The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 456: A Group of Insects, Recruiting Instead of Conscripting
Two middle-aged men in Mao suits ran up to Chen Zhen with a trembling look on their faces. One of the tall men said in Mandarin with a hint of Sichuanese accent, "Hello, sir. I am Jiang Changmin, the county magistrate of Ba County. I am here with all the public officials and the main township security chiefs of this county to welcome you."

Another person also hurried forward and said to Chen Zhen: "I am waiting for your arrival, sir. I am Luo Ziliu, the magistrate of Fuling County, and I am waiting for your inspection."

Chen Zhen curled his lips, looked at He Wei pointing at his colonel badge, and said to the two county officials, "Two county masters, I am not the protagonist today. I am here to accompany Lieutenant Colonel He. This is Lieutenant Colonel He. You must have heard of the Yangxin victory, which was won by his troops. The order to inspect your two counties this time was jointly issued by the Military Order Department and the Military and Political Department of the Military Commission. I came from the Military Order Department to accompany Lieutenant Colonel He. Today I am here to accompany him to perform official duties. Everything is based on Lieutenant Colonel He."

The two county heads were quite smart. They even recognized the military ranks on the collars of He Wei and Chen Zhen. They knew that they had to rely on military ranks to recognize the gods, so they went straight for Chen Zhen, the colonel. However, they didn't expect to worship the wrong god. However, they reacted quickly. As soon as Chen Zhen finished speaking, they walked up to He Wei with smiles on their faces.

As a local boss, Jiang Changmin, the mayor of Naba County, was naturally much more attentive. He said to He Wei with a shocked look, "So you are Captain He Wei who won the great victory in Yangxin. I have heard of your name for a long time. Today I see that you are indeed a young hero with extraordinary demeanor. You are truly a pillar and role model of our party and country. I was disrespectful just now."

Luo Ziliu, the county magistrate of Fuling County, also said: "Commander He, I am the county magistrate of Fuling County. I have come here to greet you. It is a great honor for our country's world-renowned anti-Japanese war hero to visit our Ba and Fu counties."

He Wei nodded slightly, saluted the two men, and said, "Thank you two county officials for coming to greet us, but this is too much of a fuss. In fact, there is no need to trouble so many officials and village elders, otherwise it will delay official business."

Jiang Changmin waved his hand and said, "It's natural, it's natural. The Military Commission has sent a special notice, how can we not pay attention to it? It is also our duty to cooperate with the Military Commission and contribute to the great cause of the War of Resistance. As soon as your inspection notice arrived, I didn't even need to notify you. All the police agencies, the county militia, the security team, and the township heads and security chiefs of our county took the initiative to welcome you. All the people and officials in our county are absolutely supportive of the great cause of the War of Resistance and the defense of our country."

Luo Ziliu also echoed, "Yes, the chairman said that regardless of the north or south, regardless of age, everyone has the responsibility to defend the land and fight the war. Everyone should contribute to the great cause of the war. Our county has also responded to the chairman's call. The whole county is united and dedicated to the war!"

After a round of greetings and compliments, the two introduced him to the people who were accompanying him, including staff from the county government, people from the county militia, and the head of the county security team.

Of course, the largest number are the township heads and some well-known village chiefs. These people of all kinds are basically the core skeleton that maintains the operation of the two county towns and ensures grassroots governance.

He Wei exchanged a few pleasantries with them beside the sedan, and then he was too lazy to continue to argue with them, so he said directly: "You two, I'm sure you know why I'm here this time. I'm following the dual orders of the Military and Political Department and the Military Command Department. I'm going to move our garrison to the county of Guier to serve as the guard of the secondary capital. In addition, we have to set up two regiment management areas and a supplementary soldier training department in the two counties, and we have to do a good job in military service."

"I just met with Director Liu of the Military Affairs Department and Minister He of the Military Affairs Department not long ago. Director Liu and Minister He attach great importance to the relocation of our troops, the regiment management area, and the establishment of the supplementary soldier training department. I also hope that the two of you can fully cooperate and work together. If you do it well, it will be a great achievement. If you don't do it well, it will also be a hazard to the overall situation of the war of resistance, as you two just said."

Although He Wei spoke with a smile, there was a hint of threat in his words. He Wei's meaning was very clear: I am someone who can talk to Minister He and other senior officials. If you cooperate, everyone will be happy. If you don't cooperate, you will definitely suffer the consequences.

It's not that He Wei is arrogant, but he knows that many of these local officials are long-time cunning officials. Although he doesn't know what kind of personalities the two county magistrates in front of him are, it's always right to speak the truth upfront.

After He Wei finished speaking, the two county governors immediately broke out in cold sweats. The reason was that although He Wei's tone was relatively gentle, the murderous aura that he had cultivated on the battlefield made the two men feel extremely pressured.

Jiang Changmin, the county magistrate of Ba County, wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, "Sir, how about this? You've been traveling for a long time, and it's already noon. The township office has prepared food and some wine. How about we go eat first, take a short rest, and then handle official business in the afternoon?"

Before He Wei could say anything, Chen Zhen on the side winked at He Wei and said, "Well, Captain He and I are hungry after traveling for such a long time, so let's go to the township office to rest for a while."

Originally, He Wei wanted to inspect as soon as possible and make a quick decision. He was too lazy to argue with these people. Seeing Chen Zhen reminding him, he also knew that it would be bad to not give face to these local snakes, so he readily agreed to the banquet invited by the two county heads. Then the group came to the township office (according to the current administrative system of the national government, the organization below the county is the township, and the township has a baojia system, and each township has a township office, which is the administrative center of a township and is equivalent to the township government)

When He Wei and Chen Zhen walked into the township office, they saw that more than a dozen tables of sumptuous banquets had already been set up in the courtyard of the township office. There were both meat and vegetables, wine and meat, which was quite a sumptuous banquet.

Afterwards, everyone ate and drank for a while, but no one touched the wine that was served. He Wei and Chen Zhen refused to drink on the grounds that they had official business to attend to. Seeing this, the two county governors also ordered the wine to be removed. The others did not dare to urge others to drink, so everyone drank tea and chatted while eating and drinking.

Everyone at the banquet was flattering He Wei, saying things like He Wei had become famous for his military achievements and even a three-year-old child knew He Wei's name. In addition to the two county governors, the township heads and security chiefs also took turns to come up and offer tea instead of wine to He Wei, and He Wei naturally responded with a smile and agreed to each of their requests.

Of course, he was not just chatting and drinking with this group of old hands, he also announced directly at the table that not only would his troops be moved to Ba County or Fuling County in the future, but he would also be the director of the First Supplementary Soldier Training Department directly under the Military and Political Department, which was in charge of the Ba County and Fuling Regimental Districts.

After He Wei said this, the atmosphere at the banquet became even more lively. After everyone learned that He Wei was not only the chief commander of the field army, but also the director of the First Supplementary Soldier Training Department in charge of military service, they congratulated He Wei one after another.

Especially those old township heads and village chiefs, when they learned that the conscription of the two counties was also under the charge of He Wei, they all smiled, and the wrinkles on their faces seemed to bloom. They even brought tea to He Wei one after another, and their enthusiastic appearance made him quite uncomfortable for a while.

The leaders of that so-called county security team were no less impressive, and they all came over to offer tea to He Wei eagerly and try to get close to him.

Of course, He Wei's enthusiasm for them was understandable. After all, not only did he have to bring his troops to be stationed in Ba and Fu counties, he was also in charge of military service.

To this group of people, they are the local bosses, and He Wei is also a powerful force that has come from outside the province. His position and responsibilities are indeed extremely powerful, and it is natural for them to please him. However, the performance of the two county governors made He Wei very strange.

When the village heads and security chiefs were toasting He Wei, the faces of the two county heads, Jiang Changmin and Luo Ziliu, were not very good. Relying on the meticulous observation skills honed on the battlefield, He Wei remained calm on the surface, but secretly kept the two county heads' unusual behavior in mind.

After three rounds of tea and five dishes, the number of people coming to offer tea to He Wei gradually decreased. Jiang Changmin and Luo Ziliu, the two county governors, looked at each other. Then, Jiang Changmin seemed to muster up his courage. Amid the drinking and laughter of the crowd, he smiled and whispered to He Wei: "According to the notice I received earlier, I heard that Chief He came here for military service and to select a site for the army. I wonder if Chief He plans to prepare for these two things at the same time, or in a priority order?"

He Wei said: "Of course, the military service is not urgent, and this matter cannot be rushed, but the matter of the station site selection still needs to be done as soon as possible. I mean, the two county governors can take me down to take a walk and have a look, and decide on the station as soon as possible. My troops must also be relocated as soon as possible. I still need the cooperation of the two county governors." "It should be so, it should be so. The station issue is easy to deal with. County Governor Luo and I will definitely accompany you to inspect and assist you in selecting a site. We will definitely handle it properly for you, but, it’s just about the military service..."

When Jiang Changmin talked about military service, his eyes, which were originally meeting with He Wei's, shifted downwards, his face became embarrassed, and his speech became hesitant.

He Wei saw his expression, and combined with the strange behavior of the two county heads just now, he felt something was wrong. At this time, Chen Zhen interrupted and said, "County Head Jiang, if you have any problems, just tell us. We are not bullies. If you have any difficulties, we will try our best to help you solve them. But if you have problems and keep silent, when there are problems in the future, whether it is conscription or the garrison of Lieutenant Colonel He's troops, I'm afraid you two will be in big trouble."

Chen Zhen's tone gradually turned colder, and He Wei also squinted his eyes and looked at Jiang Changmin coldly. Seeing this, Jiang Changmin no longer hesitated, but gritted his teeth and said: "Lieutenant Colonel He, to be honest, our Ba County and Fuling County do have big problems in military service. I will tell you the truth. Now the military service of the entire Sichuan Province has just been launched. Our two counties only learned about the news that the Military and Political Department is going to set up regiment management areas in our two counties and start conscription tasks after receiving your notice. If we start to conscript able-bodied men in our two counties, our two county governors will definitely try their best to complete the conscription tasks assigned by the government, but unfortunately, there are some things in these two counties that we really can't get involved in."

Soon, as Jiang Changmin told the story, He Wei understood the whole story.

It turned out that although Ba County and Fuling County had just been given the task of establishing regiment management areas and starting to recruit soldiers within the two counties, several counties near the temporary capital had already started to set up regiment management areas to recruit soldiers. As He Wei had said to Minister He before, there was considerable corruption in the national army's military service system.

Therefore, those counties that started to implement conscription tasks earlier were no exception, especially the head of the village, the head of the village, the head of the township and the captain of the security team responsible for escorting the able-bodied men, all took advantage of the power in their hands to make a fortune from the national crisis.

The buying and selling of able-bodied men, forced conscription, substitution of men, collusion with soldiers dealers and other corruption were all the work of this gang. Thanks to the unremitting efforts of this group of insects, in just a few months, the counties that first started conscription were enraged by the people and the people were boiling with resentment. There was even a saying circulating in the countryside: "If one person is conscripted, the whole family will suffer."

In short, these bugs handled the conscription extremely badly, and the common people suffered, while the township heads, security chiefs and officials in charge of conscription in each county made a fortune, which made the township heads and security chiefs in Ba County and Fuling County jealous. Before the higher authorities issued the order to start conscription in the two counties, these township heads and security chiefs learned advanced experience from their colleagues in neighboring counties who made money from conscription, and were just waiting for the higher authorities to order the establishment of regiment management areas in the two counties so that they could make a fortune after the conscription began.

Naturally, these things could not be hidden from the two county governors, Jiang Changmin and Luo Ziliu. In fact, if ordinary county governors knew that their village heads and township heads wanted to make a fortune by conscription, those with good intentions would try to control the corruption of their subordinates in order to complete the conscription task as decently as possible, while those with bad intentions would even collude with their subordinates to make money together.

But for Jiang and Luo, this matter is not that simple. You know, the two regiment management areas of Ba County and Fuling that are about to be established are directly ordered by the Military General Staff and the Military and Political Department, and they are assigned to the Assault Corps, an elite force directly under the Military Commission, and their importance is extraordinary.

Therefore, Jiang and Luo must try their best to do their best in the future conscription tasks. They dare not fool around or take the opportunity to embezzle. These two counties are directly named by the Ministry of Military Affairs and the Ministry of Military Command. The township heads and village heads below can do whatever they want. Anyway, the hands of those above have no control over the townships, villages, and villages.

But they were both county magistrates, and even if they had ten thousand guts, they would not dare to take the risk of taking the opportunity to embezzle. In addition, they both had some political ideals and wanted to handle government affairs in a down-to-earth manner. Among the current county officials of the national government, they were definitely first-class good officials who had not been corrupted. Therefore, they naturally had no intention of colluding with the village heads and security chiefs under them or leaving things alone.

Since they couldn't get away with it and couldn't commit corruption, the two men had to do their best to complete the corresponding conscription task. However, the village heads and security chiefs under them were eager to try and prepare for corruption before even receiving the conscription order. How could they possibly complete the conscription task with this group of people?
As for relying on the power of the county magistrate to require his subordinates not to engage in corruption and to rectify the work style in order to complete conscription with high quality, it is nonsense. Those township heads and security chiefs are all locals, local tyrants, and the people who govern at the grassroots level. How can they be easy to deal with?
The leaders of the security team, the only armed force in the county, are in collusion with the village heads and township heads. As the saying goes, cutting off a person's financial resources is like killing his parents. If Jiang and Luo really push them into a corner, it is hard to say who will suffer in the end!

For the two county governors Jiang and Luo, they did not want to, let alone dared to, collude with the village heads and township heads to engage in corruption. However, with this group of greedy village heads and township heads, no matter how hard they tried, it would be impossible to complete the task of recruiting soldiers with guaranteed quality and quantity. If they just let it go, the consequences would be the same, and the recruitment would still be a mess.

The two men were suddenly caught in a dilemma. No matter how they thought or tried, they could not ensure the quality and quantity of military service in the two counties.

As the head of a county, once the conscription task is not completed, they, the county chiefs, will be the first responsible persons. In addition, Ba and Fu counties are personally named by the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs and the Ministry of Military Affairs, and they are highly valued.

Therefore, if there are any mistakes in the conscription of soldiers in the two counties, Jiang and Luo will definitely suffer the consequences.

Jiang and Luo knew very well what the purpose of those village heads and security chiefs coming to offer tea to He Wei was. They must have wanted to please He Wei, the future director of the Supplementary Soldier Training Department. Maybe they even wanted to drag He Wei into the water and make money by recruiting soldiers together. Therefore, the two of them were worried and worried. What they were more afraid of was that He Wei would really go along with that group of guys in the future. By then, they would be the only ones who would be unlucky. Therefore, Jiang and Luo were even more worried, which led to He Wei's discovery of the abnormality.

As for the happy atmosphere when He Wei first met them, and the sincere unity and wholehearted support for the War of Resistance, that was all bullshit they had to act out in front of He Wei.

After He Wei learned the whole story, he did not show any extreme reaction on the surface. Instead, he was glad that he had come to have this meal, otherwise he would not have known that there were so many troubles in these two counties.

He Wei took a sip of tea and patted the two county governors on the shoulders to encourage them. Although most of the people at the dinner table in this yard were bad people, these two county governors were not bad.

Then, He Wei said softly, "I understand, you two. I also understand your difficulties, but please rest assured that I have my own way and will never make things difficult for you. Leave the military service to me. You just need to take me to a few nearby villages to take a look and help me select the locations for the troops to be stationed and trained. Leave the rest to me."

Although they were a little confused about He Wei's unspoken words, looking at He Wei's sincere face and the tone that showed he had a plan in mind, Jiang and Luo both felt at ease, and their worries were alleviated a lot.

He Wei put down his teacup and looked at the yard full of more than a dozen tables where the village heads and security chiefs were eating and drinking lavishly, and then looked at the plaque with blue background and gold letters "A Clear Mirror Hanging High" just above the lobby of the township government. He suddenly felt sad and some thoughts in his mind changed quietly.

Originally, he was thinking of trying to improve the current military service system in the two regiments under his command, but now it seems that there is no need for this at all.

It is impossible to carry out military service with this group of insects. In this case, He Wei will not spend the time and energy on conscription. The original idea of ​​conscription in He Wei's mind disappeared immediately. Instead, he thought of recruiting soldiers by soliciting and spending money to arm them. Let these stupid village heads and township heads get as far away as possible!

(End of this chapter)