Period drama: Old Cao's carefree life

Chapter 72 Traitors and their Fall

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“Cao Sang, you are Chinese and know China well. Can you analyze this for me?”

"Lieutenant Yoshida is missing. There were no signs of a struggle at his home, nor was any evidence left behind."

"Do you think your country has any methods to take people away silently without leaving any clues?"

Cao Weida shook his head blankly, "Unless you follow along yourself, I really can't think of any other way."

The punctuator and Fujita Sosuke shook their heads secretly, but they weren't disappointed.

This reaction was not unexpected by the reporter and Fujita Sosuke; they had only asked the question casually anyway.

After all, in their view, Cao Weida had only been working in the police station for a little over half a year and had previously come from a peasant background, so where would he get any case-solving abilities?

The questioning ended quickly, and naturally nothing was obtained.

The punctuator closed his notebook and stood up. "Commander Fujita, my questioning is over."

"Okay, you can go now."

After the reporter left, Cao Weida couldn't help but ask, "Fujita-kun, shouldn't everyone who had contact with Lieutenant Yoshida yesterday have been arrested—no, asked to come and cooperate with the investigation?"

"Yes, rickshaw drivers Wen San'er and Na Lai Shun, police patrol officer Fang Jinglin, and Lu Zhongyong, vice president of the New People's Association."

"Wait, Fujita-kun, the Lu Zhongyong you're talking about? The Lu Zhongyong who's the editor-in-chief of Xinmin Daily?"

"Yes, what's wrong? Do you know Cao Sang?"

“I don’t know him, but I’ve heard of him.” Cao Weida narrowed his eyes and chuckled mischievously.

"Fujita-kun, this is a great opportunity to make a fortune!"

Lu Zhongyong, a complete traitor!

He was initially a reporter for the entertainment section of the Beijing Evening News. He was a profit-driven person who would write anything for money, always trading his conscience for payment.

After Beiping fell to the Japanese, he immediately and eagerly defected to them.

At that time, the Japanese had just occupied Beiping and were in dire need of Chinese people to surrender. Lu Zhongyong's initiative to surrender pleased the Japanese, and even if it was just to set an example, they had to give him a generous reward.

As a result, he became the vice president of the Xinmin Society, and later even the editor-in-chief of the Xinmin Daily, where he spent his days cheering for the Japanese.

He was ruthless in achieving his goals, such as using the method of holding Boss Yang's mother hostage to force Yang Yichen, a famous actor in Beiping, to perform his signature play to welcome the Japanese army into the city. He was utterly wicked.

Cao Wei wished more traitors like these would die, so that the air could be purified and the soil could be enriched with black pigments – a kind of waste utilization.

"Oh? How so?" Upon hearing that he could get rich, Fujita Sosuke's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, filled with greed for money.

Cao Wei Da chuckled wickedly, “Fujita-kun, think about it, what does the New People’s Society do? It’s to cooperate with the Imperial Army to plunder, I mean, collect strategic materials and wealth.”

"I know these bastards all too well. I don't believe they don't seek personal gain. They must have plenty of money and supplies in their hands."

“In the past, we might have hesitated to take action against them, but he's just handing us leverage. Wouldn't it be a shame not to give him a good thrashing?”

Upon hearing this, Fujita Sosuke was instantly moved.

Having ruled over parts of China for so many years, how could he not know the true nature of those who had pledged allegiance to them?
Whether they will succeed or not is another matter entirely.

But if you're talking about getting them to make money, they're all incredibly good at it.

Although we don't know how much money and grain they looted, it's obvious to anyone with a brain that it must have been a considerable sum.

Fujita Sousuke was incredibly tempted, but he feigned modesty and said, "This isn't quite right. After all, anyone with eyes can see that this matter doesn't really have much to do with him."

"Anyone with eyes can see that, so we can find someone who's blind," Cao Weida chuckled.
"Take our Captain Sang Liuji Sang for example. If he weren't blind, how could such a horrific murder have happened in his jurisdiction?"

"Now is the time for him to redeem himself through meritorious service. I think he would be more than willing to serve the Imperial Army to the death."

"We won't ask for much. We can pay for the food and supplies at home. As for the rest of his belongings, it's up to him whether he wants to contribute a little something."

“We won’t ask for much, but surely we can give him half of his wealth? Once we give it to him, we can clear him of suspicion. He’s a friend of the Imperial Army, and with the situation at the front lines so tense, it’s only right that he contributes something to the Imperial Army. I think he would be very happy to do so.”

"For such a big case, we allowed him to pay money to avoid further trouble. What a great favor that is!"

“If he can’t even part with this little bit of money, then we have to question his loyalty to the Imperial Army.”

It's a perfect match to have one bad, festering thing deal with another bad, festering thing!
Maybe after they met, they fell in love and ended up together.

Isn't that how it's always written in romance novels? If it actually works out, they'll have to pay us a matchmaker fee!
"Not only that, we also need to let him know that we are fair and just," Cao Weida continued.
"We've arrested a few people, so let's make them hand over half of their entire fortune. That way, no one can say anything!" "We're treating everyone equally. Anyone who dares to object is provoking the majesty of the Imperial Japanese Army!"

"Yoshi~~ Cao-san, you're so mean." Fujita Sousuke also grinned mischievously. It sounded fair, but it was all bullshit!
How much is Lu Zhongyong worth? How much are those rickshaw pullers and patrolmen worth?
The two are completely incomparable!
But none of that matters. Our Great Japanese Imperial Army loves fairness the most. No matter if this fairness is truly fair or not, as long as it appears fair on the surface, that's enough!
Cao Wei Da thought to himself, "Thank goodness you didn't say 'I like it so much,' otherwise I would have been unable to resist having sex with you!"

the other side.

Lu Zhongyong was a well-known figure among the Japanese; many of them recognized him.

Therefore, he did not experience being extorted by ignorant people; the Japanese soldiers were quite polite when they invited him over.

"Mr. Lu, please don't be afraid, this is just a simple, rational inquiry." The Japanese man asking the question was quite polite.

After the questioning ended, he got up and was about to leave when a phone call suddenly came into the interrogation room.

"Moxi moxi."

"Hai, Hai!"

The Japanese soldier who had just hung up the phone called out to Lu Zhongyong, who was about to leave: "Mr. Lu, wait a minute."

"Sir, is there anything else you want to ask? Don't worry, I will answer everything I know!" Lu Zhongyong smiled obsequiously, his fawning face disgusting to behold.

"You can't leave yet." The Japanese soldier didn't respond kindly to Lu Zhongyong's attempt to get close to him, and ordered him with a stern face.

"Huh? Why? Didn't I answer everything I was supposed to?" Lu Zhongyong was somewhat taken aback. Who made that phone call just now? Why was their attitude so different before and after?!

"You don't need to know why, just follow orders!" The Japanese soldier's tone was a bit harsh. Don't be fooled by Lu Zhongyong's seemingly high status outside, being the vice president of the Xinmin Society and the editor-in-chief of the Xinmin Daily. In the eyes of the Japanese, he was nothing more than an obedient dog.

A dog dares to question its master's orders, so how could the Japanese be expected to be polite to it?
Lu Zhongyong was completely bewildered. He didn't know what had happened, and he hadn't done anything to offend the Japanese!
"Sir, I really only invited Lieutenant Yoshida for a cup of tea yesterday, and then we parted ways. I've said everything I needed to say."

"You talk too much." The Japanese soldier's face turned cold as he shouted, "Someone, prepare a guest room for Mr. Lu to rest!"

"."

Lu Zhongyong opened his mouth, but in the end he didn't dare to refute anything and obediently followed the Japanese soldiers to the so-called 'guest rooms' to rest.

He could be an arrogant spendthrift to the Chinese, but he really didn't have the guts to act like that in front of the Japanese.
Cao Weida, sitting in a rickshaw, tricked a group of major traitors, causing Sang Liuji to fight him like dogs, and also rescued the arrested civilians and Fang Jinglin. At this moment, he was in a very good mood.

"Sir, we've arrived."

"Ah."

After tossing over a UnionPay coin and sending the rickshaw away, Cao Weida saw someone climbing a ladder and busy at work outside the courtyard. Below, the translator he had beaten up earlier was indeed giving orders in a loud and boisterous manner.

Upon seeing him, the translator immediately scurried over, bowing and smiling obsequiously:

"Master Cao, you're back!"

"They're installing a phone for you here. I'm overseeing it myself, and it'll be finished soon. The yard's been swept clean too; everything's been washed, and the bluestone is so smooth it could be used as a mirror."

Cao Weida glanced at it indifferently, "The speed is not bad. Alright, let's leave it at that. You can leave now."

I feel disgusted just looking at his face, and I really don't want to talk to him.

"Thank you so much, Master Cao! Thank you so much, Master Cao!" The translator repeatedly kowtowed in gratitude.

"Brother Cao." Little Ear came out of the courtyard. Seeing his appearance, how could Cao Weida not tell that something was wrong?

He waved the translator away and took a few steps to the side.

"What's the matter? Tell me."

"Do you still remember Han Lu from Xiaguangyuan?"

"Nonsense, it hasn't been that long, my memory isn't that bad." Cao Weida rolled his eyes. "What happened to her? Did something happen to her?"

"Yes, a murder has occurred at Xiaguangyuan. It's said that a traitor from the Military Intelligence Bureau got into trouble there, and someone is going to hold her accountable."

"Actually, someone is using this as an excuse to take over Xiaguangyuan. It seems that the person behind her has been taken care of. She begged them to come over but they ignored her. So, they came to me."

After Xiao Erduo finished speaking, he fell silent, neither asking whether to intervene or not, but simply waiting quietly for Cao Weida's order.

Tsk, so you're saying that the Xiaguangyuan incident was something they caused themselves?
Cao Weida grinned, then realized something was wrong. Someone had been eyeing Xiaguang Garden all along, and it had nothing to do with this matter.

Even without this incident, people would find other ways to make things difficult for Han Lu.

He stroked his chin, pondering whether or not to get involved.

(End of this chapter)