He Jichun visits

  The next morning, Luo Yi hadn't gotten out of bed yet when he heard someone knocking on the door. He looked at the two girls sleeping on the bed and quietly walked to the door, asking, "Who is it?"

  "Luó zǐ, shì wǒ."

  Translation: "Luozi, is me."

  Lu Yi heard that it was Tu Jiu's voice, and hastily opened the door a crack, slipping out sideways. Tu Jiu looked inside with some surprise. Lu Yi smiled wryly and said: "Xiao Jing and Shan Er both went crazy last night and insisted on sleeping in my room. I didn't do anything, I slept on the sofa."

  Tou Jiu chuckled and didn't pursue the topic further. He told Luo Yi, "That Mr. He from the Shanghai Municipal Government has arrived and is eager to see you."

  "Oh? What's going on with Ji Chun?"

  "That's right, it's him."

  "What did you say?"

  "He didn't say anything, but I could tell he was in a hurry. I didn't dare bring him over directly, now he's in my room."

  "Okay, I'll go right away."

  Luo Yi said, went back to the house to wipe his face, dressed neatly, and came to Tu Jiu's room. He saw that He Ji Chun was waiting for him with an uneasy expression.

  "What's wrong, He Ge? You're here so early?" Luo Wei asked.

  He Jichun looked up at Tu Jiu, who understood his intention and quietly retreated, closing the door behind him. As soon as He Jichun heard the sound of the lock clicking shut, he asked urgently: "Luo younger brother, I'm asking you something important, no matter what, you can't hide it from me."

  "You speak." Luo Yi was somewhat intimidated by his attitude.

  "Didn't you guys go to Zhoupu Village in Zhabei yesterday?"

  Luo Yi was taken aback for a moment, then immediately understood that He Jichun had come to find him, and it must be because of the disappearance of the Japanese devils in Song Ben's class.

  It turned out that after Luo Yi set fire to Zhoupu Village yesterday, the Japanese army in Liu Fang Town sent a squad of soldiers to Zhoupu Village for inspection and to pick up Matsumoto's party. After the Japanese army arrived at Zhoupu Village, they only saw the big fire all over the village, and the village was empty, not only were the villagers gone without a trace, but also Matsumoto and others had evaporated.

  Liu Fang Town's Japanese leader, Fukuda Kazuo, received the report and made a phone call to Ma Lao, asking if he knew where Matsumoto was because Hong Kunsheng, who led Matsumoto on the way, was provided by Ma Lao. Ma Lao received the phone call and was so scared that his soul was gone. He knew that a group of Japanese soldiers had disappeared without reason, and the person in charge was still someone he sent out, which was not a trivial matter.

  Boss Ma immediately sent his men to inquire all around, the news they got was that no one had seen any trace of Hong Kunsheng and Matsumoto, but someone heard gunshots ringing out in Zhoupu Village, after which the villagers of Zhoupu Village dispersed and ran away, as for where exactly they escaped to, nobody knew.

  By evening, Fukuda Ichiro could no longer hold back his temper. He led a team of Japanese soldiers to the Shanghai Municipal Police Bureau and began to interrogate them.

  "Today during the day, my eight soldiers were on a mission in Zhoupu Village and all of them went missing. You are responsible for this!"

  The one who received Fukuda Ichiro was He Jichun, whose true identity was an intelligence officer stationed in Shanghai by the Ministry of National Defense, equivalent to the head of the later-established Military Intelligence Bureau. After listening to Fukuda's statement, He Jichun said with a subtle tone: "Mr. Fukuda, you want us to take responsibility for the disappearance of your soldiers, what is your reason?"

  "My soldier has gone missing in your area of jurisdiction, so you must take responsibility."

  "Mr. Fukuda, since the 12th of last month, in accordance with our agreement, our armed personnel have withdrawn from the relevant areas of Zhabei, and there are no troops of ours in this area at all. I ask you, who has the ability to abduct eight of your armed soldiers all at once? As far as I know, Zhoupu Village is only 5 li away from Liu Fang Town, if someone attacks your soldiers, you wouldn't be unaware of it, would you?"

  "This...". Fukuda Ichimon was at a loss for words. After all, Matsumoto Kazuyoshi was nowhere to be found, neither dead nor alive, and even if he had to say that the Chinese army did something, there was no reason to be found. At present, Japan is still in the preparation stage of the full-scale invasion of China, and it is impossible for him to provoke the Chinese authorities with an unsubstantiated reason at this time.

  "Alright, Mr. Fukuda, I'll arrange for someone to investigate first. If there's any news, we'll notify you immediately. You should also think about whether Matsumoto and the others have violated discipline or done something they shouldn't have, which is why they're delayed in returning to their post." He Jichun gave Fukuda Ichiro a way out since he had nothing to say.

  "Alright then. I'll wait for Mr. He's message." Fukuda Ichiro bowed to He Jichun and left with his men.

  He Jichun immediately arranged for an investigation as soon as Futian Yimale walked away. His energy was much greater than that of Old Master Ma, and he quickly got the news: a mysterious fire had occurred in Zhoupu Village, and the villagers had left ahead of time, with most people temporarily staying in a hostel on the outskirts of Shanghai. In addition, a police officer named He Qihuan at the local police station said that before the fire in Zhoupu Village, a merchant from Jiangxi named Luo Jiu had visited Zhoupu, accompanied by a young boy from Zhoupu named Zhou Xi'ao.

  After He Jichun received this intelligence, his heart was like a clear mirror. He knew that the person with the alias Luo Jiu must be Luo Yi. And the big fire in Zhoupu Village and Matsumoto's disappearance were probably related to Luo Yi. When rescuing Du Xinyu, He Jichun had already seen the combat power of Luo Yi's group. If they took action, dealing with an eight-man team like Matsumoto's should be a foregone conclusion.

  Thinking of this, He Jichun couldn't wait to call Luo Yi over for questioning. However, it was already late at night, and he restrained himself until dawn before hastily rushing to the Shihao Inn to see Luo Yi.

  "He Ge, didn't you say you were just an ordinary civil servant? How did this matter end up on your head?" Luo Yi asked with a smile.

  He Jichun waved his hand and said, "Alas, Luo brother, don't interrupt at this time. I'll be honest with you, I'm from the Ministry of National Defense, currently in charge of intelligence work on the Shanghai side. This kind of thing, I don't manage, who manages?"

  So that's how it is. Luo Yi nodded secretly, no wonder He Jichun claimed to be able to help get a place in the telecommunications class, it seems his own guess was correct.

  "In that case, I won't hide it from you either, Brother He. Yesterday, I did go to Zhoupu Village and encountered those Japanese devils you mentioned."

  "Where are they?"

  "At the bottom of the Yangtze River... If the fish don't like their taste, they're probably still there."

  "You..." He Jichun pointed at Luo Yi, unsure of what to say. "You, do you know how much trouble you've caused? And yet you still have the nerve to joke around."

  "Brother He, we also had no choice but to take action. If we hadn't taken action, I'm afraid many villagers in Zhoupu Village would have died. Can you say that I could just stand by and do nothing?"

  He Ji Chun sighed and said, "Now it's too late to say anything. Eight Japanese soldiers have gone missing. If the Japanese army uses this as an excuse to provoke us, I'm afraid we'll be in for another Shanghai Incident. Luo Zi, oh Luo Zi, you really know how to get me into trouble."

  Luo Yi said: "He brother, since you are a person from the Ministry of National Defense, how can you still say such things? If the Japanese dare to provoke us, we will resolutely counterattack. How far do we have to retreat step by step before it's over? If you don't dare to act, then let the people spontaneously organize themselves, there are plenty of Chinese who are not afraid to die."

  He Jichun angrily said: "You're too simple-minded! Do you think I don't want to resist Japan? I'm also a man of seven feet, no matter what, wearing a military uniform, don't I know the principle of defending the country? But now, what can we use to fight against Japan? The Chairman's current strategy is to trade space for time, and only by gaining time can we make good war preparations. And you, your impulsive behavior may lead to the Japanese taking action against us immediately! You're truly... a vainglorious hero!"

  Luo Yi saw He Jichun's urgent eyes and hastily got up, poured him a cup of water, saying: "Brother He, don't be anxious, first drink some water."

  He Jichun was also a man of some refinement, and seeing Luo Yi's attitude, he too calmed down. He took the water, drank a mouthful, and smoothed out his breath, saying: "Luo younger brother, what do you think we should do about this matter now?"

  Luo Yi said, "He brother, actually you don't need to be in such a hurry. Don't you know what the Japanese are like? If they really want to take action against China, they won't need any reason at all. Even if I hadn't moved him, he can still say that their soldiers have gone missing and frame me for it, how easy is it to come up with an excuse?"

  Any Chinese person will not forget this period of history. In 1937, the Japanese army used the excuse of a missing soldier to launch the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, which led to a full-scale invasion of China. Thinking of this, Luo Yi felt very reassured in his heart, knowing that before Japan's preparations for the invasion of China, the disappearance of just eight soldiers would not cause any major incident. He Jichun was limited by the era and naturally could not see this point. But Luo Yi was a time-traveler, so he still had this concept of time.

  "What you said makes sense." He Jichun nodded, "I was a bit hasty earlier. Now that I think about it, Fukuda Ichimon's attitude has already explained the situation quite well. If they were really prepared, they probably wouldn't have come to negotiate with us and would have taken action directly."

  Luo Yi said: "You think that way, it's right. He brother, I tell you, this matter of the eight devils is now dead and has no evidence. The Japanese military side has neither human testimony nor physical evidence. Zhoupu Village has been burned down, you can completely frame this matter on Song Ben's body, since he has the ability to burn villages, it proves that there was no one attacking them at all. As for where they went, this is not something you should care about, you should ask their own military police to take care of it."

  "Alright, it's got to be this way," He Jichun said. "Lao Di, this time it's up to you. However, I have to remind you of one thing - don't make a habit out of this kind of thing. I've already got enough on my plate, don't cause me any more trouble."

  Luo Yi smiled and said: "No more, no more. Right, He brother, you mentioned the telecommunications class, when can it start? I plan to send Xiao Jing to learn."

  He Jichun said: "Just these two days, have been prepared. I will let someone send you a notice."

  "Alright, He Ge, let's go have breakfast together."

  He Jichun shook his head: "No, I have to hurry back and make arrangements. The people who know the inside story, I have to notify them to keep their mouths shut. You've caused trouble again, and I'm the one who has to clean up after you. I must have owed you a debt in my past life."

  Luo Yi said: "Brother He says so, I'm ashamed. Another day I'll host a banquet to thank you."

  He Jichun patted Luo Yi's shoulder: "Luo, my younger brother, to be honest with you, your patriotic passion is truly commendable. If one day, as you said, a formal war breaks out between China and Japan, I hope you can still maintain this enthusiasm and apply your intelligence, talent, and skills on the battlefield. China needs young people like you."