Chapter 92: Night of Sixteen
Ships from the Far East to Europe mainly stopped at Saigon, French Vietnam and British Singapore. Very rarely, they also stopped at Penang, the southernmost tip of the South China Sea, which is also the end of China's influence.
This small island in the Strait of Malacca, though rarely visited by ships, maintains extremely strict border control. This British-occupied island is a stark contrast to Singapore: governed by the British and influenced by Indian culture, its streets are devoid of any Chinese characters. Yet, today, the island's border police station has welcomed two fleets of light cruisers, one from Japan and the other from Britain.
This was still British territory. After patrolling the sea for several days, Xie Zeyi, in a rare moment of good humor, suddenly raised the white flag, lowering his authority. His sole purpose was to invite Japanese fleet officers to Penang for dinner, drinks, and conversation at the police station on this small, British-controlled border island.
Not long after, someone from the Penang Police Station came to find him and said that the Shanghai Concession Municipal Council had called him and said that the third young lady had woken up.
He asked the man to call back and ask Bian Jieming to pick up the third young lady and take her to the Municipal Council, and then call him again. He had something to ask her.
After giving the order to the others, the Royal Navy officer remembered his inexplicable joke about "hand-delivering a love letter to a rival." The joke spread among the British and Japanese soldiers, and for a while, it amused the officers in the reception room, and the atmosphere suddenly became lively.
He didn't take it seriously, sat down with a smile, and said to the Japanese captain who was in charge of intercepting the ocean ferry, "This may be a public matter, but for me, it's really just a private matter."
The captain looked at him for a moment, then laughed heartily and said, "So, Captain Xie, do you want the cruise ship to enter China, or do you not?"
He curled his lips and smiled, feeling rather embarrassed. "The cruise ship has entered the country. Publicly, I haven't gained any credit. Personally, I feel bad for working so hard to connect my rival with her, letting her get close to me. It's not my fault that she hasn't entered the country. But if the whole Municipal Council hears about it, they'll think I, Xie Zeyi, am afraid of competing fairly with my rival, so I deliberately let her go on the extradition mission, just to satisfy my own selfish desires. If I ever win her, others will probably say I won unfairly and am not a gentleman. I feel so wronged." He took a sip of his wine and smiled again. "Captain, what do you think I should do with this ship?"
The captain coughed lightly twice, then smiled softly, saying, "You have to understand that this ship isn't just ours. Nanjing is watching it even more closely than we are. My decision doesn't count."
"That's right," Xie Zeyi said, squinting his eyes. "So, this morning at 3:00 a.m., the Tianjin Maru departed from Hongkou, claiming to be carrying medical interns from Sendai Medical College. However, the Municipal Council received a report claiming that the Tianjin Maru was carrying over 30 Chinese nationals of unknown origin, suspected of human trafficking."
The captain's face darkened. "That's not my business."
"It's certainly none of your business," Xie Zeyi chuckled softly, "but have you called the Japanese consul in Shanghai to ask for his opinion? After all, even though Nanjing is keeping a close eye on this ship and the report has been made to the Municipal Council, if human trafficking is confirmed, don't forget that the Municipal Council has not only British, but also Americans, French, Italians, and Soviets. The factories and land north of Yangjingbang, as well as the newly built hospitals and chemical plants, this industrial chain is truly coveted. What would be the consequences if they knew you were sending living people to the Emperor for experiments?"
Xie Zeyi's words are truly clever. Whether or not you allow cruise ships into the country is really none of my business. If anything, it's simply because the woman I'm pursuing wants that ship to enter the port. If you're willing to help, I'll appreciate it. If you're not, it doesn't hurt me.
But I won't be as easy with you guys as I am with dealing with the evidence you have in my hands. Here are the conditions, it depends on whether you accept them or not.
The captain's facial muscles twitched. Then he asked harshly, "Did Penang call the Municipal Council?"
"Of course it's working. It's very convenient." He said with a light smile. "It just so happens that I also want to call my sweetheart and ask her if she wants to bring her ex-fiancé's cruise ship to China. How about we go together, Captain?"
——
She slept for thirty hours, making up for the sleep she'd missed in the past two weeks. Not long after she woke up and washed up, her mother came over to make her some food. Seeing her awake, she had an almost relieved smile on her face, and said in her Cantonese accent, which was far more outrageous than Xie Zeyi's, "That's great, you're finally awake! Go give Mr. Xie a call!"
After dinner, after reading the stack of letters on the table, her mind cleared up a bit. She carefully placed Yan Sang's letter in the mahogany box, found a pen and paper, and had just written two lines of reply when the doorbell rang outside. Looking out the window, she saw Bian Jieming coming downstairs, honking twice. She had no choice but to put down her pen and paper, change into a cashmere sweater and coat, and hurried downstairs.
They arrived at the Municipal Council in anger. Bian Jieming gave her a six-digit phone number of British Penang, and then hurried out with several other policemen.
She dialed the number and waited a long time for the call to be transferred. After the call was connected, she heard a few words in Japanese from the other end, but she didn't understand them.
Compared to those few words in Japanese, Xie Zeyi's voice could be said to be quite gentle: "Have you eaten?"
"I've eaten."
"Yeah. Still sleepy?"
She quickly said, "Are you sleepy or not? Have you been back?"
"It's amazing that you still remember."
"Did you tell me anything important?"
"Nothing important, I just wanted to see you. Did you see the letter?"
"I have. I had just finished reading it and was writing a reply when Bian Jieming came over."
"Yeah." After a pause, he added, "It sounds like you're in a good mood."
"Huh? Where is that?"
"You like the letters he wrote to you?"
She thought for a moment and said something from the bottom of her heart, "There's probably no one in the world who wouldn't like to receive a handwritten letter from Mr. Smith."
"Oh. So you like him very much?"
"Mr. Xie?" She was a little confused. "Overseas calls are free?"
Xie Zeyi fell silent, and the Japanese voice on the other end disappeared for a while, and then sounded again.
After a pause, Xie Zeyi said, "Do you want me to bring the cruise ship carrying him back to China?"
She said decisively, "Yes. Why not?"
"Don't you want to think about it again?"
"Like what?"
"If we are not careful, this ship could put Britain's position in the Municipal Council in a difficult position. Even more serious is the possibility that the British might be driven out of the Shanghai Concession."
She had considered this. However, in the long run, owning uranium mines, processing plants, and an engineering base would be far more effective than simply sheltering the British within the concessions. Geologists were necessary, but British troops within the concessions were not. The concessions would eventually be returned, and with China and Britain having reached an agreement, there were naturally other ways to get the British into the heart of China.
Besides, she also had a score to settle with the Si family, Yan Sang, Si Ying, and the Lin family. She also had something crucial to say to him, if only for his future, he had to come back.
She said, "Mr. Xie, please bring him back."
"It's 'he', not 'they'?"
"That's not important. That ship must come back."
There was a pause on the other end. "Yeah. I will."
"Mr. Xie, I will definitely thank you very much!"
"It's just a small matter, don't thank me."
"You must thank me!"
"You'll owe me this favor. If I don't accept it, you'll never be able to repay me in this lifetime."
"Mr. Xie, are you so vicious?"
Xie Zeyi smiled for a while.
At last, he sighed softly and said in a compromise: "If you really want to thank me, act like a spoiled child with me."
“…”
"Is it difficult?"
Under normal circumstances, if anyone said to her "act coquettishly", she would definitely slap them in the face and say "get out of here".
But Xie Zeyi really wanted to help her a lot.
And the tone of his voice when he said that last sentence sounded, somehow, a little sad.
She struggled desperately: "But... I don't know how to act like a spoiled child."
"It's okay if you don't know how to do it. I'll teach you. Just say, 'Brother Zeyi, you're so good to me. I love you the most,' and I'll let you go."
She rolled her eyes as she listened.
After a struggle between his conscience and his desires, he said calmly, "Brother Zeyi..."
"Be gentle."
She was like a balloon. She finally managed to take a breath, but it all leaked out of her mouth.
She slowly put on a smile and said softly, "Brother Zeyi, you are so good to me..."
"A little sweeter."
She gathered her strength for a long time, and finally raised her voice and said in a coquettish voice: "Brother Zeyi, you are so nice, I love you the most in the whole world!"
After saying this, I was so shocked that I looked like I had lost all hope in life.
"Yeah. I like you the most, too."
“…” She was speechless for a moment.
"Girls, acting like a spoiled child can be very effective sometimes," he said earnestly, then paused and added, "Don't worry, you'll see him soon."
She really wanted to complain, but when she opened her mouth, the phone was already hung up.
I was actually... teased.
She put down the receiver, and her whole face was burning hot, all the way to her ears.
She covered her face with her hands: It’s so... so fucking embarrassing.
——
Both telephones in the Penang British Police Station were busy.
On the other side, the Japanese captain was asking for instructions from his superior in a timid manner. He wiped the sweat off his face nervously while speaking, smiled, nodded and answered in Japanese: "Yes. Yes, yes." He was almost bowing at a 90-degree angle.
On the other side, Xie Zeyi held the phone between his ear and shoulder, leaning on the table elegantly and calmly. He spoke softly and in a relaxed posture while talking on the phone. While he was talking, there was a doting look in his eyes and eyebrows.
He seemed to be keeping pace with the conversation. As soon as the captain finished, he hung up. A lingering smile still lingered on his face, and with narrowed eyes, he complained to the captain in English, as if to show affection: "She insists on seeing me. What can I do? I really can't do anything about her."
The captain's face turned pale and black, and a smile twitched on his face: "Then let her see it."
Xie Zeyi touched his fingers and asked with a smile: "See? How do you say it?"
"One for one. You let thirty people return to Kobe and keep the Municipal Council a secret. We will also let thirty people enter China. Turn a blind eye and never let Nanjing know that these Red Party members have entered the country."
He smiled and waved, asking the naval lieutenant to come over with a contract.
The captain didn't expect it to be so fast. He raised his eyebrows, read it, and then the two of them signed the agreement.
After the signing was completed, a telegram was sent back, asking the Shanghai Police Station to release the Tianjin Maru; in the South China Sea, Japanese cruisers used false information to lure the Chinese navy towards Taiwan, and British ships with cruise ships slowly entered the country from Shantou.
At the Bund Pier in Shanghai, a dirty child was sleeping next to a non-commissioned officer in the back seat of a Municipal Council car.
The car slowly drove into the International Settlement.
On the bus, Bian Jieming turned his head to look at the child and curled his lips. "Thirty people for thirty people. And here's this two-year-old kid? Where should I take him to find his parents?" He turned around and asked the sergeant, "What do you say, sir? Should we drop him off somewhere or take him back to the Municipal Council?"
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