Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Blade of Truth

Cheng Qing's words were like a sharp knife, piercing the oppressive silence in the mourning hall.

The ever-burning lamp on the altar flickered, making the white mourning clothes on her face appear bluish-white, like a vengeful ghost.

Chen Kan felt a pang of regret. He shouldn't have been so arrogant last night and sent Lei Zi and A Qiang to assassinate her. He should have sent more people, which would have saved him from her causing trouble at the funeral hall.

Rumors can be hurtful. He targeted Qiao Yuan in the same way back then, but now the retribution has come back to haunt him. Cheng Qing directly labeled him and Lin Tang as "adulterers"!

Chen Kan had seriously underestimated Cheng Qing's intentions.

Her sinister smile was like a venomous snake, coldly darting towards Lin Tang and Chen Kan!

They could not avoid it any longer, and were filled with fear and unease.

To his surprise, there were actually a few of Qiao Yuan's old subordinates in the Crescent Moon Gang who, upon hearing this, immediately turned red in the eyes, clenched their fists, and moved closer to them.

"Lin Jintang! You bastard!" someone in the crowd cursed. "Chief Qiao treated you well, and you actually conspired with that pretty boy Chen Kan to harm him!"

"Exactly! What do you take us, the Crescent Moon Gang, for? Your private residence?"

Lin Tang stood before the portrait, the hem of her moon-white cheongsam stained with incense ash, yet she still stood ramrod straight.

“Jintang…” Chen Kan immediately regretted his rashness on this trip, and he was also annoyed by his oversight last night!

But Lin Tang didn't look at him, nor at the grumbling gang members. Instead, she turned to Qiao Yuan's portrait and kowtowed three times. Her forehead hit the bluestone slab with a crisp sound, and her temples turned red.

Chen Kan stared at her in astonishment, but unexpectedly, he recalled the image of her kneeling in the Buddhist hall when he was a child, praying for a peace charm for him. At that time, her eyes were full of tenderness, like moonlight soaked in honey.

But now, her eyes are only on the person in the photo before her, and her eyes are cold, like frozen river water.

After kowtowing, Lin Tang slowly straightened up.

"What are you doing, woman, pretending to be a ghost?!" There was a commotion below, and some people wanted to rush up, but fearing Uncle Chen's prestige, they only shouted at her from the lower steps of the mourning hall.

Lin Tang's gaze was sharp as she coldly stared at the man. "Master Qiao's body is barely cold, and you're all so impatient. I'm an educated man, I value fidelity, equality, and freedom in marriage. My divorce from Qiao Yuan was due to our differing beliefs and pursuits. But in all honesty, Qiao Yuan and I were sworn brothers, and we made equal sacrifices for the Crescent Moon Gang! He entrusted his son to me before he passed away, which is why I returned here. Otherwise, do you think I would bother with a bunch of rabble who's been instigated and just makes a racket?"

As she spoke, her sharp gaze swept over Cheng Qing, "As for her, I originally wanted to let her go because of the kindness that Master Qiao had shown her! But she insisted on doing evil and spreading rumors here! Chen Kan and I are completely innocent, how could there be any illicit affair? Fortunately, Master Qiao was farsighted and knew that she would cause trouble after his death, so he left me this item!"

Her fingers traced the edge of the prayer mat, her fingernails turning bluish-white. Suddenly, she pressed down and pulled out a gleaming metal box from under the mat.

“A German-made recorder,” Lin Tang placed the box on the altar. “The night before Master Qiao left, he held my hand and gave it to me. He said that if Cheng Qing ever turned against him, I should take this out.”

Cheng Qing's eyes widened in surprise!

Lin Tang pressed the play button.

"Cheng Qing... Cheng Qing, she and the Axe Gang, and the Japanese... harmed me!" Qiao Yuan's voice emerged from the box, carrying the gasps of someone on the verge of death, like a rusty knife that cuts painfully into one's ears.

The recording abruptly stopped, and the mourning hall fell into a deathly silence. The gang members exchanged bewildered glances, and someone whispered, "That...that's Chief Qiao's voice, isn't it?" "I remember when he was sick last time, he spoke in this tone..."

Cheng Qing took two steps back, knocking over the offering table beside her, scattering braised beef and Biluochun tea all over the floor. She stared at the recorder, her eyes filled with terror: "You...you faked this! This isn't real!"

"Whether it's true or not," Lin Tang picked up the recorder and walked up to Cheng Qing, "you know in your heart. Three days before Master Qiao died, he gave this to me and said that if anything happened to him, I should publish the contents. He said that he was sorry to Man Qing and sorry to me, but he would rather die than let the Japanese take over the Crescent Moon Gang's territory."

Cheng Qing suddenly screamed, "Lin Jintang! How dare you treat me like this? I'm Gu Manqing! Have you forgotten the days we bought honey together?"

Lin Tang's fingers paused, a hint of tears welling in her eyes, but she quickly regained her coldness: "Manqing would never betray her country or help the Japanese harm Master Qiao. You are not her, you are a traitor." She drew her gun, pointing the muzzle at Cheng Qing's temple. "Today, I will kill you for Master Qiao and for Manqing."

Lin Tang pulled the trigger.

"stop!"

At this critical moment, the vermilion doors of the mourning hall were kicked open, and the sound of leather shoes stepping on the bluestone slabs was particularly jarring.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Sato Ichiro standing at the door. His black suit sleeves were embroidered with silver cherry blossoms, and he had a cold smile on his lips. He held a folding fan in his hand, and when the fan was unfolded, it showed a Japanese ukiyo-e print depicting a female ghost under a cherry blossom tree.

Lin Tang raised an eyebrow slightly at “Mr. Sato”.

“Mrs. Lin,” Sato Ichiro walked in, tapping his palm with his folding fan, “Miss Cheng is a distinguished guest of our Japanese Empire. If you were to harm her, things would not go smoothly!”

"Miss Cheng, wouldn't it be better if you called her Sato Sakura?"

Chaos erupted immediately in the arena.

"The concubine that Chief Qiao took is Japanese?" "What's going on..." Everyone was discussing, even Chen Kan was very shocked, "She's not Manqing? She's Japanese?"

Lin Tang said coldly, "I don't know if she is Manqing, but at this moment, I am only certain that she is from Japan."

Sato Ichiro laughed, “That’s right. Miss Gu is my adopted daughter from China. She received a comprehensive education from our Great Japanese Empire from a young age… Her staying with Chief Qiao is also a sign of the friendly attitude between our two families. Madam Lin, you said Chief Qiao wants you to take over the Crescent Moon Gang, then don’t forget that the Crescent Moon Gang’s opium business is supported by us Japanese. If you kill Miss Gu, I guarantee that the Crescent Moon Gang’s opium business will collapse…”

Lin Tang ignored his threat. She didn't move the gun, but instead pressed it against Cheng Qing's temple: "Mr. Sato, you're exaggerating. What I'm investigating now is Cheng Qing's involvement in the plot to assassinate Chief Qiao. You yourself said that you and Master Qiao have a friendly working relationship, so I don't think you instructed Cheng Qing to do this, right?"

Sato Ichiro paused, his folding fan still, his gaze sweeping across Lin Tang's face like a venomous snake before settling on the gun in her hand. He suddenly smiled: "Madam Lin, I am naturally on good terms with Chief Qiao, and have never had such intentions. Knowing my daughter as I do, she deeply loves Chief Qiao and would never do such a thing. There must be a misunderstanding. Madam Qiao, if I must protect Cheng Qing today, could we perhaps discuss some terms?"

"What are the conditions?" Lin Tang's finger was on the trigger, her knuckles turning white.

“From now on, we Japanese will give you our full support in managing the Crescent Moon Gang,” Sato Ichiro said with a smile. “After all, Chief Qiao is no longer here, and you, a woman, are probably not able to keep those rough men at the docks in check. With our help, the Crescent Moon Gang can remain as stable as Mount Tai.”

Upon hearing this, Chen Kan's face paled slightly.

Lin Tang said calmly, "Mr. Sato, please remember what I said today. I will give you face because of Cheng Qing."

Sato Ichiro stared at Lin Tang, then suddenly closed his folding fan and clapped his hands: "Mrs. Lin is indeed amazing, I'm impressed!" He turned to Cheng Qing and said, "Sakura, come with me."

Cheng Qing's expression changed again. Looking at Lin Tang, she bit her lip, tears streaming down her cheeks: "Jin Tang, I really am Man Qing... Are you really so cruel to me?"

“You are not Manqing,” Lin Tang said firmly. “Manqing would never betray the country or harm Master Qiao.” She put down her gun, turned and walked towards Qiao Yuan’s portrait. “Master Qiao, I have cleaned up your mess.”

Sato Ichiro led Cheng Qing out of the mourning hall, and the vermilion door creaked shut, keeping out the outside noise.

The mourning hall was so quiet you could hear the incense burning. Chen Kan walked to Lin Tang's side and whispered, "Jin Tang, are you alright?"

Lin Tang shook her head, touching Qiao Yuan's portrait, her fingers tracing his eyebrows and eyes: "Master Qiao, I promised you I would protect the Crescent Moon Gang." She turned to look at Chen Kan, the coldness in her eyes fading slightly, "Chairman Chen, thank you for today."

Chen Kan was taken aback. He remembered when Lin Tang helped him clean his wounds as a child, speaking in the same tone: "Jin Tang, why are you being so polite with me?" After thinking for a moment, he added, "Jin Tang, you just said you wanted to cooperate with Sato. Was that just a delaying tactic?"

"Uncle Chen," Lin Tang didn't answer him, but looked at Uncle Chen, "help me put away Master Qiao's portrait, we'll bury him tomorrow."

Uncle Chen nodded and turned to tidy up the offering table.

Lin Tang walked to the entrance of the mourning hall and looked at the sky outside. The dark clouds were very low, as if it was about to rain.

She turned to Chen Kan and said, "President Chen, please come to the inner room. I have a few words to say to you."

The door to the inner hall creaked shut, shutting out the noise from the mourning hall.

Lin Tang picked up the teapot and poured Chen Kan a cup of tea.

"President Chen, please sit down." Her voice was like silk soaked in ice, carrying a chill as it brushed past my ear.

Chen Kan had a vague sense of foreboding.

"Jintang, I..." He had just started to speak when Lintang interrupted him.

But now, there are no tears in her eyes, only coldness, like the frozen waters of West Lake.

"That day at the dock, Qiao Yuan was going to see you and me off, right?"

Chen Kan's face turned deathly pale. He opened his mouth and managed to say, "Jin Tang, that day... it was Qiao Yuan who wanted to drown us! We already have Lao Zhou as a witness. What are you talking about now? I don't understand!"

Lin Tang picked up the tea on the table, the steam swirling around her face, blurring her expression: "Don't understand? Then let me help you recall."