With three days remaining until January 1st, Shandong Party Secretary Chen Deli, after discussing current tasks with Han Haitao, suggested, "Governor Han, I propose we have a normal holiday for the New Year."

Han Haitao was stunned for a moment. Although there had been no major problems in Shandong, there was a constant stream of minor issues. Just when work was intense and they were striving to complete tasks as early as possible, suddenly proposing a normal holiday... how would they account for the delayed progress?

The Secretary was mainly in charge of personnel. Who to employ and what treatment to provide them were all within Chen Deli's scope of work. Holidays, however, fell within Han Haitao's administrative authority. If he didn't issue the order, no one could rest.

Han Haitao was somewhat puzzled. "Why?"

Chen Deli stated his reason: "Better rest leads to better work. Moreover, if we rest normally, it will make the common people feel that the new government consists of normal people too."

"Normal people..." Han Haitao felt there was a paradox in this statement. Trying to make people feel one is normal is, in itself, abnormal. But this reason convinced Han Haitao. With so much content to work on, simply extending working hours could no longer improve efficiency. So, he agreed to Chen Deli's suggestion.

The Shandong government did not know that not only Shandong Province, but several provinces already firmly controlled by the new government, as well as party and government departments in the Beijing-Tianjin region, had all issued the same order for rest. The military, railways, postal service, water supply, electricity, and other sectors had their own rest systems and did not participate in this.

Tianjin and the smoothly land-reformed Zhili (Hebei Province) were even preparing to publish the official holiday schedule for 1924. In Beijing, He Rui wrote a memorandum stating that once the National Assembly reopened, Speaker of the Assembly Duan Qirui would need to undertake legislative work such as the "Holiday Law."

At this moment, Duan Qirui did not know that his position as Speaker of the National Assembly was not an idle one, and various tasks were already waiting for him. He was wholeheartedly dealing with his own troubles, which was to make those good-for-nothing Beiyang remnants give up hope at Zhang Xiluan's birthday banquet and stop looking for Duan Qirui's connections to seek official positions.

The day before the New Year, December 31st, arrived. At 10:00 AM, Duan Qirui arrived at the prepared restaurant. The steward who had already arrived asked Duan Qirui to walk through the place. Seeing that everything was arranged properly, people had already started arriving at the entrance.

Given Duan Qirui's status, he naturally wouldn't do the welcoming and seeing off. He went to a private room upstairs. However, by 11:00 AM, the steward came in to report, "Master, there are too many people coming. We have already booked the adjacent restaurant as well."

Duan Qirui knew the steward had made contingency plans and had already spoken with the neighboring restaurant. It was just that initially, only selected people were notified, but the number of people who heard the news and came was greater than expected.

Around 12:00 PM, Zhang Xiluan's car arrived. A soft sedan chair was already parked at the restaurant entrance. Zhang Xiluan sat in the sedan chair and was carried into the restaurant by two bearers. The restaurant was already large, and at this moment, there were no empty seats. Seeing Zhang Xiluan enter, everyone stood up to offer greetings. Many more people, seeing Zhang Xiluan's car arrive, came out from the adjacent restaurant and headed straight for the main birthday celebration venue.

Zhang Xiluan hadn't expected so many people and was momentarily annoyed. However, since things had reached this point, there was no reason to turn around and leave. The crowd coming to offer birthday congratulations knew the rules; no fool came up to pull Zhang Xiluan into a long-winded speech. They even sensibly cleared a path, allowing Zhang Xiluan to smoothly take the seat of honor.

Microphones and speakers were ready. Zhang Xiluan thanked everyone for coming to celebrate his birthday and invited them to eat and drink well. Then, supported by others, he went up to the second floor.

The entrance to the second floor was strictly guarded; only those truly invited could come up. Duan Qirui was already waiting for Zhang Xiluan on the second floor. Soon, the first batch of significant guests arrived on the second floor. Zhang Xiluan was stunned at a glance; the group leading the way turned out to be foreigners.

Duan Qirui's steward introduced, "This is the British Consulate in Tianjin... this is the representative of the International Chamber of Commerce in China... this is the representative of the French Chamber of Commerce in Tianjin..."

It turned out that the diplomatic and chamber of commerce representatives of various countries in Tianjin had heard the news. Although they hadn't received invitations, they took the initiative to come and offer birthday congratulations.

Although Duan Qirui's abilities were hard to evaluate compared to the new government, his personal integrity among the old Beiyang clique was passable. When he sent out the invitations, he had stated that individuals should come empty-handed, but he wouldn't let everyone see Zhang Xiluan empty-handed at the birthday banquet. Guests arrived, and paper and pens were already prepared for everyone to write a birthday scroll. In terms of etiquette, there was no problem.

For those whose calligraphy wasn't presentable, several types of pre-written birthday scrolls were also prepared. These people could choose one, sign their names, and that would suffice. It was quite dignified.

Even this group of foreigners was treated the same way. They presented birthday cards and letters, expressed their congratulations to Zhang Xiluan, and then went down.

The second wave consisted of thirty-some people, all in their early thirties or forties. Those old Beiyang members over forty-five, even if they didn't quite understand the situation, knew that at their age, there was no point in tossing about, so they didn't struggle anymore. After everyone wished Zhang Xiluan a happy birthday, Zhang Xiluan laughed, "Hehe, brothers, I didn't expect that for my birthday, so many foreigners would come. This is all due to the nation's prosperity."

Hearing this, everyone laughed along, but dared not speak recklessly. There were always some more free-spirited individuals in the crowd, and one said, "Duke Zhang, the new government has swept away national humiliation, and China is no longer bullied by foreign countries. Although we are dull, we have witnessed the previous situation. If the country is not strong, the entire nation suffers bullying. We are willing to serve the country, but we don't dare to think of seeking official positions. We just want to ask Duke Zhang to point out a clear path."

Hearing this, Zhang Xiluan's expression became serious. "I can guess a thing or two about your thoughts, brothers. I am reminded of old times. Brother He took a position from Brother Duan's side and went to the Northeast in... 1915. Tomorrow is 1924. In the blink of an eye, nine years are about to pass."

Everyone felt that He Rui's rise over these years was breathtaking. Hearing Zhang Xiluan speak like this, someone flattered, "Chairman He is a heaven-sent talent. In a mere nine years, he has achieved today's situation. We truly cannot compare."

However, more people remained silent, merely sighing with emotion in their hearts. Zhang Xiluan shook his head and turned to ask Duan Qirui, "Brother Duan, Brother He will be thirty-four next year. When he was admitted to the Shandong Military Primary School, how old was he?"

The Beiyang military academy system had undergone changes, with significant variations. Overall, it followed the progression of Army Primary School, Army Middle School, then the establishment of the Baoding Military Academy and the Army War College.

As for He Rui, after graduating from the Army Primary School back then, he went to study at the Army Middle School. Because of his excellent academic performance, during his time at the Army Middle School, he was selected to study abroad in Japan, attending the Imperial Japanese Army Academy. From 1907 to 1915, he studied in Japan for eight years. Calculating backwards, He Rui must have spent fourteen years just studying in various military academies.

Duan Qirui replied, "When Brother He entered the Army Primary School, he was at most eleven years old."

Zhang Xiluan turned to everyone present. "Brothers, Brother He certainly attended private school in his hometown. From his elementary education until he graduated from the Army War College in Japan, he studied for at least twenty years. Adding the past nine years, for Brother He to reach where he is today, he spent a full thirty years."

Thirty years. Hearing this number, the group of people anxious to find a connection was temporarily speechless. Their ages were comparable to He Rui's, and they had all read some books and attended some school. Thirty years was already the vast majority of their lives. Even studying for twenty years would exceed half of their lives. Although everyone had their own feelings, they didn't know what exactly Zhang Xiluan wanted to say.

Zhang Xiluan didn't expect this group to really amount to anything, so he spoke extremely frankly. "Brothers, after I yielded the Northeast to Brother He, I heard that in the first year, Brother He established schools. Not only did he order children to study, but he also established adult education, teaching adults who were previously thought to be past the age of reading. My son is a few years older than you brothers. In the past few years, while serving in office, he also participated in adult education. Now in his forties, because he completed his studies, he took the entrance exam for the Northeast Institute of Hydraulic Engineering last year and actually passed. I asked him at the time, at such an age going to school and becoming classmates with a group of youths, would he feel ashamed? My son said, the Sage said, 'If one hears the Way in the morning, one can die in the evening without regret.' Since there is school to attend, and after graduation one can build water conservancy projects, he felt this life would not be wasted in vain. Hearing him speak like this, I was both happy and sad. I always felt that if my horizons had been broader back then, I should have sent him to study abroad early on."

Since they were valued by Duan Qirui, they were naturally not fools. Listening to Zhang Xiluan's words, these people probably had some ideas, but most of their expressions turned ugly.

Sure enough, they heard Zhang Xiluan continue, "Brothers, the country is certainly going to prioritize education now. You have already read books. If you go and take the entrance exams for various schools now, I'm afraid you can get into university. Universities are divided into several types, with professional colleges graduating in three years. At that time, Brother Duan should still be serving the country, and naturally, Brother Duan will recommend talents. What do you have to worry about?"

Hearing these words, some people couldn't help but curse inwardly. They originally thought Duan Qirui might help, even if it was difficult. But they didn't expect the path Zhang Xiluan offered to be this arduous. If these people really wanted to study, they would have gone abroad long ago; why would they be racking their brains to find connections?

The method Zhang Xiluan gave was indeed correct, but it was truly not what they desired.

However, Zhang Xiluan didn't care in his heart. He and Duan Qirui wanted to shed all burdens. If these people were really willing to study and could pass the exams, doing a favor would naturally be easy. But Zhang Xiluan and Duan Qirui felt that these people probably didn't have such broad-mindedness, nor were they willing to endure the hardship of studying. Offering such a path could be considered making them retreat in the face of difficulties.

At this time, the banquet had already started in the restaurant. The crowd downstairs was eating and drinking boisterously. Joyful sounds drifted in from the staircase, showing that the atmosphere of the feast was truly lively. However, the crowd on the second floor either hesitated to speak or remained silent; the huge second floor was actually silent.

Because too many people came, Duan Qirui's steward had booked not two, but four restaurants. Many people actually knew they might not necessarily see Zhang Xiluan. The food served here was quite good, so they might as well eat and drink first.

In the three restaurants outside the main building, people recognized some and didn't recognize others. Those who didn't know each other were arranged together, and instead found things to talk about.

After three rounds of wine and five courses of food, a rather thin former Beiyang official sighed, "These years the country uses people, and they are all new people. I'm afraid in Chairman He's eyes, we are old-school figures."

Everyone's mind was on finding a connection. Hearing someone start a topic, someone immediately asked, "May I ask this brother, how is 'new school' defined? Is it the new school like the Revolutionary Party?"

The thin official smiled and shook his head. "Brothers, look at the ministerial candidates Chairman He recently announced. Chairman He is using our Beiyang people. Think about it, is it not so?"