1936, Shanghai, early spring.
The spring is cold and cold.
Cheng Qianfan opened the window and took a look outside. The sky was gloomy and seemed to be dripping.
With the corner of his eye, he was observing the entrance to the alley. People were coming and going, but there was nothing unusual.
You can hear the wonton seller Liu Ada arguing with Aunt Ma again.
Aunt Ma was always taking advantage, and she would give various excuses every time. The filling of the wontons was too small, the taste was too bland, the skin was thin, and the skin was thick.
Every time Ada Liu had to give her an extra bowl of wonton soup, Aunt Ma would leave proudly without forgetting to say, "Too few shrimp skins."
Liu Ada will always say that he will not sell it to you next time.
Cheng Qianfan took off his patrol uniform and began to change.
The thick V-neck sweater worn on his body lengthened the lines of his upper body.
Layer a sweater jacket on the outside to give the overall look a layered look.
This is a very common dress of educated people, which gives Cheng Qianfan a lot of scholarly atmosphere, like a student in a university or a young teacher in a school.
Today is a routine meeting day agreed with Lao Liao.
Whenever this happens, Cheng Qianfan's whole person is hot from the inside out.
He believed that every underground worker felt this way when interacting with his comrades.
Underground workers are lonely, and their working environment is complex and full of dangers.
You must always be vigilant, compete with the enemy and the surrounding environment, and there is no room for mistakes.
The happiest moment is meeting comrades, chatting, talking about work, and imagining the beautiful tomorrow of our motherland in everyone's mind.
Even if they don't touch each other or even talk when they meet, just a look is the greatest encouragement to each other.
We are not fighting alone, we have comrades.
Cheng Qianfan thought of a chat with Lao Liao. Lao Liao gestured and said that what he was most happy about (looking forward to) was that at the end of the year, he could smoke a bag of cigarettes in the yard of his ancestral home and enjoy the sunshine. ) The granddaughters gathered around him and the grandparents made fun of him. It was really a pleasure.
Cheng Qianfan fell silent and did not speak.
Lao Liao is from Northeast China.
The whole family participated in the Anti-League.
A wife, three sons, and two daughters all died.
The old man is alone now.
The old man felt bitter and resentful.
The hatred of the country and the family.
…
Half an hour later.
Cheng Qianfan was waiting for the tram on Fada Avenue.
He held a bottle of sorghum wine in his hand.
French Electrical Route 2 runs from Shiliupu to Xujiahui, passing through downtown areas such as Fada Avenue and Father Jin Road. It is the most important transportation line in the French Concession.
Cheng Qianfan wanted to get off at Xiafei Road.
Lao Liao was waiting for him at the station.
Cheng Qianfan will get off the tram and Lao Liao will pretend to get on the tram. The two will have contact at this time and complete the transfer of information or items covertly and quickly.
The tram is crowded and there are many passengers waiting. It is difficult for the elderly and weak to get on the tram.
The Shanghai poster community once used an exaggerated title to describe the difficulty of riding a tram: "Charging on a crowded tram."
“The brave passengers jumped into the car through the window or the front or rear of the car without waiting for the iron door to open.
By the time you enter through the gate, the carriage is already packed with people, as crowded as sardines and suffocating.
A group of old and weak soldiers were left under the station, and they pinned their hopes on the next train ride.
Those who are impatient can only pay a high price to hire a tricycle or rickshaw, or work hard on their soles. "
Therefore, when Lao Liao is old, he will pretend that he cannot squeeze into the tram.
This makes sense.
Rationality is the first thing an underground worker must consider. This is what Comrade "Zhulin" warned and Cheng Qianfan always kept in mind.
Then, if Lao Liao chooses to wait for the next tram where he is, it means everything is normal, there is no emergency notification from his superiors, and everything is business as usual.
If Lao Liao acts like he can't wait for the tram and chooses to leave on foot, it means that the matter is urgent and the two people need to find an opportunity to meet immediately.
Unless Lao Liao or Cheng Qianfan are exposed and someone keeps watching them, this kind of contact will not attract the attention of others.
The tram is a carrier, a good cover tool.
…
Cheng Qianfan finally squeezed into the car.
I saw Li Hao at first sight.
Li Hao is a conductor on French Electrical Route 2. He is wearing a yellow twill uniform and has a white bag used to hold ticket money slung over his shoulder.
He held the ticket folder tightly in his hand, stared at the passengers going up and down like a torch, and shouted, "Passengers who get on the train, buy their tickets!"
Cheng Qianfan said nothing, looked at Li Hao, and paid for the ticket.
Li Hao shook his head towards Cheng Qianfan in a subtle way, which meant that no one was following him.
As a tram conductor, I have a good position, and I have developed a sharp eye. I can see and remember all the men, women, and children who get on the train.
While using his peripheral vision to see if there was anything unusual behind Cheng Qianfan who was walking inside, he raised his voice and shouted to a long-faced passenger, "I bought a four-cent foreign-money ticket. At most, I can ride to Father Jin!"
…
Lao Liao was wearing an old thin cotton-padded jacket. He did not squeeze into the crowd, but stood at the corner with a bottle of rice wine in his hand.
This location is good, with a good view and easy observation.
Lao Liao glanced at the rice wine and sighed.
Today is the anniversary of the death of my wife and youngest. These bastards are all good at wine, and the two girls can even take a few sips.
Especially the youngest, the home-brewed sorghum wine is her favorite.
I didn’t buy sorghum wine, so I didn’t know if the youngest would get into trouble.
Lao Liao's nose felt sore, as if he had seen the scene where the youngest fired a grenade and disappeared with the Japanese mountain search team.
That was the youngest child that he loved the most. He was gone and left to look for his brothers and sisters.
…
A few dozen meters away, on the second floor of a private house on the street.
"Team leader, I'm going downstairs to buy cigarettes." Ding Naifei asked for instructions. There were several cigarette butts at his feet. They were out of cigarettes and addicted to smoking.
Wang Kangnian waved his hand.
"This old man seems to be distracted." Wang Kangnian put down the telescope and thought for a moment, "What is he thinking about?"
Wang Kangnian is the leader of the third team of the Shanghai Special Economic Zone Action Unit of the Central Party Affairs Investigation Office.
This person especially likes to ponder these small details. Wang Kangnian believes that the emotions and expressions that people reveal unintentionally can sometimes reveal important information subconsciously.
Ding Naifei, who went downstairs to buy cigarettes, came back.
"Old Ding, take a look." As he said that, he handed the telescope to his deputy, Ding Naifei.
Ding Naifei opened the cigarette, chewed a cigarette himself, and handed one to the team leader.
At the same time, he picked up the binoculars, took a casual look, chewed on a cigarette and said, "Team leader, I'm just doing rough work. You asked me to kill this old man with one shot. I'm doing it. What can I do if I use my brain?" OK."
"You, you have to learn to use your brain to fight and kill those who can't get on the stage." Wang Kangnian cursed with a smile.
"I'll just follow the team leader." Ding Naifei was not angry, lit the cigarette, and took a puff.
"Does this old man drink?" Wang Kangnian picked up the telescope and looked carefully. When he saw the old man looking down at the bottle he was carrying several times, he suddenly asked. This detail caught his attention and interest.
