The spring wind blew across the Huai River. Due to the activity of aquatic plants, the river wind carried a faint fishy smell. This was very different from the fishy smell mixed in the sea breeze. Lin Juemin and several revolutionary comrades stood at the bow of the boat, gazing at both banks of the Huai River. According to the guide's introduction, this was already the territory of the People's Party revolutionary base area. There were seven or eight young people who came with Lin Juemin this time, all of whom were extremely radical revolutionaries. Their dream was to one day stand on Chinese land where the Manchu Qing rule had been expelled. Now they finally saw the first piece of Chinese land that had truly "expelled the Tartars." This excitement made them feel that everything in front of them had an indescribable novelty. Even the strange river wind made them feel so comfortable.

Standing next to Lin Juemin was Fang Shengdong. He frowned slightly and asked, "Why haven't the common people working on both banks cut their queues?"

For these passionate young people, they didn't know what social development should look like after the revolution. But they firmly believed that after the revolution, the queues on their heads must be cut. Because they had this intense attitude in their hearts, they naturally thought that everyone in the People's Party base area should have cut their queues. Seeing that the majority of people in the base area still kept their queues, these young people felt very uncomfortable in their hearts.

"Maybe because there hasn't been time to manage these things?" Luo Nailin interjected.

Fang Shengdong had a fierce personality. Hearing this, he couldn't help but retort, "Brother Luo, to have conquered such a large territory without promoting the revolutionary spirit first and cutting the queues on these heads—this revolution is a bit like child's play, isn't it?"

Luo Nailin was the oldest among the young people on this trip. He knew Fang Shengdong's temper. Seeing Fang Shengdong starting to get anxious as usual, Luo Nailin smiled slightly but said no more.

Lin Juemin was also concerned about this issue. Since entering the People's Party base area, some people in the various organs and troops of the People's Party had cut extremely spirited short hair, but many people still kept their queues. He had also asked privately, and the guide from the Water Detachment accompanying them explained that because part of the work had to be carried out in the Manchu-occupied areas, it was more convenient to keep the queues temporarily. Lin Juemin could accept this explanation. But seeing that the vast majority of common people in the base area still kept their queues, he felt very uncomfortable.

Just then, the boat shook slightly. Lin Juemin didn't need to turn his head to know that among the people on the boat, only Wu Xingchen could create such an effect just by stepping onto the deck.

"Hello, Mr. Wu." Luo Nailin was the first to greet Wu Xingchen.

Wu Xingchen nodded slightly and replied, "Hello, Mr. Luo." After speaking, he stood quietly on the deck and looked around.

Seeing Wu Xingchen's calm appearance, everyone wanted to say something to him but didn't know what topic to find. They had all heard that Wu Xingchen was an old Party member of the People's Party. The old revolutionaries they had contacted were all enthusiastic, talking eloquently and endlessly. Everyone originally thought Wu Xingchen should also be of this type, but they never expected Wu Xingchen to be a taciturn character. Usually, apart from polite greetings, he didn't say a word. If everyone asked too much, Wu Xingchen would simply turn around and leave in silence. Wu Xingchen was over 1.9 meters tall and burly. Once he kept a straight face, there was an extra sense of oppression. When keeping a straight face and not speaking, he had an unfathomable attitude. Although the young people were repeatedly treated coldly, they couldn't really generate hostile emotions in their hearts.

"Mr. Wu, what kind of person is Mr. Chen Ke, the Chairman of the People's Party? You must know very well." Fang Shengdong was one of the few young people who didn't give up after hitting a wall. Every time he saw Wu Xingchen, he wanted to get some news out of Wu Xingchen's mouth, and he was also the one ignored by Wu Xingchen the most times.

Wu Xingchen remained silent as usual, just looking around. A moment later, everyone heard Wu Xingchen say in his deep voice, "Chairman Chen is a very young man, about the same age as you gentlemen."

"Oh? How old is Chairman Chen exactly?" Fang Shengdong was very interested in this.

"Twenty-six or twenty-seven," Wu Xingchen said.

"So young!" Fang Shengdong was very surprised. Not only Fang Shengdong, but the other young people at the bow were also very surprised. The reason they traveled thousands of *li* from Guangdong to Anhui was partly because friends who had already joined the People's Party brought articles written by Chen Ke. "A Madman's Diary" resonated greatly with the young people, and several of Chen Ke's manuscripts made them feel that Chen Ke's views on revolution were extremely profound. Plus, Chen Ke's book on materialism already had a considerable reputation in the south. Since such a revolutionary leader invited them warmly, the young people felt they couldn't refuse Chen Ke's face. Moreover, the revolutionary base area highly praised by friends from Anhui also made the young people yearn for it.

Everyone had more or less some opinions about the base area, but this opinion was not so much dissatisfaction as "criticizing severely because of deep love." The greatest feeling the young people had for the base area was a strong sense of satisfaction. Since entering the base area, at least the organization of the army and various local governments was completely different from the Manchu Qing. It looked like a new government at a glance. The southern revolutionaries launched uprisings continuously, but the result was repeated defeats. The People's Party had already built such a vast base area. Even if there was only this little bit, everyone felt elated.

Hearing that the leader Chen Ke, who had achieved such a situation, was actually about the same age as themselves, everyone was quite surprised. When they wanted to chase and ask Wu Xingchen, they saw Wu Xingchen turn around and walk towards the back of the boat. Like the previous few days, this was Wu Xingchen's unique way when he was unwilling to answer questions anymore. Everyone didn't know what mystery Wu Xingchen was playing, or which sentence was wrong and made Wu Xingchen unhappy.

In fact, the reason Wu Xingchen avoided them was not what these revolutionary youths thought. He hadn't worked with Chen Ke for long. Since Wu Xingchen went to Shandong to carry out rebellion activities, contact between the two sides had been cut off for more than a year. Regarding the Anhui revolutionary base area, Wu Xingchen didn't know much more than these youths from the south. Moreover, these southern youths all had Guangdong and Fujian accents. Although they also tried to speak Mandarin, they had mixed accents after all. Wu Xingchen didn't understand southern dialects very well originally, and after returning to the north for more than a year, he surprisingly couldn't understand much. To avoid trouble, Wu Xingchen tried his best to avoid these southern youths.

Seeing those young people didn't chase over to ask, Wu Xingchen breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. Looking at the unfamiliar environment of Anhui, Wu Xingchen guessed what Chen Ke would look like when seeing him again. The People's Party had changed a lot. The small political organization that once had only eight people had now become a behemoth. Just the Water Detachment Wu Xingchen saw had dozens of boats and a scale of nearly a thousand people. And in such a vast area along the coast, there must be thousands or tens of thousands of new Party members. Wu Xingchen didn't know any of the People's Party cadres who came to receive him. Or maybe Chen Ke had long forgotten him. Wu Xingchen couldn't help thinking.

The fleet didn't move fast. Wu Xingchen had seen the iron machines carried in the big boat with his own eyes. It took more than a dozen people plus equipment to lift these few iron guys onto the boat. Wu Xingchen still remembered the small equipment Chen Ke made when dyeing cloth in Shanghai before; at that time, he felt those things were quite efficient. But looking at those dark iron things, Wu Xingchen felt those small equipments were just like toys. How exactly did Chen Ke plan to use these machines? Wu Xingchen was very curious.

No matter how long the journey, there will be an end. After the fleet docked in Fengtai County, the first thing Wu Xingchen saw was several high racks, which should be the same things as the hoisting equipment on the docks managed by foreigners in Shanghai. Many people were busy around the hoisting equipment. As soon as the ship stopped steadily, the long rack turned over, and someone went down to the ship along the rope hanging from the rack and began to tie ropes to those equipments.

Wu Xingchen didn't care about so much. Under the leadership of the guide, he went onto the dock. Not far away, he saw Chen Ke surrounded by You Gou and a group of other strangers, discussing something facing a large sheet of paper.

Everyone had changed so much. Originally, some wore long gowns, some wore short clothes, and some wore Western suits. Now they were all in uniform blue clothes. Not only clothing, but hairstyles had also changed greatly. Especially You Gou cut a short hair like a boy; Wu Xingchen almost didn't recognize her. But these changes were external. If one must say, everyone's skin color and appearance hadn't changed much. Careful identification could still find clear images in memory.

The biggest change was everyone's demeanor. Whether Chen Ke or You Gou, their expressions had become much more mature. When establishing the Revolutionary Party originally, everyone talked and talked every day, their expressions changing like children. Now Chen Ke and You Gou looked extremely focused; their attention was on the paper in their hands. These two obviously knew what they wanted to do. When speaking to others, they unknowingly revealed an irrefutable firm attitude. Although their clothing and hairstyles were no different from the people around them, just standing there, the two were different from the people around them, and others would absolutely not fail to pay attention to them.

Chen Ke and You Gou talked for a good while, and Wu Xingchen waited patiently on the side. Chen Ke finally finished the arrangement. He handed the large sheet of paper to You Gou, and then walked quickly towards Wu Xingchen.

So you saw me long ago. Wu Xingchen thought to himself. He didn't know whether he should feel that Chen Ke now had such a big air. Obviously, Chen Ke was busy, not deliberately leaving Wu Xingchen aside. Moreover, Wu Xingchen himself never had the consciousness of being a People's Party member. So reasonably speaking, Chen Ke had the right to leave Wu Xingchen aside, but Wu Xingchen still felt a bit unhappy in his heart. That was a mixed emotion of jealousy and loss. And this emotion lasted for quite a while.

"Brother Wu, long time no see." Chen Ke's smile didn't change much from when he was in Shanghai. If there must be a change, it was that Chen Ke looked more frank. There was no longer anything artificial in his expression. Wu Xingchen wasn't quite sure if this was because Chen Ke no longer had the more or less hypocritical things from before, or if these things were skillfully hidden by Chen Ke.

"Brother Chen, we haven't seen each other for more than a year." Wu Xingchen also said frankly.

Chen Ke said with a smile, "It wasn't easy for you to come back; let's have a good chat. Our old comrades are basically in the base area. Comrade You Gou is responsible for carrying equipment at this moment, as you also saw. Huishen, Qingguo, and Zudao are all in the base area. It's just that they are all in other counties now, so we can't meet for a while. Now that you are back, our old comrades are all here."

Wu Xingchen knew that Chen Ke had to make this small talk, but he didn't want to say so many useless things. "Wenqing, I came back this time to ask you a few things. The most important one is, is Pang Zi listening to your orders now?"

"No. Chen Tianhua was with Pang Zi last year, but when the Beiyang Army went to suppress Pang Zi, everyone split up." After answering Wu Xingchen's question, Chen Ke asked strangely, "What trouble has Pang Zi caused again?"

"He has returned to Nangong County. Recently, he has caused quite a stir. I sent people to contact him, but I couldn't reach him no matter what. Moreover, I heard that you caused so many things in Anhui, so I felt I had to come back and have a look no matter what."

Chen Ke looked at the people coming and going around. "Let's talk about these things when we go back."

Wu Xingchen nodded. Chen Ke greeted the new revolutionaries from the south again, asked someone to take them to settle down first, and then returned to the military camp with Wu Xingchen.

"Wenqing, do I still count as a member of the People's Party?" Wu Xingchen asked straight to the point as soon as he sat down.

"Comrade Wu Xingchen, you are also an old comrade who participated in the Party admission oath. If you feel you are a People's Party member and solidly achieved the discipline that a People's Party member should abide by, then you are still a People's Party member."

Hearing Chen Ke's answer, Wu Xingchen nodded. "Wenqing, according to what you say, I'm afraid I can no longer be considered a Party member now."

Chen Ke felt this question was not easy to answer. He used to read about many historical events where the Party had to conduct strict reviews and screening of Party members who had interrupted contact for a time. At that time, Chen Ke felt this practice was a bit unreasonable. But facing Wu Xingchen, an old Party member who had "interrupted contact for a long time," he realized that such strict review and screening was not unreasonable, but a responsible practice for the organization itself.

Wu Xingchen volunteering to go to Shandong for activities a year ago was agreed by Chen Ke. This matter was beyond reproach. Wu Xingchen suddenly came back now; Chen Ke didn't suspect that Wu Xingchen had betrayed the revolution. Wu Xingchen had an irreconcilable hatred with the Manchu Qing; he couldn't defect to the Manchu Qing. But this standard was simply insufficient to determine Wu Xingchen's Party member status. If more than a year ago, Wu Xingchen could still determine his Party member stance by anti-Qing sentiment, today, more than a year later, the organization and discipline of the People's Party were highly strengthened. Wu Xingchen had been away from the Party's leadership for a long time, and he himself at least didn't try very actively to establish contact with the Party organization. According to the current organizational model of the People's Party, Wu Xingchen had actually been demoted to peripheral personnel. If Wu Xingchen really hoped to be accepted by the Party again, his Party spirit and principles would undoubtedly be severely questioned, which would mean shedding a few layers of skin. In this regard, Chen Ke dared not come forward to protect Wu Xingchen.

Seeing Chen Ke hesitating and not speaking, Wu Xingchen smiled. "Wenqing doesn't need to be so embarrassed. We haven't contacted for so long; I myself don't have the face to say I am an old Party member of the People's Party. Wenqing, you might as well speak frankly if you have anything."

Thinking about it, Chen Ke felt there were only two roads to go now. Either decide to treat Wu Xingchen as peripheral personnel, or let Wu Xingchen pass a strict review. Chen Ke believed that he also had a great responsibility for leaving Wu Xingchen isolated outside. At least Chen Ke didn't try to establish contact with Wu Xingchen. For the past year, the Party organization had fully built the Anhui base area, and Chen Ke had almost completely forgotten Wu Xingchen. So Chen Ke still hoped to redeem his mistake. But this redemption would have to make Wu Xingchen suffer grievances. Chen Ke was very worried whether Wu Xingchen could accept such grievances consciously and voluntarily. After thinking it over, Chen Ke decided to tell the truth. "Comrade Wu Xingchen, our People's Party has changed a lot now. You might as well take a good look and study well in the base area. If you still want to continue working in our People's Party, you have to pass the organizational review."

Wu Xingchen was silent for a long time after hearing this, then said, "Wenqing, is the review you mentioned a *toumingzhuang* (certificate of allegiance)?"

"Not a *toumingzhuang*. I think it's much stricter than a *toumingzhuang*. Comrade Wu Xingchen, if you want to continue following the Party, you have to make the Party believe you are sincere. I was also wrong in this matter; I shouldn't have ignored you. But no matter how big my mistake is, you have to accept the Party's review. Only by confirming that you are sincerely following the Party will it work."

" asking me to submit a *toumingzhuang*, Wenqing, you have to draw a path for me." Wu Xingchen asked.

"There are two paths. The first path is for you to restart work in the base area. Report what you did in Shandong to the Party organization. Don't worry about Shandong's affairs in the future; just concentrate on working in the base area. This path is the most convenient and won't toss you too much. But Comrade Wu Xingchen, you have been in Shandong for so long; are you willing to leave Shandong? This is what I am more worried about."

After hearing Chen Ke's words, Wu Xingchen felt that the conditions proposed by Chen Ke were surprisingly reasonable. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief. "I came back this time, firstly because of Pang Zi's matter, and secondly because I have been working alone outside for so long, and I sincerely feel that what you said before, Wenqing, makes sense. So I also made up my mind this time coming back. I will hand over all the forces I managed in Shandong to our Party to preside over. I will no longer set up my own banner in the future. However, I still hope to be able to return to Shandong. If I want to go back to Shandong to continue working, is it okay if I hand over the power?"

Chen Ke was most worried that Wu Xingchen would use his power in Shandong as a background to disobey the Party organization's arrangement. The base area was about to open up base areas in a larger scope. If Wu Xingchen was tolerated in such a situation, then the base area construction in the future would definitely become the beginning of mountain stronghold factions within the Party. The history of the Party had long proved that if the revolution was to succeed, the Party Central Committee must control the Party organization, and independent or semi-independent forces within the Party could not be allowed to exist.

Wu Xingchen's statement made Chen Ke feel much more at ease. However, Chen Ke didn't become blindly optimistic. "Comrade Wu Xingchen, the review will be a very strict matter. You will definitely suffer grievances. You must be prepared for this. In addition, the review will not be just a few short days; it will go through a long time. Not only in the base area, but also going to Shandong. The final result is very likely that you hand over the forces developed in Shandong to our Party organization, but you are transferred away from Shandong. Although I can assure you that if such a result occurs, it is not targeted at you personally; this is the unified arrangement of the Party organization. But whether you can sincerely accept the arrangement of the Party organization depends on whether you yourself can achieve the integrity of a People's Party member."

"Wenqing, if I don't agree to either of these two roads, does that mean expelling me from the Party?" Wu Xingchen asked.

"Yes. I also have responsibility for this matter, so with a responsible attitude towards you, I will ask for your expulsion from the Party. We can still cooperate in the future, but you will no longer be a member of our People's Party."