"My friend, you did this old bag of bones a great favor by pulling me back from Ghost Gate. Since he can't leave, I'll stay and keep him company. Qianqian, you should go. They must be getting anxious since they haven't heard back from you."

Big Wave glanced at the old man and then at Xia Liang, but didn't respond.

Jiang Wei's patience was gradually fading. He was eager to wrap things up and take the opportunity to weed out Yun Long's people, so he didn't stop her. One person more or less didn't matter, as long as the woman left.

"Are you sure you want them to stay?"

This time, a smile actually touched Big Wave's lips.

"Please leave."

Jiang Wei extended his arm, gesturing for her to go.

"Very well."

When the interrogation room returned to silence, Xia Liang had lost count of how many times he had rolled his eyes.

"Sir, don't you think if we'd been a little more forceful just now, we could have walked right out?"

The little old man shook his head with a smile.

"My friend, leaving is easy, but have you considered that Jiang Wei might try to settle scores later? I did this to take care of that problem for you, so he won't dare to trouble you again."

Although Xia Liang wasn't afraid, he nodded in agreement.

He could, however, sense an indescribable and unfathomable aura about the old man.

Curious as he was, Xia Liang still refrained from checking the man's panel. After all, he was an elder, and it wouldn't be right to pry.

"Sir, if you don't mind my asking, what is it that you do?"

"I do a bit of research, some writing and drawing. I was hospitalized recently, you see. Some people were worried this old bag of bones might check out too soon, so they sent Xixi to fetch a serum. Unexpectedly, something went wrong along the way. If it hadn't been for your help, my friend, I probably wouldn't have seen tomorrow's sunrise."

His identity was definitely not simple. After all, Big Wave wouldn't go to the trouble of getting a serum for an ordinary old man—there was definitely more to this story.

"So where do you work?"

"When I was young, I was in the mountains, then in the Gobi Desert. Now I'm just at home, though I go into the unit occasionally."

Xia Liang couldn't help but tease, "Sir, don't tell me you worked in mining or drilling for oil, did you?"

"Hahaha, my friend, you have quite a sense of humor. Oh, right, my memory is terrible."

The little old man took out a small box from within his coat.

"I'd completely forgotten I had this with me. If I'd remembered it earlier, we wouldn't have had to stay behind."

「Conference Room.」

The urgent meeting continued. After consulting with several departments, a conclusion was quickly reached: Xia Liang would face a minimum of life imprisonment for multiple charges, including unlawful imprisonment, endangering public safety, murder, and speeding. Even Yun Long wouldn't be able to save him.

As for the little old man, he would get five or six years and likely die in prison. Jiang Wei also intended for this swiftness to catch his superiors off guard. Once the case was finalized and made public, no one could stop it. The outside world would only see his decisive and resolute actions.

"Let's proceed. We'll press charges officially tomorrow morning—"

"Captain!"

The meeting was interrupted yet again. In a fit of anger, Jiang Wei slammed his teacup on the floor.

"How many times do I have to tell you? Knock before entering a meeting! Anyone who makes such a low-level mistake again will face the consequences!"

The clerk flinched in fear, but he knew how important the item in his hands was.

"Captain, please look at this."

Jiang Wei's face was dark as he took the box. He opened it to find a copper-colored medal inside. It was somewhat damaged, perhaps due to its age.

"What's this supposed to mean?"

"It belongs to the old man in the interrogation room. He said to have you take a look, Captain."

Jiang Wei sneered. "The son of heaven is subject to the same laws as the common people. Even someone with past merits must be punished for their wrongdoings. Send it back."

A medal? So what? Things like this aren't exactly rare. It's not enough to scare me.

To his surprise, his subordinates were staring at him as if he were an idiot. The civilian secretary, in particular, looked utterly dismayed.

"Captain, you really don't know?"

Jiang Wei felt extremely embarrassed by his own ignorance, but as the captain, he had to maintain his authority.

"What difference does it make if I know or not? I told you to send it back, so send it back! Does my word not count for anything anymore?"

This time, the clerk didn't obey. Instead, he cautiously placed the box in front of Jiang Wei.

"Captain, only thirty-six of these medals were ever issued. In all of Qingyun City, there is only one recipient, and of the original thirty-six, fewer than five are still alive.

"Its full name is the Star Merit Medal, created to commemorate the two great explosions in the Gobi Desert back then. Its owner is a national hero of Dragon Country and the current Vice President of the Dragon Country Science Academy, Lu Guangyao. A few days ago, Mr. Lu was accidentally poisoned, and it's said there's no cure in the country. The serum that woman was carrying must have been to save him."

CRACK.

With too much force, the pen in Jiang Wei's hand snapped in two. But he couldn't feel the pain in his hand at all; his brain had completely shut down.

"That bastard Jiang Wei! Where is he? Why hasn't he released them! This Master is going to skin him alive!"

The sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the conference room, accompanied by the roaring of Wang Jia, the second-in-command of Qingyun City. With a fiery temper from his background in the Weiguo Army, he had assumed Jiang Wei would quietly release the detainees. Then he could play peacemaker and de-escalate the situation.

But he never imagined that bastard Jiang Wei's petty schemes would be going off like firecrackers. Making small moves on the side was one thing, but was this really the time for such antics?

"Jiang Wei!"

Entering the conference room, Wang Jia snatched an ashtray from the table and charged. Luckily, the people around him frantically held him back, otherwise Jiang Wei's skull would have been cracked open.

"Why didn't you release them? Why! Do you have any idea who you've detained?"

After all, Wang Jia was the one backing Jiang Wei.

However, everyone understood Wang Jia's fury. To put it bluntly, what Jiang Wei had done was like lighting a lantern in a latrine—courting death.

"Where are they now? Take me to them, quickly."

Seeing Jiang Wei standing there like a vegetable, Wang Jia stopped wasting his anger on him and ordered someone to lead the way to the detention room. But then, another complication arose.

A report came from outside that several jeeps with special license plates had already crashed through the guard post. No one could stop them.

Bai Zhen nearly fainted when he heard the news.

The outcome he had dreaded most had still come to pass.

A formidable, square-faced man strode into the main hall. The young officers on duty, full of youthful bravado, moved to block the group for barging in so recklessly. Fortunately, the older veterans beside them held them back firmly.

"Where is the old gentleman? And where is his benefactor?" the square-faced man asked the oldest-looking officer there, his voice exuding an air of authority without a hint of anger.

"Uh... in the detention room..."

"You people have some nerve."

The square-faced man patted the officer's shoulder and walked straight inside.

At that moment, Wang Jia came scurrying over from the conference room. Spotting the square-faced man, he quickly put on a warm smile and greeted him.

"Well, if it isn't Lu Chuang! How long has it been? Back in the day at Old Shan, we ate from the same pot. What's this? Now that we're working in the same city, you pretend not to see me? You don't even think to call your old brother for a drink?"

Lu Chuang's expression softened, but only slightly.

"Wang Jia, our friendship goes without saying. If it weren't out of respect for you, I wouldn't have come in so politely today. Do you have any idea how the higher-ups reacted when they heard what happened in Qingyun City?"

Wang Jia could guess the gist of it without even thinking. As Lu Chuang's father, Lu Guangyao's status was far too sensitive.

"Yes, yes, you're right. It's all my fault. I failed to keep my subordinates in line. But since no major harm has been done, please, do an old brother a favor and don't take any drastic action."

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