Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The apartment was rented out on a monthly basis, so there was no need to sign rental agreements as long as the rent was paid upfront. Huo Shaoheng randomly bought some toiletries to put inside to make it appear as if he stayed there all the time. He wouldn’t be back for about a week, this time. He certainly wouldn’t be living in the three other places he’d rented, but would occasionally visit to learn the areas. Time passed gradually, and it was nearly the end of August.
Today, Huo Shaoheng finally used an old typewriter to type three letters—one to the Bai Jiangcheng’s Department of Internal Affairs, one to the Ministry of Justice, and one to the Military General Hospital, addressed to Chen Lie. The three letters were mailed out from Huo Shaoheng’s three new rental apartments, with their respective post offices in east, west, and north New York. He knew that according to procedure, letters mailed to the Department of Internal Affairs and Minister of Justice first had to pass through the mail system, then be registered at the mailroom and finally sent to addressee’s own office. That way, the letter would pass through many hands. Although it seemed excessive, each person processing the letter needed to sign, so it was simple to investigate later.
All he could do after mailing the letters was to wait. The three letters were written in code and were a cry for help, so most people wouldn’t understand. But the mole would be sure to see what was going on and locate him according to the postal code.
The three letters were sent from different locations and at different times. They would also be received at different times, making it difficult to synchronize between multiple people. After completing all the procedures, Huo Shaoheg met with James again. This time, they didn’t meet near Tan Guiren’s home but on a boat on the Hudson River. They both pretended to be tourists and leisurely exchanged intelligence amid the silly crowd holding flags and wearing identical baseball caps.
“…You’re all prepared?” said James, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and a large beard to disguise himself as a Russian man.
“Yes. As soon as he discovers I wrote the letter, he’ll be sure to notify you of my location for arrest.” Huo Shaoheng smiled. He held binoculars and enjoyed the view of New York like other ordinary tourists.
James nodded. “We’ll be deployed, then. Be careful.”
Huo Shaoheng had already made plans to leave New York for South America when the CIA agents were deployed to arrest “him.” He had come to America using a fake identity, so he had to leave soon. Also, he had already been away from the Empire for a long time without making contact with Gu Nianzhi, and he missed her a lot. He’d sent her a scarf to confuse the enemy by using a French redirecting address. Even if the enemy found out, they wouldn’t have his exact location, so he wouldn’t have to worry about Gi Nianzhi leaking intelligence. He truly hoped to be home in time for her birthday—it was only two months away. But this wasn’t up to him. Only the mole hidden deep within their internal organization could make that decision.
Huo Shaoheng was still a high-ranking military official representing the Huaxia Empire in New York. What really mattered was that he wasn’t arrested at the scene—regardless of how much the CIA suspected him.
“I know what I’m doing.” Huo Shaoheng set down his binoculars nonchalantly, rubbed his eyes, and put on sunglasses before leaving calmly. He had created a rather long-term plan. It would take a month to six months for the letter to reach the Huaxia Empire, fall into the mole’s hands, which then initiate the operation.
The pros of this plan were that it wouldn’t implicate others or harm the innocent. The con was, of course, the possibility of a prolonged timeline. If the enemy reacted within a month or two, that meant they were very anxious. If it took up to six months, that meant the enemy was very vigilant and would be difficult to handle. Luckily, Huo Shaoheng was a very patient person, so he could handle whatever the enemy decided to do.
…
It was nearly the end of August in the Imperial Capital of the Huaxia Empire, and all the schools were to begin the new semester. Ma Qiqi was riding her bike home after finishing her internship. Humming a melody, she happily zipped through the tree-lined path on the B University campus.
Gu Nianzhi had left for Germany for nearly a month, and she had been amazing this entire time! Ma Qiqi had been following this case on Weibo and had even used a VPN to view the courtroom live stream that had shaken the entire German social media world. Unfortunately, she didn’t get to see Gu Nianzhi’s sharp-witted, street-smart lawyer self. She’d only heard Gu Nianzhi’s voice and hadn’t expected her to speak English as well as her mother tongue. Also, Professor He’s German’s perfect Hannover accent was too incredible!
When Ma Qiqi returned to her dorm, she sat down in her room and sent Gu Nianzhi a message. They had been in contact all this time, but they weren’t online together very often due to the time difference. So when a typically simple message was sent out, a reply wouldn’t come until the next day, after the other person saw the first message.
I Love Meng Qiqi The Best: My Dear Zhi, good luck!
The next day, Gu Nianzhi received Ma Qiqi’s message and replied to it.
Always Thinking of You: Roger! I’ll try my best!
At the same time, Huo Shaoheng’s three letters were slowly making their way through the US postal system, put into sacks and loaded onto the airplanes headed toward the Huaxia Empire. One week later, the mailroom of the Huaxia Imperial Department of Internal Affairs received a letter from New York addressed to the Minister of Internal Affairs with no clear addressee. This type of letter was typically registered, then sent through to related departments for various security checks before finally being sent to the receiving department.
A few days later, the Minister of Justice received the same type of letter addressed to the Minister of Justice. Then, a few days after that, the mailroom of the Military General Hospital received a letter addressed to medical officer Senior Colonel Chen Lie. Chen Lie’s military rank and official post were stationed in the Military General Hospital; he was only temporarily transferred to the Special Operations Forces, along with his assistant, Ye Zitan. Because Chen Lie was very busy with work, Ye Zitan was in charge of taking care of his daily tasks, including receiving mail.
…
It was nearly September, and Gu Nianzhi was starting to want to go home. Since the serious embarrassment suffered by the Munich District Court in front of all of Germany during the third hearing, the judicial system had gotten wary of angering the public. They didn’t dare to make any dramatic moves, so the murder case of Seth of Niya was delayed for a long time without sentencing.
He Zhichu and his four American assistants were also busy setting up the German branch of their law firm. From legal files to selecting the location for the office, hiring staff, and purchasing office equipment, the two weeks passed quickly, and everyone was extremely busy.
Gu Nianzhi was the only one not yet considered an official employee of the American law firm, and she also didn’t really care much about starting up the new branch. All she cared about was the case, so she was growing exasperated from waiting.
Today, she sat in the garden behind the hotel, reading a book. The sunshine from the end of summer and beginning of autumn was filtering through the gingko tree leaves, and, like little fans, they shimmered brilliantly before her eyes. Squinting, she stopped reading. At the corner of her vision, she noticed a middle-aged couple staring at her from the edge of the grass.
