Black Flag Army

In the evening, the afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on the port of Vladivostok, covering the entire harbor with a layer of golden gauze. At this quiet and beautiful moment, Leng Hanbing, Liu Zhendong and Liu Tainan led the 50 members of the action team and walked into the Beiling submarine with firm steps.

For Leng Hanbing and Liu Zhendong, this was their first submarine trip in their lives. They looked at this mysterious underwater behemoth with curiosity, feeling both excited and nervous. However, Liu Tainan was different. He had participated in operations on submarines many times and had a certain understanding of this special means of transportation. Because of this, Di Xiong specially sent him to join this operation to help Leng Hanbing and Liu Zhendong better adapt to the submarine environment and provide necessary guidance.

Di Xiong knew that Lushun was the base of the Kwantung Army, and assassinating the commander of the Kwantung Army was undoubtedly a very challenging task. Faced with such a difficult mission, he did not hesitate to send Liu Zhendong, the top expert in the army, hoping to add a guarantee to the operation through his strength and experience. If Li Fei had not happened to be ill and unable to go on the expedition, Di Xiong even planned to send him out to further strengthen the team. In this way, the chances of success of the operation might be higher.

Liu Tainan looked at Leng Hanbing and said in a serious tone: "On the vast ocean, if we are unfortunate enough to encounter Japanese warships, we must dive underwater immediately. However, in the submarine, you will feel extremely stuffy and uncomfortable, as if the air has become thin and it is almost impossible to breathe. Therefore, you must be fully prepared mentally."

After hearing this, Leng Hanbing looked determined and replied without flinching: "Thinking back, in order to avenge my family, I have endured much more suffering than this! Compared with those, this little pain is nothing? I can totally endure it." There was a firmness and determination in his voice, as if he had regarded all difficulties and pains as insignificant challenges.

Fleet commander and boat captain Deng Haoxiong stood in the hatch, his posture as straight as a pine tree, his eyes firm and sharp. He saluted Leng Hanbing and Liu Zhendong solemnly, then stretched out his hands and shook hands with them tightly.

Leng Hanbing said with emotion: "Commander Deng has worked really hard on this operation!"

Deng Haoxiong replied proudly: "It is a supreme honor for all officers and soldiers to escort the two top masters of the Justice Party to carry out the important task of assassinating the Japanese commander. How can it be said to be hard? If this assassination operation can be successful, it will surely be famous all over the world, and it will also greatly boost the morale of our people and make those hateful Japanese invaders terrified!"

Liu Zhendong then said: "We assassinated the commander of the Kwantung Army not for the sake of personal fame, but because he committed heinous crimes that are intolerable to heaven and he deserves to die!" His voice was full of anger and determination, as if he wanted to release all the hatred in his heart.

After all personnel entered the submarine, the hatch slowly closed, the chief engineer started the engine, and the "Beiling" submarine sailed out of the port and into the sea. The other two submarines followed closely behind. In addition to the "Beihai", there was a newly manufactured submarine named "Beiting", which was about the same size as the "Beihai". They are responsible for covering and diverting enemy ships when encountering enemy ships. The three submarines must first enter the Sea of ​​Japan to the south, then cross the Tsushima Strait, and then enter the Yellow Sea to the northwest, and finally land at Port Arthur in Bohai. The entire journey is thousands of nautical miles long. No matter whether they encounter ships from North Korea, Japan or China on the way, they must avoid them, because North Korea is under the control of the Japanese, and the Chinese warships under the control of Beiyang are also enemies of the Black Flag Army. Along the way, the three submarines sneaked cautiously.

After entering the Sea of ​​Japan, they maintained low sonar communications to avoid being discovered by enemy ships.

Leng Hanbing and Liu Zhendong were nervously waiting in the submarine for the moment to approach the target.

At 10 o'clock in the evening of February 25, 1920, the Beijing Grand Theater was brightly lit and bustling with people. After several hours of wonderful Peking Opera performances, the exhausted Liu Xikui and other actors slowly walked to the dressing room backstage to remove their heavy makeup. However, the moment they stepped into the dressing room, Liu Xikui's heart sank suddenly - she was shocked to find that several martial artists from the drama troupe were lying in a mess outside the dressing room, each with a bruised and bloody face, and the tables, chairs and costumes were scattered on the ground in a mess.

Dozens of fierce Beiyang soldiers stood around like statues, silent and silent. The sudden change shocked all the actors and actresses, and some timid actresses even screamed out loud. Usually, when the martial artists of these drama troupes performed on the stage, they seemed to have special skills and high martial arts skills; but at this moment, facing this group of truly fierce and warlike Beiyang soldiers, they were obviously powerless to fight back.

Liu Xikui already knew the identity of the person who came. Looking at the entire capital, there was only one person who dared to treat her so arrogantly. As expected, an officer stepped out from a group of Beiyang officers and soldiers. This person was Wang Tiezheng, the guard captain of Cao Zhongshan, the inspector of three provinces. With a smile on his face and a very humble attitude, he said to Liu Xikui: "Liu Bantou, you are finally back. Our commander is waiting for you inside!"

Liu Xikui was not afraid at all. She resolutely pushed away the actors who tried to stop her and walked into the dressing room with firm steps. The other actors were firmly blocked by the Beiyang Army soldiers and could not follow her in.

The fat Cao Zhongshan sat on the chair in the dressing room like a mountain of meat, with a ferocious smile on his face, staring at Liu Xikui like a hungry wolf, and muttered: "My dear, I come to see you again!" He looked like a person who had been hungry for a long time and suddenly saw a delicious meal. What was even more unexpected was that he was holding a bunch of bright red plum blossoms in his hand, and this bunch of flowers happened to be Liu Xikui's favorite. I really don't know where this fat guy got this news from.

Liu Xikui glanced at him with disgust, his eyes were cold as ice, and his tone was stiff, "Sir Cao, you are the Inspector General of three provinces. You are busy with government affairs on weekdays. I wonder what brings you to my humble home this time?" Cao Zhongshan smiled, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, and said shamelessly, "It's the same as last time. I came here to propose to you and take you as my concubine. However, this time I've learned my lesson and brought dozens of guards. You, don't even think about escaping!" As he spoke, he handed the bouquet of red plums in his hand to Liu Xikui.

Liu Xikui did not reach out to take the flowers. Her eyes were cold and her tone was even colder: "You already have so many wives and concubines at home, why should I be the one to add icing on the cake? So, my answer to your question is still the same as last time."

Hearing this, Cao Zhongshan's face instantly darkened, his eyes widened, and his voice became stern and cold: "This time is different from the last time! You no longer have a choice! Back then, when the Anhui clique was in power, they relied on their power to oppress our Zhili clique. At that time, the old man surnamed Xu relied on the support of the Anhui clique to force me to let you go. But didn't you read the newspaper? Don't you know that the Anhui clique has fallen now? And Duan Hongshi, who bullied you back then, has been sent to jail by me personally!"

Liu Xikui sneered and responded: "Of course I know that your Zhili clique defeated the Anhui clique, but does that mean that you, the leader of the Zhili clique, can do whatever you want and bully men and women?" There was a hint of disdain and contempt in her eyes.

Cao Zhongshan said flatteringly: "As long as you follow me, I promise not to let you suffer any loss. When I become president, I will let you be the first lady, and then divorce that yellow-faced woman at home!"

Liu Xikui couldn't help but sigh after hearing this: "If someone like you becomes president, it would be a misfortune for the people of the whole country!"

Cao Zhongshan suddenly changed the subject and asked curiously, "I remember that you have never been interested in politics. Why did you appear among the protesters when the Anhui faction dismissed Di Xiong as the governor of Beihai Province last time?"

Liu Xikui replied righteously: "Because Commander-in-Chief Di is a brave and fearless national hero. He successfully recovered the territory lost during the Qing Dynasty. Such a great man should not be treated so unfairly. As the saying goes, 'the rise and fall of a country is the responsibility of every man.' How can I sit back and do nothing?"

Cao Zhongshan's eyes widened as she said, "Didn't you collude with him and do something shameful when you went to Beihai for a charity performance last time?" Liu Xikui's face flushed with anger when she heard this. She glared at Cao Zhongshan and retorted in a trembling voice, "You are slandering me without any basis! Nonsense! There is nothing wrong with him and I. He didn't even touch me with a finger!"

Cao Zhongshan sneered and continued, "Humph, but because you participated in the protest, a large number of your fans followed suit and joined in. The number of demonstrators suddenly increased from 100,000 to more than 200,000. This situation seriously damaged the image of the government, and the police chief Wu Bingxiang decided to arrest you. If I hadn't sent someone to say hello to him, you would probably be behind bars now."

Liu Xikui said: "In that case, I should really thank you, the Inspector General."

Cao Zhongshan smiled lewdly and said, "What's the point of just saying thank you? Only if you come home with me and become my concubine, that will be your true gratitude to me!"

Liu Xikui suppressed his disgust and tried to keep his tone calm as he replied, "It's already very late and we haven't even taken off our makeup yet. Can you please stop occupying the dressing room and let us take off our makeup first before we talk about other things?"

Cao Zhongshan thought about it and felt that what she said made some sense, so he agreed: "Okay, then I'll wait for you outside. But I have to remind you, if you don't go back with me today, I and the dozens of guards behind me will never leave here." After Cao Zhongshan finished speaking, he took his group of wolf-like guards out of the dressing room, walked out, and asked the guards to let go of the actors and allow them to go in to remove their makeup.

Liu Yue'e, the general manager of the drama troupe, was Liu Xikui's cousin. She entered the dressing room and saw Liu Xikui take out the seal from his arms. After thinking for a while, he put it back in his arms. She couldn't help but said anxiously, "Xikui! It's already this time, why are you still hesitating? Send someone to deliver the seal quickly and let the Black Flag Army come to rescue you! It will be too late if you are late."

Liu Xikui shed tears and said, "If I do this, it will probably lead to a bloody battle between the Zhili Army and the Black Flag Army. If a war is triggered because of me alone, and so many people are killed or injured, then wouldn't I become a sinner of the country?"

Liu Yue'e said, "You are not a government official, why do you care about so many national affairs? You are just a poor actor, and all you have to do is to protect yourself. At the beginning, you took people to Beihai Province for a charity performance and earned hundreds of thousands of dollars, but you gave it to Commander-in-Chief Di for nothing, and only got a seal in return. I felt sad for you when I saw it. Now it seems that you are just using money to save your life! Now you can ask them to save you with confidence."

Liu Xikui said: "There are Beiyang troops everywhere outside. Even if I want to send them out, I can't!"

Liu Yue'e said, "Let Xiao Shuanzi deliver it. There is a dog hole behind the dressing room. Xiao Shuanzi is a small child and is skinny. He can easily get out of the dog hole. He runs faster than a rabbit. Dashengkui Trading Company is very close. He can deliver it in ten minutes."

After three days and three nights of sailing, the Beiling submarine finally arrived at the waters near Lushun Port that night.

The submarine quietly surfaced, and Deng Haoxiong and others observed the surrounding situation.

In the distance, the silhouettes of Japanese warships could be seen, but the searchlights were not shining in this direction, so they obviously had not been discovered.

Liu Tainan whispered, "It seems that at this critical moment, we must be extra careful."

Leng Hanbing and Liu Zhendong nodded, with a flash of determination in their eyes. They knew the importance of this mission and decided to complete the assassination at all costs. They used flashlights to contact the dark shore, and only landed after receiving a response. They were greeted by Li Jinxi, deputy head of the intelligence team. Under the guidance of Li Jinxi, they took a shortcut and avoided the Japanese checkpoints and sentries on the main road. They settled down in a small mountain village. The village was very small, with only a few families. They were all hunters who had blood feuds with the Japanese army. Under Li Jinxi's persuasion, they became peripheral personnel of the intelligence team. The action team members lay on the ground in several families with guns in their arms, without even taking off their clothes. The owners took the initiative to give up their beds, but they were rejected.