Spy War: The Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 1: Accident
August 1938, the French cruise ship Maurice, 8:45 a.m.
Gu Yansheng felt the bed shaking in his sleep, thinking it was an earthquake, suddenly got up, rolled out of bed, his movements could not be called anything but fluid.
As a criminal defense lawyer, battle-hardened, one nerve always taut, what situation hadn’t he encountered?
But when he looked at this space that seemed like a bedroom but had no familiarity at all, narrow space, he suddenly felt he really shouldn’t have gotten up so abruptly.
It looked like a ship cabin, still in French style.
At this moment, the sliding door in front of him was knocked three times rhythmically, then opened.
A woman in her late twenties, qipao slit to the thigh, in Republican style, walked in.
“Fever gone?”
She closed the door and approached softly: “Bowen said once the ship docks, we’ll go make contact first.”
No sense of distance at all, Gu Yansheng unconsciously tugged at the quilt.
Contact, need to make contact, but this head didn’t even feel like his.
Wait, contact?
Republican era?
Gu Yansheng’s face stiffened, memories like water surged in.
Gu Yansheng, from Hangzhou, 22 years old, graduated from Peking University law major, after graduation as a patriotic youth fearlessly went to Yan’an to join the revolution, half a year after arrival, was sent by Minister Chen to Shanghai to carry out a special mission.
Under the identity of a legitimate businessman in Japanese puppet-controlled Shanghai, earn funding for the organization.
The entire team of three people, two men and one woman, and that one woman was the one in front of him, the accountant, He Yun.
The woman was still talking.
“Also, something came up, the captain notified that he received orders from the Japanese side, the Japanese are forcibly requiring the ship to dock at the wharf in Hongkou, Bowen is a bit worried, he feels carrying the gold bars on person is still not too safe, in case searched by the Japanese afraid something will go wrong, asked you to think of a way together, see if there’s any safer way. What’s wrong with you?”
He Yun noticed Gu Yansheng’s expression seemed a bit strange.
Just set off and got a fever, probably caught a chill, these two days on the ship the fever was even more severe, just saw him able to get up, thought he was better.
“You wait.”
Gu Yansheng’s voice was a bit dry, put on his shoes and walked out, pulled open the door and passed through the passageway, the foreigners in the passageway made Gu Yansheng inwardly cringe, but he still moved forward, until he reached the deck, sea breeze hit his face, air carrying the familiar seafood smell of seawater.
Looking at the wharf vaguely visible in the distance, and the fishing boats and cargo ships on the river surface from the last century, and even farther the iconic Shanghai Bund buildings, but no Oriental Pearl Tower opposite, Gu Yansheng’s suspended heart finally died.
Damn it really is the Republican era.
Damn your lungs
Gu Yansheng closed his eyes, he wanted to take back his earlier big words, this situation he really hadn’t encountered.
Toot~
The ship’s whistle sounded, signaling that docking was not far off.
Some impatient people on the deck had already packed their luggage ready to disembark, one is the intimacy of possibly seeing relatives, two is cooped up at sea for three days, even the best cruise ship makes one want to vomit.
Took a deep breath, Gu Yansheng frowned and walked back, all the way continuously digesting the memories, inwardly judging, Shanghai in 1938, the organization assigned their three-person team the major task of making money, and the subdivided task assigned to him was to infiltrate the administrative departments of the puppet government.
The starting point was not to steal any intelligence, but to provide legal protection in business and policy foresight for the three-person team’s team leader, Bowen from He Yun’s mouth, Lu Bowen.
As everyone knows, information asymmetry is the weapon for making big money, that is, Gu Yansheng this future official and Lu Bowen this future businessman, forming an interest chain.
The problem is there’s no problem, as a criminal defense lawyer, Gu Yansheng had seen plenty, the techniques needed could be said to be familiar by heart, but after all this was 1938.
Swish, Gu Yansheng frowned and pulled open the door, sure enough, He Yun was still waiting in the room.
“What’s wrong with you?” He Yun saw Gu Yansheng’s behavior was too strange.
Although everyone hadn’t known each other for a long time overall.
But after the three-person team members were selected, the three experienced targeted training together, including Shanghai’s current situation, prices, local customs, as well as intelligence transmission, code deciphering, radio use, and basic firearms knowledge.
Although only twenty days, but living together day and night, familiarity was inevitable, Gu Yansheng’s reaction today was indeed abnormal.
Stepped forward and touched his forehead, “No more fever, still not comfortable? Just now be careful to stay warm, you went outside without even your coat, careful it comes back.”
Gu Yansheng slightly frowned and looked at her for a while, quickly immersed in the role, thought and said: “I went to check the distance to port, not much time, want to hide the things to avoid inspection, short-term I have a way.”
“A way?” He Yun’s eyes lit up, a bit of surprise on her face.
Gu Yansheng nodded, the gold bars He Yun mentioned were the capital given by the organization for this Shanghai trip, three gold bars, Yan’an’s three gold bars.
Originally this French people’s cruise ship, according to plan should dock at the Shiliupu Wharf in the concession, getting off there is straight into the International Settlement’s Britain America France area, no Japanese searches, this was also why they specifically chose this ship.
But don’t know what got into the French, actually agreed to the Japanese request, changed destination to Huishan Wharf in Hongkou.
The two places not far, just ten minutes, but treatment worlds apart, Hongkou, that was the Japanese general headquarters, body searches unavoidable.
They had nothing dangerous on them, not even guns, not afraid of body searches, just afraid the gold bars cause problems.
Hiding in suitcase on body in shoes all not safe, but this problem not hard to solve.
“The way is very simple, just the process might be a bit undignified.” Gu Yansheng gave a heads up first.
“Dignified or not doesn’t matter, where is gold bar safety more important.” He Yun was straightforward.
Gu Yansheng nodded, stated directly: “Alright then, stuff the gold bars into the anus.”
He Yun’s eyes visibly widened, face flushed red in an instant, lips moved, but couldn’t utter a word.
She finally knew what undignified meant.
Wanted to speak but stopped, stopped then wanted to speak.
Clearly somewhat broken.
“Just this way, safest.” Gu Yansheng emphasized.
The small yellow fish just one finger wide, space in anus completely enough, nothing to be embarrassed about, he now was a battle-tested warrior, due to identity, just wanted to solve the problem.
Republican era people might have mental blocks, but he didn’t.
But for a woman, Gu Yansheng also needed to accommodate a bit.
“Three gold bars, theoretically three people very easy, if you’re not convenient, let Bowen stuff two, who let him be team leader, higher rank bears more, right?”
Gu Yansheng winked at her with a smile, brushed past, started packing things on the bed to prepare to disembark.
He Yun stared at Gu Yansheng packing, couldn’t squeeze out a single word, said nothing and turned to go out.
Door closed, then opened again.
He Yun said: “We’ll use this way.”
Gu Yansheng turned his head and met her eyes, “Very good.”
Door closed again, Gu Yansheng’s action of packing the suitcase paused, the experience too bizarre, for a moment still dazed if he got up too hard?
Ruthlessly pinched his thigh meat, he chose to accept reality.
Took his own gold bar from the bag and operated on it.
Took the suit jacket from the rack and put it on, buttoned up, a young elite appeared.
Toot, with the second whistle, the ship formally docked.