Hidden Radiance

French Concession, Rue de la Forge, Yongchang Grocery Store.

The shopkeeper hung up the phone. He walked to the counter, picked up the abacus and fiddled with it for a few moments; the crisp sound of the beads clashing drowned out the sound of rain outside.

"The rouge shop assistant, counter number twelve, is shipping out tonight."

The shopkeeper muttered it to himself, his brows gradually furrowing.

The goods are being shipped tonight. The enemy wants to secretly relocate Lao Zhao.

He lifted the curtain and went into the backyard. Two men dressed in shorts were arranging crates.

"Stop." The shopkeeper lowered his voice. "The opportunity to rescue Old Zhao has arrived."

The worker stopped what he was doing and turned around.

"76 is secretly transferring Lao Zhao. The time, place, and route are unknown." The shopkeeper walked to the water vat, scooped up a ladle of water to wash his hands, and said, "Keep a close eye on She Aizhen, including the Green Gang's movements. At the same time, organize manpower to be ready to rescue her at any time."

"Understood." The two men quickly put on their raincoats, climbed over the courtyard wall, and disappeared into the night.

The shopkeeper dried his hands with a towel and looked toward number 76.

Even if we lack sufficient information, we must still attempt a rescue.

76 number.

As night deepened, in the office of the head of the Confidential Affairs Department.

Lu Minghui sat behind his large desk. The desk lamp was off, only the light filtering in from the corridor illuminating the wooden floor.

The door was gently pushed open, and a shadow slipped in.

Snapped--

The desk lamp turned on.

"what?"

Sun Yaozu exclaimed in surprise, the smell of alcohol on his body dissipating significantly, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

He saw Lu Minghui sitting behind his desk, looking at him with a half-smile.

"Commander Lu... Commander Lu?" Sun Yaozu shuddered, unable to speak coherently.

Lu Minghui didn't say anything, but took out a pack of Lao Dao brand cigarettes, pulled one out, and threw it over.

Sun Yaozu took the cigarette, but didn't light it; he didn't dare.

After drinking at the Great World amusement park, Li Shiqun kept him behind to give him a task. The moment he stepped out of the amusement park, a cold wind blew, and he sobered up, but also became afraid.

He was afraid of Li Shiqun, and he was also afraid of Lu Minghui.

"Did Director Li assign you any work?" Lu Minghui leaned back in his chair, his tone indifferent.

"Yes." Sun Yaozu swallowed hard, steadied himself, and replied, "The director asked me to cooperate with Sister She to get that rickshaw puller out of No. 76 tomorrow night. We also need to avoid the eyes and ears of the South Manchuria Railway Company."

"Is that all?" Lu Minghui's tone remained calm, but his eyes gradually turned cold.

"Director...let me...let me..."

Meeting those cold eyes, Sun Yaozu's eyes darted around nervously. He hadn't expected Lu Minghui to still be at No. 76 and not even turn on the lights!

"Don't be nervous." Lu Minghui smiled, the curve of his lips barely visible before disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"I understand your difficulties." Lu Minghui took out a cigarette and lit it for himself. "But you need to know what to say and what to do. When you're doing favors for someone, you also need to be careful. Otherwise, wouldn't I have saved you for nothing and waited for you for nothing?"

"Thank you so much, Commander Lu."

Seeing that Lu Minghui truly had no intention of making things difficult for him, Sun Yaozu straightened his legs. He slowly took a few steps forward, getting closer.

"Director Li asked, regarding the relocation of Red Party members, does Commander Lu have anything to add?"

Lu Minghui tapped his cigarette ash. "We can't bring the person ourselves; we can only break him out of prison and have the Green Gang do it."

"A... a prison break?"

Sun Yaozu froze, staring at Lu Minghui in disbelief.

"The prisoner was abducted because Gu Yunqiu was negligent in his supervision." Lu Minghui took another puff and exhaled a smoke ring. "Even if we can't get Old Zhao to talk, as long as we catch him again, it will still be a merit."

Upon hearing this, Sun Yaozu's pupils first contracted slightly, then dilated.

Lu Minghui opened the drawer, took out a folded piece of white paper, and pushed it to the edge of the table.

"Open it and take a look."

Sun Yaozu put down his cigarette and picked up a piece of white paper, unfolding it.

This is a hand-drawn blueprint. The lines are extremely precise. It shows the floor plan of basement number 76, with ventilation openings, sewers, and blind spots clearly marked.

Not only that, but there were also eight crosses drawn on the drawing in red pen.

Having worked at No. 76 for so long, Sun Yaozu immediately recognized the location of the eight crosses. Those were sentries set up by the South Manchuria Railway agents around the basement.

"This...this is..." Sun Yaozu's hand trembled.

"This is what you found on the South Manchuria Railway agent this afternoon when you searched that Red Party stronghold on Qingyun Road in Zhabei. You felt something was wrong, so you handed it over to me."

Lu Minghui looked at him and spoke slowly and deliberately.

Sun Yaozu was stunned. He didn't believe a word of what he said. Did he not know whether he had done it or not? He quickly went through the meaning of the words in his mind.

"Secretary Gu was ordered to investigate the Red Party, and she's been working very hard." Lu Minghui stood up, walked around the desk, and went to Sun Yaozu's side. "But why did she draw a map of the basement of No. 76? Why did she mark the sentries of her own people?"

Lu Minghui paused for a moment.

"Because she wanted to break her out of prison."

Sun Yaozu gasped. He turned sharply to look at Lu Minghui. His young face was expressionless, chillingly cold.

"Gu Yunqiu arrested some Communist Party members, preventing Director Li from interrogating him, and he won't interrogate them himself either. Now he's even drawn up plans for a prison break." Lu Minghui raised his hand and tapped the drawing twice. "Deputy Captain Sun, give this drawing to Director Li. Director Li will naturally know what to do."

Sun Yaozu's Adam's apple bobbed violently.

One map, one safe route, and one label of being a traitor.

Li Shiqun was just worried about not being able to find any incriminating evidence against Gu Yunqiu. Once this map was handed over, the senior agent of the South Manchuria Railway Bureau's Investigation Bureau would become an inside agent for the Communist Party attempting a prison break. Gu Yunqiu would be unable to explain himself no matter how hard he tried.

"Commander Lu..." Sun Yaozu's voice changed, "This map... can we really deliver it?"

"Not only do you have to hand it in, but you have to hand it in front of Lin Zhijiang." Lu Minghui walked back to his seat and sat down. "Lin Zhijiang is Director Li's confidant. With him present, you're guaranteed credit. When Director Li gets the drawings, he'll only think you've done a good job."

Sun Yaozu folded the blueprints neatly and tucked them into his inner pocket.

He looked at Lu Minghui and remained silent for a few seconds. Then he took out an oil paper package from his jacket pocket, placed it on the table, and pushed it over.

The oil paper package was small, containing a private seal and a bankbook.

"Commander Lu," Sun Yaozu's voice lowered, "this is my HSBC account. From now on, you can use my personal wealth at any time."

This is far more effective than kneeling and kowtowing. In No. 76, handing over one's purse is the true sign of submission.

Lu Minghui glanced at the oil paper package but didn't touch it.

"Put it away."

"Commander Lu—"

"Loyalty cannot be proven with money; only actions can demonstrate your loyalty." Lu Minghui didn't look at him. "Just do your job well. The transfer tomorrow night cannot go wrong in the slightest."

"Understood!" Sun Yaozu put the oil paper package back in his pocket and walked backward out of the office.

"Remember, you stole this picture from Gu Yunqiu's office."

Sun Yaozu trembled again. He was about to leave directly, but instead he turned and walked towards Gu Yunqiu's office.

Watching Sun Yaozu disappear from sight.

Lu Minghui picked up a match from the table and struck it. The light illuminated his expressionless eyes.

He held the match to the old-fashioned cigarette; the cigarette was already lit, so there was no need to light it again.

He extinguished the match and threw it into the ashtray.

I took a deep breath, exhaled the smoke, and it spread throughout the office.

Lean back in your chair and close your eyes.

Project Sugi.

The three words that Old Zhao typed on the rack.

What exactly are the Japanese planning?

I turned off the lights, got up, went downstairs, and drove home.