Father of France

Chapter 144 Cleansing the Pingchuan Faction

“Now is a good opportunity, and your country is relatively stable.” Koman was quite satisfied with Gu Qing’s final decision. “So I’m going to pave the way for you.”

Under Gu Qing's dazed gaze, Koman led him to Saigon Prison, not to intimidate him, but simply to release a few prisoners.

French Indochina not only had the Viet Minh, but also a Vietnamese political party that adhered to the Three Principles of the People, with the same name as the Artillery Party.

The situation in French Indochina can be seen as the opposite of that of the great Eastern power. After Japan's surrender, Chiang Kai-shek's paper strength far exceeded that of his opponents; in other words, the reactionaries were unprecedentedly powerful.

The situation was exactly the opposite in French Indochina. The Viet Minh was the niche in which the President of Vietnam resided. As for the niche of the Three Principles of the People party in Vietnam, for most of the time from then until the reunification of Vietnam in 1975, it was an illegal party, under the suppression of France, Emperor Bao Dai, the United States, and the Viet Minh.

This is generally the situation of some pro-Soviet parties in the Third World. These parties, which stir up trouble in the major Eastern powers, become targets of suppression from all sides in French Indochina.

Saigon prison also holds some leaders of the Vietnamese Three Principles of the People party. Although they are called leaders, in front of the Viet Minh leaders, they are just some low-ranking officials. Koman plans to release these people and ask Gu Qing to rescue them as a pledge of loyalty for the mission back home.

"Ruan Tianxiang, you're released." The prison guard opened the iron gate, and a dark, damp atmosphere rushed out. After being imprisoned for eight months, he finally saw the light of day again.

In the open space outside the prison area, Ruan Tianxiang saw several familiar faces, but a few were missing, perhaps because they hadn't survived this ordeal.

While these supporters of the Three Principles of the People were being released, Gu Qing was outside the prison, listening to instructions from Koman and expressing his gratitude, "Sir, will releasing these people cause you any trouble?"

"No, they're just a bunch of good-for-nothings who can't be helped," Coman replied confidently. Even Chiang Kai-shek had agreed to France's proposal to reclaim North Vietnam, let alone these Vietnamese knock-offs.

Being on the side of the imperialists, Koeman had an unprecedented level of trust in Chiang Kai-shek. No one could break through this filter of trust in Koeman, not even Chiang Kai-shek himself.

Koman's theory of trust left Gu Qing with mixed feelings. After the victory of the War of Resistance against Japan, and before the arrival of the French and even British troops, the Chinese in the embankment still had unrealistic expectations of Chang Gong.

When General He, representing the great Eastern power, attended the Japanese surrender ceremony, he briefly stayed in Saigon on his way to a conference in Europe. The Saigon Chinese community held a public banquet on the embankment. The scene was so enthusiastic that it was beyond description. People, young and old, men and women, lined the streets to welcome him. Colorful flags were waving, drums and gongs were deafening, firecrackers were going off, and the streets were deserted. Many people wept with joy.

But the joy was fleeting. Soon the British returned, followed by the French, while the compatriots the Chinese were hoping for withdrew.

Koeman seemed to sense the bitterness in Gu Qing's heart, and her words were as sweet as honey. "Tell me, which normal government and people can tolerate a group that is incompatible with them but enjoys economic privileges and controls the national economy? What's more, the current Chinese in the embankment are not naturalized citizens, they are genuine foreigners, and they are not even considered a minority. Of course, the French colonists were bad, but relatively speaking, your situation is not the worst."

The French were indeed imperialists, but were the Chinese not? Gu Qing and others might not think so in their eyes, but Koeman might agree with that. The key question is whether the Vietnamese agree.

In the late 19th century, the United States also experienced an unprecedented wave of online political commentary. The reason was simply that the United States felt that its national power had reached its peak, while the world was still under the control of what they considered to be middle-power European countries, namely Britain, France, and Germany. They were dissatisfied with the status quo of the world being controlled by a group of middle-power countries. The mentality of Americans was similar to that of the major Eastern powers in the 21st century.

Such an environment is highly conducive to the creation of political commentary, and the political commentators in the United States produce different political maps every year, appearing in newspapers in ever-changing styles.

But regardless of the political map, the image of the Qing Dynasty is undeniably present on it. What did it matter if the Qing Dynasty lost to Britain in the Opium War? Britain was the world's leading power, the "empire on which the sun never sets." What did it matter if the Qing Dynasty lost to the Anglo-French forces a second time? Britain and France were the two largest colonial empires. Losing to Imperial Russia was also inconsequential; they were the defenders of the European gendarmerie monarchy.

However, the impact of losing to Japan was significant. Japan was considered a third-rate power in the mainstream world. Losing to the British Empire was like losing to the number one power. Many countries had lost to the British Empire, including France.

It doesn't matter if we lose to France, as France is the second strongest power. Similarly, it doesn't matter if we lose to Imperial Russia, as France and Imperial Russia were the second strongest powers at different times.

It could even be said that by the end of the 19th century, Imperial Russia was far more powerful than France, and no one thought that losing was a big deal.

But if India loses to Japan, it would be the same as India losing to Pakistan, rendering its united front value worthless and causing a major shift in the geopolitical landscape.

Even so, the Qing Dynasty's image still appeared in various political maps until its demise, which means it was still on the table.

The main battlefield of the Sino-French War was in Vietnam, and the ground battlefield of the First Sino-Japanese War had just begun in Korea. Gu Qing didn't want Koman to believe the Chinese community, but rather the Vietnamese. "Currently, I only have limited faith in them, and I'll immediately replenish your labor force," Koman said to himself. "The total number of Japanese troops who surrendered in French Indochina was 60,000, and 45,000 of them are currently in South Vietnam. I can temporarily hand over these prisoners of war to you for use, and you can complete our mission in six months."

This wasn't because France couldn't use these prisoners of war; it was simply that Koeman didn't want to get his hands dirty, so he gave some instructions and then let Gu Qing leave.

Koeman still has work to do today, which is to incorporate the Pingchuan faction's armed forces. The Pingchuan faction is similar to the warlords of a major modern Eastern power, but at a lower level.

Before the French troops returned, in September of last year, Japan, knowing that defeat was inevitable, still took steps to support local independence forces in Southeast Asia.

Inspired by Japan's supposed moment of conscience before its death, which was actually a move to whitewash the war, independence movements suddenly surged in the colonies of Southeast Asia and Europe.

Around that time, an organization in the suburbs of Saigon massacred 150 French and Eurasian civilians, including children.

This faction later began to resurface a few years later, mainly by shifting its support to France and Paul the Magnificent, thus whitewashing itself.

As the presiding judge of the Saitiff Military Court, although he was not in his jurisdiction, Koman was still not going to let this faction go and wanted to find these people. Since their headquarters were in Saigon, the Chinese, who made up half of the population, must know where these corrupt police officers were.

This was also one of the conditions set by Coman: the five major Chinese clans must help France find the members of the Pingchuan faction.

Koman's demands will increase over time, so the five major Chinese clan gangs don't have much time left. If he makes any more demands, it won't be good for anyone.

Koeman didn't have to wait long. Two days later, representatives of some wealthy Chinese, including Li Wenqing and Guo Cheng, appeared. Koeman then held a second dialogue with these representatives, whose group was much smaller than the first one.

In exchange for the right to use 45,000 Japanese prisoners of war and a department to liaise with the French army, Coman received 7.5 million Piastres in cash (another name for the yuan), 800,000 tons of rice, and the new department was required to commit to providing 1.5 million cubic meters of timber to the overseas departments by August.

"The timber is just an estimate, and it might not be enough. Therefore, I personally suggest preparing two million cubic meters of timber, which will also undergo rough processing, such as peeling and cutting into cuboids," Coman explained professionally. "I hope that most of it will be hardwood. Once this task is completed, our cooperation will be over."

"Sir, you trust us, and we will do our utmost." Li Wenqing made a solemn promise, clearly wanting to increase mutual trust.

"Instead of guaranteeing time, why not help us find the members of the Hirakawa faction who are hiding? You were oppressed by them during the Japanese occupation, weren't you? They are your enemies as well," Koman replied calmly.

He knew that the Hirakawa faction's later whitewashing was due to multiple factors, including their support for French colonial rule and Emperor Baodai, but this support was very limited.

Koeman didn't care about this black armed group that had purged French expatriates; once the purge was over, he could simply establish a new armed group centered around Catholics.

If the Hirakawa faction members who have now bowed their heads choose to make a drastic sacrifice and hand over a group of people to quell the previous bloodshed, Koeman is not unreasonable. However, if they resist to the end, the Hirakawa faction will not have the chance to clear their name again.

With the cooperation of the Chinese community, and even some pragmatic members of the Ping Xuen faction, coupled with the intimidation of the French army, the purge of the Ping Xuen faction around Saigon began. Chinese and Vietnamese newspapers were filled with arrest warrants issued by the French Indochina government for the Ping Xuen faction, demanding that members of the Ping Xuen faction who were not involved in the previous bloodshed be able to clear their names, be released, and atone for their crimes through meritorious service.

A group of armed men are eating at a teahouse in Saigon.

"Brother Xiao, it's been a long time." Li Guangxiong exhaled a smoke ring without getting up. Crab shells and beer bottles were scattered on the table, along with a kraft paper file folder whose sealing wax had long since cracked.

Ruan Wenxiao pulled out a rattan chair and sat down, his fingertips tracing the deep knife marks on the table: "Brother Xiong, you're in a good mood. With the situation like this, you still have the mind to eat crab feast."

"Are those Chinese crazy? And why would the French allow them to cause us trouble?" Li Guangxiong muttered, spitting out the toothpick he had just stuffed between his teeth.

Nguyen Van Hieu took out a gold-plated cigarette case from his suit pocket and slowly tapped out a 555 brand cigarette: "It seems that a new presiding judge of the military tribunal has arrived. He knows that some other factions were deceived by the Japanese last year and that the bloodshed they committed needs to be retried. He hopes that the Hirakawa faction can 'cleanse' some of the more... radical members."

(End of this chapter)