Shanghai’s Mystery-Shrouded Underworld

Shanghai in 1931 lay under a heavy night sky, neon lights making the banks of the Huangpu River look like a dream. Salty river breezes swept through the docks, while the streets rang with crowds and rattling carts. In this city of extravagant pleasures, everyone wore a mask, hiding secrets or crimes behind it. Lin Zhengyan, a young detective working at a detective agency in the foreign concessions, was an outsider in this city. He always wore a slightly worn suit, and his gaze was cool and his manner composed. This slender man had come to Shanghai from the north. He was not one for talking, but when he did speak, he got straight to the heart of the matter. In police circles, Lin Zhengyan was known as the “Dream Interpreter.” He said that crimes were like confusing dreams, and the truth was the first ray of dawn when you woke. Lin Zhengyan’s agency was tucked away in a quiet lane in the French Concession. That evening, he had just finished sorting through an inheritance dispute and was about to relax with a cup of tea when an urgent knock sounded at the door.