Just when Zhou Wen walked into Nicholas' house, a man in his thirties and wearing a long gown also walked into the door of the Hongkou Patrol Room at No. 16 Minhang Road almost at the same time.
During the Wanqing Period, after the Shanghai Concession was separatized by Western powers, the three concessions of Britain, France, and the United States adopted a joint strategy and jointly formed the concession's municipal authority, the Ministry of Industry Bureau, and set up a patrol room under the Ministry of Industry Bureau to maintain security in the concession.
However, because the American Concession is located in Hebei, Suzhou, the security management of the patrol house is not effective. The Bureau of the Ministry of Industry set up its second sub-patrol house in the Hongkou area where the American Concession was located. At the beginning of its establishment, the daily expenses of the patrol house were borne by the residents and taxpayers of the Hongkou area, while the daily management was the responsibility of the chief inspector who was responsible for the daily work of the general patrol house.
The Hongkou arrest house has one inspector, one detective, and dozens of patrol officers. The chief inspector and inspectors are all foreigners. Chinese can hold the highest position of detective.
The man in a long gown who entered the Hongkou patrol room seemed to be very familiar with the people here. No one checked him when he came in. Many patrol officers who saw him greeted him enthusiastically and called him Brother Zheng.
But I saw Brother Zheng smiling and saying hello all the way, and soon walked up to the second floor of the patrol room, came to a door with the word 'Inspector' written on the door plate, and knocked lightly.
"Come in!"
Following the sound from the door, Brother Zheng pushed the door open and entered.
In the detective's office, a middle-aged man wearing a white shirt and a small vest was leisurely drinking tea. He didn't get up when he saw Brother Ren coming in. He just said lightly: "Tomorrow." Zheng, why are you so anxious about something? You have to rush to meet immediately. You don’t know that I turned down Boss Ma’s card game just to wait for you.”
It turns out that this man in a long gown is Ming Zheng, the second-ranked capable man under Mr. Du, the leader of the Shanghai Youth Gang.
Ming Zheng is also the liaison person sent by Mr. Du to deal with all aspects of relations with Zhou Wen.
Just an hour ago, Ming Zheng received a call from Zhou Wen, asking him to help investigate the background of a Belarusian nobleman named Nikolai in the Belarusian concession, and it was very urgent.
Ming Zheng also had dealings with Zhou Wen as early as last year. Although he was a Youth Gang general, he was also a Chinese with patriotic sentiments. During the Anti-Japanese War in Songhu last year, he was responsible for Mr. Du's financial support to the 19th Route Army. He deeply admired the various experiences and achievements of a legendary figure like Zhou Wen.
What's more, Mr. Du still owns 10% of the shares of Tiger Defense Company, so he must do his best to handle the things Zhou Wen told him.
However, Mr. Du's sphere of influence is mainly in the French Concession, while the Hongkou District of the Public Concession is the territory of another Qing Gang leader Zhang Xiaoling.
Speaking of the Shanghai Youth Gang at this time, there were three major forces.
The most powerful one is of course Mr. Du, but his main area of control is in the French Concession. There are two other big guys, Huang Jinlong, who controls the junction of the French Concession and the Public Concession, and Zhang Xiaoling, who controls the eastern part of the Public Concession.
In fact, these three bosses had been fighting openly and secretly for more than ten years before, but no one could do anything about the other. So in order to maintain the stability of the Youth Gang, they became brothers and made a private agreement to manage their minions and not cross each other's boundaries.
According to the time when he joined the Qinggang, Huang Jinlong is the eldest brother, Mr. Du is the second eldest brother, and Zhang Xiaoling is the third brother.
Although they do not cross each other's boundaries, there is still mutual help and cooperation. Of course, the three people's subordinates are also good and bad, and naturally there are some battles over interests.
But generally speaking, in recent years, the three gangster factions have maintained a balance, and their interactions with each other have become closer.
Therefore, if Mingzheng wanted to investigate the people and things in Hongkou, whether it was for the sake of gang rules or work efficiency, he had to find someone from Zhang Xiaoling for help.
As for Lu Dayou, the detective of the Hongkou patrol room, according to the seniority of the Qing Gang, he is Zhang Xiaoling's junior brother, just like the relationship between Su Jixian and Mr. Du.
The patrol room at this time was like the police station of later generations, and it knew the situation of the residents in the jurisdiction best. If Ming Zheng wants to investigate Nicholas, it is of course the fastest way to find a relationship with the patrol room.
At this time, Ming Zheng knew what Lu Dayou was talking about about the card game. It was just protection money given by some merchants in the area to the patrolmen in order to seek peace.
Of course, the card game that can invite the detective to play must also be a big merchant with a high reputation.
Ming Zheng, the boss Ma mentioned by Lu Dayou, also knew him. He was the owner of a spinning mill, he was very powerful, and his main customers were Japanese trading companies.
After the September 18th Incident, many patriotic businessmen in Shanghai refused to do business with the Japanese, but Boss Ma didn't care. He also took advantage of the withdrawal of other businesses to expand the scale of production and exclusively supply the Japanese. Naturally, It's a lot of money.
Of course, Ming Zheng would not show his contempt and disdain for Boss Ma now, and he also knew that Lu Dayou only expressed his dissatisfaction with a few complaints. Could it be that if you, Inspector Lu, don't go today, you dare not pay the filial piety that Boss Ma should give you? It's just a matter of time.
Ming Zheng smiled and said: "Brother Dayou, this matter is urgent, and today a company owned by an American friend came to visit me for business. I want my little brother to help you report this."
Lu Dayou had not been in contact with Ming Zheng for a day or two. Knowing that this person was a celebrity around Mr. Du, he naturally would not make any pretense, so he pointed to a stack of documents on his desk and said: "Which Nicholas The situation is all here, you can see for yourself. I will find someone to record the reported matters. "
The so-called reporting means that because the defense company now accepts Nikolai's security protection work, there may be inevitable conflicts with others, and it is inevitable to use knives and guns, so it is natural to notify the patrol room.
Zhou Wen knew that coming to Shanghai was different from Shanxi on the battlefield, and he couldn't let his temper go.
Of course it's possible to cause trouble secretly. As long as no one discovers it, killing a few people is not a big deal. But protecting Nikola's business was on the surface. Zhou Wen was eager to kill a few people to establish his authority. By the way, he also helped the Tiger Defense Company advertise, wasn't he?
Since it is an open matter, the necessary procedures must be followed. After all, this is the territory of foreigners. Even if you kill someone, you need an explanation, right? So it is necessary to say hello to all parties.
Of course, Ming Zheng specifically mentioned that the company was run by Americans, which was a disguised reminder to Lu Dayou that he should stay away from matters involving foreigners.
This is also the current situation in Shanghai. Foreigners want to be superior to others, so Zhou Wen spent so much effort to get in touch with the American consulate and get them to endorse the defense company.
