War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 1807: Doing business like the people of Osaka

"Where are we going next?" Wei Ran asked as he lit a cigarette at the entrance of the dance hall.

"I went to the theatre to listen to a play"

Zhang Taichuan took a deep breath, tried to maintain a smile on his face and whispered, "You can't, especially at this critical moment, we can't be together often. Wei Ran, go and send the car back, report to Lao Gui first, and then go somewhere to go shopping."

"it is good"

Wei Ran nodded, got into the car alone, and drove towards the photo agency. Originally, he wanted to ask Zhang Taichuan if he knew Huang Youze.

If he could find Huang Youze, who would die in half a year, and Amani, the international brigade soldier who was still fighting in Shencheng, he might at least be able to do something for them in his spare time.

But in the end, he gave up the plan.

For these people who were dancing on the edge of a knife, even just an ordinary inquiry would make them tense up and make necessary responses. He didn't want to cause trouble for them.

It would be nice if we could find Yu Yanlin's adopted daughter-in-law, and if we could pay tribute to Clement.

With a helpless sigh, Wei Ran drove the car back to Musashino Photo Agency and then knocked on the door of Ichiro Hoshino's office.

"teacher"

Wei Ran bowed respectfully after entering the room, "Kawaguchi has arranged for Mr. Hirano to rest at the Venus Dance Hall."

"How much can he trade?" asked Ichiro Hoshino.

"He promised to trade pistols, medicine and fuel."

Wei Ran replied, "But all that was on display was a room full of captured weapons."

"What's your suggestion?" asked Ichiro Hoshino.

"Everything is up to the teacher," Wei Ran answered without thinking.

Hoshino Ichiro nodded in satisfaction, and then said, "Let's trade with him a few times to see his ability. In addition, Mr. Ji's ancestral home was attacked by anti-Japanese elements this afternoon."

"Is there such a thing?"

Wei Ran immediately panicked a little, "Could those people be targeting our business?"

“Not sure yet”

Hoshino Ichiro waved his hands, his tone becoming more and more satisfied, "This attack has made me trust Mr. Ji even more, so I plan to support his disciples to form a clean-up team."

"The Cleanup Team?"

Wei Ran showed a trace of bewilderment at the right moment, but then he gave a thumbs up and praised as if he had suddenly realized something, "Oh! I understand! Teacher, you are really a genius in business!

indeed!

If you have a cleanup team, we can legitimately bring more weapons and medicines to trade! And we can legitimately bring back a lot of gifts from Mr. Ji's home!"

"Hmm? Oh! Right! Right! That's what I was thinking!"

Hoshino Ichiro easily took over the idea that Wei Ran reminded him of, "Ryūnosuke, I will communicate about the matter of the Qingxiang Team. Now Mr. Ji and his student Feng Rongjun have left the city.

You go pick them up tomorrow morning and inform Feng Rongjun to recruit a group of absolutely trustworthy people as soon as possible."

"How many people are needed for the pacification team?" Wei Ran asked.

"What do you think?" Ichiro Hoshino asked the question again.

Wei Ran knew that he could not pretend to be confused about this question. This was an inquiry, but in fact it was also a kind of trust in a sense.

"Teacher, what is the purpose of setting up the cleanup team?" Wei Ran asked back.

"Why do you ask?" Hoshino Ichiro asked in surprise.

"If our goal is to maintain law and order and protect Mr. Ji's ancestral home, then even a thousand people would not be too many."

Wei Ran replied, "If it's for the teacher's business, then it's different."

"What's the difference?"

Ichiro Hoshino asked in confusion. He really knew nothing about military affairs, so he didn't mind listening to the "students' advice."

"The more people there are, the more goods can be taken out, and the more money can be made from a transaction."

Wei Ran paused for a moment, waiting for Hoshino Ichiro's greed to rise, and then he lowered his voice deliberately, "But it can't be too much. If it's too much, it will easily attract attention. Secondly, if you are dragged to fight, won't it affect the teacher's business? This is the third thing."

"Go on," Ichiro Hoshino, who was already moved, urged subconsciously.

"As for the third one, we can't have too few, or we might be wiped out by the guerrillas outside the city.

Also, the Cleanup Team can only help the teachers earn money if they frequently travel between the concession and the city, so we must also avoid having the Cleanup Team assigned to guard the intersections."

"makes sense"

Hoshino Ichiro nodded in agreement, "So what do you think of about a hundred people?"

"Teacher, you are wise and brave. These one hundred people can carry a lot of things at a time. Besides, ordinary guerrillas would not dare to attack. It is just the right amount, neither too much nor too little."

Wei Ran's compliment immediately brought a satisfied smile to Hoshino Ichiro's face. Seeing this, he continued, "Teacher, now that this person has it, he must have a weapon to protect himself, right?"

At this point, Wei Ran made the sign of eight with his hands, weighed his hands and whispered, "Since Mr. Hirano has so many unwanted guns, why not ask him to contribute some as well.

He is part of this rural cleanup team, so if anything happens in the future, the teacher will have a way out, right?"

"You have a point!"

Hoshino Ichiro patted Wei Ran's shoulder vigorously, laughed and praised, "Ryunosuke, you are as good at business as we Osaka people!"

"Mr. Musashi, you are too kind," Wei Ran said modestly, "How dare I compare myself with the passionate people of Osaka?"

"If I have the chance in the future, I will find a way to make you a real Osaka person!"

Hoshino Ichiro made a promise that surprised Wei Ran, but he had no intention of taking it seriously. Then he said, "Go and inform Feng Rongjun as soon as possible tomorrow morning and ask him to recruit enough people to prepare."

"Hi!"

Wei Ran responded enthusiastically, and then asked, "Teacher, since we have such a large team, I think you should ask Mr. Aoi, who runs the izakaya, to talk to Mr. Hirano about the weapons issue.

If you come forward directly, it would be bad if Mr. Hirano suspects that the teacher has other motives. "

"Makes sense!"

Hoshino Ichiro nodded in agreement, "Take me to Mr. Aoi's izakaya now."

Wei Ran naturally had no objection to this. He followed the other party out of the photo studio, drove the car at the door, and once again took Ichiro Hoshino to an izakaya not far away.

Although he was sent back again and had no idea what Ichiro Hoshino talked about with Mr. Aoi, who ran the izakaya, Wei Ran didn't mind. After driving back, he casually got on a rickshaw and took advantage of this rare free time to rush to the Golden Gate Hotel.

It was already the end of 1941, Clement had died, and Huang Youze only had seven months left to live. But even so, he still wanted to go and see, even if it was just to see Armani from a distance.

As the driver jogged, Wei Ran once again arrived at the entrance of the Golden Gate Hotel.

It’s a pity that the hotel’s doorman has been replaced, and there was no familiar figure among the coachmen outside the door.

Relying on his Japanese that was more authentic than that of the Japanese and his pretending to be in a bad mood, Wei Ran once again successfully deceived the doorman into entering the elevator, and then took the elevator to the coffee shop where Clement and Armani worked in the past.

Unfortunately, when he revisited the place, he did not see Armani playing the piano, and the barista at the coffee bar was naturally a new face.

After a slight hesitation, he did not stop, nor did he order a cup of coffee. Instead, he turned around and went downstairs, taking a rickshaw straight to Dongyi Photo Studio.

He wasn't sure whether the living father had "blocked" Amani or she had moved to another location, but he had already decided not to look for her anymore, and he didn't even plan to go to Xiafeifang again.

He was afraid, afraid that his curiosity would bring trouble to his friends in this time and space - just like he didn't dare to contact the Xuqing Bookstore in Tianjin.

With some helplessness, the rickshaw also stopped at the door of Dongyi Photo Studio.

Returning to the second floor of the photo studio alone, Wei Ran saw through the window Zhang Taichuan, who was drunk in the box opposite, and Lin Qiaoan, who was also drunk. He also saw Xiao Wu, who was wiping away tears from time to time, and Zhang Zhengqi, who was silent.

After letting out a long sigh, Wei Ran silently took out his camera, pressed the shutter button towards the heroes in the opposite window, and took a special group photo.

This night was destined to be painful. Wei Ran was in pain, and the people in the photo were in even more pain.

On the same night, Zhao Jingrong, along with his gang brothers, escorted his "master" Mr. Ji back to the old house outside the city in a grand manner.

On the same night, on the top floor of the Venus Dance Hall not far from the Lihua Theater, Hirano Daisho also felt a happiness he had never felt before from the Polish dancer.

Still on this night, Ichiro Hoshino completed the transactions with his several friends one after another with satisfaction - for those priceless Chinese antiques.

When the morning sun once again illuminated the streets of Shanghai, Wei Ran, who had woken up early, had already arrived at the entrance of the photo agency, started the car, and drove it to the entrance of the Venus Dance Hall.

Almost at the same time, Zhang Taichuan, who was drunk, also rushed over in a rickshaw.

"I guess Mr. Hirano hasn't woken up yet, let's go have breakfast first." Wei Ran suggested.

"Let Manager Xu arrange some food for us," Zhang Taichuan waved his hand, "I drank quite a bit last night."

"I can see that," Wei Ran said as he helped the other person into the Venus Dance Hall which had already closed.

"Old Xu, get us something to eat." Zhang Taichuan called out drunkenly.

"Mr. Qin has been drinking a lot."

Manager Xu quickly called out to the waiter not far away, "Ah Sheng, help Mr. Qin go upstairs to rest, and ask Master He to make a bowl of hangover soup, and then go buy some breakfast!"

"Here we go!"

The guy who was cleaning quickly put down his work and ran over. Together with Wei Ran, he helped Zhang Taichuan into the room downstairs of Hirano Daxiang, and by the way, he sent away a young man wearing headphones in the room.

I picked up the earphones and listened, but all I heard was loud snoring.

"This old guy must have worked very hard last night."

Zhang Taichuan threw the headphones on the table with regret, "I thought it was going to die on a woman's belly."

"How about I go up and let him die on a woman's belly?" Wei Ran asked, "I have a way to prevent it from being discovered."

"never mind"

Zhang Taichuan waved his hand and sat down on the sofa tiredly. "Tell me about the situation over there."

"The old ghost took the initiative to propose the Clean-up Team, and he can give about a hundred places."

Wei Ran opened the door, then sat down in a position where he could see the door, handed the other person a cigarette, and lit it for him while saying, "After I send you to the military station, I will have to inform Mr. Ji."

"A hundred or so places?" Zhang Taichuan looked at Wei Ran in surprise, and after a moment's hesitation, he asked, "What do you think?"

"Uncle, do you think it's too much or too little?" Wei Ran asked back.

"A lot, but it would be a pleasant surprise if we could save it." Zhang Taichuan replied, "With such a team, we can do a lot of things."

"I'll pick up Mr. Ji and Mr. Jin outside the city later."

Wei Ran replied with a puff of smoke, "How do you feel about robbing us on the way?"

"Oh?" Zhang Taichuan's eyes lit up. "That's a good idea! Tell me more about it!"

"Someone has to die," Wei Ran continued, "It'd be best if it's a Japanese soldier, otherwise the weight won't be enough, and then we can escape death."

"Nakamura Bar"

Zhang Taichuan said casually, "That silly boy is a nuisance in the photo studio. Try to get him to propose to follow you."

"also"

Wei Ran agreed casually, "Under my instigation, the old ghost is planning to let the guy upstairs equip the cleanup team with some weapons. He plans to ask Aoi from the pub to bring up the matter. You can try to persuade him to agree."

"This old guy is a quartermaster"

Zhang Taichuan said, "Let him send some guns and some men, and preferably a vehicle to go out of the city to collect grain and buy vegetables."

"You want the Japanese to send people out?" Wei Ran asked.

"Go ahead. If more people die, we won't go out."

Zhang Taichuan explained, "We have to let the devils know that it is dangerous to leave the city. We also lose a few people here from time to time, real or fake. From now on, it will be our job to go out of the city to collect grain."

"Good idea," Wei Ran said, and his waiter A Sheng had already brought a bowl of sobering soup and a pot of tea.

After watching the other party leave, Wei Ran continued, "There is one more thing I forgot to mention yesterday. Hirano Daxiang's sister will come to Shencheng soon. Her name is Hirano Aoi, and she is a nurse. Laogui promised to support her to open a clinic. In order to avoid suspicion, all the settlement money will be given to her sister in the future."

"Clinic?"

Zhang Taichuan pondered for a moment, then said, "This is an opportunity, Wei Ran, when that little girl comes, you take the initiative to let her open the photo studio as a clinic."

"you sure?"

Wei Ran frowned and asked, "Isn't that equivalent to being right under our noses?"

“The theater was originally for people to watch.”

Zhang Taichuan finished speaking and gulped down the hangover soup. "But its sister is right under our noses. It's a good handle."

"Right"

Wei Ran was easily convinced, but before the cigarette in his hand was about to burn out, he still asked, "Second Uncle, you..."

"I'm fine"

Zhang Taichuan smiled and waved his hands, crossed his legs, leaned back on the sofa and said, "The identity of Kawaguchi Friendly is hard-earned, and it can't be ruined because of such a beast. As for revenge, there are plenty of ways."

"On the day of revenge, you have to take me with you." Wei Ran said seriously.

"I'll definitely take you with me, kid." Zhang Taichuan smiled and patted Wei Ran's shoulder.

After a while, the waiter A Sheng brought a fairly hearty breakfast with the young man who had just left the room.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, they each picked up their headphones to listen. At this time, the Polish dancer in the headphones had already started clapping and singing again.

"Let's go up too," Zhang Taichuan said as he lit a cigarette and was the first to walk out of the room.

When the two came upstairs, Hirano Daxiang's room had already become quiet. Zhang Taichuan did not indulge him. He reached out and knocked on the door, and greeted respectfully in Japanese, "Mr. Hirano, are you up? We are here to take you back to the military station."

"wake up"

A response came from Hirano Daisho in the room. The two waited outside the door for a whole cigarette's time before Hirano Daisho opened the door with unsteady steps.

Just looking at this guy's pale face, Wei Ran almost couldn't help laughing. At this rate, this guy would probably be exhausted to death in no time.

Of course, in addition to the pale face, the red and swollen wound on the other party's ear also made Wei Ran particularly satisfied.

"How did you rest last night, Mr. Hirano?"

Zhang Taichuan asked as if he didn't notice the other party's abnormality, and by the way, he took out a transparent wine bottle from his bag and handed it to the other party.

Wei Ran could clearly see that in the reddish brown liquid in the wine bottle, there was a ginseng with its roots intact, a not-so-big seahorse, and some wolfberries. The ingredients were almost the same as the bait he used to set mousetraps to catch mice in the Love Letter Apartment.

“Very good rest”

Hirano Daxiang's hands were shaking when he took the bottle of wine. "I've never had such a good time. These European women really have a different style. Kawaguchi, what is this?"

"Medicinal wine"

Zhang Taichuan winked and whispered, "Drink one cup every day to strengthen your body. It's very effective."

"Really?" Hirano Daito's eyes immediately lit up.

"of course it's true!"

Zhang Taichuan used the bottle of medicinal wine to call Hirano Daisho, who kept looking back with a reluctant and unsatisfied expression, and started chatting with him about the topic "Men should treat themselves better after they are thirty" as they walked downstairs.

“I’ll drink one every day from now on!”

When the three of them got into the car, Hirano Daxiang had already treated the bottle of wine as a treasure, "But I don't know about that beautiful lady."

"Mr. Hirano likes that dancer?" Zhang Taichuan asked casually.

"us."

"That lady is the top star at the Venus Dance Hall"

Zhang Taichuan asked, "Will Mr. Hirano accept her as payment for the transaction?"

"Is this possible?" Hirano Daisho asked in surprise.

"Teacher Musashi said that everything has a price." Zhang Taichuan said with a seductive smile.

"Let's go back to the military station first," Hirano Daisho replied after taking a deep breath.

Hearing this, Wei Ran slightly increased the speed of the car.

They returned to the military station smoothly. Mr. Aoi, who ran the izakaya, was already waiting. Seeing this, Zhang Taichuan opened his briefcase before the car stopped and said, "Mr. Hirano, let me hold the medicinal wine for you first. Mr. Aoi must not see these things."

"that's right!"

Hirano Daxiang, who was almost sucked dry last night, returned the medicinal wine to Zhang Taichuan without even thinking about it, and then hurriedly said to Wei Ran, "Ryunosuke-kun, give my regards to Mr. Musashi."

"I'll take it there," Wei Ran responded respectfully as he stopped the car.

After watching the two get off the car, Wei Ran stepped on the accelerator again, drove out of the military station and returned to Musashino Photo Studio. Next - it was time for death.