Chapter 14: Southbound

Commander Xie, let out a chuckle.

By this time, the people inside the research institute had already received news of Xie’s arrival and several individuals came out to greet him, including military personnel and researchers in lab coats.

They walked for over a hundred meters before the two groups met.

Commander Xie looked at the comrade leading the way, “Don’t bother with all that formality. You guys carry on with what you’re doing. I just happened to be passing by and decided to stop by for a look.”

He said this, but they couldn’t truly disregard him.

Upon entering the institute,Commander Xie said, “Where’s Wei Hua? Is he at work today? Have him come over and show me around. Really, I told you, don’t follow me.”

The others thought to themselves, “We’re not following you, we just happened to be returning on the same route.”

Someone went to call for Wei Hua.

Not long after, Ye Qinglan saw a bespectacled, forty-something, extremely thin middle-aged man approaching. He looked sickly, but his eyes were sharp and full of life.

“Commander Xie.”

Commander Xie furrowed his brows and looked at him, “Are you feeling unwell again? Look at your complexion, you look like you haven’t eaten in half a month. Someone who doesn’t know better would think the food here is terrible.”

Wei Hua: “No, I’ve been feeling quite energetic these past two days. Why are you here? You’ve come at the right time, I can tell you about the latest developments.”

“Alright, go ahead. And take me on a tour. No one else is to follow.”

“Okay, this way please.”

Commander Xie and Wei Hua walked ahead, while Ye Qinglan followed behind, her peripheral vision scanning everything. The soldiers in the institute thought she was Xie’s guard, but she didn’t really look like it.

Wei Hua, walking in front, felt a chill down his spine every time he looked back. When he turned around again, he met Ye Qinglan’s clear eyes, and he quickly turned back.

Ye Qinglan thought to herself, “This guy is tough. He has such a large tumor in his colon, it must have caused more than just stomach pain, yet he still doesn’t go to the hospital.”

“Besides his colon, his stomach doesn’t look good either. It’s all eroded. He probably doesn’t eat regularly and works too hard.”

“Oh, he also has a scabies.”

…

She was so focused on her scanning that Wei Hua felt like he was being pricked by needles from behind.

He couldn’t take it anymore and turned back, “Comrade, could you please stop following me? Or you can walk in front, we can switch places, okay?”

Ye Qinglan remained expressionless, “No.”

Wei Hua: “…”

Commander Xie: “What’s wrong with her walking behind you? Continue, continue.”

Wei Hua had no choice but to turn back.

After finishing her scan, Ye Qinglan retracted her gaze and looked elsewhere.

Commander Xie, led by Wei Hua, toured the outside and then went inside, fully utilizing the word “tour.”

After the tour, he left with Ye Qinglan.

The director of the institute watched them leave and asked Wei Hua, “What was Commander Xie here for? What did he talk to you about?”

Wei Hua was also confused, “I don’t know. He didn’t ask much about the progress, instead he asked if I was going to get married. Maybe he really just came for a tour.”

“Alright.” The director looked at him, “You, you should go to the hospital soon. Your health is important.”

Wei Hua pushed up his glasses, “We’ll see when the results come back.”

The director shook his head helplessly, “What a workaholic.”

On the other hand, back in the military district, Ye Qinglan reported her scan results to Xie. The institute was clean, nothing out of place. And Wei Hua’s health couldn’t be ignored any longer.

Commander Xie finally felt a little relieved. They couldn’t let their guard down within their own ranks.

The guards also brought back news. The bug planted in the tree stump had been removed, and the receiving equipment was found in a civilian house two miles away. The people inside were apprehended, but they committed suicide by swallowing poison on the way back.

The equipment looked like the latest from S-country, but it didn’t necessarily mean they were behind it. They had sold this kind of equipment to other countries as well.

Commander Xie cursed, “A bunch of scoundrels! Can’t they focus on developing themselves?!”

After a while, he said, “Xiao Qing, it’s late, you go back. You worked hard today. I’ll give you triple the bonus.”

“Okay, thank you, Commander.”

Ye Qinglan didn’t go straight home after leaving Xie. Instead, she found Minister Bai and asked him to reassign Xiao Chen. Having someone follow her was a nuisance, especially when she was on a mission, it made her more vulnerable.

Minister Bai considered it and agreed, “Alright, be careful. Someone will be there to meet you. I’ll be back in Beijing tomorrow.”

“I’ll be careful. You be careful too.”

“Okay.”

After bidding farewell to Minister Bai, she finally went home.

It was already eleven o’clock when she got home. Yang Wenying hadn’t worked late today and hadn’t gone to bed yet.

Seeing her come back, she smiled and asked, “You’re back so late. Did you have dinner? Are you hungry?”

“I ate before coming back, I’m not hungry. Why haven’t you gone to bed yet?”

Yang Wenying raised the letter in her hand, “Lin Feifei wrote back. It arrived this afternoon, and she sent a bunch of stuff too. Do you want to write a letter or make a call to them? Tell them you’re back and put their minds at ease. When you left home that year, they were quite worried and even looked for you.”

She paused and continued, “Actually, they had already changed their minds at that time, they didn’t want to exchange you back. But you wanted to come back yourself. The past few years you were away, we discussed it with them, and we told everyone you were working elsewhere. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have an explanation, and we were worried that if you came back one day, people would say bad things.

These past two years, they’ve been in Songzhou. Every time Feifei writes, she asks about you. It doesn’t need to be said, her parents must have told her to.”

They had raised her for so many years, and the bad things hadn’t happened yet. So, even after the exchange, the Lin family still cared about her.

Ye Qinglan paused, “You guys still write letters? I haven’t heard you mention it lately, I thought you weren’t in contact anymore. I remember now. I’m going to be away for a while tomorrow, maybe a month, maybe two months.”

“Ah???”

“Sister, you’re leaving again!”

Ye Jiao, who had woken up at some point, rushed over and hugged her. Although she hadn’t spent much time with her sister, she really liked her.

Ye Qinglan patted her back, “I’m not disappearing, what are you crying for? Study hard, if your grades are bad, I’ll beat you up.” Then she thought for a moment and said,

“Don’t be afraid of the Ye family. Ye Song and his parents have gone to work out of town, they won’t be back for a while. Ye Shujuan and her mother are also too busy to bother you. Also, I’ll leave you a number. If something really big happens and you can’t solve it, contact them, someone will come to help.”

Seeing this, Yang Wenying turned and went into the room. A moment later, she came out with a small bag.

“You should be in school at your age, but you’re already working. Mom doesn’t know where you’re going to work, but it’s always good to have some money on hand. This passbook is for the money you sent back. It’s one hundred and sixty yuan a year, Mom hasn’t used it. Take it with you when you leave tomorrow.”