After hanging up the phone, Zhu Cunjun leaned back in his chair for a long time before he slowly let out a breath and started calling someone.
It was the same group of people, the same conference room as last time. When Wu Yusen was notified, he had just finished lunch with Lin Fan in the cafeteria and was planning what to do next.
When a group of people meet in a conference room, they know that there must be new progress. Since they themselves have not made any new discoveries, some people have already guessed something.
The director and Mr. Qian came together.
Qian Lao's reappearance attracted everyone's attention. As the big boss behind the scenes, Qian Lao rarely appeared in public, and most people in the Special Affairs Office had never seen him.
Director Zhu hadn't expected Mr. Qian to come; he had only politely informed him, since he had attended the previous meeting. Unexpectedly, Mr. Qian had confirmed his attendance almost immediately. The two met at the conference room door.
Elder Qian noticed everyone's confusion and took the initiative to speak up, "Little Friend Lin and I are destined to meet. I've never seen this mecha of hers before. Now that the situation has changed, it's only natural that I show some concern."
Something had changed? What had changed? Everyone wondered, but no one asked aloud.
After everyone took their seats, the director sitting at the first seat spoke first.
"Everyone has been working on Lin Fan's case for a while now, but apart from the portrait, there has been no progress."
Except for Mr. Qian and Jin Sichen, everyone lowered their heads silently.
While mechas were certainly beyond the scope of the Special Affairs Institute's research, for a few people who had witnessed countless storms and bizarre incidents over the years and successfully resolved them, finding nothing in their investigation was truly frustrating. So, even though the director didn't mean to criticize them, they couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
"Given the limitations of the Special Affairs Office, further research into Lin Fan's case will yield no results. I will consider this and report it to my superiors, requesting assistance from relevant departments."
As expected! Everyone had expected this, after all, the capabilities of the Special Affairs Office were there.
"I just received a notice that this matter has been taken over by the 800 Aerospace Research Institute. This meeting is to inform you of the upcoming developments. After all, we are all involved, so it's necessary to inform you now that the handover has taken place."
"Director, what kind of organization is the 800 Aerospace Research Institute?" The person most concerned about Lin Fan here was undoubtedly John Woo. He was uneasy about letting an unfamiliar organization study Lin Fan's situation.
"The 800 Aerospace Research Institute mainly studies new technologies in aerospace flight, such as aerospace robots, aircraft, etc. Mecha is one of their ongoing research projects, and it accounts for a very large proportion."
"In terms of aerospace technology... I don't think I've heard of their related achievements?" Zong Cheng is quite sensitive to information about science and technology.
"They are also a classified unit, and their research projects are all classified. There are definitely some results, but they won't be known to the outside world. As far as I know, some have already been maturely applied in the space field."
"How are they going to assist with the research?" Xue Ping wondered if they were coming with a large number of equipment and personnel. Thinking about it, that didn't seem likely.
"We need to send Lin Fan to their side."
Lin Fan's heart skipped a beat. He was going to another unfamiliar place...
"Then how can we guarantee Lin Fan's safety? We don't know what the situation is there. I heard that those who do scientific research are all crazy..." John Woo was a little anxious.
"Hmm!" Zong Cheng faked a cough. He was also doing scientific research, okay?
"Sorry, I wasn't talking about you." Wu Yusen apologized quickly after accidentally injuring a friendly soldier. "I heard that some researchers can go crazy and cut people up..."
"John Woo!" Jin Sichen stopped him and glanced at Lin Fan, who was sitting next to John Woo with a still expressionless face. "Watch your words!"
Wu Yusen was so anxious that he forgot Lin Fan was still beside him. He glanced at her with a guilty look. Seeing that she seemed unaffected, her emotions calmed down a little. He continued, "Sending Lin Fan to an unfamiliar research institute is too passive. If anything happens, we will be unable to do anything."
"The good news is that the current deputy director of 800 is my former colleague, Xie Bisheng, a former research engineer at 888." The director turned to ask Mr. Qian, "Mr. Qian, do you still remember him?"
Qian Lao thought for a moment and nodded: "I remember, that kid is a good person. If he is in charge of watching over Lin Fan, nothing serious should happen to him."
"I thought so too. Engineer Xie is now the deputy director of the institute, leading the research direction and overseeing the establishment and progress of the entire research project. He expressed great anticipation for Lin Fan's visit, hoping to gain inspiration and new directions from Lin Fan's mecha," the director relayed. "I have faith in his character and skills, and I'm sure Lin Fan will be treated well in his hands, so I was quite happy at first."
"There's another piece of bad news, right?" Jin Sichen easily discovered the director's implication.
"Ah~ It would be nice if all stories ended in the best possible place. Xie Bisheng is only the deputy director. Of course, the 800 Institute also has a director, and this director is the person I am wary of."
"Do you know the director of Institute 800?" Wang Fengfeng asked.
"I don't know him, but I've heard rumors about him."
"It seems that this director is not doing well." Xue Ping also understood what he meant.
"The director of the 800 is Cui Yan. You may not have heard of him. But those of us in charge of security units know about him."
"What is he famous for?" Wang Fengfeng was full of curiosity about the director.
"He's a cold, hard person, completely unsympathetic, and ruthless. I know you all call me 'Smiling Tiger,'" the director smiled, glancing at the group. Everyone avoided his gaze, pretending not to hear. "If I'm a Smiling Tiger, then that person is a vicious jackal. He'll tear a piece of flesh out of anyone he meets. Because of his formality, no one wants to deal with him."
"He wasn't originally from a classified unit, but rather the head of a regular biological research institute. For a while, that institute efficiently produced a lot of useful scientific research results and was quite well-known within the industry."
"At the time, there were rumors that Cui Yan, driven by his desire for more research results, would resort to any means necessary, even slicing up people for research..." At this point, the director couldn't help but glance at Lin Fan. But some things are unavoidable, and they still have to be said. "Just when everyone thought higher-ups were going to intervene in the investigation, the institute burned down. Everything inside was reduced to ash, and Cui Yan disappeared. We all thought he'd died in the fire. Who would have thought, all these years later, that he'd become the director of 800."
"How could such a person be the director of a security unit?" Zong Cheng thought it was inappropriate. "Could the rumors be wrong?"
"Ordinarily, someone with serious moral flaws wouldn't be the head of a security unit. For him to become director, he must possess extraordinary abilities," the director said. "But you all know the secrets within our security system. If they've leaked, they can't be groundless. The specifics of the situation are impossible to uncover right now, but this person..."
Even though Zhu Cunjun was knowledgeable and experienced, he still found it very difficult.
"No matter how reliable Deputy Director Xie is, it's impossible for him to keep an eye on Lin Fan all the time. What's more, Cui Yan is his immediate superior. If he issues any orders, Deputy Director Xie can't disobey, right?" What Xue Ping said was exactly what the director was worried about.
"But Lin Fan has to go," Zong Cheng said. "They should have more systematic methods and equipment over there. It's impossible for them to move everything here. Just like if there are special people who are suspected of having supernatural tendencies and we want to cooperate with the investigation, we will also have them send them to us for testing."
Everyone nodded silently.
"What conditions did you agree to?" Jin Sichen suddenly asked. Seeing everyone looking at him in confusion, he spread his hands. "Why? Didn't you hear the director say this guy is a vicious jackal who'd tear a piece of flesh off anyone he met? Since he agreed to let Lin Fan go, the director must have agreed to some conditions."
"He requested that Lin Fan's research results be shared, and that 800 have priority access. The Special Office cannot disclose the research results to a third party without their consent."
"What!?"
"That's too much!"
Normally, the Special Affairs Office requested assistance from other units. 800 was assigned by their superiors to assist, and the research results and Lin Fan himself should belong exclusively to the Special Affairs Office. Once the research is complete, the Special Affairs Office will have the right to reclaim all data.
Simply put, 800 is just a tool unit. I didn't expect Cui Yan to be so demanding, not only to share the results, but also to step on the Special Affairs Office and demand priority.
"You agree to this?" Xue Ping said angrily.
"What can I do if I don't agree? This kid has a big appetite. He wants Lin Fan over right away. How can I agree? He won't give up until he gets a taste of the sweetness. I have only one attitude. Assisting with the research is fine, but if you give them the people, they will definitely do their best. If you share the results, otherwise, he will definitely not work for nothing without any sweetness."
It is impossible for people to give.
The confidentiality protection unit also has to consider its performance, and this performance determines the amount of scientific research funds allocated in the following year.
Lin Fan was both a talent and a resource. Only a fool would do a one-time deal and throw away the benefits. Cui Yan also realized Lin Fan's specialness and wanted to lure him to his territory, but was stopped by Zhu Cunjun.
"But isn't this a task assigned by our superiors? He dares to make conditions?" Wang Fengfeng was surprised.
"Why wouldn't he dare? Lin Fan will definitely be sent over, and who knows how long he'll stay there. If I don't agree, he might not say anything, but he'll turn around and do something bad to Lin Fan. Who can stop him? Thinking about all the rumors about him, I have to worry about Lin Fan!"
The director was also angry, but no matter how angry he was, he knew rationally that win-win cooperation was the best way. Letting Cui Yan eat some meat was better than no one else having any.
"Besides, they're indeed better at mecha technology. Even if we keep the results to ourselves, they won't be able to put them to good use. We still have to work with them to achieve results. Since the end result will be the same, why bother arguing over face? It's all for the national interest anyway."
Zong Cheng was a little discouraged. The scientific research capabilities of their equipment group were still too weak compared to the Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
"Even so, we can't guarantee that Lin Fan is safe over there, right? I always feel that Cui Yan is a very dangerous person! We are too passive. If he wants to do something bad, even if we know it, it will be too late to get over there!" Xue Ping suggested.
"That's right. So, to protect Lin Fan's safety, I've decided to send someone to accompany him," the director said, offering the final solution. "The Special Affairs Office is a peer unit of the 800, and under supervision, Cui Yan can't do anything he wants without scruples."