Newborn 1927

The next day, after entering the city, the group split up. Chu Shiwu took Liu Yishou and two others to the casino, while Yan Donglai and Gui Liqiu followed at a distance. Yang Jiefang went alone to the house they had rented before to find Zhao Yuanbao.

Zhao Yuanbao had been eagerly anticipating Yang Jiefang's arrival and was very happy. Yang Jiefang greeted him casually and then led him to Bai He's residence. It was an old-style building facing the street. Yang Jiefang looked around and said, "This place isn't very secluded. How dare he keep a mistress here?" Zhao Yuanbao replied, "Bai He lives on the second floor. The landlady is a middle-aged woman, not very approachable. It's unlikely you'll be able to get in." Yang Jiefang asked, "How did you determine that Bai He is Wu Junxu's mistress?" Zhao Yuanbao said, "Every time Wu Junxu comes, the landlady comes over to fawn over him, saying how much Bai He misses him and complaining that he doesn't come often. Last time, I even saw Wu Junxu paying the landlady, saying it was for Bai He's lodging and meals." Yang Jiefang nodded, acknowledging his assessment.

Just then, Zhao Yuanbao exclaimed, "Hey!" and said, "She's coming out." Yang Jiefang turned around and saw a young woman in a cheongsam with a white fur shawl draped over her shoulders walking out, carrying a white cat in her arms. She seemed to be in a hurry. Her long, wavy hair and high heels made her look like a very fashionable woman of the time. Zhao Yuanbao said, "Her cat must be sick again." Yang Jiefang asked, "Does her cat often get sick?" Zhao Yuanbao said, "Several times. Actually, it's not really sick, it's just a bad habit from being idle. When we were kids, we didn't have to deal with minor illnesses like this. Why are city people so pampered with their cats?" Yang Jiefang said, "Let's follow her and see."

The two followed Bai He at a distance, turning several streets until they saw some Western-style buildings ahead. Bai He turned and went into one of the shops. Zhao Yuanbao said, "It really is here." Yang Jiefang was taken aback when he saw the sign above the door, "Hu Lai Pet Clinic." How avant-garde! There were pet clinics in this era! Through the glass doors and windows, Bai He handed the white cat she was holding to a young man in a white coat inside the shop. Zhao Yuanbao said, "That's the owner, Hu Lai, a veterinarian. The wealthy ladies and young ladies in the city, and even some foreigners, like to bring their pets here when they have some problems. I heard he even has special pet food. Things we country folk can't afford, he feeds to his dogs. Sigh, what kind of world is this? We country folk live worse than a city person's dog."

Ignoring Zhao Yuanbao's indignation, Yang Jiefang carefully observed the two people inside. Hu Lai took the white cat from Bai He's arms and examined it closely, talking to Bai He as he did so. Their conversation wasn't about the cat. Hu Lai's examination seemed perfunctory, and Bai He's gaze wasn't on the cat either. Seeing their expressions, Yang Jiefang suddenly realized, saying, "Zhao Yuanbao, you're blind!" Zhao Yuanbao, bewildered, asked, "What's wrong?" Yang Jiefang patted him on the shoulder, saying, "You can't even see the problem? You're definitely a clueless straight man. Wait outside, I'll go in and take a look."

Ignoring Zhao Yuanbao's dazed look, Hu Lai pushed open the door and went straight in. The conversation between the two people in the shop came to an abrupt halt, and they both turned to look at Yang Jiefang at the door. Hu Lai asked, "What can I do for you, sir?" Yang Jiefang replied, "No rush, you go ahead and do your work. We'll talk later when you're done. There has to be a first come, first served!" Without waiting for the other to greet him, he walked over to the sofa and sat down.

Hu Lai turned around and said, "Miss Bai, don't worry! It's nothing serious. Do you still have the medicine I prescribed for you last time? If so, give it one pill and plenty of water, and it'll be fine. Remember, the water must be warm water; the weather is still cold, so it can't drink cold water." Bai He replied, "Medicine? Oh, yes, I understand. Thank you, Dr. Hu. You have a guest, so you can go ahead and do your work! I'll be going now. If there's anything else, I'll come find you." While thanking him, she took the white cat from Hu Lai's hands and smiled and nodded at Yang Jiefang.

Yang Jiefang called out, "Miss Bai, please wait a moment! My matter happens to be related to you, please sit down and let's talk!" Bai He turned around and looked at Yang Jiefang with a puzzled expression. Hu Lai approached Yang Jiefang and asked, "May I ask your surname, sir? What can I do for you? Please note beforehand that I only treat pets; I can't treat people." Yang Jiefang replied, "My surname is Yang, and my name is Yang Jiefang. Mr. Hu, could you treat livestock and poultry such as pigs, sheep, cattle, horses, chickens, and ducks?" Hu Lai proudly stated, "Of course." Yang Jiefang continued, "I run a farm with over two hundred breeding pigs and several thousand breeding chickens, with a planned annual output of over one hundred thousand live chickens. In addition, I also have cattle, sheep, horses, and other livestock. I need a professional veterinarian there. Would you be interested in coming to my farm, Mr. Hu?" Hu Lai was greatly surprised and said, "I've never heard of anyone in China raising poultry and livestock on such a large scale. Where is your farm located?" Yang Jiefang said, "I'm from Laiyang. My farm isn't here. Would you be interested in coming with me, Mr. Hu? The salary is negotiable; you won't be taken advantage of." Hu Lai shook his head and said, "Then I'm sorry, I won't be leaving Yantai."

Yang Jiefang nodded and said, "That's true. Mr. Hu, you probably can't let go of this Miss Bai, right? But she's Wu Junxu's man now. Do you really think it's okay for the two of you to be sneaking around like this?" Hu Lai and Bai He both changed their expressions. Hu Lai shouted, "Mr. Yang, please don't joke! This Miss Bai is just one of my clients. She came here to get her pet cat treated. It's a perfectly legitimate matter. How is that sneaking around?"

Yang Jiefang said, "I run a livestock farm. Although I'm not as professional as you at treating livestock, I still know a little bit. Miss Bai's cat isn't sick at all, yet she keeps coming to you; and you said you prescribed medicine for her cat last time. That's easy. Let's go to her house now and see if she has the medicine you prescribed last time, and what kind of medicine it was." This era isn't like later times, where medicine is taken like food. If someone is truly sick, doctors won't prescribe too much medicine, especially Western medicine. Prescribing half a pill at a time is the norm; they would never prescribe more. Yang Jiefang's sudden intrusion, while seemingly clever, actually revealed a flaw. Yang Jiefang didn't give the two a chance to argue and continued, "My men have been tracking and monitoring you for over a month. You can hide this from others, but you can't hide it from me."

Hu Lai felt things were getting a bit tricky and said in a deep voice, "Who exactly are you? What do you want?" Seeing his posture, which seemed ready to pounce at any moment, Yang Jiefang lifted the corner of his coat, revealing a pistol, and said, "Don't get agitated! Sit down, let's talk this over. Miss Bai, please sit down too!" This overbearing behavior left Hu Lai and Bai He feeling helpless, and they sat down opposite Yang Jiefang. Yang Jiefang said, "I'm not lying. I do indeed run a breeding farm and need a highly skilled veterinarian. As the weather gradually warms up, bacteria and mosquitoes will multiply rapidly. Large-scale intensive farming is most vulnerable to infectious diseases, and disease control is crucial to the success or failure of the operation. Mr. Hu is a veterinarian, so he should know whether what I'm saying is correct." Hu Lai nodded in agreement, seemingly somewhat believing Yang Jiefang. Yang Jiefang continued, "If Mr. Hu is willing to work for me, he can bring Miss Bai with him. Miss Bai, would you like to come with Mr. Hu?"

The two exchanged a glance, and Bai He spoke, "Mr. Yang should know that I am not free. If I leave Yantai without permission, a large number of military and police will come after me. Can you handle that?" Yang Jiefang replied, "What if I can handle it? Would you be willing to leave with me?" Bai He was slightly taken aback, then asked, "Laiyang is not far from Yantai, and it is still under the jurisdiction of the East China Sea Garrison Command. Even if we manage to escape, can you guarantee our safety?" Yang Jiefang replied, "To be honest, I am the leader of Qinglong Village, with over a thousand brothers under my command. As long as you are on my territory, I can ensure your safety."

Hu Lai spoke up, "Mr. Yang, I don't understand. I'm just an ordinary veterinarian, not well-known in the country. You wouldn't risk this for a veterinarian like me, would you?" Yang Jiefang replied, "Of course I'm not here for you alone. I'm actually here for Miss Bai. Because I need guns and ammunition, and Wu Junxu happens to have some; I want the guns Wu Junxu has, but I don't want to pay for them. Do you understand?" Hu Lai and Bai He both nodded. Yang Jiefang continued, "So, I'm not a good person either. You'd better think carefully about whether you're willing to come with me!" Hu Lai smiled bitterly, "Now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to agree. What you've said is enough to get us silenced." Yang Jiefang said, "It's easy talking to smart people. Tell me about you and Miss Bai! What's going on between you two?"

Hu Lai sighed, “To be honest, my real name is He Huan. Bai He and I were childhood sweethearts. Her family was well-off, and mine wasn't bad either; we were a good match! She loved animals since she was little and couldn't bear to see them sick or injured; I helped treat many injured animals when I was young. Later, my interest grew, so I studied veterinary medicine and even went abroad to study Western medicine at a specialized veterinary school. But when I returned to China, I learned that both our families had suffered misfortunes. Business failed, leaving us with huge debts, leading to our families being destroyed. Bai He was also sold to this quartermaster surnamed Wu to pay off debts… I opened this clinic here not for anything else, but so that I might have a chance to rescue Bai He. Mr. Yang, let me put it this way: if you can help me rescue Bai He, I'll do anything for you.”

Yang Jiefang was overjoyed and said, "I need a veterinarian, not cattle or horses. Mr. He, I can rescue you two from Yantai and take you to my territory. I guarantee you won't be harmed." He Huan said, "Okay, Mr. Yang, what do you need us to do?" Yang Jiefang said, "Miss Bai, can you tell me about Wu Junxu?" Bai He replied, "His situation? How can I explain it? Mr. Yang, what do you want to know? Just ask, and I'll answer." Yang Jiefang nodded and said, "That's fine. I want to invite Wu Junxu up the mountain alone. Is there any opportunity? The premise is not to alert the garrison command." Bai He, of course, understood what the so-called 'invite' meant. After thinking for a moment, she shook her head and said, "I can't control his whereabouts either. When he goes out, he's usually surrounded by a group of guards. And since he's always in the city, it's not easy to invite him." This was similar to what Chu Shiwu and the others had discovered, which was indeed a bit of a headache. So she asked, "Can you arrange to meet him outside the city alone?" Bai He was a little troubled. She had never done this before. Normally, she would rather stay far away. I've never gone out of town with him alone before, so it's hard to say whether we can arrange to go out together.

Yang Jiefang could see her predicament. Clearly, Bai He wasn't the type of woman who was good at pleasing men, or rather, she had no intention of pleasing Wu Junxu at all. Without desire, there was no expectation; she simply accepted whatever came her way. So Yang Jiefang changed the subject and asked, "Could I start with the people around him? For example, if his son or wife were in my hands, would he obediently submit?" Bai He shook her head and said, "It's useless. Their relationship has always been strained. Before, his wife always had the upper hand, but ever since he got on the good side of Governor Zhang, he's wanted to turn things around, and he and his wife are like oil and water. If you kidnap his wife, he'd be more than happy to see you kill her. As for his son, that good-for-nothing Wu Sanpa, only his wife dotes on him; he doesn't care about him at all." Yang Jiefang asked, "Wu Sanpa? Is that a nickname?" Bai He replied, "Yes. His father wanted to arrange for him to join the army, but he's too afraid to go; he wanted to get him a business to manage, but he thought it was too tiring; he's idle all day, and he's afraid to lose at gambling. He's just a guy who's afraid to die in battle, afraid to work hard, and afraid to lose at gambling. What kind of future can he have? He's never liked this son and wants me to have another one for him... Hmm? Maybe there's a way."

Yang Jiefang was overjoyed and pressed, "What's the plan?" Bai He said somewhat sadly, "My parents' death anniversary is in two days. I want to go to their graves to pay my respects. I'll ask him to come with me; I think he'll agree. Besides, he won't bring too many people; he'll go and come back quietly." Yang Jiefang asked, "Where are your parents' graves? Is that a suitable place for us to make our move?" He Huan replied, "I know the location. It's quite secluded. I can take you there to make preparations beforehand." And so, the plan was settled.

Yang Jiefang reminded her, "Miss Bai, please control your emotions these next few days! Don't give anything away." Bai He replied, "I understand. If there's nothing else, I'll head back now. If I stay out too long, the landlady will get suspicious." Yang Jiefang and He Huan got up to see Bai He off.

Then, He Huan hung up the "Hospital Call" sign and locked the gate. Yang Jiefang summoned Zhao Yuanbao and instructed him to follow Bai He, not to monitor her, but to protect her in case anything happened to her. Then he left the city with He Huan. On the way, they met Chu Shiwu and quietly reported, "Liu Yishou has already entered the gambling den, but that rascal hasn't shown up yet. Now we can only wait, and who knows what it will take. I must say, Liu Yishou's gambling skills are really impressive; he's already won quite a bit." Yang Jiefang thought for a moment and said, "Tell him to take it easy. Wu San might make a drastic move if he shows up. I'm not worried about him cheating, I'm worried about him not losing enough. Yan Donglai and the other two are fine for now, so have them come out of the city with me. I'll wait for them outside the city gate." Chu Shiwu agreed and ran off.

Yang Jiefang and He Huan waited outside the city gate for a while before Yan Donglai, Gui Liqiu, and two others arrived. As they walked, they explained their plan. Upon reaching Bai He's parents' graves, Yang Jiefang told He Huan to return to the city first, instructing him to prepare in advance so that when Bai He and Wu Junxu left the city, he could pack his belongings and prepare to flee.