"Let ask soone." Ling Qingyu took out her phone and pretended to text a ssage. Athena had already moved before she even asked for it.
The act was rely to confirm that Ling Qingyu wanted her daughter to investigate further.
Hopefully, things wouldn't develop as she predicted. There must be an extrely frightening reason why the man had attempted to go off the radar.
"I've asked soone I know there to help find him, but I dare not allocate more resources after hearing his warning," Carlos bit her lip and replied.
She hadn't panicked too much when she first heard her nephew's cry for help. However, after hearing Ling Qingyu's conclusion, she was nearly frightened to death.
What face would she have left to face her sister if sothing went wrong with her child?
Her network and capabilities were useless in helping her nephew if the situation was as drastic as Ling Qingyu said.
Ling Qingyu wasn't optimistic about how things would unfold, but it didn't hurt to befriend a key figure among the six heads managing the hospital.
Even though she had the power to veto, hire, and remove anyone in a managerial position, her reputation would suffer if she behaved unscrupulously, and morale among the employees would surely plumt.
Unless absolutely necessary, she should never interfere in sectors like dicine, where the slightest mismanagent could cost her dearly.
Besides, she was truly satisfied with all the departnt heads after speaking with them closely. Making Carlos owe her a favor was better than planting her own faction, which would only arouse contempt and dissatisfaction.
Soon, Ling Qingyu received Athena's update. While adjusting her special glasses, she read and listened to Athena's presentation.
"I've found his phone's location. The last known signal was when he contacted his aunt in front of you, Mom. He threw it away.
"Smart choice, honestly—makes him harder to track, even for . So, I have no idea where he is now. Surveillance caras nearby showed that he boarded a bus, and from then on, we're in the dark.
"My guess? There's a 70 percent chance he's preparing to buy a flight ticket out of the country. As for why he didn't try a border crossing, where hiding his identity would be easier, I suspect he believes flying out is the safer option. That suggests the enemies he's running from have influence across the land, making escape to a neighboring country pointless.
"In addition, he must know exactly who he's dealing with—enough to be too scared to even contact the embassy. We have no idea what secrets he's holding, but he needs a trusted channel to unveil everything."
Who were his pursuers? Ling Qingyu rubbed her chin in deep thought.
As if aware of her question, Athena answered. "I hacked into all intelligence services and investigated. I found Country A's military intelligence units have his photo in a lower-level group."
Ling Qingyu took a deep breath as she realized the opponent she would face if she took action had just grown bigger.
Although the level chasing him was low, once her na entered the system, problems would definitely follow.
Even though Athena couldn't confirm that the culprits were from Country A's military—the world's current biggest superpower—Ling Qingyu had no doubts about her daughter's analytical abilities.
No kidding, if Athena fully utilized her power to analyze data, any identity's location would be triangulated within seconds before pinpointing the exact spot as more information beca available.
Sohow, this boy had managed to dodge Athena's eyes, exposing her vulnerabilities once soone truly went off the grid.
However, nearby CCTV could still track him. But if the internet connection disappeared or the devices were limited to intranet use, Athena would be helpless.
"Athena, can't you track him through other people's phone caras?" Ling Qingyu whispered, turning her face away to avoid exposure.
Though her voice was quiet, Athena's special glasses could capture the aning. Moreover, she understood her mother's mindset deeply.
"Mom, I'm helpless here too," Athena's projection shrugged. "If this had happened in real-ti, I could have done as you said, but it's been several hours. Now that I'm tracking him, I'll inform you if any online-connected device captures his face. But don't expect too much—the target is disguising himself to stay hidden."
"Let know once you have a lead."
"Okay, Mom. My conjecture still stands—he's heading for the airport."
"Understood. I'll talk with Carlos."
Carlos waited patiently. She had heard Ling Qingyu whispering but simply assud her boss was thinking out loud.
"Carlos." Ling Qingyu turned back around.
"Yes?"
"I'm afraid we have both bad news and good news. Which one do you want to hear first?"
Carlos frowned, displeased with her new boss's attitude. This wasn't the ti to joke around. "Boss, please."
"Alright, don't worry. Your nephew is safe for now. The good news is that the military hasn't caught him yet."
"For now?" Carlos' breathing quickened.
"Yes. I don't know what he did, but the intel I just received confirms our conjecture—he's being pursued."
"By who?"
"It's not just a person—it's a group." Ling Qingyu paused with a bad taste in her mouth. "Country A's military."
"That's impossible," Carlos blurted out in disbelief. "My nephew would never commit a cri."
"Who said he did?" Ling Qingyu rolled her eyes. "What if he witnessed and recorded sothing he shouldn't have? Just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong ti."
"It's the military… There's no hope, right? Ms. Ling, do you have any connections?"
"I'm afraid not, Carlos." Ling Qingyu's refusal made Carlos's eyes dim. "But I'll try my best. We'll keep an eye on him once we arrive in the capital. If my guess is correct, he's making his way to the airport incognito."
"Thank you so much, Ms. Ling. I owe you a lot. I know my request isn't reasonable." Carlos sighed.
"Cheer up, Carlos. It's not the whole military—just a black-ops unit." Ling Qingyu reassured her. "Alright, I should leave quickly before our beautiful Carlos gets too stressed and starts growing white hairs."
Carlos blushed and instinctively raised her hand to hit Ling Qingyu, only to realize at the last second that teasing her boss like a playmate was inappropriate.
Wow, she hadn't expected herself to relax so suddenly in front of Ling Qingyu, without the slightest guard.
At least with Ling Qingyu's assurance, Carlos no longer felt as helpless as before. There was soone to rely on.
Yet, sothing about Ling Qingyu's words regarding her nephew unsettled Carlos. The speed at which her boss had obtained such rare information and the level of infiltration into a national intelligence agency…
She had thought she had overestimated Ling Qingyu's influence, but reality had just slapped her hard.
What kind of apparatus could gather intelligence as swiftly as Ling Qingyu had?
She suspected even the renowned Mossad, MI6, or CIA wouldn't have reacted as fast as her boss.
Was Ling Qingyu really just a simple businesswoman from Country Cas, as she appeared to be in public?
Ling Qingyu was preparing to depart from STAR Hospital soon; otherwise, she would be collecting her new subordinate's relative's corpse.
The calm field trip she had anticipated had taken a dramatic turn. If her premonition was correct, she would be greeted by a symphony of gunfire once her airbus landed in the capital.
Mo Yunxi and Yin Jingfei should stay behind and focus on their studies. After all, the two had been quite energetic since landing.
It wasn't safe for them to follow her on this next trip. She had already been reluctant to bring them along to et the officials.
Now that she knew she might clash with special forces in the worst-case scenario, bringing Mo Yunxi and Yin Jingfei would only be a burden.
Well, forget it. In fact, if she thought about it carefully, traveling with her might actually be the safest option. Mo Yunxi and Yin Jingfei should decide for themselves.
—
Thousands of kiloters away…
Capital of Country C – Presidential House
Inside the office of the head of state, Gu Yi entered and sat on the carved mahogany sofa, following the president's gesture.
"My Minister, what brings you here at this hour?" the president asked.
"Mr. President, I'm sorry to interrupt your rest, but I must seek your attention," Gu Yi said politely. "We all know that infighting never benefits our country. Even if we can't stop it entirely, we can at least limit it."
"A little healthy competition is fine," the president tried to downplay the situation.
"If we want the public to question our credibility, we can ignore the ss. I don't really care because it's not who will be affected."
The president's face darkened as he glared at the minister, trying to suppress her with his presence.
Gu Yi sneered, calmly lifted a teacup to her lips, and took a gentle sip. "Good tea. A slight bitterness is sothing most people avoid, missing the rare quality of enjoynt. Too much bitterness, however, will ruin the drink. Don't you think so, Sir?"
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