At daybreak, a convoy departed from the Jingdu International Airport. They were headed towards the Thunder Horse Military Factory.
Xia Lei was sitting silently beside Tang Yuyan in one of the cars.
The moment they touched down, Fan Fan was immediately picked up by a car. The woman hadn’t even told him where she was headed to.
Though Tang Yuyan had mentioned that she would spare him more details on the road, she had remained silent for the better part of their journey.
Xia Lei had made an attempt to reach his father, Xia Changhe, in the airport washroom. However, the older man’s phone was turned off.
The uncanny occurrences worried him immensely.
After the convoy had reached a certain distance away from the airport and was now nearing the Thunder Horse Military Factory, Xia Lei could no longer stay silent. “Yuyan, we’re about to reach Bailu Town. Are you still not going to tell me anything?”
Tang Yuyan nibbled her lips nervously. “I was ordered to stay silent, you…”
Xia Lei was a little taken aback. “Ah, I see. That’s alright, I understand.” Though his words were composed, his heart was clenched in pain. Back on the snowy mountain at Dawang, Xia Lei had offered her every single piece of his garments to keep her warm. He had even fought against more than a hundred enemies for her sake. Currently, Xia Lei was in need of help. The man needed some information but all she cared about was heeding the instructions of the authorities.
Though so, the man was understanding of her decision. Regardless of what the matter at hand was, the first thing she’d think about was the interest of the Tang family. If she disobeys the orders from above, she may lose her position as the director of Bureau 101. Not doing so was a steep deviation from Tang Yuyan’s style.
Hesitantly, Tang Yuyan tried to comfort him. “Lei, there’s no need to worry. Everything is going to be alright. Even if there was something, only…”
Xia Lei interrupted her ramble. There was a forceful smile on the edges of his lips. “I’m alright. I’m not convinced that we’ll be doomed just because the Americans decided to play dirty. What is our country going to do to me? Send me to the lab?”
“Not you.” Tang Yuyan finally caved in. “My task was to bring you home and take your father away for investigation.”
“Take my father away?”
“Yes. According to what Folsom said, your father was the one who stole the AE capsule from the AE Research Centre. The nature of the capsules and the mass-production of them is vital information to us. We need to know these,” explained Tang Yuyan.
“Is that all?”
“I’m only in charge of this. There will be someone else in charge of you. Unfortunately, I don’t know much about his agenda.” Spilling the eased her a little.
“You were ordered to keep silent. Why are you telling me these?”
“You gave me every clothing you had on Dawang snow mountain. You did not leave me behind even when attacked by countless enemies. You did all these for me and if I continue to be selfish and only think about the benefits of my family, I won’t be able to forgive myself,” said Tang Yuyan.
She finally did it. Though it was well overdue, it was better late than never. All her concerns about her personal future and the benefit of the Tang family was dissolved into unimportance the moment she opened her mouth.
“Thank you so much.” A genuine smile finally appeared on Xia Lei’s face, chasing away his earlier pain.
Tang Yuyan turned to face him and fixed him a fierce glare.
To which Xia Lei coughed out a laugh at.
“Just ignore me.”
There was a brief pause before he asked again, “Can you tell me where will you be bringing my father to? How long is this investigation expected to last?”
“The first place we’ll be at is definitely Bureau 101, but I’m not sure where we will be after that.” Tang Yuyan continued, “I’m not sure how long the investigation will take. It’s something that I have no control over. Lei, if…”
“If what?”
“If you don’t want your father to be taken away, you can call him now to warn him,” offered Tang Yuyan.
Xia Lei’s eyes widened in surprise.
“I mean it.”
Xia Lei felt warmth around his heart. “I’ve already tried to phone him in the airport washroom. I can’t reach him.”
Tang Yuyan landed a playful fist on his bicep. “Jeez, and you’re only telling me now?”
Xia Lei made no move to avoid it. Instead, he uttered, “Yuyan, thank you so much for your help. But it’s best if you follow the protocol and do what you need to do. Keep yourself out from this mess.”
“But…”
“No buts. The matter is settled,” Xia Lei insisted.
The convoy finally arrived at the Peace Mansion, allowing Xia Lei and Tang Yuyan to emerge from the car. Everywhere around the entrance was filled with armed special forces. It wasn’t difficult to interpret the weight of the problem.
He turned around to eye the car Liang Siyao was in. The woman was still inside along with a few accompaniments. It was obvious that she was not allowed to exit the vehicle.
Entering the Peace Mansion, Xia Lei found a few strangers standing in his courtyard. All of them were unfamiliar faces, Xia Lei was positive that he hadn’t seen them before. A middle-aged man who held a black metal case approached them with a smile as soon as he noticed Xia Lei and Tang Yuyan’s presence. “You’re finally home, Mister Xia. I’ve been waiting for you here for the whole night.”
“Excuse me, you’re…?” Xia Lei attempted to probe.
“My surname’s Sun, I’m Sun Wen. I got some things that I require your cooperation on. It’s all simple tasks, it’s nothing to worry about,” said Sun Wen politely.
Xia Lei gave him a curt reply. “No problem.”
Following that, his left eye twitched and allowed his X-ray vision to penetrate Sun Wen’s coat. He wanted to take a look at Sun Wen’s work identification but there was nothing beneath his outerwear. Xia Lei then focused his gaze on the metal case in Sun Wen’s grip. He magnified his X-ray intensity and was finally able to study its contents.
The black metal case was actually a portable freezing container that carried a blood sampling cushion, a catheter, a few glass containers and a scalpel.
The revelation of its contents allowed Xia Lei to understand Sun Wen’s motive. Under normal circumstances, there was no way anyone would want to force him onto a surgery bed to extract a sample of his blood. Lockheed Martin’s Folsom had laid such a heavy card under the instructions of the American government but China was no idiot. They wouldn’t be as stupid as to waste all their efforts and execute something drastic towards him in the midst of Thunder Horse’s rapid development. However, they couldn’t just let this slide without doing anything appropriate. Which was why Sun Wen was here to get some samples off Xia Lei.
This was a gentle approach, evident from Sun Wen’s cautious demeanour. The government was worried that Xia Lei would take offence.
“Where shall we do this?” asked Sun Wen courteously.
Xia Lei replied, “Let’s head to my study.” Then, he turned to face Tang Yuyan. “Yuyan, we’ll talk after you’re done with your task.”
Tang Yuyan left with a nod, disappearing into the depths of the mansion.
Her task was to bring Xia Changhe away but even Xia Lei was unsure if the older man was still within the Peace Mansion.
Xia Lei led Sun Wen into his study, leaving the latter’s subordinates at the door.
The man allowed his guest to take a seat. “Mister Sun, what would you like to drink?”
“Oh, Mister Xia, there’s no need for that.” Sun Wen was friendly and generous with his smiles. The man then placed his metal case on top of the coffee table.
Xia Lei attempted to pry. “Mister Sun, if you don’t mind me asking, which department do you serve under?”
“Hehe.” Sun Wen chuckled softly. “Mister Xia, if I could tell you that, I would’ve already done it. I’m sure you know that there are some things that we cannot control. The same goes for our country. They’re reluctant for this to happen but what must be done, must be done.”
He was trying to give Xia Lei an explanation.
If the AE capsule was truly capable of bringing mankind into a new height of evolution, the state interest it could bring, regardless to America or China, was beyond imagination. Even if this hadn’t happened now but fifty years down the road, the AE capsules would still be very attractive to the state interest.
In the face of such events, even if Xia Lei had to play the role of a scapegoat, the country was not going to turn a blind eye to the existence of the AE capsules.
Xia Lei replied, “We all have things that need to be done. Don’t worry, I understand your feelings. Mister Sun, let us not waste time. You’re here to take samples, right? Let’s get right into it.”
Sun Wen was taken aback. “Mister Xia, you know what I’m here for?”
Xia Lei answered, “Lockheed Martin’s CEO had said some shocking things at the Boao Forum and you’ve been waiting for me with a portable freezer all night. If you’re not here to take samples from me, what else would you be here for?”
“Hehehe. Mister Xia, you’re exceptionally perceptive. Sure, I’ll get right into work.” Sun Wen opened the metal case and rolled on a pair of sterile gloves.
The sample extraction process was very smooth. Sun Wen first started it with a few blood samples, then he used the scalpel to extract about a square centimetre of his skin tissue from Xia Lei’s finger. Following that, the man took some of Xia Lei’s hair, saliva and so on. As he busied himself with the sampling, the man had asked Xia Lei a few questions.
“Mister Xia Lei, what do those capsules look like?”
The AE capsules?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Xia Lei smiled at him. “It’s been close to ten years, I no longer remember how it looked like. I only remember that my body was frail and I had to rely on constant medication to live. I don’t even remember what medicines had my father fed me back then. I think… it should be no different from a regular capsuled pill.”
“You’re not sure if the AE capsule exists?”
“Hahaha… If America had really created such a capsule that allowed humans to evolve further, they would’ve already used it on their armies. Compared to the authenticity of the AE capsule rumour, I’m more concerned of the plot America has against the country. Thunder Horse Organization is slowly threatening their superiority in the military industry and they’re losing their strategic balance as time goes by. If I were to be deemed guilty, the Thunder Horse Organization will not be able to offer more advanced weapons to the country. Isn’t it obvious who the benefactor from this would be?”
For Sun Wen to be in charge of him was proof of his status. Xia Lei’s words were not aimed to solve the problem, he was merely using Sun Wen to bring his words to the authority.