Operations team leader Yang Wenbo spoke first, saying, "Station chief, field operations are too dangerous. You cannot personally take the risk. If anything goes wrong, the entire intelligence station will be in danger of being destroyed."
This assassination operation was personally directed and participated in by Chen Hongchi, who was in charge of field operations at Beiping Station and was used to being on the front line of combat.
He had planned a major operation at the New Year's Eve dinner, but the operation was a disaster because the Japanese were extremely vigilant. They were almost surrounded by the Japanese military police, and everyone was severely affected. They then realized that the Japanese forces in Shanghai were stronger than ever before, and the situation was much more serious than in Beijing. So they remained silent for several days.
It should be noted that the task assigned to him by the Director was to carry out a series of assassinations against officials of the puppet government in order to intimidate people and undermine the morale of the puppet government. Now that he had just taken control of the Shanghai Station, how could he remain inactive? Thus, Chen Hongchi was unwilling to lie low and launched another assassination attempt.
Hearing Yang Wenbo's complaints, Chen Hongchi curled his lip and said dismissively, "What danger is there in dealing with such a scoundrel? I've figured it out now. As long as we're not in the eastern city, we can make our move anywhere else."
An operative asked from the side, "Station Chief, didn't they say that these people from the puppet government are going to Nanjing next month? What if we lose our target then? Are we supposed to chase them all the way to Nanjing?"
Chen Hongchi laughed and said, "Nanjing Station has been rebuilt now, so we can't take their business away. If we don't take this opportunity to make a killing, they'll miss their chance once they move to Nanjing."
“Once the puppet government people are gone, we’ll kill the Japanese and the people from No. 76. We’ll have plenty of targets!” Yang Wenbo said coldly.
Chen Hongchi waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "That's right, everyone, cheer up! We'll have plenty of time to show our skills in the future!"
That evening, in Ning Zhiheng's study, Yi Hua'an reported to him: "Mu Yu reports, there was an explosion today. Jin Jianyuan, an internal affairs official of the puppet government, along with his driver and bodyguard, were killed in the western part of the city. I have clearly told him that this was not our operation, but rather an action by the Shanghai station."
Ning Zhiheng was not surprised. As far as he knew, Chen Hongchi was a decisive man and a good operator. The Shanghai station had been established for several months and was already eager to get moving. Last time, on New Year's Eve, he was almost surrounded by Ishii. However, this time he had learned his lesson and moved to western Shanghai to carry out his operations.
Yi Hua'an then reported, "Also, Li Zhiqun informed Muyu today that the Japanese side already knows about Chen Hongchi taking over as the head of the Shanghai station, and has assigned the task of investigating the Shanghai station to Muyu."
Upon hearing this, Ning Zhiheng couldn't help but smile and said, "Haha, it seems that Chen Hongchi is quite lucky. He even has us protecting him. He's a lucky general!"
That's true. With Mu Yu's deliberate cover, Chen Hongchi was like wearing a layer of armor. As long as he didn't make any major mistakes during the operation, his safety was not a problem.
Upon hearing Ning Zhiheng's words, Yi Huaan smiled and said, "You're right, Chen Hongchi is indeed luckier than Wang Hanmin."
Furthermore, Muyu reported that Li Zhiqun's follow-up investigation into Xu Yongchang had not made any progress. However, during this period, he frequently entered and exited the Yingzuo Agency. Muyu judged that Li Zhiqun must be carrying out some plan, but he was suspicious of the personnel at the Special Agent Headquarters, so the information was being tightly controlled. I have instructed Muyu to continue to monitor the situation and report any news promptly.
Ning Zhiheng was also very worried about Li Zhiqun's current actions. He knew that the other party was making moves, but he couldn't find out the specifics, which made him, who was used to taking the initiative, feel uncomfortable.
He began, "Li Zhiqun is very shrewd. He already knows that our inside man still exists, so he's wary of everyone. This has indeed greatly interfered with Muyu's work. We must find an opportunity to dispel his suspicions!"
"Find a scapegoat?"
“That’s what I think too, but Li Zhiqun isn’t stupid. This matter must be designed flawlessly, which requires certain conditions. You should inform Muyu to select a target, and we’ll do some preparatory work first.”
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