Anti-Japanese War Espionage: I Have an Omniscient Perspective

Lin Rui returned to Lianhua Film Studio and instructed Zhao Erzhu before going upstairs: "Keep an eye on what's outside."

Zhao Erzhu understood immediately and carried the coal stove to the passageway in the courtyard, pretending to start a fire to cook while secretly keeping an eye on the situation outside the door.

Lin Rui went straight up to the second floor, into his office, and closed the door.

He then lifted the desk, opened a wooden board underneath, and took out the codebook inside.

Then he unfolded the paper with the password.

The paper contains only numerical codes, which require a specific codebook to crack.

He counted each character in four letters, checked the corresponding codebook, and translated them one by one into plaintext.

After translating everything, Lin Rui read the entire text.

[Special Secret from Shanghai Station]

[The treacherous Lu Dahong, a Chinese chairman and business tycoon in the French Concession, disregarded his country and willingly became a puppet of the Japanese puppet regime. He colluded with the Japanese army, participated in the formation of the puppet "SH Citizens' Association," and planned to join the puppet Nanshi Self-Government Committee; he controlled industries such as Hexing Steel and Electric Lighting, privately supplying strategic materials to the Japanese army; under the guise of charity, he concealed his espionage activities, lobbying Chinese people to be pro-Japanese, thus undermining their will to resist the enemy. His crimes are unforgivable.]

[Your team is hereby ordered to use the Lianhua Film Studio as cover to secretly track Lu Nixing's movements. If there is any progress, proceed to the contact point and report the situation.]

[Remember, do not alert the enemy. The task of killing traitors is handled by top-notch personnel within the organization.]

After reading the secret letter, Lin Rui pondered how to respond.

The Shanghai station also recognized that Group 3's connection to Lianhua Film Studio made them suitable for contacting high-ranking officials and business leaders in the concession, which is why they entrusted this role to Group 3.

Currently, Group 3 has only just established itself, and the film studio business has not yet started. For now, it is only one person who can contact the outside world.

It's getting late today, not a good time to go out. It seems I'll have to go out tomorrow to visit the theater owner and manager on Belle Street. Maybe I can find out Lu Dahong's address and where he usually goes from these people.

.......

The next day.

Lin Rui got up early and had breakfast with his team members.

Do not speak during meals.

After finishing his meal, he asked, "Are there any movie magazines in the storeroom?"

Zhao Erzhu smiled and said, "When we were taking inventory, we saw some magazines, which I put away and kept safe."

Chen Shan scoffed, "He just saw how pretty the woman up there was and secretly watched her alone. Who knows what dirty things he did."

"You!" Zhao Erzhu glared at Chen Shan.

"Alright, you're arguing over such a small thing. When will this end? Zhao Erzhu, take me to see the magazine."

Lin Rui stopped the minor conflict between the two and followed Zhao Erzhu to his doorman's room, where the stack of magazines was placed on the bedside table.

"Team leader, I didn't do anything wrong, I just admire it," Zhao Erzhu explained.

"Understood."

Lin Rui picked up the magazines and flipped through them. One of them, a yellowed special issue of "Liangyou" movie magazine, had a cover featuring a photo of actress Hu Die, and inside pages contained behind-the-scenes footage of early Lianhua films. It was the rare movie magazine he was looking for.

He wrapped the pictorial in newspaper, held it in his hand, and instructed Zhao Erzhu, Chen Shan, and Su Wan to guard the film studio. If any suspicious persons came, they should remember their appearance and not make any rash moves.

They then walked out of the film studio.

Outside the film studio, the man whom Sun Xiaoliu considered a madman was squatting on the left side of the gate.

Lin Rui glanced at him. Although the man was timid and hesitant, during the previous observation using his supernatural abilities, he discovered that the man had multiple gunshot and knife scars on his body, making his origins unclear.

He took out a few copper coins, bent down, and placed them in front of the madman. "Buy something to eat."

"Ah, ah..." The madman grabbed the front, overjoyed.

Is this guy really crazy for knowing how to spend money?

Lin Rui ignored the madman, walked to the roadside and waved. A rickshaw came from the opposite direction, and he said to the driver, "Go to the largest tea shop on the eastern section of Xiafei Road."

The rickshaw driver responded and started pulling the rickshaw towards Avenue Joffre.

The wheels rolled over the bluestone pavement, making soft sounds. Before long, they reached the intersection of Avenue Joffre and Avenue Belle. The rickshaw turned east, and its speed slowed down as there were more people on the street.

Ten minutes later, we arrived at the tea shop on the eastern section of Xiafei Road. The tea shop had a small storefront, but it was elegant, with a wooden sign hanging at the entrance that read "Biluochun, Longjing, Qimen Black Tea".

Lin Rui walked into the tea shop and went straight to the manager, saying, "Give me two ounces of top-quality Longjing tea, this year's new tea."

The shopkeeper, a middle-aged man, glanced at Lin Rui and, seeing his respectable attire and refined demeanor, quickly smiled and replied, "Sir, you have excellent taste. This year's West Lake Longjing tea is only left in our shop. Please wait a moment." As he spoke, he skillfully weighed the tea, packed it in a tin can, and handed it over.

"How much?"

"Two legal tender."

Lin Rui paid, and the shopkeeper handed him the packaged tin can, saying with a sigh, "Take good care of it, who knows if there will be any left next year."

"Thank you for your kind offer." Lin Rui bowed and took his leave.

Holding a magazine in his left hand and a tea canister in his right, he turned around, went out, and got back into the rickshaw, heading to the Lafayette Grand Theatre.

The Grand Theatre, located at the intersection of Rue de la Belle and Rue de la Chapelle, was a well-known theatre in the French Concession. It mainly staged Peking Opera and Pingju Opera, and its patrons were all celebrities and businessmen in the concession.

The theater was not yet open, but things still needed to be done.

The workers were busy wiping the storefront and tidying up the posters.

"Where is your Manager Wang?" Lin Rui asked.

"He went for a stroll, he should be back soon," the man replied.

Lin Rui waited outside the theater.

After a while, Manager Wang returned.

He was dressed in a long silk robe, toying with a string of Buddhist prayer beads in his hand, his face displaying the shrewdness typical of a businessman.

"Good morning, Manager Wang." Lin Rui stepped forward quickly, cupped his hands in greeting, and spoke in a humble tone.

Manager Wang turned around, saw Lin Rui, and immediately smiled and returned the greeting with a cupped hand: "So it's Manager Chen, what a coincidence."

"It's not a coincidence, I came here specifically to visit you."

"Please come in." Manager Wang waved his hand and led Lin Rui inside through the side door of the theater.

The two went to the manager's office at the back. Manager Wang asked a waiter to bring tea, and Lin Rui took the opportunity to place the can of Longjing tea on the table and push it over: "I heard that Manager Wang usually likes to drink Longjing tea. Yesterday I happened to find two ounces of new tea. This is a small gift, nothing more."

Manager Wang took the tin can, opened it, and was greeted by a rich aroma of tea. His face immediately lit up with a smile, and he thanked him repeatedly, saying, "This is Wang Yiji's top-grade West Lake Longjing tea. You've gone to so much trouble." He was being polite, but he held the tin can tightly in his hand, clearly very satisfied with the gift.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Lin Rui got straight to the point, speaking naturally: "Manager Wang, I've come today for two reasons. First, to pay a visit and renew our relationship; second, I'd like to ask you for some advice—Lianhua Film Studio is planning to release a few more older films, but is hesitant to act rashly. So, I'd like to ask you about the recent developments in the French Concession's arts and entertainment circle?"

This was something Manager Wang excelled at, and he immediately launched into a long-winded explanation of everything that happened in the arts and culture scene on Baylor Street.

Lin Rui knew most of the content, but pretended not to, listening with great interest.

After listening for a while, he seized the opportunity to interject, "Which celebrities and businessmen have been frequenting the area around theaters and film studios lately?"