59: Chapter 59 The matter is settled

"Xiao Xiao, what's the matter?" Chen Huaiyu was originally in a meeting and was currently speaking. He didn't expect his secretary to rush in and whisper a few words in his ear. After excusing himself and leaving the conference room, he picked up the phone, his heart full of doubt. Why would Cao Xiao call him at this time? The matter of Tianxing Garden was still brewing; had some other trouble cropped up?

"Alright, I'll contact the Xiangnan City side. Tell your friend to stay far away. The military will be dispatched for this kind of thing, and the police can only assist from the side. They are expected to arrive within an hour." As Cheng Huaiyu listened to the situation Cao Xiao described over the phone, he couldn't help but feel a bit startled. The local committee was responsible for such an occurrence; to think so many Japanese had sneaked in right under their noses. This matter also put him in a bit of a difficult position, as it required him to offend the people in Xiangnan City. However, despite the difficulty, this was a matter of duty.

He didn't contact the Xiangnan City side directly but instead used his personal connections to contact the Provincial Military Region. He was a committee member of Huanghe City, not Xiangnan City, so he couldn't follow normal procedures; otherwise, he would end up looking like a busybody.

...

Cao Xiao felt relieved after finishing the call with Chen Huaiyu. He explained the situation at the Daqiang Steel Plant and the specifics of the Japanese-funded machinery plant he had discovered to Chen Huaiyu. However, he removed himself from the narrative, only saying that he had asked a friend to look for someone and that's how it was discovered. This wasn't a small matter, and now that Chen Huaiyu knew, he would find a way to resolve it promptly.

It would still be some time before the army arrived. Before they did, he had to give those Japanese something to do and ensure the safety of the hostages. Consequently, the Japanese digging the tunnel would occasionally suffer "accidental" injuries. In less than half an hour, more than ten people had sustained minor injuries, but it didn't dampen their enthusiasm for digging. The progress was much faster than Cao Xiao had imagined, and it looked like they were about to break through completely.

Just as Cao Xiao was preparing to add some spice to the mix, the people outside the tunnel all looked up at the sky as if they had discovered something. After the leaders discussed it, they all entered the tunnel, covering the entrance with branches. Underground, Cao Xiao couldn't hear the sounds from outside and didn't know what had caused them to hide. However, once they entered the tunnel, they would need his permission to leave. He quietly surfaced and looked up at the sky, seeing three small black dots growing larger. A buzzing sound reached his ears—those were helicopters. It seemed the army had arrived, and he should get ready to cooperate.

These people had all entered the tunnel, leaving the factory basement unguarded. Cao Xiao went to sabotage the wiring of the remote detonators for the explosives and also uncovered the entrance. Anyone coming in would discover the basement entrance immediately. After finishing, Cao Xiao returned to the military base side. Once the helicopters landed, he let those Japanese into the military base. He wasn't worried about them taking up arms to resist; the armory door had been sealed shut by him, so those people were nothing more than turtles in a jar.

Two people stayed behind at the tunnel entrance to observe, while the rest swarmed into the military base. Looking at the corpses scattered across the hall, these people merely bowed solemnly before rushing into the surrounding rooms. Seeing the crates of antiques piled on the floor, they immediately burst into cheers, completely unaware that danger had already descended.

As expected, the first to arrive was the army, specifically the Special Forces. Before the two men at the tunnel entrance could notice anything unusual, two bullets pierced their foreheads. Over a dozen Special Forces soldiers silently entered the tunnel. While those hundred-plus Japanese were still immersed in the joy of discovering treasure, a dozen tear gas canisters landed on the ground near them. Thick smoke billowed, completely enveloping them.

Only then did these people react, frantically covering their mouths and noses, but they couldn't open their eyes. Even so, a few of them pulled out pistols and fired wildly, trying to fight back, killing several of their own people on the spot. The scene became even more chaotic, but their resistance was in vain. Over a dozen Special Forces soldiers appeared wearing gas masks and thermal imagers. The Japanese who had fired were shot dead on the spot, and the others, having lost their ability to resist due to the tear gas, were all subdued and brought to the surface.

Now that things had reached this point, it was no longer Cao Xiao's concern. As for how the matter would finally be handled, it wasn't his headache. After erasing the traces he had left behind, Cao Xiao dug a tunnel underground all the way to the roadside. Waiting until no cars were passing, he released his Leopard and drove back toward Huanghe City.

"Hey, Linger, my friend found Meng Xiaohuan. She's been rescued by the police now. You can contact Meng Tong to cooperate with the police and settle the matter," Cao Xiao said over the phone while on the road.

"What? *Sob sob!* Cao Xiao, thank you! I'll contact my uncle right away. I'll thank you and your friend properly when I get back."

"Hey, no need to thank me. My friend didn't put in much effort; he just got lucky and found her as soon as he went. You go ahead and get busy, I'm driving."

"Hello, Teacher, is something the matter?" Just after hanging up on Hao Linger, Elder Chen called.

"Xiao Xiao, I heard everything from your eldest brother. That friend of yours did a great job and saved the country from a lot of losses. The families of those kidnapped said they want to thank him properly, and the state will also give him a reward. Go over to your eldest brother's place in a bit. By the way, tens of thousands of precious cultural relics were discovered there this time, including many missing national treasures. I'll be representing the museum to go and organize them. Thanks to your friend, our Provincial Museum will be allocated some of the relics. Tomorrow, come with me to Xiangnan City; I'll take you there for some practical experience."

One could tell from the phone call that his teacher was very happy. However, he had only just returned from Xiangnan City and would have to go back with his teacher tomorrow. He had already established data files for all those relics in his Intellectual Brain, so seeing them again would be utterly dull. Cleaning and maintaining tens of thousands of relics would take a lot of time, and he needed to prepare materials for manufacturing the atomic energy reactor. Once it was built, he would also need to go abroad to find fuel, so he had no time to waste there. He could only decline his teacher.

"Teacher, I'm preparing to go abroad in the next couple of days, so I won't have time to go," Cao Xiao said.

"Sigh! This is a rare opportunity. If you don't have time, then forget it. Be careful when you go abroad. Your third brother is currently looking for bodyguards for you; how about waiting a while before you go?" Elder Chen was a bit disappointed and also worried about Cao Xiao going abroad.

"Don't worry, Teacher, it's fine. I'm going to Australia this time; the security there is very good, there won't be any danger." Cao Xiao was somewhat moved, knowing his teacher was worried about him.