Chapter 294: Deadly Intelligence

"Yes, yes."

"You are the Director Lu who holds two posts at once; how could he compare to you?"

"Old Lu."

"Let's stop this talk right here; Old Yu is still a decent person."

"Don't forget, Li Ya may have fallen, but he isn't dead."

"Jianfeng has become the Director of the Second Division of the Three People's Principles Youth League headquarters, and now he completely controls the Youth League; the Jinhai branch was set up a few months ago."

"You hold the post of Director of the Inspection Division, and Li Ya also has the Youth League branch."

"It's hard to say who will deal with whom."

"The three of us have been getting along well; wouldn't it be better to have more people and more strength?"

Hong Zhiyou's face fell, feeling somewhat annoyed that he didn't know his place.

With his current status, occasionally putting on a cold face still carried some weight.

Lu Qiao was not stupid.

He had just gained power and wanted to put on a show, but seeing that Hong Zhiyou was unhappy,

he immediately remembered that Hong and Yu were as thick as thieves, both being the station master's right-hand men.

"Yes."

"I just have a bit of resentment in my heart; I'm not very happy with Old Yu."

"But in the end, we were brothers in the past."

"When I was framed by Li Ya, he also helped speak up for me."

"I still understand the big picture; in that case, tonight I will go to his... I will let him come to my house for a simple meal."

Lu Qiao sipped his coffee and smiled faintly.

"Good, I will definitely pass on the message," Hong Zhiyou nodded.

They chatted for a while.

Over there, Wu Jingzhong shook hands with Zheng Jiemin to say goodbye.

Hong Zhiyou and Lu Qiao hurriedly walked away tactfully.

"Old brother."

"Jinhai will be left to me; take care," Wu Jingzhong said.

"Jingzhong."

"Next month I will go on a business trip to Xiangdao to inspect official business, and I will stop by to visit your winery in Yuezhou on the way."

Zheng Jiemin smiled, not forgetting to point out the dividends from his winery.

"It is Jingzhong's honor."

"Stay where you are!"

Wu Jingzhong bowed slightly and walked out.

Hong Zhiyou also bowed in salute and followed closely behind.

Once in the car, Wu Jingzhong sneered:

"Did you see that? He was afraid we wouldn't give him money, so he specifically brought it up."

Hong Zhiyou nodded and said, "Officer Zheng's vision is still far inferior to yours, Teacher."

"Indeed."

"He hides in a small place like Jingling every day, clinging to the empty reputation of integrity; relying solely on his wife to peddle goods and beg for food, how much money can he make?"

"Money is the same as vision."

"Before coming to Jinhai, I was also just tinkering around; I never imagined this place would be paved with gold."

Wu Jingzhong laughed.

"Teacher, Li Ya is investigating Yu Zecheng."

"It seems he wants to go to his hometown in Yixian to dig for the truth; that area is now under Fu Zuoyi's control, and I am truly afraid that Li Ya will just grab anyone to frame Yu Zecheng."

Hong Zhiyou expressed his concern very tactfully.

Wu Jingzhong frowned: "There are too many issues with this Yu Zecheng."

"To be honest, if it weren't for the thought of saving up some family fortune for the kids over the next two years before retiring, I would have thought about sending him away."

Hong Zhiyou knew that Old Wu had all but pointed out Yu Zecheng's identity.

With all the suspicions surrounding Yu Zecheng, if he were transferred to another station, he would soon be on the execution block.

The reason Yu was able to remain unscathed and even become a deputy station master

was largely because Wu Jingzhong turned a blind eye, and out of consideration for their teacher-student relationship, secretly helped him resolve crises and maneuver.

But clearly, as Li Ya kept raising the stakes, Wu Jingzhong was also getting annoyed.

"Teacher, there are advantages to being 'unclean'."

"Li Ya staring at him is better than him staring at us; furthermore, the work Deputy Station Master Yu handles really cannot be replaced by anyone else."

"Not to mention anything else, the pile of accounts in the station is not something an ordinary person can clear up."

Hong Zhiyou smiled.

"Sigh."

"Zhiyou, one must value human sentiment, but sometimes being too sentimental leads to trouble," Wu Jingzhong sighed and said no more.

Inside the office.

Li Ya sat on the sofa with his eyes closed, his lips pressed tightly together.

Lu Qiao had returned.

This was not good news; he needed to divert a large portion of his energy to deal with this person.

"Captain, Yucheng and Zhou Kai have returned."

Gao Yuan walked in and reported.

"Quick, call them in," Li Ya said urgently.

Soon, Zhou Kai, Yucheng, and the others walked in.

"How was it? What did you find out in Yixian?" Li Ya asked.

They all shook their heads.

"What does shaking your head mean?" Li Ya frowned.

"Captain, the Weitou Village and Heigou areas in Yixian are all in Fu Zuoyi's defense zone."

"We couldn't get in."

"We were even almost mistaken for Red spies."

"If it weren't for Yucheng's cousin who happens to serve in the army and explained things clearly, we wouldn't have been able to come back."

The tall, thin man named Zhou Kai said very dejectedly.

"However, we did find out something."

"That village underwent land reform before, and many people in the village with land and fields ran away."

"We don't know the specific situation now."

Yucheng also added.

"That's not worth a damn as intelligence, a bunch of good-for-nothings."

"Get out."

Li Ya was so angry he closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, his state of mind practically shattered.

"No."

"The reason I was able to be promoted to Colonel this time is largely to cooperate with the Youth League branch in clearing out the Reds in Jinhai."

"The Jinhai station is the most important of all."

"Especially since Yu Zecheng is a person of suspicion to Jianfeng."

"If I can expose Yu, it will definitely be a great achievement."

"It's just that from where can I..."

He tilted his head, unbuttoned his shirt collar, and suddenly had an idea.

Jinhai.

The spring rain was like oil, fine and delicate.

Xie Ruo, in a white suit and pink shirt, held a black umbrella and walked into Cat Ear Alley.

Arriving at the courtyard gate,

he closed his umbrella, looked at the mud spots on his white leather shoes, curled his lip in annoyance, and walked in:

"Old Shang."

Old Shang was under the eaves, using the rainwater to sharpen his sword.

"Master, what... what kind of game is this again?" Xie Ruo asked with a smile.

"What do you know?"

"The rain falling from the sky is called rootless water; the sword sharpened with it has spirit."

Old Shang took a sip of tea and continued sharpening.

"Stop dawdling."

"No matter how much you dawdle, you won't turn it into gold. You're an intelligence peddler, not a Daoist priest catching ghosts or exorcising demons."

Xie Ruo said.

"Forget it, I'll deal with you, a vulgar person, first, to avoid sullying my sword."

Old Shang stopped and led the way toward the storeroom inside.

"What kind of intelligence do you want?" Old Shang asked.

"To be honest, I'm already clear on everything available on the market. Can you get me something more obscure?" Xie Ruo asked.

"Something obscure."

"From Yancheng."

"It's all here, take your pick."

Old Shang pointed to a thick stack on the side.

"Give me a break."

"Do you think Yancheng is like us, a sieve? Where would you get so many original documents?"

Xie Ruo shook the documents and said.

"That's where you don't understand."

"There are traitors in Yancheng, too."

"These are treasures that Han Jien and his men dug up after digging for several miles in Ansai."

"They are all secret documents from the Red Ticket headquarters that they didn't have time to destroy."

"I'm not bragging, every single one is worth a fortune."

"You'll understand once you look at the seals and signatures on them."

Old Shang deliberately put on airs.

"Master, I was brought up by you. This act might work on others, but it's meaningless to me."

"From the moment Hu Zongnan occupied Yancheng."

"Those Red Ticket people have cut their ties and severed their lines; these intelligence reports of yours are no different from waste paper."

"If they were sellable, you wouldn't be letting them gather dust here; you would have sold them off at a high price long ago."

"Don't try to pull that with me."

Xie Ruo teased while looking through them.

"Take it or leave it, get out if you don't want it," Old Shang said irritably, his intentions exposed.

"Right now, the most important intelligence has to be from the Red Ticket front lines."

"The news that the Democratic Allied Army led by Lin was going to retreat during the second battle of Siping was what was truly valuable. At the time, the National Army was fighting for credit, and the price was bid up to the heavens."

"As for your... these old, moldy things, they really aren't worth the price."

Xie Ruo wasn't annoyed; he tilted his head and smiled at him.

Old Shang pulled a long face and said nothing.

Xie Ruo smiled triumphantly and continued reading the intelligence.

Soon, his expression turned grave:

"Notice: The urgent mission for Comrade Chen Qiuping is to rush to Jinhai and work under the guise of a married couple with Emeifeng, covering his infiltration mission."

"Please ensure that by..."

He continued to flip through them.

The next item was an obituary.

Chen Qiuping died after falling from a horse...

"This intelligence is related to Jinhai, I'll take it."

Xie Ruo held it up and casually put down fifty US dollars.

"Are there any copies? Give them to me as well."

He asked cautiously.

"Take them yourself." Old Shang pointed to the side.

Xie Ruo flipped through them, found the handwritten copy by Old Shang, and took them all together.

"I'm off, Master."

"I'll treat you to a drink next time."

Xie Ruo waved his hand and walked out quickly.

Once outside, he quickened his pace, not caring about the mud splashing his legs, and hurried toward the main road.

As he walked, he looked back several times with a nervous expression.

He confirmed that Old Shang had not followed him.

Just by one glance, he knew this was a lethal piece of intelligence.

Returning home.

Xie Ruo opened the envelope and reread the content of the intelligence.

Jinhai, Emeifeng!

Emeifeng had died long ago.

Wasn't it Ma Kui?

But Ma Kui's wife was named Zhou Gendi, and with that delicate, slutty look of hers, she didn't look like someone sent by the Red Ticket at all.

That is to say.

Ma Kui was not Emeifeng at all, but had been a scapegoat.

On the contrary.

Yu Zecheng had previously asked him many times to target Ma Kui.

Senior agents like Ma Kui and Liu Xiong had been hounding him relentlessly.

And then there was his wife, with that fearless, reckless attitude.

This fit perfectly.

He remembered the intelligence he bought from Old Shang last time, about Li Wanrong being swapped; there were clearly Red Ticket people in the Shuitun Prison.

At the time, he had speculated that the Red Ticket person in Shuitun Prison was most likely Liao Sanmin.

Because Liao Sanmin was very close to Yu Zecheng.

Now with this intelligence, it could basically be confirmed that Yu Zecheng was undoubtedly Emeifeng.

It is no exaggeration to say.

This intelligence was far more lethal than the last one.

Because it had the signature and seal of Section Chief Liu Liuke of the Border Defense.

And the stamp of the Red Ticket headquarters' receipt.

If it fell into the hands of someone like Li Ya, it would basically be the final nail in the coffin for Yu Zecheng.

"Hello, how are you."

"Oh, it's Wu, Station Chief Wu. I, I'm Xie Ruo, I'm looking for Hong Zhiyou for something, could you please pass on a message?"

He picked up the phone and dialed a number, his voice slightly nervous.

Soon, Hong Zhiyou's voice came from the other end of the line: "It's me, what is it?"

"Call Old Yu, let's grab a bite tonight."

"The same little fish restaurant as last time, it's quiet and there aren't many people."

After receiving Hong Zhiyou's reply, he hung up the phone.

"Phew!"

"As expected of the same family!"

Xie Ruo shook his head and began to ponder the value of this intelligence letter again.

Evening.

Little Fish Restaurant.

This place was chosen by Mao Wanli when he last came to Jinhai.

It was remote, and the food was good.

Except for Captain Li, who perhaps had a bad impression of it, no one who had been here was dissatisfied.

The three of them asked for a small private room by the window upstairs.

After Yu Zecheng entered, he opened the window to look around, then stepped on the table to check the light bulb.

"Old Yu, do you distrust me that much?" Xie Ruo pouted and said.

"It's not aimed at you."

"Li Ya from our station almost got Lu Qiaoshan killed with a recording."

"It's better to be careful."

Yu Zecheng jumped down, patted his hands, and wiped the table clean in the process.

"Old Xie, where did you make a fortune? Why did you think of treating us?" Hong Zhiyou asked with a smile, arms crossed.

"What are you thinking?"

"This meal today has to be... you have to treat." Xie Ruolin pointed at him and said.

"Oh?"

"It seems I've gotten myself into trouble again." Yu Zecheng nodded with self-awareness and smiled.

"Given the relationship between the three of us, I'll just speak plainly.

"Your wife arrived in Jinmen on September 28, 1945, right?"

Xie Ruolin leaned forward and asked.

"Yes, that's correct. Old Xie is truly worthy of being in intelligence; you know everything." Yu Zecheng nodded and said.

"Your wife also... also has a younger sister, right?" Xie Ruolin asked again.

"She does." Yu Zecheng remembered Cuiping mentioning it once.

"Her sister's name is Chen Qiuping.

"She was a cadre in the Sixth Section of the Border Defense Bureau in Yancheng."

Xie Ruolin stared at him and said.

"Old Xie, what do you mean by this? Are you using those tactics of yours on your own brother?" Yu Zecheng put down his chopsticks, his expression turning displeased.

"Look, don't get angry.

"Isn't this just... just chatting with you." Xie Ruolin smiled.

"Fine, go ahead." Yu Zecheng said.

"An obituary.

"..."

He took out an envelope and finished reading it in front of Yu Zecheng.

"Chen Qiuping died on September 26.

"On September 28, your wife arrived in Jinmen. The time, the location, and your identity all match up perfectly.

"Old brother, you are Emei Peak.

"Your wife is also a Red Ticket.

"You are a fake married couple, aren't you?"

Xie Ruolin tapped the envelope on the table and asked in a low voice.

"Old Xie.

"We are friends, but some jokes cannot be made.

"Just because of a few pieces of trash intelligence, you label me as Emei Peak; you are trying to take my life."

Yu Zecheng took a slight breath and said calmly.

"This is not trash intelligence.

"It is top-secret documentation dug up from Ansai by the traitor from Yancheng, Han Jien." Xie Ruolin said.

"It's not like you don't know, Emei Peak is Ma Kui; his grave is covered in fresh flowers, you can go visit it another day." Yu Zecheng said.

He knew that Xie Ruolin should have guessed his identity long ago.

But such matters, in any situation and to anyone, must never be admitted.

"Ma Kui is not Emei Peak.

"With our friendship, there's no need to say much about this; the key is that his wife doesn't look like a Red Ticket either.

"You don't need to show me your marriage certificate, the stamp duty, or the magistrate's seal.

"Those things can all be forged.

"Give me a small gold bar, and I'll get it done for you in... in minutes."

Xie Ruolin shook his head slightly and said.

"So, what do you want to say?" Yu Zecheng looked at him with a smile.

Hong Zhiyou noticed that his legs were shaking a little.

This was indeed fatal intelligence.

And it was fortunate that Old Xie was one of their own.

"You are the real Emei Peak.

"Liao Sanmin is a Red Ticket.

"Including Zhiyou, there is also suspicion of being a Red Ticket.

"Even your Station Chief Wu is highly likely to be a Red Ticket.

"Otherwise, with the skills of people like Liu Xiong, Ma Kui, and Li Ya, you wouldn't be able to hide without Wu Jingzhong protecting you."

Xie Ruolin said, hitting the nail on the head.

"Oh, according to you, the entire Jinmen Station is full of Red Tickets, a Red Ticket nest, right?" Yu Zecheng leaned forward, his tone both angry and disdainful.

"Pretty much." Xie Ruolin said.

"Old Xie, do you know what you are saying?

"You are from the Dangtong Bureau, our mortal enemy.

"If these words reach the ears of Ye Xiufeng, I, Zhiyou, and Station Chief Wu might be facing a military tribunal tomorrow.

"If you act like this, we can't be brothers anymore."

Yu Zecheng took off his glasses, rubbed his brow, and sighed.

"Don't be like that.

"I've said it before, the Dangtong Bureau is just where I collect my paycheck.

"We are friends, we are brothers.

"It's also out of this sentiment that I spent a huge sum to buy this intelligence.

"Just imagine, what would be the consequence if this intelligence fell into the hands of Li Ya?

"Enough.

"Whether you are Red Tickets or not, it's none of my business.

"Love... love whether you are or not!

"It's better if you are."

Xie Ruolin shook his head and continued to eat.

"Old Xie, don't talk nonsense. You can say whatever you want about me, after all, there's someone at home who goes out to the streets shouting slogans every day.

"How could Old Yu be a Red Ticket?

"However, if this thing fell into the hands of someone with ulterior motives, it would indeed easily invite suspicion.

"How about this.

"It's rare for Old Xie to have this intention, Old Yu, why don't you just pay to buy it?

"We can't let someone make a wasted trip."

Hong Zhiyou had seen enough of the show and stepped in to mediate.

"Fine.

"Old Xie, name your price. I admit I was scared by you; let's just consider it spending money to avert a disaster."

Yu Zecheng was not someone who didn't understand the situation.

"One... one thousand US dollars." Xie Ruolin shook his head and smiled.

"One thousand US dollars!"

Yu Zecheng's eyes widened.

He was not like Hong Zhiyou, who had so many US banknotes he could use them as toilet paper; even when Cuiping bought groceries, she spent every cent carefully.

One thousand US dollars could not be called a huge sum.

But it was certainly painful.

"This is already a brotherly price; if I were to sell it to Li Ya, I would ask for at least three... three thousand US dollars." Xie Ruolin said.

"Are you sure the tracks have been wiped clean?" Yu Zecheng gritted his teeth and said.

"Rest assured, I've collected everything.

"This document and the contents within, it ends with the three of us."

Xie Ruolin picked up a piece of fish with his chopsticks and ate it with satisfaction.

"It's a fair price." Hong Zhiyou looked at Old Yu and said a word of justice.

It wasn't just Li Ya.

There were many people who wanted to be Deputy Station Chief and wanted to bring down the Jinmen Station.

Sun Chuanzhi of the Dangtong Bureau.

Sanmao of the Secret Service Bureau.

Not to mention three thousand, even ten thousand US dollars would be paid by people like Mao Sen.

"Fine, one thousand US dollars for peace of mind and a good night's sleep.

"I'll buy it."

Yu Zecheng blinked with a pained expression.

"Plus this meal!" Xie Ruolin raised his eyebrows and smiled craftily.

"No problem." Yu Zecheng nodded.

"Boss, add another hot pot." Xie Ruolin turned his head and shouted outside.

……

Nine o'clock in the evening.

The rain had just ceased.

Li Ya found his way to Cat Ear Alley.

He knew who this Old Shang was.

Back then, his subordinates were tailing Mei Yingxue, and Yingxue had met this person for... dinner many times.

After Li Ya investigated, Old Shang's identity naturally became clear.

He was an old-timer in the intelligence world of Jinhai, a patriarch-level figure.

Even the stuttering Xie, whom he often sought out, was said to be a disciple brought up by this man.

This person might be able to obtain intelligence related to the Yixian market head.

As for the capabilities of these black-market dealers, Li Ya had long since received verification from Xie Ruo.

He stepped forward and lightly knocked on the door.

Shang Bo, who had just gone to sleep, opened the door in a foul mood; just as he was about to complain, he saw who it was and immediately smiled obsequiously:

"Oh, Captain Li is here.

"A rare guest, please come in."

Li Ya glanced around and walked inside.

"Do you have any intelligence regarding the Red tickets?

"From Jinhai."

He asked coldly and arrogantly.

"I do have some from the Jinhai direction, but..."

(End of chapter)