern warlord government, and this time more people joined the demonstration team. Many people who did not know about the demonstration on the 13th actively participated in the second-day demonstration against the Northern government.
On January 14, 1921, the two-wheeled parade demonstrations in various places were not taken seriously by imperialism and warlord governments. On this day, thousands of students broke through the military police's blockade and gathered at Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The slogans were more frantic than before: "Rather be shattered jade than intact pottery" and "Fight for national rights externally, punish national traitors internally". Later, the procession rushed to the homes of Cao Rulin, Minister of Communications, Lu Zongyu, Director of the Currency Bureau, and Zhang Zongxiang, Minister to Japan, among others. The excited demonstrators set fire to their dens, beating up these traitors who sold out the country. However, they soon clashed with arriving military police, resulting in dozens of injuries during the fight. Afterwards, the military police arrested several dozen students.
The long-dormant contradictions were like a large pile of gunpowder, and when ignited by powerful sparks, the explosive force was unimaginable.
On January 15, the ambassadors of Britain, France, Japan, Italy and the United States to China sent a joint diplomatic note to the Beiyang government, demanding that China quickly put an end to the large-scale demonstrations and ensure the safety of the interests and personnel of various countries in China... As more and more people supported the demonstrations, they were strongly dissatisfied with the resolution of the powers, and if it was not handled properly, it would lead to even greater disaster. Therefore, on the afternoon of the 15th, just as various joint action associations were being established everywhere, the Beijing warlord government issued a severe ban on protests, President Xu Shichang ordered suppression, and strictly ordered local governments to cooperate with the central government's decision, requiring students to return to class, workers to return to work, and merchants to reopen their businesses...
The next day, teachers and students in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and other places continued to boycott classes. Many schools even directly labeled the principals who had previously persuaded them as traitors. Later, the students prepared to take to the streets with workers on strike and merchants closing their shops to continue demonstrating and protesting, but tragedy struck at this time.
On the 16th morning, several cotton mill workers of Japanese-owned factories in Shanghai were preparing to go on strike together, but they were blocked by the factory and even locked all the entrance gates. When the workers finally opened the gate and prepared to take to the streets for a demonstration, they found that countless soldiers and police had already been deployed at the entrance. Students also had similar experiences, and soon after taking to the streets, they encountered swarms of soldiers and police. Hundreds of students and workers were arrested in various places, and casualties began to appear in the clashes.
On the 17th, Beijing and Shanghai had even larger-scale strikes, with teachers and students completely boycotting classes and starting to charge at the military police blocking the campuses. After breaking through, they began gathering again for another march and demonstration. Workers in major industries such as railways, ports, and docks went on a general strike, causing all transportation along the coast to come to a standstill. Workers and artisans, peddlers, and small business owners joined together to put pressure on the government, demanding the release of those arrested, severe punishment for traitors who sold out the country, and rejection of the Paris Peace Conference resolution. If the government did not fulfill the people's requests within a day, students would not return to class, workers would not go back to work, and merchants would not open their shops.
On the 17th afternoon at three o'clock, due to the worsening situation in various places, the diplomatic notes sent by the powers once again put increasing pressure on the Beiyang government. Therefore, President Xu Shichang quickly declared a state of emergency nationwide, and under permissible conditions, governments at all levels can dispatch troops to suppress demonstrators...
After the shocking news was announced, various places fell into an even more terrible situation. The people not only completely lost hope in the government but also lost their due rationality. Large-scale riots began to erupt, and many coastal cities started to see people rushing into foreign shops to smash and loot. All kinds of goods from foreign powers were hoarded and burned, and foreign books, newspapers, and even blonde wigs were thrown into the raging fire. Among them, naturally, there were many lawless elements taking advantage of the situation to stir up trouble, indirectly fueling the crowd's extreme behavior. After smashing and looting, there began to be incidents of robbery. If things continued to develop in this way, the armies of foreign powers in the concessions could at any time take action and open fire on unarmed innocent civilians.
The warlord government, in addition to sending out a larger scale of temporary police and soldiers to maintain order on the streets, also began large-scale arrests of troublemakers. In some streets of Shanghai, machine guns were even set up to intimidate the demonstrators. The city of Beijing under the Northern Warlords' control was subject to exceptionally strict control. Xu Shichang fulfilled his promise by deploying troops into the city to maintain order. Whenever there was a disturbance, they would fire warning shots and then either make mass arrests or directly open fire and kill. Although the outlaws were suppressed, many innocent people also suffered misfortune...
However, this incident will not end here. The anti-imperialist demonstrations and protests that have affected several provinces and cities will come to an end in what way is still unknown.
