Li Sang knew Ling Lan had a cold personality, but she hadn’t realized it was this freezing. While one shouldn’t lie, there are moments when a little deception is necessary. Being this blunt was counterproductive.
Case in point: Wen Banxia’s face had turned paper-white.
Wen Banxia wasn’t short—standing at about 160cm, she was quite average for a girl—but standing next to Ling Lan, she looked like a helpless little sister. With Ling Lan’s icy expression, the scene looked less like a professional recruitment and more like a terrifying sibling spat.
Standing behind Wen Banxia, Li Sang frantically signaled Ling Lan to be more tactful.
Ling Lan caught the signal, but only partially. She opened her mouth and changed her tune: “Wen Banxia, your parents work at the Broadcasting Bureau, right?”
Stunned by the sudden personal detail, Wen Banxia nodded stiffly. “How do you know that?”
She rarely mentioned her parents’ jobs to outsiders. Even her boyfriend, Cheng Ran, didn’t know. Her parents held mid-level positions, and she worried that talking about it might negatively affect them.
“We are your parents’ colleagues,” Ling Lan lied with a straight face, repeating the script Li Sang had mentioned earlier.
Wen Banxia’s eyebrows shot up. “You? Colleagues? My parents?”
The Broadcasting Bureau was severely lacking in young talent. If there were girls as beautiful as these two working there, her mother would have mentioned it long ago. She didn’t buy it for a second.
Seeing her skepticism, Ling Lan squinted at Li Sang.
Before cornering Wen Banxia, the group had discussed a cover story. Since Wen Banxia wasn’t a typical “Awakened” but rather a “Favored of the Goddess of Luck,” Li Sang didn’t want to reveal the truth about her future role in post-apocalyptic farming just yet. It was better to wait for the right moment.
Realizing the first lie had failed, Li Sang stepped forward. “Your mother once mentioned she has a brilliant daughter studying agronomy. As an agronomy student, surely you recognize this man?”
Li Sang pulled out her phone and showed a photo. It was a face Ling Lan knew well—they had just seen him yesterday.
The man in the photo was Tang Yunzhou.
Ling Lan, who thought Li Sang was just going to use her silver tongue, suddenly felt something was off. Is she trying to lure her into a trap? Regardless, the goal was the same, so Ling Lan didn’t interrupt and watched Li Sang play her “scammer” hand using Tang Yunzhou’s prestige.
The plan worked. The moment Wen Banxia saw the photo, her pupils contracted in disbelief.
“Academician Tang?”
She was an agronomy major and had taken biology courses where Tang Yunzhou had been a guest lecturer. If it weren’t for that, she wouldn’t have recognized him so quickly.
“You know Academician Tang?” Li Sang asked.
Initially, Li Sang thought Wen Banxia might have seen him in a textbook or on social media, but her reaction suggested a personal encounter. If she had actually met him, this would be even easier!
Li Sang’s eyes lit up. “You’ve met him?”
Wen Banxia found these people increasingly bizarre. Honestly, with looks like theirs, why were they wasting time on scams? Couldn’t they make money legally? But then again, what scammer would waste this much time talking?
Caught between suspicion and belief, Wen Banxia answered, “Yes, I know him.” Her voice carried a hint of pride, as if to say You can’t fool me.
To her surprise, Li Sang’s reaction was one of relief. “Even better. Everything will be clear once you see Academician Tang.”
Li Sang made a “this way” gesture and produced an ID badge from nowhere. It bore the logo of the Central Agricultural Research Institute.
Wen Banxia recognized the emblem immediately. “You’re from the Research Institute?”
Li Sang gave a mysterious smile. “In a way.”
Wen Banxia’s curiosity was piqued, and she followed Li Sang instinctively. “Why are you looking for me? Does Academician Tang think I’m talented? Does he want to take me on as a student?”
The moment the words left her mouth, she felt she was being delusional. Academician Tang had visited her school a month ago; if he liked her work, why wait until now to find her?
But logic was currently losing the battle against excitement. Li Sang had her hook, line, and sinker.
It wasn’t until she was led to a beat-up Wuling Hongguang van that Wen Banxia snapped back to reality. She stopped dead in her tracks.
“Wait… you aren’t scammers, are you?”
Before she could say another word, a “hand knife” struck her neck. Pain flared for a split second before her eyelids grew heavy, and she collapsed.
The move was so sudden that everyone was caught off guard—except the one who did it. Qi Yan remained perfectly calm as he caught her before she hit the ground. His expression didn’t change at all; it was as if he had done this a thousand times.
Back in their old squad, missions were always fast and brutal. If words didn’t work, they used force. Why waste time talking?
Li Sang watched in stunned silence as Qi Yan loaded the girl into the van. Eventually, she turned to Jiang Taian. “Are you guys always this… aggressive?”
“He probably thought she talked too much,” Jiang Taian grumbled, adjusting his glasses as he climbed into the driver’s seat.
Unbeknownst to them, a little girl passing by had already dialed the police.
With a trembling voice and shaking fingers, the child whispered into her phone, “Officer? I just saw a kidnapping in broad daylight. I have the license plate number. It’s…”
Before the van could reach Base 09, Jiang Taian’s phone rang. Since he was driving, he signaled Li Sang to answer.
Li Sang picked up, but before she could even say “hello,” a voice roared from the other end:
“Jiang Taian! What the hell are you doing?! It’s one thing to knock someone out in the street, but how did you let yourselves get caught? Someone reported it! The Imperial Capital Public Security Bureau just called me!”
“…”