Republic of China, 1928: Starting from a Wonton Shop

After seeing Zhou Zhengnan off, Li's Restaurant prepared to close.

Li Chunsheng hung up a "Closed" sign at the door, leaving only his family inside.

Yunniang was tidying up the table with Yaya in her hand, Xiao Wu was chopping firewood in the backyard, while Lao Wu sat behind the counter, carefully unfolding the red paper.

Beneath the red paper image of the Kitchen God, several commonly used characters from the literacy list are written in dense strokes:

South, fat, three, ten, jin, fire.

This was the dictionary code they had agreed upon. Old Wu pulled out a tattered copy of the Kangxi Dictionary from under the counter and quickly flipped through it according to the strokes and radicals of the characters:

"South suburb warehouse, thirty fat sheep, get in immediately."

Old Wu's heart sank suddenly.

In the terminology of the underground Communist Party in Beiping, "fat sheep" referred to important supplies transferred from the south or comrades who had been arrested and were awaiting transport; "thirty" signified an extremely large scale.

The warehouse in the southern suburbs was a heavily guarded military restricted area.

This intelligence means that a batch of important supplies is facing a deadly threat in the southern suburbs of Beiping.

"Mr. Wu, have you finished settling the bill?" Li Chunsheng walked up to the counter at some point, carrying a heavy cloth bag in his hand.

Old Wu's hand trembled slightly as he discreetly put away the red paper: "That's all, boss."

Li Chunsheng, seemingly oblivious to his panic, placed the cloth bag on the counter, making a crisp metallic clanging sound.

"Dahu, sister-in-law, come here." Li Chunsheng called out.

Several people gathered in front of the counter.

Li Chunsheng untied the cloth bag, inside which were twenty neatly arranged silver dollars, gleaming with an alluring silver light.

"Thank you all for your hard work these past two weeks," Li Chunsheng said with a smile. "Although we've only been open for a short time, everyone has been working with me sincerely. Mr. Wu, I've calculated your wages as a month's salary, plus a New Year's red envelope for a total of 7 silver dollars; Da Hu, yours is 3 dollars; Sister-in-law, you and Ya Ya have a total of 10 dollars. Use it to buy some decent New Year's goods and a new pair of shoes for Ya Ya."

"Chunsheng, this is too much," Yunniang said somewhat awkwardly, rubbing the hem of her clothes.

"Sister-in-law, here you go! You can't just suffer after following me, Li Chunsheng." Li Chunsheng waved his hand.

Then he turned his gaze to Old Wu, "Mr. Wu, the wind and snow are heavy tonight, and the roads are slippery. If you have any urgent matters to attend to at home, please be extra careful. Although Li's Restaurant is a small place, it is also our home. As long as the business here is still operating, everyone will have a way out."

Old Wu's body stiffened, and he raised his head to meet Li Chunsheng's clear eyes, nodding heavily: "Don't worry, boss, we will definitely be back on time to start work."

On a snowy night, Lao Wu led Xiao Wu over the wall and disappeared into the darkness of the vast southern city. Li Chunsheng stood in the kitchen, looking at the pot of soup that had not yet cooled down, and sighed deeply.

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On the eve of the Lunar New Year, the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, due to the turbulent situation, even though it was the eve of the Lunar New Year, the streets were not as lively as in previous years. Only the occasional sporadic sound of firecrackers could be heard, which seemed particularly desolate in the empty snowy night.

"Uncle Wu, it's confirmed, no one is following us," Xiao Wu whispered in Old Wu's ear.

Old Wu didn't speak, but just nodded slightly. The two circled the deep alley three times to make sure no one was following them before slipping into a side alley.

At the gate of the courtyard, Old Wu raised his hand and knocked on the door knocker three times in a row, paused, and then knocked twice more.

A soft footstep sounded from inside the door.

Who is it?

"I'm from Shanxi, and I'd like to ask for a prescription to dispel the cold."

The gate opened a crack, and Old Wu and Xiao Wu quickly slipped inside. Zhou Zhengnan then closed the gate tightly and bolted it shut.

"Let's go inside and talk, it's warm inside." Zhou Zhengnan turned to the side and led the two into the west wing.

A charcoal fire was burning in the room. Zhou Zhengnan took out a few changes of clothes from his briefcase and tossed them to Xiao Wu, then pointed to the hot water on the table: "Warm yourself up first."

Old Wu, ignoring his water, pulled out a piece of red paper from his sleeve: "Old Zhou, what exactly happened at the warehouse in the south suburbs?"

Zhou Zhengnan took off his glasses, rubbed his slightly sore eyes, and looked somewhat haggard under the glow of the charcoal fire.

"The things the organization transported from the south," Zhou Zhengnan said in a low voice, "the comrades in Shanghai spent half a year and went through many troubles to get this batch of German-made anti-inflammatory drugs, morphine, and a batch of high-power radio parts; you know, these are the two things we need most right now."

Old Wu's fingers trembled slightly. Having experienced the flames of war on the front lines, he understood all too well what this meant.

"This batch of supplies started from Shanghai, first by waterway to Tianjin, and then by our comrades on the sea route disguised as leather goods and secretly transported into Beiping," Zhou Zhengnan continued. "The original plan was to transship the goods at a warehouse in the southern suburbs and then enter the city during the chaos on the eve of the Lunar New Year, but just yesterday, something happened."

"What happened?"

Zhou Zhengnan sighed. "After Marshal Zhang was killed in the bombing at Huanggutun, although Beiping is nominally under the Nanjing government, there is actually a huge power vacuum. The southern suburbs are nominally under the control of Yan Xishan's Shanxi Army, mainly controlled by a garrison regiment. But in reality, various defeated Fengtian troops, remnants of Beiyang Army soldiers, and local militias are all mixed together, making it a complete mess."

"What about our stuff?" Old Wu asked urgently. "Is it still in the warehouse?"

"Yes." Zhou Zhengnan nodded. "At Warehouse No. 3 in the southern suburbs. There's a company of soldiers stationed there now. The regimental commander is a seasoned veteran, very shrewd. He's got his eye on that batch of furs and thinks he can get a good price for them, so he hasn't made a move yet, but has just sent people to keep a close watch on them."

Old Wu closed his eyes, sketching out the layout of the southern suburban warehouse in his mind. It was built by foreigners back then, with only one main gate for entry and exit, and the backyard facing a vast expanse of farmland. At this time of year, it was freezing cold, and there was no cover in the farmland. To launch a direct assault would be tantamount to suicide.

"What does that mean?" Old Wu opened his eyes.

"Get them there immediately, at any cost," Zhou Zhengnan said, emphasizing each word. "If this batch of goods isn't moved in three days, the head of the security regiment will sell it off. Then, we'll really have no chance of getting it back."

"What kind of person is that security commander?" In matters like this, knowing yourself and your enemy is the most important thing.

"His surname is Hu, and his nickname is Hu Chou Chou. In his early years, he was a groom serving the Fengtian clique generals. He rose to the rank of regimental commander by relying on his ruthlessness. This man is addicted to gambling and is also extremely suspicious," Zhou Zhengnan analyzed. "He has now surrounded the warehouse like an iron barrel, not even a fly can get in. The city's police department is also eyeing this lucrative piece of land in the southern suburbs, but they haven't dared to openly rob it because of the military's influence."

Xiao Wu stood up, clenching his fists: "Screw them! Old Wu, let's grab our weapons, sneak in under the cover of snow, and wipe out those gatekeepers!"

"Nonsense!" Old Wu shouted. "Do you think this is child's play? The southern suburbs are open ground. There's no cover within two hundred meters of the warehouse. Before you even get close, the searchlights will spot you, and a machine gun blast will turn you into a sieve!"

Zhou Zhengnan waved his hand and said, "Xiao Wu, calm down. If we could resolve this by force, the organization wouldn't be in such a difficult position. Our armed forces in Beiping are already limited. A direct assault would not only fail to retrieve our belongings, but would also expose all our ambush points."

The three fell silent.