Chapter 54: Analyzing Enemy Situation

Temporary action team…

Could it be that Boss Dai gave me a promotion?

After a moment of calculation, Chen Yongren began researching the upgraded skill again.

The current Insight can lock onto two targets at once—perfect for trying it out on Lin Dayou and Zhang Haifeng.

Chen Yongren stood up and looked at them.

Lin Dayou sat beside the sofa, smoking; compared to his earlier tension, his expression had relaxed considerably.

Zhang Haifeng sat by the dining table, holding a rag, earnestly wiping his sidearm.

Chen Yongren locked his Insight onto them, and their inner voices simultaneously appeared in his ears.

Lin Dayou:

"This time, thanks to A Ren—how many times has he saved me, I wonder?"

"My luck is really damn good."

"Damn, the great winds and waves of Jinling have all come my way—I almost came a cropper here."

"Chen Yongren saved me once and also scored a major merit; his future will surely be bright, so I must not offend him."

Zhang Haifeng:

"A Ren has scored another major merit this time—I don't know what reward he'll get."

"I also had a part in taking down Lu Yan—I should be able to share in the broth, right?"

"After all this danger, I ought to marry and have kids; if I ever fall in action, at least I can leave an heir for the Zhang family."

Hearing their inner voices, Chen Yongren struggled not to laugh.

Leaving other matters aside, the upgraded Insight is indeed excellent—having both inner voices appear simultaneously in my ears isn't chaotic at all, just like stereo channels.

In the future, when interrogating Japanese spies, I could also lock onto them simultaneously to compare their testimonies.

Seeing that the two were fine, Chen Yongren turned off Insight and prepared to test the effect of Photographic Memory.

Skill activated.

The memories from seven days ago played back in Chen Yongren's mind like a fleeting glance.

At first, Chen Yongren thought it was merely a simple recollection.

But after experiencing it firsthand, he realized the skill was far from as simple as he had imagined.

The memories from seven days ago are genuine, yet they consist of every single image—even a casual glance that the brain overlooked can be perfectly reproduced.

Chen Yongren casually recalled a memory from three days prior.

At the time, his attention was focused on the Japanese spy by the street, and any then-useless information would be unconsciously ignored.

But with the Photographic Memory skill,

as long as he had seen a scene—such as when and where, a bird flying across the sky—

or on a certain street, a passerby scratching his head while a petty thief steals a rich lady's wallet,

even a passerby reading a newspaper, down to the tiniest rental ad in the corner of the paper, can be recalled clearly.

Even a stray dog urinating in a deep alleyway—such minute details—can all be recalled, and these memories come with timestamps.

Holy shit!

Chen Yongren immediately realized how formidable this skill is.

With this ability, even if he later overlooks some details, he can use the skill to make up for them.

Right.

There's also an enhanced version of Utter Focus.

This is a special benefit granted by Tongzi after slaying Sakai Mieko.

Chen Yongren activated Utter Focus and locked onto Lin Dayou.

His clothing gradually turned transparent.

Lin Dayou was actually still wearing a pair of red underpants…

Chen Yongren stifled a laugh and continued observing.

His abdomen still bore a ferocious knife wound, and his body had several bullet holes.

At his right waist lay a holster, at his right calf a dagger was sheathed, and in the pocket over his left chest lay a stack of legal tender and a pack of freshly bought Marlboro cigarettes.

All the items Lin Dayou carried were clearly presented before Chen Yongren's eyes.

This enhanced skill is actually quite interesting, Chen Yongren thought to himself.

He then locked onto Zhang Haifeng, with the same effect.

The bigwigs weren't much to look at either; after a brief overview of the skill, he shut it down.

The skill is quite good, and Chen Yongren wore a satisfied smile.

Being able to laugh at this moment shows Chen Yongren's psychological resilience is truly exceptional; the usually silent Lin Dayou suddenly turned to him and asked.

"A Ren, what are your plans going forward?"

Zhang Haifeng also stopped wiping his gun, looked at Chen Yongren, and his eyes shone.

"Me?" Chen Yongren sat up straight and asked.

"You know this situation better than I do." Lin Dayou produced a pack of cigarettes, tossed one to Chen Yongren, and said with a smile, "So I'd like to hear your opinion."

"Once reinforcements arrive in Shanghai, we can also launch our operation swiftly."

Chen Yongren took the cigarette, calmly saying, "We've caused such a commotion in Hongkou; the Japanese spies will surely not let it rest."

Upon saying that, Chen Yongren only wanted to curse, "Damn it."

Had the situation not been urgent then, I would definitely have kidnapped Sakai Mieko, taken her back, and interrogated her thoroughly with carrot and stick.

By then, no matter whether it's the Rainstorm or Snowstorm Plan, I could extract everything from them.

"Not bad." Lin Dayou nodded, worriedly said: "But now the enemy is in the dark while we are in the open; besides the secret warehouse, we have no idea what the Japanese spies actually intend to do."

"Bold speculation, careful verification." Chen Yongren analyzed.

"The pangolin has left our Shanghai station gravely weakened; its target is certainly not just our warehouse."

"Moreover, because of that damned Huang who leaked the secret, our army's operation to blockade Japanese warships in Jiangyin failed."

Chen Yongren paused, then said in a low voice: "So our army will definitely act against the Japanese troops stationed in Shanghai next."

"Why?" Lin Dayou frowned and asked.

Chen Yongren spoke at length: "From a strategic standpoint, rather than letting the Japanese army roam freely in North China, it's better to lure them into the Jiangnan region, which is laced with waterways."

"While easing the pressure on North China, it can also slow the Japanese invasion speed."

"Songhu is relatively close to Jinling, with many highways and railways, making logistical supply convenient, which is favorable for us to launch operations."

"The main point is that the Japanese forces stationed in Shanghai are not many; we can concentrate our forces to quickly wipe them out and deal a heavy blow to Japanese morale."

Listening to Chen Yongren's analysis, Lin Dayou and Zhang Haifeng stared dumbfounded.

This was a direction they had never considered.

Chen Yongren lightly coughed twice and said: "Of course, these are just my analyses."

"We can predict the Japanese spies' next moves based on this assumption."

Upon hearing this, Lin Dayou and Zhang Haifeng immediately sat up straight.

Chen Yongren spoke at length: "If I were the pangolin, I would definitely find a way to destroy our side's bridges, roads, railways and other transportation facilities."

"Thus paralyzing our army's logistics transport line to weaken our offensive capability."

Chen Yongren's train of thought gradually became clear.

"Next, before the war begins, assassinate high-ranking officials of the city government to create panic and chaos."

"In order to undermine Songhu's stability and the city government's support for the National Army."

Speaking of this, Chen Yongren suddenly recalled that, when testing his photographic memory skill, he had once passed by a pedestrian reading a newspaper.

On that newspaper, the largest section was about the Songhu mayor, demanding that the Japanese troops withdraw the marines stationed in Hongkou.

He sternly rebuked them and demanded that the Japanese cease all military operations in North China.

Chen Yongren suddenly had a bold guess in his mind, and with a solemn expression he said: "I have already figured out whom the Japanese spies will target next."

"Who?" Lin Dayou asked.

"Mayor Yu." Chen Yongren said in a low voice.

"You say who?" Lin Dayou leaned forward, stunned.

Chen Yongren's guess is perhaps overly bold.

Zhang Haifeng's expression also showed some shock.

"Since the Japanese will surely retaliate, they will definitely choose a target of great significance." Chen Yongren said seriously.

"He often protests the Japanese army's actions to the consulate and urges citizens to donate to the war effort."

"In all of Songhu, only Mayor Yu fits the bill; once he is assassinated, the resolve of Songhu's military and civilians to resist will surely suffer a heavy blow!"

Speaking of this.

Chen Yongren then thought of another person, General Zhang.

But this matter is hard to speak openly about; General Zhang's arrival in Shanghai is still top secret, known only to a very few.

Chen Yongren could only say: "We should immediately send the analysis report to headquarters, so that superiors can remind Mayor Yu and others to stay safe and beware of the Japanese spies' assassination!"