The Bravest

Lin Jie returned home and, as usual, carefully checked the marks he left when he left. However, Lin Jie's marks were not placed at the door like in the TV series, which was too deliberate. Who would stand outside the door and check before entering? Lin Jie's marks were all in the room, although there were ordinary things in the house, just to know if anyone had come in.

Lin Jie turned off the lights and lay quietly on the bed. He slowly recalled the process of his relationship with Ye Wulian, especially the memory of his original body. He found that he thought they were in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship because of Ye Wulian's concern and care after he was injured. Today, Li Shiqun asked them how far they had progressed. Lin Jie remembered that Ye Wulian and he had always had a sense of distance. It was impossible for them to be in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship. Then Ye Wulian's active and frequent interactions with him might have a purpose. Through today's test, Lin Jie can basically determine Ye Wulian's identity. She is either a military agent or a member of our party.

Lin Jie was happy for a while, because the person he was looking for was right beside him, but he became depressed the next moment. As for Ye Wulian, Lin Jie still liked her very much, because she was beautiful, generous, and caring. Unfortunately, it was just his wishful thinking.

Lin Jie certainly didn't want to be a traitor, but the environment he grew up in made him timid and self-protective, so Lin Jie always wanted to do things for the country secretly while ensuring his own safety. After thinking for a long time, he couldn't come up with any solution and fell asleep unknowingly.

The next day, Lin Jie picked up Ye Wulian, and the two went to visit Ye Jiqing together, and went to the movies together in the afternoon, as if nothing had happened yesterday. Ye Wulian was relieved, and Lin Jie did not ask about the relationship between the two. Everything was natural. A few days later, Ye Wulian brought two people to Lin Jie and arranged to meet in a teahouse.

"Xiao Jie, this is Ma Laosan, 35 years old. He used to work on a boat on the Huangpu River and also hung out in Zhabei area. Now he runs errands for people at the dock. He's a local boss and very experienced in doing things. This is Chen Kai, 18 years old. He's a distant relative of mine who's in charge of my family. He fled here from Chenjiagou, Henan. Mr. Chen at my family said that he can beat three people at once, so he'll be his bodyguard. That's quite nice, right?" Ye Wulian proudly introduced the two people she brought with her.

Lin Jie looked at the two men standing obediently beside him with a smile. Ma Laosan was thin and small, standing with his back bent. He looked a little wretched, but his eyes were bright. The other one, Chen Kai, was not tall, but had a strong build. He looked honest and simple, but the flash of hatred in his eyes did not escape Lin Jie's eyes.

When the two were about to get scared by being stared at, Lin Jie spoke up: "Old Ma, are you helping? Are you familiar with the black market?"

"Hey, Chief Lin, yes, yes, just a small character, but I am familiar with the black market."

"Well, Xiao Chen is strong and knows martial arts?" Lin Jie stood up with great interest, and before Chen Kai could react, he grabbed his right hand and held it together: "Come on, test your strength."

"I dare not, I dare not, Chief Lin." Chen Kai quickly pulled his hand back, bent down and lowered his head, saying repeatedly that he dared not.

"Haha, what's there to be afraid of? You've been a soldier, right?" Lin Jie said lightly, and Chen Kai and Ma Laosan beside him immediately became nervous. Lin Jie probably knew where these two people came from, and he just wanted to give them a warning, especially Chen Kai, who probably had no experience, so he must not cause any trouble for himself. His face changed, and Lin Jie said seriously:

"Relax, your introducer should have told me where I work, and I won't ask you about your background. If you want to work for me, you have to be obedient. If you get the job done, I will treat you well. Do you understand? If you can accept this, wait for me at the door at 8 a.m. in two days. Let's go back and discuss it."

"Hey, Xiaojie, what are you doing? I've come to help you with good intentions, but you're still so fierce. Okay, Ma Laosan, Chen Kai, go back and tell Lao Chen that this matter is done. Do a good job in the future and don't embarrass Lao Chen." Ye Wulian was afraid that things would change, so she quickly drove the two away.

Ma Laosan and Chen Kai did not know Ye Wulian's identity. They only knew that their superiors introduced Ye Wulian through middlemen who had no connection with the organization. The two could only communicate with their superiors in a single line, and their mission was to prepare for a long-term undercover operation.

"That's not fierce. I'm just afraid that they will cause trouble for me, especially Chen Kai. Young people have bad tempers. I just wanted to show my power." Lin Jie said nonchalantly. She knew Ye Wulian could understand.

"Okay, I'll tell Lao Chen to talk to the person he found for you."

"That's good."

Ma Laosan took Chen Kai back to their residence after taking many turns, and their supervisor was already waiting for them.

"Have you seen anyone?" Lao Xia asked anxiously. No wonder Lao Xia was so anxious. In Shanghai, the underground working group led by the organization currently has the main task of lurking for a long time and seizing opportunities to obtain intelligence, and also to raise supplies. However, the organization suffered heavy losses in the more than one year since the establishment of No. 76. Many contact points were destroyed, many personnel died, and those who had been exposed were also forced to withdraw from the Shanghai area. Due to the situation, the superiors ordered the remaining personnel to disperse and lurk. The horizontal connections of the contact points were all interrupted, and the underground work came to a standstill.

Lao Xia's group had a radio station, which was originally a very important liaison station organized in Shanghai. A few months ago, an external personnel was captured and defected, and the spies followed the clues to search for him. Fortunately, the guards discovered it early, risked their lives to fire warning shots, and tried their best to stop the attack. After paying the price of all five people's sacrifice, three people were able to break through with the radio station, and have been waiting silently since then.

The organization's resources are scarce, and most contact stations do not have radio stations. Lao Xia's team, which has a radio station, has become particularly important after the organization suffered huge losses. This time there is an opportunity to arrange personnel to enter the enemy's core department. The superiors made a great determination to mobilize Lao Xia's team, and also considered that in case of any emergency, they can use the radio to contact the superiors as soon as possible. Because the opportunity came suddenly, the superiors were not very clear about the specific situation. They just ordered Lao Xia to let the personnel contact first, and arrange them to enter No. 76 and wait silently. No further action was allowed, because this arrangement was provided by a group of comrades who had been lurking for many years. Once something went wrong, not only would the plan to infiltrate the enemy be wasted, but it would also bring great danger to the comrades who provided the opportunity.

That is why Lao Xia, an underground worker with rich experience in struggle, was so nervous.

"Yes, our comrade was amazing. He didn't show up. After we arrived at the place on time, we quarreled in Henan dialect and Shanghai dialect as required. Someone immediately got the secret code and slapped Xiao Chen. Who came up with this?" Ma Laosan couldn't help laughing when he said this.

"Be serious and continue talking," Lao Xia interrupted immediately.

"Ahem, that person just said a few words, and then took us to find the manager of a branch of the Ye family, arranged an identity, and recommended us to his daughter. Finally, Miss Ye was taken directly to meet a deputy section chief of No. 76, and we agreed to meet him at No. 76 the day after tomorrow. There shouldn't be any problem." Old Xia just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this, and Chen Kai next to him added:

"That Section Chief Lin might doubt our identities!"

"Ah, what's going on?" Old Xia was startled. "Old Ma, what do you think?"

"It should be fine. That section chief is very smart and skilled. He grabbed Chen Kai's right hand before he could react. He saw that Chen Kai had used a gun and served in the military. He just warned us to be obedient. Miss Ye mentioned in advance that she arranged for us to go in to help Section Chief Lin with his personal business, so she found an outsider to bring us in."

"Well, let's go and check out the situation the day after tomorrow. I say that if we are exposed, we can't say a word even if we die. We can't expose the comrade who provided the opportunity. Do you understand?" Old Xia had to prepare for the worst.

"You stay here. I will move the radio to a new location. Before I contact you, you cannot take any further action. This is a death order. Even if I die in front of you, do you understand? Comrade Chen Kai, you must suppress your temper. This is not the army. Underground work is even more cruel. Your mission is to stay undercover for a long time. Remember that."

"I obey orders." Seeing Lao Xia's serious expression, Chen Kai quickly made the promise.

"Well, this opportunity is rare, otherwise our comrades wouldn't be in such a hurry. They might be afraid of missing it, so they took the risk to arrange it. Both us and them are risking our lives. Let me say one more thing. Just in case, just in case I can't contact you, you must lie low. As long as you don't sell out your country or your comrades, you can do some things that are not too outrageous. Remember that your surface identity is a traitor. Do you remember?"

"Old Xia, we will complete the mission, take care,"

"Take care of yourself"

"Okay, I'm leaving. Take care of yourself too."

1939/ 10/ 25

Ma Laosan and Chen Kai were squatting at the door of No. 76 at 7 o'clock in the morning. When the guards came to chase them away, Ma Laosan kept saying that Chief Lin from the General Affairs Office asked them to come. The guards didn't know whether it was true or not, so they just asked them to squat further away and wait.

At 8:10, Lin Jie walked over slowly. This was Lin Jie's habit. When he was about to reach No. 76 on his rickshaw, he would get off the rickshaw and walk over. Maybe he didn't want people to know that he was from No. 76.

Lin Jie saw the two people, waved and called them over, "You're here quite early, come in with me," then greeted the guard and signed his name in the registration book. It turned out that he had already greeted Li Shiqun's secretary Sanpu, so the guard who had been notified would not make trouble. Lin Jie successfully took the two people to the Personnel Department to register for employment and obtained the No. 76 certificate and pass.

"Okay, do you have a place to live? Take this money first and come to work officially tomorrow. Since you are recommended by Miss Ye, I will not treat you unfairly as long as you work hard. Go ahead." In his office, Lin Jie gave a few instructions, handed some French currency to Ma Laosan and sent him away.

Ma Laosan took it without hesitation and said, "Chief Xie Lin, we're leaving first." He then pulled the dazed Chen Kai away.

After secretly observing for a week and finding nothing unusual, Old Xia finally showed up in front of Ma Laosan and Chen Kai's little house, which made them very happy. They had been living in fear for the past week, and the appearance of Old Xia showed that everything was going well so far.

"Xiao Chen, go to the grocery store next door and buy a pack of cigarettes. Sit at the door and keep watch. I'll report to Lao Xia on our work."

Chen Kai turned around and went out. Ma Lao San closed the door and began to report: "We have been familiarizing ourselves with the work these days and have not arranged anything else. This Lin Jie saved Li Shiqun, and others at No. 76 gave him some face, so no one has come to us for trouble.

"That's good. Don't think about anything else. You must first gain a firm foothold. If Lin Jie asks you to do something, do your best to do it. You must gain his trust before you can act again. How about Xiao Chen? Can he adapt?" Old Xia was still a little worried that Chen Kai was too young. Psychological quality was very important when lurking within the enemy.

"Xiao Chen is fine now. He knows the importance of this job. I will keep an eye on him. In addition, people in the General Affairs Office said that Miss Ye who recommended us in is Lin Jie's girlfriend. Lin Jie is quite caring towards us. He arranged for Xiao Chen to go to the driver's class to learn how to drive. I wanted to go too, but Lin Jie said that he could only arrange one person and we should look for an opportunity later. There is another situation. Lin Jie doesn't look like a traitor. When there was no one around, I heard him talking about the Japanese a few times. Once he even said in front of me that he would sell the Japanese things when he had the chance. Hehe, Lao Xia, do you think Lin Jie is one of us?" Ma Laosan teased Lin Jie at the end, although he himself would not believe it, he just wanted to relax.

Unexpectedly, when Lao Xia heard this, his face changed and he shouted, "Is this what you should say?" Then he realized that he had overreacted and lowered his voice sternly, "Lao Ma, no matter what Lin Jie is like, this is not what you should say. This will bring him trouble, and then he will make trouble for you."

"Hey, Lao Xia, don't get excited. I was just joking. Why are you so anxious? Haha." Ma Lao San was surprised by Lao Xia's reaction and laughed. Seeing that Ma Lao San was still joking, Lao Xia stood up angrily and pointed at Ma Lao San, "You, you you..." He was speechless for a while.

"Hey, Old Xia, calm down, drink some water, and slow down. I'm right in front of you so you can relax. This is just a joke, don't take it seriously." Seeing that Old Xia was really angry, Ma Laosan quickly patted him on the back to help him calm down.

Old Xia took a deep breath, his face still dark. He glanced at the door and whispered, "Old Ma, you have to be on your toes at all times. We can't make mistakes in this line of work. Once we make a mistake, we'll be doomed." Seeing that Ma Lao San was looking at him blankly and still hadn't reacted, Old Xia could only move closer and whisper, "What if it's true?"

Old Xia's barely audible voice made Ma Laosan's head buzz and his face turned pale. After a long while, Ma Laosan slapped himself hard in the face.

"Old Xia, I apologize to you and the organization. I've only said this once before you, and I will forget it."

"We all have to forget."