Courtyard House: Home Alone

"Two thousand rifles! One hundred light machine guns!" Manager Zhou gasped, his eyes shining brightly. For the Red Party, which was short of guns and ammunition, this was undoubtedly a godsend, no, it was like a mountain of coal delivered to the snow!

He paced back and forth in the cramped warehouse, then suddenly stopped and looked at Lin Yifan: "Xiao Fan! Give me three days! No, two days! Within two days, I will definitely give you an answer, telling you where and how to contact their people!"

Lin Yifan nodded: "Okay, I'll wait for your news. The meeting place and method should be kept as discreet and safe as possible."

"Don't worry!" Manager Zhou patted his chest confidently, his eyes gleaming with an unprecedented light. "For the sake of these weapons, and for the heroes who killed Okamura Yasuji and the 20th Division, I will be extremely cautious!"

At this point, he seemed to remember something and added, "By the way, Xiao Fan, about your parents... although I can't tell you their exact whereabouts, I can tell you that they are perfectly safe now."

Lin Yifan was startled and looked sharply at Manager Zhou: "Okay!" Lin Yifan uttered a single word heavily, his eyes becoming incredibly bright.

"Manager Zhou, I'll await your good news!"

"Hey! Take care!" Manager Zhou personally escorted Lin Yifan to the back door of the teahouse. Watching his figure disappear into the depths of the alley, he excitedly rubbed his hands together, turned around and hurried back to the warehouse. He carefully took out the blood-stained collar insignia, examined them again, and his eyes were filled with strength and hope.

After leaving Xilai Teahouse, Lin Yifan did not return directly to Nanluoguxiang. Instead, he circled around several times to make sure no one was following him before turning into a quiet alley.

He was deeply moved and couldn't calm down for a long time. Manager Zhou's reaction was both expected and somewhat unexpected. The weight of those few collar badges was clearly greater than he had imagined.

The annihilation of Okamura Yasuji and the 20th Division was undoubtedly a shot in the arm for the underground Red Party organization that persisted in the struggle in Beiping, and the weapons and supplies he offered were an irresistible temptation for them.

He leaned against the cold wall and took a deep breath of the slightly chilly air of Beiping. The progress in contacting the Red Party had eased his anxiety considerably. Furthermore, the news of his family's safety completely relaxed his tense nerves.

Next, we wait for Manager Zhou's message, and at the same time, we must begin preparing to deal with Wang Defa and Li Sangou.

Old Master Tang must have already begun taking action, gathering intelligence on those two traitors.

He gave himself only three days, and he had to complete the decapitation operation within those three days, firing the first shot in the purge of traitors in Beiping.

Thinking of this, Lin Yifan's eyes sharpened, and without lingering, his figure quickly disappeared into the shadows of the alley, heading towards Grandpa Tang's house.

Meanwhile, at the Japanese military headquarters, several high-ranking Japanese officers took turns looking at the urgent telegram they had just received from Tianjin. The telegram contained the following:

On the morning of [date], Commander Okamura led the 20th Division to Beiping and was ambushed in the [location].

Our unit received orders from the Commander that the Tanaka Regiment would proceed to provide support this morning. Upon arrival, they were also ambushed, suffering heavy losses (65% casualties). They were forced to retreat to Tianjin to ensure the city's safety. The 20th Division and Your Excellency have been out of contact for sixteen hours. We await further instructions from the military headquarters.

The signature reads: 23rd Brigade of the Imperial Army.

"Baka!" A Japanese lieutenant general slammed the telegram on the table. His triangular eyes under his military cap were bloodshot with rage. "Sixteen hours without contact? Sixty percent casualties in the Tanaka Regiment? This is a disgrace to the Imperial Army!" His voice echoed in the solemn military conference room, filled with barely suppressed fury.

The Minister of War, seated at the head of the table, had a livid face, his fingers gripping the thin yet incredibly heavy telegram so tightly that his knuckles turned white from the force.

He slowly raised his head, his gaze sweeping over every officer present. His eyes were like ice, causing everyone to unconsciously straighten their backs.

"Okamura-kun... the 20th Division..."

He read it in a low voice, hoarse, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth, "From Tianjin to Beiping, it's only a few dozen miles, yet a division, plus a regiment for support, actually... actually ended up like this!"

The meeting room was deathly silent, with only the ticking of the wall clock sounding particularly jarring in the heavy atmosphere.

A staff officer cautiously began, "Commander, the Tanaka Regiment's report states that the enemy who ambushed them possessed exceptionally fierce firepower and employed bizarre tactics, unlike those of the regular Chinese army. Rather, they resembled... those elusive guerrillas."

"Guerrilla forces?" The lieutenant general scoffed, his eyes sharpening. "What kind of guerrilla force could wipe out an elite division? And inflict 60% casualties on the Tanaka Regiment? That's impossible! Something must be wrong!"

He suddenly stood up, paced a few steps, and said, "Contact Special Fat Man immediately! I need to know what exactly happened around Beiping!"

Furthermore, send a telegram to the 23rd Brigade in Tianjin, ordering them to spare no effort in regrouping and searching for the Commander-in-Chief and the 20th Division! They must find them alive or dead!

"Yes, sir!" the officers responded in unison, their faces filled with shock and unease. The disappearance of Okamura Yasuji and the 20th Division was like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, causing a huge uproar in the upper echelons of the Japanese military.

They had a vague feeling that the situation in Beiping might have already slipped out of their control. The Minister of War picked up the telegram from Tianjin on the table and hurried toward the palace; he had to tell the Emperor the news as soon as possible.

The loss of contact between an army commander and a full-strength division is a responsibility that he, as the Minister of War, cannot bear.

This was no longer a simple military defeat, but a major crisis that could shake the foundations of the empire's rule in North China.

He couldn't even imagine the fury the Emperor would feel when he learned of this.

He took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, straightened the wrinkles in his military uniform, and strode heavily toward the palace that symbolized supreme power.

Every step felt like walking on a red-hot iron, sending shivers down his spine. He knew a massive storm was about to erupt in the heart of the empire.

Deep within the palace, the air seemed to freeze, and even the scent of sandalwood could not mask the invisible oppression.

The Minister of the Army lowered his head, almost unable to look at the figure on the throne. After he finished reporting the news of Okamura Yasuji and the 20th Division's loss of contact in a trembling voice, the entire study fell into a deathly silence.

He could clearly hear his heart pounding and the increasingly heavy breathing coming from the direction of the throne.