Chapter 96: Breaking the Heavens

This was the first time a commissioned mission had felt this easy.

Working with Luo Yuan was truly effortless.

She didn’t need to optimize her wording, explain her reasoning, or build trust.

She just had to tell him what she discovered, and Luo Yuan would cooperate unconditionally.

Because of that, even an international mission like this had been highly efficient.

From touchdown to now, not even thirty hours had passed—and they were already preparing to return.

After making the arrangements, Luo Yuan said to Qin Qing, “You come with us to the airport. Zhao Fei will stay here to meet Dou Xu.”

Qin Qing nodded.

Zhao Fei said, “I’ll make sure the task is completed.”

She had already checked things out. Based on the new route, there shouldn’t be any problems here for the time being.

The core target of their mission this time was Yang Zhongjiao, and they needed to stay close to him.

Luo Yuan stepped aside and caught hold of Xiao Luo’s hand. He had just borrowed a satellite phone from the embassy staff and was about to make a call.

Xiao Luo gave Luo Yuan a goofy smile. “Captain Luo, what’s up?”

“What are you doing?”

“Oh, just letting the family know I’m okay—it’s been a while since I last checked in.”

Luo Yuan smiled back at him—and took the phone straight out of his hand.

“Hold on a bit longer, we’re almost home. You make one call, then the next guy wants one too—how long would that take?”

It was rare for Luo Yuan to say this many words in one go.

Qin Qing kept her eyes on Xiao Luo. Until boarding, he didn’t manage to pull any funny business.

As she stared blankly at the boarding line, a cold can of Coke was suddenly pressed into her hand.

She looked up into a scruffy, stubbly face under messy hair—but that tired face was beaming.

“Comrade Qin, you’re incredible. When we were relocating last night, we ran right into gunfire. I was scrambling for cover and spotted a big business van and almost went for it, but I remembered what you said and dodged behind a trash bin by a tree instead.”

Qin Qing said, “So it was you.”

She remembered him—he was the Coke-loving young man she’d given a last-minute warning to before leaving the embassy.

The young man nodded enthusiastically.

“My name’s Qin Fei. Turns out we share a surname. I don’t know where Comrade Qin lives, but when we’re back home, I’ll definitely come visit…”

Before he could finish, he got a playful shove to the forehead.

Luo Yuan said, “What are you nosing around for?”

Qin Fei grinned. “Heh, Captain Luo, you don’t even know how dangerous it was last night. A few minutes after I passed on hiding in that van, a group of armed rebels showed up. They came out of that exact vehicle.”

He glanced at Qin Qing, but left something unsaid: after he and his coworker hid by the trash bin, a local ducked behind the same van.

Then he saw it with his own eyes—rebels flung open the car door, drew knives, and slit the man’s throat right there. Blood sprayed far across the ground.

Qin Fei had collapsed in fear on the spot.

The rebels saw him and his coworker, gave them a look, noticed they were Asian, and didn’t do anything—just laughed mockingly at how scared he looked.

Either way, he’d lived through it.

So when he saw Qin Qing again, he ran straight over.

But after Luo Yuan’s interruption, he didn’t dare say much more.

Qin Fei tugged a black cord from around his neck, a gold longevity charm dangling from the end.

He held it out to Qin Qing. “My mom had this blessed for me. I’ve worn it since I was a kid. Your missions are dangerous—take this. May it keep you safe too.”

Qin Qing was speechless.

A charm you’ve worn your whole life, and you’re just giving it away?

Qin Fei added, “The fortune teller said once I pass age thirty-seven, my life will go smoothly. I probably don’t need this anymore.”

Then, “I don’t have much with me right now. But Comrade Qin, you really saved my life—I can’t just walk away without showing my gratitude. If you don’t like the style, melt it down—it’s solid gold, nearly a tael.”

Before she could object, he forced it into her hands.

The charm was heavy and solid. Hard to imagine he’d been wearing it around his neck all this time.

After a moment’s thought, Qin Qing didn’t refuse.

She removed the white crystal bracelet from her wrist, broke the string, and took a single bead to give to Qin Fei.

Qin Fei caught it, stunned. “Ah, this…”

Qin Qing said, “It’s for your unborn child. For protection.”

Not cheap either—cost her five merit points.

Qin Fei laughed awkwardly. “I don’t even have a kid yet.”

“You will soon.” Qin Qing tucked the charm away and gave a final farewell. “The fortune teller was right. The rest of your life will go smoothly.”

She boarded the plane with Luo Yuan.

Qin Fei held the small white crystal and turned to his colleague. “What do you think she meant?”

His coworker, who had just watched him trade a chunk of gold for a single bead, said, “It’s fine. I think this is what they call ‘losing wealth to avoid disaster.’”

Last night had been terrifying. And that one sentence from Comrade Qin really had saved them. It was spooky.

Qin Fei didn’t quite agree.

“Why do I feel like it meant something else?”

He watched as Qin Qing disappeared onto the plane. Once she was gone from view, he took out his phone—signal was back. Factoring in the time difference, his wife back home should just be finishing her lunch break, getting ready for work. He dialed.

He didn’t tell her how dangerous things had been—just chuckled and said, “Honey, you won’t believe this. Some miracle woman gave me a charm just now. Said it was for our child. Even said we’re going to have one soon. Isn’t that hilarious?”

His wife was silent.

“Honey? Hello? Signal’s gone again?”

Then she told him: she hadn’t been feeling well recently. Took advantage of her lunch break to go to the doctor. The result—six weeks pregnant.

“I was going to wait and surprise you when you got back…”

Qin Fei gave a few distracted hums. His grin stretched ear to ear.

He carefully wrapped the crystal bead in layers of tissue and tucked it into his inner suit pocket.

His coworker, who had heard the whole thing, bumped into him. “Do you think if I go ask Comrade Qin now, she’ll sell me one too for safety?”

Qin Fei just kept grinning. Aside from his wife’s voice, he couldn’t hear a thing.

—

The group of 280 Dou Xu was retrieving didn’t reach the outskirts of the city until 7:45—nearly bumping into armed troops. But Qin Qing’s planned route helped them avoid contact. Still, they did see the military column.

Once at the airport, they scrambled off the buses and practically dove onto the plane.

Even inside, they could faintly hear gunfire from the outskirts.

It was getting closer.

Mixed in were the sounds of artillery—and maybe even screams.

When shells exploded, even from that distance, the ground seemed to tremble.

There were shouts, collisions, the screech of metal against metal—

Qin Qing sat beside Yang Zhongjiao. His female student was in the same row, by the window.

After boarding, Luo Yuan revealed his true identity to Yang Zhongjiao. Once both sides confirmed the agreed-upon code, Luo Yuan took possession of the case in Yang’s hands.

Qin Qing knew the plane would take off safely, that there was no danger. But still—she realized her hands were shaking.

Sometimes, your body doesn’t sync with what your mind understands.

The student beside her was trembling even more.

Yang Zhongjiao, in contrast, looked almost calm.

He even had the presence of mind to comfort his student.

In his own peculiar way.

He adjusted his glasses, took out a pen, and drew a few lines on the back of her hand.

Some sort of hyperbolic curves—Qin Qing couldn’t make sense of them.

Neither could the student, clearly.

Yang Zhongjiao said, “Hmm… I just want to tell you—even the most terrifying Y-ray can be bent by a brave gravitational lens.”

The student: “…”

Qin Qing: “…”

Even without understanding, Qin Qing could tell that was an incredibly terrible metaphor.

Especially as a form of comfort.

Then came his next sentence:

“Remember this moment. Your trembling today will become the sharpest proof of string theory at your academician defense twenty years from now.”

Qin Qing still didn’t get it. But the student seemed to.

She looked at the curve on her hand—and calmed down.

Qin Qing: “…”

Really don’t get your science world references.

Yet somehow, she herself began to settle too.

Qin Qing asked, “Dr. Yang, you don’t seem afraid?”

The cabin was still in chaos.

At that moment, the cabin broadcast came on.

“All compatriots, I am the captain of this plane, Lu Hui. I need you to know that what you’re on right now is not just a civilian aircraft—it is a mobile piece of Chinese territory. I promise to bring you home. And right now, I need your silence.”

“I need your silence.”

“I need your silence.”

The captain’s voice was steady, and the crowd’s noise gradually quieted. A stark contrast to the gunfire and explosions outside.

The captain’s voice continued, “Now, please cooperate with our flight attendants. Stow your luggage quickly and take your seats.”

The cabin slowly began to fall into order.

The captain never stopped speaking.

“The tower’s last communication was thirty-one seconds ago. Their commanding officer personally promised me—and the 323 Chinese citizens aboard—that we have fifteen minutes to evacuate.”

Lu Hui’s voice suddenly rose, his breath hitting the mic with a bit of static, but his words were firm and clear: “And I swear to you, with the blood of a J-10 pilot in my veins, we’ll be out of range in under four minutes.”

“If you’re afraid, there’s a five-star red flag behind every seat. Take it out, hold it in your hand—or if you prefer, open your window shade and stick it to the window. Let those thugs see clearly whose sovereign territory they are about to violate.”

His words landed like thunder. Everyone stared at the speaker, as if they could see the captain bearing the greatest burden on this flight.

Luo Yuan assisted the crew in getting people seated.

He finally took a seat behind Qin Qing.

Qin Qing saw him listening intently to the broadcast, and suddenly smiled.

“…?”

What’s funny about this?

Luo Yuan smiled again. “When I’m on leave, I want to buy this captain a drink. Wonder if they’ve got rules against that.”

At this moment, only he could still smile.

Qin Qing suddenly relaxed too, and smiled with him.

Through the speakers, the engine’s roar could be heard.

“Please tighten your seatbelts, and hold your flag tighter.”

The roar peaked. The sound of metal levers being pulled echoed through the broadcast.

“Compatriots, what you are now riding is not just your paid economy seat—but a homeward path guided by the Beidou satellite system.” (China’s satellite navigation system)

Throttle fully pushed. The engine’s blue flame burned through the smoke.

The landing gear lifted off the ground in an instant.

“All hands, count down with the roar of the engines.”

Lu Hui: “Three!”

The passengers instinctively echoed, “Three…”

“Two!”

“Two…”

“One!”

“One…”

“We break the sky!”

The sense of weightlessness hit instantly—this was, without a doubt, the most violent takeoff in the history of civil aviation.