Chapter 56: Return to Nanjing

  Lin Xiaotang gazed out of the car window at the trees and grass, feeling an indescribable sense of loneliness and desolation. She thought back to when she had escaped from here two years ago, when the place was filled with smoke and ruins, and the entire world seemed to be made up of only gray and blood-red hues. Now, returning to her hometown of Nanjing after all this time, Lin Xiaotang felt as if she had entered a different world.

  Although two years have passed, the scars of war are still visible in this city. Newly built walls line the streets, wrapping up the rubble and ruins in between, hiding everything that happened in the city. Everywhere is filled with brand-new gray buildings emitting a cold atmosphere, making Lin Xiaotang feel like she has come to the wrong place. The spring wind is still icy, and as the car moves forward, it keeps making a mournful sound, which sounds like the crying of countless lonely souls to Lin Xiaotang's ears.

  There were not a few pedestrians on the street, but their faces seemed to be filled with a sense of confusion, which set off the whole city's lack of vitality and dullness. The shops on both sides had basically opened, but they lacked the lively atmosphere. The prosperity of Jinling Imperial City in those years only remained in Lin Xiaotang's memory, while the current Nanjing brought him only a sense of unfamiliarity that hit him in the face.

  Ma Qixiang found that Lin Xiaotang's face was a bit off, and he hastily pulled out the small wine bottle from his bosom: "Xiaoqi, don't think so much, have a sip of wine, warm up your body!"

  The cold liquor flowed down her throat and into her chest, followed by an unbearable burning sensation. Lin Xiaotang suddenly froze, big tears streaming down from the corners of her eyes, and in front of her was already the Taihe Bridge. ?? Counterattack Republic's Special Agent 56

  Previously, Lin Xiaotang had registered a trading company called Longsheng in the French concession, which appeared to be a Sino-Japanese joint venture on the surface. Ota Kazuya, also known as the officer of the 4th Division, was forced to invest under Lin Xiaotang's coercion and temptation, but for safety reasons, the investor did not use his own name directly, instead registering in the name of a friend. The Chinese shareholder was Lin Xiaotang, who was also the largest shareholder of the entire company. However, there was also a hidden share, which was owned by Hong Chawei and the forces behind him.

  At the same time, Lin Xiaotang also submitted a registration application to the Commercial Bureau of the Nanjing puppet government, applying for the establishment of a branch of Longsheng in Nanjing. This was naturally a welcome move for the current puppet government, which was struggling to recover from devastation. The Longsheng side promised to invest over $10 million in Nanjing, engaging in trade and infrastructure construction.

  Before that, Lin Xiaotang had sent Ma Qixiang to Nanjing in advance to prepare for the company's work. Before he left, Lin Xiaotang had a heart-to-heart talk with him, revealing his true identity and entrusting him with the task, and solemnly asked Ma Qixiang to make a careful choice, after all, this time was to rebuild the Military Intelligence Bureau's Nanjing station in the tiger's lair, facing risks that could be imagined.

  What made Lin Xiaotang astonished was that Ma Qixiang agreed without hesitation, saying that his greatest wish now is to marry Dong Jiayu's sister and win the beauty back, what he hates most is the contempt of Nanyang for himself, now with this opportunity, he can be a hero and also get an official position, it's really hard to find such a good thing even with a lantern.

  Thus, Ma Qixiang set off for Nanjing with full confidence.

  No need to mention, Ma Qixiang's social skills are indeed not to be underestimated. In less than a week, he had completed all the formalities and even bought a newly built six-story building on Ninghai Road as the location of Longsheng's branch in Nanjing. He then reported to Lin Xiaotang and asked him to officially go to Nanjing.

  It was under such circumstances that Lin Xiaotang and his party arrived in Nanjing.

  The area around Ninghai Road is currently one of the most prosperous areas in Nanjing, adjacent to the original Nanjing Gongyuan District on Yihe Road, so it was relatively less damaged. In addition, many departments and institutions of the puppet government are now located nearby, which has driven the prosperity of a series of commercial activities around them.

  Ma Qixiang chose this building at the end of Ninghai Road, near the original National Government's Ministry of National Defense office location, with relatively sparse residential distribution, making it an ideal place to be quiet in the midst of noise.

  The long journey had left Lin Xiaotang somewhat fatigued, and as soon as he entered the office, he collapsed onto the sofa, stretching out his waist in a most ungraceful manner. But Ma Qixiang clearly didn't intend to give him any time to rest, carrying a large stack of invitations and letters, and walking in without even knocking on the door.

  "Here, they're all for you!" Ma Qixiang casually tossed the invitation and letter into Lin Xiaotang's arms.

  Lin Xiaotang's mood was already not good on the way, and after a bumpy ride, seeing these things made her feel like her brain was hurting. Irritated, she threw them back at Ma Qixiang: "You're the person in charge of the Nanjing company, you can handle all this miscellaneous stuff, don't bother me!"

  Ma Qixiang sighed: "Big brother, you think I want to? Since I came to Nanjing, the top and bottom of this commercial bureau have been thinking about you. Every day, several phone calls, asking when you will come to Nanjing, they are good at arranging all aspects to meet with us. To be honest! This Nanjing government is purely poor, it's just a puppet of the Japanese. You don't know, they don't even have basic office expenses, and Wang's daily expenses are still given by the Japanese and the 76th contribution. Now that you're coming to Nanjing, everyone is like a hungry wolf, waiting to pounce on you!"

  Lin Xiaotang's face turned pale with fear: "So, I'm still quite famous in Nanjing now."

  Ma Qixiang sneered, "Who doesn't know you, Lin Qiye, now? The rising star of Shanghai's underworld, the new favorite of Du Yuesheng and the concession authorities, who fought a fierce battle with Zhang Xiaolin for 300 rounds, and made him spit blood repeatedly. Do you know how many people are eager to come and fawn on you now?"

  Lin Xiaotang took a look at the thick stack in Ma Qixiang's hand and patted his head: "Like this, you categorize them, if it's really necessary for me to meet with someone, I'll take care of it, otherwise, you handle it yourself!"

  Ma Qixiang smoothly pulled out an invitation card: "This must be attended by you, the New Year's party jointly organized by the Commercial Bureau and the Ministry of Finance, Zhou Fohai, a big shot from the Nanjing government, will attend, all the attendees are social celebrities, either rich or noble!"

  Lin Xiaotang nodded. Immediately afterwards, he slapped his forehead: "Look at my memory, I forgot about this!"

  Lin Xiaotang took an envelope out of the pocket of his suit and handed it to Ma Qixiang: "Congratulations, Captain Ma!" ?? Counterattack Republic's Special Agent 56

  Ma Qixiang was taken aback, took over the envelope and opened it to take a look, and suddenly his eyes lit up: "So soon!"

  Lin Xiaotang laughed: "Needless to say, I personally took care of it for you. As a lieutenant general and stationmaster now, promoting you is just a small matter. How about being the deputy officer of Nanjing Station and also the director of the confidential room?"

  Ma Qixiang stood up straight and gave a neat military salute: "Thank you, Director Lin, for your cultivation!"

  The two of them looked at each other and burst out laughing uncontrollably.

  Lin Xiaotang waved her hand: "Don't be so happy too early, this official position is not that easy to hold. Although you've been to university, after all, you're not a professional in this field. During this period of time, if there's nothing going on at night, I'll assign work tasks to you and also make sure you understand the key points. Next, we'll be recruiting soldiers and buying horses, and when that happens, you'll have your own subordinates too. This isn't just a game, it's real fighting, do you understand?"

  Ma Qixiang solemnly nodded his head.

  Lin Xiaotang continued to explain. According to his plan, the future Nanjing Station would be divided into four institutions: the confidential office would report directly to the station chief, and the other three departments would be the action team, intelligence agency, and telecommunications agency. As for the logistics department, due to the current shortage of personnel, it would temporarily be handled by the confidential office.

  Ma Qixiang was somewhat perplexed: "According to you, the more low-key we are in our actions, the better. But why do I see that you're doing things so high-profile now? Aren't you afraid of drawing attention from the Japanese and No. 76?"

  Lin Xiaotang nodded in approval, and Ma Qixiang, who had received higher education, quickly changed his mind: "That's right, but now I can't keep a low profile anymore. The things that happened in Shanghai have long been spread throughout Nanjing, and the 76th has been eyeing me for a long time. It's just that I'm still relying on Old Du's backing, so outsiders don't know about it yet. What I mean is, when it comes to making money, you should be high-profile, but when doing things, you should be low-key. You might as well think about it carefully!"

  In the afternoon, Lin Xiaotang met with a few people from Nanjing Station. The disaster two years ago had not spared Nanjing Station either. Except for a few high-ranking officials who saw the situation was unfavorable and escaped in the chaos, all the grassroots personnel were trapped in Nanjing City, either dead or scattered, only one in ten survived, leaving only these four people.

  Looking at the four people in front of her, Lin Xiaotang felt a bit dizzy.

  One of the old men looked over seventy years old, with a fourteen or fifteen year old girl tightly holding his arm, her eyes fixed on Lin Xiaotang with extreme vigilance. There were also two emaciated men who introduced themselves as former employees of the Nanjing Railway Station's telecommunications department, and had been assigned to Nanjing University students just after training, but before they could start work, they mysteriously became prisoners of the Japanese and were sent to the train station for a year of forced labor. They managed to escape with their lives, but were now barely clinging to life, with only half a life left.

  Lin Xiaotang sighed and let Guo Zhu bring the two people from the telecommunications office to settle down, as Nanjing Station was currently lacking such professional talents. Although their bodies were no longer capable, the knowledge in their minds was priceless.

  These four people were survivors of the disaster and later contacted Shanghai Station. During this time, Wang Tianmu had already identified the four individuals and confirmed that they had not defected to the enemy, so he introduced them to Lin Xiaotang. After all, they were familiar with the work of Nanjing Station, which would be very beneficial for Lin Xiaotang's rebuilding work.

  The old man and the young girl were left, Lin Xiaotang asked them not to be polite, invited them to sit on the sofa, and personally poured tea for them, brought some snacks. The little girl seemed to be starving, her eyes staring straight at the snacks, constantly swallowing saliva, but the old man didn't open his mouth, she didn't dare reach out to take any.

  Lin Xiaotang smiled and handed a pastry to the little girl, who didn't dare bring it to her mouth until she saw the old man nodding, then hastily stuffed the pastry into her mouth.

  The old man smiled apologetically and bowed his waist: "Officer, please don't be alarmed. This child has been hiding with me in the sewers for three months. After coming out, they've been wandering around, sleeping under the stars, and have been scared and starved half to death!"

  "Sewer?" Lin Xiaotang was shocked: "How did you stay there for so long?"

  The old man's eyes dimmed: "What can we do? After the National Army retreated, the Japanese occupied the whole city and started searching for and capturing the remaining National Army soldiers. In the end, even ordinary people were not spared. I had no choice but to take my granddaughter and hide in the sewers. Outside, people were being killed every day, regardless of whether it was day or night. The sewers flowed with blood, and even rats were getting fat from it. We survived only by catching those rats!"