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墨書 Inktalez
In the supermarket, the crowd was bustling. K was in front, Zhang Qiu was in the center, and Young Men was bringing up the rear. The three of them struggled to push through the throng of people. Not far behind, four men in their thirties, dressed in black suits and wearing earpieces, were hot on their heels, receiving disdainful looks and curses from the people they brushed past.
Further back, armed Patrol Officers and SWAT members, along with police reinforcements arriving from nearby, rushed in. Those unaware might have thought it was a police drill, as curious customers pulled out their phones to take pictures. Amidst the clicking of cameras, an announcement echoed through the supermarket.
“Dear customers, due to system issues, this mall will soon cease operations. Please put down your items and exit the mall under the guidance of our staff so we can resolve this as quickly as possible. Staff members throughout the mall immediately sprang into action upon hearing the announcement, leading customers away from their respective areas. In ten minutes, we will close the mall for repairs. Repeat…”
The announcement continued to repeat in the hall as K said immediately, “Let’s get through the mall and leave.”
Customers inside grumbled in dissatisfaction; many simply stopped to listen to the announcement. The already crowded space became even more congested as people halted. K grabbed Zhang Qiu's arm and said, “Stay close to me.”
Zhang Qiu shrugged off K's arm and replied, “You focus on finding a way out.”
“Do I need to find a way when I'm with you?” K smirked slightly, casting a disdainful glance at the four men in black suits pursuing them. He pointed to the side and said, “We’ll leave from here. Let’s go!”
K pushed through the crowd with determination, followed closely by Zhang Qiu and Young Men. After a few minutes, they indeed found a door open nearby; a slightly rusted sign read "Goods Passage." However, Zhang Qiu clearly saw that two iron doors were locked together with chains as thick as chopsticks.
Just as Zhang Qiu pondered how to unlock it, K had already taken action. A sleek black handgun appeared in K's hand; he calmly attached a suppressor and with a pop, the lock exploded. K yanked off the chain, pocketing the broken lock and shell before turning back and saying, “Hurry up.”
Zhang Qiu snapped out of his surprise and thought as they walked that these people were even more mysterious than he had imagined. Driving an armored car while carrying handguns and confronting violent machines—each aspect alone would be considered extraordinary.
Emerging from the goods passage, K hailed a taxi by the roadside. K took the front seat while Zhang Qiu and Young Men squeezed into the backseat, making it feel cramped inside. By the time the four men in black suits burst out of the supermarket, Zhang Qiu and his companions had long vanished. The leader dejectedly took out his phone and dialed a number, frustratedly saying, “Boss, they got away.”
After hanging up, he gritted his teeth and angrily commanded, “Find them! We must track them down.”
“Don’t move! Hands on your heads!”
Four police officers armed with 92-style pistols caught up from behind. None of the four men in black suits complied; instead, they split into pairs and fled in different directions. Seeing this, the officers rushed forward but only caught sight of their retreating figures. They contemplated firing but ultimately decided against it; after reporting the fugitives' direction via radio, they continued their pursuit.
In the taxi, K turned to Zhang Qiu and said, “Good thing you didn’t act on your own earlier; I was ready to knock you out and take you with me.”
“In a perilous situation like this, do I have any other choice but to trust you?” Zhang Qiu returned his gaze with equal intensity.
"I really dislike your attitude."
Zhang Qiu replied, "So do I."
After half an hour, the taxi stopped outside the yellow line at the entrance of a certain Research Center located in the suburbs of the capital. K got out of the car, and the Young Man opened the back door for Zhang Qiu, saying, "Get out, we’ve arrived."
Zhang Qiu stepped out of the car and surveyed the building before him. Inside the yellow line, there was a guard post and a railing, with armed soldiers standing straight at the entrance, holding rifles. Surrounding the high walls were coils of barbed wire, and a duty soldier in the guard tower had already aimed his Type 88 sniper rifle at the taxi. In fact, since its establishment, the soldiers in the guard tower had changed many times, but that Type 88 sniper rifle had never been fired. However, whenever someone approached, they still had to follow this set procedure.
As Zhang Qiu walked in, he finally saw the large red characters on a sign beside the entrance: Military Restricted Area. Zhang Qiu's confusion was instantly resolved; no wonder these people had guns and armored vehicles and dared to confront SWAT— they were a group of soldiers. Judging by the scale of this restricted area, it was clear that this was not an ordinary military zone. Having seen so much military presence, Zhang Qiu excitedly thought, could this be a special forces base?
K glanced at Zhang Qiu, who was standing still, and said, "Hurry up; Dr. Bai is still waiting for us."
Zhang Qiu quickly caught up, curiously observing everything inside the military restricted area. From the outside, it seemed quite large, but inside there was only one big building flanked by some artificially constructed ancient garden-style landscapes. Zhang Qiu became puzzled again; no matter how it looked, this couldn't possibly be a special forces location—so what kind of military restricted area was this?
With questions in mind, Zhang Qiu followed K into the building. When they reached the elevator, K didn't press any buttons but chose the only letter button: G.
The elevator slowly started downwards and eventually stopped at floor G. Zhang Qiu asked, "Are we going underground?"
"That's right."
When Zhang Qiu tried to ask more questions, K remained silent. Stepping out of the elevator revealed a smooth marble floor with glass curtain walls on both sides that were so clean they showed no dust whatsoever. After walking just a few steps, they encountered a middle-aged man dressed in a crisp light-colored suit. His hair was graying but he appeared lively; his gaze seemed like a black hole that swallowed everything in sight. As his voice rang out, Zhang Qiu felt goosebumps rise again.
"You must be Zhang Qiu; hello! Welcome to my Research Center."
Suppressing her disgust at this shrewd-looking man before her, Zhang Qiu said, "Aren't we here to draw blood? Let's get straight to it."
"Hehe, you seem quite eager. I think it would be better if we talked first; perhaps we could become friends in the future."
"Talk?" Zhang Qiu laughed. "That's exactly what I wanted to do."
"Oh?" Bai Jingwei looked at Zhang Qiu meaningfully. "That would be best."
"On my way here, I was chased. If the car hadn't been bulletproof, I might not have made it. I want to hear your plan regarding this matter."
Bai Jingwei showed no significant reaction after hearing this. He turned to K, who nodded slightly, and then Bai Jingwei smiled, "I sincerely apologize for such an unpleasant incident, but it does not affect our transaction. In fact, I promise to ensure your safety; I have not gone back on my word, and I have full confidence in my people."
"How can you guarantee that I'll still be safe after I leave here?" Zhang Qiu asked. If he left and they came after him, he had no means to escape.
"I will send someone with you until you return to the city."
"And what happens after I get back? The people who can do this kind of thing in a place like the capital must not be ordinary individuals. I'm very interested to know who they are."
"I don't know who they are either."
"You wouldn't know?"
"I truly don't know."
The atmosphere became awkward. Zhang Qiu did not believe that Bai Jingwei was completely unaware of these matters. Given that those men in black knew exactly when Zhang Qiu got out of the car, it was clear that information had been leaked from Bai Jingwei's side. If it had been leaked once, it could happen again.
Bai Jingwei was also pondering who might have leaked the information and what their intentions were. The research field he was involved in was unique in the entire country. Did they want to capture Zhang Qiu because they were interested in his blood?
To ease the awkwardness, Bai Jingwei suddenly smiled and said, "I heard from Dr. Li that you are very loyal; you risked increasing your sentence to save your girlfriend."
"Let's get straight to the point," Zhang Qiu said, tired of small talk with Bai Jingwei. "I owe you this; I'll repay it today. After the blood draw, take me away, and we will have no further interactions."
"Hehe, perhaps we could be friends in the future. At the very least, we might have a partnership."
"I can't afford that."
"How do you talk to Dr. Bai like that?" A man in his forties, wearing wide-brimmed glasses, stepped forward to accuse Zhang Qiu.
Zhang Qiu, who had been chased all the way here and was already furious, snapped back, "Screw you! Put away that condescending attitude. I came here because you sought me out, not because I begged you. I'm here to get things done, not to be hunted down or to take your crap."
"Alright, alright, no need to get so worked up," Bai Jingwei said calmly, chuckling lightly. "Since you're eager to have your blood drawn, let's get started. Follow me."
Zhang Qiu snorted coldly, ignoring the gritting teeth of the Wide-Brimmed Glasses Man, and followed Bai Jingwei. Through the glass wall, he could see strange instruments in the rooms on either side and staff members tightly wrapped in white protective suits, giving off a mysterious vibe similar to those secret research centers he had seen in movies.
Bai Jingwei led Zhang Qiu into a spacious room with a wall-sized television and comfortable luxury sofas. "Please have a seat," Bai Jingwei said with a smile.
Zhang Qiu sat down on the sofa, surveying the surroundings and asked, "Is this where the blood will be drawn?"
"Yes, right here."
Moments later, a beautiful nurse entered the room holding a tray and respectfully bowed to Bai Jingwei. Bai Jingwei nodded and instructed, "Draw his blood, two samples."
"Yes!" The beautiful nurse replied sweetly as she walked over to Zhang Qiu's side. She knelt directly on the deep blue carpet and placed the tray aside. The nurse took out an alcohol swab and gently wiped Zhang Qiu's arm before retrieving a butterfly needle and slowly inserting it into his vein. Bright red blood immediately flowed through the tubing into the collection bottle.
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