After careful consideration, Huo Shaoheng once again deployed a new direction of action.
Time passed quickly.
A week later, Yin Shixiong finally returned to the Huaxia Empire’s southernmost military port with the submarine with the warship that contained Xiao Nianzhi’s remains.
Like Gu Xiangwen’s large submarine, Cereus I, Xiao Nianzhi’s small submarine, Cereus II, was also left in this military base.
Cereus I and Cereus II could finally be placed side by side.
It was still the same giant cave that was surrounded by cold steel supports. The light from the shadow-less lamps poured down from the top and shone on the two submarines, one large and one small.
The incandescent light that looked cold seemed to have become gentler. It was like a kind father looking at his naughty child with fatherly gentleness
The corners of Yin Shixiong’s eyes teared up. He took a few photos with his phone.
He then left the military port and boarded the military transport plane back to the imperial capital.
He placed Little Nianzhi’s body in an exquisite cherry-wood coffin and brought it back to the imperial capital.
When the military transport plane landed at the imperial capital’s airport, Huo Shaoheng called Ye Xuan to come and welcome him.
Ye Xuan had dressed up specifically today. He wore a black tuxedo with a bow tie. Adding to his charming beauty, his shiny black hair complemented his handsome, mixed-race face.
Waiting for Little Nianzhi’s coffin to come down from the plane like a lover waiting for his beloved girl, he held a budding rose in his hand.
Somewhat speechless, Huo Shaoheng stood beside him with his hands behind his back.
However, this was Ye Xuan’s matter, so he didn’t want to comment on it.
With Yin Shixiong walking at the front, a few soldiers carried the small cherry-wood coffin down from the military transport plane.
When they passed Huo Shaoheng, Huo Shaoheng nodded at him. “Thank you for your hard work.”
Yin Shixiong quickly replied, “… It’s not hard at all.”
Ye Xuan walked over and looked at Yin Shixiong cautiously.”… Sir, can I help her carry the coffin? Send her on her last journey?”
Yin Shixiong’s mouth was agape as he looked at Huo Shaoheng in surprise.
Huo Shaoheng nodded without batting an eye. “Let him send it.”
Yin Shixiong quickly gave up his position.
Ye Xuan pinned the rose to his chest and carried Little Nianzhi’s cherry coffin on his shoulder.
He thought to himself: Little Nianzhi, I’ll send you back to your parents…
After special approval from the relevant government departments, Little Nianzhi was finally buried in the National War Hero Cemetery as the child of a minor war hero. She was buried with Gu Xiangwen and his wife.
The family of three was finally reunited on the land of the Huaxia Empire.
Huo Shaoheng used the excuse that Gu Xiangwen had two biological daughters, and that Little Nianzhi was also his biological daughter.
The name engraved on the tombstone was Crena Ku, the Latin name Huo Shaoheng had given Little Nianzhi. It had the same meaning as the English name Cereus.
He didn’t want to see the name “Gu Nianzhi” or “Cereus” engraved on the tombstone.
Although Gu Yanran insisted that Gu Xiangwen didn’t have two daughters, the results of the DNA test were there for everyone to see. No matter how much she repeated it, it would only make people think that she had ulterior motives, that she was a habitual liar, and that she was asking for humiliation.
Moreover, this kind of result was more acceptable than other results.
Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze believed it, not to mention General Ji, Speaker Long, and Prime Minister Bai. They all approved of this result.
Only Huo Shaoheng and Chen Lie knew that things were far from simple.
Autumn in the imperial capital was supposed to be the most beautiful season of the year. With white clouds floating in the sky and bright red maple leaves in and around the city, it was often sunny.
However, on the day of Little Nianzhi’s burial, it rained in the imperial capital.
The evergreen pines and cypresses in the National War Hero Cemetery were washed green by the rain.
Dressed in a formal military uniform with General Ji, Huo Shaoheng stood in the rain.
Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze held big black umbrellas for them on both sides.
“Is there any news about Nianzhi?” General Ji asked softly.
The ceremony was still in progress, but not many people had come. It was only a small-scale burial ceremony.
Ye Xuan was in the front and taking care of everything that a family member should do.
Huo Shaoheng stood behind General Ji and watched quietly.
He shook his head. “… I’m still looking.”
General Ji turned to look at him, patted him on the shoulder, and left without saying anything.
Not long after General Ji left, Huo Shaoheng’s phone rang.
He had been wearing a bluetooth headset the whole time. When he heard Song Jinning’s voice, his heart skipped a beat. “Miss Song, What’s the matter?”
Song Jinning had been studying the surveillance footage that Huo Shaoheng and the others had obtained for the past week.
With her technical skills and professionalism, as well as the incredible computing power of the quantum computer, she had finally discovered the problem with the surveillance footage.
“Shaoheng, come over here. My technical analysis has come to a conclusion.” Song Jinning’s voice was a little shaky.
Huo Shaoheng’s face twitched involuntarily, and his heart started to race.
This was an instinct he had developed on the battlefield. When a target or danger appeared, he could feel it.
Huo Shaoheng immediately turned and walked to his car. “What’s the result?”
He had never been so eager. He couldn’t help but want to know the result on the road.
Song Jinning didn’t keep him in suspense. She looked at the computer screen in front of her and said excitedly, “… There is indeed something wrong with the surveillance video, especially the surveillance video of the sudden appearance of four black SUVs. There are traces of abnormal magnetic fields on the images at the same time!”
“The abnormal magnetic field this time is very subtle. It isn’t as powerful as any of the previous abnormal magnetic fields that we have found, but it is more precise and leaves no traces. Therefore, your technical analysis didn’t notice it.”
“I didn’t notice it when I first analyzed it. After the video was further digitized and analyzed by a quantum computer, I found traces of the abnormal magnetic field!”
Just like on the day she appeared, the abnormal magnetic field also appeared on the day she disappeared.
Huo Shaoheng had an idea. He quickly got into the car and slammed the door shut. “Go to the Institute of High Energy Physics!”
Huo Shaoheng sat next to Song Jinning at the Institute of High Energy Physics. He watched as she explained the surveillance footage from three weeks ago on the computer frame by frame.
“Look, this is the abnormal fluctuation that occurred three weeks ago when the 18-wheeler truck blocked the camera.”
“Did you see that? Even without the high-definition digital processing, the footage would still blur and jump for a few seconds at this time. Although it’s very short and may not be visible to the human eye, the equipment can still capture it.”
Huo Shaoheng agreed. “Our technicians have noticed this phenomenon, but after analysis, they believe that this is just a common focus problem that occurs with ordinary cameras.”
Song Jinning replied with an “Oh.” She said regretfully, “This is indeed a common problem with ordinary cameras, but if your technicians had done an in-depth study of the abnormal magnetic field, they would have been able to tell that this wasn’t blurring caused by the focus problem of ordinary cameras.”
She paused. “… This is the fluctuation caused by the abnormal magnetic field, which affects the focus of the camera.”
Song Jinning patiently pointed at Huo Shaoheng with her mouse. “Look here again. When the 18-wheeler truck drove away, then the four black SUVs suddenly appeared and drove in four directions, the abnormal magnetic field had already disappeared.”
“This means that these four cars were just a pretense. What really happened was within the few seconds of the 18-wheeler truck blocking the camera.”
Her expression a little uneasy, she paused for a moment. “… What do you think happened in those few seconds?”
Yes, what exactly happened in those few seconds three weeks ago?
On that day three weeks ago, Gu Nianzhi hadn’t been unconscious for long and quickly regained consciousness.
Her head was still a little dizzy, but she had come back to her senses. However, she didn’t open her eyes and remained in a motionless position.
Everything that had happened just now was too shocking for her.
The image of Xiao Ye lying on the floor covered in blood kept echoing in her mind.
Like a heavy stone pressing down on the depths of her heart, her heart tightened and she felt sad.
Hoping that Major General Huo and the others would notice the abnormality in her apartment in time and rescue Xiao Ye, she kept praying.
After she finished praying nervously, her thoughts returned to herself.
She was instantly enraged at the thought.
D*mn it!
She had actually been kidnapped!
And the other party had even said that they were going to take her home?!
Which asylum hadn’t closed their doors properly and let these psychos out?!
They had dared to kidnap her in the Huaxia Empire. These people were either crazy or idiots!
Major General Huo would definitely cut them into a thousand pieces when he caught them!
Gu Nianzhi thought angrily. She quietly raised her eyelids, and her thick and long eyelashes fluttered slightly.
She wanted to see what this place was.
Major General Huo and the others should be able to find her soon.
She was very confident about this.
But before that, she needed to have a clear understanding of her situation.
She didn’t know if her phone was still there, but even without the phone’s GPS, she still had the GPS that Huo Shaoheng had specially installed for her.
Just as she opened her eyes, a blinding ray of sunlight shone down on her and instantly stung her eyes.
Gu Nianzhi instinctively closed her eyes.
The strong light stung her so much that she couldn’t help shed tears.
What was this place?
How could there be such intense sunlight?
Gu Nianzhi thought back to the weather in the imperial capital and started to feel that something was wrong.
No matter how intense the sunlight in the imperial capital was, it was impossible for it to be so pure and scorching.
The light was practically scorching her eyes.
She was almost blinded by the light.
Gu Nianzhi’s entire body stiffened, but she still didn’t dare open her eyes. She only relied on her ears and skin to feel the situation around her.
It was very quiet around her, and the temperature wasn’t high. It was very comfortable.
She was sitting, and the seat beneath her… why did it feel like a car seat?
Gu Nianzhi became even more nervous.
She thought back to that year when she had been kidnapped at King’s Lake on the outskirts of Munich, Germany…
Could it be the same situation?
But Seth and his stepfather had both died, right?
Could it be that his mother had come to Huaxia Empire to avenge him and her husband?
Gu Nianzhi was lost in her thoughts and waited quietly for a while.
It was eerily quiet around her, and she couldn’t feel anyone else around her.
What about those cruel and brainless kidnappers?
Could they have just left her here alone?
Where was she?