Courtyard House: Home Alone

Terauchi Hisaichi straightened the wrinkles in his court robes and carefully tucked the imperial decree close to his body. As he left the imperial study, the palace bells were striking nine times, their deep sound echoing between the vermilion pillars like some ancient warning.

"Prepare the carriage," he said to the servant waiting outside the door. "To the Ministry of War."

The next morning, after eating the breakfast Chunxing had prepared for him, Lin Yifan drove towards the Tang residence. He parked his car about 200 meters away from the Tang residence and began to survey the surrounding area.

Before long, he found four surveillance points set up by ghosts in the vicinity. Two of them were located not far from the front and back gates of the Tang residence, and the other two were located two hundred meters to the left and right of the front gate.

He got out of the car when no one was paying attention, and then strolled leisurely toward the Tang residence, like a neighbor's child visiting.

Arriving at the gate of the Tang residence, he knocked on the door, and after a short while, Shi Tou's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"

"Brother Stone, it's me, Lin Yifan."

The door creaked open from the inside, and Shi Tou, who opened it, saw Lin Yifan standing in the doorway and hurriedly said, "Young master, please come in. What brings you here so early today?"

"Isn't today a special occasion? I came over early to check on things. Did the old man keep you here too?" Lin Yifan asked.

"Of course, the old man said that a 'distinguished guest' is coming to the manor today, and he told me to bring people to guard the place and not to leave even for a moment." Shi Tou lowered his voice as he led Lin Yifan into the courtyard.

Lin Yifan followed Shi Tou through the hanging flower gate. He noticed that the window of the west wing was ajar, and there was a shadowy figure moving behind the curtains—it was a guard from the Tang family.

"Where is the old man?" Lin Yifan asked.

"study."

Stone gestured towards the main house with his lip, his voice extremely low, "He's locked himself inside since he got up this morning, even having tea delivered to his door."

Lin Yifan nodded, but unconsciously slowed his pace.

"Come inside with me, I need you to do something for me later."

"Young master, I'll do as you say."

Stone followed in response, his footsteps barely making a sound on the blue brick ground.

"Are all the people gone?" Lin Yifan asked.

"It's cleared."

Stone's gaze swept over the pillars of the east wing. "Two cleaners have been left here; they've both served the old man for over ten years. They'll leave after they're done cleaning."

The study door was tightly closed, but a sliver of light shone through the crack. Lin Yifan raised his hand and knocked on the door, his knuckles making a dull sound as they landed on the nanmu wood.

"Enter."

Tang Baolin's voice came from inside, an octave lower than usual. Lin Yifan pushed open the door and entered, a strong scent of ink mixed with the aroma of aged camphor wood wafting towards him.

The study was lined with rosewood bookshelves, but one of them had been moved, revealing a painting titled "Solitary Angler on a Cold River" hanging on the wall behind it.

"Close the door."

"Yifan," Tang Baolin turned around, his gaze lingering on Lin Yifan's face for a moment, "Qingshui Dongsan replied early this morning."

"Did the Japanese agree?" Lin Yifan asked.

Tang Baolin did not answer immediately. He walked to his desk, took out a kraft paper envelope from the drawer, the edges of which were sealed with sealing wax, and the imprint was a five-petaled cherry blossom—Qingshui Dongsan's personal seal.

"I agree," he said, pushing the envelope towards Lin Yifan, "but with conditions."

Lin Yifan took the envelope, his fingertips pausing slightly as they touched the sealing wax. The cherry blossom pattern was clearly raised, like a silent provocation.

He opened the envelope and took out the letter inside—not the usual Japanese, but Chinese characters written in neat regular script, the handwriting thin and firm, revealing a deliberate respect.

"Mr. Ghost's opinion: All requests have been approved by headquarters. However, the security within the buffer zone must be jointly managed by both sides."

After the diplomatic personnel withdrew, Shimizu Takashi remained as an advisor on overseas Chinese affairs, stationed at the Six Nations Hotel, to facilitate communication. The term was three years, with further discussions to be held upon its expiration.

When Lin Yifan read the words "three years", his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

"Three years," Tang Baolin's voice came from behind, "the deadline given by the Emperor."

"It's not for 'Ghost,'" Lin Yifan placed the letter on the table, "it's for them."

He walked up to the painting "Solitary Angler on a Cold River," his gaze falling on the fisherman in the painting, reduced to a mere ink dot. The river was vast, a lone boat adrift, with only the fishing line dangling into the void between heaven and earth.

"Old man,"

He turned around and said, "Qingshui Dongsan is an open spy at the Six Nations Hotel. They will also leave behind covert spies. We need to strengthen our surveillance of their expatriates."

"Hey Stone, come here for a second." He waved to Stone, who was standing by the door.

Looking at the stone that had come to the coffee table, Lin Yifan said, "Brother Stone, I found four rat nests around the Tang residence. There's one diagonally opposite the front door, and there are three rats inside."

There were also three rats inside, right opposite the back door.

The pharmacy 200 meters east of the front gate also has four rats; the small courtyard 200 meters west also has three rats.

"The weapons are all pistols. Can the men you have now handle this?"

Stone didn't answer immediately. He walked to the window and parted the curtains a crack.

"Young master,"

He turned around, his voice low but carrying a steady certainty, "We have enough men. The old man said we have distinguished guests at the manor today, and he specifically asked me to bring over twenty more men, all of whom went out to raid the Japanese pillbox a couple of days ago."

Lin Yifan nodded, took out a folded sketch from his pocket, and spread it out on the coffee table. It was a map of the surveillance points he had drawn from memory when he parked the car earlier. Four red circles were marked on the streets and alleys around the Tang residence. Although the lines were rough, the distances and angles were as precise as if measured with a compass.

"Diagonally opposite the front door,"

His fingertip pointed to the first red circle. "That little grocery store, there's a hidden door behind the counter leading to the basement. Three Japanese soldiers, working in two shifts, we can't give them a chance to fire a warning shot when we attack."

Stone leaned over to look at the sketch, his brow furrowing slightly. "I recognize that shop. The owner is from Hebei; he just bought the shop last year."

"The shopkeeper and the waiter are both Japanese."

Lin Yifan's voice was flat, "Same old rules, no survivors."

Tang Baolin stood beside the desk, the purple clay teapot in his hand hovering in mid-air, the tea already cold. "What about the one by the back door?" Shi Tou asked.

"It's also a separate courtyard," Lin Yifan's fingertip moved to the second red circle, "Three Japanese soldiers, two sleeping inside, and one keeping watch at the door."

"The pharmacy one is the most troublesome."

His brow finally furrowed with seriousness. "Four Japanese soldiers, two of them in the rear. You need to arrange for men to attack from both the front and rear simultaneously. If you suspect any problems, then leave the pharmacy to me."

Stone's fingers lightly traced the outline of the sketch, extending from the pharmacy's location to the side entrance of the Tang residence: "Should we act simultaneously?"

"It must be done simultaneously."

Lin Yifan straightened up, his gaze meeting the stone's. "The interval can't exceed three minutes. If a shot rings out, the whole street will be alerted, and the Japanese will be prepared."

"Three minutes is enough."

Stone folded the sketch neatly and tucked it into his robes. "Young master, when's it time to get started?"