Chapter 91 no_name

"Scholar Wen, there's no need to explain anymore. Just tell us what we should do." You Gou had no interest in listening to any more nonsense. She bluntly interrupted Lu Huitian's question. Many members of the People's Party, when faced with emergencies, loved to talk about principles and reason. But how many principles and reasons were there in this world? Thinking of this, You Gou stood up, "Comrades, we have built our organization and our army to this scale through action, not through talk. Instead of trying to understand why the landlords are attacking us, we should deal with the landlords who are plotting against us first. What do you all think?"

Upon hearing this, some nodded in agreement, while others had different views. "In this world, nothing is more important than reason. The revolution also needs to be based on reason." Qin Shou had recently arrived in Anhui, nominally as an engineer in the water conservancy department, but in reality, he held a leisurely position. His remarks represented the views of comrades who were temporarily not involved in military or political work but were engaged in clerical work.

You Gou did not support these people's attitudes at all, "Every time we have a meeting, we always follow Scholar Wen's final opinion. The results are right here for everyone to see. Now that the situation is so urgent, we talk about principles, but the landlords do not follow our principles. My opinion is that we should start acting according to what Scholar Wen said. After we solve the problem, we can then slowly discuss the principles."

"You are undermining party democracy!" Qin Shou reacted strongly.

"We talk about democracy, but the landlords do not. Party democracy does not mean that irrelevant comrades should have decision-making power. I believe that in such an emergency, someone must make the final decision." This was what You Gou had always wanted to say. In the early days when the People's Party had only eight or nine members, the focus was on action, and lectures and discussions were squeezed into spare time. At that time, You Gou was responsible for pharmaceuticals and had to sacrifice sleep to attend meetings. After the People's Party expanded, although everyone had work, the efficiency was lower. Especially during party meetings, Chen Ke always had to communicate with the comrades for a long time. In normal times, it was fine, but in such a critical moment, instead of thinking about dealing with the enemy, they had to spend energy convincing their comrades. Party democracy carried out in this way was better not to exist at all.

Unfortunately, Qi Huishen and Xing Tai were not present. You Gou felt very regretful. Chen Tianhua was working in the north, and Qi Huishen was still in Shanghai, responsible for the Shanghai branch. If these two were in Anhui, they could at least suppress a considerable number of people with their prestige and connections.

"What do you think should be done, Comrade You Gou?" Qin Shou asked.

"My suggestion is to directly elect a Central Committee for Anhui, with annual re-elections. All work should be under the command of the Central Committee." You Gou finally expressed her final thoughts.

Many people drew in a cold breath, and Qin Shou secretly gave You Gou a nod, then he also stood up. As a graduate of the Nanyang Naval Academy, this young man, who had traveled north alone to serve the capital during the Gengzi year and had once been a minor official in the Ministry of Revenue, had long hoped to establish a more efficient party organization. But the timing had never been right. As a member of the Beijing party group and a southerner, Qin Shou did not exclude the Shanghai party group. On the contrary, he shared the same views as You Gou and others on reforming the party organization. Although it was not intentional, his and You Gou's cooperation was quite默契 (默契 means默契, but in this context, it can be translated as "coordinated").

"If a Central Committee is established, what should be the relationship between the Central Committee and the party members? Party democracy cannot be abandoned. How can we ensure both democracy and efficiency? This needs to be clarified." The People's Party could still maintain a certain level of cohesion despite being a large mix of people, and party democracy played a significant role. Because everyone had a voice, many things, although not necessarily accepted, could still be discussed. Once a Central Committee was elected, there would be a hierarchy. Many people would certainly worry that their opinions would not be as valued as before.

"Let me ask a question. Who does the power of the People's Party belong to?" As an old party member, You Gou was very clear about the party's theories and institutional construction. This was all thanks to Chen Ke's insistence on organizational principles, which kept the People's Party from going astray from the beginning.

All party members had heard these contents in party classes. When You Gou asked this question, they immediately began to frown and think. Qin Shou said loudly, "The power of the People's Party belongs to the various levels of party organizations. Party organizations at all levels are elected through fair voting, and within the same level, the principle of the minority obeying the majority is adopted. Between different levels of party organizations, the principle of lower levels obeying higher levels is implemented. Higher-level party organizations have the obligation to provide explanations to the questions of lower-level party organizations."

After hearing Qin Shou's explanation, the comrades recalled the organizational rules proposed by the People's Party. At this stage, the People's Party did not have a central committee, and even before the comrades arrived in Anhui, there were no party branches. So these organizational rules were only heard about. While everyone was worried about the possible attack by landlord armed forces, they did not expect that You Gou and Qin Shou's seemingly opposing arguments would lead to the establishment of a party organization. Many people did not even understand what was happening.

"In the face of a major enemy, we cannot have multiple commands. We must elect a Central Committee and coordinate our actions under its command." Shang Yuan stood up and expressed his stance.

"That's right. In the past, it took days to discuss a single issue. Now, it's really not appropriate." Hua Xiongmao was very smart. He immediately understood You Gou's intention. Seeing that Shang Yuan had already expressed his stance, he quickly stood up to support it.

"I also support the election of a Central Committee. After dealing with the landlords, we can have detailed discussions later." He Zudao immediately followed.

Several key figures in the People's Party and the insurance team expressed their support, and the others had no reason to oppose. Mysteriously, the meeting's theme shifted from rural work to how to hold elections.

However, this was also a good opportunity. Except for a few comrades from the guard department, who did not have time to attend the meeting, most of the comrades from the Anhui branch of the People's Party were present. Thus, an election rule was established. Since Anhui had gathered the majority of the People's Party members, a resolution could be formed with the agreement of more than two-thirds of the formal party members. If more than three-quarters voted in favor, even the party constitution could be proposed for amendment.

This meeting temporarily approved two major intentions: first, to establish the Central Committee of the People's Party, and all other party branches must obey the command of the Central Committee. Second, to prepare for the election of a temporary Central Committee with a six-month term. All of this would be formally voted on at the full party meeting to be held the next day.

The meeting had to end here. Although the issue of landlord armed forces was urgent, the People's Party's military force, the "Insurance Team," was already in the county and responsible for security, especially the safety of the warehouses. The various alert systems were also in place. Thanks to the collective meeting, everyone was clear about these matters and was not overly worried.

Since another meeting would be held in a few hours, Chen Ke announced the adjournment, and the comrades returned to rest. In the temporary Central Committee, Chen Ke was sure to be elected as the First Secretary. This was not in doubt, and Chen Ke did not want to privately discuss with some comrades, as any subtle actions could be misinterpreted. Even You Gou and Hua Xiongmao, Chen Ke's staunch supporters, directly returned to their residences. He Zudao, after much thought, finally swallowed the incident of Xiong Mingyang's minor friction with the sentry. This matter could be discussed after the committee was elected.

On July 27, 1906, the full meeting of the Anhui branch of the People's Party was officially held. The meeting elected the Central Committee of the People's Party, and the temporary Central Committee consisted of seven members: Chen Ke, Shang Yuan, Hua Xiongmao, You Gou, Qin Shou, Yu Wenbada, and Lu Huitian.

The Central Committee oversaw three branches: the Hebei branch, the Shanghai branch, and the Anhui branch. Chen Tianhua was appointed as the secretary of the Hebei branch in absentia, and Qi Huishen was appointed as the secretary of the Shanghai branch in absentia. Surprisingly, the secretary of the Anhui branch was appointed to Qin Wuan. Due to his long-term contact and cooperation with the Anhui engineering team led by Yu Wenbada, and because this team was already the backbone of the Insurance Team, Qin Wuan's appointment as the secretary of the Anhui branch did not face any opposition.

After the Central Committee was established, the core structure of the party, government, and military was basically formed. Party members were not allowed to hold positions in both the Central Committee and the various levels of party organizations, but party members could hold positions in government departments. Shang Yuan, for example, also served as the highest administrative official of the Anhui government.

The military was divided into the military command and the military administration departments. Chen Ke, following party tradition, held the position of Chairman of the Military Committee with the status of First Secretary. The Military Committee had seven members: Chen Ke, Hua Xiongmao, Xu Dian, Chai Qingguo, He Zudao, Yu Wenbada, and Kuroshima Jinichiro.

A special logistics committee was also established, with Su Wuming and Mao Ping serving as members.

Additionally, a very important department was established, the "People's Party Discipline Inspection Committee," commonly known as the "Disciplinary Committee." This department was equivalent to the "Imperial Censorate." Chen Ke did not want this important work to be controlled by the "pure stream" faction, so he personally appointed the members, with government and military committee providing the personnel. Shang Yuan served as the head of the Disciplinary Committee, and Xu Dian, a graduate of the law school, served as the deputy head.

The election seemed simple, but the repeated raising of hands for voting was indeed tedious. These comrades had been together for a long time and were familiar with each other. The People's Party was still in its early stages, and internal factions had not yet fully formed. Apart from Chen Ke, the two most influential figures in the party, Qi Huishen and Chen Tianhua, were in Shanghai and Hebei. If they were present, there might have been some struggles. Now that these two were not present, no one even thought about competing for authority. Since the flood began, all party members had been ordered to work on the front lines, and everyone had to work personally, so the difference in status was not a key issue for the time being.

Once the Central Committee was established, Chen Ke let each department hold its own meetings to familiarize themselves with their comrades and discuss departmental arrangements and guidelines. The Central Committee members held their internal meeting.

"The rural work must be launched immediately." Chen Ke said straightforwardly. A meeting of seven people was indeed much more efficient than a full meeting. If it were a full meeting, Chen Ke would at least show some gentleness, but facing the other Central Committee members, he had no smile.

"Mr. Chen, oh, Comrade Chen Ke, I am still worried about the landlords' intentions." Yu Wenbada quickly said. Since he had already revealed this information, he believed Chen Ke would not ignore it.

"Comrade Yu," You Gou omitted the name "Bada" and only called him by his surname, "the landlords incite the people to attack us. We must counter their counter-revolutionary propaganda with revolutionary propaganda."

"Revolutionary propaganda?" Yu Wenbada was somewhat puzzled.

"The landlords tell the people that we have grain and are preparing to hoard it for profit, and they do not care about the people's lives. Therefore, we must counter their propaganda with revolutionary propaganda. We do have grain, but it is not enough for everyone to eat until next year. To ensure everyone's survival, the landlords' land must be taken and cultivated collectively, and the harvest must be shared to get through the disaster year."

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