Spy wars start with lurking Secretary Hong

Chapter 454 There's nothing Old Wu can't do.

Upon hearing his tone, Lu Ming perked up and quickly replied:
"Section Chief, I still stand by my judgment."

"Besides the female telegraph operator, there was at least one other person at the scene!"

"Of the three soldiers, two were shot in the side. This is something a woman sending a telegram could never have done."

"Ok.

"The question now is, if such a person exists, where exactly is he?"

“Several companies of the National Army conducted a thorough search, covering the entire forest. Even if there was a second person, could he have flown away?” Gao Bin raised his eyebrows.

“Section Chief, I think… is it possible that he hid in a tree?” Lu Ming cautiously offered his guess. “At the time, everyone was paying attention to the marks on the ground and might have overlooked what was above our heads.”

Gao Bin snorted dismissively, a mocking smile playing on his lips:
"Lu Ming, do you think police dogs are just for show?"
"Don't even mention a person hiding in a tree. Even if it were Sun Wukong, our 'Howling Celestial Dogs' could sniff him out from between the rocks. How could he possibly disappear into thin air?"

Lu Ming was speechless, and asked blankly, "Then... what do you mean, Section Chief?"

Gao Bin tapped his pipe in the ashtray, his gaze sharp as lightning, piercing straight into Lu Ming's heart:
"What I mean is, that person didn't run away at all."

"He was very likely among the people who were there at the time. He could have been a soldier, or he could have been... a policeman."

Lu Ming felt a chill run down his spine, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on his back.

He didn't dare mention Zhou Yi directly, but instead used a more roundabout approach:
"Section Chief, now that you mention it, something comes to mind."

“Captain Zhou was the first one to arrive among our men today. I asked him, and he said he was going to the countryside to buy some local eggs for Gu Qiuyan to help her recover. It was nearby, so he arrived early.”

He swallowed hard and continued, "Also, I think Captain Zhou is acting a bit strange today."

He usually smokes with his right hand.

"But today he held the cigarette in his left hand the whole time. This habit... is very unusual."

Gao Bin's eyes narrowed to slits, his fingers unconsciously rubbing against the pipe.

Seeing this, Lu Ming became bolder and asked the most crucial question.

"Also, where exactly is Gu Qiuyan?"
"We came out to buy eggs together, shouldn't we go back together?"

he asks.

"It's also possible that Zhou Yi returned to the edge of the city or dropped Gu Qiuyan off halfway, or that Gu Qiuyan had her own way back, since there are quite a few rickshaw drivers from the village who run rickshaws in the city."

"Don't think too absolutely."

Zhou Yi had just undergone his rigorous "test," and Gao Bin didn't want to be too hasty in his judgment.

"Section Chief, how about... we go to Zhou Yi's house now and see if it's true or not?" Lu Ming suggested.

Gao Bin fell silent.

He thought of his nephew, Hong Zhiyou, who was still at Zhou Yi's house.

If we rush over there now and accidentally break something, dragging his precious nephew into it, things will get complicated.

He waved his hand, his tone returning to its usual calm.

"no need."

"If a woman were that telegraph operator, falling from such a high cliff, she would be facing a near-death experience. If we rush there, it would only make us seem impatient."

He paused for a moment, then gave his final decision:

"Tomorrow at noon, let's go to Captain Zhou's house for a 'visit'."

"Then everything will be clear."

"Yes, Section Chief is wise!" Although Lu Ming was somewhat unwilling, he could only accept the order.

As soon as Lu Ming left and the office door closed, the last trace of a smile on Gao Bin's face disappeared, replaced by a cold and murderous expression.

He picked up the phone and dialed a number.

The call was answered quickly.

"I am Gao Bin." His voice was low and commanding, leaving no room for argument.

"Check the police station deployed at the intersection of Laotuoshan West Road, and find out their duty records and shift change times for today! I need to know who left their post today, even for a minute!"

"Also, have Director Liang come to my office."

……

"Section Chief Gao!"

There was a gentle knock on the door of Gao Bin's office, and then a slightly overweight middle-aged man in a police uniform peeked in.

The visitor was Chief Liang of the Daowai Police Station.

His already round face was plastered with a humble yet fearful smile: "Section Chief, you wanted to see me?"

"Old Liang, sit down. You're on duty today." Gao Bin's voice was calm, revealing no emotion.

"Yes, yes, Section Chief. I've been on duty at the intersection post all day today." Director Liang's forehead was starting to sweat, and the collar of his police uniform was so tight that he could hardly breathe.

"Is there anything unusual at the Daowai intersection today?" Gao Bin asked.

"Reporting to the section chief, no! Absolutely nothing unusual!" Director Liang answered decisively, his voice rising half an octave due to tension. "I swear on my life, we didn't even catch anyone urinating or defecating in public today. Everything... everything is peaceful!"

Gao Bin's lips curled into a slight smile as he tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his movements unhurried and rhythmic.

thump.

thump.

thump.

Each time, Director Liang's body trembled.

"Really...no?" Gao Bin lowered his voice, drawing out a hint of amusement. "Director Liang, think it over carefully. Don't make me remember for you."

"Section Chief!"
"I remember now, Captain Zhou went out of the city today. Yes, his wife was in the passenger seat, they went out of the city together!" Director Liang replied cleverly.

"Oh?" Gao Bin raised an eyebrow slightly. "Go on."

"Captain Zhou said... he was going to the countryside to buy some local eggs and mountain produce for his wife to nourish her body, and this was registered," Director Liang explained, trembling.

“I know that,” Gao Bin interrupted him, leaning forward slightly. The light illuminated half of his face, and his eyes were so sharp they seemed to pierce through one’s heart.
"What I want to know is, has Gu Qiuyan... come back?"

Chief Liang froze, stammering, "The officers on duty said they only saw Captain Zhou and Section Chief Hong return in the same car, but they didn't see his wife."

Gao Bin leaned back in his chair, disappearing into the shadows once more, and the office fell into a deathly silence.

Director Liang felt he might be in big trouble.

After a long while, Gao Bin waved his hand, his tone returning to its usual calm: "Alright, you can go now."

Director Liang felt as if he had been granted a pardon and respectfully withdrew.

After the door closed, Gao Bin sat alone in the darkness, lit his pipe, and took a deep drag.

Gu Qiuyan didn't come back...

This coincides with Lu Ming's guess.

Could the woman who fell off the cliff really be Gu Qiuyan?
It's too much of a coincidence!
He stood up and walked to the window, gazing at the dome that was already shrouded in night.

If Zhou Yi and Gu Qiuyan were indeed the man and woman who sent the telegram, and Hong Zhi was so close to him, coupled with Lai Wenbin's revelation of the Anti-Japanese Alliance's fake infection, then...

My nephew has a serious problem.

……

The living room on the second floor of Zhou Yi's house was filled with a strong smell of alcohol and blood.

After the wound was stopped and bandaged, Zhou Yi leaned back on the sofa, lit a cigarette, and looked much more relaxed.

"Is it alright for you to go to the countryside to buy eggs and local products?" Hong Zhi packed up the first aid kit and put it back. He also packed up the used materials and gauze in something so that he could take them with him later.

"Don't worry." Zhou Yi exhaled a smoke ring.

"Before sending the message, we did go to a familiar farmhouse. We bought everything, and it's in the trunk. I'll get it back later."

"This line can withstand scrutiny."

He said lightly.

“That servant, Aunt Liu, is a problem.” Hong Zhi frowned.

“Unless Gu Qiuyan can come back tonight, this lie won’t hold up.” Zhou Yi’s eyes dimmed, and his voice was tinged with weariness. “But getting rid of Liu Ma now will only expose me immediately. If an old woman who hardly ever leaves the house except to buy groceries suddenly disappears, your uncle, that old fox, will be the first to suspect me.”

"Now we can only take it one step at a time."

"If Gu Qiuyan really... really can't come back, I will either be arrested or find a way to leave Harbin."

"Killing an innocent Liu Ma is pointless."

He gave a wry smile.

"I have to go. There might still be hope if we go to the search and rescue sooner." Hong Zhiyou stood up.

"If anything happens, feel free to call my home anytime."

He quickly went downstairs and left the Zhou family home.

As night deepened, Hong Zhi drove at high speed through the empty streets to Futai Leather Goods Store.

He knocked on the door with a peculiar rhythm.

A moment later, the door opened from the inside, and Wu Jingzhong, dressed in a long gown and wearing a melon-shaped hat, who looked shrewd and mercenary, peeked around and pulled him inside.

"My goodness, you've been coming here way too often. Do you want me to die?" Wu Jingzhong said irritably as he closed the door.

“Look at what you’re saying, I must have come to see you for something good.” Hong Zhiyou sat down.

"Don't give me that." Wu Jingzhong rolled his eyes at him. "Speak, what is it?"

"Has the news about Stalin been sent out yet?" Hong Zhiyou's expression turned serious.

When it came to serious matters, Wu Jingzhong also put away his lazy demeanor.

"Do you think we're just sitting around doing nothing?"

"The communications data you gave me last time was a huge help. I had my men thoroughly investigate the routes and schedules of the police department's radio surveillance vehicles!"

He stood up, walked to a map of Harbin, and pointed at it.

"Look, their surveillance is systematic, like a moving, broken net."

"It takes them seven and a half minutes to patrol between Gogol Street and Central Street."

"As long as we find the blind spot in the surveillance at the intersection within these seven and a half minutes, we can send the telegram safely."

Wu Jingzhong turned around, his expression quite proud.

"The intelligence has been reported to Boss Dai via encrypted radio."

"The Sino-Soviet intelligence agencies have probably received the news and are conducting emergency verification."

"This is an incredible achievement!"

Wu Jingzhong laughed.

"You are truly a genius, a master strategist!" Hong Zhiyou immediately flattered him.

"Alright, you've practically bloated yourself with flattery." Wu Jingzhong was quite pleased, but he didn't hold back, "Spit it out if you have something to say!"

Hong Zhiyou chuckled, took out a hastily drawn map from his pocket, and spread it on the table.

"I'm sorry to trouble you again."

"This is Wolf Head Cliff in Laotuo Mountain."

“A friend of mine fell off a cliff. The Japanese, the Nationalist soldiers, and the police are all resting at night. Have someone hurry up and search for him. We need to find him alive or dead.”

"If it's a corpse, destroy it nearby, especially the face!"

Hong Zhiyou said.

Wu Jingzhong's face instantly darkened, and he said unhappily, looking like a bitter gourd:
"Hey kid, do you have a grudge against me? Going to Wolf Head Cliff this late at night? That's just asking for trouble. It's minus twenty or thirty degrees Celsius in the mountains. You could freeze to death going that far."

"Of course not!" Hong Zhiyou quickly replied with a smile.

"There's nothing you can't do, sir. Don't worry, after it's done, I'll give you ten! Ten gold bars!"

He offered a price for Zhou Yi, since the guy had money anyway.

Wu Jingzhong's eyes lit up immediately, and the anger on his face vanished in an instant, replaced by a greedy smile.

He snatched the map and examined it carefully: "I've heard about Wolf Head Cliff too. Your friend's background is questionable. Fine, for the sake of the KMT and the CCP being one family, I'll give it a try."

"By the way, how's that gold mine and the female bandit thing going?" Wu Jingzhong asked again.

"Everything is taken care of."

"That wild horse has been tamed by me."

"When I get back from Jinhai, I'll take some men up the mountain and take care of Guan Weilong, who's occupying the gold mine!"

……

Around 1 a.m., the night in Harbin was so quiet that you could hear the snowflakes falling.

A rickshaw stopped at the alleyway across the street from Zhou Yi's house.

The man pulling the cart was a lean, wiry fellow, Xiao Guohua, one of Wu Jingzhong's subordinates.

He glanced warily across the street; the lights were still on on the second floor across the street.

At this time of day, most people would be fast asleep.

It was obvious that it was Gao Bin's eyeliner.

"Can you still walk?" Xiao Guohua helped Gu Qiuyan, who was covered in bruises and looked disheveled, quietly turn into a corner.

"No problem, there's surveillance, so we'll probably have to go in through the back door."

The two went around to the backyard of Zhou Yi's house.

Xiao Guohua squatted down and cushioned the weak Gu Qiuyan, who then struggled to climb onto the wall.

A dark shadow flashed, and Zhou Yi was already waiting in the backyard.

He caught the swaying Gu Qiuyan, and the two quickly went into the house.

Downstairs, Aunt Liu was fast asleep and didn't notice anything.

As soon as she returned to her bedroom on the second floor and the door closed, Gu Qiuyan could no longer hold back and threw herself into Zhou Yi's arms. The fear, grievances, and lingering dread that she had suppressed all day turned into soft sobs at that moment.

Zhou Yi patted her back gently like an older brother, and her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled back down.

The two savored this brief moment of warmth after surviving the ordeal.

"How did you escape?" Zhou Yi asked in a deep voice.

"When I fell, I was caught by a horizontal pine tree, but I only injured my leg."

"Later... I found a sheltered cave in the mountains that hunters had left behind when they ran through the mountains."

There was even some dry food and firewood inside.

Gu Qiuyan's voice was still choked with sobs, "I hid inside for a whole day, and only dared to come out when it was completely dark, and that's when I ran into the people who came looking for me."

Zhou Yi secretly rejoiced; this was truly a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

But there are more important things to say right now.

He helped Gu Qiuyan sit down, his expression regaining its calm and seriousness.

"Qiuyan, listen to me. Gao Bin will definitely come to 'visit' tomorrow."

"We must match our statements."

"Just say... just say that after you returned to the city, your friend dragged you to her house to play, and you didn't come back until very late."

"Because I caught a cold, I won't be able to get out of bed tomorrow and will have to stay in the bedroom."

"When he arrives, just respond from inside the bedroom and don't show yourself."

He gave detailed instructions.

"I understand." Gu Qiuyan nodded vigorously.

"And another thing." Zhou Yi looked at the injury on her face, a resolute glint in his eyes. "You can't say you fell and hurt yourself. Gao Bin will become suspicious."

He took a deep breath and said, "Let's have a fight right now."

"What?" Gu Qiuyan was stunned.

“Make a loud noise.” Zhou Yi’s tone left no room for argument.

"I scolded you, complaining that you were playful, that you went out drinking and partying with your friends until midnight while pregnant and didn't come home, and that there were already a lot of rumors about you outside."

"Then, you can smash some more things, cups, vases, anything."

"Make a lot of noise, preferably enough to wake up Aunt Liu."

"That way, when Gao Bin sees the injury on your face tomorrow, I can explain that I hit you in a fit of anger."

“A family dispute is far more likely to dispel his doubts than a missing suspected intelligence agent.”

Gu Qiuyan looked at Zhou Yi and instantly understood his intention.

In front of the enemy, they not only had to play the role of husband and wife, but also an ordinary couple who would quarrel, fight, and be full of everyday life.

Thinking of this, she changed into expensive clothes, touched up her makeup briefly, and raised her voice to argue with Zhou Yi.

The two were separated only after Liu Ma came up to mediate.

……

The next day, Zhou Yi arrived at the police station and exchanged a brief glance with Hong Zhi in the hallway before heading straight to his office.

really.

Not long after he sat down, Lu Ming walked in and patted him on the arm: "Old Zhou, the section chief wants you to go over there."

"Have you heard anything about that woman?" Zhou Yi asked, feigning pain and frowning.

"Who knows?" Lu Ming smiled and walked out.

They arrived at Gao Bin's office.

Gao Bin handed him a cigarette, which Zhou Yi took with his right hand, lit, and started smoking.

"I always thought you were left-handed, but it seems Captain Zhou is ambidextrous," Gao Bin said with a half-smile.

"To be honest, Section Chief Gao, I have frozen shoulder. It hurts terribly whenever I raise my arm!" Zhou Yi said.

"Here's the thing, I estimate there will be news about the pursuit at Wolf Head Cliff this morning. Whether they're dead or alive, our Special Service Section will get some credit for it."

"This Liu Kui."

He keeps telling me how delicious your family's dumplings are.

"I was thinking, you've been back in Harbin for so long, and I, as the section chief, haven't even paid you a visit yet."

"There's no time like the present, so how about I come over to your house for dumplings at noon today?"

"Let's treat this as a celebration and a visit all in one go."

Gao Bin smiled.

"It's an honor for Section Chief Gao to visit us, Qiu Yan and I. However, Qiu Yan is pregnant, so it might be inconvenient for her to entertain us..." Zhou Yi smiled and politely declined.

"Hey, our hall is full of men."

"These days, having a daughter is a waste of money. She'll just be a burden on your family's fortune. Your family will definitely have to have a son."

"Okay, now call home and ask your wife what she thinks."

Once Gao Bin became suspicious, he was determined to get to the bottom of it.

……

(End of this chapter)