Wu Youping listened with surging emotions. He picked up the cup, drank a large mouthful of plain water, and calmed his mood. Only then did he remember He Rui saying the starting point begins in Siping, so he hurriedly asked, "I wonder how the Governor plans to govern Siping?"

"Student Wu is a native of Siping and possesses insight. Presumably, you have some ideas. Why not share them?"

Hearing this, Wu Youping steadied his mind, though his expression looked somewhat troubled. However, he still said, "I went to school in Tianjin and felt heavy-hearted seeing the concessions. However, the governance of the concessions indeed far exceeds that of outside the pass. If we can borrow their reasonable ideas without those humiliating treaties that forfeit sovereignty, they should serve as a model for Siping's current development."

He Rui's evaluation of Wu Youping instantly rose significantly. Even a character like Xu Chengfeng hated the concessions to the bone. If Xu Chengfeng were ordered to seize the concessions at this time, he would certainly build them up too, but he would probably start over after destroying them to his heart's content, and would absolutely not consider the advanced elements within.

Wu Youping was equally heartbroken by the humiliating concessions, yet he could already think in terms of borrowing and learning; he was indeed promising.

During the exchange, Wu Youping pointed out Siping's advantages. Although this place wasn't a big city like Fengtian or Changchun, it was located in the middle of the railway network outside the pass. From the perspective of commodity trade, it possessed a superior location second only to Changchun. Natural resources were also very abundant, allowing for the simultaneous development of industry and commerce and rapid growth.

After listening to Wu Youping's narrative, He Rui asked a question. "Youping, why did you say twice that Siping is limited by insufficient water sources?"

Wu Youping didn't expect He Rui to ask this question. He had just spoken out of feeling without thinking too much. After pondering for a while, he answered, "Probably because one of the railway subjects I studied was about train water supply. Outside the pass is not like inside the pass; there are no great rivers. It's difficult to get water during the dry season, so I spoke out of feeling."

Just then, the orderly reported again, "Report to the Governor..."

"Good. I know." He Rui stood up and extended his hand to Wu Youping. "This is the first time I've met a young man who has read my books. When I have time in the coming days, I will invite you over."

Wu Youping hurriedly shook hands with He Rui. "Governor," he suddenly blushed slightly, saying expectantly, "this subordinate wishes to serve the Governor."

He Rui patted his shoulder vigorously and smiled. "We welcome all like-minded comrades!"

He Rui arrived at the meeting room and handed Wu Youping's business card to Xu Jia, who had been formally appointed as the Chief of the Statistics Section. "Send someone to investigate this person and prepare to conduct a political review on him."

Xu Jia looked at the card, showing a slightly surprised expression.

"You know this person?" He Rui was a bit puzzled.

"I only saw this name when conducting the survey and statistics on Siping's prominent figures; I haven't met him. I just heard Hu Xiushan mention once that this person was his middle school classmate. I recorded it in the file, so I have an impression."

It was also the first time He Rui heard that Hu Xiushan had this relationship with Wu Youping. Hu Xiushan was usually reticent but completed his work extremely well. He was a person of inner intelligence. It was normal for Hu Xiushan not to show off, but this Wu Youping sought a meeting with He Rui based only on learning and insight, without mentioning this relationship. It showed that although this person was young, he was confident.

Before He Rui could speak, Xu Jia added, "I absolutely won't mention this matter during the review. I'll just see if this Wu Youping writes it truthfully when stating his social relations."

He Rui nodded and began to preside over the meeting. "Comrades, the situation in Siping is now initially settled. Our goal in the next few years is to unify China and liberate China. Judging by the international situation, once we start the process of unifying China, Japan, based on its own interest demands, will definitely try every means to add unnecessary trouble for us, and won't even rule out armed intervention. Therefore, we must defeat Japan before marching deeply into the country, forcing Japan to remain neutral, and clearing the obstacles for unifying the country in advance."

Everyone at the meeting showed expressions of surprise and joy. They hadn't expected to take down Siping so quickly. Naturally, they talked about the future during their dormitory "bedroom talks" before sleep. They mainly discussed how to seize the area outside the pass and Mongolia as soon as possible to cut off Japan's ambition to covet Manchuria and Mongolia. When talking about unifying the whole country, they all felt the immense pressure of Japan and Russia taking the opportunity to invade.

At this moment, hearing He Rui say they would use a pre-emptive method to deal with Japan, everyone couldn't help but think of Russia at the same time.

They heard He Rui continue, "Russia's industrial development was later than Western Europe's, but it developed rapidly with the support of French monetary capital. One of the reasons Germany was eager to start the war was the fear that Russia would expand westward after developing, joining hands with France to unbalance the European situation. However, in Russian society at this time, the old agricultural society is beginning to disintegrate. Although industry has become the main part of the national economy, a political system suitable for an industrial society has not yet been built. It is precisely the stage where the domestic superstructure is most torn. The World War has a huge impact on Russia. I judge that before the war ends, a revolution will break out in Russia, plunging Russia into civil war. Even if a winner emerges, Russia will be greatly weakened. It will take at least a dozen years for Russia to recover its vitality. As long as we can use diplomatic means properly, we should be able to avoid Russian intervention."

The crowd had some doubts, but hearing He Rui's firm tone and definitive words, they could only keep their doubts in their hearts.

"As for Japan, although its domestic system is on par with Russia's, due to geographical reasons, it did not participate directly in the World War and has temporarily maintained political stability. But once the Great War ends, the social contradictions accumulated during economic development will erupt violently. To transfer this domestic pressure, Japanese politicians and soldiers will definitely choose to invade China. And our task is to strike first before they launch their move, defeating Japan first to avoid interference with our development process."

Everyone looked at each other. Xu Chengfeng couldn't help asking, "Governor, Japan went through the Meiji Restoration and has a first-mover advantage. I'm afraid it will be very difficult for us to defeat them, right?"

He Rui laughed. "I studied in Japan for many years and understand this country very well. In my judgment, Japan's national power is very weak, domestic social contradictions are acute, and the army's combat effectiveness is very poor. As long as the strategic direction is set, solving it won't be difficult."

The group of young men was spirited. After whispering for a while, they felt uneasy again. "Governor, Japan has fought our country many times. Judging from the battle situations, the Japanese army performed very excellently. Why does the Governor think their combat effectiveness is very poor?"

He Rui explained patiently, "That is because we have never established a truly modern army. When the Japanese army fights us, they are either fighting China's feudal armies or fighting semi-professional armies like militias. So looking at the battle records, they appear powerful. In reality, this army's navy is passable, but the army is basically still in a semi-feudal, semi-modern state. The overall military quality of the officer corps is low, relying on extreme nationalism and fear intimidation to drive soldiers. Their equipment can't be considered good either. They can perform some low-to-mid-level tactical operations, but apart from not being afraid of death, they have no special characteristics. Overall, this is still an armed force stuck in a barbaric era."