The night was deep. At the Xuzhou Yunlong Lake construction site, the number of night shift personnel was small as usual, but the roar of machinery was much louder than during the day. Digging the lake was important work, but the core task was the 4,000-meter-long "Bayi" (August 1st) Dyke. It was impossible to build a concrete dyke at this stage, so the headquarters adopted a very traditional rammed earth plan. The soil was sourced locally; the mud dug from Yunlong Lake was dried and used to build the dyke.

Just as mechanical wells pumped groundwater and steam locomotives pulled plows for ground preparation, a large number of new rubber-tired flatbed carts were used for short-distance transport, while a temporary loop railway handled the bulk of the transportation work. Ramming the earth didn't rely solely on manpower either; instead, steam engines pulled massive rollers to pre-compress the soil. The dyke was 4,000 meters long and divided into multiple sections. Steam engines slowly dragged rollers taller than a man, flattening the fresh layer of soil piled onto the already compacted dyke base.

The skeleton of the giant roller was steel, packed tight with wooden blocks to form a circular body, and then bound layer by layer with thick hemp rope. Finally, the inside of the skeleton was filled with iron blocks. The entire roller weighed thousands of *jin*, impossible to move by human or animal power alone. Simple gearboxes manufactured in the base area used different gear ratios to convert torque, allowing these massive beasts weighing thousands of *jin* to be slowly dragged along. After this preparation during the night, countless laborers would use wooden mallets during the day to smash the soil even more solidly, compacting it until not even a small knife could poke into it.

The center of the giant roller was stuffed as tight as possible with wood and iron, but when it moved, the tiny gaps between the assembled parts still emitted a tooth-aching "creak" sound. The cables wrapped around the outermost layer were as thick as a wrist, taut from bearing the immense force. Engineering personnel, wearing protective steel helmets and thick cotton coats, followed closely behind the rollers carrying gas lamps, intently observing the condition of the cables.

When they first started attempting this, the cables used for these giant rollers weren't thick enough, leading to snapping accidents. A comrade had been whipped by a flying cable, breaking three ribs, though fortunately, no lives were lost. So the engineering department immediately switched to new, thicker cables and increased observation to prevent similar industrial accidents.

Under the illumination of hundreds of high-hanging gas lamps, the entire construction site was brightly lit compared to the pitch-black Xuzhou city. On the periphery, patrol teams walked back and forth occasionally. But compared to the massive construction site covering over a dozen square kilometers, these patrols seemed insignificant.

Even with gas lamps and patrols, light and guards couldn't manage every corner. In the latter half of the night, after a patrol team passed, several figures suddenly slipped into the construction site. They avoided the brightly lit areas where machinery was working intensely. Many areas were just excavation sites; after plowing the ground, there was no one guarding them, nor was there any need to. These figures used the cover of darkness and the plowed ditches to avoid the mechanical work zones, creeping towards the material storage area where the lights were less dense.

The material storage area was a key defense point. The figures stopped far away in a newly dug ditch on the ground.

"Big Brother, these people are watching very closely. Should we wait a bit longer or what?" one of the guys asked in a low voice.

The one called Big Brother poked his head out of the ditch to carefully watch the guards. After a long time, he pulled his head back and couldn't help but curse, "The richer they are, the less conscience they have. With so much stuff, they won't even let us take a little. Why watch it so tight!"

This theory, peculiar to thieves, received immediate support from the others. Someone immediately chimed in, "Exactly! They make everyone work their lives away for them, but they watch even the carrying poles and baskets so closely."

These hiding fellows didn't know that they had already been spotted by the people in the watchtower. A patrol team had long since signaled the post with flashlights. The reason the guard team hadn't acted was that they were preparing to wait and see if any other fellows would come over, intending to catch them all in one net. Startling the snake too early was not a good thing.

The comrades in the watchtower carefully watched for signals from the various patrol directions while rubbing their cheeks, which were frozen cold. "Squad leader, why do these little thieves refuse to work properly? If they worked honestly on the construction site, they wouldn't earn any less than we do."

Mobilizing the local people of Xuzhou to participate in labor, the People's Party paid considerable remuneration. solely in terms of equal pay for equal work, the income of the masses was probably even a bit more than what the soldiers received. These days, attempted thefts were as numerous as ox hairs, but actual successful cases were negligible. Because the People's Party placed the utmost importance on systems, Chen Ke believed that "Systems defeat everything!" The engineering personnel knew very well that since these commoners came to participate in labor to get paid, if the system wasn't perfect, large-scale loss of materials would be inevitable. Since the People's Party did not yet intend to carry out large-scale arrests and sentencing—strong control measures—against ordinary commoners, then to protect the People's Party's own interests and the interests of the vast number of laborers, it was necessary to treat everyone as a potential thief in the system's design.

Taking earth excavation as an example, the People's Party did not allow commoners to bring their own tools. Not when entering, and not when leaving. Based on the concepts of "execution without instruction is cruelty" and "having a beginning and an end," strict promotion of the rules was conducted for every laborer before entry. At the end of every shift, to receive payment, one had to hand over the receipt along with the tools. At worst, there were issues with broken tools, but not many theft incidents occurred.

For those who were stubborn and tried to steal during the day, arrests were made without leniency. After being caught, they were publicly tried in the court beside the construction site, generally sentenced to fifteen days of labor reform. Under the surveillance of the Public Security Department, they performed forced labor, with wages at only 70% of normal labor. These trials became a form of entertainment for the masses during breaks; the trial grounds were always surrounded by a sea of people, with bursts of laughter and curses ringing out.

This tough approach actually built a very good reputation among the masses. These dishonest fellows didn't just start being dishonest now; they weren't good birds in their daily lives either. Seeing them arrested and forced to work, the masses actually felt quite happy.

Some of the undyingly thief-hearted fellows, seeing they couldn't succeed during the day, switched strategies, changing from fishing in troubled waters to direct theft. The People's Party implemented key point monitoring, and the fellows with this kind of guts were caught one after another. Arrest experience also became increasingly rich.

Just like in the beginning, catching a team of small thieves could mobilize almost the entire guard team, often affecting the normal labor order. Now, the guard team would start a comprehensive arrest during the darkest time before dawn. By the time all these fellows were caught, the sky would be bright, perfectly timed not to delay the day's normal work.

The situation this time was likely the same. Even if the patrol team saw suspicious characters, they wouldn't act immediately; they just used flashlights to send messages. After the various watchtowers and sentry posts confirmed they had tracked those chicken-stealing, dog-robber types, they would also communicate via flashlight. If they temporarily lost the trail, they would have the patrol team search again. The patrols seemed lax, but it actually gave the feeling of "Heaven's net is wide, coarse but letting nothing slip through." Even so, comrades with relatively rich experience still felt things were a bit different from usual.

From the emphasis on weapon cleaning in the watchtowers to the more vigorous figures of the patrol teams, and the abnormal calmness in some areas of the site... all these details made the dutiful soldiers in the watchtower feel something was wrong. A communications officer came to make contact, flashing the night's password signal—three long, three short—from below the tower. The comrades in the tower let him climb up.

"There might be a bandit attack tonight. The commander requests everyone to be vigilant."

The intelligence from the communicator made the comrades not just vigilant, but immediately tense. "How many bandits are coming to loot?"

"We've already arranged troops on the periphery; it's unlikely the battle will spill over to the material storage area. But it's better to be careful. If anyone else rushes towards the material storage area, the commander orders everyone to return fire immediately. Enemies are absolutely not allowed to approach."

"Yes!" The comrades all roused their spirits.

"Also, don't act rashly and startle the snake. If no fighting occurs, don't aim guns outside, and don't frequently stick your bodies out," the communicator delivered the final requirement.

For the half-hour after the communicator left, the comrades in the watchtower were in a state of high excitement. They pretended to be the same as in the first half of the night according to regulations. But everyone leaned tightly against the wooden walls of the tower, occasionally glancing out the window. They both hoped the battle would start and hoped it wouldn't.

It wasn't until a gunshot suddenly rang out in the distance, followed by several flares being launched into the sky. If the gas lamps on the construction site could be considered brilliantly lit, the blinding light of the flares gave the comrades in the tower the illusion that it was day. Just a moment later, gunshots erupted from the southwest. It seemed the comrades in the material storage area had received orders; even with such intense fighting sounds, still no one appeared.

Just at this moment, those few petty thieves who thought they had escaped the watchtower's surveillance crept out from their hiding place. These few were truly audacious; not only did they not scatter and flee, but they recklessly crept towards the material storage area regardless of life or death. They actually wanted to fish in troubled waters.

No order was needed anymore. The comrades in the watchtower propped their rifles on the window sills, pulled the bolts, and aimed at those fellows.

Just as taught in training class, hitting with the first shot was extremely difficult. The three comrades in the tower fired simultaneously, but only hit one person. The effect of training showed itself then: without the slightest hesitation or regret, the three comrades continued firing at their targets. After three rounds of shooting, all four men who rushed out were knocked to the ground.

Ignoring the screams of the four who had been hit, the comrades' gun muzzles all turned towards the position they had rushed out from. Everyone had seen clearly earlier that there were five people hiding there, which meant there was still one guy left behind.

The waiting time was agonizing. It was unclear if a long time had passed or merely a moment. Holding their breath and staring wordlessly at the mound of earth, ready at any moment to spot the enemy moving, created a massive illusion in the perception of time. Following their daily training, the comrades counted silently in their hearts. Just as they counted to over 300, the cunning guy left behind finally poked his head out to look. This immediately calmed the comrades' hearts significantly. That guy hadn't run away.

Everyone held their breath and waited. That guy poked his head out several times in succession, then tried to slowly crawl away along the ditch. He thought his body could hide inside the ditch, but from the high vantage point of the watchtower, his body was completely exposed under the muzzles. The three comrades each fired a shot. The target area was so large that they could even see the small holes explode open as the bullets penetrated his cotton coat. The guy's body twitched a few times, then lay motionless in the ditch.

Seeing that they had finally finished off those five fellows, the comrades in the watchtower felt their taut nerves suddenly relax. Everyone gasped for air, and one comrade's legs even went soft, causing him to sit down on the wooden floor. The excitement raced through their nerves like electric current; everyone was trembling all over, wanting to go see their results, yet seemingly held back by a huge resistance that prevented them from leaning out to look.

Before the sky turned bright, the gunfire on the construction site completely ceased. The guard troops checked the fellows who had been shot down. For those who weren't dead, military doctors in white coats immediately gave treatment.

Commanding this operation was the People's Internal Affairs Committee. The person in charge was Liu Yongsheng, who had once participated in the Political Department meeting. After inspecting the battlefield, Liu Yongsheng took a middle-aged man in civilian clothes into a temporary tent on the site. After the two sat down, Liu Yongsheng spoke unhurriedly, "Mr. Ren Jizhou, thank you for providing us with the news about these bandits. This has been a huge help to us."

Ren Jizhou replied somewhat nervously, "I only learned of their news by chance. I was afraid your army wouldn't believe me. Or think I was in cahoots with them."

Liu Yongsheng chuckled a few times. "We strive not to wrong anyone. These people merely stayed at Mr. Ren's inn. If we directly linked Mr. Ren to these bandits just because of that without investigation, that would be unreasonable. Mr. Ren, rest assured, our People's Party strives to prevent such things from happening."

Hearing Liu Yongsheng's words, Ren Jizhou's expression relaxed. He nodded repeatedly, "I don't seek any reward; I only ask not to be implicated. With Comrade Liu saying this, I am at ease."

"You can truly be at ease about this matter; we will absolutely not wrong anyone," Liu Yongsheng comforted.

After speaking, Liu Yongsheng poured a cup of water for Ren Jizhou. Seeing Ren Jizhou holding the cup and bowing in gratitude, Liu Yongsheng urged, "Mr. Ren, drink some water to calm your nerves first. After this whole night, you must be tired."

Since Liu Yongsheng was so polite, even though the cup contained only plain water, Ren Jizhou lifted it and drank most of it in one breath. Just as he put down the cup, he heard Liu Yongsheng say, "Mr. Ren, I have something I want to ask you. As a high-level spy for Beiyang, I wonder how many ocean dollars you get a month?"

If these words had been spoken in an interrogating tone, or shouted while slamming the table, they might have given a sense of intimidation. But when Liu Yongsheng said them unhurriedly, in an extremely ordinary tone, Ren Jizhou initially couldn't figure out if Liu Yongsheng was joking. The muscles on his face twitched a few times, and then he said with a trembling voice, "Comrade Liu, I really am not in the same gang as those bandits."

Just as he finished saying this, the two comrades from the People's Internal Affairs Committee standing behind Ren Jizhou had already pounced, twisted Ren Jizhou's arms behind his back, and handcuffed him. But that was all. After handcuffing Ren Jizhou, the two released his arms and took a step back.

Ren Jizhou tried to stand up to argue, so the two behind him had to step forward again and press him back into the chair.

Only after Ren Jizhou finished shouting his grievances did Liu Yongsheng speak again, still unhurriedly. "I stand by what I said. I don't believe you have any collusion with the bandits. We have investigated that. However, you *are* a Beiyang spy; we have investigated that too. Your real name isn't Ren Jizhou; it's Wang Jizhou. You are a distant relative of Wang Shizhen. Before the Manchu Qing fell, Wang Shizhen sent you to Xuzhou to gather intelligence on our People's Party. You found an opportunity to take over a shop and became an innkeeper. From that time on, you have been acting as a secret agent for Beiyang."

Hearing Liu Yongsheng say this, Ren Jizhou cried out that he was wrongly accused.

Seeing Ren Jizhou's panicked expression and resolute denial, Liu Yongsheng laughed with some helplessness, "Hehe, Mr. Ren. Do you know? Our People's Party opposes torture to extract confessions. Why? Because we have conducted scientific research, and intelligence obtained through torture is often just what the interrogators want to force the victim to admit. What we want to hear is the truth."

At the mention of torture, Ren Jizhou's face turned pale. He had been an innkeeper for a long time and dealt with many people; he knew that after this initial denial, followed by the word "but," everything would change.

Sure enough, Liu Yongsheng continued, "But, I think we still have to beat you. Why? Because some people think that since we talk about science and don't approve of torture, they feel they don't have to suffer physical pain and thus don't have to tell us the truth. So, regarding my personal interrogation habit... I won't ask you any questions first; I'll apply torture. I'll watch your tolerance for pain while beating you, seeing how to beat you to make it hurt the most and be the most unbearable. Once we've gone through this procedure, I believe you won't have any misunderstandings. Thinking that besides asking questions, we won't do anything else."

Although it was winter, Ren Jizhou felt cold sweat breaking out on his back. If Liu Yongsheng had brandished a leather whip or threatened him with a ferocious face, it wouldn't have caused such immense psychological pressure. But Liu Yongsheng talked about science and reason, and what he said wasn't nonsense. Not only that, Liu Yongsheng even hoped Ren Jizhou could understand the reason for the torture himself. This actually truly terrified Ren Jizhou.

Unknowingly, Ren Jizhou suddenly found his forehead covered in sweat. If Liu Yongsheng's purpose in using torture was just to make Ren Jizhou confess something, Ren Jizhou could have made up some lies. But this time, the torture didn't seek to make him say anything at all; it was just a round of "killer sticks" (intimidation beating). So what even more brutal methods were waiting for Ren Jizhou after the beating?

The fear caused by imagination was even more terrifying than the pain itself. Just as Ren Jizhou was sweating profusely and at a loss for what to do, Liu Yongsheng asked leisurely, "So, Mr. Ren, do you have any thoughts?"

Ren Jizhou subconsciously said, "I really am not a spy. I said from the start, I am not a spy."

"Sigh!" Liu Yongsheng sighed. "Mr. Ren, if you weren't a spy, you would have been trying to prove yourself just now. The fact that you say this now only means you are considering whether or not to admit you are a spy. So, let's wait until after the beating to ask questions."