Chapter Fifty-Seven: Jiao Tou Zong Fei

  The old man's name was Shang Huai Shi, who was actually only in his fifties. Due to that experience, he looked much older than his actual age. His granddaughter's name was Shang Zhi, and she was just fifteen years old.

  When the Japanese army occupied Nanjing and began the massacre, the two were forced to hide in the sewer. Actually, many people had thought of this method at that time, but later they were discovered by the Japanese and taken away. Shang Huai Shi relied on his military training and agility to take Little Shang Zhi to hide everywhere, almost traversing the entire underground pipe network of Nanjing, and thus narrowly escaped.

  According to Shanghai's identification report, Shang Hui-shih was the head of the Archives Section of the Nanjing Station Intelligence Bureau and held the rank of lieutenant colonel at that time.

  Lin Xiaotang sighed after listening to Shang Huai's account: "Director Shang, as the saying goes, 'great difficulties do not die and must have good fortune later.' You and your granddaughter were able to escape, which is already a blessing in disguise. Don't worry, I will report your situation to the higher-ups and ask for credit on your behalf. You can rest here for a while first, and later, I will send you to the rear."

  Shang Huishou sprang to his feet as soon as he heard this, walked straight to Lin Xiaotang's side and knelt down with a thud: "Officer, I don't want to go, please let me stay!" Shang Zhi also followed suit and knelt down.

  This time, Lin Xiaotang was confused, and he hurriedly helped them up.

  Shang Huai's eyes were filled with tears, for his wife, son, daughter-in-law and daughter had all perished in the massacre. He refused to leave because on one hand he couldn't bear to part with his homeland, and on the other hand, Shang Huai's heart was now filled with nothing but a desire for revenge.

  "Sir, I have a family of six, and only two of us escaped. As long as my granddaughter can survive, I have no other wishes. I hope you can send her to the rear and entrust her to a kind-hearted family to raise her. This way, I can also give an account to my deceased family members. Please take me in, sir. I know this time you came to rebuild Nanjing Station. I'm not yet sixty years old, I have plenty of strength and experience. I may not be able to help with major tasks, but I can at least hold a gun. If all else fails, I can serve tea and water. My only thought now is to kill more devils, please fulfill my wish!"

  Shang Zhi refused to leave Grandfather and hugged Shang Huai Shi, crying uncontrollably.

  Looking at the two people in front of him, Lin Xiaotang's heart was like a knife, when had he also been so desperate and sorrowful. More than two years of time had not erased the hatred in his heart, on the contrary, as time passed, that bone-deep and unforgettable intention only became more real, constantly piercing the softest part of his heart.

  After a moment's thought, Lin Xiaotang had made up his mind. The situation in Shanghai was now stable, but he was short-handed and lacked professional talent on this side. Since Shang Huaishou had decided to stay, he might as well let him take charge of the Intelligence Department first. He was an old hand at the Nanjing station, with rich experience and unwavering determination to kill the enemy, which would also allow the Intelligence Department to quickly get into working condition.

  As for Xiao Shangzhi, let Ma Qixiang take care of her first. His place is also short-handed and needs someone reliable to take charge of logistics. It's just right to let Shangzhi follow him to learn for a while. Although she is still young, Lin Xiaotang always feels that she has a maturity and seriousness beyond her peers, perhaps it's due to her experiences.

  After properly arranging for the crowd, Lin Xiaotang finally let out a sigh of relief. Without even eating lunch, he locked the door and decided to catch up on some sleep. These past few days, he had not rested well at all. Either he was busy with company formation or negotiating with Wang Tianmu over equipment, funding, and personnel. Currently, the Nanjing station could be said to be completely empty, except for the manpower and funds brought by Lin Xiaotang, there was nothing else. The series of support promised by Dai Li earlier had only remained verbal, and from Wang Tianmu's side, apart from sending over Shang Huai Shi and three others, not a single penny had been spent. This made Lin Xiaotang anxious to no end. Manpower, money, and equipment were his top three headaches at the moment.

  It wasn't even six o'clock yet, and the office door was already being knocked on. Lin Xiaotang suddenly felt a surge of anger. Ma Qixiang stood leisurely at the door, looking at Lin Xiaotang's furious expression, and he couldn't help but smile awkwardly, pointing to his watch: "Seven o'clock, the Commercial Bureau and Ministry of Finance dinner party, can't be late."

  Helpless, Lin Xiaotang had to muster up her spirit, changed into a brand new suit, and only after washing up did she realize that her stomach was growling loudly. The dinner party she would be attending soon, Lin Xiaotang was very clear, was just for show, and wanting to get a full meal there was simply a pipe dream. Just then, Shang Zhi was holding a tray, standing at the door looking inside timidly.

  Ma Qixiang turned his head and smiled, beckoning Shang Zhi to come in.

  Xiangzhi's little face turned red as she hesitantly walked in: "Two officials, please have something to eat first."

  "Remember, from now on, no matter what the environment is like, never mention those two words 'superior officer' again. You know very well what kind of place this is. If one mistake occurs, everyone will be affected. From now on, just call me Chairman or Mr. Lin. He is Manager Ma, got it?"

  Shang Zhi's small face turned pale, and a look of grievance flashed in her big eyes, but she still nodded heavily.

  Ma Qixiang hastily mediated: "Forget it, kids don't understand things, there's still time to teach them later. Look, Xiao Zhi heard that we're attending a dinner party tonight and specially made some food with her own hands, just preparing for us two to fill up first and avoid embarrassing ourselves!"

  Lin Xiaotang looked at the tray on the table, two small bowls of wontons in chicken soup, with pickled vegetables and scallions in the thick broth, floating thin-skinned transparent wontons, faintly visible golden meat filling, and a sprinkle of red chili oil on top. Next to it was a dish of stir-fried greens and another dish of fermented bean paste, making one's mouth water uncontrollably.

  Ma Qixiang couldn't help but swallow his saliva: "Xiao Zhi, your craftsmanship is truly unmatched."

  Lin Xiaotang's face was calm, she didn't say a word, picked up the bowl and ate it with the side dish, quickly finishing it off. Finally, she couldn't help but exclaim: "Authentic! Addictive!"

  Ma Qixiang also finished eating and looked at his watch: "Let's set off?"

  Lin Xiaotang put on the coat handed over by Shang Zhi with both hands, looked at her and asked with a smile: "Is there any more of this wonton?"

  Xiangzhi nodded like a little chicken pecking at rice.

  "Save it for me, I'll have it as a midnight snack!" Lin Xiaotang threw out a sentence and strode out of the office.

  "And mine too!" Ma Qixiang smiled at Shang Zhi, patted her little head, and pointed to Lin Xiaotang's back: "This guy just likes to put on airs, it's nothing."

  Shang Zhi's face finally showed a hint of blush, gazing at the two figures' backs, she gently patted her own chest and let out a sigh.

  The Ministry of Finance and the Board of Trade had a dinner party at Yiheyuan Road in the original Gongyuan District, where there was an original clubhouse set up by the British, which is still relatively intact.

  Lin Xiaotang and Ma Qixiang arrived, the entrance of the club was already crowded with cars and horses, but the organizer of the banquet was either inexperienced or short-staffed, and there was no one to greet guests at the door. As a result, the cars and carriages of various guests blocked the originally narrow road in front of the club, making it impassable.

  No choice, Lin Xiaotang and Ma Qixiang had to get off the car, let Guo Zhu and another hand go stop the car, while they two went on foot to rush to the meeting place.

  Carts and automobiles jammed in one place, making the whole street chaotic. Even Japanese military police came out to direct traffic, but some vehicles were already stuck in the middle of the road, so there was no sign of relief on the road.

  Lin Xiaotang and Ma Qixiang were struggling to move forward, overcoming one obstacle after another. Suddenly, Ma Qixiang exclaimed: "Big Brother!"

  Lin Xiaotang turned her head to look, and a middle-aged man on the side of the road was supporting an old man in his sixties who was squatting by the roadside. The old man seemed to have sprained his foot, and his face showed a painful expression, but his clothes were clearly not ordinary, and he also appeared to be a distinguished guest attending the dinner party and wine gathering.

  The middle-aged man obviously didn't expect to meet Ma Qixiang here: "Xiangzi, what are you doing here?"

  Ma Qixiang smiled: "It seems we're all going to that place up ahead."

  The middle-aged man's face was full of anxiety: "Let's talk later. Today's banquet is too chaotic, Mr. Zhuang accidentally twisted his foot and was blocked here, unable to advance or retreat!"

  Lin Xiaotang took advantage of the remaining sunset glow to take a look at the old man's ankle, which had already swollen up high. Lin Xiaotang turned his head to look back and saw that his own car was still parked in its original position, completely unable to move.

  "Wait a minute, I have medicine in my car!" Lin Xiaotang immediately squeezed towards the back.

  Lin Xiaotang benefited from the ghost's all-encompassing knowledge, and also dabbled in the field of wound medicine, including some unique prescriptions from the ghost's native era. For example, for injuries such as sprains, there were a few relevant ones. Lin Xiaotang borrowed the concept of "sealed needles" from the ghost, and researched some ointments and medicinal waters on her own. Although they might not be as effective as sealed needles, they should still be more than enough to treat minor sprains.

  Before long, Lin Xiaotang rushed back with a big sweat, squatted down, took off the old man's shoes, and carefully looked at them. The problem was not very serious. Lin Xiaotang helped the old man gently massage the injured part of his ankle. Before long, the old man felt that the pain had eased a lot.

  Middle-aged and elderly people looked at Lin Xiaotang in surprise, while Ma Qixiang was not surprised at all, and leisurely lit a cigarette on the side.

  After the massage, Lin Xiaotang applied some medicinal liquid to the injured area, and after the liquid was absorbed, she gently stuck the plaster on the affected area. She let out a sigh of relief: "Alright, get up and walk around to see how it feels!"

  The old man stood up slowly with the support of the middle-aged person and Lin Xiaotang, took a tentative step forward, but found that the wound was cool and painless, and he couldn't feel any pain at all. He tried to walk two steps, and there was no problem at all.

  Middle-aged and elderly people were surprised and delighted: "What kind of medicine is this? How can it have such an effect?"

  Lin Xiaotang smiled: "It's just some local remedies from my hometown."

  Middle-aged and elderly people thanked them again and again, and everyone walked towards the clubhouse together.

  The middle-aged man supported the old man and walked in front, while Ma Qixiang secretly pulled Lin Xiaotang's sleeve and pointed to the back of the middle-aged man: "Do you know who he is?"

  Lin Xiaotang shook her head.

  Ma Qixiang smiled: "You're always saying you want to meet the other members of the Thirteen Taibao, aren't you? He is the leader of the Thirteen Taibao - Jiao Tou Zong Fei!"