The Gao Tao incident had a huge impact, shocking both China and the world. As a result, the tripartite talks were forced to be temporarily suspended. Wang Tianhai and several core members discussed the matter behind closed doors for a long time, and then invited Yingzuo Yuki to come and discuss countermeasures.
Because these secret agreements were secret transactions between the Central China side and the puppet government, the puppet government, in order to gain the full support of the Japanese Central China Area Army, even promised to give all the benefits within the jurisdiction of the soon-to-be-reorganized Nanjing National Government to the Central China Area Army. This inadvertently damaged the interests of the Japanese North China Area Army.
The revelation of these secret agreements also led to the complete exposure of the puppet government's true intentions during the talks, putting them in an extremely unfavorable position. As a result, everyone held an emergency meeting to try to come up with a solution.
Meanwhile, at the headquarters of the Military Intelligence Bureau in Chongqing, the director was listening to Bian Ze's report.
"Director, this is a telegram that just arrived from Hong Kong. Gao and Tao's move this time has hit the Japanese and the puppet government right where it hurts. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Information are urging major newspapers to reprint it. This is a big move!"
Upon hearing Bian Ze's report, the Director burst into laughter, overjoyed. This Gao Tao incident was naturally one of his proudest achievements. The timing was deliberately chosen today, specifically to target the tripartite talks with the puppet government and deliver a blow to these traitors and sellouts. Now it seems the effect is excellent.
The bureau chief waved the telegram in the air and said, "This operation is of utmost importance. The situation has just stabilized after the Battle of Changsha, but those pro-peace factions in our government have resurfaced, inciting people and bewitching them. They are simply absurd."
Now they know, don't they? What a load of bull! This peace movement was nothing but blatant treason. Negotiating with the Japanese was like asking a tiger for its skin. They sold everything to them; what difference is there between that and national subjugation?
Now, we have entered the third year of the full-scale War of Resistance against Japan. The protracted war and the helplessness of being confined to a corner of the country have caused some high-ranking officials in the Nationalist government to lose confidence in recovering the lost territories. These people are repeating the old tune, trying to resolve the war through negotiations. However, the Gao Tao incident is enough to shut them up. No one dares to bear the infamy of selling out national interests and kneeling down to Japan for peace.
Bian Ze nodded and said, "These people have all lost their minds. In the end, national interests are nothing but business to them. They've abandoned all principles!"
"Alright, let's not talk about these people anymore!"
The mention of these people makes the Director feel somewhat annoyed. Among them are many powerful figures with high positions of authority, whom even the Chairman of the Central Committee is unwilling to deal with, otherwise the Director would have taken action against them long ago.
The bureau chief continued, "By the way, there's still work to be done with Yue Sheng. Arrange for him to receive another sum of money immediately, ask him to be more understanding, and put in more effort. I'm doing this for the greater good!"
It turns out that Gao and Tao's publication of the article, exposing the secret agreement and revealing the ugly face of the puppet government, was a great thing. However, Yue Sheng, who was in charge of taking care of Gao and Tao, had some concerns. His assistant, Wan Mulin, was still imprisoned in the No. 76 prison. He was afraid that Gao and Tao's exposure of the secret agreement would anger the puppet government and the Japanese, which would ultimately be detrimental to Wan Mulin. Therefore, he kept persuading the director to postpone the operation and wait until Wan Mulin was rescued before publishing the truth in the newspaper.
But how could the Director give up such a great opportunity for the sake of a small Wanmulin? So he repeatedly persuaded Yue Sheng that national righteousness was the priority. Yue Sheng had no choice but to agree. Thus, the rescue of Wanmulin was once again put on the agenda.
Bian Ze nodded in acceptance and replied, "Yes, I'll arrange it right away! However, rescuing Wan Mulin will indeed be difficult. Li Zhiqun is afraid of being implicated, and he will absolutely not release him unless the Japanese side speaks up!"
In truth, the director didn't hold out much hope of rescuing Wan Mulin. He was only doing his best for Yue Sheng's sake. He waved his hand and said, "We'll do our best. If it really doesn't work, there's nothing we can do. I'll explain to Yue Sheng later."
Bian Ze thought for a moment, carefully considered his words, and asked in a low voice, "Do you think we could ask the Shanghai intelligence department to think of a way? They must have their own connections in Shanghai. If they can find a channel to communicate with the Japanese high command and bribe them, maybe there's still a chance!"
The bureau chief looked up at him, frowned and didn't speak. After a long while, he shook his head. He was unwilling to bow down to Huang Xianzheng and Ning Zhiheng again for Wan Mulin's sake.
The Director's handling of Gao and Tao's escape from Shanghai was unethical, which caused Ning Zhiheng to express his resentment in the telegram. Later, Huang Xianzheng also had a special talk with him, which made the Director very embarrassed. If he had to ask them to clean up his mess again, how could he bring himself to ask?
“The Shanghai Intelligence Section is different from other departments. Their important role is irreplaceable. Safety is the priority. It’s best not to use them. Wanmulin is not worth risking their lives.”
The director rejected Bian Ze's suggestion again, and then instructed: "By the way, you should pay attention to the telegrams sent from Qingdao. A few days ago, Luo Yuze sent a telegram saying that the operation was progressing smoothly. I think they will make their move in the next day or two. If they can achieve something, that would be the icing on the cake."
In response to this tripartite meeting, the Director (Zhang Zhaozhong) pulled out all the stops, employing both diplomatic and military tactics, determined to deliver a heavy blow to Japan and its puppet government.
The situation in Hong Kong is relatively straightforward, involving only the publication of articles. However, the operation in Qingdao is much more difficult, as it has been planned for a long time and is now time to reap the rewards.
Bian Ze said with a smile, "Luo Yuze is Director Zhao's favorite and one of the best at operations. Fu Shengyuan is also a very experienced veteran. The two of them will not let you down!"
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