Chapter 373: The Warlords

Zhang Yong raised his binoculars and searched for the target.

He found the target on the river. It was actually a fisherman.

Hey, Japanese spies are really versatile!

They know how to fish.

'Who is that person?' Zhang Yong asked Wei Da.

'Oh, you mean Brother Hao!' Wei Da answered casually, 'He came here from the north of the river to escape.'

'Are you familiar with him?'

'Yes. We often drink together.'

'Really?'

'Of course!'

Wei Da answered proudly.

Zhang Yong's face gradually grew dark.

This Japanese spy doesn't seem to be the loner type. He's good at dealing with people.

'He likes to drink with people?'

'More or less. He knows the people in the Fish Gang best. He was the one who suggested forming it.'

'Suggested?'

'In the past, everyone minded their own business. Sometimes there were even disputes. After Brother Hao came, he suggested that everyone form a gang. We can help each other. If there are disputes, we can discuss and resolve them internally. So the Fish Gang was formed.'

'I see.'

Zhang Yong nodded silently. The Japanese spy is really resourceful.

He even set up a Fish Gang. Needless to say, it must serve the Japanese.

He has not yet revealed his true colours. Once the Japanese invade, this fish gang will become an accomplice of the Japanese. It will become a capable assistant in controlling the Yangtze River waterway.

The Yangtze River is so big and long that it is definitely impossible to completely blockade it by relying on the Japanese alone.

This is also the reason why the Wang Clique government was later established. Because the Japanese began to feel overwhelmed.

'Does Brother Hao have a family?'

'No. He said that all his family members died tragically during the war.'

'Oh...'

Zhang Yong knew full well.

It was indeed a very standard character setting. No relatives.

In this era, it was indeed normal for a civilian who had fled to have no relatives. No one would suspect.

He just needed to quietly take root among the fish gangs and slowly develop and expand them. Lay the foundation for the future.

In fact, his goal should be very easy to achieve.

Why?

Because there was Japanese help in the shadows.

It was certain that there was definitely someone behind this Japanese spy who supported him.

Suddenly, he thought of Wen Zhenping.

Wen Zhenping is the boss of Haichang Shipping, and this fish gang...

If they cooperate, and with the support of the Japanese consortium behind them, it is entirely possible that they will become the new overlords of the Yangtze River shipping channel.

'Help me call Brother Hao San over.'

'You want him?'

'Let's see what he's got. We want to eat grilled fish. You're invited too.'

'Great!'

Wei Da was instantly motivated when he heard the last sentence.

He hurried to the front and waved at Hao Sange from afar. Unfortunately, Hao Sange did not see him.

Zhang Yong was standing behind him, quietly observing his target through binoculars.

He noticed that Hao Sange was really focused on fishing.

Without the reminder, Zhang Yong would never have guessed that the man was Japanese. His fishing skills were truly impressive.

It occurred to him later. It seems that the Japanese are also very good at fishing. In many games, the characteristic of Japanese civilisation is fishing...

Oh, and shipbuilding.

For example, the Age of Empires series and so on...

Finally, Hao San saw Wei Da's hand signal and slowly steered the fishing boat back.

He is a master.

Zhang Yong silently judged.

This Hao San is excellent at fishing and excellent at sailing.

There are many other Chinese fishermen nearby. But none of their skills seem to match this Hao San Ge.

Unmoved.

He is not going to make an arrest right away.

Let's see what use this Hao San Ge is first.

The fishing gang...

Maybe it can be controlled by oneself.

The Japanese invaders want to control the fishing gang, but they dare not reveal their identities, so they can take advantage of this.

Both Kitakata Taro and Kikuta Yosuke have shit on their bodies.

This is the future of the name.

Once it explodes, it will be very disadvantageous to them.

So, as long as it's not something very dangerous, they'll be willing to cooperate.

This Hao San...

can be done this way.

'San Ge!'

'San Ge!'

Wei Da helped pull Hao San's fishing boat over.

Zhang Yong just stood there watching. He didn't go near it. Because the shore was very wet. It was all silt.

Soon after, Hao San came over.

'This boss...'

'Your name is Hao San?'

'Yes, boss. What do you want?'

'How was the catch today? Is there enough for a meal for all of us?'

'Boss, you...'

'We'll pay!'

Zhang Yong took out a handful of silver coins. He counted them. There were eight in total.

That was more than enough. Fish was not worth much in those days. Even a whole catch would only fetch a few silver coins.

Even with the labour costs factored in, there would still be more than enough left over.

'Boss...'

'Arrange something for us. We'll have the fish grilled here. How's that?'

'Yes, yes.'

Hao San was naturally delighted.

He was confident in his disguise. He had not been unmasked.

It was just as well, as he could get some information from these people.

So he immediately called for help. The fish was grilled.

Zhang Yong brought a lot of people, almost 80. If they all ate grilled fish, they would have to wait a long time. So other dishes were prepared.

The Fish Gang happened to have a place of business. It was quite large. There were just not enough stools. There had never been so many guests. But that was fine, they went to the neighbourhood to borrow some. Soon enough, they had enough stools.

'His name is Wei Da. Da means 'imprisoned',' Hao San said to Zhang Yong.

Zhang Yong casually asked about the title of Wei Da's book.

Brother Hao San showed that he was somewhat cultured. He said that he had attended primary school at home before.

He also said that the Hao family had been wealthy in the past. Unfortunately, the family fortunes declined. Then there was the war. His family members were killed one after the other. He was the only one who ran to Jinling in a daze and helplessly.

His life story was flawless.

His ancestors had been wealthy. So, he knew quite a lot.

He had attended primary school. So, he was cultured.

These are all very important character traits. Otherwise, it would be obvious.

How could someone whose ancestors have been fishing on the river for generations be educated? How could they read and write?

'Just call him Xiaoyu,' said Hao San.

'Him?' Zhang Yong looked at Wei Da.

This guy's nickname is Xiaoyu? That doesn't seem right!

Other people's Xiaoyu is a handsome man with a charming demeanour. And you? You're all black.

His skin is so dark that it's as smooth as glass, and you could hang a drop of water on it. If a fly lands on it, it'll probably do a handstand and then die.

'Little Fish, go and get some more fish,' said Hao San.

'Okay!' Wei Da agreed. He stood up, rushed to the riverbank, pulled down his trousers, took a dive and dived into the water.

Zhang Yong watched carefully.

He really wanted to see how the 'little fish' swam.

The result...

He didn't see anyone for half an hour.

The little fish dove into the water and disappeared.

Three minutes...

Five minutes...

He muttered to himself. Could it be that he just hung up?

Could it be that he dove into the water and something in the water happened to stab him? Then the little fish became a dead fish.

'He...' He turned his head and looked at Hao San.

'It's fine. He probably just wanted to show off.' Hao San Ge is very calm.

'Oh...' Zhang Yong then continued to look at the river.

After a while, a head appeared in the centre of the river. It seems to be Xiaoyu?

Raise the binoculars. Sure enough, it is him.

Look at the watch again. Good guy, he held his breath for eight minutes.

Awesome!

Eight minutes!

Just this breath-holding technique, not many people can do it.

From inside the binoculars, I can see Wei Da's head emerge from the water, and he gasps for breath. But he never lets go of his hands. That's a bit strange.

After a couple of minutes, Wei Da seems to have regained some strength, and he raises his hands.

Well, this guy is actually holding a big fish in his hands.

My initial guess is that it's a catfish, at least ten catties in weight.

Amazing.

Catching fish with your bare hands! And in the middle of a river.

I'm impressed.

Immediately, he waved his hand to invite him back.

Wei Da then held the big catfish and dived back into the water. He swam back. He took a breath in the middle. And returned to the shore.

He got out of the water. He threw the big catfish in front of Zhang Yong and the others.

'Pop!'

'Pop!'

Good boy, the catfish is still alive and kicking.

It is indeed a big one. At least more than ten catties. The scales on the back are all black and blue.

'Let's eat this!' Zhang Yong said.

'Good!' Hao Sanguo took a stick and stunned the catfish. Then he began to kill the fish.

His movements were smooth and proficient.

It was like flowing water.

He was a professional Japanese spy. His skills were strong.

Since he was disguised as a fisherman, he naturally had to master all the skills of a fisherman.

Soon, the fish was killed and the barbecue began.

There is charcoal grilling, there is also smothered grilling. There is even a plate of Zhu Geliang's grilled fish.

All the side ingredients such as bean sprouts, tofu, and yuba are also brought in vats. They are all stewed together.

Soon, the aroma fills the air.

Zhang Yong takes a deep breath. Yes. This is the right taste.

It must be admitted that this Hao San'ge is indeed making a good profit. If he weren't a Japanese spy, he could get rich just selling grilled fish professionally.

If he adds a few ideas that Zhang Yong has stolen from the future, he could even set up a chain of restaurants.

Suddenly, the map shows that another red dot has appeared.

He turns his head. He looks at the river.

This is interesting. It's another fisherman.

He's puzzled.

Could it be Hao San's companion?

Okay, let's give him a little excitement. Let him submit without knowing it.

'Hao San.'

'Yes, boss, what is it?'

'Who is that fisherman?'

'I don't know.'

'Go and help me arrest him.'

'Arrest?'

'Yes. He is the target of my arrest. Help me arrest him.'

'Okay...'

Hao San Ge agreed.

He really didn't know the identity of the fisherman.

'It seems to be Lord Qing...'

'What?'

'It seems to be Lord Qing from Anqing...'

'Who?'

'He also makes a living on the river. He's very famous in Anqing. I've heard people talking about him.'

'No matter who he is, arrest him!'

Zhang Yong ordered.

What Qing Wangye. What Anqing.

Whoever he is. It's enough that he knows he's Japanese.

Let's make two Japanese spies fight each other first. Whoever arrests whoever, or whoever kills whoever, will have a black mark on their body.

As long as there is one black mark, there will be more.

In the end, all sorts of messy things add up to a name for the game.

'Little Fish, you go too!'

'Me?'

'There's a reward. Catch the fisherman, and you'll each get ten taels of gold.'

'Yes!'

Little Fish immediately changed his mind.

Zhang Yong waved his hand. Signalling them to go ahead.

'Go!'

'Yes!'

Hao San led Little Fish and sailed out of the river.

Soon, the two of them arrived in front of the so-called Lord Qing. It seemed that the two sides had negotiations. But then the talks broke down quickly.

So they started fighting...

'Plop!'

'Plop!'

Lord Qing was the first to fall into the water. Hao San followed suit.

Then, Xiaoyu also jumped in. The three of them engaged in a fierce battle in the water. They rose and fell, struggling to the death.

Zhang Yong held his binoculars and watched carefully.

He noticed that the Lord Qing seemed to be an excellent swimmer. He was fighting two opponents at once, but he was still not losing.

He was secretly alarmed.

The Japanese invaders had actually planted spies in Anqing.

This Lord Qing was obviously trying to establish his own network of organisations in Anqing. Preparing for future invasions.

His thoughts began to wander...

If there were Japanese spies in Anqing, then what about Wuhan?

There were even more hidden Japanese spies in the three towns of Wuhan, right? And Hangzhou, Yangcheng and other places. There were probably not a few Japanese spies there either.

The three men continued to struggle in the water. Large amounts of water splashed up continuously.

Ten minutes...

Thirty minutes...

Finally, Prince Qing could not withstand his two opponents.

After half an hour, Prince Qing was forcibly dragged to Zhang Yong.

Zhang Yong waved his hand.

Someone immediately went up and tied him up.

'Who are you?' Prince Qing shouted anxiously and angrily, "Why are you arresting me?'

'Because you are Japanese!" Zhang Yong said slowly.

'I'm not!' the Prince of Qing yelled.

'We won't make any mistakes,' Zhang Yong said calmly, 'I came here to wait for you. Do you think I could wait for you so precisely without any information?'

'You, you...' the Prince of Qing finally felt a hint of tension.

Information?

A traitor?

Could it be that someone inside had betrayed him?

Baka!

Damn it!

Zhang Yong turned to look at Hao San, 'Thank you!'

'Ah, ah...' Brother Hao San seemed a little distracted. But he quickly came back to his senses. "No need. No need.'

'Here, ten silver dollars each." Zhang Yong took out some loose silver dollars and honoured his promise one by one. He kept his word.

Brother Hao San took it and expressed his gratitude.

Xiao Yu took it and beamed with joy, overjoyed.

Only the unlucky Prince Qing curled up on the ground, looking indignant.

Zhang Yong said calmly, 'Confess. Which spy agency do you belong to?'

'I don't. I don't. You're mistaken,' the Lord Qing argued.

'Do you know who I am?'

'No.'

'My name is Zhang Yong. I specialise in catching Japanese spies. I killed the head of your Tongji Agency, Matashiro Matashiro, and I arrested the head of your Huaiji Agency, Nogaya Kintaro, and also Takegawa Kumazo. I arrested them all. Do you think I would admit to a mistake?'

'I don't know what you're talking about. I don't understand.'

'You understand. You just don't want to accept the reality. Actually, I don't need your confession.'

'Hmph!'

'Brother Hao!'

'Yes!'

'Bring the plate of Zhu Ge's baked fish over here and feed him.'

'What?'

'The freshly baked Zhu Ge's baked fish is just right. It tastes delicious. He's getting off easy.'

'But it's hot!'

'It's fine. He's Japanese. He's not afraid of the heat. Get a spoon. First, ladle a spoonful of boiling oil, then pour it in from his crotch...'

'Huh?'

Hao Sange was stunned.

This is...

Oh, no! This is so cruel!

Pouring it in from the crotch, wouldn't that...

He'd become a eunuch straight away?

No, it would be even worse than that.

A eunuch only gets one cut. But pouring boiling hot oil in would be more than just one cut.

It would be...

He couldn't even imagine what it would be like.

And look, Lord Qing's face has changed too.