cicada

Chapter 1493 Rainy Night
As Japan's most important naval base in the Tohoku region, the Kwantung Naval Base had a large number of well-ventilated military warehouses, which is why it was chosen by the Tokyo Headquarters as a storage location for transferred valuables.

That morning, Japanese soldiers outside the naval port drove passersby to the roadside in a very arrogant manner.

"Get out of the way!"

Under the threat of the gun butts, the people lowered their heads and remained silent, but the hatred and humiliation in their eyes could not be concealed.

According to the "laws" of the Kwantung State Government, people of the Republic of China had to bow and scrape before Japanese people to show respect; this was the fate of being a subjugated people.

A few minutes later, a convoy of cars and troop carriers slowly approached from a distance.

Among the crowd by the roadside, Wu Chunyang slightly raised his head and caught a glimpse of Hasegawa Ryosuke chatting and laughing with a Japanese officer in the carriage.

"Hase-kun, please make sure you stay in Kanto State for as long as possible this time."

"Haha, Shirata-kun, of course I can stay a little longer, but you'd better treat me well."

Ryosuke Hasegawa and Lieutenant Colonel Shirata of the Kwantung Army General Staff exchanged pleasantries warmly, and the atmosphere was very harmonious.

The two were old business friends, and because of this relationship, Shirata was assigned to cooperate with the Golden Lily Project.

As for the special advisors from the General Staff Headquarters, where are they?
This is Kwantung Army territory; not even the General Staff or the Imperial General Headquarters' special envoy can do anything here.

As they spoke, the convoy entered the naval port gate and headed towards the warehouse area.

Shirata glanced at the driver, then leaned close to Hase's ear and said, "Hase-kun, I hope you'll take good care of me this time."

As he spoke, he kicked the suitcase on the floor, and from the sound, it seemed to contain quite a few things.

The carriage fell silent. Ryosuke Hasegawa didn't look at the box. From the moment he took on the mission, he knew that the trip to Northeast China would not go smoothly.

The audacity of the Kwantung Army is well-known. With so much wealth in their possession, how could these guys not be tempted?
Of course not.

If two-thirds of the items on the transfer list are still there, it's considered that these army bastards are very honest.

The convoy stopped in the warehouse area, and Ryosuke Hase got out of the car, his eyes filled with anticipation, as Shirata looked at him.

Shirata quickly got out of the car and followed, but after taking a few steps, he heard Hasegawa whisper a rebuke.

"Baka! How can you talk about this in front of others? The list must be handled properly. The actual amount and the difference cannot be too large, otherwise I will not be able to explain it to Tokyo."

Upon hearing this, Shirata smiled again, thinking that Hase-kun was indeed meticulous in his actions.

He quickly explained in a low voice, "Please rest assured, the General Staff has taken care of everything, there will absolutely be no problem."

Hasegawa Ryosuke grunted in agreement. The powerful and influential above should be allowed to eat meat, but the people below should be allowed to drink some soup, otherwise there will be big trouble.

Having reached an understanding, the two entered the warehouse. Bai Tian opened the transfer list and read out the contents. There were thousands of paintings and calligraphy works alone, far exceeding those in Shanghai in both quantity and quality.

Among them are works by famous artists such as Huang Tingjian, Zhu Xi, Zhao Mengfu, Bada Shanren, and Zheng Xie.

When the False Mite Emperor fled from Beiping and Tianjin, he took countless royal treasures with him, which are now in the hands of the Kwantung Army.

For example, "Xiaoxiang Scroll", "Red and White Hibiscus", "Snowy Landscape", and "Zen Riddle Fragment: Hanshan and Shide".

As Shirata called out the numbers, he scribbled over the list with a pen, and the scribbled-over parts were clearly "blurred away".

Ryosuke Hasegawa took a look and found that the Kwantung Army was still sensible and the amount of property lost was not too much, otherwise that box of gifts would have been a real problem.

After checking the goods, Shirata closed the list, waved for his subordinates to leave, and then quietly handed Hase a key.

"Hase-kun, this is the key to the safe deposit box of the Portuguese bank. Please accept this small token of my appreciation."

Without any hesitation, Hasegawa took the keys and put them in his pocket. Taking money to do the job and doing the job is a rule that no one can break.

After receiving the bribes, he waved his hand and said, "Seal it immediately. Do not open it without my order."

After confirming that all the valuables were "safe and sound," Hasegawa Ryosuke ordered the boxes to be sealed and personally stamped them with his seal.

After the last seal was affixed, Hase asked Shirata if the warehouse was safe.

"of course."

Shirata smiled and gave a detailed explanation of the warehouse's defensive layout, while casually patting the horse behind the head of Kwantung Army Commander Yamada Otozo.

"Hase-kun, the Commander attaches great importance to Operation Golden Lily and has divided the soldiers protecting the warehouse into two layers, inner and outer."

"The outer layer was composed of elite Kwantung Army field troops, who patrolled day and night to prevent anyone from infiltrating."

"The inner layer was handed over to the military police, who would guard the warehouse at all times and prohibit individuals from acting alone, and they would monitor each other."

After explaining the arrangements for the Kwantung Army, he paused briefly and then reported on the naval deployment.

"Upon receiving orders from headquarters, the naval base also went on high alert."

"But these guys are really despicable. They actually sent people to monitor us. Headquarters has reported this to General Headquarters."

Shirata was very indignant, his tone full of dissatisfaction, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

Hasegawa shook his head inwardly. Without the Navy's surveillance, even more things would have been missing from the warehouse. But didn't the Navy take the opportunity to make a quick buck?

As he was thinking, Shirata added, "Thirty percent of the missing items on the list belong to deer."

Hasegawa suddenly realized that this was how it was. The navy must have put in a lot of effort to snatch such a large piece of meat from the Kwantung Army.

At this point, the verification of the transferred goods was completed, and the transfer could officially begin once the cargo ships from Tianjin and Shanghai arrived in Kwantung Province to meet them.

Hasegawa Ryosuke named several of his entourage and ordered them to stay at the warehouse to supervise and prevent the army and navy from stealing from the warehouse. Shirata had anticipated this and, far from being dissatisfied, instead smiled and invited Hasegawa to the banquet.

"Hase-kun, I heard you were coming, so some old friends and I have prepared a welcome dinner. Many noble ladies would like to meet you, the flower of the Empire's intelligence."

"Haha, you're too kind, everyone."

Hase's eyes lit up, but thinking of his wife, who was a distant relative of the royal family, he hesitated and declined Shirata's offer.

"The transport ships from Shanghai and Tianjin will arrive in Kwantung State soon. It might be inappropriate to hold a banquet now. Mr. Shirata, perhaps we should meet again another time."

Shirata ignored Hase's explanation and pulled him toward the car without saying a word, all the while making sarcastic remarks.

"Alright, your wife will never know about this. How can a man be afraid of his wife?"

And so, Hasegawa reluctantly got into the car, and the convoy drove to Asia, the largest hotel in the Kanto State.

As the car drove out of the port gate, Hasegawa sneezed and took out a handkerchief to wipe his nose, seemingly not quite used to the seaside climate.

Outside the naval port, Gu Qi watched the departing convoy and gently nudged Wu Chunyang's shoulder.

"Everything is normal, we should go now."

Boom! Before Gu Qi could finish speaking, thunder rumbled in the sky, and the weather changed.

In the blink of an eye, countless raindrops fell from the sky, creating small craters on the muddy ground.

The rain lasted for several hours and did not stop until dark, by which time the Asia Hotel was already packed with guests.

Among the guests were officials from the Kwantung Army, the Kwantung State Government, and the South Manchuria Railway, as well as heads of various trading companies and high-ranking members of the pioneering groups.

Hasegawa met many people through Shirota's introduction, and the gathering was lively and filled with toasts.

Amidst the laughter and chatter, Hasegawa noticed a woman surrounded by a throng of fawning male guests, like a star being surrounded by admirers.

Noticing his movement, Bai Tian turned to the side and introduced, "That's Miss Xiao Qingmin, a famous socialite in Manzhou, who has considerable influence within the military."

"Oh?" Hase was surprised.

Even Bai Tian believed that the other party had power; this woman named Xiao Qingmin was quite skilled.

Shirata continued, "She had personal relationships with many high-ranking officers of the Kwantung Army, and her business extended throughout Asia and Korea."

Hasegawa, a little curious, pressed on, "This kind of person is very suspicious. Didn't you screen them?"

"Of course we've screened them, and more than once."

Shirata brought the glass to his lips, his mouth still, but his voice clearly reached Hase's ears.

"The intelligence department sent a staff officer to meet with the other party in secret with top-secret information, but Xiao Qingmin was not interested in the information at all."

"Speaking of which, she is also our partner. Those ginseng and leather goods were purchased from the mountains by her subordinates, so the identification operation was stopped."

Ryosuke Hasegawa asked casually, and seeing Shirata's confident tone, he didn't bother to inquire further. He raised his glass and clinked it with the guest who came to offer a toast.

"Ding~"

The clinking of glasses echoed as lightning flashed and torrential rain poured down outside the hotel.

On the coast of Kwantung State, a group of Japanese soldiers walked slowly by, flashlights in hand, the clattering sound of their boots gradually fading into the rain.

A few minutes later, Gu Qi, Wu Chunyang, and several junior agents emerged from the bushes.

Gu Qi took out his flashlight and flashed it twice in the direction of the sea. Soon, lights appeared on the sea surface, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hurry up and be careful to sweep up the footprints."

After Wu Chunyang finished speaking, he walked towards the beach with Gu Qi. There were still ten minutes before the Japanese patrol would start again, so they had to hurry.

Upon receiving the order, the junior agent backed up to catch up with the two men, his branch constantly sweeping across the ground.

The group waited at the beach for a short while before two rubber boats slowly approached the shore. Someone on board asked a question in a low voice.

"Is this Mr. Liu Shan?"

"Yes, have you prepared the sugarcane I requested?"

"Get on the boat quickly."

Having exchanged the code words, Wu Chunyang climbed onto the ship while inwardly grumbling that the co-pilot's chosen code was too strange.

After picking up Wu Chunyang and the others, the rubber boat moved towards the nearshore waters, where the wind and waves grew larger and larger.

The small boat, less than two meters long, rocked violently with the waves, sometimes being lifted onto the crest of a wave and sometimes plunging into the trough, creating a very dangerous scene.

After an unknown amount of time, a loud thud was heard from the bow of the boat as the rubber dinghy collided with the side of a cargo ship.

"Snap~~~~"

Another clap of thunder boomed.

As Wu Chunyang boarded the ship, he gripped the rope ladder with one hand and wiped the rain from his face with the other. In the flash of lightning, he finally saw the ship's name: [Yamato Maru].

Several hundred meters away, there seemed to be other cargo ships anchored on the dark sea, but because the ships had no lights on, the shadowy figures made it impossible to see their exact number.