The Transaction

"Liu Nan was captured, just, just, just..."

Yuan Nan Nan was flustered, unable to organize her words for a moment.

"Don't rush, speak slowly."

He Ao watched Yuan Nan Nan's incoherent state, placed the phone in his hand on the counter, took a disposable plastic cup, and poured her a cup of water from his thermos.

"Mm... mm..." The anxious Yuan Nan Nan subconsciously took the cup. He Ao's calmness infected her, making her slightly calmer and allowing her to gradually organize her words.

"It's just that we were preparing to take a taxi home over there, and then suddenly there was an explosion, a boom, and then Liu Nan pulled me and we ran and ran... and then she also called a car... we just got in the car... Liu Nan was grabbed by a person who was completely red, full of muscles, and particularly strong. That person was too terrifying, he directly tore off the car door... just like this... rip, rip... he just tore it off..."

Yuan Nan Nan tried to act out the 'rip' motion, and then spilled the water in the cup she was holding. Some of it spilled on the glass counter, and some wet her clothes.

He Ao handed her a few tissues to wipe her clothes. Although Yuan Nan Nan's words were disjointed, He Ao roughly understood what she meant. Just as he was about to speak, Zhang Anxia's voice suddenly came from the other end of the phone, "It's Bull! The one who kidnapped Liu Nan is Bull."

He Ao was using a type of smartphone commonly used by the elderly on the market, costing only a few hundred yuan. Its performance wasn't great, but the sound was incredibly loud. Even though He Ao hadn't turned on the speakerphone, Zhang Anxia's voice successfully reached both He Ao and Yuan Nan Nan's ears.

"What bull? Where is there a bull?"

Yuan Nan Nan was stunned for a moment.

"It's okay, wait a moment."

He Ao nodded towards Yuan Nan Nan, lowered the phone's volume, and put it to his ear. He had actually thought Zhang Anxia had hung up, but he didn't expect Zhang Anxia to have been eavesdropping all along.

"He Ao, the mission has changed now. You're familiar with that area. Do you have confidence in finding Bull? You just need to delay for a while, make sure to protect Liu Nan from harm, and wait for me to rush back."

Zhang Anxia's voice clearly became a little low, indicating that things had obviously gone beyond his control.

"Using my location as a base point, which direction are you in now, and what is the surrounding environment like? Does Bull know the direction you left in?"

He Ao didn't answer directly, but instead asked back.

"West, I'm surrounded by self-built houses in the countryside now, and also some construction sites," Zhang Anxia thought for a moment, "Bull's accomplice led me away, so he should know my direction."

Then He Ao looked at the still somewhat confused Yuan Nan Nan, "Where were you attacked just now?"

"Just a crossroads. Liu Nan pulled me along just now, I didn't pay attention."

Yuan Nan Nan was clearly stunned for a moment.

"Are there any landmark buildings or objects nearby?"

He Ao pressed on.

"There are main roads, trees, and cars..."

Yuan Nan Nan recalled carefully.

He Ao: ...

"Are there people?"

"No people."

Yuan Nan Nan shook her head.

The only place nearby with no people and wide roads was the few crossroads not far to the north. The factories around that intersection didn't work night shifts, and the dormitories weren't nearby, so basically no one went there after dark.

It just so happened that the direction Liu Nan pulled Yuan Nan Nan towards was also north.

He Ao quickly recalled the surrounding terrain in his mind, roughly estimated the location of the intersection, and then he asked Zhang Anxia, "Do you have any companions?"

Zhang Anxia dared to chase after them with such confidence, so he must have reliable teammates.

"Yes," Zhang Anxia's reply was also quick; he seemed to have been on the move the whole time. "Theoretically, she should have been following Liu Nan, but I can't contact her now. I didn't hang up just now because I wanted to ask you to go find her."

"Okay," He Ao turned his gaze back to Yuan Nan Nan. "When you were attacked just now, did you see anyone strange?"

"No? Maybe?" Yuan Nan Nan thought for a moment, unsure how to explain. "It's just that when the explosion happened, it seemed like two figures flashed by, whooshing across the road. I didn't see them clearly either."

"Which way did they go?"

He Ao asked, then he thought for a moment, dipped his finger in the water that had just spilled on the counter, and quickly drew a simple map with intersecting lines. He pointed to the bottommost point, "This is my stall."

Then he moved his finger forward to an intersection. "This should be where you were standing just now. Which way did those two people go?"

"It seemed to be this way!"

This time, Yuan Nan Nan pointed forward in a direction.

"That's north," He Ao roughly understood the situation. He said softly into the phone, "It seems your teammate was led away, which is why they had an opening to grab Liu Nan."

"Yes," Zhang Anxia also heard the conversation between the two just now. "Our intelligence was flawed; we only had information on Bull."

"So there might be others with Bull?"

He Ao keenly grasped the key point.

"No, hiding two people is their limit. They don't have that many people."

This time, Zhang Anxia spoke with certainty, and then he immediately pressed on, "So do you have any leads now? Can you find Bull?"

"Yes," He Ao replied calmly, "It'll cost extra."

"Okay, starting at ten thousand. You can name your price based on the results afterward."

This time, Zhang Anxia didn't hesitate. This was not the time for hesitation.

Moreover, the clear logic He Ao had just displayed had already impressed him. All he was thinking about now was how to trick... no, recruit this kid into the research institute afterward.

He Ao naturally didn't know what Zhang Anxia was thinking at that moment, but he knew Zhang Anxia must have already suspected he was an extraordinary person. But he didn't say anything, and Zhang Anxia didn't ask.

The two of them tacitly remained silent about this matter.

The research institute Zhang Anxia belonged to was clearly a large, secretive organization, and most likely one on the side of order.

For He Ao, when he realized the world was starting to change, he had consciously been looking for channels to stably obtain intelligence.

In a changing era, large organizations often grasp a lot of information before individuals do, and the most important thing in this world is actually information. A gap in information can be the difference between life and death.

For example, if you drink paraquat, even an immortal can't save you, but if you drink ordinary pesticide, a stomach wash can save you. For someone who just wants to threaten others by drinking pesticide and doesn't really want to die, whether they know the toxicity of paraquat might be the difference between life and death.

Zhang Anxia was smart enough and friendly enough.

So He Ao was very happy to cooperate with him this time. His agreement to this employment also had the meaning of returning a favor.