Chapter 25
When Jiang Yun returned to the Rescue, it was already fully light, just in time for the daily morning meeting.
Both rows of the long table in the conference room were filled with people, with only one seat in the front empty.
The moment Cheng Chi opened the door for Jiang Yun, everyone stood up.
"Foreign Minister."
"Foreign Minister Jiang."
"Mr. Jiang."
Jiang Yun nodded and motioned for everyone to sit down: "Arrange a negotiation with Aolin as soon as possible. I need the Aolin side to immediately take responsibility for the disappearance of Colonel Lu's body."
Yi Laizhe stood up again: "Understood."
Jiang Yun continued, "I will contact the president of the Academy of Advanced Sciences, Mr. Fu Mingqian, in my personal capacity. I have a favor to ask of him."
If Lu Huai were to apply to the Academy of Sciences through formal channels for the components he wanted, the approval process alone would take at least three days.
Special measures must be taken in special times.
Hopefully, Dean Fu, who was one of their best men at the wedding, still recognizes the friendship between him and Lu Huai.
Zhong Man immediately said, "Okay, I'll go right away."
"Also, Dr. Lin, please submit a list of 20 people for the mining team immediately." Jiang Yun emphasized, "This team must depart from the Capital Planet today and arrive at the Ice Wasteland Planet on time in three days."
"Mining team?" Lin Zhen was puzzled. "Are you planning to mine crystal cores on the Ice Wasteland Planet?"
Jiang Yun folded his hands on the table: "Or?"
Lin Zhen looked embarrassed. "But Minister Jiang, how could the Austrian side allow us to mine their unique energy resources on their territory? To be honest, I wanted to go to the mining area to investigate yesterday, but the Olin military stopped me."
Cheng Chi added, "Also, the Ice Wasteland Planet is currently under lockdown. Without Austrian communication permission, the Alliance's mining spacecraft may not be able to land smoothly at the port."
"Leave these matters to me," Jiang Yun said, "just do your own thing."
After the meeting, Jiang Yun was the first to stand up and walk towards the door.
When passing by Morris, Jiang Yun seemed to remember something and stopped beside Morris.
Morris froze under Jiang Yun's cold gaze. "Foreign Minister Jiang?"
Jiang Yun raised a slightly sarcastic smile and said, "Please don't tell me that you know Colonel Lu anymore, Mr. Lieutenant Colonel."
Morris: “……!”
——
Yi Laizhe was extremely efficient and the negotiations with the Austrian side were scheduled for that afternoon.
Although Jiang Yun strongly controlled the laboratory where Lu Huai's body was kept, Olin Fang still did not give up his own investigation into the case.
Unfortunately, the person who stole Colonel Lu's body, like the sniper, did not leave them any useful clues. He disappeared silently like foam on the sea.
Ian Tangmang, who had just returned to the pinnacle of power, not only had to be responsible for the two cases, but also had to face the constant pressure from Prime Minister Shancheng.
The Foreign Minister was extremely busy. An Alpha at the negotiation table was even worse than Jiang Yun, who hadn't slept for forty-eight hours.
Ian was certain that the disappearance of the body, like the sniper who blew Wycliffe's head off, was Jiang Yun's doing.
Jiang Yun has the ability to quietly arrange a top sniper on the Ice Star, so he can naturally also arrange a top penetration hacker.
But without any evidence, only a fool like Pollitt would make accusations against a high-ranking League official in public.
At the negotiation table, Ian stared coldly at Jiang Yun's figure, wishing he could pierce his thin chest with his eyes to see what this Omega was thinking.
The alliance proposed:
First, the serious mistakes made by the Austrian side on security issues have caused serious threats to the lives of our personnel.
Not only has Wycliffe died tragically, but the murderer has yet to be apprehended. Now, a killer who targeted Foreign Minister Jiang has appeared in the shantytown, along with eight tragically deceased bodies. This has caused considerable psychological trauma to our personnel.
For example, Foreign Minister Jiang’s poor little son was so scared that he couldn’t sleep every night.
Second, we have fulfilled the agreement and brought Wycliffe Lu to the Ice Wasteland Planet unharmed, but the Austrian side is unable to comply with the agreement and return Colonel Lu's body.
Such behavior may be regarded as breach of contract.
And breaking a contract will definitely come at a price.
In light of all this, shouldn’t Olin give the league the compensation it deserves?
When Aolin Fang asked Jiang Yun what compensation he wanted, Jiang Yun replied:
"For example..." Jiang Yun paused for a long time, pretending to be in deep thought: "Twenty thousand tons of crystal core samples?"
Olinfang: "!!!"
It’s already 20,000 tons, can it still be called a “sample”?
If the crystal core is equated with the proto-nuclei circulating throughout the interstellar space, the value of 20,000 tons of crystal core is equivalent to nearly 100 million Ao Yuan.
The loss of money is secondary. If the Alliance masters the core technology of the crystal core before them, Austria will inevitably be at a greater disadvantage in the battle for energy in the future.
At the critical moment when the whereabouts of her late husband's body were unknown, Jiang Yun was still thinking about Olin's crystal core all the time, and was simply squeezing out the last bit of value from her late husband's body.
How could this Omega have the heart to do this?
An Olin diplomat immediately accused them, "Crystal cores are a rare energy source unique to the Olin Empire. Your blatant demand for them is no different from barbaric robbers. Don't you think you're being too extreme, Mr. Jiang?"
Jiang Yun laughed when he heard that.
"Excessive? Your Highness Wycliffe brutally abused three Omega citizens of the Alliance, resulting in two serious injuries and one death on the spot. Isn't that excessive?"
"Six years ago, you joined forces with your ally, the Kingdom of Harman, to spread false information on a large scale, attempting to manipulate public opinion and interfere with our elections, thereby preventing me from becoming Minister of Foreign Affairs. Isn't that excessive?"
"Ten years ago, when we were providing Star Orbit support to the Sawyer Republic, you deliberately launched an armed invasion of that country. Then, when we retreated, you attempted to steal our advanced equipment and confidential technology. Isn't this excessive?"
"Need me more examples, huh?"
Olinfang: "..."
Ian, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke up: "If you hadn't taken the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Union six years ago, I'm sure my colleagues wouldn't be so upset right now."
"Halman's Foreign Minister also said something similar." Jiang Yun chuckled lightly, "It's a pity that you didn't succeed."
"Indeed." Ian said with regret. The red-haired Alpha forced himself to cheer up and said, "I can't make the decision on the crystal core. I need to consult the cabinet."
"You have one day to consider this," Jiang Yun said casually. "Also, our mining team will be arriving to defend Ice Desolate Planet in three days. But to save unnecessary time, you can issue a pass now."
"What?" an Olin diplomat exclaimed angrily. "We haven't even agreed to your terms yet, and your mining team has already set off?! Do you have even a little respect for the Empire?"
"Respect is mutual, sir." Jiang Yun said calmly, "By the way, have you investigated the identities of the eight deceased in the shantytown? If not, we are happy to lend you a hand. I'm also very curious about what they are doing on Ice Desolate Planet."
"What do the eight dead in the shantytown have to do with our negotiations today...!"
Others might not know, but Ian could naturally guess that Pollitt had done something stupid on his own initiative again.
If Jiang Yun could produce evidence that Prince Olin hired a third-party force to murder the Alliance Foreign Minister, the crystal core worth 100 million O's would seem insignificant compared to the unimaginable consequences.
Ian immediately raised his hand to stop the other diplomats from speaking, and said politely, "We will give you a reply today, Foreign Minister Jiang."
Jiang Yun smiled and said, "Wait for good news."
——
Someone pulled two all-nighters to crack Olin's anti-theft system. Jiang Yun also pulled two all-nighters, clearing countless tedious steps and borrowing the components someone needed from the Academy of Advanced Sciences.
Soon, Lin Zhen’s newly formed energy team will land at the port of Binghuang Star on time with the component.
After finishing the work at hand, Jiang Yun finally had his own rest time.
In the past, Jiang Yun only slept for five hours a day at most. This time, he slept for eight hours, which was a rare occasion. When he woke up, he felt a little dazed.
It has been snowing on the Ice Planet for hundreds of years, but the cabin is as warm as spring.
The twins sat on the carpet beside the bed, chatting idly. On the bedside table was the lunch they had brought specially for their father.
It all felt so familiar, no different from every rest after overwork in the past.
Jiang Yun sat with his back against the bed, coffee in hand. A soft blanket covered him from the waist down, and the homely style softened his usually cold face.
Jiang Yun looked out the window at the seemingly endless snow, recalling his recent experience, and a sense of unreal confusion gradually appeared between his brows.
"Oh, Dad," Lu Chao said, "We just heard from the assistant sister that you have to go to the research center again tomorrow to investigate the disappearance of the colonel's father..."
Jiang Yun, who had been motionless, suddenly spoke: "The day before yesterday, I did leave the Rescue alone, and then stayed in the shantytown for three hours before returning, right?"
"Yeah." Jiang Mu was made nervous by Jiang Yun's sudden question. "Is there something wrong, Dad?"
Jiang Yun asked again: "Eight bodies were indeed found in the shantytown, right?"
"Yes, that's right." Lu Chao said anxiously, "How come you don't even remember what happened the day before yesterday?"
Jiang Yun breathed a sigh of relief and subconsciously touched his lips, which had no traces left on them, with his fingertips. "It's not that I don't remember. I just want to confirm that it really happened, and not just my personal..." A shadow flashed in Jiang Yun's eyes. "Imagination."
Jiang Mu and Lu Chao looked at each other in confusion.
"Sorry to interrupt you." Jiang Yun collected his thoughts and asked, "What did you want to say just now?"
"It's like this, Dad. The assistant sister said that the theft of your father's body has cast a big shadow on the Austrian side. The Austrian side now dares not fully trust the intelligent security check. All personnel entering the institute must pass their manual security check." Jiang Mu said as tactfully as possible, "You also know that the Austrian side's staff on the Ice Wasteland Star are either Alpha or Beta. The assistant sister asked us to ask you if you mind this..."
Jiang Yun said: "I don't mind."
Manual security checks were essential in important occasions, and he didn't always encounter male Omega security inspectors.
As long as it is a public service requirement, there is nothing we cannot cooperate with.
Wait, manual security check?
Jiang Yun seemed to have thought of something, and his hand holding the coffee suddenly paused.
Manual... body search?
...He seemed to know how Lu Huai planned to take the components from him.
Seeing that Jiang Yun hadn't responded yet, Jiang Mu tentatively called out, "Dad?"
Jiang Yun suddenly sneered, as if he was laughing in anger, but he was not really angry.
If I had to describe it, it would probably be like the smile I felt when I saw Lu Chao's math test paper after taking time out to tutor him for a month.
"No wonder you said you were looking forward to working with me." Jiang Yun took a sip of coffee and said slowly, "You are worthy of being me, Colonel Lu."
Jiang Yun's series of abnormalities completely scared the two unlucky children.
"Dad, don't scare me... Who are you talking to?" Jiang Mu looked back tremblingly, "Is my father's body here?"
"Dad, what's wrong with you? Wake up!" Lu Chao rushed to the bed, grabbed Jiang Yun's shoulders and shook him violently, "Did something upset you?"
Jiang Yun was already a bit dazed, and after Lu Chao shook his head like that, he felt dizzy and almost spilled his coffee. He immediately gave the order: "That's enough, Lu Chao, let me go."
Lu Chao let go of his hand nervously.
Jiang Mu also got on the bed. The two brothers knelt on either side of Jiang Yun, looking at him with the same worried look: "Dad, are you okay?"
Jiang Yun rubbed his aching temple, thinking that the current situation was complicated and it was not a good time to tell the children the truth. He should wait until Lu Huai came back with a legitimate reason.
I don’t know if I can make it to the twins’ sixteenth birthday.
If possible, it might be the best birthday surprise - or scare - for kids.
"I'm fine. You guys go play by yourselves first." Jiang Yun said to his sons, "Let's go to the restaurant for dinner tonight."
The twins were still worried about their father's condition, but they didn't dare to disobey him.
The two of them walked towards the door, looking back every few steps. Then they heard Jiang Yun say to the AI assistant, "Please help me choose an outfit suitable for going out tomorrow."
AI Assistant: "Okay, Mr. Jiang, what are you going out for?"
"Official business." Jiang Yun paused, then added, "But it doesn't have to be too official. It can be a little more personal."
Jiang Mu: "?"
Lu Chao: “???”
AI Assistant: "Okay, Mr. Jiang. Please wait a moment while I search your wardrobe for you... Sorry, you don't seem to have any clothes in your personal style."
Jiang Yun was silent for a moment, then turned around and found the twins were still there: "Are you not leaving yet?"
The two brothers left the cabin in shock, then stood at the door staring at each other.
"No, Dad already looks like that, so why would he need to pick out clothes?" Lu Chao was stunned. "Besides, doesn't he always wear black suits?"
Jiang Mu shook his head, confusion written all over his face. "I don't understand it either."
Lu Chao thought for a moment and said, "Generally speaking, in this kind of situation, the most unlikely answer is often the most correct one."
Jiang Mu asked: "So what is your answer?"
Lu Chao said confidently: "The man inside is not my father, but an Olin agent impersonating him."
Jiang Mu turned around and left: "Why should I waste my time talking to you."
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