By seven, a Hongqi sedan had found a parking spot along the street. Right opposite them was the one and only Freedom EDM Music Bar. It seemed to be a popular spot for foreigners to relax. This was why despite its location in the heart of the bustling city, the structure of their staff was not complicated, which made things easier to comprehend.
To set their safehouse in the middle of Jingdu city was a cunning move by Yang Shen.
Xia Lei watched the barâs entrance through the window. Standing in front of it were two blonde waiters with crystal blue eyes. One simple scan through their body showed that they were unarmed. He pushed his left vision further into the establishment, noticing a few drinking foreigners inside. A majority of its patrons were whites with a few black people in the mix. Regardless of its service or customers, everything about the bar looked normal. However, Xia Lei was almost certain that there was an underground structure beneath the property. It was just a pity that he couldnât see through the ground.
Tang Yuyan picked up the communicator. âDispatch an agent to scout its interior.â
âRoger.â Tang Bochuan answered.
Soon enough, a casually dressed female agent went into the bar. The agent was young and was blessed with great body proportions. This was the kind of female patron that a bar would love. Gorgeous ladies were magnets which helped drive business. Some bars would even offer good-looking women free drinks for the night. Despite that, the young and pretty female agent was immediately stopped by the two.
Xia Lei locked his left eye to read the exchange between the greeters and the female agent.
âSorry, miss. This bar is for members only. If you wish to enter, please kindly produce your membership card.â The blonde greeter spoke fluent Chinese, her tone polite and courteous.
The Bureau 101 female agent replied, âHuh? Is that so? Can I just register for one now?â
âTo register as a member now is not an issue. However, verification of documents would take time.â
âWhat? Verification is needed too?â
âYeah, weâre terribly sorry for the trouble.â The blonde greeter apologized softly.
âWhat the hell? Ugh, this place sucks. Youâre not the only bar along this street anyways.â The female agent feigned anger, swiftly turning away to leave.
In the car, Tang Yuyan furrowed her brows. âThere really is something fishy about this place. Bars rarely implement strict membership systems.â
Her analysis was the same as Xia Leiâs judgement after a thorough study of the barâs interior.
Xia Lei replied, âThis place was set in downtown Jingdu to make it look like it has a large customer flow with complex social structure. But in reality, the party has a great amount of control over the place. The lively traffic and complexity of the environment, in turn, provide them with an excellent cover. Iâm guessing that Yang Shan and Sperry are beneath this bar. Surveillance is to be expected inside the bar. As soon as our people move in, theyâll be alarmed.â
âI wasnât expecting this to be so difficult.â Tang Yuyan rubbed her temples. âWith the membership system, thereâs no way for our agents to enter the bar. Forcing our way in would only create a scene. Yang Shan is sly, would a safehouse he built have secret passages? If he notices us, he would certainly flee. If an intense gunfight were to break out, the mortality rate would be high.â
She made sense. If gunfire were exchanged and turned a large number of civilians into victims, then the operation would be a failure and the agents involved would be punished.
Xia Lei thought about it. âI think I should head inside alone.â
âNo way, thatâs too dangerous. I wonât allow that.â Tang Yuyanâs gaze was filled to the brim with worry.
Xia Lei offered her a relaxed smile. âItâs just one Yang Shan and Sperry, itâs not that big of a threat to my safety. Donât worry, Iâll be fine. Iâm not trying to force myself through this, I just donât wish to harm anyone innocent involved in this operation. Iâm sure you wouldnât want this to go south? This is Jingdu, there will be great consequences.â
Tang Yuyan gulped. âButâŚâ
Xia Lei interjected, âThereâs no need to talk me out of this. This is settled. Iâll disguise myself as Li Youdun to gain access. Bring your team in after ten minutes.â
âWaitâŚâ Tang Yuyan abruptly met his eyes. âLi Youdun is such a familiar name. What is he to the CIA?â
âHeâs an assassin working for the CIA, also the one responsible for killing me. He blended into the Thunder Horse Organization for two things. To steal trade secrets on the new material and to take my life,â answered Xia Lei.
Li Youdun was dead. There was no longer a need for him to continue keeping this a secret. There was no point in doing that. It was only a matter of time until Bureau 101 discovers the truth and when that time comes, Xia Lei would be in a sticky situation while attempting to explain himself. Hence, this was the best time to come clean.
Tang Yuyan fell silent for a moment. âWhen I visited your office to investigate the spy incident, you tried to stop me from progressing further. You knew who exactly it was, why did you choose not to tell me?â
Xia Lei nodded to confirm her thoughts. âYes, Iâve known for some time. I have my own reasons for doing so.â
âIs he still in your grasp?â Tang Yuyan questioned.
Xia Lei answered, âHow did you think I got a hold of the CIAâs list? Plus, how was I able to find out where the CIAâs Jingdu informant base and safehouse was?â
âYou⌠made a deal with him?â
âThatâs right. I gave him his freedom and he gave me what I wanted. I wasnât planning on doing this initially but the value of that list was enough to exchange more than his life. This is beneficial for the country. Why give up the opportunity?â Xia Lei stared into Tang Yuyanâs eye with unwavering calmness. There was nothing but honesty and sincerity in his gaze.
Tang Yuyan reciprocated the stare. There was a few seconds of silence before she spoke again, âFrom what youâve gained, this deal was certainly worth it. But your approach is illegal.â
âBeing a law-abiding citizen will not get the job done.â
âAlright, I can help you cover this up but there will be no next time. If something similar were to happen again, you need to tell me the truth or have me handle it,â warned Tang Yuyan.
âNo problem, I.â Xia Lei pulled out his toolbox from the backseat. He opened it and brought out his human face mask.
Five minutes later, Xia Lei had completed his disguise and left the Hongqi car. This was not the first time he had become Li Youdunâs imposter. At this rate, all preparation work was as effortless as breathing.
âBe careful.â Tang Yuyan gently reminded him through the car window.
Xia Lei nodded slightly as acknowledgement before making a beeline for the entrance of Freedom EDM Music Bar. As he strode over, he began to ponder quietly, âI donât have any membership card on me. If the two greeters stop me, what should I do? Do I just head straight inside? I hope they recognize him here.â
The two blonde greeters were quick to register his presence. In unison, they bowed and welcomed him. âWelcome.â
Xia Lei went past the greeters and made it into the safehouse. From his assumptions earlier, the last one certainly was the case.
As soon as Xia Lei entered the establishment, Tang Yuyan began laying down instructions through her communicator. âAll combatants on standby. Calibrate your watches. It is now 7:45 pm, force entry at 7:55 pm. Shoot anyone who stands in your way!â
âRoger!â A wave of responses came ringing through the device.
Inside Freedom EDM Music Bar, Xia Lei made his way to the bar counter and ordered a glass of whisky. He took a seat and waited. After the bartender had placed his order in front of him, Xia Lei made no move to take a sip. This was not a place that he would find safe enough to consume anything.
Two minutes later, a familiar figure emerged from the back corridor of the bar. The man made his way over to Xia Lei.
It was Sperry. He immediately inched closer to Xia Leiâs side and lowered his voice. âAnyone tailing you?â
This question was basically a round-about method of asking, Have you been exposed?
Xia Lei turned to face Sperry. âThere are not more than twenty people in the world that are capable of tailing me. Do you think there would be one here?â
Sperry shrugged nonchalantly. âHey, donât get so defensive. I was just checking. This is our last stronghold. If we lose this too, it will be difficult to reform our informant base in Jingdu.â
âThatâs none of my concern.â Xia Lei snorted. âYou brought me here. Whatâs the issue?â
âWell, of course, itâs something very important.â Sperry began, âMister Williams wishes to confirm your progress. Iâm sure you know what that means.â
Xia Lei scoffed coldly. âOf course I do. If my identity was exposed, I wouldâve probably been sitting around in a special cell within Chinaâs Intelligence Department. It will be impossible for me to reach this place. Thatâs enough, I donât wish to answer anything else. Bring me to Williams.â
âFollow me.â Sperry led him away from the bar counter and into the back corridor.
Both sides of the corridor were lined with rooms. There were storerooms and VIP rooms. However, none of it was to store alcohol.
Xia Lei quickly concluded his corridor study with the help of his X-ray vision. His heart hummed, âThis means that thereâs an underground cellar. Yang Shan should be waiting inside. He mustâve turned that place into a temporary informant base.â
They reached the end of the corridor, which happened to be a storeroom for random appliances. Sperry moved to the one corner and rotated a filthy ashtray that was placed on one of the dusty shelves.
Clack! With a soft sound, the entire storeroom began to sink.
This room was an elevator!
The moving elevator came to a halt a few moments later. Sperry turned the doorknob and exited the storeroom. Xia Lei quickly tagged behind him. Contrary to his assumption, it wasnât an alcohol cellar but a multifunctional space. It had an office area and a training area, which the latter was surprisingly small. On another side of the space was an area for weapons and espionage gadgets.
Under one wall was a desk, where Yang Shan was seated. The man immediately locked gazes on Xia Lei as soon as he emerged out of the elevator, the suspicion burning in his eyes was unmistakable.
To Yang Shanâs side was a wall that hung an impressive row of monitors. All of it showed the surroundings and interior of the Freedom EDM Music Bar along with body scans of the entire street. There was no doubt that the CIA had full control over this entire area!
Other than Yang Shan, there were also six CIA agents in the underground space. There was one Caucasian and five Asians.
Xia Leiâs eyes landed on one of them, his face ringing a bell in his mind. This fella was Li Youdunâs observer.
Typically, informant bases would have ten to fifteen agents. But with Yang Shan and Sperry included, there were not more than eight agents. Their numbers did not even reach the standard minimum. Xia Leiâs heart was confused, âI observed this place. Everyone in the bar seemed normal and definitely not agents. Where are the rest? Why are they hiding?â
Suddenly, the thought triggered a surge of alarm in Xia Lei that seemed to claw for the roof.
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