Operation Red Book

Cold... river water... dark... oppressive... urgent... air... turbid...

Breathing...difficulty...

Can’t see clearly...

Can't hear any sound...

Can't see...

can not hear……

Are you going to die?

No, I can hear it now. The sound of my palms sliding across the water is muffled and ringing right beside my ears...

I could see a dark object, like a boat, gradually getting bigger, approaching me, and then getting closer...

The lips are soft, cold and warm.

The air entered his mouth, stretched his tight trachea, and blew into his squeezed lungs.

Alive...

who is it?

What I saw before me was a blurry, large black object with a deep red tint.

"Red."

Ivy repeated in a low voice, and she repeated it many times.

The pale yellow light in front of her fluctuated a few times, slowly pulling Ivy's thoughts back to the present.

It was an exquisite Chinese chandelier with several rockery and butterflies painted on the waxed silk cloth, which looked very comfortable.

Joshua had already fallen on the table. He was sleeping soundly with a slight smile on his lips.

There were quite a few people at the table who fell asleep, all of them were men who couldn't handle alcohol.

The number of exquisite dishes is still increasing, mostly Chinese stir-fried dishes and Western barbecues.

Although it is a Chinese style decoration, what is placed in the center of the dining table is not a fish, but a large bouquet of flowers in a white porcelain vase.

The dark red wine swayed slowly in the transparent champagne glass, filling the room with the rich aroma of wine.

The guests were drinking, eating, chatting and laughing...

No one cared when Ivy lifted the gauze curtain behind the screen.

The cool sea breeze blew on my face, washing away all the fatigue.

Ivy hasn't rested since she woke up.

Mr. Zhu disappeared. Alexander said that he was stabbed to death by Zhao Minghua, but the military failed to retrieve his body.

Fang Yi's body was fished out, but Ivy was surprised to find that he had hanged himself on a tree branch and was then washed into the river.

There was a suicide note on the chest of his shirt, which contained only three words - I'm sorry.

The Chinese docks were leaderless, a large number of buildings were flooded, and a large number of Chinese were homeless.

London was unwilling to take in these Chinese people. During the negotiations, the British side was only willing to provide a few beds and medical care for seriously injured patients, and refused to accept any others.

"For ordinary people, this is a natural disaster! The Chinese wharf paid you so much tax, and you are not willing to provide some temporary tents?"

"I'm sorry, Miss Ivy, you are Chinese, not London residents."

"In fact, if you fail to pay next quarter's taxes on time, we will deport you all in accordance with the most sacred laws of this land."

"You are going too far!"

"In fact, you are not the official agent of the Chinese Wharf, do you have any credentials?"

"If not, please let the security personnel lead you out of this golden gate and let the commander personally certified by Her Majesty the Queen come to negotiate."

"you……"

"Ms. Ivy, please leave."

Ivy suffered a loss and had to return to the Chinese dock angrily.

Most of the tents stationed at the Chinese dock had been folded up, and a large number of soldiers packed their luggage and marched back to London in a line, no longer caring about the people here.

The residents of the Chinese wharf cleared away the rubble and bricks of all sizes, revealing spacious land and winding cobblestone roads.

Some of the houses that did not collapse were covered with green roofs, and the empty walls inside became the family's home.

The residents of the collapsed houses could only carry their broken belongings and lie down wherever they went.

Seeing this scene, Ivy didn't know how to deal with it for a moment.

No, it’s not that we can’t face it, but where should we start?

There was no money, and Uncle Zhang, the accountant, refused to show her the financial situation of the Chinese Wharf.

She had no power. Ivy was just one of Mr. Zhu's assistants, a girl under 20 years old. At most, she was a small financial officer in charge of the accounts of Muyunzhai.

No matter how enthusiastically you handle the affairs of the Chinese wharf on weekdays, there is nothing you can do now.

The bad things happening nowadays are as big as the Yellow River, and her say is not even as strong as that of a runner in Shisanfang.

Without land, let alone rebuilding the Chinese wharf, there is not even a place to live to support daily life.

If this continues, how can we make money, support people, go out to sea, and operate the Chinese docks...

Do we really have to wait until that time, when the British kidnap all the desperate Chinese and send us back to the impoverished and weak Qing Dynasty in ships that are too dilapidated to sail?

In this crappy era, there are no airplanes, no trains, and no ships.

Ivy only hoped that the British side would have some conscience and send her back using those large ships at the dock...

The big ship in the dock...

Big ship...

The light bulb in her mind lit up, Ivy looked up suddenly, clapped her hands, and a vague idea took shape.

"Let everyone live on the boats, leave some people to rebuild the Chinese wharf, leave some people to go out to sea to fish, and leave some people to convert merchant ships into passenger ships and run living and entertainment venues."

"We even kept a ship and moved the tricks from Shisanfang, Muyunzhai and the Chinese market on board, and opened a limited number of them at night for those British who couldn't hold back."

"That's what I've been doing for the past half month. What do you think? Mr. Zhu..."

Ivy leaned on the railing, supporting her head with her hands and looking towards the darkness at the end.

"How can you have so many unmatched ideas at such a young age?"

Mr. Zhu walked out of the darkness with a smile on his face. He looked no different from before, and even looked a lot plumper.

"Young people, you can't keep up with your times."

"That's right, I work so hard! Pay more! I must pay more!"

“I can’t add it!”

"Fuck!"

Ivy took a step forward and grabbed Mr. Zhu by the collar, looking arrogant.

"Then I will throw you overboard right now and become the commander of the Chinese wharf myself. Your money, your land, and your people will all be mine!"

"Oh! You are reluctant to..."

"Tsk! Why would I be reluctant to part with a 30-year-old man?"

"Don't you want to know what happened after Zhao Minghua stabbed me?"

"Wait a minute... I'll go grab some peanuts..."

"Give me some melon seeds."