Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 119 Genuine Item
"What happened?" Gu Yansheng asked.

Chen Mo explained the situation.

"It was almost lunchtime when our men saw a group of people leaving mysteriously. After the waiter identified them, it was Gao Zhongwu, whom he thought was Gao Zhongwu, but he was not the person in the newspaper at all!"

"It really is fake." Gu Yansheng frowned slightly. Where is the real one? This became a new problem. This time, there was nowhere to test it. The Japanese had already used the three high-end hotels.

Both the organization and the Military Intelligence Bureau received news that the special envoy was coming to Shanghai. The person should have actually arrived. It's unlikely that the false information was deliberately released to test them. Judging from the timeline, if the Wang Jingwei regime was to be established, they should indeed have made contact during this period.

Liu San asked curiously, "Mr. Gu, did you guess that this location was fake, which is why you went to find this newspaper, or did you just want to confirm it?"

"I'm just guessing. You may not know who Kagesa Yoshiaki is, but I've heard the name before."

Among the notable figures of the traitors, the most famous are Li Shiqun and Ding Mocun.

Among the old Japanese spies, not many people knew Gu Yansheng, but there were two names they had heard of: Kenji Doihara and Yoshiaki Kagesa.

If there were no tests on them, it could be considered a normal meeting. But if there were any tests, then it was definitely this old spy who would make the move.

Of course, Gu Yansheng also has supporting evidence.

"Kagesa Yoshiaki is a top Japanese spy, probably around the same level as Director Dai. He's not simple. We know about the three hotels in Hongkou, and the Japanese know about them too. Two of them were used to test the waters, and leaving one to be occupied is reasonable, but also dangerous. It's like they were prepared to be found."

And do you know which of these three hotels is the safest? It's the Broadway Tower.

That hotel is very new; it was bought by the Japanese at a huge cost. Some Japanese organizations that don't want to show their faces operate there. It's a mixed-use commercial and residential hotel. If we're really going to make arrangements, I think the other two locations could be used as test sites, while it would be safer to keep the real entity here.

And it's more prestigious.

"The Japanese tested you once, and then tested the intelligence headquarters once. So who are they testing at the Kaifu Hotel?" Chen Mo didn't understand. The Japanese must have a lot of free time.

"Testing us like this," Gu Yansheng chuckled. "That's called collusion between the Special Agent Headquarters and the Municipal Government. Aren't we just falling into their trap? Or, to put it another way, they didn't really test us. They just used us to spread the information to the ears of the Military Intelligence Bureau, and then set traps everywhere. You can choose whichever you choose, because no matter what you choose, it's wrong."

"What do we do now? We can't find him."

Chen Mo frowned. "There are traps everywhere, but they could be everywhere at the same time. We're really confused by the Japanese now. But we have to admire them; their tactic is indeed brilliant."

"Let me think." Gu Yansheng pondered what clues he could find. As long as the person was still in Hongkou, they needed a place to live.

A small Japanese-style hotel?
A cluster of villas next to a military camp?
It couldn't possibly be Su Xiwen's apartment, could it? It's not a good omen to say that it's the place of a runaway official. It probably isn't.
“I’ve got it.” Gu Yansheng thought of someone and said confidently, “As long as they are still in Shanghai, the talks are not over. We should not be distracted by their information and start over.”

"How come?"

"Are the Japanese going to hold talks?"

"Correct."

“Two people are definitely going to participate: Hasegawa from the consulate and Ling Xianwen, the secretary-general of the municipal government. If we can’t find them, we’ll find a car! If we can’t find accommodation, we’ll find the place where they’re meeting!”

Chen Mo's eyes lit up: "Let the Japanese lead the way. There may be a thousand fakes outside, but the people attending this meeting must be real. This can't be fake, right?"

"Probably not." Gu Yansheng shook his head.

Although Ling Xianwen had lied once, Gu Yansheng believed that it was at the request of the Japanese, not that Ling Xianwen had deliberately lied to him.

If he remembered correctly, Ling Xianwen had said before the meeting that he had attended meetings before, and that he actually knew that the meeting that day was a hoax.

Liu San cursed, "If this person is real or not, we'll shoot him on the street if we see him!"

"Hahaha, that works too."

"Don't be so happy yet. In Hongkou, they can get through with just a word, but you can be stopped by the military police at any time while driving or walking in Hongkou. There's a possibility of getting lost, so be careful tomorrow."

Time was of the essence, so Gu Yansheng contacted Shen Linshen.

"Time is a bit tight. This might require your men to be involved as well. How's the action team recruitment going?"

"We have enough people, seven in total, two women and five men. Including me and my radio operator, that makes nine people. You can use them anytime you need them."

"The Japanese in charge of this matter is named Kagesa Yoshiaki. He's a veteran spy with extensive experience, and he's set up many traps," Gu Yansheng explained.

"Now the Military Intelligence Bureau is splitting into two groups to follow the cars, but Ling Xianwen and Hasegawa's cars can pass through Hongkou, but their cars may not. Military police checks and such waste time, and if they are stopped, they will lose track of them. It's the fourth day, and there is really not enough time."

Have our people find some excuse to enter Hongkou District. They should spread out and search for this car at all the major intersections. See if they've passed by. If they see it, call you, and you can tell me the number later. I'll give you the phone number later. I'll book a room and gather information there.

"Okay, I see."

Gu Yansheng needed to confirm with Liu San again.

"I'll find a hotel tomorrow. If anything unexpected happens, call the hotel and report the situation immediately. If the target is lost, tell me right away. I know some people and I'll ask them to help find him."

"Okay." Liu San assumed Gu Yansheng was referring to government connections and didn't pay much attention.

After finding Liu San, Gu Yansheng went to find Lu Bowen.

Tell him to use a fake identity to book two rooms in the concession, the two rooms being across from each other.

One phone call was made to the Military Intelligence Bureau, and the other to the underground Communist Party. Next, a map was prepared, circling the entire Hongkou district.

Gu Yansheng received a call from the Military Intelligence Bureau, while Lu Bowen received a call from the Communist Party.

Ding-ling-ling. Ding-ling-ling.

As expected, the Military Intelligence Bureau lost track of them. Soon after, the Red Party's surveillance at the street corners came into play. When the car passed by the intersection, Lu Bowen received a call and came to report to Gu Yansheng. Gu Yansheng confirmed the route and asked them to adjust their latest location and change the neighborhood.

Then call the Military Intelligence Bureau and tell them which direction to continue the pursuit.

They continued their pursuit, and Gu Yansheng drew circles on the map.

By drawing a direction based on the vehicle's trajectory, the target area can be narrowed down to the intersection of four roads, forming a grid, based on the positions of the four Red Party members.

The "口" (mouth) shape in the grid pattern represents the point where we need to converge today.

The rest is up to the Military Intelligence Bureau.

"found it!"

That evening, Liu San rushed over, panting, and reported, "Found it! This time we really found it! Not only did we find the meeting place, but we also found the accommodations!"
The meeting was held in a villa, whose owner was unknown; it was just a fairly ordinary-looking three-story detached house.

Do you know where you live? It's a place I really can't imagine even if I rack my brains.

Hongkou Grand Hotel!

After Liu San finished speaking in one breath, he sneered, "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it. That place is for ordinary people to live in. It's four stories high, and anyone can stay there as long as they pay. The accommodation is very basic."

The people who usually live there are mostly traveling merchants, Japanese ronin, Koreans, and Taiwanese. Mr. Gu, you know that Japanese people love to drink, so there are people coming and going in that place in the middle of the night. When Japanese people drink too much, they also like to sing.

I truly never imagined the Japanese would place Wang Jingwei's men in a place like this.

"You wouldn't believe how safe it is." Now that they've found it, Gu Yansheng can relax a bit, and it sounds like this place isn't that difficult to raid.

"Is it easy to get in?"

"It's not easy to get in." Liu San sighed. "It's usually easy to get in because there are plenty of rooms, but when we asked today, they said the rooms were full. The entire floor had been booked by some South Manchuria Railway Survey Team, and there weren't enough rooms. But from what we observed, there were rooms available for Japanese people. It's obvious that they're only letting Japanese people stay there."

Gu Yansheng thought for a moment and then asked, "What did Chen Mo say?"

"The team leader observed the surrounding environment and felt there was still an opportunity to make a move. There's a Japanese armory on the street behind the Hongkou Grand Hotel. If we can blow up the armory, then the surrounding area will catch fire and become very chaotic."

"Wait, you're going to blow up someone's armory just to steal a document?" Gu Yansheng was shocked. As expected of the Iron-Blooded Assassination Squad, their methods were quite unique.

Their thought processes are more unique than others.

Liu San chuckled: "Don't be surprised. We've been planning to blow up this place for a while now. Don't be fooled by the number of guards or how difficult it seems. We've already figured out the situation pretty well. As long as we succeed, a big fire will break out nearby, and all sorts of ambulances, fire trucks, and a bunch of random people will come out."

At that distance, even the hotels wouldn't be spared; people would definitely be out, and it would be chaotic, giving us a chance to get in.

We looked at the glass; the shockwave from the explosion would likely shatter it directly. Even if it didn't, in the chaos of the explosion, we could just smash it open with a gun, rummage around, and get inside.

Gu Yansheng was stunned. What a talent!

"Has the floor been decided?"

"It's confirmed. It's on the fourth floor. There are two rooms. We determined this based on the lights they turned on after they went back. We'll head straight to those two rooms. There aren't even any safes there. It's too easy."

"What will you do if you get blocked?"

"At night, if we choose to operate at night, the explosion will sever all the nearby power and telephone lines. The hotel will be without any power. Who are we going to ambush? He won't even be able to see who it is."

Gu Yansheng said no more; it was best to leave the operation to the professionals.

However, he still had a problem after thinking about it. "Once the armory explodes, the Japanese will definitely guess that someone from the Military Intelligence Bureau is behind it. Even if they can't find you for a while, the military police will definitely block the entrance and exit to Hongkou. Then there will be a large-scale manhunt. How will you get out?"

Liu San smiled slightly and made a wave-like gesture: "Don't forget what the Green Gang does. Small bridges, flowing water, and humble dwellings."

"If we jump into the Huangpu River, he can block the roads, but can he block the entire river? We can just dock at any bank and get on."

"Then let's blast it." Since that had already been considered, Gu Yansheng had nothing more to say.

Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. Who told Kageyama to make things so complicated? He secretly photographed a document, fine. If they wouldn't let him, then let's just blow it up.

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

"There's nothing I can help with. The only person in the operation who knows your information is the team leader. He'll bring potassium cyanide with him, and if the operation fails, he definitely won't implicate you."

However, the possibility is slim. In that situation, even if something were to happen, the likelihood of being shot dead is much higher; the chance of needing potassium cyanide is unlikely.

He could say such things so calmly, and Gu Yansheng even saw a hint of joy in his expression, as if he had found a solution to the problem.

They are truly a group of people who completely disregard life and death.

(End of this chapter)