The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

What these people didn't know was that once the four-stroke engine could be mass-produced, the era of the automobile would arrive. And since these people could manufacture single-cylinder engines, they could also design and manufacture two-, three-, and four-cylinder engines. And since they could manufacture diesel engines, they could also manufacture gasoline engines.

Just like the heart of an airplane is its engine, once that heart is manufactured, Zhang Yinghao believes that airplanes and cars can be easily manufactured, as long as aesthetics are not a priority. And as long as the materials are of good quality, the practicality of these things will also be met.

However, there are many factors that currently hinder Zhang Yinghao's development. For example, bearings and drive shafts have very high material requirements, and some even require the use of special steel. If the materials are not up to standard, then many components will be scrapped after a short period of use.

But as long as he could make it, Zhang Yinghao would be happy. He knew that even in the 21st century, some places still used steam engines. But he wasn't interested in them; he could study them later. His goal was to bypass the steam engine entirely and use internal combustion engines and electric motors as power, ushering in the era of the Second Industrial Revolution.

Zhang Yinghao knew that the era of the internal combustion engine was just around the corner. Since the First Industrial Revolution, industrial technology had accumulated a wealth of experience, reaching a critical juncture where it could be rapidly developed. Of course, the First World War was the first to truly catalyze these technologies. The increased demand during the war accelerated the transformation of the achievements of the Industrial Revolution.

However, after only glancing at the basic data they'd developed—only 20 horsepower—Zhang Yinghao lost interest in examining the actual engine and tractor. 20 horsepower was more than enough power for motorcycles and three-wheeled vehicles. Zhang Yinghao immediately drew up schematics for two-stroke engines, two-cylinder, three-cylinder, and four-cylinder four-stroke engines, and sent them to the factory's confidential room for further research.

When thinking of cars, the first thing that comes to mind is the rubber on their wheels. The wheels of the horse-drawn carriages and other vehicles within the base now all use rubber tires. When Zhang Yinghao was handing over the research on rubber shoes to the researchers, he explained the concepts of pneumatic and radial tires to them. Along with the rubber tires, items like IV tubes were also developed. With pneumatic tires installed, the carriages' load capacity and speed were no longer the same as those with the old, shoddy tires, significantly saving manpower and resources.

On a moonlit night, a massive gunboat could be seen in the distance, slowly sailing westwards towards Chongqing. To those of that era, this was sheer size. The thick barrel, like a pillar supporting the heavens, evoked a sense of industrial beauty. And that very night, a middle-aged woman knocked on the door of the Rectification Committee.

After the woman went in, she didn't come out for a long time. Soon after, the sound of a wireless telegraph was heard, and soon after, Qin Tanghai, a member of the Suspecting Committee, appeared in the office, along with Liu Xinsheng, the municipal party secretary, and Lin Zhenghong, the mayor, who had come secretly.

They were all carefully reviewing the information the woman had just provided. According to the woman, she had an urgent need to urinate and couldn't find a restroom, so she ran to a dilapidated house to relieve herself. Suddenly, she heard someone speaking a foreign language inside. She listened carefully, only to discover that the translation was actually about causing chaos in Chongqing, storming the British consulate, and giving the British an excuse to bombard Chongqing. Based on the woman's description, they assumed the foreign language was Japanese.

Although the truth of the story was unknown, the officer on duty didn't hesitate and immediately telegraphed his superiors. Unexpectedly, it attracted the attention of so many leaders. Chongqing's leaders all knew the British gunboats would soon arrive in Chongqing, likely tomorrow afternoon based on their distance and speed. Based on the woman's account, if they were to create chaos and find an excuse for the British to bombard Chongqing, they would only have tonight until tomorrow noon. The situation had become extremely critical. If these people succeeded in storming the consulate, and the British gunboats bombarded Chongqing, it would be a devastating blow to the Forward Party and the Revolutionary Army. Resolving this crisis was a top priority.

In fact, during this period, many people who had been bribed by the Qing Dynasty and foreign powers to enter Chongqing had already been under surveillance by relevant Chongqing personnel. Originally, they wanted to play the long game to catch the big fish, but now, under the circumstances, there was no time to wait. They had to cut the Gordian knot and quickly deal with these people who had been bribed by the Qing Dynasty and foreigners and were secretly lurking in Chongqing.

After sharing the information, everyone decided to mobilize the army to help calm the situation. Without alerting the enemy, they would first capture a leader of the infiltrated Gelaohui and interrogate him. Based on the information obtained from the interrogation, they would then coordinate their actions tomorrow.

The arrest operation was directed by the Suppression Committee, and the person in charge was Qin Tanghai, a member of the Chongqin Committee. They had long known the whereabouts of some people and knew that a Gelaohui leader was hiding alone in a remote place.

The comrades approached stealthily and suddenly entered the house. After a burst of noise, it became quiet. After the comrades controlled the people in the room, Qin Tanghai walked in leisurely. After seeing the controlled people sitting face to face with Guo Ran's ancestors, Qin Tanghai said slowly: "Zhou Ji's ancestors

"Sir, my name is Qin Tanghai. Do you want to cooperate? Or do you want to resist?"

"Who are you? I don't know anything. Let me go quickly, or I will call for help." Zhou Jizu said in a trembling voice.

Qin Tanghai smiled and said, "Zhou Jizu Wusheng 1 Xiaolong B-' is really good. Haha, no one can hear you even if you shout at the top of your lungs."

"I don't know anything. What on earth are you going to do?"

"Zhou Jizu, 48 years old, from a landlord family, your village's "Ge Yi Uncle." Didn't someone in our mountain recognize you? What's wrong? We didn't even know you were back! Don't you want to say something?"

"I am the landlord, but I didn't harm anyone. I found the ball and released it without knowing the difference. What else do you want me to do? I have nothing to say. I don't know anything.

road. "

"Mr. Zhou Jizu, you know what? We try our best not to wrongly accuse anyone. So don't worry, our Progressive Party is working hard to prevent this kind of thing from happening."

After hearing what Qin Tanghai said, Zhou Jizu looked relieved. He nodded repeatedly, "I really didn't do anything. I just ask you to let me go. Comrade, I feel relieved now."

"You can rest assured about this matter. We will never harm Du Shi or anyone else." Qin Tanghai comforted him.

After saying that, Qin Tanghai poured Zhou Jizu a glass of water. Seeing Zhou Jizu holding the glass and thanking him profusely, Qin Tanghai advised: "Mr. Zhou, drink some water first to calm down. Did I scare you just now?"

Since Qin Tanghai was so polite, Zhou Jizu picked up the water cup and drank half of it in one gulp, even though it was just water. Just as he put the cup down, he heard Qin Tanghai say, "Mr. Zhou, I have something to ask you. As a spy paid by Japan, how much taels of silver can you earn per month?"

If this had been said in a questioning tone, or in the manner of an angry slam on the table, it might have given people a sense of intimidation. When Qin Tanghai spoke slowly and in a very normal tone, Zhou Jizu didn't even understand at first whether Qin Tanghai was joking. His facial muscles twitched a few times, and then he said in a trembling voice: "Comrade Liu, I am with the Japanese... How could I be a spy? I still have ancestors!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the two comrades from the Purification Committee standing behind Zhou Jizu rushed over, twisted his arms behind his back, and handcuffed him. But that was all they did. After handcuffing Zhou Jizu, the two men let go of his arms and took a step back.

Zhou Jizu tried to stand up and argue, but the two comrades behind him had to step forward again and push Zhou Jizu back into his seat.

Zhou Jizu kept shouting his injustice until he finished. Qin Tanghai then spoke slowly, "I still say the same thing. We have investigated. We don't want to wrongly accuse a good person, but we also don't want to let a bad person go. Where have you been these past two days? Tell me again."

When Zhou Jizu heard what Qin Tanghai said, he immediately said that he had stayed in the room the whole time, and then he cried out that he was innocent. Although Zhou Jizu looked a little flustered, he still refused to admit that he was a spy paid by Japan.

Qin Tanghai smiled helplessly and said, "Haha, Mr. Zhou. You know what? We in the Forward Party oppose torture. If you use torture to extract a confession, you might fabricate something. We want to hear the truth."

When the topic of torture was mentioned, Zhou Jizu's face turned pale.

The landlord who has been here for so long and is also a leader of the Gelaohui is not a fool. He is very good at dealing with people and he talks to his subordinates in this way. He knows this kind of

After starting with a statement of affirmation, everything changes with the word "but".

As expected, Qin Tanghai continued, "But I think torture is necessary. Why? Because if you don't force them, you won't get any useful words. If you force them, even if the prisoner is making things up, there will always be some information revealed. This isn't a professional place for torture, but it's a good place. Mr. Zhou Jizu really knows how to choose a place. This place is really remote."

As soon as Qin Tanghai finished speaking, the two comrades behind him directly picked up Zhou Jizu and tied him to a long bench using the materials available. Then they began to remove Zhou Jizu's clothes and pants. Zhou Jizu wanted to reach out to cover his genitals, but he immediately remembered that he was handcuffed. He immediately shouted: "Why are you taking off my clothes and pants? Stop it! Ah, help! You beasts, stop it..."

The comrades of the Purification Committee naturally would not listen to Zhou Jizu and quickly stripped him naked, leaving him without even a piece of cloth to cover his body. Since mankind has emerged from ignorance, they have developed a sense of shame. Except for a few people with exhibitionism, being naked in front of outsiders would be shameful. If people were watching,

Then he will feel that he has no secrets at all.

Zhou Jizu was a very cautious person. Although he had sneaked into Chongqing, he only dared to live alone in this remote place, fearing that his identity would be exposed by the crowd. He didn't expect that he would be exposed again and trapped in the house. Now he really cried out in vain, but no one answered him.

Chapter 253:

Although it was still April, Zhou Jizu felt a cold sweat breaking out. He had no idea what these people were planning to do, so he could only plead for mercy, stating that he was not a spy and would not work for the Japanese. Then he began to act pitiful, saying that his family's land had been divided up by the revolutionary army, so what else could they do to him? They were not going to let him go yet. He hoped that the comrades would show mercy and spare his life.

Seeing Zhou Jizu's reaction, Qin Tanghai stopped talking and pulled out a dagger from his waist. He also took out a small whetstone from his pocket and began sharpening the dagger right in front of Zhou Jizu. Zhou Jizu continued to observe the situation while crying out in injustice. Even though Qin Tanghai was sharpening the dagger, he didn't take it seriously. He had played countless of these scare tricks when he was a leader of the Gelaohui in the village, so he didn't take them seriously at all.

Perhaps it was the weather that stimulated Zhou Jizu's nerves, or perhaps it was the sudden quiet environment that made Zhou Jizu relax, and his strokes actually started to rise at this time.

Qin Tanghai saw this and said with a smile, "Haha, Mr. Zhou Jizu is really in high spirits."

Zhou Jizu's face flushed when he heard this. "You guys, put on your pants quickly."

He wanted to control the few things below and make them soften immediately, but the more he thought about it, the more the thing raised its head high, looking unruly.

Qin Tanghai stopped sharpening his dagger and asked with a smile, "Well, Mr. Zhou, do you have anything to say?"

Seeing Qin Tanghai's devilish smile and remembering his naked body, Zhou Jizu suddenly found beads of sweat on his forehead.

However, Zhou Jizu still held onto some hope and subconsciously said, "I'm not a spy. I said it from the beginning. I'm really not a spy."

Qin Tanghai simply laughed and said, "Haha, Mr. Zhou Jizu, do you know why we haven't asked you anything? If a normal person heard someone say they were a spy, they would immediately refute it and try to prove that they are not a spy. But you have been only opposing us, which means you are still debating whether to admit that you are a spy."

"I'm really not a spy..."

Qin Tanghai was too lazy to waste time talking to the remnants of the landlord Zhou Jizu. No one liked them anyway. He pulled out a glove and put it on while talking. "Comrades, today I'm going to give you a human anatomy lesson. This big, swollen thing is called a jiba, and it's a bird's egg..."

After the introduction, he continued, "To allow you to observe closely, I'll cut off a few of these. Everyone can take a look at them in their hands. Then we'll dissect them layer by layer to see the structure inside. Mr. Zhou, bear with it. It might be a little painful after not having your hands done for three days."

After saying that, without even looking at Zhou Jizu, he grabbed Zhou Jizu's hands and started cutting slowly with the dagger.

Zhou Jizu felt his penis being grasped and was horrified. "Oh my god, is this someone from the new government?" He had never heard of corporal punishment being used. He had even asked around, but everyone said they had never heard of it. Could these people be fake? Just as he was about to take a closer look, he suddenly felt a sharp pain down there. He almost came. He couldn't even keep his penis safe. He wouldn't know how to face his ancestors if he died.

He looked down and saw that it was really cut, and it was bleeding. He dared not think about it anymore and shouted: "Stop, stop, I confess, I confess everything."

Qin Tanghai heard Zhou Jizu's cry, let go of his hand, straightened up, and said calmly: "Tell me!"

Feeling Qin Tanghai's hand leave his body, Zhou Jizu quickly looked down. It was just a scratch on the skin, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Then he thought again, could these guys be trying to trick him? Could it be just a bluff?

As soon as Qin Tanghai saw Zhou Jizu's eyes darting around, he knew that this guy was still dishonest and was thinking of saying something nonsense to fool him. Qin Tanghai sighed inwardly, thinking that he was really a person who feared power but not virtue.

Qin Tanghai patiently listened to Zhou Jizu's fabricated statement, then questioned him again, highlighting any inconsistencies. These were essential procedures, essential. The more torture was used to extract a confession, the more important it was to follow the procedures. Of course, torture was only used against enemies; it was forbidden to use forced confessions in internal conflicts. Unless these enemies were extremely valuable, they would have no chance of survival and would be disposed of after their use.

After asking the same questions three times in a row, Qin Tanghai pointed to one of the recorded questions and asked, "Mr. Zhou Jizu, we asked you where you went yesterday and the day before yesterday, and you insisted three times that you were hiding in this room. But the information we received was exactly the opposite. Can you explain this? If you want to find a witness to prove you were here, please tell me now who can prove it for you."

Zhou Jizu hadn't expected Qin Tanghai to go straight to this question, and he immediately panicked. Suppressing his panic, he began to think of ways to defend himself. Unfortunately, he was just a landlord and hadn't received any special training.

Seeing Zhou Jizu's eyes rolling, Qin Tanghai laughed, found a wooden stick as thick as a thumb, and said, "Are you afraid of pain? How about biting this stick?"

Zhou Jizu remained silent, feigning bewilderment as he looked at Qin Tanghai. Qin Tanghai then handed the stick to a comrade behind him. He then picked up a dagger, bent down, and cut a hole in Zhou Jizu's pouch.

"Ah, ah! Woo~"

In severe pain, Zhou Jizu opened his mouth and screamed. His howls were heard in the room. The comrades behind him immediately put the wooden stick into Zhou Jizu's mouth. Zhou Jizu bit it hard immediately, and they cooperated very well.

Qin Tanghai grabbed one of Zhou Jizu's testicles and squeezed it hard, squeezing it out. Quick-witted, he severed the vas deferens that connected it to the testicles, caught the testicle, and placed it on the table in front of Zhou Jizu. He then took out a needle and thread from somewhere and sewed Zhou Jizu up.

At this time, Zhou Jizu's whole body was convulsing in pain, and tears, sweat, and snot flowed out uncontrollably.

"I confess. I confess everything, okay?"

The pain eased slightly, and he immediately spat out the stick he had bitten, crying and snotting. He had never seen such a cruel person before, someone who actually attacked without a word. He looked at the egg on the table again, and suddenly felt a burning in his stomach, full of regret.

Hearing Zhou Jizu's words, Qin Tanghai continued to smile and said, "Look, if you had confessed earlier, you wouldn't have to endure this pain of castration. You have to understand that what we did was wrong. I apologize to you here. We had no choice but to do this. I hope Mr. Zhou Jizu can understand."

Zhou Jizu felt like he was facing a demon. He was actually laughing at this moment, which frightened him deeply. And he apologized, so sorry! Zhou Jizu wanted to curse and even kill the bastard in front of him, but he was completely powerless and could only nod silently.

"I confessed everything."

Qin Tanghai said, "Tell me everything. Tell me how you two contacted each other. If there's anything wrong, the next blow will be your lifeblood."

"Yes, yes, I'll tell you everything. This is what happened..."

The reason was simple: the Japanese, through their connections, had won over many landlords and other people persecuted by the Sichuan Forward Party and the revolutionary army, especially members of secret societies. They paid them money and provided them with a small amount of weapons to get them to do their jobs.

Before daybreak, Qin Tanghai, a member of the Suppression Committee, submitted a separate report to Liu Xinsheng. The report was about the multiple spy networks in Chongqing and Sichuan discovered by the Suppression Committee in conjunction with the police and intelligence departments based on all the intelligence collected temporarily.

The spy network uncovered included not only landlords and their representatives, but also

A spy network hired by foreigners was also uncovered. France, Britain, Japan, and the United States, countries with significant interests in China, all targeted the base.

The fact of espionage.

Liu Xinsheng was of course happy that the comrades of the Suppression Committee had made remarkable achievements. However, he knew the characteristics of these comrades very well. Since he had submitted this report, he was not sure.

There will definitely be considerable problems in solving bandit attacks.

Sure enough, among the "some additional issues" mentioned in the report outline, the Purification Committee listed a number of confessions. It is impossible for spies to just observe from the outside.

They also tried to get into the Forward Party to get more detailed and accurate information. Many of the captured people mentioned that they had contact with certain comrades of the Forward Party. The Purification Committee cleverly collected this part of the information separately and gave it to Liu Xinsheng, because Liu Xinsheng was a member of the Central Committee and was qualified.

Look at this information.

Liu Xinsheng knew that this matter was of great importance, so he immediately sent the main content of the report to Zhang Yinghao in a top-secret form in front of Qin Tanghai.

After receiving the telegram, he translated it himself, which took about two hours to complete. After reading it, he put down the document in his hand.

This method is enough to prove the political sensitivity of the comrades in the Discipline Inspection Commission.

Zhang Yinghao had previously told the comrades of the Supplementary Committee that internal contradictions and contradictions between ourselves and the enemy must be distinguished. Therefore, in the case of internal contradictions, the Supplementary Committee should try not to

Instead of getting involved, the case will be handed over to the Political Security Bureau or the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs for handling.

They certainly had no involvement. Even when they uncovered the enemy's intelligence network and discovered possible links with comrades from the Forward Party, they neither concealed the facts nor took any initiative. Instead, they pushed all the blame onto the Central Committee members. At least they didn't cause unnecessary trouble.

Zhang Yinghao looked at these materials and felt an indescribable feeling in his heart. The Japanese were really lingering. They didn't have much interest in Sichuan, but they were fighting so hard. Zhang Yinghao knew that many outstanding figures in his previous life during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China died inexplicably, and the shadow of Japan was behind them.

Zhang Yinghao still didn't know which comrades had been contacted by foreign forces, or whether they had truly been bribed. However, if these materials were circulated, they would be enough to bring about their deaths. Zhang Yinghao had always wondered why no one dared to do anything to the Premier during the Cultural Revolution. Seeing these materials, Zhang Yinghao suddenly understood. The Premier was an intelligence agent, possessing "secret information" on many people. These people had to protect the Premier, otherwise, if this "secret information" were to be leaked, the consequences would be disastrous.

Are we going to solve these problems through investigation now? Zhang Yinghao felt that this was a very difficult matter to deal with. Once the investigation started, who knew what the outcome would be. In fact, having contact with people sent by the enemy did not mean that you had surrendered to the enemy. But who could prove that you had not surrendered to the enemy? If you want to

To punish certain people, there is no need to resort to any conspiracy or trickery. Just show these "secret materials" and ask those comrades to clarify the facts. No other means are needed.

The witnesses are all there, and this alone is enough to easily capture those who need to be captured.

Furthermore, once these "secret materials" are revealed, they are virtually impossible to eliminate. Zhang Yinghao cannot ask the Purification Committee to destroy these materials; they will remain on file. As long as these issues remain unresolved, they could be resurrected at any time to attack them. Furthermore, the longer time passes, the more powerful these materials will become. By then, they will be unable to defend themselves, and even jumping into the Yellow River will be impossible to clear their name.

Thinking of this, Zhang Yinghao couldn't help but press his palm to his forehead and let out a long sigh.

This kind of struggle has happened throughout history, including the Soviet Great Purge, and it's precisely the preferred method of bureaucrats familiar with the system. Zhang Yinghao himself didn't know what he would do if that day ever came. Protecting the organization's security is a member's obligation. Even if one knows the enemy is framing them with ill intent, as long as there's unresolved "secret information," such a demand isn't wrong.

Hu Gan of Longxu secretly contacted others to "stand up for his brothers." Zhang Yinghao hasn't yet taken drastic measures to fully investigate and crack down on this small group. Instead, he's working at the grassroots level, undermining them before taking action. If word of this "secret information" gets out, who knows who will exploit it to stir up trouble. Zhang Yinghao's tolerance of his comrades' mistakes up to this point doesn't mean he'll continue to tolerate these troublemakers.

Chapter 254:

Thinking of this, Zhang Yinghao stood up and began to pace around the office with his hands behind his back. Not long after he left, the secretary came in and told Zhang Yinghao that another telegram had arrived and hoped that Zhang Yinghao would reply quickly.

Zhang Yinghao thought for a moment, then wrote: "Grasp the main contradictions, and seal up the incidental issues at the AAA level."

This is Zhang Yinghao’s reply.

What is the main contradiction? Of course it is the contradiction between the enemy and us. The British gunboats are coming, and this is the main contradiction now. We have discovered that someone is plotting a conspiracy and let the British gunboats fire, which is the main contradiction now.

Comrade Liu Xinsheng understood immediately and sprang into action! Before the British gunboats arrived, Chongqing launched a sweeping operation under the guise of "sweeping away gangsters and eliminating evil." The goal was to eliminate those who were secretly perpetrating mischief. According to current intelligence, most of these individuals were recruited by the Japanese. Because the Japanese, like the Chinese, share a common yellow race, they have studied China for thousands of years. Their understanding of the Chinese far surpasses that of the so-called China experts of the great powers.

The Japanese consulate in Chongqing, under Zhang Yinghao's orders, was under constant surveillance. The Japanese, in collusion with escaped gang members, bandits, and hooligans, secretly sent them to Chongqing, hoping to stir up trouble, take advantage of the situation, or perhaps, at the request of the British, act as a vanguard.

What the Japanese didn't know was that they had been preparing for this operation for so long, and the Sichuan Purification Committee and intelligence agents had already discovered their movements long ago, so how could they not have been prepared? It was only because the gunboat incident came suddenly that they had to act in advance.

These people planned to take action when the British gunboats arrived in Chongqing, because at that time the British could shirk responsibility by saying that the gunboats were in an unknown situation and opened fire when they saw an emergency.

Lin Zhenghong and his men had no time to wait, lest the night drag on and more troubles arise. The mayor and municipal party secretary personally led the charge, with the military, police, armed police, and the Suppression Committee working together to eliminate multiple strongholds hidden within Chongqing, effectively closing the loop on the operation.

At the command, martial law was immediately declared throughout the city. All parties sprang into action, and the largest stronghold, where several armed police officers and over 200 soldiers had long since been ambushed, awaited the signal to rush in and take control of the situation.

When they arrived outside the stronghold, they assigned more than 50 people to guard the outside and handed them over to the commander of the fifth company of the army to prevent any accidents. The remaining 150 people, led by the commander of the sixth company, were ambushed.

Soon, gunshots were heard in the distance, and the action was exposed. Although the signal flare had not yet been fired, in order to avoid any more trouble, they had to act. The commander of the sixth company immediately gave the order to attack, and the army instantly broke into the stronghold.

Although these gang bullies, bandits and hooligans were a mob, they were still brave and some of them had guns. The rest of them had machetes and sticks. Moreover, these people relied on their familiarity with the stronghold.

To resist stubbornly.

These people were quite familiar with the revolutionary army's combat capabilities and knew that it was a powerful army that had suddenly emerged. They came to Chongqing because they wanted to seek revenge on the one hand, and on the other hand, they were happy to receive the rewards promised by Japan.