Chapter 660: It Takes No Effort to Find What One Seeks

In the rainy night, the only light on the pitch-black road was the residual glow from the hospital penetrating the rain curtain. A man holding an umbrella walked at a fairly brisk pace. The *tap-tap* of his leather shoes on the hard road, which had accumulated a layer of rainwater, could be heard far away in the rain. Every step felt like it was treading on the rise and fall of a heartbeat, making one's scalp tingle.

When Wang Yan came over earlier, he hadn't circled to the back of this inpatient building; he had scouted the outer perimeter and only walked halfway before climbing into the hospital at an inconspicuous spot in the front. Only after leaving and coming back did he complete the full circle.

Therefore, the gaze from above belonged to the guards, not because they had locked onto a target. Otherwise, he would have been shot long ago.

But the current situation was not optimistic. He couldn't get inside the inpatient building to scout carefully and find out if Song Xiwen was there. Although there were soldiers guarding the inpatient building, it didn't mean Song Xiwen was definitely there, but he might be. With truth and falsehood mixed, and little information obtained, it was impossible to judge.

Thinking this, Wang Yan left and went to the nearest safe house. The condition of this safe house was not as good as the previous one; it had been clearly ransacked, likely due to the Japanese conducting massive searches after the previous prison break.

He took out the credentials for the Japanese Army Hospital, compared the facial features on them, and disguised himself once again.

The Japanese doctor at the Army Hospital was named Takahashi Masao, and his family likely had some background. Because the surname Takahashi had history; it wasn't one of those "Bridge-side" or "Well-mouth" names taken from wherever someone happened to be.

After a flurry of activity, Wang Yan repeated the previous operation and jumped down from the top floor. His safe houses were basically all on the top floor, mainly because the top floor was convenient for setting up radio antennas, and also because people in this era were already tired of climbing several flights of stairs...

He stole a car from the roadside, drove to the vicinity of the Japanese Army Hospital, got out, and walked directly toward the hospital with his umbrella. This area belonged to the original Japanese concession, and many Japanese departments were still here. This was the rear, so if Song Xiwen was really here, it was basically impossible for the Red Party to execute a rescue operation with their strength.

This was different from the previous operation, which involved cooperation between more than 3,000 people on both sides, with external battles attracting Japanese military forces, and internal battles resolved swiftly and silently, and it was still some distance from the Japanese headquarters. This was different; once a battle broke out, it wouldn't take long before they were surrounded by thousands of Japanese troops.

Wang Yan walked openly through the gate with his umbrella and wanted to take out his credentials to show the guards, but the soldier stood at attention and gave a Japanese military salute. "Takahashi-sensei, no need to see the credentials. Could you tell me why you've come so late?"

"I accidentally got a bit wet in the rain today, and I felt uncomfortable when I was sleeping. I think I caught a cold, and the medicine at home ran out, so I came to get some. This damn weather is really uncomfortable. You've worked hard standing guard, too; be careful not to catch a cold."

"Thank you for your concern, Takahashi-sensei." The soldier grinned. "It takes a lot of willpower to climb out of bed so late. Takahashi-sensei must be very uncomfortable. Please go in quickly; it's so cold outside, your cold will get worse."

Wang Yan nodded, turned, and walked inside while coughing.

"Takahashi-sensei really is a good person. He didn't look down on us, right?" The soldier on guard looked at the other Japanese soldier standing in the rain with him, sharing his feelings...

The hospital at night was relatively quiet, and with the bad weather, people were drowsy, and even those on duty weren't very attentive. In fact, the previous Nanhua Hospital was about the same; it was just that the interior of the inpatient building was different.

He reached the inpatient building without obstruction. There were no soldiers guarding it this time, only a sleepy little nurse. "Takahashi-kun, why have you come so late?"

"I got a bit wet in the rain and caught a cold. My head is heavy and I can't sleep well, and I'm out of cold medicine at home, so I came back to get some. By the way, I'll do rounds and check on our Empire's warriors."

"Takahashi-kun is truly hardworking, thinking of those soldiers even when you have a cold." The little nurse looked at Wang Yan with admiration.

Wang Yan stood with his back to the light, wearing his fedora, and nodded with a smile. "You're also hardworking; we're all serving the Empire's tomorrow. Ah, right, show me the admission and discharge records. I remember a few people whose injuries haven't fully recovered but were discharged to return to their units. They are truly respectable warriors. I want to contact them tomorrow to ask how their illnesses are."

"Takahashi-kun really is a good person." The little nurse looked at Wang Yan even more favorably. He had a good background, was a doctor, and was so kind to patients. He wasn't old, either. No matter how she thought about it, he was a very good person; it was just a pity that she wasn't good enough for him...

Although her mind was filled with messy thoughts, her hands didn't stop, and she took the records and handed them over.

Wang Yan took the records and flipped through them casually. They all had the attending doctor's name and the general situation of the discharge. While looking, he muttered to the little nurse, saying things that sounded detailed but, upon closer inspection, were basically nonsense. He just made things up based on the names, never saying too much detail, and the few points he did mention were common traits of Japanese soldiers or mentioning the patients' hometowns.

Flipping through the names one by one, he flipped two pages, frowned, and pointed to one of the names. "What's going on with this person? Admitted at noon and left in the afternoon? Oh, sorry, I overlooked the note about the Tokko. I remember this person seemed to be seriously injured. To encounter such a person, the Empire's warriors really have it tough."

He muttered to himself, sparking the little nurse's interest. The little nurse nodded repeatedly. "Takahashi-kun is right. This person was treated by Watanabe-kun. The nurse during the surgery was Yumi, and she told me that this person was shot twice, both in vital areas, and he even bit off his own tongue. The Zhina people are truly terrifying. But fortunately, Watanabe-kun's medical skills are high, and he saved this person. And the two of our people who came with that person died after failed resuscitation..."

Wang Yan sighed. "They are all good subjects of the Emperor and good warriors of the Empire. With such warriors fighting, destroying China and killing those hateful Zhina people must be a matter of time."

The little nurse looked left and right, carefully leaning toward Wang Yan. "And the night that person came, I was on duty. He wasn't actually transferred away—after all, he suffered such heavy injuries, and his body couldn't handle it—but was recuperating in a nearby sanatorium. I only asked Yumi later out of curiosity..."

Wang Yan waved his hand, his face serious. "Never say such things again. This must be the Tokko's plan to capture the Zhina people. What if someone hears the news from you? We have quite a few Zhina nursing assistants here. If the news leaks and ruins the Tokko's plan, can you bear the responsibility if you're held accountable in the end? Even if you don't commit *seppuku*, you'll be sent to a comfort station to comfort the Empire's warriors. Watch your mouth; don't reveal such things to outsiders in the future. Even if I ask you anything tomorrow, you must act as if you don't know. This is for your own good, understand?"

In the time it took to say two sentences, the little nurse was scared silly. She was just a gossip sharing a little secret, and Takahashi-kun was such a good person, so she shared a little secret. She didn't want to cause any big trouble.

"Takahashi-kun, don't worry, I've only told you this. Yumi only told me about that Zhina person's situation, and surely no one else knows. If anyone does, it's Yumi who let it slip. Because she has been transferred to the sanatorium now, specifically to take care of that seriously injured Zhina person."

"My head hurts even more after being angered by you like this." Wang Yan covered his mouth and coughed. "I'm going to get the medicine. Remember what I said; it's really worrying."

He waved his hand helplessly, turned, walked a few steps, and slowly climbed the stairs. He really went to Takahashi Masao's office and really found some cold and anti-inflammatory medicine in the desk, only then leaving. When he passed the little nurse and the soldier on guard at the door, he just waved casually and walked toward the so-called sanatorium.

It takes no effort to find what one seeks—that was about it. He had been racking his brains at Nanhua Hospital, but after coming to the Army Hospital, he got the information from a little nurse.

According to the little nurse, she saw the Tokko transporting people out when she was on the night shift and asked the instrument nurse about the injuries. This account was credible because Wang Yan only saw a lack of guile in the little nurse's eyes. Pretending to be stupid wouldn't fool him. And according to the little nurse's simple description, being shot twice in vital areas and biting off his tongue, it was good enough that he was still alive. He really didn't meet the conditions for transfer; being able to get him out to the sanatorium was already the maximum capacity, and he wouldn't have been able to handle any further distance.

Then the Japanese idea was clear: Song Xiwen's situation definitely couldn't be interrogated; he had no tongue and couldn't speak. So the Japanese let the Red Party think Song Xiwen was at Nanhua Hospital, thereby organizing personnel to go and rescue him, capturing them alive to open a breakthrough, or using the rescue attempt to eliminate the Red Party's living strength.

As for Song Xiwen, they should let him recuperate first, saving him to fish for the Red Party next time. And there was a traitor who sold out Song Xiwen lurking within the party. No matter what, the Japanese were the side holding the initiative. No wonder Wang Manchun was so happy; this was a guaranteed win, playing a "bright scheme." It was just that they couldn't have imagined that the one who sold them out was just a little nurse on the night shift at the Army Hospital.

They must have severely warned the little nurse long ago, but Wang Yan, disguised as a little aristocrat, likely had some charm in daily life, plus Wang Yan's own natural temperament, which made the little nurse infatuated, causing her to speak without thinking.

Now, even if he knew where Song Xiwen was, it was useless. He couldn't rescue him; he couldn't save him, otherwise, he would be saved to death even if he wasn't dead yet. And this was the Japanese rear, different from the previous prison, which had a sufficient safety distance; it was very difficult to handle.

As for taking the person away silently, Wang Yan carefully climbed the wall, his murderous intent exposed, scaring the dogs in the sanatorium into tucking their tails and playing dead. He looked at the internal environment.

It was called a sanatorium, but the place wasn't actually that big; calling it a "station" was more appropriate. It wasn't for patients with infectious diseases, but for some wounded and disabled soldiers to recuperate, waiting to be sent back to the country or for the next arrangement, as well as Japanese soldiers who were almost treated in the hospital, to avoid them occupying hospital space.

Actually, there weren't many people here because the battlefield was no longer here. Besides, that was war. With current medical conditions, even if Japanese casualties were small, there were only two results: either die or be lightly injured. Most of the seriously injured didn't wait for medical soldiers to save them and died directly. Only a small portion of people had the life to return to the rear.

Of course, that was the previous situation. Now that Song Xiwen, a heavy-weight figure of the Shanghai underground party, was here, the guard force was naturally relatively strong. Although it was in the rear, the necessary arrangements certainly couldn't be lacking.

Wang Yan had already seen the Japanese agents patrolling and guarding here. They were smoking, walking carelessly, and even chatting leisurely. This was normal; after all, this place hadn't been exposed yet, and it would be strange if they didn't relax. No one could maintain a high level of vigilance all the time; that wasn't something human nerves could bear.

Even those who lurked inside the enemy had times when they relaxed, let alone these arrogant Japanese agents.

Wang Yan silently circled the sanatorium, noted the layout inside, and analyzed the possible location of Song Xiwen. He couldn't go inside to scout; if he accidentally leaked his tracks, it would ruin big things. Even if he was confident, accidents always happened; it was better to be careful in everything.

After looking around like this, Wang Yan left, parked the stolen car back in its original place, ran back to the safe house on Dixi Road, changed back into the Tokko agent's appearance, walked down the stairs, drove the car, and left Hongkou openly. He drove across the Suzhou River into the concession area and headed straight for Fuxu Road.

After parking the car in the alley, Wang Yan scouted the perimeter again. Confirming there were no problems, he set off for the back door of the Fuxing Pawnshop, knocking on the door with the usual two short, two long, two short knocks.

Lu Boda had said yesterday that they were relocating, but he hadn't told him the location, which meant they were still there today.

Sure enough, not long after the knocking ended, Liu Qiulan ran out to open the door. "Come in quickly, we've been waiting for you for half the night." It was already past one in the morning.

Arriving in the study, he sat down on the sofa behind the desk lamp again. Wang Yan waved his hand to fan the air. "Smoke less."

Lu Boda shook his head, not caring, and asked with concern, "How is it? Did it go smoothly?"

"Found Comrade Xiwen, but..."

"Really?" Before Wang Yan could continue, Lu Boda stood up, losing his composure. "At Nanhua Hospital?"

Wang Yan pressed his hand, gesturing for him to sit down. "At a sanatorium not far from the Army Hospital, specifically for wounded soldiers to recuperate. However, there are quite a few guards there, and they keep dogs. To avoid exposing my tracks, I didn't go in. So I didn't see the person, but I'm eighty percent sure he's there."

"Tell me in detail."

"I disguised myself as Ozawa Yoshio, whose identity information was provided by our comrades, and lied that I had a cold and wanted to go into the inpatient building office to get medicine... Later, I went to the Army Hospital and got news from a professional Japanese nurse. She said she was on duty five days ago and saw Tokko people transporting that patient. She was friends with the nurse who performed surgery on that patient, and later she went to ask and learned that the injured person was shot twice in vital areas and even bit off his tongue..."

"Comrade Xiwen is a good man..."

Lu Boda was silent for a long time, lit another cigarette, steadied himself, and turned to say, "You were right; the person we sent to Nanhua Hospital to steal data was indeed exposed, and the Japanese agents followed the vine to find a transit station we had in the public concession. A battle broke out at night, three comrades died, and two were injured. Fortunately, no one was captured. When I received the news, it was too late to notify you. But the result was unexpected: not only did you not encounter danger, but you also gained news of Comrade Xiwen. As expected of the terrifying Pei Min, impressive."

"At a time like this, don't flatter me. In the end, unity is the greatest strength."

Wang Yan waved his hand. "The urgent matter is to study what to do next. Now Comrade Xiwen's injury status is unknown, but the fact that they transferred him shows it must be very critical. Otherwise, five days have passed, and they should have transferred him again. Even if we could carry out a rescue operation silently, we couldn't guarantee Comrade Xiwen's life safety. And Nanhua Hospital is already waiting with a net spread; do we throw ourselves into it or not?

This must be decided early. If we drag it out for another day or two, they will realize we have discovered it, and they will change their other plans. Comrade Xiwen is in their hands, so they hold the initiative; we can only respond passively, and the situation is very unfavorable for us. And there is a traitor who sold out Comrade Xiwen lurking within the party, which is also a fatal point."

"Don't worry about the traitor; we'll catch and dispose of them in the next two days. As for Comrade Xiwen's matter..." Lu Boda nodded solemnly and sighed. "Your analysis is very correct. Now the Japanese have put us in check; we are in a dilemma..."

That was the situation. Song Xiwen couldn't be saved, and Nanhua Hospital was right there. If they didn't go, the Japanese would know their plan had been seen through; perhaps they would transfer Song Xiwen, or perhaps they would really use Song Xiwen as a bargaining chip to make them go and rescue him. If they went, it would just be increasing casualties in vain.

After a long silence, Lu Boda asked, "What is your opinion?"

"I don't know." Wang Yan shook his head. "The main thing is that I don't know the specific situation of Comrade Xiwen's body. If his body is okay, it's simple; just like the previous prison break, we'll give them a feint. Feign an attack on Nanhua Hospital, and secretly rescue Comrade Xiwen at the sanatorium. But if Comrade Xiwen's body isn't okay..."

Wang Yan didn't continue; this was the ultimate problem.

After another silence, Lu Boda let out a long sigh. "Let's think of another way. First, try to find out Comrade Xiwen's specific situation, then hold a meeting to study what to do about this situation. This headquarters can still be used for now. If the situation changes recently and you can't find anyone here, go to the Yonghe Hotel on Pétain Road; that's the backup address for the new headquarters. If needed, I will call you using the code we agreed upon yesterday. Leave quickly, and be careful."

Wang Yan nodded without any extra nonsense and left directly...

Thanks to the five brothers (fngzi), (Guangpi de Xiao Jiangshi), (Mumu Yijiujiuwu), (Taiwuliao), and (Luguo) for their continued support.

Daily thanks to the good brothers who voted with monthly tickets for their support.

Thanks to all the brothers who voted with recommendations for their support.

Thanks to the brothers who read the book silently for their support. ===== CHAPTER 661 =====