Solving Middle Age Crisis by Intelligence System

"A few days ago, your business partner brought someone to see me, that person..." Zhao Qing paused, her eyes starting to redden. She fought back her emotions and continued to speak, "That person claimed to be my biological father."

"Although I can no longer remember what he looked like, there's a feeling in my heart that what he said is true."

"And later... they showed me the test report."

Zhao Qing didn't continue speaking, instead she collapsed into Qi Yun's arms, beginning to sob softly.

Qi Yun gently patted her back, speaking softly, "I'm sorry, actually I met him before, and he is indeed your father."

"The reason I didn't tell you is because I wasn't sure if you'd want a father suddenly appearing in your life..."

"But what I want to tell you is that I will always be your support, and I have the ability to make you happy, so you don't need to feel burdened. Whether or not you acknowledge him, I will support you."

Zhao Qing cried in Qi Yun's arms for a long time, until her sobbing gradually subsided, then she raised her red eyes, fingers clutching the corner of his clothes: "Thank you, actually... I still have some impression of him from when I was young."

Her voice was very small, as if searching for those sealed fragments from the depths of her memory, "I remember he always wore a dark blue coverall and would put me on his shoulders to go buy orange candies at the post exchange."

"Later he disappeared... he wasn't there when my mom died either..."

Qi Yun didn't delve into the memories that caused Zhao Qing pain. Instead, he raised a hand to wipe away her tears, grasping her hand tightly, "I know this matter may be hard for you to accept right now. You can acknowledge him if you want or it's okay if you don't."

"I'll take care of you, we don't need him, there's nothing to worry about."

"Mm." Zhao Qing leaned lightly on his shoulder, whispering softly, "With you here, I'm not afraid."

...

The next day Qi Yun rose early, first ran five kilometers in the neighborhood, then prepared breakfast for Zhao Qing and their daughter, personally sending them to kindergarten.

After returning home, he first contacted Chen Wei, learning that they were already gathering information and preparing for action.

Then he called Duan Pingyu.

"How are things over there?"

On the other end of the phone came the whirring of wind; Duan Pingyu's voice was intermittent: "Yesterday I heard from a herdsman in Qiqian Village, that there indeed were a group of foreigners appearing in the surrounding ranch, quite a number, with three or four vehicles."

"I just found their track near here, closing in."

"Alright, keep yourself safe."

Qi Yun understood the situation, and didn't say more.

Originally he wanted to ask Ah Jiao about the progress of the team there, but received a call from Niu Da instead.

"Hey, Brother Niu."

"Boss, things have gone awry here, we... we've all been captured." Niu Da's voice was somewhat weak.

Upon hearing this, Qi Yun's head buzzed, his hand gripping the phone tightly: "What happened?"

Earlier Ah Jiao had reported to him that they were being watched, but with Niu Da and Old Hei's combat prowess, they managed to resolve the issues without danger. He didn't expect they'd all get captured this time.

"A team found our hiding spot just now. They were very well prepared, two of them were incredibly skilled, I'm no match for them, and was completely controlled."

"Their leader wants to talk to you."

Qi Yun forced himself to calm down and continued to ask, "How are you guys? Is anyone injured?"

"I got a minor injury." On the other end came Niu Da's heavy breathing, "The others are alright for now."

Hearing that Niu Da and the others were temporarily safe, Qi Yun relaxed a bit inside; as long as the people are okay, there's still the possibility for a rescue.

However, the people sent by the opposition this time could injure Niu Da, meaning they truly have strength.

"Pass the phone to him."

"Okay."

After a momentary silence, a middle-aged man's voice came through the receiver, speaking in English.

"Hello, Mr. Qi."

"Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Charles de Gaulle Gwen."

Charles de Gaulle Gwen, when Qi Yun heard this name, his heart sank. This was the person who had previously investigated him and sent those two white men to Hong Kong Island.

"What are you trying to do by capturing my people?" Qi Yun asked solemnly.

"Oh! Mr. Qi, I think you misunderstand." De Gaulle replied with a smile, "I didn't capture your people, just invited them to be my guests. They are free, and can leave anytime."

"Misunderstand?" Qi Yun sneered, "Then kindly let them leave now."

"Mr. Qi, please don't be hasty. As I said, they are free," De Gaulle seemed oblivious to Qi Yun's icy tone, continuing to speak unhurriedly, "I assure you that after our enjoyable conversation, I'll let them leave."

"What are we talking about?" Qi Yun asked patiently.

The other party's words were pleasant to hear, but Qi Yun wasn't naive enough to believe they could easily let Niu Da and the others get off. The only thing to do now was to follow their lead.

"Let's talk about the San Jose shipwreck." There was an imperceptible urgency in De Gaulle's voice, "I'm curious, besides those treasures, did you find anything on that sunken ship?"

Qi Yun squinted his eyes, this statement was very targeted, indeed directed at the map.

However, analyzing from De Gaulle's words, he seemed to know something, but wasn't certain.

To probe how much information De Gaulle had, Qi Yun decided to feign ignorance: "I don't understand what you mean, the things salvaged from that sunken ship were just some gold coins and jewelry."

"Mr. Qi, I hope our conversation can be simple and honest," De Gaulle was clearly dissatisfied with this answer, he got straight to the point, "I'm not interested in those treasures. According to the captain of the salvage ship, you once brought up a wooden box, right?"

"That's right." There was no point in denying this, not only the captain, but many crew members saw it that night.

"What was inside the box?" Without waiting for Qi Yun's answer, De Gaulle continued to ask, "Was it a map?"

Qi Yun's heart skipped a beat; regarding the map's existence, only he, Old Hei, Ignacio, and his teacher were aware at the moment.

Old Hei wouldn't say anything, Ignacio had warned him to keep it confidential, believing he wouldn't leak it to outsiders. So how was Charles de Gaulle Gwen aware?

Seeing Qi Yun silent and not answering, De Gaulle got more urgent, "Mr. Qi, please trust that I truly bear you no ill will. I sent people to investigate just to confirm a few things."

"I can promise that as long as you answer me honestly, I can immediately let your people go!"

Qi Yun pondered for a while, unable to determine the truth of De Gaulle's words, but now Old Hei and the others were under his control, and he seemed to have no other choice.

He picked up the cigarette box on the table, lit a cigarette, took two deep drags, and finally gave the real answer: "Yes, that's correct."

Because he wasn't sure how much information De Gaulle had, he worried denying the map's existence might endanger Old Hei and the others...

"Very good." De Gaulle seemed relieved, "That map..."

"First let my people leave." Qi Yun interrupted.

"No problem, I'm instructing my men to send them away now." De Gaulle kept his word, indeed arranging for Old Hei and the others to be released.

"Mr. Qi, trust me, we are not enemies. I understand some things may confuse you, but don't worry, I will provide you with answers."

Qi Yun didn't reject the offer, instead said blandly, "We'll talk again in half an hour. I need to ensure my people can leave safely."

"Understood, I'll call again in half an hour."

Based on Charles de Gaulle Gwen's previous actions, there seemed to indeed be no hostile intentions.

Nevertheless, Qi Yun wouldn't let his guard down just because of a few words. After ending the call, he immediately dialed Ah Jiao's number.

"Hey, did you guys get out?"

"Yes, he let us go and even arranged a vehicle for us, this is the outskirts, and we're heading into the city." Ah Jiao responded quickly.

Qi Yun temporarily breathed a sigh of relief, continuing to instruct, "Don't linger over there, head to the airport immediately and take the earliest flight back."

"Alright." Ah Jiao no longer insisted, the other party's power was unexpectedly strong, even among them with the highest combat power, Niu Da, was easily injured by them. There's no point in staying there further; if they could capture them once, they could capture them again.