30: Chapter 30 Spy Next Door? This is clearly a walking 500,000!

The night at Yunding Villa always carried a sense of tranquility built from money.

The streetlights cast warm yellow halos, stretching the shadows of the two people into an ambiguously long shape.

Jiang Chen stood in front of his ornate iron gate, holding a bag of household trash he had just cleaned up.

He looked at this new neighbor who claimed to be "Zhang Li," his eyes filled with amusement, as if he were watching a little monkey performing a circus act with all its might.

It was too deliberate.

In the middle of the night, what decent girl would wear such a low-cut, tight-fitting knit top, step into ten-centimeter red-bottom high heels, and direct movers in a villa area where there were only two men?

Moreover, the scent of perfume carried by the wind, although it smelled like a high-end product from some big brand, was still caught by Jiang Chen's keen nose (genetically enhanced), which detected a faint, burnt smell similar to overheating electronic components.

"Miss Zhang Li, is it?"

Jiang Chen did not rush to shake the fair, slender hand extended toward him; instead, he hid the trash bag behind his back and smiled with an innocent expression, "Nice to meet you. My name is Jiang Chen, just an unemployed bum, usually just hanging around at home."

"Unemployed bum?"

Alice—the top agent who was using the alias Zhang Li—sneered inwardly.

According to the organization's intelligence, this seemingly slacker young man in front of her held secrets capable of overturning the global technological landscape.

Just the "Sweet Potato Base," which was strictly blockaded by the military, was enough to prove that his value was immeasurable.

"Mr. Jiang, you certainly know how to joke."

Alice brushed her wavy hair behind her ear, her movements filled with charm.

She did not retract her hand; instead, she took a step forward, and that highly aggressive, beautiful aura instantly closed in.

"How could anyone who lives here be simple? I see that Mr. Jiang is heroic and spirited; you must be someone who accomplishes great things."

As she spoke, she seemed to lose her footing, and her body suddenly tilted.

"Oh!"

A delicate cry.

Although this acting was cliché, it was undeniably practical.

Like a delicate, boneless flower, she leaned toward Jiang Chen's embrace.

According to her script, at this moment, a man would instinctively reach out to help her. As long as there was physical contact, the micro-scanner hidden in her brooch could instantly read the information on the electronic devices on the other person.

However.

Jiang Chen did not move.

Not only did he not move, but he even extremely nimbly... stepped aside.

"Thud!"

Before Alice even realized what had happened, she landed solidly on the slightly cool asphalt road.

Although she had undergone strict impact resistance training, this was a real fall; her knees hit the ground, and it hurt so much that tears almost streamed from her eyes.

The most embarrassing part was that due to her posture, her already short skirt inevitably rode up, revealing a large expanse of snow-white skin.

If it were an ordinary man, he would probably have been staring blankly by now and then rushed up in a panic to curry favor.

But Jiang Chen just stood a meter away, looking down at her, still holding that black trash bag, and asked with a look of concern yet full of distance:

"Miss Zhang, are you okay? This road is indeed a bit slippery. Remember to wear non-slip shoes next time."

Alice lay on the ground, cursing internally.

Is this person in the terminal stages of being a clueless man?!

A beautiful woman throws herself into your arms, and you actually dodged? Are you even a man!

"I... I'm fine."

Alice gritted her teeth, resisting the urge to pull out a silenced pistol and shoot him, and forced out a pitiful expression.

She rubbed her ankle, her eyes slightly red, and her voice carried a trembling, tearful tone: "It seems... I twisted my ankle. Mr. Jiang, could you help me up?"

This "pity tactic" was usually unsolvable.

Jiang Chen sighed, seemingly moved by her miserable state.

He put the trash bag on the ground, walked over slowly, and extended his hand: "Come on, be careful."

Just as their hands were about to touch.

The phone in Jiang Chen's pocket suddenly turned into a scorching hot iron while vibrating.

The virtual interface that only he could see popped up scarlet warning boxes frantically, at a frequency so fast it looked like it had a virus.

[Alert! Extreme danger!]

[High-frequency biological scanning rays detected!]

[Source locked: Target's left chest brooch, right ear stud, belt buckle!]

[Target identity confirmed: Codename "Black Mamba," an S-class agent belonging to an overseas intelligence agency. Skilled in seduction, assassination, and stealing secrets.]

[Bounty amount: According to the latest "Anti-Espionage Law" reward standards of the Dragon Kingdom, this target belongs to a "Big Fish," estimated reporting reward: 500,000 Yuan (maximum limit).]

When he saw the "500,000" number, Jiang Chen's eyes changed instantly.

The look that had originally carried a bit of mockery and vigilance suddenly became extremely gentle, one could even say... greedy.

Five hundred thousand!

Although his net worth was in the billions, this was a cash reward! And it was an honorary bonus issued by the state! Could the significance be the same?

Where was this any kind of beautiful snake?

This was clearly a walking stack of RMB, a living certificate of merit!

"Come, come, come, get up slowly."

Jiang Chen's attitude underwent a Napoleonic transformation. He grabbed Alice's hand, his enthusiasm just like an old farmer grabbing his lost sow.

Alice was overjoyed.

Hooked!

Sure enough, no man could resist this sense of contrast. The coldness just now must have been an act!

She stood up using Jiang Chen's strength, her body leaning softly against Jiang Chen, her breath sweet as an orchid: "Thank you, Mr. Jiang... You scared me to death just now. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know what to do tonight."

As she spoke, she quietly adjusted the angle of her brooch, attempting to perform an all-around scan of Jiang Chen.

"No need for thanks, distant relatives aren't as good as close neighbors."

Jiang Chen smiled and put his arm around her waist—in reality, he was pressing down on the hidden signal transmitter on her lower back, preventing her from transmitting data normally.

"Miss Zhang just moved in, do you live alone?" Jiang Chen asked tentatively.

"Yes."

Alice's eyes darted around, her fingers lightly drawing circles on Jiang Chen's chest, "Living in such a big house alone, sometimes at night... it's quite scary. Especially when it thunders, there's not even anyone to talk to."

This hint could not be more obvious.

If it were someone like Wang Kai, he would have probably lost his soul by now.

But Jiang Chen's mind was full of: Living alone? Great! No need to worry about accidentally injuring innocent people during the arrest!

"That is indeed quite unsafe."

Jiang Chen nodded in deep agreement, "There are many bad people these days, especially for beautiful single women like Miss Zhang; it's easy to be targeted. But don't worry, the security guards in our residential area are all retired special forces soldiers; ordinary petty thieves can't get in."

"Is that so? Then I can rest easy."

A trace of disdain flashed in Alice's eyes.

Retired special forces? In front of an S-class agent like her, they were no different from kindergarteners.

The scan progress bar had already reached 90%.

As long as she delayed for another minute, she could copy all the data from the electronic devices on Jiang Chen, and even implant a Trojan virus.

"Mr. Jiang..."

Alice decided to increase the intensity. She looked up, her captivating eyes looking at Jiang Chen with a watery gaze, her red lips parted slightly: "To thank you for helping me up, I would like to invite you... to my place for a cup of coffee. It just so happens I brought some top-grade Blue Mountain coffee beans and haven't had a chance to grind them yet."

Drink coffee?

This was a classic trope in spy movies.

After drinking coffee, does that mean I also have to take a shower? And then you rummage through my phone while I'm showering?

Jiang Chen was clear-headed about it.

He looked at this "five hundred thousand" who was still acting with all her might, and a wicked smile curled the corner of his mouth.

Want to go to your house?

That won't do.

If I go to your house, the home-field advantage will be on your side. What if you have a few big guys ambushed inside, or installed some traps I don't know about? Wouldn't I, a mere mortal, be at a disadvantage?

Need to minimize the risk and maximize the benefits.

And...

Jiang Chen suddenly remembered that he was worrying about the fact that no one was writing that fishing paper on "Controlled Nuclear Fusion." Tens of thousands of words of formulas and data, and it also needed to be translated into English; just thinking about it gave him a headache.

Isn't this a ready-made high-level labor force right in front of him?

Since she was an S-class agent, her foreign language skills must be impeccable, and her typing speed would definitely be fast!

"Drinking coffee is so boring."

Jiang Chen shook his head, a mysterious expression appearing on his face, as if he were about to share a shocking secret.

He leaned into Alice's ear and whispered:

"Coffee can be drunk anywhere. But my place... has some 'good stuff' that you'll definitely be interested in."

"Good stuff?"

Alice was stunned for a moment, and then her heart skipped a beat.

Could it be... technical blueprints? Or core data?

Could this young man be a fool blinded by lust, willing to take out secrets just to show off in front of a beauty?

This was too smooth!

"What is it?"

Alice suppressed the ecstasy in her heart and pretended to be curious, "Is it an antique collected by Mr. Jiang? Or... some other treasure?"

"Much more valuable than antiques."

Jiang Chen blinked and pointed to his brightly lit villa, "It's some... blueprints I recently researched. The only ones in the whole world, the kind that even the Eagle Sauce would drool over upon seeing."

Now Alice couldn't hold back anymore.

Blueprints!

It really was blueprints!

Searching high and low, only to find it without any effort!

"Really?"

Alice's hands were trembling slightly with excitement, and she gripped Jiang Chen's arm tightly, "Then... could I have the honor of visiting? I've admired this kind of high technology since I was a child!"

"Of course."

Jiang Chen smiled like a fox that had stolen a chicken.

He made a "please" gesture, his eyes flashing with a cunning light that only he understood:

"Come, this way please."

"But we need to be quick, those things... are very brain-intensive, we might have to pull an all-nighter tonight."

"All-nighter?"

Alice blushed, but she sneered inwardly: An all-nighter is good; once I knock you out, the whole villa will be mine!

The two, each with their own ulterior motives, walked shoulder to shoulder into the gate of Villa Number One.

Alice thought she was about to step into an unguarded vault.

Little did she know.

She was stepping, step by step, into a sweatshop named "Heartless Capitalist," and was about to welcome the darkest, most humiliating, and most life-questioning night of her agent career.