HPDBC Chapter 5: A Gathering of Elites from the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics
Chapter 5: A Gathering of Elites from the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics
"I fled from Henan Province. My parents starved to death on the way, and only my sister and I survived and came to Tianjin..."
On the way, Hong Zhong made a point of asking around, and Ali readily answered all his questions.
Through a brief conversation, Hong Zhong had dispelled his suspicions about the other party.
While they were waiting for me, the other person didn't see me making the call.
Moreover, the other party's background was simple, so it was a false alarm for me.
"Let's stop here!"
As they were talking, Ali had already led Hong Zhong to a row of upscale residences, and Hong Zhong called out to Ali.
"Sir, I can't accept this money! You just gave it to me!"
After getting off the bus, Hong Zhong took out a few more copper coins and handed them to Ali, but Ali refused them, saying that he had already given him enough money.
Although the face value of copper coins was much smaller than that of legal tender, who still needed legal tender these days?
Ten years ago, 10,000 yuan could buy two cows; now it can only buy an egg!
In two more years, I'm afraid it will cost several million yuan to buy a single sesame seed cake.
On the contrary, government-issued coins have not depreciated as quickly.
Faced with Ali's refusal, Hong Zhong did not insist. He put the money in his pocket and asked:
"Here's what we'll do: give me your contact information. I'm planning to open a trading company later, and since you seem like a nice guy, I'll hire you as an employee!"
"Okay! Thank you, sir! Oh no, thank you, boss!"
Ali was overjoyed to hear Hong Zhong's answer.
After a long day of hard work, he could barely support himself and his sister after paying the rent. This old man in front of him was obviously rich, and only a fool would refuse him.
Hong Zhong's purpose was simply to obtain his contact information so that he could check again later and eliminate any potential problems.
After seeing Ali off, Hong Zhong headed towards one of the villas.
The middle section of Ma Chang Road, near the border of the British Concession, is a high-end residential area, not far from Binjiang Road and the Commercial Securities Association.
One of the buildings, a two-story French-style garden villa with red brick walls, an iron gate, and flower beds in the courtyard, is the home of station chief Wu Jingzhong.
Before going to Mrs. Ma's house, Hong Zhong was notified that he was to attend a meeting at the station chief's house.
As soon as he arrived at the door, a Ford V8 pulled up on the side of the road, and a person got out of the car.
The man in front of me was around forty years old, of medium build and rather thin, with a fair and gentle square face, showing no trace of ferocity.
A pair of thin, round metal-framed glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, behind which a pair of small, shifty eyes revealed a cunning and suspicious nature.
Upon seeing Hong Zhong, he immediately put on his signature obsequious smile: "Secretary Hong, have you heard?"
"Director Lu, what did you hear?"
Upon hearing the traditional greeting gesture at Jinhai Station, Hong Zhong outwardly appeared bewildered, but inwardly he became more vigilant.
That's right, the man in front of us is Lu Qiaoshan, the head of the intelligence department of Jinhai Station. He not only has a powerful background, but he is also as cunning as a honeycomb briquette.
Most importantly, he and the station manager were not on the same side.
With Yu Nong and Ka Dai Shan now in power, and Zheng Jiemin as the new director of the Bureau of Secrecy, the Guangdong clique has rapidly grown within the Bureau of Secrecy, and Lu Qiaoshan has finally had a chance to turn his life around.
However, Lu Qiaoshan was very shrewd and managed to maintain a smile even when facing Hong Zhong, the station chief's secretary.
"Why did the station manager suddenly call us to his house for a meeting? Do you know what it's about?"
Hearing Hong Zhong's question, Lu Qiaoshan explained with an unchanged smile.
"I'm not entirely sure either. I just took care of some personal business outside and only just got the news!"
Hong Zhong shook his head, looking completely honest.
Lu Qiaoshan didn't take it to heart, after all, Hong Zhong had always kept a low profile over the years.
"No wonder. Shall we go in together?"
"Alright, Director Lu, please!"
"Don't be so polite with me, let's go together!"
Despite Lu Qiaoshan's polite words, he still walked ahead of Hong Zhong without hesitation, clearly pleased with Hong Zhong's attitude.
Hong Zhong followed Lu Qiaoshan into the stationmaster's house, where he saw a group of people inside, including the stationmaster, his wife, Cuiping, Li Ya, and Yu Zecheng.
It was truly a meeting of radishes from the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics... oops, I mean, a gathering of heroes!
"Secretary Hong, where have you been? I couldn't reach you by phone!"
Wu Jingzhong was over fifty years old, his face was deeply lined, his hair was neatly combed, but his temples were slightly gray.
Her figure was somewhat out of shape, but her posture was very upright, and her imposing presence made people tremble involuntarily.
Upon seeing Hong Zhong enter, Wu Jingzhong asked him with a serious expression.
"Stationmaster, I have a situation here. I'll report back to you shortly!"
Hong Zhong quickly replied sincerely.
Upon hearing Hong Zhong's answer, Wu Jingzhong did not pursue the matter further. With so many people around, he couldn't afford to lose his temper with his secretary.
Of course, he didn't think a secretary could handle anything important.
Seeing that Wu Jingzhong had let him go, Hong Zhong secretly breathed a sigh of relief, while simultaneously observing the situation before him:
Li Ya was dressed in a neat dark gray Zhongshan suit. He was lean and tall, with a stern and cold face and a sharp and stubborn gaze.
Yu Zecheng, on the other hand, exuded a scholarly air, with his head bowed and eyes lowered, humble and unassuming, showing no hint of sharpness.
The "Museum Twins" sat at the mahjong table, while the stationmaster's wife seemed to be quietly comforting Cuiping.
However, while Cuiping was talking to the stationmaster's wife, her hand was casually placed on the mahjong table, touching the tiles. She must have been planning to pass on information, right?
While at Mrs. Ma's house, Cuiping inadvertently learned about Li Ya's entrapment of Zuo Lan, and naturally she wanted to pass this information on to Yu Zecheng.
Since the two couldn't communicate right now, she decided to have Yu Zecheng find Hong Zhong.
"Go home, there's something I need to do here!"
At that moment, the senior management of Jinhai Station was about to have a meeting, and Yu Zecheng spoke up to tell Cuiping to leave.
"So when are you coming home?"
Cuiping then walked up to Yu Zecheng.
"What business is it of yours when I come home?"
"You yelled at me!"
Cuiping and Yu Zecheng got into an argument over passing on information.
Hong Zhong watched all this without saying a word, and even offered a few words of advice, just like the others.
"Get out of here!"
Finally, after being comforted by the stationmaster's wife, Cuiping stormed off, giving herself a shove as she did so.
She seemed angry, but Hong Zhong knew that she was reminding Yu Zecheng.
Great, this result is exactly what I expected.
"The meeting won't be held here today. Go back to the station; I have something to say!"
After Cuiping left, Wu Jingzhong spoke up, leading everyone present back into the station.
Hong Zhong couldn't help but complain to himself: If you're going to have a meeting at the station, why make everyone come to your house? Are the secret service bureaus all that free?
Of course, Hong Zhong only dared to say this in his heart, but aloud he replied along with the other high-ranking officials in the station: "Yes!"
At this moment, he looked exactly like a beast of burden who, more than half a century later, could only say "received"!
"What do you need to report to me?"
On the way back to the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, Hong Zhong naturally rode in the same car as Station Chief Wu Jingzhong.
Wu Jingzhong clearly remembered what Hong Zhong had just said.
The driver was a close confidant of Wu Jingzhong, and Hong Zhong, sitting in the passenger seat, didn't hide anything, turning to look at Wu Jingzhong in the back seat and saying:
"Station sergeant, I had lunch with a friend from the military police this afternoon, and he provided a very valuable lead. He said he ran into Ma Kui in an abandoned warehouse belonging to the military police!"
"Ma Kui? Are you sure?"
Upon hearing Hong Zhong's words, Wu Jingzhong's eyes, which had been slightly narrowed, widened considerably, and he leaned forward slightly.
"I'm not entirely sure. After getting this clue, I specifically went to check that abandoned warehouse, but the person was already gone!"
Hong Zhong's words were obviously false; in fact, he spent most of the day in Mrs. Ma's closet!
But Wu Jingzhong was unaware that he was currently contemplating the message brought by Hong Zhong.
Regarding the matter of Ma Kui being Mount Emei, how could someone as shrewd and calculating as Wu Jingzhong not know that there was something fishy about it?
The problem is that Ma Kui is investigating his own affairs, which means that Ma Kui must be from Mount Emei!
Therefore, he had to make this case airtight and silence Ma Kui forever.
Unexpectedly, Ma Kui escaped during the escort, which was a major setback for him and he had to make amends immediately.
The news his secretary brought him was a timely help.
What are you thinking?
"Station sergeant, although the warehouse has been cleaned up very well, I've found out that the warehouse manager is Han Tieshan from the military police. Perhaps we can start with him!"
Upon hearing Hong Zhong's words, Wu Jingzhong nodded silently, his eyes filled with admiration as he looked at Hong Zhong.
He used to think that Hong Zhong was just an obedient secretary, but now it seems that this guy has some ability!