A Lonely Hero’s Journey 孤舟 Episode 34

Haiyan was jealous, and when she learned that Gu Yizhong was still concerned about Xiao Ruotong, she angrily threatened to follow Gu Yizhong wherever he went. Gu Yizhong knew that the task was arduous, especially after witnessing Xie Wenchao's act of kidnapping, if that person was a colleague, he vowed to rescue him. So, he patiently persuaded Haiyan and arranged for Haimo and Junsheng to secretly move to the countryside with the help of the temple owner to ensure their safety, while he continued to perform his unfulfilled duties.

Gu Yizhong stepped into No. 90 again, accompanied by Captain Zhang, heading straight for the prison. However, Xie Wenchao's men were like an iron wall, using the deputy director's order as a shield and refused to let him go. Captain Zhang was furious, slapped him loudly, and solemnly declared that the authority of the director was unshakable. The iron door of the prison finally opened, and Gu Yizhong eagerly asked the prisoner for details. Just as Xie Wenchao entered, Gu Yizhong had an idea and staged a good show by using the identity of Chief of Staff Chen, an important minister under General Luo Wuqiang. Chief of Staff Chen understood the situation and pretended to be angry at Gu Yizhong in order to cover up the situation. After Xie Wenchao left, Gu Yizhong pretended to take Chief of Staff Chen to meet Masao Kondo, but in fact he drove to the countryside and secretly visited Chen Cang. Faced with Captain Zhang's confusion, Gu Yizhong revealed the secret that Japan's defeat was certain and advised him to make plans early. Captain Zhang heard this and vowed to follow Gu Yizhong to the death and plan the future together.

After sending Chief of Staff Chen away safely, Gu Yizhong dragged his tired body back to Gu Yuan. Just as he was about to take a rest, Xie Wenchao led the crowd to arrive unexpectedly. Xie Wenchao's eyes focused on Gu Yizhong's boots, and his words revealed his doubts about the Communist Party's escape. Gu Yizhong did not hide, admitted frankly, and deeply analyzed the international and domestic current situation, trying to awaken Xie Wenchao's conscience. However, Xie Wenchao's obsession remained and he insisted on taking Gu Yizhong away.

Seeing this, Gu Yizhong decided to take another dose of strong medicine and led Xie Wenchao to the clock. He gently opened the back cover and saw a letter of appointment signed by Dai Li himself. This sudden evidence left Xie Wenchao and Monk Zhang Er confused for a while, making it difficult to judge Gu Yizhong's true identity. In the end, he decided to imprison Gu Yizhong first to see the consequences.

In the prison, Gu Yizhong accidentally met a group of imprisoned New Fourth Army soldiers. He walked resolutely toward them and shared the exciting news that Japan was about to surrender. At this time of life and death, Gu Yizhong proposed the idea of ​​an uprising, but was met with skepticism by his comrades.

At the critical moment, Captain Zhang broke in with his men and a large number of weapons and responded to Gu Yizhong's call. After taking care of some of the guards, they quickly organized the uprising fighters to evacuate. However, when they approached Gate No. 90, they encountered a double interception by Xie Wenchao and Japanese soldiers. The two sides are at war with each other and are on the verge of breaking out.

At this critical moment, the shocking news that the Japanese Emperor announced unconditional surrender came on the radio. The Japanese soldiers suddenly lost their morale, threw away their guns and armor, and wailed endlessly. At the same time, bursts of cheers and celebrations erupted in China. The horn of victory has sounded, and Gu Yizhong and the soldiers of the New Fourth Army went hand in hand to usher in this glorious moment that belongs to the whole nation.

Gu Yizhong was about to get ready and join Haimo, but unexpectedly several Japanese soldiers suddenly broke in and conveyed Kondo Masao's summons. During the meeting, they were shocked to learn that Kondo Masao wanted to commit suicide by caesarean section and asked Gu Yizhong to take over the role of intermediary. Gu Yizhong took the saber, with mixed feelings in his heart. The hatred of his country and his family welled up in his heart, and he almost wanted to kill Kondo first. However, reason finally prevailed, and he realized that the enemy should not be allowed to escape so easily.

Just as Kondo Masao was about to commit seppuku, something unexpected happened. Kondo actually held Gu Yizhong's hand tightly, and the two fell into a stalemate over the fight for the saber. At this time, Zhou Zhifei unexpectedly appeared, led the Kuomintang soldiers to subdue Kondo Masao, and announced that he would be escorted to Nanjing for trial.

Gu Yizhong suddenly realized that Zhou Zhifei had betrayed his faith and defected to the military commander. He claimed to be Dai Li's special envoy and the commander of the Suzhou Special Operations Group. He took over Suzhou in the name of the National Government and threatened to try Gu Yizhong, a "Han Jian", in the name of the people. After saying this, he ordered Gu Yizhong to be arrested. Facing this sudden change, Gu Yizhong's heart surged, but he also knew that he had fallen into many crises.