Retired for A Hundred Years: Re-Employment for the Apocalypse Bigshot!-Chapter 312 - 307: All Died in a Foreign Land

One hour later.

Brother Shen sat by the edge of the boat smoking a cigarette, and not far across from him sat a young girl. Her body was quite thin, and she wore a thick men’s coat that wrapped her up completely.

"Shen... Brother Shen... hot water is here..."

A boatman fearfully brought over a thermos and quickly placed it beside the young girl before running off, as if she were the plague.

My goodness, scared to death...

Brother Shen took a deep drag of his cigarette and tossed the butt into the sea.

He stood up and poured a cup of hot water for the young girl.

"Have some water to warm up; we still have two hours before we reach the shore."

The girl slowly reached out her hand, her slender arm and pale skin revealing each vein. Brother Shen’s eyes darkened slightly, and he moved the cup away from her hand, placing it on the table in front of her.

"Be careful, it’s hot."

"Thank you..." The young girl’s voice was very hoarse, as if she had been soaking in the sea for too long.

She picked up the cup, holding it between her hands, the rising steam partially obscuring her expression.

Brother Shen felt apologetic for staring at the girl, so he took out another cigarette, sat back down at his original spot, and smoked.

He didn’t need to think much; the girl in front of him was undoubtedly what Mr. Huang had sent them to find.

During the day, it was said that there was an anomaly in these waters, with fishermen seeing the sea water suddenly rise as if a tsunami had occurred. That night, Mr. Huang had them come to this area to find something.

He didn’t specify what it was, just said that whatever they encountered should be brought onto the boat.

Now everything was clear.

He and his crew were not the talkative type.

People suddenly appearing at sea usually have identity issues, otherwise, they wouldn’t enter the Hua Continent in this manner.

The young girl took a sip of hot water, initially thought he would question her about some things, and had prepared her answers, but the man in front of her remained silent, which made her feel more at ease.

She must have found the right boat.

Elsewhere.

Although Ji Ning had reported everything that happened at sea, the old hands at the Security Department still did not fully believe her words, planning to conduct their own investigation.

Ji Ning didn’t bother to care.

After the meeting, Li Wenxin had kept Ji Ning back alone.

The two sat facing each other across an oval conference table.

The room was even quieter than before, with Li Wenxin’s gaze showing a mix of complexity and a hint of nostalgia, "He has always been the person I respect the most. His wisdom made the Huazhou Safety Zone the safest place internationally, but he always lamented that he was not a tenth as wise as the Commander. If the Commander were still alive, the Huazhou Safety Zone would be even stronger. Back then, I wondered, was the Commander really that formidable? If she truly was, why would she have disappeared during the Jiuming Mountain battle?"

At this point, Li Wenxin’s gaze turned sharp, looking at Ji Ning with eyes filled with resentment and grievance.

"It was because of her disappearance that Hua Continent fell into seven years of internal chaos. The twelve major forces of Hua Continent were divided, and the Outer Continent eyed us covetously, taking advantage of the situation. Three half-grown children had to inherit her legacy, fighting against hostile forces. If one generation couldn’t win, then the second and third generation had to keep fighting to finally achieve the current peace and stability. Do you know why my family’s direct lineage has so few people and has to change our names and keep a branch hidden?"

Li Wenxin’s pupils dilated slightly, staring hard at Ji Ning’s eyes.

"Because most of the direct bloodline of the Li family’s ancestors met their end in foreign lands, their names couldn’t even be engraved on their tombstones."

Ji Ning’s pupils slightly contracted, her expression dimming.

Before her eyes suddenly appeared the image of the little boy who always loved to joke with her, his gaze darkening slightly.

So it wasn’t just a matter of marrying late...

"Gu Family..."

"The Li family’s direct lineage consists of five branches, Gu Beifeng is my cousin."

Li Wenxin’s words left Ji Ning silent for a long time.

"Therefore, the Li family must unify the Ji Family Army. This is the result of countless ancestors’ sacrifices, and I will not allow anyone to further divide Hua Continent."

Ji Ning looked into Li Wenxin’s piercing eyes, seeing determination, decisiveness, and ruthlessness within them.

This was his true self...

Ji Ning felt a tightness in her heart, but she still asked, "For the Ji Family Army, are you willing to sacrifice innocent people?"

Li Wenxin did not answer, but the answer was evident in his eyes. After calming his emotions, he replied with a calm face, "In order to achieve peace and stability, sacrifices must be made, right?"

"So ever since Ji Hong appeared, you’ve been monitoring her, step by step forcing her into a desperate situation; you were the one behind all this, weren’t you?"

"If you hadn’t appeared, she would have been the best candidate."

Li Wenxin’s attitude explained everything.

The warmth in Ji Ning’s eyes gradually cooled, "Then the next step would be to use her death to frame the Lane family in Jiazhou, inciting a conflict between Hua Continent and Jiazhou? Then, ignite a fire within the Ji Family Army so that the divided Ji Family Army achieves unification?"

Li Wenxin’s breathing became lighter, his gaze flashing with a hint of darkness.

Ji Ning stood up, not giving him another look, and turned to leave.

Li Wenxin’s hands, clasped together on the table, suddenly tightened, and the pale bones in his knuckles looked as if they were about to pierce through his skin.

***

When Ji Ning left the Security Department building, snowflakes were already drifting down outside.

This was the second snowfall of the winter in Beijing.

The snow fell densely, already whitening the ground.

Ji Ning did not like snow; during times of chaos, snow meant many ordinary people would perish.

Beneath the white snow, corpses would lie scattered, with skeletons stark and grim.

"Team Leader, you’re out?"

In the courtyard, Xiao Shun, who was making snowballs, turned his head to see his team leader standing on the steps, looking up at the sky.

There was a slight frown between her brows, as if she was troubled by something?

Could it be that Minister Li made things difficult for the team leader?

Thinking of this, Xiao Shun paid no mind to the snowball in his hand and quickly came over to ask Ji Ning, "Team Leader, did something happen? Did Minister Li trouble you?"

Ji Ning slightly lowered her head, looking at him with eyes devoid of emotion, making Xiao Shun feel even more certain that his team leader had been wronged.

Just as he was about to comfort her, he heard Ji Ning coldly ask, "Liu Yan gave you a task, so why haven’t you left?"

"Ah?" Xiao Shun felt panic, his eyes instantly betraying guilt, especially under Ji Ning’s dark gaze, his heart couldn’t help but pound, "Team Leader, no... I don’t have a task from Director Liu..."

Xiao Shun cautiously watched her, only to see the corners of Ji Ning’s lips lift in a sarcastic smile. She said nothing, walking straight past him.

Xiao Shun’s heart shouted "I’m doomed," and after a glance at the Security Department gate, he quickly chased after her.

"Team Leader, let me explain. At first, Director Liu did have me keep an eye on you, but I didn’t report anything later. Really, I swear..."

As Ji Ning walked ahead, she suddenly stopped.

Xiao Shun almost bumped into her, quickly halting, and said with a nasally voice, "I admit... I was Liu Yan’s person. I was initially sent to keep watch, but I didn’t send any messages later..."

"Why?"

Xiao Shun stared blankly ahead, but Ji Ning did not turn around.

Clenching his fists, Xiao Shun’s eyes gradually filled with warmth, "Because I feel the team leader is different. While we are detectives from the Security Bureau, in a place like Beijing, who dares to truly investigate the noble families? Who dares to offend powerful superpower users for the sake of an ordinary person? But the team leader is different; you genuinely pursue the truth, genuinely investigate for ordinary people. In your eyes, I’ve seen that superpower users and ordinary people are equal, with no distinction of status or worth..."