Genius is just the threshold for me!

The U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai.

It was nearly nine o'clock at night, and the conference room was brightly lit. Seven or eight intelligence analysts were busy working. Most of the coffee cups on the table were empty, with only a dark brown ring remaining at the bottom.

Senior intelligence officer Peter, along with a group of his men, looked at the information they had gathered over the past few days on the table, organizing and analyzing the hidden intelligence within it according to the timeline.

After organizing all the information collected over the past few days, Peter looked at the last piece of analytical intelligence handed to him, his expression changed, and he signaled for everyone to leave.

After the last analyst left and closed the door, he walked with a heavy expression to Williams, who was standing by the window, prying open the blinds to look at the lights outside.

"Sir, it's confirmed!"

"Is it Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group?"

Williams turned around and saw Peter's expression. Before the other man could say anything, he seemed to have guessed something.

"Yes, Mr. Smith has ordered us to thoroughly investigate the intelligence regarding this J-16D electronic warfare aircraft..."

Peter nodded and said in silence, "Now we can confirm that Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAC) took over the project data from Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) and completed the later stages of the project. It was the very project they suddenly launched when we were conducting our family tracing plan."

Additionally, around last Saturday, this electronic warfare aircraft was still undergoing test flights. To ensure there were no safety issues, it arrived on Tuesday to sail out to sea and counter our Growler's harassment tactics.

"Setting sail on Tuesday, and still test-flying last Saturday?"

Williams looked incredulous: "Is this information accurate?"

"Sure!"

Peter took a photo and said seriously, "Because we just received a photo of them test-flying in the southwest on Saturday afternoon."

Williams took the photo and glanced at it. Although it was still a bit blurry, he recognized it at a glance.

This is how they crushed the two Howler squadrons head-on, and even gave their cruiser's Aegis radar a J-16D fighter jet that looked like a gourd brother.

"An electronic warfare aircraft that we took over the project with last year and completed the key tasks in less than a year has just rolled off the production line and been test-flying for a few days. It has already overwhelmed our two Howler formations in electronic warfare..."

Williams' face turned extremely ugly. He handed the photo back to Peter and said through gritted teeth, "Cheng Fei has gone mad!"

As an intelligence officer specializing in fighter jets and aircraft, Williams was well aware of this.

An electronic warfare aircraft that completed its mission in less than a year, and immediately crushed two Howler squadrons upon its release—what does this really mean?

This means that Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group's R&D capabilities have risen by at least several levels compared to the past, making it a formidable force in the development of core equipment.

This means that they monitored a project that suddenly started last summer but stopped after about four months. Their final analysis concluded that it was a smokescreen project, and that there was a high probability that there was actually a real project.

Neither of these two speculations is good news.

One sign is that the equipment here is about to take off and become uncontrollable.

Since the J-20, besides the electronic warfare aircraft that shot down their mysterious F-35 last week, Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAC) has likely developed another unknown, mysterious fighter jet.

At this moment, Williams seemed to realize something and suddenly opened his eyes wide, saying, "When exactly did our strategic pawns at their headquarters suddenly become exposed, and when did their screening operations in their core departments begin?"

Was it after Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group's four-month smokescreen project was halted last year?

"Sir, you mean...?"

Peter was startled and hurriedly ran to a laptop to search for something. Then, looking shocked, he said, "When our strategic pieces were exposed, the smokescreen project hadn't stopped even after four months, it stopped after just over half a month..."

half a month.

But for them, this two-week time difference is enough to confidently confirm that the two are now connected.

The project is completed, but all personnel can continue operating for a while to carry out a simple disguise.

"There's one more fighter jet! A strategic-class fighter jet! Only a strategic-class fighter jet could expose our strategic pawns at their headquarters!"

"So, in the two years since the J-20 rolled off the production line, Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAC) has already completed the development of three fighter jets, each with greater strategic deterrence than the last?"

Williams' voice trembled slightly as he spoke, his face filled with shock. "Does their research and development work the same way they do in industry? A technological breakthrough allows them to quickly reduce costs and then rapidly develop related supporting industries?"

Suddenly, Williams turned around sharply, stared at Peter seriously, and asked, "Do we and our allies still have any pawns within Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group?"

Whether it's their core researchers, core engineers, or their family members and friends, anyone will do!

"Sir, ordinary employees do have them, but they don't know anything. They just do production work and can't take the parts they produce out."

Peter shook his head and replied in silence, "Researchers and engineers. A few years ago, our ally managed to recruit a core engineer through the other party's daughter, but the first key intelligence transaction was exposed."

After that, Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group tightened its personnel control. Anyone who was even slightly unclean or flawed was not allowed to enter the research sequence, nor could they touch the core of the project.

As for their relatives and friends...

Since our search plan failed, and that unfortunate fellow who was exposed was used as a prime example and sentenced to death for treason, no one has dared to touch this case since.

The few people who dared to contact us were all scammers. They took our $1,000 deposit with their graduation photos with the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group researchers and then disappeared…”

"Another scam? Are all the people here outlaws?"

Williams rubbed his forehead, feeling a bit of a headache, and suddenly asked, "No one's going to call the police this time, right?"

"Well……"

Peter paused for a moment: "Not this time."

"That's good."

Williams breathed a sigh of relief and instructed seriously, "If there's any more, just have someone force him into the toilet to eat shit. No need to ask me."

"Yes, sir."

Peter nodded seriously.

"Remember this: it's okay to be scammed out of a small amount of money, but whoever reports it to the police should be told to eat shit."

Williams, still not entirely convinced, repeated himself, then took a deep breath, checked the time, and straightened his collar.

"I'll report to Mr. Smith about the J-16D electronic warfare aircraft, and also about the possibility that Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group might be hiding a mysterious fighter jet, and see what the next steps are."

After speaking, Williams quickly walked to the adjacent liaison room and made a video call to the domestic network via a secure line.

"Hey Williams, have you found out anything about that electronic warfare aircraft?"

The video call connected, and a white figure appeared on the computer screen.

Smith, as was his custom, sat in a spacious, bright office with a cup of coffee in his hand and greeted Williams.

"Sir, we've made some discoveries. Besides this electronic warfare aircraft, we've also found something else..."

Williams reported everything without concealing the fact that the J-16D fighter jet was developed and produced by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAC), and that CAC had also concealed the fact that it possessed a strategic-level fighter jet.

"Three strategic-class fighter jets in two years?"

Smith sat up straight for the first time, his expression one of utter astonishment. "My God, is Chengfei really that amazing?"

"Yes, Mr. Smith."

Williams took a deep breath and earnestly asked, "Right now, we can't get any internal intelligence from Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group. I'm thinking, should we reactivate those pawns who were silenced due to screening?"

"This is not our responsibility. Furthermore, their military research is completely independent and confidential. Headquarters only issues requirements and objectives."

Restarting the chess pieces only lets you know if Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group has new projects, but it can't find out specific information, so it's not very useful...

Smith put down his coffee, picked up an intelligence document from the side, looked at it for a while, and then looked up and said, "Williams, carefully organize the information you gathered this time, especially the intelligence that Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group has developed three strategic-class fighter jets in two years, and clearly describe the threat posed by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group."

I'll submit this analysis report again and apply for additional funding. Given the current situation, we need to change our strategy...

"Yes."

Williams, unsuspecting, earnestly inquired, "Sir, what strategy should we adopt?"

"We should stop searching randomly like before; we need to analyze and target our targets first, and then strike with precision."

Smith tapped his fingers on the table and said seriously, "Wang Xingguo, the chief engineer of Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group, is very capable, but he is not a superman."

The astonishing speed of Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group's scientific research in the past two years must be due to the assistance of other important personnel, and these personnel did not appear out of thin air.

We are now building a genealogy chart for Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAC), tracing back twenty years from the personnel information we have, to find those who joined CAC in the last twenty years and have now entered the core layer of CAC, and have been promoted to senior engineer, deputy chief engineer and chief engineer.

Take this list again, find their school records, investigate their performance during their time at school, and ask their former classmates, relatives, and friends what they know about them.

We will focus on two types of people: one is like their chief engineer, who has been exceptionally talented since childhood and is now a core member of Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group.

Another type is those who were mediocre in talent before, but are now core members of Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group…

"gentlemen."

Williams paused, startled. "The first scenario is understandable, but the second..."

"It's simple, I suddenly had a breakthrough, and the other one..."

Smith picked up his coffee and chuckled, "Trust and interests."

"You mean?" Williams' eyes lit up, his expression filled with surprise and delight.

"Yes, this person may have always been mediocre. After all, it's extremely rare for someone to suddenly have a breakthrough. What we need to find is the person around him who makes him extraordinary."

Smith took a sip of coffee and said, "Go ahead and investigate in these two directions. If all goes well, the secret of Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group will be revealed."

"gentlemen."

At this moment, Williams seemed to realize something and said anxiously, "This kind of investigation will be very costly. We don't have enough funds right now to support this plan."

"When has such strategic intelligence planning ever lacked funding?"

Upon hearing this, Smith put down his coffee and looked at Williams with some helplessness, saying, "Didn't I just tell you to compile a report on the situation at Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group and give it to me?"

As long as the report is in order, given that Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group has developed three strategic-level fighter jets in two years, and the threat they pose to our Asia-Pacific strategy, there shouldn't be any problem with the funding...