Chapter 198 Another Storm

A piercing alarm sounded in the spacious and bright international airport departure hall, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

"Beep! Beep! Beep! Warning! Prohibited item detected! Warning!"

The sound was too loud and urgent, completely unlike the gentle "beep-beep" usually heard when a power bank or lighter was detected.

The passengers queuing nearby were startled; they stopped in their tracks and looked around in confusion.

The stylish young man, who had been whistling and feeling incredibly cool just moments ago, was now completely bewildered.

He took off his sunglasses, looked at the security scanner that was suddenly flashing red, and then looked at the silver-white "Wangcai" still sitting in a crouch on the conveyor belt.

"What's going on?"

"Big sister, this dog of mine is an electronic product. I'm not checking it in; can't I take it on the plane?"

The young man said to the security officer with some impatience, "This battery meets the regulations. I didn't bring any explosives."

However, what responded to him was not the gentle explanation of the security officer, but a series of urgent, heavy footsteps.

"Don't move!"

"Hands on your head! Get down!"

"Evacuate all unrelated personnel! Quickly!"

In the blink of an eye, seven or eight fully armed SWAT officers rushed out from all directions.

They held riot shields and riot forks, and some even had dark submachine guns in their hands. They instantly formed a perimeter, trapping the stylish young man and the "Wangcai" tightly in the center.

When the surrounding passengers saw this scene, they couldn't care less about watching the commotion and immediately scattered.

The security checkpoint, which had been bustling with activity just a moment ago, was instantly cleared into a vast empty zone.

The stylish young man was completely stunned.

He raised his hands, his legs went weak, and he slid right down the security counter to the floor.

"N-no..."

"Officer, don't shoot! I'm a law-abiding citizen!"

"I'm just taking a toy dog on a trip. Is it necessary? Is it necessary to draw guns?"

He shouted with a sobbing tone, feeling more wronged than Dou E.

At this moment, a high-ranking security supervisor ran over, sweating profusely, and roared into the walkie-talkie:

"Confirmed! The instrument scan shows that the target object's internal structure and material density perfectly match the characteristics database of 'Level 1 Embargoed Military Equipment' just issued by the XX Department!"

"It's that combat platform with the codename 'Wangcai'!"

Upon hearing the words "combat platform," the SWAT officers present acted as if facing a formidable enemy, their fingers already resting on their triggers.

After all, just a few hours ago, an internal bulletin had displayed terrifying footage of this thing tearing tanks apart like building blocks on the Middle Eastern battlefield.

Although the one in front of them had no machine guns mounted and no explosives strapped to it, appearing harmless to humans and animals,

the kinetic impact force of this thing itself was enough to tear a passenger plane apart.

"Control it! Cut the power!"

A SWAT team leader shouted.

Two SWAT officers carefully held electronic jamming guns and fired a barrage at the "Wangcai" still on the conveyor belt.

Only after confirming that the indicator lights of the robot dog had completely gone out did they heave a sigh of relief.

A few minutes later, in the interrogation room of the airport police station.

The stylish young man sat in the confession chair, his hands still shaking; that scene just now had almost scared the pee out of him.

Opposite him sat two middle-aged men in plain clothes with sharp eyes. They were the National Security agents who had rushed over upon receiving the news.

"Name."

"Zh-Zhang Wei."

"Where did this thing come from?" The National Security agent pointed to the "Wangcai" in the evidence bag.

"I... I bought it!" Zhang Wei said, tears welling up in his eyes from grievance. "I bought it online! From the Li Family Toy Factory's livestream! I even used the hand speed I'd honed over twenty years of being single to snatch the first edition!"

"Officer, this is just a toy! It cost ten thousand yuan each, and shipping was included!"

"How did it become... become a prohibited item?"

The National Security agent looked at his pathetic state and sighed helplessly. Of course, they knew this young man was innocent.

However, the law is the law, and security is security.

One of them took out a document that had just been printed and pushed it in front of Zhang Wei, saying solemnly:

"Young comrade, take a look at this."

"According to the country's newly released 'Emergency Notice on Restricting the Export of High-Performance Unmanned Combat Platforms and Related Technologies'."

"This thing you are carrying... um, 'Wangcai'."

"Its various performance indicators, including the power system, balance algorithms, and that... ceramic composite armor shell, all belong to cutting-edge military technology strictly controlled by the state."

"This thing is now a sensitive material of key concern under international conventions like the Wassenaar Arrangement."

"Simply put." The National Security agent pointed at the dog and said in a very certain tone:

"Taking it abroad is equivalent to carrying a single-soldier missile or a miniature tank across the border."

"This is called arms smuggling, do you understand?"

Boom! Zhang Wei felt as if a thunderbolt had exploded in his brain.

He stared dumbfounded at the "electronic pet" he had bought for ten thousand yuan, intending to take it abroad to show off. His mouth was open wide enough to fit a fist inside.

"What?"

"My... my dog is a weapon?"

"I just bought a toy, and I've become an arms smuggler?"

He felt this world was too crazy. Who the hell could he reason with?

Li Family Toy Factory?

That Streamer who smiled and called out "family" in the livestream?

Because it was his first time watching that Streamer's broadcast, although he had seen comments in the live chat saying the other party was a Militia General and talking about arms, he had thought they were just memes.

So that guy was actually selling arms? No, if you're selling arms, you should have made it clear! So I could have bought it and hidden it better.

...

And this was just the beginning. With the emergency control measures launched at the national level, a massive "National Pet Confiscation" campaign quickly spread across the country.

In a high-end residential complex, an auntie was walking her "Wangcai," which had a vegetable basket hanging on it, returning happily from the vegetable market.

Just as she entered the gate of the complex, she was stopped by two staff members in uniform.

"Auntie, hello. We need to take this... dog of yours."

"On what grounds? I paid money for this! It helps me carry rice!" The auntie was unhappy.

The staff member smiled apologetically and took out an official document with a red seal: "Auntie, this is a state requisition. Your dog... is too strong and could easily hurt people. How about this: we'll refund you the original price and provide an additional compensation of five thousand yuan. Is that alright?"

Upon hearing that she could still make money, the auntie immediately handed over the dog leash: "Take it, take it! This dog really does consume a lot of electricity."

In a university dormitory, several male students were surrounding a "Wangcai," studying how to flash a new system onto it.

"Bang, bang, bang!" The counselor, accompanied by several police officers, knocked on the door.

"Students, stop what you're doing," the police officer said kindly. "This teaching aid... involves state secrets, and we need to recover it."

"But we've already written half the code..."

"What code? That's a fire control system! Hand it over immediately!"

Similar events were playing out in airports, train stations, customs, and even residential buildings all over the country.

More and more ordinary people who had purchased "Wangcai" were being directly visited by relevant departments for a "talk." While called a talk, it was actually more like "delivering warmth."

After all, the consumers couldn't be blamed for this; who could have imagined that a toy factory could produce weapons?

Therefore, the official attitude was very sincere, focusing on "friendly recovery." Not only was there a full refund, but also compensation for emotional distress. In some places, they even gave out rice, flour, and oil.

For a time, this matter fermented rapidly on the internet and directly exploded onto the trending topics.

#NationalPetRequisitioned#

#MyDogBecameAWeapon#

#WhatExactlyDidLiFamilyToyFactoryBuild#

#TheMostHardcoreToyRecoveryActionInHistory#

...

Meanwhile, at the Li Family Toy Factory, in the factory manager's office.

Li Jiajun was sitting in his boss chair, holding his phone, looking at the long list of trending topics on the screen, as well as the overwhelming comments from Netizens tagging him.

His hands were trembling slightly.

Just a few minutes ago, he was still rejoicing, thinking that the tens of thousands of regular edition Wangcais he had produced had already been shipped and sold.

The law does not punish the masses.

As long as it was sold to the public, it was a civilian product.

The state couldn't possibly go into people's homes and snatch things, could it?

But now...