Chapter 56: The Thugs of the National Socialist Party

Zhang Hainuo returned to Germany once again, this time in July 1920.

On April 1st of that year, the German Workers' Party officially changed its name to the National Socialist German Workers' Party, abbreviated as the Nazi Party. At this time, Hitler's position within the Nazi Party was also gradually elevated as his personal influence grew.

However, upon his return to Germany, Zhang Hainuo was unaware of these developments, and he had no time to rush to Munich to congratulate Hitler. As soon as he arrived in Germany, he met with Seckenwald, the main operator of the Weisel Shipyard. Seckenwald informed him that during the German Empire era, the steel used by Weisel primarily came from the industrial giant at the time, Krupp.

Over the past few months, the Allied Commission for Reparations had been relentlessly "punishing" major factories and shipyards in Germany, including Krupp. Although the Krupp family did not capitulate, rebuilding was not something that could be accomplished overnight, and many of their experts faced the prospect of being "idle".

With the precedent of cooperation with the Weisel Shipyard, Zhang Hainuo set his sights on Krupp. Upon Seckenwald's recommendation, he quickly met with an important member of the Krupp family. After candidly explaining his intentions, the other party quickly agreed to his proposed collaboration and promised to send a group of experts to Brazil. As for the equipment needed by the Royal Ironworks, it would be provided by Krupp's subsidiary in Sweden. In the dismantling operations of the Allied Commission for Reparations, some of the more valuable machinery and equipment were bought up by these German industrial giants' partners or subsidiaries in the Nordic countries.

Zhang Hainuo's visit to Krupp this time unexpectedly went smoothly. Next, he turned his attention to his personal affairs—trying to find Anna. Considering that Anna's family were Bavarians through and through, he speculated that Anna and her family might have sought refuge with their relatives in Bavaria.

Therefore, he decided to start searching in Bavaria.

"Sir, currently, the price for publishing a notice in the first section of the newspaper is 1000 marks per day for 100 words or less. The same number of words in the second section costs only 400 marks, while in the third and fourth sections, it's 200 and 150 marks respectively! You can choose different sections according to your needs. As for the effect, of course, the closer to the front page, the more attention it will attract!"

In the office of the Munich Morning Post, the head of the newspaper, with a small elegant mustache on his upper lip and his hair neatly parted in the middle, explained their business and charges for missing person notices. In the eyes of this man, who had rich social experience, the person sitting in front of him might not be flashy in appearance, but his complexion and temperament were not something an ordinary citizen could possess—today, the lower-middle class people of Munich were either working hard every day but earning little, or running around all day for their livelihood. The young man in front of him might not be wearing fancy clothes, but it was clear he didn't want to attract attention from outsiders.

The young man didn't take too long to consider. He asked, "For the first section, if I publish continuously for a week, can I get a discount?"

"Of course!" The newspaper head raised his eyebrows casually, as if he were being generous. "If you publish continuously for a week, we'll only charge you 5000 marks! Sir, please write down the person you're looking for, your contact information, and the message you want to leave on the paper. We'll place this missing person notice in a very prominent position for you!"

The young man pondered for a moment, "What if I offer a reward to anyone providing valid information? Would it make it easier to find the person I'm looking for?"

"Of course!" The newspaper head said without hesitation, "As long as you can afford the price, everyone in Munich will be mobilized! Once this message is published in our newspaper, the person you're looking for might appear in front of you within a week!"

"How about 1000 marks? What do you think?"

"Then it means this person is very important to you!" He smirked cunningly, thinking to himself, "It also means you have money."

The young man started writing on the paper, making several revisions back and forth with gestures. After several changes, he was satisfied and handed the note back to the mustached man.

The newspaper head only glanced briefly to ensure that the number of words did not exceed 100, thankfully, the young man didn't write too much despite taking a long time. It seemed that with some careful layout, they could save some advertising space.

"Sir, as long as you pay, we can start publishing your notice tomorrow!"

"Great, thank you very much!"

The young man took out a wallet from his pocket. "Can I pay in dollars?"

"Of course! According to the latest exchange rate announced by the bank, you'll need... 170 dollars!"

The newspaper head's expression seemed to say, "Paying in dollars is great."

Although slightly surprised by the official exchange rate, the young man counted out 17 ten-dollar bills from his wallet.

The newspaper head took the money, carefully examining each note until he had checked the last one. Then, he smiled and said, "Sir, rest assured, there will be no problem with this matter! If you have time tomorrow, come to the newspaper office, and we'll give you ten copies of the newspaper for free!"

"No need!" After receiving the receipt, the young man picked up the suitcase he carried with him, said little, and prepared to leave.

"Karl, escort this gentleman!"

The newspaper head called his deputy and politely said, "Please, take care!"

After the young man's figure disappeared down the corridor, the newspaper head picked up the note on the desk and read it gently:

"Looking for Anna Tiefert. I'm Hainuo, I'm back. If seen, please come to the Humpelthof Hotel, 9 Langen Street, Munich, or to the Fink Manor in Oberschleben! Hasting has passed away, and my new steward's name is Barend! Informants can also contact at the above address, reward 1000 marks!"

After leaving the Munich Morning Post office, Zhang Hainuo finally had time to visit his "old friend". Uncertain if Hitler still lived in the attic where they last met, he went directly to the Schandlknackbrau Tavern.

The waiter at the tavern informed him that the Workers' Party had rented an apartment on the next street for their office, and Hitler usually spent his days there.

After leaving the tavern, Zhang Hainuo headed straight for the building the owner had told him about. Just as he turned the corner, he almost collided with a man in military uniform.

"You blind fool... Oh, look who it is!"

A voice as loud as a bull's roar made Zhang Hainuo's eardrums ache.

"Oh, Mr. Rohm, it's you! It's great to see you. I was just about to look for you!" Zhang Hainuo greeted the fat and sturdy man warmly.

"Haha, brave and stubborn young man, how long has it been since we last met?" Rohm looked Zhang Hainuo up and down while speaking. "Almost a year, isn't it?"

"Nine months!" Zhang Hainuo corrected him.

"Haha, Adolf often mentions you! Come, take a look at our new office!" Rohm put his hand on Zhang Hainuo's back and pointed to a nearby building that was sixty percent new. "Starting from April 1st, we've changed our name from the German Workers' Party to the National Socialist German Workers' Party! There, that's our new office location!"

"The National Socialist German Workers' Party?" The name seemed a bit long, and it took Zhang Hainuo some effort to repeat it.

"Yes, abbreviated as the NSDAP!" Rohm proudly introduced.

"The NSDAP!" Zhang Hainuo's heart skipped a beat; it seemed that the era of the Nazis had begun!

"Let's go, Adolf is designing the emblem and flag for our party!"

Rohm didn't care whether Zhang Hainuo was lost in thought or not. He grabbed him and walked towards the building.

Soon, Zhang Hainuo found himself in the hall of the NSDAP's new headquarters on the second floor. Just like the first time they met, Hitler was wearing a white shirt with a suit vest today, but he exuded a few more leadership qualities than before.

Seeing Zhang Hainuo coming in, Hitler's reaction was almost the same as Rohm's.

"Ha, isn't this our old friend Hainuo? You haven't been here for almost half a year. We were worried!"

From Hitler's more mature face, Zhang Hainuo saw a kind of concern, but behind that concern seemed to be another layer of meaning—Zhang Hainuo guessed that ninety-nine percent of it was related to his promise to raise funds for the Workers' Party among the German immigrants in America. Maybe this little mustache thought he had run off with the donations by himself!

"I'm really sorry, the cargo ship I was working on received a commission from the shipowner and has been running between the United States and Brazil for several months! I finally got back to Germany and came straight here!"

Zhang Hainuo picked up his briefcase and said mysteriously to Hitler, "Let's talk inside!"

Hitler immediately understood what he meant. He gave Rohm a look and gestured for his subordinates to continue their work, then led Zhang Hainuo into a room closer to the inside and closed the door behind them.

"Do you have good news?"

Hitler asked eagerly, while Zhang Hainuo, at this moment, was staring blankly at the pattern spread out on the desk.

Hitler noticed this and quickly walked to the desk, picked up the paper, and proudly said, "This is the emblem I designed for the party. What do you think?"

For this design, how could Zhang Hainuo not be familiar with it? The blood-red background was striking and glaring, the white circle symbolized nationalist ideology, and in the center was a black swastika, said to symbolize the mission of the Aryan people's struggle for victory. However, with the rise of the Nazis and the progress of World War II, this symbol also became a mark of cruelty, bloodshed, and slaughter.

"Um... remarkable, very remarkable!" Zhang Hainuo could only respond in this way.

"Haha, of course!" Hitler was obviously very satisfied with his work. He exclaimed enthusiastically, "This flag will bring us mysterious power, it will call on brave people to gather here and fight for new goals! Fight!"

Zhang Hainuo certainly knew that if history here didn't deviate from its original course, this flag would spread across Germany and much of Europe at a surprising speed.

"Hainuo, it won't be long before we become a powerful force dominating Germany. We will rebuild this country according to our manifesto, strangle the traitors, usurers, and speculators, abolish income obtained without work, nationalize the industries, share the profits of big industry with the state, and, we'll abolish land rent and prohibit land speculation, nationalize large department stores, and rent them cheaply to small traders. That's how we can maintain a healthy middle class!"

Hitler rambled on, then suddenly remembered that there was something more important for Zhang Hainuo to do here.

"Oh, right, Hainuo, quickly tell me, how did your fundraising for the party in America go?"

From Hitler's eager eyes, Zhang Hainuo knew that although the newly established Nazi Party had expanded its size compared to before, funding was always a headache for Hitler until its influence was strong enough to influence politics. In the years after the beer hall riot, Goering, who many thought was Hitler's faithful servant, was temporarily forgotten by the Nazi Party, but it was his significant contribution to organization and fundraising that brought him back into Hitler's favor.

"Very considerable!" Zhang Hainuo finally managed a forced smile. But at this moment, Hitler obviously had no interest in his mindset. His eyes were fixed on the suitcase.

Zhang Hainuo placed the suitcase on Hitler's desk, unlocked it, and inside were several pieces of clothing and two thick books. These were two completely emptied books; flipping open the covers and the first few pages revealed a large amount of US dollar bills inside.

In today's Germany, the dollar was obviously much more valuable than the mark. Seeing this money, Hitler almost went mad with excitement. He grabbed Zhang Hainuo's hands excitedly, "Hainuo, I knew you were the party's most loyal and reliable friend! Do you know? Our party now needs this money to expand its strength. I also plan to buy a newspaper, and we need to equip our sports department with weapons! Fantastic, fantastic!"

Zhang Hainuo's mood at this time was still complex. He didn't know whether his actions would accelerate the Nazis' rise to power or cause problems for the still very weak party due to too rapid expansion. But he had to establish a deep relationship with the person in front of him. Everything was full of contradictions.

"It's a total of $1,605.37, of which about $1,000 was raised from Brazil, and the rest came from some German-American businessmen in New York!"

"Note down their names, Hainuo! In the near future, we'll show those who support us what kind of returns their investments will bring!" As he spoke, Hitler grabbed the dollars from the two books. He didn't count them, but rather aimlessly rearranged them before putting them into a locked cabinet under the desk.

"Hainuo, I really don't know how to thank you! It's a shame you're not willing to join our party. Otherwise, I would definitely appoint you to an important position! Hainuo, are you still unwilling to give up the principles of your family and join us?"

Zhang Hainuo said seriously and solemnly, "Adolf, please respect my principles of life!"

"Well, well, Hainuo, I understand!" Hitler was so happy that he even allowed others to inadvertently go against his wishes.

As night fell, standing at the high point of Munich, one could see that the city's nights no longer had the splendor of 1914—large areas of the city were almost in darkness, and the sparse lights came from street lamps and the few taverns and restaurants.

With the high unemployment rate and inflation, more and more civilians could not afford electricity. So when night fell, wherever there were public electric lights, such as street lamps and near restaurants, one could always see various crowds—old people, children, strong men, women—they were cooling off, chatting, or making a helpless living.

The Schandlknackbrau Tavern was already full of people—there were fewer and fewer people who could afford beer, so it was more like a gathering place for people from all walks of life.

Although it wasn't a day for public gatherings, the tavern was still full, and some were even standing because there were no seats available. Zhang Hainuo learned from Rohm that Hitler came here to speak every night, and now he had become quite famous in Munich, with people even coming from out of town to hear him speak.

The temple is small but accommodates great gods, Rohm said they were currently planning to find a larger tavern as the party's meeting place. The small Schandlknackbrau Tavern seemed to be getting too small to contain the ambitions of this party.

At 7 p.m., Hitler, dressed in black, appeared on time at the door of the tavern. The cheers inside erupted like a tide even before he had taken off his coat. He smiled, took off his coat, handed it to the assistant behind him, waved to the audience in the tavern, and steadily walked onto the platform.

"Ladies and gentlemen, whether you are faithful supporters of the National Socialist German Workers' Party or just ordinary people, you are all indispensable parts of Germany's revival!"

After such an opening, Hitler began his lengthy speech. To Zhang Hainuo, his brilliance lay in not rushing to climax the atmosphere at the beginning, but slowly letting the audience catch up with his rhythm. It was like a great conductor, allowing everyone to be immersed in his music. When he saw that everyone was "caught" by his speech, he immediately changed the subject, starting to passionately present his political views and ideas, fiercely attacking his opponents and enemies, becoming more intense as he spoke, as if he was tearing his political enemies apart.

At this moment, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Damn racist, you are the people's enemy, you will be sent to the gallows!"

This voice was initially solitary, but soon others joined in, and a few even started throwing things towards the platform. The burly man who had been following Hitler since entering the tavern immediately stood in front of him, and it seemed that the little mustache had already seen such scenes, as he calmly turned his head towards the direction of the tavern door. After a moment, a group of big men, armed with sticks and wearing old military uniforms, rushed in menacingly, catching those who had been disrespectful and beating them mercilessly.

Zhang Hainuo, not far away, could clearly hear the sound of sticks and fists hitting bodies, as well as the cries of those being beaten. Such violent means were just a trifle for Hitler and the Nazi Party. However, when he saw the ringleaders of these thugs clearly, he was stunned—they were none other than his best friend since coming to this era, Edwin Schubert!

Although Edwin didn't personally take action, Zhang Hainuo clearly saw a kind of cruel indifference in his expression, behind which seemed to be an imperceptible satisfaction, as if those being beaten were not ordinary troublemakers, but enemies who had once bullied him.

Although Edwin followed the little mustache, Zhang Hainuo's advice, he couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable witnessing this scene: had his good friend fallen into becoming a thug and head of thugs for the Nazi Party in just a few months?

In less than two minutes, the thugs dragged several bloodied individuals out, and Edwin nodded towards Hitler on the platform before walking back to the tavern door.

What surprised Zhang Hainuo somewhat was that there was no protest or displeasure from the audience, but rather applause and cheers after Hitler cursed those individuals as Bolsheviks and troublemakers.

After this incident, Hitler's speech further excited the emotions of the people in the tavern. It was as if the blood had stimulated the violent side of these people's nature, and they waved their fists, shouting various slogans under the leadership of the Nazi thugs.

At this moment, in this tavern, perhaps only Zhang Hainuo remained calm.

The speech lasted for a full hour, and Hitler stepped down from the platform, leading the way outside. Seeing Edwin still at the tavern door, Zhang Hainuo hurried through the crowd to catch up.

"Mr. Adolf, are you okay just now!"

The emotion of the little mustache seemed not to have recovered from the intense speech just now, and he loudly said, "Don't worry, those Bolsheviks won't threaten me! Look, here are the most loyal guards of our party. We still have countless supporters! One day, I will send all the enemies to hell!"

Zhang Hainuo didn't worry about Hitler's safety just now. Even if the thugs didn't come in time, the audience wouldn't allow troublemakers to threaten their idol. He glanced at Edwin leading the way to escort Hitler back and quickly caught up.

"Adolf, how do you think of him?"

"He's just as you described, fanatical and emotional, but very persuasive. You see, the number of people supporting him is increasing every day! He has a terrifying charm, and maybe before long, the people here will become his loyal servants!"

Thinking for a while, Zhang Hainuo still couldn't shake off the worry in his heart—perhaps such a life could soothe Edwin's inner pain, but he didn't want his dear friend to move towards another extreme. Thinking of the consequences, he shuddered.

"How's your relationship with Rohm now?"

Zhang Hainuo glanced over, seeing the stout homosexual chatting with two officers at the other end of the tavern.

Edwin didn't think much about it. "Mr. Adolf and Mr. Rohm have been very kind to me!"

"Remember what I told you, don't get too close to Rohm. He will eventually destroy himself because of his desire for power!" After a pause, Zhang Hainuo leaned close to his glass, "If you still believe in what I said, don't show too much desire for power. Even if you have it, keep it in your heart!"

Edwin smiled, a smile that was so familiar to Zhang Hainuo.

"Of course, Hainuo, my ambitions are insignificant in front of Mr. Adolf and Mr. Rohm!"