4. Captain Kid
On July 22nd, the Northeast Navy once again dispatched the warships "Chenhai" and "Weihai" to attack Haizhou Bay. This time, I led two seaplanes in reconnaissance, successfully capturing the revolutionary army's transport ship "Sankiang" and seizing a large amount of military supplies. After this battle, the Great Marshal was even more impressed with me and awarded me a reward of two thousand pounds. I noticed that Captain Wang seemed a little jealous, but at the time I was young and impetuous and completely ignored other people's opinions; this mistake later cost me dearly.
On August 3rd, a major event occurred: the Shandong faction within the Northeast Fleet, which opposed Admiral Shen, actually sailed eight ships, including the "Haichen" and "Chaohe," out of port and declared a violent mutiny. Admiral Shen urgently telegraphed the air force to send planes to monitor the mutinous ships. Upon receiving the order, I immediately took off with Song Feihu in a seaplane and arrived outside Tsingtao port.
Admiral Shen's orders to me were: "Only demonstrate, no attack!" When I flew over the scene, good heavens! Eight rebel ships were lined up in a row on the sea, including two cruisers, one destroyer, two gunboats, one transport ship, and two gunboats, all with their guns pointed at Tsingtao Harbor. On the other side, the "Haichi," "Chenhai," and "Weihai" were confronting them, and many British and Japanese warships were also anchored in the harbor. I calculated that if the two sides really started fighting, half of China's warships would be destroyed. And if they accidentally hit foreign warships in the harbor, it might even trigger an international war.
I kept circling in the air, pondering how to solve this problem. Suddenly, an idea flashed through my mind, so I wiggled the wing to signal Song Feihu to pay attention. He immediately flew to my left to await my command. I gave him a hand gesture, which was the common way for aircraft without radio equipment to communicate.
When Song Feihu saw my hand gesture, he was stunned for a moment, then smiled knowingly, pulled away, turned around and flew in the opposite direction. When the two of them flew to the two ends of the rebel fleet, about two nautical miles apart, the two planes turned at the same time and rushed towards each other at high speed. When they were about to collide, they flipped in sync and passed each other with their backs to each other.
(Figure 2-4-2) Paul Draken flew his plane over the two opposing fleets, defusing the crisis.
This is my self-created "Swan Lake" choreography, one of the special skills I practice with Song Feihu every day in private. Although seaplanes are slow and their movements aren't very agile, it's still quite a sight when you have good teamwork. "Swan Lake" was a name Chang Hsueh-Liang gave us after seeing our performance, because he thought it really resembled the ballet Swan Lake!
As I flew over the mutineer ship, I could almost see the stunned expressions on the faces of the officers and men on board and hear the cheers and applause that followed. Encouraged, I pressed on, giving it my all. Song Feihu cooperated perfectly, and the two of us performed an aerial ballet on the battlefield where conflict was about to erupt. The band on the flagship "Haichi" even brought out their instruments to accompany us, instantly transforming the atmosphere from the grimness of the battlefield into something like a park on a Sunday afternoon.
The Northeast Naval Air Squadron's entertainment and demonstration had a calming and deterrent effect. Then, several small boats sailed out of Tsingtao harbor. Admiral Shen boarded the rebel ship and, with a speech, defused a crisis that could have resulted in mutual destruction. The Great Marshal was very pleased and ordered my promotion to colonel and battalion commander (I was only 20 years old at the time, so everyone in the squadron called me "Captain Kid"), awarded me a medal, and a bonus of five thousand pounds. The original commander Wang, who couldn't fly, had no choice but to step down and slink back to the army!
On my first day as commander of the naval air squadron, I received an American visitor to my office: Frank Walder Lilley II, a representative of Mobile Oil Company in Tsingtao, who had previously had business dealings with the Northeast Naval Air Squadron.
His purpose in coming was to tell me that he hoped the oil supply agreement he had reached with commander Wang in the past would not be changed due to Wang's departure.
"I won't worry about that. There's a contract, so just follow it," I replied.
"This... I mean that... it doesn't change either." Mr. Lili suddenly started to stammer.
"What's with all this 'this' and 'that'? I don't understand!"
"It's..." Mr. Lili said in a low voice, "It's your ten percent!"
"Oh! Is that so!"
I gave a noncommittal answer. To be honest, based on my social experience, I really don't know how to deal with this kind of thing, and I have too many new things to face and learn right now, so I simply don't have time to think about it.
"Captain Draken, it's quite remarkable that you became a battalion commander at such a young age. Judging from your appearance, you must not be married yet!" Mr. Lili said, trying to establish a friendly relationship. "It must be very boring for you to be alone in Tsingtao. How about this, please do me the honor of visiting my home this weekend."
I did indeed visit Mr. Lilley's home over the weekend. He had a son, and his wife was newly pregnant at the time, giving birth to their second son early the following year. However, I had already left Tsingtao by then. This second son of Mr. Lilley was James R. Lilley, who later became the U.S. Ambassador to China. Coincidentally, he had served as my contact while working at the CIA.
Living alone is indeed quite lonely. My adjutant often hinted that he could help arrange things, saying, "You're a high-ranking official now! You can have as many girls as you want. Why don't you let me go for you...?" But I didn't trust him, neither his motives nor his taste.
(Figure 2-4-4) Paul Draken first met Li Yunhe in front of a German restaurant in Tsingtao.
I asked her, "Would you like to come in for a meal?" She nodded. "You can't get in dressed like that. Here's what we'll do: I'll buy some and take you home to eat." Back at our lodgings, I found some clothes left behind by the women of Korniloff for her to wear. After she washed up and put on the clothes, she looked incredibly charming and alluring. We sat in the dining room eating the German food I had brought back and talked about her background. "My name is Li Yunhe. I went to primary school in my hometown of Zhucheng, Shandong. My father used to be a carpenter. After making some money, he now runs an inn. He is very fierce and often beats my mother and me, so we left home for Tiantsin..." I could tell she spoke with a slight Shandong accent, similar to some of the soldiers in the air force, but her expressive ability was excellent. "I love acting. A friend told me that the Shandong Experimental Theater in Jinan was recruiting students to learn acting. I applied, but they wouldn't accept me. I didn't want to go back to Tiantsin, so I had to come to Tsingtao to find my relatives. Now I can't find them and I've run out of money, so I'm homeless... If you, sir..." She lowered her head. "Call me Paul Dragon, or just Paul!" "Uncle Draken, if you're willing to take Yunhe in, Yunhe is willing to do anything for you, anything at all!"
(Figures 2-4-5) Li Yunhe, dressed in the clothes left behind by the women of Korniloff, twirls and dances, trying his best to seduce Paul in the hope of being kept.
I was surprised by her frankness and sincerely admired her willpower to fight for every possible opportunity to survive. I cupped her face in my hands; the girl's face had a delicate pinkish touch. I gently kissed her and carried her to the dining table. She automatically took off her top from her shoulders and pulled up her skirt to reveal her fair thighs. Then she wrapped her legs around my waist and thrust hard into my body. The thrusts were rhythmic, like waves. I realized that although she was young, she was very experienced.
"The fortune teller said I'm destined to be a prince consort, and that among the women in my life I'll have one princess and one queen..." I asked Yunhe, "I don't know if you're a princess or a queen?"
"I want to be queen!" Yunhe hugged me and said sweetly, "No! How can you have other princesses? I order them all to be beheaded!"
"Alright! Alright! Your Majesty, what are your orders?" I said, deliberately bowing.
"Then..." Yunhe said, her cheeks flushing a rosy hue, "Let's do it one more time!"
"Your servant obeys!" This time I carried her to bed and let her be queen all night long.
From then on, I kept Li Yunhe at home. Every time I came home from work at the base, she would greet me with a smile at the door. As soon as I entered, she would kiss me passionately and ask for sex. My adjutant and orderly were very tactful; they would quietly close the door and go out to find their own fun. We lived a happy life as a young married couple like this, and Mr. M's intelligence work and further studies at the Royal Naval College were long forgotten.
September 27th was my birthday. I remember it was a Tuesday. Yunhe said he had a surprise for me when I got home, but just as I was about to leave after get off work, Song Feihu stormed into the office, slammed the door shut, and said to me, "Reporting, Captain, something terrible has happened! My friend who works at the Marshal's mansion told me that Captain Wang went to the Marshal today to secretly report that you accepted kickbacks from oil merchants. The Marshal is furious and has already sent his guards to arrest you. You'd better run away quickly!"
"Is that true? He's taking kickbacks himself and thinks everyone else is doing the same?"
"It must be Captain Wang who's jealous of your favor with the Marshal and spoke ill of you. Actually, I don't want to fight the civil war for the Marshal anymore; I want to leave with the Captain!"
"Okay! I've already made arrangements. First, go to the manager of Taikoo Shipping Company to get the tickets, and then go to the fishermen's house by the sea to rent a sampan."
I gave Song Feihu detailed instructions. In fact, I had already made arrangements after my secret meeting with Mr. M in Peking. We had a good relationship with the manager of the shipping company, and I had already bought the tickets and left them with him. The sampan was to avoid being caught at the pier and instead board the ship at sea.
Song Feihu said, "Why don't we escape by plane? Wouldn't that be faster?"
I shook my head and said, "No! This is a personal matter; we cannot steal state property because of it!"
Song Feihu asked, puzzled, "They've come to your door to arrest you, what's the point of talking about principles? Are all British people like this?"
"Flying a plane is too conspicuous. Ignition the engine will attract a large number of guards, and we might even be chased by the Air Force Team. It's safer to take a British ship. Once you're on board, they can't do anything to you." I checked my watch and urged him, "Hurry up! Otherwise, it will be too late! I'm going to pick up Yunhe now. We'll meet at the small boat on the beach."
After quickly packing up my belongings in the office, I rushed back to pick up Yunhe. Unexpectedly, before I even got home, I saw that the soldiers had already surrounded my residence. I had no choice but to give up and head to the seaside instead.
I saw a figure by a sampan and thought it was Song Feihu. But when I got closer, I realized it was the Young Marshal Chang Hsueh-Liang! He took out an exquisite wooden box and handed it to me. When I opened it, I found a Mauser pistol inside. The steel material emitted a cold blue light under the moonlight. The gun was engraved with a flying dragon pattern and the words "Respectfully presented by Hanching".
I didn't understand his intention, but the thought of the Mauser C96 pistols used by the guards at the execution of Korniloff immediately cast a shadow over my mind. Chang Hsueh-Liang probably sensed my thoughts and said, "These are Mauser C96 pistols that our Tagu Arsenal has just successfully copied. They were originally intended to be delivered to your residence tomorrow as a 20th birthday present, but since you're traveling tonight, I had no choice but to bring them here to give to you!
(Figure 2-4-6) Chang Hsueh-Liang rushed to the seaside to see Paul Draken off and presented him with a birthday gift: a Mauser pistol made by the Tagu Arsenal.
"Hanching, I..." My eyes welled up with tears.
"Hurry up! Otherwise it will be too late." The young marshal shook my hand and said, "Until we meet again!" Then he turned and left, his figure disappearing into the darkness.
Just then, another figure emerged from the roadside. I raised my pistol, pointed it at him, and whispered, "Who's there?"
"It's me! Song Feihu!"
"Why are you only arriving now? Did you get the tickets?"
"Got it! Wait, where's Yunhe?"
"It's too late, the spearmen have already surrounded my house! Let's get out of here!"
We boarded a sampan, and the boatman rowed it to the outskirts of Tsingtao Port. There, we saw a large Swire Shipping Company vessel anchored on the sea, its deck brightly lit. As the sampan drew closer, looking up, the towering hull seemed like a black wall standing before us. The shipping company manager had already informed the British captain. After we climbed the gangway from the sampan onto the deck, a whistle sounded, and the ship turned and headed south.
(Figure 2-4-7) Paul Draken and Song Feihu boarded a sampan and escaped from Tsingtao by taking a sea liner.
"Yunhe, I'm leaving. I'm sorry I can't take you with me..."
As the lights of Tsingtao gradually faded into the distance, Song Feihu and I sailing to Hong Kong for our lives. Later, I heard that Li Yunhe arrived in Shanghai in 1933 and transformed into a movie star, using the stage name "Lan Ping".
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(Figure 2-4-3) When Paul Draken took office, Frank Waldley II, the representative of Mobil Oil Company in Tsingtao, visited.
