Chapter 146: The Good Defender

The cold secretary pushed the room door open, and to Liu Yaofeng’s surprise, this was not Du Qiu’s office or laboratory but a room that resembled a command center.

However, unlike a traditional command center, the room was devoid of many support staff.

Just Du Qiu alone, standing in the center; in front of him was a huge screen on the wall flanked by countless smaller screens.

In front of Du Qiu, there stood a massive silver table, its surface covered in high and low relief maps, akin to a sandbox model.

Liu Yaofeng could see clearly; this was not a physical object but a 3D holographic projection!

The incredibly lifelike 3D holography surprised Liu Yaofeng.

This scene elevated the feeling Liu Yaofeng had experienced since entering the underground world, as if he had stepped onto the peak of a science fiction universe.

As the two entered the room, Du Qiu was bent over looking at a spot on the sandbox, then he reached out and plucked a building projection from it and casually tossed it away, whereupon it dissipated in mid-air.

“Star Ocean, let’s not build a factory here. Change it to an anti-air missile base instead,” said Du Qiu.

Liu Yaofeng blinked. This felt oddly like a scene from the movie “Iron Man,” where Stark and Jarvis were designing together, wasn’t it?

“Boss—” Liu Yaofeng couldn’t help but exclaim.

Du Qiu turned at the sound, facing Liu Yaofeng with a smile and said, “Liu Yaofeng, we finally meet again.”

Liu Yaofeng rushed over and hugged Du Qiu tightly, “Boss!”

In an instant, Liu Yaofeng let go of Du Qiu, his eyes brimming with tears, “Boss, I missed you so much.”

From the side, Hao Ren teased, “Hey, my master likes women!”

Liu Yaofeng turned his head and yelled at Hao Ren, “Get lost!”

Du Qiu, seeing Liu Yaofeng’s genuine emotions, was somewhat moved and said, “Liu Yaofeng, you’ve had it tough this past year and more.”

Liu Yaofeng wiped his eyes and said, “It wasn’t hard. Knowing that you had safely left the United States, we found our spine. No one could take down Dream Technology.”

Over the past year and more, Du Qiu had barely contacted them, mainly worried that they couldn’t control their emotions, which would give away clues to the observant.

Fortunately, when Rein Leinar invested in Tang Country to set up a factory, they had visited them under the guise of purchasing equipment.

Although GIA people were also watching Rein Leinar, since they never found Du Qiu, they couldn’t take rash action against them.

After all, Rein Leinar is German, and Germans are not only allies of the United States but also core forces in Europe.

The previous year, the U.S. interference in the German-Russian gas pipeline project had provoked strong backlash from the Germans, after which the U.S. became more restrained.

Especially after the new president took office, although he showed more aggression against Tang Country and Russia, his attitude towards allies improved quite a bit compared to the previous president.

Clearly knowing that, at a time of rivalry with Tang and Russia, it was vital not to alienate allies.

Also, because of such changes in the world situation, Du Qiu decided to let Rein Leinar take the lead and helm Dream Technology.

Without any trace of Du Qiu, GIA naturally took no action.

Although Lagia and others guessed that Du Qiu might have changed his identity and were especially watchful for strangers who had contact with Du Qiu’s friends and colleagues, they could never have dreamt that Du Qiu’s new identity was so solid that they could find no flaws.

What was more important was that aside from the initial meeting between Du Qiu, Hao Ren, and Rein Leinar, Du Qiu later hid by the Peaceful Lake and never left.

Therefore, GIA had no chance of seeing Du Qiu’s other identity.

Dream Technology, led by the president of Rein Leinar, operated by the book in all aspects, serving as a contractor for large manufacturers, with technology that seemed to come from German R&D centers, showing no trace of Du Qiu.

Dream Technology had many shareholders, some of whom even came from politicians of various countries.

That’s because whenever Dream Technology set up a factory in a country, politicians from that country inevitably became shareholders.

Such a shareholders’ list naturally led GIA’s intelligence analysts to exclude the possibility of Du Qiu hiding among them.

Even though GIA still dispatched intelligence officers to infiltrate every factory of Dream Technology, they were discovered and monitored by Star Ocean.

Du Qiu did not clear these people out but used them instead to mislead GIA.

With the new U.S. president’s inauguration, GIA also changed leaders. Lagia, having stumbled on Du Qiu’s case, naturally could not hold the position of Tang Country Bureau Chief.

Now, the GIA’s Tang Country Bureau Chief was replaced by an elder named Clark, who had lived in Tang Country for a long time and was once an educator there.

Not only was he fluent in Tang Country language, but he also spoke the local dialects very authentically, a real expert on Tang Country.

Such a person, knowing Tang Country so well, occupied that position, giving the U.S. some advantages in the covert struggle with Tang Country over the past year.

This man focused on the major trends within Tang Country and naturally lost interest in Du Qiu, who had disappeared for nearly two years.

Now, as factories producing products for the outside world gradually migrated out of this valley, it progressively became a military forbidden zone.

Because the military of Tanga Federation officially explained that they are reclaiming this land, and Dream Technology will gradually move out.

With these developments, Du Qiu could stay here more at ease.

Of course, the main reason was that his underground base was finally completed.

Also because of this, Du Qiu now summoned Liu Yaofeng to the base to discuss the next development plan together.

Du Qiu, pulling Liu Yaofeng along with Hao Ren, took a seat in the sofa rest area beside the command hall.

After serving tea and drinks with adept movements, the cold secretary stood behind Du Qiu.

“After the events more than a year ago, I’ve come to realize that in the face of power, in addition to reasoning, one needs the strength to turn those reasons into truth.”

Liu Yaofeng, somewhat agitated, asked, “Boss, how do you plan to get back at the Americans?”

Du Qiu looked at Liu Yaofeng and calmly said, “There’s a saying in the art of war: The good defender hides beneath nine grounds. Do you think this base might be considered the most hidden on this planet?”

Liu Yaofeng turned his head to look at Hao Ren and asked, “Boss, have you built such a base here? Does the Tanga Federation military know about this?”

Hao Ren immediately laughed and said, “Liu Yaofeng, don’t worry. My dad and the others don’t know. I’ve kept it a secret for master.

My master talked to my dad a long time ago. He is helping us, Tanga Federation, by upgrading our current weapons and equipment, increasing the combat power of the Tang federation military.

He also conveniently established a security company with weapons and built a weapons test site in these mountains.

You probably also noticed that there are military personnel at the valley entrance; my dad has stationed a company here to ensure safety.”

Du Qiu smiled and, pointing at the 3D projected images on the table, said: “Liu Yaofeng, rest assured, the base has been built. Safety isn’t an issue anymore.”

After the worries in Liu Yaofeng’s heart dissipated, he instantly became lively again.

During this past year, Liu Yaofeng also experienced much – his girlfriend Tian Ya, blackmailed into espionage, fortunately, Du Qiu acted in time, and with mitigating circumstances, she received a two-year sentence, with a two-year suspended execution.

With Du Qiu being globally wanted by the United States and unable to return to his country, Liu Yaofeng, pushed into the role, tread cautiously as the president of Dream Technology.