Huang Xianzheng hadn't expected Ning Zhiheng to be so meticulous in his work. He quickly asked, "You know so much about him, has he noticed?"
Ning Zhiheng answered affirmatively, "No, I did this just in case. After all, one can never be too careful!"
Huang Xianzheng slapped the armrest of the chair and said slowly, "Well done. To a certain extent, Wang Hanmin is also your opponent. So how much does Wang Hanmin know about your intelligence station?"
Ning Zhiheng said, "Don't worry, Chief. I've always been wary of him and haven't made any contact with them. Shanghai is now full of Japanese agents and informants. If Wang Hanmin makes a mistake, it's hard to say that it won't implicate me!"
Huang Xianzheng stood up, stretched, and walked around the room a few steps before saying, "No matter what, the Director won't give up. Even if Wang Hanmin stumbles, he'll send someone else to take over. Zhiheng, what are your plans?"
Ning Zhiheng had already made preparations. He quickly said, "I think it's best to maintain the status quo at the Shanghai station. I don't intend to compete with Wang Hanmin for the station chief position. That's just an empty title. The real strength is the strength of the subordinates. The personnel, industries, intelligence market relationships, and smuggling channels I've established in Shanghai are what we need to value most. We must not give these up."
Huang Xianzheng could see that this was Ning Zhiheng's true bottom line, but he was thinking about more. This promotion of the Military Intelligence Investigation Department was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and he had to make the most of it, or he would regret it later!
“But this time, the Chief is willing to offer the position of the head of the Action Section. He specifically named you as the only candidate. You know the current status of the Action Section in our Military Intelligence Bureau. This is an opportunity for our Baoding faction. It would be a pity to give it up like this,” Huang Xianzheng said regretfully.
Ning Zhiheng sat in his chair, looked up at Huang Xianzheng pacing back and forth, and said with a smile, "Actually, you're overthinking it!"
Huang Xianzheng paused, looked at Ning Zhiheng, and asked, "What do you think?"
Ning Zhiheng said calmly, "We will definitely get a share of this promotion, and the sergeant must acquiesce to that. Why? Because our Baoding faction wields immense power in the military. Without our support, how can he interfere in military affairs? How can he oversee military intelligence, corruption, and fraud? It was precisely because he refused to cooperate with us that so many incidents of resistance against law enforcement occurred in the military at the beginning of this year, spiraling out of control. Only the principal intervened to quell the situation. This time, let's talk to him. If he gives us an action department, we can control the military's disciplinary oversight and supervision..." Intelligence work will be carried out by this Operations Division. After all, it's much more convenient for us to do these things than for him. This will also save him from conflicts with the military bigwigs. We can even let his people fill the commanding positions. Of course, the core members of this Operations Division must all be our people. We only need real power. In this way, both the Shanghai station and the Operations Division will be commanded by his people. On the surface, he has gained a huge advantage. As for us, we have maintained our current situation in Shanghai, especially the smuggling channel, which remains intact. In the Operations Division, we retain real power. Isn't this a win-win situation?
Huang Xianzheng glared at Ning Zhiheng, then laughed and scolded, "Do you really think the Chief is a fool? We're all sensible people. Who cares about that empty title? You've taken away his power, yet you still cling to your own treasure trove. There's no such thing as a free lunch!"
"What if I share some treasures with him from the cornucopia?"
Upon hearing this, Huang Xianzheng hesitated for a moment and said, "Should we make things clear?"
Ning Zhiheng bluntly stated, "The Director is greedy for power and money. We can add another bargaining chip. Here's what I'm thinking: We have a million dollars in profits from smuggling, and we estimate that about seven hundred thousand dollars will be invested in the intelligence network. Of the remaining three hundred thousand, I'm willing to give you two hundred thousand and the Director one hundred thousand. What do you think of this distribution plan?"
Huang Xianzheng considered it carefully and shook his head, saying, "One hundred thousand US dollars is a lot, but given the director's character, I'm afraid it's still not enough to get him to relinquish power!"
Ning Zhiheng gritted his teeth and said fiercely, "Then it's two hundred thousand. That's the bottom line. As you know, in the Shanghai intelligence market, you can't collect important intelligence without real money. Just this time, I spent a full sixty thousand US dollars on intelligence regarding Li Jiangguan's defection case in Guangzhou. I can't reduce the budget of six hundred thousand US dollars a year any further!"
"Okay, that's the deal!" Huang Xianzheng nodded in agreement. "I'll talk to the director tomorrow. But, Zhiheng, can you come up with that much money?"
Ning Zhiheng understood Huang Xianzheng's meaning. Empty promises and real money are two completely different things. Huang Xianzheng wanted Ning Zhiheng to take out the money now so that he could go and negotiate with the director.
Ning Zhiheng quickly took out a wooden box from his pocket, gently opened it, took out several drafts, and handed them to Huang Xianzheng with both hands, saying respectfully, "These are drafts from Citibank in the United States, each worth $100,000, which can be cashed immediately at the branch in Hankou."
Huang Xianzheng reached out and took it, only to find that Ning Zhiheng had already handed over his copy as well. Looking at the few thin pieces of paper in his hand, Huang Xianzheng felt an unusual heaviness. He couldn't help but take a deep breath and said with a smile, "It seems you were prepared all along. Who would have thought that in such a short time, you would so easily spend hundreds of thousands of dollars? Everyone else is scrambling to get promoted, but you're spending money to push your position away. Who would believe that!"
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