War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 1843: Getting on and off the ship
When the white light faded, Wei Ran found that he was back in the darkroom of the photo studio again.

Just like the previous two times, the drying line in the darkroom was also filled with photos that had just been developed and had not yet dried.

I touched my lower back out of habit, and sure enough, the TT30 pistol was there.

Once again, he carefully leaned against the door and listened for a moment, then Wei Ran focused his attention on the photo that was still dripping water.

This photo, which seemed to have been deliberately printed out for Ichiro Hoshino to see, is a photo of Zhang Taichuan and Hirano Aoi secretly holding hands while taking a photo with Hirano Daisho.

Continuing to look around in the darkroom, he also found a letter from Hirano Daito to Hoshino Ichiro.

After putting the letter into his pocket, Wei Ran opened the door and walked out of the darkroom, then walked out of the photo agency. The weather was still hot and humid, and a lot of dust had accumulated on the car outside the door.

He bent down and picked up a greasy old newspaper. The date on it was September 1943, and he even saw an advertisement for mooncakes on it.

Throwing the newspaper aside, Wei Ran returned to the photo studio, sat down and waited quietly. He had already guessed that someone would come to visit again.

However, this time, even when he started to feel hungry, no one came to his door.

Squinting his eyes to look at the sun which had already reached its highest point above his head, Wei Ran shook his head helplessly, then stood up and locked the door of the photo studio.

When he got into the car, he saw that the fuel gauge was empty. He opened the trunk and saw that the oil barrel was also empty. In the end, he had no choice but to take a rickshaw and rush back to the Shikumen building.

Today, it is still bustling here, and all kinds of people live here, and they are still as enthusiastic about me as ever.

"Where is Captain Jin?" Wei Ran asked.

"Next door," one of the residents whispered, "the courtyard in the middle, just entered."

"I'll go over and have a look"

Wei Ran said this and walked towards the room where the tunnel leading to the next door was located with familiarity.

However, before he could get in, Zhao Jingrong came back carrying a briefcase.

"You're back, have you eaten?"

Zhao Jingrong greeted him and motioned Wei Ran to follow him upstairs.

"No." Wei Ran shook his head.

"Drink some later"

As Zhao Jingrong spoke, he had already walked into the morgue, bent down and took out a dusty wine bottle from under the bed, then took out two wine glasses from the cabinet and filled them.

"What's the matter?" Wei Ran asked in a low voice as he took a plate of broad beans and a plate of peanuts from the cabinet.

"The old ghost is coming back. The old thing is finally coming back."

Zhao Jingrong filled his glass and said, "This afternoon, the two of us will go to the dock to pick him up."

"I'm afraid this old guy can't sit still anymore." Wei Ran raised his wine glass and clinked it with the other party.

"I have tolerated him for so many years."

Zhao Jingrong also picked up his glass and drank it all. Then he said, "Let's try to get him on board today. The less time we give him to react, the less likely it is that something will go wrong."

"Is there anyone on the boat?" Wei Ran asked, holding a glass of wine.

"Have"

Zhao Jingrong nodded and said, "Wang Fu and Wang Gui have both been hired as waiters on that passenger ship. As long as they can get on board, we can remove their crab legs at night, and then change boats in Ningbo to go to Portugal and Macao. You can come back and deal with it by yourself when the time comes.

In about a month, Ms. Taichuan and Ms. Hirano will come back and continue to use Ichiro Hoshino's name to do things. "

"it is good"

Wei Ran nodded and took note of the other party's arrangement. "But, would the old ghost be willing to leave today?"

“He has to be willing even if he doesn’t want to”

Zhao Jingrong pulled out an envelope from his bag and shook it. "And I have another letter here that will make him excited."

Seeing Wei Ran seemed to be hesitant to speak, Zhao Jingrong explained, "Boss Mu sent it to him. He found out about the stupid woman he loved so much back then."

"Does this work?"

“It doesn’t matter whether he believes it or not”

Zhao Jingrong said, "He already knew about the beast taking away those antiques. I guess even if he didn't have those, his original itinerary would have been to Feilu Funeral."

"So he came to Shencheng just because he was worried, so he came to verify it?" Wei Ran asked.

“It’s probably like this”

Zhao Jingrong said this, but changed the subject and revealed a piece of news that Wei Ran was not prepared for, "My cousin and his family have already left Shencheng."

"Leaving Shencheng? The whole family?" Wei Ran was stunned for a moment, "Where to? Why?"

"Yes, the whole family is leaving."

Zhao Jingrong nodded, "The beast is gone, and when the old ghost is gone, our line of business will be without income. Hirano Aoi will probably have to rely on this photo studio for cover and rescue work in the future.

So my cousin and his family sold their belongings and went to Macau, where things are tough right now, and leaving now is a good way to avoid the old ghost."

"Going to Portugal and Macao?"

“Go to Portugal and Macau”

Zhao Jingrong explained with a smile, "The girl from Linzhi found that there are also Japanese who like antiques and collectibles. Anyway, we are all trying to cheat the Japanese, so it doesn't matter where we cheat."

"Thank you for your hard work, old man," Wei Ran sighed.

"My cousin and my nephew were not on the Battle of Shanghai."

Zhao Jingrong picked up the cup and drank it all. "The old lady still doesn't know about this. She still thinks that the father and son are fighting the Japanese. If my cousin hadn't been holding up his spirits because of this incident, I guess..."

Hearing this, Wei Ran opened his mouth but found that he could not say anything. Even the wine that was brought to his lips was too bitter to swallow.

"One more thing"

Zhao Jingrong handed a leather-bound photo album from his bag to Wei Ran, saying, "All the photos of the fake antiques and the negatives of the raw clay models made by my cousin and his colleagues over the years are here. He asked me to give them to you."

"Leave it to me?" Wei Ran asked in surprise.

"He said you have the best chance of surviving, so he asked you to help keep it safe."

Zhao Jingrong smiled carefreely, "He also said that those fake antiques can be used to deceive Japanese and foreigners, but they should not be used to deceive our own people.

Any one of those things, if done right, can make a person go bankrupt. It's such a sin."

"I'll keep it"

Wei Ran took the photo album which was as big as the Xinhua Dictionary and said, "I'll keep it together with the negatives in the album of the beast."

"I feel at ease leaving it to you," Zhao Jingrong said with a smile.

"What about you? You and Lin. You and Boss Mu?" Wei Ran asked, "You guys won't be in Shencheng anymore?"

“It probably won’t come back in the short term.”

Zhao Jingrong shook his head. "We are going to do something in Southeast Asia with Lao Gui. The bigger the movement we make there, the more you can do here with his name."

"This"

"Don't worry, Xiaowu and Liuzi are still here, and everyone from the firewood collecting team is here too."

Zhao Jingrong comforted him, "Wei Ran, while we're away, please help your uncle."

"Okay, don't worry." Wei Ran made his promise.

"Come on, let's have another drink."

As Zhao Jingrong spoke, he picked up the wine glass that Wei Ran had helped to fill. The two of them clinked their glasses lightly, then drank it all in one gulp.

When they put down their cups, someone outside brought in a meal that was not very sumptuous.

After simply filling their stomachs and resting for a while, the two took a rickshaw to the pier early.

Around three o'clock in the afternoon, the two men who had been waiting under the scorching sun and were sweating profusely finally waited for Ichiro Hoshino - or Mr. Musashi.

I haven't seen Mr. Musashi for a long time. He looks a little older. However, next to him, there is a man who looks to be around 30 years old.

He was taller and stronger than most of the nuclear recruits of this era, and his every move revealed a dangerous aura that made Wei Ran wary.

"Long time no see, Mr. Musashi, you are finally back! I have been worried about you."

Wei Ran greeted him enthusiastically and bowed, then took the suitcase from him. He then extended his hand to the burly man and continued to say enthusiastically in Japanese, "Give me your luggage as well."

Before Wei Ran could touch the suitcase, the man with the fierce eyes took a step back and dodged.

"This is my son-in-law Sato"

Hoshino Ichiro introduced, "He is my most proud student Ryunosuke, Musashi Ryunosuke."

"Hello, my luggage is heavy, you can carry it yourself." Sato's son-in-law said in a not very enthusiastic attitude.

"Alright"

Wei Ran said simply, "Teacher, you must know what happened, right?"

“I know everything.”

Ichiro Hoshino nodded, shook hands with Zhao Jingrong, introduced them, and then continued, "I rushed back as soon as I received your letter."

'It's too late'

Zhao Jingrong said helplessly, "The traitor Kawaguchi didn't give us any information in advance. He and Miss Hirano even boarded the ship earlier than Mr. Hirano."

"Where are the payments for those ancient goods?" Ichiro Hoshino asked involuntarily.

“They’ve all been taken away.”

Zhao Jingrong shook his head regretfully. "It was Boss Mu's work, but Mr. Hirano did keep his son. We have been taking care of him recently."

"Boss Mu? Is it him?" Hoshino Ichiro frowned, "Where is that kid?"

"It's in the house that Mr. Hirano originally rented for his wife."

Zhao Jingrong said, "Kawaguchi gave me his house and asked us to help take good care of the child. He also said that you will understand everything after reading Mr. Hirano's letter."

"Where's the letter?" Hoshino Ichiro asked subconsciously.

"Here I am"

Wei Ran said as he took out the letter from his pocket and handed it to the other party, "Mr. Hirano specifically reminded me not to mail it and that I must hand it to you personally."

After receiving the letter, Ichiro Hoshino did not open it. Instead, he said, "Let's go back to the photo agency first." "Please come with me."

Wei Ran immediately took them to a row of rickshaws, asked them to get on and rushed to the photo studio.

Without paying any attention to his son-in-law Sato, Ichiro Hoshino hurried into the darkroom, using the excuse that he had some photos to be developed first.

"Is this your first time in Shanghai, Mr. Sato?" Zhao Jingrong asked for the sake of conversation.

Unfortunately, after this question was asked, there was no response. Sato just looked at Zhao Jingrong with contempt and then looked away.

Zhao Jingrong and Wei Ran smiled at each other; that smile was particularly subtle.

Soon, the door of the darkroom was opened, and Ichiro Hoshino said, "Mr. Feng Rong, please come in and help me."

"Okay," Zhao Jingrong said as he stood up and walked into the darkroom. For a moment, only Wei Ran and the other two were left in the reception area of ​​the photo agency.

"Mr. Sato, would you like some tea or coffee?" Wei Ran asked in a gentle tone.

"No need," Sato replied dryly.

"Okay," Wei Ran smiled. He was too lazy to bother with a dead person.

After a somewhat long wait of more than an hour, Ichiro Hoshino and Zhao Jingrong finally walked out of the darkroom.

"Let's go see the kid."

Hoshino Ichiro said, "Sato, go to the pier and buy a ticket. The fastest one to go is the one for the non-green funeral."

"We're going to Feilu Funeral?"

Sato asked in surprise, he pretended very well but Wei Ran could tell that he was faking his surprise.

Obviously, as Zhao Jingrong said before, their trip was probably aimed at Feilu Funeral.

"Go buy your tickets"

Hoshino Ichiro urged, "Ryunosuke, take Sato to buy tickets, and you and Feng Rong will go to Feilu Funeral with me, okay?"

"It's an honor for me that Mr. Musashi is willing to take me with him," Wei Ran said quickly, "but do I need to go home and pack my belongings?"

"There's nothing to pack, let's go buy tickets quickly." After saying this, Ichiro Hoshino and Zhao Jingrong hurriedly left the photo agency.

"Mr. Sato, please come with me." Wei Ran turned around and greeted him warmly.

"How long has Ryunosuke been following Mr. Musashi?" Sato asked dryly as he sat side by side with Wei Ran in the rickshaw rushing back to the dock.

“It’s been years.”

Wei Ran gave an ambiguous answer, and then continued to talk about the topic in a slightly fanatical manner, "Over the years, I have learned a lot of photography techniques from Mr. Musashi, from the choice of aperture and shutter speed to the choice of film, lens and composition. These are all worth following and learning."

As Wei Ran was talking almost incessantly, the rickshaw carrying the two of them and Sato's suitcase rushed back to the dock.

Along the way, Wei Ran did not hide anything, but even so, Sato did not get any valuable information out of him.

On the contrary, Wei Ran came to the conclusion based on a few words that this Sato was definitely not coming to China for the first time, and he might even be able to understand Chinese.

This made him more alert and his attitude became more agitated and excited - Musashi Ryunosuke had never been to a non-green funeral.

Even so, Sato still had to pay for the ticket, and Wei Ran didn't even get close to the ticket window.

Fortunately, Sato was quite generous. He did not buy a cheaper cabin for him and Zhao Jingrong. Instead, he specially arranged to buy the cabin next door.

They didn't have to wait long, Zhao Jingrong and Hoshino Ichiro also rushed over, but what Wei Ran didn't expect was that they actually brought the baby Morpheus and his wet nurse with them.

Wei Ran didn't ask any more questions about this, and Sato simply bought another boat ticket.

Without waiting at the dock, everyone boarded the ship directly and walked into the cabin in groups of two.

As expected, the cabin that Sato and Laogui shared was located in the middle of three adjacent cabins, and the rest of the people lived on the left and right sides respectively.

"Ryunosuke, please take a picture for us." Ichiro Hoshino said as he invited everyone to go onto the deck.

"My pleasure"

Wei Ran took the camera handed to him and took a photo of Ichiro Hoshino and his son-in-law, and Zhao Jingrong holding the child with the pier as the background.

"Okay, get off the boat." Ichiro Hoshino said abruptly.

"Teacher, aren't you going to take me with you?" Wei Ran asked as he returned the camera to the other party.

"It's enough for Feng Rongjun to follow me."

As Hoshino Ichiro said this, he had already taken out the film from the camera and handed it to Wei Ran, "Remember to develop the photos for me and mail them to Mr. Hirano's address."

"Okay, Mr. Musashi." Wei Ran suppressed his uneasiness, respectfully took the film, turned and walked towards the gangway leading to the dock.

"No one can take away what belongs to me, no one." Hoshino Ichiro looked at Wei Ran's departing back and said meaningfully, "Right? Feng Rongjun."

"That's right"

Zhao Jingrong nodded and asked with pretended curiosity, "Is Ryunosuke too greedy?"

"No, no, no, he's not greedy at all."

Hoshino Ichiro replied, "I just need someone to help me continue to look after the photography club."

"Wei Ran is indeed very talented in photography," Zhao Jingrong complimented, "He will definitely be able to take good care of your photo agency."

"I hope so"

Hoshino Ichiro's tone was rather absent-minded, and he didn't turn around until he saw Wei Ran off the boat, and then he walked back and said, "Okay, let's go back to the cabin. The smell here is really bad."

“The taste here is really not that good”

As Zhao Jingrong spoke, he took a step forward, holding the child in his arms and followed the two of them into the cabin.

At the same time, Wei Ran, who had just got off the boat, was bumped by a coolie carrying a heavy bag.

"Hurry to the warehouse and prepare to board the ship." The coolie, whom Wei Ran had never seen before, helped Wei Ran apologize and said in a low voice.

Wei Ran looked around inconspicuously, distanced himself from the other party and walked into a warehouse. Then he was led by Wang Gui who was waiting there to hide beside a pile of goods. He changed into a set of coolie clothes as quickly as possible, grabbed a handful of mud from the vegetable roots and smeared it on his face, neck and arms. Then he picked up a basket of vegetables and followed the coolies back to the passenger ship.

Using the basket of vegetables that covered most of his face as his ticket, Wei Ran easily sneaked into the cabin. Then, under the cover of Wang Fu, he washed off the mud on his body, changed into the ship's waiter's uniform, and got an employee key that could open most of the cabin doors.

This so-called employee key was actually just a special wrench, similar in style to the elevator door key of later generations. However, with this key, he could enter and exit most of the cabins on the ship at will.

Leaving the cargo hold and heading upwards, Wei Ran strolled around the passenger cabin for a while. After watching a lady leave her cabin, he slowly walked over and knocked on the door. Seeing no one respond, he immediately opened the cabin door and slipped in.

After a quick check, Wei Ran found the lady's makeup bag and changed the skin color on his face and exposed skin to the best of his ability, and then simply changed his facial features by modifying the shadows.

After restoring everything to its original state, Wei Ran quickly left the cabin and followed the instructions on the escape diagram to first find the banquet hall of the cruise ship. He got acquainted with some waiters and memorized a few of their names. Then, carrying a Japanese kitchen knife he had picked up, he boldly walked into the cabin where Zhao Jingrong and others were.

Soon, he came to the cabin where Zhao Jingrong was. Looking inside through the glass, he found that Zhao Jingrong had been tied to a chair, and the man named Sato was sitting on another chair and interrogating him patiently.

Without rushing to save him, Wei Ran stepped to the door next door and looked in through the window. At this time, Hoshino Ichiro did not seem to be in the room.

Seeing this, Wei Ran took a step forward and came to the cabin where the wet nurse lived with the baby.

The glass door of this cabin was blocked by the curtain inside, but even so, he could still vaguely hear Ichiro Hoshino asking something gently in fairly fluent Chinese.

Are there any other people on this ship?
Wei Ran thought secretly, he knew Musashi's plan, compared to Shencheng where he had been away for too long, this ship was indeed safer, which was probably why he returned to the ship so decisively.

After a moment's hesitation, Wei Ran took out the key, inserted it into the special keyhole and knocked on the door.

"Shh!"

The curtain on the inside of the cabin door glass was opened by Ichiro Hoshino, who was holding a flower-mouthed pistol in his hand. At the same time, Wei Ran turned the T-shaped master key in his hand and pushed the door hard, causing the metal window frame of the door glass to hit Ichiro Hoshino's neck hard.

Under the stimulation of severe pain, Ichiro Hoshino, who was hit so hard that tears and nose bleeding, had not yet reacted before Wei Ran pushed him against the wall with the door, hit him in the abdomen with the internal door handle, and then hit the back of his head with the wall.

After Wei Ran, who was holding a box gun in one hand, kicked the door shut, he used the key in his hand as brass knuckles to hit Ichiro Hoshino hard on the back of his hand holding the gun.

Without waiting for him to scream, Wei Ran had already thrust the barrel of the box gun into his mouth. He dared to do this because he had seen clearly that there was no third person in the cabin except the nanny and Ichiro Hoshino who was holding a weapon.

"Where are the children?"

While asking, Wei Ran had already taken the pistol from Ichiro Hoshino's hand. He held the slide with one hand and opened it slightly to take a look. Seeing that there was no bullet in the chamber, he threw it directly on the bed and then opened the curtains.

"Mr. Sato took the child away," the nurse said. "He took the child away as soon as we returned to the room."

"Can you use a gun?"

While speaking, Wei Ran had already put away his gun under the cover of his clothes. He then covered Hoshino Ichiro's mouth and pinched the joints of his thumbs as he groaned.

"will use"

As the nanny spoke, she had already picked up the pistol on the bed and pulled the slide to load a bullet.

"Ryunosuke, are you sure you want to do this?" Hoshino Ichiro, who was already sweating from the pain, asked gloomily, "I trusted you so much."

"You didn't even take me to Feilv Funeral, and you still trust me. I'm so sad that I want to cry."

As Wei Ran spoke, he gave the old man a crisp slap on the back of his head, then picked up a rag on the table and stuffed it into his mouth, then pulled out his belt and strangled him.

At the same time, the nanny also brought a blanket to cover Ichiro Hoshino's head, and wrapped it several times with the cloth straps used to carry children.

"I'll be back soon. Knock on the door, two fast and two slow."

As he spoke, Wei Ran kicked Hoshino Ichiro's knees, forcing him to kneel beside the bed, and then pressed his covered head against the bed, "Kneel down and don't move, or I'll stuff the film you just gave me into your pussy and pull the film out of your mouth."

After saying that, Wei Ran pulled down the old man's pants, revealing his snow-white, loose buttocks. He slapped him in an extremely humiliating manner with a crisp "pa!" sound, successfully shattering the old man's sense of security.

With a look of disgust, Wei Ran tore off the waiter's gloves and threw them on the floor, then turned around and walked out of the cabin, locking it with a master key.

Returning to the door where Zhao Jingrong and Sato were, he waved at Zhao Jingrong who was tied to a chair, then dodged and hid to the side.

"Don't hurt the children"

Zhao Jingrong heaved a sigh of relief, as if accepting his fate. "Please ask Mr. Musashi to come over. I... I only want to talk to him."

“It doesn’t matter who you talk to.”

Sato snorted coldly and threw the baby in his arms onto the relatively soft bed. He turned around and opened the door, ignoring the baby's crying. Then he was put on the neck by a long, sharp kitchen knife that still smelled of fish and was pushed all the way back to the cabin.

"you"

"Oh!"

Wei Ran didn't even wait for the other party to finish his words, and slammed his head hard against the cabin wall.

After easily knocking out the son-in-law named Sato, Wei Ran cautiously pinched his chin and wrist joints, then felt around his mouth and found nothing. He then tore off the second glove and stuffed it into his mouth along with Sato's tie, and also tied it tightly with a belt.

Only after all hidden dangers were eliminated did Wei Ran cut the ropes that tied Zhao Jingrong to his body, and then looked at the baby.

Fortunately, he only had a few strands of hair pulled out and his injury was not serious.