Southern guerrilla warfare: I led the Red Seventh Army Corps to amassed a million troops.

Chen Lifu's mind wavered for a moment, and the hand holding the wine glass trembled slightly.

Seeing this, Dai Yunong, standing behind him, quickly said loudly, "General Zhou is quite right. Then, I wonder if the Red Army is sincere about these negotiations?"

Distracted from his thoughts, Chen Lifu finally came to his senses.

That's right, there's no point in thinking about it too much now. Let's focus on getting the present matter done first.

Back home, people are waiting for good news to appease the protesters; this is the most urgent matter, and everything else has to take a backseat.

Zhou Zeyuan turned to Dai Yunong, his gaze lingering on his gloomy face for a moment, a fleeting murderous intent flashing through his mind.

Well, Dai Yunong's life was a mix of merits and demerits, but he ultimately contributed to the War of Resistance against Japan.

There are too many talented people in the Kuomintang who are not given the opportunity to shine. If someone else were to take charge of the Special Service Department, it might not be any easier to deal with them.

"Of course, we also have sincerity. Since the Quzhou Campaign, in order to cut off the National Army's logistical transport to the front lines, we have blocked the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Railway, which has led to the disruption of trade routes and the shrinking of economic activities between Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces, causing great damage to people's livelihoods."

He paused, as if making a major decision, and solemnly announced, "Therefore, we have decided to lift the blockade during the negotiations, and all goods except military supplies may pass freely."

"Bravo!" A shout broke the brief silence.

Everyone turned to look, and there stood Mr. Huang, the industrialist, his face beaming, clapping enthusiastically.

Behind him, several other pro-democracy activists from the business community also stood up, and applause quickly spread from his table.

Then the whole hall erupted in enthusiastic applause.

The democrats applauded, their faces showing genuine approval.

Seeing this, the officials on the Nationalist government side had no choice but to applaud as well.

Some people took perfunctory photos, their palms touching palms, making a soft, muffled sound.

A few people clapped their hands hard, with slightly embarrassed smiles on their faces.

Dai Yunong looked at Zhou Zeyuan's young face.

A flicker of shock, a hint of frustration, and an indescribable, almost awe-inspiring, complex expression crossed his eyes.

That was a brilliant move.

It was clearly the Red Army that had the advantage, but Zhou Zeyuan's public announcement made it seem as if the Red Army had made a huge sacrifice and shown great sincerity.

In fact, it was the Nationalist army itself that blocked the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Railway.

The Red Army did not obstruct the railway crossing the border at all; it only set up checkpoints at the relevant stations to prevent the National Army from using the railway to transport supplies.

As for why the road to the meeting was blocked later, it was because the National Revolutionary Army deliberately stopped railway transportation to prevent supplies from entering the Red Army's base area.

Then they shifted the blame to the Red Army.

But once Zhou Zeyuan made this announcement, if the Nationalist government didn't lift the blockade, everyone would know that the Nationalist government was the real culprit behind the disruption of trade routes.

Then they would truly become the sinners who sabotaged the peace talks.

That was a really vicious move.

Chen Lifu's facial muscles twitched slightly, but he was a first-rate political veteran and adjusted his expression in less than two seconds.

"General Zhou is a man of great integrity and righteousness, worthy of our admiration."

The applause gradually subsided. Zhou Zeyuan, holding his wine glass, gave Chen Lifu a slight bow: "Minister Chen, I'm very busy with military affairs, please forgive any neglect. I'll go over there to offer a toast to all of you gentlemen, please excuse me."

After he finished speaking, without waiting for Chen Lifu's response, he picked up his wine glass and walked towards the tables on his left.

When Mr. Zhou saw him approaching, he quickly took the cigarette out of his mouth and stubbed it out in the ashtray.

Mr. Zhou gestured with his chin toward the person opposite him, a signature sly smile on his face. "Commander-in-Chief Zhou, those words you just said were quite good. I'd like to propose a toast to you."

Zhou Zeyuan walked over and gently clinked his wine glass against Mr. Zhou's teacup: "Sir, you flatter me. Compared to you, my eloquence is nothing but a trivial skill."

Old Mr. Cai, stroking his beard, interjected with a smile: "No, no, no, a trivial skill, used in the right place, is a divine weapon. Commander Zhou, please sit down. I have a few words I'd like to ask you."

Zhou Zeyuan did not refuse and pulled up a chair to sit down at the table of pro-democracy figures.

……

After dinner, it was already dark, and the group of people, exhausted from their journey, returned to their lodgings.

The residences arranged for the democrats were personally selected by Yu Qiubai, so that his friends could live in peace and comfort.

But in the pitch-black night, the mansion was brightly lit.

A clean white cloth was laid on the octagonal table in the center of the main room. Zhou Zeyuan sat on one side of the table, with a small pulse pillow in front of him and writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone next to him.

Several pro-democracy activists gathered around, some sitting, some standing, some holding teacups, some pacing with their hands behind their backs, and others craning their necks to look at the table.

At Yu Qiubai's request, Zhou Zeyuan had no choice but to return to his old profession and once again become a resident doctor.

At this moment, Mr. Chen, a pro-democracy activist who had come with Mr. Huang, sat in front of him, rolled up his sleeves to reveal a section of his wrist, and had a confident look on his face.

He was a businessman in his early forties, with a ruddy complexion and a strong, resonant voice.

"Mr. Zeyuan, I'm not bragging. I may be busy with business, but I've always valued health. I go to bed early and get up early, and take a walk after meals. I'm in excellent health."

Zhou Zeyuan placed his fingers on his pulse, not in a hurry to speak.

The main room fell silent, and everyone stared at his young face.

A moment later, he opened his eyes: "Take a look at the tongue coating."

Boss Chen obediently stuck out his tongue and said somewhat indistinctly, "How is it? Not bad, right?"

Zhou Zeyuan withdrew his hand, picked up the pen beside him, and began to write slowly as he spoke:

"Mr. Chen, your health is indeed quite good, you don't have any major illnesses. But you have quite a few minor ailments, none of which are life-threatening. I call this state sub-health."

Mr. Chen turned to Mr. Huang beside him and said proudly, "I knew it! I'm in great health; I could work for another twenty years without any problem."

Zhou Zeyuan continued writing, adding, "It's just that the dampness is a bit heavy, the yang energy is insufficient, and there's yin deficiency with excessive fire. I sleep poorly at night, feeling sleepy and having many dreams. There are still some minor issues with my lifestyle habits."

Halfway through writing, he looked up at Boss Chen and said, "It's not a big problem now, but if this continues, your kidney function will decline rapidly."

Boss Chen suddenly stood up: "General Zhou, you're so young, don't talk nonsense. You're not a professional doctor, what makes you say I have kidney deficiency!"

The whole room fell silent. Boss Chen was too brave!

No matter how easy-going this young comrade may be, he is still a great general who commands thousands of troops and is decisive in killing.

Don't you want face?

Isn't it a bit too hurtful to say that about him?