Chapter 55: Seeing the Treasured Tobacco

  Jiang Chao Tian is actually Jiang Ge Yang's Yan Shi Fan, he and the historical Yan Shi Fan have too many similarities, same fondness for beauty, same physical weakness, same expertise in ZZ, precise in planning, the biggest similarity lies in having a powerful and influential old father. In an instant, Jiang Chao Tian saw the problem, with the problem, naturally had to seek a solution.

  Jiang Chaotian suddenly changed his previous cold demeanor, chuckled and said: "So it's the high-ranking official from General An's office. Nice to meet you, nice to meet you. I'm still seeing such a young and handsome high-ranking official for the first time. We brothers should get along well, how can we lose our harmony because of a little misunderstanding?" After flattering him, he turned his head to Qiu Zhiguo and said: "Colonel Qiu, I want to exchange views with Advisor Xue, can you take everyone to rest in the next room for a while?" Jiang Chaotian was indeed clever, Qiu Zhiguo's eyelid twitched, he immediately sensed that the other party was dissatisfied with his nickname, and quickly changed his title, even changing the tone of his request to a consultative tone.

  Qiu Zhiguo had never seen Jiang Dashao speak to him with such a warm and gentle tone, he was about to agree. Suddenly, he thought that the real boss was sitting on the sofa, how could he dare to take charge? Fortunately, he didn't rashly agree, otherwise, he would have offended both Jiang Dashao and Director J, probably wouldn't have been able to survive. Qiu Zhiguo also didn't speak, carefully glanced at Xue Xiang, intending to ask for his opinion, Xue Xiang slightly nodded. Qiu Zhiguo let out a sigh of relief, led the crowd, supported Si Yong, and dragged Wen Hong out of the office.

  Xue Xiang agreed to have a private conversation with Jiang Chao Tian, also in order to clarify his chips. Xue Xiang, who has carefully studied both official and unofficial histories, naturally understood that the greatest threat to the faction he represented at this time came from that side, rather than the vice governor.

  Jiang Chao Tian locked the door and sat on the sofa opposite Xue Xiang, looking at him with a playful expression: "Let's open the window and talk frankly. I don't believe those old men would pay attention to such trivial matters. I'd rather believe this is your righteous indignation getting out of hand. Tell me, what did General An really mean?" He was right about the first half of the sentence, but wrong about the second half. This wasn't General An intentionally sending a signal to Jiang Ge Yang at all, it was just Xue Xiang's pride and personal vendetta.

  Xue Xiang smiled and said, "What a big deal? Jiang Da Shao really has a big mouth! The old man's instructions are simple: first, you must make amends for the evil you have done. You must compensate the victims' families with money and work, and most importantly, kneel down and apologize to the victimized young woman; second, the dregs of the military must be eliminated, and Wen Hong and Si Yong must be put on trial." Xue Xiang deliberately called General An "old man", implying that his relationship with him was not ordinary. In fact, there was no need for Xue Xiang to do so, as this young An Ban Te was not an ordinary person who could handle such a task, and he had even come in General An's vehicle.

  Xue Xiang was not a Lei Feng who indulged in a sense of justice, but he had a mind to do good things. He still had the most simple moral view and the desire to punish evil and promote good. Although he knew that it was not the time to stir up trouble now, and it was impossible to bring Jiang Chao Tian to justice, he could only try to get some justice for the injured young women within his own ability.

  Jiang Chao Tian's two thin and long eyebrows were tightly locked, his eyes fiercely staring at Xue Xiang Dao: "Is this really what Old An meant? Everything else is fine, but to make me kneel down and apologize to those broken shoes, how dare he think of it. What an old feudalistic idea!"

  Xue Xiang's fist heavily slammed onto the tea table, staring coldly at Jiang Chao Tian: "What did you say? Say it again?" The massive fist instantly shattered the 10-centimeter-thick glass tea table into fragments, and the flying debris cut open Jiang Chao Tian's left cheek, with fresh blood gushing out immediately.

  Jiang Chao Tian stuck out his scarlet tongue and licked the fresh blood that had flowed to the corner of his mouth, savoring it in his mouth: "They say blood is salty, but why does my blood taste sweet? How strange!"

  "Don't play non-mainstream with me, I'll pass on Old General's words, whether you follow them or not is up to you. I believe you're a smart person, those cases will be handed over, some people will get very excited." Xue turned lazy and didn't bother looking at him, propping his leg up and smoking.

  "Not mainstream? Fresh! But very accurate, however, the word 'not mainstream' is a bit wasteful on me. I've never been one to make grand statements, always speaking ill of others and doing bad deeds to the extreme. When people respect me by an inch, I respect them by a foot." Jiang Chao Tian wiped the blood from his face with a handkerchief in his left hand, while reaching for Xue Xiang's cigarette box with his right hand.

  "Threaten me? I'm least afraid of threats!" Xue pressed down on the cigarette box, leaving him grasping at nothing.

  Jiang Chao Tian smiled, pulled out a white metal cigarette case from his pocket with a golden dragon painted on it. He opened the case and took out a cigar with a rough texture, both ends of which were roughly the same thickness, lit it with a match, and took a nice drag.

  Xue Xiang's eyes were fixed on the cigar and couldn't move away. As an old smoker, he was familiar with this famous brand of cigar. This cigar was known as "Sichuan Snowflake" or "132" cigar. It originated from Sichuan Province and was initially produced by Sichuan Cigar Factory. Chairman Mao accidentally showed off this cigar in front of the leader, who fell in love with its refreshing and mellow flavor after lighting one up. Later on, the central government assembled a special team of craftsmen from Sichuan Province to produce customized cigars for the top leaders in Beijing, known as the "132" group. The "132" group produced two types of cigars: No. 13 and No. 2, with No. 2 exclusively supplied to Chairman Mao and No. 13 supplied to other central government leaders. The main difference between No. 2 and No. 13 cigars was their thickness at both ends. It was said that Chairman Mao always lit up his cigar by simply picking it up and taking a puff, sometimes putting the thicker end in his mouth, which was inconvenient. That's why the No. 2 cigar was created. The cigar Jiang Chao Tian held in his hand was precisely this famous No. 2 cigar.

  "Number 2, you've never had one before, have you? You must have had Number 13 from General An's place. Haven't you heard that apart from the appearance, everything else is the same between Number 2 and Number 13? That's a scam! Do you know how the tobacco for Number 2 is cultivated? It's irrigated with nutrient-rich things like pig manure, sesame oil, and fragrant oil. In the two hundred mu of sandy fields along the river in Shu, only one mu of special soil can produce this kind of tobacco leaf, with an annual output of no more than thirty catties..."

  Jiang Chao Tian saw that his opponent's attention had indeed been drawn to his cigar and began to introduce it enthusiastically. He was very clever and knew how to use what methods to ease the atmosphere and shift attention. As a special agent from An's office, he could tell by the way he smoked that he was an old smoker, with no reason not to recognize this cigar or be interested in it. Finding the enemy's weakness is the key to victory. Similarly, finding the opponent's excitement point is the key to cooperation and negotiation.

  Xue Xiang's interest in the cigar was not just a passing fancy, but an urgent desire to get his hands on some, for this brand of cigar was truly rare. Xue Xiang tossed the jade pendant onto the pile of glass, crushed it, and snatched the cigarette box from his hand, opening it and pulling out the last one to light up for himself, taking a deep drag, closing his eyes, as a refreshing and mellow flavor surged through his nostrils straight to his heart, his entire body felt like it was floating on cloud nine, ethereal and carefree.

  This fragrance should be in heaven, how can it be smelled by humans?!

  Xue Xiang opened his eyes and smiled: "You've got what you wanted, I won't ask where you got it from, anyway it's not through any proper channels. Speak up, how much more do you have!"

  Jiang Chao Tian burst out laughing: "People are ultimately their mothers' people! A pack of cigarettes, and Bao Si Yong's military status."

  Xue Xiang looked at him with disdain and said coldly, "Is kneeling down more important than punishing Si Yong? Five words: forget about kneeling down to apologize. There's no room for discussion when it comes to Si Yong's matter." Although Xue Xiang loved this brand of cigarettes dearly, if he had to choose between giving up on punishing Si Yong and his beloved cigarettes, he would choose the former without hesitation - his brother was a hundred times more important than his most cherished cigarettes.

  Jiang Chao Tian's eyes were wide with anger, staring fiercely at Xue Xiang Dao: "I think you're crazy, five? Do you know that this cigarette has been produced since the end of 71, only thirty a year, not enough for old people to smoke, if not given away will be destroyed, where can I get five for you?"

  Where did Xue go, I don't know if he was deceiving people or destroying them. It sounds good to say that the No. 2 cigar of the later generation has not been taken out for auction. Hongci also said that except for sending it to the central government, all local ones were destroyed, and in the end, weren't many secretly hidden? Xue Xiang squinted his eyes and said: "I won't haggle with you, a flat price of five No. 2 cigars, I'll help you destroy your case files, sacrifice one finger of Si Yong, and keep your military rank, but you must be imprisoned for a year. Also, if you kneel down and apologize, I'll plead with the old man on your behalf. Don't give me any nonsense, just one word, is it a deal or not?"

  Jiang Chao didn't respond immediately, tapping his thigh with his index finger as if in thought. What he was most concerned about was the case, not Si Yong. As for kneeling and the case being one and two, or two and one, if it wasn't for him grasping the case, he wouldn't bother wasting words with him, let alone making himself kneel. He hadn't considered destroying the case immediately afterwards, but the other party had already taken notice and wouldn't let him complete it secretly. If this matter were to stir up more trouble, it would inevitably cause a big commotion throughout the city. Alas, the hard-earned No. 2 was mostly going to be cheapened for this opportunist. Jiang Chao nodded helplessly, saying "Deal" in a weak tone.

  Xue Xiang was overjoyed, but didn't show it. To be honest, this limited edition cigar weighed more in his heart than Su Shi's calligraphy and painting, or Qingshui's porcelain. Xue Xiang pointed to the office phone on the nearby desk, indicating that he should call to pick up the goods now.

  Jiang Chao Tian ran into this kind of guy who only cared about getting benefits, it was as if he had encountered a bad omen. He wanted to delay for some time to find some 13th-style cigarette packaging designs, but it was too late. He helplessly walked over to the desk and started dialing the phone.

  Xue Xiang opened the office door and called out to Qiu Zhiguo to make a phone call to the duty officer, and soon someone would bring something over. After saying that, he closed the door again and said to Jiang Chaotian, who was hanging his head in despair: "Those cigarettes, how did you get them? You must have spent a lot of effort. I really admire you, your courage is boundless, this is a deadly business."

  Jiang Chao Tian burst out laughing and said, "I thought you were a big shot, but it turns out you're just naive. You think this is some kind of huge secret? Everyone knows except for the old man. The only reason this smoke is rare is because its leaves are hard to find outside."

  Xue Xiang really didn't know the reason, and thought that the two cigars were just different in appearance. The two men didn't wait for long, fifteen minutes later, Qiu Zhiguo led a tall middle-aged man wearing a dress shirt and trousers to knock on the office door.

  A middle-aged man carried a large, dark leather suitcase and saw Jiang Chao Tian with a gloomy face, bowed his head to greet him, and handed over the suitcase. However, Jiang Chao Tian did not take it, pointing at Xue Xiangdao: "It's prepared for this gentleman."

  The middle-aged man's face flashed with surprise, and he respectfully handed over the iron box. Xue took the iron box, held it in his hand, felt a bit heavy, was about to open it, and found that the lid buckle was actually equipped with a password lock. The password locks of this era are high-end goods, rare goods, and mostly foreign goods, which are mainly used for setting up safes. Mobile password boxes are extremely rare. It can be seen how much Jiang Chao Tian treasures these few cigars.

  Xue Xiangyi tilted his head and swept his eyes over Jiang Chao Tian. With a miserable look on his face, as if he had lost his parents, Jiang Taishao weakly spat out the password.

  With a "ding", the password lock popped open, and inside lay six cigarettes neatly arranged. There was no text on the cigarettes, only a golden dragon flying overhead the Great Wall, compared to the single-pack cigarette's aluminum box with an additional Great Wall.

  Xue handed over a cigar to Jiang Chao, who waved his hand indicating he didn't need it. We can't be so petty when doing things, if not enough, we'll think of ways to get more next year and make up for it. If he knew that with the great leader's passing in a month, the "132 group" would disband by the end of the year, and there wouldn't be any No. 2 cigars left in the world, he'd regret it till his intestines turned green.

  Xue Xiang was unexpectedly pleased with this young man's style, which was quite refreshing and generous. He put the cigarette back, locked it up, stretched out his hand and made a inviting gesture. Jiang Chao Tian took big strides, walked out of the office, and rushed all the way, leaving behind this unlucky, jinxed and heartbreaking place.