Spy war in the Republic of China, peak undercover

Lu Yang looked up and saw that outside the abandoned house, the lights of several cars were lit up. In the rain, the halos of the car lights were blurry and dazzling.

He knew that the Japanese spy reinforcements had arrived.

They must leave as soon as possible.

As they were retreating, Lu Yang felt someone put a note in his hand. He subconsciously squeezed it tightly without looking back.

After returning to the safe house, Lu Yang opened the note. It contained only a few words: "The Japanese spy's real name: Inoue Yuichi. On the night of the fire, he was your family's fire chief."

Lu Yang's heart suddenly sank, as if being grasped by an invisible hand. Inoue Yuichi! That name he had seen in the archives of his past life, that fire captain hailed as a "hero"! Turns out to be the true murderer of his parents, a deeply entrenched Japanese spy! Shock, anger, pain—all sorts of emotions surged through him, nearly choking him.

He clutched the note tightly, his knuckles turning white from the strain.

"Bah!"

At this moment, the door of the safe house was suddenly kicked open, and several beams of flashlight shone in.

"Don't move!"

Lu Yang looked up suddenly and saw several people from the Secret Service rushing in, led by Interrogator No. 1.

Interrogator No. 1 was holding a piece of paper in his hand, and it was the secret report that said "a fragment of a code book left behind by a Japanese spy"!

"Team Leader Lu, it looks like you've made quite a haul tonight." Interrogator No. 1 looked at him coldly. "However, we just received a tip-off that a torn cipher book left behind by a Japanese spy was found in the library. I'm afraid this is related to your actions tonight and that female student."

Lu Yang's heart sank into an icy cave. He instantly understood. This was a double trap! The Japanese spies had deliberately left fragments of a code book in the library to arouse suspicion from the secret service. At the same time, they had kidnapped female students to lure him into their rescue. They intended to use the secret service to eliminate him, only to then become suspected by the secret service themselves, leading to a three-way conflict between the three forces!

Lu Yang looked at interrogator number one.

"You..." he said.

Interrogator No. 1.

Lu Yang took a deep breath and a sneer appeared on his face.

"Sir," Lu Yang said slowly, looking directly into the eyes of Interrogator No. 1, "Do you think I would be so stupid as to leave such a loophole right under my own nose?"

Interrogator No. 1's smile froze on his face.

"That fragment of a page," Lu Yang said in a low voice, "maybe it was a smokescreen they left behind deliberately to divert our attention. The real purpose might be somewhere you and I wouldn't expect."

 Chapter 25: Mantis Catches Cicada

The abandoned house, shrouded in rain, smelled of blood and gunpowder. Lu Yang stared at the note in his hand, his knuckles white from the strain. The name "Number 5" struck his heart like a hammer, and fragments of memories from the fire scene three years ago suddenly reunited: the "fire captain" who braved the rain to save lives, turning back in the thick smoke with a strange sneer. He suppressed the nausea that surged in his stomach and crumpled the note into his palm. At this moment, Falcon, the operations captain of the Secret Service, urged evacuation, but Lu Yang suddenly pointed to a half-burned cigarette butt in the corner of the abandoned house.

"This is the '555' brand. British American Tobacco is exclusively supplied to the Military Control Commission for field work. It's impossible for Japanese spies to use it." Lu Yang said, his voice so calm that it was frightening.

Falcon froze, his eyes falling on the cigarette butt.

"What do you mean?" Falcon asked.

"The meaning is very clear." Lu Yang walked over to the cigarette butt and gently flicked it with his toes. "The so-called 'code book fragments' and this cigarette butt are all frame-ups. They were baited by someone within the Military Control Commission, using the Japanese spies to eliminate dissidents."

Falcon's face showed surprise and doubt, and he looked at Lu Yang.

"What evidence do you have?" he asked in a deep voice.

"Evidence?" Lu Yang smiled, a hint of sarcasm in his smile. "Didn't Captain Falcon realize that we arrived at such a coincidence for this operation? It's as if someone was deliberately guiding us."

Falcon didn't say anything, he just tightened the gun in his hand.

"We were used," Lu Yang said. "From the beginning, this was a trap."

"Who would do such a thing?" asked Falcon.

"Anyone who wants to kill someone with a borrowed knife will do this kind of thing." Lu Yang's eyes swept across every corner of the abandoned house, as if looking for hidden answers.

Falcon thought for a moment and finally chose to believe Lu Yang.

"What now?" he asked.

"We'll evacuate according to the original plan, but we'll have to put on a good show," Lu Yang said. "Let them think we've really fallen for the trick."

He picked up the half cherry blossom nail polish on the ground and held it carefully in his hand.

***

When he returned to the library, it was already late at night and the library was empty, with only the ticking of an old clock. Lu Yang used the dim emergency light to move between the bookshelves. He did not rush to deal with the spoils, but under the pretext of tidying up the bookshelves, he used tweezers to pick out a microfilm from the interlayer of the book "Records of Famous Mountains and Scenic Spots in the World". [1]

The contents of the film made his pupils shrink: 1937 pharmaceutical factory blueprints, secret codes related to "Northern Burma" and "Wu Kejie," and a faded photograph of his parents with a man in a bowler hat, the factory gates before the fire in the background. A cherry blossom tattoo peeked out from the man's sleeve, a pattern identical to the nail art on Woman No. 1. Lu Yang suddenly realized: Woman No. 1 was most likely a witness to the arson, or even a "double agent" planted by Japanese spies.

He quickly hid the film and returned to the library. He knew that the trap of the "fragmented pages of the code book" in the library and the ambush at the abandoned house all pointed to the same goal: to disrupt the KMT and eliminate certain insiders. And he was the insider who had been caught in the vortex.

He lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and his thoughts raced.[2]

"Lu Yang."

A voice rang out in the library. Lu Yang turned around and saw a woman in a Central Bureau of Investigation uniform walking in. It was his classmate and fiancée, Chen Yijun, the director of the Central Bureau of Investigation. [1]

There was a hint of fatigue on Chen Yijun's face, but her eyes were still sharp.

"It's so late, why are you still in the library?" Chen Yijun walked up to him with a hint of scrutiny in her voice.

Lu Yang held the cigarette and smiled slightly.

"Yijun, you're no different," Lu Yang said. "The gendarmerie was attacked, the embassy blueprints were stolen, and the whole city is saying it was me. Did you come to me to get to the bottom of this?" [1]

Chen Yijun sneered, took out a piece of information from her handbag and threw it on the table. [1]

"The gendarmerie was attacked last night and the embassy blueprints were stolen. The whole city is saying it was you who did it," she said.

Lu Yang glanced at the information and said calmly, "It's just a rumor, Yijun, do you believe it?" [1]

Chen Yijun stared at him.

"Lu Yang, you are from the Military Control Commission. I don't believe you would do such a thing. But if it wasn't you, who else could it be?" she asked. [1]

Lu Yang walked closer to her and lowered his voice.

"Yijun, there are some things I cannot tell you, but you have to believe me," Lu Yang said. [1]

Chen Yijun was silent for a moment, and finally softened her tone.

"Lu Yang, I don't care what you do, just don't make things difficult for me." Chen Yijun said. [1]

Lu Yang nodded. He knew that Chen Yijun was the director of the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, and if she discovered his true identity, he would be in big trouble. [1]

"How do you know I'm here?" Lu Yang asked.

"My informant reported it," Chen Yijun replied. "I can smell the cigarette smoke from a long way off."

Lu Yang smiled, but did not speak.

"Are you busy lately?" Chen Yijun asked.

"I have military duties to attend to and have no choice." Lu Yang replied.

"I heard you went to Huangyangba Town and got injured," Chen Yijun said. "You always make me worry."

Lu Yang shrugged.

"It was just an accident," he said. "Isn't everything fine now?"

"Hmph, you're fine?" Chen Yijun stepped forward and reached out to touch his bandaged left shoulder. "How do you explain this?"

Lu Yang dodged and avoided her hand.

"It's a minor injury, nothing serious," he said.

"Lu Yang!" Chen Yijun's tone became more serious. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing! I know all the dirty deeds of the Military Control Commission!"

"Yijun, you're too sensitive." Lu Yang said, "I'm just carrying out my mission."

"On a mission? So many people died in the Huangyangba Town operation, and you tell me it was just a mission?" Chen Yijun lowered her voice. "Have you been involved in something you shouldn't have been involved in again?"

"I don't know what you are talking about." Lu Yang said.

"You don't know?" Chen Yijun sneered, "Your parents' death and the pharmaceutical arson case, do you really think it was just an accident?"

Lu Yang's heart skipped a beat. He hadn't expected Chen Yijun to bring this up.

"What did you find?" Lu Yang asked, with a hint of subtle nervousness in his voice.

"I just feel that some things aren't that simple," Chen Yijun said. "Lu Yang, we're classmates and engaged. I don't want you to get stuck in this mess."

"A quagmire?" Lu Yang asked, "In troubled times, who can remain unscathed?"

"You can choose." Chen Yijun said.

"I have no choice." Lu Yang replied.

Chen Yijun stared at him, her eyes filled with mixed emotions. She finally sighed.

"Forget it, take care of yourself." She said, "If you need any help, just ask."

"I will." Lu Yang said.

Chen Yijun turned and left, her figure quickly disappearing into the depths of the library. [1]

Lu Yang walked to the window and watched Chen Yijun's car slowly drive away. He knew that Chen Yijun's words were not without reason. The complexity within the Military Control Commission far exceeded his imagination.

***

At three o'clock in the morning, in an old teahouse at the corner of a mountain city lane, the air was filled with steam, and the smell of tea and tobacco mixed in the air. Lu Yang followed the code left by No. 4, the professor, and pushed open the door of the teahouse. [6]

There were only a few customers in the teahouse, sitting in a corner, chatting quietly. Lu Yang walked to an empty table, sat down, and ordered a pot of tea. He picked up the teacup and tapped it lightly on the table three times.

Soon, No. 4 came over and sat down across from him. He still had a gentle smile on his face, but his eyes were sharper than they had been during the day.

"Mr. Lu, sorry to have kept you waiting." said No. 4.

"Professor, you're welcome." Lu Yang replied.

Number 4 pushed over an oil-paper bag and said, "Inside is Wu Kejie's smuggling records. Goods from northern Myanmar were transferred to Chongqing through his hands." [3]

Lu Yang opened the oil-paper package, revealing a stack of account books written in calligraphy. He flipped through the records and discovered that next to each transaction date was "Shan Zi Tang Wu Ye"—a codeword used by a certain branch of the Chongqing Pao Brothers.

"Shan Zi Tang?" Lu Yang raised his head.

No. 4 nodded.

"The Military Intelligence Bureau doesn't want Japanese spies," Number 4 suddenly lowered his voice. "They want to use them to eliminate dissidents. The film in your hand has touched someone's cake and butter."

Lu Yang's heart sank. Number 4's words confirmed his suspicions. The film in his hand wasn't just evidence of the Japanese spy's crimes; it was also the spark that sparked the power struggle within the Military Control Commission.

Before he finished speaking, a gunshot was heard outside the window. Amidst the flying glass fragments, Lu Yang caught a glimpse of the hem of a cherry blossom cheongsam flashing by the corner of the street. [4]

"Be careful!" Lu Yang yelled, yanking Number 4 under the table as a bullet grazed his ear. He flung the teacup away, taking advantage of the shattering moment to draw his gun and fire back, striking a gunman disguised as a tea drinker. Amidst the chaos, Number 4 thrust a brass whistle at him: "Go to Shanzitang Wharf, tomorrow night at midnight, and meet with Master Wu to exchange information."

"What is this?" Lu Yang asked.

"A life-saving token," said Number 4. "You might need it."

"Why help me?" Lu Yang asked.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend," said No. 4. "Besides, your parents are also victims."

Lu Yang didn't ask any more questions. He held the copper whistle tightly in his hand.

"You go first!" Lu Yang said, "I'll lead them away."

"Take care, Mr. Lu!" No. 4 said, and then quickly evacuated from the back door of the teahouse.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Lu Yang deliberately left half a cherry blossom nail polish at the scene—a bait to frame the Japanese spies, a hook to lure them out. He knew this half nail polish would become irrefutable evidence of mutual suspicion between the Japanese spies and the Military Control Commission. He quickly left the teahouse through a side door and disappeared into the night.

***

After returning to the Military Control Commission's district headquarters, Lu Yang had just locked the film in the safe when Interrogator No. 1 suddenly pushed the door open, followed by a forensic doctor wearing white gloves.

"Team Leader Lu, how are you?" said interrogator No. 1.

Lu Yang closed the safe door and turned around.

"Sir, what brings you here so late at night?" Lu Yang asked.

"Three bodies were found in Baini Town," Interrogator No. 1 said. "The method used is very similar to your 'masterpiece' in Fuzhou."

The medical examiner handed over an autopsy report. Lu Yang scanned it and saw the curved incision in the victim's throat, exactly like the "Iai Slash" technique he remembered from Japanese ninjas. He suddenly pointed to the cinnabar seal in the corner of the report.

"This is a Tantric symbol, and it's the same as the fragments of the code book in the library," Lu Yang said. He didn't look at Interrogator No. 1's expression, but just analyzed it to himself. "The Japanese spies want to use us to kill Wu Ye and cut off Wu Kejie's connection."

Interrogator No. 1.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"I'm saying that someone wants to use us to eliminate dissidents," Lu Yang said. "These bodies were taken by Japanese spies. They want to put the blame on me and, at the same time, lure out the Fifth Master of Shanzi Hall."

"Why?" asked Interrogator No. 1.

"Fifth Master controls Wu Kejie's smuggling line, which is a vital channel for Japanese spies to infiltrate Chongqing," Lu Yang said. "Killing Fifth Master will cut off this line. They can then use this opportunity to frame us and create chaos within the Military Control Commission."