Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 175 New Guard Captain Selection

"General Ma?"

Looking at the person who came, Zheng Yi was also very surprised. He did not dare to neglect him and hurried forward to shake hands with him.

Regardless of his stance, Zheng Yi always respected this person very much, but his words still surprised him a little.

"You want to counterattack?"

Zheng Yi couldn't help but turn his head and look at Marshal Zhu. Marshal Zhu nodded to him, and Zheng Yi understood at once.

Then he smiled and said, "In that case, congratulations, General Ma. There's no problem with the money. If you need any military supplies, just talk to Marshal Zhu and the others. Marshal, you can keep track of the accounts and I'll reimburse you for any expenses."

Marshal Zhu: "Of course, no problem. Japanese militarism is our common enemy. We can give you a cost price."

Marshal Zhu was quite busy after all, and he was not Chinese, so he had to bring an interpreter with him when talking to the two of them. After a brief greeting, he said goodbye and continued to busy himself with arranging the defense line, leaving General Ma to chat with Zheng Yi.

Ma Zhanshan said, "Mr. Zheng, I have been staying in Yan'an for the past few years and have learned a lot. I have read every one of your articles. They are all very powerful. I believe that victory will definitely belong to us."

"Yeah." Zheng Yi nodded.

"Mr. Zheng, you are absolutely right. Waging an economic war against Japan is the true way to defeat them. This time, with the help of the Soviet Union, I am confident that I can at least turn Heilongjiang into another North China."

The Soviet-Japanese war, unlike the short and quick Nomonhan battle in history, is likely to become a large-scale, high-intensity, and even sustained battle that will affect the final course of World War II. At least it will be a great thing for the enemy-occupied areas behind enemy lines in Heilongjiang.

Not only can we get the support of the Soviet Union, but if it is really difficult to build a base, we can even build the base headquarters directly in the Soviet Union.

If they can't win, the worst that can happen is they retreat to the Soviet Union. Judging from the current real gap in national strength between Japan and the Soviet Union, Ma Zhanshan does not think that Japan really has any chance of winning.

"Well...Mr. Zheng, I, Old Ma, have one more thing I want to ask of you."

"You said."

"My health isn't very good. This time when I return to Heilongjiang, I don't plan on making it out alive. I'll never run away again. In my life, I've been able to go from being a bandit to where I am now, and even become a national hero. I'm content."

"It's just... I have a son who's quite honest and straightforward. If I died, I'd be worried about him. Could I entrust him to you?"

Zheng Yi asked in surprise: "My son, where are you now?"

After all, this was the first time he met General Ma. Why did he entrust his wife and son to him when they first met?

We're not that familiar with each other.

"He's too honest and simple-minded in Yan'an, and he's my only son. The political situation in China is too complicated. It's not just the Japanese devils. I'm afraid... if I die, my little reputation will harm him."

"Are you in Yan'an? Oh~"

After hearing this, Zheng Yi understood a little.

"So you want to send him abroad?"

"Yes, reputation is something that has its benefits but also its weight. But I don't think my son can bear this weight."

To put it bluntly, Ma Zhanshan's reputation is a bit too loud now. He himself is not actually a member of any political party. He was just a bandit before. Even after being incorporated into the Northeast Army, he was relatively independent.

Politics was something far away from him, and he didn't really understand the difference between political parties. When the Japanese invaded, he refused to submit. In fact, it just happened that he was the one who fired the first shot in the anti-Japanese war.

There were many domestic warlords who fought the Japanese with all their might, and none of them was worse than the other. It was just that it was 1932, after all, and when the entire national policy was non-resistance, he stood out.

If he can really return to Heilongjiang again, then with this matter and his reputation, I am afraid there will be few people in the country who can surpass him.

But he just doesn't have much strength.

He had no strength to begin with. He was one of the weakest warlords in the country, even at the bottom. During the War of Resistance Against Japan, the whole country did not resist, and he was the only one facing the Kwantung Army, which was almost the most elite army in the Japanese army. Most of his old brothers had been killed long ago.

Having a name without substance is not necessarily a good thing in the political environment. If he dies again, his huge fame will be inherited by his son. The waters here are too complicated, and a young man like him may not be able to handle it.

To put it bluntly, in addition to the main task of resisting Japan, internal strife has begun in the side tasks.

It would be better to sell his old face and send him to Zheng Yi, at least he would be away from the vortex of politics. In the future, the descendants of their Ma family would be able to live a good life in Southeast Asia with his little reputation as an anti-Japanese hero.

Even if I return to my country, I can wait until the domestic politics is stable before going back.

"I see. What's your son's name?"

Ma Kui

"Ma Kui, I'm still short of a security captain. If you don't mind me doing that, have him wait for me in Penang." "Oh~, okay, okay. Thank you very much, Mr. Zheng, thank you very much, Mr. Zheng!"

Zheng Yi’s original security team leader was Yang Shaomin, but when he invested in Alor Setar some time ago, he appointed Yang Shaomin as the general manager of Alor Setar.

To put it bluntly, he and Datuk Onn are walking on two completely different lines. Datuk Onn is responsible for managing the entire Alor Setar and even the entire state of Kedah. At least in name, he has no superior-subordinate relationship with Zheng Yi. It's just that Alor Setar joined the SAARC, and they are in a cooperative relationship.

Yang Shaomin is not in charge of government affairs, but is only in charge of the companies invested by the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in Alor Setar. He is also Zheng Yi's direct report.

This guy has a certain prestige in Kedah, and he has always been committed to promoting harmonious coexistence between Malays and Chinese, so it is very appropriate for him to do this.

However, Zheng Yi needed security around him, and there was no suitable replacement, so Zheng Yi did not release the person for the time being, and Yang Shaomin was still guarding him.

Anyway, the main factories in Alor Setar are still under construction, so he is not in a hurry to take up the position.

Zheng Yi has very strict requirements for the bodyguards around him. Simply put, those who have roots in Southeast Asia are not allowed to join.

As long as they have just arrived from China, and preferably are from northern Fujian.

Firstly, he was indeed a little insecure, fearing that someone would bribe his bodyguards. He was not only on guard against the Japanese, but in fact he was even more wary of the Southeast Asians.

He does have a high personal prestige in Nanyang now, but he is wary of anyone colluding with him to assassinate him, even if someone follows him around to gather information or tries to influence his decision-making.

Secondly, his current bodyguard group has become a bit like the imperial guards and the inner court. After staying with him for a period of time, it is easy for them to be sent out and become his spies for supervising the entire Southern Alliance.

Anyone who has served as a bodyguard for Zheng Yi is considered to have a backer no matter where he is sent out to. He can represent him to a certain extent and is one of his important means of managing the Southern Alliance.

The biggest problem of the Southern Alliance, or Nanyang, is that the influence of local factions is too great. No matter what you do, it depends on where you come from. People from the same region stick together too much.

Secret societies, hometown associations, and regional chambers of commerce are still the most basic social organizations in Nanyang.

Factionalism based on fellow townsmen has become the biggest problem that the Chinese in Southeast Asia need to face as they continue to develop.

This is something Zheng Yi cannot change, or it can be said that he is helpless about it for the time being, so when he hires guards now, he is particularly taboo about this and would never dare to hire Xiamen people as his guards.

The power of Xiamen people is too great.

Therefore, Zheng Yi is currently trying to use people who have just arrived in Southeast Asia, preferably those who are not from Guangdong or southern Fujian. He is even trying to use fewer people from northern Fujian.

Since Ma Kui is the son of Ma Zhanshan, he is from Northeast China.

There are still very few people from Northeast China in Southeast Asia, and at least they are definitely not Japanese spies.

Perhaps we can consider using Ma Kui as the core and forming a new generation of bodyguards mainly composed of northerners.

Employ more people from the Northeast, Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi, etc. At least these people have no relationship with the original southern fellow villagers, and only have one master.

And to be honest, northerners are relatively less likely to stick together than southerners, and their factionalism is at least not as serious as that among people in Fujian and Guangdong provinces.

Ma Zhanshan was really overjoyed. After all, he was a general, so he naturally knew how promising the position of guard, especially the chief guard, was within a bureaucratic system.

He shook hands with Zheng Yi repeatedly to express his gratitude, but his attitude was almost that of a subordinate.

…………

On the other side, the Kwantung Army was also gathering.

Kenkichi Ueda, the commander-in-chief of the Japanese Kwantung Army, said gloomily, "Are you sure there is oil in the Zongbayin area?"

"Hey! It's basically confirmed that the news came from Penang. A large number of geological experts from Penang and even Europe have rushed there.

Zheng Yi has basically locked down the location of the oil field and conducted trial excavations. Oil has indeed been produced, but we still don't know the exact scale of this oil field and its reserves.

"Humph, Zheng Yi, despite the danger, put aside the affairs of Southeast Asia and come to a stingy place like the Far East. I guess the scale of the oil business must be quite large, not to mention..."

With a swish, Kenkichi Ueda drew his sword and said solemnly, "We have to fight the Soviet Union anyway, not to mention Zheng Yi. Zheng Yi is the mortal enemy of the Great Japanese Empire. He has gone too far in bullying our Empire! Warriors of the Empire, only his blood can wash away the shame of the Empire!"

"The Cabinet has ordered that once it is confirmed that there are oil fields in East Gobi Province, we will attack immediately, at any cost. We will fight the Soviet Union, seize the oil fields, and kill Zheng Yi! Kill!!!"

"Board! Board!"

"The fate of the Empire depends on this battle! Send out the troops, Zong Bayin, to avenge the Normandy attack!"

(End of this chapter)