kvmb 108. Gaining fame
108. Gaining fame
"Breaking news! Breaking news! A massive explosion shook Shanghai to its core, leveling the headquarters of the Special Higher Police! Breaking news! Breaking news!"
The next day, news of the Special High Technology headquarters being razed to the ground spread like wildfire throughout all levels of society and in every corner of Shanghai.
Newspapers and magazines of all sizes were sold out in less than an hour, and everyone was speculating about who was behind this and how they could do something so earth-shattering.
"Amazing, amazing! That was the headquarters of the Special Higher Police, where the Japanese elite spies and agents were all located. To be able to raze the entire building to the ground is simply divine intervention!"
"Blowing up the building wasn't the most impressive thing. The most impressive thing was that the person who did it got away scot-free. This morning, squads of Japanese military police were patrolling the streets downstairs from my house. All roads leading out of the city were placed under the highest level of martial law. Even the Japanese military camp was alerted, and thousands of people were deployed to conduct a thorough search."
"You don't know, I have a cousin who works at the police station. He was sleeping in the middle of the night when someone dragged him out of bed to put out a fire. He didn't get home until dawn. He said that the headquarters of the Special Higher Police and the street next to it were blown to smithereens, and now no one is allowed to go near the area."
"I also heard that more than 200 Japanese soldiers were killed or wounded in the explosion, and two truckloads of military police soldiers were unlucky enough to be caught in the explosion and died without even knowing how. This is the biggest casualty incident since the Japanese occupied Shanghai."
"Guess who did it? Was it the Communist Party, the Kuomintang, or the guerrillas?"
"Who knows? You can't guess. Whoever did it, they're an absolute hero!"
"Shh, don't say anything, there are spies coming over there."
In every teahouse, coffee shop, breakfast shop, or street corner in Shanghai, you can see citizens whispering and discussing animatedly while reading newspapers.
Although the Japanese had issued ultimatums to major newspapers, forbidding them from reporting on the incident, the underground tabloids paid no heed. Some were motivated by profit, but many more sought to publicize this rare heroic deed. This was especially true of the underground tabloids affiliated with the Communist Party and the Kuomintang, who were adept at sensationalism and propaganda. In their writings, the mysterious figure who blew up the Special Higher Police was portrayed as a god, capable of scaling walls and hitting a target with deadly accuracy, seemingly omnipotent.
Some reports even directly implicated this person in the recent death of the traitor Mr. Su, claiming that he poisoned the notorious traitor right under the noses of spies and Japanese soldiers without anyone noticing. This contrast further shrouds this person in mystery.
Some reporters even gave him a nickname, calling him Sun Wukong, the all-powerful demon slayer.
"Brother, brother~ the military police major is here."
The next morning, Zhou Hongyi happily brewed a cup of tea, sat in his office with his feet up on the desk, and was about to enjoy the outrageous stories written in the newspapers when Fusheng's words spoiled his mood.
No sooner had Fusheng finished speaking than a series of heavy footsteps were heard. A Japanese officer, accompanied by some soldiers, entered his office and said with a stern expression:
"Director Zhou Hongyi, this is Captain Kawasaki of the Shanghai Guard Brigade. I have received orders to take over all police officers of your Jing'an Second Branch, including yourself, effective immediately. You are now under my command. Take your men and conduct a thorough search along the south pier. Anyone whose identity is unknown or who cannot prove their innocence last night will be arrested and interrogated in the dungeon. Anyone who resists will be executed on the spot!"
As he spoke, the Japanese soldier slammed an appointment certificate onto the table.
Zhou Hongyi cursed and jumped up from his chair. He saw that the appointment letter was actually issued by Kondo Ryunosuke. This kid really had a lot of power. With this one appointment, he had completely sidelined Zhou Hongyi, the newly appointed police chief.
"Damn it... he's starting to have doubts."
In fact, Zhou Hongyi wronged Kondo. Kondo wasn't doubting him; he was doubting everyone equally. He had consolidated command of all the police forces in Shanghai and sent his trusted confidants to take over. This bombing incident had caused him to lose face in front of his mentor, and the bombing of the Special Higher Police headquarters was no longer a simple act of harassment; it was a declaration of war, a direct challenge to him.
Another thing that infuriated Kondo was that Yamamoto Sekito, the master of the Dansui-ryu karate style, was also killed in the explosion.
When the military medics performed an autopsy on his charred body, they discovered that his arms and ankles had been broken beforehand, and two ribs under his left rib were also broken, clearly indicating a tremendous impact. There were also ligature marks on his neck. From these marks, it can be inferred that Yamamoto Hiroto, the karate master, had a fierce fight with another mysterious person before the headquarters explosion, and that he was actually at a disadvantage in that fight.
Kondo knew Yamamoto's strength better than anyone else; otherwise, he wouldn't have specifically requested to bring him from the mainland to his side. But this master was killed before he could even fully utilize his abilities, which made him think of the assassin Zhou Hongyi encountered in the hospital. If it was that person, only that person could have inflicted such a heavy loss on Yamamoto in close combat.
"You idiot... I will definitely find you!" Kondo Ryunosuke gritted his teeth and swore, "No matter who you are, I will find you!"
At the police station, Zhou Hongyi showed shock at the order, but in front of a group of heavily armed Japanese soldiers, he chose to keep the peace and gritted his teeth, saying, "All brothers of the Second Precinct, listen up... Follow this officer's instructions and conduct a carpet search along the route."
The police officers from the Second Precinct had long since stood with their Chief Zhou, sharing a common hatred for the enemy. However, due to his status, they could only curse him secretly behind his back.
However, it was impossible to get these scoundrel police officers to conduct a genuine search, especially under Zhou Hongyi's leadership. While they appeared to be searching, some were actually slacking off and others were being lazy. They couldn't find the Monkey King mentioned in the newspaper, let alone the bald gorilla.
While Zhou Hongyi's Second Precinct was slacking off, the police officers from other precincts were much more diligent, and their search actually uncovered some unidentified individuals.
Upon hearing this news, Zhou Hongyi hurriedly ordered his men to conduct a thorough search.
"Damn it, it's better to catch those patriots lurking in the shadows than to catch them. If I catch them, I can find a way to release them, but if someone else catches them, they're doomed."
With this in mind, and no one knows what's wrong with their Director Zhou, who was originally slacking off, suddenly became like he'd been injected with adrenaline and ordered them to search all night.
But as the saying goes, "It takes a thousand days to train an army, but only one day to use it." Director Zhou had always been too good to them and had given them too much. Even though they had been working at high intensity for twenty consecutive hours, no one complained. After all, the director had said that after this busy period, he would not only take them to the Huizhong Hotel for a good meal, but also treat them to drinks and dancing at the Paramount. How could they not work hard?