Chapter 1894: Electricity Bill

Chapter 1894: Chapter 1894: Electricity Bill

"Don’t ask him that question again. He eats, sleeps, and occasionally reads newspapers and watches the news all day. He’s very at ease," said Tianjing directly. This kind of life is very similar to retirement, but De can’t go online.

"It seems Mr. Tianjing is quite envious of my life, huh. Yes, this place lacks nothing but freedom, and I don’t have high demands for material life. Just taking things as they come," De waved his hand. After all, he was a mutated human and naturally couldn’t go out. However, Ye Shikai believed there was no malice in his heart.

"Seems like you don’t feel uncomfortable at all," Ye Shikai teased.

"Of course, there’s food and drink here. It’s much better than my previous life," De continued, "Let’s get back on track. You two busy people wouldn’t just come to chat with me over tea."

"You must have encountered some trouble."

"Indeed," Ye Shikai recounted the entire story. De was a modified mutant, but he didn’t know much about the Underworld abroad. As for the matters of Doris and Aphrodite, he glossed over them, primarily focusing on questions about the HST project.

"So, the only woman who knew the mastermind behind it, what was her name, was silenced," De asked.

"Yes, she was silenced just as she was about to speak."

"I’ve been locked up here for over a year, and I don’t know a lot about what’s happening outside. As for this so-called Red Poison Gu, I’ve never heard of it. I’m afraid I can’t help you."

"Alright, I didn’t come to ask you about poisonous insects today, mainly about the HST project." Ye Shikai took out an envelope from his pocket, thick with contents, and De found it was a pile of photos.

"These..." Looking at the content of the photos, De fell into contemplation.

"So many mutants."

"What do you think, does it feel like visiting a zoo?" Ye Shikai teased. Though blunt, there was some truth to it. The HST project had developed far beyond the original Mothman idea. But Ye Shikai also noticed that despite the different types of mutants, their powers were similar. The main difference lay in the varied attributes of different mutants; for example, some had wings and could fly.

This was a small blessing within a misfortune, at least there were no extremely powerful mutants...

"Haha, it seems they’ve accelerated their actions. The terrifying thing about the HST project is their model. Once they complete the research, even if you blow their base to bits, it doesn’t matter. To them, the base is just an empty shell. In Huaxia, worldwide, they can have as many as they want."

"I understand what you’re saying. Without finding the mastermind, everything will go on," Ye Shikai nodded. "Do you have any leads about the mastermind behind the HST project, or anything you know?"

"I’ve been locked here for a long time. Most of the clues I have, I’ve already told you. As for the rest, I’m afraid I really can’t help you."

"Then just speak freely about whatever you know."

"This organization is enormous with tremendous financial and manpower resources, many of whom are cultivators. Additionally, buying up so much land to establish bases might be connected to real estate," De continued, "They use humans for experiments, in the hundreds and thousands, including men, women, old, and young. So, merely relying on kidnapping is probably insufficient. I think they must have used some means to trick these people, maybe through inducements?"

"This matches the information we have. They indeed engage in kidnappings, specifically targeting beggars and homeless people, to avoid attracting attention," Ye Shikai nodded.

"Therefore, it seems they’re short on human bodies for experiments, hence resorting to such underhanded tactics."

"If it weren’t for these tactics, I would’ve had a hard time finding any clues."

"Did you just say they might be connected to real estate?" Tianjing suddenly asked.

"It’s just a guess. After all, it’s not easy to get such a big factory," De shifted the topic, "Also, operating so many machines should consume a lot of electricity."

.................................

"What are you thinking about that’s got you so engrossed?"

"De just mentioned that it’s quite power-consuming. Did you notice?" Ye Shikai felt De’s seemingly casual mention carried a hint of mystery.

"If it’s a factory, naturally, the electricity bill would be high. And the machines running inside consume a lot of power, so naturally, the electricity bill would be in the millions or even more."

"I have an idea," Ye Shikai suddenly said excitedly.

"What’s going on?"

Half an hour later.

"There are countless factories across Huaxia, large and small. Those that reach a certain scale aren’t few. We can’t investigate one by one, but as De mentioned, the HST project’s research base is filled with various instruments, consuming a lot of energy every day. So, how much would the electricity bill be?"

"That’s true, but some factories, especially those in heavy industry, also require a lot of electricity."

"I’ve meticulously examined the machines from the bases in Hong Kong and South America. Their power is extremely high, much more than ordinary machines. We can start from this angle."

"You check which factories have millions, or even more, in monthly electricity expenses."

"Why me?"

"Duh, you’re the head of the National Security Bureau’s team. It shouldn’t be hard for you to investigate such matters, right?"

At night.

Ye Shikai finally returned home after a long day. Tianjing handed him the documents obtained. Although consuming hundreds of thousands in electricity each month was plenty, in Huaxia, there were still many factories like that. A long list, Ye Shikai couldn’t go through it all.

"Kai, you’re back."

"Yeah, busy all day, finally back," Ye Shikai waved and sat on the sofa, stretching his body.

"Kai, why’re you still investigating? Didn’t you say the matter was resolved?" Chen Yuxin queried.

"Uh, it’s not the same thing. But don’t worry, it won’t be long."

Ye Shikai went to the study, placing the folder given by Tianjing on the table. It contained a lot of factory information.

"Kai, what’s this?" Chen Yuxin handed him a cup of coffee and noticed the document too.

"Some factory records, it’s crucial to finding clues."