Chapter 96

Xu Yan readily agreed, but Wen Xiuzhi felt a bit uneasy: After being together for so long, he had some understanding of Xu Yan's personality. He was the kind of person who would hide his discontent and not argue openly, but would gradually distance himself from you and cut off all contact.

"Looks like I really need to give him a taste of something sweet. Otherwise, this kid won't want to play with me again! Hmm, what does he like? Young men are usually most interested in beautiful women! Money is also a good thing!"

With that, he really had to consider using a beauty trap. It seemed he would have to ask his niece, Chen Yaoyu, to communicate more with Xu Yan and deepen their friendship, or...

Wen Xiuzhi secretly planned as he pulled Xu Yan aside and whispered, "Brother, you've really helped me out this time. If it weren't for you, I might have been in a real bind today, and I would have lost face."

"Of course, I can't write your contribution in the report, but don't worry, Brother Wen isn't an ungrateful person. You just started working, and the salary process isn't complete yet, so you can't get paid for now. But give me an account number, and after I get back to the capital, I'll transfer you some attendance fees and a bonus—nothing much, just a token of appreciation. Don't expect too much; the bonus is just to make sure you didn't come all this way for nothing. Our intelligence department isn't a rich department, so this is the best we can do."

Xu Yan didn't really care: He figured the attendance fee would be a couple of thousand yuan. He had done the work, and the state was paying him, which was only fair. So he accepted it without hesitation.

Wen Xiuzhi wrote down Xu Yan's account number on his phone and nodded, "Alright, I'll notify you when the money is transferred."

"Okay, thanks, Brother Wen—by the way, Brother Wen, are you coming back to Jincheng after this trip to the capital?"

Wen Xiuzhi shook his head, "My workplace is in the capital. The Jincheng office was set up temporarily because of the case here. It's not a permanent institution. If everything goes smoothly, our mission will be completed, and the investigation team will be disbanded. The Jincheng office will also be closed. If you want to see Brother Wen in the future, you'll have to come to the capital."

I'm not going to the capital just to see you, as if I have nothing better to do!

Xu Yan cursed inwardly. However, hearing that the investigation team might be disbanded and no one would investigate Zhu Youxiang's identity anymore, he felt an immense relief. He tried to suppress his joy but couldn't hide the smile on his face, "Ah, Brother Wen, you're not planning to come back to Jincheng? That's not good, I'll miss you!"

Xu Yan said he would miss him, but his face showed pure delight. Wen Xiuzhi, being a seasoned person, could easily see through his insincerity. He felt quite depressed, "I don't think I'm that bad of a person, and I haven't done anything to wrong you. Why are you treating me like a plague?"

The two sighed and exchanged some words of farewell. At this moment, the convoy arrived. Wen Xiuzhi directed the crane to place the iron cage containing the criminal into a container truck and securely closed the gate. Under the escort of a large number of military and police vehicles, the truck carrying the criminal headed for the train station.

Watching the convoy drive away, the dust gradually settling on the road, Xu Yan felt a great sense of relief.

The main team of the investigation group had left, but fortunately, Wen Xiuzhi still had some conscience and arranged for the Xiangcheng Public Security Bureau to take care of Xu Yan's return trip. A young deputy section chief surnamed Han from the Xiangcheng Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Brigade came to see Xu Yan off.

The deputy section chief asked Xu Yan where he was going, and Xu Yan said he was returning to Jincheng. The deputy section chief immediately made a call to book two tickets to Jincheng—the nearest flight was in the afternoon, three hours away, which was just right.

Officer Han drove Xu Yan to the airport. Along the way, Officer Han was quite interested in the young Captain Xu—this kid was a captain before he turned twenty and worked in the intelligence department, which was a highly confidential unit. He must be some rich kid, right? But seeing that Xu Yan was humble and had no airs, Officer Han gradually relaxed and started chatting with Xu Yan enthusiastically. He was very interested in what had happened today and tried to get more details from Xu Yan, asking why a single madman could cause so many casualties and what the reason was.

Then, Officer Han sighed emotionally, "This must be a problem with our system. In the United States, such things would never happen!"

Xu Yan thought to himself, No wonder the most rebels are inside the system! You're eating the state's salary but praising the United States, which is really bad! The Pacific Ocean isn't covered, so why don't you swim over?

Xu Yan hummed and hawed, answering irrelevantly. Fortunately, Officer Han knew the drill. Seeing that Xu Yan was being vague, he eventually realized and apologized, "Ah, Captain Xu, don't mind me. I'm just straightforward and speak without thinking. I don't have any ulterior motives or want to pry into the intelligence department's secrets. I'm just curious. Don't take it the wrong way!"

Seeing the other person apologize hurriedly and look a bit anxious, as if worried that Xu Yan would suspect him, Xu Yan couldn't help but smile, "Don't worry, Chief Han, it's not a big deal... It's not as serious as you think. We just can't say it publicly yet. Don't overthink it, hehe."

Although Chief Han was a fan of the United States, he was quite capable and efficient. They arrived at the airport, and he helped Xu Yan with the boarding procedures. While waiting, Chief Han enthusiastically bought a lot of Xiangyang specialties for Xu Yan, such as board ducks and beef jerky, and gave them all to him.

Xu Yan tried to refuse, but Chief Han smiled, "Captain Xu and the investigation team came all the way from the capital to support our work, and you've worked so hard and taken risks. It wouldn't be right to let you go back empty-handed. This is a small token of appreciation from the people of Xiangcheng. Don't refuse—oh, and we have a budget for this, so it can be reimbursed."

Seeing the large bags of board ducks and chestnuts, Xu Yan was speechless: Is this the token of appreciation from the six million people of Xiangcheng? But since it was public money, Xu Yan felt it would be impolite to refuse.

Chief Han saw Xu Yan and Zhu Youxiang to the security checkpoint before leaving. As he watched him walk away, Xu Yan smiled at Zhu Youxiang, "Xuanyun, the Xiangcheng Public Security Bureau has been very hospitable, covering our round-trip tickets and sending someone to see us off."

Since leaving the scene, Zhu Youxiang had been deep in thought, looking a bit distracted. Hearing Xu Yan's words, she seemed to be jolted awake and replied, "Yes, it's normal protocol—by the way, Young Master Xu, do you know how much a passenger plane like the one we're taking today costs on Earth?"

Xu Yan was stunned for five seconds before he realized: Zhu Youxiang wanted to buy a passenger plane?!

This girl's wealth was almost beyond imagination!

Because he had been shocked by Zhu Youxiang too many times, Xu Yan was somewhat numb. He said, "We came on a Boeing 737. It's an American-made aircraft, and a brand new one costs several hundred million yuan... It's really expensive."

Hearing the word "billion," Zhu Youxiang's expression didn't change. She asked, "A billion is a hundred million, right?"

"Exactly."

Zhu Youxiang frowned slightly, clearly calculating something in her mind. Xu Yan could guess what she was thinking—she was probably estimating how much gold would be needed to buy a plane. According to the previous transaction, one tael of gold was worth about 13,000 yuan, so to raise several hundred million yuan, it would take tens of thousands of taels of gold.

Xu Yan didn't know Zhu Youxiang's family background in the Ming Dynasty, but even if they were very wealthy, it would be impossible to come up with tens of thousands of taels of gold. Even if Zhu Youxiang's family had it, she couldn't bring it over.

Xu Yan decided to pour cold water on Zhu Youxiang's enthusiasm, "Xuanyun, you should know that starting an airline isn't just about buying a couple of planes. There's a lot of complex work involved: building airports, terminals, and training pilots—pilots aren't just anyone; they need specialized training, which takes years and requires specialized institutions and schools. The training fees are also very expensive. You also need navigation towers, control centers, and communication systems. All of this will cost more than a billion yuan. Running an airline is really expensive and not something to be taken lightly."

Clearly, Xu Yan's words made an impact on Zhu Youxiang. She nodded but didn't say anything, lowering her head. Xu Yan wasn't sure if she had given up or not. However, he didn't have much knowledge about such large-scale investments, so he wisely kept quiet to avoid getting into trouble—what if Zhu Youxiang really brought tens of thousands of taels of gold and asked him to buy a plane? He wouldn't even know where to start with Boeing!

As they were chatting, a well-dressed young man in his thirties, sitting diagonally across from them, stood up. He hesitated for a moment and then walked over to them.

Actually, Xu Yan and Zhu Youxiang had noticed the young man earlier. Not only was he dressed in a well-fitted suit and carrying a high-end briefcase, but he stood out from the other passengers with their large bags, clearly a so-called elite. More importantly, he had been staring at them—more accurately, at Zhu Youxiang.

Xu Yan had noticed that the young man had been looking at Zhu Youxiang multiple times with a strange gleam in his eyes.

Xu Yan and Zhu Youxiang watched the young man approach with interest—because of Zhu Youxiang's beauty and her vibrant aura, they often attracted a lot of attention when they went out. However, this was the first time someone had approached them so openly.

The young man stopped in front of them and said in standard Mandarin, "Hello, are you two going to Jincheng?"

Xu Yan looked at Zhu Youxiang, and Zhu Youxiang looked back at him. Both found the question quite strange—this boarding gate was for passengers going to Jincheng, and most of the people waiting in the nearby rows were going to Jincheng. Did he really need to ask?

Zhu Youxiang turned her head slightly, showing her disinterest in such an obvious attempt at small talk. Xu Yan, not wanting to be rude, replied, "Yes, we're going to Jincheng. Are you also going there, sir?"

The young man seemed pleased that his attempt at small talk had worked. He said cheerfully, "Yes, I'm also going to Jincheng on flight G526. There's still almost an hour before boarding, and since we're going to the same place, I thought we could get to know each other and chat a bit to pass the time. Oh, my name is Zhao Tong. What are your names?"

Xu Yan rolled his eyes, thinking that all the other passengers at the boarding gate were also going to Jincheng, and the women sitting next to him had a Jincheng accent, clearly going to Jincheng. Why didn't he talk to them?

Though the young man's intentions were clear, his excuse for starting a conversation was a bit awkward, almost as if he was looking for a brick on the ground to ask if it was Zhu Youxiang's.

Though Zhao Tong's approach was a bit rude, Xu Yan, being a gentle person, didn't want to make him feel embarrassed. He said politely, "Hello, Mr. Zhao, my name is Xu Yan. This is my friend, Zhu Youxiang."

"Oh, so you're Xu Yan and Zhu Youxiang. Nice to meet you! You both look like college students, right?"

"That's right, I'm a student at Sichuan University."

"Oh, Sichuan University, that's a prestigious university with a long history!" Zhao Tong smiled and said, "To be able to study at such a prestigious university, you must be very talented and have a bright future ahead!"

Knowing that Zhao Tong had mistaken Zhu Youxiang for a college student, Xu Yan found it amusing but didn't correct him, "Thank you, Mr. Zhao. Are you going to Sichuan for business or personal reasons?"

This question seemed to hit a nerve with Zhao Tong, who immediately became excited and spoke louder, "Oh, I'm going to discuss a significant contract with a client. It's a very important contract worth hundreds of millions of yuan, and I can't feel at ease unless I handle it personally. Usually, my assistants handle business with clients in Sichuan, but this contract is too important, so I have to personally oversee it to feel at ease!"

When he mentioned "assistants," "hundreds of millions of yuan," and "personal oversight," Zhao Tong clearly emphasized these words to hint at his high status, implying that he was a successful and prestigious person, not just an ordinary person. However, his efforts were wasted on Xu Yan, who only responded with "oh" and "ah," showing no particular interest. Zhu Youxiang, on the other hand, remained expressionless, as if she hadn't heard anything.

Seeing that the two young people were not impressed, Zhao Tong felt a bit disappointed but didn't give up. He asked about their year in college. Xu Yan casually replied that they were in their second year, and Zhao Tong said, "Oh, you're already in your second year? That means you're not far from graduation. Xu Yan, Zhu Youxiang, you might not know this, but finding a job nowadays is very difficult! Every year, millions of college graduates enter the job market, and many can't find work. For a well-known foreign company like ours, it's even harder to get in. During the graduation season, our HR department receives so many resumes that they have to be packed in boxes and sold to scrap collectors—our company, being a well-known foreign brand, is very popular. Whenever we post job openings, even for just one or two positions, hundreds of people apply, making it as crowded as a market. We can't even interview everyone!"

Zhao Tong sighed, "Seeing those poor college graduates squeezed together, their suits and dresses all messed up, some of them even graduates from prestigious universities like Tsinghua or Peking, it makes us feel bad. But there's nothing we can do—our company is so popular that there are always more applicants than positions. Out of hundreds of applicants, only a few can get in.

Of course, for those who have connections with us, we can help them get in smoothly... You're still in your second year, but it's good to start thinking about your future career. It's always better to be prepared, rather than waiting until the last minute and finding it too late."

Every few sentences, Zhao Tong emphasized that his company was a "well-known foreign brand," making Xu Yan feel a bit awkward—since he was showing off so much, it would be impolite not to play along, right?

"Manager Zhao..." Xu Yan didn't know Zhao Tong's exact position, but his father had taught him that if you're not sure about someone's position in a business setting, calling them "Manager" is usually safe, as it applies to everyone from a salesperson in a small company to the CEO of Microsoft: "If I may ask, which company do you work for?" (To be continued)

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