Chapter 224: The Perfect Alibi

Minister Peng Yuxiang was going crazy from helplessness and felt ready to climb the walls.

He had simply been drinking with Director Tang Chao, and then suddenly blacked out.

When he woke up, he was already in an unfamiliar place.

Trying to figure out what was going on, he had turned the entire room upside down and caused a tremendous commotion, yet no one had come inside.

As a result, the room in which he had been locked was now in complete chaos.

“Haa, just what the hell is going on...”

Clank!

While he was sighing heavily, the thick iron door swung open with a deafening sound.

Minister Peng Yuxiang abruptly turned his head, and his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

The person who entered the room was none other than NIS Director Om Giyeon.

“O-Oh!”

Looking surprised, Director Om Giyeon addressed the seated Peng Yuxiang in Chinese.

“Minister Peng, it’s been a long time.”

“You can say that again. Where in the world am I?”

“Hmm, it hardly seems appropriate to have a conversation in a mess like this. Why don’t we move somewhere cleaner?”

“Well, that’s not a bad idea.”

Following NIS Director Om Giyeon into the adjoining room, Minister Peng Yuxiang stared in astonishment.

And no wonder, because Director Griffin was waiting for him right there.

While Peng Yuxiang caught his breath and tried to process what he was seeing, Director Griffin rose from his seat and spoke in English.

“Minister Peng, I’m sure you’re curious about what’s going on here?”

“I won’t deny it.”

“Why don’t we sit down and talk calmly?”

“Very well.”

Minister Peng Yuxiang took a seat on one sofa, while NIS Director Om Giyeon and Director Griffin sat opposite him.

Minister Peng grabbed a bottle of drinking water from the table, greedily drained it in one gulp, and set the empty bottle back down before addressing NIS Director Om Giyeon.

“Director Om, where exactly are we?”

“In the Republic of Korea, in Seoul.”

“Whaaat?!”

Minister Peng Yuxiang sprang from the sofa in genuine shock.

Feeling the awkward gazes of those around him, he sat back down in embarrassment and continued,

“Director Om... Did you kidnap me?”

Of course, Minister Peng Yuxiang had hit the nail right on the head.

But NIS Director Om Giyeon could never admit that, even under threat of death.

“‘Kidnap’ isn’t the right word. ‘Rescue’ would be more accurate.”

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, Director Om.”

NIS Director Om Giyeon mentally reviewed the scenario he had worked out in advance with Cha Jiham and continued speaking to Minister Peng Yuxiang.

“I’ll explain in detail how we got you out of there, so listen carefully.”

“Fine, go ahead. I’m listening.”

“We received intelligence that Commander Kwak Taesu, who fled North Korea, was hiding in an upscale villa in Dandong. While searching for his hideout, our people spotted several large men carrying someone out of a luxury residence in their arms.”

“And I was the one being abducted?”

“Exactly, Minister Peng.”

“Did you find out who those thugs were?”

“You’ll understand that yourself in a moment.”

“Fine, I get the gist of it. Continue.”

“The suspicious behavior of those men prompted one of our operatives to tail them while another entered the villa.”

In truth, NIS Director Om Giyeon had no need to reveal so many details to Minister Peng Yuxiang.

Nevertheless, he did so in order to construct the perfect alibi.

“Three Chinese men were lying dead near the entrance, while another was bleeding out in the kitchen from a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Fortunately, he was still alive.”

“My God...”

Minister Peng Yuxiang sighed bitterly.

“To save the victim, our operative carried him outside and stopped a passing car, which took him to the hospital.”

“And what happened? Did he make it?”

“We managed to save his life only after a six-hour emergency operation.”

“Phew, thank goodness.”

“I agree. Now I’ll tell you how we rescued you personally, Minister Peng.”

“Get to the point.”

Burning with impatience, Minister Peng Yuxiang urged NIS Director Om Giyeon to hurry.

“After stuffing you into the trunk of a passenger car, the assailants fled. Our operative secretly followed them. The pursuit led to a sightseeing boat pier, where a North Korean midget submarine was already waiting for them.”

“From North Korea?!”

Minister Peng Yuxiang’s eyes widened in astonishment.

“Exactly.”

“Why the hell would the North Koreans plot to kidnap me?”

“We managed to determine that Russia had commissioned the operation, while North Korea merely provided the submarine.”

“...Russia?”

“The militants who abducted you were huge men nearly two meters tall and clearly European in appearance.”

“I see... Continue.”

“After loading you aboard the submarine, the attackers headed toward North Korea. Our operative immediately sent me an emergency signal.”

“I’ll take it from here,” Director Griffin said, taking over from NIS Director Om Giyeon.

“I’m listening.”

“We also suspected that Commander Kwak Taesu was hiding somewhere near Dandong. To extract him, we had already positioned one of our stealth nuclear submarines off the Dandong coast. At that moment, NIS Director Om Giyeon contacted me with an emergency request. You can probably figure out what happened next, so I’ll spare you the details.”

“I understand.”

“I immediately ordered the captain of our submarine to sink the North Korean vessel. The captain handled the task flawlessly, and we managed to rescue you without injury, Minister Peng. Naturally, we only learned your identity after the rescue.”

“I see... And what happened to those bastards who kidnapped me?”

“To eliminate any risks, they were killed on the spot and sent to the bottom along with the North Korean submarine. Incidentally, we managed to confirm their identities beforehand. They were operatives of Russia’s FSB.”

“Those fucking sons of bitches!”

Overwhelmed by fury, Minister Peng Yuxiang could no longer restrain himself and cursed viciously.

Director Griffin judged the timing perfect and continued.

“Ordinarily, we should have put you ashore somewhere in China, but because doing so risked exposing our secret stealth submarine, we had no choice but to bring you to Korea.”

“Director Griffin, Director Om, I sincerely thank you for saving me!”

“There’s no need for thanks. Still, why would Russia want to kidnap you, Minister Peng?”

That question was just as much a mystery to Minister Peng Yuxiang himself.

Although their country and Russia had been engaged in covert maneuvering over matters concerning North Korea, things had clearly never gone far enough to warrant such radical measures.

And yet Russia had supposedly deployed FSB operatives to abduct him.

As he frantically searched his mind for a reason, a particular figure suddenly surfaced in his memory.

“Deputy Minister Dmitriev!”

“Who is Deputy Minister Dmitriev?”

When Minister Peng Yuxiang barked out the name, NIS Director Om Giyeon put on a puzzled expression.

“Russia is suffering from a catastrophic shortage of kamikaze drones for its war against Ukraine. President Putin sent Deputy Minister Dmitriev to our country to secure those drones. And I went to Dandong specifically to meet with him, only to walk straight into this ambush!”

“Are you saying he decided to kidnap you so he could use you as leverage and force China to accept favorable terms?”

“I can’t think of any other explanation! Now send me back home immediately!”

Of course, NIS Director Om Giyeon had not the slightest intention of allowing Minister Peng Yuxiang to return to China.

“If I were you, Minister Peng, I wouldn’t be in such a hurry to return to China.”

“Why not?”

“Because Ukrainian military intelligence destroyed the kamikaze drone factory in Fengcheng, President Xi Jinping has completely lost confidence in you. What do you have to say about that?”

“I won’t deny it. However, the President’s trust in me is far stronger than you seem to think.”

“Do you really believe that?”

Instead of answering, NIS Director Om Giyeon took a phone out of his pocket.

Holding it out to Minister Peng Yuxiang, he added,

“Director Tang Chao called you several times.”

“Did you speak to him?”

Naturally, to make their alibi airtight, Om Giyeon had been forced to answer the call.

However, NIS Director Om Giyeon had no intention of showing Minister Peng Yuxiang his hand.

“I answered entirely at my own risk so I could assess the situation within the MSS and China itself.”

“I see.”

“You can call him back and check for yourself.”

Minister Peng Yuxiang entered the password to unlock his smartphone and dialed Director Tang Chao.

Tang seemed to have been sitting on pins and needles waiting for the call—the first ring had barely begun when his voice came through the speaker.

[Minister, where are you?!]

Minister Peng Yuxiang understood that it was time to prepare himself for the worst.

“Sorry, but I can’t tell you. I heard you were wounded. How are you?”

[The bullet hit me in the stomach... It was a miracle I came back from the brink of death.]

“Thank goodness you survived. Tell me, what happened that night when I disappeared?”

[You passed out while we were drinking. While we were carrying you to the bedroom, a group of huge thugs burst in and opened fire with pistols. I don’t remember anything after that. Later, I was told that someone took me to the hospital, and the doctors managed to save my life after emergency surgery.]

“I see... And what happened afterward?”

[Director Wang Wei from the Inspection Department came to see me. He interrogated me with a knife at my throat, trying to find out where you had fled.]

“What?! What the hell do you mean, fled?!”

Minister Peng Yuxiang asked Director Tang Chao again in utter disbelief.

[Director Wang claims he obtained evidence that you embezzled an enormous amount of MSS government funds. According to his theory, when the fraud came to light, you got rid of me and your subordinates and then fled abroad.]

“Haaah!.. What kind of bullshit is that?! Keep talking!”

[Director Wang has already personally reported the embezzlement to the President. The President flew into a rage and issued a special order to capture you at any cost.]

What overwhelmed Minister Peng Yuxiang was not so much anger as bitter resentment.

After all, he had only pocketed some 10 million yuan (approximately 1.9 billion won) from the MSS fund.

Such a trivial matter could easily have been swept under the rug, yet President Xi Jinping was apparently determined to hand him over for prosecution lock, stock, and barrel.

“And this is the thanks I get for serving the President as faithfully as a dog?!”

[I’m shocked myself, Minister. I think you’d better lie low until the President’s anger subsides.]

“Of course. We’ll talk later.”

Click.

After ending the call, Minister Peng Yuxiang closed his eyes and sank into gloomy thought.

NIS Director Om Giyeon and Director Griffin waited silently, giving him time to digest the information.

After quite a long while, he finally opened his mouth.

“Director Om, I take back what I said about returning to China.”

“A wise decision.”

“Could I stay in Korea for a while?”

“Chinese spies have infiltrated deeply into our country.”

In other words, absolutely not.

“Well, then I suppose it can’t be helped.”

“How about relocating to the United States?”

As though he had been waiting for precisely this moment, Director Griffin joined the conversation.

“Minister Peng, we can guarantee your absolute safety under the Witness Protection Program.”

“I’m perfectly familiar with that program, but...”

Director Griffin immediately understood the reason for Minister Peng Yuxiang’s hesitation.

“If you agree to seek political asylum in the United States, we’re prepared to provide you with a substantial resettlement payment.”

“I possess a considerable amount of valuable intelligence.”

“Once we verify your information and confirm its authenticity, you’ll receive an enormous reward.”

“I trust documents bearing official seals, not empty promises.”

“Would an official guarantee personally signed by President Douglas satisfy you?”

“If you can provide me with such a document, I’ll seriously consider applying for asylum in the United States.”

“Haha, excellent! I guarantee that you’ll have the document in your hands no later than tomorrow.”

Bzzz!

At that moment, the phone in NIS Director Om Giyeon’s pocket briefly vibrated.

Taking it out, he saw a text message from Cha Jiham.

Understanding the signal, he nodded and addressed Minister Peng Yuxiang.

“Minister Peng, our intelligence service risked everything to pull you out of the noose.”

Minister Peng Yuxiang immediately grasped the implication behind NIS Director Om Giyeon’s words.

He was openly demanding payment for saving his life.

The meaning was perfectly clear, and there was no point pretending otherwise.

“Director Om, would it satisfy you if, as payment for saving my skin, I handed over all our operational intelligence on Korea?”