Spying

20 Fake Documents

The Ministry of National Defense launched an internal investigation into Han Guizhang's escape, attempting to identify his accomplice and extract Han's current whereabouts from them. Everyone who had prior knowledge of the arrest plan was summoned by the Sixth Division of the Second Department to provide written statements. However, as Ren Shaobai had predicted, the matter was quickly stifled—not only by the Northwestern Military Command but also by voices from the Army Headquarters and even the Presidential Office. Their message was clear: focus on finding the man, not on internal investigations that would sow chaos and play right into the Communist Party's scheme of sowing discord.

Given that these individuals had prior connections with Han Guizhang, their true motives remained unspoken. Rumors even circulated that many had directly conveyed messages to the Minister of National Defense, demanding that even if Han were found, he should not be treated as harshly as others. They insisted that as long as he was kept away from the frontlines and prevented from relaying information to the Communist forces, that would suffice.

"So Old Yang just died for nothing, then? In their eyes, Han Guizhang's life matters, but Old Yang's doesn't?" Lu Peng was furious upon hearing these rumors.

"Don't get worked up. Stay calm," Li Helin said, his tone still reminiscent of a teacher lecturing a student years ago.

The two sitting together to discuss the same operation was indeed a rare sight in recent years. Though their motives differed—Lu Peng wanted to capture the Communist who had shot Yang Kaizhi, while Li Helin's plan was to take credit for apprehending Han Guizhang, a man once favored by the former Minister of National Defense, thereby earning the current minister's gratitude—their immediate goal was the same. Thus, when the Confidentiality Bureau intervened, Li Helin proactively shared intelligence with Lu Peng, naturally expecting the same in return.

"Any leads from your Communications Headquarters?" Lu Peng asked. "Our Signals Division detected a shift in the encryption system used by the Communist Party's peripheral intelligence operations, but we haven't found a breakthrough yet."

Li Helin bluntly pointed out, "The Communications Headquarters handles battlefield intelligence transmissions, not Communist intelligence activities in Nationalist-controlled zones." The implication was clear: stick to your own responsibilities—the Confidentiality Bureau hadn't done its job well.

Lu Peng's expression darkened instantly, but before he could retort, Ren Shaobai cut in.

"This incident was sudden. We don’t even know Han Guizhang’s intended destination, making it hard to define the scope. However, one thing is certain: Nanjing is now airtight." Observing the expressions of the two men before him, Ren Shaobai once again played the mediator. "Thanks to the joint efforts of the Confidentiality Bureau and the Second Department, anyone trying to smuggle him out will need two things: fake documents and transportation. Every road, station, and dock is under surveillance—nothing will slip through. At the same time, since his escape was abrupt, the Communists aiding him may not have prepared fake documents in advance and could be arranging them in the next day or two. The professor has already dispatched men to track down counterfeit document specialists in the city. Hopefully, that will yield results."

In a photo studio on Pingshi Street, behind the darkroom, there was a small door leading to a basement. This was the real moneymaking side of the shop owner’s business. Like most black-market dealings, it operated on word-of-mouth referrals. And the young woman currently present had been brought there through such connections.She finalized the details of what she wanted with the shop owner and paid half the fee as a deposit. As she left the basement and emerged from the darkroom, she unexpectedly saw a woman in an army uniform standing in the shop, examining the finished photographs hanging on the wall. Her steps faltered slightly, but she showed no signs of panic.

It was the shop owner who followed her out who seemed startled. Before he had gone down to the basement, he had flipped the sign at the entrance to "Closed." If it had been an unruly customer barging in, he would have immediately started scolding, but the military uniform the woman wore forced him to put on a smile and say politely, "Apologies, officer, but the shop is currently closed."

Shen Tong, who had been standing in front of the photo wall, turned around with a look of surprise. "Is that so? Maybe the wind flipped the sign."

The summer sun blazed outside, and not a single branch of the crooked-neck tree by the door stirred.

As the tension hung in the air, the young woman suddenly spoke to the shop owner, "Boss, I'll come back for those photos in a couple of days."

Realizing she was covering for him, the owner quickly agreed and escorted her to the door. As she passed Shen Tong, the girl murmured softly, "Excuse me."

Watching her figure disappear outside, the owner turned back to Shen Tong. "Would you like to take some photos, officer? What kind are you looking for?"

Shen Tong didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she continued scanning the surroundings and remarked, "You’ve got quite a few backdrops here."

The owner replied, "We do alright. They’re all ordered from Shanghai. Would you like to take a look, officer?"

"Let’s see then."

Guided by the owner, Shen Tong stepped in front of the camera. She stood within the frame but faced away from the lens, watching with interest as the owner flipped through the backdrops behind her—the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben… Allowing customers to pose in front of famous landmarks without ever leaving the shop.

As she observed, Shen Tong suddenly asked, "Boss, do customers usually go into the darkroom?"

The owner hesitated for a couple of seconds before answering, "Generally not, unless they have special developing requests."

"What was that young lady’s request?"

"Film restoration."

Shen Tong’s disbelief was evident, but she said nothing, simply staring at him intently.

"Officer, are you here to take photos or not?" The owner was growing slightly impatient.

Shen Tong smiled faintly and spoke leisurely, "Looking at the sample photos on the wall, the newest ones are from the end of last year. Business doesn’t seem to be doing well, yet you’re still investing in new backdrops. Boss, you must have a side business, don’t you?"

At this, the owner’s expression changed, but before he could defend himself, Shen Tong continued, "I’m not the police. I’m not here to ruin anyone’s livelihood. I just need your cooperation to look into a few things—specifically, the list of customers from your side business over the past few days and any special 'developing requests' they might have had." She then tilted her chin toward the window. "And don’t get any foolish ideas. See that car across the street? Haven’t seen it before, have you?"

Following her gaze, the owner spotted a man leaning against the car door, smoking—a plainclothes agent.Returning to the basement, the shopkeeper reluctantly pulled out a hidden ledger from a locked drawer beneath the workbench, documenting transactions beyond the upstairs photography studio. Shen Tong flipped through it quickly, discovering the shopkeeper's surprisingly extensive reach in forgery—ranging from fake IDs and licenses to various official and private seals. After reviewing the ledger, she listed the names of customers who had ordered counterfeit documents in the past week.

"You must have kept negatives of their photos as well?"

The shopkeeper gave her a surprised look but obediently opened a hidden compartment in the wall beside the desk, revealing a safe. Inside were copies he had retained, along with a few completed orders customers hadn’t yet picked up.

Shen Tong examined each document carefully—every ID number and watermark was flawlessly executed.

"The lady who just left wasn’t registered?"

"...She paid extra to avoid written records."

—That was indeed the kind of precaution some meticulous customers would take.

Shen Tong thought to herself but pressed further: "What did she order?"

"A British passport."

"You even forge foreign documents?"

"Not forge—she provided a genuine one and asked for alterations."

"What do you mean?"

"The document she has now is real, just with a changed photo and embossed seal."

With a sigh, the shopkeeper retrieved the original British passport from another drawer, issued under the name "Yu Kao," featuring the photo of an ethnic Chinese woman.

Shen Tong frowned slightly, tapping her fingers on the workbench. She knew many were scrambling to obtain foreign passports lately, fearing China's political climate and seeking to flee abroad. It wasn’t impossible that the fake "Gao Yu" had the same motive. But... her eyes lingered on the English text of the passport, and a sudden realization sparked a faint thrill of excitement.

Still, she maintained interest in all the records, taking copies of the photos and instructing, "Carry on as usual. A car will stay outside—not to monitor you, but to help screen for any real traitors or criminals."

The shopkeeper nodded hastily, then nervously asked, "Are you taking the ledger? Could I at least copy the names—"

"No need," Shen Tong cut him off. "I’ve memorized it."

Back at the Ministry of Defense, Shen Tong matched the names from the ledger with the photo copies, transcribing them all from memory. Her colleagues in the Second Department, all investigating Han Guizhang’s case, marveled at her ability to recall everything without notes. Shen Tong waved off their praise modestly, feigning embarrassment.

Pointing to each forged document on the blackboard, she analyzed whether the aliases and photos could conceal Han Guizhang. When she reached the British passport, she began, "This one belongs to a woman in her twenties—I even ran into her. Definitely not Han Guizhang in disguise—"

The room erupted in laughter.But Shen Tong didn't seem to think she was joking. With a completely serious expression, she continued explaining: "Although it may seem unrelated—just someone stealing or finding a passport trying to take advantage of going to Europe—this passport gave me an idea."

"What idea?" Li Helin asked.

Shen Tong said, "Right now, although the entire city is under strict inspection and control, there's still one type of person who won't be thoroughly checked: foreigners. Or, to broaden it slightly, all diplomatic personnel from foreign embassies."

At this point, everyone understood what she was implying—under any circumstances, embassy staff leaving the city or port would be let through by customs or the garrison command to avoid potential diplomatic disputes, essentially a form of diplomatic immunity. Moreover, various embassies often hired Chinese familiar with the local language and transportation as drivers, translators, procurement officers, etc. So if someone wanted to slip through unnoticed, it would be quite easy.

"You didn't alert them, did you?" Li Helin asked again.

"No," Shen Tong replied gravely. "But I've arranged surveillance. If that fake Gao Yu is really involved, we'll have to wait until she returns to that photo studio to retrieve the fake passport. Then we can follow the trail and see if she's using it to smuggle someone out of the city."

Li Helin nodded in satisfaction and added, "Not just that. We should inspect all cars, trucks, departing ships, and containers bearing foreign embassy insignia. Who knows if the Communist Party might have obtained other credentials besides British ones." He turned to Ren Shaobai and ordered, "Go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, explain the situation, and have them contact all the embassies. Tell them someone is impersonating their diplomatic personnel to assist fugitives and request their cooperation in inspecting their vehicles and ships."

It was the morning of August 9th, more than thirty hours since Han Guizhang had "disappeared."

By evening, Ren Shaobai brought the communication records with the embassies to report to Li Helin: "That fake Gao Yu is definitely involved, and it's not just her. The British, Danish, American, and Belgian embassies all reported that in the past two days, their respective citizens in China have had passports stolen and needed replacements. Someone is stealing foreign passports—the Communist Party must be planning to use this method to smuggle Han Guizhang out of the city."