The shopkeeper invited Xu Chengyan into the back hall and only said: "Wait a moment!"

Then he turned and left, leaving Xu Chengyan alone. He walked around the room to check that everything was correct, and then sat down on the chair.

After waiting for about twenty minutes, footsteps were heard outside the door. The shopkeeper walked in with a middle-aged man, then backed out and closed the door from the outside.

This man is in his forties, has a wide forehead and a big face, is somewhat fat, has an ordinary appearance, and has a somewhat pale complexion. He is wearing a long mandarin jacket and looks like a businessman.

Xu Chengyan just glanced at him and put him together with the character in Chu Guangji's description. He quickly stood up, nodded slightly, and said respectfully: "Stationmaster Zhou!"

The person who came was none other than Zhou Shirong, the head of the Peiping District of the Military Unification Bureau and the chief of the Peiping Station. He was also one of the oldest agents in the Military Unification Bureau and had been operating in North China. After the outbreak of all-out war, he was ordered to establish the Peiping Intelligence Region of the Military Unification Bureau and take full responsibility for it.

The intelligence activities in the Pingjin area are under the jurisdiction of Beiping Station, Tianjin Station and Qingdao Station. Among them, Beiping Station and Tianjin Station are rare Category A major stations in the military command bureau's establishment, which shows his position in the heart of the bureau.

Before Xu Chengyan's trip to Peking this time, Chu Guangji specially gave Xu Chengyan a task, which was to come and meet Zhou Shirong to hand over an important document.

Peiping Station and Taiyuan Station are the heart of the Peiping Intelligence Region and the Shanxi-Chasui Intelligence Region respectively. They are also major stations in North China. They have always been connected, usually through secret radio stations. However, there is a lot of information that is not suitable for various reasons.

It is sent in a message, which needs to be passed back and forth between the two stations through the liaison officer.

However, the distance between Peiping and Taiyuan is really far, and the route is occupied by occupied areas controlled by the Japanese. It is difficult to ensure safety and the risks are too high, so there is little personnel contact between the two stations. Xu Chengyan happened to come to Peiping this time, so he

Acted as a liaison officer.

When Zhou Shirong saw Xu Chengyan, he looked at it carefully. He couldn't help but be surprised. He couldn't imagine that this gentle and gentle young man in front of him was actually the famous "Viper"!

The executioner of the "March 28 Bombings" who assassinated Masao Yoshioka, killed Takuma Ito, and sent dozens of important Japanese and puppet officials to the West in one fell swoop.

We must know that the impact of the "March 28 Bombing" was really huge, which directly led to the turmoil in North China. For this reason, the relationship between the Japanese chaebols represented by Nikko Kaisha and the Japanese military was once tense, and there were problems with logistical supplies, which led to the national

The pressure on the front line of the army was greatly reduced, and the bureau chief was still reporting awards to the overall situation. For a time, the name "Viper" was known to everyone within the military command, and it could be said that it was in the limelight.

At this time, Zhou Shirong stepped forward and stretched out his hand first. Xu Chengyan was startled, but he quickly reacted and reached out to meet him, holding his two big hands tightly together.

"I have heard about Viper for a long time, and after receiving the telegram from Brother Guangji, I have been waiting for your arrival. When I saw you today, you are indeed worthy of your reputation. I'm glad to meet you, I'm glad to meet you!"

Zhou Shirong's status in the Military Control Bureau is far higher than that of Xu Chengyan. Even his teacher Chu Guangji is far behind him. However, Zhou Shirong's words are extremely polite and his posture is very low.

, which made Xu Chengyan a little confused.

However, Xu Chengyan still said respectfully: "I am in a humble position and have only shallow qualifications. I am lucky enough to have made some achievements. I dare not take credit in front of my seniors. You are too polite!"

"Haha, you are worthy of being Brother Guangji's disciple. He is truly better than his master. Now that Viper's name is like thunder, you don't have to be too humble. Come, let's sit down and talk."

The two of them took their seats, and Xu Chengyan unfolded the newspaper he had brought, revealing a thread-bound book inside. This was the important document that Chu Guangji asked Xu Chengyan to hand over.

Zhou Shirong took it and checked it carefully. When he saw that there was nothing unusual, he nodded slightly.

Xu Chengyan has carefully examined this book. From the inside to the outside, it is just an ordinary thread-bound book. The content is unremarkable. It is just an old storybook. However, if you look carefully, you will find that there are several pages in it.

It was slightly stretched and uneven, as if there were traces of writing with ink. Xu Chengyan knew that this must have been caused by the use of an invisible potion, which required special processing to become visible.

Although Xu Chengyan also wanted to know the contents of this secret document, there were currently many types of invisibility potions used in the intelligence department. As far as he knew, there were several types. Some of them could not be restored to their original state after being processed. Technically,

Xu Chengyan was not sure.

Moreover, he is currently a kite with a broken string, a lone goose that has escaped from the flock. There is no need to intercept any important information. If it is intercepted, he does not know where to send it. So after thinking about it again and again, he finally did not act rashly, but submitted the document intact.

In the hands of Zhou Shirong.

After Zhou Shirong carefully inspected the thread-bound book, he made sure that there was no trace of leakage, and he was not suspected. After all, Viper was Chu Guangji's student and confidant, and he was also a rising star valued by the bureau, so he could not have any suspicion.

Putting down the book, he asked in a deep voice: "Does Brother Guangji have anything else to explain to me when I come to Peiping this time?"

"I don't dare. You and the teacher are close friends. You have been generous in helping me since the Taiyuan station was rebuilt. The teacher will bear this in mind. We are far away from the center in Taiyuan and have little information. We will still rely on your support in the future.

By the way, this is a gift specially prepared by the teacher for me to hand over to you."

After saying that, Xu Chengyan took out a wrapped white handkerchief from his arms, placed it on the table and unfolded it, revealing a piece of milky white crystal jade wall inside.

I saw this piece of jade wall about the size of half a palm, with a through hole in the center and shallow lotus patterns carved in sequence around the through hole. Especially the jade is warm and as delicate as mutton fat. Under the sunlight coming in from the window,

, exuding crystal light, really exquisite!

"Knowing that you like jade, the teacher worked hard to get this piece of jade. It's top-quality Hetian jade, without any flaws. The delicately carved lotus pattern also suits your liking."

Xu Chengyan came to Peking this time. In addition to delivering confidential documents, he also shouldered another mission as a teacher, which was to send this generous gift to express his gratitude to Zhou Shirong.

It turns out that Chu Guangji and Zhou Shirong did have some friendship in the past, but they were not close friends like what Xu Chengyan said. They could only be talked with each other at most.

Later, Chu Guangji stayed at the headquarters, while Zhou Shirong went to North China, and there was no contact between them.

However, this time when Chu Guangji became the chief of the Taiyuan Station, he was very poor when he took office. He was short of people, money, and especially intelligence channels. The few intelligence agents left behind by Ji Xinghuai and Han Zhirong's rebellion could not find the informants.

Because of the ghost, Chu Guangji really didn't dare to use it easily.

However, the fighting on the front line was tense at that time. In order to cope with the Japanese attack, the military urgently needed intelligence to judge the movements of the Japanese army.

So the headquarters kept urging Chu Guangji to collect military intelligence from all parties to assist in the defense task of the Zhongtiao Mountain Front. However, Chu Guangji had no information, and he was so anxious that he had to shamelessly ask Zhou Shirong for help.

.

Zhou Shirong was indeed a generous person. Although he did not have a close relationship with Chu Guangji, he readily agreed to his request.

After all, Peiping was the heart of the Japanese North China Front and the seat of the central organization. All major political and especially military measures were formulated here.

Zhou Shirong has been operating here for a long time, and his intelligence tentacles have been able to obtain some inside information and information with intelligence value.

So Chu Guangji relied on some news about the Japanese military movements transferred from Zhou Shirong and reported it to the headquarters. Finally, he passed the test without any danger. For this reason, Chu Guangji hoped that Zhou Shirong could report to the headquarters in times of crisis.

I have always been grateful for my helping hand.

He had spent a lot of time collecting this lotus jade. He had put a lot of effort into making good friends with Zhou Shirong. After all, there would be many things to do in the future. If he asked Zhou Shirong to do more to win over him, he would never succeed.

Incorrect.

But what Xu Chengyan didn't expect was that when Zhou Shirong saw this extremely rare lotus jade, there was no smile on his face. Instead, his eyelids sank and he said coldly: "Why, Chu Guangji is still doing this with me?"

Tune?"

In one sentence, he changed his address to Chu Guangji from "Brother Guangji" to calling him by his first name, and his tone became less affectionate, which immediately made Xu Chengyan not know what to say.

He carefully replied: "Webmaster Zhou, please don't get me wrong. This is entirely the teacher's intention. It comes from the bottom of my heart. There is absolutely no other intention..."

But before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Zhou Shirong with a wave of his hand: "I was willing to help before because Chu Guangji was ordered to save the crisis in Shanxi at an urgent moment. Everyone shares weal and woe, and it is our duty to help each other. I absolutely cannot

It’s not because of personal friendship, let alone for his benefit, you take this jade back.”

Listening to Zhou Shirong's righteous words, Xu Chengyan's eyes widened. He was really a little surprised. It is common for Kuomintang officials to exchange favors and send money to each other. It is nothing at all. The so-called politeness to many people is not strange.

It would be strange not to give away talents!

But he really didn't expect that Zhou Shirong would refuse the gift directly, and the job would be ruined. How would he explain to Chu Guangji when he went back?

Thinking of this, he quickly explained again: "Stationmaster Zhou, I apologize for my inappropriate behavior and disrespect for my humble position. As you said, we are all in the same boat, and we will work together in the future, but we must not hurt the harmony.

"

At this time, Zhou Shirong also knew that his reaction was a bit too much, so he softened his tone and said: "Okay, don't worry too much. In fact, these things were fine in the peaceful and prosperous times, but now? Playing with things to lose one's ambition may even lead to irritation.

Disaster for yourself.

Besides, since the fall of Peiping, life at our Peking Station has not been easy. In times of difficulty, it was even difficult for my subordinates to feed themselves, so I no longer had any thoughts. Some of the antique jades I had collected have been sold to raise funds.

Now, I can’t hide this treasure of yours for a few days. Once this kind of thing is released, it will not be a good thing for you if it is involved again. Listen to me and take it back! Thank Guangji for me too.

Brother’s kindness!”

Xu Chengyan could tell that Zhou Shirong's words came from the sincerity and were not false at all. He couldn't help but feel in awe. There were not many people in the Kuomintang who could be self-denial and devoted to public service and sacrifice their families for the country. Even his teacher Chu Guangji

No, this is the webmaster Zhou Shirong.

Seeing that Xu Chengyan didn't speak, Zhou Shirong thought he still had concerns, so he said, "Go back and tell Brother Guangji that if you have any difficulties in the future, I, Mr. Zhou, will still be able to help you and I will never refuse. Just don't worry!"

Now that the words have reached this point, Xu Chengyan can no longer say anything. He can only nod his head and agree: "Stationmaster Zhou is so upright and upright. He humbles his position and is sincerely convinced. I'm ashamed, I'm ashamed!"

After saying that, he stretched out his hand to wrap the lotus jade in handkerchief and put it in his arms.

"However," Zhou Shirong suddenly spoke up again, "Since you have your heart, I am really in a bit of a dilemma here. If I need you, a master of operations, to take action, don't refuse!"
Chapter completed!