Virginia, CIB Headquarters.
Inside the spacious director's office, a middle-aged white man was leaning against the computer chair as he stared at the documents in his hand with a frown.
"Space program? What is Future Group planning? "Naomi leaned against the desk as he stared at the documents in his hand and couldn't help but ask.
Because of the massive loss of the spy operation in Hua, the former director of the CIB, John Brennan, couldn't withstand the pressure of public opinion and resigned. Only then did Naomi Madden have the opportunity to take over. Although due to various reasons, the government adjusted their strategy against Future Group, Jiang Chen's name had always been on the CIB's priority list.
From the overthrow of the former regime in Pannu, to the fishing boat incident in Country F, to the recently booming immersive virtual reality technology, as well as the deep sea mining technology that became a hot topic in the mining industry … Behind the series of hot events, the man's name could be seen. More intelligence indicated that Jiang Chen could be the mastermind behind the war in Country F, but because of the lack of evidence, the CIB couldn't do anything.
Her instincts told her that this guy was dangerous. Not because his existence harmed UA's national interest, but because of his ability to create miracles. There were too many mysteries surrounding him, so much so that it reminded him of a dusty document …
"I'm not sure. The only thing I'm sure of is that they spent 5 billion USD to acquire all the shares of two private aerospace technology companies that were on the verge of bankruptcy. They held a board meeting and merged the two companies into Celestial Trade's aerospace department and relocated to Xin," the agent beside the man said calmly with his hands behind his back.
"Customs?" Naomi's eyes didn't move away from the document in his hand.
"The assets of the two aerospace technology companies have 11 pieces of equipment that are restricted for export, but they didn't go through customs. Instead, they sold the equipment to SpaceX at a low price. They don't seem to want the equipment at all; they only want the technicians. "
Naomi snorted.
"Oh? Do they really think that they can make a rocket out of nothing just by getting a bunch of MIT graduates there? "
Without the industrial capability, they wouldn't even be able to make a screw on a rocket. It wasn't a problem that could be solved with a few scientists. The more advanced the industry, the higher the requirement for the industrial foundation.
It would take decades to build this industrial foundation.
"I don't know, just like we don't know where they got the deep-sea mining equipment from." The agent shrugged.
Naomi fell silent.
Although he was not a technician, he still had some understanding of the problems of deep-sea mining. First, there was the problem of materials. Very few materials could withstand the pressure of 7,000 meters deep for a long time, let alone mining under such terrifying pressure.
One moment it was virtual reality, the next moment it was deep sea mining, and now they were extending their hands into aerospace. It seemed like they had been laying out the most cutting-edge field regardless of the cost. Being at the forefront meant risk, but it also meant high returns.
The major shareholder of Future Group was a complete gambler and a gambler who didn't hold back on his chips. This was a consensus among Wall Street investors.
"Can you find a way to find the source of their technology?" Naomi asked in a deep voice.
"I've been arranging for people to do this, but there hasn't been any results so far." The agent had a helpless expression on his face. "Right now, we can only speculate that they have a secret research institute. It could be underground, or it could be disguised as another organization hidden somewhere in Xin. Needless to say, although they don't care about the details in their intelligence work, they are extremely cautious when it comes to confidentiality. Can I request to send more people to Xin? "
"It's difficult." Naomi shook his head. "There are too many places that need people. Although Future Group is interesting, it is only a private company. Although some people in the Congress are interested in the technology in their hands, the Capital wants to rope in Xin and requires us to maintain a certain degree of restraint. "
"Is the president not interested?" The agent asked.
"Let's put it this way, the energy giant provides the president with campaign funds, not a company listed on NASDAQ," Naomi said emotionlessly. "Our focus is still on the Middle East and Eastern Europe. As to the new stuff, as long as it's not a weapon of mass destruction, it's better to leave it to the businessmen to figure it out themselves. "
Typically speaking, the CIB with a "confidential budget" didn't need to offend the president. The one loyal to the Capital should be their old rival, the FBA. But because the CIB was tricked by the General Staff Department in Hua, the CIB didn't have the confidence to face the Congress and the Capital.
The reason why John Brennan retired early was because he didn't have a good relationship with the Congress and the Capital. The spy operation almost dragged the Capital into a diplomatic quagmire. Fortunately, Hua didn't protest the previous incident, or else the UA would be in the second biggest diplomatic scandal after the Bay of Pigs Incident.
Although the Congress had no right to question the CIB's budget, they had the right to cut the funding, and they were already doing so. Even if Naomi didn't want to side with the president, he had to make a certain degree of compromise for the budget.
"Okay, this damned politics … But what I want to say is that Xin has established a national security department, and our work may be affected. If we can't receive support, I can't guarantee that I can provide this stable intelligence in the future. "The agent let out a sigh and shrugged helplessly.
"Then just put on a show and keep an eye on their launch project … What I'm more concerned about is not Future Group, but the little mouse we raised. It doesn't seem to be obedient," Naomi said.
"Willie Society?" The agent probed.
"That's right. The intelligence shows that they received donations from unknown sources. They aren't satisfied with living in a small place like Kane, so they extended their tentacles to our little friends in Europe. There's even more recent intelligence that they seem to have some level of contact with Jiang Chen. "Naomi picked up another document and said emotionlessly.
"You're saying … Jiang Chen and Willie Society are connected."
"Probably not, the two sides shouldn't have a focus of interest. No … if you have to say, it's not like there isn't." Naomi frowned, bit his thumb, and murmured to himself.
A word suddenly appeared in his head.
Golden Apple …
To be honest, before the collapse of the Soviet Union, collecting intelligence on the Golden Apple was one of the CIB's jobs. But with the end of the Cold War, the work without any clues was gradually put on hold.
But did that thing really exist? The legendary item that could communicate with the future.
Then Naomi's eyebrows relaxed as he shook his head with a self-deprecating smile.
How could that thing exist? It was like the Nazi military base in the Arctic.
Reality was not a novel.
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