THE REBEL Episode 19 Recap
> THE REBEL Recap
Kuang Huidong, a lieutenant with the Kuomintang's 74th Army, 51st Division, was officially declared dead in Gao'an, Ganbei. Having recently graduated from a German military academy, he was given a new identity as Meng Annan, tasked with infiltrating a left-leaning news agency in Hong Kong to establish contact with and eventually penetrate the Communist Party's core. Chen Moqun met with Meng Annan in Hong Kong, first inquiring with Station Chief Ren about Zhu Xiaoxian and his daughter Zhu Yizhen.
Ren confirmed Zhu Xiaoxian maintained a low profile but stated Zhu Yizhen had never been to Hong Kong. Chen Moqun then brought Meng Annan to a new residence, tearing up his military academy certificate to signify the end of his old identity. He explained that Kuang Huidong was officially dead, and Meng Annan was his new name, along with new identity documents.
Chen Moqun assigned him the mission to infiltrate the left-leaning financial news agency, starting as an ordinary journalist or editor, and adopting a left-leaning persona to achieve his goal. Chen Moqun outlined their future communication methods, using code words in "Missing Persons" columns in specific newspapers. He also gave Meng Annan a unique Titoni watch without a second hand, stipulating that if he were ever gone, whoever presented this watch, which stopped at 4:12 p. m.
, would be Meng Annan's new superior, to be obeyed unconditionally. Meng Annan, deeply grateful for Chen Moqun's patronage that allowed him to study in Berlin, pledged his unwavering loyalty.
Meanwhile, Wang Shi'an, wary of Chen Moqun's impending return to Shanghai, used a public telephone booth in the British and American enclaves to anonymously inform the Japanese Kempeitai about Chen Moqun's travel details: he would arrive in Shanghai on the 23rd aboard the British passenger ship, Mao Sheng, from Hong Kong. The Japanese intelligence confirmed the call and recognized it as an attempt by someone within the Kuomintang to eliminate Chen Moqun.
They decided to intercept and capture him alive, assigning agents in Hong Kong to tail him. Simultaneously, news spread rapidly about a night raid on Longhua Airport, widely attributed to the Pudong Detachment of the Loyal Salvation Army, which reportedly resulted in dozens of Japanese casualties and ten destroyed planes. However, the attack was actually carried out by the Communist Party, posing as the Pudong Detachment.
Chongqing headquarters commended the Shanghai station, and Station Chief Wang Shi'an, unaware of the deception, expressed great satisfaction, applying for a lump sum reward for the detachment. Lin Nansheng, skeptical of the reports, met secretly with Wang Shuigen, a signaller from the Pudong Detachment. Wang Shuigen revealed that their detachment had not received any new high-power radios or requested firearms, and moreover, they were not responsible for the Longhua Airport attack.
This information led Lin Nansheng to suspect that Gu Shenyan had privately obtained a radio and firearms, only to transfer them elsewhere. When Lin Nansheng reported this to Gu Shenyan and inquired about a radio that Gu Shenyan had acquired for the detachment, Gu Shenyan casually dismissed it, claiming the radio was lost during a Japanese checkpoint raid at Zhangjiabang and its damage reported.
He advised Lin Nansheng not to make judgments regarding the Longhua Airport incident until the truth was verified, especially since the Pudong Detachment had been honored. Gu Shenyan later provided Lin Nansheng with a letter containing the venue and code word for a meeting with a Communist Party contact, along with a pocket watch as a token. The meeting was arranged at Le Cancoll café, where Lin Nansheng ordered two café au laits with sugar.
To his surprise, the Communist contact was Zhu Yizhen, holding a copy of the "Shanghai Evening Post and Mercury." He greeted her, exchanging code words, and then introduced himself as Lin Nansheng from the Military Intelligence Bureau, proposing intelligence sharing and offering to install a radio to receive messages from their side.
Zhu Yizhen immediately cut him off, questioning how the Kuomintang could ask for intelligence sharing while simultaneously killing the Eighth Route Army in the North and encircling the New Fourth Army in Shanghai. She stated firmly that they would not share intelligence but accepted the notebook containing Lin Nansheng's proposals for her superior's consideration.
The arrival of the café au laits reminded them of their shared past, but Zhu Yizhen maintained her composure, abruptly ending the meeting and stating there would be no "next time" to prevent others from falling into a "trap." She then left in a rickshaw, struggling to suppress her emotions, eventually finding a secluded alley where she broke down and cried. Back at the station, Lin Nansheng reported to Wang Shi'an and Gu Shenyan.
He downplayed the Communist contact, describing him as an "ordinary young man" whose stance he couldn't discern, and stated that the notebook was taken for superior's instructions. Gu Shenyan expressed subtle doubt about the contact being "ordinary." Meanwhile, Japanese intelligence, led by Takahashi Senbei, analyzed intercepted telegrams containing the codeword "Board," which referred to their 13th Division's operations against the New Fourth Army. They concluded that the "fisherman's" radio was active again and dispatched direction-finding lorries to locate it.
Ji Zhongyuan, aware of the Japanese reconnaissance, urgently warned Zhu Yizhen, who was mid-transmission, to stop immediately and move the radio, even though sending a half-written telegram would worry their superior. Wang Shi'an convened a meeting to announce Chen Moqun's return to Shanghai as the Beijing-Shanghai District Chief, overseeing three stations and the Loyal Salvation Army.
His accountant, who helped him with illicit activities, expressed panic about Chen Moqun's return, fearing exposure and execution, particularly concerning the misused pensions of the 5th Communications Group. Wang Shi'an was also aware of these concerns, especially since he had previously converted the pensions of the 5th Communications Group, who died during the August 13 Incident, into gold bars for his personal use. Wang Shi'an dismissed the accountant's concerns, advising him to focus on his work.
Lin Nansheng volunteered to pick up Chen Moqun at Kinlee Yuan Wharf. Upon arrival, a large contingent of Japanese military police swarmed the dock and boarded the ship. The Japanese agents in Hong Kong, who had been tailing Chen Moqun, reported he should have been secured by then. Chen Moqun attempted to evade capture by changing into a crew member's uniform, but the sheer number of Japanese soldiers made escape impossible, and he was arrested on board the ship.
Lin Nansheng, having witnessed Chen Moqun's arrest, returned to the station in a fury, confronting Wang Shi'an and accusing an internal member of betraying Chen Moqun's whereabouts. Wang Shi'an, feeling implicated, angrily rebuked Lin Nansheng for making wild assumptions and doubting the entire station, including himself, given that everyone knew Chen Moqun's itinerary. Gu Shenyan intervened, attempting to mediate by suggesting that information could have leaked from Chongqing or Hong Kong.
Wang Shi'an, however, dismissed Lin Nansheng's suspicions and emphasized the seriousness of the situation, immediately sending a telegram to Chongqing headquarters to report Chen Moqun's capture, recognizing the need for swift action rather than internal investigation at that moment.
