A Little More Haggling

Mang Ke was a little worried that Feng Xue had only exchanged a few words with him before being ushered into the room, but he still kept a straight face and pretended to be mute, letting Feng Xue do as she pleased. Feng Xue, on the other hand, shook hands with the middle-aged man who came out of the factory as if they were old acquaintances.

However, Mang Ke quickly realized something was wrong, because the two of them were shaking hands for a little too long...

"Young man, isn't your price a bit too high?"

"A flagship model Baqi 377, complete with all Accessories, only the lock plate is damaged. In this condition, it would be worth 70% in Budali." Feng Xue maintained an unyielding attitude, but her clasped hands subtly shifted their grip.

The man seemed to think for a moment before saying:

"You said it yourself, it's Budali. Parlin Kingdom a small country, it's not easy to get such a small vehicle out!"

"It's not that it's impossible to get out, but it's not that it's impossible." Feng Xue ignored the man's hand movements, but a ruthless glint flashed in his eyes. He then glanced at the man's hand at his waist, released it, and shook his head, saying:

"It's not that I'm greedy, it's just that your model is too big. There are only five in the entire Palin. If I want to sell it, I'll have to find a way to send it away, and the travel expenses alone will be a problem."

"Oh, send it out?" Feng Xue's lips curled up slightly, while the middle-aged man seemed to understand and smiled, saying:

"I knew that if you could get such good goods, you must know the market price. Turns out, this young man was after my connections."

"There's no other way. The person we've offended has some powerful connections. We have to test the waters first." Feng Xue pouted, but didn't take her hand out of her pocket. Seeing this, the man remained silent for a moment before finally saying:

"It's not that I'm timid, it's just that I need to check this car. Brother, give me two hours, and whether it works out or not, we'll go by the price you said. I, Lao Hei, have been running this place for twenty years; I'm not going to ruin my reputation for a horse."

"Then I shall respectfully comply."

"You can speak now." Inside a motel next to the parking lot, Feng Xue lifted the ban on Mang Ke. Relieved by his reply, Mang Ke finally breathed a sigh of relief, rubbed his stiff cheeks, and then said:

"What exactly did you say to that person? Why did your handshake take so long?"

"Holding hands is for negotiating prices, usually to prevent others from knowing the transaction price. However, here it's mainly to verify the connection, to confirm whether I'm a real insider or just a bait set up by the official."

While Mang Ke, Feng Xue opened the hotel's refrigerator, took out a bottle of drink, and opened it.

Mang Ke suddenly had a fantastical feeling that "spy movies are all real," but he didn't forget the current situation and asked:

Can I contact them now?

"Okay, but don't tell me our location. Also, don't beat around the bush, just ask what to do next, whether it's handing over items or the route. I've already checked the house; the hidden cameras and listening devices have been blocked. I'll keep watch outside. Hurry up."

After saying that, Feng Xue took the drinks and left the room. Mang Ke took a deep breath, pulled out the thick, black Satellite Phone, and quickly dialed the number...

In the capital of Palin, several people familiar with the "Dawn" project looked at each other with worried expressions. They had just finished dealing with the diplomatic ambassador of the Ideal Country and then met in a safe house.

"Currently, it seems that Mang Ke escaped with the items, but we can't rule out the possibility that Ideal Country already obtained them and then made up an excuse to test our reaction."

"I know Mang Ke well. She doesn't have the ability to escape that encirclement on her own, and that machine isn't capable of fighting against the Gold Knight."

"But given the way the Ideal Country operates, if they had obtained the goods, they would never be so hypocritical. Instead, they would directly announce a terrorist attack and shamelessly proclaim to the world that they 'protected Palin.'"

"Could it be that other forces have entered?"

"It cannot be ruled out that..."

Just as the senior executives were racking their brains over the blindness, a monotonous ringtone suddenly sounded, instantly focusing their attention. The researcher, the chief commander of Project Dawn, awkwardly pulled out his communicator, but his expression immediately changed—

"It was Mang Ke called!"

Answer it quickly!

"..."

"Hello?"

"Teacher? Is that you?" Mang Ke's voice came through the receiver. Upon hearing this, the project's commander suppressed his emotions and calmly replied, like an ordinary teacher receiving a call from a student:

"Mang Ke? Why are you calling this number?"

"Teacher, is it convenient for you to speak now?"

Mang Ke's question startled the old professor. He looked up, glanced at everyone in the conference room, and only spoke after receiving permission:

"They are all trustworthy people."

Upon hearing this, Mang Ke paused for a moment, but quickly gave up on thinking about it and said directly:

"'Dawn' is with me, what should I do next?"

"!"

The temperature in the conference room suddenly rose, and the old professor's breathing became more rapid. But before he could speak, the high-ranking military officer next to him raised his hand to make an "X," shook his head, and then quickly picked up the meeting minutes book, which had not been written on at all, and quickly wrote down a line.

The old professor looked at the line of text, realized what it meant, sighed, and then said:

"Mang Ke, I don't know if you're still free, or how you escaped the encirclement, but the situation in the capital is very serious, and we can't bring you back for the time being."

He then added:

"But don't worry, no matter how unreasonable the Ideal Country is, it can't maintain a blockade for long..."

Why waste time with all this nonsense? Just say you can't go back, that's all.

The sudden interruption of the conversation startled everyone in the conference room, with high-ranking military officials stating directly:

"Who are you? Are you the Mang Ke?"

"Me? Just a multi-talented ordinary high school student. In short, I have no interest in these three burdens. If you have a way, take them back quickly. If not, then you might as well listen to my suggestion."

"This..." The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly became noisy, but quickly quieted down again, and the old professor spoke first:

"Please tell me."

"Palin isn't very safe right now. I've found a private channel to leave Palin. Do any of you have a safe house abroad, the kind with communication capabilities? I'll send this burden over there, and you can figure things out yourselves."

Hearing this reply, everyone in the room was clearly surprised that it was so simple. After a moment's thought, the old professor, prompted, asked, "What do you want?"

"I didn't originally intend to, but since you've put it that way, how about I borrow this knock-off you made and play with it for a bit?"

Since the item was in someone else's hands, it was impossible to say no. Without much thought, everyone in the room reached a consensus.

"Thank you for your help, sir. If possible, please deliver Mang Ke to QY City in Bailin Country. Here is the address and contact information..."