bestfiction 126. Lions dancing wildly
126. Lions dancing wildly
The Lion King Competition, organized by the two chambers of commerce, originally only planned to have ten teams participate, but unexpectedly, more than forty lion dance teams showed up at the registration site on the day of the event.
They came from all walks of life: gangsters, martial arts schools, chambers of commerce, and even spontaneous individuals. Xiaodaotian, the office director in charge of local pacification policies in Shanghai, was extremely satisfied with this scene. His job and responsibility was to subtly influence the people of Shanghai to accept the rule of Xiaodaotian. The more harmonious the people were, the better he had done his job. At this moment, he was beaming with joy.
All forty-odd lions eventually joined the lion king competition. Not only that, many people who came to join in the fun also made their own lions, which paraded back and forth in the streets and alleys, somewhat like a rural folk performance, which was very lively.
However, beneath this seemingly bustling surface, countless turbulent crises lurk.
Putting everything else aside, almost all of the agents from No. 76, police officers from several branches, military police, and Special Higher Police were mobilized and scattered throughout the city center. In particular, the agents were all dressed in civilian clothes, making it difficult to distinguish them from the crowds who were out enjoying the festivities without careful observation.
But who is Zhou Hongyi? He is an anomaly with the abilities of [Insightful Eye] and [Master of Deception]. Early this morning, he put on makeup, then donned a monkey mask, and then slipped into a lion's tail, transforming into one of the many lions dancing in the streets and alleys.
As for why he is the lion's tail instead of the lion's head, the reason is simple: the lion's head is an assistant sent to him by the Red Party's superiors, and this person's code name is "Awakening Lion".
The two mingled into the parade, fiddling with the lion head while whispering to each other below.
"Comrade Four-Faced Buddha, I have been sent here to fully assist you in this operation. My code name is 'Awakening Lion.' What do you need me to do now?"
Zhou Hongyi grabbed his waist and said quickly, "Comrade Xing Shi, I have disguised the expert who is to be transferred and he is following that big-headed doll. While we are escorting him out of Shanghai, there may be a small disturbance here, but you don't need to worry. The disturbance is intentional on my part. Although some goods will be lost, we should weigh the two things and choose the lesser one. Transporting Professor Wang is the priority."
"Awakening Lion" said that he understood that their biggest difficulty was escorting Professor Wang out of the main transportation routes of Shanghai. Once they were out of Shanghai, the mountains were high and the emperor was far away, like fish entering the sea or birds flying in the sky. There were many ways to escort the expert away. Moreover, "Bodhi" had already personally made preparations for the handover at the pre-arranged location.
Zhou Hongyi personally escorted Professor Wang, while Gu Tianbo and others were busily arranging their goods. This time, they had a sudden inspiration: they loaded the goods to be transported onto two floats, one with a huge lion head and the other with a huge dragon. During this festive season, they planned to take advantage of the chaos caused by the lion king competition to transport the supplies out.
Both sides were being transported, one side carrying goods and the other carrying people, and Kondo, watching this lively scene, revealed a sinister smile.
"I refuse to believe that with such a golden opportunity, the big fish hiding at the bottom of the water can resist coming up for air. Come on, let's see if we can still meet you, the 'Great Sage Sun' who specializes in slaying demons and monsters..."
Kondo's methods were quite simple; they weren't even a conspiracy, but rather an open scheme.
He deliberately created a loophole and took advantage of the relaxed state of mind during the New Year holiday to hold the Lion King Tournament. In fact, many of the contestants were sent by him, including members of gangs such as the Green Gang and the Viper Gang who cooperated with the Special Higher Police, as well as his own Special Higher Police special operations personnel.
To catch the enemy, you should try to act from the enemy's perspective, and blending in with the lion dance crowd was part of that plan.
Not only that, Kondo also deliberately relaxed some of the main traffic routes leading out of Shanghai and secretly laid ambushes. Anyone who tried to take advantage of the chaos to escape Shanghai or smuggle anything out would fall into his trap.
Each of the three factions was pursuing its own agenda, but once the battle for the Lion King began, they all overlooked the chaotic state of the scene.
This Lion Dance Competition featured three routes. Participants had to overcome numerous obstacles, traverse Huangpu District and Jing'an District, and finally snatch the embroidered ball from the wooden building erected in People's Square. This was the general direction, but there were actually many more roads leading to the destination.
On the crowded main roads and the intricate alleyways, the lion dance contestants were like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each displaying their unique skills. While moving their lion heads to the beat of the drums, they also had to hinder their opponents and compete for the lead.
Many onlookers crowded the street, shouting loudly. Many vendors, seeing the business opportunity, pushed carts to sell their goods. The happiest of all were the children, who were a restless bunch, running around in the already chaotic crowd and causing quite a bit of confusion.
The two lions sent by Zhou Hongyi were on the main group's route. In particular, the lion led by Hong Xiaoliang was exceptionally fierce. Any lion that got close to them would be kicked away. Moreover, he and his companion at the tail of the lion cooperated perfectly. Even if there were complicated obstacles in front of them, they could cross them as if walking on flat ground. Every time they performed a difficult move, it would draw cheers from the surrounding crowd.
Zhou Hongyi paced back and forth in the alley, and as he walked, a chubby-headed baby appeared in front of his lion's tail. The baby held an embroidered ball, and wherever the ball flew, the lion followed, which looked quite amusing. The onlookers naturally assumed this was a deliberately staged performance, but only Zhou Hongyi and the lion dancer knew that this chubby-headed baby was the one they were meant to protect and escort out.
"Dong qiang dong qiang~ dong dong qiang~"
The streets were bustling with activity, filled with the sounds of gongs and drums and the crackling of firecrackers. The lively atmosphere made one seem to forget the hardships and sorrows.
Kondo, standing on a high vantage point, held binoculars and monitored the scene.
His location was on a major thoroughfare that people leaving the city had to take, and his high vantage point gave him an excellent view. With his binoculars, he could observe angles that others couldn't.
Before long, a rather unusual lion dance caught Kondo's attention.
This lion dance was clearly made spontaneously by ordinary people for fun, because it didn't head towards the Lion King competition, but instead darted and weaved through the alleys, eventually arriving at this bustling and crowded main road.
In front of the lion is a chubby baby holding an embroidered ball. The baby's expression is drawn very festively, with two big red cheeks and a bald head.
The embroidered ball in the child's hand fluttered left and right, while the lion blinked its eyes and shook its head as it chased after it. The movements of the child and the lion were sometimes fast and sometimes slow, sometimes left and sometimes right. If it were just a spectator, no one would notice anything amiss. But Kondo was standing on high ground and had binoculars, so he quickly discovered the suspicious details.