Eagle and Tiger Fight

As dawn broke, the streetlights gradually dimmed, their light becoming somewhat strained. A few more citizens began to stretch and practice their martial arts on the riverbank. A river breeze swept by, and the moored steamships swayed with the waves. Against the backdrop of these massive vessels, the simple hand-cranked boats seemed to come from another time and space.

The dock's crisscrossing walkways led in all directions, and Chen Jian dared not stop for even a second. If CC got hold of Secretary Yu, then no matter where the spring breeze blew in the future, it would never reach the secret investigation team.

Every now and then, porters with a sour, sweaty smell would walk by. Chen Jian frowned and stepped aside. It wasn't that he looked down on the workers; they earned their living through their skills, and there was nothing wrong with that. It was just that his sense of smell was too sensitive. He didn't like any strong smells, whether fragrant or foul. Yuan Yuan always teased him for having a dog's nose.

A sudden pang of pain shot through his heart. Chen Jian pinched the bridge of his nose to calm himself. After a few breaths, only the salty smell of the river remained in the air.

After running around for a long time, they didn't even see a scrap of the Communist Party's clothing. If they were in Nanjing at this moment, Chen Jian would have already led the secret agents of Chicken and Goose Alley to blockade the docks. There would be no need for them to be so restrained.

Unfortunately, this was Shanghai, and searching aimlessly like a headless fly would be too inefficient. Shen Jian immediately adjusted his strategy. He found three of his men dressed in civilian clothes and asked them to sneak into the ship's dispatch room, where the view was best.

Gurgle~ Gurgle~ Chen Jian endured the discomfort in his stomach and continued searching for people. He hadn't eaten enough, and now he was hungry again after exercising. He wondered if any early-rising vendors were out and about.

Just then, the sound of a vendor selling sweet rice porridge drifted from the alleyway. Chen Jian swallowed hard. His men were keeping watch at the dock; he figured he could buy some breakfast and come back in time. Chen Jian tiptoed slightly, his gaze shifting to the main road connecting to the embankment above, trying to find the vendor selling sweet rice porridge.

At this moment, a man wearing dark shorts walked down the steps. The man did not move quickly, but he deliberately lowered the brim of his hat.

It was too dark, and the angle wasn't good. Even with his eyes squinted, Chen Jian could only make out the man's blurry profile, the outline of which seemed somewhat familiar.

Puzzled, Chen Jian ignored the rumbling in his stomach and strolled along the boardwalk. By the dim light of the ship's lanterns, he saw the man walk to a pile of cargo boxes and find a dark-skinned man wearing a straw hat. The two whispered to each other with their backs to each other.

A moment later, the two men's gloves were found in a black cloth bag; they must have been comparing prices. It turned out to be a shady deal, and Chen Jian instantly lost interest.

However, when the man in the straw hat lifted the net covering the hand-rowed boat, the words "boat captain" immediately flashed through his mind, and the string in his mind tightened again.

The deal seemed to be settled. The man suddenly turned around, and Chen Jian darted behind the cargo box. Gulp~ He clutched his stomach and glanced back casually. Wheat-colored skin and a strong physique—it was the courier who had escorted Secretary Yu, only he had changed his clothes.

The courier no longer had the large box, and Secretary Yu had also disappeared. Were they going to rent a small boat to leave Shanghai? Damn it, that old bastard Zhang Tianhe must be hiding some important information again.

By the time Chen Jian came to his senses, the strong figure had already returned to the main road above the riverbank. Without even replenishing his energy, Chen Jian followed along the embankment.

The wide main road beside the dam led in all directions; he wanted to see where the Communist Party would go after leaving the heavily blockaded docks. The two men, one below and one above, were like two parallel lines.

The flags along the roadside fluttered in the river wind. Walking against the wind, Chen Jian could barely open his eyes. With his innate intuition, he locked onto the Communist Party members to his side. The moment his gaze fell on the steps, Chen Jian rushed up the main road in three quick steps.

Perhaps because the commotion was a bit too loud, the G Party realized that someone was following them, and they took bigger steps. Chen Jian had finally locked onto his target again, so he wasn't going to give in so easily.

Without hesitation, he deliberately overtook the man, then immediately turned 90 degrees, pretending to be a morning exerciser brushing past the G Party members. However, as he got closer, he noticed that the weapon at the man's waist had disappeared.

Damn it, all that following for nothing! Shen Jian's heart sank. The man was walking peacefully on the street, not carrying any dangerous weapons, and probably didn't have any identification. How could he arrest him? Shen Jian gritted his teeth in anger. He knew perfectly well that the man was a member of the Communist Party, but he just couldn't legitimately arrest him.

Compared to the bustling docks, there wasn't a single living person to be seen on the streets. Chen Jian slowed down and turned to hide in the shadows of the alleyway to observe. The courier seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and his brisk walk turned into a steady pace.

Now, Shen Jian faces two paths. The first is to wait for the CCP liaison to sneak into the shadows and forcibly arrest him, perhaps using torture to find out Secretary Yu's hiding place. However, there is a greater probability that the liaison will resist to the death, and without the liaison's protection, the big fish will fall into the CC's net.

The second option is to keep an eye on the boat captain and wait for Secretary Yu and the liaison officer to appear before taking them down. However, using force on someone else's turf without authorization is, at best, a disturbance of public order, and at worst, an overreach of authority.

Zhang Chong wasn't some philanthropist; if they used this as leverage, it would bring endless trouble to Team Leader Dai, and he himself would be in deep trouble. However, if they could arrest Secretary Yu, the secret investigation team would at least receive a commendation from Nanjing.

Secretary Yu's poor, scholarly appearance clearly indicates he's a high-ranking CCP official. If we can capture him alive, it will greatly demoralize the CCP. Furthermore, by carefully searching the surrounding streets and alleys during this arrest operation, they might even find the radio and the accompanying codebook. It's definitely a worthwhile operation.

Chen Jian quickly compared the costs and achievements, hesitated for a moment, and then chose the second path. So what if he offended CC? In their line of work, there's no such thing as morality; the result is the most important thing.

The warm, orange-red curtain of sunlight slowly rose from the horizon. Shen Jian knew that his time was running out. He sniffed and walked towards the dock. The wind by the river was stronger than he had imagined.

Suddenly, an ominous killing intent swept over him. Chen Jian instinctively turned his head to dodge, and the wind from the punch grazed his cheek. He immediately grabbed the attacker's arm, pushed it against his shoulder, and snapped the man's arm in half.

The sword strike was incredibly fast. The man belatedly let out a scream, and almost simultaneously, a group of men in short-sleeved shirts surrounded him. The leader waved his hand, and the group rushed forward with iron rods in hand.

Shen Jian dared not be careless, but the opponent had a large number of people and was unable to gain the upper hand after several rounds of punches and kicks. He seized the opportunity and kicked a large hole in the encirclement.

With the hope of breaking through in sight, Chen Jian sprinted forward, but a sizzling sound came from his wound and spread to his limbs. His knees buckled, and he curled up on the ground in pain, his vision going dark.

Before Chen Jian could even ponder what weapon it was, a sizzling sound pierced his skin, causing him to tremble uncontrollably from the intense pain. His heavy body felt light, and his soul seemed to almost leave his body.

No, he couldn't faint. His fingernails left white scratches on the asphalt. Chen Jian gritted his teeth and desperately pulled himself back to his senses, asking in a hoarse voice, "Who are you?"

Laughter erupted around him, and a man leaned close to his ear and said, "Young Master Shen, Mr. Shen, you're causing trouble on someone else's turf, and you still have the nerve to ask questions? Heh, give the kid a neck massage."

It turned out that CC's people had struck first. Chen Jian immediately realized who they were. Alas, he had underestimated them.

Before he could recover from the pain, the belt tightened around his neck, the immense pressure making it hard for him to breathe, and his legs kicked helplessly at the ground.

The man behind him tightened his belt little by little, causing Chen Jian to be dragged backward. The man was incredibly strong, and Chen Jian slid several meters in one go. Chen Jian's breathing became more rapid, his vision went black, and he looked up at the colorless sky, the light in his eyes no longer flickering.

They seemed to be deliberately torturing him, dragging out the time for a few seconds, the long wait for death was more terrifying than death itself. Shen Jian was soaked in sweat, leaving a watermark on the cold floor. He hoped to die quickly; he didn't want to suffer.

He was dragged into the alleyway when a blinding light shone on his face. Suddenly, his neck loosened, and Chen Jian gasped for breath. Seeing his savior holding a gun in both hands, he forced out, "Help!"

"Everyone, put your hands behind your heads and squat down." The police officer stood in the shadows under the building, his face obscured, only his black uniform identifying him. Chen Jian tried to call for help, but it felt like a stone was stuck in his throat, and he could no longer utter a sound.

“Officer, I’m a law-abiding citizen. My brothers are just here to collect a debt. This kid owes our boss a huge sum. Paying back debts is only right and proper.” The CC team leader was not intimidated at all. With a crack, a spark flew from the iron rod in his hand.

Bang! In an instant, the stun baton in the agent's hand was knocked to the ground. Blood was dripping from his wrist. Chen Jian, who was close by, discovered that he had only suffered a scratch and had not been shot. Wow, this policeman's marksmanship is really good!

The policeman pulled down his hat brim, his voice icy: "I don't care if you're collecting debts or committing violence. Those Indians and foreign devils, I don't know what's gotten into them, patrolling the docks all over there. You'd better behave yourselves. Hands over your heads! Kneel down!"

Blackie cleverly invoked the foreigners' name to exert pressure, and the CC agents looked at each other in bewilderment, then threw down their weapons and obediently squatted down.

It is common knowledge that foreigners do not care about China's internal strife; they only care about their immediate interests. Even if things escalate, given Zhang Chong's terrible relationship with the high-ranking officials of the International Settlement, CC agents will not fare well.

The fact that the riot he had just caused had actually saved his life made Chen Jian feel smug. He laughed out loud. The G Party members could come and go as they pleased, while the CC gang of trash was still busy fighting amongst themselves. They deserved to be riddled with holes by the G Party.

A dull punch landed on his stomach, and Chen Jian vomited bile. His already empty stomach was in excruciating pain. The heavy impacts continued, and Chen Jian could almost hear the cracking sound of his bones breaking.

"Stop!" the policeman shouted, trying to stop them. "At least put on a show. If you really want money, you should take that kid out of the concession area quickly, otherwise he'll have to be interrogated on the street."

The constable held out his hand, and an agent expertly pulled out three silver dollars, held them above his head, and walked towards the constable with small, quick steps and a bow. The constable didn't stand on ceremony, blew on the silver dollars to listen to the sound, and after confirming that they were genuine silver dollars, whispered a few words of advice to the man.

Seeing that their transaction was going smoothly, Shen Jian silently crawled into the darkness, but before he could escape, someone sat down on his back. A CC agent warned him fiercely, "Young Master Shen, take your little rats away from the dock immediately, or we'll give you a good beating."

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding vegetation rustled, and a group of men in black, armed with guns, rushed into the narrow alley, surrounding him completely. Dazed, Chen Jian was helped up, and only then did he realize that they were his own men. He guessed that he had been away from the dock for too long, which had attracted their attention.

"Pah!" Spitting out blood-tinged saliva, Chen Jian waved for his men to chase after the CC agent who had just delivered the money. If that kid found Zhang Chong and tipped him off, their secret investigation team wouldn't have enough men to fight, and they might even alert a big fish in the G Party.

After receiving the order, his subordinates immediately pursued the enemy in the general direction. Looking around, they found that most of the CC agents had been apprehended. Their faces were full of resentment, but the more they acted this way, the more pleased Chen Jian became.

Hiss~ His subordinate wiped the blood from his mouth and accidentally touched the wound. Chen Jian grabbed the handkerchief, found the CC agent who had electrocuted him earlier, raised his leg and kicked him hard. His toes were wrapped in a strong wind like an iron hammer. One kick, two kicks, three kicks... until his leg ached and he stopped. The other party lost his arrogance and lay on the cold stone slab like a dead dog.

Hmph, Shen Jian will eat anything, he'll never suffer a loss. Covering his mouth with a handkerchief, Shen Jian cleared his throat and finally found his voice: "Take them all back. I suspect they are liaisons sent by the Communist Party to pick up that big fish. The rest of you come with me to the dock. The Communist Party is about to leave by boat. Cough cough, let's go."

It took a lot of effort for Shen Jian to say those few words, but with a direction for the arrest, his confidence increased greatly. He wondered if the agents he sent to the dispatch room had successfully infiltrated.

The black, multi-national architectural complex has regained its original brick and tile patterns. The white tables and chairs in the dispatch room are clean but have a touch of coldness. Zhang Chong stands at the window, feeling the gentle river breeze and observing the ants-like queue of laborers carrying goods on the boardwalk.

Muffled thuds could be heard from behind, interspersed with the man's piercing screams.

"Reporting to the section chief, one of the kids has confessed. Their secret investigation team also intercepted that telegram, and then asked Zhang Tianhe for help in deciphering it. Zhang Tianhe sent them to the dock to intercept it." A man in uniform bowed and reported.

"Oh," Zhang Chong replied casually, seemingly unconcerned, and continued to admire the scenery at the dock. After all, a traitor is a traitor no matter where he goes; it's like a leopard can't change its spots. It's nothing to be surprised about.

"Shen Jian should have found the G Party's trail by now. He left the team earlier to catch that courier," the man continued to report.

"Hmph, you greenhorn." Zhang Chong snorted contemptuously, sneering inwardly. The courier's whereabouts had been discovered long ago, but the key was not the courier but Secretary Yu. If they wanted to go to sea, they had to take a boat, and if they wanted to take a boat, they had to show their faces.

No matter how Secretary Yu disguises himself, the radio he carries will always be a problem. Even if it's hidden among the cargo, his own agents can find it by searching the ship after arresting the people. Given the CCP's cunning, they definitely have a more elaborate plan.

For example, the person and the radio could be separated and boarded on separate ships. Once the two ships were on the high seas, there would be a meeting point where Secretary Yu could retrieve his radio. Zhang Chong couldn't help but let his imagination run wild and designed several methods of transportation.

After considering the options several times in his mind, Zhang Chong still felt that separating humans from machines was the safest transportation method at present, and the G Party should at least protect one of them.

"Something's wrong, Section Chief! Chen Jian has detained one of our brothers and is leading a team to the docks!" The sudden voice interrupted Zhang Chong's thoughts.

Upon seeing that the newcomer was a veteran agent he had just dispatched, Zhang Chong glanced at him sideways and cursed, "So many of you, carrying stun guns, and you can't even subdue a mere kid?"

"Chief, please calm down." The agent took a breath and replied in a low voice, "It seems like there's a spy in our team. That spy first called the police station to report the case, asking the police to stall for time, and then their secret investigation team also got wind of it and suddenly surrounded us. Without an inside man, how could they have such timely information?"

"Nails!" Zhang Chong's eyes twitched. He couldn't stand those two words right now. Because of the CCP's "nails," CC was ridiculed by the industry like a sieve. The CCP's agents were clearly lurking in every corner, impossible to guard against. Why was CC being singled out for criticism? He couldn't swallow this insult.

We just finished cleaning up the G-party members in the house, and now the little rats from the secret investigation team are coming to join in the fun and wreak havoc. Does that guy surnamed Dai really think CC is an easy target?

"Your whole team was arrested, how did you escape?" Zhang Chong asked abruptly.

"Chief, the police were some distance from the group. I happened to be offering them a bribe to try and settle things peacefully, which gave me the opportunity to escape," the agent replied honestly.

After examining the situation and confirming that his subordinate was not lying, Zhang Chong ordered his subordinate to recount the events in detail, leaving no detail out.

After listening to his subordinate's recount, Zhang Chong felt that something was amiss. The police's actions were strange. Shouldn't the police blow a whistle as a warning before arresting someone?

Even if there wasn't time to blow the whistle in the heat of the moment, where would an ordinary patrolman get a gun? Only customs officers and criminal investigation teams have guns, right? It's a pity he slipped away as soon as he sensed something was wrong, otherwise he would definitely have been caught and interrogated.

"Section Chief, what should we do with the little mouse?" the subordinate asked.

“It’s not like you’re new to this job. Do you think I need to teach you what to do when you see a rat crossing the street?” Zhang Chong asked without any emotion on his face.

Just as the arrangements were finished, another voice rang out at the door: "Report—Section Chief, Section Chief, there's new information."

Taking the telegram handed to him by his subordinate, Zhang Chong opened it and immediately smiled. "Great! It's like a godsend!" he thought. "Zhang Tianhe has cracked the last set of numbers; they are two sets of coordinates."

But what do these two sets of coordinates mean? Zhang Chong narrowed his eyes, beckoned to the surveyors in the dispatch room, and helped them point out the direction.

Strangely, one of these coordinates is near Jinshanwei, while the other is completely outside Shanghai's borders in international waters. Could one be real and the other fake? Things have changed, and Zhang Chong has no choice but to continue gesturing with a belly full of questions.

Looking at the two points, Zhang Chong had a flash of inspiration. He picked up a pencil and drew a line connecting the two coordinates. Eliminating interference, Zhang Chong discovered that the line connected two large island groups, greatly narrowing the search area. However, the location of the G Party's hideout was still unknown. With so many islands, where would they meet up?

Leaning over the nautical map, Zhang Chong reassessed the value of the coordinates. No, there should be two more coordinates; the intersection of the two lines is the final coordinate.

"Call Zhang Tianhe right now!" Zhang Chong suppressed his anger, a strange smile appearing on his face.

Everyone around was terrified and buried themselves in their work. As the saying goes, "When the King of Hell smiles, life and death are unpredictable." What had Zhang Tianhe done?

Not long after leaving the dock, the piers of all sizes were already filled with merchant ships, and dockworkers were carrying heavy sacks, disembarking and unloading cargo in an orderly fashion.

The dock is a public place; anyone can come. As for catching gang members, that's up to their ability. Chen Jian led his men, disguised as laborers, to various corners of the dock, especially around the boat captain, where they needed to plant spies.

With a flick of his towel, Chen Jian sat down on a nearby stone stool, crossed his legs, and adopted an extremely carefree posture. His eagle eyes scanned the crowd coming and going on the dock.

Just then, a man in shorts stood in the center of the area, looking around as if searching for someone. Oh, the courier's here. Why is his gun tucked in again? Strange, does the courier still have a mission to complete?

In the blink of an eye, he seemed to see the person he was looking for, a scholar-like man in a long robe. The two were very intimate, exchanging greetings with clasped hands and their arms around each other's shoulders.

Good heavens, another suspected member of the CCP has surfaced. Chen Jian grinned, his blood boiling. The man in the long robe looked to be of high rank, probably a minor leader. It seemed their deal was related to transporting Secretary Yu.

"Young man, looking for work?" Suddenly, a foreman in a white short-sleeved shirt blocked Chen Jian's path.

Just as he was about to refuse, Shen Jian noticed two members of the Communist Party boarding a large merchant ship one after the other. Curious, he asked the foreman whose ship it was and whether he was going to work on it. "It looks really impressive!"

"It's impressive, that's Maochang Company's ship, they do big business." The foreman was as proud as if he were looking at his own ship. "It's a pity that their company has permanent workers, they don't need temporary porters."

"Sir, you know a lot. You must be an old master at this dock. What big business do they do? Is it opium?" Chen Jian held up his hand and made a "6" gesture, which was also the gesture of holding an opium pipe.

Hearing the kind words, the foreman's expression softened considerably: "It's no big deal, it's no big deal. Maochang Company is a legitimate company, they don't do such unethical things. Their boss is an overseas Chinese who returned to China and specializes in reselling rubber, lacquer, precious metals and gems from Southeast Asia back to China."

With such a clean background, no wonder they have ties with the CCP. Shen Jian refused the foreman's offer, recalling how the courier had rented a small boat before, and now they were boarding a large merchant ship. There was only one Secretary Yu; why did they need two boats?

"Team Leader Shen... cough cough, Xiao Shen, Boss Cao has sent a new order. The goods need to be shipped by water." A subordinate hurriedly handed over a note.

Brother Cao sent a message. Chen Jian carefully opened the note, glanced at it, and immediately crumpled it into a ball. There were only four numbers with letters on the note. He tilted his head and thought for a long time before he realized that 30°N was the latitude of Shanghai. Those numbers were navigation coordinates, but why were there two sets? He racked his brains but still couldn't figure it out.

For professional matters, one should find professionals. Chen Jian avoided CC's eyes and ears, and found the phone booth. He needed to find out what the coordinates meant.

Dodo, dodo...

Before Chen Jian could even dial the number, he heard someone knocking on the glass. He turned around but saw nothing, yet the knocking continued unabated. Just as he was racking his brains trying to figure it out, *smack*, a bloody handprint was pressed against the glass, revealing a face covered in blood behind it.