allonlinenovel Chapter 1183 He didn't care about those infamy at all.
Chapter 1183 He didn't care about those infamy at all.
"It's all arranged, Your Highness." The secretary nodded hurriedly and said cautiously, "General Takasaki is staying on the fourth floor of the Beiping Hotel. The area has been cleared in advance, and no one is allowed to approach without Commander Terauchi's order."
The hotel was staffed with two guards both inside and out. A company of Japanese military police was responsible for security, with military police stationed at the entrance, elevator, and stairwell.
Japanese plainclothes detectives also set up checkpoints on the streets around hotels to investigate suspicious individuals.
Our men were responsible for patrolling the outermost perimeter to ensure that no unauthorized personnel approached the Beiping Hotel.
“It’s still not enough.” Wang Kemin put down the jade ball in his hand, picked up the red and blue pencils on the table, and made several heavy marks on the document. His tone instantly became stern: “From the train station to the Beiping Hotel, we need to add guards at every intersection along the way.”
Notify the police chief and instruct him to deploy all available officers, with at least one officer stationed at each intersection, to thoroughly check pedestrians and vehicles.
He paused, then raised his voice, his tone carrying an undeniable authority: "General Takasaki's safety is a matter of life and death for every one of us!"
"Tell them to send everyone out. Don't be afraid to arrest people now; it's better to arrest a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free! We absolutely cannot allow any accidents to happen!"
The secretary hesitated for a moment, then said cautiously, "This... Your Highness, isn't this too much of a commotion? Starting martial law so many days in advance?"
There are already many foreign journalists around the Beiping Hotel. If we deploy a large-scale defense and arbitrarily arrest people, it will probably cause controversy.
Furthermore, wouldn't Commander Takasaki think we're making a mountain out of a molehill, making us look incompetent?
"What do you know!" Wang Kemin suddenly raised his head, gave his secretary a cold look, and the sinister look in his eyes made the secretary freeze instantly and subconsciously lower his head.
“Dai Li in Chongqing will never sit idly by and watch us establish a new government.”
His military intelligence agents were ubiquitous, employing a plethora of assassination methods.
Wang Kemin's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible tension: "Let me tell you, Dai Li will definitely not let me go. Sooner or later, he will send someone to Beiping to assassinate me."
What is General Takasaki's identity?
He came to Beiping at the invitation of Commander Terauchi to support our government. If he makes even the slightest mistake, or suffers even the slightest fright, or loses a few hairs, the Japanese will never forgive us!
We should be grateful if we die!
Therefore, it's always better to be safe than sorry; it's better to be well-prepared than to be careless!
"Yes, yes, I understand!" The secretary nodded hurriedly, not daring to argue further. He picked up the documents, bowed, and quickly retreated. When he reached the door, he accidentally bumped into the door frame. Without daring to look back, he fled the study in a disheveled state.
After the secretary left, Wang Kemin slowly stood up, walked to the window, and reached out to pull back the heavy brocade curtains.
Outside the window, several Japanese soldiers were skating on the frozen pond outside Jurentang, their laughter faintly drifting over, carrying an air of unbridled arrogance.
A few withered leaves still clung to the bare branches of a tree by the pond, shivering in the cold wind, a stark contrast to the cheers and laughter of the Japanese soldiers.
Wang Kemin frowned, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes—dissatisfaction with the Japanese army's arrogance, but even more so fear and dependence.
He abruptly drew the curtains, shutting out the glaring sights and laughter, and the study returned to its previous somber atmosphere.
He walked back to his desk, bent down and pulled open the bottom drawer. Inside were no documents or jewelry, only a shiny black Browning pistol, lying quietly on the velvet cushion.
The pistol's body was somewhat worn, clearly indicating it had been used for many years; the barrel gleamed with a cold luster, exuding a deadly chill.
He seized the gun from an executed member of the Kuomintang's Military Intelligence Bureau.
Wang Kemin reached out and picked up the pistol. It was cold to the touch, and its heavy weight spread from his fingertips throughout his body.
He skillfully ejected the magazine, looked at the neatly arranged bullets inside, and then pressed the bullets back in one by one, his movements slow and mechanical, his eyes carrying a complex expression.
I thought of that young Kuomintang agent, who was probably not even twenty years old, with a childlike face. When he was arrested, all he had was this gun and a small photograph.
The photo shows a girl in a school uniform with two braids and a bright smile. On the back of the photo, four words are written in pen: "Wait for me to come back."
I remember when that young man was led to the execution ground, he showed no fear whatsoever. He just stared at him with eyes full of deep-seated hatred, and roared with all his might, "Wang Kemin, you traitor! You will die a horrible death!"
He simply smiled dismissively and said to the man, "Then I'll wait."
But now, whenever the night is quiet, the spy's roar always echoes in his ears, and the words "You will die a horrible death" always resound in his mind.
He knew that he was betraying his country and nation, and was a traitor condemned by all, but the temptation of power made it impossible for him to turn back.
In a few days, the Provisional Government of North China will be formally established, and Wang Kemin will become the head of administration of this "new regime," holding military and political power over Beiping and even the entire North China.
The Japanese have promised him that once the situation stabilizes and the Japanese have occupied all of China, they will give him a more important position.
Power was what he relentlessly pursued throughout his life, the goal he dreamed of.
He recalled his life. In the late Qing Dynasty, he studied hard for more than ten years and finally passed the imperial examination, thinking that he could make a name for himself and bring glory to his family. However, before he could enter officialdom, the Qing Dynasty fell, and his status as a successful candidate in the imperial examination became a worthless piece of paper.
After the establishment of the Republic of China, he went through many political struggles, working in the Ministry of Finance for decades. He was involved in intrigue and backstabbing, and finally managed to become the Minister of Finance. However, he was caught up in the warlord era and frequent changes of power. He was dismissed and reinstated several times, like a rootless duckweed, drifting in the chaos of the world.
Until the Japanese came, they gave him the opportunity he had always dreamed of.
Although he was dependent on the Japanese and had to bear the stigma of being a traitor, at least he could wield power, control the life and death of others, and realize his lifelong ambition.
He didn't care about the criticism at all.
History is written by the victors. He firmly believed that as long as Japan could win this war and establish the so-called "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere," he would be the victor. At that time, no one would remember him as a traitor, but only as a hero who established the "New Order."
Wang Kemin put away the pistol, placed it back in the drawer, closed the drawer, and then picked up the jade ball on the table and slowly began to spin it.
The jade ball remained warm and smooth, and the sound of friction was particularly clear in the quiet study.
Leaning back in his chair, he closed his eyes, and the image of himself wearing a python robe and receiving the worship of the crowd appeared in his mind. A greedy smile unconsciously crept onto his lips.
The cold wind still howled through the alleys of Beiping, and a contest concerning life and death, and the greater good of the nation, was quietly brewing.
On one side are the Kuomintang secret agents who are ready to die for the greater good of the nation, willing to sacrifice their lives.
On one side are greedy and ruthless traitors who betray their country and compatriots for power and wealth.
A life-or-death struggle of blood and fire had already been foreshadowed in everyone's choices.