A familiar silver Rolls-Royce Phantom barged into the compound of Thunder Horse Organization. The security guards stationed in the gate made no move to stop it. The vehicle came to a sudden halt at the entrance of the office block and before the car was switched off, Shentu Tianyin had already dashed out of the car. Her contrastingly uncalculated actions caused her to stumble, almost falling flat onto the ground. She sprinted for the stairs despite the risk she posed to herself.
The ex-wife was here to send her ex-husband off. Unfortunately, she did not have the chance to see Xia Lei’s face for the very last time.
“Xia… Where’s Xia Lei?” She huffed, finally making it into Xia Lei’s office. Shentu Tianyin noticed the three crying women in the room. Long Bing, Liang Siyao and Jiang Ruyi. Reality sunk in, causing her to brim with tears that were threatening to fall at any given moment.
Liang Siyao wiped her crocodile tears away. “You’re late. His body was just brought away.”
“He…” Shentu Tianyin’s tears were gushing out of her eyes. “He’s dead?”
Long Bing gave her an affirmative nod.
“No!” Shentu Tianyin screamed. “This is impossible! Impossible! This must be a lie! This can’t be real! Xia Lei wouldn’t have died. There’s no way he could be dead!”
Tang Yuyan entered through the door this time, choking on her words through tears. “Tianyin, he’s gone. They’ve already brought his body away.”
A shrill scream was elicited from Shentu Tianyin and she doubled over, eyes shut.
Tang Yuyan lunged forward and caught Shentu Tianyin.
Five women, two different stands.
Liang Siyao couldn’t help but lock gazes with Long Bing. They knew that Xia Lei wasn’t dead but this was confidential. Tang Yuyan and Shentu Tianyin did not share the same knowledge. Their grief was overwhelming and very much genuine. It was clear that they harboured strong feelings for the man. How would they react after they learn that this was just an act?
“Yuyan, did we contact her over?” asked Long Bing.
Tang Yuyan sneered, “She’s Xia Lei’s ex-wife, is she not allowed to send him off?”
Long Bing wanted to say something else but Liang Siyao quickly caught her off guard with an embrace. The woman bemoaned, “Ah Bing, I don’t want to live anymore. I want to go with him…”
Long Bing picked up the hint, quickly staying mum.
At the same time, a Buick Encore Mercedes zoomed along the suburban highway.
Doot doot doot… Doot doot doot…
“Boss, we’re on standby at the spot. The target has not appeared yet.” Anjum Khan’s voice rang through the satellite phone as soon as the call was connected.
Xia Lei lowered his voice. “They are bound to appear. Remember, do not shot the target. You are only allowed to open fire when my life is at stake.”
“Understood.” Anjum Khan smiled. “But man, I really hope they would try to kill you.”
“It’s unlikely. I still hold some value to them. If everything goes well, they wouldn’t do that. I’m ending the call now.” Xia Lei hung up.
He was on his way to meet Hattori Mei, Yang Shan and Sperry. The meeting spot was the same. They would meet at the tower at the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. Before he left, Anjum Khan, Tsukino Kyoko, Yelena and Sa’im were already waiting at a mountain one kilometre away from the site. They were armed with four XL2500 sniper rifle, each standing by at different sniping points. As soon as Yang Shan or Hattori Mei initiated an attack, they would open fire.
While the predicted likelihood of the situation had not exceeded ten per cent, he needed to eliminate all possible danger. Xia Lei was bound to die but he still had two good years left. The man was determined to not die prematurely. He still had so much planned for the Thunder Horse Organization and his family! He was determined to not die no matter what!
Half an hour later, Anjum Khan contacted him as his vehicle came close to the Mutianyu Great Wall attraction.
“Boss, they’re here.”
“Got it.” Xia Lei swiftly ended the call and kept the satellite phone well. He made his way into the attraction site.
The crowd of tourists had died down after the Lunar New Year. It created a less straining environment for Xia Lei to study his surroundings. It only took him one stare to spot the people he wished to meet. Hattori Mei, Yang Shan and Sperry along with a few Hattori family fighters and special agents from the CIA Jingdu informant base had arrived.
Xia Lei approached the tower at a regular pace and trained his X-ray vision on them. All of them were armed.
“If they’re really planning to kill me, I’d have no choice but to take them out, destroy the CIA informant base and activate Xiao Qian to steal as much information as possible.” Xia Lei manifested an idea. But to be honest, he was not looking forward to that plan.
In his plan, Hattori Mei, Yang Shan and Sperry had to die. The timing of their deaths was specific. If he was forced to kill them now, his plans could be considered ruined.
“Mister Li, you’re right on time. Please come with me.” The waiter from the Tree Leaf Cafe was already waiting for him.
Xia Lei returned him a slight nod before trailing behind his lead.
“Mister Li, how did it go?” Yang Shan questioned impatiently as soon as Xia Lei’s head peeked through the stairway.
Xia Lei nodded again. “Yeah, it went well all thanks to the poison. The poor man probably had no idea how he died.”
“What happened to his body?” Hattori Mei blurted out a question.
Xia Lei replied, “His body was already whisked away by the Chinese government. He carries some kind of secret in his body, so the authorities deemed his body a priceless research specimen. But judging from the contributions Xia Lei had done for China and his status in the hearts of the people, the Chinese government would most likely hold an official funeral for him.”
“Hahaha…” Hattori Mei’s laughter was pitchy and maniacal.
Xia Lei watched in silence. This Japanese woman had reminded him strongly of Gu Kewen. Both Hattori Mei and Gu Kewen’s will to kill him was abnormally apparent.
“Are you sure?” Yang Shan scrutinized Xia Lei, his suspicion thinly veiled.
Xia Lei did Li Youdun’s characteristic shrug. “If you had called me here just to confirm Xia Lei’s death, I have already given you my answer. If you have further qualms about the validity of the outcome, please feel free to confirm it at Xia Lei’s funeral.”
“Hehe, no. I hope there’s no misunderstanding between us, Mister Li. I was just curious.” Yang Shan continued, “I’ll report your progress to Mister Williams. You’ll be getting the rest of your payment soon.”
Internally, Xia Lei let out a sigh. Yang Shan’s speech held no malice. It seemed like he wasn’t here to cause harm.
Yang Shan slid out his satellite phone and exited the tower to make a call.
As Xia Lei was about to use his X-ray vision to spy on their call, Hattori Mei came to stand before him and blocked his sight. She leaned in to whisper into his ear.
Xia Lei cautiously took a step back. “Miss Hattori, what are you doing?”
Hattori Mei offered him a sweet smile. “You killed someone that I was desperate to get rid of. I would love to kiss you to express my gratitude.”
Xia Lei scoffed disinterestedly. “I don’t want a kiss from a venomous snake.”
“Hehehe.” There was something charming about her chime-like giggle. “Mister Li, you’re so funny.”
Xia Lei decided to say nothing else. The more he talked, the more he’d reveal about himself. It was a smart move to say less in the face of intelligent officers and spies.
Hattori Mei lowered her voice to a volume that was barely audible. The woman was essentially asking him to read her lips. “If you happened to obtain the formula and technology information on Alloy X, please remember to contact me.”
The angle she had chosen to stand at was planned out perfectly. Other than Xia Lei, people within their vicinity had no way of noticing what she mouthed.
A smile flitted across Xia Lei’s lips. This was a hint, a hint that indicated that she could offer him a price after he had gotten ahold of the Alloy X. His undetectable smile was an appropriate response to Hattori Mei.
Yang Shan came over and pressed his satellite phone into Xia Lei’s palm. “Mister Williams asked for you.”
Xia Lei brought the device to his ear. “Mister Williams.”
“Excellent job, Li!” Williams was ecstatic.
Xia Lei listened, not humming a word.
“I need to know a few things.” Williams’ emotions calmed down. “Did anyone notice you?”
Xia Lei was certain that everyone standing around would pounce him if he mentioned that he was noticed. Nonchalantly, he replied, “No, my trails were not left behind. Even if the Bureau 101 were to investigate this case, they’d never suspect me.”
“Can you resume with your mission?” asked Williams.
Xia Lei answered, “Of course. It’d be even better now that Xia Lei is dead. The construction for the material workshop is about to begin and I got assigned the position to be in charge of it. I’m confident I’ll be able to obtain the information we need.”
“Very well then. Cut off all contact with Yang Shan for a while until you’ve got everything,” instructed Williams.
“Mister Williams, I kept my end of the promise and killed Xia Lei. About my payment…”
“No problem. We’ll be paying the rest of it after we receive a confirmation on Xia Lei’s death,” said Williams.
It was that instance that Xia Lei was reminded of the incredibly patient observer. If the CIA informant base were to assign someone to verify his death, he would be the best candidate. However, Xia Lei had nothing to fear. The observer had no means to come in proximity with his ‘corpse’.
While his mind pondered further about it, Xia Lei furrowed his brows exteriorly. “Mister Williams, this was not what we agreed on earlier. I had risked my life for this payment. If I don’t receive it…”
There was no need to voice his threat for Willaims had certainly picked it up.
Williams inhaled. “Alright. The transaction shall arrive within twenty-four hours. I’m sure that the time frame is enough for us to obtain final confirmation.”
“Thank you. I need to leave for the Thunder Horse Organization now. I’ll lay low for the time being. I won’t be in contact for a while and I don’t wish for anyone to contact me either.” Letting his sentence fall, Xia Lei ended the call and returned the device to its owner.
His words earlier were purposeful, making it audible to Yang Shan, Sperry and Hattori Mei. He needed to lay low and asked for no one to contact him, it was obvious that he was referring to the three of them.
Hattori Mei winked at him discreetly.
Xia Lei noticed it but gave no response, taking his leave immediately.
“Damn, that guy is arrogant.” Sperry jeered, “One billion USD… That man just earned one billion USD!”
Yang Shan drawled in a calm tone. “He’s got the luck but no time left to spend them.”
Hattori Mei mused, “Judging from the current situation, he should be able to steal information on the Alloy X from the Thunder Horse Organization. By possessing it, you’ll definitely be able to sell it for more than two billion.”
Yang Shan and Sperry turned to lock gazes.
This was an obvious hint.
Humans were greedy animals. There weren't many who could reject the seduction of wealth.
Xia Lei exited the tower. The man gazed at the top of the mountain opposite him. He mouthed, “Retreat, move out.”
They were moving to his next destination, but it wasn’t the Thunder Horse Organization.