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Chapter 1420 [The Ksitigarbha Project]

Inside the safe house in the Jinling District of the Military Intelligence Bureau, Zuo Chong listened to Wu Chunyang's report on Gui Youguang's capture. His expression turned serious, and he immediately asked Wu Chunyang to confirm the information again.

"You mean, Gui Youguang was worried that Chen Gongshu would reveal the assassination mission to Li Shiqun, so he deliberately revealed a flaw and was arrested, intending to provoke conflict between Li Shiqun and the Japanese by framing Gangcun?"

“Yes, Vice-Captain.” Wu Chunyang replied with his head down, “You Guang had the backup intelligence network in Shanghai report the plan. By the time I received the news and wanted to stop it, it was too late.”

To be honest, he didn't expect Gui Youguang to be so bold. Even if Li Shiqun believed that Gangcun was a mole in the Military Intelligence Bureau, Gui Youguang would still have to undergo torture before he could gain their trust.

Listening to Wu Chunyang's explanation, Zuo Zhong reviewed the plan in his mind and finally shook his head slightly.

"That's not enough. The Japanese aren't stupid. Even if Li Shiqun believes Gui Youguang and secretly investigates or reports Gangcun, the Japanese won't easily eliminate him."

Wu Chunyang looked puzzled and quickly added, "Vice-Captain, Youguang's plan is very meticulous. When he is monitoring the village of No. 76, I will create the illusion that he is meeting with us and exchanging intelligence, and take photos."

Zuo Zhong shook his head again. This was the most common tactic to sow discord. The Japanese might suspect Li Shiqun because of this, but it was still a long way from actually killing him.

In later films and television dramas, underground Communist Party members often used this method to take photos to set traps for traitors, but reality was not so simple.

The enemy is not an NPC; they won't act entirely according to your plan. It's unrealistic to think you can eliminate the target based on just a few photos. You have to push them from multiple angles, like toppling dominoes.

After pondering for a long time, Zuo Zhong issued two orders: "Notify the Listening Team to prepare to execute the [Earth Treasury Plan]. We must go all out, or the plan will fail."

"Tell Tongsuo not to try to approach or rescue Gui Youguang. Li Shiqun may use Youguang as bait to lure out the mole inside No. 76."

Wu Chunyang was shocked to hear this. The "Earth Treasury Plan" was a destructive operation, and if it were carried out, the Military Intelligence Bureau would suffer enormous losses.

He instinctively advised, "Vice-Sir, shouldn't we be more cautious? Perhaps there are other options."

Zuo Chong waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "No need. Anyway, No. 76 won't exist for long. Implementing the Ksitigarbha Project is only a matter of time. It's just a little earlier now."

Wu Chunyang didn't understand what he meant, but he nodded nonetheless and ordered his men to contact the Listening Team and Tongsuo as instructed.

Seeing him walk out of the room, Zuo Chong gently patted the armrest of the chair. If he remembered correctly, No. 76 would be merged into the Political Security Bureau of the puppet government's Wei Hui this year.

This incident has nothing to do with whether Li Shiqun lives or dies. Now, the 76th Division is becoming too powerful to be controlled, and the Japanese cannot allow it to grow too strong—if a dog is too fierce, it will bite its owner.

With the imminent disbandment of No. 76, the value of its intelligence has plummeted. It's a bit of a pity to start the "Earth Treasury Project" at this time, but it's worth it to get rid of Li Shiqun, not to mention that it can also rescue the bald man.

On the other hand, Li Shiqun was somewhat skeptical when he learned that Gangcun, the captain of the Nanjing Military Police, was a mole in the Military Intelligence Bureau.

It wasn't that he trusted Okamura, but rather that Okamura's work experience didn't overlap with the Military Intelligence Bureau's (MIB) operational scope.

Before becoming the captain of the Nanjing Military Police, Okamura had served in Japan for a long time and had no knowledge of the Republic of China or even the mainland.

If this point cannot be explained clearly, Gui Youguang is lying. Thinking of this, Li Shiqun's gaze gradually turned hostile.

"Mr. Gui, don't treat me like a fool. Captain Gangcun only arrived in Nanjing last year. How did you manage to cooperate?"

Gui Youguang scoffed and retorted, "Director Li, you don't think that the Military Intelligence Bureau only has one mole within Japan, do you? Okamura is just one of them. Before him, there were naturally other moles providing intelligence to the Military Intelligence Bureau."

Li Shiqun's face turned ashen, but then he realized there was nothing wrong with what he said, so he quickly pressed for the identities of the other moles, only to be met with another cold laugh and sarcasm from Gui Youguang.

"Alright, do you really think I'm some greenhorn who just started out? If I reveal all the secrets, I'm afraid I'll be executed tomorrow."

"You can check whether what I said is true or false first, and then we can talk about the rest. Right now, I need a clean cell, is that alright?"

Faced with this request, Li Shiqun squinted at Gui Youguang, neither agreeing nor refusing. After thinking for a moment, he asked a new question.

"What is your purpose in meeting with Chen Gongshu? Don't try to fool me. He is currently in the 76th Division. If I find out you are not being honest, you know the consequences."

Gui Youguang did not hesitate and frankly stated that his goal this time was to assassinate the other party, but he did not mention the method of assassination.

This was also a test, to see if Chen Gongshu would confess everything. If Chen Gongshu was determined to be a traitor, then another name would be added to the Kuomintang's list of targets.

Upon hearing this, Li Shiqun was utterly dismayed. The Military Intelligence Bureau had actually set its sights on him. Thinking of his colleagues who had died at the hands of the Military Intelligence Bureau, he suddenly felt extremely uneasy.

"How are you planning the assassination? Do you have any accomplices in 76? Tell me now!"

As soon as Li Shiqun shouted these words, Gui Youguang immediately made a judgment: it seemed that Chen Gongshu had not completely defected to the enemy, which made things easier.

Based on the circumstances of the rendezvous, Gui Youguang casually replied, "Our first rendezvous was interrupted by gunfire before we could even come up with a specific plan." "As for whether there are any of our people in 76, I'll say it again: we'll talk about that after you've investigated Gangcun."

Seeing that Gui Youguang was unresponsive, Li Shiqun ordered his men to take him back to the detention center and specially arranged a clean cell for him.

After doing all this, Li Shiqun, feeling a chill down his spine, summoned his trusted confidant Wu Sibao and ordered the guard brigade to send out its most elite agents to protect him.

His exact words were: "Whether I'm going to the outhouse or with a young woman, the guards must be within five steps. In case of an assassination attempt, the guards need to appear immediately."

Wu Sibao patted his chest and guaranteed that as long as the Kuomintang agents dared to come, the guard brigade would definitely teach those traitors a profound lesson.

Although he suspected the guy was bragging, Li Shiqun still pretended to be satisfied and patted Wu Sibao on the shoulder before heading to the witness protection room on the top floor.

After climbing several flights of stairs and passing through a heavy iron gate, Li Shiqun met Chen Gongshu, who was sitting blankly by the bed.

Since his confession, Chen Gongshu has been living under protective housing here. The room contains only a bed and has no windows. His meals are delivered by a designated person every day, cutting off all contact between him and the outside world.

"Cough cough."

Li Shiqun cleared his throat, strode into the room, and when he saw Chen Gongshu get up, he raised his hand and pressed it down.

"Sit down, sit down. We're all family here, no need to be so polite. I've come today to tell you something. Brother Gongshu, you've done a great service this time."

Chen Gongshu was completely bewildered. When had he ever performed meritorious service? He had been missing for so long; the important personnel in the Shanghai district should have evacuated long ago.

Seeing the doubt on his face, Li Shiqun smiled: "Thanks to your help, we were able to capture Captain Gui Youguang of your bureau. Isn't that a great achievement?"

With a thunderous roar, Chen Gongshu felt as if he had been struck by lightning, his head buzzing. Why had Gui Youguang been arrested?
According to the plan, the other party should immediately cut off all contact with the Shanghai area after he lost contact, and No. 76 could at most find that dead mailbox.

The more Chen Gongshu thought about it, the more confused he became. He was on the verge of tears. Once Gui Youguang was arrested, his defection became an undeniable fact, and the Kuomintang agents might already be on their way to punish him.

"Brother Gongshu?"

He heard a voice calling his name and slowly turned his head, only to see Li Shiqun's large face right in front of him.

"Station Chief Chen, are you too happy? You didn't even hear Li calling you?"

Li Shiqun's words completely broke Chen Gongshu's composure. "Happy my ass! You bunch of traitors have ruined me! Let's all just wait to die!"

No one knew better than him how ruthless Zuo Zhong was. Even if he stayed in the 76th Division, or even if he hid in the Japanese headquarters or the Hase Agency, the headquarters personnel would have a way to kill him.

But when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Chen Gongshu forced a smile: "Yes, I'm so happy."

Li Shiqun knew exactly what he was thinking, so he deliberately put on the appearance of a caring older brother and congratulated him, saying, "This is just the beginning. Captain Gui is a smart man who knows when to stop. Once we have wiped out all the Kuomintang agents in the Nationalist-controlled areas, I will personally take you two to Nanjing to meet Mr. Ji."

Chen Gongshu's knees buckled. Gui Youguang had also defected to the enemy! How could the other party defect?! He was Zuo Zhong's confidant, the top operative of the Military Intelligence Bureau!

Taking advantage of Chen Gongshu's mental confusion, Li Shiqun suddenly shouted angrily: "Captain Gui said you were planning to assassinate me, and that there was an inside agent in the 76th Division. Why didn't you say this before!"

Huh? Chen Gongshu sensed something was wrong. Gui Youguang hadn't mentioned having an inside man during the rendezvous, so what Li Shiqun had just said was clearly not true, or at least part of it was false.

He thought for a moment, then stammered, "Director Li, I, I..."

"What do you mean, 'you'?! Confess honestly, I know everything. I'm only asking you to give you a chance." Li Shiqun glared at him.

This was practically a blatant attempt to cover up his mistake, so Chen Gongshu breathed a sigh of relief and continued on the topic.

"Yes, I confessed. Headquarters did have a plan to assassinate Director Li, but I really didn't know about the inside man. Captain Gui didn't mention it to me either."

Regardless of the back-and-forth between Chen Gongshu and Li Shiqun, Tong Suo received the latest instructions from Jinling: cease contact, rescue Gui Youguang, and be prepared to evacuate Jisifeier Road at any time.

After lighting the secret letter, Tong Suo stared thoughtfully at the leaping flames. The vice-captain seemed to be playing a grand game of chess, but it was unclear where the pieces would be placed.

Returning to No. 76, the traitors were overjoyed at the capture of two important Kuomintang agents, all calculating how much reward they could get. No one noticed a truck arriving at the gate of the villa across the street.

The servants of the mansion pushed open the iron gate to let the truck in. As the large black iron gate slowly closed, four burly men unloaded several large wooden crates from the truck and carried them into the house.

The Ksitigarbha Project has been officially launched.