Huo Yueze frowned and continued, "There's another situation. One of our team members almost got into trouble today."
"What went wrong?" Ning Zhiheng asked quickly.
Huo Yueze replied, "It was Liu Zhi. He wanted to get closer to observe, but he was stopped by a Japanese officer. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and pretended to be deaf and mute, which allowed him to get away with it. However, we dare not get any closer. The area is too heavily guarded, and we don't speak Japanese. Our behavior is also different from the Japanese, so it's easy to give ourselves away. Once we make a mistake, we won't be able to escape. Station Chief, I would like to ask Yi Hua'an and a few other team members who are fluent in Japanese to join our reconnaissance work."
Upon hearing this, Ning Zhiheng remained silent for a long time. This was indeed a problem. His team members knew nothing about Japanese, and they would easily expose their weaknesses if questioned.
Only he, Yi Hua'an, and the two translators he brought could speak Japanese at the entire intelligence station. However, all three of them had previously worked as Japanese translators and had never been on field missions, so accidents were bound to happen during the operation.
These three warehouses were located in the heart of the Japanese-occupied territory, surrounded by Japanese people, making reconnaissance impossible.
It seems that I have no choice but to go to the Japanese-occupied territory myself to conduct reconnaissance. After all, I am fluent in Japanese and have the status of a Japanese nobleman, Fujiwara no Tomohito, which would make it very convenient for me to move around in the Japanese-occupied territory.
Thinking of this, he said to Huo Yueze, "I will personally carry out the reconnaissance work, so you don't need to worry about it for now. What is the situation in the Japanese-occupied areas?"
Huo Yueze quickly replied, "The Jiangwan area in the east is their heartland and is still relatively well-preserved. Japanese expatriates have begun to return in large numbers, and you can hardly see any Chinese people there."
The Jiangbei area, especially the area north of Zhabei, suffered severe building damage. However, some residents have begun to return. These refugees had previously sought refuge in the foreign concessions or in southern Jiangsu to escape the war, and those areas are now gradually recovering.
Ning Zhiheng nodded, then turned to Ji Hongyi and asked, "How is it going with You Laoliu?"
During this period, some problems also arose with You Laoliu. Previously, Ning Zhiheng trusted You Laoliu quite a bit, and the two cooperated very well, with You Laoliu reaping great benefits.
However, after Yue Sheng fled Hong Kong, the Shanghai Green Gang was leaderless and the situation immediately descended into chaos. Several big shots were eager to take over the position of the top leader.
Previously, You Laoliu's backer was Yue Sheng, so these people naturally dared not make things difficult for him. Now that You Laoliu has lost his backer, these big shots are preparing to compete for power and need to integrate the Green Gang members and quickly absorb Yue Sheng's disciples and subordinates to strengthen their own power. Therefore, some people have their eyes on You Laoliu, who has emerged before, knowing that he has a large sum of money and are preparing to take action against him.
Hearing the news, You Laoliu was too scared to show his face. He was not weak, but he was no match for these big shots. So he did not hesitate and took his trusted subordinates back to his hometown in the countryside of Pudong to hide. You should know that his trusted subordinates were all his fellow villagers who he brought from Pudong to Shanghai. Pudong can be considered his stronghold, so his safety can be guaranteed.
Ji Hongyi quickly replied, "He's safe there for now, but Pudong is still the countryside. Lao Liu won't last long. Once the major gangs in Shanghai have settled their scores, he plans to come back and seek a new patronage. He'll eventually have to come back to make a living."
Ning Zhiheng nodded and said, "You still need to make some arrangements for yourself by You Laoliu's side. Hongyi, it's not that I'm being heartless, it's just that he knows our situation and is aware of many things. If he were to sell our existence to someone else one day, it would pose a huge threat to us."
Previously, Ning Zhiheng had ordered Ji Hongyi to find an informant for You Laoliu, fearing that You Laoliu might leak Ning Zhiheng's information for some reason. Now it seems that this danger is very great.
Although Ji Hongyi was somewhat reluctant to do this, he was also aware of the Military Intelligence Investigation Department's style of doing things. If You Laoliu dared to do this, Ning Zhiheng would never let You Laoliu off the hook, so the work that needed to be done had to be done.
He nodded and said, "It's all been arranged beforehand. If he dares to leak our information, I'll know immediately. But don't worry, Station Chief, Lao Liu is a very loyal person and won't betray us easily."
"I hope so. As long as he doesn't betray me, I want to see this through to the end and fulfill this bond!" Ning Zhiheng nodded and said.
Ning Zhiheng then turned to Huo Yueze and instructed him: "Yuize, you and Hongyi take good care of the explosives. Be extra careful when dealing with these arms dealers. Also, don't be afraid to spend money. Get as much TNT as you can. We'll need it for our future operations."
"Yes!" Huo Yueze and Ji Hongyi quickly nodded in agreement.
The next morning, Ning Zhiheng prepared to personally go to the Japanese-occupied area in Jiangbei to conduct reconnaissance activities. Zuo Rou deliberately applied light makeup to him to make his appearance appear softer and younger. He then changed into a smart beige suit. Looking at himself in the mirror, he looked like a handsome and accomplished young man.
"Young Master, why don't I go with you? You know my skills; I can lend a hand if anything happens!" Zuo Rou said softly, carefully straightening his collar.
Since being separated from Ning Zhiheng and her brothers for the past few months, Zuo Rou felt like she was all alone in this chaotic world, helpless and directionless. She lived in constant fear, afraid of receiving terrible news from the front lines. It wasn't until she received a notification from headquarters that she learned her loved ones were safe and sound and had survived the war. She cried her heart out in her dormitory and secretly vowed that once she reunited with her family in Shanghai, she would never be separated from them again.
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