Chapter 271: Danger at the Entry Ceremony

He Yuzhu quietly slipped back into that courtyard, intending to wait like a rabbit for a tree stump.

He was certain those rescue agents would return to provide support, and he was determined to round them all up in one go.

At present, Beiping had not yet been fully liberated, and the agents still deluded themselves into thinking this place was still their world.

He Yuzhu searched the courtyard for two hours, collecting every valuable item into his Space Ability, not leaving a single thing behind.

Two hours later, a group of people indeed snuck into the courtyard.

He Yuzhu waited until they had all entered the door, then, relying on the cover of night and his Space Ability, he dealt with the entire group in a flash.

By the time he drove the truck back to Nanluoguxiang 91, Tian Dan and the others were still waiting, having not slept all night.

He Yuzhu jumped off the truck and moved the seized supplies down one by one: a radio, thirty gold bars, and over five hundred Big Ocean coins.

Tian Dan's eyes lit up: "Zhuzi, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, these good things would have fallen back into the enemy's hands."

The next day, Lou Laoban convened a general meeting of all the factory Cadres.

He announced on the spot that all personnel who had entered through connections would be dismissed, with ready-made reasons—one only had to ask around, and not a single person had a good word to say about them; in just one day, he had collected countless pieces of evidence of their misconduct.

The Security Team alone had over forty people fired, and even his godson Zheng Yusong was not spared; in total, 130 idle personnel were cleared out of the factory.

Seeing this, He Yuzhu couldn't help but admire how beautifully Lou Laoban had handled this.

This boss was indeed clear-headed, knowing when to restrain himself and when to exert force; to use an old saying, those who understand the times are the heroes.

After the meeting, Lou Laoban specifically kept He Yuzhu at the factory and said earnestly: "Zhuzi, your achievements at the New Factory Area are plain for all to see; I intend to make you the Chief of the Security Section."

He Yuzhu said with some difficulty: "Lou Laoban, to be honest with you, I still have to help my sister look after the Bicycle Factory..."

Lou Laoban waved his hand: "Yesterday I received a call from Officer Fu; he doesn't want the Special Steel anymore, and from now on, all steel produced by the new factory will be supplied to your sister's Bicycle Factory. Wouldn't you say we are practically one family now?"

"Alright, I agree." He Yuzhu thought of the three families living in the courtyard—Wang Xiaomi, Li Dahua, and Xiaoqi—and figured it would be better to arrange for them to work as security guards at the Rolling Mill, so there would be insiders to help monitor for enemy agents in the future.

"Lou Laoban, since you trust me so much, I will take on this burden. However, although we have caught a few agents, there are still quite a few people eyeing our factory, and I hope to recruit some reliable hands."

"That is easy to arrange; I will give you two hundred slots," Lou Laoban agreed readily.

When He Yuzhu returned to the factory area, he happened to run into Zhou Lian and over thirty people packing their things, preparing to evacuate.

"Leaving already?" He Yuzhu asked.

"The peace agreement has been signed; we have to evacuate Beiping city before the 30th," Zhou Lian said with some disappointment.

"What are your plans for the future?"

"Brother, I can tell you're going to be someone important in the future. How about I take off this uniform and work for you?"

He Yuzhu looked him over and said: "No problem, but you won't be able to drink every day!"

"Understood!" Zhou Lian replied.

He Yuzhu actually quite appreciated Zhou Lian, who knew how to bend and stretch; he could perfectly complement his own unyielding temperament, and having him as a vanguard would not be bad at all.

On the second day of the second lunar month, He Yuzhu was called over by Tian Dan again.

"Tomorrow, the People's Liberation Army will hold an entry ceremony and will pass through Qianmen. This stretch of road is the hardest to control, with heavy foot traffic and complex alleys; I am leaving it to you—that is the face of our Beiping, and absolutely nothing can go wrong," Tian Dan instructed.

"Sister, you really think highly of me; there will probably be tens of thousands of people at Qianmen, how am I supposed to manage that alone?"

Tian Dan smiled: "I am giving you one hundred people; I am transferring you there specifically to guard against sudden incidents."

"That's more like it," He Yuzhu said.

Tian Dan handed He Yuzhu a special pass.

He Yuzhu took the pass: "Sister, don't worry, I guarantee I will complete the mission."

That evening, He Yuzhu brought home two roasted ducks; as soon as He Yushui saw them, she was overjoyed and immediately ran to call the three little companions.

At dinner, He Yuzhu said: "Tomorrow the People's Liberation Army is entering the city; Mother, aren't you going to take a look?"

Shen Guizhi shook her head: "There are too many people; I'm afraid of being crushed."

He Yushui looked at her brother with longing: "Brother, I want to go. Do you think Father will come back with the troops?"

"What are you thinking? The ones entering the city are troops coming from the Northeast; Father won't be coming in with them this time," He Yuzhu said, patting his sister's head.

"Then I still want to go see; will you take me or not?" He Yushui tugged on He Yuzhu's sleeve, pulling incessantly.

He Yuzhu looked at Shen Guizhi.

Shen Guizhi still shook her head, refusing He Yushui.

He Yushui immediately burst into loud sobs.

He Yuzhu advised: "Mother, I will take her over and settle her in a private room at He Ji Restaurant to watch; nothing will happen."

"That's great!" He Yushui instantly cheered up, "Xiaomi, Dahua, Xiaoqi, let's all go together!"

"Fine, we leave at five tomorrow morning; if you can't get up, I won't wait for you," He Yuzhu said.

The four little girls said in unison: "We will definitely be able to get up!"

Before the sky was fully bright, He Yuzhu heard a knock on the door.

When he opened it, he saw the three little girls all wearing brand-new floral cotton-padded jackets, their pigtails braided meticulously, their little faces flushed red with excitement.

When He Yuzhu drove them to Qianmen, quite a crowd had already gathered on both sides of the street.

Everyone was clutching small paper flags, craning their necks in anticipation of the troops entering the city.

He Yuzhu settled the four little girls in a private room at He Ji Restaurant and had two waiters look after them before he turned to patrol the street.

"They're coming, they're coming!" The crowd suddenly became restless.

Amidst the anticipation of the masses, the People's Liberation Army marched forward in neat steps.

The soldiers were all wearing uniform cotton military outfits, their bayonets glinting coldly in the winter sun, as each phalanx marched forward with rhythmic precision.

"Look! There are cannons!" Xiaomi pointed at the artillery vehicles driving in the distance and screamed.

The three little girls leaned against the window, shouting and screaming with excitement.

He Yuzui raised the paper flag in her hand and shouted in a milky voice: "Welcome, People's Liberation Army uncles, to our city!"

This childish greeting seemed to ignite the enthusiasm of the entire street, and the crowd began to shout along with He Yushui; the sound was truly deafening.

Xiaomi, Dahua, and Xiaoqi also followed the crowd in shouting, "Welcome, People's Liberation Army!"

The marching soldiers heard the shouting and one after another revealed smiles toward the direction of the children, and many soldiers even waved at them.

The few little girls were incredibly happy, their mouths unable to close from smiling.

He Yuzhu was not carried away by the victory; he was Scanning the crowd of onlookers without a moment's pause when suddenly, an old man who looked to be over sixty years old came out from a door and quickly squeezed into the crowd. He Yuzhu saw at a glance that he was a bit suspicious, and upon Scanning, he discovered that an Explosive was actually hidden in the basket!

The entire Qianmen Street was immersed in joy; if the old man were to ignite the Explosive, the consequences would be simply unthinkable.

However, He Yuzhu was still a distance away from him, and this distance was packed with people shoulder to shoulder, making it extremely difficult to get through.

He Yuzhu truly had no other choice; he could only leap onto the roof like an ape.

On the roof of a four-story building not far away, a person was holding a sniper rifle and aiming at Qianmen Street.

The sniper suddenly saw a person sprinting on the rooftops and immediately moved the muzzle to aim at He Yuzhu.

The old man took out a tinderstick, his eyes full of hatred, and reached out to ignite the Explosive in the basket.