Chapter 6: The Little Thief of Fengtian (1)

  I held a cup of clear tea, sitting in a rattan chair, listening intently. In front of me sat an elderly man in his nineties, reclining on a chaise longue, half-lying and half-sitting, with an IV drip still hanging from his hand. Despite this, the old man spoke with great vigor and clarity, his accent unmistakably that of a northerner.

  The room I was in, whether it was furniture, walls or floors, was very old, but clean and tidy, with a faint scent of grass. The old man sat facing the window, on which several pots of fresh flowers were placed, and the flowers on top were also blooming beautifully. Those flowers I had never seen before, only feeling that the flowers exuded an extremely seductive aura, couldn't help but take a few more glances.

  The old man stretched out his hand and picked up the teacup on the low table beside the chair, slowly taking a sip.

  I couldn't help but ask cautiously, "Old master, what exactly is the Five Elements Supreme Sacred King Ding? Why does it say that whoever gets the Ding will get the world, and whoever loses the Ding will lose the world? Is there some kind of treasure inside the Ding that can unify the world?" My mind was filled with images like Aladdin's lamp, where as soon as you opened the lid, laser bombs or invincible weapons would fly out.

  The old man chuckled and said, "What treasure? This is just a token of inheritance!"

  "I said: 'A token? I still don't quite understand... Isn't this useless?'"

  The old man said, "You are a person from the new society and don't quite understand China's imperial past. When it comes to being an emperor, they believe that there must be a divine will at work in the universe, and when dynasties rise and fall, there must be omens! The Five Sacred Vessels of the Supreme Emperor are the representatives of this divine will. Since Qin Shi Huang became the First Emperor, these vessels have existed. It is said that they were created from a strange stone that fell from heaven during Qin Shi Huang's ritual at Mount Tai. Every dynasty since then has revolved around these vessels, openly and secretly vying for them. Whether it was the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, or Qing dynasties, none of them could sit securely on their thrones without first seizing these vessels from the previous dynasty. These vessels don't have any special powers, but which emperor dared to neglect them? The Yuan Dynasty was so powerful, yet they lost everything in just a few decades because they couldn't find these vessels. There's also a legend that at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Li Zicheng captured Beijing and obtained these vessels, but for some reason, they were stolen from him and ended up in the hands of the Manchu people. The Manchu people didn't have any chance of seizing power, but after obtaining these vessels, it seemed as though heaven was on their side. They created a romantic legend with Wu Sangui and Chen Yuanyuan, and Wu Sangui led the Qing army into the pass, establishing the Qing Dynasty's rule for three hundred years."

  It seems I've understood a bit, but still have countless questions to ask, so I picked one and asked: "Old man, what are the Five Elements Family people?"

  The old man smiled and said, "All five elements are thieves."

  "Thief?" I was taken aback.

  The old man said: "The five-line family theory originated in the Han Dynasty. It is said that the Han emperor was afraid that someone would steal the tripod, so he searched all over the world for masters who were good at stealing and preventing theft. He found that the techniques of thieves also divided into five lines: gold, wood, water, fire, and earth, which could generate and restrain each other. As long as there were masters of the five-line thieving technique to deduce the anti-theft method together, the tripod would probably never be stolen again! So, the Han emperor signed a contract with the top masters in the five-line thieving technique, appointed them as the five-line family, and specialized in guarding the tripod for the royal family. For generations, they didn't have to worry about food, clothing, or use. The title of the five-line family was passed down to the people, and it was said that they were called the Five Great Thieves."

  "Thief King?" I was shocked!

  The old man nodded and continued: "Being a bandit king is not an easy job! These people who become bandits, since ancient times, are either forced by their circumstances or tempted by the desire for pleasure. They use cunning and clever tricks, such as thievery and deception, to get what they want. Naturally, they have narrow minds and can't compare to those heroic outlaws who are generous and righteous. Therefore, these five great families not only plot against each other but also have to guard against the attacks of other bandit experts who covet the title of bandit king day and night. As the saying goes, the more chaotic the world is, the more prosperous the bandits become, and the longer they can roam freely without fear. How could this peaceful and prosperous era last forever? Even the people in the five great families feel that guarding the Sacred King's Tripod is too boring. Coincidentally, when the First Emperor created this tripod, he used the five-colored light from the heavenly stone to separate the lights of the dragon's mouth lamp, which would shine together with the pearl inside the dragon's mouth. If someone took out the pearl, even if they were separated by 10,000 miles, it wouldn't affect anything. The five great families made an agreement with the imperial family that if the lamp representing their element (gold, wood, water, fire, or earth) went out, they didn't need to guard the tripod anymore and could take the pearl from the dragon's mouth and leave. The imperial family couldn't stop them. If the dragon's mouth lamp lit up again, the pearl they took would also light up, and they would have to return. However, at that time, whoever possessed the tripod was none of their concern."

  "What if the pearl is lost?"

  The old man laughed and said, "Lost? If anyone can steal this pearl from the King of Thieves, he will be the new King of Thieves! The Five Elements Families are not just families with fathers and sons or brothers gathering together. Each family is equivalent to a gang, and there are also levels of apprenticeship."

  I let out a sound, and suddenly asked: "Old man, you said that thieves are all bad, but I think there are also good thieves, like Drumming Up the Fleas, or Chai Hu's Leaving Fragrance, aren't they all good people who rob from the rich to help the poor?"

  The old man looked at me, suddenly burst out laughing, he laughed heartily, leaning forward and backward, and also said: "Well said! Well said! What a scoundrel! Good kid! You really have it!"

  I rubbed my head, I don't know why he was laughing so happily.

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  Note 1: On December 5, 1926, Guo Songling, originally a member of the Fengtian clique, led his troops to occupy Jinzhou. On the 13th, they captured Yingkou and Shenyang was shaken. Zhang Zuolin prepared to step down and escape to Lüshun. Guo Songling sent two telegrams to the Japanese ambassador and the diplomatic corps in China, declaring that he would protect foreigners in Manchuria, respect existing treaties, and asking Japan and other countries to maintain neutrality and not interfere with Chinese internal affairs. On the 7th, the Japanese Kwantung Army quickly gathered from Tieling, Liaoyang, Haicheng and other places to garrison Shenyang, declaring that they would not intervene in China's civil war while warning Guo Songling's troops and the Fengtian army not to disturb the South Manchurian Railway and Japanese military defense areas. On the 15th, the Japanese cabinet decided to deploy a large number of troops from Japan and Korea to Manchuria to support Zhang Zuolin. On the same day, they issued their second warning, strictly prohibiting any direct combat actions within 20 li (about 10 km) on either side of the South Manchurian Railway, as well as any military actions that might disrupt the security of the concession areas; otherwise, all parties would be disarmed. On the 18th, the commander of the Kwantung Army moved to Shenyang and took command of Japanese troops.

  On the 19th, the dispatched Manchurian reinforcements arrived in Fengtian, with Lieutenant General Saito Yoshio as the commander-in-chief. The Japanese army replaced Zhang's troops to defend the city of Fengtian Province, and Zhang's guards quickly moved to the front line to fight. At the same time, Japanese soldiers disguised themselves as Zhang's army and attacked Guo's left flank, with Japanese soldiers and artillery joining the Feng army's defense line. On the 22nd, the Guo and Feng armies clashed fiercely in Jiliu River. The Japanese army used 80 aircraft to bomb the Xinmin area with heavy bombs, coordinating with the Feng army on the front battlefield, while using the excuse of "not invading the southern Manchurian attached territory" to stop the Guo army's advance; at the same time, they disguised themselves as Feng army soldiers and pressed Guo's army from the left side, covering Wu Junsheng's cavalry to raid the rear of the Guo army in Baitaibao. The Guo army was attacked on three sides and defeated on the 23rd. Guo Songling and his wife abandoned their troops and escaped to Yingkou, where they were captured in Xinmin. On the same day, Zhang Zuolin ordered the execution of the Guo couple by firing squad.

  The Guangdong Rebellion gave Japan an opportunity. Originally, they had no intention of helping the rebellion against Zhang Zuolin, but Kuomintang leader Guang clearly warned Japan not to interfere in China's internal affairs, which ultimately led Japan to continue supporting Zhang Zuolin. In the crucial Battle of Giant Flow River, Japanese artillery played a significant role. At that time, the Kwantung Army had already deployed 40,000 troops in the Shenyang area, planting Japanese flags everywhere and ordering Guang's army not to pass through, thus forcing Guang's army into a dead end. When Guang's army was pressing on, Japan proposed signing a secret agreement with Zhang Zuolin as a condition for sending troops to assist him. The secret agreement included five clauses:

  Japanese subjects in the three eastern provinces and eastern Inner Mongolia shall enjoy the right of commercial lease, i.e., they have the same rights as local residents to reside and operate industries and commerce.

  2. Transfer of administrative power in the Ryukyu Islands;

  3. The extension of the Jidun Railway and its connection with the North Korean railway east of Tumen for through traffic;

  4. The various counties subordinate to Taochang Road are all permitted to have Japanese consulates established in them;

  The detailed implementation of the above four items shall be decided by consultation between the diplomatic organs of Japan and China.

  At that time, Zhang Zuolin was in a state of panic and hastily agreed. However, this agreement was not written down and had the provision "to be decided through further consultation", so Zhang Zuolin immediately went back on his word afterwards. (Fortunately, Zhang Zuolin did not succeed in selling out the country.) This laid the groundwork for Japan's later creation of the Huanggutun incident, which killed the King of Northeast China.