Chapter 133

The people around were stunned, watching everything as if in a dream—how could such fierce bandits bow respectfully to a young man in his early twenties? After a while, the groans of the injured lying on the ground pulled everyone back to reality, and they rushed out of the bank screaming.

Dong Xinlei finally relaxed his clenched fists and whispered, “Brother Dong, isn’t it a shame to just let them go?”

Xie Wendong shook his head and smiled softly, saying, “It’s not their fault if they don’t know! Besides, since we’re in a foreign land, why make things difficult for fellow countrymen?”

“Hehe!” Dong Xinlei could only force a smile. It was rare for Brother Dong to show kindness! Gao Huiyu excitedly wrapped her arms around Xie Wendong’s arm, her eyes shining with pride as she said, “Wendong, do you know? Just now, you were the most handsome man in the world!”

“Ah?” Xie Wendong scratched his head awkwardly. Noticing the gleam in Li Yan’s eyes as well, he sensed something was off and quickly said with a silly laugh, “Hehe, it was just acting. Those bandits were too stupid; I outsmarted them.”

Gao Huiyu pouted, “That’s not what happened at all!”

This little incident didn’t dampen Xie Wendong and the others’ spirits. They went to another bank to withdraw money and continue their hard-won joyful journey. Xie Wendong stayed in DL for three days, which was the most relaxed and happiest part of the trip. Before leaving, he couldn’t help but say to Dong Xinlei, “It would be so exciting if the next three stops were all like this.”

Dong Xinlei thought of the risks ahead and felt his blood boil. He replied, “Then there would be less to look forward to!” Xie Wendong laughed heartily and said, “Hmm, that makes sense!”

“Will we go to Beijing next?” “People say those who haven’t been to the Great Wall aren’t true heroes. Let’s be heroes then!”

Xie Wendong finally remembered his identity as someone from the Central Political Department. It was time to get in touch with Dong Fangyi, the old fox, and tell him about this favor from the Red Army. That might ease some of the pressure—at least his direct superior in the Political Department wouldn’t press him too hard.

With a rumbling sound, the plane slowly rose into the sky. Through the window, Xie Wendong watched the city below shrink gradually and muttered to himself, “One day, I’ll return and take control here. I’ll build the tallest and most luxurious building in the busiest area, so that people here will remember my name!”

“I really can’t wait for that day!” Being with Xie Wendong always brought endless surprises and thrills—this was Dong Xinlei’s deepest realization. It’s not easy for heaven to create a genius, and it’s even harder for such a genius to know how to use their abilities. He was fortunate that the person he followed, Dong Xinlei, was such a genius.

If you ask someone who has been to Beijing what there is most, nine times out of ten they’ll tell you it’s bicycles!
Xie Wendong was unlucky—he arrived in Beijing just in time for a sandstorm, a rather severe one at that. Yellow sand filled the air, the sun could only emit a faint light, the sky was dim, and visibility was barely about ten meters. Upon leaving the airport, a summer breeze blew towards them, carrying countless tiny sand particles that stung their faces. Dong Xinlei pulled up his collar and gasped, “Brother Dong, I think we should find a place to stay to avoid this horrible weather. The old man has a house here; we can go there.”
Xie Wendong thought for a moment and said, “I don’t want to trouble the old man anymore. Just find any hotel.”
“Alright then.” Dong Xinlei hailed a taxi and told the driver, “Take us to the city center and find a decent hotel.”
Once they entered the hotel room, they let out a long sigh, as if they had just come back from battle. Xie Wendong was somewhat disappointed; he had hoped to enjoy the scenery of Beijing, but all he saw was yellow sandstorms. Jokingly, he said, “It seems we really need to plant more trees. Otherwise, who knows, Beijing might turn into the legendary Loulan someday.”
Dong Xinlei smiled bitterly. “Sandstorms used to happen often, but never this severe. This is the worst I’ve ever seen. I didn’t expect Brother Dong to encounter this on his first visit. Maybe many old Beijingers have never seen such weather either. Maybe it’s just our luck.”
“I’d rather not have such luck,” Xie Wendong muttered, shaking the sand out of his clothes.
After taking a bath and having dinner, Xie Wendong thought for a while before calling Dong Fangyi. As soon as Dong Fangyi answered, he started asking questions nonstop, “You finally decided to call me, kid! Where have you been? Why couldn’t I reach you on your phone? Are you trying to run away? Let me tell you, even if you hide in the African jungle and sleep with lions, I’ll still find you!”
“Sigh!” Xie Wendong sighed, trimming his nails while cursing this old guy in his heart—why did he have to live so long! Calmly, he said, “I’m in Beijing now.”
“What? In Beijing? What are you doing there? Aren’t you planning to expand your influence to the capital? I warn you…” (omitted)
Yawning, Xie Wendong listened to Dong Fangyi’s endless “advice” and almost fell asleep. Five minutes later, seeing no response from Xie Wendong, Dong Fangyi took a big sip of tea to replace the saliva he had lost and couldn’t help but say, “Hello? Hello? Kid, are you still listening to me?”

“Yes! Of course it is, you just didn’t give me a chance to speak. I came to Beijing just to watch a show…” “Watch a show? What kind of show? Do you think I’m a three-year-old?” “Hehe, I came just to watch the ‘assassination show’ of the Red Army killing their own prime minister in a foreign country.” “What are you joking about? There’s no such movie…” The voice on the other end suddenly stopped. Xie Wendong smiled secretly, moving the phone away from his ear. Sure enough, Dong Fang Yi’s loud voice came through the speaker: “What did you say? The Red Army is going to assassinate the visiting Japanese prime minister in China?” “That’s right! You finally got it.” “You brat, why didn’t you tell me earlier? The Japanese prime minister is visiting China in two days! This is a huge deal—it affects the country’s honor and international public opinion…” (omitted) Seeing that the weather showed no sign of improving, Xie Wendong sighed inwardly. It seemed difficult to go to the Great Wall today! Feeling annoyed by Dong Fang Yi’s voice, Xie Wendong quickly said, “This intelligence comes from the Soul Group. I’m not sure if it’s reliable, but according to the principles of the Political Department, they should be prepared. I’ll fax you the details later. That’s it for now; see you next time!” With that, Xie Wendong hung up the phone. “Hello? Wait, I still have…” Before Dong Fang Yi could finish, the call was cut off. He muttered under his breath, “This brat dares to hang up on me! But this intelligence is indeed important. Whether it’s true or not, it seems I need to go to Beijing.” The Central Political Department followed the principle of “better to execute a thousand innocents than let one criminal escape” when dealing with such major matters. After all, they were responsible for national security. If something happened to the Japanese prime minister in China, they would also be held accountable, and the entire Central Political Department might face sanctions. Dong Fang Yi felt somewhat relieved that he had let Xie Wendong join the Political Department after all. After a day with no news, the weather improved the next day. Early in the morning, Xie Wendong and Dong Xinlei left the hotel—not for sightseeing, but to find the assassination location indicated in the intelligence. Although Xie Wendong was there with the mindset of watching a show, he was also curious about the Red Army. He wanted to understand what made this organization, which had been hunted by the Japanese government for decades yet still remained strong, so tenacious. What kind of group was it? This might be helpful for Xie Wendong’s future development.

The ponderous sun rose slowly, its morning rays turning the sky red and bringing a wave of warm warmth. The morning breeze was still cool. It was hard not to feel good in such weather. Xie Wendong’s eyes, already smiling, narrowed further. The address from the intelligence was located in a shopping mall in the city, easy to find. After getting into a taxi and giving the address, the driver immediately understood. The driver was very talkative; noticing that their accents weren’t local, he began to talk nonstop about Beijing’s famous attractions and said that the mall Xie Wendong wanted to go to wasn’t the best, suggesting Hualian instead for shopping.

As he listened, Xie Wendong observed the scenery by the road. The traffic was filled with various world-famous cars, and high-rise buildings could be seen everywhere. The overpasses built in mid-air were dazzling, a stark contrast to his hometown. The gap between these places wasn’t just about being fifty years behind. The economic stagnation in the northeast must also be directly related to central government policies.

It took the taxi nearly an hour to reach the destination. Xie Wendong and Dong Xinlei got out of the car and looked at the building ahead—probably over twenty stories tall. The road in front of it was the main route from the airport to Zhongnanhai, but there was some distance between them. Although there was a large crowd here, if there were armed police on both sides guarding it, it would be difficult to find an opportunity to act. Xie Wendong looked at Dong Xinlei with doubts. Dong Xinlei, a former assassin, was good at finding even the slightest gap, which was enough for a top-tier assassin. He put himself in the role of an assassin, walked around the building twice, then went from the building to the roadside, making careful calculations. Finally, he shook his head and said in a low voice, “It’s basically impossible to carry out an attack here without getting caught, unless…”

“Unless what?” Xie Wendong pressed.

“The vehicles carried by national leaders are probably bulletproof. Ordinary small-caliber weapons can’t penetrate their armor. To carry out an assassination, large weapons like rockets would be needed, but with armed police guarding carefully here, you might get caught before even pulling out a rocket, not to mention that loading a rocket also takes time. Unless the assassin creates chaos in front of the road, to the point where the Japanese prime minister has to get out of the car, and then the assassin shoots him with a pistol; or else…” As he spoke, Dong Xinlei pointed at the roof of the building. “Firing a rocket from the roof—if it were me, my chances of hitting would be 80%.”

After listening, Xie Wendong lowered his head in thought. After a while, he said, “The address recorded in the intelligence is here; it can’t be wrong. According to what you said, the first scenario can basically be ruled out. I can’t think of any situation that would be bad enough to force the Japanese prime minister out of his car, unless landmines were buried under the road to blow up the armored vehicle, but that’s impossible. It seems only the second scenario you mentioned remains—acting on the rooftop, which offers a high chance of safety, and they can also escape by mixing in the chaotic crowd afterward.”
Dong Xinlei nodded and said, “I thought the same. The latter approach is much more practical and easier to carry out than the former.”
As they were talking, Xie Wendong suddenly pulled Dong Xinlei toward the shopping mall, whispering as they walked, “It seems Old Fox Dong Fangyi really takes this matter seriously. He even came in person, and quite quickly at that.”