bestfiction 131. Drawing water with a bamboo basket
131. Drawing water with a bamboo basket
At the start of the new year, the lion dance competition, which was expected to be a lively event on the first day of the new year, turned into a disastrous farce.
The angrier person that day was undoubtedly Ryunosuke Kondo. He had painstakingly laid a trap, but in the end, it all came to nothing. Those masked individuals who were arrested were all found to be innocent after questioning and investigation; the perpetrators had indeed simply hired random passersby to wear masks to deliberately mislead the public.
The float that was stopped by the military police was found to contain some smuggled goods upon inspection. However, while the goods were seized, the people involved had vanished without a trace. Those caught were just passersby who claimed to know nothing and were simply hired laborers.
"Baka yarou... Baka yarou! You bastard!"
Enraged, Kondo grabbed the agents from Unit 76 and slapped them hard across the face, but they dared not retaliate and could only curse him a hundred times in their hearts.
"Damn it, the whole plan was devised by your Special Higher Police, and we at 76 were just following orders. We even lost several men. Now that you couldn't catch them, you're taking your anger out on us. You're despicable! You deserve to fail!"
After venting his anger, Kondo quickly calmed down and began to review the situation to see where things went wrong.
"Kondo-kun, your opponent this time is quite interesting."
Just as Kondo finished his outburst, a hoarse voice came from outside, followed by Sasaki walking in with his eyes rolled back.
"Mr. Sasaki, you're back. Do you have any information about your battle with the enemy?"
Sasaki had a katana at his waist, his hands tucked into his sleeves, and his back hunched. He had stopped sneezing after washing up, but the battle he had just fought left him displeased. His opponent was too unsportsmanlike; it was supposed to be a one-on-one duel, but he used a grenade to interfere with him.
Upon hearing Kondo's question, Sasaki's voice gradually turned cold as he said, "The other party is using Tai Chi swordsmanship and a soft sword. Although we only exchanged a few simple moves, I can still be certain that he is not the person you are looking for. He is too young."
"Not him? Mr. Sasaki, you mean... the person I really want to arrest didn't show up today?"
"Not necessarily. He may have shown himself, but he just didn't make a move... The person who was almost hit by my Dojigiri Slash was the one who threw the grenade. I could sense that he possessed powerful combat strength, which he concealed very well, and even disappeared later. Someone who can control combat strength at will to confuse opponents must be a master among masters. I think that person is the one you are looking for."
Sasaki was referring to Zhou Hongyi. Although he found Zhou's use of grenades despicable, he wasn't too angry; in fact, he was quite intrigued.
Kondo gritted his teeth, making a cracking sound, and said fiercely, "It's him... We had him cornered today, but he used some cheap grenades to create chaos, and bribed some passersby and laborers to wear monkey masks. It was him... Men, come here!"
Kondo called out, and a Special Higher Police agent stepped forward and replied, "Yes, sir!"
"Go to the black markets and arms dealers immediately and find out who got those grenades. They're so functional that they couldn't have been made by an ordinary person. I suspect the person who made these grenades must have extensive knowledge of gunpowder and chemistry, so he must be someone special. Once we have a direction, we can greatly narrow down the scope of our target. So we can start investigating from those strange weapons and monkey masks! Making so many monkey masks is not a simple task. The other party must have spent a lot of money to have similar factories process them in advance."
"Yes, sir!" The agent accepted the order and immediately went down to investigate.
At that moment, another Japanese soldier walked up to Kondo and whispered a few words in his ear.
After listening, Kondo's expression softened slightly, and he slowly nodded, saying, "I understand. Give the order to proceed according to the original plan."
Kondo seemed to have just heard good news. Now that he had calmed down, he said to the person next to him, "Send the order to Number 76 and have them continue to intensify their search, arrest, and interrogation of relevant personnel. It's better to arrest the wrong person than to let one go. We have another matter to deal with first."
......
The Jing'an Second Branch Police Station was bustling with activity, filled with laughter and joy.
As the New Year approached, Zhou Hongyi, as the bureau chief, provided rice, flour, and oil for everyone and gave each person a large red envelope.
Most importantly, while they were receiving benefits and red envelopes, the Japanese soldiers in charge of investigation and questioning were watching from the sidelines, their faces pale and their teeth clenched. After all, everyone around them was happily receiving benefits, but they were the only ones who didn't. No one would feel good about that.
"Come on, everyone, line up here to sign for your perks! Brothers, you've all worked hard all year. Following me, Zhou Hongyi, you'll definitely be rewarded. From tomorrow until New Year's Eve, you team leaders can take turns on duty, and the rest of you can take turns on leave. Go and buy some New Year's goods for your families, make some new clothes, take your girlfriends, wives, or mothers out shopping, and buy some good food for the kids. I, Zhou Hongyi, wish you all a happy new year and all your wishes come true! Happy New Year!"
Zhou Hongyi stood at the front of the crowd, speaking in a series of sentences, but no one found it tedious. On the contrary, they were very enthusiastic, cheering and clapping from below.
"Director Zhou, you have no right to give them leave. Such a big incident just happened in Shanghai. All the police officers in the branch offices have to work overtime to search for the rebels!"
The Japanese officer next to him, his face ashen, stepped forward to try to stop Zhou Hongyi, but the latter sneered and said, "Our country has a tradition that has been passed down for thousands of years, which is to give people a holiday during the New Year. There's no way around it. Even if you force people to stay here and let them search, they will not put in any effort. What's the point of such ineffective work? They are just pretending to work hard."
Our brothers in the Second Precinct work like crazy when it's time to work, and rest like crazy when it's time to rest. Only when we're well-rested can we better serve the Imperial Army, right? Besides, there's still Number 76, and your superiors, aren't there? The large-scale search on the surface isn't yielding any effective results anymore; now the focus should be on the covert operations. By the way, sir, will your Military Police or Special Higher Police Commander Kondo send you New Year's gifts?"
The moment the topic of gifts came up, the Japanese officer's facial muscles twitched. They didn't have any gifts; if they wanted any, they'd basically have to go out and rob. Wait, right? He could go and rob.
The Japanese soldier seemed to have suddenly discovered a new world. His expression softened, and he glanced at the police officers who were having a lively discussion nearby. He said, "Suit yourself. Go on leave if you want. Soldiers of our Empire never relax their self-management and requirements, hmph!"
The officer turned and left with his men, but Zhou Hongyi's smile gradually turned cold, because the "entry" he saw above the man's head indicated that this guy had no good intentions.