Collusion

Another half month passed quickly.

Autumn had begun in the Northern Hemisphere, but the Luzon Archipelago, in the tropics, was still hot and rainy.

During this time,

everything remained calm within Homo sapiens Company. Although Li Jinglan couldn't stand Fang Xin Cheng, he understood that he couldn't just fire a member of the company's management team on his own.

But as he watched the company's account balance swell to over a hundred million US dollars—and thought of the nearly billion dollars he'd handled before—the greed in his heart grew unchecked.

Then he thought of the budget Fang Xin Cheng had approved yesterday, and his expression darkened. He could have pocketed at least three million dollars from this project, but now he'd only get a little over a hundred thousand.

The thought made Li Jinglan's heart ache.

Then he thought of Homo sapiens Company, which possessed the technology for breeding eels artificially. Its future revenues were bound to be enormous, but even if he received a share of the profits, it would be a pittance.

Damn Fang Xin Cheng. Once I'm in control of the company, I'll kick you out first thing, he seethed.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up. He took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts.

Before long, he found a name and dialed the number.

"Hello, Mr. Li. How can I help you?"

Li Jinglan said with a smile, "Mr. Watanabe, how have you been?"

"Thank you for asking, Mr. Li. I'm getting by, more or less."

"Would you be interested in discussing a business deal, Mr. Watanabe?"

"Oh? I'm all ears."

Two days later,

at the Starfish Restaurant in Darte Port,

Li Jinglan met secretly with Watanabe Motoji and his secretary, Leme.

In a private room,

after a few pleasantries, Li Jinglan got straight to the point. "Mr. Watanabe, I hear your investment company has a lot of influence in Southeast Asia. Would you be interested in investing in Homo sapiens Company?"

"Invest in Homo sapiens Company?" Watanabe glanced at Li Jinglan without giving anything away, then replied, "That depends on whether it's worth it. I'm only a small-time businessman, after all."

"What if Homo sapiens Company had a low-cost technology for breeding eels?" Li Jinglan offered his first bargaining chip.

Watanabe was ecstatic inside, but kept his expression neutral. "You said 'if.' I need a definite answer. Otherwise, I can't convince my shareholders."

"Homo sapiens Company has already developed the technology. The eel fry we sold a few months ago were produced through artificial breeding. I can tell you that the fish-fry sales companies in Manila and Hong Kong are both controlled behind the scenes by our company."

Watanabe already believed Li Jinglan. He countered, "If you've already achieved mass production, then as far as I know, your company's revenue this year is likely to top a billion dollars. It doesn't seem short on funds."

Li Jinglan adjusted his glasses. "The company's core technology is in the hands of its founder, Zhang Jack. And all of Homo sapiens Company's shares are in his name. The market is enormous, and everyone wants to make money."

"I see. So what do you need me to do, Mr. Li?" Watanabe had seen through Li Jinglan's greed and resentment.

"That technology must be hidden at the Research Base on Calagua Island. But Zhang Jack takes the island very seriously, so I can't get my hands on the technology directly."

Li Jinglan continued, "If you can have Zhang Jack taken care of, I can take control of Homo sapiens Company. Then we can work closely together and monopolize the entire eel-fry industry."

Watanabe was tempted by the proposal, too. After all, this was an industry that brought in over a billion dollars in annual profits.

The two hit it off and began discussing the details of their partnership.

Neither of them noticed the inconspicuous flies on the ceiling, silently watching everything.

Li Qingye stopped writing with his ballpoint pen.

Skinny Monkey gave him a detailed report. "Half an hour ago, Li Jinglan met with a Japanese angel investor named Watanabe Motoji at the Starfish Restaurant in Darte Port. This is a transcript of their conversation."

He placed the transcript on the desk.

Li Qingye flipped through it and scoffed. "Give someone an inch, and they'll take a mile. Looks like some people have gotten carried away."

A cold glint flashed in his eyes. He casually instructed the bald man standing nearby, "Fili, bring Mr. Watanabe here, and carry out Plan 95."

"Yes, boss!" Fili saluted, then immediately headed out.

At the Blue Sea Hotel in Darte Port,

Watanabe Motoji, who had just met with Li Jinglan, was discussing things with two subordinates.

"Mr. Watanabe, the core technology of Homo sapiens Company is in the hands of its founder, Zhang Jack. He probably won't hand over the technology or sell the company shares easily."

Watanabe Motoji had a long, horse-like face, yet he seemed utterly confident.

"He'll agree. We have friends in Luzon. If he doesn't know what's good for him, we'll make him understand how the real world works."

Another subordinate asked, "What should we tell our people over there?"

"Once the network's back, send them an email. The signal in this dump is terrible..." Watanabe Motoji said disdainfully.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

The subordinate nearest the door got up to open it. Seeing a stranger in a black suit outside, he asked suspiciously, "Who are you?"

"May I ask if you're Mr. Watanabe? I'm here on behalf of Manager Li Jinglan," the man in the black suit asked, his tone stiff and formal.

"Oh? I'm Watanabe. What does Mr. Li want?" Watanabe Motoji asked in surprise.

The man in the black suit continued, "Manager Li asked me to bring you all to dinner. He said he has something important to discuss with you, Mr. Watanabe."

"I see. Lead the way!" Watanabe Motoji didn't suspect a thing.

Watanabe Motoji was very good at reading people. He even studied the man in the black suit for a while, but saw nothing unusual in his expression.

The three men gathered their phones, laptops, and other belongings, then followed the man in the black suit out of the hotel and climbed into an SUV.

Once the vehicle started, it drove straight toward the outskirts. After about ten minutes,

Watanabe heard mosquitoes buzzing inside the vehicle. In a tropical rainforest climate like Luzon's, mosquitoes were extremely common.

Caught off guard, all three men were bitten several times. A series of slapping sounds filled the vehicle.

After casually killing a few mosquitoes, Watanabe saw blood on his hands. "Do you have a tissue?"

"Yes." The soldier in the front passenger seat smiled and pulled out a tissue.

As soon as Watanabe took it, his vision doubled. What was happening? Before he could react, he passed out.

The other two Japanese men also felt their bodies growing heavier, until they couldn't even lift their arms.

More than thirty minutes later, the SUV arrived at a secluded little pier.

The soldiers dragged Watanabe and the other two out of the vehicle. A fishing boat had been waiting there for quite some time. Three animal-storage cabinets had been set up in its hold, and the men were stuffed inside them. The boat quickly disappeared into the night.

Elsewhere,

the Blue Sea Hotel's manager smiled at the bald man. "Thank you all for your generous support."

The bald man had just extended the room bookings for Watanabe and the other two by half a month. He'd said their friends had taken them out to enjoy themselves, and that he was worried their rooms might expire, so he'd come to renew the bookings.

That way, Watanabe and the others wouldn't be reported missing anytime soon.

As for the other person who knew about the meeting,

on Li Qingye's orders, he had already gone to Manila to catch a plane to Hong Kong, where he planned to take care of some business and visit his family.