cicada

Chapter 1440 The Case of Shi Ming

Late at night, a military camp on the outskirts of Yancheng, Henan Province, was under heavy guard. This was the headquarters of the X Division of the 13th Army of the Kuomintang, responsible for protecting the city of Luoyang.

A patrol was passing through the camp when the leading officer saw a figure in the darkness. Just as he was about to ask for the password, the figure approached him.

By the moonlight, the officer could see the man's face clearly. He immediately stopped and saluted, saying, "Director Shi."

"Well, how are you, brothers? Are you still cold?"

The officer nodded, touched the soldier's new cotton-padded coat, and asked with great concern.

"Reporting to the sir, it's not cold."

The officer, head held high and chest out, answered loudly, then looked at the other man gratefully: "Thanks to the officer for getting new winter clothes for the brothers, otherwise this awful weather would have been unbearable."

Director Shi laughed and didn't say much. He ordered the patrol team to continue patrolling, as he still needed to inspect other sentry posts in the camp.

After he left, a soldier whispered to the officer, "Platoon leader, Director Shi is a good man."

The officer watched the departing figure and muttered to himself, "Yes, but good people usually don't live long."

As he spoke, his voice became very soft, and the soldier he was talking to didn't hear him, continuing to ramble on about how good Director Shi was.

Director Shi's full name is Shi Ming. His position is Director of the Political Training Department of the X Division. He comes from the Military Intelligence Bureau.

Although he was a spy, Shi Ming did a lot of practical things for the grassroots officers and soldiers after he became the director of the Political Training Department.

For example, requesting supplies from superiors, or helping soldiers and junior officers whose credit was stolen to appeal.

Compared to his predecessor, the director of the Political Training Department, who only knew how to explain the inevitability of the victory against Japan, Shi Ming was clearly more popular with the officers and soldiers.

However, some people disliked him, such as those corrupt elements within the military who exploited soldiers and resold supplies, who wished they could shoot Shi Ming to death.

In their eyes, it was only right for them to risk their lives to fight the Japanese, kill a few civilians, and make some money.

The bigwigs in the mountain city made even more money and killed even more people, but the Political Training Department kept harping on this small mistake and just wanted to make things difficult for them.

Shi Ming knew his situation was dangerous, so he acted very cautiously. In addition, with the help of his old superior Zuo Zhong, he believed that those people would not dare to make a move openly.

Even if someone dared to defy public opinion, he, as a veteran of the Secret Service, was not someone to be trifled with.

To assassinate a professional agent who always carries a gun, the target would definitely pay a heavy price. If things escalate, the person who did it would not be able to escape.

As the night deepened, Shi Ming, after circling the camp, checked his watch, carefully observed what was behind him, and then walked towards the stables.

When he arrived at the stable, a man had been waiting in the shadows for a long time. Upon seeing Shi Ming appear, the man hurriedly went to greet him.

"Director Shi, you've finally arrived. I've been waiting for almost half an hour, and my legs are aching from squatting."

Pretending not to hear the man's complaint, Shi Ming cautiously looked around. After confirming that there were no ambushes, he asked in a low voice.

"Where's the evidence? I'm warning you, don't try anything funny. You can't just turn to the light with words."

“I know, Director Shi. Look, these are the ledgers.”

Without wasting words, the other party took out a notebook from his pocket and handed it to Shi Ming. Shi Ming quickly glanced at the notebook next to the lantern, and his face instantly turned gloomy.

"Damn it, these bastards, they even sold the ammunition allocated by Junwei! Aren't they afraid of losing their heads?!"

Shi Ming's informant, the mysterious person who provided the ledgers, sighed.

"Losing their heads? Of course they're afraid, but they're even more afraid of not making any money. There are too many people involved. Director Shi, what are you planning to do?"

After glancing at the superior's signature on the ledger, Shi Ming was startled and slammed the notebook shut before revealing his plan.

"I will report to the vice-captain's office immediately. With the vice-captain's support, we will definitely be able to wipe these people out in one fell swoop this time!"

The mysterious man nodded excitedly: "Okay, there's no time to lose. Director Shi, please report this as soon as possible, and I will fully cooperate."

"By the way, I also have a copy of last year's account book. Why don't you hand it over to the Left Vice-Captain as well?"

After a moment's thought, Shi Ming did not refuse. The more evidence there was, the less pressure the deputy would feel. So he followed the mysterious man to the other party's office.

As they entered the office, the mysterious man bent down to open the safe, while Shi Ming stood guard by the door.

After waiting a while without any movement from his informant, Shi Ming turned around and urged, "Hurry, the patrol team will be here soon."

Rat-a-tat-tat, a burst of bullets flew from the barrel and struck his back. Shi Ming fell to the ground, his uniform instantly stained with blood.

Perhaps because the distance was too close, the bullets reduced their lethality as they penetrated his body. Shi Ming did not die immediately while lying on the ground. He stretched out his right hand with all his might to grab the account book not far away.

In the dim moonlight, as the smoke from the gun muzzles dissipated, the mysterious man, carrying a submachine gun, strode quickly to the door, his expression sinister.

Seeing Shi Ming on the verge of death, the mysterious man stepped on his hand, aimed at his head, and coldly pulled the trigger.

Having confirmed the target's death, the mysterious man put on gloves, took out a document from his pocket, imprinted Shi Ming's fingerprints on the document, and then put the ledger back.

Meanwhile, alarms were sounding throughout the camp, and the X Division's guard battalion was the first to arrive at the scene.

The battalion commander of the guard battalion, holding a Mauser pistol, glanced at Shi Ming's corpse, leaned close to the mysterious man's ear, and asked, "Is it all taken care of?" The mysterious man smiled slightly: "Don't worry, there are his fingerprints on the documents. Once the scene is staged, even if the lawsuit goes all the way to Shancheng, we're not afraid."

The guard battalion commander put away his gun, revealing a "good-natured" smile, but then his expression changed, and he spat at Shi Ming.

"Pah, you're just being nosy, damn it."

"Alright, respect the dead. Why are you arguing with a corpse?"

The mysterious man spoke with a perfect Beijing accent, feigning to be a good person, and then began to plan the next step of the operation.

"Quickly tell the higher-ups, and also notify the Military Intelligence Bureau, that Shi Ming colluded with dissidents to steal intelligence, and was shot dead on the spot while trying to escape. Tell them to send someone over to verify this."

The battalion commander of the guards was a little worried when he heard this: "Let's not send someone to check. It would be terrible if they found out there was a problem."

Those within the military know very well how capable the Military Intelligence Bureau is; it's unlikely to be easy to deceive those cunning and shrewd agents.

The mysterious man shook his head, saying confidently, "Don't worry, we have people in the Military Intelligence Bureau too."

"Where do you think those hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks go? Those people have to do things once they get paid, otherwise we'll all die together."

The battalion commander was relieved and ordered his men to clean up the scene and collect the bodies.

As the still-bleeding stretcher was carried away, the mysterious man quietly entered an office with a sign that read "Deputy Division Commander".

The office owner was engrossed in a book, exuding the air of a scholar-general. He didn't even look up when the mysterious man arrived, but simply muttered a few instructions to himself.

"Tomorrow, I will send people who are on good terms with Shi Ming to the front lines. I have already spoken with the Japanese, and they will launch an attack then."

"Tell the artillerymen that no one is allowed to fire without my order. Once these men are dead, the matter is over."

The mysterious man replied "yes" and respectfully left the room, behaving like a complete lackey.

He showed no hesitation or remorse in betraying his comrades who had shared life and death with him. As a member of a huge chain of interests, there was no turning back once he boarded the ship.

The following day, the X Division reported to the 13th Army Headquarters that a part of the X Division had been attacked by the Japanese army, resulting in hundreds of casualties.

In addition, Shi Ming, the director of the political training department of the X Division, stole the military deployment map. When the guard battalion failed to persuade him to surrender, they had no choice but to shoot and kill him.

Commander Tang of the 13th Army coldly wrote "Read" on the report, then instructed his secretary to file it, as if nothing had happened.

Compared to the military's low-key handling of the matter, the news of Shi Ming's alleged espionage caused quite a stir when it reached the Military Intelligence Bureau.

Shi Ming was a veteran of the Special Service Section and the Special Service Department, and had made many contributions.

Because he was already quite old and unable to perform field missions, Zuo Chong considered his contributions and sent him to the military to gain experience so that he could be promoted in the future.

Unexpectedly, Shi Ming died after only a few months at the X Division, and was even killed in action.

Song Minghao, who stayed at headquarters, slammed the telegram on the table and immediately went to the director's office to see Lao Dai. He absolutely did not believe that Shi Ming was an underground party member.

After hearing the report, Lao Dai was also furious, but at the same time he was a little uncertain. After all, the underground party was everywhere, and who could guarantee that Shi Ming was not a mole in the Northwest?

After thinking it over, Dai Chunfeng called all the senior executives to discuss the matter, and even Zheng Tingbing, who was engrossed in business, was pulled into the conference room.

After learning the whole story, Chief Secretary Li Qiwu volunteered to go to Yancheng to investigate and clear Shi Ming's name.

Song Minghao and Wu Jingzhong narrowed their eyes and remained silent. They sensed something was amiss, but since the co-pilot wasn't present, they couldn't directly oppose Li Qiwu.

Dai Chunfeng hesitated. He wasn't stupid; the reason why the usually lazy Li Qiwu had suddenly stepped forward was worth pondering.

But Division X belongs to the 13th Army, which is the unit of Commander Tang, a participant in the "Longmen Oath". Should I lift the lid?

At this moment, Zheng Tingbing, who had read the report, slammed his fist on the table and shouted angrily, "Damn it, does the X Division think we're idiots? This matter must be investigated thoroughly."

You could say Zheng Tingbing was greedy or cowardly, but he still had some basic principles.

This bottom line is colluding with the Japanese. Zheng Tingbing always believed that the victory against Japan was not just about ending the war militarily, but also about long-term political precautions and cultural counter-espionage.

After berating Division X, Zheng Tingbing volunteered: "Chief, leave this case to me. I want to see who dares to frame our Military Intelligence Bureau."

These words reminded Dai Chunfeng that if the leader found out that there were underground party members among the mid-level cadres of the Military Intelligence Bureau, the consequences would be unpredictable.

Despite Commander Tang being an ally of the Longmen Alliance, when it came to his own interests, Old Dai immediately put aside their friendship and gave orders to everyone in a serious tone.

"The case of Shi Ming is of great importance. Deputy Director Zheng will lead a team to Yancheng, with Song Minghao and Wu Jingzhong accompanying him. We must find out the truth."

Dai Chunfeng still kept a backup plan, sending out Song and Wu from Zuo Zhongyi's faction, fearing that Zheng Tingbing might make some underhanded moves.

Zheng Tingbing, Song Minghao, and Wu Jingzhong rose to return to their posts and flew to Los Angeles that afternoon.

Ten minutes after the plane took off, the X Division's communications room received a coded telegram. The deputy division commander looked at the telegram with a grim face and his eyes filled with murderous intent.

① This is not a fabrication. Zheng supported maintaining political and economic contact with Japan, but firmly opposed relaxing the supervision of Japanese spies.

After the war, Zheng suggested that places like Xiaoliuqiu, Shanghai, and Qingdao continue to investigate Japanese expatriates and their businesses to prevent "Japanese businessmen from becoming Japanese spies." Of course, he could also take the opportunity to make a profit.