Chapter 37: Arrest
The eyes of Vice Marshal Kuang revealed a trace of hostility. "Go to Suzhou, and you can see your family. Remember, if Zhou Lin catches you, you should commit suicide. Don't mention me. If you mention me, your family will die."
Jin Wei came out of the hospital, his spirit completely depleted.
Five hours ago, "Did you hear? Shu Zhi was taken to the political department."
"Shu Zhi? That guy won't do anything big. At most, it's some small matter."
"Small matter? The political department handles small matters. Maybe he's a spy."
"You're joking. If Shu Zhi is a spy, then the Seventh Division has at least several hundred spies."
"True, looking for Shu Zhi is probably because he knows something."
After hearing the news, Jin Wei returned to the dormitory, collected the money and the little yellow fish, and stashed them on his person.
He also took the handgun and, after some thought, brought along the bottle of poison.
Outside the political department, he sat in a diagonal position, smoking a cigarette.
An hour later, Jin Wei saw Shu Zhi coming out. The political department captain saw him off, and they waved goodbye.
Jin Wei stood up, patted his buttocks, and turned towards the northwest corner of the military camp.
In this place, there was a secret door leading outside. The people of the Seventh Division didn't know about it.
This secret door was revealed to Jin Wei by Vice Marshal Kuang. It was to be used in times of danger.
Now, the time had come.
After leaving the military camp, Jin Wei turned around, stood at attention for three seconds, and finally headed towards the market.
In the market, he saw a bus about to depart.
At this point, Jin Wei's thought was to leave early. Take the bus first and then transfer to Suzhou later.
He relaxed only when the bus started moving.
However, his joy was premature.
The bus was stopped. Zhou Lin boarded.
Jin Wei had considered drawing his gun. But he abandoned that idea.
He knew Zhou Lin wouldn't come alone. Even if he killed Zhou Lin, he wouldn't escape.
Since he was prepared to die anyway, he decided not to kill anymore. Let Zhou Lin live; he might do something for China.
In the final scene, Jin Wei took poison and ended his own life...
Zhou Lin slowly opened his eyes.
Jin Wei had wanted to kill Zhou Lin, but Zhou Lin was never in danger. After all, he was a systematic person.
But Zhou Lin still thanked Jin Wei for not shooting him.
"In your heart, you think about your family incessantly. I will definitely help you, rescue your family. Consider it my reward for you not shooting me!"
After saying this, Zhou Lin got off the bus.
Wang Hong came to Zhou Lin's side and asked, "Are you okay?"
"No problem! We need to go to the next stop."
Three vehicles arrived at the Seventh Division's headquarters.
Zhou Lin reported the situation to Wang Hong.
Wang Hong immediately ordered the hospital squad to lock down the target, preventing him from leaving and avoiding self-harm.
Later, Wang Hong made a long-distance call to report to Dai Su.
Dai Su ordered the successful arrest of Vice Marshal Kuang.
After hanging up the phone, Wang Hong went to the division commander's office.
In the office, besides the division commander, there was also Deputy Division Commander He, who had rushed back from Nanjing.
Wang Hong reported Dai Su's instructions to the two division commanders.
Commander Xie sighed, "After all these years as comrades, I'll go see him."
Deputy Commander He said, "I'll go too!"
So, Wang Hong and Zhou Lin accompanied the two division commanders to the hospital.
Chief of Staff Huang did not go; he had no connection with Kuang Cheng.
When Wang Hong issued orders, the members of the 21st squad, led by their captain, took control of the courtyard of the high-ranking ward.
Kuang Cheng's bodyguard captain wanted to resist but was knocked out with a punch. After fainting, he was tied up.
Kuang Cheng brought ten bodyguards, all of whom were tied up.
Later, the 21st squad's captain, leading his men, rushed into Kuang Cheng's ward.
Kuang Cheng's adjutant shouted, "What are you doing? This is Vice Marshal Kuang's ward."
The captain of the 21st squad said, "We're here to find Vice Marshal Kuang."
After saying that, he gestured, and two squad members grabbed the adjutant's hands, rendering him immobile.
The squad leader approached, pressing down Kuang Cheng's hand reaching for the pillow.
"Kuang Cheng, you've committed a crime. I'm from the Military Statistics Bureau. Now I'm ordered to take control of you."
After saying that, two squad members held Kuang Cheng down. The squad leader found a Browning pistol under the pillow.
Kuang Cheng was wearing a patient's gown, and a search revealed no dangerous items on him.
His clothes were hung on a hanger, guarded by squad members.
Kuang Cheng asked, "Who gave the order for you to come and arrest me?"
The squad leader said, "Our bureau chief."
Upon hearing it was Dai Su, Kuang Cheng's last thought vanished.
Although Dai Su was also from Zhejiang, he showed no mercy to Zhejiang people who made mistakes.
As for seeking higher-ups, the top-ranking nephew was here. He was in charge of this case. Who could be higher than the top?
Kuang Cheng knew he was undoubtedly doomed.
At this moment, Zhou Lin accompanied by the two division commanders entered.
Commander Xie, seeing the controlled Kuang Cheng, sighed, "Old Kuang, the three of us have adapted together since Huangtang, cooperating for seven years. During these seven years, we've suffered, worried, killed enemies, and been wounded. We can say we're comrades. But how did you end up like this?"
Deputy Commander He said, "Although the three of us often had conflicts, whenever a major enemy appeared, we would unite against them. We helped each other. Remember five years ago when I was surrounded? It was you who led people in, killing your way to me and rescuing me. For my sake, more than a hundred brothers sacrificed that time."
Kuang Cheng cried. "Old Xie! Old He! I've let you down! I've let down the brothers of the Seventh Division."
Zhou Lin asked, "Then why did you do this? Do you know that if I hadn't received the information, more than five thousand brothers of the Seventh Division would have died under the blades of the Japanese devils? Why did you telegraph the Japanese army headquarters, notifying them of the Seventh Division's actions?"
Kuang Cheng pounded his head with his hands, immediately restrained by the members of the 21st squad.
"I just reported it to make them alert. I never thought the Japanese would send a whole brigade, intending to surround our Seventh Division. I regret it."
After saying that, Kuang Cheng shouted, "I'm not human! I'm a beast."
At this moment, the doctor arrived, diagnosed Vice Marshal Kuang's condition, and said
"Vice Marshal Kuang has experienced too much stress; he's gone mad. We need to calm him down."
Afterward, the doctor administered a sedative to Kuang Cheng.
Commander Xie, seeing Kuang Cheng's deteriorated state, stepped out.
Wang Hong had Kuang Cheng escorted onto a vehicle and taken back to the Seventh Division headquarters.
All guards for Kuang Cheng were from the 21st squad; no one from the Seventh Division was involved.
Firstly, Zhou Lin didn't trust the Seventh Division; he feared there might be Kuang Cheng's loyalists who would attempt a rescue.
Secondly, the members of the Seventh Division felt ashamed. Their deputy division commander turned out to be a traitor, selling intelligence and almost causing the annihilation of the Seventh Division.
Vice Marshal: A high-ranking military officer.
Political Department: An organization responsible for political supervision within a military unit.
Browning Handgun: A type of semi-automatic pistol.
Adjutant: A military officer who assists a higher-ranking officer.
Political Commissar: A political officer responsible for ensuring the ideological commitment of the military unit.
Military Statistics Bureau: A fictional bureau mentioned in the story, responsible for military intelligence and statistics.
High-ranking Ward: A special section of a hospital reserved for important or high-ranking individuals.
Sedative: A medication to induce calmness and sleepiness.
Note: Some terms may not have direct equivalents in Old English due to the historical and cultural differences between the languages.