Chapter 2495: Burning the Building (Part 8)

"If only they'd get us some Type 34s. Who the hell wants this modified gadget called Type 36!" Wu Mu stared at the training ground, his expression sour.

The Training Director beside him dared not join the conversation. He knew this matter had sparked considerable controversy within the Senate.

Both the Political Security and Police departments had accumulated many complaints regarding pistols. Compared to the Fubo Army and National Army, they used revolvers far more frequently. But after several years of actual combat testing, the effectiveness of the Type 1630 revolver was widely questioned. These questions centered on pistol power. There were even reports claiming that hitting enemy soldiers wearing thick cotton clothes multiple times at close range failed to bring them down—completely failing to achieve the claimed armor-penetrating effect within 20 meters.

The problem dragged on. One obvious reason was that pistols weren't an urgent priority for the Ordnance Department. That changed with the Sun Umbrella Special Case in 1634. During the post-event review, the National Police, Political Security Bureau, and military all criticized existing equipment, expressing particular dissatisfaction with the Type 30 pistol. They argued that not only was ammunition lethality weak, but the slow reloading speed was even more fatal—it had caused heavy casualties among action personnel and nearly led to the arrest operation's failure.

Under fierce pressure from the Senate, the pistol improvement project quickly passed the Planning Academy. To avoid repeating past mistakes, two groups would carry out parallel design work.

The final result was two models: the Type 1630 Modified—the so-called Type 1636 they'd just received—and the completely reborn Type 1634.

The Type 1636's design concept maintained the Planning Academy's "waste utilization" philosophy. In fact, Type 1636 and Type 1630 differed little. Changes appeared only in ammunition specifications and mechanical mechanisms. Most of these pistols were recycled and modified Type 1630s produced earlier—an attitude of squeezing every drop of surplus value.

What the Second Weapons Group designed was more advanced, designed from the start for full metal cartridges. Though it couldn't escape black powder, it achieved comprehensive improvements in ammunition safety and ballistic performance.

The Type 1634 was actually based on the S&W No. 3 pistol blueprint, equipped with a more reliable safety mechanism and optimized ergonomic design. Its break-open frame and automatic shell ejection rod greatly improved reloading and filling speed, making it very convenient to use. The prototype quickly entered testing and was finalized as the Type 1634 revolver by year's end, abbreviated as "Type 34 Pistol."

The blueprint for Type 34 cartridges was also the .44 Russian (11x25mmR) bullet. While ensuring stopping power, it maintained bearable recoil. Combined with the heavy overall weight, the Type 1634's shooting controllability earned considerable praise. An episode occurred during development: the Planning Academy proposed using paper cartridge bullets similar to the Type 1636, based on inherited ammunition specifications to save copper. But the Navy and Marine Corps fiercely opposed this, pointing out that paper cartridges stored in pistol cylinders were easily dampened in maritime environments. Moreover, issues of self-ignition prevention and loading speed remained unsolved. What was the point of equipping another kind of revolver?

Finally, considering that copper supply tensions had greatly eased after monopolizing trade with Japan, and that continuing old designs would also affect gun service life, the Planning Academy decided the Type 34 .44 caliber cartridge would adopt full copper cases and Boxer primers to facilitate cartridge reloading.

Due to cost, the Type 34 wasn't widely distributed. The first batch went to the Fubo Army General Reconnaissance Bureau and the Senate General Guard Bureau. Later, Navy and Marine Corps officers and some South China Army officers were also equipped. As for the National Police and Political Security Bureau—these two departments received this Type 36 with its new face but old content.

Naturalized citizen cadres generally dared not complain about Senate decisions, but complaints among Senators themselves were unreserved. The Training Director had participated in many light weapon shooting and tactical trainings conducted by the Special Reconnaissance Team and had seen many genuine "Australian goods," giving him his own criticisms of this modified Type 36. Seeing his superior's disgusted expression, he naturally understood the man's feelings.

A clerk walked over quickly. "Director Wu, Section Chief Yang is waiting in your office. There's a situation to report." Wu Mu nodded and strode quickly to his office.

With a bang, Wu Mu pushed the door open. Yang Cao and Xu Tong had been waiting inside. Seeing him enter, they bowed slightly as if to rise. Wu Mu pressed his hand down, signaling them to sit, then took his seat. "What's the situation?"

Yang Cao said: "That batch of purchased goods in the city was sent out."

Wu Mu's attention sharpened. "Oh? Who received them?"

"Externally hired carts and people. They unloaded at a village twenty li from the city. After sitting for two days, someone picked them up."

"Did you find the destination?"

"Very difficult. Among the receivers were local Dan households who know the river channels and bays intimately. Our people have limited knowledge of local waterways and couldn't follow. To avoid exposure—and for safety—we withdrew our people. However, there's a major discovery."

"Tell me."

"There were Heavenly Soldiers among those receiving the goods."

Wu Mu was surprised. "Heavenly Soldiers?"

From the name, he suspected this was a secret society organization. The Political Security Bureau had learned about various such organizations through understanding local conditions. However, secret societies had never flourished in Guangdong and Guangxi—far less powerful than their northern counterparts. Local clan forces were too strong; secret societies could hardly win over lower-class commoners through "mutual aid" and thus never gained real influence.

Yang Cao continued: "It's a local Daoist sect called the Heavenly Gate Daoist Society. When it arose is uncertain—it's existed in the countryside since ancient times and spread widely. Members call themselves Heavenly Soldiers. During combat, they tie red scarves around their heads, wrap knives with red ribbons, gather spears with red tassels, and drape their bodies with cloth strips inscribed 'Daoist God Disciples Protected by Heaven and Earth.' Members are mostly Hakkas, Dan households renting sandy fields, landless hired laborers, and artisans. Initially, it served as a mutual protection union. After the shelling of Guangzhou, when bandits rose everywhere, the Heavenly Gate Daoist Society seized the opportunity under the banner of 'defending soil and resisting bandits.' They successively destroyed three bandit gangs of several dozen members each—Yitang Feng, Pushan Hu, and Guo Longbei—dominating a region and gaining great fame, attracting many new members. It's essentially a landlord armed force controlled by local powers. These people normally live and farm in the countryside, indistinguishable from ordinary commoners. They only gather when needed, making them difficult to identify."

Wu Mu's head was already starting to ache. This wasn't a simple bandit group. The loose, extremely "civilianized" structure made them nearly impossible to distinguish. Without criminal acts, direct coercive measures were problematic.

"...After we occupied Guangdong, they didn't confront the Senate and cooperated with our local work. So our routine operations didn't touch their organizational activities."

Wu Mu waved his hand. "Is there intelligence on specific structure and organization?"

"Here's the relevant intelligence." Yang Cao handed over the prepared dossier. Wu Mu flipped through it. The introduction was very brief.

"...The society head is called Heavenly Gate Marshal, internally called Seat Marshal—also called Helmsman or Helm Master. The deputy is called Chief Seal or Assistant Helmsman, assisting in leading congregation members of various regions. Below the Society Head, it's divided into eight gates. The Merit Gate is head of all gates, handling personnel promotion and demotion; the Punishment Gate manages rules and commandments; the Grain Gate manages finance; the Executive Gate manages general affairs; the Ritual Gate manages ceremonies; the Wind Gate manages reconnaissance and reporting; the Soldier Gate manages killing and fighting. It possesses some organization but remains overall relatively loose. Society heads of various villages basically act independently. It carries strong superstitious coloring, deceiving commoners with gods and ghosts. Key positions are basically held by important local figures. Wealthy households and gentry often join to serve as society heads, seeking safety or expanding strength. Great disciples in charge of various gates are called Teaching Disciples, who must clear their backgrounds and pass grand ceremonies before officially holding positions."

Judging from the materials, this organization had no serious crimes. Even the scale of "wealth accumulation" typical of such organizations wasn't large. The biggest problem was frequent involvement in local armed feuds, intertwined with clan conflicts and tensions between locals and Hakkas. It was hard to assign right or wrong.

It was strange indeed how such an obviously lower-class secret society could collude with a genuine local gentry like Liang Cunhou.

"Liang Cunhou very likely made connections with local power factions through the Martial Team, and the secret societies in their hands are the armed forces he covets. Since we implemented public security rectification in Liangguang, after two consecutive periods of crackdowns, bandit and pirate groups in the Pearl River Delta have been basically cleared out. Constructing armed forces through the traditional method of contacting bandit classes is no longer feasible. So Liang Cunhou turned his attention to them. Their anti-court sentiments were originally relatively weak—in their bones, they still consider the Great Ming orthodox."

Yang Cao paused. "But overall, their organization isn't very tight, and internally it's not monolithic. Many prosperous households only want to organize able-bodied men to protect their native land, fearing that outside forces would increase local burdens. They're unwilling to wade into anti-Song waters. This gives us considerable room for winning-over work. In the countryside, some gentry aligned with us in time, actively offering to serve as our eyes and ears. Among them are Teaching Disciples of the Heavenly Gate Way. This allows us to obtain valuable intelligence. This was provided yesterday by Li Baiqing of Old Li's Walled Village in Dongguan." She handed a letter to Wu Mu.

Wu Mu took it and examined it carefully. It was a hard paper card 8 cun long and 4 cun wide. Written on top: "Public Alliance Precious Card." In the middle:

"Reporting to Heavenly Emperor Summoning generals to dispatch troops ... Heaven and Earth as witness Ghosts and Gods as proof"

Written below: "Meeting at X place on X day X month to discuss grand plans together. Heavenly Gate Daoist Society Seat Marshal: Xue Tu bows in greeting to await all brothers."

Wu Mu flipped it over and looked. "This is their internal gathering card?"

Yang Cao said: "Yes, and it's a formal alliance public card—very rare. Unless there are major matters, it won't be issued lightly. This time, all Great Heads of various counties received the public card. This Xue Tu is currently the Chief Helm Master of the Heavenly Gate Way."

(End of Chapter)