Spy Wars: I can get rewards by being a bully!

Chapter 1050 Taking Okamura Nakamasa to Report

Jinling, Li Mansion.

The thin-looking Li Shiqun was having breakfast with his wife.

His wife, Ye Jiqing, came from a wealthy family. When Li Shiqun was down on his luck, he relied on his wife for support. Later, when he got into trouble, Ye Jiqing went to great lengths to help him and suffered a lot. Therefore, Li Shiqun loved his wife very much.

Because of his family background, Ye Jiqing was very knowledgeable and often gave Li Shiqun advice. If Li Shiqun hadn't fallen into the water and become a traitor, the two of them might have become a legendary couple.

"Shiqun, my right eyelid has been twitching all night, and I'm feeling very uneasy. You said that the higher-ups, who are in charge of the Special Agent Headquarters, sent you to North China to handle the grain issue, what for?"

Li Shiqun laughed and said, "I declined twice, but Dean Wang still insisted that I go. In any case, I am the secretary-general of the Rural Cleanup Committee, and the Materials Control Committee is also a subordinate organization of the Rural Cleanup Committee. Gu Baoheng is incompetent, so it is reasonable for me to go and clean up the mess."

Ye Jiqing said in a low voice, "I heard that the Japanese have also sent people over there?"

Li Shiqun put down his bowl and nodded rather heavily. "The Expeditionary Army Headquarters sent a major general, Toyotomi Kiyoto. He's not important. Although his rank is not low, he's always been stuck in the General Staff and doesn't have much real power. The other one is Colonel Tanabe Ken, the head of the Central China Area Army's Nanjing Military Police Headquarters. This Tanabe is one of Shibayama Kenshiro's men."

Ye Jiqing exclaimed in surprise, "People from Chai Mountain? You're still going? You might as well feign illness..."

Kenjiro Shibayama is a lieutenant general with a distinguished background. He is currently the highest military advisor to the Nanjing Restoration Government. As the so-called highest military advisor, he actually controls the Japanese intelligence agencies in the Nanjing area and also has the authority to deploy the puppet troops.

This man served as the head of the Tianjin Special Service Agency and the Hankou Special Service Agency. Later, he left the special service and became the commander of the 26th Division. There are rumors that he has supporters in the General Staff Headquarters and may even be a candidate for Vice Minister of the Army!

More importantly, before Shibayama Kenshiro, the highest military advisor to the Jinling Restoration Office was Haruki Yoshitane. This man valued Li Shiqun highly, and the two had a good personal relationship. Li Shiqun was able to wield great power in Jinling and become the head of the secret service because of Haruki Yoshitane. However, Haruki had no background and did not stay in this position for long. He has now been transferred back to Japan to serve as the head of the China Section of the General Staff Headquarters.

The newly arrived Shibayama Kenshiro was very dissatisfied with Li Shiqun. In his view, Li Shiqun was a spy chief supported by Japan. He had supported similar people before when he was in Hankou. He thought Li Shiqun should just be a dog and not make such a big fuss.

He used to be in charge of that place, where he was the only one who could be trusted. Whether it was the local maintenance committee or the detective team, they all had to obey him. Why is it that things are different in Nanjing?

In Li Shiqun's view, the Jinling Reformed Prefecture had a certain degree of autonomy. "Your Military Police Command is the Military Police Command, and our Special Agent Headquarters is the Special Agent Headquarters. I'm giving you face, so don't interfere with me too much."

The deeper conflict between the two sides still lies in the issues in Shanghai.

The No. 76 controlled multiple sources of income in Shanghai, especially large factories and trading companies, all of which had to pay protection money to the No. 76. Li Shiqun and his gang made a fortune.

How could Shibayama Kenshiro sit still?

"Alright, Qingqing, feigning illness isn't a solution. I know what I'm doing. I'll just be careful with my words and actions along the way. If they want to sue the North China authorities, let them. I'm not going to get involved."

"That's right, Shiqun. Doing this well won't do you any good, and if you do it badly, you won't be held responsible. Just go through the motions."

Li Shiqun chuckled and pinched her cheek. "Oh my, my wife is truly a female Zhuge Liang of our time, the best and most capable wife ever!"

Ye Jiqing, with her captivating charm, blushed and said, "You shameless rascal!"

That noon, Li Shiqun boarded a special train bound for Tianjin.

His fellow passengers in the same carriage were Toyotomi Kiyoto and Tanabe Kenzai.

Toyotomi Kiyoto, who was in his fifties, went to rest in the back of the train after boarding, clearly not intending to get too involved in what was happening here.

Kenjiro Tanabe, being younger and more energetic, asked the food truck staff to bring him some food, which he ate with great relish.

"Director Li, it's lunchtime, aren't you going to eat something?"

Li Shiqun smiled and said, "Colonel Tanabe, please go ahead. I'm not hungry yet."

An hour or so later, Li Shiqun's attendant brought over a meal: two flatbreads and a bowl of soup.

Upon seeing this, Kenji Tanabe laughed and said, "Director Li is indeed very cautious."

Ignoring the sarcasm in his words, Li Shiqun said seriously, "Those of us in this line of work should always be careful when we're out and about."

"I heard that North China has swallowed 60,000 shi of grain. How does Director Li plan to handle this matter?"

"Before we came, Dean Wang personally instructed that the 60,000 shi of grain were military rations, and Mr. Tanabe is a member of the military. Please try to mediate between us."

Kenjiro Tanabe said softly, "With Major General Toyotomi here, it's not my place to arrange this. Just saying it's military rations probably won't make North China give in."

Li Shiqun shook his head. "Whether you comply or not, I, Li, only need to follow Dean Wang's instructions."

After a while, Toyotomi Kiyoto still hadn't come over, and the two of them couldn't continue their conversation, so they simply closed their eyes to rest.

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

Eastern Hebei.

The situation here has changed once again.

After a period of silence, the Loyal and Patriotic Army resumed its operations.

This time, instead of attacking the Fengrun area, they marched south, and their activities were felt all the way to the north of Tianjin.

Lin Ze even personally dispatched the auxiliary management bureau and a portion of the police brigade to the area north of Tianjin to assist the security forces in their operations.

That same day, Okamura urgently telegraphed Hayashi to inquire about the situation. Hayashi simply got in his car and went to Beiping to report to Okamura.

He also brought Okamura Tadamasa with him.

On the train, Tadashi Okamura was showing off his little cakes and enjoying them immensely.

"Brother, although I have a nominal position in the auxiliary management bureau, I've never actually been to the north. Is it appropriate for me to give a report on this?"

Lin Ze glanced at him and waved for another plate of pastries. “Zhongzheng, I’ve said before that you should make money and become an official. This banditry in Jidong is an opportunity. Although you didn’t go to the front line, you’ve heard a lot of reports these past two days. Just report the facts when the time comes.”

"I'm afraid my father won't believe me."

"Don't worry, I'm here for you. I'll report first, then you can report. The General will be pleased to see your progress."

Okamura Tadamasa pursed his lips, "Big brother, I'll listen to you. It doesn't matter if he's happy or not, as long as you're happy."

Lin Ze was speechless for a moment.

Filial piety! Such a grand display of filial piety!