My spy diary

Chapter 670 Arresting People (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Liu Ningxue was still engrossed in their conversation and didn't notice that they had already left. By the time she realized there was no sound in her earphones for a while, Zheng Huhe had already calmly left with Guo Xinya.

This infuriated Liu Ningxue, but at this moment she couldn't care less about these two uninvited guests and was instead focused on gathering intelligence.

After Zheng Hu and Guo Xinya left Huanyun Pavilion, there was a long period of silence.

Lost in thought, I walked silently from Yuzhong District to the Jialing River.

The sound of the river could already be heard ahead. Zheng Huhe turned around and walked forward.

Standing on the banks of the Jialing River, watching the water surge forward, one's gaze follows it all the way. If one looks at it for a long time, it is easy to think of things from a long time ago.

"When you get to Yan'an, you will be able to see the Yan River."

As he spoke, Zheng Huhe pulled a pistol from his waist and took out a new ID, which he handed to Guo Xinya.

"Take these with you. Someone arranged by the organization will come to pick you up in a while and evacuate through the safe passage. These are extraordinary times, and these things are necessary to deal with unexpected situations. I just hope you'll need them, and I also hope you won't."

Guo Xinya silently accepted it, thought for a moment, and then asked the question that had been on her mind for a long time:
Does 031 really not exist?

She was also somewhat dazed at this moment. Although her rational mind kept reminding her that it was a carefully designed play and that she was saying lines written in the script, Zheng Huhe's performance and eyes made her feel somewhat dazed and unable to distinguish whether it was real or fake.

Zheng Huhe smiled and said, "Director Zhou once said that '031' is never just one person. It is me, it is him, it is you, it is the thousands of hard-working people who fight in the heart of the enemy in anonymity, it is fellow travelers who have never met each other but are already connected by blood."

Guo Xinya stared at him blankly for a moment, then smiled with deep emotion.

The atmosphere in the head of the intelligence department's office was very harmonious.

Yang Rong and Zhang Yi sat on the sofa with their legs crossed, chatting.

Yang Rong calmly and methodically scalded the cups, rinsed the tea, and brewed it, his movements extremely fluid. Pointing to the simple and unadorned purple clay teapot, he said with a hint of pride:
"How is it? Not bad, right?"

Zhang Yi examined the purple clay teapot in front of him. The body of the teapot was made up of three stacked spheres of different sizes, with a beautiful shape. Even if he didn't know much about purple clay teapots, he could tell that this was a fine piece, so he chimed in:
"The lines are smooth, steady, and full; it's clearly a masterpiece. I wonder which master craftsman it is?"

“Master Cheng Shouzhen.” Yang Rong smiled proudly. “This is the master’s masterpiece, the Duoqiu teapot, which won first prize and an award of excellence at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in 15 and the Chicago World’s Fair in 32.”

"No wonder! Where did you get it? Make one for me too!" Zhang Yi pretended to be interested.

Yang Rong smiled without saying a word, poured Zhang Yi a cup of tea, and then changed the subject:
"Did you hear that?"

He spoke incoherently, but Zhang Yi understood what he meant. He smiled calmly, picked up his teacup, offered a toast, and said with a sigh:
"The Red Party is truly ubiquitous! Who would have thought that even the cipher clerk in the confidential office was one of their people!"

"Yes, I heard that Boss Dai was furious and slapped Jiang Yiying a few times before exiling her to Xiamen," Yang Rong said with a sigh.

Director Jiang came from a carpenter's family in Jiangshan, Zhejiang. In 32, he was admitted to the Jiangzhe Police Academy. Due to his outstanding performance and because he was a fellow townsman of Boss Dai, he was recruited by the Special Service Department for training. Later, he received guidance from Wei Daming, the "first person in the Military Intelligence Bureau's telecommunications department," and quickly made a name for himself in the fields of telecommunications and decryption.

After graduation, he served successively as a radio operator and chief radio operator at the Kuomintang's Xiamen radio station. He once set a record of deciphering 80 Japanese military telegrams in a single day. Due to his outstanding abilities, he was transferred to the headquarters to control the confidential office and received double the salary.

Since she took over as director of the confidential office, the office has been staffed entirely with radio operators from Jiangshan. They communicate in their local dialect, which varies from place to place, making it difficult for outsiders to understand what they are saying.

Even with such tight security, a mole still emerged—Jiang Shanren, whom Dai Chunfeng trusted most. One can imagine the unease and fear he felt.

Zhang Yi frowned and remained silent.

"We can't be half of our people, can we?" Yang Rong's expression was very serious, even somewhat worried. "Do you believe that there are definitely more than one person like Guo Xinya who is secretly lurking and hasn't revealed her identity yet, but has kept us in the dark?"

"Director Yang, you must be joking," Zhang Yi chuckled, somewhat surprised. An official like Yang Rong, relatively cautious and introspective, usually didn't have many people to confide in or discuss matters with, not even his wife. He always kept such confidential matters to himself, as it wasn't a pleasant experience. Even so, he wouldn't easily reveal such things. So what was his true intention in saying this?

Thinking to himself, he put on a disdainful look: "Then their skills are too great, aren't they?"

“Brother, we still can’t be careless. The Red Party is best at playing chess in idle moments and stirring up trouble in unintentional situations. Although everyone is wearing the same uniform, no one knows who is hiding a tail under their uniform,” Yang Rong said with an air of seriousness.

Zhang Yi half-jokingly said, "Then we'll just have to find a fortune teller to do the reading."

Yang Rong smiled wryly, about to say something, when a knock came at the door. Li Maocai, the head of the military intelligence section under him, pushed the door open and entered. He was clearly surprised to see Zhang Yi. He nodded politely and then looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated.

Zhang Yi stood up and excused himself.

"Alright, I'm going now. Let's talk another day!"

Yang Rong glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, shrugged, smiled, and waved her hand.

"Stop being so mysterious. Just tell us. Deputy Director Zhang isn't an outsider."

"No, I have a lot of things to take care of. See you later!" Zhang Yi waved with a smile and turned to leave.

As soon as Zhang Yi left, Li Maocai immediately locked the door. Even though he and Yang Rong were the only two people in the office, he still lowered his voice:
"Chief, a message just came from our inside source."

Yang Rong immediately became serious. He looked at Li Maocai and unconsciously lowered his voice as well:
"what news?"

"Those bastards from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics just sent someone to Mao Zhongxin's house, apparently looking for some clues. Also, they just finished an operation this afternoon."

"What action?"

"It seems to be a covert operation to arrest members of the Red Party. They're using the charge of wanted murderers. The Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (Zhongtong) has mobilized over a hundred people. The specific intelligence is still being verified." After saying this, Li Maocai thought for a moment and added, "By the way, they just sent a team to Huanyun Pavilion."

"Huanyun Pavilion? A brothel? What were they doing there? Didn't our informant get any information?"

After a pause, Li Maocai shook his head:
"No."

"What are they doing at the brothel?" Yang Rong frowned, pondering. After a moment's thought, he seemed to have made up his mind:
"Take some men with you and see what they're up to."

"Yes." Li Maocai accepted the order with a stern expression, hesitated for a moment, and then asked:
"What if we clash with the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS)?"

Yang Rong snorted coldly: "Then let's teach those little punks in the First Division a lesson. Don't worry, as long as no one dies, I'll take responsibility for whatever happens."

"Yes." Li Maocai felt the support behind him and immediately became excited, as if he had been injected with adrenaline. Back in his department, he immediately gathered dozens of men and rushed towards Huanyun Pavilion.

As soon as they arrived outside Huanyun Pavilion, they saw that plainclothes officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) had already surrounded the area.

Li Maocai ordered his men to advance on foot. The plainclothes officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) who had arrived earlier saw another group of armed plainclothes officers coming and quickly separated a team, each brandishing a pistol, to block the path of the Military Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (JBI) plainclothes officers.

"What are you doing?" Li Maocai shouted first, charging forward with his gun in hand. The Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) agents, however, were unmoved. Two of them stepped forward, brandishing their pistols and pointing them at him.

"Damn it, they haven't even opened their insurance, who are they trying to scare?" Li Maocai sneered, about to disarm them, when he suddenly heard someone say:
"Oh my, isn't this Brother Maocai from the Second Division?"

Li Maocai looked closely and realized that the speaker was Zheng Rui from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) action team. The CBIS had already discovered that the prostitute who had close ties with Mao Zhongxin was Liu Ningxue, known as "Xue'er" from Huanyun Pavilion. However, in order not to alert her, they were using the pretext of searching for a "murderer".

Upon seeing Zheng Rui, a hint of disdain flashed in Li Maocai's eyes. He shoved aside the plainclothes officer from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) and raised his chin:

"Oh, it's you, Xiao Zheng from the same place. What are you doing here?"

Zheng Rui let out a cold laugh:
"That's what I should be asking you! What are you doing here with these people?"

Li Maocai's heart skipped a beat, and he said in a serious tone:

"On the orders of Mr. Dai and Director Yang, we have come to arrest Guo Xinya, a traitor to the Military Intelligence Bureau."

"Guo Xinya is hiding in a brothel?" Zheng Rui asked, surprised and suspicious. He had already heard about Guo Xinya's escape after her identity was exposed; Xu Zeng'en had told them the story as a joke. Thinking it over, he kept staring at Li Maocai, as if trying to discern the truth in his words. After a moment of silence, he feigned surprise and asked:

"She'd be hiding here? Impossible!"

"Why not? My informant saw it with his own eyes." Li Maocai snorted, then changed the subject, "And you? What are you doing here with so many people? Shouldn't you be here to protect her?"

“Protect her?” Zheng Rui sneered. To conceal his true purpose and not want the Military Intelligence Bureau to ruin things, he said righteously, “Colonel Li, don’t forget our Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics’ responsibilities. Now that her identity has been exposed, we also have the right to arrest her.”

"So, you're here to arrest her too?"

"good."

"Mind your own business!" Li Maocai pretended to pull out an arrest warrant from his pocket. "This is a matter for our Military Intelligence Bureau, so you don't need to worry about it. Who ordered you to come here?"

"Of course, it's our Director Xu."

"The deputy." Li Maocai chuckled upon hearing this, immediately revealing a disdainful expression, and mocked:
"You should worry about your own business. I heard your operation this afternoon failed again. Could there be a traitor among you as well?"

The slap made Zheng Rui's face turn pale. He couldn't help but recall the scene when Xu Zeng poked his nose and called him an idiot. He was furious and embarrassed.
"No need for you to worry about it. There's an order to arresting people, Colonel Li. Goodbye!"

"What if I don't leave?" Li Maocai immediately adopted an arrogant attitude, pressing his face close to Zheng Rui's, spitting as he spoke. "What do you mean by 'first come, first served'? Do you think this is like queuing to use the toilet? You need a legitimate reason to arrest someone, right? Do you have an arrest warrant?"

Zheng Rui naturally didn't have an arrest warrant. Although he was furious inside, he remained calm on the surface.

"We in the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics never need that thing to arrest people; we can arrest people just by suspecting them."

"Does that mean there's nothing left?"

Zheng Rui wanted to say something more.
"It's alright." Li Maocai grabbed Zheng Rui's gun-wielding hand with lightning speed, twisting and turning it so that Zheng Rui was caught off guard and let out a muffled groan. His hand loosened, and the pistol fell to the ground with a "clatter".

Li Maocai kicked the pistol far away, then suddenly raised the muzzle and pressed it against Zheng Rui's chin:

"Stop acting all high and mighty! You think you can get away with this? Cuff him!"

Before he could finish speaking, two fierce-looking plainclothes officers pounced on Zheng Rui, pinning him down and pressing gun barrels against his head.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye. In his panic, Zheng Rui, with a gloomy face, didn't know what to say. The Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics agents stared at each other, looking at each other in bewilderment and utterly frustrated.

"Take him into custody. The rest of you, disarm these good-for-nothings!" Li Maocai waved his hand. "Take control of Huanyun Pavilion immediately!"

The plainclothes officers from the Military Intelligence Bureau stood at attention, beaming, and answered "Yes, sir!" before rushing towards the plainclothes officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics. Seeing the deputy section chief also rushing towards them, Li Maocai grabbed him.

"You stay for a while."

Then she gave him a wink.

The deputy section chief immediately understood, and after everyone else had rushed out, he asked in a low voice:

"Section Chief?"

"Call the director right now and ask for backup." Li Maocai's expression was unusually grim. "I just saw a few bastards from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics slip away when things got bad. They must have gone to make phone calls."

"Yes," the deputy section chief replied sternly.

After explaining everything, Li Maocai left a few people to guard the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (Zhongtong) personnel, and then led the others straight to Huanyun Pavilion.

Huanyun Pavilion was in complete chaos. The madam, accompanied by two guards, rushed over upon hearing the commotion. Seeing plainclothes officers armed with menacing expressions, they trembled with fear.

"Sir, I don't know who you are."

Before she could finish speaking, Li Maocai raised his chin, and a plainclothes officer slapped the madam across the face, forcing her to swallow the "you" that was about to be uttered.

The madam immediately let out a scream.

Li Maocai didn't even look at her, and gestured to his men:
"Have everyone gather downstairs to verify their ID."

"Yes." Just as the plainclothes officer was about to act, a sharp police whistle came from afar.

Then, a man in a white suit jumped out of the car with several police officers and shouted:
"Who dares to cause trouble on my turf? Arrest the ringleaders! Nobody's getting away!"

Several policemen, carrying batons, charged forward menacingly, only to be met with a gunshot.

"boom!"

The man in the suit shouted from behind, "Who fired the shot? Charge in and grab him!"

Several policemen instinctively shrank back. The shot had just been fired into the air, but they were sure the next bullet wouldn't be aimed at them.

The man in the suit spat dismissively: "A bunch of cowards."

As he spoke, he strode forward and stared at Li Maocai, asking in a condescending manner:
"Which department are you from? Get your superior out here and answer me!"

(End of this chapter)