Chapter 1340 Relief
Liu Shang was afraid that he might be mistaken, so he rubbed his eyes vigorously, and then carefully identified the corpse. It was indeed Liao Yuan's. At this time, the first thought that came to Liu Shang's mind was not why Liao Yuan died at sea, but that Liao Yuan did not go out alone this time. He took away all his subordinates. Logically speaking, these people should be It was best to go with him, so he quickly opened up the canvas again, and sure enough he saw that among the bodies lying next to him were several other men who had lived in the same yard in the port area.
Liu Shang's heart was beating fast at this moment. Could it be that what he had only dared to think about but not implement had become a reality so effortlessly? He swallowed hard and peeled off all the canvas covering the corpses, intending to identify them carefully. If Liao Yuan and his men all died in this shipwreck, then no one in Sanya would know his true identity as Liu Shang.
After this was revealed, Liu Shang took a closer look and almost exclaimed because he actually discovered Qin An's face in it. This impact was even more intense than when he saw Liao Yuan just now, because he knew very well that Liao Yuan's purpose of leading the team to Changhua was to confront Qin An. If he did not speculate, then killing Qin An would be Next steps. After all, if Qin An makes a mistake, Liu Shang will not only be affected. The entire Ming intelligence network lurking near Sanya may be exposed, and Liao Yuan can only take extreme measures to protect the overall situation.
Liu Shang really couldn't figure out the exact reason why Qin An was in the same boat as Liao Yuan and others. He could only guess that after Liao Yuan found Qin An in Changhua, the two might not have reached an agreement on communication, so Liao Yuan took him back to Sanya. Unexpectedly, he encountered a shipwreck on the way.
The real reason why Liao Yuan brought Qin An back to Sanya may never be known, but Liu Shang believes that there are only two possibilities. One is that his original intention was discovered by Liao Yuan and Qin An after their meeting, and the two planned to come back together. Confront him face to face; secondly, for some reason, Liao Yuan relented when he was about to take action and planned to bring Qin An back and discuss with him how to deal with him.
No matter which possibility it is, there is a certain risk for Liu Shang, and he does not want to face the unstable factor of Qin An again. Although Liu Shang is basically sure that no matter how Qin An tries to defend himself, Liao Yuan will never fall out due to his official status, but if Qin An refuses to accept it, there will inevitably be huge rifts in this temporarily formed small group, which is very important to Liu Shang. The long-term latency is definitely extremely detrimental. Of course, now the two scourges that have troubled Liu Shang for many days have finally become dead and can no longer threaten Liu Shang's personal safety.
Although a group of colleagues died inexplicably was not something to be happy about, Liu Shang really just wanted to laugh out loud at this time to release his long-suppressed emotions. But he also knew that he must not get carried away at this time, so he carefully kept calm and checked carefully. Sure enough, all of Liao Yuan's men were among them, and no one escaped. In this way, no one on Hainan Island should know Liu Shang's true identity.
"Sir, do you know anyone among these victims?"
The captain's question brought Liu Shang's mind back to the present, and he quickly responded: "I looked carefully, but I don't know anyone... By the way, I just remembered that there are extremely important things to do, and I can't do it today. It’s really annoying to go with the boat.”
The captain's face darkened slightly and he said, "Is it possible that the guest dislikes my ship for bringing back so many victims and thinks it is unlucky? Regardless of whether it is a merchant ship or a civilian ship, if a ship needs to be rescued at sea, it should do its best to rescue it. This is a maritime transport I am just following the company’s express regulations.”
Liu Shang quickly waved his hands and defended: "I didn't mean that, and don't misunderstand me. Let's do it this way. I just paid you the ship's price. I just don't want it anymore. If you think it's inappropriate, just give it to these victims on my behalf." How about buying some joss sticks and paper money to commemorate them? ”
The price that the ship owner just casually offered to Liu Shang would have to be used to buy several baskets of incense and candles. Of course, it wouldn't be enough to pay homage to the deceased. Liu Shang's statement that he would give up asking for the ship's money would allow the ship owner to make some money from it. Seeing these benefits, I no longer argued with Liu Shang about this matter.
Liu Shang was worried that he would be delayed here for too long, so he immediately disembarked from the boat and left. Not far away, he saw a group of laborers pulling several flatbed trailers towards the dock. The first vehicle also had a white and red plate stuck in it. Liu Shang knew that this kind of flag was the symbol of the medical and health department. He knew that most of them were coming from the morgue to transport corpses. He quickly slowed down and turned to look to the other side, letting these people pass first.
The ship owner had previously told him that the official autopsy had been carried out and confirmed that these people had no obvious fatal injuries and theoretically all died from drowning. After the body is transported to the morgue, it will be parked for a few days at most for relatives to come and claim it. If no one recognizes it at that time, it will definitely be disposed of according to Haihan's rules and cremated.
Liu Shang knew that people like Liao Yuan and Qin An were rootless people like himself. No one knew their true past, and they had no relatives or friends in the local area. Now even if the security department comes to investigate, they won't find any clues from them. They can only treat it as an ordinary shipwreck.
God help me! Liu Shang looked at the carts heading towards the dock, and this thought passed through his mind silently. What I had been thinking about but couldn't implement suddenly became a reality, and the result was even more perfect than any of the assumptions I had made.
At this point, Liu Shang would definitely no longer be in a hurry to escape Sanya. After he returned to his residence, he closed the door and sat down to meditate on his current situation. At present, no one in Sanya knows his details, and the superiors are temporarily unable to confirm the whereabouts of the group of people headed by Liao Yuan. He can continue to lurk as a Haihan official with peace of mind. It would be at least a month or two before the superiors found out that all contact with them had been lost. It might be three, four months or even half a year before they redeployed manpower and sent new people over.
By then, the superiors must have listed him as a missing person along with Liao Yuan, Qin An and others, and treated him as if he had been arrested by Haihan. And those who are sent later will definitely not be informed of the existence of these people by their superiors. This is just like when Liu Shang was sent to Sanya, he only knew that hundreds of Ming intelligence personnel had been lost in Haihan in the past few years. As for the true identities and concealed identities of these seniors, no one knew Inform them one by one. Among the intelligence officers who disappeared without a trace in Haihan in the past, how many were dead, how many were captured, and how many were defectors? Because no one has ever successfully broken into the Haihan Security Department, there is no way to know these situations. research. In order to prevent latecomers from repeating the same mistakes and being trapped by those who have turned traitor, the information of Liu Shang and his group will definitely be deliberately concealed.
This means that in the future, unless Liu Shang initiates contact with the Yamen he is loyal to, it is likely that no one will know his true identity from now on. In addition to being a deeply dormant lurker, he now has another option, which is to quietly leave the Ming Dynasty and then work peacefully as an official in Haihan.
This sudden new path is undoubtedly very tempting to Liu Shang, who already knows Haihan's strength. Power is something that is difficult to give up after enjoying it. Even though Liu Shang knew clearly that this was an official position in an enemy country and he should never hold on to it from his own standpoint, he still couldn't resist the pleasure of being commanded by his arrogance when the matter came to pass. . What's more, everyone who knows his details is dead. He now has the best chance to clear his identity, solve his dual identity problem once and for all, and rest assured to be a peace officer in Haihan.
Haihan has only been officially established for more than a year and is in a period of rapid development. Liu Shang has been able to confirm after his trip around the island that as long as there is no chaos at the top, this country will remain a powerful country in the South China Sea for a long time to come. status. It is difficult for other surrounding countries, including Ming Dynasty, to pose a substantial threat to it. After watching the Haihan Navy defeat the invading Spanish fleet with his own eyes a few days ago, he was even more convinced of this.
On the one hand, he was working openly and honestly in Haihan and enjoying the life of a superior man; on the other hand, he continued to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty and acted as a lurker to collect intelligence about Haihan. Liu Shang was at war with heaven and man in his heart, and it was difficult to make the final decision for a long time. decision.
Liu Shang just sat in the house like this, thinking about the morning from sunset to morning. When he found that he was so hungry that he could no longer concentrate, the sky outside the window had already brightened.
According to the schedule, today is the day for the construction aid workers to set off north. Liu Shang sighed, thinking that he didn't leave yesterday, and he couldn't leave at this time today. He seemed to have no other choice but to follow the arrangement and go north to Shandong to help Haihan establish a control area there. . And he went to Shandong for a year and a half before returning. By then, he would have become a genuine Haihan official. Even if he went out of his way to contact his superiors, all his colleagues who had lurked in Haihan would be dead. , and he himself lost contact with the organization for a long time. How can he explain these circumstances so that his superiors can trust him? Will anyone still believe in his loyalty to the Ming court at that time?
"It's not that I chose this path, but this is the only path for me to choose." Liu Shang finally figured out the reason at this time. Even if he wanted to continue to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty, it would be difficult to regain the trust of the organization.
Although Liao Yuan, Qin An and others were not killed by him personally, they were indeed killed in the shipwreck because of his saucy manipulations. Speaking of which, they all died because of him. But all the insiders are dead, and the only person with vested interests is prosperous in Haihan. If you explain this to anyone, it will be difficult for people to believe that this is just a coincidence. Liu Shang realized that his situation and mentality could no longer return to before the accident, and any choice he made would be meaningless. God only left him one path. If he wanted to survive, he had to follow this path first.
"I am doing this to protect myself, not to betray my country for glory." Liu Shang must brainwash himself at this time, otherwise the guilt in his heart will still make him unable to face the future. Although the purpose of his previous actions was not necessarily treason, the serious consequences were tantamount to treason.
Liu Shang forcibly brainwashed himself, then packed his luggage and set off again. It's just that this time he brought much more luggage than yesterday. In addition to some personal items, there were also winter supplies such as quilts, blankets, cotton jackets and trousers, cotton shoes and hats that he had just brought back a few days ago. When he fled yesterday, he did not take these things with him for the convenience of movement, but after leaving today, he will go north to Shandong, and he will have to bring all these necessities for keeping warm in winter. The intention of the above to distribute these items to the construction aid workers going north is also obvious. It is obvious that this winter must be spent in Shandong.
Liu Shang went out with his large and small bags, called a rickshaw, and took him and his luggage to the Shengli Port area. The personnel and supplies of the northbound fleet were gathered here to board the ship. When Liu Shang arrived here, he saw many people similar to him with luggage waiting at the pier.
Seeing that these people had not boarded the ship yet, Liu Shang asked an official he knew to inquire about the situation, and found out that the head of the executive committee would come to see them off later, so everyone had to wait on the dock for the head to finish his lecture. Then board the ship and set off.
Not long after, two teams of police arrived and cleared a large area on the pier. Then a black four-wheeled carriage, escorted by several cavalrymen, came down to the pier. Two people got out of the car, one after the other. Liu Shang recognized them all at first sight. The burly middle-aged man in the front wearing a straight military uniform is the Minister of Defense Yan Chujie. Liu Shang had met him when he was watching military exercises off the coast of Danzhou. Following behind him was his immediate boss Yu Xiaobao. He came in the same car as Yan Chujie, which showed that Haihan's senior management had great trust in him.
Yan Chujie did not make any long speech, but just told everyone to be more patient and careful when handing over work with the military after arriving in the north, to cooperate well, and not to have conflicts with military personnel due to differences in opinions on work. Regarding this matter, Liu Shang had already heard from Yu Xiaobao that almost all local government and civil affairs were managed by the military in the early stage. It was impossible for the work to be as detailed as the functional departments, so there may be some unavoidable problems during the handover of work. Where responsibilities and powers are not clear. Fortunately, the Youth League will not have such troubles. After all, the officers in charge of political work in the army are basically members of the Youth League.
(End of chapter)