Spy Wars: I can get rewards by being a bully!

Okamura had previously mentioned an organization in a phone call: the Planning Institute.

This agency has become incredibly powerful in the last two years. Originally, it was a department under the Ministry of Finance responsible for industrial planning, but they managed to turn it into a planning commission. For example, this planning institute decides how much steel production to achieve this year, how to achieve it, how many new ships to build, and who to entrust with the construction.

The rise of the Planning Institute can be seen as a result of the mutual tacit agreement among various forces after a balance of power was reached.

The military needs an economy to serve the war effort. They need financial and production capacity support from conglomerates, so they naturally have to relinquish some of their interests, such as the valuable minerals and factories in the occupied territories. As a result, some assets controlled by the military will be allocated to the planning institute, which will then assign its own people to develop them. In return, the planning institute will spare no effort to promote the improvement of military production capacity and give back to the military.

This powerful department will soon fall apart. It won't even have to wait for defeat. Before the defeat, everyone will want to jump ship, especially those few financial groups, each with their own agenda. In the end, this Japanese planning commission will not be able to maintain itself.

Lin Ze pressed the doorbell on the table, and Song Yuzhen and Dong Ling'er walked in.

Dong Ling'er made tea for Lin Ze and opened the window to let the smoke dissipate.

Song Yuzhen walked behind Lin Ze and gently massaged his temples.

"Master, what's your order?"

Lin Ze put his legs up on the desk, and Dong Ling'er came over and gently massaged them for him. This girl was extremely gentle and charming. No matter what Lin Ze asked for, she would always agree with a smile. She had been his secretary for quite some time, and apart from handling some official documents, she never asked a single question about anything else. But whenever Lin Ze came to the headquarters, she would personally take care of everything he ate and drank.

"Have the kitchen arrange two tables for Yoshimura Yuta, Wang Zhulin, and Lao Zheng. I'll treat them to dinner tonight, right here."

"Yes, I'll do it right away."

Song Yuzhen went out to make a phone call. Lin Ze pulled Dong Ling'er close. Although the two were already very familiar with each other, Dong Ling'er was still shy. As soon as Lin Ze put his arm around her, her cheeks turned pink and she lowered her head, not daring to look at Lin Ze.

"Ling'er, it's so hot, why are you wearing a high-necked jacket?"

Today, Dong Ling'er wore a white satin blouse with a floral pattern. The blouse had a stand-up collar, and at that time, it was fashionable to use stiff fabric for the stand-up collar, which extended all the way to the jawline. It looked very good on girls with oval faces.

"Grandpa used to say... that I looked good dressed like this..."

"You're so pretty and beautiful, you look good in anything."

Dong Ling'er was a lady from a respectable family. Faced with such enthusiastic and straightforward praise from Lin Ze, her heart would always race and she would feel a little breathless.

Lin Ze lowered his leg, leaned back, and lit a cigarette.

A hint of allure flashed in Dong Ling'er's pure and captivating eyes, both innocent and seductive, "Master is like this again... I should have known better than to wear this suit today. This skirt is so tight, it's inconvenient to squat down."

Despite saying this, Dong Ling'er didn't hesitate at all. She lifted her skirt up and knelt down.

After a while, Song Yuzhen returned from the phone call and was taken aback. "Master, where is Ling'er?"

"Mmm, I'm here!"

Song Yuzhen pursed her lips and smiled, "You're really too honest. Couldn't you have used a cushion to put on top of that?"

As she spoke, she went to the inner suite and brought back two soft cushions.

Lin Ze laughed, "Hey, you only need to give Ling'er one, why take two?"

Song Yuzhen, dressed in a simple cheongsam and high heels, exuded charm. "Sir, I have something to report to you verbally."

..............

At six o'clock in the evening, all sorts of cars drove to the military police headquarters.

Wang Zhulin arrived first. After arriving, he didn't rush inside, but instead started smoking at the entrance.

Arriving early is a matter of attitude, but if you go in and talk to Master Lin alone, it will inevitably make others think too much. Wang Zhulin has been in business all his life and pays special attention to these small details.

Before he could finish his cigarette, Yoshimura Yuta arrived. Despite the sweltering heat, he was wearing a suit and tie and started wiping his sweat as soon as he got out of the car.

Wearing a short jacket made of fragrant gauze, Wang Zhulin smiled and said, "President Yoshimura is here. Shall we wait inside for a bit? It's hot outside."

Yoshimura Yuta was very obedient and polite. "Thank you, Chairman Wang. I'll wait with you for a bit. Let's go in after everyone has arrived."

"Alright, alright."

Soon, Zheng Xiaji arrived as well. He jumped out of the car in a hurry and said, "Old Wang, Yoshimura, you're here early! There's some official business at the headquarters. Sorry for the delay."

As he spoke, he took out a cigarette case and offered cigarettes to the two men.

Wang Zhulin raised his hand. "Just finished smoking. I wonder what brings you to dinner today, Master Lin?"

Zheng Xiaji didn't know either, but he didn't say he didn't know. Instead, he said casually, "It's been a while since we got together. Boss Lin is calling for dinner. I'll eat more tonight. President Yoshimura, have a smoke, have a smoke."

Yoshimura Yuta took it with both hands and lit it for Zheng Xiaji first.

As they were talking, most of the people from the Northern Federal Reserve, Yokohama Specie Bank, and various factories and mines arrived.

Once everyone entered the headquarters, the sofa in the reception room was moved away and replaced with two round tables.

Lin Ze was not wearing a military uniform, but civilian clothes. He sat at two separate tables, one for guests and one for hosts, and the kitchen began serving dishes.

The meal wasn't extravagant, but it was still quite lavish, and everyone was waiting for Lin Ze to speak.

Lin Ze raised his glass and said, “You’re all very busy. We usually talk a lot about official business, and we haven’t had a proper get-together this year. The main reason for inviting you all here today is to eat and drink. It’s not easy for Tianjin to have achieved what it has today. I’d like to toast you all.”

As soon as he said "respect," everyone quickly stood up. Lin Ze waved his hand and said, "Sit down, sit down. There are no outsiders here today."

Everyone sat down again with a clatter, and after drinking three cups of wine, Lin Ze slowly said, "In a couple of days, people from the Planning Institute of the Ministry of Finance will come to audit us. I won't hide it from you all, General Okamura will soon take over as Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Army. At this critical juncture, everyone should take good care of their own affairs and avoid making any mistakes."

Everyone understood; this meant that the accounts should be kept in order and no mistakes should be made.

"In addition, the Planning Institute has a strong background and powerful influence, with several financial groups standing behind it. The banks, factories, mines, and docks in Beijing and Tianjin are all doing very well. You are all outstanding individuals. If there are better prospects, I will never stand in your way, but you must let me know in advance so that we can discuss things and avoid hurting our relationship."

Now everyone understood: the visitors were up to no good!

Yoshimura Yuta stood up with his wine glass in hand. "Mr. Lin! I dare to say that our group owes its current status entirely to your leadership. No matter what planning institute or zaibatsu dares to harm your interests, I, Yoshimura, will be the first to object. Everyone in our North China Transportation Company follows Mr. Lin's lead. Not even the Prime Minister would listen to us!"

Wang Zhulin thought to himself, "Damn, Yoshimura is usually so timid, but he's really showing off today." He quickly stood up as well, "Although I'm an old man, Master Lin doesn't look down on me and has made me the president of this chamber of commerce. I consider myself a servant under Master Lin. Our Tianjin Chamber of Commerce only recognizes Master Lin. I don't know anything about any planning institute!"

One by one, everyone expressed their agreement. Niu San'er stood at the door, taking in everyone's expressions.