You went on a blind date and presented an A-level wanted criminal as a meeting gift?

The banquet was held in the main hall of the Su family home.

Three round tables were set up, and people sat down according to their seniority.

Lin Chen was placed to Su Jianguo's left, and everyone understood the significance of this position.

This is the host/guest seating arrangement.

Su Rui sat at the second table, head down, picking at his food, looking completely dejected.

He was a completely different person from the arrogant young master he was in the afternoon.

The dishes are authentic Beijing-style private cuisine; the roast duck is sliced ​​paper-thin, and the scallions are cut into needle-like pieces.

Lin Chen's [God-level Cooking Skills] automatically scanned the area and found that he had added half a gram too much salt and the duck skin was cooked ten seconds too late.

But he didn't say anything, after all, it was a welcome banquet, and it wasn't a good habit to find fault with the host and the chef.

The conversation revolved around the situation in the capital and the basic rules of the selection process.

Su Jianguo gave Lin Chen a few key pieces of information: the selection process would last for three days, and the participants came from various systems across the country, including special forces soldiers from the military, intelligence analysts from the National Security Bureau, and technical experts from the cybersecurity sector.

"There were fourteen people in total, but only three spots will be selected."

Su Jianguo picked up a piece of duck meat and put it in his mouth.

"Live-fire drills account for 70% of the total score."

"What were the drills like?"

"It's different every year. The specific subjects for this year haven't been announced yet, but last year it was simulated urban counter-terrorism and intelligence warfare."

Lin Chen nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

Just as the second dish was served, the side door of the main hall was suddenly pushed open.

The Su family's butler rushed in, his face somewhat ashen.

He leaned close to Su Jianguo's ear and whispered a few words.

Su Jianguo's chopsticks stopped in mid-air.

Three seconds later, he put down his chopsticks and said in a deep voice.

"Let them in."

The side door opened again, and four men in black suits walked in.

They all had buzz cuts, and their gait showed clear signs of military training.

The leader had a square face, was in his thirties, and had a cold expression.

He was carrying something in his hand.

A pure black metal combination lock box.

The box was about the size of two shoeboxes, but it took four people a lot of effort to carry it in; it was much heavier than it looked.

The man with the square face placed the briefcase on the floor in the center of the main hall, straightened up, and glanced around at the entire room.

"The head of the Xiao family asked me to convey his best wishes to the Su family for outstanding results in this selection. This is a small gift; please accept it, Minister Su."

After saying that, the four of them turned and left.

Straightforward, arrogant, not a single unnecessary word.

A few seconds of silence fell over the main hall. All eyes were fixed on the black combination lock box on the floor.

Su Jianguo did not move immediately; his gaze first fell on Lin Chen.

Lin Chen stared at the box, his eyes narrowing slightly.

The case's outer shell is not made of ordinary metal.

In his view, it was a special tungsten carbide alloy with an anti-magnetic surface treatment.

There are six sets of tightly meshed mechanical gears on the side of the housing.

The most glaring feature is the small LED display screen at the top center.

The red numbers are jumping.

02: 58.

02: 57.

02: 56.

Su Rui was the first to react.

His chair tipped over with a loud crash, and he bounced off his seat like a spring, stumbling back several steps.

"What the hell is this thing? A bomb?"

Su Rui's voice changed tone, with a noticeable tremor.

The main hall erupted in chaos.

Several female relatives from the collateral branches screamed and ran out the door, while the middle-aged people also stood up, their faces ashen.

"Quiet."

Su Jianguo's voice quelled the commotion.

He turned to the butler and said, "Call Old Zhou over."

Old Zhou was the security consultant the Su family had been employing for over a decade; he had previously worked in the military's bomb disposal team.

Old Zhou arrived quickly. He was in his sixties, with gray hair, and carrying a toolbox.

He squatted in front of the combination lock box for less than half a minute before sweat began to pour down his forehead.

"Minister Su."

Old Zhou's voice was strained.

"This is Archimedes' box."

Su Jianguo's expression changed.

Old Zhou wiped away his sweat.

"The inside of the enclosure has a nested gear locking structure, and any external force that breaks it will trigger an internal chemical trigger."

"As far as I know, it contains highly concentrated cyanide poison gas."

"If the countdown reaches zero or if the room is forcibly destroyed, the poison gas will fill the entire room in 0.3 seconds."

He turned to look at Su Jianguo, his expression one of despair.

"I can't dismantle it."

"There are no more than five people in the world who can dismantle this thing, and it would take at least forty minutes."

02: 12.

02: 11.

Panic spread like a plague.

Su Rui had already run to the door. He didn't even care about saving face and scrambled out.

Several middle-aged people from collateral branches were also pushing their way out, and one of them even pointed at Lin Chen and shouted something.

"This is all your fault! The Xiao family is after you!"

Su Qingge drew her gun from her waist with a "snap" and stood in front of Lin Chen.

"Shut up, all of you!"

Her voice carried the coldness of a criminal investigator, but Lin Chen could feel her hand holding the gun trembling slightly.

It's not that I'm afraid of dying, it's that I'm afraid I won't be able to protect him.

Lin Chen gently pushed Su Qingge's shoulder away.

He walked toward the briefcase.

His steps were neither fast nor slow, and the sound of his leather shoes on the bluestone ground was clear.

01: 47.

"Is this all the underhanded tricks the Xiao family has?"

Lin Chen squatted down, his tone almost as if he were commenting on the doneness of a dish.

"Disappointing."