Chapter 991: Hidden Currents in Center Nine

After dropping Little Shiyi back at Territory Fifteen and delivering materials to Territory Seven, Xia Qing didn’t stir up trouble. Instead, she headed home to her own territory for a while before finally returning to Center Nine in the afternoon to handle paperwork in her office.

All the while, she kept her keen hearing locked onto the nurse with the big, nervous eyes—Chen Xia—who’d clearly put Little Shiyi on edge.

As for the red-faced nurse who’d been just as anxious while Little Shiyi’s blood was drawn, Xia Qing didn’t bother monitoring her. That was He Hui.

He Hui had been nervous during the blood draw because she was secretly clutching the test tube Xia Qing gave her, the one meant to swap out Little Shiyi’s blood sample. Right now He Hui sat at a desk diagonally across from Xia Qing, fingers flying over data entry.

There was just a single file room separating the infirmary from the Center Office where Xia Qing sat—close enough that she could hear every sound.

This afternoon, the main task in the infirmary was processing the kids’ physical exam records and analyzing their blood samples from the morning.

Chen Xia had volunteered to convert the handwritten physical exam notes into digital files, while another nurse, Jiang Xiao, was in charge of analyzing the blood samples.

At four in the afternoon the center erupted in commotion—an employee from the Construction Department had been injured and rushed to the infirmary. Naturally, Chen Xia assisted Dr. Li with the exam.

Xia Qing glanced through the office window, brought up the employee files on her computer, and quickly pulled up information on the injured worker and the two people who’d brought him in.

No surprises there. All three files were spotless, just like Chen Xia’s.

Soon enough, Chen Xia dashed into the Center Office to report an emergency. “Director, a Construction Department employee’s taken a severe blow—internal bleeding in the abdomen. We can’t do major surgery here. He needs to be sent to the Safe Zone for an operation, and quickly.”

Xia Qing nodded. “Go get the patient ready for transport. I’ll have someone arrange a vehicle.”

“Understood.”

Once Chen Xia hurried back to the infirmary, Xia Qing fired off messages to Zhu Li, Shi Du, and Tang Huai. Then she called the Idol before heading to the infirmary herself. She told Dr. Li, “I’ve contacted Third Brother. You can take the patient to Territory Seven right away.”

“Thank you!” The old military doctor, Li Tongzhou, was overjoyed. Both Chen Xia, still preparing, and Zhang Kui, the Construction Department squad leader who’d brought the patient, couldn’t help showing their astonishment.

Zhang Kui forced a relieved smile, exaggerating his gratitude. “If we can get Jianwei into Territory Seven, I know he’ll recover soon. Thank you, Director.”

After placing injured worker Gao Jianwei in the car, Xia Qing stopped Zhang Kui, who was about to go with them, and asked him to take her to the scene of the accident.

The moment Xia Qing stopped Zhang Kui, she caught Chen Xia’s hand trembling from the corner of her eye. Zhang Kui hopped off the vehicle naturally. Another Construction Department employee, Li Cun, took Zhang Kui’s spot and climbed into the car headed for Territory Seven.

Today, the Construction Department was delivering materials to build the walls at Center Nine. Zhang Kui’s squad was unloading them. Together with the department head, Xia Qing arrived at an accident site where only half a truck of cement had been unloaded, and the rest of the staff claimed they’d seen nothing.

Xia Qing put the department head in charge of investigating, then returned to her office to review security footage for Center Nine. Just as Zhang Kui had described, the footage showed cement bags collapsing in a cloud of dust, blocking everyone’s view—including the surveillance cameras—so the true cause of the accident was impossible to make out.

Li Cun, who’d accompanied Zhang Kui in taking Gao Jianwei to Territory Seven, was also inside the dust cloud. He looked incredibly suspicious.

Xia Qing switched to the infirmary’s surveillance feeds from that morning.

If Little Shiyi hadn’t tipped her off about Chen Xia, Xia Qing might’ve missed the signs. But now that she knew, the flaws became clear.

First, to avoid drawing suspicion, Chen Xia focused on checking the kids’ skin for disease, letting nurse Jiang Xiao handle the blood draws. He Hui wrote the children’s names on each test tube, then placed them in a nearby container. This afternoon, Jiang Xiao was also assigned to analyze the blood.

Second, Xia Qing replayed the footage of Chen Xia’s fierce magnetic fluctuations, scrutinizing her face and movements. When Little Shiyi called her out by name, Chen Xia—while busy with other kids—tried not to look, but couldn’t hide her anxiety.

Fast-forwarding to when Zhang Kui brought in the injured Gao Jianwei, Chen Xia—her back to the camera—visibly relaxed. And when Xia Qing told Dr. Li to transport the patient to Territory Seven, Chen Xia instinctively glanced at Zhang Kui.

Clearly, the morning’s blood samples and the afternoon’s accident were connected. To move the samples, they had to use a vehicle—blood samples have to be kept cold and are too bulky to get past Security without a car.

Chen Xia seized the chance to switch out the samples. Zhang Kui and Li Cun staged the accident, then used the ambulance to sneak the blood samples out of Center Nine.

With over four hundred people at Center Nine and strict management, Xia Qing always figured enemies would have spies on the inside.

At the sound of a familiar gait, Xia Qing lifted her gaze as Deputy Director and Head of HR, Yue Haiying, entered Center Nine’s office. Though her face and tone remained even, everyone could sense something bloody in the air.

“Brother Yue, this is the worst incident we’ve ever had in the center. I’m putting you in charge—investigate it thoroughly. Spare no one.”

Snap! Yue Haiying clicked his heels together. “Yes, ma’am.”

That night, Xia Qing sent a message to Zhang Shi with a brief account of what had happened at Center Nine, and let her know that Li Cun had already handed Yiyi’s blood sample to Peng Lin from the Section One Inspection Team.

Xia Qing had expected Li Cun to pass the blood sample to Yan Meng in Territory Fourteen instead.

So she’d already reached out to trusted allies: Zhu Li, stationed in Section Six north of Territory Fourteen; Shi Du, just west in Territory Ten; and Tang Huai, farther southwest in Territory Twelve.

Why not contact Territory Fifteen on the east side? Too many people, too many prying eyes—and if Fire Phoenix had an informant in Territory Nine, odds are Territory Fifteen had one too.

Always one for gossip, Zhu Li from Section Six learned a lot about surveillance tech from Tang Huai and even dug a special spot near the southern wild grass wall just for watching drama. With the monitoring gear Tang Huai gave her, she caught a clear video of the Inspection Team passing by the southern gate of Territory Seven and recorded Peng Lin and Li Cun exchanging goods.

In order to avoid being spotted by the security team or the inspectors at Territory Seven, the two had picked an exchange spot that—ironically—ended up perfectly exposed to Zhu Li’s camera.

Zhang Shi quickly replied: Want me to come mark everyone at Center Nine who’s suspicious?

A single walkthrough was all it’d take for a Type C Magnetic Sense Evolver to spot every abnormal reading. That was the terrifying thing about them.

Xia Qing answered calmly: No need. Now that their cover’s blown, these spies are no longer a threat. Keeping them around is actually useful.

Zhang Shi breathed a sigh of relief seeing Xia Qing wasn’t planning to move against Zhang Kui or Chen Xia just yet. She’d finally gotten her daughter into Territory Fifteen, and this wasn’t the time for risky moves that might tip off the enemy. There was already a malicious magnetic field tracking Shiyi in Territory Fifteen: medium height, limping, with an acid-burn scar on the right cheek. Xia Qing had even told her to act oblivious.

Setting her phone aside, Xia Qing leaned back on the couch in the living room, watching as her beastly companions joyfully generated power, feeling even firmer in her decision not to let any more humans into her territory.

A few more wild beasts, at worst, meant sneaking a snack now and then. With more humans? There’d be drama nonstop.

Two days later, Qu Fangzhou placed a report on Fire Phoenix Captain Deng Yufeng’s desk. “The Shiyi delivered to Hui Three—Territory Fifteen, and the Ye Yuliang from Lan Five Safe Zone’s Outer City Hospital blood bank—are confirmed as biological father and daughter. Shiyi’s blood test shows nothing unusual; she’s cleared of suspicion.”

Deng Yufeng scanned the report and narrowed her eyes. “Who set fire to our Pesticide sales point at Hui Eight?”

Qu Fangzhou’s scalp tingled, but his voice stayed level. “Apocalypse Sect.”