Espionage codename: Shen Gongbao

Chapter 170 He's getting anxious again.

the next morning.

Conference Room 76.

The smell of smoke was pungent.

Li Shiqun had just returned from Qingdao and, unusually, flew into a rage: "Fine!"

"I just went out for a meeting, and you put on such a big show for me."

"Tao Shengxi's wife and daughter, two perfectly healthy people, died right under your noses?"

"Are your eyes only good for breathing?"

No one in the meeting room dared to speak.

With bloodshot eyes from a hangover, Wu Sibao gritted his teeth and said, "Director, the other side is disguised as military police, so even Chiang Kai-shek's troops wouldn't dare to stop them."

Hu Junhe smiled faintly: "If you had been there, you could have called Captain Okamura right then and there, and you wouldn't have lost your life."

He looked at Wu Sibao, his smile widening: "Why did you have to pick such a crucial time to go drinking?"

"Tao Shengxi just exposed the secret agreement in Hong Kong, and his wife and daughters have been taken from us. Where does the 76th Division put its face?"

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Upon hearing this sarcastic tone, Wu Sibao immediately exploded: "You, surnamed Hu, stop talking nonsense."

"The robbers are disguised as military police. Do you dare to stop them?"

"If your men were there, they would still have to kneel down and call you 'Sir'."

Hu Junhe was not annoyed; instead, he smiled even more gently.

"That's not quite right to say it."

"If Sanhu were here, he could at least ask a few questions in Japanese."

Which squad?

"Was a warrant issued?"

"On whose orders?"

"Shouldn't we at least ask these questions?"

He raised his hand and tapped the table lightly, his expression becoming more serious: "But according to last night's interrogation records, Jiang Jun neither verified his identity nor asked for his unit number."

"He handed over the Tao family mother and daughter after they slapped him."

"This is not a matter of incompetence."

"This is a problem with principle."

A murmur of discussion immediately broke out in the conference room.

Wu Sibao's face turned red, his eyes blazing with anger, but he couldn't utter a single word.

Wang Xuesen watched with secret satisfaction.

Ok.

The fiercer the bite, the better.

This dog-eat-dog scene is too good to pass up.

Hu Junhe clearly had no intention of letting Wu Sibao off so easily, and he turned his head to give Peng Sanhu a wink.

Peng Sanhu immediately stood up and said in a loud voice, "Director, I also have something to say."

Li Shiqun said in a deep voice, "Speak."

"Recently, there have been repeated errors in the intelligence of No. 76. I think Captain Wu is highly suspicious," Peng Sanhu said bluntly, staring at Wu Sibao.

These words caused an uproar in the conference room.

Who is Wu Sibao?

The vicious dog that Li Shiqun trusted most.

Whoever it bites on a normal day will suffer the consequences.

Even when beating a dog, one must consider its owner. Peng Sanhu is publicly slapping Director Li in the face.

"A fool being used as a pawn—" Li Shiqun frowned and asked, "What suspicion?"

Peng Sanhu spoke eloquently: "Last time, with the assistance of Wan Lilang and Ma Xiaotian in Jinling District, Director Hu raided an important intelligence point of the Military Intelligence Bureau."

"Originally, a tight net was laid, just waiting for the top figures of the Military Intelligence Bureau to take the bait."

"But Captain Wu deliberately caused a scene, completely disrupting the situation."

"Once the rumors died down, the big fish was gone, and Director Hu's plans of the past few days were all for naught."

Hu Junhe lowered his head and drank his tea, as if the matter had nothing to do with him.

Peng Sanhu continued, "Next up is the matter of the Tao residence."

"Captain Wu happened to leave No. 76 last night to drink and talk with the Green Gang."

"After the Tao family mother and daughter were abducted by people impersonating military police, Chiang Kai-shek's army was unable to contact Captain Wu immediately."

"If it weren't for Director Hu and Director Liu confirming with the military police's emergency liaison office, probably no one would know that the military police team was fake."

He cleverly brought Liu Zhongwen into the fray, leaving Wu Sibao with no way to refute him.

"I dare to express my doubts."

"Captain Wu has repeatedly caused trouble at key junctures, and is suspected of having connections with Shancheng and the red ticket scheme, or even being a deep participant in these two incidents."

"Please, Director, take note."

Peng Sanhu's voice was booming and powerful.

"Holy shit!"

Wu Sibao slammed his hand on the table, pointed at Peng Sanhu, and yelled, "Peng Sanhu, stop trying to pin this on me!"

"Believe it or not, I'll shoot you dead right now!"

Hu Junhe blew on his bangs and laughed, "Director, look."

"Sibao is getting anxious again."

Wu Sibao's eyes turned red, and he cursed, "You surnamed Hu, what kind of saint are you pretending to be?"

"Isn't your goal to become the deputy director?"

"You're throwing dirty water on me, but you're the one cleaning your own pockets?"

"Have you done too little black market trading?"

"And what about your illegal checkpoint at Liujiagang in Zhusha Town, which seized the Bai family's goods and got the Special Higher Police involved? How could our 76th Division suffer such losses?"

Hu Junhe smiled calmly and said, "Director, if Captain Wu thinks I have a problem, I am willing to accept an investigation."

"I accept the ambush at the bookstore; I'll just say it's because I'm not very skilled."

"But the Tao family mother and daughter were lost from the guard headquarters, that's an indisputable fact. Trying to change the subject with me won't work."

Wu Sibao roared, "You fucking pretend!"

"You clearly received a call last night, why didn't you immediately send someone to chase after them?"

"Why did you dawdle, first looking for Shibuya, then Liu Zhongwen, and then the military police?"

"You're deliberately stalling for time!"

Hu Junhe immediately retorted, "If I don't verify the military police's movements, am I supposed to just lead my men to fight the Japanese?"

"What if that team really is military police? Who will take responsibility?"

"You'll take responsibility?"

"You!" Wu Sibao choked, his face turning purple.

"Enough!" Li Shiqun raised his hand and pressed down.

"This is not a farmers' market."

"If you want to argue, go outside and argue."

He glanced at Wang Xuesen next to Wu Sibao.

Wang Xuesen understood, pulled Wu Sibao under the table, and shook his head inwardly.

Making a scene now would only add fuel to the fire.

Li Shiqun wanted a way out.

I don't want to see two dogs kill one of them on the spot.

Wu Sibao wasn't stupid. Seeing Li Shiqun's cold gaze, he glared at Hu Junhe and sat back down.

Li Shiqun coldly looked at him and announced: "The entire guard unit will receive a major demerit for the loss of Tao Shengxi's family members this time."

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"Salary cut in half this month."

"Benefits and bonuses are all cancelled."

He continued, "Wu Sibao's salary will be suspended for one year, he will receive a demerit, and a disciplinary notice will be issued."

Wu Sibao suddenly looked up: "Director, I—"

Wang Xuesen kicked him under the table again.

Wu Sibao swallowed the rest of his sentence, his face turning ashen.

Li Shiqun ignored him, saying, "Jiang Jun has failed in his duties. He is hereby dismissed from his post as deputy captain of the guard corps and is to be interrogated and detained."

"Whether there was collusion with foreign enemies or not will be determined after the investigation."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Hu Junhe, his tone softening.

"Director Hu."

"Thank you for taking care of all the big and small things in the building while I was away."

Hu Junhe felt a surge of warmth in his heart and quickly stood up to bow: "It is my duty to share the burden for the director."

"I dare not complain of the hardship."

Li Shiqun nodded, stood up, and said, "Alright."

"That concludes today's meeting. Everyone, please continue with your duties."

Everyone felt as if they had been granted a pardon and stood up.

Wu Sibao wanted to stay and explain, but Wang Xuesen grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the meeting room.

Why are you pulling me?

As soon as Wu Sibao entered the corridor, the fire flared up again.

"Hu Junhe has practically shit on my face, how can I tolerate that?"

Wang Xuesen lowered his voice and said, "What else can you do if you can't bear it?"

"Drawing a gun in front of the director?"

"If you really shoot Peng Sanhu, it won't just be a year's salary suspension today."

"It was you, Wu Sibao, who was taken away by the Japanese military police."

Wu Sibao, panting heavily, said, "So I'm just going to swallow this bitter pill?"

Wang Xuesen patted him on the shoulder: "Get Jiang Jun out first."

"Stop swearing."

"The more you make a scene, the more embarrassed the director will be."

Wu Sibao was stunned for a moment, then glared hatefully in the direction of the conference room: "That bastard surnamed Hu, I'll kill him sooner or later."

In the conference room.

Hu Junhe deliberately lingered until the very end before smilingly approaching Li Shiqun: "Director, you have made great contributions by protecting Mr. Wang during this Qingdao meeting."

"Is my position as Deputy Minister of Police secure?"

Li Shiqun picked up the cigarette case and handed one to him: "Mr. Wang agrees to support my appointment as Vice Minister."

"However, I am not from the mansion faction after all."

"It's clear that he still holds back some things from me."

Hu Junhe immediately said, "Mr. Wang's caution is only to be expected."

"But the new government can't function without the director."

"You are the only one qualified to be the Deputy Minister of Police."

Li Shiqun lit a cigarette and took a puff.

Seeing that he was in a relatively calm mood, Hu Junhe took a half step forward and said, "Director, I have an idea."

"Once the new policy is established, our No. 76 will definitely have to be restructured as well."

"In the future, it will be merged into the Ministry of Police. What it will be called is another matter, but the workload will only increase."

"You are extremely busy, managing both the building and the police."

"It's really impossible to do without a capable assistant by my side."

Li Shiqun glanced at him, a half-smile on his face: "You mean the deputy director position?"

Hu Junhe nodded and smiled, "Yes, the deputy director position has been vacant since Tang Huimin left."

"With this position vacant for so long, the people below are getting a bit uneasy."

"If all else fails, we'll fix it first."

"It would also help the director with some of the trivial matters."

Li Shiqun sighed in agreement, "Junhe is absolutely right."

"Zhou Fohai also mentioned this, saying he planned to have Luo Junqiang come over to be my deputy."

"You, you agreed?" Hu Junhe's face tightened.

Luo Junqiang?

That's a foreign monk.

If he really gets a seat in No. 76, what will become of all the old folks in the building?

Li Shiqun continued, "I didn't agree."

"If we're going to choose, we have to choose from within ourselves."

Hu Junhe felt a sudden sense of relief and quickly replied, "Yes, yes."

"What kind of scriptures can a stranger chant?"

"There are quite a few experienced and capable people in this building."

"Sibao, Lao Liu, and—me."

"They are all extremely loyal to the director."

"In terms of seniority, it's not an outsider's place at all."

Li Shiqun smiled and patted him on the shoulder: "Sibao is careless in his work."

"Old Liu is too boring."

"We still need you to handle many things in the building."

"Do a good job."

"You did a good job with this agency task; I knew you were right about me."

Hu Junhe quickly bowed and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Director. I will do my best and never let you down."

"Go ahead and get busy." Li Shiqun smiled, stubbed out his cigarette, and walked out of the conference room.

Hu Junhe stood there, his face beaming with joy.

Although the director didn't say it explicitly, the meaning was clear.

Deputy Director.

It's already mine.

When Li Shiqun returned to his office, Ye Jiqing was humming a tune as he cut a fruit platter.

She was in a good mood.

On this trip to Qingdao, I saw the sea and ate my fill of seafood.

If Li Shiqun hadn't been busy with social engagements the whole time, she would have really wanted to stay a few more days.

Seeing Li Shiqun enter, she turned and asked, "I heard that Sibao and Hu Junhe had a fight at the meeting?"

"Are you alright?"

Li Shiqun sat down and rubbed his temples: "Sibao is such a disappointment."

"Since someone found something to use against him, I fined him a year's salary."

Ye Jiqing placed the washed apples on a plate and laughed, "My salary is only a few dollars."

"We'll make it up to him from the company's profits later."

"He's a proud man, don't let him get too upset."

Li Shiqun glanced at her with a smile.

Ji Qing's ability to build a successful business is not solely due to his accounting skills.

She understands human relationships and knows how to maintain boundaries.

Wu Sibao may be stupid, but he's a dog that can bite.

Dogs can be beaten, but they can't starve to death.

Li Shiqun nodded: "I know what I'm doing."

He picked up the phone and dialed: "Xuesen, come to my office."

"Your sister-in-law brought you some Qingdao specialties."

Not long after, Wang Xuesen knocked on the door and walked in with a smile: "Big brother, sister-in-law."

Ye Jiqing greeted him with a beaming smile: "Xuesen is here."

"Please sit down."

"I brought you some dried goods when I went to Qingdao this time."

"We have scallops, shrimp, and dried shrimp."

"And these apples, from the north, are incredibly juicy and sweet."

"Try it."

Wang Xuesen glanced at Ye Jiqing.

She wore a light-colored cheongsam today, her hair was neatly styled in a bun, and she wore dark lipstick, which made her even more charming than usual.

Wang Xuesen accepted the apple and said gratefully, "Thank you, brother and sister-in-law."

"I feel really bad that you always think of me when I go out."

Ye Jiqing laughed and said, "We're family, why be so polite? Come and have a taste."

Wang Xuesen didn't stand on ceremony and took a bite of the apple.

He immediately exclaimed, "Delicious!"

"My sister-in-law has good taste."

Ye Jiqing was delighted and went to pour him tea.

Li Shiqun sat behind his desk and slowly asked, "Xuesen, what are your thoughts on the Sibao matter?"

Wang Xuesen put down the apple, his expression becoming more serious: "Brother Sibao has really messed up this time."

"But then again, last night's game was definitely a bad one."

"At a critical juncture, Si Bao was called away by Zhang Xiaolin for negotiations. Without him in charge, the matter would have been uncertain."

"Chiang Kai-shek's men are good at scaring ordinary people, but when they actually encounter the Japanese, their legs go weak."

"It's difficult for them to distinguish between real and fake on the spot."

Li Shiqun stared at him: "Do you think there's a problem with Sibao?"

Wang Xuesen knew this was a feint.

Li Shiqun would never suspect Wu Sibao, a brainless idiot.

Wang Xuesen smiled and said, "Brother, it's not surprising that Si Bao did something stupid in a moment of passion."

"But to say that he colluded with outsiders to deliberately let the Tao family mother and daughter go—I think that's unrealistic."

"I asked him, and he said it was Zhang Xiaolin's men who approached him to discuss territory."

"It's quite obvious that this was likely orchestrated by Zhang Xiaolin. After all, Wan Molin is in Shanghai, and it's normal for Zhang Xiaolin to take advantage of your absence out of consideration for our past relationship."

"Don't forget, the old man is still haggling over the territory and venue he promised us."

"This is a wolf that can't be fed enough; we have to be careful, brother."

Li Shiqun nodded: "Yes, this person is bad because he has no integrity whatsoever."

"I will investigate this matter secretly."

Then, with a gentle smile, he asked, "Tell me, how has things been in Old Hu's office while I was away?"

"Tell the truth, and do not hide anything."