Songhu: Never Give Up

After Yue Wanli left, Wang Wenhu, the second son of the Wang family, found his father and said:
"Dad, why did you agree to Yue's request? Since ancient times, the government has never interfered with the payment of rent for farming. Why should the Wang family give those peasants 20% of the profit just because he opened his mouth?

I still have to pay 10% tax, so the profit is 30%!"

Wang Jiazhi snorted coldly:

"Why? Because he has a gun!"

Wang Wenhu said unconvincedly:
"What's wrong with having a gun? Big brother has one too!

Changling Town belongs to the Wang family. Even a powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake. If the Wang family refuses to reduce the rent by 20%, will those Yue family members with dozens of guns really dare to kill people?"

Wang Wenhu used to rely on his brother's influence to bully others in Changling Town. He had never been bullied like this before.

After he heard what the housekeeper said, he didn't even rush to enter the bridal chamber but ran over to stop his father. He looked down on Yue Wanli at all.

Wang Wenlong and Wang Wenhu were both born to the first wife, and they were legitimate sons, and would inherit the Wang family's assets in the future.

Wang Wenlong was away for a long time, so he helped Wang Jiazhi manage all of the Wang family's assets, including thousands of acres of land and some shops in the town.

After listening to this, Wang Jiazhi said very dissatisfiedly:
"Wenhu, when will you learn to use your brain to think?
I tell you again, this is a time of chaos, and the survival of the family is the top priority!

The Wang family has been thriving on this land for thousands of years. During this period, how many wealthy and prominent families have disappeared without a trace, and how many powerful people have become a thing of the past?
The reason why the Wang family has survived to this day is not because of competing with others, but because of compromising with the strong.

The first rafter to stick out will rot first. If Mr. Yue wants to reduce the rent and interest, let him do it. Even if he gives up 30% of the profit, the Wang family still has 40%. It is better to send Mr. Yue away happily than anything else. "

Unfortunately, Wang Wenhu didn't listen to a word. In his opinion, his father's way of thinking was outdated. However, it was not his turn to be the master of the Wang family yet. He could only swallow his anger and wait for his elder brother to come back.

Wang Wenhu bowed to Wang Jiazhi and left angrily, which made Wang Jiazhi shake his head.

The butler Wang Zhongxin, who had been standing by like a shadow with his hands hanging down, whispered to him:
"Master, the second young master is also for the Wang family—"

Wang Jiazhi slammed his cane on the ground and said:

"He did it for himself. A rotten tree cannot be carved!"

"Zhongxin, the eldest brother can't be relied on now, and the second brother is in such a bad state. The Japanese will come back sooner or later. Judging from the attitude of the Yue family, they will not leave Changling Town easily.
The real chaos is coming, and this family still has to rely on my old bones to support it."

Wang Zhongxin was Wang Jiazhi's childhood playmate and bookboy, an adopted son. His father was also the steward of the Wang family, and he was given the surname Wang. He was a loyal dog of the Wang family and had some knowledge.

Wang Jiazhi would always discuss matters he was undecided about with him. He could not say much about the affairs of the Wang family's sons, so he could only follow Wang Jiazhi's words and said:
"Master, I have carefully observed the soldiers that Commander Yue brought here. Although they are few in number, they are very capable. They are all elites who have been on the battlefield and are definitely not a mob.
I heard that the entire Heze is full of their people, there are thousands of them, and they all use Japanese weapons, as well as some Western machine guns and box cannons.

They also have people in several neighboring counties, adding up to at least 3 people and guns. There is no need to offend them for a % profit."

Although Wang Jiazhi did not understand military affairs, he understood human nature and how to survive in troubled times, so he nodded and said:

"Zhongxin, those with the surname Yue are officials, no matter if they are a mob or an elite division, they are all officials;
The Wang family is the people, and the people do not fight against officials. The rules are set by those who hold knives and guns!
Find a time to take some people to carry some pork to the Yue military camp and tell them that although the Wang family does not provide men, it is their duty to provide some meat to reward the soldiers. It is up to them to accept it or not, but we have to show our attitude and let them accept it."

Wang Zhongxin bowed slightly and turned to leave. Wang Jiazhi's eyes became cloudy again, and from a distance he looked like an old man who was about to die.

At the company's headquarters, Captain Yue Wanli was convening a meeting with several officers. Because of the Wang family's relationship, Shitang Village had been identified by Yue Wanli as a pilot village for the promotion of the rent and interest reduction policy. When everyone was present, he said:
“Brothers, the Wang family’s stronghold has finally been taken down, and several other gentry in Changling Town have also expressed their support for implementing rent and interest reductions throughout the town;
Strike while the iron is hot. Heze’s rent and interest reduction started in Shitang Village, the largest village in Changling Town, with more than 500 households and more than 2 people.

There were more than 4 acres of fertile land, of which more than 9% belonged to the Wang family. Previously, tenants had to pay % of the land rent, and there were also heavy taxes. The villagers had little food left over throughout the year, and it was normal to have bran and vegetables for half a year.
In good years, they barely survived starvation, but in bad years, they had to sell their children to survive. If we want to mobilize the masses to fight the Japanese, we must first feed the villagers. "

Company commander Cheng Han agreed deeply. He was a staunch supporter of Yue Wanli. When Yue Wanli was company commander, he was a platoon leader.

Now that Yue Wanli has been promoted to team leader, he has taken over Yue Laosan's class and become a company commander, so it is convenient for him to use his own people.

He already understood what the captain meant, so he followed Yue Wanli's words and said:
"Captain, we need to keep up with the publicity work on rent and interest reduction. We need to let the villagers know that this is the benefit the guerrilla detachment has fought for them, so that they don't feel grateful to the Wang family."

Yue Wanli nodded and said: "The propaganda work must keep up, but the Wang family's contributions cannot be erased. When we do mass work, we must open up the pattern;

To fight the devils, we must unite all forces that can be united, and naturally that includes the Wang family."

Next, Yue Wanli began to talk about the establishment of a militia company in Shitang Village. The initial idea was that every household with two men would send one man to join the militia;
The organization of the militia company is the same as that of the main force, with 13 people in each squad and 4 people in each platoon. If the number of people is larger, 54 squads can be organized, and up to 6 platoons can be organized;

The weapons used were the Japanese weapons that had been captured and brought over. If there were not enough, they would be temporarily replaced with cold weapons.

When the guerrilla detachment advanced into western Shandong, it carried more than 1 guns and more than 200 million rounds of ammunition on mule and horse carts. These were weapons captured by the guerrilla column in previous battles.
It sounds like a lot, but it is not enough for the whole of western Shandong, and we have to find a way to seize it later.

The instructors were veterans assigned by the company, one for each class in principle. The biggest problem now was food. For the first batch of militia training, food had to be provided by the troops.

The villagers themselves can't even get enough to eat, let alone participate in high-intensity training. Regarding the food issue raised by Cheng Han, Yue Wanli thought for a while and said:
“Brothers, when we came out, the detachment only carried three months’ rations, which were calculated based on the number of troops;
If it was used to supply militia training, it would have run out in a month. Fortunately, it was the time for the summer grain harvest, and part of the grain collected by the Japanese was intercepted by the detachment, which was enough to support the entire detachment for several months.

The battalion commander approved 10 catties of food for us. There were more than 500 people in the battalion, and the average amount per person was less than 200 catties. This amount of food included food for militia training.

We can only take out 5 kilograms of grain to subsidize militia training. It is estimated that the militia in Changling Town alone will exceed 2 people, with less than 30 kilograms per person.

So we have to find a way to raise grain. The Wang family is the only one in Changling Town that has enough grain. I plan to borrow another 5 kilograms from them, using % of their autumn grain tax as collateral, and then deduct it directly when the time comes."

Platoon leader Lu Dalu interrupted and said:

"Captain, I heard that the Wang family was willing to give 5 taels of silver to the troops. This money was enough to buy food. We should have accepted it at that time.

Soldiers put their heads on their belts and fought the devils to their death, so it was only natural for them to spit something out. "

Yue Wanli knew that his brothers would have this kind of thinking. When the troops were divided, the detachment leader Wang Jianfei told them that there would be no direction without rules.

It is difficult to make a rule, but very easy to break it.

The key to establishing a base is to keep it alive, not to exhaust all resources, so he said with a serious face:
"The policy of reducing rent and interest cannot be undermined by anyone, including us. No matter how much money and grain the Wang family has, it still belongs to the Wang family.
The 10% tax is the 10% tax. You must not collect an extra pound of grain from the Wang family. This is military discipline. Anyone who dares to disobey will not blame the military law for being ruthless!"

Lu Dalu was immediately choked by the provocation and his face turned red and his neck became thick. Cheng Han quickly came out to smooth things over and said:

"Captain, Platoon Leader Lu is also thinking about the livelihood of the troops. I don't think he would dare to disobey military orders."

Yue Wanli's face looked better. He said, "I will find a way to solve the food problem later. Now is the time of shortage and there are no Japanese to rob, so we can only eat food for the rest of the year."

The troops must also be self-reliant. Now the western part of Shandong is full of guerrillas and bandits. I will suggest to the detachment commander that we organize a large-scale anti-bandit campaign.

Not only can it restore peace to the local area, but it can also collect guns and seize large amounts of food and supplies.

When everyone heard about the bandit suppression, they became excited. What Shandong lacked the most now were scattered soldiers and various bandits. They had guns, money, food, and people, all of which were urgently needed by the guerrilla detachment.
Many people responded and volunteered to fight. Building a base was much more difficult than suppressing bandits.

Yue Wanli was forced to come up with this idea because of the food shortage. The more he thought about it, the more reliable it seemed to him. So after the meeting, he rode his horse straight to the battalion headquarters, as only the battalion headquarters had a radio station.

Battalion Commander Deng Zhuxiu was also very interested after listening to it. He immediately praised Yue Wanli's clever idea and reported his suggestion to the detachment commander Wang Jianfei via the radio.

After finishing, he said to Yue Wanli:
"Go back and do a good job in reducing rent and interest in Changling Town and training militiamen. Set up the stall first, and the food problem will eventually be solved.
The troops should also be self-reliant and see if there is any wasteland to be reclaimed to grow crops and vegetables to improve the food supply.”

Yue Wanli took the order and went back to Shitang Village, where he convened a mobilization meeting for rent and interest reduction. Since there had been publicity before, on the day of the meeting, there were crowds of people, and the sound of gongs and drums was deafening, making it very lively.

All the villagers came to the meeting. The main characters were from the Wang family. Wang Jiazhi announced in public that he would respond to the call of the guerrilla detachment and voluntarily reduce the land rent to 50% in order to resist the Japanese.

All debts and interest are reduced to 1% per annum. This standard is absolutely very low. Private lending generally has a monthly interest rate of 3%, and it is ridiculous.

(End of this chapter)