Chapter 86 second quarter

In August 1945, Japan was defeated and surrendered, and Shanghai returned to the embrace of China.In the late period of the Republic of China, the Kuomintang was already highly corrupt. After Shanghai was accepted by the Kuomintang, the social chaos did not improve at all. Within a short period of time, a series of major kidnapping cases occurred, such as the kidnapping of "Diamond King" Fan Huichun, "Hardware King" Tang Baochang, and the kidnapping of the two sons of Guangdong businessman Chen Bingqian.Amid the panic and curses of the people, on April 25, 1946, another explosive news happened: Rong Desheng, the king of flour and cotton yarn, was kidnapped again!

This kidnapping case is known as "the largest kidnapping case in Shanghai", because the "meat ticket" has the largest name, the largest ransom demanded, and the actual amount paid in the end is also the largest. Rong Desheng is the head of Rongshi Group, the largest national enterprise in China. This enterprise group has 23 factories, including 14 flour mills and 9 yarn mills, which are distributed in Shanghai, Wuxi, Hankou, Chongqing, Baoji and other parts of the country. Assets exceed 100 million yuan.In the 1920s, the flour and cotton yarn output of Rong’s enterprises accounted for one-third of the output value of all national enterprises in these two industries; just one year after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, only its subordinate Shenxin No. Five times, the bonus was as high as 5,000 taels of gold, half of which was earned by the Rong family.

Such a huge wealth makes many people envious, and Rong Desheng has long been the target of kidnapping gangs.As the number one leader in Shanghai's business community, 71-year-old Rong Desheng is well aware of the dangers of the world, and he is not uncompromising about his own safety precautions. Whenever he goes out, he must be protected by armed bodyguards and rides in a bulletproof car.However, no matter how strict the precautions are, they will not be able to withstand the deliberate kidnapping black hands. It was the Shengxian Gang who planned and implemented this major kidnapping case.The gang, Luo Wenqing and Yuan Chongzhu, two "senior" kidnappers in their 50s, were finalized after secret talks, and their target was Rong Desheng, the number one tycoon in the Shanghai business world.They enlisted Zhu Liansheng, a special agent of the Blue Shirts Society, who had worked in the Rongjia Flour Mill. Under Zhu Liansheng's identification, Luo and Yuan found out Rong Desheng's appearance and habit of going in and out. It is difficult to succeed, and then consult Huang Abao, who was a habitual bandit and traitor, and now serves in the Kuomintang spy organization, to discuss the kidnapping plan.

Hijacking the "meat ticket" is the first step in kidnapping and extorting.The method of hijacking is generally to put the "meat ticket" in a car and run away when he is alone. There are also clever tricks, such as parking the car next to the victim on the street, and the kidnapper gets out of the car and walks behind the victim, covering his eyes Said: "Guess, who am I?" Of course the victim said he didn't know, and then the kidnapper covered his eyes and dragged him and said: "Long time no see, let's talk in the car..." Just like this, the "meat ticket" "Put it in the car and drive away.

Others parked the car next to the victim, and the kidnapper opened the car door to greet the victim warmly, and the victim turned around suspiciously and approached the car to look, while the other kidnapper who got out of the car first stood behind the victim; The person approached the car door, and the kidnapper in the car punched the victim in the abdomen, and the victim bent over in pain. From the eyes of the passers-by, this was an action of bending to get into the car, and the kidnapper immediately shoved him into the car. The kidnapper in the car took advantage of the situation and dragged him into the car, and he was done...

It seemed that none of these conventional methods worked for Rong Desheng. Luo Wenqing and Yuan Chongzhu approached Huang Abao to discuss.Huang Abao rolled his eyes and said, "Isn't it easy? Let's arrest him!" In other words, he got Rong Desheng into the car in the name of police arrest.Luo and Yuan Maosai suddenly realized, and praised again and again. Huang Abao recruited his nephew, Huang Jintang, a special agent of the military reunification, to join the team. This man spends a lot of money and has a limited salary. He is eager for a chance to make a fortune, so they hit it off immediately.Huang Jintang obtained a series of "props" such as a Corto pistol specially used for military reunification agents, an arrest warrant from the Army's Third Front Army, and a car from the Songhu Garrison Command.After several planning and division of labor, it is ready.

On April 25, 1946, at the residence of Rong Desheng, No. 210, Gaoen Road, Shanghai, a black military Chevrolet sedan was parked in front of the gate of the Rong residence, and a special pass stamped with the seal of the Songhu Security Command was pasted on the front window .Just as Rong Desheng's bulletproof glass armored car drove out of the courtyard gate, a person "walking" in front of the courtyard waved to the military vehicle, and the black military vehicle rushed forward, blocking the way. Luo Wenqing, Yuan Chongzhu and another kidnapper jumped out of the car and approached the armored car door, drew their pistols, and ordered the driver to get out of the car.There were 6 people in the armored car, including a driver, two bodyguards, Rong Desheng's son Rong Yixin and son-in-law Tang Xiongyuan, and another gray-haired old man who was the target of kidnapping Rong Desheng.

Seeing this, the two bodyguards immediately went forward. The man pointed his gun and said sharply: "Don't move around, we are on business!" Then he handed over an arrest warrant stamped with the seal of "Army's Third Front Army" Pass it in front of Rong Desheng and say: "Mr. Rong, please go to the headquarters for something, please get out of the car and come with us." The people in the car were inexplicable.Rong Yixin asked: "What's the matter? Do you want my father to come to the headquarters?" The visitor said: "It's not clear, we are following orders, and it will be clear when we arrive at the headquarters. Needless to say, get out of the car!"

Rong Desheng looked at the visitor in surprise.He was familiar with the situation in the military and police circles, seeing that they were traveling in a military car with a special pass, they were using Corto pistols, and they were showing the crimson arrest warrants of the Army's Third Front, so he felt that they were indeed from the military and police; Considering that my company is so large, with so many subordinate factories and involves so many areas, it is very possible that there may be some friction with the military and police, so I need to explain it.So Rong Desheng got out of the car.

Rong Yixin felt that this matter was still too strange, so he grabbed his father and said, "Then you lead the way, and I will go with you." The man waved the arrest warrant and said, "We only want Mr. Rong alone, don't you want to Obstructing official business?" The five people in the car had no choice but to watch Rong Desheng get into the black military car and drive away. Rong Yixin and Tang Xiongyuan turned around and immediately contacted the Third Front Army of the Army, who replied that they had neither seen Mr. Rong coming nor sent anyone to invite him; the two were shocked, and then quickly sent someone to the Songhu Security Command After inquiring, the headquarters was baffled and said, "Arrest Mr. Rong? Who is so bold?"

Rong Yixin and Tang Xiongyuan immediately collapsed to the ground: It turned out that the old man was abducted in broad daylight in front of his son, son-in-law and bodyguards in front of his son, son-in-law and bodyguards! Kidnapping is nothing new in Shanghai.The Rong family was in despair, and the first decision was to take money to redeem them.Generally speaking, kidnappers want money and don't want to die, and meeting their demands can keep the meat ticket safe; but if they are stingy with money or call the police, they will probably tear up the ticket.Therefore, the Rong family did not report the crime and did not want the police to intervene. They only contacted the kidnappers to redeem them. However, after Rong Desheng was "arrested", the Rong family went to the military and police for questioning twice, and the news spread immediately.Even the number one tycoon in the corporate world could not escape the kidnappers' claws. Public opinion in the society was boiling, and people commented that such audacity must involve the military and police circles. Because the kidnappers used the cars and documents of the Songhu Police Headquarters to commit the crime, the Songhu Police Headquarters could not get rid of their ties. In order to clear their innocence, the Shanghai Navy Police dispatched a large number of police forces after the incident to conduct a comprehensive search in Shanghai, trying to solve the case as soon as possible.But the Rong family was afraid that the police would intervene and endanger Rong Desheng's safety, so they not only refused to cooperate, but also tried their best to avoid the military and police.The case turned into a three-way struggle among the kidnappers, the Rong family, and the military and police, which became more complicated. The car carrying Rong Desheng drove out of Gao'en Road and headed towards Zhongshan North Road. After a few laps on the street, it arrived at a small river full of reeds in the suburbs of Zhabei. At this moment, Rong Desheng finally understood that he had been kidnapped and became the victim of the kidnappers. His ability to dominate the business world and his social prestige were all useless at this time, and he could only be manipulated and resigned to fate. The kidnapper told him that this was only for money, and as long as he didn't run away or scream, it wouldn't endanger his personal safety.When a large-scale manhunt was launched in Shanghai, Rong Desheng was taken into a small boat and wandered in the dirty river full of garbage for several days.As the scope of the police search expanded to the suburbs, Luo Wenqing and others sent Rong Desheng to the city and locked him in a very secluded hut at No. 100 Lao Gongyi Lane, Wujiaochang, Caojiadu. There are no windows on all sides, no lights are allowed, it is pitch black, and there is an old man guarding it day and night.During the month of being locked in this small dark room, the kidnapper's God of Wealth, Rong Desheng, was not allowed to speak loudly, nor was he allowed to cough, and he could only swallow phlegm. On April 30, five days after the kidnapping, the distraught Rong family finally received a call from the kidnappers. The amount of extortion was unprecedented: up to 2 million US dollars!The Rong family immediately expressed that they were willing to redeem the person with money, but the amount was too large, and they couldn't get together so much cash at once, and hoped to discuss it.The kidnapper called again and designated a place for negotiation. The Rong family rushed to the meeting point, but there was no one there.This happened twice in a row. It turned out that in order to solve the case as soon as possible, the police monitored the phone number of the Rong family who would definitely contact the kidnappers.As soon as the kidnappers and the Rong family agreed on the meeting place, the police immediately sent a large number of plainclothes to the scene.The experienced Shengxian gang found that the momentum was slightly wrong, so they didn't show up, and decided to contact by letter. Rong Desheng, who fell into the hands of the kidnappers, was also negotiating with the kidnappers.The kidnapper proposed a ransom of 2 million US dollars. Rong Desheng immediately said, "My stall looks huge, but it is all fixed investment, and I don't have so much cash; such a huge amount of money can only be withdrawn from subordinate enterprises; There is a special person in charge, not at my disposal. If so much money is withdrawn, the factory will not be able to operate, so this condition cannot be met.The kidnapper was furious and said, don't you want to live? !Rong Desheng sang a high-profile, saying that I live to serve the people, if my old life affects the lives of employees, it would be better not to live. Made an explanation. Unexpectedly, the "meat ticket" regards death as home, the kidnappers are dumbfounded now, but they can't plan and work for a long time, the last dead person will die in their hands, the police who lost their fear will definitely kill the killer.So Luo Wenqing and others changed their faces and persuaded him, saying that the matter should not end here, and that $2 million is too much, right?Then 1 million!The kidnappers drafted Rong Desheng's letter to his family and asked him to copy it. This letter, drafted by the Shengxian County Gang and rejected by Rong Desheng for modification, had to be copied as follows: "The chief here is quite angry, and I begged again and again, and he promised to donate US$1 million..." The letter said: How much money each factory pays has been explained one by one, and the tone is eager to survive, hoping to raise enough money as soon as possible. The kidnappers put the letter on the top of the water tank in the bathroom on the first floor of the Albert Road Xiangsheng Hotel, and then called a factory manager under the Rong Group to inform them.After receiving the letter, the Rong family hurriedly raised funds for the next contact. Unexpectedly, three days later, Rong Erren, Rong Desheng's son, received two letters again. One was written by Rong Desheng, saying that the ransom had dropped to 500,000 US dollars. Otherwise, "I will not be able to protect my old age, and you may suffer unimaginable evil consequences." Another letter came from the kidnappers, threatening, "... Your father has fallen into a very dangerous situation... Gu Nian your father's rare years , Shangming Dayi... The document is limited to two days to be properly prepared to clear the formalities, otherwise, in addition to the death penalty for your father, your Excellency will only issue a sanction order, which is not to say that it is not predictable!" The Rong family didn't dare to be negligent, and immediately raised 500,000 US dollars, just waiting for the money to be redeemed. Nearly a month after the Rong case occurred, the police had made no progress in the investigation, and the pressure of public opinion was increasing. Under such circumstances, Li Jilan, the deputy commander of the Garrison Command, and Cheng Yiming, the chief of the Investigation Division, were forced to resign. Chiang Kai-shek ordered the commander of the Songhu Garrison Command to resign. Xuan Tiewu, chief of the Shanghai Municipal Police, will serve concurrently.Since then, all the elite soldiers of the Shanghai Navy and Police were mobilized, and the brigade was checking day and night. This is suffering the Rong family who only want Rong Desheng to be safe.The Rong family did everything possible to get rid of the police's monitoring and tracking, and finally got in touch with the kidnappers, agreeing to pay the ransom at Pushi Road on May 15. The news was detected by the police, and a large number of plainclothes and police officers were sent to lurk at the meeting point.The location of this meeting was right next to the mansion of Tang Enbo, commander of the Beijing-Shanghai police force. The guards of Tang's mansion found so many plainclothes and policemen lurking around, and they did not dare to take it lightly, so they reported Tang Enbo.Tang Enbo didn't know what was going to happen, so he immediately dispatched a brigade to strengthen the defense. After such a toss, the ransom was in vain: the kidnappers sent to contact them found that the atmosphere was not right, and immediately slipped away.But Gu Dingyan, the contact person sent by the Rong family, didn't know about it, and came to contact with half of the ransom, that is, 250,000 US dollars.When Gu Dingyan arrived at the location and looked around, he was pushed to the ground by the police in plain clothes, and 250,000 US dollars was also confiscated. Just when Gu Dingyan was being beaten up at the Shanghai and North Police Station, the Rong family arrived and explained that Gu Dingyan brought $250,000 for ransom; the police were unreasonable, claiming that contacting the kidnapper without authorization was a violation of the law, so the $250,000 was confiscated !The servants of the Rong family did not redeem the money, but the money was confiscated. It was extremely miserable. After being cleared by the trustee, the police agreed to wait until the case was solved before returning the money. The police were very annoyed by the relationship between the Rong family and the kidnappers, and they were very unwilling to end the case with the Rong family paying the money to redeem the ticket, because in this case, it would appear that they were too pussy; The authorities imposed sanctions on the kidnappers, and only hoped that the old man would return safely first.In this way, the two sides could not work together, and the police believed that the Rong family involved should of course give money to the police to solve the case. The Rong family, who was repeatedly unable to pick up and redeem people, was in a hurry, and the kidnappers, who had not been able to get the money for a long time, were also in a hurry.If it was before the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, they had a lot of room for activities, but now it is 1946; after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War in 1945, Shanghai’s concession has been taken back by China, and Shanghai is now under unified management, without the shelter of the concession and the kidnappers. The land is greatly reduced. The small dark room where Rong Desheng was imprisoned was almost discovered by the police who searched several times.In order to avoid being searched, Yuan Chongzhu and others racked their brains. They wanted to move Rong Desheng out of the city, but they did not implement it because the intersection and the wharf were closely monitored by the police.The kidnappers lived in fear for more than 20 days, but they still didn't get the money, so their morale was low and they sighed. Some helpers felt that the risk was too great, so they simply slipped away. Finally, Luo Wenqing and Zhan Rongpei, the director of Shenxin No. 2 Factory, took over.Zhan Rongpei used to be acquainted with Luo Wenqing. At this time, his dealings with the Shengxian Gang was easy to attract suspicion, but he was extremely trusted and cultivated by Rong Desheng, so he did not avoid suspicion and contacted the kidnappers as the plenipotentiary of the Rong family. The method of contact this time is: the kidnappers wrote the contact address on the back of the hosiery factory recruitment advertisements posted around Jing'an Temple and Nanjing Grand Theater.The Rong family sent cronies to reveal the ad when they saw it, and got the meeting place.There were two meeting places, and the Rong family sent people to guard respectively, but none of the kidnappers showed up. This was just a test for them, trying to find out whether the police were in ambush. After these two trials, the kidnappers were relieved, and agreed with Zhan Rongpei to send money to No. 54, Kangle Village, Fuxi Road, on the afternoon of May 29. After the money arrived, they would be released that night.The cautious Zhan Rongpei asked the kidnappers to bring some tokens of Rong Desheng to show that Rong Desheng was indeed in their hands.Two keepsakes were delivered immediately, one was Rong Desheng's private seal, and the other was an inspirational seal engraved with the word "Youth" that Rong Desheng always wore on his body.After the Rong family saw it and confirmed it, Zhan Rongpei brought the money to redeem him. In order to evade the police, the Rong family sent several servants to deliver the $500,000 in cash to Zhan Rongpei's family several times. On May 27, Zhan Rongpei hid the money under the back seat of the car, drove into the factory first, did some business, and then walked around the street a few times. After confirming that there was no police following him, he went straight to No. 54, Kangle Village, Fuxi Road. . It was Wu Zhigang who represented the kidnappers.When Wu Zhigang saw the brightly colored US dollars, he was ecstatic and coveted. After ordering a stack, he squeezed the other bundles casually, then closed the lid of the safe, nodded and said to Zhan Rongpei: "The old man can only go out at night, it is already 4 It's too late, I will definitely be home at midnight tomorrow, don't worry about it, I guarantee it!" Zhan Rongpei had no choice but to answer the Rong family in this way; in the middle of the night, the Rong family received another call from the kidnappers, saying that Mr. Rong would definitely be home the next day. The kidnappers didn't break their word. At 10:00 p.m. on May 28, a car took Rong Desheng to Xiafei Road and stopped, then helped him out of the car, called a rickshaw, and ordered the driver to take the old man to Donnini Road, where his son-in-law Tang Xiong Yuan's family.Half an hour later, the Rong Zhai was full of joy and laughter, celebrating the safe return of the old man after being kidnapped for 34 days. Rong Desheng spent money to eliminate the disaster, and the Rong family did not want to offend the police, so they did not announce it to the outside world, but the news that "Boss Rong only spent 500,000 US dollars to redeem it" spread immediately, and the police's ability to maintain law and order was criticized by public opinion. The commander-in-chief of China and the US military all mentioned it in talks with Chiang Kai-shek.Chiang Kai-shek was very angry and ordered to solve the case within a time limit. After the kidnappers received the ransom, they performed an episode.Wu Zhigang was greedy for profit, so he privately withheld 100,000 of the 500,000 US dollars that Zhan Rongpei had given him, and then told Luo Wenqing and Yuan Chongzhu that the Rong family did not get the 500,000 US dollars, but only 400,000.Yuan Chongzhu had a problem at first glance, and immediately said that it was absolutely impossible; Wu Zhigang, as if nothing had happened, said that the Rong family could only collect so much, and he had no choice but to ask Zhan Rongpei if he didn't believe it.The kidnappers all knew what had been negotiated, and the Rong family would never change their minds on the spot. Immediately, someone scolded Wu Zhigang for daring to blackmail 100,000, did he not want to live? ! Seeing that the matter was not over, but the gang was about to fight, Luo Wenqing persuaded everyone, saying that it is not too late to settle the matter before it is over.So they released Rong Desheng first, and then they divided 400,000 US dollars into 18 shares at No. 100, Wujiaochang Laogongli, Caojiadu, where Rong Desheng was detained. Luo Wenqing, Yuan Chongzhu, Huang Abao, Huang Jintang, Wu Zhigang Each of them will get 2 shares, and other participants may get 1 share or half a share. After dividing the loot, the kidnappers broke up, and they agreed not to use the money for half a year, so as not to show their feet. The case was finally cracked because someone ignored this agreement and did not strictly enforce it! Under Chiang Kai-shek's order, the Ninghu military and police authorities were desperately looking for clues to the kidnappers who fled after they succeeded.Mao Sen, the chief of the military reunification agent in Nanjing and the second director of the Beijing-Shanghai Garrison Headquarters, was very interested in this. After reading the case materials, he felt that the kidnapping by "arrest" was really ingenious, even if ordinary kidnappers could figure it out. The guns, cars, and documents of the military and police cannot be obtained, so this case probably involved military and police agents. Originally, this case had nothing to do with his duties, but the criminal happened to catch him under his nose.Mao Sen discovered that Huang Jintang under his command had never done any lucrative errands, but recently he was very wealthy. He bought a new American car, wore high-end suits every day, and spent money in karaoke bars and restaurants.Mao Sen immediately thought that Huang Jintang was from Shengxian County, Zhejiang Province, and the Shengxian Gang was the most famous kidnapper in Shanghai. Could it be that Huang Jintang had something to do with it?He also remembered that some time ago, Huang Jintang often went to Shanghai and Wuxi to handle errands, and it stopped during this period; moreover, after the Rong case, the Shengxian Gang, who had been doing evil, disappeared immediately... With so many doubts appearing in Mao Sen's mind, Mao Sen couldn't hold back his excitement, so he asked Huang Jintang to test it out. After Huang Jintang entered the door, Mao Sen didn't say a word, just stared at him hard, Huang Jintang was stared uneasy; Mao Sen suddenly said: "Huang Jintang, what good things have you done recently?!" Huang Jintang was surprised in his heart, pretending to be surprised on the surface What does it mean to ask Virgo?Mao Sen laughed, pointed to his suit and said, "Don't pretend to be crazy! Look at your clothes, I heard that you have a lot of style recently!" Huang Jintang relaxed, and said with a smile: "It turns out that you are a Talk about my clothes. A friend came to Nanjing, and I played with him for two days, and he gave me this, which fits me well.” Mawson said, "Your friend is gone, isn't he?" "Yes, I went back two days ago." "I have something to do. It would be better to send you there." "What's up?" "It's the case of Rong Desheng's kidnapping. The chairman ordered the order to solve the case. Brother, it's best for you to go, right?" Huang Jintang became more and more surprised and uncertain, so he remained silent.Mao Sen suddenly sternly said: "You have been in Shanghai and Wuxi a lot recently, don't you know who did it?!" Huang Jintang's flustered expression became more and more difficult to hide, and he just faltered and said: "Young brother can't predict, according to the opinion of the seat ..." Mao Sen approached him and said word by word: "You don't know about the Shengxian Gang, do you?" Huang Jintang's expression suddenly changed; "500,000 US dollars is not a small amount. Tell me how will this group divide it? How will it be spent?" So far, under Mao Sen's well-designed series of offensives, Huang Jintang has lost his mind and trembled all over. In fact, the secret has been leaked, and Mao Sen's guess has been confirmed. Huang Jintang was locked in a confinement room.He came back to his senses and deeply regretted that he shouldn't have been so ostentatious after receiving tens of thousands of dollars. Now he can only deny and complain, but he can't explain the source of his recent large sum of money, and he can't explain his whereabouts during the Rong case.Under Mao Sen's further soft and hard tactics, Huang Jintang's psychological defense line collapsed, and he finally explained the process of committing the crime and his accomplices. Mao Sen immediately deployed his military special agents to search and arrest, and all the criminals in this case were arrested. On August 27, 1946, the Shanghai Military Court sentenced 8 principal criminals including Luo Wenqing, Yuan Chongzhu, Huang Abao, Huang Jintang, and Wu Zhigang to death, and they were executed immediately.The Shengxian gang that was rampant in Shanghai was destroyed, and even Luo Wenqing, a gangster who had been kidnapped for 8 years and never missed a hand, came to the end. The sensational "Shanghai Bund's No. 1 Kidnapping Case" was finally settled.In recognition of Mao Sen's great contribution to solving the case, Chiang Kai-shek rewarded him with US$50,000; Rong Desheng also came to Mao Sen's house to express his gratitude, presenting him with a gold watch and a pair of gold pens. Although the case was solved, the Rong family only recovered 200,000 US dollars, and most of the rest fell into the hands of the military and police. There is a record that the Shanghai Police Bureau and the Songhu Security Command withheld 140,000 US dollars, "as a reward for the investigators." used”; the US$250,000 previously “confiscated” has not been returned in full.After the case was solved, relevant people continued to come to ask for remuneration.The Rong family spent a total of 600,000 US dollars on this matter, which exceeded the amount extorted by the kidnappers.This huge sum of money was all distributed to the subordinate enterprises, and the business of the Rong Group was hit hard.