Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 184 Taking Action
Wu Sibao acted immediately.

Forging a letter of appointment from Chiang Kai-shek is very simple; the Green Gang knows many skilled forgers.

As for how to make someone resemble someone from Chongqing, that's even simpler. There are infiltrators in prison, and defectors in the city. Ye Jiqing is from Nanjing, so he knows exactly what a high-ranking official in Nanjing should be like.

After some tinkering, a secret envoy of President Chiang was created.

This person must be Ye Jiqing's superior, which would fit the pattern of Ye Jiqing's failed negotiations, forcing the superior to personally intervene.

Let's give him a title: District Chief of the Shanghai District of the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics.

The task was to receive a secret order from Chiang Kai-shek in Chongqing to manipulate the stock market and raise funds from the occupied territories to support the resistance against Japan.

Following the usual tactic of using national righteousness as a pretext, with everything in place and only success awaiting, Wu Sibao sent his men to set off.

The next day, Wu Sibao and Ye Jiqing came to find Gu Yansheng.

"Failed."

"Why did you fail again?" Gu Yansheng asked, puzzled, as he received him at the teahouse. "Didn't you even see him?"

"I saw him. Your method worked. My people said he was President Jiang's man, and he did indeed invite him in and treat him to good tea."

But when my man mentioned buying stocks, he saw through it, his attitude changed drastically, and he kicked the man out.

Wu Sibao frowned, rubbing his hair vigorously. "Damn it, this guy is impervious to both soft and hard approaches. He won't even give us face in Chongqing."

Ye Jiqing said, "Mr. Gu, in the end, it's not necessarily that he doesn't respect Chongqing. It's probably because Sibao has appeared before, and he doesn't believe that Sibao is from Chongqing. Businessmen are very shrewd, and now whenever he talks about stocks, he assumes that we are the ones who will make the move."

"Have you told him about opening up a transportation route for him?" Gu Yansheng asked.

Ye Jiqing nodded, "He did, but he said he didn't need it; he's done enough with his current business."

Gu Yansheng grunted, "Sounds like a very cautious businessman who doesn't want to take sides and just wants to make money."

Wu Sibao scratched the back of his head and guessed, "Do you think he might think we're setting him up? That we're trying to find a reason to frame him and get him arrested?"

As Wu Sibao spoke, his eyes became certain as he looked at the two men, "I deliberately got him involved with the Military Intelligence Bureau, so he didn't dare to."

Gu Yansheng and Ye Jiqing exchanged a glance. To be honest, what Wu Sibao said this time might actually be true.

"Forget it, I'll handle this. You guys go back and wait for news."

Gu Yansheng has to handle this himself; he can't count on the two of them for this matter.

Ye Jiqing immediately smiled; wasn't that exactly what Gu Yansheng wanted to hear?
"Then I'll leave it to Mr. Gu."

Wu Sibao also said, "Director Gu, we'll be waiting for your good news."

"Stop grinning like an idiot, where's the money? How much have you raised?"

"About 70 or 80, the two of us can probably scrape together four or five hundred thousand US dollars, at most seven hundred thousand." This is already the largest amount Ye Jiqing has diverted from the Special Agent Headquarters' funds.

He's much richer than Ding Mocun.

However, compared to the assets of Wing On Department Store, it is still far from enough.

Yong'an Department Store is worth over 20 million silver dollars, which would be around six or seven million US dollars.

"Give me the money first," Gu Yansheng said without any hesitation.

"Okay." Ye Jiqing unconditionally believed in the God of Wealth.

Once they left, Gu Yansheng had to find his partner. It was comfortable for the tax bureau chief to partner with him. While others were still worrying about the tax revenue in their own territories, Wang Rusong was living a carefree life every day.

It was said that Gu Yansheng was in charge of external affairs and Wang Rusong was in charge of internal affairs, but what internal affairs could be dealt with in western Shanghai? Brothels, opium dens, gambling dens, foreign-funded enterprises that were beyond their control, and some half-dead factories.

Wang Rusong is very content.

He called Ma Quan at the police station next door, who said that Wang Rusong had gone on patrol and was probably out having fun somewhere. He told Ma Quan to find him immediately.

After waiting for an hour, Wang Rusong rushed back. He dared not offend Gu Yansheng, for this was the real boss, the one who single-handedly handled the tax collection task!

"Brother Gu, is there something you need?"

"If I don't see you again soon, I'm afraid you'll fall at the feet of some woman and willingly become a ghost," Gu Yansheng joked.

Wang Rusong laughed heartily, "What nonsense! I'm a man of impeccable morals. What business does Brother Gu need me to handle? I guarantee I'll do it perfectly."

Gu Yansheng didn't hesitate to say that he smelled of rouge all over himself, his face was red, and he was supposed to be chaste and self-disciplined, but who knows how much wine he had drunk at the brothels.

"I do need your help with something. Do you know how many companies Wing On Department Store has in China?"

Wing On Department Store is a large and well-known company. Wang Rusong thought for a moment and said, “Wing On Department Store is mainly located in the International Settlement. There aren’t many companies in the Chinese-controlled areas. There are a few factories in Yangpu that make textiles. I don’t remember any others, or they are just too small.”

"So few?" Gu Yansheng was a little surprised. Wu Sibao had mentioned that Wing On Department Store had restaurants and hotels in Shanghai, and paid taxes to the concessions and the Japanese. He thought that Wing On must have a lot of business in the Chinese-controlled areas, but he didn't expect it to only have a few factories.

"Is it too little? It's not too little." Wang Rusong didn't think it was too little at all. He blinked and smiled, "It's because you have a high vision, Brother Gu. Several factories would cost hundreds of thousands of silver dollars to start. Ordinary people don't have that kind of financial resources. If this factory were willing to move to our western part of Shanghai, we would be more than able to meet our tax revenue targets, and the economy would be so much better."

That's true. Gu Yansheng suddenly thought of something: what if he merged Lu Bowen's factories into a brand and launched it on the stock exchange? Wouldn't that be a good way to make money off him?
"Alright, that's all. Thank you for making the trip." Gu Yansheng shooed him away.

"Are you alright?" Wang Rusong's eyes widened. He had been drinking and pulling up his pants when he came over, and that was all he said? He hadn't even helped.

Thinking about how hard Gu Yansheng worked while he was just playing around, I felt a little embarrassed.

"Brother Gu, just let me know if you need any help. Don't be shy."

"It's really nothing." The main problem is that Yong'an Department Store has too few branches in China. Gu Yansheng originally planned to shut them all down, but it seems that it's not very effective, so they have to change their approach.

After thinking for a moment, Wang Rusong thought, "Since I'm already here, I might as well spend some money." He said, "To be honest, I do have something to say. I'm planning to start a business. Would you be interested in investing?"

"Interested?" Wang Rusong shifted his position closer and asked, "What kind of business, and how much money do you need?"

"It's related to Yong'an, and the more money the better." Gu Yansheng chuckled. "Director Wang, I have to say this in advance. If the money is too little, this matter won't be settled. I can't say the specifics yet. Only those who have paid will have the right to know. I'll just reveal a little bit: quite a few people are already involved in this matter, including the 76th Division."

Was No. 76 involved as well?
With Gu Yansheng and No. 76 involved, how could this not be profitable?

Although he spoke in a mysterious way, it didn't stop Wang Rusong from becoming more interested. He whispered, "I definitely believe in Brother Gu's abilities, but how much money can this actually make? Otherwise, I really have no idea."

Gu Yansheng sipped his tea. "A long-term business, making stable profits."

This was as good as saying nothing at all. After thinking for a moment, Wang Rusong decisively slammed his hand on the table and said, "Alright, I trust Brother Gu. I'll invest 20,000 silver dollars!"

Go home and have your milk.
Gu Yansheng looked at him speechlessly, "Director Wang, the force with which you slammed the table just now was worth two million."

Wang Rusong blushed, "Too little?"

"Sigh." Gu Yansheng sighed, "If you're short of money, then forget it."

"Just tell me the amount directly." Wang Rusong was also in a dilemma; he couldn't just say 200,000, lest he seem greedy.

Gu Yansheng held out a hand.

Wang Rusong raised an eyebrow, "Fifty thousand?"

"Half a million."

"so many?"

Wang Rusong's heart jolted. Making this decision was no longer an option. Five hundred thousand yuan—five hundred thousand yuan without knowing anything about it. What if he lost it all?
Wang Rusong looked embarrassed.

Gu Yansheng wasn't in a hurry. "It's alright, there's still time. Director Wang can think about it slowly when you get back. I can wait for you for two days. Anyway, I'm still negotiating with others. But if you still haven't made up your mind by the time the money is enough, then there's nothing I can do. That's all the quota we have."

This made people anxious. Wang Rusong hesitated, "Okay, I'll think about it. Brother Gu, please don't mind, it's really such a large sum of money. Even if I could come up with it, I would have to borrow or raise it."

Anyway, I can't say that I embezzled it.

Gu Yansheng nodded readily and smiled, "No rush, you go back first, I still have to go out and look for someone."

"Alright, I'll go first." Wang Rusong was so conflicted that he didn't even feel like going to drink and have fun with the brothel when the driver asked him if he still wanted to.

"Shiqi, come with me." Gu Yansheng went downstairs and called his secretary, Ma Shiqi.

Ma Shiqi immediately stood up and followed: "Director, where are we going?"

"Let's go to Wing On Department Store and do some shopping."

Wing On Department Store owns two buildings in the concession area: an old six-story building and a new twenty-two-story building that was built a few years ago. In the concession area today, being able to acquire two plots of land and such a tall shopping mall speaks volumes about its strength.

Gu Yansheng doesn't go shopping often. Due to his identity, even if he's not afraid of being recognized and attracting attention from citizens or reporters, the security issues alone basically eliminate his chances of going shopping, since the Military Intelligence Bureau's Shanghai branch doesn't know him.

Ma Shiqi was very familiar with the place and introduced it to Gu Yansheng: "Yongan Department Store mainly sells high-end goods, imported watches and jewelry from various countries. It also has restaurants, hotels, amusement parks, and dance halls. It can be said that it has everything. As long as it is a high-end product in Shanghai, you can find it here."

"A complex, huh?" Gu Yansheng nodded with a smile. "Interesting. Solving all problems without leaving the mall—such a great concept, no wonder they're so successful."

I took a quick stroll around and saw many foreigners, as well as quite a few wealthy Shanghai ladies and wives.

Gu Yansheng went upstairs to the restaurant and asked for a private room. He said to Ma Shiqi, "Is it difficult to invite their boss over for a cup of tea?"

Ma Shiqi chuckled, "It shouldn't be difficult, I'll go right now."

In the foreign concessions, some people might disregard the 76th Division, but they couldn't disregard the gangs.

Ma Shiqi returned in ten minutes, bringing the manager with him. The manager smiled and said that the boss was at home, but he had already been notified and was on his way.

Twenty minutes later, Guo Lin, the current owner of Yong'an Department Store, walked in with a hearty laugh. "Director Gu should have informed me before he came. I wasn't here, and I've kept him waiting. I'm so sorry, so very sorry."

A man in his thirties, dressed in a sharp suit.

Gu Yansheng stood up and shook hands with him. "I came uninvited, but fortunately, Mr. Guo did not turn me away like he did with some other people."

Guo Linshuang's smile faded slightly as she guessed Gu Yansheng's purpose.

Gu Yansheng turned his head and said, "You guys go outside and wait. I'll have a few words with Mr. Guo."

(End of this chapter)