Chapter 427: Decoding the Cipher

"He has no money," Yan Bugui said. "Haven't you seen Yushui and those children going out to sell popsicles every day just to buy a few things?"

Yang Ruihua curled her lip: "That's all a smokescreen. I heard from Jiefang that the down jacket Shen Guizhi wore in winter supposedly cost over two million, and it's filled with duck down."

Yan Bugui chewed another peanut and said slowly: "I know, that coat was a gift from He Yuzhu. I heard from Shen Guizhi that Zhuzi helped the person selling the clothes with some design work, and they gave it to him."

Yang Ruihua said: "I think his family has plenty of money, they're just pretending! Haven't you seen that the people looking for him all drive cars?"

"That's their own ability! It's no use being jealous!" Yan Bugui said.

As soon as He Yuzhu returned home, He Yushui ran in with Xiaomi, Dahua, and Xiaoqi. "Brother, that cream popsicle is selling so well, but we're out of cream. What should we do?"

He Yuzhu thought for a moment and said: "Brother has no way to find cream for you today. Tomorrow, I'll help you check the market, but cream is in very short supply right now and hard to buy. Today, just make white sugar popsicles and sell them a bit cheaper."

Upon hearing this, He Yushui immediately curled her lip: "Brother, you're an amateur. People who can afford popsicles now don't care about that little bit of money; those who can't afford them won't buy them no matter how cheap they are."

He Yuzhu was amused by her "business sense": "Oh my, you've only been selling things for a few days and you've become a businessperson! Then why don't you go ask our dad? He's the Logistics Director of a factory with ten thousand people; isn't it easier for him to get cream than me?"

He Yushui snorted, turned her face away, and said: "Our dad? He doesn't even dare let me use a single sheet of his letterhead. Not like you, you even dare to move a Computer into the house."

He Yuzhu straightened his face and feigned seriousness: "This Computer is something I saved up for with my own money, not the public's. Don't you go pinning the label of an embezzler on me."

The few little girls kept their heads down, their shoulders heaving; they were clearly giggling and obviously didn't believe a word of it.

Just then, the telephone rang. He Yuzhu picked up the phone.

Tian Dan said very nervously: "Zhuzi, we just intercepted a secret telegram from the Taiwan Secret Service Bureau. I want to have Lin Wanning decode it overnight."

He Yuzhu immediately became tense and asked: "Why the rush?"

"Everyone agrees that this secret telegram is an urgent operation, perhaps in retaliation for our recent actions!" Tian Dan said in a hurried tone.

"That's very possible. We broke two major cases in a row, which is like digging up their ancestral graves!" He Yuzhu chuckled, "You come to my place, I'll go pick her up."

After hanging up the phone, He Yuzhu turned and said: "The East Cross Courtyard is being requisitioned. You all move the freezer to the Erfang in the Zhongyuan as soon as possible. You won't be able to come to my place for the next few days."

He Yushui was a bit unhappy. After all, the environment here was comfortable, and the children could make popsicles while eating and drinking. However, she was a child who knew the gravity of the situation; she frowned and said: "Xiaomi, Dahua, Xiaoqi, hurry and go call your dads, and call Ershuan over too. We're moving."

The children ran out immediately.

Paizi Hutong.

Lin Wanning had just finished showering, wearing a tank top and shorts, sitting on a rattan chair to cool off.

Two cats lay on either side of her feet, their tails occasionally flicking lightly.

The courtyard gate was pushed open with a "creak."

As soon as He Yuzhu entered, he said urgently: "Tian Dan intercepted a secret telegram; it's very urgent and she needs your help to decode it. Bring your essentials; you might have to stay at my place for a few days and work through the night."

Lin Wanning thought for a moment and said: "I don't have much to bring, it's just that dressing as a man in the summer is a bit of a hassle."

"That's not necessary. Just put on some makeup so my sister and the others don't recognize you," He Yuzhu said.

"Understood!" Lin Wanning replied.

No. 95 Siheyuan, the Zhongyuan was bustling with activity.

He Daqing rolled up his sleeves and threw all the junk from the Erfang into the courtyard.

The freezer was lifted into the Erfang by several people working together, and the children in the courtyard gathered around, their eyes shining, pointing and gesturing.

"This thing can freeze popsicles!"

"If you put water in here, can it turn into a popsicle?"

The four little girls became the center of attention, surrounded by a group of children watching them.

At the other end of the courtyard, Jia Dongxu announced in a loud voice: "Yingzi gave birth to a son for me, seven jin and two liang!"

"Why didn't Yingzi come back with you?" the Third Aunt asked.

"She still has to stay in the hospital for two days, she'll be back in a couple of days!" Jia Dongxu said.

The Third Aunt immediately replied: "Then you must set up a few tables for the full-month banquet and celebrate properly."

Although Jia Dongxu was unwilling, he still played along: "I'll definitely hold a banquet, one person from each family in the courtyard."

Yang Ruihua asked: "Do you want my Lao Yan to give the child a nice name? Just send two bottles of wine."

"My mother already picked out the name, the nickname is Bang Geng, and the formal name is Jia Geng."

"That really reeks of the countryside! Change the name quickly, it doesn't sound good!" Yan Bugui immediately interjected.

Tian Dan sat on a chair, watching everyone's performance with a smile.

In the dark shadows of the corridor in the distance, a few teenage boys were sitting, secretly sizing up Tian Dan.

Li Yong nudged Liu Guangqi with his backside and said: "When I look for a wife in the future, I'm going to find one like this young lady. She has both femininity and a heroic spirit."

"Keep bragging! With your family's conditions, it'd be good enough if you could find someone better looking than a sow! You're just a toad lusting after swan meat," Liu Guangqi said dismissively.

"Don't look down on a poor youth! You look down on me, but your family's conditions aren't any better than mine. Your dad's bad reputation for beating his children has long since spread; he's even blacklisted in Dongcheng Qu. What good girl would marry into your family?" Li Yong mocked.

"This young master is going to change his fate through study!" Liu Guangqi said solemnly.

"Do you think He Yuzhu is a 'nepotist'? Why do older beauties always come looking for him?" Li Yong asked again.

"Damn you, you really know how to ruin a person. I know He Yuzhu doesn't get along with you, but that guy doesn't seem like that kind of person. I remember now, this woman has appeared before—she appeared on the day Zhao Yingzi got married; she was disguised as a waitress, and those Police officers all listened to her. She's at least a Section Chief," Liu Guangqi recalled.

"Could it be that another spy has appeared in our courtyard?" Li Yong asked.

Liu Guangqi said: "I have a feeling that He Yuzhu might be a Plainclothes Police officer. You'd better behave yourself. Otherwise, one day, he'll find a charge and throw you into prison."

"Screw you, I haven't committed any crimes, how could he lock me up?" Li Yong said dismissively.

He Yuzhu walked in with Lin Wanning in a hurry, and Tian Dan immediately followed them to the East Cross Courtyard.

Ershuan also quietly followed and stood guard at the entrance of the East Cross Courtyard.

Liu Guangqi watched them pass by and whispered: "These people are probably all plainclothes."

Li Yong curled his lip: "Maybe they went off to do that thing."

Liu Guangqi got up and left: "I'd better stay away from you, otherwise when you get struck by lightning, it might implicate me."

In the East Cross Courtyard, Tian Dan took out a secret telegram and said: "The Telecommunications Division at the bureau suspects that this telegram is likely a retaliatory operation against us. We must decode it as quickly as possible!"

Lin Wanning took the telegram, her brain spinning rapidly.

After a while, she said, "The security level of this secret code is not high; it belongs to a simple manual encoding. Give me three days, and I will certainly be able to decipher it."

Tian Dan's eyes dimmed, and she said, "No, I can only give you one and a half days!"