Chen Ke didn't feel he was particularly good at revolutionary agitation. Speaking itself was a skill, an ability. The principle was simple; Chen Ke had tried it before, but the results were barely satisfactory. He didn't know if this was something that required innate talent, but the practical result was that Chen Ke believed nothing beat actual action. The purpose of speaking was for practice; one couldn't build a new world just with a mouth. This was also why Chen Ke hadn't tried his hardest to persuade this *Jianghu* hero when he first met Pang Zi.

That Pang Zi was willing to bow his head and come to Beijing really exceeded Chen Ke's expectations. It seemed Wu Xingchen had put in a lot of effort. Chen Ke didn't think he could make Pang Zi completely step onto the path of revolution. Rebelling in Hebei meant directly facing the pressure of the Beiyang Army. Even if Chen Ke personally stayed in Hebei, he wouldn't be arrogant enough to believe he could defeat the Beiyang Army at this stage. But Chen Ke was also unwilling to just fool and abandon Pang Zi and the other *Jianghu* heroes who came with him. Holding this attitude, Chen Ke and Pang Zi discussed the matters of rebellion.

Pang Zi had already started introducing how he met Wu Xingchen, and Wu Xingchen provided a lot of information on the side. From the Boxer Rebellion in the *Gengzi* year (1900), to the bloody battles in Beijing, and then to the rebellion in Shandong. Chen Ke wasn't particularly interested in these details. Rebellions in these times were all pretty much the same; history books might record them in even more detail. At first, Chen Ke asked some questions, but later on, he didn't say a word, his expression cold and his brows slightly furrowed. His mind was completely focused on considering the reasons for the failure of the uprisings.

However, Chen Tianhua, sitting beside Chen Ke, was quite moved. The rebellions in the south were all small-scale; many didn't even have time to launch before they were suppressed. In Pang Zi and Wu Xingchen's narration, Zhao Sanduo and Jing Tingbin's uprising involved the rebel army resisting the Qing troops and attacking churches. They formed a massive rebel army of 160,000 people spanning twenty-four counties in Zhili, Shandong, and Henan provinces. Yuan Shikai, the Governor-General of Zhili, immediately sent Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang, and others to lead Qing troops to Jizhou and Guangzong to suppress the rebel army on a large scale, and he personally supervised the battle. Moreover, more than 6,000 troops from the German, French, and Japanese invasion forces "assisted in the suppression." Making such a huge commotion in Shandong and Hebei. This greatly exceeded Chen Tianhua's imagination. Wu Xingchen usually looked quite cold, even a bit strange, and Chen Tianhua had never really liked him. Now, that thought had long flown to the nine heavens. Wu Xingchen had actually had such passionate and intense experiences. As Pang Zi and Wu Xingchen took turns speaking, Chen Tianhua's gaze kept switching between their faces.

This time, it wasn't just Pang Zi and Wu Xingchen who came; a total of six people arrived. The other four were also old brothers who had followed Zhao Sanduo in the rebellion. At first, they weren't very willing to talk, but after listening to Pang Zi for a while, everyone couldn't help but chime in one after another.

On Wu Xingchen's round, chubby face, typical of a tall man, there was an indescribable bitterness. Besides supplementing Pang Zi's introduction, he was also observing Chen Ke and Chen Tianhua. Wu Xingchen had an indescribable feeling about Chen Ke. Their initial acquaintance wasn't very pleasant, and their later cooperation couldn't be called a heart-to-heart. Chen Ke gave Wu Xingchen the impression of a cold fellow. Although Chen Ke habitually wore a smile and was definitely not a bad person, his enthusiasm for inciting revolution made Wu Xingchen feel an extreme danger. Wu Xingchen could be considered someone who had crawled out of a pile of dead bodies. In Beijing, in Shandong, if Wu Xingchen hadn't been vigilant enough and decisive enough to run away as soon as he sensed something was wrong, his head would probably be hanging somewhere unknown by now.

Running around these years, after failure after failure, Wu Xingchen had once thought he was mentally and physically exhausted and didn't want to rebel anymore. Hiding in Shanghai and muddling along until death might be a nice thing. But whenever he recalled his friends and teachers dying one by one, the hatred for the Manchu Qing and the foreigners in Wu Xingchen's chest would boil over with double the intensity. Learning that the People's Party wanted to rise up and rebel was the reason Wu Xingchen decided to join. And learning that these old brothers of Pang Zi were preparing to "make a scene," Wu Xingchen dragged Chen Ke over. Even knowing that Chen Ke and Pang Zi didn't get along well, Wu Xingchen still tried every means to persuade these brothers, hoping Chen Ke could have a good discussion with Pang Zi and the others about the rebellion. Unlike what appeared on the surface, Wu Xingchen was actually quite convinced by Chen Ke.

Unknowingly, Pang Zi had choked up as he reached the end. "In May, I was in Hebei, Big Brother Wu was in Shandong. Both groups were defeated badly. Uncle Zhao Sanduo went on a hunger strike and starved to death in the prison of Nangong County, and Uncle Jing Tingbin was executed by *lingchi*." Having just finished speaking, Pang Zi burst into loud crying. With this cry, the other four Shandong heroes looked grief-stricken, tears streaming down their faces. Chen Tianhua also had tears in his eyes, his shoulders twitching, choked up and unable to speak. Amidst this sorrow, both Chen Ke and Wu Xingchen remained silent. Wu Xingchen gritted his teeth, his eyes closed tight, a look of pain on his face. Chen Ke clenched his fists tightly, his lips pressed together until they turned white; his face was iron-blue, and it seemed as if two balls of cold fire were burning in his eyes.

It took a good while before Chen Tianhua could speak. Wiping his tears, he said, "Magnificent! Kill the Qing demons! Kill the foreign religion! These two old men are truly great heroes! I was in the south at the time and actually didn't know of such heroic deeds! Alas! I only hate that I couldn't follow all the brothers to kill the enemy back then!"

Pang Zi took a long time to barely calm his emotions. His eyes were red, and his sockets were full of tears. "Mr. Chen, last time you told me two paths: one to make a big scene, one to make a small scene. You also made it clear that making a small scene means death. I cursed you then. But after you left, every time I thought about rebelling, I couldn't help but think of your words."

History books didn't record much about this uprising, so naturally, Chen Ke didn't know Pang Zi had such experiences. Hearing Pang Zi mention the last incident, Chen Ke quickly said, "Brother Pang, my words were too harsh."

"No, Mr. Chen's words were correct. I thought it over repeatedly. If I make a small scene, I will definitely end up like the two uncles, unable to win. So Big Brother Wu persuaded me to come to Beijing, and I came to hear what advice Mr. Chen actually has."

Chen Ke lowered his head. How exactly should he explain revolution to Pang Zi? This really stumped Chen Ke. Looking at Pang Zi and the others' intention, they didn't plan to make a small scene this time either. In fact, historically, not long after, the Bai Lang Uprising in 1912 was no less in scale and momentum than the Jing Tingbin Uprising, but it was still suppressed in 1914. It was still the Beiyang Army that suppressed the uprising. History had long proven that without the Party's leadership and complete organization, rebellions by northern heroes would all fail.

"Brother Pang, I definitely want to help you rebel. Brother Wu said we are the Revolutionary Party. Since we are the Revolutionary Party, planning a rebellion is also our duty," Chen Ke looked up and said.

"Then how should we rebel?" Pang Zi asked quickly upon hearing Chen Ke say this.

"Why does Brother Pang want to rebel?" Chen Ke asked very seriously. This was a big question. If one didn't find the true reason for revolution and only acted out of momentary righteous indignation, no matter what kind of hero you were, you wouldn't be able to persist in the face of organized suppression. This had been proven countless times in Chinese history.

Sure enough, as Chen Ke guessed, Pang Zi said with resonant power, "Destroy the Qing, destroy the foreigners!"

"Why destroy the Qing and destroy the foreigners?" Chen Ke pressed on.

"The Manchu Qing and the foreigners ravage the common people. Those foreign religions do bad things everywhere, and the Manchu Qing helps those foreigners do bad things together."

"Why does the Manchu Qing want to help them?"

"This..." Pang Zi couldn't continue. He frowned and thought for a moment but felt he couldn't explain this problem. Raising his head to look at Chen Ke, Pang Zi's gaze turned to Wu Xingchen. Wu Xingchen was just about to speak when he saw Chen Ke gently shake his head at him. Wu Xingchen held back the words at his lips.

Unlike the coldness seen on the surface, for Wu Xingchen, the guidance of Chen Ke's Party class was not as insignificant as it appeared. In fact, Wu Xingchen himself was very interested in these courses. Having experienced great disasters, whether Wu Xingchen was willing or not, he had to face those memories. To think about why they suffered such tragic failures before. And Chen Ke's Party lectures undoubtedly pointed out a way to think about problems. If one had to compare, among the Party members who could understand the content of Chen Ke's lectures, Wu Xingchen could definitely rank in the top two. The reason Wu Xingchen didn't show his admiration was merely that long-term failure made Wu Xingchen more cautious.

Without Wu Xingchen's clear prompt, Pang Zi also felt he couldn't state a clear reason. He finally gave up and said, "Big Brother Wu, I can't remember clearly the words you used to persuade us a few days ago. You say them again."

Waiting for a moment, seeing Wu Xingchen not making a sound, Pang Zi felt very dissatisfied. He looked at Chen Ke, "Mr. Chen, you scholars are just so indecisive. If you want to help me, then speak plainly. What's with all this hiding and tucking away."

"After I explain it to you, you won't take it to heart. If you don't figure it out, my talking will be in vain," Chen Ke replied.

Pang Zi hated Chen Ke's attitude the most. His nature was originally impatient, and today, talking about sad things, his emotions were even more unstable. "If you're not willing to say it, don't keep us in suspense here." After speaking, Pang Zi sprang to his feet and glared at Chen Ke.

Chen Ke calmly looked at the emotional Pang Zi and slowly said, "Brother Pang, if you ask me, that 'Destroy the Qing, Destroy the Foreigners' you talk about is all learned from Uncle Zhao and Uncle Jing. You say what they said. Your true heart just wants revenge. Am I wrong?"

Hearing Chen Ke speak his mind, Pang Zi stood there stunned. He heard Chen Ke continue, "Now if I could let you kill Yuan Shikai, kill the magistrate of Nangong, even if it cost you your life, you would be willing to do it."

Upon hearing this, Pang Zi immediately became excited. He asked urgently, "Does Mr. Chen have a way to kill these two people?"

"Brother Pang, this is where you are inferior to Uncle Zhao and Uncle Jing," Chen Ke said calmly. "At any rate, the two of them went to attack churches and kill those missionaries and those bastards who believed in foreign religions for the sake of everyone. You are just for your own revenge. That's why there were tens of thousands of brothers following the two uncles. Even if you borrowed the two uncles' slogans, what you are doing is not the two uncles' business. If you just want to avenge yourself, you won't be able to raise any troops in Nangong County."

These words deeply poked Pang Zi's sore spot. He immediately flew into a rage out of humiliation. Pang Zi's left index finger pointed straight at Chen Ke's nose, his face flushed red with anger. "Motherfucker!" Pang Zi cursed aloud.

***

Early morning, the light grew brighter and brighter. Chen Ke blew out the candle and stretched a big lazy stretch. While shaking his wrist, he looked at the stack of manuscripts he had written. With Pang Zi making such a scene last night, Chen Ke didn't think much of it. Wu Xingchen stood up at the time and scolded Pang Zi. Chen Ke didn't hold a grudge; he persuaded Wu Xingchen to stop. He announced that every morning, he would give everyone a lecture. Although Pang Zi was unconvinced, since he had come, he couldn't just storm out directly. Moreover, everyone was tired from rushing from Xingtai to Beijing. Chen Ke let everyone rest individually. Pang Zi also took the opportunity to step down and left the main room in a huff.

Naturally, Chen Ke couldn't just lie down. He started staying up late to write manuscripts. This piece was about rural revolution. Chen Ke didn't know much about rural contradictions in the late Qing Dynasty, but the basic contradictions couldn't have changed much. Moreover, since Pang Zi and these people were preparing to rebel, they wouldn't become running dogs of landlords, so Chen Ke was finally able to express his feelings directly and write out the land revolution program to his heart's content.

*Hope these things can really play a big role,* Chen Ke said in his heart.

The weather was now quite cool. When Chen Ke wrote the book at night, he put on several layers of clothes. Writing until now, he only felt uncomfortable all over. He entered the bedroom, took off those clothes, and prepared to take a bath. Turning his head to look at Wu Xingchen and Chen Tianhua still sound asleep on the bed, Chen Ke made a decision in his heart to let Chen Tianhua go to the Hebei countryside to conduct a social investigation. Without investigation, there is no right to speak. Although the theoretical guidance of this piece by Chen Ke was not wrong, the specific situation would definitely not be so simple. If they wanted to formulate a reasonable rebellion step, they needed more detailed information.

The theoretical education on rebellion actually wouldn't take too long. Chen Ke was very busy in Beijing, and Chen Tianhua could also play a big role when lecturing. Especially after the lectures ended, Chen Tianhua could play an extremely significant role in the rural work in Hebei. Originally, Chen Ke dragged Chen Tianhua here just to let Chen Tianhua exert his strength in propaganda. Arranging for him to go to the countryside should not be a problem.

Having determined Chen Tianhua's arrangement, Chen Ke's gaze fell on Wu Xingchen. He didn't expect that this Hall Master, who was depressed and unfulfilled in Shanghai, actually had such an experience. Chen Ke really hadn't thought of this. Although he knew Wu Xingchen's experience was definitely not ordinary, being able to participate in a rebellion of tens of thousands of people required insight that was definitely not possessed by ordinary people. Wu Xingchen's enthusiasm for his Party class was far higher than Chen Ke's imagination, and now Chen Ke understood a bit. According to the People's Party's organizational regulations, where there are three Party members, a Party meeting must be held. Let's have a good talk with Wu Xingchen at the Party meeting. There was no need to rush now. Thinking of this, Chen Ke picked up the porcelain basin to take a bath.

The air temperature wasn't high. In comparison, the well water was very warm. Amidst the splashing sound of the shower, Chen Ke suddenly remembered that he still had the honeycomb briquette business to deal with. Before coming to Beijing, he really hadn't expected this operation to be so extensive. He had to carry out several things simultaneously. But there is strength in numbers. Fortunately, these heroes were here. Looking at their labor status would also be a nice test.

The sound of splashing water disturbed the others, and everyone got up one after another. Chen Ke saw Pang Zi walk out first. "Morning, Brother Pang!" Chen Ke greeted. Pang Zi responded with a dark face and went straight to the toilet. An official's courtyard was indeed different; it even had a dedicated toilet built. By the time Pang Zi came out, Chen Ke had finished washing. Looking at Chen Ke's muscular and sturdy body, Pang Zi suddenly asked, "I heard Mr. Chen is also a martial artist?"

"I know a little."

"Can I ask for some advice?"

"Brother Pang, if we stop at the point of contact, I will keep you company anytime. If we must determine a winner and loser, I absolutely disagree," Chen Ke said with a smile.

Pang Zi smiled, "Mr. Chen, you scholars just like to show off your book learning. Don't say words I don't understand. Are you going to compete or not?"

"Let's compete right now."

The sound of showering, added to the voices of the two talking, disturbed everyone. Plus, the sky was already bright, so everyone got up one after another. Learning that the two were going to compete, everyone was very interested. The courtyard was very flat. Pang Zi only wore trousers, his upper body bare. Young men, all practitioners, their muscles looked quite good. The crowd stood far away, watching the two intently.

Standing opposite each other, almost simultaneously, the two cupped their hands and bowed. As soon as Chen Ke lowered his arms, Pang Zi had already leaped forward, punching straight at Chen Ke's chest. Chen Ke blocked with his left arm and pushed his right palm towards Pang Zi's ribs. Pang Zi used the force of Chen Ke's block to shift his body and swept low. Both sides were wide open and close, fists and feet coming and going, fighting together.

Although the fists and feet carried strong winds and looked fierce, Chen Tianhua felt that they were just playing around and didn't aim for vital parts. Pang Zi's footwork was light; within seven or eight moves, he had already circled Chen Ke once. Every time this happened, Chen Ke would always sweep his leg back horizontally, preventing Pang Zi from getting close. Pang Zi was forced back like this several times and got into the fighting spirit. He circled Chen Ke for another half circle. Seeing Chen Ke raise his leg to sweep again, Pang Zi retreated a step quickly, letting Chen Ke's leg pass, and then grabbed a step forward, slapping a palm towards Chen Ke's armpit. Seeing that Chen Ke couldn't dodge, unexpectedly, Chen Ke, with one leg on the ground, suddenly grabbed Pang Zi's wrist, pulled and pushed, and actually switched to wrestling. Pang Zi's whole body was almost lifted into the air and thrown to the ground.

"Fuck!" Pang Zi cursed while lying on the ground, then performed a kip-up to jump up. "Brother Chen, that move was good," Pang Zi shouted. As soon as his voice fell, Pang Zi pounced again.

In this exchange, their moves were obviously not as good-looking as before, but Chen Tianhua felt the killing intent was much heavier. Turning to look at Wu Xingchen beside him, Wu Xingchen looked solemn, his brows slightly furrowed, not saying a word. Looking at the others, they all had similar expressions. Turning back to look at the two fighting, he saw them getting closer and closer, fists, palms, and elbows greeting each other's vital parts. The sound of ping-ping-pang-pang collisions was as dense as popping beans. Just listening to this sound, Chen Tianhua felt physical pain. After exchanging another thirty or forty moves, Chen Ke and Pang Zi simultaneously pushed a palm on the other's chest. The two borrowed the momentum to retreat a few steps in succession, only then opening up the distance.

"Brother Chen, you won," Pang Zi laughed happily.

"Winning by one move doesn't count as winning. I'm just all show; I haven't really tempered my muscles and bones. I think your fists are harder, Brother Pang. I can't stand it if I take a punch from you," Chen Ke also laughed.

Pang Zi smiled proudly but didn't reply. The two cupped their hands and bowed again before dispersing.

"Not bad, Brother Pang. Your kung fu has improved much more than a few years ago," Wu Xingchen went up and said.

"You two, what was the explanation?" Chen Tianhua could still see some tricks in the initial fight, but he didn't understand the subsequent close-quarters combat at all. After all, Chen Tianhua was a man and was naturally very keen on martial arts contests. He went up and asked.

"When Mr. Chen hit my vitals, he didn't exert force. We continued to disassemble the following moves. Actually, if we really compared fists and feet, it would be resolved in three punches and two kicks. How could we fight for so long," Pang Zi explained.

This statement was too simple; Chen Tianhua didn't understand. He looked at Chen Ke, who was walking over, with a puzzled gaze. Chen Ke continued to explain, "With Brother Pang's strength, I would have my ribs broken if I took one punch. If we weren't competing but fighting for our lives, I would risk taking a punch from him to give him a punch. If both of us broke our ribs, what's the point of fighting?"

"So that's how it is." Chen Tianhua only then began to understand. But he was still a bit puzzled. "Then what was with that palm you two pushed?"

"We couldn't hold back our fists and feet. If we continued fighting, I would definitely get hurt, so we could only separate like this. If I didn't trust that Brother Pang was merely comparing notes, I wouldn't dare to use my hand to push him like that," Chen Ke continued.

Pang Zi didn't pick up this topic anymore. He laughed and roared, "Happy! Happy! Haven't been this happy in a long time! Brother Chen, I haven't competed with anyone in the past two years. Those little bastards can't beat you, so they play dirty tricks. They don't stop when they should. Damn it, Brother Chen, you, a scholar, actually follow the rules of the *Jianghu* so well. Rare, rare!"

It was a case of "no discord, no concord." After such a contest, Pang Zi was in high spirits and even changed his address, no longer calling Chen Ke "Mr. Chen."

"Comparing kung fu in the past two years, this time with Brother Pang was the happiest. What's wrong with scholars? Scholars play dirty even darker," Chen Ke also laughed.

This was something Pang Zi had cursed before. Hearing Chen Ke's teasing, Pang Zi couldn't help but laugh heartily. Some of the previous unhappiness was finally dissipated a lot.

After breakfast, Chen Ke began to lecture. The content of the morning was the relationship between the Manchu Qing and the foreigners. These brothers who intended to rebel had never heard such a detailed narration. They knew about the foreign invasion, but they didn't expect it to be divided into the First Opium War and the Second Opium War. The results of each war were very different. This history lesson really opened everyone's eyes. But after all, everyone hadn't received a systematic education like Chen Ke. Regarding the complex entanglement of interests between the Manchu Qing and the foreigners, everyone understood much slower.

The lesson continued until noon and wasn't finished. Chen Ke gave the outline to Chen Tianhua and asked him to continue lecturing to everyone in the afternoon. He also wrote a list and asked Chen Tianhua to go shopping before finishing the lecture. After lunch, Chen Ke headed for the Imperial University. There were still classes there in the afternoon.

The gatekeeper and Chen Ke were already familiar faces. Mr. Gu Hongming had instructed the gatekeeper to let Chen Ke enter and leave the school freely. After greeting him, Chen Ke went to the auditorium. Entering the auditorium really gave him a start. Yesterday, there were only fifty or so people in the auditorium, but today the number had suddenly doubled.

"Please don't let anyone ask about history stuff," Chen Ke prayed silently. Checking his watch, it was time. Chen Ke stepped onto the podium under everyone's gaze. "Hello everyone, the content I want to talk about today is the development of productive forces and the changes in production relations."