Chapter 140: Reactions Across All Sectors

Morning in Modu

On a spring day in 1936 Shanghai, the morning mist had not yet lifted. Outside the Shenbao newspaper office, a long queue had already formed, and the paperboys scrambled to collect that day's paper.

"Extra! Extra! Chairman, Yongzhi Xiansheng jointly mourn a mother!" a spry paperboy shouted while running, "Students from the Huangpu gather at Xikou!"

In an alley of the French Concession, elderly tea patrons sat around in a teahouse, passing around that day's Shenbao.

"Incredible!" a white‑haired elder adjusted his bifocals, "Even the Republic has sent people to pay their respects; this is a once‑in‑creation event!"

A merchant from the Run‑Single Gang set down his teacup and sighed, "I have traveled across the lands for years, witnessing the suffering caused by civil war. If we could truly use this chance to achieve united Anti‑Japanese resistance, that would be a blessing for the nation!"

At the same time, outside the Dagongbao newspaper office in Tianjin, readers' reactions were equally fervent.

A university professor held up the newspaper in class and told the students, "Class, this is where Public Sentiment points! Even the opposing sides can temporarily set aside their grudges because of a mother's death. What does that show? It shows that Anti‑Japanese resistance is the greatest consensus right now!"

In a bookstore near the Qianyue Market, the owner deliberately posted Dagongbao's front page in the window. Passersby stopped to look.

"Owner, does this newspaper still have any?" a young student asked anxiously.

"It sold out long ago!" the owner pointed at the empty shelves, "Several groups came today, all to see this news."

In distant Paris, the publication of the Rescue Nation Times caused a sensation. Overseas Chinese gathered before the newspaper office, scrambling to buy copies.

"We have finally waited for this day!" an elderly overseas Chinese said, tears welling, "I have lived in France for twenty years, constantly hoping our motherland could unite."

The overseas Chinese Chamber of Commerce immediately convened an emergency meeting, deciding to organize fundraising to support the Anti‑Japanese forces at home.

"We must let our Fellow Countrymen at home know," the chamber president said at the meeting, "that overseas compatriots forever breathe the same air and share the same destiny with the motherland!"

In an alley of Modu, ordinary citizens were also fervently discussing the news.

"I heard General Li's mother was an extraordinary woman," an elderly lady said while selecting vegetables, "to have raised such an accomplished son, and now even the opposing sides come to mourn—truly a merit!"

At a barber stall on the corner, the master barber, while cutting a customer's hair, said, "If you ask me, this funeral is a good omen. Even enemies can sit together; what else can't be discussed?"

Someone even posted a self‑written couplet at their doorstep: "One mother moves a thousand armies to harmony; ten‑thousand peoples look forward to peace across the four seas."

In a university campus in Yanjing, professors delved into in‑depth discussion of the incident.

"This is not merely a funeral," a history professor said in a lecture, "it is a political signal, indicating that at the critical moment of the nation's survival, various factions are seeking the possibility of reconciliation."

Students spontaneously organized a discussion forum to explore the possible impacts of the incident.

"If Zhao Hengduo and Gu Yue Xiansheng can both convey goodwill in this way," a student exclaimed, "the days of a full‑scale anti‑war are not far off!"

Business figures also showed great concern. The Modu General Chamber of Commerce convened a special meeting to discuss how to support a potentially forthcoming full‑scale anti‑war.

"If the KMT‑CCP truly can cooperate against Japan," an industrialist said, "our business community is willing to spare no effort in assistance!"

Cultural figures responded even more actively. Playwright Tian Han immediately began crafting a new drama, "Awakening of the Nation", using this funeral as a focal point to showcase the whole nation's resolve to unite against Japan.

Even the religious sector joined in. Temples and churches across the land held blessing ceremonies for Li's mother, simultaneously praying for national peace and ethnic unity.

Further west at a market in Xi'an, merchants, while trading, debated the nationwide sensation. "If you ask me," a cloth seller said, "this is clearly Heaven's will! Even the heavens tell us to cease civil war and unite against the outside!"

After Zhao Hengduo returned to Jinling, he immediately convened a core staff meeting.

"You have all seen the outside reactions," Zhao Hengduo said, his tone complex, "Public Sentiment is already quite evident."

Chen Cheng spoke first: "Principal, this incident truly was unexpected. Yet it also shows that Anti‑Japanese resistance is indeed where the public's heart lies."

He Yingqin was more cautious: "But the Red Bandits are seizing the opportunity to stir things up; we must guard against it."

"Stirring things up?" Zhao Hengduo snorted coldly, "Didn't you see even our own generals are discussing it? Students from Huangpu, whether in our army or in the Red Army, all attended the funeral. What does that indicate?"

The venue fell into silence.

"It indicates," Zhao Hengduo rose slowly, "if we do not further align with Public Sentiment, we will lose it."

That night, Zhao Hengduo wrote in his diary:

"Seeing Jingxing's grief over his mother's death, my heart is a swirl of emotions. His mother, when she was in Xikou, treated me like a son or nephew. Now the nation faces hardship, beset inside and out. Observing recent public opinion, the people's sentiment craves Anti‑Japanese action more than Bandit Suppression. Yongzhi and the master's recent actions truly buy hearts, and their effect is evident."

"I deeply know, if we continue to uphold 'Stability Inside Before Dealing with External', we may lose Public Sentiment. Yet if we turn to ally with the Red Bandits against Japan, we may raise a tiger that becomes a threat. Caught between two dilemmas, how shall we choose?"

He set down his brush and walked to the window.

The funeral's impact even crossed borders. In Tokyo, the Japanese military convened a special meeting to study how this sudden incident affected the 'Huaxia Incident'.

"The Chinese seem to be uniting," a staff officer reported, "which could hinder the Empire's holy war."

In Moscow, the Comintern also monitored the development. A responsible official noted, "This shows the Huaxia people's Anti‑Japanese fervor is rising. We should support this trend."

And in Washington, experts at the United States State Department wrote in their assessment report, "Political forces in Huaxia show signs of reconciliation, which could alter the balance of power in the Far East."