Chapter 107: Religious Figures

The disposition of the officer and soldier prisoners had been set, but the handling of the scholar-aides was a matter of different controversy.

Generally speaking, the people in control of this group despised or even held hostility towards all the intellectuals of this time and space, believing them to be not only useless but also dangerous, the root of contention for the right to speak and incitement to rebellion. Although for practical reasons, the “Jasmine Pavilion Work” was implemented in Lin Gao, which won over some of the local intellectuals, and also gained the initial recognition of the mainstream scholars of Lin Gao, including Liu Dalin.

But this group was different. They were the enemies who had followed the punitive expedition, and among them were many scholars who had originally wanted to make a fortune in Lin Gao or implement their plans for “pacifying the country.” The veterans, regardless of their stance, had instinctively regarded them as enemies.

Some demanded that they all be executed directly, while others believed that it was useless to keep them and too cruel to kill them, so it would be better to release them all back.

But most of the veterans felt that this was too easy for them and demanded that they be greatly humiliated and that the ringleaders among them be tortured to death. Some suggested that they be subjected to comprehensive severe torture, and some even proposed to publicly torture them in the large stadium of Lin Gao and then torture them to death one by one, and then send the photos to the entire Guangdong province.

In particular, the fact that Lu Yizhong had fallen into their hands drove many “retaliationists” mad. Although Lu Yizhong had been scared to death of his fate, if he knew how the “short-haired bandits” planned to deal with him, he would probably be scared to death on the spot.

After the discussion on torture and interrogation reached a climax on the BBS, Zhou Dongtian, who was most skilled in interrogation work, expressed a different opinion.

He did not approve of torture or various bizarre forms of interrogation at all.

He believed that torture and interrogation could not effectively destroy the mental defenses of a despotic imperial society. Because in this kind of society, torture and interrogation were commonplace and could not arouse much fear in all classes.

The experiences of countless revolutionary martyrs and traitors tell us that physical torture—no matter how bizarre—is not a universal path. Dialectical materialism tells us that matter determines consciousness, and consciousness reacts on matter. The history of wars in all dynasties tells us that a strong fortress is most easily breached from within.

Scholars are not all weak-willed. Even in the Southern Ming regime, where the audience hall was filled with red water when meeting with Dorgon, there were many scholars with firm will who were willing to die for their cause.

Massacre would only scare some people, but it would never scare everyone, especially when the other side believed that they held the truth. And scholars were the people who were always considered to hold the truth in Chinese society.

Therefore, Zhou Dongtian believed that attacking the spiritual defense line of the Ming “scholars” rather than boosting their morale was the most realistic approach for the current transmigrators.

Obama killed bin Laden, but he would never dare to return his body to his relatives. He had to secretly conduct a sea burial. When the Allies hanged the war criminals of the Third Reich, their bodies were burned to ashes and then secretly thrown into the river to be destroyed. The purpose was to prevent anyone from using their bones and relics to promote their spirit.

If the enemy died as a warrior or was tortured to death, it would be an example for both the enemy and themselves. It was not difficult for any ruler to torture a representative enemy to death, but it was something that must be absolutely avoided. Torture would arouse the enemy’s common hatred, which was not worth the loss.

“The best way is to ‘discredit’ them!” Zhou Dongtian pointed out that there was nothing more ideal than discrediting the opponent’s reputation.

“Everyone knows that the loser has no power and can only be at the mercy of others. Why does the victor always hold a court to try the war criminals after every war?” Zhou Dongtian said at the meeting. “It’s to discredit the opponent and prevent them from becoming the hero of the losing side—even if it’s not entirely effective, at least it can be partially effective. Our thinking is the same.”

“I understand what Old Zhou means,” Dingding quickly jumped out to avoid all the limelight being taken by Zhou Dongtian. “We also need to organize a war crimes tribunal! And distribute the transcripts of the trial everywhere…”

Ma Jia expressed his approval. The concept of trying war criminals was very good. He liked it, and it could fully demonstrate the role and significance of the Law Society.

“I don’t care what kind of war crimes trial you want to hold, but I object to interrogating Lu Yizhong,” Zhou Dongtian said. “Why? Because he will be one of our pawns in the future…”

“No way? This bastard is going to be released?”

“Do you really expect this kind of bastard to serve us? It’s incredible.”

“No, what I mean is this.” Zhou Dongtian’s idea was to immediately start interrogating Lu Yizhong and dig out all the private scandals of the Guangdong officialdom that he knew.

A selection of these materials would be compiled, mainly focusing on Wang Zunde’s decision to start the war. This would expose all the inside stories of “provoking a border dispute without authorization.” These materials would be distributed by the comrades who were still active in Guangzhou and shown to the Guangdong officialdom.

Once this part of the material was leaked, Wang Zunde’s already precarious reputation would be dealt a fatal blow. He would lose his position as the Viceroy of Guangdong faster than normal. No matter who replaced him, the new Viceroy of Guangdong would inevitably change from suppression to appeasement.

“That’s secondary. The key is that the originally grand punitive expedition will become a case of ‘provoking a border dispute without authorization’ for personal gain. According to the intelligence collected by the comrades of the Guangzhou station in the ‘Intelligence Compilation,’ the Guangdong officialdom was not very supportive of this war in the first place. Now with Lu Yizhong’s confession, many people will have a negative attitude towards Guangdong’s initiation of this battle. To use a modern phrase, it will confuse the other side’s thinking.”

Zhou Dongtian’s speech was approved by the majority. As for the other aides, everyone thought they could let them visit and study in Lin Gao for a period of time and then release them, so that they could go back and be the transmigrators’ volunteer propagandists.

“Given the state of the late Ming, I’m afraid that after a few months of visiting and studying, there will be people who are unwilling to leave and are willing to stay and be our advisors,” Yu E’shui said jokingly. “At that time, they can be assigned to me.”

Lu Yizhong’s fate was thus decided. A few days later, he was taken out alone and sent to the Political Security General Bureau for separate interrogation. Jiang Shan was also very interested in this source of intelligence—among all the captured civil and military officials, Lu was the closest to the core and knew the most about the Guangdong officialdom. And he had long been close to the confidential core of a province, so his understanding of the operation of the officialdom was far beyond that of ordinary people.

Zhou Dongtian instructed his apprentice: “Wash and clean all our tools. Those that touch the skin must be disinfected with alcohol to avoid infection. Also, go to the general hospital and book a nurse for me, and bring the first aid equipment.”

He also ordered a few “temporary workers” to clean the interrogation room and the detention room and ventilate them.

“We’re going to have a wheel war in the next few days,” Zhou Dongtian said. “You guys can go and rest after you’ve cleaned up.”

“Yes, sir,” the few people answered respectfully. These few were the yamen runners from the soap class of the yamen. The people in the soap class were known for their ruthlessness. Not only were their methods ruthless, but they also had no psychological barriers when doing things. Zhou Dongtian selected a few people who did not have too many blood debts as retained personnel.

At this time, He Ying opened a report in his office.

The sender of the report was Zhang Yingchen. This person had submitted a report last week, saying that he wanted to return to Lin Gao from Sanya for a few days. He Ying thought at the time that he probably had something to do that made him rush back to Lin Gao—according to the weekly reports he submitted, his missionary activities in Sanya were quite smooth. Not only did he successfully enter the Li area and develop hundreds of Li believers there, but he also recruited a number of young Li men and women to be trained as “Taoist students.”

To the Religious Affairs Office:

To contribute to the external propaganda work of the transmigrator group, our unit will hold a memorial service for the martyrs of the Qiongshan Battle and the five gentlemen who died in the disaster after the war. The organization plan and personnel application list of the memorial service are now submitted to the organization for approval.

Attachments: 1. Organization Plan for the Memorial Service for the Martyrs of the Qiongshan Battle and the Five Gentlemen Who Died in the Disaster

1. Application Form for the Temporary Transfer of Lin Gao Taoist Clergy from the Propaganda Department

Zhang Yingchen, Head of the Qiongnan District of the Religious Affairs Office

He Ying didn’t understand who these five gentlemen were for a moment—where did the five gentlemen come from? His first reaction was the five gentlemen in the “Record of the Five Tombs,” but these five gentlemen had no relationship with the transmigrator group, and they were far away in Suzhou. Why would they be worshipped here in Lin Gao for no reason?

It was only when he saw the attachment that he understood that it was the five peddlers who had been beheaded by the government soldiers in Qiongshan as a sacrifice to the flag. Although everyone knew about this when they watched the film shot by the special investigation team and discussed how cruel the government soldiers were, no one connected it to the concept of the five gentlemen.

“The rotten Taoist priest is really good at thinking. It’s a good idea.” He Ying laughed. He felt that this idea was not bad. Not only could it highlight the cruelty and ruthlessness of the government army, but it could also give his side a layer of “benevolence and righteousness.” He remembered that a few days ago, Dean Wu of the Lin Gao Church had also submitted a report to him, asking to go to Chengmai to hold a requiem mass for the fallen and pray for their souls.

This matter could be handled together. He Ying thought, and as Wu Shimang said in his report, since it was a memorial service for the dead, they might as well be generous and include all the fallen in this war in the scope of the memorial service, to fully demonstrate the benevolence and love of the Lin Gao regime.

This plan was approved after modification. Dingding, as the head of the propaganda department, greatly appreciated the plan of the Religious Affairs Office and said that he would fully cooperate, including personnel support and necessary financial assistance. He Ying considered that since there were both the Catholic Church and the New Taoism, logically the monks should also be involved. After all, Buddhism still had a great influence in China. But the Religious Affairs Office had no qualified monks at all. There were very few temples in Lin Gao, and almost all of them were in a state of disrepair. The few monks there could only be considered amateur religious personnel. Apart from “Amitabha” and singing a few chants, they hardly knew any scriptures or Buddhist rituals.

Fortunately, according to the information from the intelligence department, there were several temples in Chengmai. They could conscript monks on the spot to participate in this large-scale ceremony. It was nothing more than giving them some rewards afterwards. He Ying thought that the Buddhist community should not be ignored either. It was time to find a suitable agent.

While He Ying was racking his brains about which veteran was willing to be a monk, in an office of the Grand Library, Yu E’shui opened a letter from the same Zhang Yingchen.

My friend:

I hope this letter finds you well.

Recently, I received a report from the Li people of Qiongshan County, saying that the government soldiers had arrested five Ming people who had come to Lin Gao for trade and beheaded them as a sacrifice to the flag on the charge of “communicating with bandits.”

Since the government is willing to be the villain, why shouldn’t we be the ones to show compassion? In order to publicize the benevolence of our transmigrator group, I suggest that these five Ming people be buried with honors and a monument be erected for them as martyrs. I have excerpted part of the content of Volume 5 of Quan Zuwang’s “Jieqiting Collection” of the Qing Dynasty to complete a draft of the monument inscription. I hope you, a literary and historical expert, will revise and polish it.

P.S.: The brocade of the Li area is really not bad. I was lucky enough to get a piece from an Ouya, and I have attached it to the letter.

Your friend, Zhang Yingchen

Attached to the back was Zhang Yingchen’s revised draft of the monument inscription:

The Five Gentlemen of Qiongshan were those who died in the disaster because of the reckless military actions of the Viceroy of Guangdong, Wang Zunde, and their advocacy of public opinion. The destruction of orchids and jade is a cause for mourning, but their righteousness is also enough to be immortal!

In the fifth month of the Gengwu year, the troops of Guangdong rose up, swarming like locusts, and the people suffered greatly. Some said, “The disaster of war is more ferocious than that of bandits.” At that time, the Viceroy of Guangdong heard this, and he arrested these five gentlemen and had them executed for “communicating with bandits.”

…

Alas, throughout history, many loyal and righteous people have died in prison. In the past two hundred years, the party strife has been rampant. Xia, Shen, Yang, and Zhang were executed in public, and Yang, Zuo, Huang, and Zhou were imprisoned later. Although Song and Dang, the chief culprits, received a terrible retribution, many of the small fry who were lucky enough to escape the imperial prison were numerous!

So, was the misfortune of the Five Gentlemen of Qiongshan an accident?

Alas! To break through this darkness and clarify the world, all benevolent people should share the responsibility!

After reading it, Yu E’shui felt that the rotten spring Taoist’s “man-made hero” plan was a good idea. But how to handle it specifically needed careful consideration. Two of the five peddlers were indeed their people, and the government soldiers had not killed the wrong people—although the government soldiers did not know that these two peddlers were intelligence personnel sent by the intelligence bureau.

If they really followed the rotten Taoist’s idea, what would the intelligence bureau think? Would they not appreciate it and instead see it as a kind of irony? Or would they think that such a high-profile propaganda would destroy the secret identity of these two people…

After careful consideration, Yu E’shui decided to postpone this plan for the time being and make a decision after communicating with the intelligence bureau.

The sun shone through the thin mist on the Ma Niao Peninsula.

In a newly completed small church outside the Ma Niao Commune, Dean Wu and Father Bai were looking at their images in the large mirror in the rest room.

Their images were impeccable. They were both wearing simple black cassocks and simple wooden crosses. They had the image of serious and compassionate religious professionals.

“Let’s go, Father Bai, let’s set off.” Wu Shimang looked at himself with satisfaction.

“Yes, Your Excellency the Dean,” Bai Dolu said respectfully. He regretted a little why he had not become the Bishop of Lin Gao in the first place. Now he had to put on a respectful appearance towards Wu Shimang.

The two walked out of the rest room with slow steps. In the chapel, several recently baptized prisoners were already kneeling, praying to the crucifix on the stained glass window. Seeing the dean and the priest come out, they all came over to ask for his blessing.

Dean Wu made the sign of the cross in a pretentious manner, which made Bai Dolu very impressed. If nothing else, he could not do it so calmly.

Not long after the prisoners arrived in Ma Niao, the church made a great breakthrough. Immediately, dozens of wavering prisoners of war were baptized, which made the Jesuit missionary who was helping here so happy that he cried. The evening prayer was held for twice as long as expected, and Dean Wu’s legs almost broke from kneeling.

However, because the effect was too good, this missionary simply stayed in Ma Niao and did not leave. The “Great Memorial Service” organized by He Ying of the Religious Affairs Office had to be attended by Wu Shimang and Bai Dolu alone.

In addition to the two of them, there were also a few native believers from the church who went with them.

The plan submitted by the Lin Gao Church and the New Taoism was re-planned by the Religious Affairs Office and the Propaganda Department and became the “Great Memorial Service.” A religious ceremony would be held locally to commemorate the fallen on both sides, in order to win over the hearts of the people and express their “benevolence and righteousness.”

At this time, Zhang Yingchen was standing by the ox cart ready to go to Chengmai, waiting for the personnel from the Lin Gao Church. In the past few months, his face had become darker, his skin was very rough, his hair had grown out completely and was tied in a Taoist bun. He was wearing a new dark blue Taoist robe with a cloth belt around his waist. He wore locally produced straw sandals on his feet. He wore a bamboo hat and carried a basket on his back, which seemed to be full of things.

His face still wore his usual smile.

There was also a newcomer beside him. This person looked like a猥琐 uncle and was also wearing a standard Taoist robe of the New Taoism that did not fit well. He also carried a basket on his back.

“This is my assistant, Dai E,” Zhang Yingchen introduced. “Fellow Taoist Dai is also interested in dedicating himself to the cause of the New Taoism. We will go to Chengmai together this time.”

The group climbed onto the ox cart and slowly headed towards Chengmai.

“Taoist Master Zhang,” Bai Dolu said politely, “aren’t you going to take a few more people with you? A religious ceremony can’t be held with too few people.”

“I have a few Taoist students in Sanya, but they have not been Taoists for long. They are not good at playing musical instruments,” Zhang Yingchen said slowly. “I brought a tape recorder and a loudspeaker. Let’s play the CD first.”

“I remember that for a Taoist ceremony, many Taoists are needed to perform the rituals, and the procedures are very complicated…” No matter how you looked at it, the New Taoism only had two people.

“I am establishing a New Taoism. I advocate simplification and modernization, just like the difference between Protestantism and Catholicism,” Zhang Yingchen said as if unintentionally.

In fact, why wouldn’t he want to hold a grand Taoist ceremony? But the few Taoist students from the Li nationality could not even speak Chinese well, and learning Taoist rituals was even more difficult. And it was not easy to prepare costumes and ritual instruments in a hurry. So he finally decided to take “simplicity” and “solemnity” as the guiding direction.

“Actually, I just wanted to hold a memorial service for the martyrs’ tomb and the five people who were innocently beheaded as a sacrifice to the flag in Qiongshan,” Zhang Yingchen waved his sleeve. “Since Director He said that we should hold a memorial service for all the fallen, this is also a matter of great merit.”