Chapter 314: For the Rest of Your Life, Use Banknotes as Firewood for Your Hearth

People change.

A villain can potentially become a Buddha in an instant.

A good person can also potentially fall and become a demon.

Especially in these times where the hearts of men are not what they used to be, Hong Zhiyou never expected a man of the underworld who spent his days mingling in the circles of fame and fortune to remain obedient for a lifetime.

In the past, they called each other brothers, but that was only because Long Er could earn money by following him.

Now, he can earn just as much by following Lin Sufang.

He might even earn more.

Wanting to kick him out of the game was, naturally, a logical progression.

In the past, Long Er hated the Japanese devils and had a bit of righteousness and conscience.

As for now, that small amount of remaining conscience has been completely lost under the temptation of women and money.

"Long Er, heh."

A cold sneer appeared on the corner of Hong Zhiyou's mouth as he got into his car and headed straight for the Navy Club.

Anderson was dancing with a few foreign women.

He saw Hong Zhiyou.

He left the dance floor, walked over, and snapped his fingers at a waiter: "Bring a whiskey."

"Hong, do you have business with me?"

He asked with a smile, biting on a cigar.

"Promoted to Major?" Hong Zhiyou noticed his shoulder insignia had changed.

"Yeah, it happened just these past few days. Once General Feiersun made the move, it was just a matter of a single word from above," Anderson said quite proudly.

"I need a batch of white sugar, flour, and one hundred thousand dollars' worth of munitions."

Hong Zhiyou took out a list and handed it to him.

Anderson took a very casual look at it: "Sorry, my brother, I really don't have any recently."

"Sigh."

"Nothing again."

"Anderson, with the relationship between us, you have to put in some effort."

"What has the General been up to lately?"

"I've invited him to a card game several times, but he hasn't responded."

Hong Zhiyou feigned a look of distress.

"He might be... too busy lately," Anderson said with a shrug.

"It seems my status as a 'Jinhai expert' is no longer effective."

"I'm leaving. Call me whenever you have stock."

"This batch of goods is needed urgently. We are brothers, you have to help me."

"Don't just read *Water Margin*; *Journey to the West* is also quite good. You can read it when you have time."

After Hong Zhiyou finished speaking, he stood up and patted him heavily on the shoulder three times.

"I am reading it," Anderson nodded.

"That's good."

Hong Zhiyou sneered and walked out quickly.

"Hong..." Anderson raised his hand, wanting to say something but stopping himself; in the end, he did not chase after him.

Hong Zhiyou returned to his car and did not rush to leave.

He decided to wait a little longer.

To give Anderson one last chance.

He believed that as long as this "China expert" hadn't fried his brain, he would make the right choice.

A moment later.

A beautiful woman in a cheongsam opened the front passenger door and got into the car.

"Secretary Hong, there are some things Anderson finds inconvenient to tell you, so he asked me to pass them on."

"Lin Sufang of the Dragon Gang is walking very closely with Feiersun."

"She ate up your share and offered more profit."

"Not only that, she and the General have been smuggling opium from the border, dumping it in the country on a massive scale, and making a lot of money."

"He also asked me to tell you."

"These are all things Feiersun has done privately."

"He also said that the woman surnamed Lin is very formidable, and you should be careful."

The beautiful woman got straight to the point without a single word of unnecessary nonsense.

"Thank you," Hong Zhiyou nodded.

"Goodbye, let's play cards together another day."

The beautiful woman smiled sweetly, got out of the car, and swayed her hips as she walked away.

Hong Zhiyou drove to find a public telephone booth, picked up the receiver, and called Li Tongshan of the 94th Army:

"Hello, Old Li, arrange a plane for me. I'm going to Qingdao tonight."

"Okay, thank you."

He hung up the phone.

Hong Zhiyou returned to No. 1 Changde Road.

Mei Qiuju and Ruirui were packing their luggage to head south to Xiangdao.

Hong Zhiyou hurried to help them organize things.

"Zhiyou, have things been arranged properly over in Xiangdao?"

"The situation is so chaotic right now."

"Without your Master there to hold down the fort, I never feel at ease."

"You say we have so much money and treasure; what if someone develops evil intentions? What are we, a mother and daughter, supposed to do with the child?"

"In the past, when Ruirui's uncle was there, I felt a bit more at ease."

"Now, I don't even know where those two have run off to; I can't even find a shadow of them."

"I'm very panicked."

Mei Qiuju said.

"Mom, there is a special security team at the manor on the island."

"The local authorities, the police, the Viceroy's office, and all sorts of ghosts and monsters have all been taken care of, so you can rest assured," Hong Zhiyou said.

"Mom, are you still worried about how Zhiyou handles things?"

"Just go over there and enjoy your life in peace."

Ruirui smiled and comforted her.

"And you."

"There's no sign of anything in this belly, and now we're going to be separated by a great distance."

Mei Qiuju rolled her eyes at her and complained.

"There is plenty of time in the future; it will happen," Ruirui comforted her with a light laugh.

"Zhiyou, come here."

As they were chatting, Wu Jingzhong walked out of the study and beckoned him over.

"How is the matter with the Cao Gang being handled?" Wu Jingzhong asked.

"I can take them down at any time."

"Long Er has an old habit: theft," Hong Zhiyou said.

"Theft?" Wu Jingzhong frowned.

"That's right."

"He likes to steal things."

"Back during the Japanese occupation, he often went with people from the Cao Gang and the Yihe Society to steal from the Japanese devils' warehouses, and he even went to prison for it."

"After the liberation, I helped him sit as the leader of the Cao Gang. He has money now, but this old habit remained."

"In the last two years, he still occasionally takes his men to the airport and wharf warehouses to satisfy his craving."

"I've put in a word, so the airport side just turns a blind eye."

"As long as I spread the word that there are good things in the airport warehouse."

"His hands will definitely itch."

Hong Zhiyou poured him a cup of light jasmine tea.

"I don't like drinking this," Wu Jingzhong frowned.

"Master, it's better to drink something light in the evening, otherwise you won't be able to sleep."

"This gathers Qi and nourishes the spirit, which helps with sleep."

Hong Zhiyou smiled.

Although Wu Jingzhong's face was sullen, his hand honestly picked up the teacup and took a sip:

"How deep are your businesses entangled with Long Er?"

Hong Zhiyou pondered, "Long Er hasn't really managed things in the past; most of his side consists of shell companies, and for the most part, a person surnamed Ji is in charge of the accounts.

"Whether Long Er is involved or not doesn't matter much.

"But the connection to the Boatmen's Guild is quite deep, especially the shipping company in Xiangdao; there are five or six hundred crew members and staff, including over a hundred security personnel on the island.

"If something goes wrong with these people, it will be a troublesome affair."

Wu Jingzhong frowned and said, "Then you must distinguish clearly between the relationship of the Boatmen's Guild and Long Er; if they follow only Long Er, we will be very passive.

"If they only recognize the Boatmen's Guild and are just trying to make a living, that is another matter entirely.

"My people reported: the Boatmen's Guild is now controlled by Long Er's wife; this woman raised the workers' monthly wages threefold. Such a method of buying people's hearts is very clever.

"If you raise the money to compete for their hearts, these workers will become increasingly spoiled and turn into fence-sitters who only care about money.

"If you don't throw money at them, in this day and age, people need to eat; naturally, they will follow whoever pays more.

"Although I don't understand business, three times the monthly wage for so many employees is already the limit of what can be borne; if you take them over, I'm afraid you won't be able to sustain such massive expenses.

"The opponent's move has left you with no way out at all.

"Unless you want to do business at a loss."

Wu Jingzhong frowned and sipped his tea.

"Using money to fight for people's hearts is a low-level tactic; my idea is to destroy the Boatmen's Guild.

"Only when people have nothing will they treat a drop of water as a gushing spring.

"Once the Boatmen's Guild is gone, and I have the Civil Affairs Bureau tighten the supply of goods, these dock workers with families to support will naturally become anxious, and that is when I will recruit them.

"They will naturally be deeply grateful."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"You want to wipe out the Boatmen's Guild?

"This is a time-honored brand that has been around since the Ming Dynasty; old institutions like gangs and docks are things even the Old Man has paid respects to.

"You must consider this clearly."

Wu Jingzhong warned him solemnly.

"Master, precisely because it is an old institution, I think now is the perfect time to remove it.

"The Boatmen's Guild is smuggling opium with the Americans.

"In the past, in order to cooperate with the Americans, I handled a batch of opium left behind by the Japanese, but it was only sold through a few restaurants.

"After it was processed, that industry was cut off in my hands.

"But now Long Er has picked it up, and he is doing it even more aggressively; every day, a steady stream of opium is transshipped from the Malacca coastline to the Jinhai docks.

"At present, our countrymen, especially university students, have relatively progressive ideas; once a matter that harms the country and the people like this is exposed, the Boatmen's Guild will inevitably be pushed to the forefront of the storm.

"At that time, I would like Master to issue an order, and by sending the Military Police, we can round up the entire Boatmen's Guild.

"I will secretly remove a group of the Boatmen's Guild elders, reorganize the Boatmen's Guild and the docks to establish a new company, and keep those dock workers; this way, we can clear out the dross without damaging the vitality of the Boatmen's Guild too much.

"The personnel transfers will then be entirely in our hands.

"With this human resource, there will be no need to worry when the company moves to Xiangdao in the future."

Hong Zhiyou said steadily.

"This woman has dragged the Americans into this.

"With the Americans as a backer, if you move against the Boatmen's Guild, you might lose your head.

"You must know that even the Generalissimo finds it difficult to intervene in matters involving the Americans.

"I don't have the ability to fish people out of the Americans' hands."

Wu Jingzhong was still very worried.

"Master, rest assured.

"Qingdao Garrison Commander Ding Defeng is currently seeking the position of Chief of the Jiangsu Government.

"He is currently currying favor with Kirk.

"Kirk has always been greedy beyond measure; he once moved a batch of old cars from North America, and Ding Defeng had his secretary sell them at a high price, allowing Kirk to make a huge profit.

"Just because of these few cars, he has repeatedly recommended Ding Defeng to the Generalissimo.

"Just a few cars."

Hong Zhiyou looked at Wu Jingzhong, his expression slightly exaggerated.

Wu Jingzhong also laughed: "Kirk truly has never seen money; Ding Defeng spent a little to accomplish a great thing.

"If he comes to Jinhai for a visit and finds out how much money Philson has made, I'm afraid he'll be jealous to death."

He instantly understood Hong Zhiyou's intention and also knew the purpose of his flight to Qingdao.

"Yes.

"Ding Defeng can buy him a few broken cars.

"I can give him more.

"So much that he won't be able to believe it."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"Hmm, Kirk has always called himself a good friend of the Generalissimo, and the Generalissimo trusts him very much.

"If we can win him over, it is indeed more valuable than those few blockheaded soldiers from the Marine Corps.

"Take him down, and get rid of this Philson."

Wu Jingzhong nodded in agreement.

"Master, I will go to win over Kirk first, but taking action might have to be slowed down a little.

"Lin Sufang cannot possibly have such methods.

"There must be someone behind her.

"My intuition is that this person is hiding in Jinhai, and it is highly likely to be the one who spent one hundred taels of gold to have Du Yuesheng take my head back then.

"If I don't dig him out, I won't be able to sleep or eat in peace."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"He is in Jinhai, what do you mean?" Wu Jingzhong asked.

"As far as I know, Lu Qiaoshan is also involved in Lin Sufang's business.

"Not long ago, he helped Bai Chongxi purchase a batch of ordnance, and it was Lin Sufang who acted as the intermediary.

"I have dealt with General Delin a few times.

"Logically speaking, the Americans wouldn't look for outsiders for these transactions.

"Clearly, the opponent's move is very clever; they completely cut off my financial path through Long Er and Lu Qiaoshan.

"Moreover, this woman sent her brother to Xiangdao not long ago to see the Rong family, attempting to take back that portion of the shipyard and Boatmen's Guild shares.

"Fortunately, I was cautious at the time, and the registration and shareholder identity used another fake identity of mine.

"She won't be able to find out for a while.

"It is said that the gift just for meeting the Rong family was thirty thousand US dollars, and she promised many benefits.

"It was only because it was the Rong family; if it had been anyone else, she really would have succeeded."

"Just imagine, if this person were not in Jinhai, how could he understand things so clearly?

"And know that Lu Qiaoshan is seeking business.

"I even suspect that Lu Qiaoshan is well-acquainted with this person."

He pondered.

"Very likely.

"Why only realize it now? Why not act sooner?" Wu Jingzhong glared at him and said.

"I previously found an informant and set a trap for Lin Sufang to fall into.

"But this woman is very cunning.

"My informant had a car accident yesterday and is still in a coma at the hospital."

Hong Zhiyou said with a cold look in his eyes.

Fang Min had just left the club after playing cards with Lin Sufang last night when she was hit by a car.

It was very clear that the opponent had seen through this move of his.

This was an open warning to him.

"Outrageous!

"Arrest her now; I don't believe her mouth is as tough as Jiang Aimei's." Wu Jingzhong was furious.

"Master.

"There are many people in this world with tough mouths.

"For example, that profiteer from the Dangtong Bureau; Captain Li almost beat him to death.

"He is still looking for me and Li Ya to set up a deal for white sugar.

"If this Lin Sufang has a tough mouth and we can't get the master behind her out of her, it would instead be alerting the enemy."

Hong Zhiyou smiled.

"Lu Qiaoshan probably doesn't know yet that you are aware of him taking over the arms deal.

"Perhaps you can secretly observe who he is associating with."

Wu Jingzhong suggested.

"I have had people follow him.

"Lu Qiaoshan probably doesn't contact this person directly."

"He always uses the excuse of the Inspection Team's procurement to go see Philson for business."

"Other than that, I haven't found him meeting privately with any suspicious people."

"That man is very cunning, and it's unlikely he would contact Lu Qiao directly."

Hong Zhiyou shook his head and said.

"What about that woman surnamed Lin?"

"Did you get anything out of her side?" Wu Jingzhong asked.

"This woman has a very strong sense of anti-surveillance."

"The people I arranged lost her several times, and even when they did follow her, they couldn't detect anything unusual."

"I even suspect she is deliberately letting people follow her to confuse my line of sight."

"The person she is truly meeting privately must have a separate and top-secret channel."

"It is highly likely to be within the Boatmen Guild."

"After all, the Boatmen Guild is a century-old organization; there must be plenty of hidden ways underneath."

"Our undercover agents simply cannot get in."

"And the people familiar with me were all replaced by Lin Tao; now Long Er is surrounded by Lin Bo's people, so it's too difficult to know who they see every day."

Hong Zhiyou said with a frown.

"What about that cat burglar under your command?" Wu Jingzhong said.

"I didn't let him go."

"Long Er knows of his existence and must be on guard; it's easy to get caught if he goes in," Hong Zhiyou said.

"This really is a thorny matter."

Wu Jingzhong took a breath, cupped his hand, and rubbed his chin.

"I'll think of another way to investigate."

"Teacher, it's getting late, you should rest early; I have to go catch my flight."

Hong Zhiyou glanced at his watch and said.

"Go ahead, stay safe," Wu Jingzhong nodded and said.

Once Hong Zhiyou left, he pondered in place for a moment, then quickly picked up the phone:

"Hello, is this Chief Zhang?"

"Help me investigate the file of Zhang Si, see who he took over the Boatmen Guild from—yes, that's right, the file of the previous Boatmen Guild leader."

"Qin Qian?"

"Are you sure?"

"Good, please help me look up the descendants of this Qin Qian."

"They were all killed?"

"The old Boatmen Guild must have had someone left behind; you're a local, you must know a thing or two from listening to stories."

"There is?"

"Your great-uncle?"

"Alright, I'll have someone come pay him a visit later."

"Don't spread the word about me asking this; I'll treat you to tea another day."

He hung up the phone.

Wu Jingzhong opened the window and, with his hands behind his back, looked at the distant flickering lights.

If the Boatmen Guild really has secret passages, a few of the older generation must still know about them.

There is no wall in this world that doesn't let the wind through.

……

The next day.

Nine o'clock in the morning.

Qingdao, 9 Shanhai Pass Road.

Kirk leaned by the pool, puffing on a cigar, watching the beauties frolicking inside.

In the past, his good brother Dai Li would send him beauties every few days.

Now Dai Li was gone.

Ding Zhipan was still quite filial and hadn't cut off this hobby of his.

"General, Hong Zhiyou, the secretary of the Jinhai Station, is here and says he wants to see you," an attendant walked in and reported in a low voice.

"Hong?"

"Oh, he is my friend, tell him to come in."

Kirk kicked away a beauty lurking underwater, pulled up his swimming trunks, draped a long bath towel over himself, and returned to the lounge chair.

Soon, Hong Zhiyou walked over and greeted him in fluent English:

"Commander, long time no see."

"Hong, I owe you for the last spy and military aid case; otherwise, I would have gone home to chop wood by now," Kirk replied humorously.

"Is there something up, my friend?" He took a sip of juice and asked.

"There is."

"General, take a look at this first."

Hong Zhiyou took out an account book and handed it to Kirk.

Kirk took it quite casually, but after flipping through a few pages, his expression shifted from surprise and jealousy to seriousness:

"This... this was all handled by Philson?"

"Yes."

"The General might not know, but Philson's assets are likely more than even Du Lumen's."

"And this doesn't even count his cut from my liquor sales."

"I heard the General found a few cars through Commander Ding and promised to elevate him to the head of Su Province."

"If Philson gave all of this to you..."

Hong Zhiyou said this, raising his eyebrows and smiling at him.

"I could give him the entire America," Kirk replied with a shrug, without hesitation.

"I don't want America."

"I just want the General to change someone."

"Make Philson disappear from this world."

"As long as he disappears, I guarantee that the portion that originally belonged to him will all go to you."

"No, even more."

Hong Zhiyou said.

Kirk frowned and was silent for a moment, "Hong, Philson has people in the General Staff; although I am his superior, it is not easy to move against him."

He paused and continued: "Otherwise, why do you think he was promoted to commander after General Butler was transferred?"

"I can help you."

"Philson is smuggling opium with the Boatmen Guild, large quantities of opium."

"I will let this matter ferment; by then, there will be protests and complaints from the National Government, including international public opinion."

"You must know that you all pride yourselves on being angels of peace, spreading the seeds of 'freedom' and 'democracy' all over the world."

"If such a scandal breaks out at this time, Du Lumen should at least react, otherwise how will the global seeds continue to be sown?"

Hong Zhiyou sneered.

"He is smuggling opium? This is not something a North American soldier should do," Kirk frowned and said.

"Yes, General."

"He only has money in his eyes now."

"Money that should have belonged to you."

Hong Zhiyou emphasized.

As he spoke, "snap," he opened the briefcase.

Inside were stacks of neatly arranged US banknotes.

"I wonder how many cars this is worth?" Hong Zhiyou asked with a smile.

"Hong, what is this?" Kirk's throat moved, and his eyes lit up.

"Our meeting in Jingling last time was too rushed, and I didn't have time to prepare carefully."

"This is a small token for our meeting; I hope the General will accept it."

Hong Zhiyou closed the case and pushed it directly in front of him.

"OK."

"Your business is left to me; as long as the public opinion on your side starts, I will let you see Philson's corpse."

Kirk took a puff of his cigar and agreed decisively.

"I hope that after this time, the General will send a reliable person to sit in Jinhai," Hong Zhiyou said.

"Of course."

"I don't mind moving the naval base to Jinhai and sitting there myself."

"I'm joking, I guarantee the commander who replaces Philson will definitely satisfy you."

Ke Ke patted his chest in assurance.

"Hong."

"I really appreciate you; besides money, what else do you want?"

"I want to make a friend out of you."

"As long as you speak up, I can have your Chairman promote you. Don't doubt it; as long as you don't want to be a Second-Class General, I can handle it for you."

Ke Ke puffed out a cloud of smoke and continued.

"I want to be the designated agent for the U. . military in China," Hong Zhiyou said.

"Aren't you already?"

"As far as I know, your Chairman thinks highly of you and has had you buy things from us," Ke Ke laughed.

"That's not it."

"Someone has already stolen my rice bowl."

"I am a businessman."

"Where we come from, cutting off someone's source of wealth is like killing their parents. Commander Philson smashed my pot, so I need an official certification from you."

Hong Zhiyou said.

"That can be done."

"I can get you many identities."

"Ambassador of Friendship."

"I can also award you the Gold Palm Freedom Medal."

"Once the medal and the ambassador title are settled, I can talk to Jiang and formally appoint you as the person in charge of the Aid to China Material Association," Ke Ke said very easily.

"Don't worry."

"You did a beautiful job last time, and there are many people on our side who appreciate you."

"Of course, it would be even better if I could bring back more money next time I go back."

As a man who was greedy for money and lustful, Ke Ke could not wait to gain Hong Zhiyou's trust.

"Of course."

"Once I see Philson's corpse, I guarantee that for the rest of your winters, General, you will never need to burn firewood in your fireplace again," Hong Zhiyou said.

"What do you mean?" Ke Ke didn't catch the reference for a moment.

Hong Zhiyou smiled, handed him a cigarette, and raised his eyebrows.

Ke Ke, a bit dazed, took it and put it in his mouth.

Hong Zhiyou pulled a brand-new U. . banknote from his pocket, flicked it, and lit it directly with a match before handing it over.

Ke Ke leaned in and lit his cigarette with the flame.

"How is it? How does this cigarette taste?" Hong Zhiyou smiled and casually threw away the half-burned banknote.

"Beautiful."

"This is the most fragrant cigarette I have ever smoked," Ke Ke exhaled in a daze.

"This is the firewood you will burn in your fireplace for the rest of your winters."

Hong Zhiyou tapped the table, his smile widening.

"Deal."

"Hong, leave everything to me. I guarantee that as long as I am alive, you will have no more problems in this world," Ke Ke laughed happily.

"Thank you, General." Hong Zhiyou's smile faded, and he took the initiative to reach out his hand.

"You're welcome."

"Hong, my most sincere friend, wait for my good news!"

Ke Ke reached out his large hand, and they shook firmly.

(End of chapter)