Chapter 98: The Traffic Station is Destroyed

Inside the Dianmen Grocery Store, Lao Zhou was squatting by the stove, poking at the coal balls with a pair of fire tongs.

Outside the door, the north wind was howling, and there weren't many pedestrians on the street; occasionally, a few carts would pass by, leaving behind the sound of bells that faded from near to far.

Suddenly, the wind chime at the shop entrance gave a "ding-dang" ring, and a young man stumbled in, pushing the door open; he was covered in the dust of travel, seemed to have injuries on his body, and his eyes held a trace of unease.

He glanced at Lao Zhou, who was poking the coal stove, and said in a low voice, "Boss, do you have any old white spirit from the dam?"

Lao Zhou raised his eyes, his expression unmoved, and said indifferently, "Sir, this shop does not sell liquor. If you want to buy liquor, you must go to the shop at number 5 across the street."

The man immediately leaned in closer, his eyes urgent: "Last night, the Traffic Station at Xuanwumen was raided, two comrades were lost, and I only managed to escape with great difficulty."

Lao Zhou's heart tightened; he hurriedly ushered the man into the back room and asked in a low voice, "Do the people who were captured know about us here?"

The young man shook his head, "They don't know, but I feel there is a traitor among our underground comrades in Beiping."

The room suddenly fell silent, with only the "pi-pa" crackling of the stove fire remaining.

Lao Zhou pondered for a moment and said, "Wait here for a while; I will make a phone call and arrange for you to go to the Jidong Guerrilla immediately."

The young man gritted his teeth and said, "The Military Statistics Bureau Beiping Station has been like mad dogs lately, arresting people everywhere."

Lao Zhou nodded, though it felt as if a stone had been pressed onto his heart.

In the afternoon, another comrade from a Traffic Station came to make contact and was also quickly sent away.

Lao Zhou pulled Shen Wenqing, who had just entered the room, into a small storage room and said, "Little Shen, when you sent the two comrades away, did you notice anyone following?"

Shen Wenqing shook his head, "Absolutely not, I checked repeatedly several times."

"I always feel something is not right. Several Traffic Stations have been raided recently, and in each case, someone managed to escape! Could it be that the enemy is deliberately releasing pigeons..." Lao Zhou muttered to himself.

Shen Wenqing was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized: "You mean they are using this method to fish..."

Lao Zhou nodded with a grave expression, "Go to the window and take a look."

Shen Wenqing immediately went to the window and was surprised to find several more people outside—there were rickshaw pullers parked on the side of the road not picking up passengers, sturdy men selling cigarettes, and unemployed drifters walking back and forth.

These people all had one common characteristic: their eyes would glance at the grocery store from time to time.

Both Lao Zhou and Shen Wenqing realized something was wrong; the two looked at each other and instantly reached a tacit understanding.

"Activate the second plan." Lao Zhou spoke at a rapid pace, almost gritting his teeth.

Shen Wenqing calmly installed the explosive device, while Lao Zhou methodically packed up important items; Shen Wenqing drenched the goods in kerosene, and Lao Zhou threw documents onto the kerosene-soaked shelves. Before going down into the tunnel entrance, Shen Wenqing steadily threw a match onto the shelves, and the flames rose up with a "whoosh."

The two climbed into the tunnel and closed the entrance door.

Outside the door were the men from the Military Statistics Bureau Beiping Station Action Team Group 2; they had just arrived and did not act immediately, waiting for the people from Group 1.

Seeing the grocery store on fire, Ge Erdan immediately became anxious and shouted, "Brothers, we can't wait any longer, charge in! They are burning documents!"

In the ranks, Tie Lin was still sitting on a rickshaw cracking melon seeds; his hands were red from the cold, but he didn't stop, and he would cover his face from time to time.

He said with a bit of sarcasm, "Ge Erdan, it was agreed that the two groups would act together; what are you, a mere Group Leader, trying to show off for?"

After hearing this, Ge Erdan's face flushed red; he gritted his teeth and cursed, "All of you, charge in with me! Whoever the hell dares to be a coward, I'll shoot him immediately!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he took the lead and rushed into the house.

The room was already filled with smoke; Tie Lin rolled his eyes, secretly stretched out his foot to trip a secret agent beside him, and fell to the ground himself, continuing to roll toward the street until he was almost in the middle of the road.

He sat up holding his lower leg and shouted, "Ouch! Liu Dabiti, you kicked my leg and broke it!"

Liu Dabiti looked at him with an innocent face.

Just at this moment.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Several consecutive explosions blew the roof of the house away, and debris and glass shards splashed everywhere.

The few people who had rushed in were silent.

Tie Lin looked up at the hellish scene and cursed, "Deserved, serves you right! Damn you, Ge Erdan, I saved you once and you didn't even appreciate it; now it's fine, you've realized your dream of being a hero."

On the other side, Lao Zhou and Shen Wenqing had already emerged from the tunnel and entered a small courtyard.

Lao Zhou looked through the wall at the raging fire and said in a low voice, "Hurry up and disguise yourselves to leave the city; we can't stay here for the time being. I am certain—there is a traitor within our ranks, and their rank is not low."

Outside Tianjin, He Yuzhu kicked the Jeep, shook his head, and said, "It broke down at a critical moment; let's go, take a rickshaw!"

"It's out of gas, isn't it?"

He Yuzhu nodded.

The two got into a rickshaw, and He Yuzhu asked, "Which is the most luxurious hotel in Tianjin?"

"If you're talking about Tianjin, the most awesome hotel is the Astor House Hotel; it has twenty-four-hour hot water, big bathtubs, and..." the rickshaw puller introduced incessantly.

Arriving at the hotel, He Yuzhu opened two of the most luxurious suites.

The room was covered with thick carpets and was warm; both of them felt as if they were in another world, sitting on the sofa in a daze.

Wang Jiazhi's expression was not good, and she was a bit dejected.

He Yuzhu brewed a cup of tea for himself, took a sip, and seeing Wang Jiazhi's low mood, comforted her: "Xiao Wang, you don't need to be afraid. I also have businesses in Beijing, and I run a large restaurant."

Wang Jiazhi nodded; she wasn't surprised in her heart, but her words were very harsh: "You are so good at 'making money' that it wouldn't be strange even if you opened ten large restaurants!"

He Yuzhu saw her mocking tone and said, "My restaurant business is very good, not because of anything else, but because I am a chef who can cook Sichuan Cuisine and Lu Cuisine. I also created a few new dishes myself; those dishes of mine are very popular in Si Jiu Cheng!"

Wang Jiazhi stared at him wide-eyed, "You're a cook? I didn't hear that wrong, did I! Then is the shop you opened a black shop? Is it the kind that makes human meat buns?"

"Listen to you, my shop is very particular. How come I've discovered that as soon as our lives get better, you start being sarcastic? Did I offend you somewhere?"

"You are going home, what about me? I have no home!" Wang Jiazhi burst into tears.

"Why are you crying? I didn't say I wouldn't take care of you. If you are willing to show your face, I will open a large restaurant for you and let you manage it. We'll split the profits sixty-forty; if you're not satisfied, seventy-thirty!"

"I don't want your money!" Wang Jiazhi choked out.

"That is your own work, the money you earned yourself, not money I gave you. If you really feel lonely, you can also consider my uncle; be my aunt, that way you'll be a generation older than me and get the better end of the deal!"

"Don't talk nonsense, I will never look for a man again in this life!"

He Yuzhu lowered his voice and said, "If you have spiritual pursuits and want to join an organization, I can connect you with the Communist Party. But don't ever defect to the Bald Party; the timing is wrong. It's already '46 now; if you defect to them, although they can still jump around for three years, they will be finished sooner or later."

Wang Jiazhi heard this and kept shaking her head, not knowing what she was thinking.

He Yuzhu smiled: "Life is actually very simple; it consists of three things: survival, spiritual life, and self-actualization. Don't think about it so complicatedly; consider my proposal carefully. I'm going to make a call."

"Go ahead, I'm going back to my room to take a bath." Wang Jiazhi walked out of the room deep in thought after hearing He Yuzhu's words, but his words kept repeating in her mind... Is this really something a child could say! Who exactly is he?

He Yuzhu walked to the hotel lobby and dialed the phone.

Liu Rusi's cold voice came from the other end: "This is Liu Rusi, who is this?"

"Sister, it's me, Zhuzi."

"Oh, what made you think of calling me? Did something happen, and you need me to clean up your mess?" Liu Rusi said sarcastically.

"Sister, is it that Pingping is on her period again and upset you?" He Yuzhu joked half-heartedly.

"You little brat, don't push everything onto others. I'm angry at you. Why didn't you come back after finishing the escort job? Where are you now?" Liu Rusi asked.

"Tianjin."

"What, you didn't go to Shanghai?"

"No." He Yuzhu sighed, "I went to the Qinhuai River, felt that place was about the same as Shanghai, so I didn't head further south. Sister, you haven't withdrawn the people protecting my family, have you?"

"You may be heartless, but I cannot be unrighteous. Rest assured, your family is fine," Liu Rusi said indifferently.

"Good, sister. I'll be back in the capital tomorrow."

"Then hurry back; I have a pile of things here waiting to discuss with you." Liu Rusi's voice revealed a hint of urgency.