The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

"Of course there are a lot. There are people everywhere who can't afford to eat. As long as they can eat, they will do anything."

"Oh, that's great."

As they walked and talked, Zhang Yinghao soon arrived at a village outside. He arrived in front of a wooden house and saw a disheveled man. He was wearing layers of clothing, making him look like a balloon. Even the patched-up clothes were already tattered. His clothes and pants hadn't been washed in ages and were filthy. He had a dark gray, no, it should have been white, cloth wrapped around his waist. He wore a fur-like garment, similar to the knee-length denim skirts women wear today, or perhaps the tiger-skin skirt worn by Sun Wukong in Journey to the West. A charcoal brazier sat in a basket at his feet, providing all-around warmth. Although Sichuan is subtropical in terms of latitude, the high mountains of western Sichuan can still be extremely cold.

"Hello, big brother. I am a comrade from the revolutionary army." (Translation omitted.)

"Oh, it's the revolutionary army comrades, hello, come in and sit down." "Okay, please come in."

"Come, distinguished guest, please take a seat."

Zhang Yinghao didn't even bother to check if the stool was dirty. He pulled it over, sat down, and asked, "Where are the other people in your family?"

"I've gone to visit relatives. Distinguished guest, come and have some barley wine."

After that, he poured Zhang Yinghao a bowl of highland barley wine. Zhang Yinghao himself didn't drink much, and he didn't know what the etiquette was for drinking highland barley wine. But since the host had already poured the wine, it would be bad if he didn't drink it. So he took a sip. It tasted quite spicy at first, but then Zhang Yinghao took another sip and found it had a surprising combination of sweetness, bitterness, and sourness.

"Haha, good wine, it has all the flavors of sweet, sour, bitter and spicy. Brother, your wine is really good."

After hearing Zhang Yinghao's praise, the Tibetan laughed and said, "Okay. If you like it, drink more."

As he said that, he filled Zhang Yinghao's glass again and pushed it in front of Zhang Yinghao.

"Brother, I came here just to ask, how much land did your family get?"

"There are five people in my family, and we have three mu of paddy field and seven mu of dry land." "Oh, is the average per person two mu here?"

"Yes, it's two mu. But my family also got two sheep and a cow. My daughter Zhuoma went with your revolutionary army, and they said we could pay less grain."

"Yes, Zhuoma can pay 30% less grain for her two mu of land! If one person joins the army, she can pay 30% less. If two people join the army, she can pay 60% less. If three people in the family join the army, then she won't have to pay anything."

"That's right, that's what you said at the beginning." "Do you have enough iron farm tools at home?"

"I'm worried about this too. I don't have money to buy it at home."

"Have you ever heard of a credit union? Has anyone here tried to organize a rural cooperative?"

"No, I haven't heard of it."

"Don't worry. Someone will come and organize a rural cooperative. A rural credit cooperative will also open in Kangding City. If you don't have money to buy farm tools, you can apply for a loan at a very low interest rate. A large batch of farm tools will be shipped to Kangding soon, and you can buy them then."

"Are they all run by the revolutionary army?"

"Yes, they were all opened by the revolutionary army. This revolutionary army is our own army, so they will definitely help poor people like us!"

"Okay, okay, okay, I'll go and take a look when the time comes." "What else do you grow here besides barley?"

"Chairman, there's very little flat land in our high mountains. Corn, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and other things are everywhere in front of and behind our houses."

It wasn't the old man who answered Zhang Yinghao, but Basang. "How's the production?"

"Chairman, corn can be grown in large quantities in the mountains, and the yield is relatively high. Many poor people rely on corn for their livelihood."

Zhang Yinghao listened, picked up the bowl of barley wine, drank it in two gulps, and said to the old man: "Thank you for your hospitality. I still have to go visit other people, so I won't disturb you anymore."

After Zhang Yinghao left, he walked for a while and saw someone digging the ground. Zhang Yinghao was surprised. What was the purpose of digging the ground at this time?

"Brother, hello, we are the revolutionary army. Why are you digging the ground now? What are you planning to plant?"

"Hello, we plan to plant barley or corn." "Aren't those supposed to be planted in March or April?"

Zhang Yinghao saw the man's goofy grin, then bent down, picked up a handful of dirt, and said, "Smell it! It smells so good. My family got five sheep, this land, and this hoe. I couldn't stay idle at home, so I came to check on the fields. I wasn't going to miss the farming season, so I just loosened the soil here."

Zhang Yinghao could tell that the man felt like he was dreaming because of the land he had just divided. Zhang Yinghao also bent down, took a handful of soil, smelled it, and said, "It's really fragrant."

Zhang Yinghao gently put the soil in his hand back on the ground, clapped his hands and said, "Then you go ahead and do your work! I won't disturb you from working."

After saying this, Zhang Yinghao turned around and went back. Through his conversation with these two people, Zhang Yinghao knew that the revolutionary army had completely established a foothold in the Kangding area. As long as he didn't commit suicide, no one could drive him away.

When Zhang Yinghao returned to Kangding, he went to their reference room to look at the Kangding data. This time, he really saw a lot of clues.

The construction and extension of roads not only satisfied people's needs for material transportation and economic development but also served as a symbol of the presence of state power, reflecting changes in local society and international geopolitical structures during a given historical period. The smooth flow of roads from the inland areas to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau not only facilitated the development of economic and trade relations between Han and Tibetans but also demonstrated the effective control of the central government over Tibetan areas.

The central government of all dynasties controlled frontier societies such as the Tibetan, Yi, Miao and Yao regions mainly through the control of roads and trade points, that is, occupying towns on major transportation routes and naturally formed commercial outposts to form a "point-line combination" network.

Historically, the opening of the Han-Tibet Passage served both economic and trade purposes and political and military functions. The tea-horse trade between Han and Tibetans was one of the main purposes of the Sichuan-Tibet Passage, which gave rise to the Ancient Tea-Horse Road.

After Zhang Yinghao's revolution, the trade of Sichuan tea from the south to Tibet was blocked. Furthermore, due to the dumping of Indian tea into Tibet, the sales of Sichuan tea to Tibet plummeted, severely impacting many organizations, individuals, and families that relied on tea for their livelihoods. Tea farmers faced difficulties in their livelihoods, with many porters losing their living allowances, and tea houses and companies operating Tibetan tea going bankrupt. Zhang Yinghao also lost the tax revenue from Tibetan tea.

The border tea trade, which had lasted for over 200 years, had shrunk and withered, which is why Zhang Yinghao introduced tea to the British. Most tea is now sold only in Kham and Amdo Tibetan areas, with only a small amount of high-end tea smuggled to Lhasa and other places, exclusively for monks, nobles, and wealthy merchants.

If Zhang Yinghao fails to address this issue, the consequences will be devastating for tea farmers, tea merchants, porters, and porters who rely on tea for their livelihoods. Through his understanding of the ancient Tea Horse Road, Zhang Yinghao concluded that "tea is the primary food of all Tibetans, Tibetans, and Mongolians, regardless of social status."

In fact, looking at the history of China, in the complementary economic exchanges between agriculture and animal husbandry, the commodity that has been able to maintain the long-term relationship between the central government and the northern nomadic peoples and the ethnic groups on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is none other than tea.

Nomadic peoples' staple foods are meat and dairy, with relatively few cereals and vegetables. This dietary habit leads to a high intake of calorie-rich fat, which is difficult for the body to absorb. Tea, on the other hand, can break down fat, prevent dryness and heat, and contribute to better health.

Tea also contains a large number of trace elements necessary for the human body, which are not easy to obtain from meat. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau lacks vegetables and rice and flour, so tea has become an indispensable thing for the Tibetan people living here.

The ethnic minorities in the north and west consider tea an essential daily necessity for survival, for the reason Gu Yanwu explained in his "Book of the Advantages and Disadvantages of Counties and States Under Heaven": "Tea is a commodity that the Western Rong and Tubo have relied on throughout history. They cannot digest fishy meats without tea, and cannot dissolve barley paper without tea, so they cannot but rely on it."

However, Zhang Yinghao was not particularly worried about this, because he always believed that time was on his side. Zhang Yinghao knew that he and time were the best friends in the world, and historical materialists should also be the best friends of time.

It took Zhang Yinghao quite a while to find the useful information among the pile of scattered data. After finishing his research, Zhang Yinghao took a quick nap until the next day. After washing up and stretching, Zhang Yinghao went to Li Qiang's headquarters and said to them, "Do you know about the Ancient Tea-Horse Road?"

"know."

"Immediately mark on the map all the Tibetan areas connected by the Ancient Tea-Horse Road."

"Sir. It's already marked." "Okay, let me see."

Zhang Yinghao discovered this problem yesterday when he was reading some information. The revolutionary army wanted to march into Xizang, and now they could only follow the Ancient Tea Horse Road. In fact, the Ancient Tea Horse Road even connected to every place in Tibet where people drank tea.

Li Qiang produced a map of the Ancient Tea-Horse Road. Zhang Yinghao took it and examined it. It contained only a few general routes to Lhasa, with nothing else. Zhang Yinghao remained calm and continued, "Show me your military plan for advancing into Tibet."

"Okay, Chairman."

Zhang Yinghao took the plan and began to read it, becoming increasingly irritated. He couldn't help but slam his fist on the table and angrily said, "If we were to lead our army into Tibet right now, would you use this plan? This map?"

"Chairman, we are still refining the plan."

Zhang Yinghao thought this was a trick and immediately said, "Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, Chapter 63, says: 'It is easier to plan the difficult than the easy, and it is easier to accomplish the great than the small.' The difficult things in the world must be done from the easy; the great things in the world must be done from the small. Therefore, the sage never seeks greatness, and therefore he is able to achieve greatness. This method of doing things is clearly explained to you, and you still don't know how to do it? What I want is to connect all the locations in Tibet."

"Chairman, this is a bit difficult. We have never been to Tibet, have we?"

Isn't this just like the joke that goes, history is something that happened before you were born, so it's normal if you don't learn it well!

Zhang Yinghao was so angry that he felt dizzy. A fool is still a fool after all. If he can't use it, he can't use it. This is the best proof that these comrades have not attended a regular military academy and lack experience.

Zhang Yinghao stroked his forehead and said, "What are these staff officers of your unit doing? Do you think this military plan to march into Tibet is acceptable? Or are you so arrogant that you look down on the Tibetan armed forces and plan to just push through with this rubbish map and rubbish plan? Have you considered the soldiers' altitude sickness? Are there any difficulties? Is there anything that isn't difficult?"

If there are difficulties, we should overcome them. As long as we do not lose our mind, solutions are always better than difficulties.

Many. None of us have ever been to Tibet, so why don't you ask those who have? Haven't the tea farmers, tea merchants, porters, and porters been to Tibet?

You should ask about everything along the way, including precautions, distance, and time. If you don’t ask now, when will you ask? I will only give you

In half a day, immediately find out what I need. I want the answers I need this afternoon, otherwise you can quit and go back to raising pigs."

"Yes."

Zhang Yinghao was really angry. He had been here for so long, and no matter how busy he was,

These tasks should have been completed long ago. Zhang Yinghao's visit during this New Year's holiday to express his condolences couldn't be more obvious.

When the leader speaks, the subordinates run around like crazy. More people means more work. By the afternoon, after interviewing tea farmers, tea merchants, porters, and porters, Zhang Yinghao had found the route he had been looking for on a large map. While the Ancient Tea Horse Road to Lhasa only has two or three main routes, there are actually countless branch lines connecting all parts of Tibet. It's fair to say that this route map was created by countless people risking their lives.

When the command center saw this map, many of them lowered their heads in shame. Just looking at this one map revealed that their previous plan was truly rubbish. In fact, with this map, the march into Tibet was already halfway to success.

"Make a new plan. I don't want to just liberate Lhasa. Lhasa is still a slave society. What we want is to carry out social transformation throughout Tibet and completely abolish slavery there. Therefore, our comrades must connect with every single person in Tibet and liberate all of them from slavery. All of you staff members will be given a serious warning this time. Li Qiang, Zhang Lei, and Chief of Staff Ye Chen have not done their job well and will be demoted. However, considering the current situation, you will still take over the duties temporarily. If you continue to fail to perform your duties, you will leave the army and stop harming others and yourself. Do you understand?"

"understood."

"Now, let's discuss..."

Zhang Yinghao and his art troupe performed for the soldiers. Their performances included singing, dancing, and Zhang Yinghao's model operas, such as "Put Down Your Whip" and "White-Haired Girl." Although later generations may perceive these operas as stereotyped, they possessed the characteristics of their time and are now mandatory.

In view of the slavery and chieftain system here, Zhang Yinghao also improvised a song and play called "The Liberated Serfs Sing" for them to rehearse and perform.

People nowadays are basically lacking in entertainment, so this consolation performance was very successful. After the art soldiers sang the last program, "Kangding Love Song", Zhang Yinghao also came on stage to sing a song as the finale amid the cheers of the soldiers, pushing the evening to its climax again.

"Comrades, since we are here to express our condolences to you, it is natural for me, the head of the group, to take part. The following song was written by me after I came to Kangding and was looking through some materials. I may not sing it well, so please treat it as a form of entertainment. The song is called "Heavenly Road - The Ancient Tea-Horse Road":

At dawn, I stood on a green pasture, beholding a condor draped in the rosy glow of the sunset. Like a cloud of auspiciousness, it soared across the blue sky, bringing good fortune to the Tibetan people. At dusk, I stood high on a hilltop, longing for the people to come to my homeland. Giants, one after another, traversed mountains and ridges, bringing well-being to the snowy plateau. It was a miraculous heavenly road, bringing the warmth of humanity to the frontier. From then on, the mountains seemed no high, the roads no long, and people of all ethnic groups gathered in joy. It was a miraculous heavenly road, leading us into a paradise on earth. Barley wine and butter tea would become even sweeter, and songs of happiness would echo far and wide. Songs of happiness would echo far and wide.

Zhang Yinghao adapted the original "Heavenly Road" into a song celebrating the ancient Tea-Horse Road and the porters and porters who carried them, a song that is still very relevant today. Zhang Yinghao believes that once his song is released, it will win the hearts of many porters and porters, and that the revolutionary army will be able to gain their help when they enter Tibet.

The soldiers saw their beloved Chairman come on stage to repay their kindness. He showed no disdain, but was instead deeply moved. Their emotions were aroused, and they immediately started shouting like they were singing an army song.

"One more song, one more song..."

Zhang Yinghao had a lot of songs in his head, so it wouldn't matter if he sang ten or eight of them. But he couldn't sing anything random at this time, and couldn't include any sacrifices or tragic themes. Zhang Yinghao thought for a moment and said, "Since the comrades are so enthusiastic, then

Here's another song. Everyone should know Yue Fei, the one who left his mark on his descendants: "Serve the Country with Loyalty and Devotion." This song is called "Serve the Country with Loyalty and Devotion":

The smoke of war rises, and the mountains and rivers look north.

The dragon flag is unfurled, the horse is neighing, and the sword energy is as cold as frost.

My heart is like the vast Yellow River. Who can resist it in these twenty years of struggle? My hatred rages with my sword, yet countless loyal brothers and sisters are buried in a foreign land. Why would I hesitate to die a hundred times for my country? I sigh in regret, speechless and filled with tears. Horses race south, and men gaze north. They gaze north, and the grass is green and yellow, and the dust is flying.

I am willing to defend my territory and expand my borders. Great China wants to make way for all directions. Come and congratulate us!

After visiting the comrades in Kangding, Zhang Yinghao finally went out for a bit of fun and took the comrades from the art troupe to a hot spring. Then he hurriedly took them to the last stop of the visit - Batang.

Batang County is located in the western part of Ganzi Prefecture, bordering Xiangcheng and Litang counties to the east, Derong County to the south, Mangkam, Yanjing, Gongjue counties of Xizang and Deqin County of Yunnan Province across the Jinsha River to the west, and bordering Baiyu County to the north.

From the third year of Kangxi (1646) to the fifty-eighth year of Kangxi (1701)

The Xizang ruled Batang for 55 years until the Qing court recaptured it. In 1726, the fourth year of the Yongzheng reign, Batang was incorporated into Sichuan. Zhang Yinghao directly changed Batang into Batang County and established the county seat.

Batang County is located in the valley east of the Jinsha River at the northern end of the Hengduan Mountains. The Hengduan Mountains run through the county, and the terrain slopes from north to south, following the Jinsha River's direction, with the terrain showing high north and low south, and high east and low west. The terrain trends from north-southeast-west above the Changbo River estuary, and from north-south below.

The average altitude of the extremely high mountainous areas in the north is 3300 meters. The altitude of the alpine valley areas in the central and southern parts is generally below 2800 meters. The altitude of the semi-alpine and alpine areas in the central and eastern parts is about 1,000 meters.

Generally between 2800 meters and 3300 meters.

Arriving here, the weather had grown even colder, and Zhang Yinghao could truly sense the unique pre-war atmosphere. Many people on the streets were rushing to and fro, lacking the leisurely pace they had experienced in Kangding. Zhang Yinghao didn't enter the city with much fanfare, but quietly led the soldiers and the art troupe into the barracks.

In the Batang area, Zhang Yinghao only stationed one regiment of troops.

The situation here is more complicated than Kangding. However, Zhang Yinghao remembered that in his previous life, Zhao Erfeng could conquer the entire Xizang region with only 2,000 men. Zhang Yinghao believed that he

A regiment is more than enough to guard Batang.

"Captain Chen, Political Commissar Li, what is the current situation in Batang?"

"Chairman, the situation isn't good. When we were carrying out land reform, a large number of people from Batang fled to Xizang and spread rumors about us. Now that trade routes are blocked, many people have lost their livelihoods. There's constant fighting on the front lines, and they're particularly hostile to us."

"What about land reform?"

"Chairman, land reform is simple. Once those landlords and chieftains leave, a large amount of land will be vacant. However, many people are afraid to take the land we distribute."

Zhang Yinghao knew that the struggle here was complicated and survival was difficult, so those who did not want land might have other reasons.

"Are these people afraid of retaliation or something?"

"Yes, those chieftains and landlords who escaped have threatened to kill anyone who takes their land."

"Hehe, quite outrageous. The biggest landlord here should be the temple, right?" "Pretty much. The temple here controls the local people's minds. The fact that these people don't want land is largely related to the temple."

“Is there a foreign church here?”

"Yes, what does the Chairman intend to do?"

"Calling a party member meeting now is not about what I want to do, but what our party wants to do."

"Yes, I'll let them know right away."

"Wait a minute, it's still early. Just get here before dark and have them arrange their work so there's no disclosure."

"it is good."

Zhang Yinghao knew that religious issues were a serious matter. He had to be cautious and careful in handling them. Zhang Yinghao had never dealt with such matters before, as even a small move could affect the entire situation. However, in Batang, things were different. Religious issues had to be addressed quickly, otherwise, things would change sooner or later.

Zhang Yinghao had long understood that during the two thousand years of feudal China, the development of any power ultimately fell prey to the curse of land. Over hundreds and thousands of years, temples typically became the largest local landowners, possessing the most extensive land holdings. What distinguished temples from other powers was their ability to control the local population through ideological manipulation. If this ideological control wasn't broken, mass unrest would easily ensue.

The base had only recently occupied Batang and was now directly on the front lines of the armed struggle. Even though land had been forcibly distributed, the people there did not yet trust the revolutionary army.

"Have you ever organized a campaign against the local people?"

"We've organized and mobilized, but the results haven't been very good. It's okay for the local Han Chinese, but people of other ethnic groups aren't very active. The main reason is the language barrier, which makes it difficult to organize."

"Have you taught them any lessons?"

"The local temples always try to stop people from participating in our work." "The temples here are so powerful? Tell me more about them."

"Chairman, the temples here were aggressively recruiting monks and were secretly threatening the people. Many Tibetans here are still hostile to us, and we are having trouble getting our work done."