Man Without Heart Is a Beast

Brown was a bit confused.

"Pleasant cooperation?"

What was going on?

Wasn't this supposed to be a tense confrontation, a battle of wits?

Seeing Darrell shake hands with another man, a strange, almost tearful smile on his face, Brown was completely bewildered.

He didn't know whether he should directly question them sternly as he had planned, or if he should first try to understand what was happening.

The emotions and momentum he had built up on the way were already starting to dissipate due to this sudden turn of events and pause, before he could even release them.

"Director?" Darrell's smile, which looked even more like he was about to cry, remained as he instinctively greeted Brown, "You're here?"

"Mmm..." Brown pondered for a moment, deciding not to blow up for now. "What's going on? I heard you talking about cooperation? What cooperation?"

"Hello, allow me to introduce myself, I am IRS employee Zhou Yi. You must be Director Brown, correct?" Zhou Yi said with a smile, extending his hand.

"Yes..."

As the saying goes, one doesn't hit a smiling face. Although he hadn't figured out what was going on, seeing Zhou Yi's demeanor, Brown had no choice but to extend his hand and shake Zhou Yi's.

"It's like this, actually, I'm here on the orders of our IRS Director Chris." After shaking hands, Zhou Yi continued to smile.

Hearing this, Brown instinctively narrowed his eyes, his expression turning serious, and he prepared himself for battle.

As expected, this guy is a smiling tiger!

He's trying to break down my guard with a smile, then reveal his true intentions to strike at my psyche, making me reveal weaknesses later!

But he definitely won't expect that I've seen through his little tricks completely!

Hmph, judging by his hair... and his face, he's just a young man. Such petty tricks, laughable, laughable!

Brown thought to himself confidently, fully prepared, intending to counter with thunderous force once Zhou Yi revealed his purpose!

Then, the confident Brown heard Zhou Yi's next sentence.

"My purpose for coming this time is to have the IRS and the CIA engage in a friendly exchange activity, covering aspects such as management systems, equipment technology, and professional qualities of agents. To show our sincerity, the Director has sent me to discuss this matter in person."

If this were a world of anime, Brown would probably turn to stone right now and shatter into pieces.

The words Zhou Yi had just spoken kept echoing in his ears.

The words "friendly" and "exchange" kept appearing in his mind.

After a long moment, Brown turned his neck with a crack and looked at Darrell.

I... I almost made a complete fool of myself...

Darrell, with his head bowed, felt the sword-like gaze piercing him. He didn't dare to look up, focusing on the floor as if he was very interested in its patterns.

Zhou Yi pretended not to notice the strange atmosphere in the conference room and continued, "Director Brown, what are your thoughts?"

After all, it wasn't Zhou Yi who was embarrassed, so he didn't care!

"Then it's settled. I'm looking forward to the exchange with the CIA!"

Zhou Yi greeted Brown, who wore a forced smile, and Darrell, who had been looking down silently the entire time. Then, he got into his car and drove away.

The fading of Brown's smile was directly proportional to the distance Zhou Yi's car traveled.

By the time Zhou Yi's car was completely out of sight, Brown's face was clouded with gloom.

"Darrell," Brown said after a long silence.

"Director... I'm here," Darrell replied weakly.

"...Do you have anything you want to explain?" Brown asked after taking a deep breath.

In the car, Zhou Yi drove for a while before pulling over to the side of the road.

Humming a tune, he accurately located several listening devices and trackers, tossed them into a passing truck, and then leisurely got back into his car and drove away.

The CIA, being an intelligence agency, it was understandable that they would do such things.

However...

To play such tricks in front of Zhou Yi, a master mechanic? Wasn't that looking down on his professional skills?

Advanced Car Mastery was not just a title!

While driving, Zhou Yi opened his phone and checked his messages.

Ethan had sent a few more messages.

Tom: "Next, I'm heading to Britain. I'll be making a transaction with Max on a train. If you want that ten million dollars, then you'll have to participate in the operation as well. I need your help to ensure everything goes smoothly."

Tom: "If there's anything you need my cooperation with for your operation, contact me in advance so I can make the necessary plans."

Zhou Yi smiled and sent a message back to Ethan.

FBI Employee: "Just proceed with your operation plan. I need to go to Wisconsin first. I'll be on the train when you make the transaction."

A moment later, Ethan sent another message.

Tom: "Wisconsin? What are you doing there?"

Zhou Yi fiddled with the steering wheel, occasionally stepping on the gas pedal, weaving through traffic. He sent a message back.

FBI Employee: "You don't think the CIA will do nothing after something this big, do you? If I recall correctly, your parents live in Wisconsin?"

Ethan replied almost immediately.

Tom: "They won't actually lay a hand on them."

FBI Employee: "But they'll arrest your parents on some pretext and broadcast the news worldwide. That's the only way to ensure you know."

Tom: "...What are you planning to do?"

Clearly, Ethan had thought about what might happen and was hesitating.

Who would want their parents falsely accused and imprisoned, with everyone in the world knowing about it?

People care about their reputation, just like trees need their bark. Although Ethan knew the CIA wouldn't dare cause any substantial harm to his parents before he traded or returned the list, wasn't emotional damage still damage?

No one wants to see their parents wronged or hurt because of them, unless they are heartless.

A heartless person is no different from a beast.

Of course, there are cases where parents are extremely unreasonable, leading to a severely broken relationship. Who is right or wrong in those situations is not for discussion here.

However, Ethan wasn't one of those cases.

He had deep feelings for his parents.

FBI Employee: "There are many ways to send two people to prison, but for something significant enough to be broadcast worldwide and sound plausible, it would have to be drug trafficking, fraud, or terrorism... In Wisconsin, the first two are the most likely.

"And both of those have one thing in common: a large sum of money is involved."

Tom: "So, are you going to intercept them, or make a preemptive move?"

FBI Employee: "Please don't make it sound like we're bandits. We're a legitimate company with credentials. This should be called—legally exercising the authority granted to us by the federal government."

How much power does the IRS have?

As long as there's evidence of tax evasion, they can arrest anyone, and they can even intercept suspects from the FBI or CIA!

And now, Zhou Yi was about to exercise his "legal authority" as an IRS employee!

Tomorrow, I'm supposed to dismantle a giant turboshaft engine... Tough stuff, another day of almost working myself to death... Good night, fellow worker!