A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 1099 The Situation in Hong Kong

As the days went by, Tong Yujun received no further news of Sha Yanxiao, and Wu Mingqiang and Acheng were unable to find out anything even after asking around.

At first, Gui'er would eagerly ask every now and then, but later, knowing that they were in a difficult position, she gradually stopped asking.

But she always believed that Sha Yanxiao was safe and sound. He was the closest person to her in the world, her lover, and her only family.

As autumn approaches, pedestrians on the street are gradually wearing thicker clothes. Modern men are wearing tight-fitting woolen coats. Women are wearing woolen overcoats, while the more traditional wealthy merchants and middle class still prefer long gowns and mandarin jackets, though they add a layer of fur inside and still pay attention to being neatly ironed. However, the clothing of ordinary citizens and laborers is not so particular. The tailor shops on the street are not doing much business. Citizens prefer to buy old clothes for refurbishment rather than buy new clothes. Some dockworkers even use burlap sacks that have been slightly cut and trimmed to wrap themselves. Wu Mingqiang said that many people have redeemed the cotton quilts and cotton-padded clothes that the shop had previously pawned.

As the weather gets colder, the portions of food are gradually increasing, but Ah-Cheng complains that the government has started to implement quota controls on rice and sugar, requiring him to register with his identity card and wait in long lines every time he buys them.

"Luckily, Brother Qiang runs his own rice business, otherwise we probably wouldn't have enough to eat, as the quota for each person is too small."

“Of course, there are already signs of shortages. With the British mainland under German blockade, the supply of imported goods such as flour, sugar, and butter has been drastically reduced, and prices have skyrocketed. If prices continue to rise like this, I might earn as much money selling my rice here as I would from shipping it back to the mainland. At that point, I won’t even need to ship it anymore; I might as well just sell it here,” Wu Mingqiang said with a smile.

When Gui'er occasionally eats out, she notices that although Western restaurants in Central are still open, the portions of steak and bread have quietly shrunk, and butter has become a limited-supply luxury. Street food stalls and tea restaurants are still bustling with people, and wonton noodles and char siu rice are still signature dishes, but the meat filling in the wontons is getting less and less, and the noodles are mixed with more whole grains.

She sensed things were getting worse, and it all felt like a storm was about to break.

Moreover, along the border of the New Territories, British and Japanese patrols frequently confronted each other, creating a tense atmosphere. Japanese aircraft would occasionally fly over Hong Kong for reconnaissance flights, forcing the colonial government to frequently organize air defense drills. Citizens would panic and hide amidst the sirens, their fear growing daily.

Although these events are obvious to everyone, the Hong Kong British authorities strictly controlled anti-Japanese speech and activities, shutting down some newspapers that promoted resistance against Japan and prohibiting Chinese communities from holding large-scale anti-Japanese rallies. Even the Xingmin Daily was almost shut down, which angered Editor-in-Chief Zhao so much that he cursed and later spent a lot of money to bribe high-ranking officials to finally escape the wrath.

Even worse, due to pressure from Japan, Britain agreed to restrict Hong Kong's material aid to mainland China and closed some supply channels to the mainland, fearing it would become a pretext for Japanese attack. Even Wu Mingqiang's rice smuggling business was affected. He had no choice but to reduce the number of smuggling trips, from one ship every few days to two ships every half month. Moreover, it is said that the risk was much higher and the profit was greatly reduced.

However, the colonial government's compromise did not bring peace. Japanese espionage activities in Hong Kong became increasingly rampant. They disguised themselves as merchants and tourists to spy on the deployment of British troops, and drew maps of ports and military fortresses. They were so blatant that even passersby walked by without fear. Although these things were not reported in the newspapers, the public had already spread the word. However, everyone dared not speak out. It is said that in addition to spying, these people also formed an assassination organization, which included both Japanese and bribed traitors. Gui'er suspected that Chen Zhongyu was related to their assassination organization, but there was no evidence. Wu Mingqiang also repeatedly warned Gui'er not to risk her life.

On the other hand, social activities in the upper class did not completely stop. The horse races were still held, and the racecourse was crowded with people. Westerners in suits and wealthy Chinese businessmen in long gowns and mandarin jackets raised their glasses and chatted. However, the topics were no longer about romance, but about the war situation in Europe and the movements of the Japanese army. Laughter at the banquet became forced, and many people would suddenly fall silent while chatting, their eyes full of worry.

However, none of this worried Liu Lanfang, the rich girl. After Lin Peishan dropped out of school, somehow she became the central figure of the wealthy class's clique. She spent her days leading a group of rich male and female classmates to watch horse races, movies, or play mahjong. She continued to attend school as usual, but her grades were terrible. She also maintained contact with Gui'er, especially by borrowing her homework and notes.

Although Gui'er didn't want to lend the money and tried to keep her distance, she ultimately compromised because of her father's status as a traitor. She discovered that Liu Lanfang's identity wasn't unknown to everyone. At least a small group of classmates and teachers, such as Chen Muli, knew about it, because it was Chen Muli who advised Gui'er not to offend Liu Lanfang.

Although Liu Lanfang had tried to meet with Wu Mingqiang several times without success, she was still unwilling to give up. She would occasionally find excuses to go to the pawnshop to see him, and she would also secretly ask Gui'er, "Mr. Wu said that he has someone in his heart. Do you know who it is? He said that when he met Yu Hanwei, he did not want to let her down."

Gui'er had never heard of this before, so she shook her head in bewilderment and said, "Back in our hometown, Steward Wu was so capable that the manor made a special exception for him to live outside. I don't know much about his social interactions."

Liu Lanfang clicked her tongue in dissatisfaction and said, "Look at how badly the war is going on in the mainland now! My father's business in Shanghai has been affected and he can't make it through the country. He's asking around for help to take care of things. The other party is a weak woman. Even if she didn't die, she's probably already suffered all kinds of humiliation. She's not innocent. What's the point of Mr. Wu waiting for her?"

Gui'er was quite unhappy when she heard this and said, "If he gives up like this, doesn't that mean he's a heartless person?"

"That's true, but he hasn't been idle in Hong Kong either. I heard he's quite close to that prostitute, what's her name, Ru Meng. Men, all they talk about is deep affection, it's all bullshit. But Ru Meng is a third-rate prostitute after all, no matter how beautiful she is, there's no way he'd marry her, right?"

Gui'er was surprised that Liu Lanfang knew about Wu Mingqiang and Rumeng's affair. She felt that associating with prostitutes was not a respectable thing, and stammered, "I really don't know how this happened. Sigh. Although she is our housekeeper, she still has her own social life."