Spy Wars: Return of the Red Luan

Chapter 150 Chen Jiehua's First Arrival in Beiping

On June 2, Chen Jiehua returned to Shanghai. He first went to the consulate general to see if there were any urgent documents, but actually just to see if there was any valuable intelligence. Then he grabbed Watanabe Watanabe and drove him to the Aoki Pharmacy flagship store.

Currently, the main store is still managed by Lao Xiong. Because pharmaceutical companies from the United States, Germany and other countries saw the booming sales of medicines in the Republic of China, Western pharmacies have gradually sprung up everywhere in Shanghai and other parts of the Republic of China, and the competition is becoming increasingly fierce.

In terms of price, Western Pharmacy naturally sold at low prices in order to seize the market share of Qingmu Pharmacy. Chen Jiehua deliberately maintained the original price and did not follow suit by lowering prices and engaging in a price war.

Engaging in price wars is a low-level tactic and completely unnecessary. If I wanted to seize market share, I had plenty of other ways. But why bother? I don't care about profits from pharmaceuticals; I'd rather the Japanese army not make any money.

Less business, less free time, and less money—that's what drives you to further corruption and depravity, isn't it? It's hard to go from extravagance to frugality.

Seeing that there weren't many people buying medicine in the store, Chen Jiehua felt relieved. He exchanged a few glances and a secret signal with Lao Xiong. Everything was fine, the organization was alright, and there was no valuable intelligence. Okay, I'll move on to the next place.

He continued to direct Watanabe to drive him to the Marine Corps headquarters, and after getting out of the car, he let Watanabe go back.

Chen Jiehua returned to his office, where his secretary placed urgent documents on his desk. After processing several of the documents on the desk, Chen Jiehua saw a "Defense Assistance Order," which ordered a five-ship fleet from the First Overseas Fleet to Shandong to assist in the defense of Shandong and protect the lives and property of Japanese nationals.

Assisting in defense? What kind of defense is this? It seems you've found out that something big might be happening in North China.

I can make use of this. I'll reluctantly make the trip myself. The flagship "Izumo" will stay in Shanghai for Lao Liu to use for practice, so I'll take the Fushimi, Sumida, and Toba to Qingdao.

After arranging the fleet's departure, Chen Jiehua went home first, since the fleet needed time to prepare and would depart early the next morning.

Chen Jiehua finally figured out a way to enter the Northeast strategy that had been troubling him! He decided to take his "second wife" on a trip to Beiping!

When I got home, Mio and Zhu Huiwu were both there. Perfect, let's chat.

"Comrade Huiwu, pack your luggage and clothes, and come with me to Beiping tomorrow morning."

"Meixu, keep track of the time. Once you see the news in the Shanghai newspapers that I took Huiwu shopping in Beiping, send a telegram to your father-in-law, telling him how you felt wronged. Do you understand?"

"What kind of operation is this?" The two women asked the question almost simultaneously.

"The situation is very delicate right now. I need to go back to headquarters and then go to Manchuria through headquarters. It's very important, but given my current status, I need a reasonable excuse to go to Manchuria. So I'd like to use my father-in-law to get him to summon me back."

"What if your father doesn't call you back?"

"He will definitely call me back."

"Alright, then you go back to headquarters, what will happen to Comrade Huiwu?"

"Comrade Huiwu needs to stay in Beiping temporarily to lead Qing Teng Ba and Qing Teng Jiu to expand the intelligence network in North China."

Given Chen Jiehua's current status, it's inconvenient for him to go anywhere. Whether before or after the war, running around aimlessly and constantly changing places will definitely arouse suspicion. Therefore, Chen Jiehua has no choice but to resort to a scheme.

If it weren't for my insistence, and because my combat skills are sufficient, headquarters would definitely have assigned me bodyguards, which would have further restricted my future activities. Therefore, my rank cannot be promoted any further; any further promotion would only mean returning to Tokyo as a mascot, with no chance of advancement. So, I might consider causing trouble later on, to suppress my achievements.

The next morning, Chen Jiehua took Zhu Huiwu, who was dressed in new clothes, back to the Marine Corps headquarters, where his secretary sent a car to take him to the naval dock.
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Dividing line —
On June 4, 1931 (the 20th year of the Republic of China), Chen Jiehua took Zhu Huiwu to Beiping for a trip. The two went shopping together, ate Peking duck at Qianmen, and climbed the Great Wall. During this time, they were photographed intimately by reporters on several occasions.

On the evening of the 5th, the two met Qing Tengba and Qing Tengjiu, who were posing as a couple, in their room on the second floor of the Six Nations Hotel in the embassy district. The two rooms were opposite each other. The first thing Chen Jiehua did upon checking into the hotel was, as was his habit, to check the eavesdropping devices.

"Greetings, Master! Greetings, Second Mistress!"

"Uh!" These two are speechless. They actually know about my time in Shanghai. But there's no way to explain it. Chen Jiehua glanced at Zhu Huiwu; the lady didn't react, so why is he making such a big fuss?

What are the recent findings?

"Reporting to Master, General Zhang of the Republic of China has returned to Beiping. His activities in the past few days have been the same as usual. In the morning, he takes his wife to Zengshengkui on Dafosi East Street for breakfast, and then goes back to the Shuncheng Prince's Mansion to work. In the evening, he likes to go to Dashilan to listen to operas."

“My usual residence is the Shuncheng Prince’s Mansion, but I recently acquired a new residence at No. 5 Cuihua Street, which I visit occasionally.”

"He eats Zeng Sheng Kui for breakfast every day? Doesn't he get tired of it?"

"Reporting to the master, we go there almost every day. General Zhang is a regular customer of Zengshengkui. Around 8 o'clock, Zengshengkui will reserve a seat at table number 2 and not let anyone else sit there."

"You can go back now, but leave the room across the street for me."

After the two maids left, Zhu Huiwu voiced the question that had been nagging at him for so long, "You took me shopping today, buying me cheongsams and Western accessories. It wasn't all for General Zhang, was it? General Zhang, General Zhang Xueliang?"

"Hehe, I thought you wouldn't ask."

"I'm just afraid you have ulterior motives and will use me to seduce you."

"It seems that our Comrade Zhu Huiwu still doesn't quite trust me."

"Trust is built on mutual acquaintance and understanding. Back in Shanghai, following you was not part of the plan. Old Wang only let us follow you in a moment of desperation. But we didn't expect you to be of such high status, and that your wife is Japanese. Now, the group you've arranged, apart from me, is all Japanese. Just now, the two of them called you 'master,' their eyes were full of fanaticism. I really know almost nothing about you now."

Zhu Huiwu finally seized the opportunity and poured out all his doubts like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

"The proprietress is a very straightforward person. That's good; it's better to ask questions than to keep them bottled up. Keeping things bottled up can easily lead to misunderstandings. In our position, misunderstandings are the worst thing."

"Now I feel that you brought me out to Beiping just to seduce General Zhang with your beauty."

"Don't worry, the organization has strict regulations against using honey traps. I don't need to use such a low-level tactic to see Zhang Xiaoliu."

“His current wife, Miss Zhao Si, is young and beautiful, and she is almost inseparable from him. He takes her with him to meals, work, and operas. I need a quiet environment to have a good talk with Zhang Xiaoliu. Your task is to accompany Miss Zhao Si to talk about fashion and clothing accessories, and not to disturb us.”

(End of this chapter)