Chapter 160: Copper Coin Whisper

Under the kerosene lamp, two copper coins glowed with a dim yellow light. Li Ping'an held a magnifying glass, carefully examining the edge engravings. Wang Dahu held his breath, fearing to disturb the Factory Director's thoughts.

Factory Director, what is engraved up here?

Li Ping'an stayed silent, fetched a sheet of white paper, and gently traced the coin's edge with a pencil. Gradually, a few fuzzy characters emerged: Yongding... outside...

Yongding outside? Wang Dahu scratched his head, this range could be huge.

Don't rush. Li Ping'an picked up another coin to trace; look at these two characters, the strokes vary in thickness, definitely a matching mark.

When the two coin tracings were pieced together, the full address appeared: Yongding Gate Outside No. 7 Warehouse.

Li Ping'an sprang up, alerted the Police Substation, and ordered an immediate encirclement of Yongding Gate Outside No. 7 Warehouse!

In the deep night, Outside Yongding Gate was silent, only a few streetlights swayed in the cold wind. Warehouse No. 7 was a dilapidated old storage building, its iron gate rusted beyond recognition, and the courtyard wall had collapsed halfway.

Factory Director, should we wait until dawn? Wang Dahu lowered his voice.

Can't wait. Li Ping'an glanced at his watch; Liu Jianming had been missing for four hours, and they were supposed to be moving.

Inside the warehouse, several dark figures were busy moving wooden crates. A middle‑aged Glasses Man shouted impatiently: "Move faster! Everything must be cleared out before dawn!"

Group Leader, Liu Jianming is still missing; could it be...

Can't control him any longer! Glasses Man cut in, "These blueprints must be delivered."

Suddenly, a police siren wailed outside the warehouse. Glasses Man's face turned pale: "Quick! Take the Secret Passage!"

Just as they lifted the cellar cover, the warehouse doors were slammed open. Li Ping'an led his men inside, shouting: "Nobody move!"

Glasses Man suddenly drew his Handgun: "Cover me!" he said as he lunged toward the cellar.

Li Ping'an's eyes were sharp and his hands quick; he sprang forward in a single stride and kicked the Handgun away. The two grappled in the shadows, and the other spies, seeing this, opened fire.

Factory Director, watch out! Wang Dahu and his men suppressed the fire from the other spies.

The Glasses Man was surprisingly skillful, each move targeting vital points. Li Ping'an dared not be careless and employed his signature Bajiquan technique. After several exchanges, he finally pinned the opponent to the ground.

Speak! What exactly are you after?

Glasses Man sneered: "Too late... the blueprints were sent out long ago..."

Li Ping'an felt a jolt in his chest, hurriedly inspected the crates. Inside they were empty, containing only scattered fragments of blueprints.

Chase! They didn't get far!

The Secret Passage led to a small river behind the warehouse, and fresh footprints lingered on the bank. Li Ping'an followed them to the riverbank, where a small boat vanished into the morning mist.

Damn it! Wang Dahu stamped his foot in fury.

Back at the warehouse, Li Ping'an carefully examined the blueprint fragments. Most were ordinary mechanical drawings, but one bore a strange symbol.

What is this? Wang Dahu leaned in to look.

Li Ping'an stared at it for a moment, then recalled: This is the symbol used in the Soviet Aid Project drawings!

He rushed to report to Factory Director Yang Changzhang. After hearing, Yang Changzhang's face turned pale: If spies target the Soviet Aid Project, that would be a huge disaster...

Through the night of interrogation, Glasses Man finally confessed that what they truly intended to steal were the Soviet‑built Precision Machine Tool Blueprints. These blueprints pertain to national industrial construction; if they leaked, it would be catastrophic.

Where are the blueprints? Li Ping'an pressed.

Already... already handed to the contact... Glasses Man said weakly.

Just then, a guard rushed in: "Factory Director, we just received a note; this afternoon a Special Train will transport Precision Machine Tools to Dongbei!"

Li Ping'an sprang to his feet: Their target isn't the blueprints, it's the Machine Tool Main Body!

At the Special Train platform, workers were busy loading equipment. Several people in railway uniforms slipped silently toward the train.

Move swiftly; everything must be secured before departure. The leader whispered instructions.

At that moment, spotlights flared around the platform. Li Ping'an led his men to encircle from all sides.

Drop whatever you're holding!

The few men, seeing this, immediately drew weapons and returned fire. Gunshots erupted across the platform.

Protect the equipment! Li Ping'an shouted, firing and directing at the same time.

Amid the melee, a spy seized the chance to climb onto the Special Train, intending to detonate explosives. Li Ping'an lunged, and at the last moment hurled the explosives out of the carriage.

A huge blast shook the platform violently.

When the smoke cleared, all the spies were subdued. While inspecting the Special Train, Li Ping'an found a small bomb hidden in the Machine Tool Main Body.

That was close... Wang Dahu wiped cold sweat; one more step and it would have been over.

The case was finally cracked, yet Li Ping'an felt uneasy. He kept thinking that this Spy Network was larger than imagined.

Sure enough, during subsequent interrogation, Glasses Man revealed there was a higher‑up who had never shown his face.

Who is the boss? Li Ping'an asked.

I don't know... Glasses Man shook his head, "We only communicate through the Dead Letter Box..."

Returning to the Siheyuan, night had fallen completely. Li Ping'an, exhausted, pushed open the door of Xi Kua Yuan, only to see his sister anxiously pacing the courtyard.

Brother, you finally made it back! His sister tugged his sleeve, "There are several strangers lurking around today..."

Li Ping'an's heart tightened; he quickly scanned the surroundings. The Siheyuan was eerily quiet in the night, yet he could feel eyes watching from the shadows.

From today on, don't go out alone. Li Ping'an said sternly, "Let me uncover where these people come from."

Late at night, in the quiet, Li Ping'an sat alone by the window. The two copper coins in his hand glimmered coldly in the moonlight, as if whispering of unsolved riddles.

He understood that this contest was far from over. That mysterious, unknown figure was probably hiding somewhere, plotting a new scheme.

What worried him most was that the opponent seemed to have already set sights on his family...

Early the next morning, Li Ping'an found a slip of paper in the doorway crack, bearing just three words: "Don't interfere."

He clenched the note, his gaze firm. In this covert battle, he must win.