8: Water meter readers? No, we're government officials!

"Can... can you afford the price?"

When Lu Chen's calm voice, tinged with a hint of playfulness, clearly reached everyone in the hallway, the air seemed to be sucked dry in an instant.

Time seemed to freeze for a second.

Qin Feng's facial muscles stiffened uncontrollably.

His hand, suspended in mid-air, also awkwardly stopped there.

As the field team leader of the Dragon Shield Bureau, he had interrogated the most stubborn spies, arrested the most vicious criminals, and faced all kinds of emergencies.

He had anticipated every possible reaction Lu Chen might have: panic, denial, fierce resistance, or even feigning profundity... But he had never expected that the other party would be so direct, opening his mouth like an old fox who had been maneuvering in the business world for decades, directly discussing... money with them?

No, that's not right.

He wasn't talking about money.

It was the price!

One word difference, a world of difference!

All Dragon Shield Bureau operatives hidden in the shadows of the hallway and behind the sniper scopes on the opposite rooftop heard this unforgettable question through their earpieces.

For a moment, everyone was stunned.

"Boss... this kid... what's going on?" A young team member's confused voice came through the earpiece.

Qin Feng did not answer.

His brain was working rapidly, re-evaluating the "target" in front of him.

Previous information showed: Lu Chen, male, eighteen years old, a third-year high school student at Jinghai City No. 17 Middle School, a science ace, parents are ordinary workers, poor family background, slightly introverted personality, simple social circle... This information now seemed like a complete joke!

"Student Lu Chen, you might have misunderstood."

Qin Feng, after all, was a battle-hardened elite. He quickly withdrew his hand, adjusted his expression, and tried to regain control of the conversation.

"We are not here to check water meters, nor are we from community welfare. We are from a... department you don't need to know about for now."

He took a step forward, subtly releasing a trace of a soldier's oppressive aura, and his voice deepened accordingly.

"We are here to ask for your cooperation in assisting with a major incident concerning national security. This is not a request; it's a notification."

He thought that bringing up the words "national security" would be enough to inspire awe in any ordinary citizen.

However, Lu Chen's reaction once again disappointed him.

Lu Chen leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, not only showing no fear but instead revealing a "just as I expected" smile.

"Don't be nervous." Lu Chen's tone was as relaxed as if he were chatting with a classmate, "I know who you are, and I know why you're here."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Qin Feng's instantly constricted pupils, and slowly said, "Isn't it because of an anonymous email and a paper about 'direction'?"

Boom!

This sentence was nothing short of a thunderclap, exploding in the minds of Qin Feng and all Dragon Shield Bureau members!

He admitted it!

He actually admitted it so nonchalantly!

Qin Feng felt his breathing halt for half a second.

Before they came, they had 99% certainty, but they were still missing that last shred of evidence. But now, the other party had actually revealed his own hand!

What exactly does this kid want to do?

"You went to such great lengths to find me, putting out news, posting 'missing person notices' on the school forum. You've worked hard."

Lu Chen's tone was indistinguishable as praise or sarcasm.

"However, this needle-in-a-haystack approach is really... a bit inefficient."

For the first time, a thin layer of cold sweat seeped from Qin Feng's temple.

He realized that from beginning to end, he and the entire Dragon Shield Bureau had been played like puppets by this seemingly harmless high school student!

The other party was not some passive "prey" at all.

He was the fisherman, holding the rod, quietly watching how they, the "fish," would bite the hook!

"You..."

Qin Feng took a deep breath, finding that all the rhetoric he had prepared earlier now seemed pale and powerless.

In the face of absolute intellectual dominance, any skill seemed so superfluous.

He could only choose the most direct approach.

"What do you want?"

He finally asked the question.

The moment he said it, he knew he had lost.

They had changed from "notifiers" to "questioners."

The initiative had completely changed hands.

"That's more like it." Lu Chen finally smiled.

His smile was clean and pure, like a child who had received a beloved toy.

"As I said, this is not an investigation, nor an interrogation."

"This is a... negotiation."

He extended two fingers and waved them in front of Qin Feng.

"I have something you desperately desire. And not just one thing."

"And you have what I need. Labs, equipment, materials, and... unrestricted research authority."

He looked at Qin Feng's shifting expression and said, word by word, clearly:

"I provide the brains, and you provide everything else besides the brains."

"Everyone, cooperate for mutual benefit."

"This is my 'price'."

The entire hallway fell into a deathly silence.

Qin Feng felt his throat incredibly dry. He opened his mouth, but not a single word came out.

He realized that he simply wasn't qualified to answer this question.

The young man's asking price had far exceeded his authority, and even the authority of the entire Dragon Shield Bureau.

This was a decision that required the highest level of approval!

"It seems you can't make the decision."

Lu Chen saw through his predicament and smiled understandingly.

"That's fine."

He pulled out the crumpled, sole ten-yuan bill from his pocket and waved it in front of Qin Feng.

"Now, I'm going to have a bowl of egg noodles with two eggs to celebrate our... impending cooperation."

With that, he turned to close the door.

"Wait!"

Qin Feng instinctively shouted!

He knew that if Lu Chen closed the door today, they would completely fall into a passive position!

Lu Chen turned back, raising an eyebrow, as if asking: Anything else?

Qin Feng stared intently at him, squeezing out a sentence through gritted teeth—the only thing he could decide today.

"The egg noodles... we'll treat!"

"Also..."

He took out his walkie-talkie, pressed the talk button, but his gaze remained fixed on Lu Chen's unfathomable eyes.

"Director Long, this is Qin Feng, there's been a major change in the situation..."

"The target... he wants to talk directly with you."