Wang Hanmin was aware of this as well, and he shook his head regretfully, saying, "There is really no place to hide in this old house. The only secret room has been filled in by us, and there is no time to prepare anything now. Besides, we have too many people to hide anywhere."

Duan Tiecheng was also anxious upon hearing this. He asked again, "If we can't hide it, we can only try to get through by deception. Don't you have forged identity documents? We were told to bring them before the operation, right? Let's see if we can get through!"

Wang Hanmin spread his hands and said with a wry smile, "It's no use. Although we made a lot of good citizen certificates before, they are fake after all. They can pass simple checks on the street, but tomorrow's search will be very strict. If someone comes to our door, the Japanese will definitely bring the police officers to search us. They have household registration records. As soon as they check the household registration records, we will be exposed. So we have to think of another way."

Upon hearing this, both men were speechless. The Japanese were meticulous in their work, and after occupying Shanghai, they exerted far greater control over household registration than the former Chinese government, which greatly restricted the activities of Chinese spies.

Wang Hanmin was extremely cautious, knowing full well that his foundation was still shallow, so he never planned to operate in downtown Shanghai, and all the good citizen certificates under his command were forged.

The situation in the Shanghai intelligence department was naturally different. They could easily obtain genuine good citizen certificates by virtue of their connections and money, and could also arrange new identities at will. The difference between the two was obvious.

Upon hearing this, Duan Tiecheng became even more anxious. He knew all too well the importance of his and Wang Hanmin's identities, and the consequences would be unimaginable if they fell into enemy hands.

He took a deep breath, staring intently at Wang Hanmin, and said again, "So what should we do now? Hanmin, I'll be frank. If we can't hide tomorrow, we'll fight to the death. But you and I absolutely cannot fall into enemy hands, or the consequences will be unimaginable. What if we can't withstand the torture? You know our Military Intelligence Bureau's rules: the families of the ringleaders who defect and those who cause significant losses will be purged. You and I both have families; we can't let them die with us!"

Seeing the fierce look in Duan Tiecheng's eyes, Wang Hanmin knew that this was a warning from the other party. He nodded and forced a smile, "Brother Tiecheng, please rest assured. Although I am not talented, I am determined to die for my country. If it really comes to that, I will never let myself become a sinner of the country."

Duan Tiecheng nodded, took out his pistol from his waist, looked at it, and sighed, saying, "I never expected this trip to Shanghai to be so dangerous. It's a pity I didn't leave a single word for my family. I'm afraid I won't be able to go back this time!"

Just as the two were feeling sad, Wei Xuehai suddenly pushed the door open and came in. He took a few steps to the front of the room and said urgently, "Station Chief, someone is knocking on the door. What should we do?"

"What?" Duan Tiecheng and Wang Han both jumped up.

Wang Hanmin asked in surprise, "Could it be that the Japanese have come knocking on our door?"

Duan Tiecheng shook his head and said, "Shanghai is so big, searching the whole city is easier said than done. The Japanese can't possibly move that fast! Besides, they can't possibly find this place right away. Let's go take a look!"

The two quickly went out the door, only to find the action team members hiding in the shadows, fully armed and on high alert.

They arrived at the front gate and heard the sound of knocking on the door from outside.

"Da da, da da da!" The sound was neither fast nor slow, but slightly rhythmic!

People usually knock on doors randomly, but this kind of rhythm usually indicates that they need to convey some kind of information.

Wang Hanmin waved for Wei Xuehai to step forward and said softly, "What's meant to be will be. If the Japanese really come to our door, everyone get ready. We'll have no choice but to fight to the death!"

Wei Xuehai pressed himself against the door, listened to the sounds outside, and finding it quiet, asked softly, "Who is it?"

The person outside the door said in a very low voice, "I want to talk to Boss Duan and Boss Wang about a business deal!"