Moreover, it was precisely because Takasugi Hitoshi was an intelligence officer for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that we deliberately restrained ourselves and did not arrest him, but instead adopted a method of tracking and surveillance. Our purpose was only to find suspicious individuals around him. We had no intention of taking action against him personally; otherwise, we would have already taken action. However, you were the villains who struck first, falsely accusing our personnel of being Kuomintang agents and carrying out an ambush. You should bear the main responsibility for the consequences now.”

Ihara Taichi's eyes widened as he reiterated, "That's just sophistry. Such screening and investigations are conducted internally by the department. In the end, you didn't notify us in advance, which is an overreach of your authority!"

Having understood the whole situation, Uehara Junpei's face darkened, and with a wave of his hand, he interrupted their argument, and the room fell silent again.

Uehara Junpei was not keen on getting involved in these kinds of things. Japan had many intelligence agencies in China, and their authority overlapped, so it was common for them to fight and bicker. Unless it was a major issue, he would try to avoid getting involved. However, given his mindset, if there was anything suspicious, he had to investigate it thoroughly and not let it go.

He glanced around. Although Koda Kanan was the executor, he was the least informed, so he had no vested interest in the matter and was his direct subordinate, so he naturally set him aside.

He turned to look at Ihara Taichi, thought for a moment and said, "Immediately take control of Takasugi Hitoshi. Regardless of his previous behavior, as long as he takes a photo with communists, there is a possibility of him becoming communist. However, the investigation into him can be carried out internally by your Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

Upon hearing this, Ihara Taichi understood that although the arrest was for Takasugi Hitoshi, as long as the person was under his control, there would be room for maneuver regardless of the outcome of the investigation, and at the very least, the situation would not spiral out of control.

After finishing speaking, Uehara Junpei looked at Imai Yuji and instructed, "I've said it before: intelligence agencies cannot target each other. Otherwise, constant internal strife will inevitably lead to endless troubles. The Special Higher Police's investigation into Takasugi Hitoshi ends here. If similar incidents occur again in the future, you must report them. You must not act on your own and take excessive measures against intelligence personnel from other agencies. Otherwise, I will pursue the matter to the end. Imai-kun, do you understand?"

Uehara Junpei made his stance clear, which completely disheartened Imai Yuji. This time, his attempt to steal a chicken had backfired, and he was naturally frustrated. However, he still spoke up and said, "I mishandled things before, please forgive me, General. Since Takasugi Jinki is an intelligence officer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, my department can give up the investigation on him. However, there is another person in this photo whose identity is unknown. This person is very likely a communist, so I hope that Takasugi Jinki can reveal this person's identity. We need to continue the investigation."

Yuji Imai's request was not excessive. As a veteran agent, he had all the necessary care and caution. Besides, since the operation had failed, he still needed to give the Special Higher Police headquarters an explanation.

Ihara Taichi knew he couldn't refuse this time, and he had no reason to stop the Special Higher Police from investigating other suspicious individuals, so he nodded and agreed, "I will ask Takasugi Hitoshi for clarification and will definitely give Imai-kun a satisfactory answer."

Seeing that the two sides had reached a settlement, Uehara Junpei was satisfied. For someone of his status, these were trivial matters, and he had no intention of getting entangled with them any further. He waved for everyone to leave.

Just then, Ning Zhiheng came out of the study. He looked up and saw several people about to leave, so he called out, "Koda-kun!"

Upon seeing Ning Zhiheng, Koda Kanan's face lit up with surprise and delight. He bowed and greeted him, "Fujiwara-kun, so you're here too. I'm so sorry to bother you!"

Ning Zhiheng laughed heartily, then turned to nod slightly to Imai Yuji and Ihara Taichi, who quickly bowed in return.

Ning Zhiheng then bid farewell to Uehara Junpei, saying, "Uncle, Koda-kun and I also have some things to discuss. It's getting late, so we'll take our leave now."

Uehara Junpei nodded slightly. He knew that Koda Kanan and the other person had become very close since Koda Kanan saved his nephew during the turmoil, so he did not try to keep them. Instead, he sent Araki Tetsuya to see everyone off.