Huang Xianzheng's words went straight to the point of the conversation. Ning Zhiheng immediately perked up, sat up straight, and replied, "Chief, I think this matter is inappropriate!"

"I knew you weren't willing! Tell me your reasons!"

"Yes," Ning Zhiheng replied with a bow, then coughed lightly. "Chief, everyone knows the status of the Shanghai Station in the Military Intelligence Department. It is not only the largest Class A station, but more importantly, it has resources that other intelligence stations simply do not have—intelligence resources!"

Shanghai is a melting pot of Chinese and foreigners, with various national powers deeply entrenched in its affairs. This not only made Shanghai the largest metropolis in the Far East, but also China's largest intelligence gathering center. I can even collect military intelligence from the Northeast and Northwest regions here. The Guangzhou defection case is a typical example of this.

Now my intelligence station has extended its reach into the intelligence market. After numerous trials and tribulations, we have made contact with intelligence networks of various countries and laid a solid foundation. Frankly speaking, my intelligence station has become the largest buyer in the Shanghai intelligence market. To date, our station has invested no less than seven hundred thousand US dollars!

"How much?" Huang Xianzheng's voice suddenly rose, his eyes flashing with a sharp light, and he slammed his hand on the table.

"Reporting to the Chief, to be precise, it's seventy-two hundred thousand US dollars!" Ning Zhiheng replied respectfully.

Huang Xianzheng stared wide-eyed at Ning Zhiheng. In the early days of the War of Resistance Against Japan, this was an astronomical sum of money. You have to know that Huang Xianzheng, a major general, only earned 800 yuan a month. Of course, this was only his official income. But even so, Ning Zhiheng had invested so much money in the Shanghai intelligence market in just over a year. Huang Xianzheng simply couldn't believe it.

However, he knew that Ning Zhiheng would never boast or show off in front of him, and Ning Zhiheng would not stoop to such a thing!

Furthermore, the high value of the various political, economic, and military intelligence continuously sent from the Shanghai intelligence station over the past year is evident to all and is sufficient proof of this point.

Even the chief himself admitted that even if all the intelligence funds for the entire Central China region were invested in the Shanghai intelligence market, it would not be possible to collect so much intelligence. This is precisely why everyone admires Ning Zhiheng's intelligence gathering ability so much, because no intelligence officer has ever had the courage to invest such a large sum of money into that bottomless pit!

Only Ning Zhiheng succeeded, and the result was satisfactory. This proves that in the intelligence market, as long as you have money, there is no information you cannot buy.

"Where did you get so much money? Did you rob a bank?" Huang Xianzheng asked irritably.

Ning Zhiheng couldn't hide it any longer and said, "This is indeed a huge sum of money. However, I have also reported to you that on the eve of the defeat in the Battle of Shanghai, I moved several foreign merchants' warehouses in Pudong. Do you remember that?"

Ning Zhiheng had already reported the matter of moving the Pudong warehouse to Huang Xianzheng. After all, there were too many people involved, and the matter would inevitably be exposed sooner or later. That's why he spent a lot of money to bribe the section chief to vouch for him and prevent any future troubles.

With Huang Xianzheng as his true backer, Ning Zhiheng had no need to hide anything. He had sent a telegram to report the matter, but did not mention the specific amount of profit, only saying that the money was used to fund the establishment of an intelligence station.

"I remember, but you didn't mention it. How could you have robbed so much?" Huang Xianzheng said with some dissatisfaction.

In his understanding, what value could a few warehouses possibly have? During the retreat from Shanghai, the army collapsed like an avalanche, and in the chaos, how much could Ning Zhiheng have taken away? He figured the profit would be very limited. Moreover, setting up an intelligence station behind enemy lines was extremely expensive, and this intelligence station was composed of the core forces of the Baoding clique. He was afraid that the funds would be insufficient and that this force would suffer losses, so he did not bring up the matter again.

From this perspective, Huang Xianzheng actually did a better job than the Director. He valued the safety of his subordinates more and was far less greedy for money than the Director.

Ning Zhiheng gave a bitter laugh, spread his hands, and said aggrievedly, "How could we make so much profit? The amount of goods transported back at that time was limited. Even so, the Director interfered and instructed his sworn brother Yue Sheng to take half of it. I used the remaining funds to open several trading companies and slowly accumulated them. Later, by using my disguised identity, I made connections with the Japanese Military Police Headquarters and started a smuggling business, which was very profitable. Only then did I have the strength to intervene in the intelligence market. Director, the Shanghai Station has achieved its current success. The hardships involved are indescribable. I gritted my teeth and persevered. Now that everything is on track, it's such a pity that we have to hand it over!"

Ning Zhiheng had a great success in his anti-traitor operation in Shanghai. After returning, he reported the operation in detail to Huang Xianzheng. Therefore, Huang Xianzheng knew his other identity: a member of a collateral branch of the Fujiwara family in Japan.

After listening, Huang Xianzheng frowned. He hadn't expected Ning Zhiheng to have put in so much effort to achieve such a situation and outstanding results in Shanghai. It seemed that he had underestimated the situation before.

"How much profit do you make from smuggling?" Huang Xianzheng asked, his eyes gleaming.

Ning Zhiheng could tell at a glance that Huang Xianzheng was interested, and he was overjoyed. His biggest advantage in coming to headquarters to report on his work and persuade the two section chiefs to change their minds was that he had a wealth of funds that others could not imagine. As long as he was willing to pay a certain price, he believed that he could persuade the two section chiefs to make some concessions after weighing the benefits.

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