Chapter 736: The Plan

Chapter 736: Chapter 87: The Plan

Manager Han looked over from his car, his tone as placid as ever.

“Manager Wen, I was waiting for you here specifically.”

Manager Wen couldn’t help but be surprised, then said with a chuckle, “Manager Han, if you needed me, you just had to say the word. I would’ve come right over. There was no need for you to go to all this trouble.”

Manager Han said, “There are just some things I’d like to discuss with you privately, Manager Wen.”

“Is that so…” Manager Wen raised his wrist to glance at his watch. Manager Han said nothing, simply watching him.

He gave a soft chuckle and lowered his hand. “Well, since Manager Han came all this way to find me, I have to show you some courtesy, don’t I? Shall we find a place? But it can’t be too far. You and I both have duties to attend to; we can’t go far.”

Manager Han said, “Let’s just find a spot nearby.”

The two men got out of their cars. After a glance around, they walked toward the distant embankment, signaling for all guards and armed personnel to stay behind.

However, both men came from backgrounds as outstanding Fighters. Even if it had been a long time since they fought on the front lines, their skills were not to be underestimated. In terms of pure combat ability, all the armed personnel present likely wouldn’t be a match for the two of them combined, so they were allowed to walk off alone without any worry.

The two men reached the edge of the embankment, where the sound of the waves became crystal clear. The sea breeze billowed the cape-like coats behind them, while at their feet, white-capped waves crashed against the shore.

It was now just after five in the afternoon, and it looked like it was about to rain. In the distance, over the sea, layers of gray and white clouds mingled and drifted, seeming to hang especially close to the water’s surface and blocking out the sun.

The two men gazed at the surging, cloud-covered waves before them. After a moment, Manager Han spoke. “I invited you here, Manager Wen, because I’ve received intelligence that the Federation and the Lynx Federation will likely join forces this time.”

Manager Wen’s expression turned serious. He asked, “Manager Han, is this intelligence reliable?”

Manager Han said, “The information came through a covert channel. It hasn’t been fully confirmed yet, but confirmation could take a long time, and it’s impossible to be one hundred percent certain.

And I think that if the information is true, it will be far too late if we wait until then to react. We need to act in advance to contain and obstruct this potential development.”

Manager Wen said skeptically, “The Lynx Federation joining forces with the Federation? Besides, coordinating the interests involved is not something their two delegations can decide on their own.”

Even though the Lynx Federation was often described as more of a corporation than a national government, it was still a single entity. This made it somewhat different from the Federation, which was a corporate consortium. Although the two sides had collaborated before, they were also wary of each other.

Manager Han said, “But now they have a common enemy. I believe this makes it a reasonable possibility.”

Manager Wen thought for a moment and said, “Has this been reported to Director Wu?”

Manager Han said, “I only just received the information. I was about to contact Director Wu, but because he previously allowed the criminal who killed the Lynx Federation’s foreign affairs personnel to escape, he is currently under inquiry. I’m afraid he won’t have time to receive our report right now. Before the inquiry began, he said we three were to handle everything ourselves.”

Manager Wen had heard about this matter before. He said, “Director Wu handled that matter perfectly.”

Manager Han said, “That’s not for us to worry about. We just need to manage our own responsibilities, especially the tasks Director Wu assigned us.”

Manager Wen looked at him, then walked off to one side and used his Realm Token to inquire with the Bureau. After confirming that Director Wu was indeed under inquiry, he asked when it would end. He was told that it was proceeding according to protocol and the end time was uncertain.

After finishing his inquiry, he seemed to be lost in thought.

Manager Han waited patiently, his face unreadable. After a while, Manager Wen turned back and said, “Manager Han, my apologies for the wait. You know how it is, the higher-ups have to follow procedure, and so do I. So, Manager Han, if I may ask, what do you propose we do?”

Manager Han said, “Assuming this information is true, then as I said before, we need to sabotage their operation. But if the enemy has united while we act separately, that’s not right. We also need to concentrate our forces. I have a plan…”

He tapped his Realm Token, creating a private communication channel between the two of them, and then transmitted a plan.

Manager Wen reviewed it. The plan was to deliberately relax monitoring and control over one of the Merging Land channels, let the other side’s people in, and then concentrate their forces to encircle and annihilate them. Of course, the choice of the primary target was also a delicate matter.

He asked with some surprise, “Are we primarily targeting the Lynx Federation?”

Manager Han said, “Because of the relationship between the Lynx Federation and the Dashun Government, most of their people who want to enter the Merging Land do so illegally, with the exception of a few invitees under special circumstances. We have sufficient grounds to encircle and eliminate them.

Moreover, launching a targeted strike against the Linax people first, without provoking the Federation, will be advantageous to our operation.

And once we’ve eliminated one side, dealing with the remaining one will be simple for us.”

A look of slightly exaggerated surprise appeared on Manager Wen’s face. In a tone that was half-questioning and half-joking, he said, “Manager Han, dealing with the Lynx Federation is my responsibility. Aren’t you afraid this will just make things easy for me?”

Manager Han replied in his usual flat tone, “I’m not doing this for your sake. If they join forces, neither of us will be able to accomplish anything. By striking a heavy blow against one side first, we can then deal with the other. I’ll help you first, and I hope you will help me in return. This is mutually beneficial, is it not?”

Manager Wen thought for a moment, then shook his head. “The plan is good, but we still don’t have enough manpower.”

Jibei Dao was facing a most difficult situation: a breach in the World Ring had appeared. This required several times the usual manpower to contain it. The Processing Bureau and the Defense Department had gone to great lengths, diverting a large number of personnel there.

The breach was now projected to be sealed around the end of this year, but it was clear that these personnel could not be recalled yet.

Furthermore, forces had to be left behind to guard against the City Council causing trouble or holding them back. Add to that the large security force that had to be maintained within Central City, plus reserve personnel, and they were stretched thin everywhere.

With just their combined manpower, carrying out this plan might have some chance of success, but it was far from a sure thing.

Manager Han said, “Other Central Cities have already sent us a batch of reinforcements. They’ve been arriving over the past few days, with more on the way. Although Director Wu isn’t here, we can apply for an emergency deployment. I believe the Bureau will approve it.”

Manager Wen calculated for a moment. “It’s still a stretch,” he said. “We’ve received a good number of reinforcements, but our high-level combatants are limited. Captain Xu’s departure this afternoon transferred away a portion of the Bureau’s top combat power. There aren’t many left. It’s a different story for those other two factions. Even with reinforcements, it’ll be a tough fight.”

As a Fighter himself, he knew very well that in an armed conflict, a single, extremely powerful individual could often be enough to turn the tide. This made it difficult to judge their respective strengths based on the number of armed personnel alone.

And this time, both the Federation and the Lynx Federation had undoubtedly gathered many of their elite Fighters.

While other Central Cities did send support, they had their own difficulties and areas to maintain. They would rarely send their own top-tier Fighters. Getting some mid-level forces was already quite good.

Manager Han said, “Manager Wen, if you feel our forces are insufficient, perhaps we can ask Manager Chen to join us. Don’t forget, Manager Chen is very capable as well.”

Manager Wen immediately rejected the idea. “If it’s just the two of us joining forces, there’s some justification for it. After all, Director Wu assigned the tasks of dealing with those two factions to us, respectively. But Manager Chen is in charge of maintaining security within the city.

I think this division of labor is very appropriate; someone needs to manage affairs within the city. If Manager Chen joins us, it would go against Director Wu’s intentions. From a mission-assignment perspective, it would also be a violation of orders and procedures.”

He shook his head. “That’s not proper.”

Manager Han said, “Nothing is one hundred percent certain. I hope you’ll seriously consider my proposal, Manager Wen. If necessary, we can step in ourselves.”

He looked at Manager Wen. “These are not ordinary times. If we follow procedure for everything, we won’t get anything done. Manager Wen, we were both full of hot-blooded passion when we were young. We may be older now, but that blood hasn’t gone completely cold.”

Although his tone was flat and emotionless, his words moved Manager Wen, whose expression flickered for a brief moment.

“Also, Manager Wen, I know you don’t trust the reinforcements from the other Central Cities, so you haven’t paid them much mind. But I hope you will take a close look at their files. You might discover something.

That’s all. I’ll be waiting for your reply.”

After speaking, Manager Han gave him a nod and turned to leave.

Manager Wen stood alone, gazing at the sea in the distance. After a moment, he took off his hat, smoothed his slightly messy hair, gently patted the hat, and then put it back on straight.

Just then, he felt a few cold drops of water hit his face. He didn’t linger any longer, turning back toward his car. The moment he sat down inside, raindrops began to rattle against the window.

He instructed the radioman sitting in the front seat, “Activate my private frequency and send a message to the other side. Ask about a situation for me, regarding the Federation and the Lynx Federation joining forces…”

He wasn’t one to act rashly based on a rumor that might or might not be true. Although Manager Han’s plan could indeed break the stalemate if executed well, everything depended on accurate intelligence. If the intel was wrong, many things could backfire.

Therefore, he needed the Secret Department’s cooperation and confirmation. If there were indeed signs of this, then the plan was worth doing. Otherwise, he would drop it.

In any case, there was still time. He could afford to wait at least a few days.

Just then, he recalled Manager Han’s final words. He pulled up the files of some of the reinforcement personnel on his Realm Token and began to look through them. When he saw certain individuals’ files, his gaze paused, and he began to ponder to himself. ‘If that’s the case, then Old Han’s plan might not be so impossible after all…’