Psychological game
The atmosphere in the makeshift interrogation room was heavy. Xiao Li was handcuffed to a chair, his eyes glazed over, and he remained silent no matter how He Shuying questioned him.
As soon as Secretary Deng entered, he saw this scene. He patted Minister He on the shoulder and sat down next to her. He Shuying shook her head at Secretary Deng, pushed over the interrogation notes from before, and looked helpless.
The notebook was almost entirely blank. Xiao Li only admitted that he was a Kuomintang agent who had infiltrated the Soviet area, and refused to answer anything else. He revealed even less than he had in the cave, and his antagonism was extremely strong.
This time they'd hit a brick wall. Getting information out of him would take some effort. Secretary Deng quietly told He Shuying to go out and rest and have a drink of water, while he dragged his chair from the interrogation station to Xiao Li's side.
He Shuying pushed up her glasses in confusion, but still went out, leaving only Secretary Deng and Xiao Li in the interrogation room.
After waiting a moment and seeing that Xiao Li didn't respond, Secretary Deng preemptively said, "Xiao Li, I genuinely want to help you. Now that it's just the two of us, don't you have anything you want to say to me?"
Perhaps hearing a familiar voice, Xiao Li's eyes changed, and he pleaded with a sob in his voice, "Secretary Deng, I really know I was wrong. I'm sorry to Red Devil. I deserve to be torn to pieces, but I'm so scared. That person kept urging me to kill him, kill him..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Li was already sobbing uncontrollably. Secretary Deng handed him a handkerchief: "Xiao Li, you won't say a word, it's really hard for me."
Clutching his handkerchief, Xiao Li lowered his head, seemingly having something difficult to say. Secretary Deng took out his notebook and pressed him, "If you explain everything clearly, I can ask Minister He to reform you. Your superior is Poison Scorpion, so who is the undercover agent that Poison Scorpion contacted through you? Is it the one who urged you to kill?"
Xiao Li nodded: "We've never met directly. Scorpion calls him Mr. Leng, but I heard that Mr. Leng isn't doing well in the Soviet area, so the intelligence isn't very valuable; it can only be used for sabotage."
It's the same old trick, just a different name. It's normal for spies to have several code names. Secretary Deng asked, "Did you know that Ruijin would be attacked by air?"
"I don't know. If I had known, I would have run away long ago." Xiao Li blurted out, "He told me to sabotage the power plant. As soon as the power went out here, it started exploding there. I almost died in the power plant."
Anyone would find this humiliating. Secretary Deng said with certainty, "You met with Mr. Leng in the secret room tonight."
"Yes, but there was a wall between us. I was in an empty room, and then he opened a crack behind that secret door. He told me to wear more layers because there was an escape route in the snow cave behind it. He was going to plant explosives near the command post to kill all the leaders. Then we heard noises elsewhere, so I gave chase..."
Before Xiao Li could finish speaking, Secretary Deng interrupted him: "Mr. Leng, are you aware of the air raid?"
“Mr. Leng said he didn’t know, but I didn’t believe him. I always felt that he wasn’t very attentive to the tasks assigned by his superiors, so I went around to the other office and found that he hadn’t even destroyed the important documents. So I planted explosives on the underground river wall, partly to drown people and partly to destroy the documents,” Xiao Li answered in detail.
It turned out to be a case of dogs fighting each other. Their individual plans would have caused serious damage to the air-raid shelter. But coincidentally, Xiao Li didn't know that Zero had placed enough explosives on the ground to collapse the air-raid shelter, and Zero didn't know that Xiao Li wanted to blow up the underground river to flood the shelter.
So, one person first planted explosives in a secret room behind the empty house, and the other planted explosives in a secret room behind the office. After draining the water, Secretary Deng walked around the site and found that the explosion point was in a secret power distribution room to the left of the bat cave.
After destroying part of the wall, it was connected to the location where Explosive Zero was placed, forming a ring structure with the outside corridor. The underground river's flow actually neutralized the power of the other explosives.
Their mutual distrust could be exploited. Secretary Deng had a plan in mind: "Since Mr. Leng is not cooperating with your work, don't you have any leverage over him?"
Xiao Li confirmed, "Yes, my superior sent me a letter to force him to cooperate. The letter only had two words on it: Xuzhou."
"What do you mean?" Secretary Deng pressed.
After a moment's hesitation, Xiao Li said, "Maybe... it's his hometown. I heard from my superiors that Mr. Leng's fake identity in the Soviet area was set up by the Nanjing headquarters. They probably want to use this to threaten him into working, otherwise they'll expose his real identity."
Secretary Deng's question suddenly jumped to another point: "Did you participate in the construction of the secret passage?"
Xiao Li hurriedly denied it: "I didn't. I just came here a few times following the markings, to make contact with Mr. Leng."
The more he emphasized it, the more suspicious Secretary Deng became, and he said coldly, "Xiao Li, if you choose to hide it, I really can't help you."
"Secretary Deng, please, please don't force me, I don't want to die." Xiao Li's eyelids twitched, and he started sobbing again.
Secretary Deng patiently waited for him to calm down a bit before speaking: "The secret base of the spies was built right next to our air-raid shelter. Even if some people wash it with disinfectant, they can't wash themselves off. You refuse to expose them, don't you want to cut ties with them?"
Xiao Li looked up at Secretary Deng with red eyes and said, "Secretary Deng, you are an honest and upright official. Why don't you ask me about Mr. Leng or Red Devil? I am a dog spy and a murderer. I confess."
Secretary Deng didn't respond to his praise, leaning back in his chair expressionlessly. The fact that Xiao Li could press the mechanism in the empty house to block the pursuit during his escape only shows that he knew the underground river would flow to the left after the explosion. Without seeing the blueprints or participating in the construction, it would be impossible to control the direction of the breach so precisely.
Putting the country before family, he suppressed his desire to avenge the Red Guards and tried to obtain as much useful information as possible for the organization. However, with the deliberate concealment by the spies, it all seemed like a joke. As Secretary Deng thought about it, he felt a surge of anger rising in his heart.
Perhaps feeling the pressure, Xiao Li hurriedly explained, "Secretary Deng, this matter involves a wide range of people and is not that simple. There's an old saying that the law doesn't punish everyone. We can't just drag everyone out and shoot them, can we? Then there would be very few people left in the Soviet government. In the end, if things blow up, the higher-ups will just pull out a few scapegoats with no background to quell public anger. Once the storm has passed, things will go back to normal."
These words made Secretary Deng's heart tighten. He patted Xiao Li on the shoulder and said, "The slope in the snow cave is man-made, right? Natural slopes aren't so regular. With your understanding of the snow cave's structure, you're definitely involved in another smuggling case. At that point, it won't be about how the law judges you, but rather when those people want you to die, that's when you'll die."
Xiao Li's face suddenly turned pale: "I'm just a nobody, with no power or influence. I only became a spy for the ten silver dollars a month. The smuggling was led by Mr. Leng, and he was the one who contacted the people. It really has nothing to do with me."
Secretary Deng guided Xiao Li step by step, saying, "Then write down the name you're afraid of for me. Your only chance to survive right now is me."
Li shifted his body in the chair and nodded after a long while. However, he was handcuffed and it was inconvenient for him to write, so he asked to have one hand unlocked first.
As Secretary Deng was about to remove his handcuffs, the image of Sun Dadan covered in blood suddenly flashed through his mind, and he became wary: "According to the file, you were recommended by Yudu County. Are you from Yudu?"
"Not really. I was originally from Jiujiang. Later, a relative introduced my father to a menial job in the Yudu County government, and that's how our family moved there. Unfortunately, he passed away early, and the family fell into poverty. I was too young then to remember my hometown," Xiao Li answered honestly.
With a twitch of his eyelids, Secretary Deng exclaimed, "Oh, you old man have it really tough, traveling so far just to make a living."
"In this chaotic world, it's good enough to have any income at all. Secretary Deng, the key is with the guard; you can ask him for it." Little Li gestured angrily towards the outside.
Secretary Deng stared at Xiao Li, his feelings quite complicated. He turned to get paper and pen and said, "Never mind, I can't take the key to the courthouse behind Minister He's back. I'll write it down and help you get the key later. I need your name, position, and department."
The handcuffs jingled once, then fell silent again. Secretary Deng pretended not to hear it, and when he turned around, he saw Xiao Li's "honest" smiling face.
Before long, three large pages were filled with writing. Secretary Deng put the papers away with satisfaction. As for the accuracy, that would have to be investigated by the court.
"Secretary Deng, I'm a little thirsty. Could you pour me a glass of water?" Xiao Li pleaded.
Reasonable requests can be met. Secretary Deng agreed, touched his chest, and found that his thin undershirt had no pockets. He then casually shoved his pen into his pocket and turned to instruct a guard to pour him a glass of water.
In the interrogation room, Xiao Li called out again, "Secretary Deng, I just thought of something about gold bars. Come here, I'll tell you quietly."
His cooperation was unexpected. Secretary Deng glanced at Xiao Li's intact handcuffs without suspecting anything, and sat down next to Xiao Li again, leaning in to listen.
“Actually, those gold bars…” Xiao Li said half a sentence before suddenly breaking free of the handcuffs and grabbing him by the neck.
Breathing became difficult. Secretary Deng struggled a few times but couldn't budge him at all. He said in a hoarse voice, "Xiao Li, don't make another mistake."
Without any response, Xiao Li increased the pressure on Deng's hand, his nails digging deep into Deng's flesh. The feeling of suffocation returned, and in a flash, Deng kicked the chair violently.
Clang!
The chair fell over with a loud noise, attracting the only remaining guard. Just as the guard was about to draw his gun, Xiao Li reacted quickly, lunging forward and delivering a heavy punch to the guard's abdomen. Before the guard could regain his balance, he kicked him in the chest, and the guard fell to the ground, but managed to hold onto Xiao Li's ankle tightly.
Bang! The guard stopped struggling, and glaring blood gushed from his back. Somehow, Xiao Li had grabbed his service pistol, and with a series of fluid movements, he had fled out the door before anyone could react.
Xiao Li's ferocious appearance was completely different from when he sent him. Secretary Deng struggled to his feet and shouted with all his might, "Help! Xiao Li has run away!"
In an instant, the air-raid shelter was filled with screams, curses, and shouts; a chaotic cacophony of sounds assaulted his ears. Secretary Deng, without a second thought, staggered out to chase after them.
Xiao Li stumbled and bumped through the crowd, his sharp movements slowed down, and the soldiers chasing behind him quickly surrounded him. In the chaos, Xiao Li snatched the baby from the woman's arms and pressed the muzzle of his gun against the child's swaddling clothes.
The child cried his heart out, and the villagers quickly stopped the frantic mother from going any further. Xiao Li, surrounded by a group of guards, arrogantly shouted, "Try shooting if you dare!"
Bang! A bullet grazed past Xiao Li's ear. Everyone stared at the soldier's empty hand, then at the mother holding the gun, speechless. She pulled back the bolt and aimed at Xiao Li again, her killing intent blazing.
Xiao Li's movements as he held the baby changed to hooking the knot on the swaddling clothes. Under everyone's gaze, he slowly backed away, the swaddling clothes swaying with his movements: "Go ahead and open it, you bitch, I just need someone to take the fall with me."
The child's cries were heartbreaking, and the mother's hands trembled uncontrollably. Finally, she couldn't bear it any longer, dropped the gun, and knelt down on the ground, pleading, "Please, give me back my child. Please."
A murmur of surprise rippled through the crowd.
“Let me be your… hostage!” Secretary Deng finally caught up with the soldier, panting as he waved his hand, signaling the soldier to put down his gun. The passage was too narrow, and if a gunfight broke out, it might hurt innocent civilians and also provoke the crazed Xiao Li.
"Oh, Secretary Deng, you're really hard to kill," Xiao Li said flippantly.
“Xiao Li, you’re useless with a little kid. Don’t you want to live? My official position is decent. Kidnapping me would be more beneficial for you.” Secretary Deng spoke quickly, afraid of angering Xiao Li.
"No need, I like kids." Xiao Li grinned, a smile that sent chills down your spine. "Quickly prepare a gas mask for me, and those gold bars too."
"How many gold bars do you want?" Secretary Deng asked, trying to get information out of him.
“I want them all. You should know how many there are in total. The sound of the gold bars falling to the ground in the cave is quite pleasant.” Little Li raised his eyebrows, seemingly savoring something.
My heart skipped a beat. This kid had been acting since he was in the cave. It wasn't that he didn't recognize Zero; in fact, there was a high probability that he did. He was deliberately playing dumb to gain sympathy and then kill him.
"I can't make that decision. Old Zhang is still in critical condition. A normal person wouldn't be injured that badly. It's a pity... such bad luck," Secretary Deng said with a hint of regret.
Xiao Li's gaze finally changed, not with guilt, but with a sense of pride: "Old Zhang's frail body is riddled with ailments, and living is a painful experience."
"So you think you've freed him, but what about that little devil?" Secretary Deng asked, staring into Xiao Li's eyes. A life as bright as the rising sun should have had a vast world to grow in.
"Who told that brat to see what he shouldn't have? If he hadn't gone in, it would have been fine. And he even dared to steal my gold bars." Xiao Li's tone was a bit resentful, as if he were talking about how the white porridge for breakfast was too thin and had to be thrown away.
Secretary Deng gripped the handrail tightly, suppressing his surging anger: "In your heart, who deserves to live?"
"Of course it's the strong. The law of this society is the survival of the fittest, the big fish eat the small fish. It's the nature of living things. I've seen through it all. Only by adapting to the bloody way of survival can one live a life of luxury in this world." Little Li curled his lip in disdain.
Secretary Deng frowned slightly, then smiled with relief: "Since that's the case, do you want to know why you were arrested before?"
“Isn’t it obvious? There are more of you,” Xiao Li retorted without any politeness.
"Does having more people mean strength? Does having fewer people mean weakness?" Secretary Deng said casually. "Then the Nationalist government's 300,000 troops should have been able to advance unimpeded against our 60,000 troops. How come we suffered three defeats in three battles?"
Xiao Li retorted, sticking his neck out: "I don't understand military affairs, so stop using analogies I don't understand. All I see is you all turning into cowards when facing real airplanes and cannons. Your so-called Soviets and proletariat are just the fantasies of the weak. You either fight your way to the top and enjoy supreme power, or you get trampled underfoot and become dirty stepping stones. Awe-inspiring power is absolute strength."
Secretary Deng stood up with a cold laugh, looked down into his eyes, and said, word by word, "Only humans can talk about success and failure. Animals that only know how to tear each other apart are not worthy."
Xiao Li's pupils suddenly contracted, and he shouted angrily, "Who are you cursing?"
"Don't be so quick to admit it, haha, the law of the jungle, and nature itself. You learned a few half-baked new words from the reactionaries, and you can't wait to use them as your ideological imprint?" Secretary Deng suppressed the urge to burst out laughing and said seriously, "Borrowing is not advisable, you still need to learn more."
"What are you pretending to be so high and mighty for? If you don't rob, will the landlords and rich people hand over their land and jewels voluntarily? If you don't rob, will they offer you beautiful women willingly? If you don't rob, will all these Soviet base areas just fall from the sky?" Xiao Li became more and more agitated as he spoke, and bloodshot veins appeared on the whites of his eyes. "The resources of the whole society are limited. If you don't rob, plenty of others will."
"Hopeless," Secretary Deng narrowed his eyes, a murderous glint flashing in them: "Social resources are created by people. There are resources only when there are people. You haven't listened to a single word of your usual Marxist-Leninist political education classes. Instead of thinking about widening the single-plank bridge across the river so that everyone can cross, you're thinking about squeezing everyone off the bridge. As a so-called superior person, your mind is still stuck in the Qing Dynasty."
"Pah! You guys can't see reality. If you're going to be bandits, just be bandits. What's with all this talk of the Eight Disciplines and the Three Points for Attention? You can't rob money, grain, or women? Who the hell would be a soldier like that? It's not human. You'll lose sooner or later." Little Li didn't shy away from revealing the darkness in his heart.
"Humanity? Don't pretend you have what you don't, or you'll be charged with fraud. If the instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm is the instinct of all living beings, then humanity is sacrificing oneself for righteousness, dying for one's country, and it is our millions of Party members and patriots fighting on the front line of the revolution."
"They don't care about houses, officials, or cars; they care about whether their own flesh can break through the dark clouds that cover the sky, whether their own blood can wash away the humiliation of this land, and in the darkness, to strive for a new world where the sun shines brightly for all living beings."
"Especially the women you look down on, they are also masters of the country. The proportion of female party members is no less than that of male party members. They also shed blood and sacrificed their lives." Secretary Deng passionately attracted Xiao Li's attention, and gestured to the soldiers behind him with his hands behind his back. A small mouse's shadow was projected onto the wall.
Xiao Li sneered, "Hmph, there is no equality in this world. You can talk big now that you are at a disadvantage. But if one day you occupy most of China—no, that's unlikely. Take you, Secretary Deng, for example. If you were to get lucky and become the chairman of the entire Soviet, once you've tasted the power, you probably wouldn't give up that position until you die."
"Your hypothesis is interesting, but our Party has too many talented people, it's not my turn as a mediocre person." Secretary Deng continued, "Although revolution is a lifelong endeavor, when you get old, you should retire and rest properly. Revolutionaries are also human beings, not machines. After retiring, you can still summarize revolutionary experiences for the younger generation. If you force yourself to keep your mind working when it can't work, you're letting your body down and the people down even more."
Xiao Li sarcastically said, "You're so high and mighty, but you can never satisfy the desires of those inherently lowly and unruly people."
"Before calling others despicable, take a piss and look at yourself. If there were no workers or farmers, what would you eat and wear? If you're not satisfied, you can strip naked and weave your own clothes," Secretary Deng retorted coldly.
Xiao Li looked around at the people around him: "Heh, they were all exploited voluntarily before. The landlords and capitalists provided them with a job so they wouldn't starve to death."
"Exploitation is exploitation. There is no such thing as voluntary. If you insist on believing in survival of the fittest, who defines 'fittest'? You, or just any exploiting class?" Secretary Deng retorted. "They define unreasonable rules to justify their plundering behavior and then force others to abide by them. Don't blame us, the vast proletariat, for overturning the table."
Unable to keep up, Xiao Li quickly changed the subject: "Haven't you seen their true colors yet? They're only willing to follow your party now because they'll get land and official positions. To put it bluntly, there are benefits. If you do anything that displeases them even slightly, they'll curse you, insult you, and turn on you faster than flipping through a book."
"We don't expect the masses to fully understand. Once everyone has enough to eat, they want to live in big houses, and once they have big houses, they want cars. This actually shows that our society has progressed and everyone has become wealthy. So our current task is to provide the people with a peaceful and prosperous environment free from war and famine. A good political environment can build an economic foundation, and a good economic environment can in turn promote a more stable political environment."
"A responsible party should try its best to avoid making mistakes, but it is impossible not to make mistakes. If mistakes are made, the people should criticize them, the louder the better. After the people have finished criticizing, we should try our best to make amends and correct them. If we are not capable of correcting them, then let new revolutionaries come and revolutionize us." Secretary Deng's eyes were firm, and Xiao Li could not get a word in edgewise.
"No, you can't just sit and die! You absolutely can't!" Little Li roared hysterically.
“If our comrades who would rather die than surrender in prison can do it, and if our comrades who fought bloody battles on the front lines can do it, then what can’t I do if I stay safely in the rear area that they risked their lives for!” Secretary Deng felt a surge of passion boiling in his chest.
Speechless for a moment, Xiao Li glared fiercely at Secretary Deng: "Enough with the nonsense, give me what I want right now."
"Get him a gas mask and some gold bars." Secretary Deng ordered the soldier beside him. Seeing the soldier's confusion, he quickly gave him a wink, "They're with Minister He."
The soldier nodded, pushed through the crowd, and quickly retrieved a heavy little box and a gas mask. The villagers watching whispered among themselves, but the child's mother wept uncontrollably.
"Secretary Deng, could you please lead the way?" Xiao Li said politely, but the gun was pointed at the baby. "Take me to the exit first, then we can make a deal."
Suddenly, Xiao Li stopped in his tracks: "Wait a minute, open the box and let me count how many gold bars are in it."
A chill ran down his spine, but Secretary Deng steadied himself: "There are too many people around here, so don't blame me if someone steals a stick or two."
"Open." Xiao Li poked the baby with the gun. The child's voice became hoarse from crying, and it let out a low whimper. Secretary Deng couldn't help but frown. He had to make a decision.
With a determined look in his heart, Secretary Deng slowly lifted the lid of the box. A bright yellow color shone through the gap, and Xiao Li immediately called out to stop. He glanced outside warily, then turned to Secretary Deng and asked him to lead the way quickly.
"Okay. Come this way, slowly." Secretary Deng slowly backed away, guiding the way while carrying the box. Suddenly, he twisted his ankle, and the box flew into the air.
"Mine!" Little Li lunged at the falling box, but Secretary Deng caught the swaddled baby with lightning speed and covered the baby's ears.
Bang! Bang!
One bullet pierced Xiao Li's temple, and another pierced his chest. Xiao Li fell to the ground with his eyes wide open, the box slipping from his hand, and round pebbles rolled all over the ground. Inside the box was a piece of polished pyrite.
Secretary Deng lay on the ground, his eyes already brimming with tears, letting his mother rush over and take away the crying child.
He was overwhelmed by guilt. The murderer was dead, and Zero was no longer going to cooperate. He would never know what Little Red Ghost had gone through before he died. This would become an unsolved mystery.
He could actually lure Xiao Li outside, have him wear the tattered mask, and if Xiao Li were poisoned, they could save the child, and Xiao Li wouldn't have to die. However, this might also poison the child, and he couldn't bring himself to use a living child as a tool to capture the enemy.
"Secretary Deng, are you alright?" The soldier helped him up and patted the dust off his clothes.
Wiping away the tears from the corners of his eyes, Secretary Deng forced a smile, pointed to several fist-sized holes that had appeared in the wall, and demanded that the two sharpshooters be commended. This tactic was commonly used in street fighting—cutting a hole in the wall to fire sniper shots; they generally called it "a rat digging a hole."
"Alright, once you've disposed of the body, have them report to you in a bit," the soldier said.
"Yes, I'll wait for them to arrive in the interrogation room just now." Secretary Deng pinched his nose, turned and left, afraid that if he stayed any longer, tears would burst out.
Before even approaching the interrogation room, he saw two guards standing at the door. Secretary Deng didn't recognize them and they probably weren't part of the Ruijin City defense force.
Had another leader requisitioned this room? Secretary Deng walked over with this question in mind, quickly glancing around. He saw three soldiers in white coats and white gloves searching for something on the ground.
"Secretary Deng."
Hearing someone call his name, Secretary Deng looked in the direction of the voice and saw a tall, square-faced comrade saluting him: "Secretary Deng, hello, I am Cai Shaokang, you can just call me Cai Tou."
"Oh. You must be Comrade Cai, the captain of the second investigation team. It's a pleasure to meet you." Secretary Deng extended his hand happily.
Cai Tou smiled and shook hands: "Feng Nian's injuries this time are not good, and he may be sent to Shanghai for treatment. Comrade Wu Hao asked me to take over the investigation team. So I started to investigate, and combined with the confiscated telegrams, I can confirm that the little Li you just killed was the spy Poison Scorpion."
"Huh?" Secretary Deng was so surprised he couldn't speak. It seems that professional matters should be handled by professionals. They've already found a clue in such a short time.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com