Chapter 92: Advancing the Opening of New Stores with Full Effort

The four men drank until two in the morning. Aoki Kyo and Yang Dengying both rushed to pay the bill, but in the end, Aoki Kyo won and used a membership card to settle it, claiming that since both wanted to pay, “Next time, you host and treat us to drinks!” With those words, Yang Dengying secured a next opportunity.

Fujiwara Mio drove Chen Jiehua home. Upon entering, Chen washed his face to clear his mind. Following their routine, the two checked all the small security devices around the house to ensure no one had “infiltrated” before beginning their conversation.

“Mio, the organization replied, telling us not to follow up. Does that mean we’re to stop handling it?”

“Yes, just one sentence.”

“Understood. You keep an eye on your teacher’s whereabouts quietly. I can’t focus too much, lest Yang Dengying get suspicious.”

“Starting tomorrow, Mio, you’re responsible for gradually uncovering the spy network structure within the East Asia Tongwen Academy. If you spot spies planted inside the organization’s apparatus, don’t rush to alert them for cleanup—just warn the organization to be vigilant.”

“We just took over and have already lost so many spies at once. It’s clear there are issues with us. So we’ll prioritize and proceed slowly.”

“My classmate Higuchi Keishichiro is very intelligent, quick-witted, and open to new things—easy to persuade. Have him assist you with intelligence classification while you compile the summaries.”

That night, Yang Dengying specially sent invitations to Aoki Kyo, Watanabe Wataru, and Higuchi Keishichiro to meet for drinks at Yipinxiang.

The group got along well, and Aoki Kyo no longer mentioned “that Adjutant Hu.” Since he was eager to renew the invitation for drinks the next day, it was clear the person was safely sent away. If Watanabe Wataru hadn’t intervened, Chen Jiehua naturally wouldn’t cause trouble.

When the evening ended, Yang Dengying handed each of them a small bundle of US dollars, claiming it was “taxi fare.”

Chen Jiehua saw the numbers on the bills and once again confirmed Yang Dengying’s identity. This was his own money, traveling full circle—what was there to say?

On December 10th, led by Miyazaki Shuichi and Tang Chuan Anfu, the first batch of “young talents (spare manpower)” from various parties arrived in Shanghai to seek fortune. Accompanying them was Kobata Ikki, a police inspector from the Special Higher Police Department. Miyazaki Shuichi took care to introduce him as a junior alumnus of the Army Academy.

Well, my habit is well known at headquarters. Even if you hadn’t introduced him, I would know—Kobata must be connected to the Karas family.

The Japanese headquarters and the various Chinese clans attached considerable importance to this joint multi-department plan. The first group sent over were all handsome young men with proper attitudes.

Aoki Kyo placed them in the East Asia Tongwen Academy to undergo three days of basic training. Zhao Shiyu and Zhou Yongsu, both graduates of the Army Academy with experience running businesses, were appointed by Aoki Kyo as class leaders, dividing the group into two classes for alternating practical training and study.

Meanwhile, at the consulate general, Tanaka Ryukichi and Tang Chuan Anfu conducted a handover, transferring secret agents from the Staff Headquarters.

The headquarters still kept a card up their sleeve. Considering Tanaka Ryukichi’s seniority—though he was also an Army Academy alumnus and a graduate of the military university—he was many years their senior. Leaving him as Aoki Kyo’s deputy risked friction, so it was better to recall him to headquarters.

That evening, five classmates plus Kobata Ikki gathered again, naturally ending up drinking at the Japanese Club. Aoki Kyo’s generosity and drinking skills won over the young inspector from the Special Higher Police, who became an eager follower.

This inspector had felt stifled in the Special Higher Police, which mainly recruited graduates from Tokyo Imperial University and Kyoto Imperial University. As an Army Academy graduate, he was not well received. His uncle, Kobata Senshiro, suggested taking this assignment to Shanghai. Hearing that Aoki Kyo was close to Army Academy alumni, he drank to confirm the truth—and indeed, it was so!

The next day, at the Aoki Pharmacy’s main store, Kobata Ikki was even more delighted to discover that the general manager was his classmate and friend!

In December, a pharmaceutical whirlwind swept through Shanghai. The Aoki chain pharmacies quickly and evenly spread across the city’s bustling streets. Soon after, Aoki Pharmacy invited the Green Gang and Shanghai citizens to join “Kuai Runner”—a rapid medicine delivery service that launched citywide.

Local Western pharmacies and foreign pharmacies in the concessions cried wolf. Except for some old and nearby customers, their business plummeted.

Aoki Pharmacy’s prices were transparent and fair. Kuai Runner would pick up and deliver based on proximity and charge accordingly, quickly winning the favor of Shanghai’s elites. It was easy to imagine that the most talked-about topics in offices and streets alike were Aoki Pharmacy and Kuai Runner.

“My little girl had a fever, and I was so worried. I just called a Kuai Runner in a blue vest at the door, and the medicine was delivered in ten minutes!”

Because of the previous incident involving the English police station, Colonel Aoki Kyo gained the goodwill of all the ronin. After taking over the Army Department’s secret agents, one day he naturally also accepted those ronin belonging to the Navy Department. However, the Navy Department also kept a trick up their sleeve.

Though Aoki Kyo was related by marriage to the Shimazu family and had their token, being an in-law could barely count as family—and was not much different from a retainer. But taking over the Navy Department’s entire spy network was impossible; after all, he belonged to the army.

To prevent Aoki Kyo from taking control of the Navy’s spy network stationed in Shanghai, the Navy Department hastily established the Marine Corps in December, carving the ronin group out of the Navy system. “Our Navy intelligence system is yours to manage!”

For Chen Jiehua, whether or not to have the Navy’s intelligence system was inconsequential—just icing on the cake—so he paid it little mind. After several banquets and some decent kendo, Chen first secured and integrated himself into the ronin group.

In late December, back at home, with some free time finally available, the two sat down to discuss recent affairs.

“Aoki, you told me to watch a person named Ozaki Hidemitsu at the Tongwen Academy, but I checked the student and professor lists thoroughly and confirmed no such person exists.”

“Maybe I remembered wrong. Don’t focus on it deliberately.” Chen thought to himself that perhaps it was a mistaken name or a pseudonym used at the time. Regardless, according to the trajectory, he and Brother Saku should have met by now.

Inside Aoki’s agency, Higuchi Keishichiro was responsible for classifying and screening intelligence information, while Mio performed the final review and compiled reports regularly sent to the consulate general.

Although Higuchi classified intelligence within Aoki’s agency, he remained connected to the academy, returning periodically to continue teaching. Though tiring, his income nearly doubled, and the emotional support from classmate Aoki Kyo was ample—work had to be done diligently!

The Japanese headquarters, the House of Peers, and the Three Crows received telegrams from the consulate general filled with words like “astonished,” “incredible,” and “exceptionally good.” They busily scrambled to mobilize a second batch of personnel to send to Shanghai!