“Ishikawa-kun, since you all know, I won’t say any more. You must know some things. I was actually acting under orders. As for who it was, everyone knows. So please be lenient with me, Ishikawa-kun, and let me off the hook. I will be eternally grateful!”

Li Zhiqun didn't intend to hide anything. The other party was clearly wary of Yingzuo Yuki, so they deliberately targeted him by ignoring the relevant content. So he would do the opposite and bring up Yingzuo Yuki to seize the opportunity.

Ishikawa Takeshi was already prepared. Seeing that Li Zhiqun had spoken frankly, he simply stopped hiding his intentions, slammed his hand on the table, and shouted, "Baka! Are you threatening me? Don't forget who you are! This is the headquarters of the Imperial Army's military police!"

Seeing Ishikawa Takeshi's outburst, Li Zhiqun dared not provoke him. If he really acted recklessly, wouldn't he suffer a loss? He quickly explained, "No, no, I just hope that Mr. Ishikawa will be lenient. Otherwise, I won't be able to explain such a huge loss to my superiors!"

"The higher-ups? Heh, Minister Li, you've gotten quite bold, haven't you? Now you dare to bargain with me? You think you can do whatever you want just because you've gained General Yingzuo's favor? You need to understand, this is Shanghai..."

At this point, Takeshi Ishikawa slammed his fist on the table, making a loud thud, and his voice grew louder: "In Shanghai, no matter who you are, you have to follow the rules, follow Chairman Fujiwara's rules, otherwise even General Kagesa can't protect you!"

Takeshi Ishikawa's eyes were sharp as he stared intently at Li Zhiqun, his murderous intent undisguised, clearly ready to erupt at the slightest provocation.

Li Zhiqun was immediately oppressed and dared not say more. He was afraid that the other party would disregard the consequences and directly order his detention. The prison of the Military Police Headquarters was by no means a safe place. Even if he was not severely tortured, he would still lose face as the Minister of Police.

Seeing the stalemate, Luo Xingchao knew he couldn't just stand by and do nothing, or Li Zhiqun would hold a grudge later. He quickly stepped forward, bowed, and explained, "Mr. Ishikawa, please calm down. We have absolutely no intention of disobeying Chairman Fujiwara. The reason we did this was not for personal gain. It was a last resort for General Kagesa to solve the financial difficulties of our Police Department and Special Agent Headquarters. Moreover, the goods we transported were not sold in the Shanghai area at all; they were all shipped to Hangzhou, so it did not affect the interests of the Fujiwara Company..."

"That's just sophistry! Utter sophistry!" Takeshi Ishikawa interrupted Luo Xingchao loudly, pointing his finger at his head and cursing him!

Then he looked at Li Zhiqun and scolded him: "Li Zhiqun, your No. 76 has monopolized the gambling, prostitution and drug business in the entire western part of Shanghai. The profits are huge. I have always turned a blind eye to you because of General Yingzuo. I have tolerated you time and time again, but you dare to smuggle controlled materials."

All controlled goods entering Shanghai must be sold to the Fujiwara Company for unified disposal at the set prices. This is a rule set by Chairman Fujiwara, and you are well aware of it, yet you still insist on going your own way. Do you still respect us?

At this point, Ishikawa Takeshi was furious and didn't bother to waste any more words with the two men. He was going to teach them a lesson today, so there was no need to be too polite. He immediately gave an order, and several military police rushed in from outside the door, swarming forward and restraining Li Zhiqun and Luo Xingchao.

"Ishikawa-kun, what are you doing..."

This move startled the two men. They hadn't expected that Takeshi Ishikawa would disregard Hiroki Kagesa and actually attack them. They had walked right into a trap.

Luo Xingchao, in particular, was inwardly groaning. He had made a fool of himself and gotten himself into trouble.

"Take him out!"

The military police shoved and pushed the two men out of the office building and turned into an open space. At this time, another team of military police also brought over Ye Yaoxian and others, who were tightly bound.

Ye Yaoxian and the others also saw Li Zhiqun and Luo Xingchao, and immediately felt as if they had seen saviors. They tried to call for help from the two, but their mouths were stuffed with cloth and they could not make a sound, only "woo woo" sounds.

The group of twenty-three people, not one missing, were all pushed to a wall, kicked to the ground, and made to kneel in a row facing the wall.

Li Zhiqun and Luo Xingchao immediately realized that this was an execution by firing squad, and they were terrified. Did Ishikawa Takeshi really have no regard for human feelings? Had he gone mad?

Just as they were filled with fear and unease, Takeshi Ishikawa arrived at the execution ground, stepped forward and stood beside Li Zhiqun, and said coldly, "Minister Li, for the sake of General Kagesa, I can let you off the hook this time, but these people in front of us are direct participants, and we must kill them to make an example of them!"

Li Zhiqun was both shocked and frightened. He tried to break free from the military police around him, but he was tightly restrained and unable to move.

He could only plead, "Mr. Ishikawa, they are all police officers from the Nanjing government's police department. You can't do this. Please think it over!"

Luo Xingchao quickly added, "Ishikawa-kun, we're all on the same side, why be like this? We can discuss anything. We've already reported to General Kagesa and will be communicating with you soon. Please wait a little longer..."

However, Takeshi Ishikawa completely ignored him. He wanted to execute these people before Hiroki Kagesa could react, creating a fait accompli and giving Li Zhiqun a warning. He didn't care about anything else. Killing a few Chinese people was nothing to these Japanese soldiers. He figured Hiroki Kagesa in Nanjing wouldn't really turn against Tomohito Fujiwara over this.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!