Hidden Radiance

Chengda Company, third-floor office.

The rain outside the window has stopped, leaving streaks of murky water on the glass.

Gu Yunqiu slammed a personnel transfer order on the table.

"Mao Sen will take over as Director of the Telecommunications Department and Deputy Head of the Special Operations Group." Gu Yunqiu rested his hands on the edge of the table, looking at Lu Minghui sitting in the chair. "Nakajima's appointment was made too quickly. Paper Hawk and Mao Sen, one a man of Wang Puchen, the other a man of Dai Li. Whoever it is, once they become suspicious of you, you will be doomed."

Lu Minghui picked up the transfer order, glanced at it, and casually tossed it into the drawer.

"Mao Feng, Nakajima doesn't trust him, and Ding Mocun is wary of him." Lu Minghui picked up his teacup. "He wants to gain a foothold in No. 76, and every pledge of allegiance has been made through my hands. Without me, he can't sit still in that chair."

Gu Yunqiu straightened up.

"Where's the kite?"

Lu Minghui put down his teacup. He did not answer immediately.

He opened the drawer, took out a file, and pushed it in front of Gu Yunqiu.

The cover of the file has two words written on it: Peng Shou.

"Deputy Chief of the Military Intelligence Bureau's Shanghai Station." Lu Minghui tapped his fingers twice on the file. "This is Wang Yixin's pledge of allegiance to Mao Sen. Tomorrow morning at ten o'clock, meet at the Grand Cinema. Mao Sen will lead the team to arrest him."

Gu Yunqiu opened the file and glanced at Peng Shou's resume.

He had assassinated a Japanese major general, bombed a military train, and carried a bounty on his head from the Japanese and their collaborators.

"This is genuine resistance against Japan." Gu Yunqiu closed the file. "Dai Li was even willing to sacrifice someone like Mao Sen to rise to power?"

"In the eyes of the party and the state's top brass, human life is just a bargaining chip. Peng Shou is indeed a meritorious official, but he is not as valuable as Mao Sen." Lu Minghui leaned back in his chair.

Gu Yunqiu looked into Lu Minghui's eyes.

"You're a bargaining chip too." Gu Yunqiu's voice lowered by half an inch. "You should know better than anyone what it feels like to be used as a bargaining chip."

Lu Minghui stood up and walked to the window.

no answer.

At the same time. Hongkou, Meiji Government Office.

The lights were off in the consultant's office.

Shinichi Nakajima stood by the window, holding Li Kaifeng's confession in his hand.

The ink exploded on the first night Lu Minghui took over the warehouse. Li Kaifeng's driver, the detonator, the confession—every piece of the puzzle that Lu Minghui handed over fit perfectly.

It's too clean.

It was so clean that he couldn't tell what was wrong with it.

The relationship between Lu Minghui and the Naval Club remains shrouded in mystery. What exactly was Inoue Muneo exchanging for by readily relinquishing 70% of his profits?

Nakajima folded up the confession and stuffed it into his pocket.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in." Nakajima turned around.

Sun Yaozu pushed open the door and came in, his face beaming with smiles, bowing and scraping.

"Section Chief, you wanted to see me?" Sun Yaozu stood at attention.

Nakajima walked to his desk, opened a drawer, took out a gold bar, and placed it on the side of the desk closest to him.

Sun Yaozu's gaze fell on the gold bars, then looked away.

"Captain Sun." Nakajima sat down in the leather chair, his fingers resting on the gold bars, but he didn't push them away. "You've done a good job in the Special Operations Team. Director Lu thinks highly of you."

"It's all thanks to the guidance of the section chief and the department head," Sun Yaozu said with a forced smile.

"What has Lu Minghui been up to lately?" Nakajima asked casually.

Sun Yaozu's heart skipped a beat.

He was a seasoned veteran, having been in the 76th Division for so many years, how could he not hear the murderous intent in those words?

"The director has been busy with the resumption of work at Chengda Company and the handover of the position to Director Mao Sen recently," Sun Yaozu replied in a standard manner.

"Has he met anyone unusual in private?" Nakajima stared into Sun Yaozu's eyes. "For example, people from the naval club?"

Sun Yaozu broke out in a cold sweat.

His mind worked incredibly fast. Number 76 had changed hands three times. Those who opposed Lu Minghui died faster than the last. Those who followed him raked in money hand over fist.

This is not a difficult calculation.

"Reporting, Section Chief." Sun Yaozu straightened his back. "The Director's life revolves around nothing but the company and the 76th Division. He's never seen anyone from the Navy. Last night, the Director and I were on guard across the street the whole time, without even closing our eyes."

Nakajima looked at Sun Yaozu without saying a word.

The gold bars on the table gleamed coldly.

Nakajima removed his finger from the gold bar and pushed it forward.

"Take this," Nakajima said. "From now on, Lu Minghui's every move—who he meets, where he goes—must be reported directly to me. Understand?"

Sun Yaozu picked up the gold bars with both hands and put them in his pocket.

"Don't worry, Section Chief! I'll keep a close eye on Director Lu!" Sun Yaozu said confidently.

Nakajima waved.

Sun Yaozu left.

"etc."

As they approached the door, Nakajima called him back again. His gaze lingered on Sun Yaozu's face for a moment longer before tossing him another gold bar.

After leaving the Meiji government office, Sun Yaozu got into his official car.

He touched the gold bars in his pocket, started the car, turned the steering wheel, and headed straight for Jessfield Road.

The gold bars have to be handed over. Whatever Nakajima said, they have to be handed over.

Night falls.

French Concession, Avenue Joffre.

Wearing a raincoat, the paper kite entered an inconspicuous pawnshop. It passed through the front hall and entered the safe house in the backyard.

The telegraph machine was placed on the table.

Paper kite had just received a secret telegram from Chongqing.

The telegram was sent personally by Wang Puchen.

"Tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM, at the Grand Cinema. Peng will make contact. Instruct Mao Sen to lead the arrest. This is a pledge of loyalty, and there must be no mistakes. Zhi Yuan will assist from the side, but do not interfere."

The paper kite stared at the words on the translation paper.

Peng Shou. Six months ago, Peng Shou led a team to destroy a Japanese military train. He was seriously wounded and risked his life to carry it out of the blockade zone. He traded one of his legs for his life.

He crumpled the paper into a ball, stuffed it into his pocket, grabbed the raincoat from the table, and pushed open the door to walk into the rainy night.

Nine o'clock in the evening.

There was a knock on Lu Minghui's apartment door.

Two short and one long.

Lu Minghui opened the door.

Paper Kite stood outside the door, rainwater streaming down the hem of his raincoat. He didn't go inside, but stood in the shadows of the corridor.

"A telegram from Chongqing," Paper Kite's voice was hoarse.

Lu Minghui stepped aside to let him in.

The kite entered the living room and took off its raincoat.

"Tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM, at the Grand Cinema. Arrest Peng Shou." Paper Kite looked at Lu Minghui. "This is Boss Dai's death order."

Lu Minghui walked to the sofa and sat down, pointing to the seat opposite him.

The kite didn't sit.

"Station Chief," Paper Hawk changed his form of address, using a military intelligence rank, "Peng Shou cannot die."

"He was the sacrifice chosen by Wang Yixin." Lu Minghui's tone was flat. "Mao Sen needs this credit to establish himself at No. 76. This is the bigger picture."

"The bigger picture?" Paper Kite's voice rose a few decibels. "Giving away the real fighters to the Japanese, and you call that the bigger picture? Li Kaifeng betrayed the radio station, and you called him a traitor who deserved to die. Now Boss Dai is betraying Peng Shou, and what does that say?"

Lu Minghui looked at him.

The kite's eyes were red, and its hands were clenched tightly at its sides.

"Politics," Lu Minghui said. "You've been in this circle for so long, I don't need to teach you this."

"I understand the logic!" Paper Kite gritted his teeth. "But Peng Shou killed three Japanese officers and blew up a military train. He has seven bullet holes in his body. If he died on the battlefield, I would respect him. But he cannot die because of his own people's schemes!"

Lu Minghui stood up and walked to the wine cabinet.

I poured two glasses of whiskey, brought them back, and placed one on the coffee table in front of the kite.

The kite wasn't touched.

Lu Minghui took a sip of his own glass.

He looked at the young man in front of him.

"Peng Shou must be arrested." Lu Minghui put down his wine glass. "But—I can guarantee he won't die."

The kite's shoulder dropped half an inch.

"Don't thank me." Lu Minghui leaned back on the sofa. "If Peng Shou runs away, Mao Sen's pledge of allegiance will be ruined. Nakajima will immediately turn against you. You—don't get involved."

The paper kite's lips moved slightly, as if it was about to speak.

The phone on the table rang.

Lu Minghui answered the call.

"Chief," Sun Yaozu's voice came through the receiver, low and menacing, "I just came out of the Mei Agency. Nakajima gave me two gold bars and told me to keep a close eye on you."

"What did you reply?" Lu Minghui asked.

"Of course I'd agree without hesitation," Sun Yaozu chuckled dryly. "Chief, I'll keep the gold bars for you. What are your orders for the job at the Grand Cinema tomorrow? What should I and my men do?"

Lu Minghui looked out the window at the night scene.

"Tomorrow, you and your men will guard the front entrance of the movie theater," Lu Minghui said. "No matter what happens inside, without my orders, not even a fly is allowed to get in or out."

"clear!"

hang up the phone.

Paper Hawk stood still. He had heard the entire conversation. Lu Minghui was receiving orders from the enemy right in front of him, his tone exactly the same as when he had spoken to him earlier.

Lu Minghui walked to the window.

He had the cigarette in his mouth but didn't light it.

His profile was reflected in the glass, along with the silhouette of Paper Kite clenching its fist in the living room behind him.