readytorunbook Chapter 711 The Southward Movement Begins
Chapter 711 The Southward Movement Begins
Newspapers dared not explicitly name the Nationalist military and the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, but phrases like "in broad daylight," "forged documents," and "suspected military vehicles" were enough to be alarming.
In teahouses and taverns, on the streets and alleys, everyone whispered among themselves, their faces showing fear.
"Even someone like Boss Rong... tsk tsk, is there no law left in Shanghai?"
"Haven't you heard? Rong's son said that Mao Linmu's seal on the arrest warrant looks genuine. They're in cahoots, officials and bandits."
"It's over, it's over, we can't stay here anymore, who knows when we'll be labeled as 'traitors'."
Panic spread silently and rapidly among the wealthy and powerful, like a plague.
Bank runs surged, especially at foreign banks; tickets to Hong Kong and the White Eagle were snapped up, and black market prices skyrocketed; late at night, the Huangpu River docks were often seen with furtive figures carrying crates onto ships; some factory owners began quietly selling off fixed assets that were difficult to take with them, exchanging them for gold bars and knives.
Rong Desheng's experience was like a sharp knife, tearing through the precarious illusion of prosperity that Shanghai had maintained after the war, revealing the festering reality beneath.
The law is ineffective, force is used for private purposes, spies run rampant, and people and property are left without any protection.
However, the Rong family was isolated and helpless, while the kidnappers became increasingly arrogant.
They exploited the internal communication channels of the Security Bureau and the connections between the underworld and legitimate businesses in Shanghai, constantly changing their methods of contact to manipulate the police at will.
The ransom demanded was as high as 200 million yuan, setting a new record for kidnapping in Shanghai.
Rong Desheng, imprisoned in a dark hut in Caojiadu, suffered greatly both physically and mentally, and at one point wrote a suicide note.
Faced with the kidnappers, this former business tycoon and Shanghai's richest man could only offer a bitter explanation:
“My assets are all tied up in factory machinery, and I have a shortage of working capital. I simply can’t come up with that much cash.”
After negotiations, the ransom was finally set at $50, but this was still an astronomical sum.
The fury in Nanjing continued, with the highest-ranking members of the White Party issuing increasingly strict orders to solve the case within a specified time. The military, police, and secret agents in Shanghai were mobilized in full force, creating a city-wide uproar. Many suspects were arrested, but the core of the case remained elusive.
The kidnappers even brazenly designated corrupt officials within the Rong family's enterprises, with Zhan Rongpei, the deputy director of Shenxin No. 9 Factory, acting as the intermediary in the negotiations, ensuring that every move the Rong family made was under their watchful eyes.
The police investigation encountered obstacles at every turn, as if an invisible net was covering the case. Whenever they were about to get to the key points, they would run into soft walls of "connections" and "instructions from superiors".
This sensational kidnapping case, which involved multiple forces including the military, police, intelligence agencies, and local gangs, was solved in a way that was both darkly humorous and ironic after more than a month of suffocating power struggle.
In the end, the Rong family compromised and, as requested, packed the 50 yuan ransom into two large boxes and delivered them to the designated room at the Shenzhou Hotel on Fada Road.
Money arrives, people are released.
After being imprisoned for 34 days, Rong Desheng finally returned to his son-in-law's home, his hair now completely white and his body emaciated.
Almost simultaneously, Wang Jintang, one of the kidnappers and a junior agent of the Security Bureau, became too ostentatious after receiving his share of the loot. He bought a brand-new luxury Spontic sedan and drove it back to his hometown to show off, which caught the attention of the Security Bureau, which was investigating the case.
After being subjected to torture, Wang Jintang broke down and confessed to the entire kidnapping gang, as well as Zhan Rongpei, the deputy director of Shenxin No. 9 Factory, who was acting as an inside accomplice.
The case was quickly solved, and 15 suspects were apprehended.
Eight ringleaders were hastily tried and sentenced to death, and were immediately executed by firing squad. The remaining accomplices also received heavy sentences.
Newspaper headlines cheered "Injustice redressed," "Bandits brought to justice," and "The National Government is powerful."
The Nanjing authorities breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that they had at least managed to save face.
However, the real story has only just begun.
Only $12.7 of the stolen money was recovered, less than a quarter of the ransom.
The person in charge of solving the case is Mao Linmu from the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics. That's right, Mao Linmu was the one who signed the arrest warrant that the robbers carried back then, and he is still the one in charge of handling the case now.
The reason is quite simple: Mao Linmu was a relative and confidant of Mao, who took over the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics after Dai Chunfeng's death.
He took 5 dollars directly from the recovered stolen money, citing his meritorious service in solving the case and as a reward for his brothers.
The police officers and secret agents who ran errands received varying amounts of money, some earning several hundred yuan and others only a dozen or so.
That wasn't all. The Songhu Garrison Command and the police station then brazenly demanded $4 from the still-shaken Rong family as a reward and thank-you fee for solving the case.
Several bandits were executed, but the real masterminds, the behind-the-scenes figures who could mobilize military vehicles, abuse arrest warrants, and keep various agencies silent, remained unscathed.
The vast majority of the huge sums of money paid by the Rong family disappeared into the bottomless black vortex of Shanghai.
The so-called "solving of the case" is nothing more than throwing out a few scapegoats and putting on a show for the public.
----
These past few days, Rong Desheng has been resting at home, with his son Rong Yixin by his side.
Despite the hardships he had endured, Rong Desheng remained unusually calm.
He looked at the newspaper articles praising the case's resolution, at the official rhetoric, and simply said to his son:
"Yixin, do you see this? This is the Nationalist government we once believed in. The White Party, this watermelon, once cut open, reveals the flesh of bandits, even more greedy and shameless than bandits!"
He walked to the window and looked at the gray sky over Shanghai:
"This place is rotten. Saving the country through industry? I think it's a joke as long as the White Party is around."
Rong Yi said with heartache:
"Father, then we..."
“Let’s go.” Rong Desheng said decisively, without the slightest hesitation in his eyes. “We must go. Not just a little, but as much as we can. The Nanyang Expo is an excellent opportunity.”
It's not just about exhibiting machines, but about going to the site to see them clearly.
If it's really as the newspapers say, that Southeast Asia has the rule of law, order, and is willing to protect entrepreneurs..."
Rong Desheng stamped his foot while leaning on his cane: "The core technology, the funds, and your future must be placed in a safe place."
At the same time, this farce of kidnapping Shanghai's richest man was like the last straw, breaking the psychological defenses of many industrialists, intellectuals, and even ordinary wealthy citizens who had previously harbored illusions about the White Party or were hesitant.
"The rule of secret agents is terrifying." This became a widely circulated consensus.
Thus, a kidnapping targeting top capitalists unexpectedly became the most powerful investment advertisement and talent mobilization order in Southeast Asia.
Heading south to Southeast Asia was no longer just a possibility; it became an urgent survival choice.
At the pier, passenger ferries bound for Singapore, Penang, and other destinations were fully booked, with first-class tickets being extremely difficult to obtain.
Many wealthy businessmen moved their entire families, taking with them valuables, securities, and even technical blueprints they could carry with them.
Some people have large businesses and cannot get out of the business immediately, so they adopt the strategy of not putting all their eggs in one basket. They first send their wives and children, some cash, and valuable collections to Southeast Asia or Hong Kong, while they stay behind to guard their business. However, they also begin to secretly plan their escape route.
Even worse, a heartbreaking wave of exodus has emerged.
Some middle-class office workers, skilled workers, and teachers, unable to afford regular boat tickets and utterly disillusioned with Shanghai, took the risk.
They might sneak onto a cargo ship about to leave port late at night and hide in the cold corners of the cargo hold or in piles of coal.
Some bribed dockworkers to slip themselves into the inner layers of wooden crates carrying goods to Southeast Asia; others forged identity documents to board ships bound for Hong Kong and then managed to transit through Southeast Asia.
The doors of Nanyang business offices and overseas Chinese affairs agencies in Shanghai were practically worn down by the crowds, with people coming in droves to inquire about policies, handle procedures, and seek guarantees.
Newspapers published in Southeast Asia and pamphlets introducing life and development in Southeast Asia quietly circulated in Shanghai, and even appeared to be reprinted on the black market.
The invitation to the first Nanyang Industrial Exposition became a lifeline for many people.