cicada

Chapter 1235 The culprit

Based on the existing investigation results, Zuo Chong roughly divided the people involved in the case into three categories.

The first is the staff of Jinlan Society.

The second group includes the members of the Jinlan Society, including Zhong Xiao and Xiang Fang, who cooperate with Sima Linglong to test the director of the Junwei Society in the official residence and the police chief who tests He Yajun.

The third is an unidentified person who went to Hongdian for investigation.

Judging from the confessions, the first and second categories of personnel knew very little intelligence, and the roles they played were either cover or peripheral members of the spy organization, the kind that could be abandoned at any time.

The third category of people are Sima Linglong’s real accomplices. These people enter and exit the Jinlan Society through secret passages, and use this method to receive tasks and hold meetings.

If the spy organization is viewed as a spider web, then Sima Linglong is the commander in the middle of the web, and the rest of the people collect intelligence knowingly or unknowingly.

This structure, which combines light and dark, reality and illusion, greatly enhances the concealment of the spy organization. However, once Sima Linglong, the core of the organization, is arrested or gives in during interrogation, the entire spy organization will be exposed.

  So, knowing clearly that Sima Linglong who was in the open was in danger, why did the enemy set the meeting point at Jinlan Society?

If the other party wants to contact and meet, they can simply place the meeting place outside the Jinlan Club. Even using a dead mailbox is safer than this structure.

Zuo Zhong felt that figuring this out would be the key to solving the case, because anyone has an internal logical drive to do anything, and it was impossible for the opponent to reveal such a big flaw for no reason.

As long as they can find the internal logic, they can infer the enemy's purpose and identity. Even if Sima Linglong doesn't speak, solving the case is only a matter of time.

Gu Qi also thought of the reason. He put down his chopsticks and looked regretful: "Deputy Commander, shouldn't we arrest Sima Linglong? We should follow the clues through her. The real spy must be shocked now."

Zuo Zhong shook his head: "This time the opponent is a bit strange and cautious. If our actions are discovered, the opponent will most likely choose to kill us to silence us."

Gu Qi understood that the Military Control Commission currently only had witnesses. If the witnesses were gone, Sima Linglong would have a chance to escape punishment. This was worth noting.

While the two were talking, Wu Chunyang walked in from outside. He shouted to the chef to bring some food and sat down heavily on the stool.

"How is it? Have Zhong Xiao and Bian Jichao been arranged?" Zuo Chong glanced at him and asked casually.

Wu Chunyang took the rice handed to him by the chef and answered, "It's all arranged. I told the guards to keep an eye on them to prevent any accidents."

From this we can see Wu Chunyang's caution and alertness. Obviously he also realized the importance of human evidence. The Military Control Commission detention center is safe, but it is always right to be careful.

After eating a little, Wu Chunyang asked about the results of the interrogation of Sima Linglong. Gu Qi introduced the situation. Wu Chunyang frowned and said with some confusion.

"According to Zhong Xiao's confession, Sima Linglong's training for them was simple, even perfunctory. To carry out the mission with this level of training is simply courting death.

Moreover, Sima Linglong seemed to pay special attention to business intelligence. Zhong Xiao once asked her the reason, but she did not give a reasonable explanation and only said that it was the need of the organization.

Some time ago, Sima Linglong also asked Zhong Xiao to collect all the details of the government's steel restructuring plan, such as the types and quantities of equipment to be purchased, etc. "

Focus on business information...Steel restructuring plan...Equipment procurement...

Zuo Zhong thought over and over again about these key pieces of information, constantly combining, splitting, and recombining them in his mind, trying to make sense of them.

Is Sima Linglong a commercial spy? Not likely. Commercial espionage organizations do not have the capabilities to research psychological control, and they dare not confront official intelligence agencies head-on.

When she was arrested earlier, it was found that Sima Linglong had a secret passage in her room, but she ignored it. There is no such commercial spy in the world.

Commercial intelligence activities are ultimately a gray business. Since it is a gray business, it cannot be seen in the light. This is inconsistent with Sima Linglong's fearless attitude.

By the way, Sima Linglong once went into exile in the United States and grew up there, and the United States is a commercial country. Could it be that the other party is from the American intelligence agency?

That's not true. Out of its own interests in East Asia, the current US government supports the joint anti-Japanese war and would not reveal the encirclement and suppression information to the Japanese.

Wait! I think I got one thing wrong. The attitude of the US government is not the same as the attitude of all Americans.

There is a group of people within the United States who not only value commercial interests, but also have strong economic and technological strength, and are more keen to provoke war.

  A light bulb went off in Zuo Chong's mind, and he had already guessed Sima Linglong's background. No wonder the other party dared to set the meeting place at the Jinlan Society. It turned out that she was not afraid of being exposed at all!

He stood up suddenly and looked at He Yijun: "Yijun, go find Miss Kong Er immediately, plan B can be implemented."

Gu Qi and others present were full of questions about what Plan B was. While they were still confused, He Yijun nodded and quickly left the cafeteria.

Without waiting for anyone to ask questions, Zuo Zhong said with a smile: "Have you finished eating? After that, let's go meet the guests. They have come from afar, so we should treat them well."

After saying that, he strode towards the interrogation area. Everyone quickly put down their bowls and chopsticks and followed him, guessing the meaning behind Plan B and the words "coming from afar".

Five minutes later, still in the interrogation room, Zuo Chong saw Sima Linglong, who was still calm.

Seeing Zuo Chong coming back, Sima Linglong showed a slightly surprised expression on her face. She looked at the newly appeared Wu Chunyang, Song Minghao, and Gui Youguang, and spoke tentatively.

"Mr. Zuo, you came back so soon, do you have any questions for me? Don't worry, I will tell you everything I know."

Zuo Zhong ignored the flirtatious Sima Linglong, slowly sat down on the stool, turned around and said an English word to everyone. "Elephant, do you know what it means?"

When Sima Linglong, who was a few meters away, heard this word, her face froze and then returned to normal in an instant, but her body leaned back in a defensive posture, and her originally slightly presumptuous attitude also restrained slightly.

This scene was seen by Gu Qi and others, who knew that the deputy director's remark about the "elephant" had hit the target's soft spot.

But what does "elephant" have to do with spies, and why did the target react so strongly after hearing it?

After confirming what he thought, Zuo Zhong did not rush to interrogate Sima Linglong. Now that he knew the other party's background, the rest of the things were easy. He spoke slowly under the gaze of everyone.

“In 1874, Thomas Nast, a famous American cartoonist, published a cartoon in Harper’s Weekly that depicted an elephant and a donkey wearing a lion’s skin.

In the cartoon, the elephant is frightened by the donkey. One is so huge and strong, and the other is so short and thin. The former is frightened by the latter. Isn't it funny?"

Gu Qi, Song Minghao and Gui Youguang chose to remain silent on this question, but Wu Chunyang seemed to have thought of something and subconsciously looked at Sima Linglong who was trying to remain calm.

Zuo Zhong crossed his arms and used storytelling to explain the background and actual meaning of the comics.

“In fact, this cartoon reflects the political situation in the United States at that time and is related to the mid-term elections in 1874. The donkey refers to the Democratic Party and the elephant refers to the Republican Party.

In Western society, elephants are often seen as symbols of strength, stability, wisdom, and good memory, traits that are considered consistent with the Republican Party, suggesting that the party values ​​tradition and history.

Therefore, the elephant has gradually been officially accepted and widely used in the R party's logo and propaganda materials. It has become a part of American culture. Am I right, Ms. Sima?"

Zuo Zhong asked Sima Linglong a question, and then, regardless of whether the other party answered or not, continued to educate his subordinates about American political culture, especially party culture.

"The political ecology of the United States is different from that of the Republic of China. It is the Democratic and Republican parties that take turns in power. The current president of the United States is from the Democratic Party, and the Republican Party is the opposition party. The two parties and the judicial system check and balance each other.

This kind of political system ensures that no one can dominate alone, which looks good, but each of them has a group of supporters behind them. These supporters actually dominate the domestic and foreign policy of the United States.

Take the D Party as an example. Most of its financiers come from the financial sector and emerging industries, such as the Morgan family, the Boston Consortium, the Citigroup, and the Chicago Consortium. They value international capital flows.

The supporters of the R Party are different. They are mainly composed of the Rockefeller family, Mellon Group, DuPont family, Cleveland Group, and Texas Group who are engaged in the steel, arms, and energy industries.

Differences in interests and positions have led to irreconcilable contradictions between the two parties. For example, Party D hopes that the world order will be stable and will maintain a friendly attitude towards the Republic of China to facilitate its capital activities.

The R Party is just the opposite. They are very keen on war and use war to sell any goods. If there is no war, they will create war. The other party is also the biggest promoter of sending war materials to Japan.

The current president of the United States from the D Party is a strategist with a vision and has provided a lot of assistance to the government, but the R Party does not like the other party's diplomatic strategy. "

Having said that, Zuo Zhong smiled slightly, with a cold light in his eyes, and asked Sima Linglong another question.

"Miss Sima, I wonder which family you obey, Eaton? Hannah? Humphrey? Or Mather?"

Gu Qi clenched his fist and slammed his palm. In an instant, he understood a lot of things. It turned out that the reason why Sima Linglong was concerned about the steel restructuring plan was because of the master's request.

Eaton, Hanna, Humphrey, and Mather were all important members of the Cleveland Consortium, which was the largest machine manufacturer in the United States. Naturally, they wanted to get a piece of the pie in the restructuring plan.

Previously, the war between the National Government and the Japanese had reached a stalemate, and the intensity of the war was getting lower and lower. The Japanese side needed to import less materials, which seriously affected the interests of the R Party supporters.

Therefore, upon learning that the Nationalist government was about to encircle and suppress the Northwestern troops, the R Party intelligence personnel fanned the flames, leaking the encirclement and suppression information to the Japanese, disrupting the situation of united anti-Japanese resistance, and wanting to make the war more intense.

As for how many people would die by doing this, it was not considered by the other party at all. Compared with the Japanese who took part in the battle themselves, those well-dressed gentlemen on Capitol Hill were also one of the culprits.

Wu Chunyang looked at Sima Linglong coldly. A citizen of the Republic of China, who helped other countries create conflicts and harmed his compatriots, deserved to be killed!

Song Minghao and Gui Youguang also reacted and looked at Sima Linglong unfriendlyly, especially Gui Youguang, who clenched his fists as big as a bowl.

But unlike dealing with Japanese spies, the Nationalist government needed the support of the United States. Even if they wanted to kill the other party on the spot, they had to endure it now.

"Pah~pah~pah~"

Sima Linglong sat straight on the interrogation chair and clapped her hands softly, causing her handcuffs to rattle.

"Deputy Director Zuo, your story is great, but it won't be long before I can leave here, do you believe it?"

  Arrogant! Too arrogant!

Gui Youguang couldn't bear it any longer, he stood up, rolled up his sleeves and wanted to go over to teach the other party a lesson.

Zuo Zhong raised his hand to stop the bald man and said softly, "Ms. Sima, you are so confident because you are relying on the Americans. But will they definitely show up?"

Sima Linglong did not answer, but just smiled mysteriously. A few seconds later, the door of the interrogation room was pushed open and a man with a dark face walked in.