Hidden Radiance

76 Jessfield Road.

The night wind, carrying the damp chill of the rain, swept through the withered leaves in the yard.

Lin Zhijiang stood on the steps of the courtyard, shouting for the guards to assemble. The gauze on his nose was tinged with yellow from sweat.

A black Ford sedan drove into the yard and came to a steady stop at the bottom of the steps.

The car door opened, and Sun Yaozu stepped out. He was wearing a black trench coat, and he closed the car door behind him, his gaze sweeping over the more than twenty secret agents gathered in the courtyard.

"Deputy Captain Lin," Sun Yaozu said, walking up the steps, "making such a big fuss in the middle of the night, are you going to ransack a house?"

Lin Zhijiang's hand, which was gesturing to people, froze in mid-air.

Sun Yaozu is Lu Minghui's driver and also the captain of the Special Operations Team of the Confidential Bureau. Lu Minghui now takes over the Southeast Trading Company, wielding considerable power, and even Advisor Nakajima has to rely on him. Naturally, Sun Yaozu's position within the 76th Division has risen accordingly.

Lin Zhijiang glanced at his men behind him, waved for them to stay put, and then approached Sun Yaozu.

"Captain Sun." Lin Zhijiang took out a cigarette case and handed him one. "No way. Director Li just assigned this task."

Sun Yaozu did not accept the cigarette.

Lin Zhijiang wasn't embarrassed. He tucked the cigarette behind his ear and lowered his voice.

He glanced at the window of Lu Minghui's office on the second floor. The light was on.

He had just knelt on the office floor to acknowledge his new master. If Lu Minghui found out he was now running this confidential errand for Li Shiqun—

But it is precisely because Lu Minghui will find out that he wants Lu Minghui to know.

"Director Li said there was a problem with the serialized 'Legend of the White Snake' in the Shenbao supplement. The plot jumped too fast, and he suspected it was a coded message sent by the Military Intelligence Bureau. He ordered me to take men to raid the newspaper's typesetting room and check the original manuscript."

Sun Yaozu's eyes remained completely expressionless.

"Investigate the newspaper office?" Sun Yaozu asked calmly. "That's the concession area, a place where intellectuals congregate. Deputy Captain Lin is leading so many armed men to force their way in; aren't they afraid of causing an international incident?"

"What can I do if it's Director Li's order?" Lin Zhijiang said with a wry smile.

"Wait a minute." Sun Yaozu patted Lin Zhijiang on the shoulder. "This matter involves public opinion. I'll go up and report to Director Lu. Otherwise, if reporters from major newspapers block the door tomorrow, the director won't be prepared."

"Yes, yes, Captain Sun is right." Lin Zhijiang nodded repeatedly. "I'll wait for you here."

Sun Yaozu turned and walked into the office building, quickly going up to the second floor.

Confidential Office.

Lu Minghui sat behind the table, with the copy of "Shenbao" spread out in front of him.

A circle was drawn on the four characters "Leifeng Pagoda collapsed" using red and blue pencils.

A knock sounded on the door, two short knocks followed by one long one.

"Enter."

Sun Yaozu pushed open the door and locked it behind him. He walked to the table and repeated Lin Zhijiang's words verbatim.

After listening, Lu Minghui threw the red and blue pencils on the table.

He didn't speak.

Lu Xuzhang should have already made arrangements. Li Shiqun, that old fox, sensed something from the serialized pace of the newspaper supplement. His intuition hadn't been dulled by the two weeks in the Nanjing dungeon.

But the warning was issued early.

"Director, should I try to stop Lin Zhijiang?" Sun Yaozu asked. "What if the newspaper has something to do with him..."

"No need to stop him." Lu Minghui stood up, walked to the window, and looked at Lin Zhijiang standing in the courtyard downstairs. "Since Li Shiqun thinks the newspaper is suspicious, let him investigate."

He turned around.

"Take your team and go with Lin Zhijiang. Ostensibly, it's to cooperate with the operation. Tell Lin Zhijiang that the newspaper is involved in public opinion, so be gentle with your approach. Don't use force; just conduct routine questioning."

"Understood." Sun Yaozu nodded.

"And one more thing," Lu Minghui paused, "During the search, have your men go first. Whatever is found at the scene, it goes through your hands first."

Sun Yaozu glanced at Lu Minghui but did not ask any further questions.

"Yes."

Lu Minghui watched Sun Yaozu walk out.

The team of over thirty men, except for Sun Yaozu, were all elite guerrilla fighters.

None of them are original #76 products.

Late at night. The office of the *Shen Bao* newspaper in the French Concession.

The door was kicked open.

Lin Zhijiang led his men into the typesetting room. A strong smell of ink hit them.

The typesetting racks stood neatly against the wall. Several scraps of newspaper were scattered on the typesetting table.

No one is empty.

Lin Zhijiang strode to the typesetting table and reached out to touch the enamel mug on the table.

It's completely cold.

There was a layer of tea residue, about half a finger's width deep, at the bottom of the jar; the tea color had already darkened.

The three drawers of the typesetting table were tightly closed. Lin Zhijiang opened them one by one.

It was empty. Clean and tidy, not even a scrap of paper was left.

The coat hook in the corner was bare, with only a rusty iron hook remaining.

They walked with ease, not like they were running away.

Lin Zhijiang clenched his fists.

"Damn it, nothing!" He drew his sidearm. "Search! Get the editor-in-chief out here!"

"Wait a minute."

Sun Yaozu led his team in and blocked Lin Zhijiang's way.

"Deputy Captain Lin, Director Lu instructed us to be mindful of the consequences," Sun Yaozu said coldly. "Arrest the editor-in-chief? Do you have any evidence that the editor-in-chief is colluding with the bandits or has secret dealings with Chongqing?"

Lin Zhijiang looked at Sun Yaozu.

"If tomorrow's newspapers report that the 76th Division broke into the newspaper office and kidnapped the editor-in-chief, who will take the blame, you or Director Li?"

Lin Zhijiang looked at the more than thirty expressionless action team members behind Sun Yaozu, who were holding submachine guns.

He swallowed.

"So... we're just going to leave it at that?" Lin Zhijiang pointed to the empty drawer on the typesetting table. "Even though the person has run away, there are always clues!"

"Search the scene and take a statement," Sun Yaozu waved his hand.

The team members immediately dispersed.

The movements, though seemingly rough, were actually swift and orderly. In the darkest corner behind the typesetting table, two team members crouched down and rummaged through the materials. A few scraps of torn lead plates, two wads of ink-stained test prints—all the usual waste from the typesetting room. No writing, no draft. They'd gone even more cleanly than expected.

Lin Zhijiang's attention was entirely focused on the typesetting table drawer, so he didn't see it clearly.

The search ended ten minutes later.

"Captain Sun, there's nothing here," a team member reported to the leader.

Lin Zhijiang's face was grim.

This job was a complete disaster.

The following morning.

Hongkou, Meiji.

The sky was overcast and heavy with clouds pressing down on the rooftops.

Consultant's Office.

boom!

Shinichi Nakajima grabbed a celadon teacup from the table and smashed it hard at Li Shiqun's feet.

Tea mixed with shards of porcelain splashed all over Li Shiqun's trouser leg.

Li Shiqun stood at the edge of the carpet, head down, barely daring to breathe.

"Idiot!" Nakajima slammed his hands on the desk. "Who gave you permission to investigate the newspaper office? Who gave you the right to act on your own!"

"Section Chief, please calm down." Li Shiqun's voice trembled. "I noticed something unusual about that serialized article and determined it was a code from the Military Intelligence Bureau. I was trying to catch Paper Kite for the Empire..."

"What did you find?" Nakajima interrupted him sharply. "The place is deserted!"

Nakajima walked around the desk and stood in front of Li Shiqun.

"You think you're the only smart one?" Nakajima lowered his voice and threw a stack of newspapers at Li Shiqun's face. "My men have been watching the anomalies in the Shenbao supplement for a while now. They're preparing to follow the trail and uproot the Military Intelligence Bureau's liaison stations."

"And what was the result? You sent Lin Zhijiang to storm the newspaper office with a huge commotion! You didn't catch any fish, and you scared away the bait! Li Shiqun, do you think the situation in Shanghai isn't chaotic enough already?!"

Li Shiqun broke out in a cold sweat.

Is Nakajima also keeping an eye on it?

He had no idea about the news. All he knew was that he had messed up, and that he had smashed Nakajima's plate.

"Your subordinate deserves to die! Your subordinate was unaware that the section chief had already made arrangements!" Li Shiqun's legs went weak, and he almost knelt down.

Nakajima walked back to his desk and sat down.

"Li Shiqun, you have disappointed me greatly." Nakajima's tone turned cold. "Regarding Chengda Company, you tolerated your subordinates' misbehavior, which greatly angered Colonel Sakata. Now, you have disrupted the plans again regarding the newspaper office."

Li Shiqun stood still.

The muscles in my neck are tense.

"However," Nakajima changed the subject, "considering your past contributions to the Empire, I'll give you one last chance."

Li Shiqun suddenly raised his head.

"Ten days." Nakajima held up one finger. "Within ten days, find me clues about the kite. Whether it's catching his people or destroying his communication stations. If you can't do it, settle all the old and new scores together."

"Your subordinate will be shattered to pieces!" Li Shiqun bowed ninety degrees.

"roll."

Li Shiqun left the office and closed the door.

In the corridor, he leaned against the wall and let out a long breath.

The back of the shirt was completely soaked.

Ten days.

Looking for kites.

All leads have gone cold.

Chen Zheng's side is in a dead end, and the newspaper's connection has also been cut off.

What can he use to find it?

Li Shiqun walked downstairs in a daze.

Outside the gate of the Mei Agency.

Lu Minghui's Ford sedan slowly drove in.

The car window was lowered halfway.

Lu Minghui sat in the back seat, watching Li Shiqun shrink his neck as he walked down the steps, his steps faltering, and got into his car.

Lu Minghui withdrew his gaze.

Ten days. Nakajima had pushed him to this point, and Li Shiqun had no way out.

He'll start biting like crazy next.

"Director," Sun Yaozu in the front row turned his head, "Director Li doesn't look too good."

"Whether he looks well or not is none of our business." Lu Minghui pulled his hand back from his inner pocket, his fingertips still tinged with the feel of the counterfeit banknote—the paper was three times stronger than the domestically produced kind. "Go to Southeast Trading Company. We should have found something out about Commissioner Gu's accounts."

Just as the car was about to start, it was stopped by Nakajima's adjutant.