Espionage: You're tasked with spying, but you'll blow up the Special Higher Police?

To avoid arousing suspicion, Zhou Hongyi made a small cut on his arm with a knife. Blood seeped out, and he frowned, enduring the pain, before riding his bicycle to the pharmacy.

At the pharmacy, he pretended to be seriously injured and bought anti-inflammatory drugs, hemostatic agents, and bandages. After leaving the pharmacy, he bought some dry food from a roadside stall before getting back on his bicycle and riding towards Guanyintang.

Throughout the journey, Zhou Hongyi was extra careful to ensure that he was not being watched by anyone.

When he returned to Guanyin Hall, he saw that the refugees who had been bullied by the puppet army and police were finally eating a hot meal. They huddled together, their faces beaming with relief, talking about the kind man who had given them silver dollars, their eyes filled with gratitude.

As Zhou Hongyi watched this scene, a warm feeling welled up in his heart, and at the same time, his belief became even stronger.

He pulled his hat brim down low, parked his bicycle in a secluded spot beforehand, and then, carrying food and medicine, circled the area, cautiously observing his surroundings. Only after confirming that no one was following him did he head towards the local temple, each step as light as a cat at night.

Upon arriving at the local earth god temple, he tapped rhythmically on the wall a few times, following the pre-arranged code, and whispered, "Who is this deity?"

A faint voice came from below the tunnel: "Four-Faced Buddha."

The entrance to the secret passage was slowly moved aside. The girl's face was even paler than when he had seen her that afternoon, completely bloodless, but there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

“It’s safe outside now, you can come out,” Zhou Hongyi said softly.

He reached out and steadily pulled the girl out of the secret passage. The girl's body was very light. Zhou Hongyi took out medicine and bandages and began to clumsily bandage the girl's wounds.

As the girl ate the food Zhou Hongyi had brought, she looked at him and weakly reminded him, "Sir, you should clean the wound first and then apply the medicine, otherwise it will easily get infected."

Zhou Hongyi scratched his head sheepishly. He poured some of the water he was supposed to drink onto a clean cloth and gently cleaned the girl's wound.

He moved very gently, cleaning the wound, drying it carefully, and then applying medicine and bandaging it.

The bandage was a bit unruly in his hands, wrapped crookedly, but he still tried his best to bandage the wound. He even felt that this process was more tense than the gunfight he had with the spies in the alley. He was careful with every movement, afraid of hurting the girl.

The girl chuckled softly at his clumsy antics, a smile blooming on her dirty face like a small flower blossoming amidst ruins.

"Sir, it seems you're not very good at this. But thank you anyway. Without you, I'm afraid I would have died in that dark tunnel, never able to avenge my family..."

Zhou Hongyi let out a soft breath: "Don't worry, young lady, your brother is an outstanding Party member. As his comrade, I will take good care of you. You won't have to face the matter of revenge alone. Everyone remembers this blood debt, and the day of revenge won't be long... Can we go now? I'll take you to a safe place first."

The girl nodded gently, tears welling in her eyes, and said, "My benefactor, my name is Ma Beibei, but my family likes to call me Xiao Bei. You can call me that too."

Zhou Hongyi gave the other person a reassuring smile: "Okay, Xiao Bei, you don't need to call me 'sir' anymore. My name is Zhou Hongyi, you can call me Brother Zhou. Let's go."

Zhou Hongyi took Xiao Bei on his bicycle and left the Guanyin Temple, which was filled with sad memories for him.

He rode very steadily the whole way, afraid of bumping into Xiao Bei. They rode until they reached a Western church in the International Settlement, where they stopped.

Zhou Hongyi stopped his bicycle and helped Xiao Bei slowly walk into the church.

The church was filled with a peaceful and serene atmosphere, as if it were in a different time and space from the outside world.

"Since you're going to Tongji University, you must speak English, right? I'll settle you here first, disguised as a nun. The Japanese devils and spies won't find this place for now. Once things calm down, you can move around freely, but you'll need a new identity. I know the nun here; she's a devout missionary and a pacifist, but to be on the safe side, we can't reveal your true identity. Just say you're my sister, who ran away from home because she couldn't bear the arranged marriage and is temporarily staying here. Got it?"

While Zhou Hongyi was speaking, Xiao Bei listened attentively and nodded vigorously: "I'll remember, big brother."

Zhou Hongyi was quite satisfied with the girl. Although she was young, she was quite mature. She was able to remain calm in the face of her family members who had died tragically in the massacre. This alone made her a good candidate for the underground party.

For an ordinary person to not break down emotionally after such a disaster is already considered to have good mental fortitude, and someone like her is even rarer.

Zhou Hongyi seemed to see a seed that was growing tenaciously amidst the flames of war, which would one day grow into a towering tree and bring hope to this land shrouded in the shadow of war.

Zhou Hongyi led Xiao Bei into the church, where a few people were bowing their heads in prayer. A nun wearing a headscarf saw him and immediately came forward, tapping her chest four times and saying, "It's Mr. Zhou, may God bless you..."

Zhou Hongyi and his sister received a Western education and were considered half believers. His previous incarnation also frequently came here to make offerings.

Zhou Hongyi also nodded four times and whispered to the nun about Xiao Bei's situation.

Sister Varanda agreed without hesitation when faced with this generous benefactor.

"Mr. Zhou, please rest assured that she can stay here with peace of mind. Her ability to speak English will be a great help to me, as I am currently short-staffed."

"Thank you, Sister."

As Zhou Hongyi spoke, he took out three silver dollars, walked to the donation box, and dropped them in through the entrance, making a pleasant clinking sound.

Sister Varanda made the sign of the cross again, bowed her head, and said, "May God bless you."

After finally settling the families of the fallen comrades, Zhou Hongyi walked out of the church, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled.

He got on his bicycle and kept thinking about what he needed to do next.

By the time he rode back to the entrance of the garden villa, his resolve had deepened considerably.

Zhou Hongyi decided to use his special status to help more people.

First, he has already established connections with the Communist Party, and can fully assist them in re-establishing contact points and safe houses in Shanghai. Traitors within the party must be purged promptly to create a deterrent effect.

As for the enemies who perpetrated the Qingdong Massacre, he would not let them get away with it. Any demon whose hands are stained with the blood of ordinary people does not deserve to live in this world.

Thinking of this, Zhou Hongyi's eyes flashed with murderous intent. But suddenly, he saw a black car parked on the side of the road opposite the villa. It seemed that his brother-in-law, the notorious traitor, had arrived.

Director Ding Mocun of No. 76 was a lecherous scoundrel. Although Zhou Hongyi called him "brother-in-law," he and Zhou Pan'er were not actually married. He was just keeping a mistress on the side. No, Zhou Pan'er probably wasn't even in the top three. She was at most the fourth or fifth mistress.

But in this day and age, this is not surprising at all, and no one will gossip about her identity; there will only be envy.

As Zhou Hongyi walked from the gate into the villa, he even had the thought of killing this traitor tonight.

But the moment he stepped into his home, he put on a smile and temporarily suppressed that impulsive thought.

For him now, killing Ding Mocun, this major traitor, seems to be no difficult task. But killing one person is easy, while helping many people is difficult.

What he needs to do now is continue to use this connection to provide more intelligence and convenience for our party and the guerrillas. Besides, even if he kills Ding Mocun, another traitor will emerge, which is definitely not the outcome he wants to see.

"Sis, is my brother-in-law back?"

First, burying his thoughts deep in his heart, Zhou Hongyi walked enthusiastically to the sofa and saw his traitorous brother-in-law sitting there drinking tea. He sat down next to him with great enthusiasm.

"Brother-in-law, it's been a while since you last visited. My sister misses you so much she's practically turned into a bitter woman, and she's taking it all out on me. You'd better find a way to make it up to me."

Ding Mocun looked at his brilliant brother-in-law and smiled, saying, "Zhongliang, I'm relieved to have you with your sister. You'll have to put up with whatever she does to you. I heard you've been doing well at the police station lately, and you even caught a spy from the Special Higher Police? Colonel Shimazu even mentioned you specifically, saying he admires you very much and wants to send you to the Army Academy for further studies."

Zhou Hongyi picked up the teapot and poured Ding Mocun a cup, smiling as he said, "Brother-in-law, although the Army Academy is very famous, I graduated from West Point and don't want to go back to that kind of place. Besides, the situation is so chaotic now, and as the saying goes, times create heroes. This is the place where I can really show my skills."

Ding Mocun picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and agreed, "That's right, you're right to think that way. The world is in chaos now, it's the perfect time for men to make their mark. By the way, Zhongliang, how did you know there were Red Party members hidden within the Special Higher Police?"