Free Web NovelChapter 1084: Chapter 760: Hanging Up a Sheep’s Head [02] Test
After Fátima left, April, Nora, and Pedro took over the large tent.
Outside, the sandstorm raged furiously.
Inside, it was calm and peaceful.
The quality of the main tent was quite good.
However, for those enduring the sandstorm outside, it was miserable. The soldiers were relatively fine, having weathered countless storms and hardships over the years. They stood firm like white poplars. But the external team, who topple at the slightest wind, were on shaky ground, feeling as if they were teetering on the brink of life and death.
Each one of them was in agony.
Windswept and disheveled, the scholars’ dignity had become nothing but a joke.
Inside the tent.
Nora sat by the conference table, browsing through the meeting materials of the external team.
A pile of blueprints covered the table.
The external team was only responsible for the entrance of Mechanism City. The drawings and data for the entrance had been backed up and submitted, and this was one of those copies.
Additionally, there were over three hundred maps and various materials that Nora had procured.
All their research was based on these blueprints.
But the research results... were as expected.
"Have they discovered anything?" April brought an apple from somewhere, wiped it casually, took a bite, and strolled over leisurely.
"No."
Nora tossed the blueprints aside and pinched her brow.
Irritating.
They hadn’t pinpointed the critical areas, circling around the outskirts of a circle. They were far less effective than Hardy and Fátima’s technical team, who conscientiously followed her instructions and made models by the book.
——What a pointless research effort.
April was taken aback, "Nothing at all?"
"Maybe they think there is." Nora reclined, a relaxed expression on her face, and a slight curve on her lips as she thought of something, "In our field, when just scratching the surface, one is always the most overconfident."
She had already foreseen the external team equating "mechanical techniques" with "simple."
"Isn’t that the same for every field?" April took another bite of the apple and asked.
"For those who know nothing, indeed every field is the same." Nora replied nonchalantly.
Pedro finished peeling an apple, handed it to Nora, and then casually pushed the stack of documents away, "Let’s not bother with this low-level stuff."
"Alright."
Nora nodded in agreement.
April: "..." Feeling proud, huh.
*
Two hours later, the dust storm subsided.
Outside, the sky had darkened.
The main tent was so comfortable that no one felt like leaving. At nightfall, the camp turned on the engines, and the bulbs lit up, making it feel just like the city.
April somehow obtained several packs of self-heating hotpot meals, conveniently settling the three people’s dinner, and also slipped a bunch of snacks to Nora.
"Your tent is ready, you can move over now."
Fátima walked in, and upon seeing the three leisurely enjoying fruits, snacks, and hot tea, she raised an eyebrow.
——Are they here to work or to enjoy a vacation?
——No sense of organizational discipline.
However, seeing Nora’s stunning face, Fátima couldn’t muster any words of reproach, lamented her own weakness for beauty, and pretended not to have witnessed the scene.
"Oh." Nora clapped her hands and stood up, instructing April on the side, "Sister April, grab the luggage."
"..."
The subsequently standing April almost twisted her ankle at Nora’s words.
?
She pointed at herself incredulously, "Me?"
"Yes."
Nora nodded with self-righteousness.
April: "..."
"Fátima, look at your little junior sister——" April turned her head to complain to Fátima.
But Fátima didn’t even glance at her, cutting her off directly, "Go get it."
April: "..."
Look how spoiled she is!
"Have you been keeping an eye on them?" Nora pulled Pedro and walked towards Fátima.
"No, just took a quick look." Fátima replied lightly, "Went to inquire about Rita’s network connections."
Pedro asked, "Have you sorted it out?"
"Close enough." Fátima nodded, glanced outside, and said, "Let’s talk as we walk."
The four of them left the tent.
Once the windstorm outside ceased, the whole night seemed to quiet down. The guards on duty were very silent, and the external team, having been battered by the wind and sand for two hours, was already exhausted, without the energy to show any temper towards Fátima. They dragged their weary bodies back to their respective tents.
Basically, there was no noise.
"The external team consists of nine people in total." Fátima spoke in an unhurried tone, "Three old professors and the rest are two doctoral students and four postgraduates. The three professors have divided into three groups, presumably doing quite a bit of research. But whether it’s useful remains unknown."
"Tsk."
Nora sneered with disdain.
Fátima gave her a smiling glance, "Currently, there are a few possibilities. One, Rita is alone. Two, Rita has a partner. But, ’partner’ here has two possible scenarios. Either Rita is aware of the ’partner’s’ existence, or she isn’t."
"..."
Nora remained silent.
So Fátima continued, "We can only analyze the situation where ’Rita is aware of the partner’s existence.’"
"What have you found out?" April asked with hands in pockets.
"Rita’s social connections are simple; she generally interacts closely with two people within the group. She has notable achievements, so even the professors have to give her face. From my observations, none fit the ’partner’ profile." Fátima noted, "As for the others, none are straightforward; the possibility of cleverly disguised individuals cannot be excluded."
At this point, Fátima glanced at Nora.
Nora misunderstood and said, "They could come here, their identities must have been scrutinized by you guys. Alexander Vaughn should have covered their identities perfectly. Having Biel Hall check it now probably won’t uncover anything new."
"Not about that." Fátima squinted slightly, "I’m suggesting that Marcus Shaw and Oliver arrive tomorrow. Why not let them test things out?"
