When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
The torrential rain poured down from the clouds, making the already damp cell even more stifling. Green moldy streaks ran down the cement wall. Xu Xun lay half-dead on a pile of straw with his back to the cell door.
Pang Minyou from the Anti-Smuggling Division warmly received Gao Junxiao. Following Gao Junxiao's instructions, he gave Xu Xun only one meal of rice mixed with bran every other day, and would add some vegetables to his diet each week, depending on the situation, so that he wouldn't starve.
Seeing Xu Xun, who used to pretend to be aloof, wolf down those coarse rice porridge, even to the point of licking the bottom of the bowl, was much more satisfying than beating him up.
Gao Junxiao smiled without saying a word after hearing this. Staff Officer Xu was practically a gift from the air. He not only had to thank An Fu, but also Chief of Staff Tang, who followed his script. The other man personally delivered the evidence of collusion between officials and bandits to him piece by piece.
In order to buy time for the anti-bandit team and Commander Xiong to collect evidence, Gao Junxiao decisively threw out a third bait, a bait that Tang Jizu absolutely could not refuse—himself.
Gao Junxiao didn't even tell Chen Yao about this; he went directly to Commander Xiong and told him about using himself as bait. He admitted that there was an element of gambling involved, but from the moment the fake list was created, he had been gambling.
Since it's come to the most crucial moment, why not go all in and decide the outcome in one go! Only one of him and the guy surnamed Tang can stay, but Commander Xiong's words forced him to rethink.
Let's go back a few days.
As evening fell, the shrill chirping of cicadas was so loud it made one's head throb. After seeing Chen Yao and Shan Hai off, Gao Junxiao lay on his simple bed, closed his eyes to rest, and felt no irritation whatsoever.
Gradually, the whispers in the cell turned into snores, but Gao Junxiao was not truly asleep. Li Sheng's words kept echoing in his mind: Xu Xun was bought...
The creaking sound of the iron gate opening and closing came from outside. Gao Junxiao sat up alertly. Through the high iron window, he found it was frighteningly dark outside, and the air was filled with damp moisture. Was it drizzling?
The clattering sound of leather shoes hitting the concrete grew closer. A figure in a black raincoat slowly walked to the front of the solitary confinement cell, water droplets dripping down the raincoat. The person arrived quietly and silently took off his hat. Gao Junxiao was about to speak when he was stopped by a shushing gesture.
The visitor was none other than Commander Xiong, who had returned to Shanghai ahead of schedule. However, the first thing Commander Xiong did upon returning to Shanghai was not to go back to headquarters but to the anti-smuggling team, where he had just met the pitiful Staff Officer Xu. Now, he was rushing to Gao Junxiao to review the situation.
The prison guards who followed opened Gao Junxiao's cell and fawned over the commander by bringing him a chair. After sending the guards away with a look, Commander Xiong got straight to the point and said, "I think Staff Officer Xu has the real ledgers."
“Coincidentally, Junxiao thinks so too. From the moment we cast the first bait, they took the bait easily, and that's when I suspected there really was an account book.” Gao Junxiao dared to speak frankly only in front of Commander Xiong, even though he already knew from Anfu.
"Staff Officer Xu was quite friendly to me, but he kept his mouth shut, insisting that he didn't have any ledgers," Commander Xiong said regretfully.
"Of course he can't say that, it would be like handing you a handle on himself, and I also suspect..." Gao Junxiao whispered to Commander Xiong, explaining the possibilities he had just deduced.
"Oh, now I understand why Tang Jizu wanted to save him." Commander Xiong said with a look of sudden realization.
"Commander, please stall for two more days so I can think of a way to get the 'real' ledger out of him." Gao Junxiao rested his chin on his hand, his eyes gleaming. Only with the real ledger could he completely control Staff Officer Xu.
"I'm fine here, it's just that you'll have to stay in this dilapidated cell for a few more days, Zexiu." Commander Xiong gently patted Gao Junxiao's shoulder.
"It's alright, Chief of Staff Tang, what do you plan to do?" Gao Junxiao asked curiously.
"Hmph, I never took Tang Jizu seriously, but he overestimated himself and colluded with outsiders, so I had no choice but to sideline him." Seeing Gao Junxiao's confusion, Commander Xiong added, "You'll understand when you become commander that military and politics are inseparable. Killing someone is easy, but how to deal with the forces behind him is the real test."
"As long as he doesn't block my way, I don't care who's behind him." Gao Junxiao was, after all, a good apprentice trained by Master Tan, and he quickly accepted this situation. The way of being an official is simply to "get by".
"You can go ahead and do the things related to suppressing the bandits, and I'll handle the negotiations." With Commander Xiong's strong guarantee, Gao Junxiao naturally dared to take the gamble.
Gao Junxiao's thoughts returned to the anti-smuggling team's cell. He nudged Xu Xun, who weakly turned over. Xu Xun's eyes were sunken, his beard was unkempt, and he was emaciated, a far cry from the handsome young man he once was.
Xu Xun glanced at Gao Junxiao, seemingly wanting to ignore him and turn away, but Gao Junxiao grabbed him and said, "If you don't want to talk to me now, I'll allow Miss Lin to visit you in prison."
Upon hearing about his girlfriend, Xu Xun instantly sat up and roared furiously, "Supervisor Gao, haven't you humiliated me enough? A scholar can be killed but not humiliated. I will never betray Chief of Staff Tang."
“Xu Xun, when did I ask you to betray Chief of Staff Tang? I never intended to kill you either. You must have misunderstood.” Gao Junxiao sat down next to Xu Xun and said with an innocent look on his face.
Perhaps because the two were sitting close together, Xu Xun pleaded, "Commander Gao, I'm really not as important as you think. If you kill me now, Chief of Staff Tang won't even bat an eye."
"Hehe, you're quite self-aware. Chief of Staff Tang is in dire straits himself, so he has indeed given up on you." Gao Junxiao observed Xu Xun's emotional changes. He accepted this fact calmly, though his eyes held a slight hint of disappointment and grievance.
“But Miss Lin didn’t give up on you.” Gao Junxiao added, continuing to observe, and Xu Xun’s eyes lit up from his previous disappointment.
But the light quickly dimmed, and Xu Xun lowered his head and said, "We are destined to be apart. Please tell her to find another good match."
"You've already bought the wedding house, it's not right to abandon the girl." Gao Junxiao looked at Xu Xun, whose face had turned pale, with interest. "No. 21 Xinle Village, a townhouse, 307 square meters. My men found something interesting in the second-to-last wooden panel under the dining table. I'm curious if Miss Lin knows that the person in her heart is a villain who aids and abets evil."
"I don't know... she doesn't know anything. You've already gotten what you wanted, please don't look for her anymore." Xu Xun said, his voice trembling as he pulled Gao Junxiao along. Every man wants to be a hero in front of his lover.
"She's too naive. With your salary, how could you afford a villa? How can Miss Lin feel at ease living in a property she acquired through corruption?" Gao Junxiao winced as he shook off Xu Xun, pressing on his wound.
“How could I let her live in an unclean house? This villa was bought by my father by selling our ancestral home, plus the interest from my investments and the royalties from my papers.” Xu Xun thought Junxiao was disgusted with him, so he knelt down next to Gao Junxiao and begged, “I will give you all the ill-gotten gains I have made. Please leave this house for my parents to live in their old age.”
Gao Junxiao did not answer. Earlier in the prison cell, he had asked Chen Yao to find Staff Officer Xu's girlfriend, Staff Officer Lin's sister. Chen Yao used his handsome appearance and sincere words to pretend to be a colleague who wanted to get Staff Officer Xu out. He quickly gained the trust of Lin's younger sister and successfully tricked her into revealing that Xu Xun had a small mansion he wanted to use as a wedding home.
This was a rather dishonorable and even somewhat immoral affair, but since they had started it by harming someone else's family, he was simply giving them a taste of their own medicine. His adjutant, Mr. Lu, was lucky; during the search of the small mansion, he successfully discovered the account books in the box.
"Is bran rice tasty?" Gao Junxiao suddenly asked out of the blue.
"How could it possibly taste good?" Xu Xun leaned weakly against the cement wall.
"Is it hard to swallow? But the bran rice you eat every other day is what ordinary people can only eat during the New Year. When they are extremely hungry, they will eat anything. Landlords exploit them, bandits rob them. For ordinary people, they don't know whether death or tomorrow will come first." Gao Junxiao looked at Xu Xun and said with emotion.
“The social environment is like this; warlords are still warlords, and corrupt officials are still corrupt officials. It’s not something that one person can change.” Xu Xun pursed his lips and turned his head away, but Gao Junxiao keenly caught the look of guilt on his face.
"So you chose to go along with the crowd? Your father was a private tutor in town, didn't he teach you that a gentleman should have the world in his heart?" Gao Junxiao chatted like a friend, very approachable.
Xu Xun smiled helplessly: "Haha. What's the point of teaching? No matter how much knowledge you impart, it won't earn you a piece of meat. I'm just barely making ends meet as a teacher."
“Although Mr. Xu was poor and only had simple meals, he never let you, his only son, go hungry. You never even ate bran rice.” Gao Junxiao directly pointed out his background. “It’s rare that they treat their adopted children so well.”
“You…” Xu Xun pointed at Gao Junxiao with an incredulous expression.
"What? Even with your clean family background, the Lin family looks down on you. What would they think if they knew your original surname was Liu?" Gao Junxiao squinted at Xu Xun.
"I'm not surnamed Liu, I'm surnamed Xu, I'm surnamed Xu—" Xu Xun suddenly cried and shouted hysterically.
Outside the window, lightning and thunder still raged, but inside the cell, it was not cool at all but unbearably hot. Gao Junxiao fanned himself with his hand, letting Xu Xun break down and go crazy.
"In the 29th year of the Guangxu Emperor's reign, a young man took advantage of his family's absence while they were working in the fields. He forcibly took away his three-year-old sister and his newborn brother. On the way, he threw his sister into the river to drown her because she was crying. His brother was sold in town for five taels of silver. The child was then sold to Jiaxing after several transfers," Gao Junxiao said expressionlessly.
"Stop talking, please stop talking!" Xu Xun covered his ears and cried bitterly.
"Are you afraid Miss Lin will look down on you, or are you worried about ruining your future?" Gao Junxiao pulled Xu Xun's hand down and whispered in his ear, "If Staff Officer Lin knew this news, she would be ecstatic."
"Hahahaha, whatever. Before Liu Shengqi recognized me, I had no idea I was adopted. Maybe my birth is the original sin. I am destined to be disgraced and despised by the people I love." Xu Xun had given up resisting and slumped down, wanting to die.
"Just kidding. Actually, I always thought it was Chief of Staff Tang who wanted to get you out of trouble, but I later found out it was Miss Lin who begged her brother to do it. You're not that important to Chief of Staff Tang," Gao Junxiao said truthfully.
Of course, the conditions that Staff Officer Lin discussed with him twice were not something he could have come up with on his own; they were with Tang Jizu's tacit approval. But there was no need to tell Xu Xun about such a trivial matter, lest he still harbor any illusions about the man surnamed Tang.
"Then why are you still watching me? Even if you force me to become an inside man, the chief of staff will no longer trust me. I'm already a pawn." Xu Xun hugged his knees and trembled.
“I’m not interested in the Chief of Staff, and you haven’t betrayed him,” Gao Junxiao said, patting Xu Xun on the shoulder. “What I need you to be is Liu Shengqi’s inside man.”
"You want me to become a bandit in the mountains? No way!" Xu Xun resolutely refused.
“You have quite the imagination. What I mean is that I’ll bring you here so you can come with me to Xuzhou to suppress the bandits,” Gao Junxiao added. “You just need to follow my instructions.”
"Aren't you afraid I might turn against you at the last minute?" Xu Xun asked, frowning.
Gao Junxiao raised an eyebrow and asked, "Oh, so you still have feelings for your brother..."
Xu Xun interrupted him directly: "Nonsense, my surname is Xu."
"Well, it's more reassuring to remove the stain yourself. That way, there's no way anyone can threaten you if you die without proof, right, Advisor Xu?" Gao Junxiao gave a meaningful smile.
"In the army, loyalty is the best medal, and changing units without cause is a big taboo. Chief of Staff Tang won't let me off easy later." Xu Xun was originally worried about Chief of Staff Tang's retaliation.
"Hmph, he's out of luck. Commander Xiong is willing to go to the Lin family right now to act as matchmaker and arrange your marriage. When you come back from suppressing the bandits with me, not only will you get a promotion, but you'll also become the Lin family's son-in-law." Gao Junxiao felt the time was right and began to explain the future benefits.
"Chief of Staff Tang is above Chief of the General Staff Shi. Once you're disloyal, you'll never use me again. If someone like me, from a humble background, offends them, even if I get promoted to a higher rank through military merit, I'll have no chance of advancement afterward." Xu Xun lowered his head and remained silent. "Besides, you wouldn't dare use me again after Liu Shengqi is wiped out, would you?"
Xu Xun was indeed smart. Gao Junxiao put his arm around Xu Xun and asked, "I've read your recently published papers. Do you want to go into politics at the Ministry of Transportation? The political world doesn't have as many fussy rules as the military."
Xu Xun was shocked and finally relented. Gao Junxiao pressed his advantage and asked the question he had always wanted to know: Did Liu Shengqi really cooperate with Chief of Staff Tang in reselling firearms? Outside, it was still pouring rain, which had been falling all day.
When Gao and Chen returned to their room that evening, it was still pouring rain outside. Chen Yao had prepared a very lavish dinner to welcome Gao Junxiao back, although it hadn't been cooked yet.
Glancing at the red and green ingredients, still in their raw state, Gao Junxiao rolled his eyes in disgust and said he was going to take a shower first. He was going to change all his clothes from head to toe, and then take a hot bath to get rid of the bad luck.
If Chen Yao calls him after he has finished cooking, Chen Yao readily agrees and hands Gao Junxiao the change of clothes that he has prepared in advance.
But as soon as Gao Junxiao entered the inner bathroom, Chen Yao opened the window to observe the road outside. The white fog outside made it difficult to see clearly, so he checked his watch again.
It should be Qingcheng's sister home from work by now, and sure enough, a rickshaw braved the downpour and entered the alley. Chen Yao was overjoyed, immediately grabbed his keys, locked the door, and rushed downstairs. Upon closer inspection, it was indeed his Qingcheng's sister.
Before Qingcheng could even get off the rickshaw, Chen Yao sat down next to her anxiously and said, "Oh, Qingcheng, it's good that you came. You can't get a rickshaw in this kind of weather."
"So you're in such a hurry? I'll go down first, you go ahead." Qingcheng jumped down to the eaves and waved for him to go first.
Unexpectedly, Chen Yao followed her out of the car and grabbed her, saying, "First of all, I have a dinner party today, but I bought a lot of ingredients beforehand. They won't be fresh by tomorrow. So, you haven't eaten yet, right? Go to the kitchen and take everything away. Wasting food is a sin against the heavens."
As if to complement Chen Yao's words, thunder rumbled in the sky, but Qingcheng still declined, saying, "How could I accept this? I have some noodles at home; I can just cook them when I get back."
“We’re already so close, don’t think you’re getting a free lunch. To be honest, I’d like you to cook a portion for my brother too. It’s settled then.” Chen Yao didn’t allow Qingcheng any objection and tossed the keys to her.
Qingcheng could only watch the rickshaw get smaller and smaller, and looking at her wet dress and silly-looking big rain boots, she thought, "How can I have the nerve to go to someone else's house like this? It's so rude. I should go change my clothes first."
After changing into a clean white dress, Qingcheng nervously went downstairs. Looking around to make sure no one was there, she quickly opened the door and slipped into her room. Leaning against the wooden door, Qingcheng felt her heart was about to jump out of her chest; why did she feel this guilty, like a thief?
The lights were still on and the windows were open, so it seemed that Chen Yao had really left in a hurry. Qingcheng gently called out, "Is anyone there?" but no one answered her. Only then did she feel relieved and begin to look for the kitchen.
The upstairs and downstairs layouts were similar, and Qingcheng quickly found the kitchen. Wow, it was quite a feast! There was chicken, fish, chrysanthemum greens, celery, and cowpeas, along with lilies and ginkgo nuts. She could roughly guess what Chen Yao wanted to cook.
There were too many things, and figuring out how to carry them upstairs was a problem. Just as she was thinking about it, a sudden gust of wind blew outside the window, and she heard a howling sound. Qingcheng realized that the window wasn't closed yet, and it was going to rain soon.
After closing the window and looking around to make sure no one was in the house, she grew bolder and began to tour the living room with her hands behind her back. There was a pile of books on the fireplace mantel and a photo of Gao and Chen together, which looked like military uniforms from the Beiyang period.
Her fingertips traced the books; most titles were magazines and novels about geological photography, with a few military works. Kiyosumi's professional instincts kicked in; she hoped to discover another side of the men from the books they were reading.
The books placed on the shelf, within easy reach, indicate that they read frequently. These are mostly novels with a literary and melancholic style, as well as her books, which Chen-ge (Brother Chen) probably enjoys reading. As for magazines, they probably both read them, with Xiao (Ah Xiao) likely reading more military-themed ones.
Several opened cardboard boxes were piled up by the fireplace, labeled with clothes, miscellaneous items, etc., indicating that they had just been moved in and hadn't been unpacked yet. This was someone else's privacy and she shouldn't look. She walked around the boxes and sat on the sofa. Yesterday's newspaper was still on the coffee table, and she imagined Ah Xiao drinking tea and reading the newspaper here.
Mimicking his usual actions, Qingcheng couldn't help but laugh out loud. However, when she thought that the real Gao Junxiao was still locked up in jail, her heart sank heavily. This time, she was really scared. She was afraid that she would never be able to hold his hand again and feel the warmth of his palm.
Men are all proud and don't like to complain, so the only thing she could do now was cook a delicious meal to comfort Ah Xiao in prison. Thinking of this, Qingcheng decided to cook it right there. After all, she had given her the key, so using the kitchen wouldn't be a big deal.
Gao Junxiao, in the bathroom, realized he had taken the wrong clothes. Why did that idiot Chen Yao take long sleeves? Wearing long sleeves at home in this weather would make him die of heatstroke.
Summer clothes are probably still in the cardboard box and haven't all been sorted out yet. I think they're in the living room. I was thinking of asking Chen Yao to help him get them, but then I thought better of it. Chen Yao is cooking, and I don't want to get his clothes dirty. I'll just get them myself.
So Gao Junxiao wrapped himself in a bath towel, humming a little tune, and walked all the way to the cardboard box to rummage through the clothes. He finally found a short-sleeved shirt, only to discover that it belonged to Chen Yao and he couldn't fit into it.
"Chen Yao, where did we put our short-sleeved shirts and vests?" Gao Junxiao asked as he continued rummaging through the box.
Just then, he heard faint footsteps behind him, which didn't sound like Chen Yao. But when Gao Junxiao saw who it was, he felt like the sky was falling. How could He Qingcheng be standing behind him with a bloodstained kitchen knife, looking so excited?
Realizing he wasn't wearing an outer garment, Gao Junxiao quickly grabbed one and covered his chest, then slowly stood up. Unexpectedly, a nail on the cardboard box caught his towel, and he felt something slowly slide down…
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, I felt a surge of heat rushing to my head, my face flushed red, and I could no longer suppress my emotions."
ah! ! ! ! !
Two screams echoed through the night sky, like sharp blades slicing through it.
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