"What can be shared is also divided into levels," He Rui explained. "The cultural instructors are one of us, and their current mission is to gather intelligence. You can show them the plan and explain the scope and methods of their collection work. As for how to analyze that data, they don't need to concern themselves with that for now."

Hearing this, Cheng Ruofan asked cautiously, "Commander, we're newcomers here. Even if we change into civilian clothes, we'll still be noticed. If others find out what we're doing, what will they think?"

The question was clever enough that He Rui actually smiled.

Of the six young officers, the four He Rui had hand-picked seemed to understand his amusement immediately. Xu Chengfeng and Zhong Yifu exchanged a glance; it was clear they understood as well.

"Ruofan, the people in a city fall into two categories: the common populace and the influential figures," He Rui said. "As for the populace, as long as we don't go looking for trouble, they won't care who we are or why we’re here. As for the influential figures—the moment we arrived, they already started forming their own ideas. And what they’re thinking is exactly what you’re trying to hide from them."

Cheng Ruofan felt a wave of anxiety. He had recently discussed their future with Xu Chengfeng, who believed that no matter where they were sent, their priority had to be seizing local control. To do that, they had to move carefully to avoid alerting the local power brokers.

Originally, Cheng Ruofan hadn't thought that deeply about it. It was only after listening to He Rui’s lectures on forming local governments that he truly grasped the importance of seizing power.

"Start your intelligence gathering as soon as you reach Siping," He Rui continued. "Leave everything else until I return from the Kwantung Government-General."

Eager to understand He Rui’s broader strategy, Cheng Ruofan volunteered himself. "Commander, please let me accompany you to the Government-General."

Zhong Yifu had the same idea. Seeing Cheng Ruofan try to beat him to it, he immediately challenged him. "On what grounds?"

With the subject now out in the open, the other officers stopped holding back. Xu Chengfeng was the first to speak. "Commander, since Siping is our jurisdiction now, we can't just sit around waiting for others to tell us what to do, can we?"

"Exactly! He's right!" the others chimed in, making their stance clear.

Zheng Silang asked, "Commander, what's our next move?"

"I’m not holding back because I don’t know or haven’t thought about it," He Rui said. "On the contrary, it’s precisely *because* I have that I’m not saying anything yet. My starting point is the liberation of all China. I haven’t spoken of seizing Siping because I want you all to follow my broader train of thought."

Cheng Ruofan looked a bit slighted. "Commander, I want to liberate China too. But to liberate China, don't we need a base of operations first?"

He Rui nodded. "Correct. I agree with that logic. But what comes after that?"

"You've ordered us to scout the area," Cheng Ruofan said. "I agree with that too—reconnaissance before a fight."

"Right. No argument there. And after that?"

"The local influential figures won't just hand Siping over to us. I think we should move cautiously so they don't catch on," Cheng Ruofan explained, still feeling a bit misunderstood.

Zhong Yifu tried to cut in, likely to point out that Cheng Ruofan was underestimating the opposition, but Cheng Ruofan cut him off. "Let me finish. I know I’m underestimating them, alright? Are you satisfied?"

Zhong Yifu rubbed his nose and swallowed his words.

Cheng Ruofan hurried on. "Since those people will know we’re here to take their territory, I’ve been thinking about how to eliminate them. I’ve come up with a few ideas, but I’m not sure which is best. I wanted to hear your take on it, Commander."

When Cheng Ruofan finished, Xu Chengfeng spoke up. "I don't think that last step is quite right. The Commander said we need to seize Siping, but if the goal is to make it our base, shouldn't we be looking at what Siping is going to *become*?"

He Rui found himself mentally comparing the two men.

In terms of raw intelligence, Cheng Ruofan was likely Xu Chengfeng's equal. However, his greatest strength was also his weakness: if given a clear starting point and a defined goal, Cheng Ruofan could work out the intermediate steps with incredible speed. But without those goalposts, he struggled to find his own direction through pure methodology.

To Cheng Ruofan, seizing Siping was the ultimate goal. His logic was linear: arrive in Siping, then take Siping. Every action was a step along that single line.

Xu Chengfeng also saw seizing Siping as a necessary objective, but he understood that it was subordinate to the much higher goal of *building* Siping.

Even though Xu Chengfeng’s thinking was still developing, his overall perspective was far more advanced. At the academy, Xu Chengfeng had been a Grade-A student, while Cheng Ruofan was a C-grade upper-middle. He Rui didn't always agree with the instructors at the Baoding Military Academy, but he certainly couldn't say they had been wrong about these two.

Since Xu Chengfeng had elevated the discussion to this level, He Rui decided to keep it there. "Understanding that taking territory requires struggle is a good start. But even if you were to seize every inch of land in this country, that alone wouldn't build a new nation. A nation is only 'new' if it is built according to a top-level design. And top-level design isn't about how people want to live in a new country—it’s about how the new country *requires* them to live."

He Rui picked up the plan. "In the Siping of the future, the people must be able to live in peace and prosperity. Does anyone here object to that?"

The question seemed bizarrely obvious, but the young men quickly voiced their firm support.

"And how do we achieve that peace and prosperity? We start with three things: security, livelihood, and education. Regarding security—who is currently in charge of it? What is the actual situation on the ground? How many bandit gangs are operating? How much petty theft is there? How many market bullies and local tyrants are breathing down the people's necks? We can only answer these questions through intelligence. And once we have those answers, it will be perfectly clear whether the people currently 'managing' Siping should be allowed to stay."

He Rui pointed to a section of the document. "I’ve already listed the specific details we need regarding the security situation. Take a look."

The officers fell silent as they studied the list.

"Then there is the matter of livelihood," He Rui continued. "What do the people of Siping eat? Are they going hungry? How do they earn a living? Who owns the land, who owns the shops, and who owns the factories? Finally, there is education—a project for a century, but an urgent problem for today. How many schools are there, and who runs them? What is the literacy rate? How many graduates do they produce at each level?"

He Rui set the plan back down. "Comrades, if your only goal is to seize Siping, then everyone in that city is your enemy. But if your goal is to ensure the people of Siping can live in peace, then the enemies of the people are your enemies. And through your investigation, those enemies will reveal themselves soon enough."