Chapter 13

The letter was delivered to Rongxiang the next day. He slowly read it through and then began to get dressed.

"Xiao Meng!"

"exist."

Rongxiang carefully straightened his tie in front of the full-length mirror, then, while buttoning his top hat, instructed, "Have someone call the military headquarters and tell Yi Zhongming that I went to the Fengyu Hotel to meet with Nakajima."

"yes."

The person in the mirror had a pale face, but their lips were a sickly crimson. Rongxiang reached out his hand with pity, but only touched the cold glass.

Fengyu Hotel is one of the most magnificent entertainment venues in Fengtian, and it is said that it was modeled after the Peace Hotel in Shanghai in every aspect of its construction and decoration. At night, all the neon lights are turned on, making the entire building dazzling with light.

Unfortunately, it's daytime now.

Standing in the lobby, Hideo Nakajima could see Rongxiang's car parked in the distance through the glass revolving doors. The doorman hurriedly ran up and respectfully opened the car door, and Rongxiang bent down and climbed out.

Nakajima had heard he was ill, but he was clearly fully recovered now. Despite the cold weather, he wore only a black wool overcoat, its clean lines perfectly suited to his tall frame. He still wore his thick felt hat askew. He looked like a sharp and modern young man. Three cars arrived, but only one person entered with him.

"Rong-kun!" Nakajima Hideo greeted him with a beaming smile.

Rongxiang pushed his hat brim up, then took off his gloves and grasped Nakajima Hideo's hand: "Mr. Nakajima, have you been waiting long?"

"No, no. It's quite presumptuous of me to invite Rong Jun here so suddenly!"

"No, no, no, it's my honor. Mr. Nakajima, you're too kind."

"Not at all, not at all. I've been wanting to meet with you for a long time. I heard you were ill. Are you feeling better now?"

"Thank you for your concern, Mr. Nakajima. I'm all better now."

"..."

"..."

The two exchanged pleasantries warmly all the way, and only after they were seated in the private room did Nakajima take a sip of hot tea and say, "Actually, Mr. Rong, the reason I invited you here today is to apologize to you."

Rongxiang took off his hat and put it aside: "Oh? What do you mean?"

"I was so sorry that I invited you to my humble abode that night, but you ended up catching a cold."

Rong Xiang smiled and said, "Mr. Nakajima, I wasn't feeling well at that time, it wasn't that I suddenly fell ill from the cold."

Nakajima opened his mouth, about to speak, when the dishes were served. He had already instructed that all the dishes be served at once, so he simply remained silent for the time being. Only after the last dessert was placed on the table did he signal the waiter to close the door.

“Rong Jun, we’ve met quite a few times now. You may not want to consider me a friend, but I’ve always been honest with you.”

Rongxiang waved his hand: "No, of course we are friends."

Nakajima continued, "I've been in Fengtian for so long this time, and although I'm here on behalf of the Kwantung Army to invite you to cooperate with us, personally, I also greatly admire and respect you, Mr. Rong. I would be very honored to stand on the same side as you."

Rongxiang smiled and lowered his eyes: "Mr. Nakajima flatters me."

Nakajima gazed at Rongxiang: "Rong-jun, we no longer need to play games, nor do we have the time for it. The Xuantong Emperor has arrived in Changchun. The Japan-Manchuria Co-Prosperity Sphere is an inevitable trend. Rong-jun, do you really want to go against the tide? The Kwantung Army will never betray its friends, especially young talents like Rong-jun, who will become the backbone of our new nation. However, if you continue..."

Rong Xiang raised his eyes and looked at Nakajima Hideo with tenderness: "Go on."

"If you continue to act willfully, then the Kwantung Army will have no choice but to regard you as an enemy. The Kwantung Army never tolerates enemies."

Upon hearing this, Rongxiang nodded with a half-smile: "Mr. Nakajima, you're not forcing me to make a statement now, are you?"

Hideo Nakajima stood up and casually strolled to the window: "What do you think, Rong-kun?"

Rongxiang knew something was amiss outside the window, but he remained calm and got up to go over. After glancing outside, he turned to Nakajima Hideo and said, "Oh, Mr. Nakajima, you were prepared all along!"

The area downstairs had been surrounded by Japanese military vehicles, and Rongxiang's bodyguards were trapped in the middle.

“There’s nothing I can do, it wasn’t my wish. I hope you can understand, Rong-kun…” Nakajima Hideo stopped abruptly in surprise.

Just as he was speaking, a large number of soldiers suddenly surged in from both sides of the street, instantly blocking the entire street completely.

Rong Xiang smiled smugly, turned around and patted Nakajima Hideo on the shoulder: "I also hope that you can understand."

Nakajima nodded and sighed, "Could we say we're on the same wavelength?"

“Mr. Nakajima, your use of that idiom is rather inappropriate.” Rongxiang said, taking his hat off the coat rack, putting it on, and turning to walk towards the door. He had already sensed the gunpowder in the air and couldn’t linger any longer.

In that instant, however, Nakajima, who had been standing by the window, suddenly lunged forward, grabbing his throat with one hand while simultaneously drawing his gun and pressing it against his waist with the other. This series of actions was completed in one fluid motion, seemingly in just a second.

Rongxiang's head was forced to tilt back, his hat slipped off, and his forehead touched Nakajima Hideo's face.

“Rong Jun, you have a very good mind. However, your martial arts skills are still a bit lacking.”

Rong Xiang was instantly subdued and at a loss for what to do. He was also being choked by Nakajima Hideo so much that he couldn't breathe. He had no choice but to give up resisting: "You dare to touch me?"

Hideo Nakajima rubbed his cheek against Rongxiang's forehead: "Why don't you dare?"

“My men… won’t let you go…” Rong Xiang’s voice suddenly choked, and then he coughed with great difficulty.

"As a soldier of the Empire, I have long been prepared to sacrifice myself at any time. I am just a lieutenant colonel; if I die, I die. What about you, Rong Jun?"

Rong Xiang leaned awkwardly against Nakajima Hideo's shoulder, feeling the gun barrel at his waist push hard. Nakajima Hideo's voice rang in his ear: "Come on, let's go see your chief of staff! He must be here too, right?"

The two opened the door one after the other, only to be met with Xiao Meng's gun. Rong Xiang gave him a wink: "Put down your gun and get out of the way!"

Xiao Meng indeed threw down his gun and stepped aside, but Nakajima shook his head: "No, let him go ahead and clear the way."

Rongxiang had no choice but to make a gesture, ordering Xiaomeng to walk in front.

The three slowly entered the hotel lobby. The lobby had been cleared of waiters and customers. Through the glass revolving door, all that could be seen outside were soldiers in a chaotic mess. Their uniforms were all similar in style and color, so it was hard to tell what was going on. No guns had been fired yet, presumably because they dared not act rashly without orders from their superiors.

Nakajima pushed Rongxiang to the glass revolving door, only to find that the three of them couldn't pass through at the same time. He tightened his grip on Rongxiang's throat: "Let your men go out first."

This time, without waiting for Rongxiang to speak, Xiao Meng consciously pushed open the door and went out, then stopped by the door. Zhongdao then led Rongxiang through the doorway. Each section of the revolving door was quite small, and the two stumbled and struggled to get out. Zhongdao breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look at Xiao Meng: "You go to the front!"

Xiao Meng responded and lifted his foot as if to leave, but just as Nakajima turned around, he suddenly turned around and kicked out, hitting Nakajima squarely in the waist. Caught off guard, Nakajima staggered from the kick, the gun barrel sliding down his waist. Sensing something was wrong, he instinctively pulled the trigger.

Gunshots rang out, followed by Rongxiang's screams.

The soldiers below immediately erupted in uproar. They saw Rong Xiang kneeling on one knee, pulling a gun from his coat pocket with his right hand, and firing a shot.

He himself did not expect that he would be shot right between the eyebrows.

The bullets were dumdum bullets.

Hideo Nakajima's brains splattered all over his head and face.

Immediately, the soldiers on the street, including Rong Xiang himself, were stunned.

Hideo Nakajima's body even swayed for a moment before collapsing heavily onto Rongxiang's shoulder. Xiao Meng was the first to react; he kicked Nakajima's body aside and pulled Rongxiang towards the hall. Rongxiang stumbled through the glass revolving door, and at the same time, gunfire erupted outside.