My years of espionage

Chapter 2064 Six of Diamonds in Action
"Chief, Shen Ling came to me and told me about a strange situation," the young Taoist priest reported to Cheng Qianfan.

"What's the strange situation?" Cheng Qianfan asked.

"He asked us if we had arranged for others to inquire about the whereabouts of the gold," the young Taoist priest asked.

"What rumors did he hear?" Cheng Qianfan asked, his expression turning serious.

“He had a close colleague who casually mentioned that someone had asked him about the Japanese gold-carrying ships,” the young Taoist priest said.

"Chief, I suspect there might be others eyeing the gold as well," the young Taoist priest said, handing Cheng Qianfan a cigarette.

……

“That possibility cannot be ruled out.” Cheng Qianfan nodded. “The Japanese were secretly transporting gold. Although the news was very secretive, as long as the information is investigated, those who are interested will eventually find out something.”

As he spoke, Cheng Qianfan glanced at the young Taoist priest and asked, "Which part do you think it will be?"

"The Red Party?" the young Taoist priest mused. "The Red Party's intelligence work has always been quite good, so it's not surprising that they know about gold."

"Possibly." Cheng Qianfan snorted coldly. "Those country bumpkins are indeed quite good at intelligence work."

As he spoke, he pondered, "Besides the Red Party, those guys from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS) might also get involved."

……

Cheng Qianfan snorted coldly, "Those stupid donkeys and idiots from the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics are utterly useless at everything else, but when it comes to money and treasure, those bastards are all incredibly shrewd."

"Master, what about our side..." the young Taoist priest asked.

"We don't need to worry about it for now," Cheng Qianfan said thoughtfully. "Boss Dai's task for us is urgent. We don't have time to deal with anything else. This batch of gold absolutely cannot be smuggled away by the Japanese."

"I understand." The young Taoist priest nodded.

"Tell Shen Ling to be careful and not to have any more unusual contact with that colleague of his," Cheng Qianfan said. "They're not very meticulous in their work, so we don't risk getting ourselves into trouble."

"Yes."

“Something’s not right,” Cheng Qianfan suddenly said. “It’s unlikely to be the Red Party. If it were the Red Party, these rebels would always be very good at keeping secrets. They would carefully select the people they’re trying to spy on and make sure they keep it a secret.”

……

“Sir, that’s true, but nothing is absolute.” The young Taoist priest thought for a moment and said, “Shen Ling also said that the person let it slip unintentionally. If Shen Ling hadn’t been paying extra attention to the matter of gold, he probably wouldn’t have noticed this.”

"In short, I told Shen Ling to focus on himself and not to worry about anything else," Cheng Qianfan said. "Of course, if there's any further movement over there, he should keep a close eye on it."

Cheng Qianfan snorted coldly, "Once the mission is completed, we'll find an opportunity to mess with those rebels."

The young Taoist priest glanced at the magistrate but said nothing. The magistrate had always harbored deep hatred for the Red Party.

"These past few days have passed, has Shen Ling found out anything?" Cheng Qianfan flicked his cigarette ash and asked.

“There has been progress, and I’m about to report to the Chief.” The young Taoist priest said excitedly, “Shen Ling has noticed the coal ships docked at the pier, and he finds them suspicious.”

……

"A coal transport ship?" Cheng Qianfan asked thoughtfully.

“Yes.” The young Taoist priest nodded. “They are coal carriers from Japan’s Daikichi Co., Ltd., and there are five ships from other Japanese companies in total.”

"How many of these ships belong to Daikichi Co., Ltd." Cheng Qianfan asked immediately.

“Three of the ships belong to the Daikichi Company,” the young Taoist priest said.

"Since Shen Ling specifically mentioned this Daikichi Co., Ltd., does that mean he suspects this Daikichi Co., Ltd.?" Cheng Qianfan immediately asked.

“Yes.” The young Taoist priest nodded. “According to Shen Ling, the Daikichi Corporation usually uses one boat, and occasionally two. This time, they suddenly rented three boats, which is a bit unusual.”

"Can Shen Ling narrow down the search area further?" Cheng Qianfan asked.

"I'm afraid it will be very difficult." The young Taoist shook his head. "The ship is a Japanese ship, and the Japanese are very wary of the Chinese. Without the Japanese side's approval, even the people from the shipping company cannot approach the ship at will, let alone board it for inspection."

……

Cheng Qianfan nodded; he understood everything the young Taoist priest was saying.

However, he needed precise intelligence, and he needed to be extremely accurate in determining whether the Japanese were transporting gold by waterway and which ship they were using. Only by accurately locking onto the target could he take action.

"The Japanese don't allow Chinese people to get close, but when loading goods, they still need to use dockworkers, right?" Cheng Qianfan pondered, then suddenly thought of a crucial point and asked.

“That’s right.” Upon hearing this, the young Taoist priest was also delighted. “The Japanese ships also need Chinese stevedores; they themselves wouldn’t do such hard work.”

He asked Cheng Qianfan, "Does the Chief mean to arrange for the brothers to disguise themselves as laborers and use the opportunity of moving cargo to locate the gold transport ship?"

“This is the most direct and effective strategy.” Cheng Qianfan nodded slightly. He asked the young Taoist priest, “Where is Mao Zhengze now?”

“In safe house number four,” the young Taoist priest said.

"Tell Zhengze to come see me," Cheng Qianfan said in a deep voice.

"clear."

……

chongqing.

"These supplies should be procured and prepared as soon as possible."

"This New Year, we should have a grand and lively celebration, a fresh start for the new year," Qi Wu said to his subordinates. "The New Year should be celebrated like the New Year, and Luojiawan can also be lively and bustling."

Mao Fulin stood beside him, wanting to say something, but he held back.

However, Qi Wu still noticed his unusual behavior.

"Go get to work," Qi Wu said, then added, "Mao Fulin, stay behind."

"Yes."

"What were you trying to say?" Qi Wu glanced at Mao Fulin and asked casually.

"I'm just not used to it," Mao Fulin said with a smile. Director Qi was always kind and friendly to everyone, and since they were fellow villagers and relatives, he wasn't afraid of Qi Wu.

……

"What are you not used to?" Qi Wu asked. "Is it the work and life you're not used to?"

"No, Director," Mao Fulin said. "It's just that the Director mentioned the New Year, but I thought it was still a long way off."

"Foolish." Qi Wu glared at Mao Fulin and said, "You remember this: from now on, when we talk about the New Year, we'll say the National Calendar Year, and the New Year will be the Gregorian Calendar Year. This must be correct."

"Oh." Mao Fulin nodded.

"I've got it. It's not a big deal, but it's very important." Qi Wu could tell that Mao Fulin didn't seem to care much, so he gave him another reminder.

In 1938, the Chairman ordered the creation and promulgation of the "National Calendar" in all provinces.

Back then, the Central Government also issued the "Measures for Assisting the Universal Use of the New Calendar and the Abolition of the Old Calendar," ordering all levels of party organizations and civic groups to abolish the old calendar.

At the same time, a nationwide order was issued that "from now on, calendars should no longer include the old calendar, so as not to hinder the implementation of the national calendar."

Subsequently, the "Measures for Promoting the Gregorian Calendar" were introduced, which clearly stipulated that: "All kinds of rituals and entertainment activities used before and after the Gregorian New Year, such as New Year greetings, group worship, ancestor worship, spring banquets, lantern viewing, paper-cutting, and pasting of Spring Festival couplets, shall be moved to be held before and after the Gregorian New Year... No holiday shall be given for the Gregorian New Year, nor shall any holiday be given under any other name."

Following this, the Executive Yuan introduced a series of policies requiring the use of the Gregorian calendar nationwide, abolishing the lunar calendar and prohibiting the celebration of the Lunar New Year, and strictly prohibiting all folk New Year customs such as pasting Spring Festival couplets, setting off fireworks and firecrackers, and exchanging New Year's greetings.

Not only are all folk activities during the Spring Festival banned, but the Spring Festival holiday is also canceled, and shops are not allowed to close and are required to operate normally.

School or organization leaders found to be granting holidays according to the Lunar New Year will be severely punished.

Those businessmen who closed their shops and went home for the Chinese New Year will also be punished if they are found to be doing so.

In some cases, the situation went to extremes, with people being arrested and fined for saying "Wishing you prosperity" during the Spring Festival.

However, despite the strict ban, the people were still unwilling to comply. The Chairman was heartbroken by this, believing that the people were ignorant, and took the initiative to launch the New Life Movement.

However, the general public is still not very willing to cooperate and obey orders.

However, precisely because of this, Party and government organs have become increasingly strict in their requirements, demanding that all regulations of the New Life Movement be strictly enforced.

……

Previously, when the Nationalist government came to Chongqing, the wartime capital, the New Life Movement had been largely forgotten for several years due to the grim situation of the War of Resistance against Japan.

However, as the Allied forces began to achieve phased victories in the European theater and the US military began to gain the upper hand in the Pacific theater, the global anti-war struggle situation improved, and the Chairman's mood and pressure were greatly relieved. As a result, he began to promote the New Life Movement again.

Dai Chunfeng, who always followed the principal's will, attached great importance to the upcoming Gregorian New Year of the 33rd year of the Republic of China and ordered that Luojiawan should also be decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations for the New Year.

"Director, I understand," Mao Fulin quickly said.

Qi Wu gave some more instructions before leaving.

Not long after he left, Mao Shun found Mao Fulin.

……

"Brother Fulin." Mao Shun glanced at Mao Fulin, "Didn't Boss Dai assign you to take care of Zhou Yifeng's life a few days ago?"

"Zhou Yifeng?" Mao Fulin asked, puzzled. "Who is this person?"

"You don't know?" Mao Shun frowned, then suddenly realized, and lowered his voice to say, "It's that really handsome guy, the one."

"Oh, I see." Mao Fulin nodded and said, "That's true."

“That’s right,” Mao Shun said. He looked around and lowered his voice, “This person’s identity is confidential. The fact that Boss Dai assigned you to take care of him is enough to show his trust in you.”

“I understand.” Mao Fulin nodded.

“Perfect timing, the New Year’s gifts have arrived. You can personally deliver them to Zhou Yifeng,” Mao Shun said.

As he spoke, he smiled and said, "With the situation in the War of Resistance improving, Boss Dai is in a great mood this time, and the gifts he gave are much better than in previous years."

“Okay,” Mao Fulin quickly replied, “I’ll send it over in a bit.”

Then he frowned and asked, "I don't know where Zhou Yifeng is staying this week either."

……

Mao Shun closed the door, took a notebook from the safe, turned to a page, and showed the address to Mao Fulin.

"Did you remember?" he asked Mao Fulin.

"I've got it." Mao Fulin nodded.

"This address must be known only to you," Mao Shun instructed. "You must not tell anyone."

“I know,” Mao Fulin said with a smile. “It’s classified.”

Hearing Mao Fulin say this, Mao Shun felt relieved.

Although Mao Fulin was not formally trained in the field, he was honest and, most importantly, a member of the Mao family in Jiangshan, making him the most trustworthy.

……

"Brother Mao, where are you going?" Yang Erbao came out of the toilet and saw Mao Fulin riding his rickshaw about to leave, with something strapped to the back seat. He quickly ran over and asked, "Do you need any help?"

He had been secretly watching Mao Fulin. He had been hiding in the toilet, observing through a hole in the wall. When he saw Mao Fulin come out, he immediately came out to meet him.

"No need, I'll go deliver the holiday gifts," Mao Fulin said.

"Have the New Year's gifts arrived?" Yang Erbao's face lit up with joy, and he immediately asked, "Why haven't I received mine yet?"

“Ours hasn’t been issued yet.” Mao Fulin looked around and said, “These are the ones that have been issued first, according to the list, and they are all from officers.”

"Oh, oh, oh." Yang Erbao looked enlightened. "Then ours should be coming soon too."

Then he said to Mao Fulin with an envious look, "Arranging for Brother Mao to deliver holiday gifts to the officers is a good job. Getting to know more officers is always a good thing."

Then he patted his mouth and muttered, "Oh dear, I misspoke. Our Boss Dai is a fellow townsman of Mao, there's no need for..."

……

"Hey, hey, hey, you can't say that." Mao Fulin waved his hands repeatedly. "Besides, I might not be happy to give gifts to my superiors, but this is a gift for a hero. I'm more than willing to do it."

"A hero?" Yang Erbao's heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained calm. He asked in a low voice, "Yes..."

"Oh dear, I should go now, it's getting late." Mao Fulin remembered Mao Shun's instructions to keep the secret. Knowing that he sometimes let things slip, he immediately shut up, waved to Yang Erbao, and rode away on his bicycle.

Yang Erbao and Mao Fulin had been talking as they walked, and now they had arrived at the gate of the courtyard.

He took out a cigarette case from his pocket at the door, pulled out a cigarette, lit it with a match, took a few deep drags, and then choked. He coughed so hard that the cigarette fell to the ground.

Yang Erbao then coughed as he returned to the courtyard.

……

In a third-floor room a little further from No. 19 Luojiawan, a man wearing gold-rimmed glasses put down his binoculars.

"Send a signal to get everyone nearby moving. Make sure they stick close to Mao Fulin," the man with the gold-rimmed glasses said.

……

Mao Fulin was riding his bicycle when the road became bumpy, and he almost slipped. Finally, the road ahead became muddy, and he had to get off and push the bicycle.

Passing by a vendor selling candied hawthorns, Mao Fulin thought for a moment, took out his money and bought a skewer of candied hawthorns, wrapped it in brown paper, and stuffed it into his briefcase, which he then hung on the handlebars of his bicycle.

I was thinking to myself, if I get home from get off work and my child sees the candied hawthorns, he'll be overjoyed.

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(End of this chapter)