Chapter 40: Identifying a Comrade

Zhao Rui was dressed plainly and wore no makeup.
The only highlight was the butterfly hairpin in her bobbed hair.
She always spoke in a slow, gentle, and soft manner, as if nothing could cause her emotions to fluctuate.
This kind of person was soft on the outside yet strong on the inside, and lacked excessive material desires, making the probability of her being turned by the Japanese invaders very low.

"Why did you choose to work at the Secret Service?" Song Yingge asked.
"After graduation, I couldn't find a good job. My uncle said the benefits at the Secret Service were good, so I came."
After getting into the car, Zhao Rui simply looked out the window at the scenery, and only turned her head when she heard Song Yingge's voice.

"Did you know what the Secret Service did before coming here?" Song Yingge asked.
"Yes," Zhao Rui replied softly.
Although the two exchanged words, their eyes never met.
Clearly, Zhao Rui had no desire to have excessive contact with Song Yingge.
Song Yingge naturally realized this as well.

The entire journey passed in silence until they arrived at the Grand World Theatre. As they stepped out of the car, Song Yingge suddenly asked, "How many field agents are currently in the Secret Service in total?"
Zhao Rui showed almost no hesitation. "Team Leader Song is joking, how could I possibly know that?"
Hearing this, Song Yingge broke into a brilliant smile.
He knew that although Zhao Rui appeared calm on the surface, her nerves must be extremely taut.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible for her to answer this question so promptly.

"How many people are in the Action Team?" Song Yingge asked.
"I really haven't paid attention to that," Zhao Rui said.
"How many people are in your family?" Song Yingge asked rapidly.
"I..." Zhao Rui instinctively wanted to give a negative answer, but reacted instantly. "There are six people in my family in total."
"Let's go, it's about to start." Song Yingge nodded and began walking toward the theatre.
Zhao Rui stood in place, watching Song Yingge's departing back, a cold sweat breaking out across her back.
"This Song Yingge is truly not easy to deal with."

After the play ended, Song Yingge escorted Zhao Rui home.
Along the way, Song Yingge did not continue to probe Zhao Rui.
The possibility of Zhao Rui being a Japanese spy was very low, and probing further would not yield any new information.
The only way was to use the clumsiest yet most practical method—tailing—to truly determine which faction she belonged to.

After watching Zhao Rui walk into her home, Song Yingge parked the car at a distance and walked back to Ganyu Lane.
Coincidentally, there was a small inn diagonally opposite Zhao Rui's house.
After renting a room, Song Yingge stationed himself by the window and began to keep watch.
Tailing was tedious, and sometimes it even felt like a waste of life.
Yet this task could not be entrusted to others.

The night passed quickly, and Zhao Rui showed no unusual movements.
As it approached seven o'clock, people gradually began to stir in the alley.
The gates of the Zhao residence opened, and Zhao Rui walked out.
Song Yingge left the inn and followed behind her.

During this time, Zhao Rui performed several anti-surveillance maneuvers, but Song Yingge anticipated them all in advance and evaded detection.
Zhao Rui's destination was the smoked beef potstickers breakfast shop north of Ganyu Lane.
As one of the four legendary breakfast delicacies of Jinling, this shop had a steady stream of customers.
Zhao Rui stood in line, yawning, looking utterly bored.
After buying her breakfast, Zhao Rui walked straight back home.

Half an hour later, Zhao Rui left her house again, heading in the direction of Caodu Lane.
When passing by Louzi Street, she noticeably slowed her pace and executed several more anti-surveillance maneuvers in succession.
Confirming that there was no one around, Zhao Rui stood on tiptoe, reached up to remove a loose brick from the wall, stuffed a slip of paper into the gap, and then carefully put the brick back in place.
Afterward, she left Louzi Street, crossed the bridge, and marked a utility pole as she passed it.

Song Yingge witnessed everything. Once Zhao Rui had walked far away, he returned to Louzi Street and retrieved the slip of paper.
"Chen has been secretly executed, I am being targeted, request a meeting."
"Chen" likely referred to Chen Xunlei.
This piece of intelligence was still insufficient to determine which faction Zhao Rui belonged to.
He had to continue tailing her.

Placing the slip of paper back where it was, Song Yingge squatted in Louzi Street until the afternoon, only to see an unexpected person.
Old Zhao actually appeared at the street corner.
"It's over, I think I've violated discipline."
This was the first thought that flashed through Song Yingge's mind.
Undercover agents were strictly prohibited from engaging in lateral contacts.
Although Song Yingge's original intention was to vet Japanese spies, the fact remained that he now knew Zhao Rui's identity.
Furthermore, he could not pretend to be ignorant.
After all, failing to report known information was a crime compounded.

Song Yingge stopped hiding and appeared on Louzi Street with an awkward expression.
Old Zhao looked at Song Yingge in astonishment.
Acting as if nothing were amiss, Song Yingge continued walking forward.
As he passed by Old Zhao, he muttered under his breath, "While vetting Japanese spies, I discovered Zhao Rui's identity."
"Meet at the bookstore tonight," Old Zhao replied.
The two brushed past each other in this manner.

Returning to Caodu Lane, Song Yingge shifted his full attention to Gu Ying.
It was a multiple-choice question between two options; eliminate the incorrect choice, and the remaining one would be correct.
Even an elementary school student could solve this problem.

Gu Ying was a graduate of the Zhejiang Police Training Academy and was assigned directly to the Telecommunications Department at headquarters upon graduation.
To say she had been bought off by the Japanese before entering the police academy was possible, but the probability was extremely low.
Most likely, she was turned by the Japanese after beginning her work.
The methods used by the Japanese to subvert agents were none other than power, money, and sex.
Since Gu Ying was a woman serving in the Secret Service, power and sex were of no use.
The only remaining option was money.

Therefore, Song Yingge's objective was clear: investigate Gu Ying's finances.
She must possess a huge sum of money of unexplained origin.
However, he could not audit her accounts alone.
Even just for the sake of appearances, he had to investigate several other people as well.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why, out of so many people, he happened to target Gu Ying, and hit the jackpot on the very first try.
If that were the case, anyone would suspect that Song Yingge had issues.

Based on personnel files, Song Yingge selected several female agents with ordinary family backgrounds and spent two days investigating their financial statuses.
On the third day, he finally began investigating Gu Ying.

Taking advantage of the time Gu Ying was working in Caodu Lane, Song Yingge sneaked into her residence.
The room appeared modest, but soon Song Yingge discovered a hidden compartment behind the dressing table.
Inside the compartment lay a small wooden box.
When Song Yingge opened it, he found it packed to the brim with gold and jewelry.
Beneath the jewelry, he discovered another two thousand and some legal tender banknotes.
Given Gu Ying's salary, it was utterly impossible for her to possess such massive wealth.

Song Yingge put everything back in its place, erased all traces of his presence, and returned to Caodu Lane.
"Director, the female Japanese spy lurking at headquarters has been tracked down," Song Yingge reported.
"So fast?" Dai Li was somewhat surprised.
"The conventional methods used by the Japanese for subversion are power, wealth, and sex. Here at headquarters, the Japanese invaders lack the capability to manipulate promotions, and since she is a female traitor, both power and sex are useless.
"Thus, your subordinate started the investigation from the angle of wealth. After filtering out those with ordinary family backgrounds, I conducted a process of elimination. Sure enough, after barely two days of investigation, your subordinate discovered a large amount of wealth of unknown origin in the home of Gu Ying from the Telecommunications Department. Given Gu Ying's income, it would be absolutely impossible for her to afford such items," Song Yingge explained.

Song Yingge's train of thought was clear, logical, and well-substantiated.
"Good," Dai Li praised.
He was growing increasingly satisfied with Song Yingge nowadays.
If he had a daughter, he would have wanted to recruit him as a son-in-law.
"There's no need to rush the arrest just yet; keep watching her," Dai Li instructed.
"Yes, Director," Song Yingge acknowledged.