390: Chapter 389 A Sudden Turn of Events

The words "did not penetrate" were like a curse, instantly changing the entire atmosphere.

Ji Hang, who had been looking down at his phone, looked up, a trace of astonishment on his face.

The smile that had been spreading across Fang Xiaoyun's face froze, and he stood there dumbfounded.

General Zheng was slightly taken aback, but he quickly recovered. A glint flashed in his eyes, and he straightened his back slightly.

The body armor was quickly delivered to the testing station.

General Zheng took the body armor.

The moment he touched it, he felt a sense of familiarity.

If he wasn't mistaken, the body armor from Hongshu Company just now seemed to have a similar feel, though there were slight differences; this piece felt smoother and silkier to the touch, and it seemed slightly lighter as well.

On the body armor, the spot where it had just been struck by the bullet was slightly damaged, with the black fiber material clearly visible. However, unlike the Hongshu armor, there was absolutely no sign of penetration, nor was there a bullet embedded in it.

General Zheng said calmly, "What is the condition of the mannequin?"

"There are signs of heavy pressure."

The inspector, a young officer, said, "But there are no signs of fracture. If this were on a human body, it would likely cause localized bruising."

"Hmm."

General Zheng nodded slightly. This was already an excellent result. As for the bruising, it was caused by the massive kinetic energy carried by the bullet being released in an instant, which no soft body armor could avoid.

Then again, no one wears body armor on its own; it is more often used in conjunction with ballistic inserts and ceramic ballistic plates, both of which are excellent for handling the kinetic energy of a bullet.

"General Zheng."

The composed look had long since vanished from Ji Hang's face. He said grimly, "May I take a look?"

"Of course."

General Zheng smiled and said, "You are experts. Manager Ji, you can also help me analyze where this body armor is strong and why it wasn't penetrated."

This was also Ji Hang's question.

Taking the body armor from General Zheng, Ji Hang examined it carefully, his expression gradually darkening.

Whether in design, weaving, or manufacturing process, this body armor was on par with theirs. The lighter weight and smoother feel told him that this armor used raw materials of the same level, or perhaps even a higher level, than theirs.

Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fiber!

Ji Hang's face was terrifyingly grim.

To ensure today's test went off without a hitch, they had brought out their best, bottom-of-the-barrel technology: 5.5 million Dalton Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. This was currently the top material known in the world. While other semi-finished products still in the experimental stage might have better performance, they lacked mature manufacturing processes, could not be mass-produced, and were not representative.

Now, something that was on par with, or even better than, their product had actually appeared?

Ji Hang instantly thought of many things.

They had been targeting China's new materials sector for so long that, logically, it shouldn't have been able to produce an Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene material better than their company's, or at the very least, it shouldn't have surpassed them.

Yet this item had clearly and undeniably appeared.

This could no longer be explained by mere coincidence.

Could it be...

Ji Hang cast a subtle glance at General Zheng, who was standing nearby, impassive.

Did the military already know about their plan? Was everything today just a trap set by the military to lure them in? Did the military want to know if they had already extended their reach into the armed forces?

Ji Hang swallowed nervously, trying his best to look calm, and then glanced at Fang Xiaoyun, who also looked grim.

If all of this was a setup, then what role did this man play in it?

That five million—did he take it himself, or was he instructed to? Now it seemed more likely that someone had instructed him, and the goal was clear: to see if they would overreach.

If that was the case... this person by his side could not be kept.

A cold glint flickered in Ji Hang's eyes.

Fang Xiaoyun naturally didn't know what Ji Hang was thinking. He only saw Manager Ji fall into deep thought while holding the body armor, and immediately feeling something was wrong, he hurriedly asked, "Manager Ji, how is it?"

Ji Hang looked at him, and for some reason, Fang Xiaoyun felt a chill from that glance.

Throwing the body armor in his hand to Fang Xiaoyun, Ji Hang didn't want to say a word.

What on earth was going on? Why had things been developing smoothly, only to suddenly spiral out of his control?

Taking the body armor handed over by Ji Hang, Fang Xiaoyun examined it carefully, but couldn't see anything.

He was just an ordinary staff member. At best, he had some niche experience from frequently dealing with equipment procurement, but that wasn't enough for him to possess professional expertise. If he could have seen anything, he would have seen it the first time he held this body armor; there would have been no need to wait until now.

But not seeing anything didn't mean he was ready to accept his fate.

"General Zheng."

Fang Xiaoyun said, "I believe the previous test was somewhat imprecise. The shooting position must have been wrong. The bullet hit the body armor at an angle, which caused most of the force to be deflected, making it unable to fully penetrate this body armor. Look, the part of the body armor struck by the bullet is already damaged; this proves my analysis."

"Oh?"

General Zheng looked at him with a half-smile, "What do you think should be done?"

"I think we should organize another round of tests and shoot a few more times; we will definitely find the reason."

"Shoot a few more times?"

General Zheng looked at him, then switched the topic, asking, "You seem to have a lot of confidence in Hongshu Company's body armor?"

This question had nothing to do with whether a test should be conducted. Fang Xiaoyun didn't understand what General Zheng meant. He glanced at the silent Ji Hang and nodded, saying, "I believe there is nothing wrong with Hongshu Company's body armor products."

"Taking responsibility for one's actions—not bad."

General Zheng offered a word of praise, then said calmly, "You want to continue testing? I agree."

Fang Xiaoyun had just revealed a trace of joy when he heard General Zheng continue, "Choose one of the body armors from Hongshu or Yunsheng and wear it. I will fire the gun myself. You tell me how many shots to take, and I will fire that many shots at you until you call for me to stop. How about that?"

Fang Xiaoyun was instantly stunned.

If they tested it this way, he was afraid he wouldn't have a chance to call for a stop.

"General Zheng."

Fang Xiaoyun's expression was ugly. "I am also a person from Northern Industries Group. Although you are a General, isn't it a bit inappropriate to treat human life like grass like this?"

"I am treating human life like grass?"

General Zheng's expression was solemn. He let out a cold snort, "You know about treating human life like grass now? Then let me ask you: when you were in charge of the bidding, you privately accepted bribes, wantonly suppressed competitors, arbitrarily defined the scope of the bid as you pleased, and altered the bidding process. When there were clearly better options available, you purchased inferior goods for your own selfish gain. This of yours..."

General Zheng's voice was icy. "Does this count as treating human life like grass?"

"Or is it that your life is a life, but the lives of the People's Liberation Army soldiers are not?"

Fang Xiaoyun's expression changed drastically. Ignoring everything else, he hurriedly said, "General Zheng, one must provide evidence when speaking. When did I purchase inferior goods? Hongshu Company's products cannot be considered inferior goods anywhere!"

"Well said."

General Zheng nodded slightly, then his expression turned cold as he said, "But that was in the past. Since it is a bidding process, the goal is to choose the best from the available options. So, you tell me..."

General Zheng pointed at the body armor in Fang Xiaoyun's hands, his voice chillingly stern. "What... is going on with this?"