1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3818

Yue Shizong had eaten at this restaurant several times with Zhang Wuye, and knew that this was a business that Zhang Wuye was protecting, so he came here to look for him. But at this time, there were probably more than a hundred people inside and outside the restaurant, upstairs and downstairs. There were at least six or seven tables with guests on the third floor alone. How could they prevent the stalkers from escaping?

While Yue Shizong was still thinking secretly, Master Zhang Wu had already stood up and went downstairs to make arrangements.

Soon, several men in black came up from the stairs, followed by the owner of the restaurant.

The shopkeeper bowed and said, "Excuse me, everyone. This place has been reserved by Master Zhang Wu for a banquet. Please move downstairs to dine. All your expenses today will be paid for by Master Zhang Wu."

Most of the people who came to the restaurant early in the morning to eat breakfast and drink morning wine were regular customers. Therefore, after listening to the shopkeeper's explanation, no one expressed dissatisfaction. Instead, several people loudly praised Master Zhang Wu for his efficiency, and it was obvious that they were familiar with him.

When Yue Shizong heard this, he had already vaguely guessed what Master Zhang Wu was up to.

Uncle Zhang Wuye was obviously quite influential here. He asked the shopkeeper to come out and clear the place. Firstly, he wanted to find a suitable reason to avoid conflicts as much as possible, and secondly, he wanted the shopkeeper to take the opportunity to identify familiar customers and screen new faces.

If someone really followed Yue Shizong to the restaurant, that person must be on the third floor at this time, so that they can observe Yue Shizong's movements up close.

Yue Shizong certainly didn't stand up, but took this opportunity to observe the other guests around him again. This time he really saw some clues.

At the table on the right sat two men in ordinary clothes, looking a little uneasy. One of them was glancing towards Yue Shizong, seemingly observing his reaction.

They were about two or three meters away from Yue Shizong, and most likely could not hear what Yue Shizong had said before, so they might not know that the Fifth Master Zhang mentioned by the shopkeeper was the one who had just met Yue Shizong.

Soon some guests got up and went downstairs. The shopkeeper stood at the stairs and greeted the regular customers one by one.

Soon there were only a few tables left on the third floor. Yue Shizong sat there confidently, and the two men seemed to be determined not to move unless the enemy did, and still refused to move.

Seeing that most of the guests had left, and only Yue Shizong and the other two were left at the table, the shopkeeper pointed at the two of them, and several men in black surrounded them.

The two men were about to say a few words to defend themselves, but they never expected that the people who surrounded them had no intention of questioning them at all. They rushed forward and pinned them down from behind, then took out shiny handcuffs and handcuffed their hands behind their backs.

Then someone took a glutinous rice ball and stuffed it into their mouths. As the two men struggled and whimpered, someone put two black cloth bags on their heads, covering their faces.

The cooperation was smooth and tacit, and it was obvious that this was not the first time they had done this.

Yue Shizong was stunned. Besides being surprised at the skills of these men in black, he also noticed the fine steel handcuffs they were using - that was one of the iconic equipment of the Hai Han police.

It seems that this group of people may not be Zhang Wuye's subordinates, but government officials dressed in private clothes.

However, when people in the government arrest criminals, they usually announce their identities. But this group of people remained silent. They neither asked the other party's identity nor announced their own identity. It was really strange.

Moreover, after they captured the people, they did not rush downstairs. Instead, they just controlled the two men and pressed them to the ground, unable to move, as if they were waiting for something.

Seeing that these people treated him as a transparent person, Yue Shizong did not dare to approach them and started a conversation. He could only continue to wait patiently.

After waiting for a while, several people came up the stairs, and the leader was none other than Master Wu Zhang. However, he was not the protagonist this time, and nodded and bowed to the person behind him to point out the location of Yue Shizong. When Yue Shizong saw the person behind Master Wu Zhang, he actually recognized him. He was Qu Shengfeng, one of the close associates of Hai Han's senior official Shi Diwen, who was in charge of the security and intelligence department of the East China Sea region.

If the person that Master Zhang Wu had consulted earlier was Qu Shengfeng, then everything would make sense.

Master Zhang Wu's smuggling business, the channels he paved for the rebellious officials of the Ming Dynasty, and the clearing operation he had just witnessed, these were resources that were definitely not within the reach of ordinary people, and they were all supported by the government.

This also confirmed Yue Shizong's previous speculation about Zhang Wuye's background. However, this time Qu Shengfeng showed up in person to meet him, and he couldn't be sure whether it was a good thing or a bad thing.

As far as Yue Shizong knew, the functions of Hai Han's security intelligence agency were similar to those of the Ming Dynasty's Jinyiwei. Qu Shengfeng's father was the former prefect of Ningbo and was related to Shi Diwen by marriage, so his background was quite strong.

Qu Shengfeng didn't even glance at the two unlucky guys lying on the ground, and walked straight towards Yue Shizong.

Upon seeing this, Yue Shizong quickly stood up, bowed and said, "Sir Qu, long time no see!"

Yue Shizong lowered his voice intentionally, not wanting the two people on the floor to hear, but Qu Shengfeng didn't seem to have such scruples, and greeted them with a bow, "Qu is late, and I'm sorry to have kept Master Yue waiting for a long time!"

Yue Shizong said: "It is unexpected that Lord Qu appears here, but it is reasonable when you think about it carefully."

Qu Shengfeng said, "Maybe Lord Yue doesn't believe it, but for both public and private reasons, I am happy to help. So when Zhang Wu came to tell me today, I put aside other things and rushed over immediately."

Yue Shizong asked, "I wonder if Lord Qu is interested in me or the Jinyiwei?"

Qu Shengfeng said: "Kill two birds with one stone, why not do it?"

Yue Shizong asked, "Can you confirm the identities of the two people arrested by Lord Qu?"

Qu Shengfeng called out, "Zhang Yingdong!"

In front of Qu Shengfeng, Zhang Wuye had no "Ye" in his name. When he heard him call him by his full name, Zhang Wuye immediately took two steps forward and presented the results of the body search of the two men.

Although we didn't find the Jinyiwei badges on them, we did find daggers and knockout drugs, which was obviously not a good idea.

As for confirming whether they were following Yue Shizong, we would have to find a place to interrogate them.

Yue Shizong reminded: "If these two are really Jinyiwei, we can't delay too long, otherwise their superiors will notice something is wrong and run away, and then it will be difficult to track them down."

Qu Shengfeng smiled and said, "Master Yue is very attentive... No problem, I should be able to solve your problem today."

Qu Shengfeng made a gesture, and the men in black who had arrested the man earlier took him downstairs.

Yue Shizong watched the two men being carried away by their hands and feet, and then he said to Qu Shengfeng: "Master Qu is willing to help me with this, I am very grateful, but I don't know how to repay you, please give me some advice!"

Qu Shengfeng said, "Since Lord Yue has brought his family to Hangzhou, he must have admiration for our country. I think it would be better for Lord Yue to do something for our country while he is still in office, just as a way of repaying me. What do you think?"