After bidding farewell to Ning Zhiheng, Matsudaira Hidemi hurriedly left the Mulan Academy in downtown Shanghai and rushed back to the consulate. He went straight to the Consul General's office and immediately reported his findings to Consul General Iwai Ken'i.
When Iwai Takei heard that Matsudaira Hidemi was asking for leave to accompany Fujiwara Tomohito to Qingdao, Iwai Takei's eyes lit up and he immediately perked up. He looked at Matsudaira Hidemi and couldn't help but nod and smile, "Matsudaira-kun, it seems that you and Chairman Fujiwara have been getting along very well lately. He's even inviting you to come to Qingdao with him this time. This is a fantastic opportunity!"
Upon hearing this, Matsudaira Hidemi feigned ignorance and asked with some doubt, "Opportunity? Sir, you mean..."
Seeing Matsudaira Hidemi's expression, Iwai Kenichi assumed that Fujiwara Tomohito hadn't explained things clearly to Matsudaira Hidemi, so he smiled and invited Matsudaira Hidemi to sit down on the sofa next to him, and the two sat facing each other.
Next, Takei Iwai explained the tripartite meeting to Hidemi Matsudaira in detail, and finally said: "Given your rank, you shouldn't normally be involved in this matter, but things are different now. Chairman Fujiwara has invited you to Qingdao, which is a very good opportunity. You can make contact and observe in a private capacity, and report back to me in detail when you return."
It turns out that Iwai Takei, as the head of the intelligence department, also wanted to find out the specific details of the talks between the two sides. After all, this meeting had a very big impact, affecting all aspects. It would never hurt to find out more information!
However, the Iwai Mansion had limited power, and Iwai Kenichi himself was only the consul of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stationed in Shanghai, with limited authority. He could not extend his reach to Qingdao, so even though he knew about the tripartite talks, he could only helplessly give up the opportunity.
But now that Matsudaira Hidemi has gained Fujiwara Tomohito's trust, there is room for maneuver in this matter, and this opportunity must not be missed.
Matsudaira Hidemi then feigned sudden realization and said, "I see. Please rest assured, sir, I will observe closely and try my best to gather information, and I will report back to you in detail!"
After thinking it over carefully, Iwai Kenichi, knowing that Matsudaira Hidemi was shrewd and capable, continued, "It would be best to find out about their secret agreement. That would be the most valuable intelligence. I suggest you start with Chairman Fujiwara. As far as I know, he went to Qingdao at the invitation of Kagesa Hiroki, actually to support Kagesa Hiroki. He may have access to these high-level secrets. You have a good relationship with Chairman Fujiwara now, so you can give it a try."
"Yes, I understand!" Matsudaira Hidemi quickly nodded in agreement. In fact, what Iwai Kenichi said was exactly what he was thinking. Given his status, even if he went to Qingdao, it would be difficult for him to access high-level secrets. The only person he could rely on was Fujiwara Tomohito!
After discussing the matter, Matsudaira Hidemi took his leave and returned to his office to handle official business and actively prepare for his trip to Qingdao.
As evening approached, Matsudaira Hidemi tidied up the documents in his hand, declined the invitations from several colleagues, and left the newspaper office alone. He walked through several blocks into the southern part of the city, and made two counter-tracking maneuvers to make sure no one was behind him before turning into an alley.
As they walked to the entrance of an alley, they saw an old shoemaker in the first leather shop at the alley looking up and exchanging glances with Matsudaira Hidemi.
The old shoemaker nodded slightly, and Matsudaira Hidemi then entered the alleyway, walked quickly, and soon arrived at the door of an inconspicuous house. He knocked rhythmically on the door, then pushed it open and went inside.
This is Matsudaira Hideki's liaison point with the underground Communist Party, and the residence of his single-line contact, Yu Mingyuan.
Upon seeing Matsudaira Hidemi enter, Yu Mingyuan quickly came forward and asked in a low voice, "What happened?"
Because of Matsudaira Hidemi's special identity and his increasingly important position on the underground party's covert front, the person in charge, Lin Hanwen, has instructed Matsudaira Hidemi not to contact him easily unless it is crucial intelligence, in order to reduce the chance of exposure.
Matsudaira Hidemi nodded, took off his coat, hung it on the hanger, sat down in front of a chair, let out a soft breath, and said slowly, "We've made significant progress today; the situation of the tripartite meeting has been clarified!"
Upon hearing this, Yu Mingyuan quickly stepped forward and said with a smile, "That's great! You're quick on the uptake. Tell me the details."
"The meeting will be held in Qingdao in a week, on the 21st. I don't know the exact location yet, but that's not important. I'll go and see for myself then. Maybe I'll gain something significant!"
"Qingdao? That's a place controlled by the Japanese army in North China?" Yu Mingyuan was taken aback, then suddenly realized, "You're going too? What's going on? Did Iwai Kenichi ask you to go?"
Matsudaira Hidemi nodded and recounted the events of the day in detail. Finally, he said, "Fujiwara Tomohito has a powerful background and a special identity. With him covering for me, it will be much easier for me to go to Qingdao, and I will be able to accomplish things more efficiently!"
Yu Mingyuan was also very excited when he heard this. Although the underground party had received news about the tripartite meeting long ago, they had not been able to confirm the specific information. The headquarters also asked the Shanghai underground organization to investigate as much detailed intelligence as possible. Now there has finally been a breakthrough, especially with such a good opportunity. Matsudaira Hidemi may even have close contact with the highest-level secrets, which was something they had not expected before!
“Your choice of Fujiwara Tomohito as your breakthrough point was indeed a good move. He holds a very high position in various sectors of Japanese society and can easily access all kinds of classified information that we cannot obtain even at great cost. We should have thought of this earlier. This was an oversight on our part. You should try to have more contact with him in the future.”
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