The Bravest

1939/ 12/ 5

Ye Wulian was selecting fabrics in a cheongsam shop while Master Zhou was introducing various patterns and colors beside her. It was a rare occasion for a customer to come, so the owner, Old Zhou, was very attentive and kept following her and whispering recommendations.

"Miss Ye, this is a newly imported fabric. It will definitely make you look stunning if you make it into a dress."

"The material is good, but the cheongsam I made at your house two months ago is a little tight for some reason. You have to take better measurements this time and give me a discount."

"No problem, Miss Ye, let's go to the back and take measurements. Old lady, keep an eye on the store."

Ye Wulian and Master Zhou went into the back hall and closed the door.

"Old Zhou, I saw the signal for contact this morning, but it wasn't an emergency signal, so I didn't come right away. Is it too late? Are there any new instructions?"

"It's not too late. The higher-ups called and said that the last batch of cotton cloth has arrived safely. In addition, there is a shortage of medicines on the front line. They asked us if we have any solutions, but our superiors emphasized that your safety must be guaranteed." Lao Zhou shared the good news with Ye Wulian and informed him of the new developments.

"In addition, the higher-ups take Lin Jie's case very seriously and agree with your judgment of Lin Jie. He is not determined to be a traitor, but he was sent to Unit 76 by mistake. The higher-ups specifically told you that a soldier can sacrifice his life, and he can also sacrifice his feelings."

"What do you mean?" Ye Wulian's face was full of anger. "Old Zhou, instructor, what does this mean? Honey trap? I don't agree. I will find a way to get the medicine."

"Xiao Ye, you are a special agent, not an ordinary soldier. You should be prepared to sacrifice your own feelings when necessary. This was taught to you in training class.

"Old Zhou, I'll go ask Lin Jie about the medicine, and I'll think about the rest later."

"Okay, think about it carefully. The hint from the higher-ups this time is very clear. Next time it might be an order. You should remember the house rules."

Seeing that Ye Wulian still didn't say anything, he continued to persuade her.

"Xiao Ye, do you know how many female students of your time were sent to the Northeast to carry out such missions? Do you know what sacrifices they made for their beliefs? The country has reached such a situation, and most of the country has fallen into the hands of the Japanese invaders. Our generation can only make sacrifices that are impossible for humans to save the collapsing building. Otherwise, our next generation, the next generation, and all our descendants will become slaves of a conquered country. Do you understand? You stayed in Shanghai because of Ye Jiqing. Your code name is Xishi, and you should understand why. I won't tell you who the target is. I am your instructor, and I blocked for you many times because I couldn't bear it. Now the higher-ups have transferred your target to Lin Jie, and I can't refute it anymore. In fact, for others, you are still good. At least he has a chance to become one of their own. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds? Think about it carefully. It's almost time, so go back first."

Lao Zhou was trying to convince himself rather than Ye Wulian. Before the July 7 Incident, he was a respected university professor, and Ye Wulian was his favorite student. Later, he became an instructor at an intelligence agency, and Ye Wulian became his student. Xiao Ye was very smart. After accepting the mission and knowing that his code name was Xishi, he never called himself teacher again.

In order to drive away the Japanese, the gentle university professor turned himself into a devil, sending batches of his students and disciples to the battlefield and into the devil's den. When the Japanese are driven away, I wonder how many of them will be able to go home? By then, I should go down to accompany them. Seeing the only disciple who remained by his side silently turning away, Lao Zhou sighed, "Alas. At this point in national affairs, the only thing left is sacrifice."

Huang Sha wears gold armor in battle, and will not pay back without breaking Loulan.

……

Ye Wulian was very resistant to such an arrangement. In order to drive the Japanese out of China, she was not afraid of sacrifice, but she could not sell her body. Even if the target was Lin Jie, whom she did not dislike, she could not avoid the rules of the Military Control Commission. She also had another identity, so she was caught in a dilemma. She played different roles alone, often waking up in the middle of the night and crying alone, but when she thought of the comrades who had sacrificed, she hated her own weakness.

A week has passed since Ye Wulian last met with Lao Zhou, but she still hasn't come up with a solution and can't delay any longer.

But it is impossible to ask the organization to solve this kind of thing. Even if the organization arranges for evacuation, I will not be willing to do so. Thinking of Lao Zhou's last words of persuasion, it is possible to become one of my own. Oh, if only Lin Jie was my comrade. This guy used to have a strong sense of justice. He had a good relationship with me in school. He was handsome and tall. It seemed that he liked me at that time. Why not give him a chance?

Ye Wulian lay in bed, tossing and turning in the dark, unable to sleep. At first, she was still trying to think about how to face the current situation, but somehow she thought of Lin Jie. She slapped her forehead in anger.

What should we do? If we delay any further, the Military Control Commission may directly issue an order. Is it really necessary to ask the superiors to evacuate? The superiors will most likely agree. Our party has never asked its comrades to make such sacrifices.

It was all my fault for dragging Lin Jie into this situation. I happened to run into Lin Jie on the street and casually told Lao Zhou about it. I didn't expect that Lao Zhou knew Lin Jie's specialty and reported it to his superiors. They instructed her to arrange for him to be admitted to the police station, but he was mistakenly admitted to No. 76, which attracted more attention from the higher-ups. Alas, it was all my fault for ruining him. Ah, how did we get back to this point again?

Ye Wulian was going crazy, and there was no conclusion until late at night. She thought about the two people that the organization arranged for Lin Jie last time. She didn't know what happened to them. Did Lin Jie doubt their identities? Her identity was directly under the Central Security Bureau, but no one could prove it. Her superiors sacrificed themselves to protect her and the radio station, but the contact with the Security Bureau was still there, and the trust in her was still there, because the intelligence she provided with the code name Gu Yan had never been wrong. Last time, Gu Yan provided the Security Bureau with information that Miss Ye was helping her boyfriend, the deputy section chief of the General Affairs Department of No. 76, to find two people to do private work, and proposed to use this opportunity to arrange for people to infiltrate No. 76. In order to avoid unnecessary trouble, Ye Wulian did not dare to reveal that Gu Yan was Miss Ye.

At first, the Security Bureau was also afraid that this was a trap. If the organization really needed someone to break into No. 76, the organization would have to take the risk of arranging someone to meet Section Chief Lin at No. 76 through several floors. The Security Bureau did not know whether Gu Yan was involved in the process, but the two of them successfully entered No. 76 and gained a foothold. This has been confirmed by several different channels that it was not a trap. And it has begun to work. This further shows that Gu Yan is still one of us.

Finally, Ye Wulian decided not to report to her superiors. The more the secret radio was used, the more dangerous it would be. It would be better to try dating Lin Jie. It was not like they were going to do that right away. This would make it easier to explain to the Military Control Commission. She also wanted to save Lin Jie. Being a traitor was a dead end. She hoped that Lin Jie could make the right choice, or she would kill the traitor herself.

Only after making up her mind did Ye Wulian stop having wild thoughts, slowly fell asleep, and had a sweet dream.

In the dream, Ye Wulian moved Lin Jie with her love, and the two of them worked together to steal a lot of intelligence from the Japanese and raised a large amount of supplies, making great contributions to the anti-Japanese war. In the end, China won the victory of the war of resistance. Later, Ye Wulian revealed her true identity and guided Lin Jie to join our party. The two continued to lurk in the Military Control Commission and fought a life-and-death struggle with the enemy. They supported and encouraged each other along the way, and finally ushered in the dawn. New China was founded. Finally, with the blessings of their comrades, the two formed a happy family and later had lovely children.

The morning sun shines through the white curtains and gently falls on Ye Wulian's face. The corners of the sleeping girl's mouth slightly rise, revealing a sincere smile that should have belonged to her but has disappeared for who knows how long. The beautiful life that this young and strong revolutionary has always longed for can only appear in her dreams now, but she firmly believes that such a life will eventually be realized in the hands of her and her comrades. But she herself did not expect that the other protagonist in the dream would be Lin Jie.

Dreams will eventually end, and the future is still in our own hands. Ye Wulian, who woke up, vaguely remembered the dream last night. Her face was a little red. She clenched her hands tightly to cheer herself up, and murmured: "Don't let me down."

Three days later, Ye Wulian found a suitable reason. Her father's birthday was the day after tomorrow. Ye Wulian wanted to take Lin Jie home in the name of paying birthday tribute and to restore their already somewhat distant relationship.

Lin Jie was a little surprised when he received Ye Wulian's call. He was not surprised that Ye Wulian called him, but that she wanted Lin Jie to accompany her to buy a gift for her father's birthday tomorrow, and that she wanted Lin Jie to bring enough money. The gift was bought by Lin Jie himself for her father. How could they suddenly become friends? It was not that Lin Jie was unwilling, but why did Ye Wulian change again?

Because it was not the weekend, Lin Jie took two days off. He would know tomorrow what this woman was up to. Does being beautiful mean she can do whatever she wants?

"Hey, Xiaojie, I'm here. Have you been waiting for a long time?" Ye Wulian was 20 minutes late, but she acted as if nothing had happened. This was impossible before, as she was never late before. Lin Jie was not used to this now. How could it be like a boyfriend and girlfriend dating? In the past, they were just ordinary friends.

"What's the matter? Just wait a while, I hope she won't be angry." Her tone became a little coquettish.

"Nothing, I, you, you look really beautiful today." Although Lin Jie was not used to it, he was telling the truth. Ye Wulian did wear makeup today. She usually went out without makeup. Her youthful and meticulous makeup was a side of her that Lin Jie had never seen before: "Beautiful" should be the most sincere compliment.

"It looks good, right? It took me a long time to draw it. Otherwise, I wouldn't be late." Yes, she was just acting cute. No one could have come through here. This was too much of a coincidence.

"Wulian, is that you?" Lin Jie wasn't sure.

"You see, I am Wu Lian's sister, Wu Hua, don't make a mistake with me next time." She spoke like a little girl, but this was really Ye Wu Lian.

"No, it's just that you look a little different today. Haha, I'm a little uncomfortable."

"Xiao Jie, do you like me the way I am now or the way I was before?" Ye Wulian suddenly became serious and asked, "Don't lie."

"You look good now, but I liked you the way you were before."

"Oh, I see. Let's go buy gifts. Have you decided where to buy them?" Finally, everything was back to normal.

"I was just about to ask you, it's okay for me to buy it with you, but why do you want me to buy it?" Lin Jie didn't really care, he was just curious about what Ye Wulian was going to do.

"It's not that bad. Before the Mid-Autumn Festival, I felt sorry for you because you had to spend the holiday alone, so I invited you to my house. But you said something inexplicably like you weren't in a good relationship and you were embarrassed to go. The next day when you visited your cousin, you ran into the assassination incident. I was so scared that I forgot to ask you what you meant. Tell me honestly, do you like me?"

"Why are you still bringing this up? That was the day. What's wrong with you today? You asked me to buy a gift for your birthday celebration tomorrow. What identity should I use to go there?" Lin Jie avoided the embarrassing question. He thought he was being too sentimental and how could he say it out loud.

"Nothing, there are a few young men coming tomorrow. Please help me block them. I'll give you a chance to pursue me. How about that? It's worth the money you spent on the gift, right?" Ye Wulian thought about it for a long time before coming up with this statement. You can't just say let's try dating to see if we can be together. Miss Ye also has to have some dignity.

"Is that so? It's nothing. I'm so handsome, I won't embarrass you. Do you want me to borrow a car tomorrow to save face?" Ye Wulian spoke normally, and Lin Jie relaxed. He no longer felt the embarrassment of the previous period.

"That's not the case. It's too exaggerated. You're just a section chief, or even a deputy. It's not necessary. Just show your face. Now go buy some gifts. Hey, when did you buy the bicycle? Can you carry someone with you on it?"

"Why not? Get in, sit tight, and let's go to Sincere Department Store, where they have everything."

"Ah, Xiaojie, can you please ride slower? Stop swaying so much."

"Hold on tight, hey hey hey, don't grab the flesh, grab the clothes." This scene really looks like a pair of lovers in love. Who would have thought that they each have their own concerns.

……

After buying gifts and having a meal together, Lin Jie rode his bike to take Ye Wulian home.

"Xiao Jie, I won't ask you to come in. Be on time at nine o'clock tomorrow morning. I'll pick you up at the door."

"Okay, I'm leaving now."

Ye Wulian turned around and went into the house. After returning to her room, she fell on her back on the bed, relaxed her whole body, and took a deep breath. It was so tiring to try to act like a person who wanted to fall in love. Today, sitting on the back of the bicycle was the first time I was so close to a man. My heart beat so fast at that time. But if it was true, I should be very happy. "As long as you don't become a traitor, I will really give you a chance after the Japanese are driven out. Don't let me down, okay?" This is what I thought to Lin Jie.

Lin Jie, who had returned home, was also thinking how great it would be if all this was true, but it was a pity. However, even if it was fake, Lin Jie would fully cooperate with her and enjoy the happiness of this day.

The next day, at Ye's house, Ye Wulian was waiting at the door before nine o'clock, followed by a tall young man. Seeing Lin Jie get off the rickshaw, Ye Wulian took two steps forward, took Lin Jie's left hand, and shouted to the tall young man, "Help me get something, you have to come out to pick someone up, but you don't help, you have no manners at all."

"Who is this? Wu Lian is here to pick me up. What are you doing following me? Just do what you should do." Lin Jie straightened his back, spoke with his nose up, and was about to walk in with Ye Wu Lian.

"Sister, this is the guy you like. He's not that great. He's almost as handsome as me, that's all. After saying that, he turned around and walked in."

"Ah, what do you mean? Your brother?" Lin Jie was confused, "Didn't you say Young Master?"

"Haha, hahahaha, I'm dying of laughter, what else can I do?" Ye Wulian laughed so hard that she doubled over. This was the first time Lin Jie saw Ye Wulian laugh so hard, maybe only at this moment was she real. Of course, it was also real in middle school, but that was not Lin Jie.

"Okay, stop being in a daze and go in."

"Wulian, you are really smiling happily today." Lin Jie said inexplicably.