Republic of China: German-equipped divisions massacred as warlords guarded the nation's borders

By the time Moranzhi rushed back to headquarters, it was already dark.

Chen Zijun wasn't waiting for her in the reception room, but in the military conference room in the basement.

Chen Zijun looked at Mo Lanzhi as she walked in.

"Where are the things?"

Mo Lanzhi placed all the oil paper packages and envelopes that Su Guiying had handed over on the table.

"The general ledger and letters of treason are all here. The documents for the Poison Needle Project are also here."

Chen Zijun flipped through the stack of letters, glanced at them, and sneered.

"That old dog, Monk Huang, is really gambling with his life. It's one thing to work for the Japanese, but he even tries to infiltrate my troops with opium?"

He threw the letter back onto the table.

"Explain what happened the night after tomorrow."

"Information provided by Sister Gui."

Moranzhi pulled out a chair and sat down, speaking very quickly, "The day after tomorrow at eight o'clock, Monk Huang is hosting a banquet at his private residence at 117 Avenue Joffre in the French Concession. There will be two groups of people coming: Felix from the Sassoon family, and Tanaka, the deputy head of the investigation department of the Dongying Tongwenhui. The three parties will sign a new secret agreement to redistribute the loading and unloading profits and shipping shares of the Shanghai docks."

She paused.

"There's even more crucial intelligence. Monk Huang is planning to present the defensive layout map of Wusongkou to the Japanese as a gift."

There was a two-second silence in the conference room.

Shen Li stood in the corner, his face turning ashen.

What is the defensive layout of Wusongkou?

Although it wasn't the most advanced coastal defense fortification complex that the Chen family planned to rebuild, but rather some defensive works left over from the late Qing Dynasty, its general structural framework was still clearly visible! If this map fell into the hands of the Japanese, it would be equivalent to having a necessary understanding of the main structure and major coastal defense fortifications for the Japanese navy to enter the Huangpu River in the future!

"Young Marshal, we can't wait."

Shen Li lowered his voice, "We have to act immediately."

Chen Zijun raised his hand to stop him.

"What's the rush?"

He stood up, walked to the map of Shanghai hanging on the wall, and pointed to the location of Avenue Joffre in the French Concession.

"If we arrest Monk Huang now, we can only arrest him. He has a group of men under him, and Sassoon's side will also get wind of it in advance and flee. Not to mention the Dongying Tongwen Association, those spies are more cunning than rats, they will disappear at the slightest sign of trouble."

He turned around and looked at everyone present.

"But the night after tomorrow was different. Three big fish came to the same pond on their own."

"You only get a few chances like this in your lifetime."

Shen Li understood.

"What the young marshal means is..."

"To capture them all in one fell swoop."

Chen Zijun's voice wasn't loud, but every word was like an iron nail driven into a wall.

He sat back down in his chair and looked at Moranzhi.

"Where is Sister Gui?"

"Wait outside."

"Let her in."

The door was pushed open.

Su Guiying entered the military conference room.

She had changed her clothes. No longer was she wearing the dark red cheongsam in the secret teahouse room, but a dark gray military intelligence uniform. Her hair was neatly tied back, and the holster for her pistol was empty.

Shen Li glanced at her and frowned slightly.

He didn't fully trust this woman who had just jumped ship from the Green Gang. But since the young marshal had spoken, he didn't say anything more.

Su Guiying walked to the table and bowed to Chen Zijun.

"commander."

Chen Zijun sized her up for two seconds.

"Please sit down. The meeting has already begun. Tell me about the situation at 117 Avenue Joffre."

Su Guiying took out a hand-drawn sketch from her purse and spread it out on the table.

"This is a 3D structural diagram of the villa. I drew it. It has three floors in total, one basement level and two above ground. The front door faces east, and the back door faces west, leading to the alleyway. The surrounding wall is 2.2 meters high, made of iron railings, without barbed wire."

She drew several lines on the diagram with her finger.

"Monk Huang had a total of thirty-two bodyguards. Sixteen were visible sentries, and sixteen were hidden sentries. The visible sentries patrolled the courtyard, while the hidden sentries were positioned at the second-floor windows and corners of the wall. Their weapons were mainly Mauser pistols and German-made revolvers; they had no machine guns or rifles."

She glanced at Shen Li.

"The shift change happens every two hours. The weakest point is during the ten-minute shift change, when four to six positions will be vacant at the same time."

Shen Li's brows relaxed a little.

It must be admitted that this woman's intelligence-gathering skills are truly exceptional. Having spent over a decade in the underworld, she remembers every single detail clearly.

After hearing this, Chen Zijun's lips twitched slightly.

"Thirty-two bodyguards with pistols?"

He looked at Zang Keping.

"Company Commander Zang, how long will it take your special operations company to take this place?"

Zang Keping scratched the back of his head, looking troubled.

"Young Marshal, you're going to use a special operations company to take down a villa?"

"What? Can't you fight?"

"No. That's using a sledgehammer to crack a nut." Zang Keping's voice boomed like thunder. "Thirty-two bodyguards with only pistols? I can easily take a platoon. If the special operations company were deployed, we could finish the job in three minutes."

Chen Zijun shook his head.

"We can't use the special agents company. The foreigners in the French Concession will go crazy if they see armored vehicles driving in."

"Then use truck platoons."

Zang Keping's eyes lit up. "Young Marshal, didn't you just purchase a batch of military trucks? I think they're German Mercedes-Benz L1500s!"

"One truck crams a squad, twelve trucks make a reinforced company. When we get there, we jump off, fight, and then get back in the trucks and leave. Clean and efficient."

"Besides, with a tarpaulin covering it, who would know it's an troop carrier?"

Shen Li interjected.

"What about the French Concession police? What if they get involved?"

Chen Zijun leaned back in his chair, not even lifting his eyelids.

"The police station? Felix and Japanese spies signed a traitorous secret agreement in the French Concession. If this gets out, even the French consul will be furious. Do you think the police detectives will side with the Sassoon family or with us?"

Shen Li thought for a moment and nodded.

Indeed. Although the French Concession was French territory, the French consul and the Sassoon family maintained a facade of harmony while harboring underlying animosity. After all, the Sassoon family were Jewish and had little connection with the French. However, their substantial interests in Shanghai hindered French control over the city.

If Chen Jiajun used irrefutable evidence of treason to beat people, the French would not only ignore it, but might even applaud it from behind.

"it is good."

Chen Zijun stood up and tapped the table twice. "The action plan is settled."

He looked at everyone.

"Molanzhi".

"exist."

"You are in charge of the communications blackout. Starting at 6 PM the day after tomorrow, all telephone lines within a 500-meter radius of 117 Xiafei Road will be physically cut off. Anyone attempting to leak information will be detained on the spot."

"clear."

"Sister Gui."

Su Guiying straightened her back.

"exist."

"You will attend the banquet as scheduled the day after tomorrow. Stay by Monk Huang's side and keep an eye on him. Once my men go in, your task is to keep him under control and prevent him from escaping."

Su Guiying's expression remained unchanged.

"Yes."

"Shen Li and Zang Keping."

The two men stood at attention simultaneously.

"Zang Keping led a convoy of trucks to surround the area from the outside, sealing off all exits within a 300-meter radius. Shen Li led an assault platoon in through the back alley and went straight for the banquet hall."

"The time is set for 9:30 p.m. By then, all three parties will be present, and the secret agreement should be laid out on the table. We'll take action after they've signed it."

His lips slowly curled upwards.

"A signed document is irrefutable proof. I'll see how the Sassoon family tries to negotiate with me then."

Zang Keping grinned.

"Young Marshal, what about the members of the Japanese Cultural Association? Were they spared as well?"

Chen Zijun glanced at him.

"Japanese spies?"

He picked up the teacup on the table and slowly took a sip.

"Spies don't need to be captured alive. What do you think?"

Zang Keping's smile became even brighter.

"Understood."

End of the meeting.

The group filed out of the basement.

Mo Lanzhi walked at the very back. She turned around and glanced at Chen Zijun, who was still sitting in his chair.

"Young Marshal, is there anything else you require?"

Chen Zijun remained silent.

He looked at the map of Shanghai on the wall, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

After a long while, he finally spoke.

"Lanzhi, what are you suggesting that the three of them—the Yellow Monk, the Sassoon, and the Japanese—are after by getting together?"

Moranzhi did not answer.

"The Sassoon family and the monk Huang are after money."

Chen Zijun answered himself, "The profits from the docks, the share of shipping, and the exorbitant profits from opium. They felt that Shanghai was a piece of fat meat, and everyone could come up and take a bite."

He stood up and walked to the map.

My fingers traced the Huangpu River, Shiliupu, Wusongkou, and Hongkou.

"But the Japanese are different! They've never been after money; they see the whole of China as their prey!"

"Shanghai is not a piece of meat that just anyone can bite. Shanghai is my territory."

He turned around, and the cold smile on his lips sent a chill down Mo Lanzhi's spine.

"They wanted to sit down at a table and discuss how to divide the meat? Well, I, the young marshal, went there myself and smashed their table."

Two days later.

117 Avenue Joffre, French Concession.

The villa of Monk Huang was brightly lit. In the banquet hall on the third floor, the crystal chandelier illuminated the entire room. The long mahogany banquet table was laden with French Western food and Bordeaux red wine.

Monk Huang, dressed in a custom-made suit and beaming with pride, stood at the door to personally greet the distinguished guest.

Felix was the first to arrive. A Jewish merchant with a high nose and deep-set eyes, dressed in a black suit, he tapped his cane on the ground, treating the place as his own backyard.

Tanaka from the Toyo Dobunkai arrived second. He was a short, stout middle-aged man with hawk-like eyes behind round-framed glasses. Behind him followed four attendants in suits, their waists bulging, clearly carrying weapons.

"Your Majesty!"

Tanaka, speaking broken Chinese, smiled and cupped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you for your hospitality."

"Mr. Tanaka, you're too kind."

Monk Huang's smile was extremely ingratiating. "Come, come, please take a seat."

Su Guiying stood at the corner of the stairs, holding a glass of red wine in her hand, with a polite smile on her face.

But every thirty seconds, she would gently tap the side of the cup with her right index finger.

That was a signal from the Military Intelligence Bureau.

at the same time.

In the alleyway surrounding the villa, twelve brand-new Mercedes-Benz L1500 military trucks had silently taken their positions. Engines off, lights off, they resembled twelve wild beasts lurking in the shadows.

Each truck carried a full squad of fully armed German-trained soldiers. MP18 submachine guns were loaded with magazines, and MG34 machine guns were mounted on the truck bed panels, their muzzles aimed at all the doors and windows of the villa.

Shen Li and his assault platoon had already sneaked through the back alley to the wall.

He glanced at the watch on his wrist.

9:25.

Five minutes to go.

Deep inside the alley, in a black Stiepburn luxury four-door sedan, Chen Zijun leaned back in the back seat, expressionless as he looked at the light shining from the third floor of the villa.

He took a cigarette out of his pocket, struck a match, and lit it.

The firelight illuminated his face. He was very young, but there wasn't a trace of hesitation or nervousness that one would expect from a young person in his eyes.

Smoke filled the car windows.

9:29.

Chen Zijun stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray inside the car door.

He picked up the car's communication microphone, his voice calm and composed.

Go knock on the door.