Chapter Forty-Four: Is It Him?

Chapter Forty-Four: Is It Him?

Creak!

The door to the secret room was pushed open. Bai Zeshao stared fixedly at the chamber behind the door, his wrist tensing as he prepared to hurl a grenade backward.

But as the door swung fully open, he caught sight of an inconspicuous chalk circle drawn on the wall. He nearly choked on his own breath, but his hand didn’t pause—the grenade flew straight into the secret room.

Boom!

The violent explosion sent tremors through the cramped space. Outside, Wu Zhengke and the others hadn’t expected another blast so soon after the last; curiosity flickered across their faces.

“Seems the Red Party’s resistance is fierce,” Qian Yihai said, smiling with narrowed eyes.

“The fiercer, the better. At least it proves we’re in the right place. But from the looks of it, we probably won’t take them down any time soon. Should we call for reinforcements?” Liu Peiru replied coolly.

“No need. Our action squad is best at handling situations like this.” Wu Zhengke shot Liu Peiru an annoyed glare at his ambiguous tone.

Liu Peiru only chuckled, ignoring Wu Zhengke, his gaze still fixed on the doorway.

Inside the room.

Dust swirled at the entrance to the secret chamber. Liu Xiaobing glanced at Bai Zeshao in surprise. “Xiao Bai, weren’t you afraid you might blow up whoever was in there?”

“It’s not that easy to kill someone with a blast. Remember the tripwire grenade we encountered when we first entered? I have no desire to go through that again. The space in here is tight—if there really was another one, we might not have made it out alive,” Bai Zeshao replied casually.

As he spoke, he strode into the secret room, and while passing the wall with the chalk circle, he absentmindedly wiped it away.

Mr. Li’s intention in drawing that circle was simple: to tell Bai Zeshao he had made it out safely. It was precisely because he saw that mark that Bai Zeshao had changed his mind about throwing the grenade backward.

“Be careful,” Liu Xiaobing called after Bai Zeshao as he entered the room, then followed him inside.

Within the secret room, by the time Liu Xiaobing entered, Bai Zeshao had already dropped his guard. He shook his head, disappointment in his voice. “Someone was here—and recently. Looks like a wounded man, too. See over there? Lots of bloodied bandages and medical supplies.”

“Damn it!” Liu Xiaobing cursed, kicking a nearby chair in frustration. “Looks like we’re a step too late again. If only I’d acted last night!”

“Let’s search the place, see if we can find anything useful,” Bai Zeshao said to Liu Xiaobing.

The group quickly combed through the room, but only found some Red Party propaganda materials; there was nothing else. Bai Zeshao and Liu Xiaobing soon left the secret chamber and walked outside.

When Wu Zhengke and the others saw them emerge empty-handed, their brows knitted in disapproval. ‘What happened?’

“Captain, we were too late,” Bai Zeshao reported gravely.

“Bastards! If I ever find out who the mole is, I’ll make sure he can’t live or die,” Wu Zhengke spat furiously.

“What’s the point of saying that now? What interests me is, how did the Red Party’s safe house end up in the same place as ours? Now that’s intriguing,” Liu Peiru remarked, his gaze sweeping back and forth between houses 11 and 12.

“Xiao Bai, have someone check who owns this house.” Though he doubted there’d be much to gain, Qian Yihai still gave the order.

“Yes, sir.”

“Well then... shall we pull out?” Qian Yihai glanced at Wu Zhengke and Liu Peiru for their opinion.

“Withdraw!” Wu Zhengke barked at the team, frustration evident, and strode toward the car.

That afternoon.

Information on the owner of House 12 on Xinyi Street was quickly obtained. But when Bai Zeshao read the report, he froze in surprise. He hadn’t expected the owner to be Wu Jian, the black market dealer.

Originally, Bai Zeshao had been at a loss as to how to approach Wu Jian for help with the radio station. Now, with this leverage handed to him, it would be a waste not to use it.

Without delay, he led his squad to the address listed in the file. Confronting Wu Jian’s calm face, Bai Zeshao gave a cold snort. “Take him away. Bring him to headquarters.”

“Hold on. May I ask what crime I’m accused of, for the special agents to visit me in such force?” Wu Jian was no ordinary figure—many had dealings with him in secret. Confronted with a minor player like Bai Zeshao, he showed no fear, but instead responded with righteous indignation.

“Heh. Wu, we’ve met before, though I doubt you remember someone as insignificant as me. But today, I’m here on orders from above. Don’t take it personally,” Bai Zeshao answered with a smile.

“We’ve met?” Wu Jian was momentarily taken aback. “What’s your name, friend?”

“Bai Zeshao,” he replied with a friendly grin.

“So it’s Brother Bai. But I still don’t know what crime I’ve supposedly committed.” As Wu Jian spoke, he pulled out a gold bar and placed it before Bai Zeshao.

Bai Zeshao hefted the gold bar lightly, smiling. “Wu, surely you know what you’ve been up to? House 12 on Xinyi Street—you can’t be unaware of it. That was the hiding place of Mr. Li, a Red Party fugitive wanted by the state.”

“What?” Wu Jian’s face drained of color. He’d feared his smuggling had been exposed, never imagining it would be colluding with the enemy. If that charge stuck, he’d never recover.

In these times, whatever else one might do, as long as it wasn’t treason, Wu Jian believed his years of connections and some gold would see him through any trouble.

But now, hearing Bai Zeshao’s words, Wu Jian was truly frightened. He even wondered if his rivals were framing him out of jealousy.

“You heard right, Wu. Surely you’re aware of the incident at House 11 on Xinyi Street a few days ago? The Red Party leader, Mr. Li, was rescued. His hiding place was number 12—and you, Wu, are the owner,” Bai Zeshao explained, still weighing the gold bar in his hand.

“Brother Bai, how could I be a traitor? You’ve got it all wrong!” Wu Jian protested desperately.

“Wu, I’m just a messenger. If you have anything more to say, save it for headquarters.” With that, Bai Zeshao stood and strode out the door.