N-A-A Chapter 95 was a fruitless trial.
Chapter 95 was a fruitless trial.
He paused, noticing the instant collapse in everyone's faces, and continued to add insult to injury: "Besides, once I'm captured, the codebook will naturally be destroyed by my companions. You want to find it? It's a complete waste of your energy."
In fact, Shen Qing knew perfectly well that Yan Shuo and his team had already started investigating "Operation Orca" a few days ago, so there was no need for him to say anything more; as for the new codebook, it was just a pretext he made up on the spot.
The Red Bean Squad always sends the encrypted codebook back; why would they need someone specifically to send the codebook?
However, since the Japanese army wanted to hear it, he didn't mind saying something "useful" to make them work for nothing.
"You!" Miyamoto Ichiro was so angry that his face turned red, but he couldn't say a word as he pointed at Shen Qing.
He knew Shen Qing was right, but he was really unwilling to miss the opportunity.
Saburo Miura's expression darkened again. He waved his hand to stop Ichiro Miyamoto's outburst, his tone weary: "Alright, we understand Mr. Shen's words. Take him away and keep a close watch on him. Do not neglect him."
"Yes, sir!" Two privates stepped forward and restrained Shen Qing again.
Shen Qing cooperated, slowly standing up. Before leaving, she even raised her chin at everyone, looking so nonchalant that Miyamoto Ichiro almost ground his teeth to powder.
After Shen Qing was taken away, the atmosphere in the tea room plummeted once again.
Saburo Miura leaned back in his chair, his fingers lightly tapping the tea table, and said in a deep voice, "Miyamoto-kun, from now on, closely monitor all waterways, docks, and stations in Shanghai. Keep a close watch on any suspicious persons, especially those carrying books or documents! Even if you have to dig three feet into the ground, find the whereabouts of the codebook and the new contact person for the Red Bean Squad!"
"Hai!" Miyamoto Ichiro immediately stood at attention and bowed, his tone firm, but inwardly he was groaning. This was like finding a needle in a haystack, but he dared not disobey Miura Saburo's order and could only bite the bullet and agree.
By this time, Yan Shuo had already infiltrated the prison under the guise of "patrol and guard".
He was wearing the uniform of a Japanese sergeant, with his hat brim pulled low, his hands behind his back, and he walked back and forth in the corridor with steady steps, his eyes subtly scanning the surrounding environment.
He vaguely heard some of the commotion during the joint trial and realized that Shen Qing was deliberately misleading the Japanese army.
Until he saw Shen Qing being escorted back to his cell, Yan Shuo calmly memorized the cell number: Cell No. 3, the preferential treatment cell.
After waiting for about fifteen minutes, they saw Saburo Miura leading Yuichi Sato and others out of the office. The men looked rather grim and walked silently out of the prison gate, getting into their cars and leaving. Clearly, they were extremely dissatisfied with the outcome of the trial.
As night deepened, the prison returned to its quietude, with only the intermittent footsteps of patrolling soldiers echoing in the corridors.
Yan Shuo hid in the shadows around the corner. After a patrol team had gone far away, he quickly slipped out, took a thin wire from his pocket, inserted it into the keyhole of cell number 3, and gently flicked it a few times.
With a soft "click," the door lock opened.
Yan Shuo pushed open the door and went in, and found that this cell was indeed a privileged cell, with a much better environment than ordinary cells: there was a single bed against the wall, with clean bedding on the bed, and a desk and a chair next to it. On the desk were a few old newspapers, a few books, and even a kettle, a tea set and a small can of tea.
"Tsk tsk, I didn't expect the Japanese to be so polite to you. This treatment is almost like being in a hotel." Yan Shuo took off his hat and joked with a smile.
Shen Qing was sitting on the edge of the bed in a daze when he heard the sound and turned his head sharply. He saw a man dressed in a Japanese sergeant's uniform walk in, speaking fluent Mandarin Chinese. Shen Qing frowned and stood up warily: "Who are you? Who sent you?"
"Don't be nervous." Yan Shuo smiled, took out a small ID from his pocket, and waved it. "Red Bean Squad, Yan Shuo. Here to take you home."
"Good heavens! It's you!" Shen Qing instantly relaxed, a surprised smile spreading across her face. She quickly stepped forward. "I thought we'd have to wait until dawn for any movement. I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly."
"If you had arrived any later, you would probably have been interrogated by the Japanese devils in shifts."
Yan Shuo took out a Japanese sergeant uniform that was exactly the same as his own from his backpack and threw it to him, "Hurry up and change into it. Also, keep the gun and identification safe."
Shen Qing took the uniform and quickly began changing, asking as she did so, "How's the situation outside? Are Jiang Feng and Xia Lin alright?"
"Don't worry, they're all safe. They've been taken to a temporary safe house," Yan Shuo replied, then pulled a lifelike human skin mask from his pocket. "Here, put this on."
Shen Qing took the mask, touched it; it was soft and squishy. Unable to contain her curiosity, she asked, "Is this the legendary human skin mask? It won't fall off, will it? I heard it's very delicate; is it something you can't just talk about?"
"Don't worry, this is an improved version, it fits very well, you can speak normally without any problem, just don't make any exaggerated facial expressions."
Yan Shuo demonstrated how to adjust the mask for him, "It's mainly to deal with the sentries at the door. We're both wearing the same uniform and masks, so it's less likely to arouse suspicion."
Shen Qing nodded, carefully pursed her lips, and breathed a sigh of relief when she felt the mask fit securely: "By the way, during the interrogation just now, I deliberately mentioned Operation Orca and the new codebook to them. That should mislead them for a while."
"I heard that, well done." Yan Shuo nodded approvingly. "We're already investigating Operation Orca. Your feint will make them focus on finding the code, buying us time."
Yan Shuo gently pressed his fingertips against the imitation human skin mask on Shen Qing's face, repeatedly confirming that the edges fit the skin perfectly before letting out a sigh of relief.
After hesitating for a while, Shen Qing saw that he had stopped moving, and then asked tentatively in a low voice, "Are you done? Can you talk now?"
"Wait two more minutes to let the adhesive set completely." Yan Shuo glanced at his watch, his tone confident. "This mask is delicate. If you speak as soon as it's on, the edges will easily peel off."
Shen Qing obediently shut his mouth, his fingertips unable to resist lightly touching the edge of the mask. The soft touch felt like a thin layer of rubber, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself, "I've only heard Boss Dai mention this thing before, saying it's some kind of top-notch disguise equipment. I never thought I'd get to use it myself today."
He paused, a mixture of curiosity and pain in his eyes, "I heard this thing is really expensive?"
"It's alright, only a few thousand dollars." Yan Shuo leaned against the table, his tone as casual as if he were talking about a few cents' worth of sugar cake.
"Several thousand? Silver dollars?!" Shen Qing suddenly raised his voice, then quickly covered his mouth, glanced warily at the door, gasped, and gritted his teeth, saying, "My God, that's enough for an ordinary family to chew for several years! It's too precious!"
"This one is a custom-made one, it costs 1,500 yuan." Yan Shuo raised an eyebrow and gave an example, "A lower price won't work, the quality won't be guaranteed. I tried a cheap one before, and when someone wore it while talking, the corners of their mouth just curled up, like they had a layer of melted paste on them, it gave them away on the spot."