Zhang Haiqi knew that Zhang Qishan’s inference was correct, and it certainly wasn’t just an inference; Zhang Qishan must have other evidence but was unwilling to elaborate, casually hinting at it to them. Mo Yungao was indeed a very frightening person.

Lying in bed, Zhang Haiyan stared at the ceiling, and the humidity of Changsha made it difficult for him to fall asleep. He had a subtle feeling today because Zhang Haiqi mentioned the term “clan leader.”

From childhood to adulthood, Zhang Haiyan’s perception of the world had always been one of decay; he had never felt the sense of survival amidst the crowd. However, the term “clan leader” suddenly made him feel the weight of a large family and the influx of family matters.

“I have a clan leader, which means I have a whole family.” In this solitary world, this feeling inexplicably gave him a sense of security. Even if a wealthy relative treats me poorly, they are still a relative.

What kind of person is the clan leader? Someone who can incite a massive plague, risking the lives of hundreds of thousands, just to see him again.

Zhang Haiyan sat up in bed, unable to sleep. He went to the balcony and saw Zhang Haiqi standing on the balcony of the neighboring room. Zhang Haiqi was in his pajamas, smoking a cigarette. The moon was bright outside, and the Xiang River was visible, dotted with lights in the distance.

“Does this mean Zhang Qishan is helping us or not?” Zhang Haiyan asked.

Finding evidence is certainly simpler than taking down Mo Yungao, especially since they are spies by trade. But upon reflection, with such a meticulous plan, the evidence should be in Mo Yungao’s residence, which means they still need to go to Beihai, avoiding all eyes and ears, and infiltrating the Beihai Command. This isn’t much different from directly killing Mo Yungao.

“Zhang Qishan means that Mo Yungao is heading to Nanjing, and we should directly intercept him there, interrogate him for the evidence of the plague, and then send a telegram to the Beihai team to arrest him and seal off the command.”

“Strike in Nanjing?”

“He will help us get close to Mo Yungao,” Zhang Haiqi said.

Zhang Haiyan remained silent. He had to admit that this was a clever plan, one that a soldier would come up with. It could be inferred that Zhang Qishan wanted to completely eliminate Mo Yungao’s sphere of influence, allowing the allied forces to occupy Beihai and prevent warlords from seizing power after Mo Yungao was captured. However, even if they caught Mo Yungao in Beihai, the system he had built over the years might not submit immediately; there was a possibility that they could all be trapped in Beihai along with Mo Yungao.

Historically, capturing a prince had always been about seizing the capital.

“Can we trust him?”

“If we have already captured Mo Yungao, once we interrogate him, how he is dealt with will be our decision. Zhang Qishan doesn’t trust us either, so this plan is his way of taking his Beihai while we handle our Commander Mo,” Zhang Haiqi took a puff of his cigarette. Zhang Haiyan then said, “It’s so perfect, yet you can’t sleep. What’s the problem?”

“Let’s see if you can figure it out,” Zhang Haiqi challenged.

“I’m thinking about why Mo Yungao is going to Nanjing,” Zhang Haiyan replied. This seemingly inconspicuous figure among the southwestern warlords had completely eliminated the Nanyang Archives, and his plan should be in full swing. Given his delicate relationship with the allied forces, why would he go to Nanjing? If it were him, he would break his own leg and go nowhere.

What benefits could he possibly gain from going to Nanjing?

“From Beihai to Nanjing, the journey is long. Perhaps his destination is not Nanjing, but rather a specific point along the way?” Zhang Haiqi said.

Zhang Haiyan flipped over from his balcony to Zhang Haiqi’s balcony. Looking at him, Zhang Haiqi continued, “Starting from Beihai, you first take the water route to Guangzhou, then the train goes through Changsha, Wuhan, and finally to Nanjing.”

Suddenly, Zhang Haiyan’s mind sparked with an idea. He went into the room, took out paper and pen, and began to draw.

“This is the location of the villages where the plague broke out in Malacca, along with the connections between them. Here are Guangzhou, Changsha, Wuhan, and Nanjing.”

The shape formed by the connections between the villages was identical to the connections between the four cities of Guangzhou, Changsha, Wuhan, and Nanjing.

Zhang Haiyan fell silent. The villages in Malacca were truly just an experiment. Mo Yungao had specifically chosen villages at similar distances to release the plague and study the efficiency of its spread. Now, this Mo Yungao was about to play for real on the mainland.

“The plague in the villages of Malacca broke out simultaneously, which means the epidemics in these four cities will also break out at the same time,” Zhang Haiyan said. “The key timing is when Mo Yungao arrives in Nanjing; Nanjing will be the place where he sends out the signal. Once the signal is sent, all the cities will start to fall ill simultaneously.”

Zhang Haiqi nodded in agreement. Just then, they both saw a car arriving downstairs.

Zhang Haiyan asked, “Who is it?”

“It’s to pick us up. I just passed my guess—similar to yours—to Zhang Qishan through the guard,” Zhang Haiqi said, extinguishing her cigarette. Zhang Haiyan noticed that her luggage hadn’t been unpacked. “We’re going to Nanjing.”

*******++

Mo Yungao sat in the train’s dining car, looking at a small bottle in front of him. Inside the bottle was a beetle, clearly a variety from the southwest—something like a seven-spotted ladybug.

Next to him stood a young man, looking completely at a loss.

Mo Yungao held a needle in his hand and carefully pricked the young man’s index finger. He did it very slowly and deeply, almost as if it would pierce through to the other side. The young man felt pain, but with soldiers holding him back, he couldn’t move.

Then, Mo Yungao pulled the needle out, and blood began to ooze from the wound. He very deliberately squeezed out some blood and let it drip into the small bottle. The beetle inside remained unmoved.

Mo Yungao set the needle down and looked at the little girl sitting in front of him. “It’s no use.”

Outside, the landscape was mountainous; they were in the hilly area between Changsha and Wuhan. In the distance, there was smoke rising and the sunset.

“You need patience.”

“I have patience,” Mo Yungao said to the little girl. “Do I look impatient?” He poured the beetle out of the bottle and placed it on his finger; the beetle seemed a bit disoriented.

In one swift motion, Mo Yungao crushed it to death. “I don’t like others to define me at will,” Mo Yungao said, looking at the little girl. “Have you found your sister?”

The little girl shook her head.

“I’ve already sent people to inquire at all the major docks. This is very embarrassing for me, and in return, I hope you can quickly find what I need.”

Mo Yungao stood up and made a gesture to the soldiers to clear away. The soldier behind the young man suddenly twisted the young man’s neck.

The young man collapsed to the ground.

Mo Yungao returned to his room, carefully took off his military uniform, pants, and hat, arranged them neatly, and then lay down on the bed like a corpse.

He closed his eyes and saw that young man. Was he still a boy or already a youth? It was hard to tell. A long time had passed, but every time he closed his eyes, he could see that young man looking at him with eyes as deep as a still pond.

“I’m going to die.” At that time, Mo Yungao was still a young man. Weakly, he said to the boy, “You’d better not stay here for long, or you will die too.”

“I won’t die,” the young man replied. “I have to keep going, into the mountains. Do you know the way?”

“I used to think I wouldn’t die either,” Mo Yungao laughed. “What are you going to do in that mountain?”

Mo Yungao looked around; he was lying on a dirt slope where the battle had just ended, and all his soldiers were dead. The young man said to him, “There’s something that needs to come out from the mountains.”