Seeing that the conversation about military equipment was about to begin, Hu Xiushan stood up and said, "Chairman, let me hand over my work first."

He Rui nodded. Hu Xiushan was meticulous in his work, always prioritizing the completion of one task before starting another. Cheng Ruofan used to like 'multi-threading' tasks, but after suffering for it, he learned from Hu Xiushan, and his work completion rate improved rapidly.

Hu Xiushan had his secretary pass the retreat order to the department responsible for execution before sitting back down in front of He Rui with his full attention, explaining the army's demand for weapons.

To defeat the Japanese army, it was naturally necessary to conduct large-scale exercises with the Japanese army as the hypothetical enemy. In the exercises, the Type 19 semi-automatic rifle performed very well, but the troops still felt that their firepower could not quickly overwhelm the Japanese army. They needed weapons and equipment capable of comprehensively suppressing the Japanese. As the person responsible for this area, Hu Xiushan summarized the troops' envisioned needs and proposed a complete set of weapon concepts.

After listening to the brief introduction, He Rui couldn't help but want to smile. At this stage, these weapons were all concepts, but they already had the feel of the Cold War era. Assault rifles, direct-fire weapons carried by individual soldiers.

Looking at He Rui's expression, Hu Xiushan could already guess that these weapon design concepts were within He Rui's vision. And the fact that He Rui hadn't proposed them until now was likely because He Rui had already considered clearly why these weapons couldn't be built yet.

Since He Rui fully understood what Hu Xiushan was saying, Hu Xiushan didn't continue his introduction and asked directly, "Chairman, can I hear your opinion?"

"My opinion is that at this stage, we should first make good use of the weapons we have on hand, especially the tempo of using these weapons. As for the weapons everyone hopes for now, they are merely upgrades and enhancements to current weapons, without considering the upgrade of the combat system of war itself. For example, has the use of armored forces been considered? In the future, troop offensives will not rely on two legs, but on armored fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers for long-distance battlefield maneuvering. Furthermore, during ground engagements, will aircraft in the sky join the battle? Carrying out in-depth bombing of enemy defensive positions and aerial bombing attacks on stubborn firepower points."

Hu Xiushan remembered these things He Rui had said, and he had considered them. So Hu Xiushan immediately asked, "Chairman, how long will it take to achieve this?"

He Rui naturally had an assessment. "We will end the war with Japan in '23 and completely liberate China within '25. Two Five-Year Plans will take 10 years, so it can be realized by 1935."

Hu Xiushan didn't make a sound, just considering along He Rui's line of thought, his expression full of intellectual hesitation.

He Rui knew that as someone who had witnessed the great power of China's industrial construction, he not only felt that such development was only natural but also felt that there were too many areas that could be improved. But for young people who were walking on this path, this was a path that was both anticipated and completely unknown.

In that case, He Rui naturally had to shoulder the responsibility of a leader, which was to point out the path to his comrades.

"Comrade Xiushan, what do you think is the fundamental basis for us winning victory?"

"Industrial strength?" Hu Xiushan quickly gave an answer.

"After four years of hard work, over ten million people have completed literacy training. In the entire Northeast, young people under 18 have completed four years of primary education. Over one million young people have completed higher primary education. 200,000 young people have completed junior high school education. Over 39,000 have completed high school education. Over 4,000 have graduated from university... including military academies. We are going to use such manpower to fight a war of a modern nation against Japan."

Hu Xiushan did not shy away at all. "Japan industrialized earlier than we did."

He Rui was somewhat disappointed in his heart. This was Hu Xiushan's limitation. Whether it was Xu Chengfeng or Cheng Ruofan, they had enough research interest in the country's future, or rather, in things that did not yet exist in reality. Hu Xiushan, on the other hand, was a very realistic person and would absolutely not focus his attention on things that did not exist.

It wasn't that Hu Xiushan wasn't good; Hu Xiushan had a huge interest and sensitivity towards cutting-edge military academics that had already appeared, which also formed Hu Xiushan's extreme professionalism in military affairs. But it was limited to the military field.

Pushing aside the regret in his heart, He Rui explained to Hu Xiushan, "The point of industrialization is not just to produce more equipment, nor is it just about possessing modern army-building thoughts. Our army's advantage lies in the political advantage of how to use these tools. Xiushan, do you think the Japanese don't know they are obtaining benefits by invading China?"

Hu Xiushan thought for a moment before answering, "...I think the upper echelons know. As for the lower classes, I have some doubts."

"Heh." He Rui chuckled. He Rui had also gone through this stage when he was young. Especially after seeing many Japanese right-wingers trying their best to whitewash the war of aggression, He Rui not only completely disbelieved the saying that 'the Japanese people were deceived', but in He Rui's view, the Japanese people were not only not innocent, but were accomplices and even fellow travelers of the Japanese militarist war criminals.

Even now, He Rui still didn't think the Japanese people were innocent, though he no longer held the Japanese people in high regard.

If the phrase 'the people create history' is taken as a theory rather than a 'propaganda slogan', then the Japanese army that committed innumerable crimes in World War II was composed of Japanese people, and the thoughts were also created by Japanese people. The Japanese people as a whole were guilty.

In reality, the Japanese people tried their best to forget World War II, and the right-wingers spoke all sorts of nonsense. All of this proved that they knew they were guilty. But from a Chinese perspective, this behavior was a refusal to admit guilt.

Hu Xiushan might not have mastered the ability to analyze these issues, and had no interest in learning these abilities. This young man was like a sword, meant for killing, not for understanding.

But He Rui didn't want Hu Xiushan's vision to be confined to his current field, so he discussed this matter carefully with Hu Xiushan.

Relying on his own comprehension, Hu Xiushan still managed to understand He Rui's view on the future Sino-Japanese war. Hu Xiushan was even more puzzled, "Chairman, wanting the Japanese to understand that the war has reached a dead end, wouldn't that require the Japanese to awaken?"

Looking at Hu Xiushan's expression, He Rui was truly somewhat speechless. This guy was really specialized. Hu Xiushan saw that the Japanese people had to awaken before they could understand Japan's dead end, but this guy couldn't understand what result the awakening of the Japanese public would bring.

Since this guy could see the key point, He Rui felt there was no reason to force Hu Xiushan to understand from a political perspective; that would be a cruel compulsion. So He Rui switched back to the direction Hu Xiushan was proceeding in. "Xiushan, the fact that you can understand this point, I think is very good. Then from this angle, how do you view the requirements regarding equipment now?"

Hu Xiushan thought for a moment and answered, "I think it is inappropriate to universally roll out these equipment. However, it is necessary for our army to design specifically for the annihilation of Japanese divisions. These designs do not need to increase equipment, but rather adjust the equipment already fielded to achieve the goal of annihilating Japanese division-level units in field environments."

He Rui praised in his heart; as long as he returned to the track of Hu Xiushan's thinking, this guy was simply a genius. He Rui had long been considering annihilating Japanese divisions in field battles. If he had proposed this idea to Xu Chengfeng or Cheng Ruofan, they would have considered it from an overall strategic perspective, while Hu Xiushan considered it directly from a tactical perspective. In operations of combat scale, He Rui trusted Hu Xiushan's consideration.

"Go back and carry out the design. Existing equipment will not be adjusted, but the quantity of existing equipment can be adjusted for different combat targets." After He Rui finished speaking, he looked at Hu Xiushan. He saw Hu Xiushan nod and answer straightforwardly, "I will carry out the design."

It was enough to stop here. He Rui believed that a military expert didn't need to say more. If they said more, it would prove that the so-called military expert actually had no ideas themselves.

After sending Hu Xiushan away, He Rui began planning regarding the utilization of Russian coal. In the initial negotiations completed by Han Haitao, the Russian side was willing to provide a coal mine near Heilongjiang. In the eyes of current coal professionals, this wet coal mine was simply a nightmare. But in He Rui's eyes, these coal mines could be used directly for chemical production. Whether it was coal gasification, coal-to-liquids for gasoline, or chemical raw materials, they were extremely high-quality raw materials. Therefore, the Northeast Government wanted to directly contract this coal mine in full. A base with an annual output of millions of tons of gasoline and chemical products—not utilizing it well would be a waste of natural resources.

While He Rui was busy with his affairs, Comrade Lenin in Soviet Russia was also busy with what he had to do. He Rui's letter was still in transit, but the content of the letter had already been sent to Comrade Lenin via telegram. Comrade Lenin hadn't expected He Rui to have a bit of a 'historian's' style.

Marxism is an economics, and just as He Rui said in the letter, there has never been a precedent for the revival of an old regime that has collapsed economically. Because of He Rui, Comrade Lenin also learned about the Chinese political situation. Zhang Xun's restoration had great reference significance for Soviet Russia.

To prevent the Tsar's family from becoming White Russian princesses, Soviet Russia killed the entire Tsar's family. But China's emperor was still there, the imperial family was there, and the ministers were also there. However, Zhang Xun's restoration was a calculated and utilized object from the very beginning. When Zhang Xun drove away the then-President of the Republic Li Yuanhong, Zhang Xun's utility was exhausted, and he was immediately and easily beaten out of Beijing.

This was a very good case study, allowing Comrade Lenin to understand why He Rui completely didn't care about the restoration of the old dynasty. But Comrade Lenin couldn't figure out what kind of benefits He Rui wanted to extract from the humanitarian action targeting the White Russians.

Comrade Lenin didn't believe a single word of the 'humanitarianism' He Rui spoke of. A person like He Rui possessed a concept of good and evil that was worlds apart from normal people. When He Rui tried to make ordinary people think that both sides had the same concept of good and evil, he was one hundred percent deceiving kind-hearted ordinary people.

However, this question could not be asked of He Rui. Not because he was afraid He Rui would be angry, but because Comrade Lenin didn't want He Rui to see that no one in Soviet Russia could see through him. This would only make He Rui look down on the upper echelons of Soviet Russia.

Finally, Comrade Lenin made a decision and drafted an order to be sent to the front line: 'Leave a passage for the White Russians to retreat from Vladivostok to China; the troops will launch an attack from due north of Vladivostok.'

At this time, the Japanese General Staff in Tokyo was also discussing He Rui's statement. This statement was not He Rui's statement regarding the White Russians; the Japanese military had lost confidence in the White Russians and accepted the result of letting them sink or swim.

Nagata Tetsuzan himself was looking forward to going to Europe as a military attaché, but the General Staff and the Ministry of War both believed that such a talent could not be leisurely studying in Europe, so they appointed Nagata Tetsuzan to work in the military training department.

This meeting called Lieutenant Colonel Nagata to attend again. The generals discussed the Zhili-Anhui War that had nearly broken out. Although Duan Qirui of the Anhui clique had a distinguished reputation, the Zhili clique, after losing its leader Feng Guozhang, did not care about Duan Qirui, who was as famous as Feng Guozhang. If it weren't for the lack of clear support from Britain and the stern warning from Japan, the Zhili clique would likely have already launched an attack on the Anhui clique's Duan Qirui.

From Japan's perspective, if not for the factor of He Rui, Japan would actually be happy to see a war between Zhili and Anhui. As long as war broke out, Japan could demand that the Zhili warlords accept Japan's special privileges in Shandong. Moreover, the Japanese side had actually proposed to Duan Qirui that as long as Duan Qirui fully recognized Japan's special privileges in Shandong, Japan was willing to support him.

However, Duan Qirui decisively rejected Japan's request and gave the Japanese side this answer: 'He Rui is only thirty years old, yet he can reclaim the Chinese Eastern Railway and recover interests for China. This old man is fifty-five this year; even if I die immediately, it wouldn't be considered a premature death. At the age of knowing one's destiny, if I still sell out China's interests, how would I speak when I see my ancestors after death?'

Both China and Japan practiced ancestor worship. Duan Qirui's words had already expressed his attitude extremely clearly. Moreover, after analysis, the Japanese side believed that Duan Qirui was bluntly expressing his attitude that he was confident of receiving He Rui's support.

So after some discussion, the Japanese General Staff believed that He Rui's purpose in causing so many things internationally recently lay not abroad but domestically. Gaining fame in Europe and America through 'humanitarian aid', if He Rui were to be actively attacked by Japan at this time, he would undoubtedly receive public support.

But this was still a small matter. Both the Japanese General Staff and the Ministry of War were worried that He Rui would take advantage of the outbreak of the Zhili-Anhui war to send troops into the pass and occupy North China when Duan Qirui was defeated. Once He Rui achieved such a goal, even if Japan intervened with troops, they probably wouldn't be able to stop He Rui from unifying China.

Yet He Rui remained silent and maintained an extremely restrained attitude. This attitude was most beneficial to Japan. No matter what Japan did, it was not as beneficial as secretly maintaining the status quo in China.

After the Japanese officers discussed this, they all felt very speechless. Finally, Chief of the General Staff General Uehara Yūsaku laughed and said, "He-kun is indeed the Chief Graduate of the Army War College. Principal Kawai Misao really taught an extraordinary student."

This remark was both a fact and saved the face of the Japanese officers. Everyone could only laugh dryly and sigh along. Soon, the officers' gazes fell upon Nagata Tetsuzan, the Japanese Lieutenant Colonel who was highly regarded.

Nagata Tetsuzan didn't care about his colleagues' gazes. He knew he was kept in the country because of the expectations of the seniors in the military. Since a figure like He Rui had appeared in China, Japan must also cultivate young elites capable of countering him.

The young Japanese elites were a list, and Nagata Tetsuzan was one of them. Another was Ishiwara Kanji, who was known as a ronin. However, Ishiwara Kanji was too close to He Rui. Although he was still valued, it was impossible to let Ishiwara Kanji intervene in affairs related to He Rui.

Although Nagata Tetsuzan had his own judgment, he remained silent, waiting for his seniors in the military to speak first. The two sides were entangled in silence for a moment before Chief of the General Staff General Uehara Yūsaku said, "Nagata-kun, what do you think is He-kun's goal?"

Nagata Tetsuzan bowed slightly. "Your Excellency, in my opinion, He-kun truly does not care about the war that might break out between Zhili and Anhui. Even if the Zhili-Anhui war breaks out, as long as the Empire sends troops, all of He-kun's efforts will come to naught. Therefore, I believe that He-kun is currently reorganizing the military and preparing for war with the goal of actively initiating a war with the Empire. As long as he can weaken the Empire, He-kun will naturally be invincible when he marches south. With He-kun's insight, he cannot possibly neglect the essentials for the trifles and play some petty tricks."

This was not the first time Nagata Tetsuzan had voiced such a judgment, so the officers of the General Staff were no longer astonished. Theoretically, what Nagata Tetsuzan said was the dignified and correct path. But He Rui challenging the Great Japanese Empire with the power of the Northeast was completely unreasonable from a practical perspective. Even if He Rui bet everything, he couldn't defeat the Great Japanese Empire.

Hearing this, only a few light chuckles came from the General Staff conference room, and no one chimed in. Even Chief of the General Staff General Uehara Yūsaku just smiled and didn't even evaluate Nagata Tetsuzan's view. Instead, he continued with other discussions regarding the situation in Northeast Asia. "The United States wants to hold a conference in Washington and has invited many countries, including us and China. I am worried that the government will make concessions on interests in Shandong due to pressure from the United States at the conference..."

After the General Staff meeting ended, Nagata Tetsuzan went straight to the Army War College. When he arrived at the school, it happened to be afternoon dismissal time. The Japanese Army War College was absolutely elite education, with a small scale, graduating only fifty or sixty people a year on average. The instructors were actually quite relaxed. Seeing Ishiwara Kanji walking out of the classroom with a textbook tucked under his arm, Nagata Tetsuzan greeted Ishiwara Kanji, "Second Seat Ishiwara, hello."

Ishiwara Kanji, seeing it was Nagata Tetsuzan greeting him like this, couldn't help but laugh. "Second Seat, good day."

He Rui graduated first, meaning he was the Chief. Nagata Tetsuzan and Ishiwara Kanji were both second in their respective classes, making them Second Seats. Just this greeting told Ishiwara Kanji that what Nagata Tetsuzan wanted to discuss was He Rui.

It was winter now. Nagata Tetsuzan and Ishiwara Kanji, with Siping brand cigarettes produced in the Northeast hanging from their lips, strolled on the snowy ground of the school, two lines of footprints extending behind them.

Nagata Tetsuzan went straight to the point. "Ishiwara-kun, have you heard He-kun mention any plans to go to war with the Great Japanese Empire?"

Ishiwara Kanji chuckled. "Nagata-kun, shouldn't it be the Empire actively attacking He-kun?"

Nagata Tetsuzan knew very well how to perfunctory in front of not-so-smart people, but facing a smart person like Ishiwara Kanji, Nagata Tetsuzan was not sloppy at all. "How could He-kun be someone who passively takes a beating? Ishiwara-kun, this matter concerns the fate of the Empire. I sincerely came to ask for advice."

Ishiwara Kanji actually admired Nagata Tetsuzan's ability. Hearing Nagata Tetsuzan speak of the Empire's fate, he had to answer seriously, "'25, '26. It definitely won't drag on to '30. The Empire's situation will also be extremely difficult to maintain until '30. By then, no matter what He-kun thinks, the Empire will probably have to make a move against China."

Nagata Tetsuzan originally also thought war would break out in '25 or '26, but he felt that those in the Japanese General Staff and Ministry of War who could understand this point would definitely not be few. So he continued to ask, "Could it be earlier?"

Ishiwara Kanji was somewhat surprised by Nagata Tetsuzan's judgment. He frowned as he smoked and continued walking. After walking a while longer, he stopped and flicked the cigarette butt into the snow. "Nagata-kun, if He-kun makes a move, he must have a chance of winning. If war starts earlier than '25 or '26, He-kun's capability is already beyond what you and I can understand. Are you asking this sincerely, or are you that unconfident in yourself?"