My spy diary

Chapter 619 A Great Responsibility Descended Upon This Person (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
Perhaps he was too tired these past few days, because after seeing Station Chief Tong off, Zhang Yi lay down fully clothed and quickly fell asleep.

But he was a light sleeper; no matter how tired he was, his sleep was always in a semi-conscious state.

Ever since he was woken up by his instructors for sleeping too soundly at the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Police Academy, he hasn't had a proper night's sleep in the past seven or eight years unless he takes medication.

At that moment, he felt as if he were climbing a dark, sheer cliff, his feet slippery and rugged, leading to an abyss, with someone chasing him from behind. And the person chasing him seemed even more anxious than he was, their footsteps growing increasingly rapid not far from him.

Hearing the footsteps, Zhang Yi stopped, slowly opened his eyes, and found that it was already noon, the sun shining brightly. He was still in that bright and peaceful hotel room. Warm sunlight streamed in through the window, the white gauze curtains fluttered gently, a picture of tranquility.

Just then, a series of unhurried footsteps came from outside the door, followed by a knock.

Zhang Yi stepped forward and opened the door; it was Shen Ruozhu.

She looked very tired. Clearly, she hadn't slept well either. However, forcing herself to remain calm, she said to Zhang Yi:
"It's time to change the medicine."

"You studied medicine?" Zhang Yi couldn't help but ask when he saw her carrying a first-aid kit.

“I have studied nursing.” Shen Ruozhu said calmly, closed the door, gestured for Zhang Yi to take off his clothes, and then took out tweezers, iodine, gauze, cotton swabs, and sulfonamide from the medicine box. She put on rubber gloves and began to clean the wound like a skilled emergency doctor.

Looking at her haggard face, Zhang Yi suddenly wanted to say a few words of advice, telling her not to be too hard on herself because of Li Wei's death, but in the end, he said nothing. A sharp pain shot through his wound, and he couldn't help but gasp.

"Bear with it, it'll be over soon." Shen Ruozhu asked while carefully treating the wound:

"I heard you caught another female spy last night?"

“Just a side job. But be careful these next few days. These people are after Boss Dai. They won’t let this go after the mission failed. They might take even bigger revenge. Be careful, don’t let the fire at the city gate affect the fish in the moat.” Zhang Yi sighed as he spoke, “The tree may wish to be still, but the wind will not cease.”

Shen Ruozhu carefully gathered the used gauze, frowning as she said, "Who would target a lowly police officer like me?"

Zhang Yi smiled but didn't say anything.

Sunlight streamed through the windowpanes, the white gauze curtains swaying gently, filtering golden rays into tiny stars that fell upon the ends of her loose hair. A few strands of light swirled around the ends, then slid down her shoulders and into the hem of her cheongsam, casting warm, shimmering patches of light on the fabric, as if she herself were being edged with a soft gold. The curves within the halo of light were beautiful, but Shen Ruozhu only exuded melancholy and weariness. Zhang Yi wanted to reach out and touch her back, to offer a few words of comfort, but then stopped, only replying with a seemingly unrelated question:
Were you at the hospital last night?

Just as Shen Ruozhu was about to say something, she suddenly heard a sound outside the door—it was Deputy Commander Jia calling for dinner. The two fell silent in unison, one straightening her clothes, the other packing her medicine kit to leave. Shen Ruozhu was halfway there when she suddenly stopped, frowning and saying:
"You haven't changed your clothes for days?"

"What's wrong?" Zhang Yi looked at her suspiciously, then pulled her clothes over and sniffed them. Sure enough, they did smell. He then remembered that when he came to Shancheng, because of the suddenness of the incident, he didn't even bring a change of clothes. He couldn't help but open his mouth awkwardly.

"Stop smelling it, I'll go find you a set," Shen Ruozhu said without turning her head.

Zhang Yi awkwardly put down the clothes.

A few minutes later, Shen Ruozhu found a light blue thin cloth long shirt with a white lining from somewhere and placed it by the bed. Watching Zhang Yi put it on, she asked:
"How is it? Does it fit?"

"pretty good."

"Do you know what I'm asking? The inner lining, or the outer garment?" Shen Ruozhu raised her delicate eyebrows.

"It's all good."

Shen Ruozhu paused for a moment and asked, "When you're in Shancheng, do you usually talk to women like this?"

With a woman? Or a female spy? Zhang Yi also felt he was being too perfunctory. He looked at Shen Ruozhu:
Do you think I'm a pretty boring person?

"No. It's just incredibly boring."

Although Zhang Yi didn't laugh, he was visibly more relaxed than before: "Boring? As long as it's not vulgar or lowbrow, it's fine. There's a saying that a person who doesn't understand life doesn't understand romance. But a secret agent doesn't have time or a life that truly belongs to them. Year after year, not a single day is like sitting on a hot plate, not eating well, not sleeping well, not knowing when they'll come back alive, walking on thin ice."

Realizing he had said too much, he immediately stopped talking and changed the subject, saying, "If you're tired, take a rest. That's just how I am, I'm really boring."

After saying that, he turned and left the room.

Shen Ruozhu said nothing, turned around and walked to the window, facing the warm sun and gentle breeze, lost in thought.

When Zhang Yi arrived at the dining hall, Dai Chunfeng, Director Gong, and Deputy Officer Jia were already eating. Station Chief Tong was also there, and upon seeing Zhang Yi from afar, he jokingly said:

"Wow, Director Zhang looks quite good in that outfit, so refined and scholarly. Did Officer Shen help you put it together? You have excellent taste!"

After saying this, he winked at Zhang Yi, raised an eyebrow slightly, and his knowing smile was full of tacit understanding.

Seeing his teasing look, Zhang Yi remained unfazed and laughed, "I just didn't bring a change of clothes when I came, so I just found one. Why make fun of me, Station Chief Tong?"

"Oh, anyway, the two of you standing together look like a perfect match."

"You've arranged a marriage haphazardly; the Xiongnu haven't been defeated yet, how can we return home?" Zhang Yijian said, his words filled with alarm.

"You should still get married. Judging from Xiao Shen's appearance and demeanor, he doesn't come from a humble background. You two are a perfect match!"

Seeing that the conversation was getting further and further off-topic, Zhang Yi quickly waved his hand:

"Old Tong, don't get me into trouble. Saying things like that in front of the bureau chief, you'll be in for a beating!"

Dai Chunfeng seemed to be in a good mood and gestured for Zhang Yi to sit down: "Yunyi, you've come at the right time. I just received a telegram from the Shanghai district. With Zhou Dahai mediating, the Japanese have agreed to a secret exchange. Things here have finally come to a temporary end."

"So fast?" Zhang Yi was somewhat surprised. He immediately put down the chopsticks he had just picked up, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped himself.

Dai Chunfeng looked at him: "What, do you think there's a problem?" "Did you agree too readily? There was no bargaining at all, which is a bit out of character for the Japanese invaders. I'm worried there might be a trap."

Dai Chunfeng frowned: "Is this a trap?"

Zhang Yi remained calm and, after careful consideration, said:
"I suspect that the Japanese invaders deliberately concealed their strength and adopted a humble posture in an attempt to undermine our vigilance, make us lower our guard, and become complacent."

Upon hearing this, Dai Chunfeng seemed to be deep in thought.

"Director Zhang, aren't you being a bit too paranoid?"

Station Chief Tong was somewhat dismissive. "The instinct of a secret agent is to doubt everything, I don't object to that. But being overly sensitive is something I don't agree with."

He paused, glancing at Dai Chunfeng's expression, and said confidently, "Of course, Director Zhang's concerns are not without merit, after all, the safety of the Bureau Chief is more important than anything else. But now that the Japanese spies lurking in Jiangshan County have been wiped out in one fell swoop, even if the Japanese spies have any conspiracies, they are too far away to be of any use."

Furthermore, besides his personal bodyguards, the Director was also accompanied by a fully armed guard company, equipped entirely with German weaponry. In addition to rifles and automatic pistols, they were also equipped with six MP18 submachine guns, two Type 24 Maxim heavy machine guns, and grenade launchers. Even the most well-trained agents would be no match for them, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot or an egg striking a rock.

Although Station Chief Tong spoke with great confidence, Zhang Yi felt he was confusing the issue and calmly retorted:
"German equipment is not the same as German weaponry. Although these people are equipped with German equipment, their combat effectiveness is not comparable to the Central Training Corps, and probably not even to the Tax Police Corps. We must not be careless."

In 33, Chang expanded the Training Corps according to the organization of a German infantry regiment and appointed 15 German advisors to guide the academic department, completing the training according to German standards. In 34, he used the 87th, 88th and 36th Divisions of the Whampoa Military Academy as pilot units to carry out German-style training, completely following the German military model in terms of organization, equipment and training.

The results were also encouraging. In addition to the strict selection of soldiers and their high treatment and quality, the soldiers were also composed of officers from the Whampoa Military Academy, making them outstanding in combat. They dared to fight tough battles and were most impressive in the Battle of Shanghai and the Battle of Nanjing. They launched multiple counterattacks against the Japanese positions. Even in the midst of fierce protracted battles, when the overall forces were defeated, some units held their positions until the last moment. Their tenacious fighting spirit was extremely prominent among the National Revolutionary Army at that time.

The Ministry of Finance Tax Police Corps, indirectly commanded by Dai Chunfeng, also drew a large number of graduates from the Whampoa Military Academy to serve as military backbone, making it relatively strong in combat.

However, this does not mean that being equipped with German weaponry equates to having the same strength as the training regiment; they are two different things.

“Brother, you’re overthinking it.” Station Chief Tong was taken aback at first, then calmly said, “No matter what, they are all much better than those scattered soldiers. Besides, even if the Japanese spies are still up to no good, how many people can they send? It’s not that easy to infiltrate the National Army’s layers of defenses, is it? Even if there are any who slip through the net, they are just small fry and can’t cause any trouble.”

"We still need to be cautious."

"Brother, you're being too sensitive."

"It's not sensitivity, it's anxiety."

"There's no need to be overly suspicious."

"Perhaps I'm overthinking it, after all, it concerns the safety of the Director."

"Alright!" Dai Chunfeng didn't participate in their argument, only focusing on eating. He was moved by Station Chief Tong's words and satisfied with Zhang Yi's concern for his safety. He waved his hand to interrupt them, saying casually:

"The tree may wish to remain still, but the wind will not cease; danger lurks everywhere. We've weathered many storms over the years. If the Japanese truly harbor any conspiracy, we can simply meet them head-on. Besides, in addition to the guard company, there are troops stationed near my hometown's security post, so there's no need to worry about my safety."

Seeing this, Zhang Yi said nothing more.

Dai Chunfeng finished his meal quickly, and while instructing Zhang Yi to recover from his injuries, he also instructed him to assist Station Chief Tong in handling the follow-up matters regarding the "secret exchange of agents" with the Second District of Shanghai. Then, he led Director Gong, Deputy Officer Jia, and guards to his hometown, Bao'an Village in Xiakou Town.

Zhang Yi and Station Chief Tong, among others, saw the long convoy off before returning to their hotel.

With Boss Dai gone, the two spoke more casually. Station Chief Tong took out the previous telegram again and said, not without a hint of sarcasm:

"This Zhou Dahai truly lives up to his reputation as a super lubricant. Not only does he thrive among the Japanese puppet regime, but he also has a close relationship with Boss Dai!"

Zhang Yi sneered: "This kind of person is a fence-sitter, playing both sides, and will only follow whoever benefits."

Station Chief Tong disagreed: "You can't say that. It's just about maximizing profits. How many people in history have done that? The Xun family, represented by Xun Yu and Xun You during the Three Kingdoms period, and the Zhuge Liang family, all dispersed their clansmen to different camps, betting on multiple sides to ensure the continuation of their clans. It's just the survival wisdom of chaotic times."

Zhang Yi suddenly fell silent. He realized that Station Chief Tong, this old idiot, especially liked to play dumb and confuse people. Did he really not understand the difference?
not necessarily!

There is a fundamental difference between the survival strategy of aristocratic families and the personal treason and defection to the enemy. The two are completely different in terms of motives, stances, and the nature of their actions. How can they be confused?
Take the Zhuge family as an example. Their strategy of strategizing between Wei, Shu, and Wu was essentially about choosing different "powers to compete for supremacy" in a chaotic world where "the world was not yet unified and the legitimacy was not yet determined." However, the core stance of all branches was to be loyal to their respective regimes and maintain the internal order of China. They did not betray the Chinese nation, defect to foreign enemies, or sell out the interests of their respective regimes.

Zhou Dahai's "two-timing" occurred when the country faced Japanese invasion and national peril. In essence, it was for his own selfish interests and to satisfy his personal desire for power. He chose to live a life of ignominy and was willing to betray his country for personal gain. The two men's stances are worlds apart.

In Zhang Yi's view, Station Chief Tong, though old, was very clear-headed and, having navigated the officialdom for many years, remained politically astute and experienced. Regardless of whether he said this to echo the close relationship between Boss Dai and Zhou, or for other purposes, Zhang Yi felt that this man was no longer a simple soldier, but more like a shrewd and worldly politician.

So Zhang Yi went along with him and said, "Who cares? Let's just do our own jobs."

Station Chief Tong stopped there, then changed the subject, saying, "Let's go see Su Jingyi. This Japanese woman has been on a hunger strike since she was arrested, refusing to eat or drink anything. The exchange is imminent, so we can't let anything go wrong."

Su Jingyi, also known as Matsushima Ryoko, was detained in a room on the first floor, guarded by two female agents.

Although her attire remained the same, the allure she once possessed was long gone. She leaned back in her chair, her gaze lowered, her face expressionless, as if she were completely isolated from everything around her.

Station Chief Tong snorted coldly, scrutinizing the old acquaintance in front of him with a cold eye. He almost admired her a little—this woman had been doing this for a whole day and night.

He waved for the plainclothes guards to leave and said to Zhang Yi, "Director Zhang, shall we interrogate them together?"

Zhang Yi was not interested in the interrogation, so he made an excuse to leave.

What he needs most now is to heal his injuries and recover. After cultivating patience and perseverance, he can then enhance what he lacks.

After that, it should be time for Heaven to bestow a great responsibility upon this person.

(End of this chapter)