Chapter 2: First to Xianyang to be King

Wu Jingzhong didn't understand cars, but he had been immersed in antiques for many years.

Lu Qinzhai was a big-time dealer spanning East and West; the items that passed through his hands were all good things.

"What do you think?"

Wu Jingzhong put down the porcelain vase, his gaze restrained, his smile approachable and warm.

Old fox!

Hong Zhiyou said in a low voice: "Back when the Generalissimo fought Officer Yan, Kang Zuowen provided military grain; they can be considered friendly merchants."

"Yishengyuan is also an old brand in Jinhai's grain trade."

"Kang Zuowen is a local bully; his brother-in-law is Adjutant Pang of the 94th Army. He's well-connected in the black market and familiar with foreigners."

"If the Kang family takes over, grain circulation shouldn't be a problem."

"They have prestige, reputation, and strength."

"Your subordinate thinks it's feasible."

"Hmm, then let's do it that way." Wu Jingzhong nodded with appreciation.

Why did he hold a porcelain vase all day, looking at it in front of his subordinates, making people think he was neglecting his duties?

That was all for enlightenment.

A new monk has trouble chanting scriptures.

He couldn't go around telling everyone he liked antiques, so everyone should be sensible—hand over good things when they find them and scrape them up when they can.

This had to be realized by the subordinates themselves.

Yet this bunch of blockheads spent all day saying "Station Chief this" and "Station Chief that," and none of them were very enlightened or on the right track.

Otherwise, why would he have insisted on transferring Yu Zecheng from far away in Shancheng?

Hong Zhiyou had been at the station for some time.

Wu Jingzhong's assessment of him was:

Has brains, no guts.

Has thoughts, no action.

He hadn't expected him to be enlightened today, which was a big, pleasant surprise.

"Station Chief, then I'll go to the Kang family to finalize it." Hong Zhiyou stood up.

"Wait!"

"Don't rush to do that yet; go to the train station to pick someone up!" Wu Jingzhong smiled and handed him an appointment letter.

"Yu Zecheng, proposed Section Chief of the Confidential Section..." Hong Zhiyou looked up at the Station Chief, feigning confusion.

Wu Jingzhong smiled and pointed at him:

"Secretary Hong, your job is to handle affairs for me and accompany those wealthy wives to play mahjong and dance."

"This person is my student, an old-timer from the Qingpu class."

As he spoke, he squeezed his eyelids upward:

"Young people shouldn't work too hard. The Confidential Section has a lot of work; you should step back a bit. Everything requires a balance of work and rest."

Hong Zhiyou instantly understood that the Station Chief wanted him to pave the way for the newly arrived Yu Zecheng.

"Understood, thank you for your consideration, Station Chief."

"Section Chief Yu is a senior; your subordinate will cooperate with Section Chief Yu's work with all his might."

Hong Zhiyou said, feigning realization and respect.

"Hmm!"

"By the way, take this."

"Station Chief Ma from Beiping sent me some lingzhi and deer antler powder; it's for tonifying the kidneys and strengthening Qi. They like to drink this, but I'm getting on in years and don't need it."

"Accompanying women is a bitter chore."

"Talk well, negotiate well, you know?"

Wu Jingzhong opened a drawer, took out an exquisite small jar, and handed it to Hong Zhiyou.

"Thank you, Station Chief."

"Your subordinate will definitely do his utmost, be loyal to the officer, and for..."

Hong Zhiyou bowed ninety degrees, his eyes reddening with gratitude.

"Alright, alright. The Jinhai Station doesn't hold '41' meetings, and I'm not Boss Dai; there's no need to shout slogans."

"Go quickly, don't miss the time!"

Wu Jingzhong waved his hand with a smile.

"Yes!"

Hong Zhiyou left with red eyes to carry out the order.

"Interesting." Once the person left, Wu Jingzhong smiled with satisfaction.

He had plenty of this tonic at home.

He had intended to wait for Yu Zecheng to arrive and encourage him to take down Mu Liancheng's niece.

He hadn't expected Secretary Hong to fire the first shot.

Well, nothing to be done; whoever makes the contribution first gets the reward.

After all, who would complain about having too many "Gods of Wealth"?

"First to Xianyang to be King, later... together to Xianyang to protect the old man on the throne."

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but hum happily, his fingers quickly dialing a number:

"Hello, does your brother have any friends at the auction house in Yuezhou, no, Xiangdao?"

"Ask him about a pair of Yongzheng-era enamel..."

Hong Zhiyou drove to the train station.

It was clear Wu Jingzhong was satisfied with his performance.

The future looked promising.

He glanced at his watch and headed toward the exit.

Soon, he saw Yu Zecheng.

Well-proportioned figure, hair parted 3-7, fair complexion, eyes not large but bright and steady.

There was absolutely no fierce, murderous aura of "Is this melon ripe?"

If he changed into a long gown, he would look a bit like a teacher.

Who would have thought that the slightly feminine Comrade Old Yu could single-handedly assassinate Li Haifeng?

"Senior Yu, I am Hong Zhiyou, Secretary of the Jinhai Station; I have long admired you." Hong Zhiyou stepped forward to greet him.

"We'll be colleagues from now on; just call me Old Yu."

After a simple exchange of pleasantries, Hong Zhiyou packed the luggage, and the two got into the car.

"Is Little Brother Hong from Shancheng, or..." Yu Zecheng smiled, trying to probe his background.

"I'm from the Southeast Sino-American class, just graduated. There's an American base here in Jinhai, and they need people who know foreign languages for liaison, so Station Chief Wu handpicked me." Hong Zhiyou proactively revealed to Old Yu.

"So that's how it is. Please take care of me in the future." Yu Zecheng nodded.

The two chatted about some light topics.

Upon arriving at the station, Yu Zecheng immediately went to offer his treasures behind closed doors, after which the Station Chief called Lu Qiao and Ma Kui in for a meeting.

Hong Zhiyou waited for a while at the registration desk outside the Station Chief's office.

He wasn't called to attend the meeting.

It seemed that if he wanted to become Old Wu's trusted aide, he would have to recruit more wealth.

He returned to his office, called Mrs. Kang, and went straight to the Kang family to pick up the goods.

Arriving at the Kang family, Hong Zhiyou, having obtained the handling rights, simply put the last few fat spots like the docks and textile mills up for bid, letting Mrs. Kang organize the gathering to round up the wealthy merchants in Jinhai who were interested in "drinking soup."

Antiques were preferred, but gold bars and US dollars were also fine.

Mrs. Kang was naturally happy to be of service.

Being able to obtain this "Imperial Sword" from the Jinhai Station would be of great benefit to the Kang family's status in the business circle.

Kang Zuowen sensibly found an excuse to leave, leaving the two alone.

Hong Zhiyou couldn't refuse the hospitality, hugged Mrs. Kang to "conspire," and only left after he had his fill.

"I don't have the backing of the Station Chief's student status like Old Yu."

"If I want to completely gain trust, I must take down Mu Liancheng, and of course, Wanqiu."

"Old Yu has Zuo Lan and Cui Ping; there's no reason for Wanqiu to be ruined by Xie the Stutterer again."

"Of course, one must be careful with the measure here; I can't steal the limelight from Old Yu, the God of Wealth."

"Otherwise, if he can't make it in the Jinhai Station, I won't be able to eat this melon."

Before leaving the Kang family, Hong Zhiyou found a roadside tea stall to think about his next plan.

He had to take Old Yu along to fly!

This melon didn't seem easy to chew.

Fortunately, Mu Liancheng's "gold mountain" was big enough; a whole ship and several rooms full of treasures should be enough for him and Old Yu to burn incense and worship Buddha, and save up enough family fortune to become farm owners in the South Seas later.

He paid for the tea.

He found a place to call his old classmate, the American Anderson, and made an appointment at the Tongfu Hotel on Huaishan Road.

Huaishan Road was paved with bluestone, with old houses and shops along the street.

This area was quite lively, with laborers, peddlers, doctors, and restaurants everywhere, including Shopkeeper Qiu's Xuanji Pharmacy.

Arriving at the hotel's private room.

The handsome, tall, blonde American Anderson was smoking a cigar.

"Hong, long time no see. You didn't look for me when you came to Jinhai; that's not very friendly." Anderson spoke fluent Chinese.

Thanks to Jiang Yiying cracking the Japanese telegrams about the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor.

Furthermore, civil war was imminent.

The Americans and Boss Dai had established an intelligence hotline.

Anderson was one of the first exchange students to come to the mainland for training. During the special training class, Hong Zhiyou was skilled in foreign languages and had a very good relationship with these exchange students.

"Jinhai was liberated not long ago, and there's a pile of messy business that never ends."

"I'm looking for information on someone: Mu Liancheng." Hong Zhiyou got straight to the point.

(End of chapter)