Chapter 1: The Stutz and the Jade Throne Buddha Theory

Jinhai City, Astor Hotel.

Inside a room decorated in Victorian style, the orange-tinted chandelier cast a romantic glow.

Two bodies were entwined, rolling about.

"Ugh!"

Accompanied by the woman's soft moan, the man's body shuddered; his brain felt as if it had been emptied, and waves of dizziness washed over him.

Where is this?

Who is she?

Hong Zhiyou let out a muffled groan and struggled to climb off the woman, his eyes filled with shock and panic.

"I'm not a tiger; I won't eat you."

"Don't worry, I have a secret contraceptive remedy; you won't be stuck with me."

The woman's eyes were seductive, her face flushed with a satisfied rosy glow.

"You don't eat people, but you can charm them to death!"

"You're annoying."

Amidst the woman's coquettish scolding, Hong Zhiyou gave a frivolous smile, walked quickly into the bathroom, and locked the door behind him.

*Hoo, hoo! *

He turned on the faucet and scrubbed his face vigorously.

In the mirror was a completely unfamiliar young man.

A neat, short crew cut.

Fair skin, delicate features—not exactly handsome, but definitely pleasant to look at.

After binge-watching *Lurking* thirteen times, he hadn't expected that a pain in his chest would lead to him transmigrating into... Secretary Hong.

A man who didn't even deserve a name in the show.

He quickly integrated the memories.

Hong Zhiyou, 25 years old, his name off by only one character.

A graduate of the Southeast "Sino-American Eighth Special Training Class."

Skilled in foreign languages, telecommunications, intelligence, and especially in bed...

After the victory in the War of Resistance, the Jinhai Station was rebuilt, and Station Chief Wu Jingzhong was in urgent need of reliable personnel.

Compared to the past Qingpu, Lin Li, and Xifeng classes, the Sino-American class didn't have high-ranking officials like Boss Dai or Shen Zui personally teaching, nor did it have old-timers like Yu Lexing who had led many sessions; the students' backgrounds were relatively clean.

After the liberation of Jinhai, there was no avoiding dealings with Americans and Westerners. Just updating the station's various American-style equipment would be a headache without a versatile talent who was avant-garde and understood foreign languages.

Thus, Hong Zhiyou, who had just graduated and had no factional ties, was luckily handpicked by Wu Jingzhong.

At the moment, Wu Jingzhong was busy catching traitors to amass wealth and investigating "Red Tickets."

As the actual "helmsman" of Jinhai, after the liberation, the various major industries left behind by the Japanese—salt, banks, shipping, grain, etc. —urgently needed reorganization and redistribution of equity.

Excluding the top-tier resources carved up by the Four Great Families, there were still plenty of scraps left, especially businesses like foreign firms.

Local wealthy merchants and compradors had more or less had ties with the Japanese in the past and were eager to become "one of our own," so naturally, they flocked to him.

The ones in the station with higher education were Lu Qiao and Hong Zhiyou.

Wu Jingzhong didn't trust the Cantonese, so these tasks naturally fell to Hong Zhiyou.

The woman on the bed was the third concubine of Kang Zuowen, owner of the "Yishengyuan" grain shop.

Seductive, beautiful, and skilled.

When the Japanese were here, she was a somewhat famous socialite.

This wasn't the first time his predecessor had been with her.

"Secretary Hong, you really have to help me. The position of Grain Association President and the operating rights for the Liuweilu grain market we talked about last time..." Back in the bedroom, Mrs. Kang brought up business.

"Your Boss Kang is quite the clever one."

"Now that the sea routes are open, flour imports from America and Australia have resumed, and flour from Shanghai is also being vigorously transported north; the grain business is indeed a good trade."

Hong Zhiyou smiled, put on his shirt, and tied his tie.

"Oh, you already promised me. I've inquired at the Municipal Office... you have the final say on this."

"Besides, as for Station Chief Wu, we already sent gold bars and US dollars a few days ago."

"Just do me a favor and help out."

Mrs. Kang traced circles on his chest coquettishly.

"If I remember correctly, your husband had dealings with Mitsubishi in the past, right?" Hong Zhiyou looked at her and sneered.

"Secretary Hong... what do you mean by that?" Mrs. Kang wished she could tear this little "toy boy" to shreds.

She had given the money and slept with him.

Not only was the matter not resolved, but he had also slapped a "traitor" label on them; who could take that?

"What do you think?"

"Burning incense and worshipping Buddha requires knowing the right path. There are plenty of people sending gold bars and US dollars; what makes you Kangs think you're so special?" Hong Zhiyou teased.

The third concubine's face turned pale, but she still forced a smile:

"Then I beg you, the God of Wealth, to point out a clear path."

"Sun Dianying has become the Commander-in-Chief of Northern Henan; baby, why don't you understand?" Hong Zhiyou gave her a firm slap on her perky buttocks.

The third concubine looked at him, and after a moment, she had an epiphany:

"Wait here, I'm going downstairs to make a call."

She didn't even bother putting on her underwear, simply threw on a skirt, and clicked her heels as she went downstairs to the main hall.

A while later, Mrs. Kang walked back in:

"Old Kang has a pair of Yongzheng-era enamel-painted flower and butterfly plates in his collection, acquired from Mr. Lu Qinzhai. Using them to secure a few mansions near the racecourse shouldn't be a problem."

"Whispering in ears is best done by a pillow partner; the Station Chief's wife's words carry more weight than mine." Hong Zhiyou whispered in her ear.

"There... there is also a family heirloom, a top-grade blood-red jade bracelet, meant for Mrs. Wu."

"I only ask for your success."

Mrs. Kang bit her lip and added, very sensibly.

"That's a good girl. Wait for my news!"

Hong Zhiyou lifted her chin, kissed her red lips, and left the room.

"You bastard!"

"Why didn't you tell me sooner? I let you toss me around for so many days for nothing."

Thanks to Mrs. Kang's "nourishment," Hong Zhiyou walked out of the elevator and lobby feeling completely refreshed.

The heavy wheels of history were rolling toward him.

On the Haihe River, the whistles of steamships belching black smoke blared.

On the road, rickshaws, cars, buses, and crowds were all mixed together.

Beneath the prosperity lay undercurrents; what a man-eating era.

Hong Zhiyou got into the car, gripped the steering wheel, and his mind began to race.

Combining his memories, he could roughly deduce his predecessor's character.

Fearful of superiors but unskilled at flattery.

Doing things not to seek merit, but to avoid blame.

Most of the time, he was a character the Station Chief would wave away with a "dismissed," far less favored than Yu Zecheng or Li Ya.

The most fatal flaw was being blinded by lust.

When Ma Kui was branded as the "Mount Emei" and everyone was avoiding him, he still dared to date Mrs. Ma, eventually being quietly taken out of the picture; one could only call it "true love."

"The original owner had no backing, wasn't valued by the Station Chief, and his mentality was broken and he gave up by those old foxes at the Jinhai Station."

"In the end, it's because he didn't understand the Stutz and the Jade Throne Buddha theory."

Hong Zhiyou raised the corner of his mouth and started the car.

It was true that Jinhai was a mix of dragons and snakes, but it wasn't hard to survive and become someone above others.

Being shameless and clinging tightly to Wu Jingzhong's thigh was the right move.

After all, the Station Chief was a Major General in the intelligence system, a favorite of Boss Dai, and an old classmate of Jiang Jianfeng and Officer Zheng from Moscow Sun Yat-sen University.

With Old Wu covering him, walking sideways through this colorful world of Jinhai wouldn't be much of a problem.

However, Hong Zhiyou had no interest in promotion or "turning red."

Just watching Old Yu fight, making some money, having a little romance with Mrs. Ma and Miss Wanqiu, and filling in the holes for Old Yu along the way would be enough.

When the red flag waves and the world is united, he would follow Sister Mei to Southeast Asia to open a farm and build a winery.

No wind, no rain.

Isn't that nice?

Having made up his mind, Hong Zhiyou familiarized himself with the car and drove skillfully toward the Jinhai Station.

The compound consisted mainly of two- and three-story white buildings, surrounded by high walls, electric fences, and guard towers with heavy machine guns at the east and west corners, patrolled and guarded by personnel and police dogs twenty-four hours a day.

He got out of the car.

He headed straight for the Station Chief's office on the third floor and knocked lightly on the door.

"Come in." Wu Jingzhong's deep voice came from inside.

Hong Zhiyou pushed the door open and entered.

Wu Jingzhong had just finished giving instructions to a bald, bearded man.

The Station Chief had slightly graying temples, deep nasolabial folds on his square face, and a slicked-back hairstyle; he was steady, approachable, and possessed the dignity of a superior.

"Section Chief Liu!" Hong Zhiyou called out when he met the bald man's gaze.

The bald man nodded slightly.

This man was Liu Xiong, a trusted aide who had followed Wu Jingzhong for many years.

Wu Jingzhong didn't trust Ma Kui or Lu Qiao.

He had Liu Xiong and a few old hands he brought with him form the Security Section, specifically responsible for his and his wife's security as well as some covert intelligence work.

In *Lurking*, when Yu Zecheng first arrived in Jinhai, Liu Xiong investigated him thoroughly and was the one who suggested the Station Chief initiate a "Buddha Niche" investigation into Yu.

If it weren't for the fact that this guy couldn't be in two places at once and was a bit rough around the edges, the Stutz and the Jade Throne Buddha business wouldn't have had anything to do with Old Yu.

"How did the matter go?"

Wu Jingzhong toyed with a porcelain vase and asked nonchalantly.

Jinhai's livelihood and economy had long been messed up by the Japanese.

Just after the liberation, Boss Dai came in person to guide them and took away a plane full of "national assets."

As for enterprises like banks, they had always been the Four Great Families' turf.

The good ones had been snatched up long ago.

The remaining ones that could offer a sip of soup were mostly entangled with these forces; poking a finger in might drag out something unexpected.

Therefore, Wu Jingzhong had no interest in dividing the pie.

Giving it to Hong Zhiyou was, first, for training.

Second, if something really went wrong, a pawn with no background could be discarded at any time, without implicating himself.

"Except for a few fat spots like the docks and grain shops, the procedures for the others are basically finished."

"Station Chief, you might still have an impression of Kang Zuowen from the Yishengyuan grain shop." Hong Zhiyou asked.

"Hmm!" Wu Jingzhong didn't even lift his eyelids.

Kang Zuowen and his blockheaded ilk—sending a few hundred dollars today, two small gold bars tomorrow—were really quite boring.

"Mr. Kang heard you like antiques."

"He has a pair of Yongzheng-era enamel-painted flower and butterfly plates he wants to give you, saying they passed through Lu Qinzhai's hands and could secure a few houses near the racecourse."

"By the way, Mrs. Kang also specially prepared a top-grade blood-red jade bracelet for your wife."

"They want to ask for your approval for the Grain Association President position and the operating rights for Liuweilu."

"What do you think..."

Hong Zhiyou poured him tea while whispering the message.

Yongzheng-style flower and butterfly plates.

Top-grade blood-red jade bracelet.

Wu Jingzhong's eyes lit up!

New book release, a different kind of *Lurking* story. I'll mention later that Old Yu going to the island and Cui Ping returning to Yixian will all be covered. During the new book period, follow-up reading is very important. I ask all the big shots who like spy thrillers to add it to your collections and recommend it. Mwah.

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(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 2 =====