37: Chapter 37: The truth comes out, I'm selling future technology.

The beams from the searchlights were like sharp swords, piercing through the stifling night of the Western Suburbs.

The five-meter-tall alloy gate boomed open, pushed by hydraulic arms, emitting a teeth-grinding screech. The sentries on either side were rooted to the ground like nails, their Type 95 assault rifles gleaming with a cold, metallic luster under the lights.

Jiang Qianqian sat in the passenger seat, frozen stiff.

She gripped her seatbelt tightly, her usually glib little mouth wide open, yet she couldn't make a single sound.

What kind of company is this?

This is clearly one of those secret bases from movies where they lock up aliens or develop ultimate biochemical weapons!

"Brother..." After a long while, Jiang Qianqian finally found her tongue again, her voice trembling like a leaf in the wind. "You... you honestly tell me, did we leave the country? Is this Northern Myanmar? Don't tell me you're a warlord with a private army?"

"What are you thinking?" Jiang Chen rolled his eyes at her and pressed the gas pedal to drive inside. "This is the Western Suburbs of Tianhai City; we're still on Earth. As for being a warlord... look at your brother's physique, do I look like one?"

As soon as the car came to a stop, Company Commander Zhao Gang, who had been waiting for a long time, trotted over.

This tower of a man didn't even look at the girl in the car; he pulled the door open and snapped to attention, saluting Jiang Chen with a stomp that could have shattered the floor.

"Greetings, Chief!" The shout was like thunder, filled with killing intent.

Jiang Qianqian shuddered in terror, almost sliding off her seat. She looked at Zhao Gang's camouflage uniform and the two bars and one star on his shoulder; the string in her brain called "common sense" snapped completely. A Major? Opening the car door for her brother? And calling him Chief?

"Alright, Old Zhao, cut the formalities." Jiang Chen waved his hand, signaling Zhao Gang to relax. "Take my sister around for a bit. This girl insists I'm trafficking drugs, so I'm showing her our legitimate business so she doesn't try to drag me to the police station."

"Drug trafficking?!" Zhao Gang's eyes widened, and the aura that erupted in that instant made Jiang Qianqian feel like she was being stared down by a tiger.

"Who dares to slander the Chief! We are a legitimate unit! We are approved by..." Zhao Gang wanted to say "approved by Commander Qin," but suddenly remembered the confidentiality regulations and swallowed his words, turning red in the face. "In short, we are growing sweet potatoes for the country!"

Growing sweet potatoes? Jiang Qianqian looked at the anti-aircraft missile vehicle with its menacing silhouette covered by a tarp not far away, then at the pistol tucked at Zhao Gang's waist, and tears almost welled up. Liars! Everyone is a liar! Whose family needs anti-aircraft missiles to grow sweet potatoes? This is clearly armed separatism!

"Let's go, seeing is believing." Jiang Chen didn't explain; he pulled his sister, whose legs were weak, directly toward the most heavily guarded Warehouse No. 2.

As the heavy blast door slowly rose, a scent mixed with machine oil, metal, and some indescribable "future aura" rushed toward them.

The warehouse was brightly lit. The "junk" shipped over from the Wasteland, which hadn't even been categorized yet, was piled on giant shelves without any concealment. Although most of it was wreckage, the industrial design aesthetic that transcended the era was still enough to shock the retinas of any modern person.

Jiang Qianqian looked at the Anti-gravity Engine turbine, which was as big as a house and still rotating slightly, and then at the row of powered exoskeletons next to it—damaged, yet still clearly showing the human silhouette—and was completely speechless.

"What... what is this?" She reached out with a trembling hand, wanting to touch the metal part floating in mid-air, but didn't dare.

"This is your brother's business." Jiang Chen leaned against the leg of a scrapped mecha and pulled a cigarette from his pocket, twirling it in his hand without lighting it. "Qianqian, brother didn't lie to you. Not only am I rich now, but I'm also the country's... well, you can understand it as a 'Special Scientific Consultant'."

"Scientific Consultant?" Jiang Qianqian looked at him blankly. "But you can't even get physics problems right..."

"That was in the past!" Jiang Chen's face flushed, and he forced a recovery. "That was me hiding my talent! Actually, I'm a genius, specifically responsible for helping the country get... ahem, get these future technologies from special channels. See these big guys? Take any one of them out, and it could drive the scientists outside crazy."

He pointed to Zhao Gang, who was standing straight at the door, his tone becoming serious and earnest: "So, these people aren't gangsters, and they certainly aren't a warlord's private army. They were sent by the country to protect this technology, and by the way... to protect your brother as well. Your brother is a national treasure now, understand?"

Jiang Qianqian stared blankly at her brother. At this moment, Jiang Chen stood in that jungle of steel filled with sci-fi vibes, his posture upright and his gaze confident. The composure that radiated from his very bones was something she had never seen in the eighteen years she had known him. He was no longer the down-and-out teenager worrying about a few thousand yuan in tuition, nor was he the gaming-addicted brother who only knew how to hide in his room. He was like a true king, standing on his own territory, overlooking the world.

"Brother..." Jiang Qianqian sniffled, and the tears in her eyes finally couldn't be held back. It wasn't out of fear, but excitement, and a sense of relief mixed with grievance. "You scared me to death... I really thought you were going to jail..." She threw herself into Jiang Chen's arms, wiping her snot and tears all over his high-end custom trench coat, crying like a two-hundred-pound child. "I knew it! I knew my brother was the best! You're not a drug dealer! You're a big hero!"

Jiang Chen helplessly patted her back, his eyes gentle. "Silly girl. As long as I'm here, from now on, no one in this world will be able to bully our Jiang family."

Standing at the door, Zhao Gang watched this scene, and on that rock-hard, cold face, he couldn't help but show a simple, honest smile. Although he didn't understand what "future technology" was, he knew that Mr. Jiang was a good man. That was enough.

After dropping off Jiang Qianqian, who had calmed down and even started excitedly taking selfies in the warehouse (though strictly forbidden from posting them to Moments) back at school, Jiang Chen returned to Yunding Villa alone. The night was deep. The villa was quiet; Academician Chen Shuyin was still in the basement struggling with that chip, and she probably wouldn't be coming up tonight. Jiang Chen slumped on the sofa, feeling that this day had been more tiring than fighting a war.

"Coaxing an ex-girlfriend, then coaxing my sister, then having to coax the country... is it easy for me?" He sighed, habitually pulled out his phone, and prepared to check on his worry-free lady in the Wasteland. He just unlocked the screen. Before the familiar game interface popped up, a golden system notification took over the entire screen, accompanied by an extremely pleasant notification sound. [Ding!] [Congratulations to the Host! With the upgrade of Dawn City's technology level, and the deepening of your bond with the God-Chosen One...] [System communication module upgrade complete!] [New function unlocked: Cross-dimensional real-time video call (zero latency, high fidelity, immersive experience).]

Jiang Chen's fingers paused abruptly, and his breathing instantly quickened. Video call? Does this mean... I can not only see that chibi character, and not only look at those static illustrations... I can see a living person?! And it's... the zero-latency, high-fidelity kind? An image instantly popped into his mind of Jiang Wanqiu wearing that "Black Widow" combat armor, moving in front of the camera...

"Holy crap." Jiang Chen sprang up from the sofa, rushed into the bathroom, fixed his hair in the mirror, and quickly brushed his teeth. "First video meeting, have to leave a good impression. Wanqiu, oh Wanqiu, let Father God take a good look at what you really look like!"