My spy diary

Chapter 666 Shut Up (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Xu Zeng walked into the interrogation room with a beaming smile:
"How about it?"

As he spoke, he glanced with interest at Mao Zhongxin, who was trembling all over but staring with dead fish eyes.

Mao Zhongxin stared at him intently, his eyes filled with worry and anger.

"He's completely unresponsive." Zheng Rui handed the letter he had taken from Mao Zhongxin to Xu Zengen.

Xu Zeng glanced at it, his eyes narrowing, and then he turned to Mao Zhongxin:
"Tell me about it."

Mao Zhongxin's eyes darted around, but he remained silent. He knew he couldn't withstand torture, but it was a mission for the Military Intelligence Bureau. If he revealed it, he would be leaking group secrets, a traitor, and the Military Intelligence Bureau would have no place for him, even if he was from Jiangshan. Although Dai Chunfeng treated agents from Jiangshan differently, he had to consider the circumstances.

Take Mao Lie, for example, the director of the detention center under the Shancheng Inspection Bureau. He secretly accepted 50 yuan from Zhang Weilin at Zhang Weilin's radio station to help deliver a message. He thought it was a simple family letter, but it turned out to be a warning letter to the underground Communist Party organization, which led to the organization's timely relocation and prevented greater losses.

Afterwards, Dai Chunfeng learned that it was Mao Lie who had let the Red Party "prisoner" escape, and he was furious. He immediately ordered him to be detained.

Besides being a member of the Jiangshan family, Mao Lie was also the brother-in-law of He Zhiyuan, the head of the action department. Despite He Zhiyuan and his wife's repeated pleas for leniency, they were unable to get what they wanted, and the next day, he was ordered to be shot by Dai Chunfeng.

Therefore, Mao Zhongxin could only remain silent at this moment, hoping that the Military Intelligence Bureau could get him out.

"All bark and no bite!" Xu Zeng snorted coldly, too lazy to even glance at him again. "Use the torture!"

"Yes." Zheng Rui waved his hand, and immediately two fierce-looking men carrying iron whips stepped forward, ripped open Mao Zhongxin's clothes, and began to whip him.

"Snapped!"

"what!"

Emerging from the interrogation room, Xu Zeng'en kept thinking about one question: "The Red Party spy was supposed to exchange intelligence with his courier." Was Mao Zhongxin a Red Party spy? Where was the courier? Why wasn't he at the rendezvous point?
Also, why was Wang Xinheng's name written on the letter?
He found this whole thing very strange!

Office Director Pu Mengjiu said, "After receiving the call from Team Leader Zheng, I immediately had someone check the phone numbers that were called to the teahouse during that time period. We found that the call came from the dock and was from a public phone."

"The dock? Does that mean we can't find anyone again?" Xu Zeng sighed, then turned to Zheng Rui and asked:
"You just said that Mao Zhongxin's briefcase contained fake gold bars? Why is that?"

"Yes." Zheng Rui was also confused. After thinking for a moment, he said, "By the way, Director, we also saw reporters at the scene. I vaguely remember one of them. He works for a newspaper controlled by the Military Intelligence Bureau."

"A reporter?" Xu Zeng'en's lips curled slightly. "Why does this sound like a conspiracy?"

Pu Mengjiu pondered for a moment and then said, "Director, could it be that this Mao Zhongxin is not a Red Party spy? He went there to meet with a Red Party member or his informant, and tried to find out who the Red Party spy was hiding in the Military Intelligence Bureau?"

Zheng Rui suddenly realized, "That explains it. So, the mole within the Military Intelligence Bureau is Wang Xinheng?" As he spoke, his eyes widened, somewhat unable to believe his own deduction.

Wang Xinheng, that's a section chief!
“It’s not impossible. After all…” Pu Mengjiu said with a hint of sarcasm. Halfway through his sentence, he suddenly noticed that Xu Zeng’en’s expression was somewhat gloomy. Afraid of touching on his boss’s sensitive spot, he quickly changed his words, “We’ll know the answer soon.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the screams in the interrogation room stopped.

An undercover officer stepped forward: "Chief, he's willing to confess."

The group entered the interrogation room again. Mao Zhongxin was covered in wounds and bloodstains, his hair hanging down over his forehead. He sat in a chair, breathing weakly. His previous high spirits and ambitions had vanished.

"Looks like you overestimated yourself. If only you'd known this would happen, you wouldn't have acted this way in the first place," Xu Zeng said with a mocking tone, then asked:
Who called you?

Next came the Q&A session.

Military Intelligence Bureau, Dai Chunfeng's office.

The atmosphere was solemn.

Seeing that no one spoke, Zhang Yi broke the silence at the opportune moment, comforting Mao Qiwu while suggesting to Dai Chunfeng:
"The most important thing now is to rescue Mao Zhongxin. Since he was originally carrying out Director Mao's orders, he has a legitimate reason and nothing to hide. Director Mao's plan was very meticulous, but he accidentally fell into the Red Party's trap. It's just a misunderstanding, and we can clear it up."

Since the reasons were difficult to explain, Dai Chunfeng was too lazy to explain, and said helplessly and angrily:
"That's all we can do. We should have just ignored that Zhu Hua! All that talk of playing along, inviting media reporters, making a big show of it, and we just got made a fool of. Mao Qiwu, go there right now and bring that good-for-nothing back."

"Yes." Mao Qiwu's face was very unpleasant. He answered sternly and was about to turn around and leave when he saw Deputy Officer Jia push the door open and come in. He glanced at the people in the room, as if he had something to say, but he didn't know whether he should speak or not.

Seeing his hesitant expression, Dai Chunfeng said:
"You can say anything."

"Yes." Deputy Jia glanced at Mao Qiwu before saying, "Thumbtack just called; Mao Zhongxin has already confessed."

Dai Chunfeng's expression shifted slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. He looked calmly at Deputy Commander Jia:
"What did they confess to?"

Deputy Jia shook his head: "I don't know the specifics. He's still being interrogated. He got the information from the torturers."

"That's the truth," Dai Chunfeng said coldly, his face grim.
"In that case, let him shut up!"

Mao Qiwu's face turned deathly pale.

Interrogation room of the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics.

The interrogation of Mao Zhongxin went smoothly. After asking enough questions, Xu Zeng'en told the interrogator to continue the interrogation, while he went to his office with Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui.

"Just as I suspected, this is a trap, a carefully designed trap by the Red Party. Knowing there are tigers in the mountains, they still went towards them. Are they stupid or courageous?" Xu Zengen sighed with a sarcastic expression, "Alas, we are not as good as them."

Hearing this, Pu Mengjiu smiled: "Director, you are insightful and have a keen eye for detail." After offering this compliment, he changed the subject, "Now it seems that the person who called us must also be an accomplice of Zhu Hua, otherwise this operation could not have been so meticulous."

Xu Zeng looked at him with anticipation.

Zheng Rui chimed in, "That's right. They're trying to use us to deal with the Military Intelligence Bureau. Killing two birds with one stone, how insidious!"

Xu Zeng was still waiting for them to get to the point, but none of them got to the heart of the matter. He smacked his lips twice in frustration.
"Now is not the time to pursue these issues. What are your thoughts on Wang Xinheng?"

His expression was somewhat grim; he was completely bewildered by everything that had happened today. He now clearly knew that today's events were a conspiracy by the Red Party, a follow-up to Mao Qiwu's bribery of Zhu Hua. Since it was a trap, the name Wang Xinheng was likely a smokescreen deliberately thrown out by the other side to muddy the waters and cover up the existence of other undercover agents.

So the question is, who is this undercover agent?
Guo Xinya, the radio operator in the Military Intelligence Bureau's confidential office, has already run away; it couldn't have been her.

Could it be Zhang Yi, whom Mao Zhongxin mentioned?

What about the evidence?
Furthermore, what exactly did Dai Chunfeng say at the gathering? Mao Zhongxin mentioned a "chain reaction," but what was the initial trigger for this event?

What plan is the Military Intelligence Bureau plotting now?

Pu Mengjiu coughed and suggested, "Director, how about we secretly monitor Zhang Yi and Wang Xinheng first?" Zheng Rui immediately chimed in, "Director, this task can be assigned to me."

Xu Zeng hummed noncommittally, but surveillance was certain. The rivalry between the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (Zhongtong) and the Military Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (Juntong) had a long history, and now it was irreconcilable. However, mere suspicion without evidence wouldn't deliver a fatal blow to the Military Bureau of Investigation and Statistics. Furthermore, to anticipate the enemy's moves, one needed to first understand what the Military Bureau of Investigation and Statistics was planning, right?

Thinking this, he looked at the office director, Pu Mengjiu:

"Any news from Yan'an?"

When he asked about secrets, Zheng Rui pretended to avoid the question:

"Director, I'm heading back now."

Xu Zeng waved his hand, gesturing for Zheng Rui to sit down: "No need. You can take this opportunity to learn more, which will help you get started on the subsequent surveillance mission." He then asked Pu Mengjiu, "Any progress on Ma Yaojiang's side?"

Ma Yaojiang was originally a member of the Communist Party, but after defecting, he joined the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS). This year, Xu Zeng'en recommended him as the county magistrate of Fushi (i.e., Yan'an), and he brought more than a dozen agents with him. This position was nominal and not recognized by the people, so Ma Yaojiang was nominally the county magistrate, but his core mission was to spy on internal Communist Party intelligence, spread rumors to create chaos, and recruit agents.

However, their espionage activities made no progress due to the border region's tight security system, and they could only operate on the periphery.

“I was just about to report to you that, according to Ma Yaojiang’s call, the Red Party has recently arrested a number of Kuomintang secret agents from the Hanzhong branch.”

Xu Zeng's expression immediately darkened, and he said in an almost complaining tone:
"Listen to this, the Second Division's agents have already infiltrated the core, while our people are still just wandering around on the periphery. If this continues, the Second Division will be scrambling to do all our work. What's the point of our existence then?"

Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui gave a wry smile, awkwardly unsure how to respond.

The Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) had a promising start but a decline. Especially after the outbreak of the War of Resistance against Japan and the cooperation between the two parties, the Nationalist government's demand for military intelligence and raids behind enemy lines increased dramatically. The CBIS's party intelligence system was not able to keep up with the demand. On the other hand, the Military Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (JBIS) became increasingly prominent due to its focus on espionage against Japan and operations behind enemy lines, and the CBIS was gradually marginalized.

Of course, the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) is also adjusting the nature of its work according to the changing situation. In the past, because the target of their work was the same—to deal with the Communist Party—they simply distinguished between various specialties such as intelligence, operations, and training. Now that the national war has risen to become the main contradiction in the country, the counter-espionage and anti-espionage activities that were previously completely ignored by the CBIS have had to be put on the important agenda.

Accordingly, Xu Zeng'en specially added a new group in the bureau called the Enemy and Puppet Group, which focused on the Japanese and puppet regimes and carried out counter-espionage activities.

Unfortunately, despite being established for so long, they haven't caught a single legitimate Japanese spy.

Instead, Dai Chunfeng laughed at her, calling her a "foolish imitator"!
Seeing that the two remained silent, Xu Zeng snorted coldly, stood up under their gazes, walked to the safe in the corner, and turned the keypad to open the safe door.

He carefully took out a file bag marked "Top Secret" and cautiously said to Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui:

"This is a nail I planted there years ago, and now it's time to put it to use. Wake him up and get him to find out the whole story of how the Red Party arrested the Kuomintang's secret agents. Let's see what the Kuomintang is planning. When the time is right, we can take advantage of the situation and reap the benefits."

"Yes." Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui accepted the order with a stern expression.

Pu Mengjiu carefully took the file bag, opened it, and after glancing at it a few times, his expression gradually became interesting.

This is a spy codenamed "Qinhuai River." Apart from that, nothing is known about his identity or background, except for the activation code.

Xu Zengen pondered for a moment and said, "Tell Lao Ma that this person must be awakened by him personally, and not by someone else."

He paused, then continued:

"A special reminder to Lao Ma: this guy is like a donkey that's been fed softly; he won't chew on anything hard. Tell Lao Ma to stroke his fur a bit more and coax him. Agree to whatever he asks for—money, goods, etc. Tell him that as long as he can make a name for himself over there, he can go back to headquarters. Besides a reward, a promotion, a raise, a car, and a house are all within reach."

"Yes!" Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves that with the Director's promise, they were not afraid that "Qinhuai River" would not be moved or not do its best.

Both of them smiled with great confidence.

After the two left, Xu Zeng leaned back on the sofa and gave a meaningful smile.

Just then, Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui, who had just left, returned. Pu Mengjiu said with a look of fear:
"Chief, something's happened!"

"What happened?"

"Interrogation Room"

Xu Zeng'en's expression changed. Without asking any questions, he pushed the two aside and quickly walked towards the interrogation room.

Two guards lay unconscious on the ground, while several others watched in fear and unease.

Xu Zeng'en stared wide-eyed and asked, "What's going on?"

"It seems that Commissioner Liu came by just now."

Within the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS), agents are as numerous as dogs, and section chiefs are everywhere. Xu Zeng'en couldn't immediately recall who he was referring to.

"Which Commissioner Liu?"

"Liu Dali from Group Two."

"Where is the prisoner?"

The plainclothes officer's face darkened, and he lowered his head, remaining silent.

Xu Zeng couldn't wait any longer and rushed into the interrogation room. The two pre-interrogators who had been inside were lying unconscious on the floor. Mao Zhongxin lay quietly against the interrogation chair, blood streaming from his seven orifices, a syringe inserted into his neck.
He is dead.

Pu Mengjiu and Zheng Rui, who rushed over, were also shocked, but no one dared to speak, because Xu Zeng'en's eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets.

Just then, Liu Cixiao, the secretary of the bureau headquarters, jogged over:
"Director Pu, I need to see the deputy director."

Liu Cixiao was the secretary assigned to the bureau headquarters by the official Director Zhu. Because the director and Xu Zeng'en were at odds, Xu Zeng'en disliked him very much.

Therefore, Pu Mengjiu looked impatient:

"what's up?"

Liu Cixiao looked sullen: "The phone rang in the deputy director's office just now. I was passing by and saw that the door was open, so I answered it. The person on the other end asked if the deputy director needed any more intelligence?"

Xu Zeng'en heard this from inside and was startled:
"Did you hang up the phone?"

(End of this chapter)