Chapter 393: Relying on Oneself

Accompanied by the “William Tell Overture,” they feasted heartily.

“This is a nice set of tableware, and these knives and forks too.” Nangong Hao was a man of artistic temperament with a taste for the finer things in life. He could, of course, see the value of the items before him.

“They’re all from the spoils of war auctions. This set of cutlery is Italian. The tableware is high-grade Kraak porcelain.” Dongfang Ke smiled faintly. “It’s a pity there’s no real red wine. A little lamb chop like this, even with a one or two euro table wine, would be an exquisite enjoyment…”

Hainan Island was not suitable for growing grapes. Both Xue Ziliang and the Agricultural Committee had made futile efforts in this regard—even their attempt to make cider as a second-best option had failed. The Elders had to content themselves with various fruit wines made from local fruits. Although they possessed the complete winemaking process and better equipment than the wineries of this era, the prestige of wine was clearly much higher than that of jackfruit wine.

“Can’t we import wine?” Okamoto asked, his mouth full of lamb.

“From Europe to here, it takes more than a year. It starts as fine wine, but by the time it reaches the port, it’s the finest grape vinegar,” Dongfang Ke said with no small amount of regret. “I asked Minister Hong to order a barrel of fine port wine from Macau. Now I can only use it to dress salads—it’s a pity olive oil can’t be transported long distances either. And you can’t grow olive trees on Hainan Island…”

“The Minister Hong you’re talking about, is that Hong Huangnan from the General Logistics Headquarters?” Okamoto asked.

“That’s right, it’s him.”

“No wonder there’s good stuff,” Okamoto said. “Abusing public office for private gain.”

“You’re wrong about him,” Dongfang Ke said, raising his carved glass cup and gazing at the amber liquid of the brandy inside. “This is a new project of his, attached to the General Office. It’s currently being renovated and is in its trial operation phase. He asked me for a favor on some matters, so I commissioned him to help me get some rare goods.”

The four portions of roasted lamb chops were almost gone. Okamoto’s face was flushed, but he continued to exchange toasts with Nangong Hao. He drank in a completely Chinese style, disliking ice and preferring to down his drink in one go.

Dongfang Ke rose and brought out a new dish from the kitchen.

“Braised lamb liver.” He lifted the insulated cover.

A captivating aroma filled the air. The portion of lamb liver on each person’s plate was small, garnished with herbs and drizzled with a thick sauce.

“This tastes great! Your skills are good enough for a Western restaurant!” Okamoto complimented.

Nangong Hao didn’t speak, but he nodded in agreement with Okamoto’s assessment.

A mysterious smile appeared on Dongfang’s face. “I bet you guys have no idea where this lamb liver came from…”

In an instant, both Okamoto and Nangong Hao’s faces turned pale.

A lover of music, a good cook, reclusive, with refined taste… these characteristics were suddenly magnified countless times. Looking at the dark red sauce remaining on their plates, a strong sense of discomfort rose from their stomachs. Okamoto saw that Nangong Hao’s face had turned frighteningly white.

Realizing his joke had gone a bit too far, Dongfang Ke quickly raised his hand. “Just kidding, just kidding. It’s from the South China Sea Farm, the best Changhua lamb…”

“Damn it, don’t play around like that when we’re eating,” Okamoto’s color returned slightly. “It’s a real mood killer.”

“Sorry, sorry, I was just having a bit of fun,” Dongfang Ke apologized repeatedly.

After clearing the plates, Dongfang Ke served dessert: cookies and hot coffee.

At this point, Dongfang Ke put on a serious expression. “It’s just the three of us here, safer than any restaurant or reception hall. So, you two stop eating for a moment and listen to me.”

“Don’t. You’re going to trick us again.” Okamoto almost spat out the cookie in his mouth.

Clink. It was the sound of Dongfang tapping a soup bowl with a silver spoon.

“If you two don’t want to be the main characters of the Qingming Festival memorial service at Cui Gang Cemetery next year, you’d better listen to me.”

Okamoto froze, staring at Dongfang. Nangong also stopped eating.

“The pistols you were issued before, have you remembered to maintain them regularly all these years?”

The two shook their heads blankly. After the Battle of Chengmai, most of the civilian Elders had relaxed their military training. Apart from the two pistol target practice sessions organized by the General Office each year, many Elders had completely forgotten about their handguns. Some had even locked up their guns and ammunition.

Dongfang’s expression was not surprised. He continued, “Well, do you have stab-proof vests?”

“Yes, we were each issued one back then,” Nangong Hao thought for a moment. “It’s probably with my steel helmet.”

“Mine should be there too. I don’t know where I put it. It should be in some cabinet.”

“When you go back tonight, have your maids find them and clean them up,” Dongfang Ke said. “As for the pistols, take them out, disassemble them, and oil them properly. It would be best to find some time to test-fire them.”

“Wait, what do you mean by this?” Okamoto asked, completely bewildered.

“I don’t know how to start, but during the cultural festival performance, Lingao might not be peaceful. You’d better all wear stab-proof vests and carry weapons to the performance.”

“What? You’re saying there will be trouble at the arts performance? You want me to wear a stab-proof vest on the conductor’s podium? Wouldn’t that be ridiculous!” Nangong Hao’s face also changed, his drunkenness instantly dissipating.

“Well… wearing it under a long performance shirt would make you look stronger. It wouldn’t be too ridiculous, just a bit hot. You’ll have to bear with it… I was originally going to ask Liu Shuixin to come over and have her submit a report requesting to strengthen the security of the art troupe—I don’t think the Executive Committee would refuse her request…” Dongfang began to ramble, which was unusual for him.

“You really don’t understand the Executive Committee,” Okamoto shook his head. “Those bastards in the Executive Committee are most afraid of being accused of fawning over female Elders. They all pretend to be ascetics—haven’t you noticed their attitude towards female Elders is always cold and polite? And this matter doesn’t follow procedure either.”

“Is that so…” Dongfang Ke hesitated. Apparently, the political situation in the Senate was more complicated than he had imagined. No wonder he…

“What do you know? Don’t scare us, this joke isn’t funny!” Okamoto seemed to no longer recognize his partner at all. How had this person suddenly become so cautious?

“I don’t know anything, I’m just guessing. But it’s better to be prepared than not. We’ve all been to the performance venue. Such a large place, we can’t rely on those few garrison soldiers without long guns to guard it…”

“What do you mean? Will there be a major incident at the cultural festival?” The two’s curiosity was piqued, and they insisted he explain.

Dongfang Ke had no choice but to recount what he had seen and his suspicions. “I suspect that it’s highly likely that spies have already entered Lingao and are planning to pull off something big at the cultural festival! They probably already have an inside line in the police department.”

“Damn it, why didn’t you report such important intelligence to the Political Security Bureau?!” Okamoto exclaimed.

Nangong Hao nodded. “I also think you should report it to them.”

“I’ve already reported it,” Dongfang Ke said. “I not only went to see Wu Mu, but also the commander of the Garrison Battalion.” He said indignantly, “They both gave me a standard ‘official answer’.”

“What’s an ‘official answer’?” Okamoto asked.

Nangong Hao chimed in, “Basically, ‘We are aware of the situation you have reported, we will handle it appropriately, thank you for your help in our work, blah blah blah’.” He then recounted his experience of going to see Wu Mu and Li Yiyang.

“Damn, isn’t this disregarding the power of us Elders!” Okamoto became agitated. “Those bastards in the Executive Committee! They don’t take the Elders seriously at all. This is the prelude to them making themselves emperors!”

Nangong Hao shook his head. “You were wrong to go to Li Yiyang in the first place. What authority does he have to arm Wang Qisuo? As for increasing the number of troops, I’m not very clear on how our forces are deployed, but I imagine it’s similar to the PLA: without an order from the Executive Committee, does Li Yiyang dare to move troops at will?”

“That’s true, but for Wu Mu, that spymaster, to give such a lukewarm response, isn’t that too dismissive of the Elders? Does he really think he’s Himmler!” Okamoto grumbled.

“Well, I don’t think this Political Security Bureau is very reliable,” Dongfang Ke said, drinking his coffee. “They put on a big show, but I haven’t seen them do anything serious.”

“So, we can’t count on them?” Okamoto said.

“At least not entirely. We have to have our own means of self-preservation.” Dongfang Ke said, getting up and walking into the inner room. Okamoto and Nangong heard the sound of a cabinet opening and closing. When he came out, he was holding a bundle.

“Since you both have stab-proof vests, I won’t take out the cotton vests I had prepared. But this—” he magically produced a leather holster, “a quick-draw holster, genuine American-made. It can hold a short-barreled Smith & Wesson. A revolver is more reliable—Liu Shuixin should have one of these, all the female Elders are issued one. Okamoto, you go and borrow it from Liu Shuixin. You’re not going on stage, so you can just wear this under your arm. I don’t need to teach you how to use it, do I?”

Okamoto pouted and took the holster.

“Alright, that’s about it. If you haven’t had enough to drink, continue. Would you like some more soup?”

The two seemingly shaken artists indicated that they were full and should be heading back to rest.

“Well, then~ take care, I won’t see you out. Be careful on the way.” Dongfang turned off the stereo and began to clear the cups and plates.

“Alright, see you at the performance. Thanks for the hospitality…” Okamoto was already a bit unsteady on his feet as he stood up. Nangong quickly supported him.

Dongfang Ke stood at the window, watching his two colleagues walk towards the gate of the Bairen dormitory area. Suddenly, he drew his right hand from behind his back, a karambit now in his palm. He swung it through the air a few times, then turned and sat down at the piano, lost in thought.