Chapter 280: Penicillin

"Zhiyou, didn't you go celebrate with the Station Chief and Li Ya?" Yu Zecheng asked with a weary smile.

Hong Zhiyou was one of the few people he didn't have to wear a mask around.

"The Station Chief asked me to bring you some medicine."

"Right now, medical supplies are prioritized for the front lines, and all the major hospitals are in short supply; even Ding Defeng's wife can't get medicine when she's sick."

"We don't have the technology here."

"We can only rely on the American West for this, and it's tight."

"Keep some at home."

Hong Zhiyou pulled two boxes of medicine from his pocket and handed them to Yu Zecheng.

Yu Zecheng's health was actually not very good.

Although he hadn't been tortured like Ma Kui, nor had he suffered from poor nutrition and hunger in Yancheng like Li Ya.

But his nerves had been stretched tight for years, leading to frequent migraines.

Last time he went to Jingling, Cuiping had even entrusted Hong Zhiyou to ask Shopkeeper Qiu to write a prescription.

"Thanks."

"Chat for a bit?"

Yu Zecheng sat down, picked up a teacup, and said.

"Then you have to... have to pay." Hong Zhiyou mimicked Xie Ruo, tilting his head and stuttering.

"Here."

Yu Zecheng fished a large handful of legal tender from his pocket and pushed it all over.

"This isn't even enough to buy a sesame seed cake."

"Forget it, it's just taking up space in my pocket."

Hong Zhiyou pushed the money back.

Yu Zecheng hurriedly stuffed it back into his pocket: "Your senior sister keeps a tight rein on things; she only gives me enough for a newspaper."

"You really are obedient," Hong Zhiyou said.

"What else can I do if I'm not?"

"She has a heavy fist and is a Party member; she's set up a Party branch right at home. As a non-Party member, what can I do besides accept her leadership?"

Yu Zecheng laughed.

Hong Zhiyou could see that he and Cuiping were getting along more and more smoothly.

"It's right for her to manage you."

"My senior sister has high moral character; she won't go wrong."

Hong Zhiyou smiled.

"Sigh."

"Every time I hear the broadcast now, I get chills all over and my heart beats violently."

"Li Ya is watching me, and I don't dare go to the bookstore."

"I wonder how the organization's organs are doing?"

Yu Zecheng said, rubbing his temples with a headache.

Hong Zhiyou looked at him.

Old Yu had grown a lot of white hair at his temples recently, and his eyes looked dim.

This was not a good sign.

Especially at this critical juncture, many things could not escape the eyes of old hands like the Station Chief and Li Ya.

"What are you panicking about?"

"They survived the Long March back then; this is nothing."

"Hu Zongnan might not have won, and the organization might not have lost."

"There is a kind of failure called occupation, and there is a kind of victory called withdrawal."

Hong Zhiyou looked at him and smiled with calm composure.

"There is a kind of failure called occupation, and there is a kind of victory..."

Yu Zecheng chewed on these words, and light gradually appeared in his eyes.

"Is this also a form of protracted warfare?"

"It was published in the newspapers back then, and even the Japanese were terrified when they read it."

"Zhiyou, do you know something?"

"Tell me quickly."

Yu Zecheng knew Hong Zhiyou was very well-informed.

"What could I know?"

"I just feel that the wisdom of those who plan strategies is not something you or I can fathom."

"This is a showdown between the Generalissimo and them."

"It's useless for us to think too much."

"But since you are a heavy-hearted person, I'll help you to the end."

Hong Zhiyou stood up, picked up his desk phone, and dialed Xie Ruo's number:

"Old Xie."

"Help me get the latest battle reports, especially in the direction of Qinghuabian."

"Yes."

"Also, help me inquire about someone, Zuo Lan."

"She used to be a cadre for the Social Security Department."

"She once served as a clerk at the Jinhai Military Mediation Office and has experience studying in the Soviet Union."

"Yes."

"This person is very important; I need to know her news as soon as possible."

"Money is not an issue."

"Good, see you."

Hong Zhiyou hung up the phone and returned to the sofa.

Yu Zecheng felt a warmth in his heart and said gratefully: "Zhiyou, thank you."

Of course he cared about Zuo Lan.

It was just that this timing wasn't appropriate to ask, and he hadn't expected Hong Zhiyou to see through it at a glance.

"Don't be so polite."

"Just wait, there will be news in a few days."

"Go back and get some sleep; everything will get better."

Hong Zhiyou patted his shoulder and walked out.

Yu Zecheng suddenly felt much clearer in his heart.

Hong Zhiyou was known as "Half-Immortal Hong," and he didn't know how others saw it.

But Yu Zecheng knew very well that as long as it was something he expressed an opinion on, it was mostly true, or could be accomplished.

Perhaps the organization's organs really did withdraw voluntarily.

Instead of what was boasted on the broadcast—that those people were not fleeing in a panic, their lives and deaths unknown, while Hu Zongnan was launching a dragnet-style pursuit to search for their whereabouts.

As for Zuo Lan.

She would definitely be fine.

She definitely would.

Station Chief's office.

Li Ya and Wu Jingzhong clinked glasses, took a sip, and said sarcastically:

"Teacher."

"Why do I feel that Secretary Hong and Deputy Director Yu aren't very high-spirited?"

"Isn't this a joyous occasion for the whole world?"

"It's not necessarily joyous for the whole world." Wu Jingzhong put down his wine glass, sat down, and crossed his arms to analyze.

"Victory is achieved, and there is peace."

"Military aid will be gone; just on this alone, from the Ministry of National Defense down to the lower levels, how many people's rice bowls have been smashed."

"And that's not counting the intelligence trading and other messy gray-market deals."

"Take you, for example."

"If Zheng Jiemin recovers his strength, will he give you a hard time?"

"Not to mention anything else, if he issues an order from the Second Department to transfer you to Lanzhou to plant trees, you won't be able to take it."

"And Mao Renfeng, he has been keeping an eye on Jinhai."

"Can Deputy Station Chief Yu be happy?"

Wu Jingzhong said.

"Don't forget, our station is still missing an Intelligence Division Chief, and that is a position at the Lieutenant Colonel or Colonel level."

"Who will Zheng Jiemin send?"

"Could it be Lu Qiao?"

"With this war dragging on, the higher-ups have no time to consider these matters; once things are settled, you, and even I, might be held accountable and have our positions moved."

"Personnel is politics; it's not that simple."

He pointed at Li Ya and said.

"What you say is also true."

"But it doesn't matter to me; no matter how the Party-State treats me, surely they wouldn't stop me from being a schoolteacher."

"When the time comes, I'll just be like Yancheng and go be a primary school teacher; that would be quite nice."

Li Ya bit his lip and said.

"I hope so."

"Have you ever thought about what you would do if the Red Faction isn't wiped out and they take the country?"

Wu Jingzhong asked again.

"That won't happen," Li Ya frowned and said.

"One must consider everything; I am speaking of possibilities," Wu Jingzhong said.

"Then I will stay behind to wage Mobile Corps Commander warfare and go underground; if they can start by waging Mobile Corps Commander warfare, we can also wage Mobile Corps Commander warfare to take back our home."

"To use their own methods against them."

Li Ya said very firmly.

"If everyone in the Party-State were like you, this war would have been over long ago."

"Let's not talk about this."

"A batch of penicillin has arrived at the wharf warehouse; it was shipped over by the Japanese."

"It is said to be for exchanging the pardon of some war criminals."

"Go retrieve it and ship it to the Xi'an Pacification Office to be handed over to Hu Zongnan's troops."

Wu Jingzhong said in a deep voice.

"How could the National Government deal with the Japanese? They have a blood feud with us," Li Ya frowned, dissatisfied.

"In the eyes of those people at the Ministry of National Defense, there is only money and only profit."

"In the face of profit, they wouldn't even blink if their own parents died; how could they care about such things?"

"This is not something we should worry about."

"Li Ya, penicillin is rarer than gold right now; do you understand what I mean?"

Wu Jingzhong rubbed his fingers together, making a gesture of counting money.

"Understood, I know what to do."

Li Ya raised his eyebrows, looked at Wu Jingzhong, and nodded.

"Master."

"I don't know if I should say this," he paused and said.

"Hmm, go ahead," Wu Jingzhong said.

"That book corner set up by Deputy Station Chief Yu isn't visited by many people, and even if someone goes to borrow books, they are all just storybooks, magazines, and novels."

"I don't think it has much significance."

"How about we cut off the bookstore business?"

"I've seen the kickbacks from the book lists; having eaten for so long, there should be a limit."

Li Ya suggested.

Wu Jingzhong looked at him and immediately understood that Li Ya suspected Yu Zecheng and the bookstore.

Sigh.

It really is troublesome; there are never a few days of peace.

"Hmm, I'll talk to him later and stop this project as soon as possible," Wu Jingzhong pondered for a moment and said.

"Go handle your business as soon as possible."

"Hu Zongnan's front line cannot be without medicine for a single day; if you handle this well and they win a battle, I can also claim credit for you to Jiang Jianfeng."

Wu Jingzhong pointed at him and said.

"Yes, Master," Li Ya accepted the order happily.

He never dreamed that there would be a day when Wu Jingzhong would assign him a "money-making job."

One must know that such jobs were always handled by Hong Zhiyou and Yu Zecheng in the past.

The Master really has a heart of utmost sincerity toward him.

Li Ya calculated as he walked.

He had no interest in living in Lu Qiao's house and had already asked Hong Zhiyou to find someone to sell it.

If he could make a profit from this batch of medicine.

Wouldn't his own money bag bulge?

Just after Li Ya left, Hong Zhiyou walked in.

"The National Government got a large batch of penicillin from the Japanese; Jiang Jianfeng asked me to secretly transport it to the front line, especially to avoid Fu Zuoyi's territory."

"I have already handed this job to Li Ya."

Wu Jingzhong said.

"Medicine is very scarce now; Fu Zuoyi's side has sent many telegrams to the Jinhai Military Supplies Transfer Office, asking Chen Zhangjie to negotiate the purchase of penicillin."

"The Chairman is still biased."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"Of course."

"Now that Yancheng has been occupied, the clearing of bandits is just around the corner; the Chairman is eager for Fu Zuoyi to lose more men."

"Let Li Ya handle it."

"He will definitely take a cut, and these things cannot be hidden from Jiang Jianfeng."

"Once Jiang Jianfeng sees through his little schemes, Li Ya's reputation in his heart will only become worse."

Wu Jingzhong said with deep calculation.

Penicillin?

Hong Zhiyou couldn't help but think of the people in Yancheng.

Yancheng actually has money.

Aid from overseas figures like Situ, as well as the Rong family, and so on.

Their difficulty is being blockaded; their money cannot be used, or rather, they cannot buy things.

Since it is being shipped to Hu Zongnan.

If one could pull some strings to get a share and pour it into the north of Yancheng, it would not only earn a lot of money but also be a good deed of providing help in a time of need.

Later, when the eighties and nineties come and the reform and opening up arrives.

As long as there is a faint trace of one's own contribution in the book of merits, plus the many witnesses like the Rong family.

It would be very convenient to come back and take a look occasionally at the age of sixty or seventy and meet old friends from all walks of life.

"Master, the black market for penicillin is currently going crazy."

"Can we operate it, get a batch from inside, and sell it to Fu Zuoyi and the others?"

Hong Zhiyou organized his thoughts and said.

"Fu Zuoyi?"

"Better forget it; touching this stuff might cost you your life," Wu Jingzhong shook his head.

"No."

"Fu Zuoyi's troops are also short of medicine right now; if they know there is such a batch, they will definitely move to grab it."

"We all know that once Hu Zongnan wins a battle, the Chairman will turn his guns inward."

"Doesn't he know that?"

"As long as we leak a little wind, they will definitely risk their lives."

"Moreover, the Chairman doesn't dare to offend them right now; if they really grab it, it's a free grab."

"Not to mention this batch is still shady Japanese goods."

"Even if the Chairman finds out, he can only swallow his bitterness in silence."

"By then, if we take a thirty or fifty percent cut, every turnover will be real gold and silver."

Hong Zhiyou persuaded.

"Can you keep yourself clean?" Wu Jingzhong asked.

"Yes."

"When inspecting the goods, have the people from the Military Hospital, the Confidential Bureau headquarters, and the Second Department all sign off."

"As long as the real goods are shipped out."

"It has nothing to do with our Jinhai Station; I will arrange for people to tamper with it halfway."

"Have Fu Zuoyi's people blow up a section of the mountain road along the route."

"As long as the train cannot go to Xi'an, it must go by land."

"Then there will be plenty of opportunities."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"Fine, you handle it as you see fit.

"Just one thing, make sure that even if they investigate a hundred or a thousand times, it never falls back on you."

Wu Jingzhong instructed.

He still liked money.

It was the only thing that made him willing to take risks.

……

Evening.

Hong Zhiyou arrived at the residence of Xie Ruo.

There was a woman's voice inside.

He waited patiently for a few seconds.

Just as he was about to knock, he realized the rhythm was off.

A moment later, it stopped.

Hong Zhiyou checked his watch: 86 seconds.

It was significantly longer than the previous three seconds.

"Old Xie."

He knocked on the door.

A moment later, the door opened, and a female student-looking girl ran out with a flushed face.

Old Xie, beaming with joy, with a cigarette in his mouth and wearing his undergarments, opened the door for Hong Zhiyou.

He wrapped a quilt around himself and pointed to the briefcase on the head of the bed.

"The intelligence you wanted is in there, take it yourself," Xie Ruo laughed.

"Aren't you afraid I'll read it all?" Hong Zhiyou didn't stand on ceremony and took a stack out of the bag to look through it.

"If you're talking about me, we're both men, feel free to look.

"If you're talking about them, I can afford the loss with you, sooner or later I... I can win it back, so feel free to look."

Xie Ruo chuckled dryly.

"You've made progress." Hong Zhiyou quickly picked out a piece of useful intelligence.

"What do you mean?" Xie Ruo asked.

"You lasted over eighty seconds this time; you used to only last three," Hong Zhiyou said.

"Hehe.

"That's all thanks to you, brother, drinking that deer antler powder every day, it's really, really not bad.

"I won't lie to you, if I can drink it for a year or so, I... I'll at least last this long."

Xie Ruo gestured with two fingers, shaking his head triumphantly.

"Two hours?" Hong Zhiyou asked.

"That's too exaggerated, two... two minutes!" Xie Ruo said proudly.

"That's all the ambition you have." Hong Zhiyou was speechless.

"Well, I'm a man.

"Fast or slow is secondary, as long as I enjoy it myself, who cares about them."

In this matter, Xie Ruo was consistently an exquisite egoist.

"Fine.

"I'm taking the stuff.

"I want to discuss a deal with you."

Hong Zhiyou brought up the matter of the medicine.

"Tsk.

"This... this is a head-rolling business." Xie Ruo frowned.

"What's wrong, you don't want to do it?" Hong Zhiyou asked.

"How could that be.

"Earn money in the morning, die... die in the evening.

"If I don't earn money when I can, Heaven will... will punish me, I, I was born to eat this bowl of rice."

Xie Ruo shook his head; his philosophy had arrived again.

"However, I'm not familiar with the people over in Zhangyuan, I can't speak to them," he said, turning to the difficulty.

"You don't need to worry about that, I will contact the people in Zhangyuan later.

"By then, someone will agree to this deal."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"Done, I feel at ease earning money with you, brother.

"Isn't it just finding someone to go collect the money when the time comes?

"Don't worry, leave this to me, I'm a professional!"

Xie Ruo patted his chest and gave his guarantee.

Hong Zhiyou didn't ask further.

He knew that Old Xie's network had many people who specialized in doing such things.

For example, replacing death row inmates.

Taking the blame, going to jail.

As long as there was money, they could find anyone.

And it was guaranteed to be clean, neat, and without future trouble.

"Alright.

"I have to go, don't go around corrupting female students when there's nothing to do."

Hong Zhiyou stood up and said.

"Flies don't bite seamless eggs.

"With my status just placed there, do I even need to corrupt them? They... they are all throwing themselves at me, okay?

"It's just that they don't last long."

Xie Ruo laughed.

With your duration, it would be a miracle if it lasted long.

Hong Zhiyou muttered to himself and walked out.

"Wait.

"Leave some deer antler powder for me." Xie Ruo called out to him.

"I'm not weak, who carries this stuff when they go out? I'll give you some next time." Hong Zhiyou rolled his eyes at him and walked out quickly.

"What a... a buzzkill!"

Xie Ruo waved his hand and said gloomily.

Hong Zhiyou reached the main street, picked up the phone, and dialed a number:

"Is this Deputy Officer Sun?

"In two days, there will be a batch of penicillin arriving in Tianjin Sea to be transported to the Xi'an Pacification Commissioner's Office, it's Japanese goods.

"Have your people cause some trouble along the railway to stop the train first.

"Then hijack the medicine.

"Someone will come to you to collect the money afterward.

"It's reliable, I am... Owl!

"Good.

"Waiting for your good news."

Hong Zhiyou finished and hung up the phone.

Deputy Officer Sun was a secret agent planted by the Red Ticket beside Fu Zuoyi.

Owl was the code name for Rong Bin, who had previously been in contact with Sun Shang.

Of course, the relationship between the two was top secret, even higher than the security clearance of Yu Zecheng.

It was just that the organization was now at a life-or-death juncture, so there was no such thing as top secret or not; preserving the organization came first.

After Rong Bin obtained approval, and given Hong Zhiyou's many past friendly gestures toward the organization.

This code name fell to Hong Zhiyou.

Now it came in handy.

Once Owl was mentioned, Sun Shang naturally understood the significance behind this deal.

……

Tianjin Sea Wharf.

Li Ya was organizing the Transportation Bureau to unload cargo from a large ship.

The headquarters inspector, Hu Zongnan's deputy officer, and the Army Hospital representative signed off one after another.

"Captain Li, according to the manifest, there are still two crates of medicine missing," Hu Zongnan's deputy officer said coldly.

"Adjutant Zhou."

"These are glass vials; it's perfectly normal to have some loss due to bumps and knocks."

"You're asking for the goods."

"If those damaged medicines are shipped to the front lines and problems arise, who will be held responsible?"

Li Ya cast a glance, signed his name with a flourish, and slapped the notebook into the arms of a staff member standing nearby.

"When will the cargo be loaded and ready to depart?"

"The fighting at the front is intense, and the wounded soldiers are in urgent need of this batch of medicine."

Adjutant Zhou urged.

"Do you think I don't want to be quick?"

"A section of the railway toward Longmen is damaged, and the railway department is working on emergency repairs."

"It will be repaired by tonight, and I will arrange for it to be loaded and shipped to Xi'an tomorrow."

After Li Ya finished speaking, he didn't bother with them and turned to leave.

Some official meal.

He was too lazy to arrange it.

"Li Ya!" Adjutant Zhou was so angry his teeth itched.

He was, after all, Hu Zongnan's adjutant.

Everywhere he went, who didn't have to show him respect?

This Li Ya had investigated and punished Ye Tianhua in Beiping; if not for Jianfeng's strong protection, Officer Hu could have personally executed him.

He didn't expect this dog of a man not only to fail to learn his lesson but to dare to be so arrogant toward him.

He is truly courting death!

"Adjutant Zhou, what should we do?" a guard nearby asked.

"What else can we do?"

"Have Officer Hu call Wu Jingzhong and urge them to put more effort into their work," Adjutant Zhou said irritably.

"This Li Ya, I will deal with him sooner or later."

After saying this, he cursed bitterly.

Li Ya drove, loaded with two boxes of "scrapped" medicine, and headed straight for Xie Ruolin's residence.

Xie Ruolin had long since changed the sheets and washed the cups and saucers, waiting to host Li Ya.

He was more casual with Hong Zhiyou since he was his own brother.

Li Ya was different; this guy was a stickler for appearances.

The superficial courtesies still had to be performed.

Soon, Li Ya walked in, wearing a Zhongshan suit with his hair groomed meticulously:

"Old Xie, why are you all dressed up like you're getting married?"

"People like us, what kind of wife would we marry?"

"You are single-mindedly focused on catching the Reds."

"I just want to make money."

"A woman would only hinder our path to success."

Xie Ruolin laughed dryly.

"I agree with that."

Li Ya pulled up a chair and sat down.

Xie Ruolin poured him tea: "Tell me, what good business does my brother have?"

Li Ya had no desire to reach for it; he crossed his legs and said indifferently:

"I've acquired some penicillin; help me offload it."

"That's doable. Penicillin, that's worth more than gold. I'll take whatever you have," Xie Ruolin said.

"You can't take it all."

"Two big boxes!"

Li Ya said.

"That much!"

Xie Ruolin's expression turned serious: "I can't handle that much; I can't even afford the deposit."

"I'll have to entrust it to others to sell."

"Up to you, name your price first," Li Ya said.

"I'll give you eighty taels of gold."

"Or five thousand US dollars."

Xie Ruolin said.

Li Ya gave him a cold look and stood up to leave.

"Don't go, we're doing business, isn't that just a matter of haggling?" Xie Ruolin panicked and hurriedly grabbed him.

"Ten thousand US dollars, minimum."

"Not a cent less."

"Also, it cannot be sold to the Reds; that is my bottom line."

Li Ya said.

"That's no problem."

"Every division needs medicine now, especially the Gui clique and the Jin-Sui clique who have no supplies; as long as it's ready stock, it can be offloaded in minutes."

"It's just that ten thousand US dollars is really too high; you have to leave me some profit, brother."

Xie Ruolin said.

"How about this: eight thousand US dollars, not a cent less."

"If you don't want it, I'll go find Shang Bo."

Li Ya said with some impatience.

"He's already washed up, why go find him?"

"Fine, fine, eight thousand US dollars, I'll take it."

"May I ask, your Secretary Hong has more ability than me, why didn't you go to him?"

Xie Ruolin asked with a smile.

"Go to him?"

"I'm afraid these two boxes of medicine would end up in the Reds' field hospital in the blink of an eye."

"How long will it take? I want to see the cash."

Li Ya said.

"Eight thousand US dollars, I can scrape it together later," Xie Ruolin said.

"Good."

"I'll come back to collect it later."

Li Ya gestured, and the two of them went out to the courtyard to move the medicine down.

After Xie Ruolin checked that everything was correct, he paid a deposit of three thousand, and Li Ya left quickly.

Once Li Ya was gone.

Xie Ruolin dialed Hong Zhiyou's phone number:

"Hello, Secretary Hong."

"I have two boxes of penicillin here, the batch that Li Ya offloaded."

"Yes, I'll give you a brotherly price of thirteen thousand... US dollars!"

(End of chapter)