Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 42 Assassination
"So powerful?"

"Big?"

Now that it was brought out, Ling Xianwen didn't hide it anymore, lest he run into a ghost if he was blind.

"Behind these people in the new government are basically higher-ranking people, like the mayor who was previously pushed out and is now the deputy mayor, who is from the gendarmerie headquarters.

The heads of the remaining 29 departments are inevitably tied to other people by connections.

There are basically four factions in Shanghai, including the Japanese headquarters represented by Commander Matsui.

The local military represented by the Shanghai Gendarmerie Command.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs represented by our consulate.

The rest are the navy stationed in Shanghai. Their strength is not great, but their position is critical.

Without their consent, no ship can enter any port trade in or out of Shanghai, and their people must be among the relevant personnel."

Gu Yansheng understood. Ling Xianwen had made it very clear. Although he was talking about several factions, he was actually talking about the distribution of interests among the Japanese themselves.

The Japanese military eats the most, the gendarmerie headquarters and the consulate are at about the same level, and as for the navy, they have to eat a little bit, but the demand for positions may not be that great.

"Working in government isn't as pure as working as a lawyer. There are more social interactions involved, but don't overthink the cliques. Take your time. It won't get in the way. There's plenty of time."

Ling Xianwen smiled and said, "No matter who is behind this, as long as we do our own thing well, there won't be any problem.

Like your judicial department, its main job is to judge and supervise.

But where is the judiciary in Shanghai now? If I say there is a judiciary in Shanghai now, do you believe me? Who would believe me if I told them?

I don't believe it.

After the war, Shanghai was ruled by the Japanese. We didn't even have laws, so we couldn't just use the laws of the Nationalist government and be hated by the Japanese for no reason.

Everything needs to be rebuilt, so you have time to experience it slowly.

However, Mr. Hase also has some requirements for us, which we should take seriously.

There were two major Japanese forces in Shanghai: the Japanese military and the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The former was responsible for war, and the latter was responsible for diplomacy.

What is diplomacy?

Don't cause trouble.

Whether it is military chaos, judicial chaos, or chaos in international relations.

Anything that would make Mr. Hase lose face in front of the major newspapers is called chaos.

People's hearts are hidden, and some people are lawless. We must keep a close eye on them and, at critical moments, correct mistakes when necessary. No matter who is involved, we must not let Mr. Hase's consular diplomacy fall into a passive position. This is the core focus of our work."

"understood."

Gu Yansheng nodded: "I don't know what the current situation is in the new government, but give me some time, I will first sort out the situation in the judicial department, and at least in my own field, I can make Shanghai peaceful and reassure Mr. Chang Gu.

Then I will expand into other areas and fulfill my supervisory responsibilities.”

"Hey, that's great." Ling Xianwen put down his coffee cup, smiled and stood up: "Okay, I've been out for a long time, it's time to go back. If you don't have anything to do, why don't you just come with me to get to know the place?

There's a meeting at the city government at 10 a.m. hosted by Mayor Fu. All the leaders are there, so I'd like to introduce you to someone so you don't have to worry about anything later."

Gu Yansheng and Ling Xianwen went in the same car and sat in the back seat. They had a lot to talk about on the way.

"Regarding the security issue you're concerned about, the situation in Shanghai is indeed quite serious right now, so the city government is urging some institutions to come up with detailed protection regulations as soon as possible. In fact, the Japanese are also very anxious about this matter.

The candidate they collected with great difficulty was shot down. Shanghai's economy is unstable. This is not what they want, right? "

Ling Xianwen smiled after he finished speaking.

Gu Yansheng nodded in agreement.

"But they weren't the ones who died. Honestly, I'm not a saint. I can reduce my financial gains and do something for Shanghai, but if my life safety can't be guaranteed, then there's no need for me to risk my life so desperately."

Ling Xianwen patted Gu Yansheng's thigh and said, "This isn't just your idea. I guess this is also what Chongqing wants to achieve. It's what they call panic. But there should be progress soon."

The gang that stole your car were actually a branch of a Japanese intelligence agency, led by a Central Bureau of Investigation agent who had switched from Chongqing and seemed to be a director.

Among the remaining people, some were his old subordinates, and some were members of the Green Gang, and he also had some connections in the Green Gang.

As far as I know, they have a plan to attack the Military Control Commission in Shanghai. I don't know the details, but the Japanese seem quite satisfied. I guess the situation will improve significantly by then."

"That's good." Gu Yansheng said, "As long as it's not a matter of life or death, everything else is trivial."

"That's right, and during this period, I will arrange for people to protect you.

Actually, you don't have to worry about it now. Who are you? To be honest, Chongqing doesn't even know who you are. People like us who work in the city government are likely to be on Chongqing's list.

And you just arrived, so you can't possibly be a target, right?" Gu Yansheng joked directly, "Then I don't think I should ride in the same car with Secretary Ling. With your talent, you should be ranked very high."

"Hahahaha." Ling Xianwen laughed and pointed out the window, "I'm afraid of death too, so if you look closely you'll find that there are actually four cars protecting me and more than a dozen people around me.

Although the Chongqing agents are rampant, they are also smart. If I tell them clearly that there are people nearby, they will not provoke me. The cost is too high.

Just as he finished speaking, there was a sudden loud explosion, the ground exploded, bricks and stones flew all over the sky, and landed on the car with a crackling sound!
Because of the ground explosion, the front of the car was directly blown up to a high height, and then dense bullets fell like raindrops around the car body. Due to the gravity of the earth, the car body fell straight down and hit the ground, causing constant vibrations.

The sudden attack made both of them look unhappy.

This was also the first time that Gu Yansheng encountered a battle with real guns. He was really afraid of death. This undercover mission was really difficult to do!
However, Gu Yansheng acted decisively and immediately shrank his body, hiding in the gap between the back seat and the front seat. In his spare time, he did not forget to pull Ling Xianwen's hand and tried to hold his body down.

To say that he was saving someone was from Ling Xianwen's perspective. From Gu Yansheng's perspective, it was just to use someone as a human shield to reduce his own area of ​​exposure.

There was a driver in front of him, Ling Xianwen on his right, and the trunk behind him. Only a stray bullet from the left door could cause him bleeding. Gu Yansheng analyzed the current situation in an instant and made a confident judgment, determined to minimize the possibility of injury.

Ling Xianwen was also frightened and angry. He couldn't say anything at this time and could only hide and wait for time to pass.

The crackling sound of gunfire continued for a long time. Fortunately, Ling Xianwen's guards were probably sufficient, and the assassin's bullets were unable to break through the guards' defense line.

This is a downtown area, and the patrolling Japanese soldiers could come back at any time. After three or five minutes, the other side chose to retreat, so their lives were saved.

The car door opened and the guard came in and asked, "Secretary Ling, are you okay?"

Gu Yansheng felt Ling Xianwen shudder when the door was opened, but when he found out it was one of his own, he flew into a rage: "Where are the assassins? How many did you kill?"

The guard quickly replied: "We killed one, and the rest all ran away."

Ling Xianwen's face was gloomy. He stood up to get rid of this humiliating posture, and did not forget to pat the timid but alert Gu Yansheng on the back: "It's okay, come out and get some fresh air."

Gu Yansheng followed him out of the car. The situation outside was terrible. There were four bodies lying on the ground, and several people were injured. The scene was chaotic due to the explosion, the car body was damaged, and there were already many people watching from a distance on the roadside.

Ling Xianwen saw this scene as soon as he got out of the car. He glanced at the street scene coldly and got back into the car. "Drive."

"The police and gendarmes are coming." the driver reminded.

"I let you drive!"

"Yes."

The vehicle passed the military police and drove away. Seeing this, several escort vehicles quickly got on board and followed closely behind.

He was silent all the way. When he arrived at the city government, Ling Xianwen walked hurriedly to the meeting room with a sullen face and pushed open the door with a bang.

He had skipped work to recruit Gu Yansheng, and had been delayed by the assassination just now. Now there were already quite a few people in the conference room. They were sitting on both sides of the conference table, drinking tea and chatting happily, with rumbling laughter.

Ling Xianwen's violent push of the door interrupted the atmosphere, and everyone in the meeting room became more restrained upon seeing this.

"Secretary Ling, what's wrong with you? Why are you so magnanimous?" Someone greeted him with a smile.

Ling Xianwen suppressed his anger and scanned the crowd. He fixed his gaze on a rather honest-looking 50-year-old man sitting in the front row. He walked over quickly and threw his bag on the table.

"When will the assassination in Shanghai be resolved? I almost got killed on the way here! If you can't do the job as the police chief, you should find someone else!"

"Is there such a thing?"

Police Chief Lu Ying stood up in shock and looked Ling Xianwen up and down. "Brother Ling, did they all attack you? Are you hurt?"

"Injured? I'm fucking dying! If the assassination isn't resolved, not only me, but you, you, you, you all, and you, the police chief, will all die!"

"I know. I will track it down as soon as I get back and give you an explanation, Brother Ling!"

"Explain, explain! Why don't you wait until I'm dead and then write the word 'explain' on my tombstone? Will it be of any use? You, the police chief, are just sitting there doing nothing? How long has it been going on?!"

"That's enough! Ling Xianwen! The role of the police is to maintain public order, not to catch spies! If you want to catch spies, let the Japanese find their own agents to catch them!"

Lu Ying is not someone to be trifled with either. He has a dark face and a bad temper.

"What kind of people are secret agents? They are elites trained by the Chongqing government. They just know how to hide. How can the police under my command be their match?
If you use your brain, you will know that you can't catch him. Why are you taking your anger out on me? Why don't you take it out on the Japanese?
Just curse a few words, it’s not over yet.”

Ling Xianwen frowned and narrowed his eyes, "But weren't you the Inspector General of the Shanghai Police Department during the Nationalist Government period?
Don’t you know anything about the Nationalist government’s secret agents?
Is it because you don’t know how to find it? Or do you simply not want to look for it?
Or, you are from the National Government."

"Ling Xianwen! Watch your mouth!"

Lu Ying suddenly shouted angrily, "My background and resume have also been reviewed by the Japanese. If you want to kill me, please find another way. Catching spies is the job of spies. Go find the Japanese, go find the Special High Section, or if that doesn't work, go find Li Shiqun from Daxilu.

If you can catch the spy, fine, I'll give you my job. If you show me your performance, I'll pack up and leave without a word. Can you do that?"

"Don't provoke me. I can't do it because I'm a civilian. But you've been a police officer in Shanghai for almost twenty years. If you can't do it, is that appropriate? Ask everyone here if they believe it."

"What are you arguing about?" As he was speaking, a man in a suit and glasses came in. He was in his fifties or sixties and looked quite dignified.

(End of this chapter)