The Year of the Monkey, 1980.
My partner in bed, Lu Yi.
He died without a complete corpse.
Everything matches up!
Ruan Xianxian paused, then smiled and said, "Thanks for the reminder."
Zhao Li couldn't stand it anymore and came back to give the young man a good beating on the head.
"Let me spout nonsense, let me spout nonsense. According to seniority, you call my disciple's wife your nephew? You have quite the nerve."
"Ouch—" The young man finally realized where he went wrong. So, the woman wasn't Miyano's wife?
Will the top killer of Institute 507 murder his wife and children in the future? My God, what secret did he accidentally uncover? Pass it on, it must be passed on!
After Zhao Li had finished hitting him, he slammed the door shut.
The young man, Danfeng, looked aggrieved as he carried a large tea mug straight upstairs. "Do you know what I just calculated?"
...
Even after entering the office, Zhao Li was still furious.
He scrutinized his smiling apprentice's wife. That kid outside was no good at predicting marriage or career, but when it came to fate, he was a trait that surpassed even the old guys in the bureau.
Could it be that his beautiful and lovely apprentice's wife would really be killed by that beast in the future?
Zhao Li said with great distress, "Girl, have you considered finding another boyfriend? There are plenty of talented young men in the bureau. We can't hang ourselves on one crooked tree."
Ruan Xianxian: ...
She chuckled: "You don't trust the student you personally taught? That one..."
"His name is Jin Xin, the vice captain of the Xuan team."
Ruan Xianxian nodded. "I know what he's talking about. Don't worry."
Seeing that she understood, Old Zhao didn't say anything more. He first made a phone call to summon someone to his office, and then explained the basic situation of Bureau 749 to her.
"Me, Lao Han, Lao Zhang who guards the gate downstairs, Lao Song... and a few others, you can think of them as the pillars of the bureau."
According to the family hierarchy, he is the grandmaster of Bureau 749.
The following senior colleagues include Old Li, Little Song (Song Nanli), Gong Ye...
Furthermore, all the team members, including Jin Xin whom you just met and yourself, are rising stars in the bureau.
"Wait a minute," Ruan Xianxian said, "So, does that mean Gong Ye and I aren't from different generations?"
Old Zhao chuckled, "That kid is at most half a Taoist. You're not a Taoist, so you don't need to follow the seniority rules."
This is simply to help you clearly distinguish between job titles and ranks.
In the past, Institute 507 relied heavily on Taoist traditions; after moving here and undertaking large-scale excavation, everything needs to be reorganized.
The old system of seniority is largely no longer valid; the hierarchical system needs to be reformed. Just keep that in mind.
Ruan Xianxian said she understood.
Zhao Li added, "Since Ono isn't here, you'll be temporarily assigned to the Yellow Team. I know you want to be with Ono."
The Heaven, Earth, Black, and Yellow groups are not assigned based on combat strength, but rather on their different abilities and tasks. For example, the Black group specializes in dealing with supernatural phenomena, while the Yellow group guards the imperial city.
Where the nation's destiny converges, mysterious events that the military cannot resolve are highly likely to occur in the surrounding area; therefore, the existence of the Yellow Group is crucial.
Ruan Xianxian didn't interrupt, and only spoke after the other party finished speaking, "I can't do what you're asking."
Zhao Li raised an eyebrow, signaling to continue.
She found that people here interacted very naturally, unlike outside where even saying a few harsh words to elders would be considered unfilial.
It seems to be a place that values seniority, yet doesn't require strict adherence to tradition.
She didn't need to craft any fancy or tactful words; she simply said, "I just came to let you know that I'm about to set off for Japan to find Miyano."
Zhao Li neither confirmed nor denied, "How do we get there?"
Ruan Xianxian had already planned it out: "As long as I reveal my identity as a national security officer or a member of the 749 Bureau, I'll have plenty of enemy agents to escort me there."
This time, it was Zhao Li who remained silent.
He made another phone call, saying some numbers that Ruan Xianxian couldn't understand, as if he was checking something.
He hung up after a moment and took out a document from the drawer.
"Take a look. This is the activity track of the Heavenly Group after they went to Japan. Tell me, what trouble do you want to cause there?"
Ruan Xianxian: ...
He could skim through the documents.
The Heavenly Group arrived in the island nation in May. The seven members split into four groups to attack the Kyuju branch. At the same time, a trio led by Miyano destroyed the island nation's largest underground laboratory.
June: To cover his teammates' breakout, one person sacrificed himself, and the whereabouts of the top team are unknown.
July: A five-person team counterattacked, wiping out all five of Nine Chrysanthemum's branch offices except for its headquarters, and destroying three island shrines.
August: The Heavenly Group begins its escape, preparing to evacuate.
In the same month: The Japanese squad received orders from Bureau 749 to retrieve the stolen dragon from the Dragon Vein, after which it disappeared without a trace.
November: Jiuju and Bureau 749 clashed head-on at the foot of Mount Fuji. Jiaolong was captured, but both sides suffered heavy casualties.
Upon seeing this, Ruan Xianxian's heart tightened.
Zhao Li gestured for them to continue.
December: China received intelligence that only three members of the Heavenly Team remained, two seriously injured and one slightly injured. The exact number of the injured was uncertain, and they were currently recuperating in a safe place.
In the same month: China issued a withdrawal order.
That same month: the three disappeared again.
January: A senior executive of Jiuju was thrown from the 22nd floor and died on the spot. According to eyewitnesses, the perpetrator was Hua Guo and Gong Ye.
In the same month, China issued another withdrawal order.
As she read through the lines, Ruan Xianxian's heart pounded with fear. She had already gotten a general idea of the Japanese Nine Chrysanthemums organization; it was an organization no less powerful than China's 749 Bureau.
There are quite a few powerful individuals like Zhao Li.
Seeing that she was so restless and couldn't sit still for even a minute, Zhao Li smiled.
"Don't worry, what you see is only the surface. When the children are in danger, how could our country not send support?"
After a pause, Zhao Li said in a deep voice, "You were the first to discover the trouble at the dragon vein. Three top experts from the bureau went to oversee the situation, but it turns out they couldn't spare any more manpower..."
He then changed the subject, "You little brats, including Miyano, are grateful to you for getting support so quickly."
“Me?” Ruan Xianxian pointed to herself.
Zhao Li nodded, "It was your spiritual spring that saved the old folks of the Taoist lineage who were originally living in seclusion and waiting to die, allowing them to recover from their injuries and come out of seclusion to provide support."
"With this group of people, not only was China's immediate crisis resolved, but the group that went to Japan was also able to stand on foreign soil and achieve a comprehensive victory."
After saying this, Zhao Li stood up and performed a Taoist salute. "I can't represent China, but son, I represent those old guys. Thank you."
On one hand, she was supposed to be struck by lightning for receiving a grand ceremony from her elders, but on the other hand, she genuinely saved someone's life, so Ruan Xianxian only received half the ceremony.
After sitting down again, Zhao Li sighed with emotion.
"You don't know, Fan Caicai sent word this morning that you wanted to go to Japan, and those old guys were furious and wouldn't let you go no matter what."
If you want to go, they can go for you. You just need to kill a few little demons near the capital that steal the nation's fortune.
But when I saw you today, I knew I couldn't stop you.
All the missions in Japan have been successfully completed, and only the obstacles encountered during the evacuation remain. Jiuju, having suffered a loss in silence, will not easily let the people go.
So the bureau happens to have a mission to bring back the heroes who went to Japan. Since you'd like to go, I'll add your name to the list?
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