Chapter 48: Family?

Hearing his words, Zhou Mei did not dare to force her way through. After all, the Japanese accent was so heavy, and Zhou Mei certainly did not dare to offend the little Japanese.

Zhao Xuan glanced at the private room's door, pushed Zhou Mei aside, and stepped forward to say:
"We are from No. 76, and Su Bai inside is our target for this operation."

The Japanese guards at the door shook their heads upon hearing this and replied:
"That won't do either. We are from the Special High School!"

The Special High School!
Hearing the name of this department, Zhou Mei was both furious and anxious, yet she dared not put on a hostile expression toward them.

Could the duck that had already reached her mouth still fly away?
Right now, Zhou Mei truly wished that Ding Moqun would appear before her immediately.

Unlike Zhou Mei, Zhao Xuan was somewhat surprised at the moment.
This person actually did not belong to the Yamaguchi-gumi, but was indeed an agent of the Special High School.

As for the Yamaguchi-gumi member who had just brought Su Bai to the private room, he had already returned to his previous seat, and all those gazes were once again focused on Zhao Xuan.

Watanabe Akiko, is she planning to keep her eyes glued on me?
Zhao Xuan very much wanted to ask what virtues or abilities he possessed that warranted Watanabe Akiko sending so many informants to watch him.

Because of this, Zhao Xuan did not even dare to make the slightest unusual move.
Previously, he had still wanted to see whose vetting methods were more sophisticated, Watanabe Akiko's or Ding Moqun's.
Right now, Zhao Xuan would rather let Ding Moqun vet him than continue being watched by Watanabe Akiko.
This woman was simply abnormal.

In Zhao Xuan's view, Watanabe Akiko wasn't vetting him at all; she suspected him.
Otherwise, why would she send so many people to watch him, and with such outstanding disguise capabilities and professional skills that only senior agents could achieve?

On the way to Baoshan Street, Ding Moqun and Dao Yan sat in the back seat of the sedan.
As for the person driving, it greatly surprised Dao Yan.

"So, going to Zhoushan Road was your suggestion?"
The driver was none other than Jiang Ping, the captain of the Intelligence Department's fieldwork team.

Ding Moqun and Dao Yan had first returned to No. 76 before taking the car to Paramount.
And Jiang Ping was specifically arranged by Ding Moqun to come back and drive precisely to clear up the matter regarding the fieldwork.
After all, Zhao Xuan had stated earlier that Zhoushan Road was his choice.

Jiang Ping looked at the road ahead, sweating profusely, not even daring to glance in the rearview mirror.
"Director, um..."
"Tell me word for word how you originally spoke to Ah Xuan!"

Jiang Ping swallowed hard and hurriedly said:
"Director, I was only considering the brothers in the fieldwork team."
"At the time, I just told Brother Xuan that the situation around Nanjing Road was complicated, and conducting reconnaissance there meant we could be chased around by the Japanese at any moment."
"As for Fuzhou Road, I suggested it out of consideration for Brother Xuan's safety, since that area is notoriously chaotic."
"I told Brother Xuan that there were too many underworld figures on Fuzhou Road; even though we have guns, those people might even snatch them away."

Before Jiang Ping could finish, Ding Moqun let out a cold snort:
"So only Zhoushan Road was left for Ah Xuan to choose from? You certainly have a flexible mind. However, this is my last warning to you: you may take what you are supposed to take, but think very carefully about what you are not supposed to take."
"I heard you distributed two thousand legal tender notes to Ah Xuan today?"

Hearing this, Jiang Ping's heart nearly leaped out of his throat.
He never expected that damned brat Zhao Xuan would actually report the exact amount of illicit money split to Ding Moqun. Had he known, he would never have dared to do such a thing.

"Di... Director, I... I will never dare to do it again. The brothers haven't made any extra money in a long time and lacked motivation out in the field, which is why I..."

Ding Moqun straightened his posture, and Dao Yan beside him had already drawn her pistol.
Hearing the sound of the handgun being cocked, Jiang Ping was nearly scared to tears.

"So you dared to fool Ah Xuan like this? Two thousand, are you dismissing a beggar? Are the people of the Ding family someone you can deceive?"

Clack!
Before Ding Moqun finished speaking, the muzzle of the gun in Dao Yan's hand was already pressed against Jiang Ping's head.

"Director, Section Chief Dao, I won't dare again, never again. I beg the Director and Section Chief Dao to spare me this once..."

Seeing Ding Moqun give her a look, Dao Yan finally pulled the gun back.
Having saved his life, Jiang Ping didn't even dare to draw a full breath now.
It wasn't until they arrived at the entrance of Paramount and he watched Ding Moqun and Dao Yan get out of the car and leave that Jiang Ping leaned back against the seat as if reborn, panting heavily while cold sweat streamed endlessly down his temples.

Inside Paramount, Ding Moqun, who had just walked in, tilted his head and smiled at Dao Yan:
"Well done, you've learned to stand up for your husband."
"The two of you should hurry up and have a child; that's the proper thing to do. Day in and day out, all you do is live apart and quarrel. Starting tonight, you are not allowed to sleep in separate rooms."

Dao Yan froze for a moment, then smiled bitterly and linked her arm through Ding Moqun's:
"Uncle, I'm not ready yet..."
"When will you ever be ready? Ah Xuan has already passed the vetting process. We are a family, and a family must be harmonious and happy. If even the household is in a mess, how can you go out and accomplish things?"
"Besides, Ah Xuan will soon be promoted to deputy chief of the Intelligence Department. You two need to know how to cooperate; otherwise, without achievements, that bunch of Japanese will strip you of your positions in a minute."
"This time, the position of the Intelligence Department chief is being eyed by them, humph!"

Hearing Ding Moqun's words, Dao Yan frowned deeply and acknowledged the order, a sense of desolation filling her heart. Could it be that she really had to sacrifice herself for this?
This world was truly damn fucked up!
However, Dao Yan quickly came up with a countermeasure: not being allowed to sleep in separate rooms didn't mean they had to sleep in the same bed. At worst, she'd make Zhao Xuan sleep on the floor!

With Ding Moqun's arrival, even the Special High School had to show them some respect.
The Special High School agents guarding the door, seeing that Ding Moqun had arrived, had no choice but to enter the private room to report.
Unsurprisingly, Ding Moqun led Zhao Xuan, Zhou Mei, and Dao Yan into the private room.

This entire scene was witnessed from beginning to end by Liu Qinghuan, who was sitting in a corner booth drinking with two young scions from prominent families.
A flash of sorrow and admiration crossed the depths of Liu Qinghuan's eyes, and then she seamlessly drifted back among the two wealthy young men. From her skillful manner of plying them with drink, it was easy to predict that even if these two young scions drank themselves to death tonight, Liu Qinghuan would not get drunk.

Inside the private room, Ding Moqun met Miss Aizawa Keiko, secretary to Matsumoto Ichiro, the head of the Special High School.
Su Bai was seated beside Aizawa Keiko, and the two were chatting and laughing.

Seeing Ding Moqun enter, Aizawa Keiko hurriedly invited the group to sit down.
"I'm sorry, Director Ding. We have an important operation tonight, and Mr. Su Bai is an honored guest of our Special High School. Therefore, before we finalize our operation plan, it is truly inconvenient for outsiders to overhear."
*(After tonight, the Shanghai Military Statistics will fall apart once again!)*

Hearing Aizawa Keiko's confident inner voice, Zhao Xuan, who was sitting next to Dao Yan, looked at Ding Moqun and said:
"Director, this Mr. Su Bai previously promised to make a deal with us, but I'm just wondering if Mr. Su Bai's deal with the Special High School conflicts with ours?"