Inside the transport plane's cabin, there were no windows. Fang Jizhong sat in an inner seat, clutching a military canvas bag tightly in his arms.
Since taking off from the Shenzhen Military Airport, his posture had barely changed.
Shen Yuefeng sat beside him, with two armed soldiers standing at both the front and back of the cabin. Since boarding, they hadn't even blinked.
The only sounds in the cabin were the roar of the engines and the suppressed breathing of a few people.
Suddenly, the plane's body dipped slightly, and the pilot's voice came from the cockpit, "Reporting to the chief, we will arrive at Nanyuan Airport in twenty minutes. The tower has cleared a dedicated runway, and all ground security is in place."
Shen Yuefeng's spine tensed abruptly, and he responded in a deep voice, "Received!"
He turned to Fang Jizhong, "Fang Jizhong, listen carefully. After disembarking, you must not leave this bag for a moment. Only Vice Minister Zhou can take it from you personally. No one else, regardless of their rank or uniform, can touch this bag. Understand?"
Fang Jizhong lifted his head, his bloodshot eyes showing no hesitation. He nodded heavily, "Yes."
...
In Jingshi, at the Second Department office building.
The long street was silent in the early morning, with only streetlights casting a continuous glow in the night. Yet, the entire office building of the General Staff Department was lit up like daylight.
The main entrance, usually locked at this hour, was wide open, with armed sentries standing guard.
Inside the building, the corridors were filled with the sound of hurried yet orderly footsteps. Staff officers in military uniforms carried encrypted documents, moving quickly without making any unnecessary noise.
A Level-1 Emergency Response had been initiated, the highest level of emergency protocol for the Second Department.
In the secure communications room, Zhou Huaichang stood in front of the red secure telephone, his military uniform soaked with cold sweat.
From reconnaissance behind enemy lines in the Korean War to the razor's edge of intelligence warfare against the United States, he had seen it all.
But today, since receiving that call from Shen Yuefeng, his hand was trembling uncontrollably for the first time.
Jin Youdai.
This name was the Top Secret of Top Secrets within the entire Dragon Nation intelligence system.
Zhou Huaichang took a deep drag on his cigarette, the sharpness of the nicotine flooding his lungs, barely suppressing the turmoil in his chest.
He stubbed out the cigarette and issued two orders to the staff officers beside him:
"I will immediately report all elements of the incident to the chief, simultaneously initiating the highest-level top-secret meeting protocol. Notify all relevant leaders above the vice-minister level to attend the meeting at 6 a.m. in the No. 1 Secure Conference Room. No absences, no excuses, and no disclosure of any meeting content."
"Immediately connect the secure lines to the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense and the Equipment Department of the General Staff Department. Have the heads of these units finalize the list of core experts in the 5-axis Linkage CNC Machine Tool field, covering CNC systems, mechanical design, aviation processing, and shipbuilding military industry. They must be politically absolutely reliable and leaders in their fields."
"Once the list is finalized, issue top-secret orders to the special dispatch teams across the country. At exactly 6 a.m., they are to gather the experts, with only three requirements: do not disclose the reason, no external communication allowed, and armed escort throughout, directly to the General Staff Department, with no delays!"
With the orders issued, the staff officers swiftly recorded them, saluted, and quickly exited the communications room.
The secure line phones rang one after another, and the indicator lights on the red phone lit up in succession. Top-secret orders were transmitted via encrypted lines to military units and research institutes nationwide, including Jingshi, Shenyang, Xi'an, Modu, and Chengdu.
Experts from Peking University, Beijing University of Technology, Institute 625 of the Ministry of Aviation, Shenyang Machine Tool Institute, Institute 715 of the Shipbuilding Industry, and the First Research Institute of the Ministry of Nuclear Industry—each a towering figure in their respective fields—were roused from their sleep by soldiers before dawn, boarding military vehicles to rush to the General Staff Department by any means necessary.
No one knew what had happened, where they were going, or what they were to do.
They only knew that an order of this magnitude, jointly issued by the General Staff Department and the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, must concern a matter of national destiny.
...
On the runway at Nanyuan Airport, a beam of light pierced the early morning darkness.
The transport plane's tires touched down on the runway with precision, the body shuddering slightly before coming to a steady stop at its designated parking spot after taxiing several hundred meters.
As the cabin door opened, Fang Jizhong realized that the entire tarmac had been completely secured.
A cordon stretched from the end of the runway to the entrance of the tarmac, with armed internal security soldiers stationed every five meters, their guns pointed outward, ensuring not even a fly could get through.
There were no unrelated personnel on the tarmac, only three black sedans with military plates parked silently at the cabin door.
Standing beside the lead car, Zhou Huaichang stood straight, his military uniform immaculate, his hair meticulously combed, though the red veins in his eyes betrayed his exhaustion.
He quickly descended the gangway with the canvas bag, stopping in front of Zhou Huaichang to salute, "Reporting to Vice Minister Zhou! Fang Jizhong has completed the mission as ordered, all materials have been brought back, please verify!"
Zhou Huaichang returned the salute, his gaze falling on the canvas bag in Fang Jizhong's arms, his expression complex.
He reached out and took the heavy canvas bag.
"Well done," Zhou Huaichang said simply, before opening the car door behind him, "Get in, we're heading back to the General Staff Department immediately."
The convoy sped through the empty early morning streets, unimpeded, returning to the General Staff Department compound at the fastest speed, stopping directly below the No. 1 Secure Conference Room.
The conference room was already filled with people.
The entire room was sealed, with thick soundproof doors, triple-layer blackout curtains, and no windows on the walls, only explosion-proof lights overhead illuminating the room as bright as day.
Smoke filled the air, with nearly everyone having an ashtray in front of them, overflowing with cigarette butts.
All relevant leaders above the vice-minister level were present, and the room was eerily quiet, with only the faint sound of burning cigarettes.
Zhou Huaichang looked at everyone present, tapping the table to break the silence.
"Everyone's here, let's begin the meeting." The atmosphere in the conference room was tense. "Please take a look at this brief introduction first."
The sound of rustling paper filled the room as everyone examined the obviously redacted materials, their expressions growing increasingly grave.
Some hands began to tremble, others took a deep drag on their cigarettes, coughing violently but stifling the sound in their throats.
Many of them had, to varying degrees, encountered these comrades lurking in the shadows and understood what they represented.
Watching everyone's reactions, Zhou Huaichang spoke again, "Now, let's proceed with the file comparison."
A small side door in the conference room opened, and two archivists carrying top-secret file folders entered. The seals on the folders bore six bright red top-secret stamps.
The entire conference room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Everyone held their breath, eyes fixed on the two sets of documents laid out on the table.
Time ticked by, each second feeling like an eternity.
Ten minutes later, the two archivists with the highest security clearance put down their pens, turned to face everyone, and saluted. The lead archivist reported in a loud, clear voice, "Reporting to all chiefs! After word-for-word comparison, the two sets of documents—names, code names, positions, permissions, contact methods—are all identical, not a single word different!"
The only sound left in the conference room was the heavy breathing of those present.
The extreme relief felt like a cold tide, engulfing everyone in the room.
Yu Ruoyin's defection had indeed taken with it a list capable of wiping out the entire North American intelligence network.
It meant that if not for that mysterious person, these comrades' names would have all been laid out on the CIA director's desk.
It meant that the intelligence lifeline built by generations of intelligence officers with their blood and lives would have been uprooted overnight, leaving nothing behind!
Someone clenched their fists tightly, veins bulging on the back of their hand.
They had stood on the edge of a cliff, seen the abyss below, yet had been pulled back from the gates of hell.
The fear of surviving such a disaster was more overwhelming and piercing than any terror.
And then came the towering anger.
"Bastard!"
A vice-ministerial leader in charge of counter-espionage slammed the table, causing the ashtray to jump and scatter cigarette butts across the table.
His eyes were bloodshot, voice filled with seething hatred, "Yu Ruoyin! Holding a high position, entrusted with the nation's core secrets, yet dared to defect and betray! Such a scoundrel deserves a thousand cuts, and even that wouldn't atone for his sins!"
"Full chain investigation! Start immediately!" Another leader's voice was as cold as ice, "From the moment he entered the intelligence system, every review record, every work trace, every contact person, investigate thoroughly! No matter who is involved, regardless of rank, there will be no leniency! All negligent personnel will be held accountable! Not one will be spared!"
The flames of anger burned fiercely throughout the conference room.
And after the anger and fear came the ultimate shock.
Everyone came to their senses, faced with an unavoidable question.
Who?
Who could have, right under the CIA Hong Kong Station's nose, precisely located Yu Ruoyin's hiding place, executed the interception, retrieved the top-secret list, and escaped unscathed, even sending the list back to the homeland intact?
Zhou Huaichang looked at everyone and spoke slowly, "We have initiated a full-system and inter-agency investigation and coordination. All field personnel and operatives in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia have been screened. Not a single person matches this young man, nor has any unit issued related action orders."
His voice carried an indescribable complexity, "In other words, the person who did this, we have no idea who he is, don't know the truth of his identity, and can even say we don't know his allegiance!"
The conference room fell silent once more.
A mysterious stranger, using unimaginable means, had shielded them from a catastrophic disaster.
It was too incredible, too perfect, so perfect that... it didn't seem real.
At that moment, a vice-ministerial leader with graying hair slowly raised his head, breaking the silence with a frown.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I have a concern."
All eyes instantly focused on him.
He looked at the list on the table, his voice tinged with heaviness, "This entire affair has gone too smoothly, too perfectly. So perfect it feels like a deliberately scripted play. I'm wondering... could this be the Americans having obtained this intelligence, deliberately toying with us in this manner?"
As soon as he spoke, the temperature in the conference room plummeted.
Everyone's expressions changed drastically, their brows furrowing tightly.
In intelligence work, the most feared thing is a pie falling from the sky.
The most terrifying enemy is never the one in plain sight, but the hidden... unfathomable trap.
What if this really was an American setup?
What if this list was deliberately returned by the Americans?
What if that mysterious person wasn't one of their own, but a CIA agent?
Countless possibilities surged through everyone's minds.
The euphoria of surviving a disaster was instantly doused by the chilling doubt.
Zhou Huaichang's brow also furrowed tightly.
He had considered this possibility.
But this possibility was too frightening, so frightening that he dared not think deeply about it.
He looked at everyone, tapping the table, "We cannot rule out this doubt. The only thing that can determine the nature of this matter now is the complete technical data of the 5-axis Linkage CNC Machine Tool that he sent back."
All eyes instantly focused.
"That is the core technology we've been blocked from by the West for over a decade, something we've sought but never obtained. If this data is real, complete, and applicable, then this matter can truly be considered a great boon."
"If it's fake..."
He didn't finish, but everyone understood what he left unsaid.
If the technical data is fake, then this matter is undoubtedly a colossal trap targeting the entire national intelligence system.
The first rays of morning light had already crossed the horizon, seeping through the gaps in the curtains, casting a faint glow.
And everyone in the conference room was plunged into a suffocating wait.
All their hopes, all their judgments, were pinned on the experts rushing in from across the country, on those three thin rolls of microfilm!