Several teams of armed personnel patrolled the walls compressed from sand and stone. Their gazes held not only numbness but also exhaustion. Yet, when they saw a stranger attempting to enter the large encampment, their eyes sharpened. Silently, they flipped off their safeties. Even as they continued their patrols, the AKs in their hands were ready to fire at any moment.
“You here to do business?”
The armed man checking the letter spoke. Every wrinkle on his face bore the scars of time.
“That’s right. I need to purchase some valuable items from your side. I appreciate the trouble.”
Gu Lian gave a slight bow, her tone carrying a hint of apology. She was telling the truth. Wasn’t their boss’s life and Document No. 051 in the underground base beneath this large encampment both extremely valuable items?
‘She simply intended to buy their lives with bullets and blades. Wasn’t that a major transaction?’
With the Masked Man as a teammate backing her up, the current difficulty wasn’t whether she could kill Weikede or whether she could enter the underground base.
The hard part was that the location of Document No. 051 was unknown, and she didn’t have sufficient time to search for it.
This gave Gu Lian a headache. If it were just about killing someone, she could solve the problem in minutes. But the primary objective of this mission was that unknown Document No. 051; killing was just incidental.
As for capturing Weikede and forcing him to lead the way…
She didn’t consider herself some chosen one who got whatever she wanted. Weikede was a warlord ruler. Unless he was insane, he wouldn’t be threatened by her.
If she actually captured Weikede, the most likely outcome was him leading her into a trap and then having his men surround and kill her.
Those in power might not be great at much, but their ability to preserve their own lives was absolutely top-notch. If she tried that, the only way to survive would be to enter her Weiyi state.
But entering the Weiyi state, the energy she would emit would definitely draw every single Lieshou stationed here to swarm out. Who knew if among these Lieshou there was one capable of hunting her?
Even if she miraculously survived, the Masked Man wasn’t a fool. If she was ambushed one moment and a humanoid Weiyi charged out the next…
He would definitely suspect her identity. Then his plan wouldn’t be to use what she obtained to climb the ranks, but to report her information.
In that case, not only would she be in danger, but even Yi Yi would be at risk.
Yao Yao and Yi Yi had pulled her back when she was at her weakest. If her own actions caused those two girls to lose their lives…
Gu Lian forcibly stopped that terrifying thought. Absolutely must not capture Weikede alive. If there was a chance, killing him directly was the best option.
“Then get in quickly.”
The armed man tossed the letter of recommendation back, waving impatiently. The seven men behind him immediately stood down from alert. The patrol team on the stone wall also withdrew their aim, flipping the safeties back on their guns.
“Thank you.”
Gu Lian caught the tossed letter, stepped forward, and entered the large encampment. The armed men who had cleared a path watched her go.
In their minds, Gu Lian was indeed beautiful, but they absolutely had no thoughts of trying anything with her.
In their view, the more beautiful a woman was, the more she was just a decorative vase. In the Mountain Kingdom, where war raged endlessly, warlords fought amongst themselves, and even getting enough to eat was a problem.
If you really wanted to find a wife, a virtuous woman was definitely the priority. Background came second. Looks were the least important.
Only in large, peaceful, and stable countries did people prioritize looks when finding a wife.
Entering the large encampment, Gu Lian lifted the hem of her trench coat and slid both hands into her pants pockets. It seemed like meaningless posturing, but as she lifted the coat, her right hand smoothly opened her ammo pouch and retrieved a magnetic grenade.
It was now eight-twelve in the morning (checked via her watch). She had just entered the large encampment. The interior wasn’t just a military installation; there were also civilians and merchants.
Her current position was at an intersection. Her destination was the small castle in the inner ring area. That was where Weikede handled affairs and wielded his power.
A faint, almost imperceptible feeling of being watched brushed over her from behind. Gu Lian narrowed her eyes. This should be the person tailing her.
Tap, tap, tap…
Every time Gu Lian passed a corner, she gave her hand a slight flick, using that split-second blind spot. The magnet-like grenade slid a short distance on the ground before attaching itself to the underside of some metal equipment.
Ten minutes later, Gu Lian, holding the letter of recommendation, found the man with the yellow scarf around his neck inside a tent, just as the fat man had said. She walked straight into the tent. She could feel that faint, watchful gaze from behind had disappeared.
“(English) What business do you have here?”
A man wearing a monocle, dressed in khaki military uniform with a yellow scarf tied at his collar, spoke. He sat on a sofa, head bowed as he processed documents in his hands, not even looking up.
“…”
***
After observing her surroundings for a moment, Gu Lian walked over to him, found a chair, and sat down. She crossed her legs before speaking slowly. “(English) I’m here to discuss a business deal with Weikede.”
“(English) A deal?”
“(English) Yes, a deal.”
Gu Lian’s tone was calm. She really couldn’t muster the interest to be polite and talk nicely with someone who handled documents while meeting a guest.
“(English) Because this deal is of a special nature, I’d like to meet your BOSS alone.”
“(English) You can tell me directly about any deal. I’ll convey it to the boss.”
“(English) The fat man told me to come find you.”
The pen moving in the man’s hand suddenly stopped. He looked up, a dangerous glint flashing in his slightly narrowed eyes.
“(English) Fat man? What are you talking about?”
The man’s tone was calm, so calm it was frightening. But Gu Lian just nonchalantly took a chocolate bar from her backpack, tore open the wrapper, and put it in her mouth.
“If you want to discuss business, be quick. If not, please leave immediately.”
A hint of anger gradually crept into the man’s tone. Gu Lian simply ignored him, continuing to eat her chocolate.
Yesterday, she had opened three packs of combat rations. Aside from the compressed dried fruit, only this chocolate bar remained uneaten.
But you know what? These combat rations were pretty tasty. Even the compressed biscuits were fruit-flavored.
“Guards—”
The man had just started to call for someone when Gu Lian finished the chocolate. She softly uttered a sentence. “(English) Huandou Street, number one hundred three.”
“…”
The words the man was about to shout died in his throat. He stared at Gu Lian seriously for a moment, then slowly nodded. “(English) You need to meet the BOSS, correct? I’ll contact him shortly. The BOSS has a meeting this morning. It’s not a good time to disturb him now.”
“(English) That’s perfect.”
Gu Lian’s tone was relaxed. This was basically settled. All she needed to do next was kill Weikede, then infiltrate the underground base and steal Document No. 051.
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