Chapter 525: Operation Blade

Carrying weapons.

Sneaking around.

They are also in contact with the Japanese spy in a mysterious way, and the identity of the other party is obvious.

They are definitely accomplices of the Japanese invaders!

Their goal is to cause sabotage while mingling with the student group.

Zhang Yong is very anxious. But he can't be too anxious. He can't solve this problem.

This is not his area of expertise.

He needs the help of someone from the underground party. Someone experienced from the underground party.

Someone who can warn the underground party about internal sabotage.

The problem is...

Where are the members of the underground party hiding?

He can tell the difference between the Japanese invaders and the people carrying weapons.

However, the underground party are not Japanese invaders. And the underground party generally don't carry weapons. So, trying to identify them...

It's impossible.

It's difficult.

There are so many hidden currents and twists and turns, it seems like everyone is walking a tightrope...

'Ah...'

'Ah...'

Over there, screams can be heard.

It's Wu Liuji interrogating a captured target violently.

Surprisingly, this target is quite stubborn. Even though he has been beaten all over his body, he still refuses to confess.

Zhang Yong turns his head and looks at Jin Xiuzhu, his eyes full of doubt.

Are you Koreans?

Your bones are so hard? Rare!

Jin Xiuzhu shakes her head. She says she doesn't know.

It could also be a puppet Manchurian. There are some pretty stubborn people over there too.

There's nothing we can do. We'll just have to kill them.

There's no point in taking any alive. There's no use keeping the Japanese.

We can't get a confession? That's not a big problem. There are still three Japanese and four traitors in the pawnshop. There are plenty of targets.

Keep watching.

After a while, another white dot moves. It too has taken up arms and is coming out the back door.

Zhang Yong waved his hand. Cao Mengqi immediately led his men to pounce on him.

The target was caught off guard. He was captured alive on the spot. A revolver was also found on him. However, there were no extra magazines. There was only one magazine in the chamber, with a total of ten bullets.

The target caught this time also did not look like a student. He was wearing long-distance running clothes, a scarf, and glasses, and looked more like a teacher.

'Excuse me,' Zhang Yong waved the revolver, 'Your Excellency is...'

'Who are you?' The target was very vigilant.

'I should be asking you that,' Zhang Yong said coldly, 'You are carrying a weapon, what do you want?'

'You are also carrying weapons, what do you want?'

'We are robbers. Of course we are carrying weapons. Are you also a robber?'

'Of course I'm not.'

'How do you explain this revolver?'

'What revolver? What does it have to do with me? It's not mine.'

'You...'

Zhang Yong laughed helplessly.

Shit. This guy's quick-witted.

He's quickly absolved himself of any involvement.

Yes, the revolver is now in Zhang Yong's hands. The other party can completely deny it. He can completely deny any involvement.

Since Zhang Yong admitted that he was a robber, he can't possibly report it to the authorities. He can't possibly call the police. He can't possibly go and have his fingerprints checked.

These days, even fingerprinting can't necessarily identify someone. It's not up to that level.

'Impressive. What's your name?'

'Sorry, we don't see eye to eye. I have important things to do. Please let me go.'

'Do you think I'll agree?'

'This has become a big deal, and it's not good for you guys either...'

'Beat him!'

Zhang Yong waved his hand in annoyance.

Damn it. I can't argue with you. But I can beat you up! I'll see if your bones are as hard as your mouth.

In the end, after a good beating, the target finally begged for mercy.

'Name.'

'Cai Qiang.'

'Occupation?'

'I'm a teacher at Yenching University.'

'Oh?'

Zhang Yong looked at the other man askance.

Yenching University? A prestigious university! Not bad! You've actually infiltrated it.

As a teacher at Yenching University, you must be very well respected. But you went and conspired with the Japanese invaders. And then you left with a submachine gun. What were you going to do?

'Whose submachine gun is this?'

'...'

'Hit!'

So there was another round of beatings.

Wu Liuji got tired of beating him. A change of guard. The beatings continued.

Fists and kicks could kill, so a whip was used.

A leather whip. Dipped in water. Very perverted. Each blow left a trail of blood. Flesh and skin were ripped open.

'Stop...'

'Stop...'

'It's mine...'

'It's mine...'

Cai Qiang finally couldn't resist any longer and begged for mercy.

Zhang Yong waved his hand. He told the man to continue beating him. Begging for mercy now? Too late. Do you think I'm that easy to bully?

Zhang Yong didn't wave his hand until the other person was beaten until the skin was split open.

Are you comfortable now? Have you surrendered?

"Answer honestly, what is the owner of Shuntian Pawnshop to you?'

'Who?'

'I said, the owner of Shuntian Pawnshop.'

'I don't know him.'

'Really don't know him.'

'I don't know any pawnshop owner.'

'Then what were you doing coming out of Shun Tian Pawnshop?'

'I...'

Cai Qiang was suddenly speechless.

Oh no!

His lie had been exposed.

The other person actually knew that he had come from Shun Tian Pawnshop.

In other words, the other person had been keeping an eye on Shun Tian Pawnshop. It was a matter of course to arrest him. The people inside Shun Tian Pawnshop were the other person's target.

'Who are you people?' Cai Qiang was unwilling to accept this.

'You answer my question first,' Zhang Yong raised his tone. The atmosphere suddenly became cold.

The Japanese invaders were very sinister.

They were obviously preparing to lay mines for the student movement.

If a bloody incident really occurred during the demonstration, the consequences would be unimaginable.

'I...'

Cai Qiang was unable to answer.

Or rather, he didn't want to answer.

Zhang Yong pursed his lips.

His approach to dealing with people like this was particularly simple and crude.

Either he would do it himself.

Or hand him over to Wu Liuqi.

Or Cao Mengqi.

Or someone else. But not Zhong Yang.

Zhong Yang is a bit soft. He doesn't strike hard enough. Although he fights bravely, he is not suitable for torture.

In fact, out of ten people, only one may be able to withstand the scene of torture. This is the person doing the torture. Not the one being tortured.

At the moment, the Restoration Society is still quite strict when it comes to hiring people. They need to be of clean background.

But after 1949, they desperately expanded and cooperated with the Green Gang. As a result, all kinds of people from the Green Gang infiltrated the organisation. It became a mess.

This is definitely the responsibility of Boss Dai.

He was greedy for power and ambitions.

In the end, he became too big to handle.

He was suspected by Chiang Kai-shek and ended up dead.

His biggest mistake was that he should not have organised the Loyal Army to Save the Country. He should not have interfered with military power. This is a very taboo thing to do. How could the other military bigwigs tolerate such behaviour?

By doing so, Boss Dai was planting a time bomb for himself.

In the end, the facts proved that it was indeed very fatal.

As his main opponent, a certain bigwig from the Red Party kept a much lower profile. He was humble. He never interfered with military power. He was able to end his days in peace.

'Ah...'

Screams of agony could be heard continuously.

That was real torture. Not just a flogging. A flogging is not torture.

One minute...

Two minutes...

Cai Qiang finally confessed.

Although it was only the appetiser, not many people could withstand it.

The point is, Zhang Yong did not reveal his identity as an agent of the Special Branch of the Restoration Society. Cai Qiang thought they were all gangsters. Confessing was not as hard as it should be.

'Tell us!'

'His name is Ma Yali. He is in charge of Operation Blade.'

'What is Operation Blade?'

'It is to plant armed men among the anti-Japanese students, to look for opportunities to attack the military and police and cause bloody conflicts.'

'How many of you were there?'

'There were five in our group. I don't know about the other groups.'

'Ma Yali was only responsible for one group?'

'Yes.'

'How many other groups were there?'

'I don't know. But there must have been more than just ours. Ma Yali once scolded us, saying that all the other groups had already infiltrated, but we were still dragging our feet...'

'When did you arrive? Did you meet someone called Ma Yu?'

'Who? I didn't meet anyone else. Everyone gathered today is from our own team.'

'Ma Yali also has two Japanese people with him. Who are they?'

'Japanese? Who's Japanese?'

'Don't you know that Ma Yali is Japanese?'

'He's Japanese? I didn't hear that! He said he was from the Beiping Police Department...'

'I see.'

Zhang Yong vaguely understood a little.

It seems that this Ma Yali has a lot of secrets. Unfortunately, it is a bit difficult to arrest him now.

The main thing is that there are still two Japanese invaders around this guy.

Although they are not armed for the time being. But the weapons are right next to them. They can be obtained at any time.

Once the other party has a gun, they will just do it, and a gunfight may break out.

This is Beiping. Guns cannot be used lightly. Otherwise, you won't be able to escape.

There are people from the 29th Army all around.

There is no way to escape.

It is completely different from Tianjinwei.

Unless he has already made friends with the top brass of the 29th Army and obtained their permission.

The problem is, Zhang Yong is operating in secret. He hasn't even informed Wang Tianmu at the Beiping Railway Station, so how can he possibly inform the top brass of the 29th Army?

Keep a low profile.

Stay hidden.

In other places, he can be as conspicuous as he likes. But not here.

Of course, the Japanese spies in Beiping are also wary. They dare not shoot recklessly. This is especially true of those Japanese spies who have not revealed their identities. If they are caught, it will be a problem.

The Japanese certainly wouldn't dare claim them openly. Then the 29th Army could treat them like Chinese.

Alas, there is no way to communicate with the 29th Army's high command now.

He is only a small team leader of the Special Branch of the Restoration Society, and he is not qualified to communicate with the high command of the 29th Army.

His thoughts are a million miles away.

Suddenly, the third white dot began to move.

He also took a weapon and then sneaked out of the side door of the pawnshop.

These hidden enemies, presumably to avoid attracting attention, all came out quietly and intermittently.

This happened to give Zhang Yong the opportunity to capture them separately.

He immediately arranged it.

Soon, the third target was captured.

He was also a student-looking person. Very young. He also carried a submachine gun.

There was only one magazine in the submachine gun. Only ten rounds of ammunition. The Japanese invaders were really stingy. Not even one extra bullet was possible.

'He's one of ours,' Jin Xiu Zhu suddenly whispered.

'How many of you Koreans are coming?' Zhang Yong frowned. This question was very annoying.

It was already difficult to distinguish between the Japanese and the Chinese, as the Japanese were pretending to be Chinese.

Now that there were also Koreans coming over, it would be even more difficult to distinguish. The map also did not have a screening function.

And there were those hardcore traitors from the puppet state of Manchukuo...

Leave it to Cao Meng Qi to interrogate.

A confession was quickly obtained. It was not much different from Cai Qiang's.

They were all following Ma Yali's instructions and were lurking among the student ranks, waiting for an opportunity to cause bloodshed.

In this way, the nature of the incident would change.

He also didn't know that Ma Yali was Japanese. He didn't know much about Operation Blade. But he was also certain that there were other groups. Ma Yali was just one of them.

The source of the information was exactly the same as Cai Qiang's. Both of them had been lectured by Ma Yali, saying that other groups were already ready, but their group was still dragging its feet. The lurking was not yet complete.

'You're a transfer student from Tsinghua University?'

'Yes.'

'Who arranged for you to transfer?'

'I don't know.'

Zhang Yong interrogated him all the way down. And confirmed one thing:

Behind the people who arranged these people, there is another person behind the scenes. It could be one person. It could be a group of people.

They are very powerful. And they have a considerable amount of power.

They can actually place people in Tsinghua University.

Bullshit...

When is the time to pay a visit.

I'll enrol in Tsinghua University myself and get some gold-plating...

Continue the arrests.

The fourth target has come out.

Interrogate.

No more information was obtained. Exactly the same as the previous interrogation.

The fifth...

Arrest.

Interrogate.

There is no new information either.

They are all peripheral members. They are responsible for operations. They don't know anything about core intelligence.

Then I'll have to start with the others.

Now, there are only three Japanese left in the pawnshop. I guess they know more.

Will they leave alone? I hope so.

We wait in silence.

Fortunately, half an hour later, one of the Japanese came out alone.

'He's Japanese,'

'Be careful,'

Zhang Yong reminded Cao Mengqi.

This Japanese soldier may put up a desperate fight. There may be casualties.

Fortunately, the arrest went relatively smoothly.

Ambush. Attack. Capture.

By the time the Japanese soldier reacted, he was already being held down by at least three people. He couldn't move.

A Browning pistol was found on the Japanese soldier. Unfortunately, it was an old model. It's not worth much. Better than nothing.

An unexpected bonus was a stack of banknotes found on the Japanese spy.

It was a complete surprise that they weren't from the Baoshang Bank. They were from the Fenghui Bank.

'What?'

'Let me see!'

Zhang Yong was doubtful. He took the banknotes.

Sure enough, it was the Fenghui Bank logo.

Oh dear, what a relief! Finally, I won't have to see the Baoshang Bank again. Finally, I can take Hua Bei out of North China.

Ha, I'm so happy!

I immediately hid the banknotes.

Since I was still in North China, of course I had to continue spending Baoshang Bank notes.

However, the fact that this Japanese spy was carrying Fenghui Bank banknotes meant that this guy had an important mission. Could it be that I had inadvertently caught a break?

Order the Japanese spy to be brought in. He wants to ask him personally.

Soon, the Japanese spy is brought before Zhang Yong. What a mess. He has been beaten to a pulp. It is almost impossible to recognise the human form.

There is no way around it, arrests can be so violent. There is no civilisation to speak of.

On seeing Zhang Yong arrive, the Japanese spy desperately tries to lift his head and struggle, but unfortunately, he is bound like a dumpling, and only his neck can move.

'Name.'

'Zhang Wancheng...'

'I am talking about a Japanese name.'

'I...'

'Cut the crap. We know you're Japanese. If you weren't, we wouldn't have bothered to catch you.'

'I, I...'

'Don't want to say?'

'No, no, I'll say, I'll say, my name is Asakura Mikado...'

'Which ancestor are you? Asakura Kageyoshi? Asakura Kagekage? Asakura Kagetoyo? Or Asakura Kagenobu?'

'What? You...'

The Japanese spy looked at Zhang Yong stupidly.

He couldn't believe it.

He couldn't believe it.

The other party was so familiar with the Asakura family.

Those were all characters from the Warring States period! The other party knew about them! No wonder he was captured!

It turned out that he had long been studied thoroughly by his enemy.

Alas...

Lament...

What kind of enemy have I encountered?