The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 700 In-Depth Investigation!!!

Several people wearing white coats and gas masks were busy at work. In the middle of the room was a workbench with some glassware and chemical reagents on it, and there was a dryer in the corner.

Mi Yuan then explained to Zhang Jincheng, "This is the second step in the entire production process, which involves taking a certain proportion of..." As he spoke, he picked up a white cuboid and said, "This is the finished product. The three 9s on it represent its purity."

Zhang Jin weighed it in his hand and estimated it to be about two kilograms. He asked, "So, will we use this thing to produce 'Number Four' next?"

"That's right, we only produce white blocks here. Our third-stage production is all concentrated in a cave."

Reprocessing the white blocks into "Number Four" is the most technically demanding step in the entire production process, requiring specialized technicians to operate it.

Hehe, it's a bit late today. I'll take you there another time.

Zhang Jin said he knew Mi Yuan was just making excuses, but he could understand.

Mijia will definitely keep the production of "Number 4" a strict secret. They will not reveal the secret until they have fully ascertained the identities of Zhang Jincheng and the other two.

Today, Mi Yuan brought Zhang Jin to the factory and showed them only the ordinary production process; they didn't see the real core processes.

Through this incident, Zhang Jin realized that Michael was still wary of them.

Don't be fooled by Michael's friendly manner, treating them like family; he's a real old fox.

The three returned to the mountain village, but the market had already closed. Just as Mi Yuan had said, the locals arrived late and left early.

Zhang Jin said that he and Lei Jun returned to their stilted house, where soldiers had already brought them dinner.

The staple food here is rice, and there are four dishes: stir-fried cured meat, stewed chicken, wild mushroom soup, and a plate of green vegetables, which is similar to the diet in China.

Such a meal was quite sumptuous in this remote mountain village, and it was clear that Michael had specifically instructed Guo to treat Zhang Jincheng and the other two to a warm welcome.

With no outsiders in the house, Zhang Jin and his companion didn't stand on ceremony and began to wolf down their food. They were exhausted and hungry after a day of hiking in the mountains.

While shoveling rice into his mouth, Zhang Jin said to Lei Jun in a low voice, "What we saw today was all superficial. That old fox, Michael, didn't let us get to the core aspects at all."

Lei Jun picked up a piece of cured meat and nodded thoughtfully: "Yes, that cave is the key. But judging from the scale of their factory, their output should be quite large."

While eating, Zhang Jin said in a low voice, "We must find a way to locate this cave, and if we get the chance, we'll blow it up!"

"Didn't Mi Yuan say he would take us to see it later?" Lei Jun said softly.

"They certainly won't take us there until they've dispelled their suspicions about us."

Michael is a suspicious man. Even though we've saved him several times, the old man is still wary of us.

"How about I go out tonight and check things out?" Lei Jun was willing to take the risk.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jin frowned, put down his chopsticks, looked around, and only after confirming that the doors and windows were tightly closed did he whisper, "This matter needs to be considered carefully. I see that the soldiers patrolling the stronghold are all equipped with guards; we definitely can't force our way in." He pointed to the sentry posts that were faintly visible outside the window, "Besides, our every move is under their watchful eyes."

"When are we going to finish? We can't stay here for several years, can we?" Lei Jun said anxiously. He was eager to return to his unit as soon as possible after finishing this mission.

"What's wrong? You've only just arrived, and you're already itching to go back?"

After finishing the last bite of his rice, Zhang Jin wiped his mouth and said, "In a few days, when they are less wary of us, I'll go and scout things out."

"When I came back today, I noticed a small path on the back mountain. Maybe the cave is on the mountain behind the factory." He pulled a crumpled map from his pocket, with several suspicious marks marked on it in red pen.

Just then, footsteps suddenly came from downstairs.

The two immediately fell silent, and Zhang Jin quickly stuffed the map into his pocket.

There was a gentle knock on the door, and Mi Yuan's voice came through: "Mr. Zhang, are you two still awake?"

Zhang Jin gave Lei Jun a wink, and Lei Jun, understanding, opened the door.

Mi Yuan, carrying a fruit platter, smiled broadly: "These are freshly picked mangosteens. My father asked me to bring them over for you two to try." His gaze swept quickly across the room, finally settling on the nearly empty bowls and chopsticks on the dining table.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Mi." Zhang Jincheng warmly accepted the fruit plate, deliberately yawning, "I'm exhausted today, I was just planning to go to bed early."

Mi Yuan smiled meaningfully, "Then I won't bother you any longer. By the way, there's a sacrificial ceremony in the village tomorrow, and my father specially invited you two to attend." After saying that, he politely took his leave.

"This guy with less rice is no simpleton!"

"Yeah, didn't you see how he looked at us when he came back? It was different."

"We must be careful from now on, and never be fooled by their apparent friendliness or let our guard down." Zhang Jincheng nodded and continued, "Let's leave this cave for now; we'll find it sooner or later."

Next, our top priority is to find a way to go to the old town and get a clear picture of the Lang brothers' situation.

"Okay, boss." Lei Jun nodded in agreement, then he thought of his good partner Zhuang Yan, "Hey, I wonder if 'Monkey' had a smooth trip?"

"Don't worry, 'Monkey' is much smarter than you. I believe he will find a way to use this opportunity to get in touch with his superiors," Zhang Jin said confidently.

……

Just as Zhang Jincheng was considering his next move, someone else was also eyeing them.

After Zhang Jincheng and his two companions' stilted house was set on fire, Li Yuan, fearing exposure, hurriedly left the mountain stronghold.

As soon as Li Yuan returned to Mandalay, she immediately called Lang San to come over.

Upon meeting, Li Yuan immediately launched into a tirade against Lang San: "You heartless bastard, are you trying to kill me?"
You said you were worried about my safety and assigned me several bodyguards, but it turns out you were trying to harm me!

Lang San feigned innocence and said, "Baby, I really don't know what you're talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me. I'm asking you, did you order the fire in Awa Mountain Village to be set?"

"Oh, you mean this? Yes, I arranged for someone to do it."

I'm helping your old man.

"Those three guys are of unknown origin and are likely henchmen from over there. It's best to get rid of them sooner rather than later, or they'll cause trouble sooner or later," Lang San said emphatically.

"You should have told me! These three aren't exactly good people. What if they found out it was my men who did this? Wouldn't that have ruined me?" Li Yuan complained.

"Didn't even a big fire do anything to them?" Lang San said through gritted teeth.

"Let me tell you the truth, these three are special forces soldiers from over there. They escaped because they accidentally killed someone."

"With your meager resources, you think you can take them on? Keep dreaming!"

"Damn, no wonder they're so good, they're special forces..." Lang San muttered to himself as he pondered, "This further proves that there's something wrong with them."

As far as I know, the special forces there are selected from among the best of the best, and in their words, they are all ideologically sound. How could they accidentally kill someone?
"No, there's definitely something wrong here..."

Li Yuan said nonchalantly, "I don't care if they have any problems or not. I just happen to need their help with something. You can't find anyone with such skills in the entire 'Kim San District'."

"Oh?" Li Yuan's words piqued Lang San's interest: "Is there anything you need their help with?"

"...A piece of jadeite rough that is of extremely high quality was found in the mine and was worth a lot of money as soon as it was transported out."

You know that area is very remote and rife with bandits, so I haven't been able to find a suitable person to take on this job.

These three people can get this done, and they even agreed to it for me.”

Upon hearing Li Yuan's words, Lang San remained silent for a long time, seemingly lost in thought.

Li Yuan nudged him: "What are you thinking about? Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Hehe..." Lang San suddenly chuckled slyly, "Baby, you weren't thinking anything!"

Seeing Lang San's ill-intentioned expression, Li Yuan immediately said, "Don't get any funny ideas. This is a helper I finally found."

"I know, I will definitely send someone to secretly protect your darling to Mandalay, and then deal with them. Are you satisfied now?"

"Hmm, that's more like it. Once they bring the ore back to me, you can get rid of them and I can save millions, hahaha..." Li Yuan laughed maliciously. This woman was no pushover either.

“Go back to Awa Mountain Village immediately and make sure they take on this job, no matter how much it costs.”

When Lang San told him to go back immediately, Li Yuan was displeased: "I finally got back from the mountain. Stay here with me for a few days before you go back."

“Honey, it’s really not possible right now. I have to rush back to the old town immediately because I have an appointment with a big client over there, and I need to go and discuss things with them.”

At this point, Lang San angrily cursed, "It's all because of that guy Mi Gao. He cut off all my original channels, and now I have to rebuild them all over again."

Li Yuan pouted, "Alright, stop complaining. You go back to your business. I'm heading back to the mountain stronghold first thing tomorrow morning." She leaned back lazily on the sofa, lighting a slender cigarette. "But you have to promise me that if this job goes through, you'll take me on vacation to Paris." A calculating glint flashed in Lang San's eyes as he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Baby, once this shipment sells, not just Paris, but a round-the-world trip is yours." His rough fingers gently caressed Li Yuan's neck. "Remember, make sure they agree to this job. Price is not a problem."

A bolt of lightning suddenly flashed past the window, illuminating Lang San's sinister profile.

Li Yuan didn't notice the murderous intent that flashed in his eyes, preoccupied with her own thoughts: "Those three special forces soldiers are indeed skilled. The day before yesterday, I personally saw 'Steel Nail' catch a flying dagger with his bare hands." She exhaled a smoke ring, "But even the most powerful outlaws can't beat you local bullies."

After spending some time with Li Yuan, Lang San set off back to the old city.

Li Yuan got up and returned to Awa Mountain Village, and the two went their separate ways.

Lang San was in a hurry to go back and discuss with Boss Lang the plan to eliminate Zhang Jincheng and the other two.

A few days later, Zhuang Yan returned safely from Bangkok.

His safe return greatly encouraged Zhang Jincheng and the other man.

The three began to discuss their next move, deciding to find a way to get to the old city as soon as possible to find out about Lang's missile site.

This is the most urgent matter at the moment.

Just as Zhang Jincheng and his two companions were worrying about how to leave Awa Mountain Village, an opportunity arose.

Michael's adjutant invited Zhang Jincheng to his office, saying he had something important to discuss.

When Zhang Jin arrived at the office, he found that Mi Gao's concubine, Li Yuan, was also there.

"When did this woman come back?" Zhang Jin wondered, but he didn't show it.

When Michael saw Zhang Jincheng arrive, he stood up with a smile to greet him, while Li Yuan nodded to him with feigned modesty.

She appeared very dignified in front of Michael.

"I wonder what business Boss Mi has with me?" Zhang Jin asked directly after sitting down.

"Hahaha... How could I dare to give such an order? I called Brother Zhang over because I have a favor to ask of you."

To be precise, it was my wife who wanted to ask Brother Zhang and his two companions for help.

Zhang Jincheng understood what was going on and was secretly delighted that someone had brought him a pillow just when he was about to doze off.

He smiled slightly and said, "Is it the matter that Madam mentioned at the welcome banquet?"

“Mr. Zhang is a very thoughtful person. I only said something casually, but you remembered it. It was about that matter.”

To be honest, I've already found a new job during my trip back to Mandalay.

If we can get this stone out, we can make several times the profit by reselling it.

"So I rushed back to discuss it with the old man, and only Mr. Zhang can take on this important task," Li Yuan immediately interjected.

"We can't afford to lose something so valuable, and the lives of the three of us aren't worth that much money."

"So, I urge Mr. Mi and his wife to reconsider!" Zhang Jin said, feigning tact.

"Brother Zhang, although we haven't known each other for long, we've been through life and death together."

I believe I haven't misjudged you. With your abilities, you three can handle this with ease; there will absolutely be no problem.

To be honest, there's really no one in the 'Kim Jong-un region' who can rival the three of them.

So, go ahead and do your best. As long as you do your best, I'll take responsibility if anything goes wrong.

Since Michael had put it so bluntly, Zhang Jin pretended to be embarrassed to refuse. He pretended to think for a moment and said, "Since Boss Michael values ​​us brothers so much, then we brothers will go through fire and water to complete the mission."

However, this matter is no ordinary one; we need to plan it carefully and thoroughly.

"Okay, have fun!"

"As long as Brother Zhang agrees, that's fine. Just tell me what you need, and feel free to make any demands—money, goods, or people, it's all possible," Michael said happily.

"Ok!"

"That's right. From what the lady said, it seems that many people are eyeing this rough stone, so the fewer people who know about our actions, the better."

Based on this, I have two requirements. First, we need a high-performance off-road vehicle and some high-performance weaponry.

Secondly, please give us some time. We need to thoroughly investigate this route to Mandalay and develop a detailed transportation plan after conducting on-site inspections.

“Brother Zhang, you’ve thought this through very well. I fully support you. I already have some high-performance off-road vehicles on hand. How about your domestically produced ‘Beijing Auto’ Warrior brand off-road vehicle?”

Zhang Jin nodded and said, "No problem, the Warrior off-road vehicle from 'Beijing Auto' is fine. The military there is purchasing them, and they are sufficient to handle the road conditions here."

The "Warrior" off-road vehicle is a new generation of equipment developed by Beijing Automobile Group for the military.

Upon its debut, it became known for its superior performance, reliable power system, and advanced technology, making it suitable for diverse military applications and quickly replacing other miscellaneous military vehicles.

After its release, the "Warrior" was not only very popular with the domestic military, but its civilian version was also widely praised by car enthusiasts.

Now it has been exported overseas and is competing with Japanese off-road vehicles such as Toyota for market share.

I just don't know whether the one Michael has is the military version or the civilian version.

Even its civilian-grade performance is no worse than that of Toyota's off-road vehicles.

"Make a list of all the weapons and equipment you need, and I'll arrange for someone to prepare them right away."

"Okay, let's prepare some basic weapons and communication tools first."

We will supplement the necessary special equipment after we conduct an on-site inspection and formulate a plan.

Also, please prepare a high-resolution military map of the surrounding area, preferably at a large scale.

It would be even better if we had some guides.

“Leave all of this to me. I can guarantee it will be ready in three to five days,” Michael said readily.

“Alright, we’ll depart in five days. Mrs. Mi, please go back and wait for our news,” Zhang Jin said to Li Yuan.

"Make sure you notify me before you make your arrangements so I can get the mine ready. Otherwise, you won't be able to bring out the ore."

Zhang Jin didn't think much of what the woman said, assuming she was just being thoughtful. He smiled and said, "Of course. I'll go back to Boss Mi first, and then we'll take action."

……

Zhang Jin told Zhuang Yanlei and Jun when he got back, which made the two of them very happy.

Zhuang Yan said excitedly, "Great! Tell me your plans."

"I'll have Michael get us a radio first, so we can get in touch with command."

Our route to the mine passes through the old town, so we took the opportunity of our inspection to go there and find out more about the Lang family missile base.

"I never expected this woman to do us such a big favor unintentionally. We'll do our best to help her get it out as a way of repaying her," Lei Jun said with a nonchalant smile.

Zhang Jincheng's expression was somewhat serious: "This job is not easy," otherwise Michael would not have needed to ask us to come, and at such a high cost.

In addition, I always felt that Li Yuan was not a simple woman, but I couldn't quite put my finger on why.
I noticed her gaze was shifty; she was definitely hiding something.

Zhuang Yan echoed this sentiment, saying, "Brother is right. She left in a hurry the day after the fire in our building, right after Michael had just returned. This is very unusual. I think we should be careful about this woman in the future."

Zhang Jin nodded and said, "Let's discuss our next steps. Whatever we need, let Michael get it for us."

Three days later, Zhang Jin and the other two left Awa Mountain Village with the help of a guide.

The guide was a veteran in his thirties named Agui. He was a very cheerful person and chatted non-stop with Zhang Jincheng and the other two along the way.

From Ah Gui's conversation, I learned that he had served in the Democratic League Army for over twenty years, starting at the age of twelve, and had never left the unit.

Ah Gui has participated in countless battles, large and small, and has extremely rich combat experience. His footprints have been left in the mountains and rivers of the "Jin San area".

(End of this chapter)