Jiang Cheng's brows furrowed slightly as his gaze lingered on the rickshaw puller's shoes.

Near the alley entrance, a few dilapidated tables were set up, with a large, blackened iron kettle resting on a makeshift stove. White steam billowed from the kettle's spout.

Several people sat scattered around the tables, their clothes tattered. They fanned themselves with palm-leaf fans. One of them was reading a newspaper, head bent low. Coarse, large bowls sat on the table, from which they occasionally took gulps. It seemed to be a crude, unpretentious roadside tea stall.

At the same time, everyone noticed a sign hanging on the wall next to the iron gate. It read "Su Residence."

Apparently, the owner of this house was named Su.

The man who looked like a butler walked to the iron gate, clenched his fist, and knocked.

Jiang Cheng noticed his knocking was peculiar. He first knocked twice slowly, then paused, and quickly knocked twice again, like a spy signaling a contact.

Almost immediately, the iron gate opened a crack, revealing half a face behind it.

A burly man with a face full of橫肉 (héng ròu, fleshy excess) glared at them warily. He wasn't tall, but he was very strong, with bulging muscles on either side of his neck. He wore coarse cloth clothes and was likely a guard.

"Don't be nervous, it's me," the butler-like man said with a smile. "These people are guests invited by the master. They're here to treat the master's illness. I personally picked them up from the police station. There's no problem."

Despite the butler's words, the man remained vigilant. His sharp, hawk-like eyes scanned everyone. After about ten seconds, he opened the gate.

The butler led the group quickly into the courtyard. Lin Qianqian was the last to enter. As soon as she stepped into the courtyard, she heard a "bang" behind her. The man who opened the gate slammed it shut, startling her.

"Everyone, my master is not in good health and prefers peace and quiet. Now that you're here, I hope you can abide by the rules." Perhaps knowing they couldn't escape, the butler's attitude was no longer as respectful as before. He said with a forced smile.

"Alright," everyone replied cooperatively.

The residence didn't look like much from the outside, but once inside, they discovered it was a different world. The area was much larger than expected and even included a uniquely shaped pond.

However, the pond was bare at the moment, and a person was standing with their back to them in the waist-deep water, pulling out the few remaining lotus flowers.

In this season, lotus flowers were in full bloom, complementing the rockery and clear water, creating a beautiful scene. Yet, these people were heartlessly uprooting the lotus flowers, which made Fatty scratch his head in confusion.

There were also many uprooted lotus flowers piled up by the pond. Someone on the bank was barefoot, gathering armfuls of lotus flowers and tossing them carelessly into a wheelbarrow.

Yao Shunyu trotted over to talk to the person on the bank. The butler noticed and quickly followed, pulling him back with a very harsh attitude. "What do you want to do? I told you, you're not allowed to wander around here!"

Yao Shunyu clutched his stomach with a pained expression. "I don't want to either, but I need to find a place to relieve myself. I have a bad stomach."

The butler had no choice but to tell him to hold on, they were almost there.

About a minute later, the group was led to a small building. The building had three stories and looked quaint from the outside. Two bare-chested men stood outside the door.

The butler stepped forward, smiled, and whispered a few words. The two men scanned Jiang Cheng and the others one by one, and then opened the door and let them in.

"I'll go in and report. You wait here and don't wander around," the butler said, turning and walking inside.

They were now in what seemed to be a reception room. Everyone found a seat. Yao Shunyu was no longer the pained person he was before. He was the first to find a sofa, sat down, and crossed his legs carelessly.

"Same as outside?" Zhang Shiwei, dressed in a suit and tie, was the first to break the silence, looking at Yao Shunyu, obviously talking to him.

Yao Shunyu glanced outside, making sure no one was watching. He lowered his legs, his arrogant demeanor lessened, and his voice dropped. "Yeah, same as outside. The servants in this house are all disguised Japanese."

"I ran over to talk to the two people picking lotus flowers, asking them where the restroom was, but they just looked at me without answering, their eyes full of vigilance."

"We've encountered three men in total since we came in, and not one of them has spoken. And did you notice the butler's attitude? Does he really need to be so humble in front of the servants?"

Listening to Yao Shunyu, Fatty's head was spinning. He had noticed something was wrong along the way, but what was this about Japanese people?

"The rickshaw pullers outside, and the people sitting at the tea stall drinking tea, are all disguised Japanese. This residence is completely under surveillance," Jiang Cheng said.

Li Shanru leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, and scoffed. "But these Japanese fools don't know how to disguise themselves at all. This time of day is relatively cool, which is a good time for rickshaw pullers to be working, but those two are actually parked and sleeping. And they have great skin. How could people who pull rickshaws outside all year round in the sun and wind look like that?"

"And those guys sitting at the tea stall, they're actually reading newspapers?" Li Shanru had a completely incomprehensible expression. "Judging by their clothes, they probably don't know where their next meal is coming from, but they still have the mind to buy newspapers to read? Besides... in this world, there probably aren't many manual laborers who can read."

"Mainly their feet," a very gentle voice said. Lin Qianqian raised her hand and tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "Their big toes are turned outward, and there's a gap between them and the second toe. This is caused by wearing wooden clogs for a long time, but Chinese people don't have this habit. Only Japanese people do."

"Also, it's strange how they're uprooting lotus flowers. Chinese people don't have this habit, but Japanese people do, because in their culture, they avoid lotus flowers, believing them to be funeral flowers."

"You can't give lotus flowers when visiting a patient, and greeting cards shouldn't have lotus flower patterns. In Japan, lotus flowers are only used for funerals," Lin Qianqian said softly, but every point was spot on.

He Ping, who used to be a personal bodyguard, leaned forward, his expression serious. "One more thing, these Japanese are not ordinary people. Judging from their physical fitness, eyes, and other details, they should be soldiers."

Li Bai sat upright, her white coat giving her a special air. "So... our mission target is under the strict surveillance of Japanese soldiers."

"Or maybe they're protecting them," Yao Shunyu said, narrowing his eyes.