Chapter Thirty-One: Zhendong Hall

After meeting with Old Zhao and shedding his disguise, the first thing Song Yingge did upon arriving at Caodu Lane was to rush to the interrogation room.

Throughout the previous night, the duty officers had taken turns "tending" to Chen Xunlei. Whenever Chen was exhausted and on the verge of sleep, he would be subjected to further torture. The combination of physical agony and sleep deprivation had pushed his willpower to the brink of collapse. It was a war of attrition, every passing second a grueling ordeal for him.

"Has he confessed yet?" Song Yingge asked.

"Sir, this man's mouth is too stubborn—harder than iron," the officer in charge replied.

Song Yingge felt a surge of reluctant respect, but he replied coldly, "Keep at it. Don’t let him sleep."

Returning to the Fourth Intelligence Section, Song Yingge reviewed the intelligence reports as usual. They were all routine updates.

"Section Chief, there is news from the police station," Zhang Ke said, walking in hurriedly.

Song Yingge perked up. "Did you find the person who pawned the jewelry?"

"We did. He is the Third Master of a small gang called Zhendong Tang down at the Xiaguan Wharf, nicknamed 'Dog Tooth,'" Zhang Ke reported.

In wharf gangs, the First Master was the leader, while the Second and Third Masters were the lieutenants.

"Keep an eye on the leaders of Zhendong Tang. See if they have any contact with Wang Sheng. Also, find out if Zhendong Tang has sold a mother and daughter recently," Song Yingge instructed. If there was no direct link between Zhendong Tang and Wang Sheng, it meant an invisible hand was pulling the strings behind the Caimao Garage incident.

"Yes, sir," Zhang Ke said, hurrying out as quickly as he had arrived.

*Ring-ring—*

The office telephone rang. Song Yingge picked it up.

"Come to my office," came the voice of Dai Li.

"Yes, Director."

Song Yingge hung up and headed toward Dai Li’s office. After he was out of sight, an inconspicuous member of the team named Huang Yue took advantage of the empty office to approach Song Yingge’s desk, pick up his briefcase, and look inside.

...

"Take a look at this," Dai Li said, handing a paper to Song Yingge.

"A commission?" Song Yingge’s heart leaped. Wang Zhen was finally being transferred, and Song Yingge was officially appointed as the acting section chief. From now on, his leadership of the Fourth Intelligence Section would be legitimate. Previously, holding the rank of Second Lieutenant while serving as deputy section chief had already been an exceptional promotion, but becoming an acting section chief was unprecedented in the entire Secret Service.

"Thank you for your guidance, Director! I will fulfill my duties and never betray your trust!" Song Yingge gave a crisp military salute.

Dai Li nodded with satisfaction, offered a casual compliment, and asked, "How is the interrogation of Chen Xunlei going?"

"Director, this is the most stubborn man I have ever encountered. I haven't yet found a way to break him," Song Yingge admitted.

Dai Li understood that this was not a failure of effort; anyone else would have faced the same result. He nodded and said, "Your father wrote to me yesterday, asking which department you were assigned to and why you haven't written home in so long."

"That was my negligence. I've been so busy chasing Japanese spies that it completely slipped my mind," Song Yingge said apologetically.

"A child travels a thousand miles, and parents worry," Dai Li remarked. Although a ruthless man, Dai Li was known for his filial piety toward his own mother.

"I will write to them tonight," Song Yingge promised.

Back at the Fourth Intelligence Section, Song Yingge sought out Wang Zhen. "Brother Wang, preparing to head to Shanghai for your new post? Congratulations."

"Congratulations to you too, Brother Song," Wang Zhen replied with a smile. After sharing a few meals, their relationship had grown significantly warmer, especially after the farewell banquet at the brothel. Although his transfer to head the Shanghai Intelligence Section was technically a promotion, moving from the headquarters to the field was often seen as a lateral step. Once one left the inner circle, it was harder to climb the ladder, and society was always quick to favor the influential while trampling the sidelined. Song Yingge was the only one who had hosted a farewell banquet for him, which earned him Wang Zhen's genuine favor.

"Brother Song, I want to give you a word of advice," Wang Zhen said, lowering his voice.

"Please, go ahead," Song Yingge replied.

"Huang Yue," Wang Zhen whispered. In their line of work, everyone had secrets. If they remained buried, things stayed peaceful; if dragged into the light, dismissal would be the least of one's worries—one could easily lose their life. Despite Song Yingge’s short tenure, Wang Zhen suspected his hands were not clean.

Song Yingge’s heart skipped a beat. Was he being watched by Huang Yue? That seemed impossible; if he were being tailed, he surely would have noticed.

Wang Zhen seemed to guess his thoughts and added, "The briefcase."

Song Yingge realized instantly: that dog had gone through his briefcase while he was away. He thanked Wang Zhen sincerely, marking the favor in his mind.

*Who is Huang Yue working for?* Was it Dai Li, or Deputy Director Zheng Jiemin? He couldn't afford to offend either, but dealing with someone like Huang Yue would be easy enough.

Leaving Wang Zhen’s office, Song Yingge walked straight up to Huang Yue. "Have you found any leads on Wang Sheng?"

"No, Section Chief," Huang Yue said, scrambling to his feet.

"Then why are you sitting there? Hatching eggs?" Song Yingge scolded.

"I’ll go check right now," Huang Yue said, starting to walk away.

Song Yingge didn't stop him, but watched the direction he left in, deep in thought. There was a saying: it is not the thief who steals that one fears, but the thief who keeps watch. Even the best intelligence agent leaves traces behind during an operation; if someone were constantly watching, those traces would be magnified infinitely.

*This Huang Yue cannot stay.*

...

After work that evening, Song Yingge went to see Xu Zhong.

"How is your leg?" Song Yingge asked.

"Nothing serious. Is the matter in Shanghai urgent?" Xu Zhong knew Song Yingge never visited without a reason.

"I need you to go there and handle something," Song Yingge said.

"What exactly?"

"I’ve bought six ships. Once you get to Shanghai, find someone to refurbish them—make them look as new as possible. Then, set up a shipping company. Use the ships as collateral to take out loans from Japanese banks. High interest rates don't matter. If the Japanese banks refuse, find the right people and grease some palms. Remember, the more you borrow, the better. Don't worry about paying them back," Song Yingge instructed.

"You don't intend to repay them?" Xu Zhong asked.

"Repay them?" Song Yingge looked puzzled. "Empress Dowager Cixi already footed the bill for that long ago."

Xu Zhong laughed. "You should borrow as much as you can, then."

"Collateralizing six ships should easily get twenty thousand. Once the loans come through, buy more dilapidated ships, fix them up, and go to another Japanese bank for more loans," Song Yingge said.

There were still seven months until the July 7th Incident. Once the war of resistance began, did they really expect him to pay? And if they wanted to seize the ships? Let them have them.