Ning Zhiheng gestured to the waiter and ordered a pot of Longjing tea. After the tea was brewed, he said to Luo Gaoyi, "Mr. Luo, it seems you've remembered something. Please don't hesitate, I'm all ears!"
"Okay, okay." Luo Gaoyi looked at Ning Zhiheng and said somewhat nervously, "Mr. Ning, I thought about it for a long time last night and recalled everything related to Ji Yongyan. There's one thing I overlooked, I wonder if it will be of any use to you?"
"you say!"
"Ji Yongyan and his landlady, Cheng Liugu, had an ambiguous relationship."
Ning Zhiheng quickly pressed on, "Are they related? Are you sure?"
Luo Gaoyi nodded heavily and confirmed, "It's at least not a normal landlord-tenant relationship. None of the other tenants know about this, only I do. Aunt Cheng once came to the school to see Ji Yongyan. She was dressed very beautifully. I've never seen Aunt Cheng in a long dress before. She was very striking. The two of them were whispering sweet nothings to each other in the office for quite a while. Later, when I was having tea and chatting with Ji Yongyan, I even teased him about it. Ji Yongyan just smiled. He neither admitted nor denied it. There must be something between them."
Ning Zhiheng nodded upon hearing this. He knew about Cheng Liugu's situation, after all, she was Ji Yongyan's landlady. Chen Yanqing had conducted some investigations on the people around Ji Yongyan, including Cheng Liugu.
Cheng Liugu was a widow. Her husband was originally an officer in the Sichuan Army. He later left Sichuan to fight against the Japanese and died in Shanghai. Cheng Liugu lived off the rent from her several properties and had no worries about her life. She never expected that she would have an ambiguous relationship with Ji Yongyan.
It makes sense. Ji Yongyan is a single man, a schoolteacher, refined and cultured, and he's not short of money. For a widow like Cheng Liugu, he's a really good match. It's not surprising that the two of them got together.
Ning Zhiheng asked, "After Ji Yongyan disappeared, has Aunt Cheng changed in any way?"
If Cheng Liugu knew about Ji Yongyan's disappearance beforehand, she wouldn't have reacted so strongly. Conversely, if she didn't know, and her lover suddenly abandoned her and ran away without a trace, it would be emotionally unacceptable for most people, and they would likely act out of control.
"Emotionally, she didn't change much. She just complained a bit in front of the tenants, saying that it wasn't easy for a woman like her, and that she couldn't believe a schoolteacher would skip out on rent. It made me feel quite awkward, since I was the one who introduced the house to Ji Yongyan. Later, I offered to pay Ji Yongyan the rent she owed for that month, but she said it wasn't necessary. She said she didn't mean it and asked me not to mind. She was very polite, and that was the end of it!"
Just as I thought! Aunt Cheng was just going through the motions. It seems she knew about Ji Yongyan's departure beforehand, so she didn't show any extreme attitude and didn't even want Luo Gaoyi's compensation. Obviously, she was just putting on a show for everyone.
In other words, Ji Yongyan had given prior instructions to Cheng Liugu. Since the departure was premeditated, their relationship could not have been severed so easily; they must still have been in secret contact.
Ning Zhiheng felt reassured by this, knowing that as long as he followed Cheng Liugu's lead, he would surely find Ji Yongyan's hiding place.
However, Ning Zhiheng did not have time to track and monitor Cheng Liugu. If she did not contact Ji Yongyan, wouldn't he be wasting his time with her for nothing? And right now, time was what Ning Zhiheng lacked most.
The leak was just the beginning of this purge. There were hundreds of Japanese spies lurking in the Chongqing area, and Ning Zhiheng had to carry out a large-scale cleanup within three to four months. The work that followed would be very arduous, and he had no time to waste, so he inevitably had to be ruthless in his methods.
Without further ado, we must seize the opportunity to arrest Cheng Liugu today. She is a woman, and it will not be difficult to get her to talk. After that, things will be simple: capture Ji Yongyan, find evidence to confirm his identity as a Japanese spy, then arrest Song Anxian and get her to talk, thus solidifying Xia Bin's identity as an internal traitor. This leak case can then be successfully completed and brought to a perfect end.
After making up his mind, Ning Zhiheng smiled and said to Luo Gaoyi, "Thank you so much, Mr. Luo. You have done a great service this time, and I will definitely not treat you unfairly! Here's what we'll do: go back and act as usual, without making a fuss. Leave the rest to me. When Ji Yongyan is caught, I will definitely keep my promise and reward him handsomely!"
"Mr. Ning, you're too kind. To be honest, I wasn't entirely in it for the money. Catching Japanese spies is also a citizen's responsibility. I really didn't expect that someone I'd called a brother and spent so much time with would actually be a Japanese spy. It's terrifying to even think about it!"
Ning Zhiheng could tell that Luo Gaoyi was speaking from the heart, and he slowly said, "Yes, the Japanese have never given up their desire to destroy us. They are everywhere. All our citizens should unite and stand together against them. Come, let me offer tea instead of wine to Mr. Luo!"
Luo Gaoyi quickly raised his glass in invitation, and the two toasted each other with tea to express their gratitude!
Ning Zhiheng told Luo Gaoyi to leave first, and he immediately prepared an arrest plan, specifically transferring the action team leader Nie Tianming over.
Nie Tianming and Zhao Jiang were both his trusted subordinates left in the Second Operations Division, so he naturally took care of his men when there were benefits to be had.
Upon receiving Ning Zhiheng's order, Nie Tianming immediately led his men over at top speed. Ning Zhiheng gave him a detailed explanation of Cheng Liugu's situation and then carefully instructed him: "Tianming, this arrest mission is of paramount importance. The Jiangxi North leak case is currently the most important case, and even the Chairman is paying close attention to it. It involves many high-ranking officials of the Military Commission, and the case has been dragging on for a long time. Our Military Intelligence Bureau has been under great pressure. If we can arrest this Japanese spy today, the entire case can be successfully completed. This achievement will be of immense merit. You've been stuck at the rank of captain and unable to be promoted because you haven't made any significant contributions. This is an excellent opportunity, and you must seize it!"
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