“I… I didn’t.”
The words were on the tip of Yu Ze Cheng’s tongue, but he still didn’t tell the truth. Instead, he stubbornly said, “Teacher, you know I haven’t gotten married. If I’m stuck with this record in my file, will I never get married? No, that’s not acceptable.”
Yu Ze Cheng continued, “And when I first arrived at Qingpu Class, you tricked me, saying that I couldn’t join the Military Unified Bureau unless I was married. I believed you, but the Bureau Chief’s order prohibits us from getting married during the war. Why did you lie to me?”
Looking at Yu Ze Cheng, Lü Zong Fang sighed. It seemed what Chen Han Wen said was true.
Lü Zong Fang knew who Yu Ze Cheng was dating, but why wouldn’t this silly boy just tell him Left Lan’s name? Look at her, she straightforwardly told the organization about Yu Ze Cheng.
This kid is still so green!
Lü Zong Fang liked Yu Ze Cheng, otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought him on this mission. He told Yu Ze Cheng, “Go on the mission. When it’s finished, maybe there’s a chance for your situation to change.”
The current Yu Ze Cheng wasn’t the same as the one at Qingpu Class. He didn’t believe a word of Lü Zong Fang’s empty promises. “Chance? What kind of chance? Are we going to win the war after completing this mission? You’re lying to me again.”
Lü Zong Fang asked directly, “You still claim you’re not in love? Do you care about what I say if you weren’t?”
“I didn’t… Never mind, let’s just go on the mission.”
Yu Ze Cheng couldn’t argue with Lü Zong Fang, who caught him red-handed about the fake record. On top of that, now that he was smitten, he dared not reveal anything. So he kept quiet and drove on.
Lü Zong Fang, sitting in the passenger seat, saw Yu Ze Cheng stop talking and looked at the street outside. However, another scene appeared in his mind:
Years ago, when Lü Zong Fang was still a tactics instructor at Qingpu Class, he received a note that said: Yu Ze Cheng can be developed as a party member. Don’t rush things. Just let him quietly infiltrate.
The note was signed with a skull mark…
Lü Zong Fang had been searching for the skull for eight years, but found nothing. In those eight years, it was as if he had disappeared. No news about him had ever reached Lü Zong Fang.
…
Arriving at the Military Unified Bureau, Chen Han Wen didn’t go anywhere else. He went straight to the confinement room.
Chen Han Wen’s confinement room was… special. He was frequently locked up in the confinement room, so he had specifically customized it for himself. It had a music box, a radio, a large sofa, and a Simmons bed…
In other words, Chen Han Wen was more comfortable in the confinement room than in his office.
He put down the soy milk and fried dough sticks, and there was a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
Soon, a greasy and slick head with an ever-present smile peeked through the open door. “Chief, are you busy?”
The visitor was Xu Zhong Yi, a major and the head of the Administration Section of the Military Unified Bureau’s General Affairs Department. He was one of Chen Han Wen’s loyal subordinates.
Xu Zhong Yi was no fool. He excelled in strategic intelligence, but he was always failing tactical training. He was seconds away from being defeated in both shooting and fighting. He had attended Qingpu Class, Linli Class, and Xi Xun Class, and he knew countless classmates, but he was never allowed to graduate. Later, when there was no other choice, his teacher found Chen Han Wen, who was then the head of Xi Xun Class. He gave Chen Han Wen two gold bars, and he graduated as a “special student” with great difficulty.
Later, Xu Zhong Yi arrived at the Military Unified Bureau and was brought by Chen Han Wen to the General Affairs Department. He helped Chen Han Wen handle some “small businesses” and thus gained the nickname “shop assistant” within the bureau.
Xu Zhong Yi was smooth, but quite loyal. Chen Han Wen had brought him up, and he was loyal to Chen Han Wen. Therefore, he became the head of the Administration Section. If Chen Han Wen wasn’t in the General Affairs Department, he would act as the deputy head of the department.
With Xu Zhong Yi’s personality, Chen Han Wen guessed that he would come back to him. He was not surprised to see him and waved him in. “Little assistant is here. Come, have you eaten? Have some with me.”
“Okay.”
Xu Zhong Yi walked in with two lunchboxes. One had five layers, clearly carefully prepared. “Yesterday, I heard that the boss was going to confine you. You’re not someone who causes trouble, so I went to the best Cantonese restaurant in Shancheng this morning and had them prepare a Cantonese feast for you. There’s porridge, buns, and everything you like.”
Chicken feet, soup buns, siu mai, tripe… and two bowls of seafood porridge. Xu Zhong Yi clearly intended to eat here.
With so much food, Chen Han Wen didn’t refuse. He liked to enjoy life, and he had a cheat code with him after transmigrating. It caused him to have a large appetite. In those days when he was a bodyguard for Chiang Kai-shek, he often ate with Chiang Kai-shek. Seeing Chen Han Wen’s capacity, Chiang Kai-shek sighed, “If my salary wasn’t high, I couldn’t afford to keep you.”
While eating, Xu Zhong Yi said to Chen Han Wen, “Chief, the goods from the five ships in Shanghai have arrived in Shancheng. We made at least this much.”
Xu Zhong Yi extended five fingers. Chen Han Wen understood immediately.
Five hundred thousand US dollars.
Not bad.
Because of Chen Han Wen, the Japanese in Shanghai didn’t dare to obstruct Chen Han Wen’s cargo ships. They were even worried that his cargo would be robbed by surrounding bandits and thieves, so they even escorted him with warships.
Xu Zhong Yi ate a popsicle and then said to Chen Han Wen, “Your name is known to the Japanese. They dare not trouble you. Our ships always go where they please, no matter the time. I went to the Plum Agency in Shanghai to see Ying Zu Zhen Zhao before the new year. He knew I was your man. He practically bowed to his crotch.”
“Good, good.”
Chen Han Wen nodded and told Xu Zhong Yi, “The Japanese are about to collapse. They won’t last another six months. Remind me then. Before they surrender, send someone to kill Ying Zu Zhen Zhao.”
The Plum Agency was a Japanese intelligence agency established in Shanghai. It was established on August 22, 1939, specifically to handle all matters related to Wang Jingwei. It was composed of personnel assigned by the Japanese Army, Navy, Foreign Ministry, House of Representatives, and South Manchuria Railway Investigative Department. Because the agency was located in a three-story building called “Plum Garden” in the Japanese community in Hongkou, Shanghai, it was called the “Plum Agency.”
Xu Zhong Yi grinned. “Okay!”
He admired Chen Han Wen’s ability to turn his back on people.
Chen Han Wen didn’t kill Ying Zu Zhen Zhao now because he was treating him like a dog, making him obedient… Anyway, if he killed Ying Zu Zhen Zhao, another person would take his place. It was better to raise him and kill him after he was useless.
Xu Zhong Yi suddenly remembered someone and asked Chen Han Wen, “Chief, do you remember a man named Tan Zhong Shu?”
Tan Zhong Shu?
Chen Han Wen’s heart skipped a beat. Was the Military Unified Bureau’s Eighth Division being established?
During the war, the Military Unified Bureau’s operations in Shanghai were established as separate departments, directly managed by Dai Li. Although it belonged to the bureau, it had the power to act independently without authorization. Now the Japanese were about to surrender. Dai Li must have heard something and was preparing to take control and limit the authority of local military unified stations. Shanghai, such an important city, would be a priority.
Chen Han Wen picked up a chicken foot, ate it, spit out the bone, took a sip of soy milk, and then said, “I know him. He was my schoolmate in Huangpu. He used to be in Yu Cheng Wan’s 57th Division. The Changde battle crippled the 57th Division, so he became a spy.”