If you had to choose an identity to go undercover, you'd choose a gynecologist.

Helpless, Chen Qing went downstairs, opened the door, and saw that Xing'er had returned, along with Chen Xia.

When Xing'er saw Chen Qing, she hugged him and cried, "Honey, I heard that you were arrested by the 76th Division. They all said you wouldn't be coming back. I'm so happy to see you."

Chen Qing thought that things definitely wouldn't work out today, so she quickly comforted him, "Okay, okay, it's alright now, I'm back perfectly fine, aren't I?"

"I'm so glad you're back. You scared me to death."

Chen Xia opened her innocent eyes wide and asked, "Dr. Chen, where did my brother go?"

Chen Qing felt a pang of sadness and tenderly stroked her hair, saying, "Your brother has gone on a long trip. He'll be back in a while."

He knew that once Chen He left, he would probably never return.

Chen Xia burst into tears: "Dr. Chen, tell me, was my brother killed by those bad people?"

Chen Qing forced a smile and comforted him, "No, before your brother left, he told you to eat well, study hard, and that he would come back when you know many words."

Remembering that his landlady was still upstairs, Chen Qing quickly took out a hundred yuan and said to Xing'er, "Take her to the street to buy some good food and some wine and dishes. We'll celebrate tonight."

"Hmm!" Xing'er understood. Chen He might not be coming back. Looking at the pitiful child, her nose tingled with sadness. She took Chen Xia's hand and said softly, "Chen Xia, how about Auntie takes you to the street to buy candied hawthorns?"

Chen Qing took out a ten-yuan note and gave it to her. Xing'er complained, "Prices change every day, and money is becoming less and less valuable."

Chen Qing then remembered that after the establishment of the Wang Jingwei regime, inflation of the legal tender had become the norm. In the early days of the Wang Jingwei regime, a few legal tenders could buy a pound of rice, but in the later days it would cost hundreds or thousands of legal tenders.

The common fever reducer in the pharmacy used to cost 10 French francs, but now it will cost 500 or even thousands. When the neighbors buy medicine, they often carry stacks of French francs, as thick as bricks.

Later, the Japanese devised a counterfeit currency plan, painstakingly printing 4 billion counterfeit bills in preparation for disrupting Chongqing's financial system.

As a result of the shortage of supplies in Chongqing, the prices skyrocketed during the two years of war, and the Chongqing government printed 1890 billion yuan in real money in one year, which baffled the Japanese, who called the old man the Wolf of Wall Street.

No, it's the wolves of Huayuankou!

Later on, people only accepted silver dollars. They even considered the legal tender too hard to wipe their bottoms. When burning paper money at graves, a bundle of legal tender couldn't even get a dozen ghost money. So people simply burned real money directly.

Chen Qing thought that turning Zhou Fuhai to defect and transport supplies seemed to be an urgent matter.

After seeing Xing'er off, Chen Qing hurried upstairs. The landlady was already dressed and glared at him with annoyance.

Chen Qing was a little embarrassed, scratched his head, and asked, "Shall we continue?"

"Continue what? It's already too cold. Come to my house another day when Xiaobao isn't home," the landlady said irritably.

"Alright then." Chen Qing lost interest and saw the landlady out. He sat there until closing time. It was almost nine o'clock when he went upstairs, took out a radio and codebook from under the floor, and started listening to the radio.

The task was originally assigned to Zhou Haichao, but now he's all alone again and has to continue this habit by himself.

There are no new instructions from headquarters. The Lunar New Year is just around the corner, so there shouldn't be any missions.

...............

At the execution ground of the military police headquarters, a blackened wooden pillar stood in the center. Chen He was tightly bound to it with thick hemp ropes, the ropes at his wrists and ankles digging deep into his flesh, and the dark red blood seeping out congealed into hard scabs on his tattered prison uniform.

His cheeks were bruised and swollen, and the corner of his mouth was torn, with congealed scabs sealing most of his mouth.

To avoid revealing a single word of information, he bit off his own tongue, and now could only make hoarse, guttural sounds from his throat.

Xu Tian stood not far from the wooden pillar, looking at the man in front of him who had been tortured beyond recognition. His heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand, making it hard to breathe.

Is this the "murderer" who killed his father?

But my father was a traitor despised by everyone. This man was a patriot who fought against the Japanese for the country and the people. What wrong did he do by killing the traitor?

He personally dragged him out of his hiding place, and now he wants to end his life with his own hands. How is this any different from those traitors who aid and abet evil?

Am I destined to follow in my father's footsteps?

Araki shoved his sidearm into Xu's hand, his voice cold and hard: "Xu-san, he is the murderer who killed your father. Kill him and avenge your father."

Xu Tian's gaze fell on Chen He's unyielding eyes, and his throat tightened.

This man of unwavering integrity, who would rather bite off his own tongue than betray his comrades, died by his own hand.

His hands trembled slightly as he took the gun from Araki, barely able to hold it steady. He fired, his hands stained with blood, and there was no turning back.

This is what Araki Yui wanted to see.

Xu Tian's finger rested on the trigger, but it felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.

He could feel Chen He's gaze, a gaze that held no resentment, only a trace of pity, as if looking at a lost child.

"Kill him!" Araki's tone already revealed a hint of impatience.

stop!"

A sharp shout shattered the deathly silence of the execution ground, followed by a cacophony of footsteps, shouts, and the sounds of bodies colliding.

A figure broke through the military police's blockade and stumbled in, his clothes somewhat disheveled and his face full of urgency and panic.

Araki's expression changed drastically: "Chen Shan, what are you doing here?"

Chen Shan's gaze immediately fell on Chen He, who was perched on the wooden pillar, and his heart skipped a beat.

He staggered forward, his voice frantic: "Colonel Araki, please spare him! He's my brother, spare his life, I'll do anything you ask!"

"You're saying he's your brother?" Araki raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, before turning deep and unfathomable.

"Yes! He's my own brother! Years ago he left home to join the army, and I never knew he went to Chongqing. Chen Xia is still in his hands. If you kill him, I'll never see my sister again! Please, spare his life!"

His voice was choked with sobs, and he even bowed slightly, his eyes filled with pleading.

Chen Xia is his weakness; he can't live without his sister.

Araki remained silent for a moment, his eyes darting back and forth between Chen Shan and Chen He.

"Someone come here," Araki finally spoke. "Take the prisoner back first, keep a close watch on him, and don't let anything go wrong."

Araki turned to Xu Tian, ​​forcing a fake smile: "I'm sorry, Xu-san. This person still has some use, so we can't kill him for now."

Xu Tian breathed a sigh of relief, shoved the gun into Araki's hand with a stern face, and turned to leave.

Chen He was taken back to prison. Chen Shan staggered in, grabbed him by the collar, and shouted, "Where did you take Chen Xia? Tell me!"

Chen He grinned at him, and only then did Chen Shan notice that his tongue was gone.

Chen Shan cried out in surprise and fell to the ground, his voice trembling.

"Araki, did he cut out your tongue?"

Chen He didn't answer him, but instead wrote a line on the ground with his finger: "I cured Chen Xia's eyes, and she has regained her sight."

After Chen Shan clearly saw the line of words, he erased them.

Chen Shan was stunned for a moment, as if he had finally let go of a long-held worry, but an overwhelming sense of guilt welled up in his heart. He knelt down in front of him with a thud and burst into tears.

"Brother, I'm so sorry!"

...............