Jiang Yujin went to work at the Special Investigation Bureau.
Between fixing that impossibly unrepairable river and going to work, he decisively chose the higher-paying job.
An early riser is no different from a dead fish; alarms rang one after another. The person lying in bed turned over, then went back to sleep. The alarms grew louder and louder until he finally sat up.
Mechanically changing out of his pajamas, Jiang Yujin brushed his teeth with messy hair.
His phone, which was on the living room table, rang. He answered. It was Hu Li calling, saying he was already waiting downstairs in his car.
He casually ruffled his hair a couple of times, at least making it look less like a bird's nest, and then stopped. There was breakfast in the kitchen, but he had no appetite from getting up so early, so he didn't eat and went downstairs yawning.
Even though they grew up in the same world, people are indeed different. Both were early risers, but the one staggering downstairs looked utterly hopeless, while the person in the driver's seat was refreshed and energetic.
Without playing Candy Crush or trying to chat, Jiang Yujin quickly closed his eyes after getting into the car. Then he remembered that the driver wasn't Xu, so he opened his eyes again, fastened his seatbelt, and closed them again.
Hu Li had originally planned to talk about the branch on the way to the bureau, but less than a few minutes after getting in the car, the person next to him had already slumped to one side and fallen fast asleep.
"..."
Good sleep quality.
Just before the vehicle got closer to the Special Investigation Bureau, the soundly sleeping citizen Jiang opened his eyes.
It was only two blocks, less than ten minutes away. Some people started feeling carsick as soon as they woke up, and after getting out of the car, they squatted by the parking lot and started reflecting on their mistakes.
Hu Li went to the office.
It was the usual start of the workday, but the office, which used to be bustling with activity in the corridor, was now unusually quiet, with only one or two people coming and going. With
the number of aliens rapidly decreasing, work should have become easier, but in reality, it was getting busier. Various finishing touches required a lot of manpower and energy, and the office was empty because everyone was out on missions.
The task of cleaning up the branch was originally scheduled to be led by Xu Tonggui, but due to a series of unexpected events, he had to deal with other matters urgently, so this task fell to Hu Li.
Compared to the other offices, the first team's office had a relatively large number of people, at least it didn't look so desolate.
There weren't any extra manpower assigned to them, so everyone participating in the cleaning of the branch was from the first team. Everyone was sitting in the office, and the number of people seemed barely considerable, but compared to the branch they were cleaning, it was completely insufficient.
The task needed to be completed quickly, so they had to arrive early and leave early. After glancing around the office and finding that no one was missing, Hu Li divided everyone present into two teams, and he was the captain of the first team.
Someone asked, "What about the captain of the second team?"
Hu Li said, "Outside."
With the task settled and everyone fully equipped, they left the office one by one.
Hu Li stood outside the office watching the others leave when his phone rang in his pocket. Someone had sent him a message, and he looked down.
It was a message from Xu Tonggui.
"..."
After reading the message, Hu Li fell silent, his expression indescribable. He turned and went back to his office.
He took the sweet red bean buns and milk from Xu Tonggui's desk.
Leaving the office and standing in the parking lot, the team members saw the figure squatting by the roadside.
As if noticing their gaze, the person squatting by the roadside turned around.
"..."
When their eyes met, the group of people had different expressions. The person squatting by the roadside was expressionless and lifeless, but still maintained basic politeness by waving slightly.
Hu Li appeared behind them with the milk and sweet buns, following their gaze, and introduced, "This is the captain of the second team."
Someone raised an eyebrow: "Boss Jiang?" Those
who knew the inside story felt their hearts skip a beat the moment they saw the white-haired man, choosing to remain silent and exchange glances, wondering what method the bureau had used to poach this person. In short, it
must have cost a lot of money.
Jiang Yujin, who had been hired at great expense, got into the car again. This time, the driver was different, and he sat next to Hu Li.
People behind them craned their necks to look this way, but neither of them paid much attention. Before the person next to him could fall asleep again, Hu Li handed the milk and steamed buns to the person beside him, saying, "Captain Xu brought you some energy."
He hadn't expected that Xu Tonggui, who was so busy, would take the time to message him just to have him bring breakfast and convey this inexplicable message.
Perhaps there was some mystical element to that message.
Upon hearing the mention of energy, the person next to him instantly sat up straight, took the milk and steamed buns, and opened his phone, completely unlike his previous drowsy state.
Hu Li: "..."
Hu Li realized that he still didn't understand this person as well as Xu Tonggui.
After the energy was exhausted, the person finally had time to listen to him.
Hu Li took out a photocopied map, pointed to a place, and said, "The branch is here."
In the center of K City.
This branch was slightly different from the previous ones; it was a patchwork of many scattered branches, and could now perhaps be called the headquarters.
The previous cleanup of the branches had been ongoing. Some branches had already disintegrated before the cleanup even began, but others were still putting up a stubborn resistance, believing that further research would yield results comparable to headquarters. However, their forces were weak and vulnerable to discovery and attack at any time, so they formed a temporary headquarters.
The temporary headquarters had obvious drawbacks: it was too scattered and chaotic, with all sorts of people mixed together, making it easy to infiltrate and escape. The information they currently had about this headquarters came from those who had escaped.
However, its advantages were also clear. This temporary headquarters had absorbed too many branches, giving it a significant numerical advantage. If it were just a matter of numbers, Xu Tong's return would suffice, but this branch's location was excellent, situated underground in the city center. Any slight explosion or collapse could endanger lives, so no major actions were permissible.
Violent dismantling was not an option, and there weren't enough people to confront it head-on. To take down this branch today, they had to find other methods.
Jiang Yujin seemed quite optimistic at this moment, eating his breakfast with a milk in one hand and a red bean bun in the other, saying, "Let's go in and take a look first, then we'll figure something out."
He didn't seem nervous at all, like a typical laid-back employee just passing the time.
He really didn't feel any urgency. It was quite a long way from City A to City K. He spent the first half of the journey playing Candy Crush and eating breakfast, and then changed seats for the second half, sitting in the back and gossiping and chatting with the others.
Some people weren't in the Special Investigation Bureau, but they knew all the gossip about it. The others were drawn in, becoming increasingly enthusiastic and exclaiming in surprise. The car was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
It wasn't until they got off that the person in the back reluctantly ended the gossip. The others looked disappointed, but Jiang Yujin patted them on the shoulder and comforted them, saying, "Let's chat again after we finish our work."
They got off outside a street still under construction.
The person who had previously given information to the Special Investigation Bureau also provided details of the entrances to the branch that he knew.
For security reasons, the branch changed its entrances periodically. Currently, there were two entrances in use, but because many people from other branches had recently joined, security was tighter than before, making it difficult to infiltrate. Since
the two current entrances were no longer viable, they planned to enter through an abandoned entrance. The entrance was abandoned, but it could still be repaired and used.
In the center of the street was a narrow alley, filled with garbage cans and various discarded items, with a door at the very end.
The door was locked. Hu Li smashed the lock with the butt of his rifle, and Jiang Yujin stood to the side, quietly applauding him.
"..."
This guy seemed genuinely there for the fun, and he also possessed a strange kind of leadership. The others joined in the quiet applause, creating a moment of awkward silence.
Unable to hit Jiang Yujin, Hu Li casually patted the back of someone's head, his fox-like eyes smiling: "Go in."
Behind the door was a long staircase, a long-standing tradition of the Zero branch. Despite already guessing, Jiang Yujin still closed his eyes reluctantly.
He could already imagine how painful it would be to climb up.
If only Xu Tonggui were here.
But Xu Tonggui wasn't here, only Hu Li and a group of people who wouldn't carry him.
As they descended the stairs, the sounds outside grew increasingly faint, and the entire passage became quieter and quieter.
Just when it was almost completely silent, sounds gradually came from below.
There were voices and footsteps, gradually becoming noisier.
They were almost there.
The entrance was indeed abandoned, sealed off by sheet metal, which looked quite thick. Someone used a dagger to pry open a small section of the sheet metal, revealing the interior.
To be fair, the location was quite good, offering a view of the branch's basic structure.
The branch was circular, with a sealed corridor, and appeared to have several layers. Jiang Yujin glanced at it, then squatted down and looked at Hu Li, saying, "Let's divide the work."
Hu Li asked how.
"Rock, paper, scissors. Winner goes to the right, loser goes to the left."
The circle was divided in two, left and right halves.
"..."
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the two team leaders began playing rock, paper, scissors.
Jiang Yujin won and led his second team to the right.
The second team was polarized; some were completely at ease, while others were prepared to have their families collect compensation. Although some subtly reminded them that Boss Jiang was actually quite reliable, they were unsure, even vaguely feeling that
things were absurd. While they were lost in their own thoughts, Jiang Yujin remained silent, squatting in front and observing the corridor. He looked around for a while, then turned and said, "There aren't many people in this corridor. We need to lie in wait."
This decision was sound, and the people behind him nodded.
"Alright, let's go."
Then the group watched as the white-haired man jumped out, openly and swiftly.
"???"
The people behind him reacted quickly, jumping out after him and drawing their guns.
A white-haired shadow flashed across the corridor.
Before they could fire, the people in the corridor fell silently, without time to resist, to call for help, or to notify anyone. They died silently, landing softly, without even a sound after death, their blood slowly soaking the floor tiles.
...Is this lying in wait?
The person at the end of the corridor put down the last person, casually wiping the blood from his face, and said, "As long as you're not discovered by the living, it's lying in wait."
He put away his dagger and praised, "Your knife is indeed better than a steel pipe."
"..."
From this moment on, everyone had a completely new understanding of "lying in wait."