Invasion of America

Chapter 83 Counterfeiting
On Nebraska Avenue in Washington, DC, the Department of Homeland Security's office building looks particularly solemn in the night.

Inside the building, in an unremarkable office, Dias was sitting at his desk, his brow furrowed, his eyes darting back and forth between several files.

The cold light from the computer screen reflected on his face, outlining a gloomy and anxious face.

As the absolute core of the "Tree of Justice", 'Diaz' ​​holds the names and contact information of almost everyone in the organization.

The organization was originally just a small group of public officials who were dissatisfied with the political situation.

They gather together because of various personal connections, usually exchanging information and helping each other out. Occasionally, they get together to curse the White House, mock Congress, and brag about themselves.

However, over time, when a group of people who feel that they are "unappreciated" get together, it is inevitable that they will develop some inappropriate thoughts.

They began discussing "If I were in the White House..." and even began to imagine how to change the country.

At first, these were just drunken grumblings, but as the atmosphere became more heated, everyone actually began to discuss who should be removed, what policies should be revised, and how to implement the changes...

Normally, complaining isn't a big deal; who wouldn't complain after being slavishly treated like an ox? But the problem was that one old man with dementia took it seriously.

What's worse is that a rich man casually gave the demented old man 30 million US dollars, which suddenly gave this small group, which was originally just talking about it, the ability to implement the plan.

"It really killed me." Diaz stared at the computer screen, recalling the magical experiences of the past few months, and couldn't help feeling a little regretful.

He muttered under his breath, "Why did I get involved in this shit in the first place? Wasn't it better for me to just be a small clerk at the Department of Homeland Security? Now I'm being roasted in the face of the fire."

After all, the "Tree of Justice" is just a small organization that operates in secret. In the beginning, it can be maintained by enthusiasm, but once it does something big, organization and discipline become imminent problems.

Diaz knew very well that if he did not take some measures to prevent the problem from happening, the organization would soon collapse from within.

He looked down at the several files in his hands. He considered these to be "unstable factors" within the organization and they needed to be cleared out urgently - if he was soft-hearted, it would bring about a terrible disaster.

The first person who needed to be cleaned up was Hammer Lee.

This old man has made great contributions to the organization, but he knows too much and has Alzheimer's disease, so he is very unreliable.

If this old guy were to say something nonsense someday, Diaz could already imagine himself spending the rest of his life in prison, or even going straight to the electric chair.

The second is Zhou Qingfeng.

This man could be called one of the founders of the "Tree of Justice," although he would never admit it.

But if this guy hadn't casually given away 30 million US dollars, "Tree of Justice" would definitely still be a small private group like a club, and would not cause any big trouble.

But now, Zhou Qingfeng has become an extremely bad "negative asset", and it is best to get rid of him as soon as possible and keep his money in hand.

If things don't go well one day, 'Diaz' ​​hopes to be able to run away with the money.

However, no one knows where Zhou Qingfeng has escaped to and it is difficult to find his whereabouts.

In comparison, Hammer Lee is much easier to deal with - although the old man is innocent, he now has to be asked to "disappear" in order to keep the secret.

Dias took a deep breath, closed the file, and his eyes turned cold and determined. There was no turning back.

There was no shortage of despicable and shameless secret dealings within the intelligence community. To protect himself, he had to take action, even if it meant getting his hands stained with blood.

He picked up his phone, dialed a number, and whispered, "Plan ahead. Find Hammer Lee and kill him. Remember, it must be clean and leave no trace."

After hanging up the phone, 'Diaz' ​​leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and the old and confused face of Hammer Lee appeared in his mind.

He whispered to himself, "I'm sorry, Hammer. I appreciate you, but you know too much, and I... have no choice. We won't be safe unless you die."
-
At this moment, in Jacksonville, a small city in northern Florida, night falls and the street lights cast a dim glow.

In a family restaurant called "Old Oak", Lucy, who is in her twenties, is busy clearing several tables.

This is her second job. She works as a nurse in a community hospital during the day and works as a waitress here at night. Occasionally, she also works part-time as a babysitter for her neighbors to earn some pocket money.

This is a very ordinary girl, of medium height, with a few freckles on her face, a slightly plump figure, and her eyes curved into crescents when she smiled.

She is lively and cheerful, a bit carefree, loves making friends, and especially loves sweets. Although her life is busy, she is always cheerful, as if nothing can really bother her.

As she was carrying the last stack of dishes back to the kitchen, her colleague sidled up and said in a hushed voice, "Hey, Lucy, did you notice that guy by the window?"

Lucy turned her head, glanced towards the window, and nodded. "Yeah, I noticed. He came at seven o'clock and has been sitting there for more than half an hour.

He ordered a cup of coffee, two orders of fries, and two of their signature beef king burgers. I thought he wouldn't be able to finish them, but he actually ate them all.

The man by the window is indeed a little special.

Late at night, he wore a dark baseball cap with the brim pulled down low, covering most of his face.

His face was sallow, as if he had put on makeup, and his expression was a little stiff, giving people an indescribable sense of weirdness.

But judging from the way he sat, he had a very strong physique. His arms with his sleeves rolled up were muscular, almost as thick as the average woman's calves. He was obviously a strong guy.

My colleague's face gleamed with gossip, and he lowered his voice to a level below, saying mysteriously, "Guess what he just asked me?"

Lucy's curiosity was immediately piqued, her eyes sparkling: "What did you ask?"

"He asked what time you get off work," the colleague said, a hint of sourness in his tone. "Lucy, you are really lucky."

Lucy was stunned for a moment, feeling very surprised.

Although the man by the window looks a little strange, his muscular body and mysterious temperament really make people want to take a few more glances.

In the United States, this type of "big muscle" man is very popular and can become the focus of attention wherever he goes.

"Impossible..." Lucy muttered softly, but she couldn't help but feel a little bit of anticipation in her heart.

A girl like her with ordinary looks, average figure and low education never dared to hope that she could meet a "Prince Charming".

She couldn't help but glance toward the window a few more times and shook her head. "I don't even know him, how could he be interested in me?" A colleague patted her shoulder and said firmly, "I guarantee you, he's definitely interested in you. Go talk to him, maybe you can get a date tonight."

Lucy's heartbeat quickened, and her palms began to sweat slightly. She looked down at her uniform, then touched her messy hair, and hesitated.

"But...is it okay for me to do this? Will he think I'm weird?"

"He's even weirder than you." Mary rolled her eyes and pushed her: "Don't think too much! This is a rare opportunity, go! Take the initiative."

Lucy took a deep breath, took a step with stiff legs, and walked towards the window seat.

The man saw her coming over and took out an ID from his pocket with a smile, "Hi, Lucy, my name is Victor, and I'm an agent from the FBI Miami branch.

I have some questions for you, I hope I won’t cause you too much trouble.”

As soon as she saw the ID, all the hope in Lucy's heart disappeared instantly, and the smile on her face disappeared. She couldn't help but curse, "Oh, shit!"
-
With Zhou Qingfeng's current identity, openly going out would be tantamount to walking into a trap. So, he decided to go all out—forge a fake identity.

Since he was going to fake something, he might as well make it something substantial. He decided to disguise himself as an FBI agent.

To this end, Zhou Qingfeng specially received three days of "FBI special training".

Gray Shark collected a lot of information about the FBI from the Internet, including books, interviews, documentaries, and even Hollywood movies and TV shows.

All this information was stuffed into Zhou Qingfeng's hands, and he had to cram in some "basic knowledge".

From the FBI's organizational structure to the agents' daily behavioral norms, to the common language used when handling cases, Zhou Qingfeng absorbed this information like a sponge.

Three days later, Zhou Qingfeng transformed himself into a federal agent who went out alone to carry out an investigation mission.

The moment Lucy saw the ID, she didn't even suspect it was fake. She sighed, her tone filled with helplessness and fatigue:
"Damn it! I finally found a stable job. Why do you always keep picking on me?"

What? !

Lucy continued to herself, "I've changed my ways! I don't steal, I don't commit fraud, I don't sell contraband, and I don't hurt anyone anymore..."

The more she spoke, the more excited she became. Her eyes began to turn red and her voice became tearful.

Zhou Qingfeng wondered if he had found the wrong person, or if he had missed a few pages when he was looking at the file. He looked carefully at Lucy's face, trying to find clues from her facial features.

Yes, there was a bit of old man Hammer's shadow in her eyebrows and eyes, especially the slightly drooping corners of her eyes and the slightly stubborn chin. This girl was definitely Hammer Lee's granddaughter.

"Wait, Lucy," Zhou Qingfeng had to interrupt her chatter, otherwise she might talk endlessly, "I'm not here to check your past."

Lucy was stunned for a moment, then raised her tearful eyes to look at him: "Then why are you here?"

Zhou Qingfeng took a deep breath and tried to make his tone sound calm: "I'm here to see your grandfather, Hammer Lee."

Lucy's mouth instantly shrank into an "O" shape. After letting out a series of sighs, she shook her head and said, "Sorry, you've got the wrong person. That damn old fool should be in a nursing home right now."

Zhou Qingfeng shook his head. "No, your grandfather is not in the nursing home. He left half a year ago. I hope you can provide some clues."

After hearing this, Lucy simply burst into laughter. "You want me to provide any clues? I've only seen that old man a few times since I was a child. He's like a stranger to me."

After saying that, she turned and left, leaving Zhou Qingfeng sitting there.

Zhou Qingfeng looked at Lucy's back and wondered if he had made a mistake in his character design. Perhaps throwing out a stack of dollar bills would have been more effective.

It now seems that this girl's attitude towards Hammer Lee is even colder than expected.
-
Zhou Qingfeng, who was left out, felt a little embarrassed. He recalled the "crash training" he had received. What would a normal FBI agent do in this situation?
Should I force Lucy to take a statement, or should I talk to her gently?
Before Zhou Qingfeng could make a decision, a quarrel suddenly broke out in the restaurant.

A sturdy customer started arguing with the store clerk for some unknown reason. The argument became louder and louder, and gradually escalated to the point of cursing.

Normally, the clerk should have called the police in this situation.

Lucy suddenly called out to Zhou Qingfeng, "Mr. FBI Agent, can I borrow your ID?"

This shout drew the attention of the entire restaurant to Zhou Qingfeng. He immediately wanted to curse. What kind of a mess did he want to get involved in?
"If you have any problems, go to the police. Federal agents don't care about this." Zhou Qingfeng ignored him and didn't want to step forward at all.

As a federal-level investigative agency, the FBI really doesn't care about such trivial matters.

But the quarreling customer refused to give in. He stared at Zhou Qingfeng and asked, "Are you FBI? I want to see your ID." After saying that, the guy walked towards Zhou Qingfeng.

Zhou Qingfeng had never seen anyone so suicidal, but he really couldn't just show his badge and ID to anyone casually - what if someone found out about his identity? Wouldn't that just be looking for trouble?
So he lifted up his coat, revealing the holster between his ribs and a P320 pistol inserted in it.

Seeing the gun, the sturdy customer immediately sobered up, raised his hands to indicate that he was harmless, and slowly backed away, saying, "OK, I believe you are an FBI agent."

A possible conflict was averted, and the atmosphere in the restaurant became a little more lively.

Zhou Qingfeng couldn't stay any longer, so he stood up and walked to the cashier's counter. He handed Lucy a business card and said, "If you need anything, you can call me."

Lucy rolled her eyes but took the card anyway.
-
The moment he walked out of the restaurant, Zhou Qingfeng felt deeply annoyed - pretending to be an FBI agent was a bad move, and it tied his own hands and made it impossible for him to gain Lucy's trust.

If I had known this earlier, I would have pretended to be a kidnapper and kidnapped the girl directly for questioning. It might have been more efficient.

But less than two hundred meters away, Zhou Qingfeng's phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number. When he answered, he heard a cry for help: "Help, that guy. FBI, come and save me."

The voice was Lucy.

Zhou Qingfeng immediately turned around and rushed back to the restaurant like thunder in just ten seconds, shouting, "Where's Lucy?"

The sound was so deafening that it startled both the customers and the waiters. A colleague who was close to Lucy pointed to the kitchen and said, "Lucy just got off work and left through the back door."

Zhou Qingfeng immediately rushed into the kitchen, found the back door, and chased after him. His swift and decisive posture was handsome and fierce, with great visual impact.

A customer at the restaurant couldn't help but wonder, "Wow, this guy really is a federal agent? Could he be a fake?"

(End of this chapter)