Chapter 476 "Personnel Changes"
In the ruins of the warehouse, Han Zuzheng was talking while changing into the clothes customized for him by the contractor, which looked like a simple sports suit.
"What happened in the more than a year we were away?"
“I only came back a few days earlier than you, so I don’t know the details, but when I was going to your old house, I passed by the branch building of C City Unlimited Company, and that place is gone.”
"What do you mean by gone? Torn down?"
"No, it seems to be undergoing a complete renovation. The entire branch building is blocked by a protective wall for construction, so I don't know what's going on inside. I've been there several times, but I didn't hear any sound of renovations. I got a few devices from the contractor, and I wanted to use them to investigate the situation inside, but I can only detect the square in front of the building at best. There are indeed a lot of construction vehicles inside, but I can't detect the inside of the building, so I don't know what's going on. By the way, I asked the contractor who brought us back, and he said it wasn't a problem with the equipment, but that it couldn't be detected for other reasons, but he didn't say the specific reason. He just said he didn't know either."
"Have you ever been to an airport? The airport of Infinity Company."
"I have been there. I used the contractor's equipment to sneak in a few times. The first time I went there, someone was investigating your private plane. Although those people were dressed like mechanics, they didn't look like special operations forces. The security around the airport was a level higher than before. I saw several heavy armed vehicles near the runway."
"Have you ever been discovered when you went to these places?"
"No, after all, I am from the special operations force of the Ferdinand family. I won't make such a low-level mistake. Besides, with the help of the contractor's equipment, it's not easy to find my trace."
"What news do you have about the Infinite City?"
"I used the contractor's node to check the relevant information. There is nothing abnormal in Infinite City. I wanted to log in to the forum with your account, but in order to avoid being targeted, I used a guest account and then overwrote the permissions with the contractor's intrusion device. I found some posts on the forum that were officially deleted. I thought you might be interested."
"What post?"
Gloria raised her right hand and saw a thin line about five centimeters long in the middle of her right wrist. It looked like it was made of metal. She slid her finger over it and some information was transmitted to Han Zu's contractor equipment. It seemed that this was a contractor equipment that Han Zu had never seen before.
Based on the post transmitted by Gloria, Han Zu was able to learn a lot of information. This post had nothing to do with the copy or activities of the Infinite City. There was no title on it and the content was very long, about four or five pages of text, and there were corresponding pictures. Judging from the clarity, it should have been recorded with professional filming equipment.
The content of the post mainly consists of three news items and the author's own analysis of them. The first news item is that Infinite City's overseas branch encountered an armed conflict, resulting in many casualties and some equipment being looted or destroyed. The content in this regard is some speculation written by the initiator of the post. It is not very informative and is very short.
The second piece of news was about the current chairman of the unlimited company attending an event to congratulate a certain technology company on its listing. The news itself was not important, but the photos attached to the event were important. The chairman of the unlimited company was not the one Han Zu had been dealing with, but another person who looked to be in his early forties, tall, with silver hair and a European and American face. Han Zu was very unfamiliar with him and was sure that he had never seen this person before.
The other person who shook hands with him and took a photo with him was the chairman of the listed technology company in the news. Although Han Zu didn't know who this person was, Gloria recognized him. He was the leader of a branch of the Feidenan family and belonged to the core leadership of the family.
The third aspect is a piece of news that seems to have even less to do with the first two pieces of news. It is about geology. The content is that a foreign scientific expedition team discovered a huge underground world somewhere in Antarctica, which contains many creatures that are believed to be extinct, as well as other creatures that have never appeared in records. The scientific expedition team has established a well-equipped scientific research station in the explored underground world.
It seems that these three aspects are not related to each other, but according to the summary of the poster and the attached news photos, it can be found that the chairman of the listed technology company appears in all three news items. Although due to the angle, his face can only be seen in the photo of the second news item, but according to the technical analysis of the author of the post, it is very likely that he appears in all the photos.
However, such a post, which had less than double-digit click-through rates, was directly deleted by the official of Infinite Company. If Gloria did not have the contractor's equipment, Han Zu might never have seen this post.
For ordinary people, this seemingly meaningless post does not contain any useful information at all, but for people like Han Zu and Gloria who know the inside story, this is big news. What these news reveal can be summarized as a whole, that is, the Feidenan family has launched actions in all directions, not only against the Unlimited Company, but also in other aspects. The establishment of the special Antarctic research station proves that the Feidenan family should have been aware of some of Han Zu's actions and are trying to find clues.
And judging from the fact that the current chairman of the Unlimited Company has been replaced, and that all of his residences have been searched, it can be roughly judged that the Ferdinand family's actions against the Unlimited Company seem to have achieved a preliminary victory, or even worse.
If his residence had not been searched, it would mean that both Unlimited Company and the Ferdinand Family had lost interest in him and no longer considered him a threat. If that was the case, Han Zu would only need to stop having anything to do with these two forces. With the contractor as an ally, he could rest easy. However, the actual situation was completely the opposite.
The search of his several residences proved that Unlimited Company and the Ferdinand family did not think they were dead, and the Ferdinand family's actions in Antarctica proved this point. They were trying to find what they were looking for, and wanted to use it to get a way to fight against themselves. Now the change of the chairman of Unlimited Company and the photo of him and the core members of the Ferdinand family in the second news seemed to mean that the Ferdinand family's power had spread in Unlimited Company, or at least the two sides had reached a cooperation. This was not a good thing.
Not only that, there is an agreement that cannot be reached with the contractor that has been put on hold. Becoming stronger is still Han Zu's only option. Now that he has basically lost his connections with Infinite Company, it is undoubtedly a headache for Han Zu.
The Infinite Company, whose attitude was unclear, the Ferdinand family, who had already noticed his purpose, the suspected traitor Garcia, and the rat removal company she represented, were all difficult problems that Han Zu needed to deal with. Due to the internal problems of the Tigris, he could not completely rely on contractors to solve these problems. In theory, he could indeed use the strength of contractors to eliminate these forces, which were not much different from primitive people, directly at the physical level to prevent future troubles. However, using the contractors' large-scale weapons would inevitably attract the attention of the Tigris civilization. Although the contractors and the Tigris were at the same level in terms of technology and combat power, they were not superior in numbers after all.
Han Zu also didn't want the contractors to take action. After all, compared to the forces on Earth, the civilization of the Tige people was much more difficult to deal with. Besides, Han Zu didn't think that he was a very important figure among the contractors. The reason why they were willing to help him now was, firstly, because this help was not troublesome for them, and secondly, because they still needed his help. There was an agreement that they had not explained yet.
The contractors were indeed allies that could be developed, and Han Zu also intended to win them over. After all, the power of a group was definitely greater than that of an individual. However, if he wanted to be recognized by the contractors and treated as equal companions, he had to improve his own strength. This strength was not only about his own strength and combat ability, but also about other aspects. It was a good experience to solve the chaos of various forces that he was facing.
"Have you come up with any solution?"
While thinking, Han Zu had unknowingly stood there for more than ten hours. The afterglow of the setting sun poured in through the cracks in the walls of the dilapidated warehouse, but this afterglow did not shine on Han Zu. He was still standing in the darkness just a few inches away from the light.
"Although it's convenient, we can't rely on contractors for everything. I have to fix this mess myself."
"So have you figured out how to solve it?"
"My whereabouts are unknown. This is an opportunity. If used well, it can have unexpected results."
"So you don't plan to contact Infinite Company and Infinite City anymore?"
"No, if I want to get first-hand information, I still need to find a way to get in, but I also need to avoid them to a certain extent. I can use the contractor's equipment to delete all the information I left in Infinite Company. Except for the top executives at that time, many people have heard of me, but few have seen me in person. I just need to be careful, and I can get into Infinite Company again."
“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t rely on contractors anymore?”
"It's just a device. How do you say that? If there's a frame, you won't open it?"
"I don't play games and don't understand your 'terminology'."
"You still need to get the help you need. You can't achieve anything by fighting alone."
"So what are you going to do? What do you need me to do?"
"Something went wrong in City C. Although I don't know the reason, I think it's time to leave the city to avoid exposing my identity too early."
"Haven't you lived here for more than 20 years? Are you willing to leave?"
"I think there is someone you care about? Wherever I am, that is my home."
"Okay, so what do you need me to do?"
"I can handle these things myself. You don't need to show up in public for the time being. Just treat it as a vacation."
"Do nothing? I'm not used to that kind of life now. At least give me something to do. What about your cyborg army? Are they useless?"
"Oh, yes, there are still these. If you hadn't mentioned them, I would have almost forgotten about them. How about this, if you really want to find something to do, then help me manage them. You can use my relationship with the contractors to get some things from them and equip those cyborgs. Who knows, they might be useful someday."
"Okay, then when should I leave?"
"It's up to you. There's no rush."
"So when do you plan to leave City C?"
"nighttime then."
"You plan to go around the city again and make some memories?"
"No, there's nothing left to be nostalgic about in City C. I'll stay here and fly away after dark."
"Fly away?"
"I forgot to tell you that I now have normal flying ability."
"Oh."
"You don't look surprised at all."
"Indeed. After all, I thought it was a matter of time. How fast can you go?"
"It's quite slow. At top speed, it's about Mach 2."
“That’s pretty slow.”
"You're so rude."
"Is that true?"
"Yes, it is about the same speed as fighter jets from decades ago. It is indeed not good enough now."
Perhaps because they didn't know what to talk about, the conversation between the two quickly ran out of topics. The current situation was not suitable for casual chatting.
The two found a relatively clean place to sit down, staring at the gradually disappearing afterglow of the sunset in the dark. The air was silent for about ten minutes. Gloria took out something and threw it to Han Zu.
"Give."
"Wow! Where did you find this? I thought this brand of cigarettes was no longer sold."
Gloria threw a pack of Feihu cigarettes to Han Zu, which were originally from City C. They were spicy and not very popular, but they sold very well in City C. Until the last few years, this brand of cigarettes has become less and less popular, and it is hard to buy in City C. Han Zu bought this brand when he first started smoking.
"I bought this at a nearby supermarket when I went to your old house. I thought you might need a pack of cigarettes when you come back. After all, you're a heavy smoker."
"Ha! Of course! But thanks, I do need a pack of cigarettes."
"Then I'll leave first?"
"Not later?"
"Too many people means more targets. Although I have cleared the area and ensured safety, I am not sure if anyone will continue to monitor this place."
"Right."
Nodding, Han Zu watched Gloria leave using the contractor's teleportation. Han Zu was the only one left in the dilapidated warehouse. While it was not completely dark outside, he opened the pack of Feihu, took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth, rubbing his fingers, lit the cigarette with the spark that appeared, and began to look at the photos of his parents and the old photo album.
As the cigarette gradually burned, Han Zu closed the photo album he had read, put the photos of his parents in it, and lit them with the dying cigarette butt.
After a minute or two, the album was reduced to ashes. After extinguishing the sparks in the embers, Han Zu stood up, patted the ashes on his hands, and left the warehouse. He took one last look at this place.
"boom."
The sound of the sonic boom covered by the biological force field was very small. Han Zu flew high into the sky, entered the clouds, and left City C. He did not look back. As he said, everything that made him nostalgic for this city was long gone.