139: Chapter 139 The President's Call: Take good care of her for me, consider it a debt I owe you.
On the contrary.
He picked up the cup of black coffee on the table, which had already gone lukewarm, and took a slow, deliberate sip.
The bitter liquid slid down his throat, making his mind even clearer.
"Mr. President."
Chen Yuan's voice was as calm as water, without even the slightest hint of awe.
"Your memory doesn't seem to be very good."
"This is a security company, a place for legitimate business, not a den for human trafficking."
The breathing on the other end of the line became heavy.
"Chen Yuan! Don't play dumb with me!"
The President's fury could set someone on fire from across the Atlantic.
"The Secret Service's internal tracking signal shows that the last place she appeared was your goddamn manor!"
"Do you know what the charge is for detaining the First Daughter?"
"With just one executive order from me."
"The National Guard stationed in Texas, along with the Navy SEALs, will blow your Elysium Manor to the ground within ten minutes!"
"First."
Chen Yuan raised a finger. Although the other party couldn't see it, his aura of controlling everything pressed through the airwaves.
"Your daughter climbed over the wall and ran in herself."
"According to Texas's 'Castle Doctrine,' my security guards have the right to shoot her on the spot for trespassing on private property without permission."
"Not only did I not kill her, but I'm also providing her with food and shelter."
"Instead of thanking me, a helpful citizen, you want to bomb my house?"
The other end of the line fell into a brief silence.
Obviously, the President was choked up by this shameless, hooligan logic.
"Second."
Chen Yuan continued to twist the knife, his eyes as sharp as blades.
"If the Secret Service was truly confident, and if the military really dared to act."
"Then the people standing outside my door right now should be fully armed special forces, not you, a very busy man, calling me personally to roar."
"The reason you are making this call."
"Is because deep down..."
Chen Yuan leaned back in his chair.
"Wouldn't it have been better if you were like this from the start?"
"Speak, Mr. President. What exactly do you need from a 'terrorist' like me?"
The sound of a lighter came from the other end of the line.
Apparently, this President, pushed into a corner, also needed nicotine to calm his strained nerves.
"I know Jennifer is with you."
The President exhaled a puff of smoke, his voice hoarse.
"I also know it was your men who knocked out the Secret Service's sentry."
"But I'm not calling to hold you accountable this time."
He paused.
His tone became incomparably grave, even carrying a hint of unspeakable grief.
"Chen, don't let her run around."
"And don't let her return to the White House."
Chen Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly.
He keenly captured the subtext in this sentence.
"Interesting."
Chen Yuan toyed with the fountain pen in his hand.
"A father who actually won't let his runaway daughter come home?"
"And he specifically instructs an arms dealer to watch over her?"
"This doesn't sound like the style of the White House."
"Because the White House is now more dangerous than that manor of yours, which is crawling with monsters!"
"I can guarantee."
"There will definitely be an 'unfortunate, serious car accident' on the highway back to Washington."
"They need a tragedy, they need a broken President, to sway those damn votes!"
Chen Yuan listened quietly.
The expression on his face did not fluctuate in the slightest.
He was long accustomed to the filth of politics.
What is the sacrifice of an innocent girl for the sake of power?
Moreover, this girl was the opponent's most lethal weak point.
"So."
Chen Yuan pointed out the core issue with surgical precision.
"You want to use my place as a sanctuary for your precious daughter?"
"That's right."
The President admitted frankly, "In all of North America, yours is the only safe place right now."
"Your Tyrant Guard doesn't recognize anyone."
"Even The Pentagon gets a headache from your defense systems."
"As long as Jennifer stays with you, the assassins sent by those political enemies can only stare helplessly from the outside."
This was an extremely ironic fact.
The daughter of the American President actually needed to stay in the home of an arms kingpin, whom the FBI considered a thorn in their side, to save her life.
"Mr. President, your plan is very well thought out."
Chen Yuan smiled.
He laughed like a black-hearted merchant who had just seen a fat sheep walk through his door.
"But you seem to have forgotten."
"Umbrella is a security company, not a charity."
"Letting the First Daughter stay here means I have to block all the open and hidden arrows for you."
"This security fee won't be cheap."
"How much money do you want?"
The President spoke without hesitation, "One hundred million? Two hundred million? Or the next quarter's body armor order for The Pentagon?"
"As long as you guarantee her safety, I will approve it all for you!"
"Money?"
Chen Yuan sneered, as if he had heard some low-level vocabulary.
"Mr. President, just yesterday, I shorted the Johnson & Johnson Group and added fifty billion US dollars in cash to my account."
"Do you think I would be short of your pocket change?"
There was another silence on the other end of the line.
That's right.
Using money to bribe a demon king with wealth rivaling a nation was a false premise in itself.
"Then what do you want?"
A hint of tension seeped into the President's voice.
He wasn't afraid of the other party wanting money.
What he feared was that he wouldn't be able to give what the other party wanted.
"What I want is very simple."
Chen Yuan stood up and walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window.
Looking down at the entire San Verde, which was bathed in sunlight.
"I want a promise."
"A favor."
"An absolute favor... from the President of the United States."
Chen Yuan's eyes became deep and dangerous.
"In the future."
"When certain businesses of Umbrella Corporation inevitably touch upon some 'bottom lines'."
"When those congressmen of yours are clamoring to sanction me."
"I need you."
Chen Yuan's voice was low, carrying a devilish allure.
"To close your eyes."
"And use the presidential veto power in your hands to suppress all those annoying bills for me."
"Is this price fair?"
Crazy.
The President on the other end of the line felt that his back was already soaked in cold sweat.
This Easterner was asking for a get-out-of-jail-free card!
This was equivalent to tearing a lawless gap in the bottom line of the law!
But.
Did he have a choice?
On one side was the bottom line of the country, on the other was the life of his own daughter.
For a father pushed to the end of the road by political enemies, this multiple-choice question was actually not difficult.
"...Fine."
After a long time, an extremely weary sigh came from the phone.
"I agree."
"But you must guarantee that Jennifer will not lose a single hair."
"Deal."
Chen Yuan curled his lips into a victorious smile.
"I wish you a smooth re-election, Mr. President."
"Beep."
The call ended.
Chen Yuan casually tossed the satellite phone onto the table.
An earth-shattering transaction capable of affecting the political landscape of North America was settled just like that in a few understated sentences.
He turned his head.
His gaze passed through the floor-to-ceiling window and looked down at the courtyard below.
He had just finished a major business deal worth hundreds of millions.
Chen Yuan was in a very good mood right now.
He intended to see what that First Daughter, who was worth a "Presidential favor," was doing now.
However.
The moment his gaze touched the lawn.
The smile on Chen Yuan's face froze instantly.
The veins on his forehead bulged uncontrollably.
In the courtyard.
Tyrant No. 1 was gone.
Replacing it were the Zombie Dogs that had just been cultivated in the underground laboratory for assassination missions!
They were bloodthirsty monsters with flayed skin, exposed muscles, and mouths full of fangs.
An ordinary person would have nightmares for months after just one look.
But what about now?
Jennifer was holding a bloody raw steak in her hand.
She was shouting at that terrifying Zombie Dog as if she were training a Border Collie.
"Sit!"
"Good, if you don't sit, I won't give it to you!"
The red light in the Zombie Dog's eyes flickered crazily, and the drool from the corner of its mouth dripped onto the grass, emitting puffs of white smoke.
Its killing instinct made it want to bite the throat of the human in front of it directly.
But the bio-chip in its brain.
The highest underlying logic set by Chen Yuan firmly suppressed its instinct, telling it that it could not harm this girl.
And so.
This fearsome Zombie Dog whimpered aggrievedly.
It actually really did.
Very awkwardly, it slowly sat its butt, which consisted only of muscle and bone, on the grass.
"Great job! You're much smarter than those police dogs in the White House!"
Jennifer cheered and threw the raw steak over.
She even boldly reached out her hand.
And stroked the Zombie Dog's bloody head.
The several security personnel standing in the distance were already pale with fright, ready to call an ambulance at any moment.
In front of the second-floor floor-to-ceiling window.
Chen Yuan watched this scene, which was absurd to the extreme.
He took a deep breath.
Feeling his blood pressure soaring wildly.
He had originally thought he had taken on a troublesome escort mission.
Now it seemed.
This wasn't an escort at all.
This is like inviting a house-wrecking Siberian Husky back!
Chen Yuan covered his forehead and sighed helplessly.
"Victor."
He shouted without turning his head.
"Yes, boss!"
Victor hurried over.
Chen Yuan looked at the blonde girl downstairs who was still teaching the Zombie Dog to "shake hands," his voice filled with deep exhaustion.
"Go prepare the sturdiest guest room for her."
"Tell the laboratory to lock up all dangerous reagents."
"Boss, this is..."
Victor swallowed, a bit confused.
Chen Yuan gritted his teeth and squeezed out a sentence:
"This is no First Daughter."
"This is a living ancestor!"