Tianjin, starting with unorthodox methods to achieve immortality

The rain was getting heavier and heavier. When Chen Mo led his men through the narrow alley on the east side of Haiguang Temple, the water was already above their ankles.

Liu Ruyan followed behind him, holding an umbrella in one hand and resting the other on the short sword at her waist, her face expressionless.

Fang Yingxia walked in the middle of the group, while Yu Qianmantang and Zhao Shouxin walked at the back, occasionally raising their hands to wipe their faces.

"arrive."

Chen Mo stopped and looked through the rain curtain at the street ahead, which was dimly lit by streetlights.

It was a narrow road with low brick houses and a few scattered shops on both sides.

At this time of day, there would usually be pedestrians on the street, and shop assistants would be standing at the door to greet customers.

But tonight, there wasn't a single pedestrian on the entire street; only the sound of rain hitting the tiles and the occasional barking of dogs in the distance.

Because at the other end of the street, someone was putting up barbed wire.

Chen Mo squinted, seeing it clearly.

A dozen or so Japanese soldiers, dressed in khaki uniforms, wearing helmets and carrying rifles, were driving stakes and laying nets in the middle of the street.

The barbed wire was wrapped around the wooden stakes, and it had already stretched out more than halfway, cutting the entire street in half.

On the other side of the net was the area already occupied by the Japanese.

At this end of the net, less than thirty meters of street remain under the jurisdiction of the coalition government.

But that thirty meters is still shrinking inch by inch.

Chen Mo took a deep breath and strode forward, the puddles under his feet making a splashing sound.

Liu Ruyan caught up and lowered her voice: "Director Zhou said we can't make the first move."

"I know."

He didn't stop, his gaze calmly fixed on the figures of the Japanese soldiers ahead. "I'm just going to take a look."

Fang Yingxia and Qian Mantang exchanged glances and quickly followed.

Their figures were quickly spotted by the Japanese soldiers behind the barbed wire.

A Japanese soldier with the rank of sergeant was the first to turn around. He was short and stocky, and the fleshy part of his face was shiny from the rain.

He glanced at the police uniforms worn by Chen Mo and the others, a contemptuous smile playing on his lips.

He said something to the people next to him, and several Japanese soldiers laughed.

Chen Mo stopped three steps away from the barbed wire fence.

"This is the territory under the jurisdiction of the coalition government. You have crossed the line by putting up barbed wire here."

The sergeant tilted his head and glanced at him as if he were looking at a rat that had crawled out of a sewer.

"This area is now part of the Japanese concession. You, step back."

"The concession area is 300 meters east of Haiguang Temple." Chen Mo pointed in the direction behind him. "This place is less than 100 meters from Haiguang Temple. When did it become your territory?"

The sergeant didn't answer, but simply gestured towards a Japanese soldier next to him.

The Japanese soldier immediately pulled a notice from his waist and slapped it onto the telephone pole next to the barbed wire fence.

The notice, written in both Japanese and Chinese, was soaked by rain as soon as it was posted. It essentially stated that the area had been designated as part of the Japanese concession, and unauthorized personnel were not allowed to enter; violators would be held responsible for any consequences.

Chen Mo glanced at the notice, his lips twitching slightly. "Your notices have no effect on the land of China."

His voice was calm, but there was a chill in his eyes.

The sergeant grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

He took two steps forward, looked Chen Mo up and down in his uniform, and suddenly reached out and poked his chest with his finger, once, twice, three times.

"You, the watchdogs of the Chinese."

He spoke each word slowly and deliberately, as if teasing a disobedient animal, "A dog should obey. This is our Japanese territory. You, go back."

Liu Ruyan gripped the knife hilt tightly.

Fang Yingxia's face turned bright red, and her lips trembled.

Qian Mantang and Zhao Shouxin clenched their fists so tightly they cracked, and rainwater streamed down their thick arms.

Chen Mo didn't look at the hand poking his chest. Instead, he raised his head and looked past the sergeant's shoulder at the Japanese soldiers behind the barbed wire.

There were a dozen or so of them, their rifles cocked at low aim, but the safety was off.

Further away, in the darkness of the street corner, there seemed to be several figures standing, dressed in black, motionless, like statues.

Those are practitioners.

They were probably Japanese Onmyoji or Ninjas.

Chen Mo withdrew his gaze, looked into the sergeant's eyes, and said softly, "Take your hand away."

The sergeant didn't remove it; instead, he poked it again with force.

This time, the needle struck his collarbone with greater force, carrying a clear sense of humiliation.

"What if you don't move it? Do you dare to lay a hand on it? You Chinese, go ahead and do it."

The Japanese soldiers next to him laughed again, their laughter sharp and piercing.

One of the younger Japanese soldiers even slung his rifle over his shoulder, crossed his arms, tilted his head to watch the spectacle, and mumbled a string of Japanese.

The sergeant laughed too. He turned around and said something to his companion, and the group laughed even harder.

Then he turned back, stretched out his hand in front of Chen Mo, thumb down, making a gesture that everyone could understand.

"Chinese people, no way."

The rain was pouring down, and Chen Mo's uniform was completely soaked, with rainwater running down his trouser legs.

Liu Ruyan's heart was in her throat; she was really afraid he would make a move right now.

After spending some time together, she had a general understanding of Chen Mo's personality.

He usually seems indifferent to everything, but his inner ferocity is hidden deeper than anyone else's.

Beneath that lazy exterior, who knows how many lives are buried?

Fang Yingxia was ready to take action, and reached for her waist.

Qian Mantang and Zhao Shouxin took half a step forward at the same time, protecting Chen Mo on both sides.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from behind.

"Stop! Stop it, all of you!"

Chen Mo's step, which was about to be taken, stopped in mid-air. He frowned and turned around.

A group of people arrived, led by a middle-aged man wearing a gray Zhongshan suit, gold-rimmed glasses, and slicked-back hair that remained perfectly styled even when rain poured on it.

He was followed by seven or eight police officers, dressed in black uniforms with pistols at their waists, each with an awkward expression, as if they were reluctant to be there.

The middle-aged man strode up to Chen Mo, looked him up and down, recognized his uniform, and his expression immediately turned anxious and angry.

"Which team are you from? Who sent you? Who gave you permission to clash with the Japanese?" he asked.

Chen Mo didn't answer his question, but instead asked, "Who are you?"

"I am a special liaison officer dispatched by the coalition government, and my surname is Wang."

The middle-aged man puffed out his chest, pulled out an ID from his pocket, waved it in front of Chen Mo, and then put it away, as if afraid of getting it wet in the rain. "I am under orders to handle this dispute in the concession with full authority. Your inspection bureau personnel must immediately withdraw from here and are not allowed to have any conflict with the Japanese side."

Chen Mo stared at him for two seconds.

"Evacuate?" He pointed to the street behind him, which was now blocked off by barbed wire. "They're about to take over this entire area, and you want me to evacuate?"

Special Envoy Wang wiped the rain from his face; his glasses were covered in water droplets, but he didn't bother to wipe them away. He simply said in a very fast voice, "This is an order from the coalition government, a decision from above. It's not something you can interfere with."

"You should withdraw now to avoid escalating the conflict. The higher-ups are still negotiating with the Japanese, and there's still room for maneuver. If you resort to violence, it will be a diplomatic incident, and who can bear that responsibility?"

"Negotiations?" Liu Ruyan finally couldn't hold back any longer. "They've already put up barbed wire right under our noses, and you're still negotiating? What are you negotiating? How to get this street out too?"

Special Envoy Wang's face darkened, his gaze sweeping over Liu Ruyan, and his tone became stern: "Which team are you from? Don't you know the rules? Your Inspection Bureau is under the jurisdiction of the Town Bureau of Disorder, and the Town Bureau of Disorder is under the jurisdiction of the United Government. Once the government issues an order, you must carry it out."

"If you dare disobey orders, don't blame me for reporting your names. You'll regret it when the time comes."

He added, lowering his voice but with an even stronger sense of threat, "Don't you know what time it is? Do you know how much pressure the council is under this time? Don't cause trouble for those above you."

Chen Mo's lips twitched slightly, but he neither spoke nor moved.

The sergeant behind the barbed wire saw all of this, and his smile widened.

"Look, their dogs are biting each other."

The Japanese soldiers next to him burst into laughter again.

Another Japanese soldier took off his helmet, bowed to Chen Mo, and said in exaggerated tone in broken Chinese, "Thank you, thank you for your cooperation."

After saying that, he gave a thumbs-up, then shook it downwards, turning it into a mocking gesture.

Special Envoy Wang's face alternated between pale and flushed, pretending not to hear the taunts, and urged Chen Mo, "Hurry up and go, don't stand here. Where's your captain? Get your captain to see me."

Chen Mo turned his head and glanced at him, his gaze so calm it was almost frightening.

"I am the captain."

Special Envoy Wang paused for a moment, then frowned: "You're the captain? Then you should know better than anyone what's important. Now, immediately, take your men and retreat. That's an order."

From the other side of the barbed wire, the sergeant spoke again.

"The Chinese government has already recognized our occupation, and these watchdogs are still pretending. How pathetic."

Laughter erupted again, this time louder and more unrestrained.

Qian Mantang could no longer contain himself and lunged forward. Zhao Shouxin swiftly grabbed his arm and hissed, "Old Qian!"

Special Envoy Wang was startled and instinctively took two steps back. Then, enraged, he pointed at Qian Mantang and shouted, "What are you doing? What do you want to do? Let me tell you, if you dare to lay a hand on me, you'll face the consequences! The Zhenyi Division can't protect you, and nobody can!"

He took a breath, then turned to look at Chen Mo, still with that condescending official tone: "I know you're not happy, and I'm not happy either, but this is what the higher-ups want, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"You all go back first and wait for news from above, okay? Don't make things difficult for me."

Chen Mo didn't look at him, but stared at the smiling faces of the Japanese soldiers behind the barbed wire. Suddenly, he lay down on the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Go and inform Director Shen and the others that I was injured by these Japanese, and ask him to bring reinforcements."

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