Anti-Japanese War Espionage: I Have an Omniscient Perspective

Upon hearing this, Team Leader Zhang interrupted.

"Back then, what was the situation with Lao Zhou, um, Fang Dongcheng? I mean, did he resist?"

"At the time, Lao Zhou's face was covered in blood, and he couldn't move freely. He had to be carried around," Lin Rui replied.

Team Leader Zhang nodded: "Continue."

"After Lao Zhou was taken away, I thought that if he couldn't hold out and surrendered to the Japanese, none of the other members of the undercover team would be able to escape. So I contacted the four team members, asked them to give up their current identities and go into hiding, and left them with our contact information for the future."

Upon hearing this, Team Leader Zhang showed a satisfied expression; Lin Rui had done an excellent job.

But he did not interrupt Lin Rui.

"After notifying the four people, I was thinking, how could Lao Zhou contact the higher-ups if he was arrested? Then I remembered that Lao Zhou often wiped the Guan Yu statue in the shop. Maybe there was something important hidden inside the statue. So I sneaked into the shop at night, killed one of the people lying in ambush, and took the item from the statue. Then I learned about the contact point by reading the cipher text hidden in the back of the codebook, and went to Dafang Stationery Store to make contact today."

Lin Rui explained the situation clearly and logically, detailing everything in detail.

Subsequently, Team Leader Zhang checked the codebook and, combined with their investigation, everything matched.

At this point, Team Leader Zhang appeared to have completely dispelled any doubts and got up to support Lin Rui's shoulder.

"Brother Lin, you truly are an elite of the Party and the State. Such a dangerous situation is described so casually by you. I think you were born for this job. I will report your matter to the higher-ups. You should rest at the station for now."

"Okay," Lin Rui replied, finally relieved.

........

Lin Rui followed Team Leader Zhang's men out of the room; the shop assistants outside had already left.

The two went down to the first floor, where Zhang's men found a stool for them to sit on and wait before leaving.

After a while, whispers began to circulate in the lobby, and people kept glancing at Lin Rui, who was sitting there.

Clearly, they already knew something about Lin Rui.

A young man wearing a baseball cap and clutching a telegram draft approached and offered a cigarette: "Brother Lin, it's an honor to meet you! I just heard that you took something right under the noses of the Japanese and even took one down. That's quite brave!" Just then, another man in a long robe came over and said with a smile: "My name is Li Xiang. I'm in charge of intelligence gathering at the station. Let's be friends."

Lin Rui stood up, nodded, took the cigarette but didn't light it, and said calmly, "Thank you for your kind offer. I'll be relying on my brothers from now on."

He knew that this intelligence station was a mixed bag, and while he didn't need to be all things to all people, he did need to be good at making friends with a few enemies.

Seeing his behavior, others came over to chat with Lin Rui.

Just as the hall was becoming lively, footsteps came from the second floor, and Team Leader Zhang walked down with a relaxed expression.

He raised his hand and clapped his hands, and everyone stopped and looked at him.

"Gentlemen, I just spoke with headquarters in Nanjing by telegram and have two things to announce."

Team Leader Zhang's gaze swept over everyone, finally landing on Lin Rui. His tone was clearly approving: "First, after Lao Zhou was arrested, Lin Rui remained calm under pressure, successfully contacted the undercover team members, retrieved classified items, and perfectly completed the emergency reporting mission. Headquarters has specially approved a commendation for him!"

A round of applause immediately rang out in the hall, and some people cast envious glances at Lin Rui.

Team Leader Zhang raised his hand to quell the tension, and continued, "Secondly, we've prepared a simple dinner at the station tonight as a celebration for Comrade Lin Rui's achievement, and also to take this opportunity to share the current situation with everyone." After speaking, he beckoned to Lin Rui, "Lin Rui, come with me."

As evening fell, a celebratory banquet was simply set up in the lobby on the first floor. Several long tables were put together and set with braised pork, stir-fried vegetables, and a few bottles of baijiu (Chinese liquor).

The group sat together, and occasionally someone would offer Lin Rui a toast, but he would only take a small sip and remain sober throughout.

After a few rounds of drinks, Team Leader Zhang stood up and tapped the table, and the hall fell silent again.

"Gentlemen, I'd like to take this opportunity to tell you something. After Shanghai fell, our station was hastily relocated. Station Chief Zhou was transferred to the Special Operations Team as commander, and Station Chief Zhu is still out and hasn't returned yet. I will temporarily handle all the affairs of the station."

He paused, then turned his gaze to Lin Rui, his tone becoming serious. "The 3rd Infiltrator Team has an important responsibility and absolutely cannot stop. Now that Lao Zhou has been arrested, the team is leaderless, and Comrade Lin Rui is currently the only one who knows the whereabouts of the four team members and is familiar with the team's situation."

Lin Rui's heart skipped a beat, and he vaguely guessed what was going to be said next.

Sure enough, Team Leader Zhang placed his hand on Lin Rui's shoulder: "After I reported to headquarters, headquarters agreed to make an exception and appoint Comrade Lin Rui as the leader of the 3rd Infiltrator Team to take over the mission that Lao Zhou did not complete."

After he finished speaking, the hall fell silent. All eyes were on Lin Rui, some with surprise, some with approval, and some with uncertainty.

Team Leader Zhang looked at him with expectant eyes and earnest tone: "Lin Rui, this is the Party and the country's trust in you. I hope you will not let them down."

Lin Rui had some thoughts on this.

He wanted this position as group leader, because only in this way could he infiltrate the Special Service Department, which later became the Military Intelligence Bureau.

Then, feigning seriousness, he took a deep breath, slowly stood up, met Team Leader Zhang's gaze, and spoke in a steady and firm voice:

"Team Leader Zhang, colleagues, in this time of national crisis, every citizen has a responsibility. Team Leader Zhou is imprisoned, but the mission of the 3rd Infiltrator Team cannot be interrupted. I, Lin Rui, am willing to accept this assignment and will certainly live up to the mission entrusted to me by our superiors!"

Team Leader Zhang's eyes lit up with satisfaction, and he led the applause: "Great! From today onwards, Lin Rui is the leader of the 3rd Infiltration Team. The station will fully cooperate with your work. Whatever you need, just ask; as long as the station can do it, we will fulfill your request!"

Applause erupted in the hall again, this time even more enthusiastic than before.

Lin Rui raised his glass and drank it all in one gulp in response to everyone.

.......

After the celebration banquet ended, the dishes and plates were cleared away, and the tables and chairs were returned to their original positions.

Lin Rui followed Team Leader Zhang upstairs to discuss taking over as the leader of the 3rd Infiltrator Team.

Becoming a team leader means taking on many responsibilities.

A new codebook.

The password is still a 4-digit number, but it's different from the one Lao Zhou used to use.

Because Lao Zhou was arrested, that code has been abolished.

In addition to the codebook, there were also ways to contact superiors.

In addition to the liaison point, there was also a radio station, which could be used to send telegrams to the Shanghai station and Nanjing.

Lin Rui learned Morse code telegraphy at the Qingpu training camp. Here, he can send secret messages by converting digital codes into Morse code.

In addition, there is the issue of funding.

The three gold bars and Lao Zhou's pistol have been returned to Lin Rui.

The station also gave Lin Rui three more gold bars, plus 500 yuan in legal tender as funding for the third infiltration team.

Finally, there is an even more important issue: the new identities of the undercover team members, and Lin Rui's own identity.