Big Data Cultivation

Chapter 2396: Chapter 2388: Who’s Afraid of Whom?

Facing the military intelligence officer’s question, He Runxian was stunned for a whole three seconds, and then... he actually laughed.

"Haha, I don’t know either, Colonel. What do you want to say?"

The young colonel replied expressionlessly, "What do you mean what do I want to say? This is your Hesheng’s territory, since I don’t know anything, what can I say? Or should I ask... why is this place so clean?"

I knew it would be like this! He Runxian smiled indifferently, "Our Hesheng always pays attention to quality control. Not only are the production workshops clean, but the storage areas are also well maintained. Isn’t this what a qualified company should be?"

Then he glanced at the local official with an eye of complaint, "The factory is currently in a semi-shut down state. The employees are idle anyway, so we organized them to clean up, to find an excuse to give them some benefits."

The official he glanced at gave a bitter smile, "We tried hard too, but military orders... we can’t make decisions."

The young colonel pursed his lips and didn’t speak further, he raised his hand to call over a soldier and handed him the scales he held. The soldier quickly took out an evidence bag and placed the scales inside.

He Runxian glanced at him intentionally or unintentionally, without saying anything.

They conducted a search along their way, except for staying a while at the storage area, they hardly lingered anywhere else, even in the underground warehouse, they only asked two questions.

There were two large cold storages in operation, the colonel asked casually, "What is this, Energy Stone Depot?"

"It is the Energy Stone Depot," He Runxian nodded, admitting calmly.

"You have quite a few energy stones, the cold storage is still running," the colonel sighed and then asked, "How about opening it and taking a look?"

"The base only has this much left," He Runxian responded calmly, "Is it necessary to open it? Minus forty degrees... can a person hide inside?"

The colonel did not insist and gave a nonchalant smile.

After the search was completed, it was almost noon. As they stepped outside, they discovered drizzling rain had started falling from the sky. He Runxian chuckled lightly, "The heavens have left a guest, how about a simple lunch together at noon... I’ve been eating nutrients for ten straight days, might as well take the chance for a full meal."

This comment deterred anyone from staying further. Everyone knew, He Runxian is a ruthless person, willing to eat nutrients for ten consecutive days just to secure orders, and this meal would hardly be tasty—it’s likely just coarse grain to deal with.

Eating coarse grain is not the issue, the key part is having to listen to this guy’s constant chatter and bombardment. Everyone prefers to leave early; no one lacks this meal—better to have a shot of nutrition than suffer through this ordeal.

Everyone left one after another, only the colonel stayed behind, "You all go first, I still have some matters to discuss with Director He."

When only the two remained, he glanced at He Runxian, "Arrange a quiet place for us... to talk?"

Finally, it comes to this. He Runxian gestured uninvolvedly, "Let’s walk in the rain, it helps clear the mind."

Following his gesture, someone activated strong electromagnetic shielding, no electronic signals could be transmitted, and there was interference with recordings.

The young colonel glanced at him indifferently, with a knowing look, "How much energy stone reserves does Hesheng still have?"

"That is our wartime reserve," He Runhua replied, indifferent in tone, "The factory hardly operates, we must be ready to resume at any time... the underground cold storage hardly consumes energy."

During the war, the military requisitioned civilian energy stones, but Hesheng’s base is a factory, not only must it protect itself but also be ready to switch production to military items at any time, casually handing over some energy stones as a gesture suffices.

If he insists it’s wartime reserve without conclusive evidence proving hoarding during the war, it would be difficult to prosecute.

The colonel officer gave a nonchalant smile, "You activated electromagnetic shielding? Then I need not fear your recording, and you are fully aware, I took the scales of the Delusion Butterfly out of my pocket."

"Haha," He Runxian smiled slightly, but said nothing else.

The young colonel saw him silent, unfazed, continued speaking, "I almost forgot, Hesheng’s origins aren’t that clean... but I must stress, the knife being in my hand, and you being the fish, I can frame you once, I can frame you many times."

Actually, this time wasn’t framing, just a warning.

He Runxian is well aware of this, so he smiled, "Youth is indeed wonderful, I’m just a bit saddened that the military has become like this?"

"It’s all for victory, no one is not expendable," the young colonel’s face lacked any expression, "The grand scale is unblemished; I am guilt-free in conscience, do you have anything to say?"

"I don’t understand at all why you’re targeting Hesheng," He Runxian replied calmly. As long as the other side couldn’t produce concrete evidence, he couldn’t be scared. "As you said, Hesheng is not easy to mess with."

He turned his head slightly, giving the other person a once-over, "Extorting us is not a good choice, but you can state your terms. As long as they’re not too excessive, maybe I can consider it... I’m not like you; I don’t like to strike against my own kind."

"Threats and sarcasm?" The colonel sneered indifferently. "You know very well why I’m looking for you. Someone suggested using Hesheng as bait to catch the big fish behind you, but I prefer cooperation... Our kind shouldn’t be tearing each other apart, indeed."

"I still don’t understand what you mean," He Runhua, an old hand, wouldn’t acknowledge or admit to anything. "If you keep talking like this, you can leave... If you want to frame me, feel free."

"You really won’t give up until you see the coffin," the colonel sneered, "You should know that Energy Stones can be traced back to their source, although it’s a bit troublesome... Are you sure you want me to apply to trace the origin of the Energy Stones in your depot?"

"Suit yourself," He Runhua waved a hand indifferently, "By the way, let me tell you, you’ve already angered me. Considering you’re just a small colonel, there’s no way you could take down such a big Hesheng... Tell me who’s behind you, and I might consider sparing you."

"The He family sure has guts," the colonel gave a thumbs-up, "Let’s forget it then, I’ll just have a patrol unit keep an eye on Hesheng 24/7. You still have quite a bit of Energy Stone reserves; it’s worth setting up a squad to guard constantly."

He Runxian paused, then smiled, "You’re really shameless. I already told you to state your terms, and you’ve said nothing, only threatening me over and over... Fine, I’m really not inviting you for lunch. You can leave."

The colonel laughed at his words, very brightly, "If I leave now, I might just die quickly, right?"

Before the other could say more, his expression turned serious, "I need medication. Many comrades in the army are not getting effective treatment... If you can get hold of Energy Stones, you can surely get medication!"

"Damn," He Runxian muttered helplessly. He was a specialist and had never served in the army, though he had always been in the reserves and was even still a reservist. It’s just that the production base couldn’t function without him, so by policy, it wasn’t yet time to recall him.

The initial framing had indeed riled him up, but hearing now that the other only wanted medication to heal comrades, his heart couldn’t help but soften.

After a long silence, he sighed, "To be honest, with your attitude towards doing things, I could arrange a death mission for you within three days, whether you believe it or not... If all you want is medication, I can try, but no guarantees."

The colonel sneered indifferently, "Type B and C treatment fluids, Nanobot Repair Robots, and Critical Care Chambers... all of which can’t be produced locally. Of course, if there are food and Energy Blocks, that would be even better."

He Runxian looked at him silently for a long time before speaking, "I’m very curious how you’ve managed to survive this long."

"Indeed," the colonel nodded, answering very seriously, "I’m curious too... I should have died at least three times by now."

"I can see what I can do about the medication, but nothing else," He Runxian answered solemnly, "Also, withdraw your surveillance within ten kilometers, or don’t mention anything else."

"Impossible," the colonel replied crisply, "If you manage to get the medication, you’ll receive priority protection from us. We won’t just watch as you get taken away by the bugs."

In different circumstances, others might have believed him, but He Runhua was truly experienced. While he still had a warm heart, his sense of caution was stronger, "Then do as you please, just don’t blame me if I can’t get the medication."

He spoke with an unwavering confidence. In fact, Hesheng still had several secret bases on this planet. If one thought that the goods could only be transported and stored here, they would be gravely mistaken.

If you’re trying to play tricks on me, don’t blame me for not helping.

But the young colonel wasn’t ordinary either. His intuition told him things were about to go south, so he quickly changed his mind, "Alright then, let’s go with your plan. But I’m really curious, what kind of middleman could have such capabilities?"

He Runxian gave him a deep look before casually stating, "I don’t know of any middlemen; Hesheng just has some strategic reserves. As for Bounty Hunters, I might be able to contact a top-notch one."

"Tch," the colonel wasn’t concerned with his threat, scoffing disdainfully, "In Hesheng’s strategic reserves, are there any medications you’re unaware of?"

He Runxian answered expressionlessly, "All data on the strategic reserves has been lost; it’ll take time to recall."

The young colonel, ever composed since entering, couldn’t help but pause when he heard this, eventually raising a thumbs-up after a lengthy silence, "Impressive!"

Thought I couldn’t handle you, huh? He Runxian sneered internally, responding expressionlessly, "You may leave now. Remember your promise, or someone might end up dead."

Lately, he’s often been threatened with death by middlemen, and unconsciously, he’s adopted their tone. Although this tone didn’t match his role as a production director, it indeed reflects a connection with various sectors.

After seeing him off, he promptly picked up the phone to call, "Sir, the matter has been handled. Are you listening?"

(Updated to summon the base monthly tickets.)