Hidden Radiance

Chapter 90 Borrowing a Knife

Chengda Company, third-floor office.

Lu Minghui leaned back in his chair.

Screening Chinese employees. Nakajima's move was both to investigate the mole behind the stolen steel molds and to test his attitude towards special materials.

Song Qingyuan cannot hand over the bonds. If he does, the lifeline of the Central Reserve Bank bonds will be severed. If he doesn't, Nakajima's suspicions will remain.

There was a knock on the door. Sun Yaozu pushed the door open and came in.

"Chief," Sun Yaozu walked to the table, "Colonel Sakata sent someone with an invitation."

A gold-embossed invitation card sits on the table.

Naval Club. Tonight at 8 PM.

Lu Minghui didn't touch the invitation.

Sakata was just kicked out of Chengda, and he immediately came to treat everyone to a meal. He has ulterior motives.

"Send them away," Lu Minghui said.

Sun Yaozu nodded, turned around and went out.

Lu Minghui picked up the phone on the table and dialed.

"Mei Agency, Nakajima Advisor's Office."

"This is Lu Minghui. I'm looking for the section chief."

Line switching.

"Minghui," came Nakajima's voice.

"Section Chief," Lu Minghui said respectfully, "Colonel Sakata just sent an invitation to meet me at the Naval Club tonight."

There was no immediate response on the other end of the phone.

"What do you think?" Nakajima asked.

"Sakata just retired, and he's contacting me now for one of two reasons: either revenge or to win me over," Lu Minghui said. "He won't swallow this insult from Chengda Company so easily. I'll follow the section chief's instructions. To go or not to go?"

Nakajima smiled.

"Go," Nakajima said. "Sakata has high-ranking military officials backing him. Chengda Company has deep roots. Go see him, find out what he's up to, and see what he's really up to."

"clear."

Lu Minghui hung up the phone.

He picked up the invitation from the table and tossed it into the drawer.

Night. Naval Club.

This place doesn't accept outsiders. Fully armed Marines stand guard at the entrance.

Lu Minghui stepped out of the Ford sedan. He showed his invitation and was led to a Japanese-style private room on the second floor.

Push open the sliding door.

There were no geisha or music in the private room.

Sakata, dressed in a loose kimono, sat cross-legged behind a low table. On the table were a pot of sake and two porcelain cups.

His face lacked its usual irritable and easily angered expression. His eyes were reserved.

"Mr. Minghui, please sit down." Sakata raised his hand.

Lu Minghui took off his shoes, walked over, and sat down cross-legged on the opposite side.

Sakata picked up the sake bottle, poured a cup for Lu Minghui, and then filled his own cup.

"You created that fake ledger containing two million dollars."

Sakata put down the sake jug and got straight to the point.

Lu Minghui did not touch his wine glass.

"The deficit is real. Matsui's embezzlement of funds is real." Sakata looked at him, "but the accounts are fake. You've flawlessly pinned Matsui's messy accounts on me. You deserve a lot of credit for forcing me out of Chengda."

Lu Minghui met Sakata's gaze.

"If the colonel invited me here tonight to settle this score," Lu Minghui's voice was as flat as a sheet of paper, "it would be easier to just draw your gun. This is a naval club; if you kill me, no one will dare to interfere."

Sakata picked up his glass and took a sip.

lol.

Laughter echoed in the empty private room.

"Mr. Minghui has guts." Sakata put down his wine glass. "Kill you? That would be a waste. I invited you here, of course, not for personal revenge."

He leaned forward.

"Nakajima is entrusting Chengda Company to you. I hope you will manage it well." Sakata stared at Lu Minghui.

"I am loyal to the empire," Lu Minghui said. "Naturally, I will do my best to manage it."

"No," Sakata shook his head, "it's to help me manage it."

See the picture poorly.

Lu Minghui looked at the wine glass on the table.

"Colonel, you overestimate me," Lu Minghui said. "I'm just an ordinary Chinese man. I was able to establish myself in Shanghai entirely thanks to Mr. Nakajima's help. At the Japanese Military Academy, Mr. Nakajima was my senior and also my roommate. He was kind to me and we were classmates."

Lu Minghui raised his head and looked directly at Sakata.

"Nakajima is inherently suspicious, ruthless, and ambitious," Sakata sneered. "He handed Chengda over to you merely as a shield. He could never truly trust a Chinese person. You're working for him, and sooner or later you'll be used as a pawn."

"As long as I have a clear conscience, I have lived up to this kindness." Lu Minghui's voice turned cold. "If the colonel wants revenge, he can do it now. If he wants to win me over and make me betray Nakajima-kun, that's impossible."

Lu Minghui stood up.

Goodbye.

He turned and walked toward the sliding door.

"Minghui-kun," Sakata said without getting up, "the road ahead is long. Don't speak too definitively."

Lu Minghui opened the door and went out.

Sakata stood up and followed him out.

In the corridor, Sakata escorted Lu Minghui all the way to the stairwell. His attitude was unusually polite.

Lu Minghui walked down the stairs and left the club.

Sakata turned and walked back to the private room.

Close the door.

The screen inside the private room was pushed open.

A middle-aged man dressed in the uniform of a Japanese colonel stepped out. He was slightly stout, with a dark complexion and sharp eyes.

Muneo Inoue.

"Colonel Inoue." Sakata bowed in greeting.

Muneo Inoue walked to the low table and sat down cross-legged.

"Lu Minghui doesn't know what's good for him." Sakata gritted his teeth. "He's Nakajima's die-hard loyalist; we can't win him over. Keeping him around is a disaster; we'd better find an opportunity to get rid of him."

Muneo Inoue picked up the sake bottle on the table and poured himself a glass.

"Get rid of him? You're being too impulsive." Inoue Muneo took a sip of his drink. "You didn't see his value."

Sakata frowned.

"He killed Li Shiqun with the back of his hand, and as the head of the confidential office, he effectively controlled No. 76." Inoue Muneo put down his wine glass. "Ruthless and meticulous. This kind of person is far more useful than Li Shiqun."

Looking at Sakata.

"As for his loyalty to Nakajima," Inoue Muneo smiled, "that's not a flaw. It's his greatest strength."

Sakata didn't respond.

"If we can win over a capable and absolutely loyal person, we can not only regain control of Project Sugi, but also take control of 76." Inoue Muneo's fingers tapped on the table. "The key is that he has principles and won't betray us easily."

"But he rejected me very firmly just now."

"Since we can't get to him, let's try to find a way through Nakajima." Inoue Muneo's gaze fell on his wine glass. "Nakajima is suspicious. Even the strongest loyalty can't withstand repeated distrust. We should help Nakajima by becoming more suspicious ourselves."

Late at night. Hongkou, Meiji Government Office.

The light in the consultant's office was still on.

Lu Minghui stood in front of his desk and reported the confrontation at the Navy Club word for word.

Inoue Muneo's presence was concealed. He didn't see it, but he guessed that someone was behind the screen.

Nakajima leaned back in his leather chair and listened to the report.

"He asked you to help him manage Chengda?" Nakajima asked.

"Yes," Lu Minghui said. "He tried to sow discord, saying that the section chief was suspicious and would eventually abandon me."

"What did you reply?"

"I considered our past friendship as classmates and the kindness shown to me by the section chief, and firmly refused," Lu Minghui said, bowing his head. "We parted on bad terms."

Nakajima looked at Lu Minghui.

The tapping of fingers on the table paused for a moment.

"Minghui." Nakajima stood up, walked around the desk, and stood in front of him. "You're very honest. That's good."

Nakajima patted Lu Minghui on the shoulder.

"But the waters at Chengda Company run deeper than you imagine." Nakajima withdrew his hand, turned, and walked to the window. "Although Sakata has retired, the military forces behind him remain. Many of Chengda's supply channels and black market connections are in their hands. Without their support, you, as the general manager, are just an empty shell. Many things can't be accomplished."

Lu Minghui stood still.

"What does the section chief mean?"

"Your refusal was too abrupt." Nakajima turned around. "You're now in a dilemma. Your subordinates won't listen to you, and Sakata is watching you from above."

"I only obey the orders of the section chief. Anyone who disobeys will be replaced," Lu Minghui said firmly.

"It's endless." Nakajima shook his head.

He walked to the coffee table and poured two cups of tea. He handed one to Lu Minghui.

"The dumbest way to deal with this kind of person is to confront him head-on." Nakajima held his teacup, looking at Lu Minghui. "Minghui, you need to learn how to 'use' him."

Lu Minghui's hand, holding the teacup, froze in mid-air.

It paused for two seconds.

He raised his head.

"The section chief wants me to... feign allegiance?"

"Yes." Nakajima nodded. "Go find Sakata and tell him you've thought it over. Chengda is having financial difficulties and you need his support. On the surface, you'll pledge allegiance to him and work for him. But secretly, find out everything about the military's contacts, networks, and fund flows within Chengda. Then report back to me."

Lu Minghui looked at the surface of the water in the teacup.

The ceiling lights were reflected in the water.

"Section Chief," Lu Minghui's voice tightened, "If I do this, what will the Special Higher Police think? Nanzo Yunko has been watching me closely. If she finds out that I'm secretly colluding with Sakata, I'll have no way to defend myself."

"I will protect you from Nanzo Yunko," Nakajima said firmly. "This is a top-secret mission. Only you and I know."

Lu Minghui remained silent for a few seconds. His Adam's apple bobbed.

"I see."

Lu Minghui tilted his head back and drank the tea in his cup in one gulp.

"I'll follow the instructions of the section chief."

"Go ahead. Be careful." Nakajima waved.

Lu Minghui left the office.

In the corridor, cold wind blew in through the cracks in the windows.

Lu Minghui walked down the stairs.

Nakajima needed a compliant tool to probe Sakata's intentions. And what he needed was precisely this oral decree.

With Nakajima's permission, he could openly contact Sakata, openly use Chengda's resources, and even use Sakata's help to fill the gaps in Song Qingyuan's screening process.

I got into the Ford sedan.

"Director." Sun Yaozu turned his head.

"Back to No. 76." Lu Minghui leaned back in his chair.

The car drove out of Meiji Station.

Lu Minghui closed his eyes.

Nakajima thought he was the one holding the chess pieces. Inoue Muneo also thought he was the one holding the chess pieces.

The chessboard has been laid out.

Next, we'll see whose piece falls off the board first.

Tomorrow, he has to give Sakata a gift as a token of his appreciation.

A gift that would convince Sakata that he was "desperate" and had no choice but to cooperate.

Song Qingyuan, your life is saved.

Not only will you save it, you'll also make a great contribution.