Chapter 40: Citywide Manhunt

He Yuzhu followed all the way, running for four or five li, until he saw the car finally stop at the entrance of a secluded alley.

The alley was very dark, with only a sliver of light torn open by the headlights, revealing Gu Xiaobao's slender figure.

She hugged Ozu Jiro, then turned and walked into a small Siheyuan with a private entrance.

Above the courtyard gate hung a wooden plaque—"Qingyin Small Class."

Ozu Jiro stood where he was, watching Gu Xiaobao disappear; he sniffed, fished a cigarette case from his pocket, shook out a cigarette, and held it between his lips.

The moment the match flared, it illuminated half of his blurred face.

He took a few fierce drags, the cigarette tip glowing and fading, then casually tossed the butt onto the ground and was about to turn back to the car—

When suddenly, a flash of a blade appeared.

A Flying Knife was already precisely embedded in his neck.

Ozu's eyes widened; he instinctively covered the hilt of the knife tightly with his right hand, warm blood seeping out from between his fingers.

His mind was in chaos, still struggling to think whether this knife should be pulled out...

A black shadow, however, had already approached him like a ghost.

He opened his mouth, wanting to call for help, but could only emit a wheezing, leaking sound, unable to utter a single word.

The driver in the car noticed something amiss; just as he turned his head, he saw Officer Ozu had already collapsed limply.

The driver reached out to draw his gun, but before his fingertips touched the holster, he felt a chill at his neck, and a long, thin bloody gash had already bloomed.

Two strange sounds like a broken bellows came from his throat, and then he breathed his last.

He Yuzhu, expressionless, stuffed Ozu's corpse back into the car.

He immediately took a barrel of gasoline from his space and splashed it all over the car with a *whoosh*.

Then, he struck a match, flicked his wrist, and the spark traced a resolute arc, landing steadily inside the car.

Boom—!

The flames erupted instantly, greedily devouring the car, illuminating half the alley in a blood-red glow.

He Yuzhu, like a night-prowling civet cat, moved with a few leaps and bounds, blending into the deep night and disappearing without a trace.

The alley behind him completely exploded into chaos.

Cries of alarm and footsteps rose everywhere; a few people rushed out carrying water buckets and basins, futilely splashing water onto the raging car.

"Boom—!"

Another deafening explosion occurred, and the wreckage of the car was blasted in all directions.

At this moment, He Yuzhu had already snuck into Ozu Jiro's residence.

There was only one guard in the courtyard, dozing off in the gatehouse while clutching his rifle, his head bobbing.

He Yuzhu climbed over the wall and approached silently; the guard didn't even have time to wake up before a very thin line of blood appeared on his throat, and he went limp without a sound.

He Yuzhu began to search rapidly.

Although Ozu Jiro didn't have hard currency like gold or Big Ocean, his collection was quite rich: piles of ancient paintings, furniture mostly made of red sandalwood, and some bronze ware on the curio shelves.

Though He Yuzhu didn't know the trade, he operated on the principle of "better to take a thousand by mistake than to let one slip by," and collected everything he saw into his space.

Finished, he didn't hesitate and lit another fire.

He nimbly vaulted over the wall, the flames behind him lighting up the sky.

He headed straight for his next target—the Deputy Captain of the Military Police Action Team, Miura Dashan.

This person's temperament was completely different from Ozu Jiro's; he was a rigid soldier living in the Military Police dormitory, leaving no way to strike.

But Watanabe revealed that Miura Dashan was fond of alcohol, going almost every night to an izakaya near Dongzhimen called "Naracho," drinking until midnight before returning, and always traveling alone, never fearing the night road due to his impressive swordsmanship.

He Yuzhu became interested. Having upgraded the system for the "Martial Arts Assembly" last time, he was worried about not having a chance to test his skills; if he could run into him today, he would definitely have a "spar."

Following the information, he found "Naracho." After some disguise, he had become a disheveled little beggar.

He tried to barge in to beg for food, but was kicked out as soon as he entered the main door.

He didn't leave, instead cursing at the inside; whenever someone came out, he would pester them for money, acting very much like a rogue—in reality, he was identifying every guest at close range to find Miura Dashan.

Most Japanese people either beat or scolded him, and some even drew guns to threaten him.

And all those with bad attitudes were quietly followed by He Yuzhu for a distance, then silently collected into his space.

After waiting for nearly two hours, the night having reached the hour of the Rat, a man in his thirties of medium build with a conspicuous handlebar mustache finally walked out in a hurry with two others.

He Yuzhu's eyes sharpened—it was undoubtedly Miura Dashan.

The three walked in a hurry; He Yuzhu guessed that the news of Ozu's death had spread.

He followed silently until they reached a remote, desolate area.

He Yuzhu suddenly launched his attack, drawing two Box Cannons and firing from behind.

"Bang, bang, bang...!"

The rapid gunfire tore through the silence, and the three fell to the ground in response.

He Yuzhu quickly collected the corpses into his space and turned to head toward Kameda's residence.

However, the Special Higher Grade dormitory where Kameda lived was heavily guarded, leaving no way to strike.

He Yuzhu's gaze was cold; he was unwilling to stop there.

He threw out all the Japanese military corpses from his space—eleven in total—piled them up near Kameda's dormitory, poured gasoline on them, and lit them.

The sky-high flames rose again! To create even greater chaos, he threw a few Hand Grenades at the Special Higher Grade compound, the explosions shattering the tranquility of the night.

At the same time, Kameda was standing with his head bowed in the Military Police Commander's office.

Commander Tanaka Taro already knew the news of Ozu's death, and coupled with the series of major cases in Si Jiu Cheng recently, his anger finally erupted: "Baka! Incompetent! In half a month, over a dozen major cases, and you have no clues! If the Ozu murder case cannot be solved, don't bother being the section chief of the Special Higher Grade anymore; go straight to the front lines!"

"Hai! This subordinate will definitely solve the case as soon as possible and give you an account! Please give me ten days!"

"Get out!" Tanaka Taro's roar was deafening.

When He Yuzhu returned to the Siheyuan, his mother, Shen Guizhi, had not yet slept and was waiting anxiously.

"Can I go see your father first thing tomorrow morning?" she asked.

"No need to wait until tomorrow, let's go now," He Yuzhu said with a firm tone.

"It's the middle of the night, aren't you afraid of waking the neighbors?" Shen Guizhi asked worriedly.

"I ran into the people investigating my father this morning; if we don't leave now, you'll be dragged into the Military Police by tomorrow morning!"

"Why are the Japanese devils investigating your father?"

"They consider my father a suspect. It's probably that Boss Ma who falsely accused him!" He Yuzhu lied.

"Is it that serious?"

"It's more serious than you think. If you fall into the hands of the Japanese devils, you'll be skinned alive even if you don't die!" He Yuzhu threatened.

Shen Guizhi finally stopped hesitating, packed a few simple necessities, and slipped out quietly while holding He Yushui. Fortunately, the gatekeeper Yan Bugui was already fast asleep.

He Yuzhu escorted his mother to Shichahai.

Upon seeing He Daqing, Shen Guizhi immediately buried her head in her hands and wept bitterly.

He Yuzhu felt a heaviness in his heart and turned to knock on Chen Qingshan's door.

Chen Qingshan had already been awakened by the crying; seeing He Yuzhu when he opened the door, he asked, "Why have you come so late?"

"The day before yesterday, my mother and I went to Dongxing Lou to demand an explanation, but that Boss Ma wouldn't budge, so we and four other families caused a huge scene. As it turned out, his shop was set on fire that night. I suspect Boss Ma reported it to the Japanese and falsely accused my father of doing it!" He Yuzhu said briefly.

Chen Qingshan stared at him: "If I'm not mistaken, you're the one who set that fire, aren't you?"

He Yuzhu shook his head like a rattle-drum: "I'm a good kid, how could I do such a thing?"

Knowing he didn't want to talk about it further, Chen Qingshan changed the subject: "Zhuzi, we're opening a steamed bun shop, but white flour isn't easy to buy. Do you have any connections?"

He Yuzhu thought for a moment: "I've thought about it. Not far from here there's a 'small market,' it's a black market where they sell everything. Let's go take a look another day."

The next morning, while He Yuzhu was still fast asleep, a violent knocking sounded at the door.