Chapter 89: The Impersonator
Changchun.
The Special Higher Police Section headquarters of the Xinjing Police Department in Manchukuo, a building with three floors above ground and one underground level, built in a distinctly Russian style.
Maeda Ryo, chief of the Xinjing Special Higher Police Section, wore a spotless Japanese military uniform.
The white gloves on his hands were as white as snow.
“Has that Chinese woman confessed yet?”
“No. That stupid Chinese woman has gone insane.”
The interrogation chamber was in the basement level. The stagnant air carried the pungent smell of burnt flesh, dirty blood, and mixed human waste.
Maeda Ryo frowned and lightly covered his nose.
“The ventilator broke again?”
“The motor burned out,” the Japanese officer replied. The section chief had a cleanliness obsession. After taking over the Xinjing Special Higher Police Section, the first thing he had done was equip the interrogation room with a ventilator.
Maeda Ryo carefully examined the woman tied to the pillar.
Her hair hung in disarray.
There was scarcely an intact patch of flesh left on her body.
A burnt stench emanated from her.
Her eyes were vacant and lifeless.
“She’s insane?”
“Insane.”
“Did she say anything?”
“She said she knew nothing. We investigated her background. This woman is the wife of an Imperial Guard officer. In order to curry favor with Mr. Imai, the officer arranged for her to serve Mr. Imai. It appears she truly knows nothing and is not lying.”
Maeda Ryo nodded and extended his hand.
The officer drew his Type 14 Nambu pistol and respectfully handed it over with both hands.
Bang!
The woman was shot in the forehead.
Her body twitched reflexively from nervous response.
Then everything became still.
“What about her husband?”
Maeda Ryo returned the Type 14 Nambu pistol.
“We investigated him. Nothing suspicious. This Imperial Guard officer has always been friendly toward the Empire. He personally executed several anti-Manchukuo, anti-Japanese resistance members.”
“So there has been no progress whatsoever in the investigation into Imai’s assassination?”
Maeda Ryo frowned in dissatisfaction.
“Section Chief, we’ve been puzzled by this all along. Mr. Imai was only an ordinary military adviser. His life was very simple, consisting of the military camp, his quarters, and the tavern. He rarely participated in front-line military operations and was not important enough to become a major assassination target for anti-Manchukuo and anti-Japanese resistance elements.”
Maeda Ryo lowered his head and glanced at his glove.
A speck of blood had landed on the pristine white fabric.
Frowning, he irritably removed the glove and tossed it beside the dead woman’s feet.
“Investigate within the Imperial Guard.”
Maeda Ryo spoke in a deep voice.
“Imai was a man with an unpredictable temper. Many Chinese soldiers disliked him.”
“Yes, sir.”
That evening, as the city lights began to glow.
Shanghai.
French Concession.
Yande Lane.
Li Hao finished work and came to Cheng Qianfan’s home.
Every day he came once to clean the house and feed the cat.
Using his key to open the door, he immediately noticed a letter lying on the floor.
Li Hao picked it up and saw the words “To Be Opened Personally by Cheng Qianfan” written on the envelope.
After confirming it was a letter for Brother Fan, he took the envelope upstairs and placed it in a desk drawer.
Brother Fan had been away from Shanghai for quite a few days.
Several days later.
Man Cang deliberately injured his arm, drawing blood.
Clutching the wound, he arrived at Guangji Hospital, paid the fee, and headed directly to the dressing room.
Doctor Hu in the dressing room glanced up.
“Sit down.”
Man Cang looked around and silently took a seat.
“How did you injure yourself?”
“Scraped it while working.”
Doctor Hu skillfully disinfected and bandaged the wound.
“Be careful. Old Zou has been captured by the secret police. The organization has instructed you to relocate as soon as possible.”
Man Cang spoke in a low voice.
Doctor Hu continued bandaging without even looking at him.
His expression remained calm.
“Remember, don’t let it get wet. Be careful of infection.”
“I understand.”
Man Cang looked at his bandaged arm and gave an honest-looking grin.
Then he turned and left.
“Remember, don’t let it get wet.”
Doctor Hu reminded him again.
“Understood.”
Man Cang nodded, adjusted his felt hat, and hurried away.
He almost bumped into someone entering the room and apologetically gave a simple-minded smile.
Cheng Qianfan waved his hand to indicate it was nothing.
“Doctor, I’m here to change my dressing.”
“Didn’t I tell you not to get it wet?”
Doctor Hu removed the bandage and frowned.
“Sorry about that. I couldn’t avoid it while working.”
Cheng Qianfan forced a smile.
Doctor Hu dipped a cotton swab into disinfectant, cleaned the wound briefly, sprinkled medicinal powder on it, and replaced the bandage with fresh gauze.
“Remember, you absolutely can’t get it wet again.”
“Thank you, thank you.”
Cheng Qianfan nodded repeatedly, stood up, thanked him, and left.
After having his dressing changed, Cheng Qianfan wandered casually through the hospital corridor.
“Hey, what are you doing?”
A doctor wearing a mask called out loudly.
“Changing my dressing.”
Cheng Qianfan raised his right hand.
“If you’re changing your dressing, go to the dressing room.”
The doctor spoke impatiently.
“Stop wandering around.”
“Understood.”
Cheng Qianfan nodded with a broad smile.
There was a patch of what appeared to be burn scarring on his face, along with a faint scar on his chin.
Combined with his smile, it created an inexplicably unsettling impression.
The doctor frowned, stopped paying attention to him, and walked away.
A trace of a smile appeared on Cheng Qianfan’s face.
He had already confirmed that this doctor was Agent Six, the operative hidden within the hospital.
This was the practical examination for the Special Training Class’s Scientific Investigation Methods course.
Each trainee received an assignment.
The settings varied, including hospitals, vegetable markets, street markets, department stores, taverns, and other locations.
The Special Service Office had arranged for agents to disguise themselves as Japanese spies in these places.
The trainees had to identify the hidden “Japanese spies” within half a month.
Successfully identifying the impersonator would earn an excellent evaluation.
Failing to identify the target but also avoiding exposure oneself counted as barely passing.
If one not only failed to identify the impersonator but was instead discovered by the impersonator first, the operation was considered a failure and the examination was failed.
“Doctor Gu, a Mr. Liu has arrived. He specifically requested to see you.”
A young nurse ran over, caught up with the departing doctor, and called out.
“I know.”
Doctor Gu nodded.
He entered his office and soon emerged carrying a kettle.
Handing it to the assistant who was organizing medical records at a desk outside the office, he said, “Xiao Li, go fetch me a kettle of hot water.”
“Sure thing.”
Watching his assistant leave with the kettle, Doctor Gu returned to his office and drew the curtains shut.
Everything appeared completely normal.
Leaning against a corner in the corridor, Cheng Qianfan gently shook his head.
Everything about Doctor Gu appeared normal.
However, there was one unconscious habit that even the doctor himself had failed to notice.
Every time he received a patient, he would draw the curtains and send away his medical assistant.
The hot-water room was not close to the consultation office.
Fetching a kettle of water would take at least fifteen minutes round trip.
Cheng Qianfan had observed the other doctors.
When seeing patients, their assistants never left.
Some doctors even called their assistants inside to learn.
In a certain sense, those assistants were their apprentices.
Doctors taught them through direct demonstration during consultations.
Moreover, disagreements between patients and doctors were inevitable.
Having another person present provided a witness.
In Cheng Qianfan’s view, this was an unconscious manifestation of a spy’s mentality.
Spies were lonely.
Subconsciously, they resisted allowing others to get close.
They trusted no one.
The reason Cheng Qianfan had not immediately reported that he had identified Agent Six was because it had only been three days.
Finding the impersonator so quickly would make his performance appear excessively outstanding.
As far as he knew, none of the trainees in this Special Training Class had yet successfully identified their impersonator.
In similar examinations, the fastest completion record among previous trainees had been five days.
He was deliberately concealing his abilities.
Just then, a middle-aged man dressed in a suit and leather shoes, wearing a fedora, knocked on Doctor Gu’s office door.
Cheng Qianfan narrowed his eyes.
He had never seen this man before.
Recalling what the nurse had just said to the doctor, suspicion immediately arose in Cheng Qianfan’s mind.