cicada

Chapter 1425 Face Issues
"Congratulations, teacher."

In the speeding car, Zuo Zhong smiled and said to Dai Chunfeng beside him.

Thanks to his contributions in Operation Ksitigarbha, Lao Dai was promoted to a higher rank, and his original gold-background two-star collar insignia was replaced with a gold-background three-star insignia.

Dai Chunfeng smiled and waved his hand: "Shen Zhong, you've gone to a lot of trouble. In the end, it's because your teacher is benefiting from your position as a student. Besides, in military service, there's no distinction between high and low ranks."

Upon hearing this, Zuo Zhong thought to himself: "I don't believe your nonsense. Can you at least tuck your lips in before you say that?"

Perhaps feeling that his words were somewhat hypocritical, Lao Dai coughed twice and changed the subject, asking Zuo Zhong if there was any new information about the Nanjing puppet government.

"Reporting to the teacher, this is the latest intelligence from Jinling: Li Shiqun is dead," Zuo Zhong said, handing over a telegram.

"In addition, Tong Suo got in touch with Gang Cun through Ni Daliang of Qingshui Trading Company and has now been transferred to the puppet Political Security Bureau as the deputy director of the Anti-Espionage Division."

Dai Chunfeng looked surprised. He knew Li Shiqun would die, but he didn't expect it to be so soon. How long had it been since No. 76 was bombed?

That little guy who came from a family of pickpockets was even more surprising. To be able to hold such an important position as deputy director of the counter-espionage department, having connections alone is not enough; one must also have outstanding work ability.

After taking the telegram, Dai Chunfeng quickly read it through. It turned out that the person who killed Li Shiqun was none other than Gangcun, the captain of the Nanjing Military Police.

A few days ago, Gangcun invited several high-ranking officials of the puppet government to his private residence for dinner. During the meal, Gangcun's wife served a plate of beef patties. Li Shiqun ate the patties and returned home, but died shortly afterward. It was later found that he died of amoebic poisoning.

Amoeba is a bacterium cultured from cholera virus. Once this bacterium enters the human body, it multiplies at a rate of 11 times per minute, causing the body to excrete all the water through vomiting and diarrhea.

Jinling Station learned that after Li Shiqun died, his body shrank to the size of a monkey, and his death was gruesome.

"Hmph, those who do many evil deeds will surely perish."

Dai Chunfeng said coldly, then touched his receding hairline.

“Be careful, the puppet government is now disloyal and suspicious of each other. I estimate they won’t last long, maybe three or four years at most, or one or two years at the shortest. There will be a major change in Nanjing.”

"Once the puppet government collapses, the Japanese defeat is only a matter of time. At that point, my position as teacher will be awkward."

"The Military Intelligence Bureau is growing larger and larger, which is not a good thing. I need to avoid suspicion. After the war, I want to work in the Navy. What do you think?"

Zuo Zhong seemed to see a plane crash into Mount Dai. "Teacher, oh teacher, this isn't how you seek death!"

Although Lao Dai's words sounded nice, he understood that the other party clearly wanted to use the navy's name to expand their influence and avoid conflict with the army leaders.

The former is easy to understand: the Military Intelligence Bureau has reached its current scale and it is difficult to increase personnel through conventional means.

The navy's surface patrol teams, intelligence fleets, and coastal defense forces can recruit and conceal a large number of spies.

As for the latter, if Lao Dai were to seek a position in the army, he would easily clash with powerful figures such as Hu, Chen, and Bai, which would be too risky.

If they were to vie for dominance in the air force, they would be directly encroaching on the wife's territory, which would have even more serious consequences than offending the military leaders.

From these two points of view, it seems that Lao Dai's desire to become the Navy Commander is quite "rational," but can't someone see his purpose? Of course not.

After a moment's thought, Zuo Zhong said with admiration, "Teacher, the position of Navy Commander is the most suitable, as it allows for both offense and defense."

Dai Chunfeng wanted to die, and there was no need for him to stop him. If he said too much, the other party might think he was jealous.

Moreover, if the cheap teacher were to unfortunately die, who else but him would be the head of the Military Intelligence Bureau? That way, he could wield even greater power and gather more intelligence, which would be a win-win situation.

Upon hearing Zuo Zhong's answer, Lao Dai immediately nodded in satisfaction. Within the Military Intelligence Bureau, when it came to loyalty to him, Shen Zhong was still the most important.

The two chatted about the puppet government for a while longer. Just when Zuo Zhong thought the conversation was about to end, Dai Chunfeng suddenly brought up another important matter.

"In a few months, the Nationalist government will hold a foreign ministers' meeting with Americans, British, and Soviet Russians in Moscow. I've heard that some people are very dissatisfied with the Nationalist government's attendance at the meeting. Is that true?"

Zuo Zhong's expression wasn't good. Old Dai was absolutely right. This foreign ministers' meeting aimed to coordinate allied strategies, plan the post-war order, and establish international organizations.

The contents included the establishment of the General Assembly, the handling of Italy, the restoration of Austrian independence, and the trial of German war criminals, among others.

However, during the preparatory stage of the meeting, a foreign minister bluntly stated that the Republic of China, as a defeated country, was not qualified to participate in the meeting, and that the four-foreign-ministerial meeting could be turned into a three-foreign-ministerial meeting.

Fortunately, the country represented by the foreign minister who made those remarks had strained relations with the United States, so Zuo Zhong thought for a moment and offered words of comfort to Lao Dai.

"Don't worry, teacher. Judging from the current international relations and the next few decades, the Americans will oppose whatever the other side supports, and support whatever the other side opposes."

"Moreover, the other side cannot do without American aid at present, at least not in the short term. I believe that as long as the Americans speak for the Nationalist government, the things you and the leader are worried about will not happen."

After thinking about it for a while, Dai Chunfeng realized that it was indeed the case, and he finally felt relieved.

However, he was always suspicious and felt that they couldn't just passively wait for news. The Military Intelligence Bureau needed to take the initiative and help someone resolve their worries. As everyone knows, this person values ​​international reputation the most. If the Four Nations Conference really turned into a Three Nations Conference, where would the other side's face be? Where would the face of the Party and the State be?

Therefore, after pondering for a moment, Lao Dai said, "Shen Zhong, you still need to keep an eye on this matter. We can't let our allies look down on us."

Zuo Zhong frowned. How was he supposed to keep an eye on this? He couldn't exactly carry a cannon to the European battlefield and help the British, Americans, and Red Russia wipe out some bearded man's army, could he? This wasn't a fantasy novel.

After thinking for a long time, the name of a country flashed through his mind: Italy. It seemed that the pioneer of Legalism was about to be ousted from power.

After considering it in his mind, Zuo Zhong gave an affirmative answer. Old Dai replied with a quick word and said no more. He trusted Zuo Zhong's ability to cause trouble.

The two returned to No. 29 Luojiawan. Dai Chunfeng went to his office, while Zuo Zhong summoned his subordinates to discuss how to help someone regain face.

After hearing the brief introduction, Wu Chunyang was the first to raise his hand: "Vice-Captain, if we want the other side to take the National Government seriously, we can only try to find a way on the European battlefield."

“That’s right,” Wu Jingzhong and Song Minghao agreed in unison.

Zuo Zhong spread his hands on the table and gestured with his chin toward Wu Chunyang: "What are the specific plans? The European battlefield is quite large. Where do you intend to start?"

"This..." Wu Chunyang shook his head, indicating that he hadn't thought it through.

"Secondary seat."

At this moment, Gu Qi spoke up, and everyone looked over curiously. Old Gu was usually very low-key and rarely spoke at such meetings, so everyone wanted to hear what he would say.

"Gentlemen, although the Germans have suffered setbacks in the African theater, they still have the strength to fight in Eastern and Western Europe. It is not the best policy for us to provoke them rashly."

Listening to Gu Qi's account, everyone present nodded in agreement. Even a dead tiger retains its might, let alone the fact that the Germans had not yet been defeated and were even still in the lead.

Seeing everyone's reaction, Gu Qi said calmly, "However, it's different for Italy, Germany's ally. I'm sure everyone has seen the FIRC's news about Italy."

Wu Chunyang gently patted his head, realizing he had forgotten about Italy. While Germany was still relatively unscathed, Italy was currently on the verge of collapse.

Not long ago, Germany and Italy surrendered in Tunisia. Approximately 25 Italian and German troops in North Africa were either captured or killed, suffering extremely heavy losses.

Especially Italy, one of Italy's most important colonies; losing it meant the complete shattering of the Italians' imperial dream.

According to Allied reports, Britain and the United States were about to launch an attack on the Italian mainland, and their air forces were conducting continuous bombing raids on cities such as Rome, Milan, and Naples.

The Italian Air Force was paralyzed due to fuel shortages, and its airspace was completely controlled by the Allies, leaving it with no ability to retaliate.

The bombing over several days led to a shortage of supplies in Italy. The Italian people and leaders, who were already dissatisfied with their leader due to years of war, became increasingly war-weary, and the morale of the army was also very low.

Based on the above intelligence, if the situation on the front lines deteriorates again, the Military Intelligence Bureau could easily stir up a major storm in Italy with a little push, prompting Italy to surrender to the Allies.

"Pa bang bang~~"

Zuo Zhong clapped lightly. Gu Qi's opinion was very strategic. Without Italy, Germany would expose its vulnerable side, which would inevitably affect the situation on the eastern and western fronts of Europe.

Didn't a certain country say that the Nationalist government was a defeated country? He'll wait and see how the other side evaluates it when the situation on the Eastern Front changes due to the actions of the Military Intelligence Bureau.

After chuckling twice, Zuo Zhong assigned the task: "Old Gu, how about you take charge of this operation? You happen to know Yi language, right?"

Foreign languages ​​were a compulsory course for every agent of the Military Intelligence Bureau. Gu Qi chose English, French, and Italian, and was also quite fluent in German.

Upon hearing Zuo Zhong's suggestion, Gu Qi immediately stood up: "Yes, I guarantee I will complete the mission!"

Then he made another request: "I need the cooperation of the Light. In case the Italians are indecisive, we can follow the example of Ban Chao of the Han Dynasty who assassinated the Xiongnu envoy."

"Okay, I agree."

Zuo Zhong smiled and agreed, then turned to Gui Youguang: "You've already made a name for yourself in Shanghai, so it's inconvenient for you to operate in the Japanese-occupied areas anymore. You might as well go to Europe and help Lao Gu out."

Gui Youguang had been recuperating from his injuries for several days and was now itching to get back to work. When he heard that Zuo Zhongyao was sending him to Italy, he was as happy as a 200-pound child.

"Yes, Vice-Director, I will definitely cooperate with Deputy Director Gu. Just wait for good news."

With Zuo Zhong nodding slightly, Gu Qi being meticulous and experienced, and Gui Youguang excelling in action, the two were indeed a good match.

"Alright, then get ready and set off as soon as possible." He stood up and gave the final order.
-
Three days later, a plane flew to India via the Hump route. With the help of British intelligence, Gucci and his party disguised themselves as Japanese merchants and sailed towards the Mediterranean.

Britain and the United States supported the Military Intelligence Bureau's operation, and both countries assured that they would provide military assistance if necessary.

Everyone was convinced that as soon as Allied forces approached Italian territory, the Italians, who couldn't even defeat the native Africans, would inevitably make the right choice—this was beyond doubt.

① Ban Chao assassinated the Xiongnu envoy, forcing the king of Shanshan to submit to the Han Dynasty.