Chapter 32: The Distant Relative

"Director, these are the portraits we found that might be the person in question—ten in total."

In a second-floor room of a house, Shi Xiaozhen handed over ten portraits drawn by Bai Yan.

Because they'd been told not to contact the Military Command's Nanjing station, Shi Xiaozhen and her companions spent two days wandering around Fengyou Street. After sketching possible suspects, they couldn't investigate any further and had to return to Chongqing.

Bai Yan had been selected from the training camp thanks to her extraordinary memory and lifelike sketching skills.

Director Dai Yunong, inwardly thrilled, immediately took the portraits and began flipping through them. "This time, you..."

He didn't finish his sentence; his pupils contracted as he picked up the portrait he'd just turned to and showed it to Shi Xiaozhen.

"Are you certain this person is also a suspect?"

Seeing the director so serious, Shi Xiaozhen glanced at the portrait and replied quickly, "Director, I'm certain. We observed photographs, constructed psychological profiles, and determined the suspect's general features. Then we traced his movements during the assassination of Yoshizumi Ryosuke to identify the general area. After several days of visits, we sketched everyone who might be the suspect. This person only appeared in that area once, but he matches the psychological profile. Moreover, his anti-surveillance skills are strong. I happened to run into him in an alley, and as soon as I followed him for two steps, he immediately vanished into the crowd."

Dai Yunong said nothing, but his heart was soaring. When he saw this portrait, he was already sure—it was him. His question to Shi Xiaozhen was out of shock; as soon as he asked, he regretted it.

He placed the portrait on the table, gazed at it, and thought ecstatically, "I was blind to the obvious. I should have realized it was him long ago. The first time that man appeared in Japan, he was there. When I sent him to Nanjing, within days, Yoshizumi Ryosuke was killed."

The man in the portrait was Li Wensheng. Bai Yan's sketch was so lifelike that Dai Yunong immediately found it familiar, then instantly recognized it as Li Wensheng, the pawn he’d sent to Nanjing.

Dai Yunong had dispatched Captain Li Wensheng to Nanjing as the action team leader to make Gu Liang suspicious. If Gu Liang acted against Li Wensheng, the people monitoring Nanjing station would inform him, giving Dai Yunong grounds to remove Gu Liang from his post as station chief and replace him with his own man.

He never expected Li Wensheng to actually be the one.

Suppressing his elation, Dai Yunong thought quickly for a few seconds before saying to Shi Xiaozhen, "You’ve worked hard. Rest for two days. I’ll personally arrange a celebration banquet for you."

Shi Xiaozhen hesitated briefly, then asked, "Director, don’t we need to keep investigating?"

"No need. You can go now."

"Yes, sir!"

Watching Shi Xiaozhen leave, a gleam flashed in Dai Yunong's deep eyes.

Upon returning to the Military Command, Dai Yunong immediately called his secretary.

"Go and thoroughly investigate all records about Li Wensheng, the action team leader at Nanjing station."

For normal Military Command operations, suspicion alone was enough to arrest and interrogate someone. But for missions ordered by the Master of Micro-Manipulation, Dai Yunong dared not proceed in the usual way. Only with solid evidence confirming Li Wensheng's identity would he act.

"Understood, sir."

"Remember, this is a top-secret mission. Be quick, and don’t let a single word leak," Dai Yunong instructed with utmost seriousness.

Investigating a mere team leader as a top-secret task startled the secretary, who replied promptly, "Yes, sir."

After the secretary left, Dai Yunong looked at the portrait on his desk and sighed regretfully. "If only the higher-ups would spare you. Whether you truly serve the Military Command or not, I could still find ways to make you more useful."

The secretary dared not slack off the slightest, and most of Li Wensheng’s information was already available within the Military Command. So, early the next morning, when Dai Yunong arrived, the secretary handed him the file.

"Sir, everything’s been checked. It’s all here."

Noticing the secretary’s odd expression, Dai Yunong casually asked as he took the file, "What’s wrong? Is there something unusual in his records?"

"Well, sir, it’s hard to say. You’ll see for yourself."

This response piqued Dai Yunong’s curiosity, and he flipped through the file. The secretary had done a thorough job, almost tracing Li Wensheng’s lineage back eighteen generations, making the file especially thick—over ten pages.

The first few pages were normal, detailing Li Wensheng’s schooling, his parents’ deaths, and how he joined the army just as the Restoration Society was recruiting and was sent to their training camp.

The subsequent pages surprised Dai Yunong. They recorded Li Wensheng’s tenure at the Shanghai station, his repeated achievements, and how he’d earned the nickname "Ghost Shadow" in the Shanghai espionage world.

Unable to resist, Dai Yunong asked, "With so many accomplishments, why is he still just a captain? Didn’t Shanghai station recommend him for promotion?"

"Director, headquarters received only one telegram recommending him for promotion from Shanghai station. According to reports, Station Chief Chen Moqun was dissatisfied with him and suppressed his advancement. Only last November, after he’d accumulated so many merits that any further delay would provoke unrest, did Chen Moqun finally recommend him, and headquarters promoted him to captain. Also, I found that the approval for him to go to Japan as an observer was signed by Deputy Station Chief Wang Shian, though it was actually Chen Moqun who told Wang Shian to authorize it. Chen Moqun intended to frame him; if an insider appeared in Shanghai station later, they could pin it on him. During his time in Japan, Chen Moqun even found his address and planted internal station documents in his home for future incrimination," the secretary reported quickly.

Dai Yunong frowned slightly, "What was Chen Moqun dissatisfied with?"

"Sir, I haven’t yet determined the exact reason."

Suppressing his doubts, Dai Yunong continued reading.

Then—he suddenly sprang to his feet, his eyes wide as saucers.

Staring at the paper for a few moments, Director Dai asked, "Are you certain he’s a distant relative of the higher-ups?"

"Sir, I’ve verified this several times. There’s no mistake. Li Wensheng himself doesn’t know about it. I contacted the Hangzhou station and had someone thoroughly investigate his hometown. They found that Li Wensheng’s father, Li Weigang, was a learned gentleman, well-known in Fenghua. Because the relationship was so distant, there’s been no contact with the higher-ups. Moreover, in the eighth year of the Republic, he privately expressed disagreement with their methods. I suspect that, being a distant relative and disagreeing with their practices, Li Weigang never told Li Wensheng about the family’s connection," the secretary replied promptly.

Dai Yunong’s pupils contracted slightly. "Did Hangzhou station have anything to do with Li Weigang and his wife’s deaths?"

"No, sir, they died of illness."

Dai Yunong breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright, you may go. Don’t mention this to anyone."

"Yes, sir!"

As the secretary walked toward the door, Dai Yunong suddenly remembered something and called after him, "Find out what grievances Chen Moqun has against him!"

"Yes, sir," the secretary replied, turning back.

After the secretary left, Dai Yunong looked at the file in his hands, his face alight with joy.

"Excellent—a distant relative and a Military Command officer. The old man is likely to show leniency. Then he can be used by me."

Murmuring with delight, Dai Yunong picked up the phone and called the adjutant’s office.

"This is the Deputy Director of the Military Command. I have important intelligence to report."

Previously, he needed solid evidence before he dared report to the Master of Micro-Manipulation.

But now things had changed. Li Wensheng was a distant relative of the higher-ups, and Dai Yunong wanted to protect him for the Military Command’s use. Naturally, he had to report immediately.

"They’re in a meeting—won’t finish for three hours."

With the imminent battle in Xuzhou, meetings had become frequent, as Dai Yunong well knew.

"I’ll come now and wait three hours. This is important intelligence."

"If you’re willing to wait, suit yourself," came the reply, and the phone was hung up.

Dai Yunong took Li Wensheng’s portrait from the safe, grabbed the file from his desk, and headed out.