Chapter 7 "Mystery of Asia"

Although he ultimately enjoyed torture, cruelty itself was not the key to his deterrence.Although he killed many people, he was not pathologically sadistic.He didn't like doing it himself.When he ordered the assassination of the killers, he usually kept a little distance from the plan.He no doubt took a perverse delight in his power to kill others at a distance, but that was the unquenchable satisfaction of a mysterious nemesis: death at once remote and near at hand.Thus, Dai Li's ability to remain withdrawn and mysterious made him unpredictable and thus more treacherous and dangerous in people's eyes.

This kind of temperament is vividly expressed in the description of Xu Pengfei in the novel "Red Rock".The novel is about the situation in the Military Command (or later the Bureau of Secrets) during the Civil War.Xu is the leader of the Chongqing Secret Service. The novel describes him walking through the eerie headquarters building in this way: Many of his puzzling traits have to do with his uncanny ability to go unnoticed and remain anonymous, and partly to his reluctance to be photographed.As "the most mysterious figure in modern Chinese history," Dai Li particularly stimulated the imagination of American journalists because he fit their image of him as a modern rich Manchurian doctor.

Dai Li is considered to be the most mysterious figure who has ever experienced war.But those Chinese who know what he looks like usually don't see it that way.It is said that nearly 454 million people have never seen him and have no idea what he looks like.He never makes public appearances, does not allow reporters to interview him, and almost never has him photographed. Colliers magazine called him "a mysterious figure in Asia."Dai Li, said to be a "man of terrible power and notoriety," never accepted photographs or interviews. Dai Li is one of the most legendary figures in modern Chinese history; he is rarely recognized, even among government officials; there are very few photographs of him.While he is admired by some, he is deeply hated and feared by many.

One Chinese official said of him that he "created the illusion that he was just a name and might not actually exist". And, no doubt, he was always trying to hide his tracks.In World War II Chongqing, where he lived alone — apart from his guards and the white-haired servant Jia Jinnan who bought, cooked and tasted food for him even when he ate out — the chief of the secret police moved back and forth deliberately. Between three residences: the mansion at No. 151 Zengjiayan, a small bungalow at No. 3 Kangzhuang of Shangqing Temple and another mansion in Shenxiandong.Just outside Chongqing, he owns an apartment in Yangjiashan, a house in Songlinpo, and a temporary guest room behind the auditorium of the Sino-American Cooperation Institute headquarters in Geleshan.He also had a secret residence in Xi'an, Lanzhou, Chengdu, Guiyang and Hengyang; after the war he secretly bought some secret residences in Shanghai, Nanjing, Hankou, Tianjin, Qingdao, Beiping, Zhengzhou, Fuzhou, Xiamen and Suzhou (He always keeps a spare car or two there).

Few people know the exact current situation of Dai Li.He has houses and hiding places all over China, and his routes and whereabouts are always concealed.An American who traveled with him once told me "He never let anyone know where he was going from one moment to the next, and he always spread rumors before going anywhere. Said he was going to X land, and then he always goes to land Y".In the city his people always called to say that he was on his way, and they knew the phone would be tapped; meanwhile, Dai Li went somewhere else.Because of the wiretapping, he forbids his office from scheduling appointments for him over the phone.The Americans found that their requests to see him had to be sealed in envelopes, and that replies were delivered in the same manner.

He can even hide himself from others.Journalist Epstein recalled a meeting held by the KMT for him before he went to Yan'an to interview the Communist Party.The meeting was presided over by General He Yingqin, considered by the Americans to be the most trusted by Chiang, and Wang Bensheng, a Japanese intelligence expert from the Kuomintang, was also present, as was Dong Xianguang.It was only at the end of the meeting that Epstein remembered that there was a fourth person present, who was barely noticed in the back of the room.The man had dark skin and a stubble beard. Although he was not necessarily sinister, he looked like a toad in Epstein's eyes. He was naturally Dai Li.

His dark complexion also made a strong impression on others, including his later deputy "Mary" Mellors. From the outside, Dai Li is more Latin American than Chinese in the eyes of many Americans.He was short, stocky, and dark-skinned.Someone said "he's a bit like Battista".He wore plain clothes in wartime: usually black riding boots, plain blue uniform, outdated European hat.What stands out most about his appearance are his hands. "They're weird but cute," an American once told me. "They're no bigger than my three fingers. You see him sitting at his desk in a silk Chinese gown, with a sly smile on his face, and suddenly there are hands like Chinese dolls. If you've been Thought he was a cruel man, he looks even more sinister at the moment."

Others can feel that his appearance is weird and deformed, but also feel that Dai Li is proud of this characteristic.The sombre monotony of his attire reinforces this, and at the same time renders him more consciously anonymous.Because of this, although he often entertained guests—especially in Chongqing, his banquets in the Horse Hall or Tiger Hall of his mansion are famous among Americans for their exquisite tableware, excellent coffee and Napoleon brandy—he Life is actually quite simple. In Nanjing, for example, he was famously indifferent to his living conditions.He used straw mats instead of carpets in his house at No. 53 Ji’e Lane. The two-storey house he rented near Fenglin Bridge in the French Concession in Shanghai was also very ordinary. Baker cars are equally unremarkable.Therefore, although some people thought that he had made a fortune, especially the war windfall, others believed that he was fundamentally not interested in money other than dealing with others, including his subordinates.

Most people think that Dai Li's property is huge, but no one knows how much.He claimed to work for Chiang Kai-shek's government without pay, making his personal income a mystery.Some say his income came from secret dealings with enemies.The pilots of the U.S. Air Force once said that it came from opium, and said that they had taken off from Chengdu in the west to transport mercury to the northern provinces in exchange for opium, and then handed it over to Dai Li.But as others have pointed out, Chiang Kai-shek showed no mercy to anyone or anything connected with opium, while Dai Li's loyalty to Chiang and his principles has always been beyond reproach.

According to Bishop Megan’s records, Dai Li’s position as the head of the anti-smuggling agency (named under the Ministry of Finance at the time) made it extremely easy for him to understand (and profit from) illegal transactions and smuggling activities.However, Megan, who was well-informed about conditions in China at the time, believes that Dai Li himself was not involved in any such activities.