69novels Chapter 84 Currency War?
Chapter 84 Currency War?
Zhou Xiao laughed loudly: "Boss Dai is certainly generous, offering promotions and rank-boosting rewards—but if you ask me, how about a few small yellow croakers? That would be more practical!"
"Haha, what a mouth of yours!" Zheng Yaoxian laughed and shook his head.
In fact, these honorary titles and generous rewards were not the main point; the real intention was to give Zhou Xiao an even thicker layer of disguise and armor.
"That's all the good news." He took a deep drag of his cigarette and slowly exhaled. "Now, let's get down to business—have you heard of the Japanese currency war?"
Currency war?
That top-secret intelligence was personally delivered by Zhou Xiao.
"certainly."
That was a vicious tactic used by the Japanese invaders to empty the pockets of ordinary people, disrupt the financial system, and extract profits from the war.
Counterfeit money comes in all sorts of forms, but no matter how realistic it is, there will always be flaws. Only when it is so realistic that even the counterfeit money inspector cannot tell the difference between real and fake does it truly become a knife that kills without drawing blood.
"We managed to salvage the printing plates for genuine currency, thus saving our lifeline."
"But the latest intelligence reports that the Japanese have switched to hand-carved steel plates—they have brought in two top engravers who lie under magnifying glasses and carve out every strand of hair and every fold of clothing with their naked eyes; the front is intaglio-printed and the back is offset-printed, and the counterfeit banknotes they produce can almost fool bank vaults."
"What's worse is that the coin-making machine has been secretly transported to Shanghai, just waiting to be molded and mass-produced."
"Once counterfeit money floods the market, unscrupulous merchants will scramble to buy grain, cotton and cloth, and prices will collapse overnight—not only will the soldiers on the front lines suffer, but also millions of ordinary people who are left with only a few pieces of paper and can't even buy half a pound of rice."
Zheng Yaoxian spoke clearly, and Zhou Xiao listened intently, his fingertips unconsciously tightening around the seam of his trousers.
The currency war was a life-or-death struggle without the use of swords, yet it directly impacted the nation's very foundation. The slightest misstep could shake the very basis of the war effort. It was for this reason that Zheng Yaoxian rushed to Shanghai day and night.
Some things can't be explained over the phone or hidden over the airwaves; they have to be settled face-to-face.
"The mastermind behind this currency war is the Japanese military's newly established 'Sugi Agency'—a secretive and elusive intelligence and counterfeit currency center. The person in charge is Ken Oshima; you should have met him before."
Zhou Xiao frowned: "I understand the significance of this game. So these days, I've been trying to get close to the core of the Sugi Agency and figure out their money-printing strategy."
"Unfortunately, we've been kept out of the door all along, and we haven't even found out which neighborhood their counterfeit money factory is in."
Zheng Yaoxian nodded, his tone as firm as iron: "The order Boss Dai gave us this time is to find that counterfeit money den and shut it down—leaving no one alive, not even the people, the machines, the master plates, or the ledgers."
...This task was perfectly aligned with the direction of the underground party's secret order to him to investigate a few days earlier.
The instructions Li Xiaonan gave were sharp and pointed to the same goal.
This clearly demonstrates that the crackdown on counterfeit currency was no longer a one-sided operation, but a battle for survival concerning the soldiers' pay, the people's livelihood, and even the economic lifeline of the entire occupied area. The rare collaboration between the Military Intelligence Bureau and the underground Communist Party shows that the Japanese devils' vicious scheme had struck at the most sensitive spot on the nation's spine.
"Zhou Xiao, this mission must succeed." Zheng Yaoxian's eyes were burning. "If it really comes to the point of no return—even if it means revealing our identities and risking our lives—we must turn the hideout upside down."
Zhou Xiao replied, "Understood."
If we can truly destroy that black den of counterfeit money, it will be equivalent to severing a vital lifeline for the enemy: the thousands of troops on the front lines will not collapse due to the lack of pay for counterfeit currency, and millions of families in the rear will not go hungry because the banknotes are worthless. This achievement is heavier than a mountain.
More importantly, if those printing presses are blown up and all templates and personnel rosters are burned, the entire Sugimoto Agency's currency infiltration system will be instantly paralyzed and difficult to recover.
Zheng Yaoxian stared at him: "The difficulty is self-evident—the Japanese themselves know better than anyone that the hideout is their Achilles' heel."
Zhou Xiao's gaze remained fixed: "So I'm slowly prying down Oshima Ken's wall of trust, and piercing into their hearts."
"Okay." Zheng Yaoxian paused briefly, his voice suddenly dropping three degrees. "This is only the first hurdle. There's an even more dangerous, urgent, and crucial task ahead."
"The Japanese military high command is secretly pushing forward a top-secret operation codenamed 'Heavenly Sound'."
"According to our pieced-together, albeit fragmented, intelligence, the so-called 'Heavenly Sound' refers to the simultaneous poisoning of water sources in all areas that have not yet fallen—the massive dumping of Vibrio cholerae into rivers, wells, and canals. The perpetrators are all Special Higher Police agents who have infiltrated the Kuomintang-controlled and guerrilla areas."
"Vibrio cholerae?" Zhou Xiao's pupils contracted sharply.
Cholera—its virulent nature is chilling. Just a sip of contaminated water can cause severe diarrhea, dehydration, and even shock and death within hours. It is transmitted via the fecal-oral route and thrives in places lacking medical care and with poor sanitation; it produces toxins rapidly, and even without drinking water, patients will experience uncontrollable intestinal diarrhea.
If the "heavenly sound" were to fall, the unoccupied areas would turn into a plague graveyard overnight: civilians would fall in droves, and the anti-Japanese forces would collapse before the battle even began; once the water source was cut off, the city would fall by itself—without the Japanese army firing a single shot, the entire land would be killed by thirst, disease, and fear.
"These beasts, their hearts are colder than arsenic!" Zhou Xiao's jaw clenched, his knuckles white. "If a soldier contracts cholera and becomes too weak to stand, how can he carry a gun? How can he charge?"
"What they want is to conquer China without bloodshed, trampling over mountains of corpses and seas of bones, and burying it in the mud."
Zheng Yaoxian's face turned ashen: "For the Japanese, no bottom line is too low to be crushed. Germ warfare, poison gas warfare, live experiments... the evils they committed are far dirtier and more ruthless than we've ever heard of."
"This time, they've gone even further, reaching for the water that sustains life—this is an atrocity against humanity. If they succeed, not only will the country be plunged into a cholera hell, but the virus could very well sweep the globe via merchant ships and refugee waves."
It should be noted that cholera was a plague that swept across the world in the 19th century, spreading from the Ganges River in India to Eurasia, Africa, and the Americas, claiming tens of millions of lives. It was not until the advent of a vaccine in 1884 that its fangs were barely restrained.
But in today's China, hospitals have been burned to the ground by war, pharmacies are empty ruins, and even iodine is hard to find in rural areas. If cholera were to break out now, it would not be a simple epidemic—it would be a catastrophe, a silent massacre.
"To cut off 'Heavenly Melody,' we must first remove those lurking fangs." Zhou Xiao's voice tightened, his thoughts flowing like a sharp blade. "We must, before they can poison us, dig out and eliminate every single one of the Special Higher Police's agents planted in non-enemy-occupied areas!"
"Exactly." Zheng Yaoxian nodded. "Your next target is that list of agents."
"Intelligence indicates that the list is most likely locked in a safe at the military police headquarters. But no one can guarantee that it's actually hidden in the safe."
"Remember—this list is more urgent, more important, and more urgent than counterfeit money dens. Every day of delay increases the risk of annihilation."
Zhou Xiao's Adam's apple bobbed: "I understand."
Zheng Yaoxian went to Shanghai for two reasons: first, to eliminate the black nest of the Sugi Agency's money printing business; and second, to tear down the death list before "Heavenly Music" was played.
"There's no turning back on these two matters." Zheng Yaoxian's tone was calm yet undeniable. "From now on, I will stay in Shanghai to protect you, build bridges for you, and provide a safety net."
"If you can accomplish these two things, you will be the one to lift up the tripod."
"I dare not presume to shoulder such a heavy responsibility." Zhou Xiao's voice was low and firm, like a piece of tempered steel. "As long as the blood is still hot, who wouldn't swear to defend this land to the death?"
Those who offend China, no matter how far away, will be punished!
Although Zhou Xiao did not charge into battle with a gun, he lay low in the shadows for many years, silently shouldering the heavy responsibility of protecting the country!
Zheng Yaoxian stared at Zhou Xiao with admiration in his eyes, then raised his hand and gave him two heavy taps on the shoulder: "Zhou Xiao, I knew you were up to something long ago."
Zheng Yaoxian felt at ease and exceptionally pleased to have personally trained such a calm, capable, and trustworthy apprentice.
Next, Zhou Xiao and Zheng Yaoxian exchanged information about the counterfeit currency den and "Project Tianlai," sorting through the clues while planning how to take on these two tough tasks.
The mission cannot afford to fail!
It involves the safety of millions of people, and even more so, the fate of the entire nation.
Zhou Xiao stayed at Zheng Yaoxian's apartment for more than an hour before taking his leave.
The return route was the same: first, he jumped off the roof of the Oriental Apartment building and landed safely back on the rooftop of the Prosperity Hotel; then he took a rickshaw back to Oriental Road; and finally, he drove away.
The entire secret meeting was conducted in complete silence, without even the slightest disturbance.
The No. 76 Special Agent Headquarters was a secret service agency supported by the Wang Jingwei regime, established by a group of traitors who defected to the enemy. Because its office was located at No. 76 Jessfield Road, it was known to outsiders as "No. 76".
Li Moqun, who was assassinated by Zhou Xiao, was one of the founders of the organization.
It is worth mentioning that the full name of No. 76 is "Special Service Commission Special Agent Headquarters", which has now become the core stronghold for suppressing anti-Japanese forces.
Currently, the head of the intelligence department is Wang Manchun, and the head of the operations department is Liang Zhongchun.
Wang Manchun and Minglou were originally fellow disciples. In their early years, they were both pure and gentle, and studied under Wang Manchun's uncle, Wang Fuzhao. The two were also deeply in love with each other.
The Ming and Wang families had a deep-seated grudge. Ming Lou's father, Ming Ruidong, made a strict rule before his death: "The Wang and Ming families shall not marry within three generations." Ming Lou's eldest sister, Ming Jing, refused to associate with Wang Fuzhao after learning that she was a staunch traitor, and personally severed their relationship.
Minglou stormed off in a huff, leaving Wang Manchun alone, feeling as if a piece of her heart had been ripped out.
From childhood, she only had Wang Fuzhao as her closest relative, and was exposed to distorted values all around her. Long-term lack of love and witnessing the fall of countless innocent people eventually drove her to the brink of despair. She believed that this world was a jungle law, and if you didn't bite, you would be devoured.
Thus, today, Wang Manchun is the most feared intelligence chief in the 76th Division, decisive and ruthless in her actions.
As for the Operations Director Liang Zhongchun, he was highly competitive. Although his strategy and ruthlessness were slightly inferior to Wang Manchun's, he was extremely good at understanding his superiors' intentions and currying favor with them.
He was originally a high-ranking official in the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS), but later defected to the Wang Jingwei regime. His most distinctive characteristic was his insatiable greed.