In Gong Shiqi's opinion, there was not much in this incident worthy of in-depth investigation.
The propaganda war between the Portuguese and Sing Tao has been escalating recently, even to the point of using unconventional means. Because it involves the diplomatic field, it is inconvenient for other powerful departments such as the military and police to take action, so it is only appropriate for the Ministry of Security to step in to stop it.
The incident was not complicated. If He Xi had not personally supervised the incident, it would have been just one of the many hidden dangers that the Security Department dealt with on a daily basis.
But since this has attracted He Xi's great attention, Gong Qiqi thinks that the reason may not be as simple as what He Xi said before.
He sat motionless on the chair, carefully recalling the content of his conversation with He Xi, and after a while he finally got a taste of it.
After He Xi met with him just now, he only asked about one person's situation. This person is not Tan Tianming, who has a special background, but Shao Tianhu, who has just arrived in Sanya a few days ago.
He Xi specifically asked about his opinion of Shao Tianhu. Gong Qiqi didn't take it seriously at the time, but in retrospect, he realized that this was a detail that could easily be ignored.
With the Security Department's capabilities, it was easy for He Xi to obtain information about someone. Shao Tianhu's background and military experience were basically no secrets in front of the Security Department.
But He Xi seemed not to be satisfied with the information on paper. He also wanted Gong Qiqi, who had had brief contact with him, to comment on this person. He should have some other intentions.
Unless there are some secrets about Shao Tianhu that he doesn't know.
Gong Shiqi recalled the information he had seen about Shao Tianhu. This man once went to the Military Academy in Sanya for further training because of his outstanding performance in the army. After returning to Xingdao, he was transferred to the Foreign Mercenary Group as a battalion commander.
But this term was not too long, so he retired from the army and went to Sanya to take over the vacant position of head of the Xingdao Office.
Shao Tianhu's experience during his tenure in the mercenary group is unclear in the materials. Considering the nature of the mercenary group, it is likely that the missions he performed during this period involved military secrets, and even the person who filed them did not know about them.
With Shao Tianhu's age and ability, he was arranged to be discharged from the army and transferred to Sanya at this time. This should not be a punishment after making a mistake, but some kind of special promotion.
But why Xingdao didn't promote him to a military position on the spot, but sent him all the way to Sanya? Gong Qiyi couldn't understand the mystery for a while.
Gong Shiqi opened his eyes and put down his teacup, stood up and walked out of the flower hall, and said, "Arrange people to keep an eye on Shao Tianhu. I want to know where he has been, who he has met, and what he has done in Sanya."< br>
"Also, try to contact the people who came with him from Xingdao to see if we can find out what mission Shao Tianhu was performing before coming to Sanya."
He seemed to be talking to himself, but after he finished speaking, someone in the darkness of the corridor took the order and left.
Shao Tianhu didn't know that he was being secretly watched by some big shots. He was on his way to the dock on the upper reaches of the Linchun River.
Originally, he planned to lock these people up for a few days and let them suffer a little before letting them go. But now that the security department has come to say hello, he can only terminate the plan in advance.
When he arrived at the place, Shao Tianhu was not in a hurry to enter the warehouse. He looked around in the dark on the roadside for a while to make sure no one was following him, and then he knocked on the small door on the side of the warehouse.
He didn't know whether the Ministry of Security also monitored this place, but it was better to be cautious just in case.
The warehouse was dimly lit, with only a few oil lamps lit. In order to keep the operation confidential, most of the personnel involved in today's entrapment operation stayed here and did not return to their residence at the Port Inn. The men were a little surprised to see him coming over at this time. Shao Tianhu left after dinner, why did he come back so quickly.
"Something has happened and we must stop our operations."
Shao Tianhu did not mention the Ministry of Security. He only said that the operation had been exposed and the government had come forward to ask him to end the matter as soon as possible. Now he could only let him go.
Someone asked: "Sir, since the government has discovered it, can we let him go and the matter will be over?"
Shao Tianhu said: "What the government means is that before things get out of hand, we should just let it go. As long as no one's life is hurt, we will not be held responsible."
"I know that brothers may think that catching and releasing today is a waste of work, but in fact it is still useful. At least the superiors have paid attention to this matter. It will not be so easy for the Portuguese to engage in small tricks in the future."
< br>
Although everyone was a little disappointed, they also knew that this place was not a star island, but the center of the empire, and it was not a place where they could do whatever they wanted. The government only issued a warning and did not hold them accountable. This should be the lightest way to deal with it.
Anyway, let it go sooner or later. Since something unexpected happened, it would be better to settle the matter earlier.
However, no matter how you release the person, you cannot handle it casually. Otherwise, if the Portuguese take control, there may be trouble in the future.
"Everyone prepare it first and make it cleaner later."
Shao Tianhu had already planned this. Firstly, he must not expose his identity, and secondly, he must not let the other party know where he is being held. As for what the Portuguese will guess afterwards, as long as there is no real evidence, there is no need to worry about the other party going to the office to hold them accountable.
Everyone immediately covered their heads with the black scarves they had prepared, leaving only their two eyes exposed.
Someone else came over with a bunch of short sticks and distributed them to everyone. Although the guys inside had their hands cuffed behind their backs, it would still be troublesome if they struggled too much. Prepare the guys first. If there are any dishonest ones, they will be served with sticks.
After everyone was ready, they opened the iron door of the stone house where the Portuguese was imprisoned.
When they were captured in the morning, they were originally given black cloth hoods to block their sight, but these people had already helped each other take off the hoods. As soon as the door opened, they all looked at the door.
The Portuguese had been imprisoned for a whole day, without water, and in a state of high tension. At this time, they were all sitting swaying against the wall. His two arms could only be kept behind his back. They were already numb, and there was no strength left to struggle.
Shao Tianhu reached out and grabbed one person, pinched his cheeks hard, stuffed the cloth into his mouth, put the hood back on him, then pushed him out of the room and handed him over to the people outside.
When someone was about to stand up to resist, he was already hit with a stick on his shoulder and sat back down with a cry.
Before the person who was arrested could understand the situation, several people put him face down on the ground and removed the shackles on his hands. Before he could move his arms, his wrists were tied with ropes, and then his feet were tied together with ropes.
These shackles are standard equipment. If they are allowed to go back wearing the shackles, they will become evidence, so before releasing them, they must first change the shackles.
After tying him up, someone carried him onto a freight carriage parked in the warehouse. This went on until all the dozen or so people captured were loaded into trucks and transported away from the warehouse in the dark.