Keiji Tsuchihara nodded in agreement, “Then let’s arrange it here. I spoke with Mr. Fujiwara today, and he said that a new Republic of China government must be established within three months at the latest. We need to act quickly; time waits for no one.”
“Mr. Fujiwara?” Sagawa Taro was taken aback when he heard this. He knew that Japan had sent a special envoy for this negotiation, but he didn’t know exactly who it was.
Keiji Tsuchihara laughed. Actually, there was no need to hide this from Taro Sagawa, since many things that were to come would require the cooperation of Taro Sagawa's Shanghai Special Higher Police.
"This time, the special envoy for negotiations is not only a member of the cabinet, but also Mr. Fujiwara Hirofumi, a member of the House of Peers, who was personally appointed by His Majesty the Emperor to come to Shanghai to supervise the negotiations. Now that the new cabinet has just been formed, His Majesty the Emperor is worried!"
At this point, Tsuchihara Keiji suddenly remembered the young man he had met earlier that day, and asked again, "Today I met a young man named Fujiwara Tomohito at Mr. Fujiwara's place. He is a handsome and outstanding man. He is not only Uehara Junpei's adopted nephew, but he also seems quite close to Mr. Fujiwara Hirofumi. Do you know this man?"
Upon hearing this, Sagawa Taro nodded quickly and introduced, "I am indeed quite familiar with this Fujiwara-kun you mentioned. He is said to be a collateral descendant of the Fujiwara family. About two years ago, shortly after I became the head of the Shanghai Special Higher Police Section, I met him in General Uehara Junpei's office. The general was quite close to him. I never imagined that they were uncle and nephew. Later, he opened the Fujiwara Company in Shanghai, and his business has grown very large in the past two years. He is a leader in the Shanghai business world and has a very harmonious relationship with all parties. He is a very shrewd and capable person. Now it seems that he has gained the appreciation of Congressman Fujiwara. It is probably not just because he is a collateral descendant!"
Keiji Tsuchihara glanced at Taro Sagawa and said in a deep voice, "It seems you also have a good impression of him. Does the 'various aspects' you mentioned include yourself?"
Sagawa Taro paused for a moment before nodding and saying, "Of course, Fujiwara-kun also has a very good relationship with our Special Higher Police. He only focuses on business and never gets involved in politics. He likes to indulge in refined pursuits and his favorite place is the Mulan Academy, where he engages in lively discussions with literary figures. He is quite famous in Shanghai's literary circles. Now he has doubled the size of the Mulan Academy, and it is decorated very lavishly. It is one of the most upscale buildings in our expatriate district."
"Oh! So young, yet he's a figure like Lord Mengchang! Impressive!" Tsuchihara Keiji remarked casually.
Keiji Tsuchihara was an extremely experienced veteran spy. He had a deep impression of Ning Zhiheng and was subconsciously curious about him, which is why he wanted to find out more from Taro Sagawa. However, he was obviously somewhat disappointed.
Taro Sagawa pretended not to understand the meaning behind Keiji Tsuchihara's words. He had a close relationship with the Fujiwara Company and had many business dealings with them, so he naturally had to say a few nice words for Chairman Fujiwara.
The next morning, at the headquarters of the Military Intelligence Bureau in Chongqing, Wei Liangbi walked briskly through the office building and was greeted by Bian Ze, the head of the First Intelligence Division, and Gu Zhengqi, the head of the Second Intelligence Division.
"Director Wei, you've arrived quite quickly!" Bian Ze greeted him with a smile.
Today is the weekly routine meeting. For the past few months, the participants from Operations Division Two have all been Deputy Director Wei Liangbi, while Director Ning Zhiheng has never attended. Everyone was a little surprised at first, but over time, they have gradually gotten used to it.
"Director Bian, Director Gu!"
Wei Liangbi nodded in acknowledgment. He walked without stopping behind the two section chiefs and soon arrived at the conference room.
At this time, several heads of key departments were already seated in the conference room. Everyone took their seats and, seeing that the two bureau chiefs had not yet arrived, they began to chat amongst themselves.
"Director Wei, what intelligence reports does your Second Operations Division have today? Give us some face!" Tian Jin, the director of the Telecommunications Division, said jokingly to Wei Liangbi.
Since its establishment more than half a year ago, the Shanghai Intelligence Section of the Second Action Division of the Military Intelligence Bureau has undertaken most of the intelligence tasks of the Bureau. The sources of intelligence discussed at every regular meeting are almost always from the Second Action Division. This has become a joke within the Bureau, with everyone saying that the Action Division of the Military Intelligence Bureau is actually better at intelligence gathering!
These words, of course, left the officers of the Intelligence Department and the Telecommunications Department speechless with bitterness. These two departments were now considered major departments, but they were suppressed by the Action Department and could not stand up for themselves. So every time they held a meeting, they would say a few barbed words. Of course, they dared not say anything to Zhao Ziliang, but Wei Liangbi was the youngest and the deputy, so he often made conversation and grumbled a few words.
Wei Liangbi was aware of the situation, but he didn't have Ning Zhiheng's achievements and infamous reputation, nor could he afford to turn against someone over a joke. He would just laugh it off each time.
Wei Liangbi smiled slightly and said calmly, "Director Tian is joking. Everyone knows that your Telecommunications Department is not what it used to be. You've upgraded from a ragtag bunch to a powerful force. You take up most of the Military Intelligence Bureau's budget. From now on, we brothers will all be relying on you, Director Tian, for our livelihood!"
Upon hearing this, the other section chiefs' eyes reddened. The Telecommunications Department had invested heavily, consuming everyone's resources and funds, but the results were not obvious, and everyone was very dissatisfied. Hearing Wei Liangbi's words, Zhao Ziliang spoke first: "Director Tian, your equipment is too expensive. You've taken up a lot of this month's budget again. Our brothers in the Action Department are risking their lives on the front lines, and they can't even get their full salaries. You've taken the money, so you should get things done. Why haven't we heard of any progress yet? Are the Japanese codes really that hard to crack?"
"Exactly! Even if you threw so much money into the water, it would still make a splash. But how come you, the telecommunications company, haven't given us an explanation yet? You can't possibly withhold our funds next month, can you?"
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
