Chapter 111: Reluctant Return

After walking forward for several minutes, Li Wensheng arrived at the entrance of an alley and turned to enter it.

The alley was long, stretching beyond sight. After about ten meters—just behind the shops and houses—there was a cross alley intersecting it.

This had once been a residential area, mainly inhabited by expatriates from the island nation.

As Li Wensheng stepped into the alley, he noticed several young married women and children sitting on both sides, leaning against the walls, chatting leisurely with joyful expressions.

When he reached the intersection of the cross alley, those women and children also noticed him, but they paid him little mind—just a glance before returning to their conversation.

However, as Li Wensheng approached closer, one of the women suddenly turned her head, looking at him with cautious eyes. She asked in halting Mandarin, “Do you live here?”

Li Wensheng was slightly taken aback but replied in Osaka-accented Japanese, “No, I’m here looking for someone.”

Immediately, the woman stood up, bowed slightly, and said in Japanese, “Ah, so you’re also from our country. Please forgive my earlier rudeness.”

Li Wensheng smiled, “It’s alright.”

He thought the matter was settled, but the woman continued, “May I ask whom you are looking for? I’ve lived here many years. Perhaps I know the person.”

Li Wensheng felt helpless and made up a name offhand.

“I’m looking for Kondo Eiichi.”

Upon hearing this, the woman’s gaze sharpened with suspicion. “Sir, I don’t know Kondo Eiichi, nor have I heard of him. May I ask where he lives?”

Feigning disappointment, Li Wensheng said, “I don’t know where he lives, which is why I came to find him.”

“You’re looking for someone without knowing their address?”

The woman, in her fifties, stared at him intently, her suspicious expression clear.

Inwardly, Li Wensheng thought, Damn, no need to be so dramatic. You’re just an old lady, not a secret agent. Outwardly, he smiled and said, “The thing is, I don’t know Kondo Eiichi personally. I was entrusted by his family back on the island to find him. He hasn’t written to them in two years, and they’re worried. They asked me to locate him and get him to send a letter so they’d know how he’s doing.”

“I visited the address his family gave me but found out he moved last year. The landlord told me he might have moved to this area.”

In these communities, it was common for people without much money to move frequently.

Gradually, the woman’s suspicion faded. “Then I wish you luck.”

“Thank you.”

Passing through the group of women and children, Li Wensheng walked another ten meters. Suddenly, the candy and sunflower seeds in his hand vanished, replaced by an American-style grenade.

He pulled the safety pin, spun around, and threw the grenade into the midst of the group.

He hadn’t intended to kill them, but that one woman’s excessive suspicion and persistent questioning left him no choice.

Before they could react, a thunderous explosion tore through the alley. Except for a few who barely gasped for breath, the rest were blown to death.

Bang bang...

After finishing each with a gunshot, Li Wensheng immediately turned and ran forward.

Within half a minute, he reached the end of the alley.

Beyond was a street; turning right, he quickened to a brisk walk along the road.

After several minutes, he arrived at the banks of the Suzhou River. Turning right again, he followed the river for a few minutes until he reached the checkpoint.

He had just made a full circle around this area.

The explosion had alerted the military police at the checkpoint. Although their numbers had decreased by over a dozen, security checks had become much stricter, with multiple rounds of body searches.

Seeing this, Li Wensheng frowned.

The heightened security was expected, but why were so many civilians still queuing?

He had briefly considered shelling the checkpoint. The system had just rewarded him with 80mm artillery shells; a few rounds would easily blast those military police into the air.

The Changbai Ferry Bridge, built by the old concession’s Public Works Bureau, featured riveted steel trusses above and reinforced concrete piers below, making it extremely sturdy. A few artillery strikes wouldn’t cause structural damage.

But with so many civilians lined up, a direct bombardment would inevitably cause civilian casualties.

So he planned to create an explosion nearby first to scatter the crowd in panic, then attack the checkpoint.

Originally, he intended to bomb a house, but the woman’s excessive vigilance had forced him to bomb people instead.

Though the explosion site was not perfect, it didn’t affect his plan. Yet the civilians continued waiting in line, leaving Li Wensheng no choice.

“Damn, I’ll have to find another way.”

It wasn’t yet a matter of life and death, so he couldn’t bring himself to harm these civilians.

After surveying the scene once more, Li Wensheng turned back.

...

“Knock knock!”

Startled awake from his nap at the table, Wang Feng immediately sat up.

“Knock knock!”

The knocking continued. After a moment’s thought, Wang Feng grabbed a kitchen knife from the table and headed to the door.

“Who is it?” he asked nervously, trying to sound calm.

“It’s me.”

Hearing the voice, Wang Feng exhaled deeply as his pounding heart settled.

He opened the door and let Li Wensheng in, closing it behind him.

“Why are you back again?” Wang Feng asked curiously.

Li Wensheng didn’t answer immediately but glanced at the kitchen knife in Wang Feng’s hand. “Where did you get that knife?”

“I went to the neighbor’s house next door. They just moved in and forgot to buy a kitchen knife. I borrowed it for a yuan.”

“That’s not like you. Aren’t you worried the neighbors will suspect something?”

Li Wensheng said as he walked toward the main hall.

Wang Feng followed, sighing, “I have no choice. There are no weapons at home. If the devils come knocking, I can’t even kill myself.”

Preparing weapons just in case of suicide—Li Wensheng couldn’t help but smile.

He placed the flatbread he’d bought by the roadside onto the table and said, “You haven’t eaten, right? I brought you something.”

Wang Feng put down the knife and sat down immediately, tearing open the wax paper bag. “I’ve only had a few sips of water all day. I’m starving. I was just about to go out to buy something for dinner.”

“Well, I’m back just in time,” Li Wensheng said, picking up the teapot Wang Feng had washed from well water and pouring tea for both of them.

After devouring two bites of the bread to settle his stomach, Wang Feng took a sip of tea and asked, “Why did you come back?”

“There was a problem with my route. Without a good citizen’s certificate, I can’t stay at inns or restaurants, so I had to return.”

After Wang Feng finished two large flatbreads, his eating slowed.

“So what will you do? Hide here with me?”

Li Wensheng shook his head slightly, pulling out a cigarette and matches from his pocket. “No. I still have a bullet lodged in my arm that hasn’t been removed. I can’t delay any longer. I should be fine by nighttime. I’ll leave then.”

Wang Feng’s eyes widened in shock. “At night? Are you crazy? It’s martial law now. Going out at night is asking for trouble.”

Li Wensheng lit his cigarette and took a drag. “I have no choice. If I delay this injury, even if it’s treated later, it might leave lasting damage. A gunman with an impaired hand is half ruined.”

Wang Feng glanced at Li Wensheng’s right hand, thought for a moment, then whispered, “I know a doctor in the East District of the concession. He only cares about money, not people. Maybe you should see him.”

Li Wensheng shook his head faintly. “Trusting someone with surgery is like entrusting your life to them. I can only go to a doctor I trust.”

Wang Feng said no more and lowered his head to eat.