Chapter 342: Fierce Dragon Crossing the River

Looking at the woman in front of him, Yu Zecheng trembled all over, his eyes already misting with tears.

He never expected to see Whether Zuo Lan in a foreign land.

This woman who had once made him worry and miss her was actually still alive.

"I heard your cousin is a camera smuggler; can I see the goods?" Yu Zecheng's voice was trembling.

"Sir, you are mistaken."

"My cousin sells mountain goods," Whether Zuo Lan shook her head slightly, her voice hoarse.

"Boss, can... can I eat inside?"

Yu Zecheng took a deep breath, looked around, and said in a low voice.

"Of course you can."

"Please, inside."

Whether Zuo Lan raised her hand and said.

There was no one inside. Yu Zecheng sat down with the baozi, dipped them in vinegar, and said while eating:

"I have so much to say to you."

"They all said you sacrificed yourself."

"How did you come here?"

"How could you come here?"

"This place is very dangerous, a hundred times, a thousand times more dangerous than Jinhai."

"Many people have seen you before; many people in the Confidentiality Bureau have seen your files and newspapers. If you show your face, they will recognize you."

"The organization is too reckless."

"It shouldn't be like this."

In addition to his excitement, Yu Zecheng felt an indescribable sense of frustration.

He suddenly felt that this world had become strange; the working methods and many things had changed.

The organizational relationships here were simply full of loopholes.

They weren't even as good as the underground student union led by Guo Youliang and Xu Zhao.

This made him feel an inexplicable annoyance and pain, and he felt deeply worried for the organization.

"Zecheng, Comrade Zhong Yun was arrested, and the Keelung Working Committee was paralyzed; the people on Line 1 already know."

"Fortunately, you didn't have contact with the comrades from the East China Bureau."

"As far as the current situation is concerned, you are still safe."

"My coming here was an arrangement made by the organization after careful consideration."

"They won't recognize me."

Whether Zuo Lan smiled bitterly and lifted the cloth from her face.

Most of her face and forehead had been burned away.

Even her scalp was mostly bald, revealing hideous, twisted burn scars.

Yu Zecheng's eyes instantly turned red, tears misted in his eye sockets, and his throat was so choked he could hardly speak:

"Does... does it hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt anymore."

"When Hu Zongnan bombed Yancheng, I was burned by a napalm bomb and fell unconscious while retreating. They all thought I was dead; it was the villagers nearby who saved me."

"After I returned to the troops, I recuperated for a long time."

"Zecheng, I was the one who actively applied to come here."

"I hope that in my lifetime, I can see you again and fight side-by-side with you..."

Tears spilled from the corners of Whether Zuo Lan's eyes.

She had one more thing she didn't say: the organization had stated the difficulty of lurking here, and there was a danger of sacrifice at any time.

Whether Zuo Lan hoped that even if she died, she could die together with Yu Zecheng.

"Mm."

"Whether Zuo Lan, the situation here is very dangerous. The secret agents who were able to retreat to Taiwan are all elites, and many have even stayed in our ranks before, so they are very familiar with our working methods."

"The people from the East China Bureau act very high-profile, and they are even planning to stage an armed riot."

"You must stay away from them."

"Also, if there is important intelligence, I will come over to eat baozi; we should try to have as little contact as possible at other times."

"If you have an urgent matter to find me, hang up the sign for fennel-filled baozi."

"Also, Gu Youniu has opened a shop called 'A-Niu Grain Shop' in the grain market."

"If you can't find me, you can also take the opportunity of buying flour to go there and find him."

Yu Zecheng answered with extremely fast and low speed while eating baozi.

"I understand."

"This transit station of mine is only responsible to you."

"The courier is a lady surnamed Zhu, sent by Director He of the East China Bureau's Political Department; she is responsible for transferring important intelligence to Hong Kong," Whether Zuo Lan said.

"Is she trustworthy?" Yu Zecheng frowned.

Having seen the sloppy working methods of the underground organization in Taiwan, he felt a sense of distrust toward the East China Bureau from the bottom of his heart.

"She is trustworthy."

"She is also responsible for the underground intelligence transfer of a key official."

"Don't worry, even if she is exposed and confesses, it will only lead to me."

"Zecheng, I will protect your safety with my life," Whether Zuo Lan said with a firm gaze.

"You must be careful too," Yu Zecheng gently stroked the back of her scarred hand.

"Do you have any intelligence to give me?" Whether Zuo Lan asked.

"I do."

"Take notes quickly."

"One: Jiang has spent a huge amount of money to recruit a large group of suicide pilots from the Ghost Island. The first batch has already arrived in Taiwan and Yuezhou. Air Force Commander Zhou Zhirou plans to bomb Beiping on October 1st to sabotage the founding ceremony."

"Two: Mao Renfeng has secretly sent Ye Xiangzhi to Hong Kong, and they are planning to assassinate Commander Long Yun."

"The assassination targets may also include some other Nationalist generals who have defected."

"The assassination plan was concocted by Mao Renfeng himself; it is very difficult for me to steal specific intelligence, so we must make the comrades and patriotic generals in Hong Kong increase their vigilance," Yu Zecheng said.

"Good, I understand. Anything else?" Whether Zuo Lan asked.

"No... more."

Yu Zecheng looked at her with eyes full of pain.

He originally wanted to ask about Cuiping's situation, but the words reached his lips and he swallowed them back.

What if he asked?

He might never see Cuiping again in this life.

Things that can't be thought about only increase sorrow if known.

This is the pain that underground workers must endure.

"Hurry and go."

"Hey, coming, coming."

Just as someone came to buy baozi, Whether Zuo Lan looked at him and ran out quickly to serve them.

Yu Zecheng put down his chopsticks.

He originally wanted to leave a stack of US dollars, but then he thought that US dollars were a scarce item on the island. If the secret agents investigated Whether Zuo Lan, it would be unjustifiable for an ordinary baozi shop to have US dollars.

In the end, he only left a stack of New Taiwan Dollars and then walked out quickly.

Back in the car.

He stepped on the gas and left quickly under Whether Zuo Lan's gaze.

At this moment, Yu Zecheng's heart was bleeding.

Whether Zuo Lan was a warrior.

But she was also a woman, and she loved beauty too.

He couldn't imagine how much torture she had endured after being burned, and how much pain she had.

For her, this might be worse than death.

Whether Zuo Lan came here with the mentality of certain death.

The days dragged on with dark undercurrents.

Soon, it was the Mid-Autumn Festival.

That night, the moonlight was bright.

Sizzle!

Hong Zhiyou was grilling meat in the courtyard, and Wu Jingzhong was lying on a rattan chair, swaying gently:

"I don't know how Jin Feng and your teacher's wife are doing. During this period, Kaohsiung and Keelung have been frantically catching Red Tickets, and the ports and airports have all been blocked."

"We can't get out, and Ruirui and the others can't come over."

"Ruirui's belly isn't promising either; she hasn't conceived after being in Xikou for so long."

"Sigh, damn it, I don't know how long the blockade will last."

Perhaps because he was old, his speech was significantly more fragmented than before.

"Teacher, maybe it will be soon."

"The Third Field Army has already issued notices to Kinmen, Zhoushan, and other places; it looks like they will attack the island by next month at the latest."

"Once Taiwan is captured, we might be able to leave in the chaos," Yu Zecheng said.

"I think you're thinking too beautifully."

"Kinmen and Zhoushan are heavily guarded. Although Truman doesn't look down on Old Jiang and is unwilling to provide military supplies or weapons, I feel that as a troublemaker, the US military will not give up Taiwan, this piece of fat meat."

"Don't forget, there are 4 million taels of gold on the island that the Generalissimo stole from the mainland."

"And the sugarcane and pineapples all over the island; can the Americans not be greedy?"

"With the Seventh Fleet there, relying on those few sampans of the Red Tickets, I'm afraid there's no chance of landing," Wu Jingzhong rolled his eyes at him.

"Yes, yes," Yu Zecheng laughed.

"Teacher, the meat is ready; eat it while it's hot with the osmanthus wine," Hong Zhiyou plated the barbecue and greeted them.

As the three were eating, the phone in the hall rang.

Hong Zhiyou got up to answer it, returned quickly, and said in a low voice: "Teacher, General Yang Jie was assassinated in Hong Kong; Ye Xiangzhi did it."

"Sigh!" Wu Jingzhong could only sigh lightly.

"Filthy!" Yu Zecheng cursed in a low voice.

His heart felt a deep sense of helplessness at this moment.

He had revealed some assassination intelligence from the Confidentiality Bureau to Whether Zuo Lan last time.

He didn't expect that despite all precautions, Ye Xiangzhi and his gang of dog thieves still succeeded.

"Bang bang!"

Gunshots could be heard from the night sky from time to time.

It was from the direction of Machangding.

"This group of lunatics, they won't even rest on a holiday."

"Kill."

"Kill."

"Come, eat meat, drink wine," Wu Jingzhong's eyes flashed with a trace of disgust, and he raised his glass.

The three of them ate and drank their fill, then returned to their rooms to sleep.

In the middle of the night, Hong Zhiyou's phone rang, and he answered it in a daze:

"It's me."

"Good, I understand."

"Immediately have Editor-in-Chief Zhang publish it."

The next day.

Morning tea restaurant.

Lin Dingli was eating fried dough sticks and siu mai with Lin Zaigun and Wang Kun.

"I received news that Jiang Jianfeng appointed Hong Zhiyou to set up some investigation group, using Ye Xiufeng's people."

"Third Brother, is our warehouse in Wanbei okay?"

Lin Dingli looked at Lin Zaigun, who was cutting pork intestine.

"Can that group of trash under Ye Xiufeng do anything?"

"However, there have indeed been many new faces in the grain market recently. Cowboy, come over here."

Lin Zaigun said, shouting at a young man eating breakfast not far away.

"Brother Zai, Officer Lin."

The young man nodded and bowed as he walked in, speaking in authentic Minnan dialect.

"Let me introduce you; this kid is called Gu Youniu. He fights fiercely and has a sharp mind."

"Isn't the grain market tight recently?"

"This kid pushes grain, selling it door-to-door, exchanging rice and flour for a lot of antiques, and selling them to those wealthy merchants and officials from the mainland, getting a lot of US dollars and gold bars."

"He is truly a talent!"

Lin Zaigun patted Gu Youniu's head and introduced him proudly.

"Hehe, where, it's all Brother Zai's wise guidance," Gu Youniu laughed obsequiously.

"Local?" Lin Dingli asked.

"Yes."

"When the Japanese were here, I did odd jobs for a foreigner and know a little about black market trading."

Gu Youniu said, and showed off a few sentences of Japanese.

"Mm."

"Work hard," Lin Dingli nodded.

"Third Brother, go check who the hell still dares to sell grain at a flat price, and find someone to smash their shop."

"The price in Wanbei must be in our hands."

He drank a sip of soy milk and instructed again.

"Don't worry, a few families have already been beaten into submission."

"I'm very worried about that Hong Zhiyou now; it will be very troublesome if he investigates us."

"I'll say it again: let's just finish him off."

Lin Zaigun stepped on a stool nearby and said while picking his teeth.

"Finishing him off won't work; that's slapping Jiang Jianfeng in the face."

"It's better to cripple this kid."

"Anyway, I have to get back at Wu Jingzhong for this bad breath."

Lin Dingli pondered slightly and said.

"Should I find someone to arrange it?" Wang Kun, who hadn't said much, asked.

"No need, why use a butcher's knife to kill a chicken?"

"I'll find someone to drive and crash him into a cripple tonight, won't that work?"

"Leave this to me and A-Niu," Lin Zaigun patted his chest and said.

"Fine, you go arrange it," Lin Dingli stood up.

Just as he was about to pay the bill, Gu Youniu stepped to the counter first and paid the bill.

Lin Dingli smiled and nodded, saying to Lin Zaigun: "Third Brother, there are fewer clever ghosts these days. Locals from the Japanese occupation period are trustworthy; you can give him more work."

"Understood," Lin Zaigun said.

"Officer Lin, walk slowly."

Gu Youniu nodded and bowed as he sent Lin Dingli away.

"Third Brother, I want to see some antiques; you don't mind if I use this little brother of yours, do you?" Wang Kun asked with a smile.

"Of course."

"Youniu, accompany Brother Kun and chat."

"I still have a card game, I'm leaving first," Lin Zaigun spat out a toothpick, laughed, and got up to leave.

"Get in the car."

Wang Kun invited Gu Youniu into the car.

"You know me, right?" Wang Kun asked arrogantly.

"I know, the anti-Japanese hero who assassinated Ze Zhongxin; who in all of Taiwan doesn't know the great name of Captain Wang?" Gu Youniu praised.

"Are you still collecting goods recently?" Wang Kun asked.

Now that prices were skyrocketing, his life wasn't easy either.

Don't look at how he walked close to Lin Dingli and called him brother; in reality, he was just a lackey.

Before, when he followed the Wanbei Station, he could eat some kickbacks from the station, and life was quite comfortable.

Now the kickbacks were gone, and Wu Jingzhong would find fault and deduct his performance pay and bonuses from time to time.

Lin Dingli and Lin Zaigun and those people wouldn't share a cent with him for grain hoarding in the black market.

Plus, the woman at home played mahjong and lost money all day, and his son wasn't promising either; several mouths were staring at him to make money.

And so, life was very tight.

"I am. I plan to set up a transport team and go to Keelung and Yilan to try my luck."

"It's just that the grain Brother Zai gave me is almost sold out."

"I'm just waiting for him to load grain for me."

Gu Youniu said.

"Aren't you afraid of receiving fake goods?" Wang Kun handed him a cigarette and asked with a smile.

"I won't lie to Brother Kun, the Japanese I followed before liked to flip this stuff; he even went to the Seediq tribe to collect things."

"I learned a lot from following him."

"I don't dare say how good my eye is, but I can judge ordinary things accurately," Gu Youniu said.

"What was that person's name?" Wang Kun asked very cautiously.

"Asano Dayi," Gu Youniu said.

"Asano Dayi, mm, I've heard of him; he's the one who refused to leave during Chen Cheng's land reform and was beaten to death by the locals, right?" Wang Kun remembered.

"Yes, yes, that's him."

"His whole family died out; his wife hanged herself, and his son committed seppuku," Gu Youniu said.

He had done his homework well; Wang Kun couldn't ask for any clues.

"Where did you get the grain transport team?" Wang Kun asked again.

"The Japanese used to have a transport company that was taken over by the Security Command. Brother Zai greeted Officer Peng, and I can requisition it for use."

"It's not much, just five or six cars."

"Besides, the Security Command's cars go to Yilan and Keelung, so there won't be anyone setting up checkpoints to make things difficult on the road," Gu Youniu explained with a fawning smile.

"Mm."

"I'm a bit tight on cash recently."

"How about this: I have about two tons of grain on hand; you help me sell it first," Wang Kun said.

"Brother Kun, it's not that I don't want to help you."

"Two tons of grain isn't even enough to fill one car. If I take it to Keelung and don't receive any good things, I won't even be able to find the gas money."

"Besides, even if I wanted to go, Brother Zai wouldn't let me leave."

"Two tons of grain, wouldn't that make him laugh at you, Brother Kun?"

Gu Youniu said.

"That's true."

"Then when do you plan to leave?" Wang Kun asked.

"I want to leave."

"There is a shortage of 23 tons of grain; if Brother Zai doesn't open the warehouse, where am I going to get grain?" Gu Youniu shrugged and said.

"I can help you greet him on that side," Wang Kun said.

"That's great."

"Brother Kun, let's put it this way: as long as I can successfully ship this batch, I won't dare say much about your two tons of grain."

"At least ten times over," Gu Youniu blinked and laughed dryly like a merchant.

"I can't tell, you look quite honest, but you're actually quite cunning."

"I'll make friends with you."

"Where do you live? I'll send you home," Wang Kun said.

"How can I accept that? Brother Kun, I can just walk a few more steps myself," Gu Youniu said politely.

"Hey."

"We're all brothers, why be so polite with me?"

Wang Kun intended to probe his background, and under Gu Youniu's guidance, he drove the car into a small alley on Chongqing Road.

Night.

Underground casino.

Lin Zaigun looked at his watch, put down his cards, reached under the table, took out a bottle of white wine, and handed it to a pockmarked lackey next to him:

"A-Biao, go, act according to the plan."

"If it's done, there's a reward."

As he spoke, he casually grabbed a large handful of chips and stuffed them into the lackey's pocket.

"Don't worry, Brother Zai, it will definitely be done beautifully."

A-Biao took two lackeys and quickly walked out of the casino, got into a car, and drove straight to Tai'an Road.

A-Biao had already probed Hong Zhiyou's background in the afternoon.

He hid the car at the intersection of Tai'an Road and Shida South Road.

As soon as Hong Zhiyou's car came, he would accelerate and crash into it, then the two lackeys would get out of the car and use guns to force Hong Zhiyou to get out and cripple this kid.

He had done this kind of thing many times in the past.

The reason he readily accepted the order, besides Brother Zai's reward, was mainly because Hong Zhiyou was too fat a fish.

Who knows how many good things could be scraped out of him.

A-Biao had just parked the car steadily in the narrow alley, and he hadn't even had time to light a cigarette.

A gun was pressed against his head from outside the window:

"Get out of the car."

At the same time, two handguns also poked out from the window behind.

"Brother, don't be impulsive."

A-Biao raised his hands, and the three of them slowly got out of the car.

But they saw several men dressed in black Zhongshan suits with murderous expressions staring at them coldly.

The two leading men.

The long hair on the front of their foreheads was slightly curled, they were wearing large sunglasses in the middle of the night, and there was a long, narrow scar on their cheeks; one look and you could tell they were ruthless characters.

The other one was younger, a fair-skinned, quite handsome young man.

"Walk forward."

"Face the wall."

"Kneel down!"

Sun Xing pressed his gun against A-Biao's forehead and urged coldly.

"Brother, who do you mix with?"

"I am Brother Zai's man, Wanbei Action Team Captain Wang Kun, and Lin Dingli of the Security Command Investigation Division is my big brother."

"Please open your eyes."

A-Biao was also a person who had seen the world.

"I mix with... the King of Hell's palace."

Sun Xing put on black leather gloves, picked up the silencer, screwed it on unhurriedly, and aimed it at the back of A-Biao's head.

Pfft pfft!

Two shots.

A-Biao tilted his head and fell to the ground.

"Pfft."

Sun Xing fired another shot, exploding one of his subordinates.

"Brother, don't, don't kill me." The remaining person was trembling with fear, raising his hands to beg for mercy.

"What's your name?" Sun Xing asked him.

"Liao Laoqi," the man said.

"Brother Laoqi, take me to see Lin Zaigun," Sun Xing instructed coldly.

They got into the car.

The man drove back to an underground casino in a village in the city.

"Lead the way."

Sun Xing said with his hands behind his back.

"Yes, yes!"

Liao Laoqi entered the casino trembling.

Lin Zaigun was hugging a beauty, playing pai gow, and rubbing the bone tiles.

"Brother Zai," Liao Laoqi shouted.

"So fast, where is A-Biao?" Lin Zaigun turned his head subconsciously.

He instantly saw the murderous Sun Xing.

Not good.

Years of experience in the underworld told him that the visitor was not kind.

"Bro..."

Before he could speak, Sun Xing's silent handgun hidden behind his back flashed, and he pulled the trigger.

Pfft!

A blood hole exploded in the center of Lin Zaigun's eyebrows, his eyes widened, and he fell into the beauty's arms, his body twitching a few times before he stopped moving.

This sudden scene stunned everyone.

When they reacted, dozens of Lin Zaigun's subordinates picked up their tools—guns, knives, clubs—and surrounded Sun Xing.

"What great dog guts, daring to kill Third Brother."

"Kill them."

The leader, Luo Youzhang, shouted.

Sun Xing raised the corner of his mouth and laughed coldly.

Lin Tian, who was on the side, unbuttoned his clothes, which were covered in detonators.

The other subordinates also unbuttoned their clothes one after another.

They were all American-style hand grenades.

"Holy shit!"

"Don't, don't shoot, everyone get back!"

Luo Youzhang saw this, his fat face turned green, and he shouted in fear.

If these exploded, the whole casino would be blown to ashes.

"Brother, you look very unfamiliar."

"Who do you mix with? There's no grudge in the past, no hatred in the present; there must be a reason for killing my Third Brother."

He asked sternly.

"Reason?"

Sun Xing took off his sunglasses, raised his scar, and laughed coldly: "I just don't like you, is that okay?"

"Brother, this is Wanbei; you won't last long playing like this," Luo Youzhang gritted his teeth and said.

"Just playing around."

"Don't be nervous."

Sun Xing put his sunglasses on the bridge of his nose, waved his hand, and Lin Tian and the others closed their clothes and walked out swaggeringly under the angry glares of the crowd, then drove away.

"Kill them."

Someone among the subordinates was in a hurry to chase them out.

Luo Youzhang blocked them with his hands: "No need."

"American-style hand grenades, hundreds of them at once, mainland accents, don't chase them."

"Chasing them is useless."

"Quick, call Brother Dingli."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 343 =====

Sun Xing rested his sunglasses on the bridge of his nose and waved his hand; Lin Tian and the others zipped up their jackets and, under the angry glares of the crowd, walked out swaggeringly and drove away.

"Kill them."

Someone among his subordinates was anxious to chase after them.

Luo Youzhang blocked them with his arms crossed: "No need."

"American-made grenades, hundreds of them at once, and they have mainland accents; don't chase them."

"It's useless to chase them."

"Quick, call Brother Dingli."

……

(End of chapter)