Hidden Radiance

Lu Minghui stood in front of the map, the tip of the red and blue pencil in his hand pressed against the location of "Southeast Trading Company".

"Matsui studied medicine at the Imperial University in his early years." Lu Minghui's voice was deep and flat. "Lu Xuzhang can tell what the medicines on the list represent at a glance, and he will know even better."

Gu Yunqiu stood beside the table, her fingers gripping the edge of the table.

"He not only figured it out, he also deliberately gave you the list." Lu Minghui turned around. "He was testing me. If I took the list to confront him or did anything, it would prove that I understood the value of this batch of medicine, and that I knew a secret I shouldn't have known."

Gu Yunqiu's fingers clenched into nail marks on the edge of the table.

"I'll go see him first thing tomorrow morning," she blurted out. "I'll use your name to blackmail him with this list. If I just show that I'm only after money, it will prove that we don't understand the real purpose of these drugs, let alone know about 1644."

Lu Minghui looked at her and shook his head.

"The Sugi Project was leaked. At most, Nakajima got angry and even let Li Shiqun return to Shanghai alive to cause trouble. That's because the Sugi Project was just an economic war." Lu Minghui threw his pencil on the table with a crisp snap. "But 1644 is different."

He walked up to Gu Yunqiu. So close that she could smell the iodine residue on his suit.

"That was bacteriological warfare. There's no such thing as 'no prosecution' for those who crossed that line. If you walk into the Southeast Trading Company with the list, whether you're after money or something else, in Matsui's eyes, you're already a dead man."

Gu Yunqiu did not back down.

"You managed to walk out alive with the list in your hand," Lu Minghui's tone turned cold. "Either Matsui was a beat slow to react, or he was using you as bait."

Gu Yunqiu didn't speak again. She stared at Lu Minghui for two seconds, then her shoulders slowly relaxed.

Lu Minghui walked past her, went to the desk, opened the drawer, and took out the Colt. He ejected the magazine, glanced at the gleaming yellow bullets inside, and clicked it back in.

The gun was inserted into his lower back.

"Comrade Rouge..."

"A chivalrous knight," Lu Minghui called her by her code name. Gu Yunqiu swallowed the words she was about to say.

"A person who has become suspicious cannot be allowed to live." Lu Minghui grabbed his suit jacket from the back of the chair and draped it over his shoulders. "Nip the suspicion in the bud."

Gu Yunqiu was stunned. "Assassinate Matsui? He's the leader of the Black Dragon Society, always surrounded by bodyguards. Yamada is also a tough nut to crack. Doing something to him in the concession would cause a lot of trouble."

"If we don't do anything to him, the trouble will be on our heads." Lu Minghui picked up the phone on the table and dialed a number.

After three beeps, the call is connected.

"Paper kites," Lu Minghui said into the microphone, "I have an urgent shipment to be delivered tonight. Same place, bring your gear."

"Understood," the kite replied crisply.

hang up the phone.

Lu Minghui turned to look at Gu Yunqiu. "Where is Matsui now?"

"When I left the company, I heard Yamada arranging a car. Matsui was hosting a dinner for several Japanese businessmen at the Sakura Izakaya that night. Yamada was going with them."

"Okay." Lu Minghui glanced at his watch. "Ten o'clock tonight. Go back to your place and don't go out. I'll take care of the rest."

"I'll cooperate with you." Gu Yunqiu stepped forward.

"Your mission is to stay home and create an alibi." Lu Minghui opened the door. "If I don't return, you immediately evacuate Shanghai. Take the intelligence out and have the organization send someone else."

The door closed. Lu Minghui's figure disappeared into the night.

10:15 PM.

Hongkou, Sakura Izakaya.

The rain started again, pattering softly on the stone pavement. Two red paper lanterns hung at the entrance of the izakaya, swaying in the wind and rain.

A black sedan was parked in the shadows at the alleyway across the street.

Lu Minghui sat in the driver's seat, the window rolled down a crack. Rain splashed on his face, feeling cool.

The passenger door opened, and the kite slipped inside, bringing with it a mist of water.

He was wearing a black raincoat and carrying a long, rectangular canvas bag.

"The target is in a private room on the second floor." Lu Minghui didn't turn his head, his gaze fixed on the main entrance of the izakaya. "The four businessmen have already left. Now only Matsui and Yamada are inside. There are two bodyguards at the door."

Paper Kite unzipped the canvas bag and took out a Browning pistol with a silencer.

"I'll come in through the back door." Paper Kite shoved the gun into his raincoat pocket. "Two minutes."

"Yamada is a very accurate shot. Matsui always carries a knife," Lu Minghui warned. "Be careful of his steel needles."

Paper Kite didn't reply, but pushed open the car door and got out.

The black figure hugged the wall and turned into the back alley.

Lu Minghui leaned back in his chair. His right hand reached down to his lower back and gripped the handle of Colt's gun.

Raindrops pelted the car roof, densely packed.

The second floor of the izakaya.

Business was slow on this rainy night; most of the lights on the first floor were off. Only one dishwasher was left in the kitchen cleaning up the mess.

Matsui sat cross-legged on the tatami mat, with cups and plates scattered on the low table in front of him.

He was not drunk.

"President," Yamada said, kneeling opposite him, "there's still no word from Gu Yunqiu's side."

"She doesn't dare to move." Matsui picked up his teacup. "Lu Minghui is a smart man. When he saw that list, he knew he had touched something he shouldn't have. He's weighing his options."

Matsui took a sip of tea.

"Send someone to the French Concession to bring Gu Yunqiu back first thing tomorrow morning." Matsui put down his teacup. "If Lu Minghui dares to stop him, hand that list over to the Mei Agency. Nakajima can't protect him."

"Hi!" Yamada said, bowing his head.

Soft footsteps echoed down the corridor.

Yamada's ears twitched. He stood up and reached for the Nambu Type 14 pistol at his waist with his right hand.

"Who is it?" Yamada shouted at the paper door.

no answer.

puff.

A small hole appeared on the paper door.

A burst of blood erupted from between Yamada's eyebrows. His body stiffened for a moment before crashing heavily onto the tatami mat.

Matsui reacted extremely quickly. The instant Yamada fell, he rolled to the side and grabbed the katana from the sword rack.

The paper door was kicked open.

Paper Hawk, wearing a black raincoat, stood in the doorway, gripping a Browning pistol with a silencer in both hands. The muzzle was held level.

Matsui drew his sword, a flash of cold light, and lunged forward.

He didn't shout; his actions were ruthless and decisive.

The paper kite pulled the trigger.

The bullet struck Matsui's right shoulder. Matsui groaned and froze for a moment.

Two shots in quick succession. One hit the chest, the other right between the eyebrows.

Matsui's body fell backward, and his katana clattered to the ground.

Paper Hawk went inside and glanced at the two corpses on the ground. He bent down and rummaged through Matsui's inner pocket, took out a brown paper envelope and half a note with writing on it, and put them into his raincoat pocket.

He turned and walked out of the private room.

At the top of the stairs, two bodyguards heard the commotion and were drawing their guns and rushing up.

The paper kite stood atop the stairs, looking down from above.

The first shot caused the bodyguard in front to clutch his neck and fall. The one behind reacted quickly, dodging behind the handrail and firing a Type 14 Nambu towards the stairwell. The bullet embedded itself in a wooden pillar.

The kite didn't change position. The muzzle was pressed down two inches.

puff.

The bullet slipped through a gap in the handrail and pierced the bodyguard's temple. The two bodies, piled on top of each other, rolled down the last few steps.

The kite put away its gun, climbed out of the back window, and disappeared into the rainy night.

Across the street.

Lu Minghui watched the kite's figure disappear from the alley, then opened the car door and sat in the passenger seat.

"Done." Paper Hawk took off his raincoat and tossed it onto the back seat. He pulled a manila envelope and a notepad from his pocket and threw them on the dashboard. "He has these on him."

Lu Minghui glanced at it but didn't open it.

Depress the clutch, shift gears, and release the handbrake. Rest your left hand on your lap, grip the steering wheel with your right hand, and turn out of the alley.

The carriage was quiet. The only sound was the rubber friction of the windshield wipers scraping against the glass.

"With Matsui dead, the Southeast Trading Company is leaderless." Paper Hawk took out a cigarette case from his pocket, lit one, and said, "Nakajima and Sakata will definitely investigate."

"Let them investigate." Lu Minghui looked at the road ahead. "Matsui is a member of the Black Dragon Society, and he has made quite a few enemies. He also controls the drug smuggling channels, so it's only natural that he would be targeted by double agents."

Paper Kite exhaled a smoke ring and turned its head to look at Lu Minghui.

"You always say that killing isn't the goal, so why did you suddenly pull out a gun today?"

Lu Minghui shifted gears, his eyes fixed on the road ahead through the rain. "There are always exceptions."

Paper Kite took another puff of his cigarette but didn't reply.

The car drove into the French Concession.

Lu Minghui parked his car at an intersection.

"Get out of the car," Lu Minghui said. "Stay hidden for the next few days and don't show your face."

Paper Kite pushed open the door and got off the bus.

Lu Minghui drove back to the street where the safe house was located alone.

Instead of driving directly downstairs, he parked his car in the next block and walked back.

The rain intensified.

Lu Minghui pushed open the door to the safe house.

The lights were off inside.

Gu Yunqiu sat on the sofa, watching him walk in by the light from the streetlamp streaming in through the window. She had changed into dark clothes, and her hair was slightly damp. The apartment doorman's record showed that she returned to her room at nine o'clock, the light was on for twenty minutes, and then turned off.

Lu Minghui took off his soaking wet suit jacket and hung it behind the door.

"It's solved." Lu Minghui walked to the table, poured a glass of cold water, and drank it all in one gulp.

Gu Yunqiu stood up.

"Matsui and Yamada?"

"Hmm." Lu Minghui put down his water glass.

Gu Yunqiu's shoulders slumped for a moment, then straightened up again.

"Go to work as usual tomorrow." Lu Minghui turned to look at her. "When you get to Southeast Trading Company, if you find Matsui isn't there, just do your accounting. If the police or military police come to question you, just say you don't know anything. You're just an accountant."

"Understood." Gu Yunqiu nodded.

Lu Minghui took a step closer. "When questioned, be firm. Play the role of a secretary who's paid to do things well."

Gu Yunqiu looked at Lu Minghui.

"Comrade Rouge," she said.

Lu Minghui didn't respond, waiting for her to continue.

"Thanks."

Lu Minghui picked up the cigarette case on the table, took out an "Old Knife" brand cigarette, struck a match, and lit the cigarette.

"Get some rest." He exhaled a puff of smoke, turned, and walked towards the door.

Gu Yunqiu gazed at Lu Minghui's departing figure, "You are more like a chivalrous knight, I—am more like Rouge."

Lu Minghui's figure disappeared into the rain without pausing or replying.

The following morning.

Hongkou, Southeast Trading Company.

The gate was sealed off by Japanese military police. Police tape stretched across half the street.

Gu Yunqiu, carrying her briefcase, walked outside the police cordon.

Expressionless.

"What's going on?" Gu Yunqiu asked a waiter next to her.

"Miss Gu, something terrible has happened!" The waiter's face turned ashen. "President Matsui and Mr. Yamada were murdered last night at an izakaya!"

"Killed?"

A military police officer walked over and stared at her sharply.

"Who are you?"

"I am Gu Yunqiu, the confidential secretary of No. 76." Gu Yunqiu's voice trembled. "Commander Lu sent me to audit the company's accounts."

"Take her in." The officer waved his hand and reached out to grab her shoulder.

Gu Yunqiu took half a step back.

The timidity on his face vanished instantly.

"presumptuous."

She took two identification documents out of her briefcase and patted them on the officer's chest.

The officer opened the first book.

Gu Yunqiu, Special Commissioner of the Special Higher Police Section, Kwantung Government Police Department, South Manchuria Railway Bureau Investigation Department.

The officer's hand trembled slightly as he opened the second book.

Gu Yunqiu, a senior member of the Special Operations Team for Project Shan.