One phone call later, Xia Lei’s mood was at an all-time low.
Long Bing had phoned him immediately after her debacle in Japan.
There was a high chance that the secrets of the new material were leaked.
Long Bing was ambushed shortly after arriving in Japan and her other subordinates had disappeared off the radar. If it wasn’t for Tsukino Kyoko’s earlier preparations, Long Bing would’ve been captured.
These two things had inevitably pointed to a certain person.
That person might be a spy!
This wasn’t the first time something like this had plagued the Thunder Horse Organization. Regardless of what he did, Xia Lei could never keep spies away from his company. Thunder Horse’s expansion was happening at such a rapid speed that they required mass hiring of human resources. There was no way he could’ve run an extensive background check on each person. There was a chance that a spy could have slipped through the cracks.
Another reason was that Thunder Horse Organization’s existence had long threatened the strategic benefit of America and its allies. It was only normal for those countries to send their spies to infiltrate the company. Aside from that, all the spies assigned by America and its allies would’ve been agents who have gone through rigorous training. The spies would definitely be more competent than those regular labourers Mu Jianfeng and Ye Kun had used in the past.
This spy had been lurking around the Thunder Horse Organization for a while now with no obvious signs of activities. The spy collected intel in silence while waiting for orders. Before the birth of the new material, the spy had hidden well but the first success of the project had the person lose their initial patience. Perhaps it wasn’t them who decided to leak the news, their agency or origin country might’ve been the impatient ones instead.
“Spy… Spy, huh? I wonder who it is?” In the Thunder Horse headquarters, Xia Lei slipped into deep thought in the privacy of his office. Countless faces of people that he had encountered in the past were brought into his mind, there were friends and unfamiliar contacts. As long he had seen them before, he would be able to recall their faces.
After a while, Liang Siyao joined him in his office. In solemn silence, she clicked the door shut behind her and came to his side.
Xia Lei looked at her. “Have you heard about it?”
Liang Siyao nodded. “Sa’im has shared the information. Who do you think it is?”
In the past, the other members of the Chinese Zodiac Battle Team were clueless that Liang Siyao was their pig. It was only after coaxing her to resign from Bureau 101 that her status was revealed. With the knowledge, Sa’im made the right choice to inform her of the current situation. She was Xia Lei’s lover and was constantly within his proximity. If the spy had noticed that they were no longer safe, they might execute something dangerous in a panic. In that case, it’d be better to be cautious.
“I’ve sorted through them all but I have no idea who it might be.” Xia Lei flashed her a wry smile. “The spy is doing a good job. We’ve not been able to notice their presence at all.”
His answer was genuine. Despite sorting through images of all the employees stationed in the Thunder Horse headquarters, his eyes and brain couldn’t detect a single clue. One of them had to be the spy.
“Is there no one you found suspicious?” Liang Siyao questioned.
Xia Lei said, “No, I sincerely have no idea who to suspect.”
“How about me?”
Xia Lei was visibly taken aback. “What the hell are you talking about? Don’t say things like that. I don’t want to hear it.”
Liang Siyao had once spied on him and left a great deal of damage to Xia Lei. The mental scar had taken him ages to heal, but to hear those words uttered out from her lips had reopened the wound.
Despite that, Liang Siyao was determined. “I mean it. From now on, you need to be careful around everyone, myself included.”
Xia Lei was beginning to get irritated. “Don’t you understand? I said to stop speaking of that incident. Why are you bringing it up?”
“Trust me, I’m more than unwilling to bring up the past.” Liang Siyao continued, “What I can tell you is that there is no mercy among intelligence agents. Even though I am your wife, you would still need to be cautious around me. Do not miss a single person. From now on, you need to go through everyone’s documents again. From there, you can push the investigations further and I’m sure you’ll be able to single out the spy.”
Her words had eased Xia Lei’s palpitating heart. Earlier, the way she phrased things had instilled fear in Xia Lei that the woman he loved was once again a traitor.
“Wait, Siyao.” After a short pause, Xia Lei uttered, “There’s no need for action at this moment. Keep this knowledge to yourself.”
Liang Siyao was surprised. “Why? The current timing is crucial. If we don’t find the spy, they’ll pose a great danger to you and the company.”
“If we do something now, it may alert them.” Xia Lei continued, “I’m not saying that we should do nothing, we need a better plan.”
“You’re suggesting to lure the spy out?” Liang Siyao’s comprehension skills had always been excellent.
Xia Lei nodded. “That’s right. That person has been able to go undetected in Thunder Horse, only choosing to show hints of their existence with the success of the new material research. Their target is my material. With a good plan and an attractive bait, they would bite.”
A smile finally bloomed across Liang Siyao’s face. “Alright then, I’ll follow your plan and halt my investigations. But as soon as you come out with a plan, you must tell me. I want to join you.”
Xia Lei announced, “I’ve already thought of a plan.”
“What is it like?” Liang Siyao came closer to him.
Xia Lei’s expression was stern. “Siyao, Long Bing is in danger. I wish to go to Japan and bring her home.”
That immediately triggered Liang Siyao’s anxiety. “No! You can’t head to Japan! I won’t allow that! If anyone has to go retrieve her, it should be me!”
“That’s enough, Siyao. I’m serious about this,” said Xia Lei.
“So am I!” Liang Siyao shouted back.
“You…” At this point, Xia Lei had run out of words to say.
“How about this? Let’s all take a step back. I’ll contact her and see if I can convince her to come home. If I fail, we’ll think of another way around this,” suggested Liang Siyao.
Xia Lei nodded. “Alright, but you must hurry.”
“I’ll call Ah Bing right now... Mmph!” Liang Siyao slapped her palm over her mouth and ran for the washroom.
“Siyao, what’s the matter?” Xia Lei’s worry flared up, quickly following after his wife.
Liang Siyao supported herself against the walls, pitifully vomiting out what seemed like clear water.
The man finally understood what was happening, opting to pat the small of her back to comfort her. “Is the kid tormenting you again? When he’s out, I’m going to smack his butt.”
Hearing that, Liang Siyao’s heart fluttered. Her discomfort slowly dissipated away.
Xia Lei smiled at her. “Look at you. How are you going to Japan in this state? I will not allow you to do so. If you got captured by the Japanese, who am I going to scream at?”
Liang Siyao nodded in acknowledgement. “But you’re not allowed to go too. If you get into danger, how would four pregnant ladies be able to live without you?”
Xia Lei wanted to agree, but as soon as he thought of Long Bing, he couldn’t bring himself to nod. It was as if a long wooden rod had pressed his jaw taut.
At this moment, Qing Caiyue’s voice rang in his office. “Director Xia, Elder Fan wants to see you.”
The surprise appearance had Xia Lei confused. “When did she return? Wasn’t she supposed to be in the Haizhu branch?”
Liang Siyao explained, “I moved her back. My pregnant belly is going to grow larger day by day. Soon, I won’t be able to work like before so it is best if she’s here to help me. Go meet Elder Fan now. I’m feeling much better already.”
“Okay.” With that, Xia Lei left the washroom.
Qing Caiyue stood there with a smile, welcoming Xia Lei’s presence. Her voice was as sweet as honey. “Director Xia, Elder Fan is in the material science lab at the moment. He has instructed me to invite you over.”
“Alright, I’ll be there soon,” said Xia Lei.
“Oh dear. Director Xia, your tie is a little wonky. Allow me to adjust it for you.” Qing Caiyue tried to decrease their bodily distance.
As if on cue, Liang Siyao exited the washroom in time. She said nothing as she stared at Qing Caiyue intensely.
The sight of Liang Siyao had Qing Caiyue jolting like a mouse when faced with a tiger. She frantically stopped her approaching presence and said sheepishly, “Oh, there’s actually nothing wrong with it.”
Xia Lei quickly stepped away.
It was only then that Liang Siyao spoke, “Secretary Qing, there are a few order sheets on my desk that require a confirmation from our customers. Please handle it for me.”
“Sure. Right away, CEO Liang.” Qing Caiyue quickly turned around and left. As soon as her back was to Liang Siyao, her red lips were pulled down to a deep frown.
Liang Siyao watched her leave with furrowed brows. “Damned fox. I swear I’ll fire you when this is all over.”
As Xia Lei headed towards the material science laboratory, every step was accompanied with thoughts of the spy’s identity. “Who is it? Is the spy female or male? There are many who had learned of the success of the Alloy X Project but a majority of them had no idea that Long Bing was out on a mission in Japan. The spy had known both of these but who would fit both these criteria?”
The analysis made him feel like he was getting one step closer but he knew it was just in his head.
On the day they announced the project’s success, almost the entire company had learned about it. If he was going to suspect someone, everyone was equally as suspicious. However, Long Bing’s mission was kept confidential. Members of Bureau 101 would have full knowledge of it and if the problem had stemmed from their side, there was no point for him to keep dwelling on his employees. It was bound to be difficult for him to narrow down on the people closest to him. Those who knew about these two things were all his lovers. How could he just simply suspect them?