Chapter 626

"The meaning from above is this: if the Japanese don't go too far, then we'll help them collect the bodies. But if they get too arrogant and affect the foreigners, or disrupt the original order within our French Concession, then there's no need for restraint—just arrest them. You three are veteran patrolmen who have been at this for many years; you should be able to grasp this degree of control yourselves, so I don't need to spell it out, right?"

In the Inspector's office, Wang Yan's gaze swept over the three team leaders—He Shaohong, Fang Yuantu, and Zhang Xian—who were standing before his desk, waiting for their response.

As a staunch loyalist, He Shaohong spoke up: "Inspector, don't you worry. We are clear on how to handle this."

"That's right, Inspector. If we couldn't even handle a small matter like this, wouldn't all these years have been wasted? Rest assured, I guarantee we won't cause you any trouble." Zhang Xian immediately followed up to express his stance, firmly following Inspector Wang's instructions.

The last one remaining, Fang Yuantu, also hurriedly chimed in: "The brothers all have a sense of the situation, Inspector. We definitely won't let the Japanese run wild, nor will we let our own men suffer any losses."

Wang Yan seemed to suddenly recall something and let out an "Ah": "Right, did the Japanese contact you earlier?"

The three shook their heads in unison. Fang Yuantu said: "Inspector, how could we three have your prestige? You have authority in the police station, you are deeply trusted by the French, you have tens of thousands of people working for you outside, you hold a high status in the Shanghai business world, and even within the Green Gang, in terms of seniority, you have a great deal of say. The Japanese are wolf-hearted and ambitious; they would certainly want to win your help. Besides, regarding today's events, without your word, we three wouldn't dare act on our own. Right now, the Japanese are so anxious they're like ants on a hot pan—they have no time to pay attention to us three small characters."

"I was just asking. Early this morning, while I was eating, the Japanese sent people to find me, ruining my breakfast. In the current situation, it's truly hard to live." Wang Yan sighed and waved his hand: "Alright, in a while I'll go to the warehouse to check the situation. After that, I'll be at the police station all day. You all go out and do your work. If anything comes up, call me anytime, but don't you dare stir up any trouble for me. At a time like this, I can barely protect myself, let alone have the energy to protect you."

The three gave their repeated assurances and turned to leave the office.

Wang Yan didn't linger either; he went downstairs, called for the idle Qi Si, and took a car to the warehouse at the North Station.

The Japanese were truly crazy this time. Their intensity in arresting people was immense; their men were all over the streets. Basically, after walking for a while, one could see groups of three or five searching for something. They grabbed little beggars and vagrants to question them, and they went to hospitals and clinics to investigate. This was a very correct choice, because those who escaped from the prison were all wearing blood-stained, tattered clothes. People like that could only steal a set of rags and pretend to be beggars or vagrants to be safe. Moreover, they had all suffered more or less severe torture and were wounded; finding a way to save themselves had become an urgent matter, so stealing money to go to various pharmacies and clinics became inevitable.

At this time, one shouldn't be considering whether stealing is right or wrong, but rather how to survive and find the path back to the organization.

Perhaps the Japanese's grand, blatant actions this time, besides further testing the attitudes of the foreigners in the International Settlement and the French Concession, were also meant to lure the snakes out of their holes.

After all, those personnel from the two parties who couldn't keep up with the guerrillas' retreat—excluding those who might be Japanese agents—had all been tested. It was impossible for the Military Statistics Shanghai Intelligence Station lurking in Shanghai and the underground party of the Red Party to sit by and watch these people wait for death or be captured again; they would certainly take action. Thus, during this period, the special agents of the two parties would inevitably be highly active. With so much movement, mistakes were bound to happen. As long as the Japanese agents caught these mistakes, they could find a breakthrough and open up the awkward situation of having no results for over a month.

From this perspective, the escape of all two thousand-plus people from the prison was still a multi-benefit good thing for the Japanese. Of course, if possible, they certainly wouldn't want this kind of "good thing."

No one knew better than them how much damage it would cause if those who swore never to surrender escaped alive and returned to work. There were many important personnel among them, whose abilities were beyond doubt, and who also possessed strong, unyielding wills. Without a doubt, these people were extremely crazy and terrifying...

Wang Yan arrived at the location and found the manager under his command to understand the situation.

Just as he had said before, the Japanese had immediately redeployed their defensive lines and blocked all exits, with all transportation halted. Affected by this, the goods they were supposed to ship were intercepted at checkpoints for inspection. Everything from the goods to the delivery personnel was being scrutinized very strictly. Not to mention railway transport; the tracks had been bombed, so how could anything be transported?

However, this situation couldn't last long; the Japanese also had to consider the impact. Not to mention others, just the Chinese merchants who had already defected to them couldn't be ignored. The reason they defected to the Japanese was for profit; now that they were suffering losses, they were the first to get angry. Furthermore, Japanese merchants were also among those being checked. These people all had connections behind them, and it wouldn't look good if this went on for too long. Finally, there were those so-called "pro-Japanese" figures who hadn't explicitly defected but held ambiguous attitudes; they couldn't be left without an explanation either.

The Japanese ruled Shanghai with their guns and cannons on one hand, but on the other, they still relied on the Chinese. If not for this, they wouldn't keep supporting various traitors to rise to power. In the end, they couldn't manage everything.

Wang Yan belonged to the "pro-Japanese" figures with ambiguous attitudes, and he was the kind with real power, so he personally called all the merchants he cooperated with, telling them not to worry and to wait patiently for two or three days. Afterward, he called the traitor who worked for the Japanese and managed this aspect, then found Muramoto Ichiro to get some kind of pass, and also revealed Mitchell's earlier intentions. After receiving some reassurance, he hung up the phone.

For serious matters, one still had to find Muramoto Ichiro; he held real power and his status was far higher than Wang Manchun's.

Shi Changxing was chewing on a cigarette, his tie loose and sloppy. Even though he was wearing a slim-fit suit tailored in imitation of Wang Yan, he still looked like a hoodlum, lacking the prestige of the top underling of a Green Gang boss.

He frowned and asked: "Brother Yan, what did the Japanese say?"

"I'll definitely get a pass by tomorrow night."

"That's not bad; it didn't delay things too much."

"You kid, you don't use your brain at all. You still need practice."

"What's there to use my brain for? Except for the railway being blocked, everything else is normal. Is there a problem?" Shi Changxing was extremely confused, his eyes full of bewilderment.

"You have to think about why the Japanese would give us a pass tomorrow night. Isn't that just a matter of a single word from them?" Wang Yan shook his head, smiling as he looked at the manager on the side who was wearing glasses, hair slicked back, and looking like an elite. He tilted his head: "Manager Gu, you come and tell this brute."

Gu Yongcheng pushed up his glasses and smiled: "This shows that what Brother Yan said before was right. No matter how strong the Japanese are, they can't withstand such great pressure; at most, they'll block things for two or three days. That special agent from the Special High Police saying they'll give us a pass tomorrow night confirms this. They want to highlight the attitude that the pass represents, so they'll block for at least another one or two days."

"Oh, I see. Brother Yan, it's not that I couldn't think of it, it's just that those things have nothing to do with us, so I couldn't be bothered to think about it. Hey, right, speaking of which, I really do have a situation to report to you."

"Speak!"

Shi Changxing glanced at Gu Yongcheng and didn't speak.

Without waiting for Gu Yongcheng to sensibly leave, Wang Yan spoke first: "Don't be so small-minded. Manager Gu has been conscientious and dedicated all these years, focusing on his work. He manages such a large operation in an orderly way and helps us earn a lot of money. We're all our own people; say whatever you have to say, it's no big deal."

Shi Changxing nodded, gave Gu Yongcheng an apologetic smile, looked at Wang Yan, lowered his voice, and spoke softly: "This morning, Datou, Monkey, and the others told me they found suspicious people in our company. Among the porters who came today, there were two strangers who looked quite weak. I reckon they are most likely the ones who ran out yesterday. Looking at it this way, among our employees and the foremen we cooperate with, there must be people from the Nationalist Party or the Red Party. Brother Yan, what should we do?"

"Manager Gu, do you know anything about what he said?"

Facing Wang Yan's gaze, Gu Yongcheng said: "Brother Yan, whether it's the Nationalist Party or the Red Party, their people are all capable. Their agents lurk in every trade and profession in Shanghai, holding all sorts of identities. I'm not very clear about things below, but with your name, the scale of our company, and our transport lines that can go straight to the Nationalist-controlled areas and the Soviet areas, it's perfectly normal for people from both parties to plant nails under us and use your prestige to cover their identities. On the contrary, it would be strange if we didn't have their people under us."

"You're right." Wang Yan nodded: "What did I say? In the current situation, we can't offend anyone, and we can't afford to offend anyone. My reputation for being greedy for money and lustful is known to everyone in Shanghai. Besides, we were already doing business with both parties; they aren't fools. You all could see they were physically in bad shape, and they still dared to bring people under our noses—what does that mean? It means they are showing their cards to me, telling me not to meddle in their business. I mentioned Comrade Pei Min Min to you before, remember?"

"I remember, isn't he the Red Party's number one assassin?"

"The woman who contacts me and works for the Special High Police revealed to me that in last night's operation, this Comrade Pei Min Min alone held off five hundred Japanese soldiers for half an hour and killed dozens of them. With such combat power, wouldn't dealing with us be easy? I don't have the life to offend them. Tell them to pretend they didn't see anything. Remember, whether it's Nationalist Party agents, Red Party agents, or even Japanese agents, don't meddle in any of it. Anyway, we can't tell who belongs to whom; let them do whatever they want."

Shi Changxing frowned: "They are stuffing people into our side; they must want to mix them in with our goods to get out. If this is checked at the checkpoint, won't the Japanese come looking for trouble with you?"

"Let them come. What can they do to me? I have such a large company with tens of thousands of people under me; how would I know who is who? Besides, I'm so busy, where would I have the time to manage so much nonsense? Furthermore, they want to get out through us; it would be easy to catch them, but what then? What do we do? Wait for that Comrade Pei Min Min to come and cut off our heads?" Glaring at him, Wang Yan looked at Gu Yongcheng: "Manager Gu, keep this matter to yourself. If word accidentally leaks out and lets the Japanese come here to arrest people, they won't care about you, but they will come looking for trouble with me. It's not easy to have a peaceful life in these times; don't go looking for trouble."

Gu Yongcheng hurriedly expressed his stance: "Brother Yan, don't you worry, I guarantee I'll keep my mouth shut. I won't go home for the next two days; I'll stay here until this storm passes."

"It's not that serious; just keep things as they were." Wang Yan waved his hand: "Alright, go do what you need to do. I have to hurry back to the police station to keep watch; who knows what kind of nonsense these Japanese will stir up."

Without saying any more, amidst the respectful farewells of the two, Wang Yan returned to the police station. Sitting alone in the office was boring, so he immediately went upstairs to find Aige.

As the logistics chief, although his rank wasn't low, the events happening now had nothing to do with Aige. However, the enthusiastic Aige Olsen would still sit in the office even if there was nothing to do, showing his dedication to duty.

When Wang Yan entered the office, this foreigner was drinking while listening to a program broadcast by the Nationalist Party radio station. What was playing inside was exactly the Chongqing government's report on this operation, regarding the results of the battle, the commendation of the rescued personnel's resilience, and the encouragement for resisting Japan.

Using the fact that the Japanese suffered a loss this time—with results no less than a battle involving ten thousand people on the front lines—to stimulate the enthusiasm of people from all walks of life for resisting Japan was a very normal propaganda tactic, and it was indeed very uplifting.

Seeing Wang Yan enter, Aige sprang up from his chair, turned off the radio, and asked anxiously: "Wang, how is our business?"

Wang Yan smiled and waved his hand, going to the side to pour himself a drink: "Don't worry. Although the Japanese are indeed strictly guarding all intersections and passes, and the railways and ports have been bombed, which has a big impact on us, the Japanese don't dare to block things forever. So many people need to eat; they don't dare block for too long. I've already called the Japanese, and they said they'll process a pass for me by tomorrow night at the latest. As for the bombed railways and ports, there will always be a time when they are repaired. For us, if the railway is bombed, we'll rely on donkey carts to transport slowly; if the port is bombed, we'll rely on small boats to go out to sea and pick up the goods from the big ships one trip at a time. Anyway, the goods are in our hands; they are valuable at any time. The losses aren't as big as you imagine."

Aige sat back down on the sofa and let out a long breath: "Consider those Japanese monkeys sensible."

"How about those science magazines I asked you to help find before?"

"Don't worry, Wang, I've already called my friends, and they are collecting them. They said those magazines are easy to find; I estimate they can be shipped over by boat next month. In your Chinese words, you are the God of Wealth. Although I don't hold much hope, you might really find some business opportunities in those science magazines."

Aige laughed loudly, as if he had earned another huge sum of money...

Wang Yan laughed along, because, not to be modest, he was no different from the God of Wealth...

Perhaps it was because he had tipped off the Japanese before, they grasped the boundaries very well. Although one could occasionally hear two gunshots throughout the day, no conflicts broke out, and overall, it was still controllable.

Wang Yan stayed with Aige for most of the day. Seeing that everything was safe, he called Qi Si, strolled out of the police station building, and was about to get in the car to go home.

Just then, a patrolman came running over: "Inspector, you're off work."

"Ah, thank you for your hard work. The Japanese have gone crazy lately. Tell the others, once this period is over, I'll treat the brothers to a good time."

"Hey, thank you, Inspector." The man hesitated as he approached, mumbling, looking like he had something to say but didn't dare.

Wang Yan slapped the brim of his police cap: "Are you acting with me? If you have something to say, say it."

The man smiled awkwardly: "It's like this, Inspector, there's a situation I want to tell you about."

"Speak!"

"This morning, after you held a meeting for the three team leaders and the brothers all went out, I accidentally discovered that our Second Team's Team Leader Fang was in contact with a mysterious person, right at that Rui De coffee shop not far from us. They seemed very familiar, and they were very vigilant, looking around constantly while talking. Looking at that mysterious person's attire, I felt that person looked very much like a Japanese agent..."

Wang Yan frowned as he looked at him: "Are you sure you didn't see wrong?"

"Inspector, I can't guarantee if he's a Japanese agent, but Team Leader Fang definitely had contact with someone, and they were very familiar. On this point, I absolutely wouldn't see wrong."

"You're not bad." Wang Yan patted his shoulder affectionately, took a cigarette out of his pocket, pulled one out to put in his mouth, let the man diligently strike a match to light it, and stuffed the remaining cigarettes into his jacket pocket: "I remember you. We're even from the same clan. Your name is Wang... Yongkui, right? You've been in our police station for over a year."

Wang Yongkui's eyes widened in disbelief, because he never expected that such a big figure as Inspector Wang would remember a patrolman at the very bottom like him.

He nodded repeatedly: "It's me, it's me, Inspector. Your memory is truly good."

"Hey, we're all family. You all work yourselves to the bone, isn't it so I, this Inspector, can sit firmly in my position? If I don't even know the names of the brothers who work for me, how cold-hearted would they be?" Wang Yan smiled in a very approachable way, then turned to say: "The matter you reported is very important. I'm very happy that you told me about this discovery immediately. So, continue to keep an eye on Team Leader Fang, don't let him discover you, and report any situation to me immediately. If this matter is done well, there will be benefits for you, kid."

"Yes, Inspector. Don't you worry, I guarantee I'll keep a close eye on him!"

"I believe you definitely won't let me down. Go do your work."

Wang Yongkui, as if he had been injected with three jin of chicken blood, with two jin of rebellious spirit behind his head, bowed to Wang Yan, then turned and ran away with small steps, swearing to take down his immediate superior.

Actually, Wang Yan really liked such ambitious rebellious types, because people like this are very sensible and easy to control. On the contrary, it's the players like Zhang Xian, who show an appearance of having no desires and yet are incredibly cooperative, who are the hardest to deal with...