The Fourth Outstanding Person of Huangpu Military Academy

"7. To enact laws concerning workers, peasants and women..."

The eight-day meeting ended.

Chen Tianheng received a mimeographed copy of the "Manifesto of the Second National Congress." The phrase they had discussed at dinner still appeared in the manifesto.

"How many books did Tianheng read at Hunan First Normal School? What books did he read? Is your library at Hunan First Normal School so impressive?"

After the Second National Congress, Mao Zedong and Yang Kaihui were about to return to Hunan, while Li Lisan was about to go to Zhengzhou. Before leaving, they came from their hotels to have dinner at Chen Duxiu's house. At the dinner table, Chen Duxiu specifically asked Mao Zedong about Chen Tianheng.

Mao Runzhi: "In the past two semesters, Chen Tianheng did not read books, but scanned them. He did not miss a single book in the library and read through the entire shelf from beginning to end."

Chen Tianheng coughed and said, "It's not that exaggerated. I skim through books, and only read them in detail when I come across books that are useful for my current or future work or study."

Mao Runzhi: "The library of the First Normal School has a limited collection of books, especially new books. The same is true for the Third Normal School in Hengyang. Therefore, Jiang Xianyun and Chen Tianheng must be sent to places like Beijing and Shanghai to satisfy their thirst for knowledge."

Chen Duxiu: "Speaking of Jiang Xianyun and Chen Tianheng, I have made some arrangements. Right now, I have secured a record clerk position at the Fudan University Library. I have also inquired with Shanghai University, but they don't have one at the moment. However, the Commercial Press can still hire a handyman, which solves the problem. As for who will go where, I think Jiang Xianyun should go to the Commercial Press and Chen Tianheng to the library. The Commercial Press sometimes needs physical labor, and Jiang Xianyun is older and can handle the work."

Chen Tianheng and Jiang Xianyun had nothing to say about Chen Duxiu's arrangement, and they nodded in agreement.

Chen Duxiu: "Several universities in Shanghai are very lenient with auditors. As long as they don't disrupt the classroom or the campus order, it's fine. Some professors don't take questions from auditors during class, so you should be aware of this. In short, having a job and an income that can support yourself is the most important thing. With this foundation, you can study without worries."

"Secretary Chen. Our party is actually the same way."

Chen Tianheng's thought-provoking words drew the attention of everyone present to him.

"Secretary Chen said a few days ago that the Party's organizational expenditure last year was 17,000 yuan, of which 16,000 yuan was funded by the Communist International. This year, the Party has more work and activities, so even if the funding needs are higher than last year, more than 20,000 yuan should be enough."

"I'm thinking, can't a party like ours earn 20,000 or 30,000 yuan a year? Does the Communist International have to go through so much trouble to wire gold rubles to Shanghai for us to spend?"

Chen Duxiu: "Tianheng, do you mean that our current party members should raise funds for the formation of the party, either through donations or by themselves?"

Chen Tianheng: "Party dues are one source of funding. Another is to run a company or business and make money, provided adequate security and disguise measures are in place. This can be called party assets."

(I saved this manuscript a few months ago and was reviewing it before posting it today. My hands suddenly started shaking, and I kept revising it until late at night...)

(Update frequency will double starting this weekend.)

Chapter 7

Chen Tianheng really didn't expect this.

At the Second National Congress, Chen Duxiu stood up from the gallery to argue with Zhang Guotao, but he did not lose his temper;

During a long debate at Chen Duxiu's home against the draft of the Second Congress Manifesto, Chen Duxiu did not get angry;

Suggestions: The party should start its own business to make some money.

Chen Duxiu was furious.

The explosion was so powerful that not only Chen Tianheng but also Mao Runzhi was blown up.

Chen Tianheng suggested that the Party Central Committee could manage some of its assets to address funding issues. Mao Zedong immediately agreed that this was a good idea. He had, in fact, been considering the funding issues of the peasant movement—not just money, but also grain. Agrarian revolution in the countryside required some violence, and Mao Zedong was already considering forming a peasant guard.

Furthermore, at the Second Congress, Mao Zedong indirectly suggested that China's revolution should be primarily carried out by Chinese revolutionary comrades. While Soviet guidance was acceptable, the leadership should rest with Chinese comrades, as "Moscow's instructions might not necessarily conform to China's actual conditions." The ability for the central government to independently fund itself was crucial to ensuring the Shanghai Secretariat had the confidence to discuss the leadership of the revolution.

"Treating party assets? Doing business?! No! You can't!"

Chen Duxiu's response was fierce: "Runzhi, Tianheng, your ideas are getting more and more off track. It is impossible to do business. As long as we are still called the Communist Party, it is impossible to do business!"

Mao Runzhi: "Working for a living doesn't pay much, and the comrades in the Central Committee are also overwhelmed with administrative work, leaving them with limited time to take on more work to earn money. All aspects of work require funding, and as the revolution progresses, the costs are increasing. In the future, the revolution will inevitably lead to the armed seizure of power. As the old saying goes, food and fodder must be prepared before the troops move. How will we provide food and fodder for an army of millions? It will be difficult for us to continue relying on funding from the Communist International to maintain operations in the future."

Chen Duxiu: "We are Communists. Our aim is to build a new world without exploitation and oppression. If we, the earliest group of Chinese Communists, were to become capitalists ourselves, would our revolution still be pure?"

Mao Runzhi: "From a human perspective, even if we assume that the Soviet Union funded us without any private conditions, is it a good thing to use gold rubles as operating funds?"

Chen Duxiu: "I guarantee with my personal integrity that I will do everything in my power to prevent the Soviet Union from making unreasonable private demands. Comrade Li Dazhao in the north holds the same view, so he decided not to attend the Second Congress. One of us must remain outside the Second Congress."

Chen Tianheng: "Secretary Chen, the funds allocated to us by the Communist International are not the result of our labor. Therefore, the essence of these two things is actually the same."

Chen Duxiu shook his head. "The Comintern's funding came from the Soviet Union, the current Soviet Union. The Soviet Union is a proletarian state, and its nature is absolutely different. From the perspective of our Communist beliefs, we have a clear conscience in accepting Soviet funding."

"Precisely because the Comintern's funding is now transferred from the Soviet state treasury, I say that their essence is the same. The Soviet Union's state fiscal revenue is derived from Soviet workers and is a portion of the value created by Soviet workers. The Soviet Union expropriates this revenue from these workers to operate the Soviet state machinery or to subsidize communists in other countries. In short, Soviet workers themselves are unable to enjoy this portion of the fruits of their labor. Secretary Chen, there are two sums of money. One is transferred to us through the Soviet financial system and the Comintern; the other is from Chinese workers working in a company, and the company's profits go directly to us. Neither of these sums is our own hard-earned money. We have all received the value created by workers somewhere on the planet, isn't it?"

Chen Duxiu looked at Mao Runzhi and then at Chen Tianheng.

Well, the big and small argumentative people have reunited.

How can this dinner table debate continue?

"Even the food on our table is the result of the hard work of our servant Aunt Zhang." Yang Kaihui also interjected at this time.

Chen Duxiu smiled wryly, but still shook his head firmly: "The Party, especially the Central Committee, is not yet suited to this kind of work. Even if I don't argue whether business operations are in line with Marxism-Leninism, our current personnel and organizational structure cannot accept the idea of ​​business operations within the Party. Runzhi, think about it, if you brought this up at the meeting, how many delegates would agree?"

……

Chen Duxiu displayed his inherent feudal patriarchal style (behavior). No matter how Mao Runzhi and Chen Tianheng debated, he refused to give in. In the end, he even said, "If this continues, the entire Central Secretariat will be disbanded."

"Runzhi, once you're in Hunan, I basically can't control you anymore. I know that mobilizing farmers in the countryside will eventually require spending money and grain, and with spending comes levying taxes. This part doesn't count as management. If you feel it's necessary, then do it. It's better for the central government, especially Shanghai, to be a little more pure."

the next day.

At the train station, Chen Duxiu and Mao Runzhi said a few final words to each other.

"Zhongfu, in this regard, sometimes we are really not as good as the Kuomintang."

Mao Runzhi also spoke frankly.

"First, Dr. Sun Yat-sen long ago put 'equalizing land rights' and 'expelling the Tartars' side by side in one sentence. He realized that equalizing land rights and expelling the Tartars were equally important. Second, the Kuomintang, now controlled by Zhang Jingjiang, operated several industries and provided funds for their party. Although these funds did not bring victory to the Kuomintang, they were a party that knew how to manage things."

Chen Duxiu: "Speaking of the Kuomintang, the Communist International had already made its position clear at this conference. They were promoting cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. However, I advocated a KMT-CCP ​​alliance outside the party, while Maring believed that the form of cooperation was for all Communist Party members to join the Kuomintang to achieve a united front between the KMT and the Communist Party. Because of these differences, even though the Communist International had already revealed its attitude towards KMT-CCP ​​cooperation before the meeting, I did not make a final statement at the Second Congress."

Mao Runzhi: "The reason why Maring felt it was best for all Communist Party members to join the Kuomintang was probably because of our current situation."

Chen Duxiu: "The Secretariat and the Executive Committee will hold another meeting to discuss this matter in a while."

Mao Runzhi turned to where Chen Tianheng was standing and said, "Chen Tianheng, Jiang Xianyun, you are in Shanghai for study tours. If you have time, you should come back and take the exams for the First and Third Normal Schools."

Chen Tianheng: "I will definitely go back to take the exam at the end of the school year."

The difficulty of the entrance exams for normal schools and even universities in this era is just entry-level, and it is not too difficult to get the first place in the grade.

It would be best if I could catch one or two labor movements or peasant movements in the countryside during my one or two months back in Hunan.

Where is Guo Liang now? What is Xia Xi doing now? And that, yes, Chen Geng, who became nearsighted from studying at the Self-Study University.

Chen Tianheng really wants to be with this group of people of the same or similar age, to do team building.

……

When outsiders come to Shanghai, the landlords always treat them to three things: watching a movie, eating a delicious meal, and riding the tram.

"You've been in Shanghai for a few days now, and you've been so busy that no one has had much time. Besides riding the tram, you haven't had time to experience the other two things. I have an appointment today, so let's go to a Western restaurant and treat Mr. Ding Tang to a delicious Western meal."

Chen Duxiu was in front, followed by Chen Tianheng and Jiang Xianyun, and they walked into a Western restaurant called "Detai".

It’s De Tai, not De Da.

De Da is one of the most high-end Western restaurants in Shanghai that opened in 1897, and De Tai is a follower and malicious imitator.

A Western meal at De Da costs at least 12 taels per person. Although De Tai also serves Western food, it is much cheaper, and you can eat as much as you want for 3 taels.

"Dingtang."

Chen Duxiu and Guo Moruo shook hands. Guo Moruo laughed heartily: "Mr. Zhongfu, long time no see. I missed you so much. Who are these two?"

Chen Duxiu: "Ah, these two are my students, Chen Tianheng and Jiang Xianyun. By the way, Jiang Xianyun has just joined the Commercial Press. You may meet him when you deal with the Commercial Press in the future."

Guo Moruo laughed heartily again in a familiar manner, and leaned forward to shake hands with Chen Tianheng and Jiang Xianyun.

Guo Moruo published "Phoenix Nirvana" in 1919, and this year published a collection of more than a dozen poems, including "Phoenix Nirvana," as "The Goddess." He also co-authored "Three Leaves" with Zong Baihua and Tian Han last year, and is currently working on the historical drama "Zhuo Wenjun."

Of course, Guo Moruo was still a "non-party member" at that time, and Chen Duxiu and Guo Moruo were two literati gathering together to talk about literati's matters.

"What kind of book is Zhongfu writing now?"

Guo Moruo asked, and Chen Duxiu was still thinking about how to answer when Chen Tianheng said first: "Teacher Chen and I are now thinking about ways to make money."

Chen Duxiu: "Hiss..."

Chapter 8

"Making money? Tianheng, how can you say that? ... I do have that thought, but I can't bring it up, but it would be nice to have more income. I'm not good at business, and my only skill is writing. If I can make more money from my writing, that would be great. Of course, the premise is that it's earned in a proper way. ...Even in a proper way."

Chen Tianheng suddenly stabbed him in the back and said something to force him to do something. Chen Duxiu blushed and tried to explain.

Chen Duxiu was explaining sentence after sentence, but Guo Moruo seemed to be lost in thought. His focus did not seem to be on the money. After Chen Duxiu finished explaining incoherently, Guo Moruo sat up straight, looked at Chen Duxiu, and asked seriously:

"Zhongfu, have you found love?"

"No, no, no, I don't have any concubines, and I don't plan to take one."

"I didn't say anything about wives and concubines. It's just love, pure love, which also requires money. That's how I am. My wife in Japan needs to send money, and I've also encountered some expenses when I returned to Shanghai. Sigh."

"Mr. Guo...Mr. Guo,"

Chen Tianheng, who had just burst out laughing, took a sip of water to recover. "Teacher Chen needs money to do serious work. That's why I just said that we should work together to find a way to make some money."

Guo Moruo said, "You want money to do that kind of work, right? I'm actually the same as you. We both make money by writing, and we're not very good at anything else. But when it comes to writing, writing books still doesn't make as much money as publishing them."

Chen Duxiu: "If we set up a publishing house, that's the case..."

Chen Tianheng: "Mr. Guo, do newspapers and magazines make money faster than book publishers?"

Guo Moruo: "Yes. But newspapers and magazines actually require a large scale of operation, especially newspapers. They require many reporters, who are sent to various places. Beijing even needs to set up a press station. These are all investments. Even the telex fees for reporters to send news back from various places are a considerable expense."

Chen Tianheng: "This is a stall for newspapers and news magazines, right? What if you don't sell newspapers and magazines in this field?"

Guo Moruo: "Newspapers and periodicals have high sales and can make a lot of money once they are on the right track. Zhongfu, do you know that the newspaper business under Shi Liangcai's name now makes hundreds of thousands of yuan in profit a year?"

Guo Moruo's figure made Chen Duxiu's heart beat faster. Hundreds of thousands of yuan in profit a year was a lot, equivalent to the Party Central Committee's funding for more than a decade, no, decades.

"Dingtang, if this is a magazine that publishes fiction stories, wouldn't it need so many reporters and editors?"

Guo Moruo: "Novels are a bit highbrow, but they can still make money. I can probably make a few thousand dollars a year. Zhongfu, do you need a lot of money?"

"It won't take as much as Shi Liangcai's profit. If I can get a few thousand dollars, even if there's still a gap, it won't be much. Hmm..."

Chen Duxiu turned and looked at Chen Tianheng and Jiang Xianyun.

Although Chen Tianheng was a junior and still a student, Chen Duxiu was always argued with by Chen Tianheng these days. What puzzled him was that after the argument, Chen Duxiu thought about it carefully and found that many of Chen Tianheng's words actually made sense.

So before making a decision, let's see if Chen Tianheng will argue. If he does, be prepared to "fight"

When Chen Tianheng saw Chen Duxiu looking at him, he said, "I think the magazine about novels and stories is okay with it."

Chen Tianheng thought it was possible, and that this kind of magazine might not earn little money. If it could be successful, and if Chen Tianheng could exert some influence in it, he would probably earn more than a few thousand yuan a year.

"By the way, Zhongfu, if you want to publish a story magazine, you have to first come up with 200 yuan, register a company, and then prepare for the magazine."

Chen Duxiu: "That's fine."

"So what name do you plan to register as a company?"

Chen Tianheng: "Teacher Chen, what do you think about joint reading?"

……

Before meeting Guo Moruo, Chen Tianheng had debated with Chen Duxiu on the issue of "making money" for many days.

Chen Duxiu's attitude finally softened. After all, he himself felt that the problem of the party's funding source needed to be resolved as soon as possible.

But he still opposed registering this industry under the name of the party organization, and instead ran it in his personal name, and then handed over the profits as special party dues.

This wasn't Chen Duxiu hoarding his wealth; he would certainly give away all the profits, Chen Tianheng was certain of that. Chen Duxiu's reasoning for this was that the Central Secretariat wasn't ready to truly engage in business operations; no one knew how to do business, nor was anyone willing to accept the idea. Furthermore, Chen Duxiu bluntly told Chen Tianheng that if the Central Secretariat and the various directly affiliated Party departments became so entangled in money, the mentality of many comrades would undergo a subtle change.

Chen Tianheng actually agreed with this point and actually admired Chen Duxiu's acumen in this regard. Before he had "come of age" and reached a position where he could formulate rules and procedures for the Central Committee, the Central Secretariat was directly involved in money and business, which would probably end up in a mess.

Chen Duxiu set many rules and regulations regarding the specific industries to be engaged in.

He opposed directly opening a factory and hiring workers, as he, the Party Central Committee Secretary, could not stand this. This was not a problem, as Chen Tianheng had not intended to do this anyway, so he did not open a factory.

Chen Tianheng proposed establishing a trading company, but Chen Duxiu opposed it. He cited the fact that foreign trade was subject to imperialist exploitation as one reason and that it still required hiring many workers to carry heavy bags at the docks, a labor even more arduous than factory work. He then proposed establishing a securities investment company, but Chen Duxiu again opposed it, citing the overpowering smack of "capitalist exploitation."

In the end, the only industry Chen Duxiu could accept was the news/publishing industry.

……

"This is my friend Chen Duxiu, Mr. Zhongfu. He's short on money lately and is planning to start a magazine. Please give him some support!"

Creation Society. Shanghai Writers Salon.

The Creation Society was a left-wing writers' organization founded in 1921 by Yu Dafu, Zhang Ziping, Tian Han, Guo Moruo, and others. Its roots were in Tokyo, Japan, as most of its members had studied there. However, with the return of Tian Han, Guo Moruo, and others, the Creation Society now also holds salons in Shanghai.

Guo Moruo guessed why Chen Duxiu was short of money, but he didn't ask any further questions (the Communist Party was still a closed-door party organization). He simply supported Chen. To support Chen's cause, Guo Moruo took Chen Duxiu to a salon and made this opening statement.

Chen Duxiu had been trying to be reserved, but Guo Moruo's first words were blunt: "He's short of money, please help him." His face flushed. After a moment's hesitation, he finally shared his thoughts with the salon attendees.

"I have read popular novels, but I have never written one," said Tao Jingsun.