Chapter 188: Never Assume Victory, Always Prepare for Defeat

The plan was for the infantry platoon to defend the key points, but with the main force gathered on the mountainside, controlling the situation from a high position. As soon as they identified the enemy’s main breakthrough point, they would concentrate their main force to push them back.

After the arrangements were made, Zhao Yigong summoned Fenghua and Zhao Tong and secretly instructed them to move the villa’s important documents, gold, silver, valuables, valuable silkworm breeds and plant seeds, and the dozen or so children selected for special training from the charity school to the Wanbi Bookstore in the city for safekeeping.

Hangzhou was a prefectural city. No matter who the enemy was, they wouldn’t dare to openly attack the Wanbi Bookstore in the city. This was called “open robbery with weapons,” a capital crime in ancient society. Once it happened, the local authorities absolutely could not cover it up.

“This matter must be kept as secret as possible. Besides you and the specific people involved, no one else can know,” Zhao Yigong instructed.

“Goods are transported back and forth between the villa and the bookstore every day. We can just mix the items in with the goods,” Zhao Tong said. “The children can just follow the escort team. It’s no problem.”

Zhao Tong added, “Chief, should you also go to the Wanbi Bookstore to take shelter?”

“If I leave, there are already few naturalized citizens here. Won’t morale collapse and chaos ensue before a battle is even fought? That’s not an option,” Zhao Yigong shook his head.

“Chief, when we were in training, the chiefs always said: ‘Never assume victory, always prepare for defeat.’ If we can’t hold out here, we should have a withdrawal plan.”

“You’re right,” Zhao Yigong touched his forehead. “I’ve been muddle-headed.”

The refugees in the Cihuitang were naturally beyond their concern. There were too many of them, and their organization was poor. In the event of a major disturbance, they could not be relied upon. Fortunately, the enemy was not interested in them and would not harm them. As for the servants in the villa, they were more important. Many of them were now skilled laborers in a particular craft. Whether they were tea pickers, silkworm breeders, or filature workers, they had been trained over a long period. It would be a great pity if they were killed or scattered.

But this group was very large, and moving them all into the city was simply unrealistic—there wasn’t enough space in Hangzhou to accommodate these thousands of men, women, and children. Even if there were, a large-scale evacuation would seriously shake the morale of the villa. The infantry platoon and the temporarily enlisted refugee able-bodied men would feel “abandoned,” and whether they would fight to the death would be a big question.

“These people cannot be moved,” Zhao Yigong weighed the options again and again. “Moving them will shake the very foundation. Fenghua, according to the technical skill rating roster, secretly send a portion of them and their families away. No more than two hundred people.”

But Fenghua said, “Chief, it’s no problem to send away a few children, but moving more than two hundred servants from the villa cannot be hidden from anyone. Although the servants here have sold themselves, they are not naturalized citizens. Once they find out, morale will surely be shaken. Before the enemy even attacks, we will be in chaos. If we are to fight, we must resolve to fight to the end here!”

“You have a point!” Zhao Yigong nodded. “If we are to fight, we must fight to the end here. We must give everyone this confidence. Except for those few children, no one else will be moved.”

Zhao Tong also said, “I have already arranged for a small launch boat at the pier, with its fire lit day and night, ready to depart. If things become untenable, our entire ‘Sticky Pole Department’ will mobilize to escort the chief to the pier and board the boat.”

Although the scale of the evacuation was minimized, it was impossible to hide this action from the core group of people in the villa. There was not much gold and silver in the villa—it had the Hangzhou Delong Bank for financial support and did not need to store a large amount of cash. Expenses in the villa were paid with circulation coupons, so there was no need for silver and copper coins. Large expenses were usually paid with bank drafts. Only two or three thousand taels of silver and a few thousand strings of copper coins were kept on hand for small payments. Zhao Yigong decided not to move this money, saving it for a critical moment to be spent lavishly. What was being moved were mainly jewelry, gold and silver ornaments, and some Australian goods for gifts. Most importantly, it was the gold that Zhao Yigong had secretly collected according to the orders of the finance department and obtained from trade with Japan. This gold had accumulated to about three thousand taels, which was the largest single fortune in the villa.

The finance department paid great attention to collecting gold. “Although Lingao’s future currency is likely to be silver-based,” gold, as the most reliable financial reserve, was still a reserve currency that the gentlemen of the finance department eagerly sought.

Besides valuables, there were also many “controlled materials” in the villa, most of which were instruments and equipment shipped from Lingao. According to Zhao Yigong’s orders, all “first-class controlled materials,” including microscopes, balances, thermometers, and the like, were to be packed and shipped away. Other bulky equipment and materials that could be manufactured in Lingao were to be left behind.

These treasures and materials were packed into just over twenty boxes. In contrast, the number of archival documents was enormous. According to the Political Security Bureau’s “one file per person” requirement, all the servants who had sold themselves to work in the villa had personal files.

There were currently over two thousand servants working in the villa, and their personnel files alone could fill a room. Besides these personnel files, the “archiving system,” one of the cores of modern management, had also caused the villa to accumulate a large number of archives in a short period. From the technical archives of the silkworm breeding farm to the records of rewards and punishments in the management office, meeting minutes, and records of wage and subsidy distribution… there were countless archives. To pack them all would be a task that the small transport team that usually traveled back and forth to the villa could not handle.

Such a large-scale transport of archives would cause a great sensation. It was bound to lead to rumors that a large amount of treasure from the villa was being moved to the Wanbi Bookstore, which would in turn attract even greater covetousness.

After much consideration, it was finally decided to transport only a portion of the key secret archives and technical and student archives. The other archives were to be packed and moved to the main warehouse of the villa—this warehouse was built by a construction team from Lingao with iron beams and local bricks, making it very sturdy, fireproof, and burglarproof. It was originally designed to store valuable property and controlled materials.

“The enemy has a very limited time to attack us. Even if they bribe the authorities to turn a blind eye, they can at most attack for one day,” Zhao Tong said with confidence. “At worst, we can still defend the residential part.”

“In that case, I need to send someone to hold the fort at the Wanbi Bookstore. Fenghua, starting tomorrow, you will go there and watch over things for me!”

“Yes, Chief! I will definitely protect the wealth of the Senate.” Fenghua was a cadre educated in Lingao and had been instilled with the basic principle of obeying the orders of the Senate. Although it was a master-servant relationship, it was actually a modern superior-subordinate relationship. There would be no “lingering gratitude” or similar behavior.

“Chief, we don’t have many people from the ‘Sticky Pole Department’ at the Wanbi Bookstore, and there are only a dozen or so household guards. With so many valuables being moved there, I’m afraid it’s not safe.”

“Have the Wulong Society guard the area around the bookstore. The men of the Wulong Society have not undergone our systematic transformation, and their combat effectiveness is limited. Having them reinforce the villa might not be of much use. As long as we hide the transfer of valuables well, the enemy will not risk acting in the city. Even if they do, the men of the Wulong Society are enough to drive them out. The ‘Sticky Pole Department’ can station a few core members there to work with the household guards on internal security.”

Although Zhao Tong felt it was not entirely appropriate, his own manpower was already scarce. Defending the villa was already stretching them thin, and it was indeed difficult to spare forces to help defend the Wanbi Bookstore. He felt the chief’s analysis was also reasonable, so he did not insist.

“I have already instructed Cai Shi to go to the Wanbi Bookstore tomorrow to take charge of the situation,” Zhao Yigong said. “He is a native of Hangzhou and has often run errands for me between the Hangzhou gentry and the authorities. He is very well-connected. In the bookstore, he is more than capable of handling any sudden situations. The bookstore still needs to prioritize stability.”

With the plans settled, they all went their separate ways.

Although the transfer plan was known only to a very small number of people, and those responsible for its execution were also a very small number selected by Zhao Yigong, the tasks of packing archives and valuables and moving items could not be kept completely secret, especially from those who were already close to the core.

Xihua soon learned of the transfer operation. She realized this was very important intelligence, but she did not act. She knew she was likely being watched, whether this surveillance was for protection or suspicion. Any rash move on her part would arouse greater suspicion. As for Jia Le, her identity was actually completely exposed. Hao Yuan could use her only because Master Zhao wanted to play a counter-espionage game. She absolutely could not go to her casually.

Hao Yuan no longer appeared in the villa. Xihua knew very well that the day Hao Yuan’s men would attack the villa was fast approaching. Even within the villa, she could feel the thick smell of sulfur in the air before a storm. Her heart couldn’t help but pound, and her thoughts became muddled.

Just as Zhao Yigong and the others were feeling uneasy, the Special Reconnaissance Team detachment from the Kaohsiung base that he had been eagerly awaiting finally arrived at the villa on a small inland river cargo boat from the Qiwei Depot. Although only ten men had come, it was like a welcome rain after a long drought for the terrified Zhao Yigong.

“I’ve been waiting for you all.” Seeing Qian Shuixie, dressed in an ill-fitting robe, awkwardly walk into the inner living room, Zhao Yigong almost wanted to cry and throw himself into his broad embrace. “I’ve been looking forward to your arrival with eager anticipation!” As he spoke, he choked up and was on the verge of tears.

In fact, he and Qian Shuixie had little interaction. In terms of friendship, they were just nodding acquaintances. But Zhao Yigong had been isolated behind enemy lines for a long time and had recently been under “great pressure,” living in constant fear. Seeing another senator appear was truly like seeing a family member.

“Emperor Zhao, don’t be so dramatic…” Although Qian Shuixie had been in the United States for a long time and had picked up some barbaric customs, he couldn’t handle a grown man throwing himself into his arms. He quickly pushed him away gently. “Don’t worry, the brothers are here to back you up. If anyone is blind enough to cause trouble, we’ll turn their whole family into non-humans!”