Secretary Yu's concerns

Silence fell over the room. The two men stopped talking. The only sound was the faint rustling of the foreigner moving documents, as light as a feather drifting in the air.

Compared to Li Sheng's excitement, Qingcheng was already confident that she could take the documents out. However, what puzzled her was that Secretary Yu was not alone.

Since he had already found comrades, why did he keep it a secret, or was he arrested unexpectedly before he could contact the organization?

That doesn't make sense either. Several days passed between Secretary Yu's disappearance and his arrest. Moreover, these documents contain not only the provincial party committee's evacuation list but also many confidential lists from other departments. Judging from the brand-new creases, almost every one of them has been read. Clearly, Secretary Yu is looking for someone. Who is he looking for?

Picking up a roster, Kiyosumi examined it carefully again, but still had no clue. Just as she was about to give up, a series of dark brown dots on the side caught her eye.

It looked like sauce splattered on paper when eating noodles or dipping sauce. Kiyosumi leaned closer and sniffed, a very faint fragrance entering her nostrils. She unconsciously touched it with the tip of her tongue...

"My God, what are you doing?" William held the document, his neat curly beard drooping, his face full of disbelief.

Just as the booklet was about to fall to the ground, Li Sheng caught it with lightning speed. He hesitated for a while, seemingly trying to smooth things over, but Qingcheng simply said that she was feeling the warmth of the words, leaving both of them rooted to the spot.

To break the awkward silence, Qingcheng didn't mind rambling on for a few more minutes: "Mr. William, its warmth seems to travel through my fingertips to my heart. I can't resist such an exquisite work. I really want to meet the team. I guess they have at least four people to create such a high level of artistry."

"Ahem, you guessed right, it is indeed a team, but there are 5 people: a professor, a teaching assistant, and 3 students." William put down his book and returned to his seat.

"Could you please introduce me to one of their professors? I'd like to have a face-to-face conversation with him in prison," Kiyosumi asked casually.

“Dr. Meng, I regret that I cannot introduce you. Their charges have not yet been determined, so it is not convenient for them to meet with outsiders at the moment.” William resumed his usual gentlemanly tone.

"Fine then, I'll definitely read through these documents today and get a verdict on whether they're guilty or not." Qingcheng gave Li Sheng a look as she spoke.

Li Sheng, who was standing next to her, immediately said, "Isn't that a bad idea, Dr. Meng? This is an office, not a library. William also has work to do. Why don't we take the documents with us and look at them at home? What do you think, William?"

William seemed a little hesitant, but Li Sheng repeatedly assured him that he would definitely conduct research with Dr. Meng in a safe environment.

William trusted Li Sheng's character and abilities, and finally nodded in agreement to let them take the documents on the table. They could come back to exchange them for the next batch of documents after they had finished reading them. This condition was not a big problem, and Qingcheng gladly accepted it.

In the parking lot, Li Sheng held up a box of books and praised Qingcheng for his erudition. Qingcheng habitually glanced outside through the gap in the fence. Two little spies were still standing under the road sign, whispering to each other, when one of them sneaked out of the intersection.

"What's wrong?" Li Sheng followed Qingcheng's gaze and calmly reassured her, "It's nothing. We were keeping an eye on them when we came. I'll drive away from them later."

"No, I'll drive. They're probably after you. Try to avoid any conflict, so they have an excuse to check the car." Kiyosumi touched the license plate and asked with a smile, "Do you have a backup of the license plate?"

“Of course,” Li Sheng said affirmatively.

At the main gate of the police station, the red-haired Indian man didn't notice that there was one less person in the car that came out than when it came in. He opened the door and the black sedan drove towards the crowded Nanjing Road.

The car hidden in the alleyway moved accordingly. It seemed that they had not been fooled by the spare license plate. Qingcheng withdrew her eyes from the rearview mirror, carefully gripped the steering wheel, and waited for the right moment to change lanes and overtake.

"Are they still following us?" Qingcheng asked loudly, it seemed the spies had marked Li Sheng's car.

Li Sheng, who was lying on the back seat, calmly replied, "Yeah, we've changed drivers. We need to be careful. They're getting clever. They might have memorized our backup license plate number and are trying to take turns following us."

"Do you know those people?" Kiyosumi stared straight ahead without blinking.

“They’re all familiar faces at CC. I really hope the second line reacts slower than the first.” Li Sheng realized the plan had changed, so he simply leaned out the back window to peek.

"Oh, bad news. The new kid is a fast driver." Qingcheng noticed through the rearview mirror that the newly arrived agent was like a wild horse, constantly accelerating.

After passing four intersections, the two cars maintained a distance of about ten meters. Qingcheng's palms were sweaty, and an unnamed anger surged in his chest.

Even with the congested roads and constant traffic, the young spy managed to keep a tight hold on Qingcheng and his group's car, suggesting that the young man driving the car had exceptional tracking skills and was difficult to shake off.

But the current situation didn't allow Qingcheng to give up. She knew all she knew was that the documents in the car absolutely couldn't be seen by the spies. Qingcheng deliberately drove towards areas with less traffic. The spies became increasingly brazen, no longer caring about the distance, closing in relentlessly—ten meters, five meters, three meters…

As the red light at the intersection flashed, the agent slowly pulled up beside Qingcheng, openly scrutinizing him. His car window was wide open, his arm casually resting on the window frame, and he seemed to be chewing something.

Qingcheng glanced at the spy next to him naturally, moved his right hand from the steering wheel to the steering stick, and said facing forward, "Hold on tight!"

The red light started flashing, and at the very last second of the countdown, I slammed my foot down on the clutch. The engine roared to life, and with a powerful surge of acceleration, the car leaped forward like a tiger.

However, she underestimated how persistent the spy was. He quickly caught up and shortened the distance to about ten meters in an instant.

Li Sheng, who was in the back seat, put on his seatbelt and directed, "Xiao He, turn left and then right."

Qingcheng obediently turned the car into the alley, the headlights almost touching the wall, and there was another dead end ahead: "Brother Li, this road is blocked, and the alley is getting narrower and narrower."

"Trust me, turn left, out of the alley, there's a triangular shoulder, step on the gas, floor it, then quickly reverse and stop, on the shoulder." Li Sheng's words were broken by the jolting.

The car behind was also speeding closely behind, but the narrow alley was full of obstacles and extremely difficult to drive through, which widened the distance between the two cars.

Taking advantage of the turn, Qingcheng floored the accelerator, and with a sizzle, the rearview mirror scraped against the wall, sending out blinding sparks, while a burnt smell filled her nostrils.

The white exit had turned into a green, angled flowerbed, and several black cars were parked along the triangular shoulder. Just as he was about to exit the triangular area, Qingcheng simultaneously pressed the clutch and brake pedals, one deep and one shallow, and then sharply turned the steering wheel.

Creak!

The tires locked instantly, making a screeching sound. Qingcheng and Lisheng were thrown against the car door by the huge inertia, and the car drifted out of control to the other side of the triangular area.

Just as they were about to disappear into the distance, in a flash, Qingcheng quickly shifted into reverse, slowed down, and smoothly reversed through the only gap on the side of the triangular road. He pulled down the handbrake and stopped just at the top of the triangular shoulder. Suddenly, he heard Li Sheng mutter, "Little brat, I'll treat him to a beating when we get back."

"Quick, take cover." Before Qingcheng could ask any more questions, she immediately unbuckled her seatbelt, and the two lay down in tacit agreement, remaining silent.

Only the sound of long, drawn-out breathing filled the carriage; there was no other sound. Qingcheng heard a car speeding past beside them. The two patiently continued to hide. Sure enough, the spy's car reversed again, the white exhaust lingering for a long time, as if they were slowly inspecting the vehicle.

Under the cover of the rows of black cars lining the road, like a drop of water hidden in the ocean, with the raised flowerbeds perfectly concealing the license plates, Qingcheng froze on the spot like a stone when the door opened next.

Mixed among a group of black cars, Kiyosumi could almost feel the agents' chilling gaze through the thick car doors. She kept swallowing, hoping they would be misled by the direction of the tire tracks.

They probably didn't expect Qingcheng to stop on the triangular shoulder. No matter how hard they looked, they were always a car's distance away from the spies. The spies hesitated for a long time but finally gave up, slammed the door shut, and drove away.

After a long while, Li Sheng slowly got up and peered outside: "Did you shake them off this time?"

"That would be best. CC's spies are really too troublesome, no wonder you want to beat them up." Kiyosumi straightened her numb waist, her whole body covered in a cold sweat.

"I'm not going to beat up a spy, I'm going to beat my son to death when I get back!" Li Sheng shouted angrily, pulling a red satin hair accessory from his pocket.

He explained that his son had stolen his sister's hair accessory and stuffed it into the blind spot behind the car seat. The spies most likely marked their car by the bright hair accessory, and they would have been in serious trouble if it hadn't been thrown out later.

After hearing the reason, Qingcheng rubbed her temples, feeling both amused and exasperated. What a brat! Judging from Brother Li's anger, the child would likely have a "complete" childhood as early as tonight. She was too tired to drive anymore, so she let Li Sheng take over. She needed a rest.

After driving three blocks, Li Sheng asked the question that had been lingering in his mind: How did Qingcheng know about those published papers? Had she read them all?

Of course not, it's printed on the header. Kiyosumi mocked William's subordinates for not being careful, for not covering the header properly when reprinting the magazine. The article and issue number are still printed on it. Luckily, the foreigners don't understand Chinese and didn't notice.

Li Sheng narrowed his eyes: "Hey, I thought you were really knowledgeable. Don't ask so bluntly about seeing prisoners in the future, those foreigners are very suspicious."

That's why she pretended to be a mad scholar. Kiyosumi never intended to get the address from the start. William is a suspicious man; asking a few obviously stupid questions was a way of showing his honesty. He's shrewd, so just play dumb and don't follow the script.

"You're going too far for acting, even with the warmth of words. And that gesture of yours... ugh, I really want to crawl into a hole. Please tone it down, I still need to contact William later." Li Sheng's face scrunched up, as if he had just eaten a lemon.

"If I don't try to lick their boots and then try to trick them, how will I know where Secretary Yu and the others are being held?" Qingcheng asked with a smile.

"I'm sorry, I was blind to your greatness. What do you mean?" Li Sheng asked happily.

Qingcheng pointed to a stain on the page and patiently explained that she had just smelled a faint vinegar scent. She then licked it and found it was indeed vinegar, but not ordinary vinegar. It didn't have the sweet and fresh taste of Zhenjiang vinegar, and it had large black sediment particles. It must be Shanxi vinegar that had been aged for more than five years.

Within the public concession area, only the old Jin family on Sanma Road had this kind of vinegar. Qingcheng guessed that Secretary Yu ordered takeout from the hotel, which might be dumplings. Of course, it's also possible that Secretary Yu visited a fellow Shanxi native and brought it back to the hotel.

That's almost impossible! Li Sheng shook his head, indicating that Secretary Yu had concerns; they hadn't even contacted the organization, let alone asked fellow villagers. Sanma Road was a maze of hotels and shops, perfect for hiding; the chances of them being arrested there were very high.

If they were arrested on Sanmalu Road, their first place of detention would be the infamous "Old Zha Police Station," where many comrades sacrificed their lives during the May 30th Incident. The foreign devils loved to interrogate radical students and workers there.

Indeed, Kiyosumi noticed that William's evasive attitude clearly indicated that he did not want his colleagues in the Chief Constable to know, and that it was safest to keep the prisoner in the branch police station.

Then Qingcheng pointed out that if William hadn't concealed anything, there were five people in the prison: two slightly older and three slightly younger. Besides Secretary Yu, who was slightly older, there were four other comrades, who should all be comrades from the police commission who were evacuated this time.

Because the police commissioners were also responsible for resolving the household registration and residence issues of newly transferred comrades to Shanghai, their registration lists were more complete and original than those of the provincial party committee. Coincidentally, the documents Qingcheng obtained were all quite old, with one even predating the year Qingcheng went abroad to study.

“Secretary Yu is looking for someone!” Li Sheng said with certainty.

“Yes, it might be related to his concerns. Let’s go to the teahouse opposite the old Zha Police Station and find a gossipmonger to try and get some information,” Qingcheng replied.

The once clear sky turned gloomy, and a cool, refreshing breeze stirred up a few grayish clouds, suggesting that rain was imminent.

On the second floor of Delai Teahouse, Qingcheng and Li Sheng looked at the red brick wall of the old Zha Police Station and asked the teahouse's informant. Before long, the informant brought good news: it was confirmed that Secretary Yu and the other five comrades were still being held at the old Zha Police Station.

The tea shop's informant was quite capable; he not only told them the exact cell numbers, but also, for enough money, could let one of them visit the prison for five minutes.

As the saying goes, every shrimp has its own path, and every crab has its own path. The gossips near the prison always have some intricate connection with the prison warden.

Across from him, Li Sheng gave Qingcheng a wink. Qingcheng took out a money pouch from his pocket and asked to see the two men for half an hour. The busybody looked embarrassed and pushed the money pouch back to Qingcheng. He really couldn't carry it; too long a visit would easily cause trouble.

Li Sheng calmly opened the money bag and took the opportunity to play the good guy. He offered a compromise suggestion: the two of them would go to visit the prison in ten minutes.

The gleaming silver dollars reflected a greedy longing in their silvery mirror-like surface. The gossipmonger's eyes were practically glued to the bag of dollars. Qingcheng pretended to take the money bag back, but the gossipmonger grabbed his hand and solemnly declared that he would take the job, but one of them would have to disguise himself...

The thick red brick wall towered over the surrounding buildings, and the moss clinging to the bricks unfurled its downy leaves in the wind. The guards at the gate reached into their pockets to inquire about the silver dollars in their hands and waved for them to hurry inside.

On the towering, open-air narrow path, the gossip, carrying a food basket, expertly served the jailer a roast chicken. Behind him followed a middle-aged man who looked like a wealthy family and his wife. The wife kept covering her mouth with a handkerchief, seemingly disgusted by the musty smell.

The informant made a cross with his hands, and the jailer tossed him a bunch of keys without saying a word and started a timer.

Squeak—

The rusty iron door was slowly pushed open, making a sharp scraping sound, and a dim light entered the dark cell. The informant tactfully left the room, planning to return to remind them when the time was up.

Several people sat against the wall inside the room, their faces covered in stubble, watching the newcomer warily. Li Sheng made a shushing gesture to everyone, then suddenly cried out, "Son, what happened to you? Let your father take a good look at you."

In the empty cell, Li Sheng's voice amplified several times, even echoing a few times. Having been taken advantage of, the young men quickly denied it, and the quiet cell suddenly became noisy.

Qingcheng bypassed the crowd and went straight to the only bed. Lying on the bed was a thin man with red and swollen lips. Based on the outline in the sketch, Qingcheng immediately recognized that the man was Secretary Yu, whom they had been searching for.

Secretary Yu was in bad shape; his body was burning hot, and he was delirious from the torture. His heavy breathing pounded against her clear ears. She suppressed the bitterness in her heart, nudged Secretary Yu, and softly called out his real name, Yu Chaohua.

Secretary Yu opened his swollen eyes and involuntarily let out a hoarse murmur: "Run! Comrades, run!"

Before he could finish speaking, another slightly older man gently covered Secretary Yu's mouth. Only then did Qingcheng notice that the man's wrist was rubbed raw by the iron chain, his fingers were bluish-purple, and his fingernails had black bloodstains. It seemed that he was enduring great pain to make the gesture of covering his mouth.

The man pulled the tattered blanket up for Secretary Yu and whispered to Qingcheng that he was Xiao Tang from the Police Commission, an identity that matched Qingcheng's guess.

Yesterday, Secretary Yu was forced to drink chili water, which broke several of his teeth and made him hoarse. Due to an infection in his wounds, he also developed a high fever. I was afraid that he would talk nonsense and reveal all the family's secrets, so I told Qingcheng not to ask Secretary Yu any more questions.

"Dean Wang is frantic. He's offering me whatever it takes to get you out of here." Qingcheng removed his handkerchief, revealing a small mustache.

A few young men nearby laughed unkindly, perhaps because they couldn't help but laugh at her comical appearance in a cheongsam with a mustache. As a result, Li Sheng gave each of them a flick on the forehead, making them remember how good their mother was, or else they would be stuck in jail eating rotten food.

With time limited, Qingcheng immediately asked Xiao Tang, "Why isn't Secretary Yu contacting the organization? Is he looking for someone, and who is he looking for?"

In response to Qingcheng's barrage of questions, Xiao Tang bluntly stated that there was a traitor in the organization's security department, and Secretary Yu was almost killed by the traitor. Fortunately, Secretary Yu escaped quickly. He dared not contact the organization, fearing that his message would be intercepted by the traitor. Instead, he found Xiao Tang, who had once served as his bodyguard, hoping to find an opportunity to return directly to the Soviet area.

As for finding people, Secretary Yu did grumble about it. He wanted to find the traitors within the organization because there was more than one traitor. Those people were very senior, and it seemed that they were arrested and betrayed in Shanghai during the April 12 Incident, and then went back to infiltrate. So Secretary Yu asked Xiao Tang to find the historical files of people who entered Shanghai that were sealed by the police commission.

Unfortunately, just as Secretary Yu had made some progress, they were all arrested by the police, and the two large suitcases full of rosters fell into the hands of the foreigners. Xiao Tang asked Qingcheng to retrieve the information first, so that they could hold out a little longer.

Qingcheng glanced at the dying Secretary Yu again. He couldn't blame Secretary Yu for not contacting the organization and letting the traitor continue to hide. The evacuation list in his hands was related to the lives of hundreds of comrades. In this special period, he could only choose to sacrifice the small to save the big.

"Alright, but Dean Wang won't give up on you. Just be a little dejected lately, learn from others and cry, make a scene, and threaten suicide. Ask for medicine when you need it, eat well when you need it, put on the high-minded airs of the bourgeoisie, and insist that you are scholars. We will help you out from the outside." Qingcheng said, stuffing several stacks of silver dollars into Xiao Tang's hand.

The jailer here is greedy; money talks. Little Tang understood Qingcheng's intention and nodded solemnly: "By the way, there were two traitors who wanted to kill Secretary Yu, but Secretary Yu killed one of them instead..."

Just then, the cell door opened again, and the gossip peeked out: "You two, your time is up. Hurry up and say your last words. Don't break the rules. Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

Unexpectedly, time flew by. Li Sheng stopped Bao Datong and started chatting with him.

Rules are rules, and Li Sheng can't hold out for long. Qingcheng shook Xiao Tang's arm and asked anxiously, "Name!"

“They are all aliases. One is called Chen Sijin, and the other is called Wang Ahong. I don’t know which one died,” Xiao Tang replied very quickly.

"Alright, alright, the jailer's about to start yelling. You won't be able to see him anymore." The busybody pushed Xiao Tang aside and forcefully dragged Qingcheng out of the cell.

The door slammed shut. Xiao Tang, clinging to the small window, trembled as he pointed his injured hand at his forehead, adding, "Wounds, exclude people with the same wounds!"

After making eye contact with Xiao Tang for a second, Qingcheng quickly looked away, worried that if she looked any longer, she wouldn't be able to suppress the urge to save him.

After changing back into his own clothes at the teahouse, Li Sheng asked, "Xiao He, what are we going to do now?"

"Clean house!" Qingcheng clenched her fists, her face expressionless, and the anger that rose within her was about to burn her whole body. Damn traitors, we couldn't find them when we were looking for them, but now they've finally shown their true colors.

She secretly vowed in her heart, "If I don't get rid of you, I'm not a He."