The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 466: Swear allegiance to the Captain-General until death!
Before the New Year, He Wei finally received a telegram from Ding Lunshi. It must be said that this former comprador of a foreign company, who is now an attached officer in charge of practical affairs for the Assault Corps, is very capable. According to what he said in the telegram, the package of industrial business entrusted to him by He Wei has made good progress.

Before Ding Lunshi set out, He Wei gave him the following task: to build a clothing factory that could provide the assault corps with all the equipment needed for high-quality clothing, a rear-line hospital for wounded soldiers, and advanced medical equipment and drugs needed for a complete field hospital.

In addition, we will continue to purchase a batch of supplies and equipment in the current equipment sequence of the Assault Corps that are difficult to obtain from the Ministry of Military Affairs, such as the imitation German M35 steel helmets purchased from the Jiehe Iron Factory in Hong Kong Island.

These tasks can actually be said to be quite arduous. He Wei did not expect Ding Lunshi to be able to complete them in one go. Not to mention other things, a complete set of equipment for a clothing factory and a field hospital alone is not easy to obtain. Although Ding Lunshi has done a lot of big business in the past, that was with the support of foreign companies. Now he is alone and fighting alone. Even if he has the channels of his previous comprador career and can rely on one person, I am afraid he may not be able to do it as smoothly as before.

But He Wei did not expect that this guy's efficiency was so terrifying. After he returned to Wuhan, he temporarily settled his family, took his trading company employees with him, and then went straight to Hong Kong Island. He began to use his previously accumulated connections to help He Wei run around and handle the various tasks assigned to him by He Wei.

As a result, as soon as Ding Lunshi arrived in Hong Kong Island, he happened to meet an old friend he knew when he was a comprador. The man was named Huang Shengmo. This person happened to have worked in a large garment factory in Hong Kong Island and had served as a deputy director and manager. The business scope of his garment factory included civilian clothing, work clothes and military uniforms, etc., and the business volume was very large. The garment factory was very famous in Hong Kong Island. Even the military uniforms and bedding of Song Ziwen's Tax Police Corps were ordered from this factory. The strength of the garment factory can be seen.

However, Ding Lunshi's old friend Huang Shengmo was as unlucky as Ding Lunshi. Because the factory was a British-owned factory, Huang Shengmo had a conflict with the foreign senior management of the factory during the course of handling business.

So, just like Ding Lunshi was kicked out of the foreign company, Huang Shengmo was also kicked out of this large British-owned garment factory during the conflict and instantly became unemployed.

After losing his job, Huang Shengmo's experience was no different from Ding Lunshi's. He was in a very miserable state and could only hang around in Hong Kong Island every day doing nothing and living off his savings. He felt a sense of sympathy with Ding Lunshi, who had been kicked out of a foreign company not long ago. In fact, this was not a special coincidence, but was determined by the professional characteristics of the two.

Ding Lunshi and Huang Shengmo are essentially comprador managers who work for foreigners. In the eyes of foreigners, these Chinese compradors and managers who work for them will naturally be used greatly when they are useful, but once they lose their usefulness, or when they realize that these Chinese compradors cannot be controlled, those foreigners will naturally kick these compradors out without hesitation.

After Ding Lunshi learned about Huang Shengmo's experience, he naturally wanted to recruit him. Huang Shengmo was originally a manager of a large garment factory, which happened to be a suitable professional match for the bedding factory that He Wei wanted to run. In addition, Huang Shengmo was now unemployed, so Ding Lunshi naturally extended an olive branch to him and told him about his business for the assault corps. He quickly recruited this professional talent in the garment industry, or in other words, he recruited this person for He Wei.

Immediately, Ding Lunshi handed over all the business of the clothing factory for the assault corps to this person, and he himself took the clerks under his trading company to handle the other business required by He Wei. In this way, the efficiency of Ding Lunshi and his team was greatly improved by splitting their forces into two groups.

After all, among the series of tasks entrusted to him by He Wei, the investment and construction volume required for the construction of the clothing factory were actually the largest. Now that there were professionals to run ties for Ding Lunshi, the workload on Ding Lunshi would naturally be much smaller. In addition, the funds given to him by He Wei for his activities were sufficient, and he also had the military commission issued by He Wei as an attached member of the assault corps, which greatly facilitated Ding Lunshi's various activities in Hong Kong Island.

Therefore, Ding Lunshi quickly completed all the tasks assigned to him by He Wei.

Of course, this completion naturally refers to exploring ways to find sources of various materials, medicines, and equipment required by He Wei and understanding their prices, etc. As for the actual purchase and transportation, that is not something Ding Lunshi can decide. Only He Wei has the final say.

After finding a market, Ding Lunshi hurriedly sent a telegram to He Wei, which was equivalent to a work report. In this telegram, he elaborated on his specific work process in detail, and said that after the work at hand was finished, he would return to the capital with his subordinates and his family, and planned to rush back before the Spring Festival to report his work in detail to He Wei and discuss the specific implementation of various business matters.

He Wei was very excited to see that Ding Lunshi was so efficient and had made such great progress. Now that the recruitment of new soldiers had achieved considerable results, his package of industrial construction plans should also be put on the agenda. It would be great if the specific plans for this series of industrial construction could be finalized before the Spring Festival, and the purchase, construction and start of work could be started immediately after the Spring Festival.

Just like that, with full of expectations, He Wei finally met Ding Lunshi before the Spring Festival, who had traveled all the way from Hong Kong Island to Wuhan and then back to the temporary capital.

In the office of the chief of the assault corps, He Wei met Ding Lunshi again. After meeting again after a short interval, He Wei felt that the mental state of this fat guy Ding was completely different from his previous decadent state.

Not long ago, Ding Lunshi was so desperate that he was almost kicked out of the hotel and ended up living on the streets. His originally chubby body became extremely thin as he fell into poverty, and his mental state was also extremely depressed. However, when he saw him again this time, He Wei felt that the fat comprador from before was back. This guy had become fatter, and his mental state had returned to normal. Of course, that slick and even greasy comprador temperament had also recovered to a large extent.

When the two men met, there was a natural round of greetings and courtesies. Needless to say, He Wei praised Ding Lunshi's efficiency. After Ding Lunshi learned that He Wei had been promoted to colonel and concurrently served as the director of the Supplementary Soldier Training Department directly under the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs, he became more respectful to He Wei and looked at He Wei more eagerly.

When he first joined He Wei's army, it was actually somewhat of a last resort. But now, after just a few months, He Wei has transformed himself again. His market value has soared, and he has become a colonel. He also has a part-time job as the director of the Supplementary Soldier Training Department, which is in charge of conscription. To Ding Lunshi, this speed of promotion is simply a rocket-like rise. When he was doing arms trade in foreign companies, he had come into contact with many officers of the National Army. The colonels he met were basically in their thirties or forties. He had never seen anyone like He Wei who became a colonel at the age of 24.

Moreover, He Wei's two positions were both powerful and lucrative. One was the commander of the field force of the elite Central Army, the Commander of the Assault Corps, and the other was the director of the Supplementary Soldier Training Department, a lucrative position in charge of military service. It could be said that he had both power and money. In addition, He Wei had Minister He as his backer, so Ding Lunshi's reluctance suddenly disappeared. Instead, he was more fortunate to have made the original choice and made up his mind to hold on to He Wei's thigh. Whether he, Ding, could make a comeback in the future and prosper again, all depended on He Wei. He Wei personally poured Ding Lunshi a cup of tea and greeted him with a smile: "Brother Ding, you did a great job this time. Thank you for your hard work."

Ding Lunshi, with a ruddy face, also laughed out loud. His fat face was greasy. After respectfully accepting the teacup, he smiled and said, "It's not hard, it's not hard. Since you, the captain, have entrusted me with such an important task, I should do my best. I have finally fulfilled my mission."

"It's not easy. You have to shoulder so many responsibilities. It's really hard work. Hey, how are your family and your staff doing?"

He Wei asked.

Ding Lunshi pointed in the direction of the secondary capital, a trace of joy appeared on his face, and said: "We have brought them to the secondary capital. I found a house in the secondary capital and settled the whole family down. My men also found a place for them to live. No matter what, now that we have arrived in the secondary capital, we are finally safe."

He Wei nodded slightly, and then seemed to think of something, and said solemnly, "That's good, but don't let them stay in the temporary capital for too long. I have already selected a location for the industrial construction of the clothing factory and other brigades. It is also near Longyan Mountain in Tianxi Township, Ba County. You'd better move your family and your staff there. It will be safer and more convenient to handle things. You'd better do this as soon as possible. Don't let your family and those guys and staff live in the city for a long time, otherwise there will be too many hidden dangers."

Ding Lunshi was stunned for a moment and was speechless. He Wei saw his confusion and explained, "Although the conditions and environment in the secondary city are better, I'll tell you something. Even though the Japanese can't reach the secondary capital for the time being, they will inevitably use planes to bomb. The secondary capital's urban area is definitely their main bombing target. Our air force is insufficient, and our anti-aircraft firepower is also insufficient. The Japanese air force is very powerful. Once the Japanese start bombing, there will definitely be a lot of casualties in the urban area."

"For safety reasons, it's too dangerous for your family and staff to stay in the city. It's best to move out of the city as soon as possible. You can have them move to the county seat of Ba County first. When our industrial construction starts, we will definitely have to build a lot of buildings in Longyan Mountain. When the time comes, our headquarters will pay to build some houses, and you can bring your family over. The environment over there is actually very good, and there are many people around. Of course, the living conditions are definitely not comparable to those in the city of the secondary capital, but the safety is much better. Don't take this matter lightly. Air raids are not a joke."

As soon as He Wei finished speaking, Ding Lunshi's face turned pale, but then he showed a trace of gratitude and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Captain. I will bring my family and staff out as soon as I get back. I won't stay in the city anymore, no matter what."

After taking another sip of tea to calm himself, Ding Lunshi took out a thick document from his briefcase and handed it to He Wei, saying, "Captain, this is the result of the various tasks you entrusted to me. Other tasks may still need to be negotiated, but now the entire construction plan of the clothing factory and the machinery and equipment to be purchased have been finalized and are all written above. These are all written by my old friend Huang Shengmo. He is still in Hong Kong Island and has contacted the source of goods. As long as the money is in place here, you give an order to start purchasing, and he can immediately organize the purchase and transportation. It's just a matter of your word."

He Wei looked at the well-categorized and organized shopping list on the document and nodded with satisfaction. All the items on the document were listed very clearly, especially the items related to the bedding factory. Not only were all the machines and raw materials to be purchased listed, but even the future organizational structure and operating model of the bedding factory were written in great detail. It was no exaggeration to say that it was an operating plan. It could be seen that Huang Shengmo was indeed a talent.

So He Wei said, "Professional people do professional things. The matter of the clothing factory has been settled. Send a telegram to Huang Shengmo later and ask him to make preparations for procurement. When the money is in place, start purchasing and transportation immediately. Tell him that I plan to appoint him as the director of the assault corps clothing factory, and his salary will be comparable to that of an army colonel. Tell him to do his job well. I will definitely not treat him unfairly."

"Understood, understood. I will definitely convey your words to him, Captain. Don't worry, Captain. He has been having a hard time lately. You promised him a job, and he will definitely do it wholeheartedly."

Ding Lunshi said repeatedly.

Then, He Wei pointed to the items and various amounts on the document regarding the purchase of medical supplies and said, "For the specific purchase of medicines and medical supplies needed for the construction of the rear wounded hospital and the field hospital, you should consult with Major Ling Zhi, the head of the medical team of our headquarters. He is an expert. Also, you should directly order 5,000 imitation German steel helmets produced by the Hong Kong Jiehe Iron Works. You should discuss the various expenditures with Director Li of the Logistics Department. As I said, professionals should handle professional matters. Once you have reached an agreement, you can start purchasing directly and deal with it as soon as possible. It is best to start purchasing various businesses after the Spring Festival. It is best to start the construction of the clothing factory, the rear wounded hospital, and the field hospital at the same time. After that, we will have to build a farm for wounded soldiers. The burden on you is not light. Brother Ding, please work harder."

"Don't worry, Captain. I will discuss this with Director Li and the others as soon as possible and start purchasing!"

Seeing Ding Lunshi's respectful look, He Wei patted him on the shoulder and said, "Brother, you have worked hard. Last time I gave you the status of an assistant, but that was only a temporary move. From today on, I will appoint you as the director of the General Affairs Department of our corps, in charge of a series of rear-line industries of our corps, and your salary and benefits will be equivalent to that of a major general."

The treatment of a major general that He Wei mentioned is really just treatment. The colonel treatment he just mentioned for the director of the clothing factory is also just treatment. He himself is a colonel and has no qualifications to be appointed as a colonel or a major general. To put it bluntly, it is just money but no official position. Now Ding Lunshi is essentially He Wei's personal employee. The reason why He Wei talks about the treatment of a major general and a colonel is He Wei's rhetoric. He Wei uses such rhetoric naturally to say more nice things and play some sweet words to make Ding Lunshi more loyal to work for him.

Unexpectedly, Ding Lunshi's reaction was very strong. When he heard the word "Major General", he was stunned for a moment, then stood up suddenly, saluted He Wei with an extremely non-standard military salute, and stood at attention in a very funny way, swayed twice, and shouted in a trembling voice: "Thank you, Captain! I swear to be loyal to you until death!"

He Wei:.
(End of this chapter)