Chapter 36: The Yande Lane Shooting
Chapter 36: The Yande Lane Shooting
On the second floor of a residence in Yande Lane.
Yingzuo Eiichi lightly sipped his liquor.
After the fiery burn down his throat came a lingering softness.
“Excellent liquor.”
He gently shook his head.
“China is too vast. There are too many good things here. Such a fine vintage would be exceedingly rare and precious back home, yet they have famous liquors with histories spanning centuries, even millennia.”
“Yingzuo-kun, all of these will soon belong to our Great Japanese Empire.”
“Quite right.”
Yingzuo Eiichi walked to the window and looked at his old friend, who was slowly stepping into the ambush amid the drizzle.
“Cheng Qianfan is talented. China has too many talented people. What should be done about that?”
“Kill them.”
“Exactly, exactly.”
Yingzuo Eiichi chuckled softly.
“Officer Cheng has always been friendly toward the Empire. Presumably, he would also be willing to sacrifice himself for Sino-Japanese friendship.”
“Yingzuo-kun, I still don’t quite understand. Why choose Cheng Qianfan?”
“Then blame it on my old friend’s bad luck.”
Yingzuo Eiichi sneered.
Kouji lowered his head and curled his lip.
He did not agree with Yingzuo Eiichi’s decision.
In his view, there was no way Cheng Qianfan could recognize Yingzuo Eiichi.
Even Yingzuo Eiichi himself had admitted that the chances of Cheng Qianfan recognizing him were extremely small.
Besides, several days had already passed. Any danger that might have arisen should have already manifested itself.
What he really wanted to say was that Cheng Qianfan’s status was too low.
Had they selected a more important police officer, such as Jin Kemu, the Chief Inspector of the Central Police Station, or one of the other inspectors, the effect would have been better.
Kouji did not continue trying to persuade him.
The military’s evaluation of Yingzuo Eiichi was that of “an outstanding talent who pursues perfection.”
In Kouji’s opinion, just as Yingzuo-kun suffered from an extremely severe obsession with cleanliness, he was also excessively fixated on certain obsessions.
Ever since encountering that constable in Shuanglong Lane Residence, Yingzuo-kun had been noticeably irritable for days.
Now, after all this time, he had finally decided to act against the constable.
Of course, as long as Yingzuo-kun was pleased, that was enough.
A Chinese man was just a Chinese man.
If he was killed, he was killed.
“Can these White Russians be trusted?”
“Rest assured, Yingzuo-kun.”
Kouji replied.
“These people hate Soviet Russia to the bone. That is also why they are willing to cooperate with the Empire.”
“The show begins.”
Yingzuo Eiichi nodded and revealed a cruel smile.
Cheng Qianfan’s gaze pierced through the fine curtain of rain.
A tall Westerner was striding directly toward him.
Approximately seven or eight metres behind him stood another Westerner.
At the far end of the alley, another tall figure could vaguely be seen through the rain.
Westerners?
Cheng Qianfan was slightly startled.
Among his earlier guesses, the attackers might have been Japanese, agents of the Party Affairs Investigation Department, or even personnel from the Political Department of the French Concession police.
The one possibility he had never considered was Westerners.
This was a standard triangular assault formation.
If he advanced another twenty metres or so, once the leading man passed behind him, he would be trapped in the centre of the triangle, attacked from both front and rear.
Most importantly, he had no idea whether there were additional ambushers outside the alley.
Ten metres ahead stood Old Hu’s house.
Old Hu had gone to Hong Kong, and the house currently stood empty.
Inside a storage room on the second floor, Cheng Qianfan had hidden a Mauser pistol, two magazines, and a hand grenade.
Strike first.
Drop the man in front with one shot.
Use suppressive fire against the man behind.
Then rush into Old Hu’s house and retrieve the weapons.
Cheng Qianfan’s mind raced as he considered his options.
The distance between them continued shrinking.
The leading man reached into his coat.
Cheng Qianfan’s expression changed.
There was no time left.
He had to strike first.
“Wheeeeeeet! Wheeeeeeet!”
A shrill whistle suddenly burst from Cheng Qianfan’s mouth.
The other man was clearly affected by the sudden police whistle.
His gun-drawing motion hesitated for a split second.
Almost instantly, Cheng Qianfan drew his pistol with lightning speed and fired twice.
Bang! Bang!
At the same time, instead of retreating, he charged forward and pressed himself against the wounded man as he stumbled ahead, using him as a human shield.
Two shots rang out.
Bang! Bang!
Then came several dull impacts near his ear.
Thud! Thud!
The human shield was doing its job.
Bracing with his shoulder and gripping the shield with one hand, Cheng Qianfan fired a return shot without even looking.
Bang!
Meanwhile, the whistle in his mouth continued its piercing shriek.
The succession of gunshots shattered the tranquility of Yande Lane’s morning.
Children cried.
Adults shouted in panic.
Running footsteps sounded in the distance.
Wheeeeeeet! Wheeeeeeet! Wheeeeeeet!
Hearing answering police whistles in the distance, Cheng Qianfan finally let out a long breath.
He had gambled correctly.
Every morning at this hour, a squad of patrol officers passed nearby during a shift change.
“Where are the shots coming from?”
“It’s me, Cheng Qianfan!”
Cheng Qianfan shouted loudly.
“Surround them!”
As he spoke, he threw aside the human shield and rolled across the ground.
A bullet struck the stone paving where he had just been hiding.
Fragments of stone flew past his cheek.
“Comrade Ulanov!”
“Retreat! Retreat!”
The other two gunmen cried out in grief.
Several more shots followed, along with chaotic retreating footsteps.
“Officer Cheng, are you all right?”
“I’m fine.”
Cheng Qianfan did not immediately stand.
He remained prone and observed for more than ten seconds.
Only after seeing several constables running over with rifles did he finally get up.
The faces of the arriving constables were deathly pale.
Their rifles remained trained on the man lying on the ground.
Even they rarely encountered gunfights of this sort.
Cheng Qianfan attempted to rise.
He failed several times in succession.
A constable came over to help him.
No one mocked him for weak legs.
When the two escaping gunmen had opened fire on them during their retreat, their own legs had been trembling as well.
The fact that Cheng Qianfan had survived an attack by three assailants was impressive enough.
The fact that he had merely gone weak in the knees rather than wetting himself was already commendable.
“Brother, give me a hand.”
Cheng Qianfan rubbed his calves and took a deep breath.
With the assistance of a fellow officer, he rolled over the dead gunman.
It was a middle-aged man with Slavic features.
His body had been hit multiple times.
Two bullets in the chest.
Two bullets in the back.
His eyes remained wide open, his mouth filled with blood.
The shooting in Yande Lane shocked the French Concession.
Not only did Qin Detai arrive quickly with Jin Kemu,
Lieutenant Marais of the French Concession Political Department also hurried to the scene.
“Xiao Cheng, are you all right?”
“Reporting to Chief Qin, Chief Jin.”
Cheng Qianfan looked as though he had narrowly escaped disaster.
His face was pale.
He managed a shaky salute.
“Thanks to the timely assistance of my colleagues, I was fortunate enough to escape injury. However...”
“However what?”
“However, I believe this trend cannot be allowed to continue. First there was the shooting on McKee Road, and now I have been attacked. My personal safety is insignificant. This is a provocation directed at the police station.”
Cheng Qianfan spoke through gritted teeth.
“Outrageous!”
Qin Detai exploded in anger.
“You’re absolutely right. This is a provocation against me, Qin Detai, and against the police station. Investigate! Pursue it to the very end!”
Lieutenant Marais wore an elegant moustache.
He glanced at the corpse on the ground.
Then he turned and examined Cheng Qianfan.
The young constable appeared to be forcing himself to remain calm, but the fear on his face was impossible to conceal.
Marais shook his head slightly.
Still, he did not look down on the young officer too much.
For a young man who had never experienced the storm of bullets on a battlefield, this performance was already fairly good.
He turned and said something to the interpreter.
“Officer Cheng, the Lieutenant would like to know whether you have any idea who attacked you.”