In fact, no one in the courtyard knew that of the five sons and two daughters in the Shen family, three sons and one daughter were not born to the Shen couple.
The reason lies in the period before liberation, when enemy agents were rampant and wreaked havoc on Lao Shen's hometown village, killing and injuring people who had helped the village.
The three brothers, Lao Shen and his brother, fought side by side to protect their family. Unfortunately, the eldest brother and the youngest brother were killed by enemy agents, leaving only Lao Shen alive.
Even worse, after witnessing his sister-in-law and brother's wife being captured by enemy agents, Lao Shen and his fellow villagers grabbed hoes and shovels and chased after them, risking their lives. This provoked the enemy agents' ferocity, and with the support of villagers from surrounding villages, a gunfight ensued, resulting in many deaths.
The enemy agents were eventually eliminated by civilians and the troops that came to their aid.
Considering the immense number of people who had sacrificed their lives in the Shen family, the military leaders and commune cadres arranged for the entire Shen family to move to the city and work in factories to support themselves.
Otherwise, Old Shen and his wife would not have been able to support their five sons and two daughters.
Moreover, the children had all been injured to varying degrees and urgently needed money for hospitalization and treatment, making them the poorest family in the village.
This allowed the Shen family to get jobs at the steel rolling mill and move into the courtyard house.
Strictly speaking, Lao Shen could be considered a hero for catching enemy spies, but he never told anyone, so the people in the compound didn't know.
However, the former director was a witness to this matter back then, so he naturally believed Lao Shen's testimony, but he couldn't stop Old Lady Long's false accusations.
Ignoring Old Shen's threat, Grandma Long calmly smiled and said, "Old Shen, you're getting old and senile!"
We live in a new society now, and we don't believe in superstitions.
"You're old and still restless, spreading superstition in the courtyard. Don't you know you're committing a crime?"
"Alright, if you want to falsely accuse the Zheng family, no one can stop you. Stop trying to pin this on me."
"Jia Zhangshi keeps saying that Old Jia will come back and take you away, but I've never seen you say that Jia Zhangshi is practicing feudal superstition!" Old Shen got angry and wasn't afraid of anyone.
Back in the day, I wasn't afraid of fighting enemy agents who were armed with guns, even when I was holding a wooden stick.
Unfortunately, he was still crushed by the realities of life.
However, Old Shen, though hunchbacked, remained steadfast in his principles and righteously accused Jia Zhangshi of engaging in feudal superstition. Jia Zhangshi, hiding in the crowd, merely bared her teeth at him.
Because Jia Zhangshi knew that there were two people left in the courtyard she couldn't mess with: Old Lady Long and Old Shen, she quickly hid, fearing that the police would take her away.
Grandma Long didn't dwell on the matter and turned directly to the old police chief, saying, "Old police officer, is it illegal for me to report a suspect's crime?"
"Old man, you're assisting the police in handling the case, of course you're not breaking the law. You can tell us anything you want to say." The old chief subtly waved his hand to signal Old Shen not to get agitated. Before the case is fully investigated, anything can happen.
It's not uncommon for a few traitors to emerge from among our own people.
Even if he knew all the information about Zheng Daotong, he couldn't guarantee whether Zheng Daotong was an enemy agent.
Police rely on evidence, not on personal feelings or judgments.
With the old director's permission, Old Lady Long proudly raised her chin at Old Shen before saying, "I live next door to Zheng Daotong, and I can hear the ticking sound of Zheng Daotong sending telegrams in the middle of the night."
This occurred six times, before and after.
At first, I wasn't sure if this was a telegram sent by Zheng Daotong to enemy agents.
Fortunately, the comrades from the neighborhood office shared their knowledge with us, explaining the sounds of enemy agents sending telegrams, like "beep beep" and "da," which gave me some insight.
So I thought that as a section chief in the police station, Zheng Daotong should send telegrams during working hours, and it would be normal for him to send them from the police station, right?
This makes me suspect that Zheng Daotong was an enemy agent. Only an enemy agent would choose to send a telegram in the middle of the night and engage in enemy activities.
Unfortunately, when I reported my discovery to Director Hou of the neighborhood committee, he brushed it off and nothing came of it.
As you know, we only have the right to report, not the right to supervise the management and handling of matters by the subdistrict office.
I always thought that the street office and police officers were investigating whether Zheng Daotong was an enemy agent, but they hadn't found out yet.
Or perhaps they're playing the long game, using Zheng Daotong as bait to lure the enemy intelligence gang into a trap and wipe them out in one fell swoop.
With this suspicion in mind, we stopped reporting to the neighborhood committee that Zheng Daotong was an enemy agent, for fear of hindering the police station's investigation.
This continued until Zheng Daotong's sacrifice, which made us suspicious.
Why was Zheng Daotong sacrificed, instead of being exposed as an enemy agent, becoming a target of the people, and appearing in the world as a criminal?
We consulted Director Wang of the neighborhood committee about this, but Director Wang said that Zheng Daotong's identity was confirmed by the police station and could not be changed by just anyone talking nonsense.
Fortunately, Zheng Daotong is dead, so we no longer have to worry about him silencing us. Wouldn't it be better to just consider this matter settled and live a peaceful life?
Who would have thought that this was Zheng Ya, who followed in his father's footsteps!
He actually sent a telegram in the middle of the night; he's an enemy agent just like his father, Zheng Daotong!
Perhaps he realized that we had discovered his identity, because he actually encouraged Director Wang to send me to live at Yi Zhonghai's house. Wouldn't that make it easier for him to carry out enemy spy activities?
"Officers, you really need to investigate this thoroughly. Their house definitely has tools for enemy sabotage hidden there!"
"So that's why you, Zheng Ya, are so hostile towards me. You were just waiting for this!" Wu Wei snapped, seizing the opportunity to strike back at Zheng Ya!
The old director was numb. He glared at her and scolded, "What business is it of yours here?"
You just arrived in this courtyard today, right?
You know nothing about what's going on in the courtyard, how can you believe everything you hear? Step aside..."
"Comrade Director, please allow me to expose Zheng Ya's crimes."
"This is my right to investigate classified cases within a confidential unit. You have no right to deprive me of it, do you, old police officer?" Wu Wei stepped forward instead of backing down, approaching the old director and responding with righteous indignation.
This infuriated the old director, who suppressed his anger and said, "Fine, I really don't have the authority to stop your comrades from handling cases."
However, as a veteran police officer, I must advise you: all cases must be based on solid evidence. Don't use this as an excuse to distort the facts and hinder the investigation.
"Please rest assured, Director, I know the procedures for handling cases and I know my limits." Wu Wei is now focused on crushing Zheng Ya under her feet, following Zheng Ya's lead to uncover the entire case, and earning merit and rewards.
In this way, they can respond to the Wu family with a completely new and victorious attitude, regain everything they have lost, and even go further.
An opportunity was right in front of her; she couldn't afford to miss it.
Little did they know that Old Lady Long was smiling, her eyes crinkling into a slit as she looked at them. "She's so young and impulsive. With a little guidance, she can be used by me. Zheng Ya is doomed this time, haha!"
The case has taken many twists and turns, changing again and again!
This left Xu Qi, the Shen family, Yan Fugui's family, and Zheng Ya himself all in disbelief.
Suddenly, a Cheng Yaojin appeared out of nowhere—no, an old witch appeared out of nowhere! This is weird!
The old director chuckled in exasperation: "Alright, then please tell me your opinion."
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