After leaving the duplex apartment of Yunding Mansion, Lieutenant Lula raised his hand to hail a taxi by the roadside, got into the car, and reported the address of the National Guard barracks.
After the vehicle started, he leaned back in the seat, his gaze passing through the window, watching the pedestrians rushing by on the streets.
The city’s neon lights flickered in the night, but his mood couldn’t be as light as those lights.
After about ten minutes of driving, Lula suddenly spoke, "Stop here." The driver glanced at the rearview mirror, didn’t ask much, and pulled over.
Lula paid the fare, got out of the car, and walked along the sidewalk for about a hundred meters, his steps unhurried, but his gaze occasionally swept behind him.
Confirming no one was following, he quickly turned into a small alley.
A nondescript gray station wagon by the roadside automatically opened its door, and he quickly got in. The door closed again.
A few people were already sitting inside, both men and women, all looking very ordinary in appearance and attire.
As soon as Lula sat down, a man in black-framed glasses moved closer, holding an electromagnetic detector, and began carefully checking him.
Another woman professionally scanned his clothing, her fingers lightly pinching every spot that could hide a device.
Lula remained calm, whispering, "I met the Chinese kid named Victor and conveyed my superior’s message to him.
I didn’t stay in his office for long, didn’t come into contact with anyone, there’s no way I could have... "
Before he could finish, the woman’s fingers stopped at the inside of his hem and pinched out a black device the size of a thumbtack from the seam.
Lula’s pupils suddenly contracted, a fine layer of cold sweat instantly appeared on his forehead, his mouth went dry, and his breathing became heavy.
"What is this?" His voice trembled a bit.
The man with black-framed glasses took the small device, examined it for a few seconds, then shook his head to his companions, saying in a low voice:
"A low-power listening tracker, with an effective range of no more than five hundred meters. They probably just want to confirm your whereabouts, you haven’t been exposed yet."
The atmosphere in the car eased a bit.
The team leader in the passenger seat took the ’thumbtack’, squeezed it hard, crushing it, and then casually threw it into the car’s trash bin.
He turned his head, looking sharply at Lula, "Don’t overthink it, the fact that you took the initiative to contact us and are willing to expose these parasites hidden within our nation, you’ve already done very well."
Lula’s face remained pale, his fingers unconsciously gripping the fabric on his knees, "When we attacked the Chris Clan last time, I felt something was off.
That Chinese kid Victor kept giving me money, openly bribing my subordinates. At that time, he had authorization from the governor, and I even called in the Air Force ’Osprey’ for him.
But I never thought that my superior would want to contact him to make money, selling out national interests. I simply can’t accept it... "
The team leader shook his head, "Those guys are not just after money, but power as well.
They are professionally trained agents, extremely cunning and ruthless.
The bodyguards around that Chinese kid are elites from the CIA and the Special Service Bureau, never underestimate their vigilance.
Maybe just brushing past you, they could plant a bug on you. You must carefully hide yourself. Once they discover you, we can’t help you."
Lula took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. He nodded, his voice a bit dry, "What should I do next?"
"Just follow your superior’s instructions, take the money if they give it, and do nothing else," the team leader’s tone was firm.
"Should I contact you guys again when those two groups are making a deal?" Lula asked again.
"No," the leader shook his head, "don’t contact us anymore. I’ll reach out to you if necessary."
Lula was silent for a few seconds, then asked, "What if those parasites really manage to smuggle successfully?"
The leader’s expression turned serious. He turned around, staring directly into Lula’s eyes, his tone low and grave:
"Lieutenant Lula, you don’t realize how important you are, nor do you understand how dire the situation is now.
Those people have control of public powers, infiltrated the Department of Homeland Security, have people in key government departments, monitoring all national affairs.
They’ve even evolved into an organization like the ’Tree of Justice’, a bloodsucking vine strangling the nation.
Our Ministry of Efficiency is established to counter these corrupt traitors; we are the ones with true ideals, always trying to find evidence of their crimes.
But the enemies are too strong and cunning; we can’t find a breakthrough, and instead, exposing our investigation intentions leads to persecution by those traitors.
This is an extremely brutal game, with the powerful oppressing the weak; justice does not necessarily prevail. We have no retreat, it’s victory or death.
You are our only hope now; preserving yourself is more important than anything.
They will follow you, listen to you, even try to intimidate you. You and your family will all come under their surveillance.
Without absolute certainty, we can only endure, until the enemy is completely exposed."
After he finished speaking, he patted Lula’s shoulder, with a mix of resignation and determination, blessing him, "May God bless you, bless the United States."
Lula stared blankly, nodding heavily, "I understand, I will fight the traitors to the end."
Zhou Qingfeng opened the website of the United States Department of Commerce, found the export control list, and checked what items were prohibited from being sold to the Eastern Great Power.