69novels Chapter 237 The Fox and the Bait
Chapter 237 The Fox and the Bait
Borrowing a passage?
Isn't it necessary to be monitored?
You could say you're a prisoner.
But it's definitely not like you guys who want to be the boss, or even the master!
Hu Qiankuan sat opposite him, his expression indifferent.
"Mr. Zhou, if it's all legitimate use of the road, there's naturally no need to worry about registration. What's worrying is that you might have done something shameful and feel guilty."
Zhou Qiheng put down the paper and remained silent for a moment.
"I won't hide it from Lieutenant Hu. The Northern Expeditionary Army is indeed short of food and money. The troops are pushing northward with their last breath. If we follow the same approach as the Southeast, the war will be very difficult."
"Back when Premier Sun Yat-sen was alive, he was an ally of your Marshal Yu, and even received gifts from the Southeast. Even your Young Marshal has provided our National Revolutionary Army with plenty of equipment and pay. Why are you being so cold-hearted this time?"
Hearing this, Hu Qiankuan didn't immediately retort. He simply looked at Zhou Qiheng, his tone becoming somewhat indifferent.
"Mr. Zhou, what you said is true. But truth is truth. It's difficult, it's just difficult, not impossible. But some people want to use the righteous cause of the Northern Expedition to profit from it. Have they not considered the hardships of the soldiers on the Northern Expedition? Our Young Marshal also has something to say: if the National Revolutionary Government is unable to launch the Northern Expedition due to various internal and external factors, my Southeast Army can launch the Northern Expedition on its behalf. We will swear an oath in Xuzhou and attack Shandong. What do you say?"
Zhou Qiheng didn't respond to that question, but simply raised his eyes slightly and said slowly, "That's not what I meant. I may not know everything that happens in the Nationalist government. If anyone really uses this to cause trouble, I will give Marshal Chen an explanation."
Hu Qiankuan's eyes flickered slightly.
That's an interesting statement.
It's not that I'm being stubborn.
It's about leaving an opening.
He didn't pursue it any further, but simply pushed the document forward by half an inch.
"Then keep this safe for now. From today onwards, all members of the delegation must report their whereabouts. Telegram correspondence must also be registered. Anyone who finds this troublesome may return to the south immediately. We in the southeast will not stop you."
Zhou Qiheng's lips twitched slightly upon hearing this. The meaning couldn't be clearer: either follow the rules or get out!
He remained silent for a while, then finally put the charter away.
"Okay. Mr. Zhou will cooperate."
Standing in the shadows of the window under the corridor outside the reception area, Lu Shaoting's back was already covered in a layer of cold sweat.
Register your travel route.
Register telegram exchanges.
This wasn't written in a nutshell; it was practically plastered on his forehead.
He just sent out a letter last night, and today the procedures have already reached this level of detail. Is this a coincidence?
Or have I already revealed my identity?
Lu Shaoting's Adam's apple bobbed, and his palms felt sticky.
No, if we drag this out any longer, the connection will break. People in the south are waiting for news!
The courier in Shanghai was also waiting for him to bring something more substantial.
Railway car schedules, grain price lock-in points, and special accounts for government bonds are just peripheral details. What's truly valuable is the military dispatch map of the Southeast Railway.
Thinking of this, his eyes hardened. Since the rules were getting tighter and tighter, he had to make a big move before the net completely closed.
In the city center of Shanghai, in the afternoon.
Su Guiying changed into a plain-colored long gown and sat down at a tea stall on the back street of the City God Temple. The stall was small, the tables and chairs were slicked back, and two strings of dried chilies hung in the corner, which were used to make peanuts.
She shelled peanuts while listening to her subordinates' replies.
"Lu Shaoting stood in the outer corridor of the reception area twice in the morning. Later, he went to the south station freight area and circled around it for a while. He didn't go in, but his eyes kept looking towards the second floor of the dispatch building."
Su Guiying paused for a moment.
"He's got his eye on the scheduling chart."
The officer next to him whispered, "Should we arrest them now...?"
"If we catch it, it'll just be a small fish. The turtles hiding underwater will just tuck their heads back in."
Su Guiying gently tossed the peanut shells onto the corner of the table.
"We've deployed so many people these past few days not just to capture Lu Shaoting and bring him back as a report. The person behind him is our real target."
As she spoke, she looked up towards the South Station not far away.
"Go tell the freight department. Dig out that old dispatch map from last winter. Delete a few military train schedules, change two freight branch lines, and deliberately leave half of it exposed."
"Don't show too much skin."
"It should look like something that was accidentally pressed against the corner of a table, and then it gets visible when the wind flips it up."
The clerk's eyes lit up when he heard that.
"Director, you're setting him up like bait!"
Su Guiying smiled.
"When fishing for this kind of person, the bait can't be too tempting. If it's too tempting, he'll be scared. You have to make him feel that he has a sharp eye, that he's lucky, that he stepped in dog poop. Only then will this kind of person dive in headfirst."
Southeast Central Bank, evening.
Mo Huixin received another order from the same three grain merchants, and she asked for the law even more urgently.
They not only asked about rice and grain, but also began to subtly inquire about the priority of railcars, loading and unloading times, and the heavy load limit from the South Station to Hangzhou.
After she finished reading it, she slowly folded the paper.
"As expected. Locking in the price was just a prelude. Their next move was to check transportation capacity before forcing us to open the road."
The old accountant couldn't help but say, "President, should we spread the word and sabotage these inquiries?"
Mo Huixin shook her head.
"If we let them out now, they'll just retreat. Rather than letting the snake go back into its hole, we should first see which crack it emerges from."
She went to the telegraph machine and drafted a short telegram by hand.
Send to Fuzhou.
The three grain merchants repeatedly inquired about the locked-in price, wagons, load capacity, and loading/unloading times, seemingly coordinating with the delegation's secret network. The Military and Political Reception Office was also instructed to continue to appease Zhou Qiheng. If he truly severed ties with his entourage, this could be useful later.
The telegraph operator took the telegraph and couldn't help but glance up at her. "President, do you think Representative Zhou might not be part of the same group?"
Mo Huixin gave a soft "hmm".
"A person who can honestly admit to lacking food and money at the negotiating table isn't necessarily truly honest. But most of them still have a sense of shame. And those who have a sense of shame can still be saved..."
"What I fear most is people who have no shame and only care about their masters and what benefits they receive."
Fuzhou, at night.
Chen Zijun smiled after reading the telegrams sent by Mo Huixin and Su Guiying one after the other.
"One person oversees the accounts, and the other oversees the people. They've handled this job even better than I expected."
Shen Li, standing to the side, couldn't help but grin.
"Young Marshal, Sister Huixin says the grain merchants are locking in prices, while Sister Gui says Lu Shaoting is monitoring the dispatch building. When you put these two together, the truth really comes out."
Chen Zijun slammed the telegram down on the table.
"It's good that you came out. Wasn't Chang Guangtou trying to probe my logistics base in Southeast China?"
"Then give him a floor tile. Let him think he's touched the foundation."
Shen Li immediately understood.
"Don't worry, young marshal, I'm here! I'll draft the telegram right away and have Sister Gui lay the bait."
Chen Zijun nodded and added another sentence.
"Tell her not to catch them too early. If you cast the net in before the fish has even opened its mouth, all you'll get is water droplets."
Shanghai South Railway Station, late at night.
The wind whistled through the tracks, and on the second floor of the dispatching building, a window wasn't fully closed, and the lights weren't all off. An old dispatching chart was tucked into the corner of the table, with just half of it sticking out.
Lu Shaoting stood in the shadows across the street, his heart pounding. He stared for a full quarter of an hour. No one came to collect it. No one closed the window. It was as if God had deliberately left a piece of meat dangling in his mouth. He licked his dry lips; his palms were sweaty.
The skinny man behind him lowered his voice, "Mr. Lu, this is a rare opportunity."
"After tonight, once the delegation registers, things will get even busier."
Lu Shaoting gritted his teeth. "I know. But we can't move now. We need to call our superiors. This map isn't something I can handle alone."
He looked up at the half-open window again, his eyes a mixture of lust and panic. After a long while, he finally uttered a sentence in a low voice.
"Go generate electricity. Tell the higher-ups that we can retrieve the maps tonight. Get everyone who needs to come here to come."
In the shadows not far away, Su Guiying stood at the base of the wall, gently twirling a copper coin between her fingertips.
After hearing this, the corners of her mouth slowly curled up.
"No matter how cunning the fox, it can never outwit the hunter."