Chapter 687: Comrade Pei Min Min Reappears

The ones who discovered Nantian Yangzi's death were none other than the eight guards stationed at the front and back of the courtyard.

In her daily routine, the focused Nantian Yangzi would always rise early, tidy herself up, and then head out in high spirits to the Special Higher Education Division office. Furthermore, the three female agents responsible for guarding and caring for Nantian Yangzi inside the house would also rise half an hour earlier than her.

But this morning, it was already past seven o'clock, and there was not the slightest movement in the house. The guards outside had some bad premonitions, but they dared not rush in rashly. They used the telephone in the gatehouse to contact her, but naturally, the call did not go through; they didn't even hear the telephone ringing inside the house.

Only then did they truly confirm that something had gone wrong. Without further ado, they hurriedly opened the door and swarmed in...

Ming Lou and Ming Cheng followed Zhou Fuhai and Li Shiqun, with Wang Manchun and Liang Zhongchun following behind them, and further ahead was Fujita Yoshimasa leading a group of senior officials from the Special Higher Education Division.

Fujita Yoshimasa was an Army Major General and Nantian Yangzi's superior, working for the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since Nantian Yangzi had been assassinated in her residence, he, as her superior, had brought people over to handle the aftermath. Moreover, for the next period of time, he would temporarily lead the Shanghai Special Higher Education Division until new personnel were transferred in. After all, he was a Major General; making him the Chief of the Shanghai Special Higher Education Division would be a demotion and an insult to a dignified Army Major General. Although Shanghai had a special status, the highest-ranking official needed was only a Colonel; there was no need for an Army Major General to personally hold the post.

These people walked around Nantian Yangzi's residence, examining the crime scene. Although technology was not as advanced as it would be later, methods for criminal investigation and forensics existed, as these were professions that had existed for thousands of years. Before them, others had already come to inspect the scene, so there was no concern about destroying it.

Ming Lou and Ming Cheng's moods were extremely complex, and it wasn't for any other reason than the fact that it had happened too quickly. So much so that when they received the call, it didn't feel real. Only now, having entered Nantian Yangzi's residence, watching a crowd of people busy back and forth, and seeing the corpse surrounded by dark red blood in the first-floor room, did they feel a sense of reality and truly believe in Nantian Yangzi's death.

The night before last, they had urgently contacted the organization to explain the situation and request the deployment of Comrade Pei Min Min to cooperate with the operation. That same night, the organization held an emergency meeting to determine its necessity and decided to agree to deploy Comrade Pei Min Min. In the second half of the night, the Shanghai underground party organization wired Chongqing to report to the direct leader who maintained single-line contact with Comrade Pei Min Min—the Secretary of the Red Party's Southern Bureau—and requested approval.

The next day, after receiving the reply, the Shanghai party organization sent someone to the broadcasting company to issue a missing person broadcast, activating the emergency contact code to reach Comrade Pei Min Min, who was lurking in Shanghai. That night, without alerting the eight Japanese guards at the front and back, Comrade Pei Min Min silently infiltrated Nantian Yangzi's residence, killed the three Japanese female agents, and killed Nantian Yangzi.

What powerful operational capability; is this Comrade Pei Min Min...

Ming Lou thought about it in a chaotic mess, following behind the crowd, stepping on the solid wood stairs that creaked under the weight, and arrived at the second floor.

The layout here was very simple. After turning the corner, there was the spacious, open-doored entrance to the south-facing room. Walking in a few steps, one was in the center of the study, where a luxurious European-style chandelier hung above, illuminating the study.

Where is there no shadow, or where is the shadow smallest? Undoubtedly, where there is no light, there is no shadow. The position under the light is where the shadow is smallest, which is what people often call "darkness under the lamp."

Nantian Yangzi lay slumped under that chandelier, in a pool of blood that had already congealed. Her eyes were wide open, and from her eyes and the expression frozen on her face, one could see unexpected horror and unwillingness...

"General, we have carefully examined the corpses of Section Chief Nantian and the three people downstairs, and searched every corner of the room. Based on a comprehensive judgment, this assassin took advantage of the patrol gap, climbed over the side wall, and entered the room through a first-floor window. His movements were very light. Of the three people sleeping downstairs, two were killed in their sleep. Although the remaining one had signs of a struggle, they could not leave any other clues and were killed by the assassin immediately."

"According to the daily habits of Section Chief Nantian provided by the guards outside, when the assassin entered, Section Chief Nantian was sitting at her desk working. The assassin grabbed Section Chief Nantian's neck—this can be proven by the bruises on Section Chief Nantian's neck—brought her from the window to here, and then, while choking her, used a sharp blade to slit Section Chief Nantian's throat, severing the artery. Just like the three people downstairs, the blade was pulled out after being wedged against the cervical spine. This allows for the fastest possible drainage of blood from the human body, creating the terrifying scene we see now."

"Next, the assassin turned off the study light, turned on the bedroom light to confuse the guards outside, and returned to the study to slowly and meticulously search, taking away all the documents and materials Section Chief Nantian had brought home. After more than ten minutes, the assassin went to turn off the bedroom light, making the guards outside believe that Section Chief Nantian had gone to sleep. Finally, the assassin slipped out the same way. In addition, we found footprints and signs of someone lying prone on the roof of the adjacent house, which shows that the assassin was not familiar with this place and only began the operation after observing it for a period of time."

"Synthesizing past cases and the style of this assassination, we determine that this assassin is indeed the one known as the Red Party's number one ace killer, Comrade Pei Min Min. However... Section Chief Nantian's expression is very strange; it looks like she seemed to know something..."

Fujita Yoshimasa was, after all, a high-ranking official with enough self-restraint; he just waved his hand, signaling the man to step aside. He wasn't blind, nor was he stupid; how could he not know that Nantian Yangzi must have known something? Otherwise, how could she have forced the Red Party to use Comrade Pei Min Min to risk assassinating a Section Chief of the Special Higher Education Division?

He glanced at Nantian Yangzi's corpse on the ground, swept his gaze over everyone present, and asked, "What do you think of this matter?"

Everyone present knew very well that Fujita Yoshimasa was not asking the Japanese, but the Chinese. Otherwise, why would they wait until these Chinese people from various places had gathered before collecting the corpse? The Japanese people's views and opinions had already been stated. Even the Japanese man who had just explained the situation was likely speaking specifically for the Chinese people present to hear.

Zhou Fuhai was the highest-ranking person here, so he spoke first: "General Fujita, I believe the person who assassinated Section Chief Nantian is the Red Party's Comrade Pei Min Min. The top priority is to strengthen security forces and ensure the safety of officials in key positions. Section Chief Nantian was a dignified Section Chief of the Special Higher Education Division and an Army Colonel; for someone of this level to be silently assassinated by Comrade Pei Min Min, if the Red Party gets a taste of success and sends Comrade Pei Min Min to target other officials, judging by Section Chief Nantian's case, it will be a disaster."

What he said was very good, but it was basically equivalent to nonsense; did he really need to say this? Fujita Yoshimasa looked at Li Shiqun.

Li Shiqun knew very well that Fujita Yoshimasa was asking for their analysis of the cause of this incident, not for any lessons learned. Zhou Fuhai could lie through his teeth, but he could not.

He said: "This assassination of Section Chief Nantian, just as that gentleman said earlier, must be because she obtained some information, which forced the Red Party to spare no effort in sending Comrade Pei Min Min, who had been dormant for a long time, to personally carry out the assassination. In my opinion, there are two possibilities for the expression on Section Chief Nantian's face. One is that Section Chief Nantian saw Comrade Pei Min Min's face clearly; she had seen Comrade Pei Min Min's disguised identity before. The other possibility is that at the last moment of her life, Section Chief Nantian figured out some key point and grasped some situation."

"In my view, the second possibility is greater. Because according to the situation we have grasped, this person Comrade Pei Min Min is skilled in disguise; everyone only knows his code name, no one has seen his face, and not even a back view has been remembered. Two years ago, the Red Party traitor Xia Changguo defected and was sanctioned by Comrade Pei Min Min. According to the investigation, at that time, people only saw a lame man wearing a raincoat. Left shoulder high, right shoulder low, lame left leg. But the later prison break incident and the rescue incident at the Army Sanatorium, the surviving Japanese soldiers all said Comrade Pei Min Min moved flexibly; he could not have been a lame man."

"I have read the files and later conducted a special investigation surrounding these incidents. But many people said different things; there was no highly consistent answer. Through this point, it is enough to show that with Comrade Pei Min Min's rigor, such an oversight would absolutely not occur."

"The reason I say the second possibility is greater is also because Section Chief Nantian had said more than once before that there was a mole hiding among us, who had repeatedly stolen important intelligence and sabotaged many major operations. So I believe that Section Chief Nantian must have grasped the identity of this mole hidden within us, and the Red Party was afraid that this mole's identity would be exposed, and Shanghai is so important, so they had to send Comrade Pei Min Min."

"There have only been a few major events recently, and the most recent one was the celebration meeting for the North China war organized by the consulate, where someone lurked into the venue and took the opportunity to go upstairs to steal the Japanese military deployment plan for the Third War Zone. I wonder if it was this matter that led to Section Chief Nantian's assassination? Director Ming, I heard that last night Section Chief Nantian sent people to follow you back to the Ming Tianyue Gongguan. What was Section Chief Nantian's purpose in doing this? Please enlighten us."

Ming Lou shook his head and sighed: "I have no way to explain this matter. You all know that Section Chief Nantian had actually always maintained suspicion of me. This is also normal; after all, I spent some time in Nanjing back then and know many people in the Kuomintang. And I haven't submitted a letter of intent like Director Li. Maintaining suspicion of everyone is an essential quality for an excellent secret agent."

"It is precisely because I understand this situation that I only do my own work, dealing with economic issues, and have not intervened in the 76? After all, everyone knows the economic situation of the new government; what I do is strive to make the new government's economy stable and improving."

"Section Chief Nantian sending people to follow me home could be because she felt that agents from both parties had infiltrated the consulate's cocktail party and stolen classified intelligence, and she was worried about my safety, so she wanted people to protect me. It could also be because she was worried and wanted to see if I went to contact the person she imagined; once discovered, she would immediately arrest me secretly."

"I have always believed that whether speaking or doing things, one must rely on evidence. So, I cannot solve Director Li's confusion. General Fujita, I believe the top priority is to ask the subordinates around Section Chief Nantian, as well as the leader of the action team that led the team to follow me back, about the recent situation regarding Section Chief Nantian. In addition, we must also determine as soon as possible what intelligence Section Chief Nantian brought home. After all, Comrade Pei Min Min searched this place once; now the Red Party should have already grasped some situation, and we must respond early."

His words did not excuse or argue for himself, maintaining a helpless appearance of "the innocent remain innocent," very well placing himself in the position of an innocent victim who was constantly suspected and not trusted. And at such a time, he also showed his concern for the Great Japanese Empire.

Compared to Zhou Fuhai, who was more concerned about his own safety, and Li Shiqun, who placed the target of suspicion on his own people, his approach undoubtedly had no flaws to pick at.

Of course, one cannot blame Zhou Fuhai for being concerned about safety; after all, he was the number three figure in the Wang puppet government and also the third-ranked major traitor. This time Comrade Pei Min Min killed Nantian Yangzi; if the target had been changed to Zhou Fuhai, Zhou Fuhai would feel a chill down his spine just thinking about it now; it was truly too terrifying...

Fujita Yoshimasa looked deeply at Ming Lou, then turned his head to look at the gloomy-eyed Li Shiqun, and finally at Zhou Fuhai, who hadn't put his mind here at all. He waved his hand: "Alright, the situation at the scene has been seen, let's stop here. You all have your own things to do, especially you, Li-sang, you must stabilize the hearts of the people at 76, don't let them talk nonsense, and also determine the matter of intelligence leakage; you must hurry."

"Li-sang, Ming-sang, and you two, I hope you will go back today and prepare well for the recent situation. Tomorrow morning, come to the Special Higher Education Division office for a meeting; I want to understand the specific situation."

The "you two" he spoke of were the ones further behind, Wang Manchun and Liang Zhongchun, who had been silently silent all along.

Hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement and then turned to leave.

As the highest-ranking official, Zhou Fuhai gave a few words to the others, nothing important, the general idea being to let them cooperate with the Special Higher Education Division, not to act on their own, and that the work of striking against both parties could not stop. After speaking, he got into his car and quickly left the place.

The last thing he said to Ming Lou and the others was that he had some things to return to Nanjing for...

Ming Lou and the others did not have too much exchange, just simply exaggeratedly sighed about Comrade Pei Min Min's operational capability, roughly exchanged the information they had grasped, and then each got into their cars, passed through the crowded group of reporters, and went to do their own things.

It was not that they didn't want to exchange opinions, but that this was not a good time. When they were in the room earlier, Li Shiqun was clearly trying to burn Ming Lou. Wang Manchun and Liang Zhongchun, as subordinates, were not suitable for talking too much.

Inside the car, Ming Cheng said: "Big brother, why don't we just get rid of Li Shiqun as well."

"Is it Comrade Pei Min Min's powerful operational capability that gave you confidence?" Ming Lou shook his head and said, "Our struggle on the secret front is not about killing people, but about gathering intelligence, achieving foresight, and responding first. If it weren't for Ming Tai's negligence in leaving his watch at the scene this time, I would absolutely not have wanted to get rid of Nantian Yangzi. A familiar opponent is more beneficial to us than a strange opponent; you must remember this point. Don't think about killing them the first time you encounter a difficult opponent. In the long run, we will become fools who only know how to fight and kill without brains, and that will only lead to dying faster."

"Yes, big brother, I will reflect on myself. However, Comrade Pei Min Min's operational capability is truly too powerful; just thinking about Zhou Fuhai's appearance earlier, I couldn't help but laugh." Having solved the biggest trouble, Ming Cheng's tense heart relaxed, and he had the mind to make fun of others.

Ming Lou also smiled: "It's Comrade Pei Min Min's deterrent power that is too strong. Zhou Fuhai is a villain without a stance, who values his life more than anyone else; it is normal to be afraid of Comrade Pei Min Min. Even if it were you and me, standing on the opposite side, knowing that someone like Comrade Pei Min Min is targeting us, it would be difficult to sleep peacefully... Alright, let's talk about serious matters. Although Li Shiqun guided Fujita Yoshimasa to suspect me, there is no need to worry, after all, we still have Iwai Eiichi behind us. However, this is ultimately a trouble that needs to be solved."

"Comrade Pei Min Min's action was too fast; our arrangements haven't even unfolded. In the next few days, you must hurry up and kill that traitor recuperating in the hospital to divert their attention. After we return home, we must create panic and let Lone Wolf go to Fujita Yoshimasa to re-establish contact; she will naturally help us gain Fujita Yoshimasa's trust."

"If Fujita Yoshimasa knows about Lone Wolf's existence, how will we deal with it in the future?"

"We don't need to do it ourselves. I heard from A-Xiang that she still hasn't given up and went to the Wang Tianyue Gongguan to talk to that Auntie Liang. After a few days, when she disgusts Wang Yan, she will naturally disappear. It's just hard on you..."

"There is nothing hard or not hard about it; no feelings are enough to look at in the face of national righteousness and the survival of the nation. It's good that she's dead..."

Ming Cheng was just remembering the kindness of taking him out of the orphanage and raising him back then. As for other feelings, they were already gone when that Auntie Gui went crazy and wanted to strangle Ming Cheng back then.

But people, as long as they are not ingrates, can remember that little bit of kindness. Thus, they endure some people using this kindness to constantly demand.

Nantian Yangzi's death was naturally a big event; she was also a ruthless person with a fierce reputation, who had committed many sins and owed many blood debts. What's more, such a person died under the assassination of the Red Party's Comrade Pei Min Min, which was naturally an even bigger event.

Comrade Pei Min Min, who had disappeared for more than a year, re-emerged in the world and created such a shocking major event, especially under the circumstances of multiple layers of guards, carrying out a silent assassination successfully; how could it not be reported extensively?

Reporters, newspaper offices, and printing plants once again demonstrated their powerful efficiency. The news of Nantian Yangzi's death was spread in the morning. Fresh, even hot newspapers were being sold to the people of Shanghai after lunch.

Even more, some newspaper offices published special issues, counting every murder case since Comrade Pei Min Min's debut that had been circulated.

"Extra! Extra! Comrade Pei Min Min reappears, Shanghai Special Higher Education Division Chief Nantian Yangzi had her throat slit and bled to death! Extra! Extra! Comrade Pei Min Min re-emerges in the world..." ===== CHAPTER 688 =====