In the interrogation room, Ning Zhiheng had his first conversation with Moriki Keio, who was tied to a wooden stake.
He recalled the unusual behavior of Moriki Keio during the arrest earlier that day, so he asked first, "Have you seen me before today?"
Moriki Keisei glanced at Ning Zhiheng, but didn't speak. He simply shook his head slightly. He already knew his future was bleak after being suddenly attacked, captured, and brought here. However, he was determined to remain silent and refuse to admit anything.
Moriki Keio said calmly, "No, we've never met before!"
Ning Zhiheng pressed on, "Then why did you recognize me the moment I showed my face when we were arresting you? Don't deny it, you definitely recognized me!"
Moriki Kei raised his head slightly and looked at Ning Zhiheng's face. He was secretly shocked. His reaction was only momentary, but it had not escaped the other person's eyes. This person's observation ability was so keen.
But he still insisted, "You're overthinking it. I really don't know you. I'm just a monk who eats vegetarian food and chants Buddhist prayers. I have absolutely no connection with people like you!"
Ning Zhiheng seemed oblivious to his cold attitude, and with a slight smile, he said, "Alright, then let me introduce myself. I am Ning Zhiheng, the director of the Second Action Division of the Military Intelligence Bureau."
After he finished speaking, he looked at Moriki Keio. Clearly, the other party was not surprised at all. They looked at each other silently, their lips tightly closed, and they still did not intend to say anything.
"it's a pity!"
Ning Zhiheng knew that further words were pointless. He let out a cold laugh, his eyes flashing with icy coldness, and said, "Master Huiyuan, no, no, it should be Mr. Mori Mukei, Mr. Mori Mukei, it seems that it will be difficult for us to be frank with each other. So let's not waste any more words. Believe me, it won't be long before you honestly tell me everything you know."
As soon as Ning Zhiheng spoke, Senmu Huisheng's gaze tightened, and he was shocked. It was unbelievable that the other party had even known his true identity.
Despite the recent severe damage to the intelligence network, forcing intelligence work to come to a standstill and enter a state of dormancy, his covert identity was known to no one in Chongqing except the Wuhan headquarters. He had always believed that his infiltration work was very successful, but he was unaware that someone had come knocking on his door.
He still didn't know where the problem lay. Could it be that the other party obtained information about him from the Wuhan headquarters? Otherwise, how could this be explained?
However, he absolutely could not speak, otherwise the Chongqing intelligence network would suffer a major loss, which would be adding insult to injury to the current situation, and the situation would collapse beyond repair.
The subsequent interrogation did not go smoothly. Moriki Keio clearly had no intention of giving in easily. Even though he was beaten and covered in bruises, he did not utter a single word. In fact, during the interrogation, he repeatedly tried to bite his tongue and mutilate himself.
Fortunately, Ning Zhiheng took good precautions. He personally stayed by his side, constantly observing Moriki Keisei's actions, and intervened in time to stop Moriki Keisei's self-harming behavior on several occasions.
He was subjected to a variety of tortures, including being placed in an electric chair and nearly electrocuted to death. After enduring six hours of extremely cruel torture, Moriki Keio finally succumbed to the endless torment and spoke as he lay dying.
Ning Zhiheng also felt relieved. Such a long interrogation was also a duel and a contest for him, but he had almost never lost such a contest.
It turns out that Senmu Huisheng sneaked into Chongqing at the end of October last year and stayed at Pujue Temple with an assistant as refugee monks. Later, due to Senmu Huisheng's hard work, the abbot of Pujue Temple felt that this monk Huiyuan was eloquent, knowledgeable, and capable, so he simply kept the two of them. Soon Huiyuan became the guest monk of Pujue Temple.
In the days that followed, the number of intelligence members under Moriki Keio's command increased, and he gradually became an important figure in the Chongqing intelligence network. To date, he has as many as five intelligence groups with thirty-one members, mainly concentrated in western and central Chongqing, representing all levels of society.
Most importantly, the most valuable intelligence group was the Mountain Magpie Group, which was specifically responsible for infiltrating the Military Intelligence Bureau. Apart from the group leader, the four members of this group were all members of the Military Intelligence Bureau, with varying ranks. One of them was a quartermaster in the Equipment Department, who was actually a member of the Baoding faction within the Military Intelligence Bureau.
According to Moriki Keio's confession, these four members were Japanese spies who infiltrated the Military Intelligence Bureau through various channels after its expansion. Two of them were former Military Intelligence Bureau personnel who were later recruited, but their current status is not high and they cannot obtain top-secret intelligence for the time being. Even so, taking this list back would be enough to shock the two bureau chiefs.
After Ning Zhiheng finished recording the list, he couldn't help but feel secretly delighted. He had uncovered so many spies, and with the previous twenty-six, his gains this time were enormous. If nothing unexpected happened, it would be another earth-shattering victory.
Holding up the list, he asked again, "Mr. Moriki, don't you have anything to explain to me about this 'Mountain Magpie Group'?"
Ning Zhiheng's words surprised Senmu Huisheng. His lips moved, but he didn't speak.
Ning Zhiheng then asked, "The Sparrow Group must have collected a lot of information about me before, and even had my photos, otherwise you wouldn't have recognized me at a glance, am I right?"
Moriki Keio nodded weakly and replied, "You do indeed have a lot of information. You're right. A few months ago, the Wuhan headquarters asked all intelligence organizations to work hard to collect information on the important leaders of the Military Intelligence Bureau. My intelligence team collected some information about you, including several photos, which were collected from newspapers. I later sent them to headquarters, so I am not unfamiliar with you. As soon as I saw you today, I knew something was wrong, but before I could react, you made your move."
Ning Zhiheng was taken aback after hearing this, and a sense of tension immediately rose in his heart. He wanted to ask about the details of this assassination attempt, but he did not expect that the Japanese had already investigated him. Since it was collected several months ago, it must be the video material left by Tan Jinhui. He wondered what kind of impact this material would have on him if it were sent to Wuhan.
However, he immediately felt relieved. A few months ago, he was in Shanghai and had been frequently appearing in public, a fact that relevant people in Shanghai could attest to.
The more this is the case, the more it proves that the head of the Military Intelligence Bureau's Operations Department in Chongqing and the president of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai have absolutely no connection, and I don't need to worry about that.
However, barring any unforeseen circumstances, Gao Qishige, the head of the intelligence network at the Wuhan headquarters, knew that Ning Zhiheng and Fujiwara Tomohito looked alike. Yet, when they met, he remained completely discreet, presumably after conducting some investigation, and ultimately abandoned the idea.
I wonder if Uehara Junpei, as the head of intelligence, also knew about this? But in the end, no one mentioned it, probably because they managed to cover it up for the time being. It seems I need to be more careful about this matter in the future and not let any flaws show.
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