My spy diary

Chapter 683 A Warning to Others (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Zhao Deshan arrived at his front door carrying his things. He glanced around and, seeing nothing amiss, took out a key from his pocket and opened the door.

He gently pushed the door open, but instead of rushing in, he carefully examined the doormat inside. Seeing that there was nothing unusual, he then walked in.

After closing the door, he didn't rush to the kitchen to put his things down. Instead, he stood at the doorway, looked around the entire house, sniffed the air, and, finding nothing unusual, went to the kitchen to put his things down.

Then, he pushed open the door and went straight to the desk in the living room, where he immediately saw the books on the table.

A stack of books was piled up haphazardly, scattered yet still retaining its original shape, clearly indicating that no one had touched them.

But he didn't let his guard down. He tiptoed to the door, pressed his ear against it, and listened carefully to the sounds outside for a while. Then, he went to the living room window again, hooked a corner of the curtain open with his finger, and looked out through the crack.

Following his gaze, I saw pedestrians hurrying by and vendors busy at work; everything seemed normal.

Only then did Zhao Deshan finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He lit a cigarette and, while smoking, recalled the newspaper he had just read.

How did Qian Xiaosan suddenly die? What happened to him?
It's not that simple for someone to be traveling with their family in the middle of the night. Could it be that his secret has been exposed and he's trying to escape?
That's not just a simple car accident; it could be premeditated murder?

Also, why did I have to hear about the car accident?
This is all too coincidental. No, this might be a trap.

Zhao Deshan's expression turned serious, and the worry hidden in his heart rose and fell.

He lit another cigarette, trying hard to recall the two people sitting nearby eating noodles, reading the newspaper, and talking—they seemed vaguely familiar.

They must be local residents, not members of the Military Intelligence Bureau.

If it were a Kuomintang agent in disguise, they would only give people a vague impression. Just like myself, when carrying out a mission, my attire would be very ordinary, and I would do my best not to leave an impression on those around me.

But what if it was ordered by the Military Intelligence Bureau?

can you?

Zhao Deshan hesitated, forcing himself to calm down, and tried hard to recall the figures he had encountered on his way to the vegetable market.

"The fish have returned to their nest."

Inside the car lying by the roadside, the monkey heard the voice coming from the walkie-talkie and finally breathed a sigh of relief, unable to suppress a yawn.

Seeing this, a plainclothes officer in the back seat said ingratiatingly:

"Lieutenant Hou, you should get some sleep. I'll wake you if there's any noise."

The monkey's eyes were about to close, but upon hearing this, they were forced to open again:
"The section chief also has a walkie-talkie, and he might be listening to it right now. How can you be so disrespectful to me? Go run an errand and buy me something to refresh myself."

Realizing he had misspoke, the plainclothes officer quickly asked, "What do you want?"

"It must be a mint. Are you going to use it to make tea or coffee?"

"There are only general stores around here, so you probably won't be able to buy mints. How about I buy you a bottle of Coca-Cola? I saw they sell them when I passed a foreign company earlier."

The monkey rolled its eyes speechlessly and said helplessly, "I'll just buy mints."

The worst thing about surveillance is falling asleep and letting the target slip away right under your nose.

Secondly, frequently getting on and off the bus to use the restroom arouses suspicion and alerts the other party.

The plainclothes officer nodded and was about to get out of the car when Monkey called him back:
"With so many brands, you didn't even ask me which one I wanted?"

What brand do you want?

"nameless."

"Huh?" The plainclothes officer glanced warily at the walkie-talkie. "Deputy Hou, Brother Hou, we're all listening. Stop messing around. What brand is it?"

In a private room of a nearby teahouse, Zhang Yi overheard their conversation. While eating a steamed bun, he subconsciously remarked:
"Idiot, the mint is called 'Nameless,' it doesn't have a brand, understand?"

The mints available nowadays are mainly Taizhou Silk Mints, Baizhaoji Zongzi Candy, and Tianming Eucalyptus Leaf Candy. Apart from these, there are also mints produced by nameless workshops that don't even have packaging and rely on selling them by going door-to-door.

The plainclothes officer suddenly realized what was happening and was about to say something when Zhang Yi's voice came through the walkie-talkie again:
"Those who are off shift, please meet at Ruihe Teahouse."

"Yes!" the monkey replied, and immediately drove away from the area.

A short while after he left, another gray sedan pulled up.

In a private room at Ruihe Teahouse, breakfast and tea had already been served, and the group of plainclothes officers were wolfing it down.

While eating, the group reported the surveillance and search findings to Zhang Yi.

"This person is very vigilant and has a strong sense of counter-surveillance."

"You said he went grocery shopping to test me, or was it just his usual routine? It's a pity we don't know his previous habits."

“We found a radio in his residence. It was clean and dust-free, indicating that it was used frequently. The channel was tuned to the Central Broadcasting System.”

"There are many books piled on the desk. The top one is Huanzhu Louzhu's 'The Legend of the Swordsmen of Shushan.' The edges of the pages are rough and the layers are uneven. It must be turned frequently."

"."

Listening to the report, Zhang Yi remained silent, his fingers tapping erratically on the table. This Zhao Deshan was clearly cunning and shrewd, a difficult person to deal with.

He paused, then picked up the phone that had been pulled into the private room and called He Zhiyuan:
"Director He, it's me. I need to borrow someone. That guy named Shen Linfeng is quite good; he's quick-witted. Okay, have him come to Ruihe Teahouse to find me."

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Yi thought for a moment and then said, "Regardless of whether Zhao Deshan has noticed or not, the original plan remains unchanged. Immediately send someone to the newspaper office with photos and information of Liu Ningxue and Xiaodie, and try to get them published by noon. Let's make an example of them and lure them in. Let's see if he can still hold his tongue!"

"Yes!"

The subsequent steps went smoothly. Shen Linfeng from the action department arrived quickly, memorized the information Zhang Yi had obtained from Editor-in-Chief Liu about his distant nephew, and headed to Editor-in-Chief Liu's house with his luggage.

Zhao Deshan was a little uneasy. He paced around the living room a couple of times, and when he heard a noise at the outer door, he picked up a bag of trash by the door and opened it to go out.

"Young man, who are you?" Zhao Deshan greeted Shen Linfeng, who was carrying luggage and looking travel-worn, quite naturally.

Shen Linfeng didn't say anything, just nodded politely, then took out the slip of paper that was clenched in his palm, glanced at the door of Editor-in-Chief Liu's house, and then knocked on the door.

Zhao Deshan listened quietly.

Soon, Editor-in-Chief Liu peeked out, saw Shen Linfeng, and his face lit up with surprise:
"Defu?" "Uncle, we've finally found you."

"Didn't we agree that I would pick you up?" Editor-in-Chief Liu quickly opened the door, pulling Shen Linfeng inside while scolding him:
"You didn't even make a phone call when you got to the train station. You must be exhausted. Come inside."

“I’m a grown man, I can find out by asking around, why bother Uncle to make the trip.”

Just as Editor-in-Chief Liu was about to say something, Zhao Deshan walked over, and he immediately looked disgusted.

Zhao Deshan, however, paid no heed and smiled as he sized up Shen Linfeng:
"Editor-in-Chief Liu, who is this?"

Editor-in-Chief Liu snorted, ignored him, and pulled Shen Linfeng into the house.

Zhao Deshan watched the door slam shut with a bang, snorted, and a hint of barely perceptible doubt appeared on his face.

After thinking for a moment, he put the trash at the door, went back inside to change his clothes, put on his shabby suit and leather shoes, locked the door, and took the trash downstairs.

"Yu came downstairs, carrying a bag of trash. She had changed her clothes and was wearing leather shoes, as if she was going out to run errands."

Upon receiving the message from Shen Linfeng, Zhang Yi immediately picked up his binoculars and began observing intently through the half-open window of the private room. After Zhao Deshan had thrown away the trash and walked a short distance, he grabbed the walkie-talkie and said:

"One group follows, but be careful not to follow too closely, and be careful not to make him remember your faces. At the next intersection, the second group will cross over and keep up, just don't alert him."

"Yes." The plainclothes officer replied and was about to take action when Zhao Deshan suddenly turned and disappeared into a shop on the street.

The shopkeeper came up to him, and Zhao Deshan said, "Give me a pack of Lao Dao (a type of Chinese liquor)."

As he spoke, his gaze searched the glass display case on the wall. The scene outside was clearly reflected in the glass. Passersby hurried past, and no one was looking in their direction.

The shop owner took a pack of cigarettes from the shelf and handed it to him. When Zhao Deshan took out his money to pay, he seemed to realize that he had left his wallet at home. He apologized to the shop owner, turned around and left the shop, hurrying home.

"The fish suddenly came back."

Upon receiving the report, Zhang Yi immediately ordered all those tracking them to withdraw. There was no doubt that Zhao Deshan was testing them.

Zhao Deshan rushed home.

However, after opening the door and observing the surroundings, he still found nothing unusual, which puzzled him.

"Am I overthinking this?" Zhao Deshan frowned and turned his gaze to the next room. Who was this so-called nephew of Editor-in-Chief Liu?

Thinking this, he went into the kitchen, and a little while later he came out carrying an empty bowl and knocked on the door of the next room.

The door opened quickly. Editor-in-Chief Liu, seeing Zhao Deshan outside, immediately wore a displeased expression:
"what's up?"

Zhao Deshan smiled broadly: "I bought some vegetables to make dumplings, but we're out of vinegar. Could I borrow some?"

As he spoke, he pushed the door open without saying a word and immediately caught sight of Shen Linfeng sitting inside drinking water:
"Young man, who are you? I'm your neighbor, Zhao Deshan, and I'm a writer."

"Hello. Liu Defu, you've just been transferred to Shancheng."

"Transfer? Which unit?"

"Military Statistics Bureau".

Zhao Deshan's nerves twitched, and he subconsciously tightened his grip on the bowl in his hand. He glanced at Editor-in-Chief Liu: "The Military Intelligence Bureau? Old Liu, I've never heard of that. You have such a promising nephew."

Editor-in-Chief Liu, with a stern face, snatched the bowl from his hand and snorted coldly:
"Wait!"

Zhao Deshan chuckled, then, taking the initiative, squeezed in and looked at Shen Linfeng curiously:
"The Military Intelligence Bureau, is it for catching spies?"

"Yes." Shen Linfeng nodded with a smile, then asked, "What kind of novels do you write?"

"Just writing for fun." Zhao Deshan, as usual, had a nonchalant attitude, his expression calm and revealing no emotion. He thought for a moment, then asked casually, "I've seen your Military Intelligence Bureau arresting people before, carrying guns, they looked so imposing."

"is it?"

"Hey, that's pretty scary. By the way, once you start working, will you still be living here? Won't the Military Intelligence Bureau assign you dormitories?"

"I don't know yet, I'll report tomorrow." Before Zhao Deshan could ask any more questions, Editor-in-Chief Liu came over with a bowl of vinegar. He had a stern face and looked impatient. "What are you asking about? Here's the vinegar, get out."

"I'm just curious." Zhao Deshan chuckled awkwardly, took the bowl of vinegar, and walked out. As the door closed, his face turned extremely ugly.

Therefore, the first thing he did when he got home was to look for any possible listening devices.

Even though it looks like no one has come in, what if someone has?
After locking the door from the inside, Zhao Deshan carefully searched for listening devices in every corner, even taking apart and inspecting the telephone and radio.

After getting nothing, he slumped into a chair, silently smoking, his brow furrowed.

If you let a Kuomintang agent live next door, who knows how many clues you'd give yourself away.

Think of a way to get rid of him? What method? Sowing discord? That doesn't seem like a good idea!

Or should I move myself?
After thinking about it, he felt that this approach was completely illogical. Doing something contrary to common sense would only make him seem guilty and make him more likely to arouse suspicion.

Moreover, conversely, since Liu Defu lives here, he might be able to smell what kind of food is being cooked in the Military Intelligence Bureau's kitchen, whether it's too salty or too bland.

But then he had a sudden realization: what would his superiors think if they found out that a member of the Kuomintang's Military Intelligence Bureau lived next door? It would be a situation where things looked suspicious, and he wouldn't be able to explain himself clearly.
Zhao Deshan became restless again.

Dai Chunfeng was also uneasy.

The morning light streamed through the clean glass windows into Dai Chunfeng's study. Having sat on the sofa all night anxiously awaiting a phone call, Dai Chunfeng remained fixed on the telephone on his desk. His hands unconsciously rubbed together slowly, his face filled with impatience.

The adjutant, Jia, who had kept watch with him all night, broke the somewhat oppressive atmosphere in the room by speaking:
“Mr. Dai, why don’t you have some breakfast first? We have to attend the Class B briefing later.”

The Type A meeting was always held at Chang's residence on Zhongshan Fourth Road in Chongqing, and those present were all senior advisors or high-ranking military and political officials close to Chang. The meeting content mainly included the activities of the Red Party, the handling of major anti-Red cases, and how to thoroughly prevent Red activities.

While the second type of meeting was also held at the Chairman's residence, it was chaired by Tang Heng, the head of the intelligence group of the sixth section of the Generalissimo's Office. Attendees included heads of the Military Intelligence Bureau and the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, the director of the Institute of International Studies, the secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Second Bureau of the Military Command. Ostensibly, the meeting was to study the movements of the Japanese and puppet troops, but in reality, it was also to discuss countermeasures against the activities of the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army on the front lines and in the enemy's rear base areas.

Dai Chunfeng shook his head absentmindedly. He knew that Xu Zeng'en would definitely make trouble for him at this meeting regarding Mao Zhongxin, and might even instigate Tang Heng to join in. He hadn't yet figured out a strategy to deal with it.

Lieutenant Jia stood up, brought in a stack of pastries and a glass of milk from outside, and placed them in front of him:
"Mr. Dai, please have something to eat first!"

Dai Chunfeng glanced at him, took the pastry, and took a bite:
"Where do you think Zheng Huhe is hiding? How could a living person just vanish into thin air?"

(End of this chapter)