Shadow Spy

Chapter 18 Speculations on the Warehouse Case

While Li Junhao was busy strengthening his own strength, Okada Trading Co., Ltd., which rented warehouse No. 25, was still in chaos - two days ago, four guards of the warehouse disappeared, there were blood stains on the scene, and all the goods were missing!The disappearance of the four Japanese ronin was not a big deal, but 50 pieces of cotton yarn, 100 tons of tung oil, and [-] tons of rice were the goods required by the Imperial Navy, and the trading company spent a lot of money to get them together. It's the biggest trouble! (Cotton yarn [-] kg/piece; one load [-] kg, one quintal [-] kg.)
Li Junhao guessed correctly. Okada Trading Company was really affiliated with the secret service. Its superior was the Intelligence Division of the Japanese Marine Corps Headquarters in Shanghai, which was responsible for collecting strategic materials for the navy.The loss of so many supplies now is an unbearable disaster for the trading company, especially the thousand tons of tung oil, which is urgently needed by the Japanese Navy's dispatch fleet to China. If it cannot be delivered on time within ten days, it is estimated that the Kodama Agency will really come to kill people. Got it!

At around eight o'clock in the evening on April [-]th, in the No. [-] warehouse at Shiliupu Pier, Hidetoshi Okada, the president of Okada Trading Company, was pacing in the warehouse with a gloomy face. This was already his fifth or sixth inspection. It was already on the scene, and he didn’t even bother to remember it.As an experienced imperial agent, he admitted that he was a little careless when arranging warehouse guards. First, there were insufficient numbers, and second, there was no strict emphasis on discipline. There were only four people in shifts, two per shift, which was indeed a bit too few!But what puzzled him was: Whose force was the attacker?
He could think of many forces in Shanghai that were capable of killing people and kidnapping, but taking away a lot of supplies from late at night to dawn would not only require a lot of manpower, but also sufficient transportation vehicles. He could only think of those with such strength. One force—military rule!In other words, it is a military control organization supported by the Youth Gang elements.

At this moment, several Japanese men in kimonos walked up. Hidetoshi Okada immediately stepped forward to greet them, bowed to the somewhat ferocious and sinister young man at the head and said, "Major, why are you here?"

The visitor is Kodama Yushio, who has a background in the Black Dragon Society and is one of the young leaders of the right-wing forces. He is only 28 years old now. He is in the prime of life and is full of ambition. After the Japanese army occupied Shanghai, he was influenced by the Japanese. Recruited by the Naval Aviation Headquarters and held the wartime rank of Major, he engaged in espionage activities in Shanghai and assisted in collecting strategic supplies. Okada Trading Company was one of the commercial organizations that accepted his order to serve the navy. Hearing that a large amount of supplies had been lost, he Of course you have to come and see for yourself.

"How much supplies were lost?" Yushio Kodama asked coldly.

"Five thousand pieces of cotton yarn, one thousand tons of tung oil, [-] tons of rice... and four people are missing." Hidetoshi Okada said without daring to raise his head.

"Baga!" Kodama Yushio became angry when he heard "tung oil". He cursed angrily, waved his hand and slapped Hidetoshi Okada twice in the face, making Hidetoshi Okada stagger!
"Haha!" Hidetoshi Okada hurriedly stood still. Even though the corner of his mouth was bleeding, he still bowed his head respectfully and admitted his mistake. This is the normal behavior among Japanese superiors and subordinates: standing at attention when being beaten!

"Tell me, what's going on?" Kodama Yushio calmed down and asked after venting for a while.

"Currently, we only know that the incident happened in the early morning of the [-]rd, and it will not last more than five hours..." Hidetoshi Okada replied, "All the goods in the warehouse were lost, and even the gold bars, cash and weapons in the office were all confiscated. Also robbed..."

"So you don't know who did it?" Kodama Yushio said.

"Yes...but I doubt that the only forces with such capabilities and motivations are the military commander and the Youth Gang..." Hidetoshi Okada said.

"No, there is one more!" Kodama Yushio sneered. "You mean...this is impossible!" Hidetoshi Okada raised his head in surprise, somewhat in disbelief.

"Nothing is impossible!" Yushio Kodama said, "Okay, don't waste time here now. Go and prepare another thousand tons of tung oil immediately. This is an urgently needed material for the Imperial Navy. I will only give it to you for ten days. Time, if you can’t do it, you can commit seppuku yourself!”

"Haha!" Okada Hidetoshi hurriedly bowed and agreed, but then he mumbled: "Major, time is too tight, so I can only find a way on the local black market, but... the price is 200 yuan per load, the trading company I really don’t have that much money here..." After saying that, he lowered his head, obviously afraid of being beaten again.

Kodama Yushio glared at him fiercely, but he also knew that what he said was the truth. One thousand tons of tung oil cost 20, five thousand pieces of cotton yarn cost 20, and 240 tons of rice cost 20 million. With Okada With the size of the trading company, so much supplies have been lost, and the turnover must be beyond the capacity. However, this matter still has to be done, so he can only say: "Come to me at the Marine Corps headquarters tomorrow, and I will help you make an advance from the management department first." The payment of [-] yuan... Humph! If this thing doesn't work out, no one can protect you!"

"I understand! Thank you, Major!" Hidetoshi Okada thanked him hurriedly and felt a little relieved.
-
Kodama Yushio left the dock and took the car back to Hongkou. The more he thought about it, the more angry he became. Nearly 350 million in weapons, cash and goods were lost like this?No, the people must be found, the goods and money must be taken back, and he wants these people’s lives too!

After rushing back to the Japanese Navy Special Marine Corps headquarters, Kodama Yushio went to Lieutenant Colonel Nobu Onodera, the director of the Intelligence Division, and told him about the matter.Lieutenant Colonel Ono was also very angry. He immediately called his subordinates and arranged intelligence personnel to start investigating the matter. There were two main targets. One was the powerful Youth Gang organization in Shanghai that Hidetoshi Okada suspected, and the other was the Japanese Army!
Yes, it was the Japanese Army. In view of the serious conflicts between the Navy and the Army, Ono and Kodama were even more suspicious that the Army was responsible.

After the Japanese army occupied Shanghai, the Army occupied all the Huajie, Shanghai County and surrounding areas, and used the Military Police Headquarters in Shanghai to control the security of the occupied area; the Navy controlled the North and East Districts north of the Suzhou River in the original public concession, and The Marine Corps was used to patrol the concession, and this area was commonly known as the Japanese Concession.

Because of the contradiction between the two services, the Army has been setting up obstacles for the Navy. It has even set restrictions on daily necessities such as food. If the Marine Corps had not found a way to use some Japanese-owned commercial firms to supply supplies, it might not even have enough military rations, let alone Let’s talk about supplies like cotton yarn and tung oil!

In particular, Chinese-made tung oil, which has properties such as moisture-proof, corrosion-proof, acid-alkali resistance, etc., is a strategic material needed by aircraft and ships. If the Army knew that there were a thousand tons of tung oil in the public concession, it would definitely take action first!
Because of their speculation, everyone in Phoenix Village inexplicably escaped investigation.

(End of this chapter)