Chapter 119 Dog Spy

As the year draws to a close, all units in Beicheng are extremely busy, striving to meet the final production targets and performance goals for the year.

The police officers at the Dongcheng District Police Station are no exception.

The police station chief has been so worried lately that he's almost lost a few hairs. This year, his station's performance is once again inferior to that of the Nancheng District Police Station!

"Damn it, it's almost the end of the year, how come there are hardly any cases?"

These days, even pickpockets are fewer.

As soon as he finished speaking, the police chief slapped his own face guiltily, realizing that what he said was wrong. No cases were a good thing, because no cases meant there were no victims, which was a good thing.

Oh dear, he shouldn't have thought that way.

That morning, not long after the Dongcheng District Police Station opened for business, an anonymous tip letter wrapped in pebbles was dropped into the guard room at the entrance.

With a "crack," the glass shattered, shards of glass scattering all over the floor.

The old man on duty was startled. When he looked down at the ground, he immediately started cursing. It was a stone wrapped in paper.

The old man thought some child was deliberately throwing stones in, so he ran out and yelled, "Whose brat are you? Go play somewhere else! Don't you know this is a place where you can mess around?!"

There was no one around, and it was quiet. He didn't pay any attention, assuming that the child knew he had done something wrong and had run away.

The old man walked back angrily, thinking to himself that the world was going to the dogs. These kids nowadays were so spoiled, so audacious, and so unruly!

Damn it, it almost hit him on the head!

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the ominous-looking stone, and suddenly, his gaze froze.

He immediately looked around warily, and seeing that no one was around, he quickly stepped forward and picked up the crumpled paper.

Unfold the letter, and you'll see a paragraph composed of words cut from a newspaper.

The old man became increasingly alarmed as he looked at the document, and his expression grew more and more serious.

He tucked the letter into his pocket without making a sound, and when the director came to work, he went directly to the director's office and handed it to him.

The authenticity of this letter is unknown, but this situation must be reported.

After reading the contents of the whistleblower's letter, the director slammed his fist on the table in anger, yelling, "Damn it, these bastards!"

He gritted his teeth, "I never expected to get such a big job at the end of the year!"

Soon, a group of serious-looking police officers were ready to go.

"Brothers, let's go!"

At a command, they sped off like cheetahs, hopping on their bicycles and heading towards the small courtyard where the Deng family lived.

Pedestrians passing by looked at the police officers riding bicycles with suspicion and wonder, "Oh my god, what have they done this time?"

"I heard that the Deng family got arrested. Could they have committed some crime again?"

"Pah! Corrupt officials deserve to eat peanuts!"

Although the machinery factory hasn't explicitly stated what Deng Guangming did wrong, it's obvious to everyone what kind of trouble he, a finance department employee, could have gotten into.

These days, the workers truly treat the factory as their own home, with a very strong sense of collective honor. So they all hate Deng Guangming, this corrupt official, and wish he would be eaten alive.

Another issue is that Deng Guangming's family is really unpopular. His wife and children often use his status to show off and look down on others.

Now that the police have come to his house again, he can't help but feel smug.

However, it seems that the Deng family's matter is quite serious, otherwise they wouldn't have mobilized so many police officers. This kind of mobilization is much more intimidating than when the factory's security department came to arrest people.

The neighbors couldn't help but wonder, what could be something even bigger than embezzlement?

...

Everyone will soon find out the answer.

A few days before the Lunar New Year, news suddenly spread from who-knows-where that Deng Guangming, who had been arrested, was a spy and would be executed after the New Year, and that the Deng family would be sent to a labor camp in the Northwest.

Aunt Cao, who prides herself on being the most well-informed person in the compound, naturally learned about this news from many of her "old friends".

Damn it, this bastard is actually a spy!

Aunt Cao stood in the courtyard, her eyebrows dancing with excitement, drool flying everywhere, surrounded by a group of older women, aunties, and young wives.

"Hey, have you heard? That corrupt official Deng Guangming who got arrested was actually a spy. I heard the police not only found tens of thousands of yuan in his house, but also a telegraph machine. That guy's definitely going to get what's coming to him! And his whole family will have to go farm in the Northwest!"

The crowd erupted in excitement, some in disbelief, others with a sense of schadenfreude.

It's only been a little over a decade since the founding of the People's Republic of China. Everyone experienced the War of Resistance against Japan, and we all deeply abhor spies.

"Really?!"

"Oh my, this is truly gratifying!"

Cheng Jiajia also looked surprised. "My God, this bastard is actually a spy?! Isn't he an enemy lurking among the people?"

"That's right, we've all been fooled by that bastard!"

"That dog spy deserves to die!"

Yu Junsheng's lips twitched. His wife's acting skills were superb. Her expression was so natural that you couldn't tell at all that she was the one who discovered the things during her nighttime visit to the Deng family, or that she was the one who submitted the report.

Yu Junsheng only found out the next morning that his wife had gone to the Deng family's house again late at night.

It scared him so much his heart trembled.

My wife is such a reckless fool. Knowing what kind of person they are, she still dared to go there alone. What if their accomplices were watching from the shadows? Wouldn't that be like handing herself over to be dealt with?

His wife may be a bit more skilled and stronger, but she's a spy, a spy!

They might have real weapons; you can't win an unarmed fight.

Yu Junsheng gave Cheng Jiajia the cold shoulder for two hours, and they only made up after Cheng Jiajia promised not to do such dangerous things without permission in the future.

Yes, that's right. If we're going to do it, we should discuss it with him first and plan it out carefully before proceeding.

Outside the crowd, Qin Weimin was terrified, his face turning deathly pale.

Damn it, that bastard Deng Guangming is actually a spy!

No wonder, no wonder, Deng Guangming clearly has no background, yet he has a lot of connections.

No wonder he was so arrogant and disdainful of everyone, even though he was just a section chief.

So that's how it is!

Thinking about the deals he had made with this person, Qin Weimin suddenly found it hard to breathe.

Damn it, won't this get me into trouble?

Cheng Jiajia caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye and thought, "Little brat, I knew you had something going on!"

She raised an eyebrow and said deliberately, "I heard that with this kind of crime, everyone connected to him will be investigated to see if they have been corrupted by him. Luckily, my Yu Junsheng didn't go into the finance department before, otherwise he would have been in trouble."

"Oh my god, really?!"

"Of course, you can ask the security department if you don't believe me." Cheng Jiajia wasn't exactly lying; the investigation of spies was strict now, and people closely related to Deng Guangming were indeed being investigated. However, those were people with 'close relationships,' not those with normal work-related interactions at the factory.

Seeing Qin Weimin's face turn even paler and his lips turn white from being bitten, Cheng Jiajia felt a sense of relief.

Although there is no evidence yet to implicate Qin Weimin, she doesn't want him to live too comfortably. Those who do bad things should live in constant fear.

There's a sword hanging over my head; I'll just have to suffer through it!

If you accidentally mess things up and kill yourself, then everyone will be happy.

Everyone believed it to be true and was greatly startled by Cheng Jiajia.

That bastard Deng Guangming is the deputy director of the factory's finance department; he has dealings with countless people.

There are quite a few in their yard.

Now everyone is on edge. Who would dare to get involved with spies these days?

They all quickly distanced themselves from the situation.

Yu Junsheng was the first to distance himself, saying, "That bastard deliberately took my mother's place. We are enemies and have no dealings whatsoever."

Ma Gaosheng shook his head vigorously, "I don't count, I don't count. I only see him once a month when I get my salary." Actually, no, he had given Deng Guangming gifts in private, hoping that Deng would be more generous when distributing benefits. But that bastard probably thought it wasn't enough, and after accepting the gifts, he just pretended it never happened!

Ren Wenhua quickly waved his hand, "No, it's not that. I just said hello when we met at the factory. Isn't that polite? We're from the same factory. It would be so rude not to greet each other when we meet, haha."

Ren Wenhua felt a little guilty. He had given Deng Guangming favors before; otherwise, how did all that money end up in the accounts? He had to beg Deng Guangming to be lenient when settling accounts. He wondered if Deng Guangming's troubles would lead to his own misdeeds being discovered. Ren Wenhua was truly worried sick lately.

Zou Qianjin spat, "Imperialism will never give up its desire to destroy us! Down with the dog spies!" The upright old man Zou profoundly expressed his hatred for spies. He indeed had little contact with Deng Guangming; he simply looked down on such people.

Zheng Haiyang declared righteously, "I would never stoop to associating with such a pest!" On the surface, he had no connection with Deng Guangming, but he knew perfectly well what Ren Wenhua had done. However, even if they were related now, he had to pretend they weren't.

Zhu Ziqiang's eyes darted around, and he mumbled a vague reply. He had tried to flatter him before, but the man was a section chief and wouldn't bother with a nobody like him. Zhu Ziqiang had been indignant about this before, but now it seemed like a good thing. Luckily, this man was blind to his worth. He didn't want to get involved with this kind of spy and corrupt official.

"That's right, that's right! We're all working class, and we're not familiar with these parasites of the people, Guo Jia's traitor!"

Ma Gaosheng and Ren Wenhua quickly echoed, exchanging a glance before nervously looking away.

Ma Gaosheng: Bah! You old geezer, you're spouting nonsense!

Ren Wenhua: Bah! You little brat, your ability to lie through your teeth has improved!

Suddenly, someone said something.

"I once saw Lao Qin heading towards Deng Guangming's house. Lao Qin, your relationship is definitely not ordinary!"

Swish swish swish —

Everyone's suspicious gazes immediately fell upon Qin Weimin, as if they were looking at a bad element who had betrayed the people.

"No way, Lao Qin, you can't be a real spy who's been corrupted, can you?"

“We only interacted with Deng Guangming at the factory; we’ve never been to his home.”

Qin Weimin was instantly drenched in sweat, and his heart stopped beating.

Damn it, who was that bastard who shouted that?!

If you don't speak, will anyone think you're mute?!

Qin Weimin was terrified and his mind raced, trying to find an excuse for himself. "I...I was just passing by, but I've never been to Deng Guangming's house. Don't talk nonsense!" Deng Guangming is now a piece of trash; anyone who gets involved with him is doomed.

Seeing that everyone was still looking at him with suspicion, he continued, his voice stern but his tone weak, "How can you joke about something like this?! What's the situation now? Is anyone with those two words on their person a good person? You're just making things up without any evidence. Do you know how much trouble this will cause my family? If something happens to my family, can you take responsibility?"

Everyone fell silent.

Who can take responsibility for this?

Originally, everyone was just watching the drama unfold and deliberately stirring things up. It was because Qin Weimin and Bai Zhenzhu's behavior after their marriage was so despicable.

But now that they'd said that, everyone had no choice but to give up, give an awkward smile, and continue to mock, "Old Qin, look at you, all red-faced. We were just joking, you're taking it too seriously."

"Exactly, exactly, they can't take a joke at all!"

"Old Qin, you should hurry back and find your Aunt Yan, oh no, I mean Aunt Bai, right?"

"No, Lao Qin, I have a serious question for you. Do you ever go to the wrong house at night?"

"That's hard to say. After all, we've lived with Aunt Yan for decades. How can one adjust to a new place so quickly?"

Qin Weimin: "!!!"

Qin Weimin's face turned a deep purplish-red.

It was intentional, it must have been intentional, those meddlesome bastards!

Why wasn't he implicated and arrested by Deng Guangming?

...

As the Lunar New Year draws closer, every household in the courtyard is busily preparing for the occasion, stocking up on fruits, pastries, sweets, and meat. The children in the courtyard are so eager to eat that they run around all day long.

The house was filled with food, and even the big guys who never closed their doors had to close them now, for fear that they might be robbed by some thief if they weren't careful.

This is no exaggeration. Several families actually lost things like candy and fruit. It was the Ren and Bai families in the Third Courtyard. Guan Ailian was so angry that she cursed loudly in the courtyard, and Bai Zhenzhu also said a few sarcastic things.

Cheng Jiajia also bought a lot of New Year's goods with the older women. She had never worried about these things before and was very curious about everything. She just followed the older women in the courtyard in buying whatever they wanted.

Just a couple of days ago, the supply and marketing cooperative received a batch of sunflower seeds and peanuts. Cheng Jiajia bought a few pounds of them and learned how to roast them from Aunt Hao. She and Yu Junsheng were in the kitchen, one tending the fire and the other stirring the peanuts. It has to be said that roasting dried goods is hard work. Even though Cheng Jiajia is strong, she couldn't handle it. Her hands got sore after stirring for a short while. The two of them had already taken turns stirring several times.

The front door closed, and everyone was busy in the kitchen when they heard Aunt Cao's loud voice outside.

"Xiao Cheng, Xiao Cheng, we have guests at your house!"

Both of them were taken aback. Cheng Jiajia and Yu Junsheng had no relatives left, so who would come to their house?

"It might be He San'er and his group. I'll go open the door. Don't stop what you're doing, or it'll burn." There's no salt now, so stir-frying dried goods is a hassle.

Cheng Jiajia gave a brief instruction, stuffed the firewood into the stove, dusted off her hands, and stood up to go outside.

A few days ago, He San'er and Yu Junsheng's group of brothers came to deliver New Year's goods. Cheng Jiajia thought it was them again and wondered why they were being so polite. Did they think they didn't have enough money to live on?

When they got to the door, wow! This was truly a rare guest!

He immediately crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame, a half-smile on his face. "Oh, are you bringing me New Year's gifts?" he said, deliberately glancing over the things the two were carrying.

The visitors were none other than Cheng Jiajia's stepsister, Dong Siwei, and Xu Dongliang, the wife-killing director of the supply and marketing cooperative.

These two people came to my house?

Cheng Jiajia felt that the saying "a weasel paying New Year's greetings to a chicken is not a good deed" was particularly apt in the present situation.