Chapter 8
New Beginnings
While they were chatting, Zhong Lei came in with his forehead wrinkled. He was holding his phone in one hand, and said a few sentences to the person on the other end. Then he hung up the call and sat down on the sofa against the wall.
Qin Nianwei saw this, and then shouted over there: "Zhong brother, is there a situation?”
Zhong Lei rubbed his forehead: "In the capital airport they found two time bombs, our people, as well as the public safety and fire brigade teams all were dispatched, they had to evacuate the crowds and check for suspects, and then they also had to go find bomb disposal members to go dismantle the bombs. I just happened to be walking around there, so I was busy with them all the way until now.”
"Ah?" Qin Nianwei and Ye Wenxuan exchanged a glance, and Ye Wenxuan took his cell phone and opened a news page. Sure enough, there was a piece of breaking news.
[China Capital Airport has been found to have luggage hiding suspected explosive devices, as of right now all inbound and outbound flights have been suspended at the airport, at this moment no specific injuries have been reported. The police have already launched a full investigation into the matter.]
Ye Wenxuan: "In the luggage?”
Qin Nianwei: "Did it explode?”
Zhong Lei pulled out a cigarette from his jacket and placed it into his mouth but didn"t ignite it. He looked at them: "Time was set, but hadn"t exploded. It was placed in the luggage and got past the security check, when in transit it was forcibly pa.s.sed through a second security check, and found.”
Wait wait, the amount of information here feels quite big.
Ye Wenxuan: "Bombs can also go through security?”
Qin Nianwei: "When did Capital Airport start having a second security check?”
Zhong Lei: "It wasn"t the airport"s people.”
"Today there were important people going to fly on an international route, he hired some people from a bodyguard company. Don"t know what channel that group of bodyguards used, they actually mixed into the airport staff channel, and blocked the transport road to push a few airport ground service trucks to one side. Then they reopened two trucks of luggage once again to search." Zhong Lei seemed quite speechless. He bit his cigarette and then sighed. "And then they discovered one of the luggage was suspicious, there was a homemade timed bomb, don"t know how it went through the security check.”
"Such a significant oversight, the airport security guys are going to be finished." Qin Nianwei opened her mouth wide: "Say, who has such a big shelf, they actually dare to let the bodyguards stop the ground transport trucks, and also dare to open all the luggage. I"m afraid it"s probably some national leader?”
Zhong Lei casually said: "I heard, that flight in the first cla.s.s, if it wasn"t Xing Yuan, then it would be his brother Xing Yi.”
Qin Nianwei was even more unable to close her mouth.
Ye Wenxuan, for his part, paid attention to a different question: "Didn"t you say there were two bombs?”
"Well, two." Zhong Lei leaned back on the sofa. "They found an explosive device in the luggage, the bodyguards immediately called the police, and later our men cordoned off the area to search. Underneath a pa.s.senger plane on the tarmac, we found a second one." He said, and then hummed coldly. "Double insurance, seems like they were afraid he wouldn"t be killed by one.”
Ye Wenxuan: "…Under the plane?”
Zhong Lei shrugged: "I need to observe a moment of silence for the security check and security personnel.”
"It can"t be." Qin Nianwei held her face, exaggeratedly yelling: "It"s actually bodyguards hired by Xing Yuan?! What the h.e.l.l, the Xing Group is so rich, he has so many private jets, what"s he sitting in civil aviation for!”
Zhong Lei: "Who knows what those rich people are thinking.”
"For today"s matter no one lost their life, over a hundred pa.s.sengers dodged an accident, it could also be considered that his group of bodyguards forcing a search did a good deed." He sniffed. "But, if Xing Yuan or Xing Yi were not sitting on that plane, I don"t think there would have been any bombs, so I"m still not going to comment too much about it.”
Ye Wenxuan: "Are you sure it"s because of the Xing family that the bombs would be there?”
Zhong Lei: "Well, basically can be certain.”
Ye Wenxuan: "Then…”
"Let"s stop here." Zhong Lei waved his hand: "The investigation matters are not convenient to discuss right now, we should also talk less about this. Everything is waiting for the investigations sampling colleagues" results, and then we can talk about it.”
Qin Nianwei was quite familiar with the procedures, and changed the subject: "Zhong brother, you just came back from the scene, you must not have eaten. I have some bread here, do you want some?”
Zhong Lei pinched the cigarette that he had been biting for half a day, flicking it into the trash. "I"ll eat it, I haven"t eaten for a whole day, starving lao zi to death.”
The three people casually chatted, when they were halfway done eating, Zhong Lei asked: "Ye zi, you"re not on the on-duty schedule, are you not returning home for the new year?”
"Well…probably not going back." Ye Wenxuan hesitated: "It"s just that the captain and deputy captain didn"t say that I could have a holiday, so I also don"t know whether or not I need to stay for the end of the year. After all I can"t really just go directly ask the boss ba.”
"They didn"t say to let you leave?" Zhong Lei asked.
Ye Wenxuan: "Didn"t.”
Zhong Lei squinted: "Oh, then that means there"s some business.”
Ye Wenxuan: "A mission?”
Zhong Lei swallowed some bread: "I reckon so.”
"You don"t need to be too nervous, after all it"s your first task, the uppers definitely won"t give you a mission beyond your scope." He got up to get himself a cup of water, and casually said: "And they won"t let you act alone, they"ll definitely find you one or two partners to help you complete the mission.”
Ye Wenxuan involuntarily remembered his report card full of "Pa.s.s", with only [Oral Memory Portrait] this course that could be evaluated as "Excellent." This was also because he originally was an artist, so his drawing level was higher.
Remembering that report card full of red ink, he deeply felt that the skill he was most proficient in, was probably discharging energy.
This first mission, could it be that Xue Yongchang and Zheng Xingguo were going to let him go backstage at the Spring Festival Gala on New Year"s Eve to maintain power levels ba…
Thinking about it, it seemed like it was pretty reasonable ah, after all billions of viewers all needed to watch television.
It could also be considered to be a mission with a lot of importance and purpose…
Ye Wenxuan: Purpose, my b.u.t.t.
This concern continued for two days. Two days later, Zheng Xingguo finally called him into a conference room, it was still the same room as the first time. But this time there was only Xue Yongchang and Zheng Xingguo sitting at the table.
They watched him come in and first give a salute, and then find a spot to sit down. Xue Yongchang smiled and asked: "Xiao Ye ah, you"ve come for almost half a year, are you used to working in the unit?”
Ye Wenxuan hurriedly said: "It"s pretty good, my colleagues all take care of me quite a bit, my teachers were also very good. I feel quite comfortable here.”
"It"s good that you"re comfortable." Xue Yongchang continued: "Since your training is already over, that means you already have a general understanding of our work. Xiao Zheng and I discussed earlier, we think that we can give you some simple tasks.”
Ye Wenxuan again thought of that report card of his, and couldn"t help but blush a bit: "That…my grades were not very good…”
Xue Yongchang turned to look at Zheng Xingguo, the latter nodded with a serious face. Xue Yongchang laughed: "No matter no matter, how can theoretical knowledge be compared to practical experience, as long as you take on a few more tasks, you will naturally be more and more proficient in these work." As he spoke, he pointed at Zheng Xingguo: "Come, let xiao Zheng talk to you about it.”
Ye Wenxuan looked over, and Zheng Xingguo said: "Your situation is not the same as the other team members, from the start we also didn"t want to train you into a SWAT. The knowledge and combat skills taught by the 13 teachers were designed to help enrich and broaden your horizons. We don"t require you to really perfect everything.”
Once you delve into a certain area, you will undoubtedly want to occupy a leading position in that area. This let the Ye Wenxuan who was always used to ranking among the best feel somewhat uncomfortable: "I…am used to making myself better. Only getting a pa.s.s, I"m actually quite unsatisfied with myself.”
"You"ve never been in contact with these things for your previous more than 20 years, I personally think, being able to pa.s.s could already be considered a quite good result." Xue Yongchang interjected: "We do not really want you to turn into an all-around master in just half a year, that kind of person could only be found commonly in the troops. Your current look is just suitable for the task that we will be giving you.”
Ye Wenxuan wasn"t able to understand for a moment, right now what kind of look did he have. But he still resolutely asked: "May I ask, what kind of task is it?”
Zheng Xingguo: "Bodyguard.”
Ye Wenxuan froze: "Bodyguard? But…" His physical training, martial arts fighting and investigative skills were all given sympathy points by his teacher in order to barely pa.s.s, being a bodyguard…
This is really overestimating him!
Shouldn"t it be some task like power maintenance or something?!
"That"s right, a bodyguard, but not some sort of ordinary bodyguard." Zheng Xingguo said: "The mission target that you need to protect, himself already has countless bodyguards, so he is not afraid of common dangers.”
Ye Wenxuan was somewhat confused: "It"s…a prominent government official? Then what do I need to do?”
Zheng Xingguo handed him a doc.u.ment: "The mission target is called Xing Yuan, you should have heard of him before. After all, his fame is sometimes even bigger than that of high government officials.”
The current person in power of the Xing Group, Xing Yuan.
He"s not only heard of Xing Yuan, he even almost made a deal with that person.
Unfortunately because he came to the Special Affairs Department, this deal was eventually given to other people. Ye Wenxuan had never thought, he might through another ident.i.ty, once again come into contact with this person in power of the Xing Group.
He took the stack of papers on the table and found that they were all reports on information about Xing Yuan.
The first few pages were just some simple personal profiles, family situation, kinship relationships, etc. But in the later few pages, there was information on all of the a.s.sa.s.sinations and attacks Xing Yuan had suffered in the recent years.
Ye Wenxuan was somewhat frightened, it was the first time he knew that this big guy in the 3rd place on the worldwide richest list, actually lived such a life of suffering.
Seems like everyone really hates the rich ah. Ye Wenxuan thought this while lowering his head to look at the long string of [bomb attack], [car accident], [arson], [poisoning], etc. attempts on the doc.u.ment, and then remembered the Capital Airport terrorist attack that was abuzz the past few days. He suddenly felt that he had some gooseb.u.mps.
Being Xing Yuan"s bodyguard, I"m afraid this a.s.signment is not easy.
He raised his head, looking at the two leaders: "Captain, deputy captain, Xing Yuan"s bodyguards added together is almost able to form a company, letting me this dabbler go, I also won"t really be able to help ah.”
Xue Yongchang patted Zheng Xingguo, letting him speak.
Zheng Xingguo opened his mouth: "It"s not just you, we"ve also dispatched another small team of 15 people, those are real SWAT members.”
Once he said this, Ye Wenxuan was even more confused.
Zheng Xingguo got up and turned on the projector in the conference room, and then returned to his seat. He held a wireless remote control in his hand, slowly saying: "First of all, let"s talk about Xing Yuan this person.”
## On Ye xiao shou"s first mission ##
Zheng Xingguo: "Your first task is to go backstage during the Spring Festival Gala to maintain the power system and ensure the Gala can proceed properly.”
Ye Wenxuan: "With all due respect, how does this have half a dime of relationship with counterterrorism?”
Zheng Xingguo: "Are you kidding, the Gala being messed up relates to the mental and physical wellness of over a billion people, you have the heart to bear the pain of over a billion fellow citizens?"
Ye Wenxuan: "I have the heart.”
Zheng Xingguo: "Okay, then we"ll switch to a more down-to-earth task.”
Ye Wenxuan instantly excited: "Good ah good ah!”
Zheng Xingguo handed him a piece of information: "Go be a bodyguard for Xing Yuan ba.”
Ye Wenxuan looked at the information, he was deeply sympathetic for Xing Yuan"s personal safety, and then raised his head and said righteously: "Deputy captain, I feel that letting a billion compatriots be physically and mentally traumatized is truly an unforgivable sin. Please let me go backstage of the Spring Festival Gala to maintain the power, to emit light and heat for my fellow citizens!”
Zheng Xingguo only gave him one word: "Roll.”
Translator Notes:
[1] suffering – 水深火热, idiom, literally means deep water and scorching fire
[2] company – 连, military company, not a commercial company
[3] down-to-earth – 更接地气, also means in touch with the common people
Random Notes:
A bit over one hour: 5 pm – 6:15 pm, for 3.2k characters to 2.4k words. Okay tbh this speed is probably quite similar to my times for CFCS, I"m pretty sure for 3k something characters I would still never really quite get down to 1 hour. Still love this story, it"s just that there"s so much career/professional terminology that I get confused. Also translating this has convinced me to once again reread this story. Couldn"t resist.