New Subordinate, New Neighbor

Everyone feels relaxed when they come to their own private space.

Because no one is watching you, no one is scrutinizing your behavior and posture.

But Qing Chen did not relax.

He stood by the door, closed his eyes, and listened quietly to all the sounds from the outside world.

There was no sound of the door opening or closing.

There was nothing there.

This is an anomaly.

The room is 89 square meters, which is considered a "mansion" in the District 5 in the crowded cyberpunk city. Most families of three still live in a 15-square-meter "Dove Cage".

Qing Chen didn't check his new home immediately; instead, he reopened the door and walked outside.

The quiet, dimly lit corridor was deserted. He took off his shoes and, using the technique his Mother Ye had taught him, silently and quickly approached the emergency exit...

In the corridor, the woman from the elevator was whispering, "He didn't notice anything unusual about me..."

The person on the phone laughed and said, "Your acting skills are the best in your group, it's normal that he didn't notice you. Remember to create more interactions with him. I want to see when he'll figure you out. This is really an interesting game."

"Yes, sir..."

The woman suddenly froze at this point.

Because behind her, someone had a dark gun barrel pressed against her heart.

Qing Chen silently took the phone from the woman's hand and said into the phone, "Mr. Shadow, this doesn't seem very friendly."

With his hearing, he could naturally tell that the voice on the phone belonged to that Mr. Qing's shadow.

And this 'female celebrity' whom they seemed to have met by chance was all arranged by the other party.

Qing Chen was listening to from his room was the sound of the female celebrity opening and closing the door. Since she lived here, there was no reason for her not to open and close the door.

It must be said that this arrangement was actually very ingenious.

Because the woman entered the elevator before Qing Chen, and just before the elevator doors were about to close, Qing Chen himself stopped the elevator.

Then the woman pressed the 112th floor before him and accused him of stalking her.

This is a preemptive approach. Ordinary people at this time will only get caught up in the mindset of "explaining the misunderstanding" and will not turn around and doubt the other party's identity.

But Qing Chen was very cautious, so cautious that he habitually doubted everything.

Such a coincidence, and such prior notice of his arrival, could only be from Shadow.

At that moment, Shadow laughed on the phone, "I thought she could fool you. She's surprisingly cautious. I'm curious, why do you suspect her? She really is a third-tier celebrity; she was even a second-tier star in her younger days."

Qing Chen was taken aback. He looked at the woman. Did this Mr. Shadow have a lot of informants? Even a third-rate celebrity could work for the Secret Intelligence Department.

He calmly replied, "I just don't believe in accidents."

Shadow paused for a second before saying, "It's a good habit not to believe in accidents. Her name is Yan Chunmi; you can just call her Xiaomi. However, since you've figured her out, you can go to the Secret Intelligence Department ahead of time. After 2 a. m., she'll be responsible for taking you to report to the Secret Intelligence Department. From now on, she'll be your team member, and the Second Team of the Secret Intelligence Department will serve you as the sole agent. In addition, all your orders to the Freemasons can be relayed by Yan Chunmi. Only she knows your identity as an agent, so you can trust her completely... Of course, whether you're willing to trust her is your own business."

The Secret Intelligence Department operates on a pyramidal power structure, with each spy acting independently and reporting only to the Shadow.

They each have their own action groups, each consisting of 12 people, and under these 12 people are several branch organizations, such as the Freemasons, which are controlled by Yan Chunmi.

It can be said that Qing Chen is now at the pinnacle of the Secret Intelligence Department's Second Group, and beneath him lies a massive pyramid foundation.

This is the power that the Qing family's shadow wants to give him, although it is only the tip of the iceberg.

Yan Chunmi took off her scarf and sunglasses, intending to turn around and greet her new boss.

However, just as she was about to move, she found that the gun barrel was still pressed against her back without loosening its grip.

Yan Chunmi: "..."

She thought to herself that her new boss seemed a bit difficult to get along with.

Even though Mr. Shadow had explained his identity, the other party still didn't let their guard down.

Qing Chen asked curiously over the phone, "What if I hadn't seen through her?"

"Naturally, we need more people and some bloody lessons to make you understand how complex and dangerous City No. 10 is," Qing's Shadow said calmly.

At one point, Qing Chen suddenly felt that this shadow... seemed to be spending time and energy teaching him something, just like Li Shutong and Li Xiurui.

However, the methods the other party used to teach him were even more bizarre and cruel.

Qing Chen thought for a moment and then asked, "What will I be required to do after joining the Secret Intelligence Department?"

Mr. Shadow replied, "Don't rush, I'll give you a mission. Before that, remember to go to work at the Federal Central Intelligence Agency."

After saying that, Qing Shiying hung up the phone.

Qing Chen looked at Yan Chunmi: "Turn around."

Yan Chunmi said helplessly, "Boss, it was Mr. Shadow who told me to lie to you, it has nothing to do with me. But if you want to beat me up to vent your anger, that's fine, but remember not to hit my face, I have an audition scheduled with a film crew tomorrow."

The other party immediately put herself in a vulnerable position and played the role of a weak woman.

Qing Chen looked at the other person's appearance; she was very beautiful and refined. No wonder she could be an actress. "Stop acting. Let's go back inside and talk."

Yan Chunmi walked towards room 1129, saying as she went, "Boss, I'm still your subordinate. Can't you give your subordinate a little trust? Let's put the guns down first?"

Yan Chunmi was at her wit's end. She had seen cautious people before, but she had never seen anyone this cautious.

After entering the room, Qing Chen asked, "What level are you?"

Yan Chunmi replied, "D-Class. Your team members should all be at this level, only the secret agents themselves are at a higher level."

Qing Chen thought to himself that he had only just reached D-Class, and then asked, "How do you maintain contact with the Freemasons?"

Yan Chunmi explained, "An encrypted satellite phone."

Qing Chen nodded and continued, "Besides you, how many other people are in City No. 10 in Group Two?"

Yan Chunmi replied, "Boss, I don't know about that. Members of the secret agents are not allowed to contact each other or find out each other's disguised identities. They could be cooks, taxi drivers, members of parliament... but they should all be in City No. 10, since the Second Group is Secret Intelligence Department unit stationed in City No. 10."

Qing Chen asked, "Who was the previous team leader?"

Yan Chunmi: "Qing Zhuo, a very capable intelligence officer, but he should be dead by now."

"Dead is dead, and alive is alive. Why is it that he should already be dead? Can't we be sure?" Qing Chen wondered.

Yan Chunmi said, "During the investigation of the 'Kidnapping Case of Researchers at the Seventh Research Institute of the Qing Clan' in the first half of this year, he suddenly and mysteriously disappeared. Generally, such disappearances can be classified as deaths. It is likely that he found the real clues and was killed by the forces related to the kidnapping case to destroy the evidence. Three team members also disappeared with him."

Qing Chen's heart skipped a beat; he realized how dangerous it was to be a secret agent. "Is the mortality rate high for secret agents?"

"Of course it's high," Yan Chunmi said with a smile. "Boss, what we do is the most dangerous thing in the entire Federation. People on the battlefield can still see the light of the main battle electromagnetic cannon, but sometimes we can't even see the person firing the shot before they're gone."

"Okay," Qing Chen nodded and said nothing more.

He closed his eyes and quietly pondered something, and the room fell completely silent.

An hour passed, Qing Chen remained seated on the sofa opposite Yan Chunmi without uttering a single word.

Yan Chunmi glanced at the time. There were still 4 hours until 2 a. m. She wondered if the new boss was just going to sit there silently until then.

This is so dull!

She carefully observed the new boss and felt that he was exceptionally composed, a composure beyond his years.

It's like someone who has endured a lot of loneliness and has begun to enjoy it.

Just when she almost thought Qing Chen had fallen asleep, Qing Chen suddenly opened his eyes and asked, "Are there any members of the Qing family in the Intelligence Department One of the Federal Central Intelligence Agency?"

"Yes," Yan Chunmi said with a smile, "I know of more than ninety of them, but don't trust them just because they are also from the Qing family... I'm overthinking it, you wouldn't trust them anyway."

Even though she, as the shadow of the Qing family, personally declared herself to be one of their own, she still couldn't gain their trust, let alone those people from the Intelligence Department One.

Yan Chunmi suddenly felt that this was actually quite good, at least she wouldn't be dragged down by her stupid boss.

Qing Chen pondered that his true power now came from his identity as Secret Intelligence Department of the Secret Service, which allowed him to mobilize his twelve team members and the organizations they controlled.

His position as an inspector at the Federal Central Intelligence Agency was merely an external identity to facilitate his actions.

Qing Chen stood up. "Where should I report later?"

Yan Chunmi said, "Caramel Bar on Ningbi North Street."

Qing Chen asked, "Is there a Caramel Bar with a holographic neon sign outside the door?"

Yan Chunmi was taken aback. "The boss knows about that place? Could it be that the District 5's Secret Intelligence Department station has been exposed?"

"I've only been there occasionally," Qing Chen nodded. "Then see you at Caramel Bar later."

With that, he walked out of the room, leaving Yan Chunmi alone inside.

Yan Chunmi called Shadow again, "Sir, the second group boss you chose this time is too cautious. Even the reporting has to be done separately, meeting up at Caramel Bar."

Shadow said with a smile, "Isn't this a good thing? Maybe his good habits will help your team live to retirement."

Yan Chunmi thought for a moment and said, "It is indeed a good thing."

Qing Chen walked through the long corridor, but before he could press the elevator button, the elevator doors opened directly.

Inside was a woman wearing a red turtleneck sweater and snow boots, who was wrapped up tightly in a scarf, sunglasses, and a woolen hat.

This scene is all too familiar.

The woman's clothes were exactly the same as Yan Chunmi's.

Qing Chen frowned, took out his pistol, pointed it at the other man's forehead, and asked, "Again?"

The woman stood there stunned for a moment, then burst into tears. "Are you sure you haven't mistaken me for someone else?"

As she spoke, the woman took off her sunglasses and scarf, revealing her face. Qing Chen was stunned. He had seen her face more than once in holographic neon lights and on the body of a light rail train.

This is a true top-tier federal star.

Qing Chen suddenly realized that Yan Chunmi's main purpose in approaching him, the new secret agent, was to be instructed by Shadow.

The woman dressed exactly like a celebrity seemed to be the first trap that Mr. Shadow had set for him after he arrived in City No. 10, the first "meeting gift": to subconsciously create some kind of misunderstanding.

Then they used this celebrity, who was actually living in seclusion in this building, as an intelligence agent.

Qing Chen could even imagine the shadow of the Qing family hiding in the shadows, smiling and saying: Interesting.

He sighed inwardly. No wonder Li Changqing and Li Xiurui said that this Shadow loved to play around; they were absolutely right.