Special forces soldier demobilization: Starting from the county government compound, a meteoric rise

In the dead of night in the city, the row of ancient locust trees outside the red walls rustled in the wind, as if whispering the stories of a hundred years of history.

Liu Ming did not return to his courtyard house, nor did he go to any place that might be monitored. He changed into the most inconspicuous black jacket, lowered his head, avoided all the surveillance cameras, and walked into the side door that represented the highest power in the country.

He did not make an appointment through the secretariat, nor did he follow the reporting procedures of the National Development and Reform Commission.

He held the bloodstained letter in his hand; it was the only proof he had to knock on the door of the upper floor tonight.

"Director Liu? It's so late, what are you doing here...?" The guards in the inner courtyard recognized Liu Ming, but it was precisely because they recognized him that they were so surprised at this moment.

"Take me to see my superior, immediately."

Liu Ming's voice was soft, yet so cold that it sent a chill down the spine of the battle-hardened guard.

"But... the leader is already resting, which is against the rules."

Liu Ming looked up, and a suffocating red light flashed in her eyes, which were like those of a demon, under the moonlight.

"Go and announce that Liu Jianguo's son has arrived with the truth about the 'Sun Change Plan'."

……

The study behind the Hall of Diligent Governance was dimly lit.

The superior, wearing a dark gray bathrobe, sat in the old wicker chair. He looked at the young man standing ramrod straight in front of him, then at the yellowed photograph and the suicide note on the table, and remained silent for a long time.

The room was eerily quiet, with only the clock on the wall ticking tirelessly.

a long time.

The superior stretched out his withered hand, his fingertips trembling as he traced the face of the man in military uniform in the photo. That man was his old comrade-in-arms, and one of the successors he had once relied on and favored the most—his leader.

"Are you sure it's him?" The superior's voice was hoarse, revealing an indescribable weariness.

"The photos are fake, but the reaction to the medicine my mother left behind is real."

Liu Ming looked into the old man's eyes and spoke slowly and deliberately.

Liu Ming sneered, her eyes filled with mockery.

"Bang!"

He slammed his hand on the armrest. Despite his age, his domineering aura, as if he had fought his way through thousands of troops, remained undiminished.

"Great treachery appears as loyalty! Great falsehood appears as truth!"

The old man's eyes reddened. It was anger at being betrayed, and even more so, sorrow for this beautiful land.

"He told me back then that Liu Jianguo's depression was due to work pressure, and that the 'Sun Change Project' was an accident caused by immature technology. I believed him for thirty years!"

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the pitch-black night outside.

"Liu Ming, what do you want to do?"

"I want the imperial sword."

Liu Ming walked up behind the old man, her voice carrying an undeniable resolve.

"I'm not going through legal procedures or disciplinary processes. I'm going to file a case secretly. I'm going to mobilize 'Dragon Shield' and 'Dragon Fang'. I'm going to bypass all the surveillance networks and catch this ghost myself."

He turned around and gave Liu Ming a thorough once-over.

"Do you know that if you take action and fail, or if there isn't enough evidence, you'll be charged with treason? At that point, even I won't be able to protect you."

"I should have jumped down with my father ten years ago."

Liu Ming straightened his collar, a wild smile playing on his lips.

"Since it's not fully light yet, I'll be a demon once again and forcefully pull the sun out."

He remained silent for a full five minutes.

Finally, he took out a small, jet-black wooden box with a gold dragon head seal from the very bottom of the desk.

Inside was a jade token with no words on it, only a lightning bolt symbol.

—"The Emperor's Sword".

That was a secret authorization that had only been used three times since the founding of Kyushu.

"Take it."

The old man's voice became colder than ever before.

"Go. Whoever it is, if he betrays everyone, you must... kill him."

……

Two o'clock in the morning.

Dragon Shield Security Base, underground command center.

All screens were switched to a high-level red security mode.

Tank, Lone Wolf, Vulture, Poison Doctor, and Ghost Hand stood in a semi-circle in front of Liu Ming. They looked at the token on the table that exuded a chilling aura, and their breathing became heavy.

"Boss... this is going to be a tough battle, the toughest we've ever fought in our lives."

Tank said in a deep voice, but his hands were already expertly inspecting his heavy weapons.

"It's not a tough battle."

Liu Ming stared at the red coordinates on the screen, which were locked onto by the ghost hand and located in the high-rise area.

"This is a slaughter. What we are going to kill is the biggest bloodsucking worm on this land of Kyushu."

Liu Ming turned to look at Ghost Hand: "How's the situation?"

Ghost Hand's fingers danced across the keyboard, sweat trickling down his forehead and into his eyes, but he didn't bother to wipe it away.

"Boss, the target is extremely cautious. His daily movements are completely fixed, even the time he goes to the toilet is accurate to the second. He lives in the No. 1 compound in the city with a very high level of security, and there is an entire battalion of elite soldiers guarding the perimeter."

"Moreover, if I dare to touch that secret account he has, his self-destruct system will activate within three seconds, and all the evidence will turn to ashes."

Liu Ming lit a cigarette, but didn't smoke it, letting the smoke swirl between his fingers.

"Therefore, we cannot launch a direct attack."

Liu Ming drew a curve on the screen.

"What does he want? Power, permanent control. Right now, he's eyeing my 'sixth generation engine' project, which is the next big gift he's preparing to sell to foreign powers."

Liu Ming looked at the ghost hand, her eyes flashing with an almost manic cunning.

"Since he wants it, we'll give it to him."

"I need you to forge an extremely realistic 'fake technology' within three days, one that contains a fatal backdoor. I want this technology to be delivered to his desk by his informants."

"The moment he felt he had victory in his grasp and was ready to make a deal with foreign forces."

"That's when we'll close the net."

Liu Ming turned around and looked at his brothers who had followed him through thick and thin.

"Brothers, this time we're not charging."

"We want to weave a net beneath the city's prosperity."

"A net of purgatory that even leaders cannot escape."

"Understood!" the five men roared in unison.

……

three days later.

A supplementary report on core parameters of new power systems, bearing the top-secret seal of the National Development and Reform Commission, was delivered to the senior management office by an unsuspecting section chief.

Almost simultaneously with the delivery of the documents.

Liu Ming sat under the jujube tree in the courtyard, holding the still-damp letter in her hand.

He could sense it somewhere in the shadows of the city.

The "shadow" that had been lurking for thirty years had slowly opened its greedy eyes.

A cool breeze blew by.

The last yellow leaf of the jujube tree fell.

Liu Ming looked at the rapidly fluctuating data tracker and a cruel yet confident smile crept onto his lips.

"If you want to eat meat, you have to be prepared to eat yourself to death."

He stood up and gave the final instructions into his headset.

"All personnel, take ambush positions."

"Remember, if the fish don't enter the feeding area, don't touch it."

He looked up at the red wall, which appeared solemn yet eerie under the moonlight.

"To catch big fish, you need the most fragrant bait."