Chapter 134: Causing a Catastrophic Upheaval

The man on the ground wore an ashen, lifeless expression, yet Bai Zeshao did not rush him, simply waiting in quiet patience.

After a moment, the man raised his head to look at Bai Zeshao. "Even if the people behind me refuse to let me go, that is a matter for the future. Right now, I only care about the present. I will confess everything; I only hope you can spare my life."

With that, he spoke without hesitation: "My name is Zhang Sheng, and I am from the Party Affairs Bureau."

The very first sentence of his confession caught Bai Zeshao off guard. He had considered countless possibilities, yet never once suspected someone from the CC clique. Nevertheless, maintaining his composure, he reined in his surprise and continued to listen quietly.

"There were two of us assigned to keep watch on you. This observation post was set up only yesterday. I never imagined you would uncover it in barely a day," Zhang Sheng said with a bitter, self-deprecating chuckle. "Of course, we were simply doing it for the money."

"What do you mean? Don't tell me you weren't acting under official orders to monitor me?" At this, Bai Zeshao's interest was genuinely piqued.

"You could say that, but there were no explicit orders. It mostly started because someone new joined our Party Affairs Bureau recently—a man with one eye."

At this point, a strange expression crossed Zhang Sheng's face. "You know this person."

"I know him? Who is it?" Bai Zeshao asked.

"Tian Yaopeng."

"You mean Tian Yaopeng lost an eye and actually joined your Party Affairs Bureau?" Bai Zeshao had not anticipated receiving such a startling piece of news.

"Indeed. It happened just these past couple of days, and our Captain Zheng welcomed him personally," Zhang Sheng continued.

"Zheng Zhibin received him? It seems old Tian is quite popular over at your Party Affairs Bureau. What position does he hold there? Deputy captain?" Bai Zeshao asked sarcastically.

"Chief Bai, you have it wrong. He's just an ordinary operative," Zhang Sheng said, curling his lip in open disdain.

"Is that so?" Bai Zeshao did not find it overly surprising. He looked back at Zhang Sheng and pressed on, "You mentioned Tian Yaopeng just now, and earlier you said there were no orders from above. Does that mean all of this was instigated by Tian Yaopeng?"

"That's right. Although Tian Yaopeng isn't in charge, he has money—he throws cash around by the handful, and what can't money achieve? Besides, our relationship with you Special Service Agency people was never very good to begin with. This way, we get paid and get the job done," Zhang Sheng admitted frankly.

"I suppose that's true," Bai Zeshao nodded, then gazed down at Zhang Sheng. "Go on."

"Go on about what?" Zhang Sheng stared at him with an expression of aggrieved innocence. "I've told you everything I know. What else could you possibly want me to say?"

"Are you certain?" Bai Zeshao looked at him with a faint smile.

"Chief Bai, I swear to heaven, I've really told you everything I know," Zhang Sheng protested, gesturing upward with an air of careless sincerity.

"It seems you are truly untrustworthy, treating my words as mere hot air. Or perhaps my methods were too gentle, making you think I am easily fooled?" Bai Zeshao sneered.

"Don't, Chief Bai! I'm really not lying, please believe me!" Seeing the look in Bai Zeshao's eyes, Zhang Sheng felt a chill run down the back of his neck and hurriedly cried out.

Bai Zeshao gently shook his head. Without another word, he picked up the dagger lying on the table and yanked Zhang Sheng up by his bound arms.

A flash of cold steel cut across Zhang Sheng's vision, followed instantly by a piercing agony that wracked his entire body, forcing a harrowing scream from his throat.

*Snap, snap.*

Unmoved, Bai Zeshao did not pause his movements. The dagger slashed downward four times in rapid succession, and four fingers hit the floor with dull thuds.

Then, tossing Zhang Sheng aside as if he were mere garbage, Bai Zeshao let him collapse back onto the floor.

Zhang Sheng lay there like a discarded, broken hound, weeping uncontrollably while his body twitched involuntarily.

"Why must you put yourself through this? Since you had already decided to talk, why hold anything back? Or did you genuinely believe I couldn't gather intelligence without you?" Bai Zeshao sighed, looking down at him with a gaze of profound pity.

"Could it be that you..." Zhang Sheng stared up at him from the floor, his eyes filled with terrified suspicion, though he left the rest unsaid, unsure if Bai Zeshao was merely bluffing.

"Aside from this observation post, there are two others. Am I right? These three posts practically allowed anyone to track my movements all the way to the Special Service Agency. I must admit, the method was both covert and brilliant—I very nearly fell for it," Bai Zeshao said slowly.

"You mean... you've already dismantled the other two posts as well?" Zhang Sheng murmured, collapsing onto the floor like a deflated balloon.

"What do you think? This post of yours was simply the last one I broke," Bai Zeshao said with a smile. "Well then, shall I recount a few more things for you, just in case your memory happens to fail you?"

"No need. I'll talk," Zhang Sheng sighed. Struggling to his feet, he leaned back against the corner of the wall. "Since you've already taken down those two locations, you must have the confessions in hand anyway. Keeping me alive was only ever about cross-referencing the information."

"Heh," Bai Zeshao offered a faint, flat laugh.

"It's true that Tian Yaopeng had us stationed here to monitor you. But besides watching you, Tian Yaopeng also dispatched ten other teams to keep tabs on the top brass of the Special Service Agency. Everyone with any real authority, right up to the highest levels below the director himself, has been placed under surveillance by men hired by Tian Yaopeng," Zhang Sheng said, casting a mocking glance at Bai Zeshao.

Hearing this news, a shockwave rippled through Bai Zeshao's heart. Had Tian Yaopeng lost his mind? To dare conduct such large-scale surveillance on the personnel of the Special Service Agency—if word ever got out, it would truly be enough to pierce the heavens.

Even if Tian Yaopeng was utterly fearless, surely the people in the Party Affairs Bureau weren't all absolute fools? To risk committing such a treasonous act purely for money defied belief.

Thus, part of Bai Zeshao doubted it, yet deep within his mind, a lingering intuition told him it was the absolute truth.

"Actually, Chief Bai, keeping an eye on you was merely a secondary convenience. After all, your rank and authority are relatively low," Zhang Sheng continued.

"What on earth is Tian Yaopeng trying to achieve? Is he trying to ignite a full-scale war between the Special Service Agency and the Party Affairs Bureau? Has he gone mad? And how could Zheng Zhibin ever agree to such a scheme?" Bai Zeshao pressed urgently.

"Zheng Zhibin didn't know. He only knew Tian Yaopeng instructed us to monitor you all, but he had no idea who the specific targets were," Zhang Sheng replied with a chilling, eerie smile.

"Do you have any idea what Tian Yaopeng's objective is? I refuse to believe he would take such an enormous risk without a purpose," Bai Zeshao mused for a moment before demanding an answer.

"Chief Bai, hasn't anyone else told you the reason?" Zhang Sheng asked suspiciously, probing for information.

"It seems you really haven't learned your lesson," Bai Zeshao chuckled indifferently. "It's probably for revenge, I suppose. After all, his eyes were blinded, weren't they?"

Zhang Sheng had initially assumed Bai Zeshao was simply fishing for information, but realized with a jolt that he already knew a fair amount.

This time, he resigned himself entirely. "You're right. Tian Yaopeng is doing this for revenge. Those eyes of his were blinded in the solitary confinement cells of your Special Service Agency."