Espionage: You're tasked with spying, but you'll blow up the Special Higher Police?

138. Determine the route

The three immediately sat down around each other, starting with Ah Gui, and each reported all the clues they had seen to ensure that nothing was missed.

However, after the three finished speaking, Zhou Hongyi fell silent once again.

Since everyone has discovered similar suspicious points, and there are many suspicious individuals involved, the initial estimate is that they are either agents from No. 76 or Japanese spies from the Special Higher Police.

"hiss......"

Zhou Hongyi pondered for a moment, then sneered, "Kondo... he's really cautious. If I'm not mistaken, he must be doing this on purpose to confuse people. That way, even if someone finds out something, they won't be able to confirm which path he'll take."

Just then, Fusheng finished eating, wiped his mouth and said, "Ah, brother, there's something else. On my way back, I heard the screams of prisoners in the prison not far from Wujiaochang. It sounded pretty miserable."

"Prison? Isn't it normal to hear screams coming from a prison? It must be the Japanese torturing people again," the blind man said first.

Fusheng scratched his head and said, "It was mainly because a passerby cursed, saying that it was noisy during the day and at night, and that people couldn't sleep well."

"Oh?"

Zhou Hongyi seemed to have caught something and signaled everyone to be quiet. He then activated [Master of Deception] and began to recall the scene he had seen yesterday.

"Prison...prison...I understand!"

He suddenly slapped his thigh and stood up, excitedly saying, "I understand! The Japanese devils' secret laboratory is right here, in the prison!"

Zhou Hongyi took out the map he had drawn yesterday and pointed to it, saying, "This is the Japanese army's real transport route! The first route!"

Qiujiang Wharf – Jungong Road – Xiangyin Road – Wujiaochang – Prison.

Zhou Hongyi pointed to this route, then moved his finger from Wujiaochang to the prison slightly northeast.

"This is their secret transport route, I've finally found it!"

Zhou Hongyi took out another piece of paper and began to recall all the clues related to this route.

"That's right, that's right... Wujiaochang is a transportation hub in the northeast of Shanghai, where many main roads converge, such as Songhu Road, Xiangyin Road, and Huangxing Road... This road layout facilitated the Japanese army's transportation of large quantities of materials, equipment, and personnel needed for their biological experiments."

Transport vehicles departing from docks or other military outposts can easily reach the base via these roads, and can flexibly change routes during transport to evade potential attacks. The roads are wide and relatively flat, accommodating large transport vehicles, which is highly advantageous for transporting bulky and heavy biological and chemical experimental equipment.

And also... Wujiaochang is relatively close to the Huangpu River and some tributaries. Through short-distance land transport, the Japanese could take advantage of water transport to move supplies from the docks on the Suzhou Creek or Huangpu River to unloading points near Wujiaochang, and then transport them by truck to their base.

Hearing Zhou Hongyi speak eloquently, everyone suddenly realized what was happening.

Ah Gui asked, "Big brother, can we start preparing now?"

"Preparations... we can begin now, but it's not just us. Our main force will still be the Military Intelligence Bureau and the guerrillas... The Axe Gang can also contribute. You all go back and continue your reconnaissance, striving to ensure absolute success!"

"Yes!"

After confirming the Japanese transport route, Zhou Hongyi decided to go to Wujiaochang in person.

After observing the scene firsthand, Zhou Hongyi became even more convinced of his guess.

Not far from Wujiaochang, there was a Japanese military barracks, a training ground, and a military warehouse. If a secret base were built nearby, it would naturally receive direct protection from these military facilities, and in the event of an attack, it could quickly receive support from surrounding Japanese troops. At the same time, the communication systems within the military facilities would facilitate communication between the base and other strongholds.

Furthermore, there are many factories, warehouses, and abandoned buildings around Wujiaochang. The Japanese could easily use the shells of these buildings for camouflage, setting up some of their biological and chemical experiments inside the factory buildings. From the outside, it would look no different from ordinary industrial production, while dangerous biological and chemical experiments would be carried out inside.

All the conditions for building a secret laboratory have been met here. The next step is to confirm the armed strength of the transport team, the actual distance from Qiujiang Wharf to here, and the best ambush location along this route.

In order to ensure the mission could be completed smoothly, Zhou Hongyi walked this road back and forth several times.

Qiujiang Wharf is located in the northern part of Shanghai's district, while Wujiaochang is in the northeastern part of the city. Geographically, the straight-line distance is approximately 7-10 kilometers. However, the actual transportation route will be longer due to travel along roads such as Jungong Road and Xiangyin Road.

If the Japanese troops took the highway, via Jungong Road and Xiangyin Road to reach Wujiaochang, the journey would likely be around 12-15 kilometers. Because the roads here are not straight, there would be turns and forks, making the route somewhat circuitous.

Ultimately, he decided to take action on the bridge across the Qiujiang River on Jungong Road.

This location allows for ambushes under the bridge, with explosives planted to destroy the bridge as Japanese convoys pass, thus hindering their transport. Furthermore, the high ground or buildings on either side of the bridge provide a convenient vantage point for gunners and fire teams, offering a superior vantage point for attacking the Japanese. Additionally, roadblocks and traps can be set up at intersections of Jungong Road and smaller roads to impede the Japanese advance and utilize the surrounding terrain for covert attacks.

After determining the location of the operation, Zhou Hongyi first approached the Kuomintang (KMT) brothers in charge of the main attack.

"They've already found out the enemy's supply route so quickly?"

Upon hearing the news, Chen Gong was overjoyed and hurriedly pulled Zhou Hongyi into the conference room. Pointing to the map on the wall, he said, "Make our move on the bridge across the Qiujiang River on Jungong Road... That's a good spot, but brother, how can you be so sure the Japanese won't take the waterway?"

Zhou Hongyi pointed to the map and said, "I've also considered this issue, but firstly, the Huangpu River is a busy waterway with not only Japanese ships but also merchant ships and fishing boats from various countries. The biological and chemical materials they transport are extremely sensitive, and their ships on the water are easy targets to avoid being tracked and attacked. In contrast, although the land route also has risks, we can use the buildings and trees along the roadside for concealment, making it relatively easier to control."

Secondly, during water transport, ships are vulnerable to attacks from underwater and air. Although the Japanese had some air defense and naval capabilities, they could not guarantee complete protection. On land, however, they could strengthen their defenses by setting up checkpoints, bunkers, and sentry posts to provide close-range protection for the transport convoys.

Finally, and most importantly, I suspect the transportation of those biochemical materials might involve specialized loading and unloading equipment and conditions. If transported by water, it would be difficult to find a suitable dock near Wujiaochang to meet the loading and unloading requirements of these special supplies. However, by loading the supplies onto trucks at Qiujiang Wharf first, they could be transported directly to the secret base near Wujiaochang, avoiding the risks associated with multiple loading and unloading operations.

"I see... So, brother, what exactly is your plan? Tell me about it."