Chapter 59 Clues Converge
On the other hand, things weren't so smooth in the Shanghai Military Control District.
Lu Jingyan sat on a hard bench in the reception room. The tea in front of him had already been replaced three times, and the steam had dissipated, leaving it completely cold.
Deputy Director Wang, the head of the assisting department, walked in with a beer belly and a big smile on his face, and plopped down opposite him.
"Oh dear, Commander Lu, I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting. I just had an emergency meeting." Deputy Director Wang rubbed his hands together, smiling like a Maitreya Buddha, but a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes.
Lu Jingyan remained expressionless, his voice steady: "Director Wang, have you found the file I requested?"
“Well…” Deputy Director Wang drawled, looking troubled. “Commander Lu, it’s not that we’re not cooperating, it’s just that… the case you’re looking for is from a long time ago.”
"These are old stories from ten years ago. The people who handled them have either been transferred or retired. The archives are piled up like mountains, and finding them is like looking for a needle in a haystack."
He abruptly changed the subject, leaning forward and lowering his voice: "Besides, this 'Candle Dragon' case was classified as 'top secret' back then. Without an order from the highest level in the capital, no one here would dare to touch it."
"Look, this permit you have authorizes you to 'assist in the investigation,' it doesn't say we have to turn our underwear upside down for you to see."
His words were perfectly tactful, expressing both the "difficulties" and the "rules," thus clearing the way for the outcome.
Lu Jingyan looked at him, his deep eyes remaining calm.
He knew that this was Lu Wenbo's network of connections, cultivated over many years, finally coming into play. Trying to break through the official channels was harder than climbing to heaven.
"I see."
Lu Jingyan stood up, didn't say another word, and turned to leave.
Deputy Director Wang watched his tall, straight back, the smile on his face slowly fading. He picked up the phone on the table and dialed a number: "Hello... He's gone. Yes, he was a tough guy, but don't worry, he won't be able to find anything here."
As night fell, the mist over the Huangpu River mixed with the smell of coal smoke, making the whole of Shanghai sticky and humid.
Lu Jingyan took off his military uniform and changed into a set of ordinary blue work clothes, blending into the noisy crowd at the Shiliupu Wharf.
He sat down at a small stall selling plain noodles and ordered a bowl.
Not long after, a dark-skinned man in a customs uniform sat down opposite him, looking around nervously.
"Commander." The man's voice was very low, filled with excitement and unease.
He was a soldier under Lu Jingyan's command, named Li Hu. After retiring from the army, he joined the anti-smuggling team at the Shanghai docks.
Lu Jingyan didn't look up, but just kept eating his noodles: "Speak."
"I've made some progress on the matter you asked me to investigate." Li Hu leaned closer. "In the last six months, a guy named Zheng Kai has emerged at the docks. He's incredibly powerful. He has a warehouse called Warehouse No. 7 under his control, and it's really sinister."
"What's so strange about it?"
"That warehouse was heavily guarded, with more layers of security than our customs patrols. Our men would be warned even if they just glanced at it, let alone approached it."
Li Hu swallowed hard. “I have a brother who got drunk one night and tried to take a shortcut, but he got hit on the head with a club and woke up several miles away. Everyone in the team says that Warehouse No. 7 is a hellhole, and whoever touches it is doomed.”
Lu Jingyan stopped eating his noodles.
"Take me to see it."
"Commander, that place..." Li Hu looked troubled.
"lead the way."
Lu Jingyan's tone was not harsh, but it carried an unquestionable command.
Li Hu gritted his teeth and stood up: "Yes!"
Midnight.
The dock fell into a deathly silence, with only the occasional beams of searchlight sweeping across the mountains of containers and casting huge shadows.
Lu Jingyan and Li Hu moved silently, like two ghostly figures, taking advantage of the shadows to stealthily advance.
Soon, they saw the legendary Warehouse No. 7.
It was less a warehouse and more a small fortress. Barbed wire, searchlights, guards every three steps, sentries every five.
Lu Jingyan lay on top of a shipping container and raised his binoculars.
Through the telescope, the guards patrolling back and forth stood upright, their steps steady, their eyes alert, their movements displaying a unique military efficiency and discipline.
He could even tell from the subtle tactical hand signals they used when changing shifts that they had received professional training.
They're all veterans!
Lu Jingyan's heart sank.
Lu Wenbo actually used his connections in the military to build a private black armed force for himself!
Li Hu watched in trepidation, whispering, "Commander, these people are not to be trifled with. We should..."
"Shut up."
Lu Jingyan ignored him, his gaze fixed on the warehouse door.
One after another, sealed freight trucks drove in and out silently. The whole process was efficient and quiet, exuding a chilling professionalism.
Forcing your way in would be suicide.
Lu Jingyan put down his binoculars and glanced at the trucks.
Suddenly, his pupils contracted slightly.
Without exception, the wheels of those trucks were covered with a layer of dark red mud.
This type of soil...
In his mind, a map of the suburbs of Shanghai unfolded instantly, and all the information was matched at lightning speed.
On the outskirts of Shanghai, there's a military airfield that's been abandoned for decades! The runway there has fallen into disrepair over the years, and what's been turned up is this unique red soil!
Found it!
Lu Jingyan suppressed the turmoil in his heart and, with Li Hu, quietly withdrew from the warehouse, just as he had come.
Two o'clock in the morning, at the Peace Hotel.
Su Wantang had just finished taking a shower after coming out of her busy space.
The silk robe she wore accentuated her shapely figure, and her long, black hair cascaded over her shoulders, the ends still damp with moisture, making her look vibrant and alluring.
There was a gentle knock on the door. When it opened, Lu Jingyan walked in, bringing with him a chill and the salty, damp smell of the river wind.
Su Wantang poured him a cup of hot water: "Did you run into a wall?"
"Hmm." Lu Jingyan took the cup; its warmth dispelled some of the chill. He took a sip and said succinctly, "The official path is blocked."
He recounted his discovery that evening: "I found a place, Warehouse No. 7 at the Shiliupu Wharf. The leader is called Zheng Kai."
Su Wantang paused in her hand as she dried her hair, then looked up, her beautiful eyes flashing with shock.
She walked to the desk, picked up a pen, and wrote two words on the paper.
Zheng Kai.
“Du Kangnian also mentioned this person.” Su Wantang’s voice was clear and calm. “He said that Zheng Kai was Lu Wenbo’s ‘black glove’ in Shanghai, and he handled all the dirty work that couldn’t be seen in the light of day.”
Two completely different clues, one overt and one covert, one above and one below, converge perfectly on the name "Zheng Kai".
A flame also ignited in Lu Jingyan's deep eyes.
Su Wantang continued, "Du Kangnian also said that Zheng Kai is currently planning a big business deal with a representative from Hong Kong Island surnamed Lin."
She revealed all the information that Du Kangnian had provided.
After listening, Lu Jingyan walked to her side and looked at the names on the paper, along with the circled "Warehouse No. 7" and "Abandoned Airport".
A smuggling network spanning politics and business, and extending to both the legitimate and criminal worlds, has clearly emerged before them.
Beijing is Lu Wenbo's home turf, and they are constrained in every way.
But this is Shanghai!
If you're a dragon, you have to coil up! If you're a tiger, you have to lie down!
“It seems,” Su Wantang leaned close to Lu Jingyan’s ear, her warm breath mixed with a delicate fragrance, gently caressing his earlobe, “we need to give this Zheng Kai a big gift.”
Lu Jingyan could clearly feel the heat spreading from the base of his ears. He turned his head and looked at the bright face so close to his, his Adam's apple bobbing.
"I'll listen to you." His voice was low, with a hint of hoarseness that he himself didn't even realize.
The entire warehouse was the core node of Lu Wenbo's smuggling network, and no matter how tight the defenses were, they still had to break into it.
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