Walking Straight into a Dead End

Half a month ago, the Chairman of the Political Participation Council, Wang Jihe, along with a group of high-ranking officials, defected to the island nation. Assisted by island intelligence agents, they fled Chongqing and should be in Hong Kong by now.

Wang Tianfeng’s words caused Chen Wenqi, who had just sat down, to leap to her feet in astonishment. The number two figure turning traitor... this would be a devastating blow to the Nationalist Party’s morale while also encouraging more people to turn traitor.

Li Wensheng furrowed his brow slightly. The number two man turning traitor matched the historical timeline of his previous life, but it was happening several months earlier.

Wang Tianfeng turned an upside-down teacup right-side up on the table, picked up the teapot, and began to pour.

As the sound of flowing water filled the air, he continued, “With the backing of the island nation, a puppet government will be established in Nanjing, much like Manchukuo.

“The island nation has recently established an agency called the Mei Organ. All affairs of the puppet government will be overseen by the Mei Organ.

“To establish a government, one needs money. The Mei Organ is currently working behind the scenes to vigorously lobby wealthy merchants in Shanghai, forcing them to fund it.”

“You want me to kill someone?” Li Wensheng asked.

Wang Tianfeng put down the teapot, pushed two cups filled with tea toward Li Wensheng and Chen Wenqi, picked up another cup, took a sip, and then nodded.

“Yes, but not Wang Ji. They are determined to establish a puppet government, and that cannot be stopped. If we kill Wang Ji, there is still Zhou Fo; if we kill Zhou Fo, there is still Zeng Zhongming. Relying on assassination alone cannot stop this. We can only weaken their strength while the puppet government has yet to be established.

“A puppet government is still a government, and any government requires money. The island nation is also short of funds right now and cannot provide much financial support. Most of the money must still come from merchants. Across the entire country, Shanghai has the highest concentration of wealthy merchants, which is why the Mei Organ is desperately courting them here.

“No one knows which wealthy merchant will actually cough up the money. Therefore, we must assassinate a figure of immense importance to strike fear into them and prevent them from funding the regime.

“That important figure is Imperial Japanese Navy Vice Admiral Kōichi Yamatera.”

Just as Wang Tianfeng’s voice trailed off, Chen Wenqi, who had just reseated herself, firmly declared, “No way. It’s too dangerous.”

Wang Tianfeng shifted his gaze to Chen Wenqi and smiled. “He killed Shōwa Hirohito and Lieutenant General Ryōsuke Yoshizumi stationed in Nanjing with a single shot and escaped safely. Killing Kōichi Yamatera holds no danger for him at all.”

“Regardless, absolutely not.”

Chen Wenqi’s tone brooked no argument, leaving Wang Tianfeng with no choice but to look back at Li Wensheng.

“Can you help with this favor?”

“In the past, I could. But not anymore.”

A trace of disappointment flashed in Wang Tianfeng’s eyes, and he smiled with a hint of melancholy. “I understand. You have a family now; you can’t afford to live the way you used to.”

“However, I can kill Eiji Iwai.”

Wang Tianfeng froze for a moment, a joyful smile breaking across his face.

“No—” Before Chen Wenqi could finish, Li Wensheng turned to her and said, “Rest assured, it won’t be inside a military camp. I can handle it.”

Seeing the resolute determination in Li Wensheng’s eyes, Chen Wenqi said no more to dissuade him.

Li Wensheng picked up his teacup, took a sip, set it down, and met Wang Tianfeng’s gaze directly.

“Instructor, spit it out. What else is on your mind? If your only goal was to have me kill someone, it wouldn’t be enough to warrant waiting for me here.”

The moment Li Wensheng finished speaking, Chen Wenqi’s expression shifted. She glared at Wang Tianfeng, her eyes filled with revulsion.

“Clap, clap!” Wang Tianfeng clapped his hands and smiled. “Clever.”

Then, Wang Tianfeng收敛 (withdrew) his smile and said gravely, “Intelligence uncovered by the Military Statistics Bureau indicates that once the puppet government is established, it will issue a new currency called the Central Reserve Bank notes. My objective is to obtain the printing plates for these notes, use them to mass-print the currency, and cause the puppet government to collapse from a financial crisis.

“To obtain the plates, I must infiltrate the puppet government. As my stepping stone to gain entry, I intend to hand over the Military Statistics Bureau’s Shanghai Station as a gift to the island nation.”

Chen Wenqi sprang to her feet once more in shock. The Shanghai Station of the Military Statistics Bureau was a Class-A major station. Using a Class-A station as a stepping stone was sheer madness!

Although Li Wensheng knew Wang Tianfeng was a madman whose actions defied reason, using the Shanghai Station as a stepping stone still far exceeded his expectations.

Furthermore, even if he successfully completed the mission, he would certainly die.

Headquarters could never publicly declare that Wang Tianfeng had betrayed the Shanghai Station merely to complete a mission; that would chill the hearts of every operative in the entire Bureau. Wang Tianfeng had to die!

After recovering from his shock, Li Wensheng asked in a deep voice, “A single set of currency printing plates is not worth trading the entire Shanghai Station of the Military Statistics Bureau. You must have other motives.”

“As expected of my most proud student. Others would only think I’ve gone mad, but you actually calculated that the trade isn’t worth it.

“I do have other plans, but I cannot share them with you. The only reason I told you about the printing plates is because I need your assistance.”

Wang Tianfeng’s expression of gratification left Li Wensheng somewhat dumbfounded. *My most proud student? You certainly didn’t show me any special favor back at the training camp.*

“Instructor, thank you for the compliment. However, this mission is a one-way trip. Even if you complete it, you won’t be coming back.”

“Correct, I won’t come back. But in a time of national crisis, anyone can die. Why can’t I?

“You and I used to be cut from the same cloth; you should understand my mindset.

“My mindset right now is no different from yours when you rushed off to the island nation to assassinate Shōwa Hirohito.”

Gazing at Wang Tianfeng—who radiated a righteous yet somewhat manic aura—Chen Wenqi, who had just sat down again, felt a complex mix of emotions.

A moment ago, she loathed Wang Tianfeng for dragging Li Wensheng into danger. But now, seeing Wang Tianfeng willingly walk down a path of certain death for the sake of his mission, she hardly knew what to say.

Li Wensheng stared at Wang Tianfeng’s resolute eyes. After a few seconds of silence, he asked softly, “What do you need me to do?”

“While the Mei Organ is courting wealthy merchants, it is also preparing to establish a new intelligence department. The personnel of this department will all be traitors from the Military Statistics Bureau and the Central Statistics Bureau. They intend to use Chinese agents to fight Chinese agents.

“This intelligence department will be established next month. According to intelligence gathered, the ones slated to hold power are most likely Ding Mozhun, Li Shiqun, and Tang Huimin.

“As a colonel of the Military Statistics Bureau who will be betraying the Shanghai Station, I will certainly enter the core of power within this intelligence department.

“However, because my defection is too recent, my position in the inner circle will still rank behind those three.

“I need you, after I infiltrate that department, to assassinate both me and those three.

“You must assassinate four people, but only one can truly die. Of those three, it doesn’t matter which one dies, but the other three must all sustain severe injuries—preferably broken limbs.”

Having said this, Wang Tianfeng reconsidered a detail and added, “As for me, try to break my arm, not my legs.”

“Very well. The moment I see you in the newspapers proclaiming your pro-Japanese stance, I will make my move.”

Wang Tianfeng let out a long breath and smiled faintly. “Thank you. Coming to you was a last resort; this mission is top-secret, and apart from a few individuals involved in the operation, I have no other help.

“Compared to you, the marksmanship of those people is far too inferior. If I let them do it, I’m afraid they’d actually blow my brains out.”

“I am more than happy to help with a task like this.” Li Wensheng stood up, took two steps back, raised his hand, and executed a military salute to Wang Tianfeng. “Instructor, I fear we will never have the chance to converse again after today. Take care of yourself.”

“Take care!” Wang Tianfeng stood up and returned the military salute.

Li Wensheng lowered his hand, walked over to the washstand, triggered the secret mechanism, and delivered two swift karate chops in the dark, knocking out Malone and Haynes while they were still fast asleep. He then dragged their unconscious bodies out.

Stepping out of the safe house, Chen Wenqi glanced back at the closed courtyard door, her expression somewhat dejected. “Is he your instructor?”

“Yes, my instructor from the training camp days. When I went to the island nation to assassinate Shōwa Hirohito, he was also dispatched there by the Bureau.”

“Does he...” Chen Wenqi hesitated for a long moment before continuing, “Does he not have a family?”

“I don’t know.” Li Wensheng couldn’t exactly say he was in agony, but a heavy sense of blockage weighed on his chest.

“Sigh!” Chen Wenqi let out a soft sigh and said no more.

The patrolling police officers were still fast asleep. Walking with light footsteps, the two of them safely returned to their apartment.

Dropping Malone and Haynes into a corner, the two lay down on their respective beds, staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep for a long, long time.