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Phantom chuckled at Xia Fei. "Congratulations."
What's there to congratulate me about?
"You've finally managed to pull Old Potter onto your pirate ship. Isn't that something worth congratulating?" Phantom said with ill intentions.
Xia Fei smiled. Though the term 'pirate ship' did not sound nice, it was an indisputable fact that Old Porter would be a great help to Xia Fei.
Ever since Xia Feis decision to establish Quantum Holdings, Old Porter could be said to be the most important recruit to date. Prior to this, Xia Feis had also poached experts like Boateng and Sarah into the company, but their strength could not compare to Old Porter's.
Xia Fei knew very well that Old Porter's skills in machinery and maintenance were top-notch even in the entire Alliance. It was unimaginable that such a top-notch machinist would be willing to work in a small company like Xia Fei.
As long as Old Porter said the word, countless top-notch companies in the Alliance would come begging him to join them with boxes of cash. He definitely had the strength to do so!
The longer Xia Fei traveled in space, the more he realized the importance of strength. Strength did not just refer to one's martial arts cultivation. Living in this complicated and ever-changing universe, connections and wealth could not be ignored.
Back then, Xia Fei had gone through many twists and turns to get his hands on a Black Mamba 130 engine. Without this top-notch engine, Xia Fei and Porter would have long been lost in space, which showed just how important this thing was to him.
Without sufficient connections and strength, it would be extremely difficult to get his hands on truly top-notch goods, be it the warp engine, the medicinal ingredients, or the equipment needed to increase his strength.
Since he had already chosen this path to becoming strong, Xia Fei had no reason not to do his best to expand his influence. That was why he needed to get Quantum Holdings on the stage of the Pan-Human Alliance as soon as possible.
Old Porter went to DLC-113 to look for Windchime, while Xia Fei stayed behind at Scarlet Volcano Military Base to repair Vampire.
This time, the plump manager of the logistics department, Piker, did not dare to make things difficult for Xia Fei. Commander Yawei had given him a strict order. You must give Xia Fei anything he wants. Dismantle or borrow it if you don't have it. I don't care what method you use, but you must fix his ship as soon as possible!
On the contrary, Pigel was now afraid that Xia Fei would make some outrageous demands. The dignity of a commander was not to be questioned. If he could not complete the mission, not only would he lose his lucrative position in the logistics department, he might even be thrown into some dark, cold corner.
From the moment Xia Fei entered the logistics department, this greedy fatty had been treating Xia Fei as if he were his own father. He was so enthusiastic that it made Xia Fei very uncomfortable.
Xia Fei knew very well that the Scarlet Volcano Military Base was not rich, so he tried his best to pick as few parts as possible. Most of these parts were necessary for energy, power, weapons, and so on. As for those that could be used, Xia Fei could only make do with them for now and deal with them when he returned to the Alliance.
The chubby Pigle sent Xia Fei off gratefully and immediately sent someone to repair Vampire. For three whole days, Pigle did not even sleep for a second. He did not go anywhere but stared at the construction site as a supervisor.
Logically speaking, there was nothing wrong with Piggle, who was in charge of logistics, being the supervisor. However, this fat man always liked to give orders, and he himself knew nothing about maintenance. As a result, the group of engineers in the logistics department gnashed their teeth and resented him.
Pigle ignored all this with his big belly. Yawei had given him a death order, and he was determined to ensure the progress and quality of the project even if he had to offend everyone in the military. As a 'smart man', Pigle of course knew which was more important: these lowly soldiers or the commander.
Xia Fei followed his habits and fought on the frontlines with the maintenance workers, eating the same food and doing the same work, even busier than the workers.
With Xia Fei's generous reward and the example he set, the repair work on Vampire progressed very quickly. It only took three days for everything to be completed.
Vampire was a top-notch special ops frigate, and the requirements for every aspect were much higher than that of a normal warship. The parts installed were more complicated, too, so it was not easy to repair it. The efficiency of completing it in three days was astonishing.
On the evening of the fourth day, Old Porter returned to Scarlet Volcano Base alone, without Windchime by his side.
Xia Fei had no idea what had happened on Planet DLC-113 or why Windchime was unwilling to go to Earth with Old Porter, but it was not hard to tell from the bitter look on Porter's face that Windchime had hurt his heart.
Feelings would not become smooth-sailing just because a person grew older. A woman's mind would always be subtle and hard to understand. Xia Fei had met Windchime before, and his impression of her was that she was a strange woman with a few tricks up her sleeve. Such a woman could not be measured by the standards of a young girl.
Uncle Porter was unwilling to talk about his Twilight Love, pretending to be nonchalant about it. Xia Fei had no reason to get to the bottom of it, either. Vampire slowly rose into the air, carrying the heartbroken Uncle Porter and Harris, who had lost his precious data, toward the Endaro Star Region.
A journey of more than a month was not short. On this day, Vampire finally entered the core region of the Pan-Human Alliance. As soon as the interplanetary internet signal was restored, Xia Fei could not wait to call Qin Mangs number.
The old man did not have a microcomputer like the one on Xia Fei's wrist. He usually used the large AI computer in the library to communicate with the outside world, and this was the only way Xia Fei knew how to contact him. No one picked up the phone, so it was obvious that the old man was not in the library.
Calculating the time, Xia Fei realized that it was noon on Hek. After some thought, he gave Battalion Commander Ye Jingshan a video call.
Battalion Commander Ye, Xia Fei respectfully said. Xia Fei very respectfully said, I wanted to contact old man Qin Mangs, but I couldn't find him. I wonder how the old man is doing now?
On the screen, Ye Jingshan was standing in a long hallway. From the environment he was in, it did not look like he was in a training camp but more like a hospital. The walls were as white as new, and there were even screens that guided the recovery of the patients.
Hes not doing too well. Mas … Old man Qin Mangs contracted a strange illness when he was young, causing his body to go hot and cold. About a month ago, the illness flared up again. This time, it looks more serious. The doctor said that he wont be able to hold on for much longer, Ye Jingshan said in a deep voice.
He sounded very sad. Xia Fei had no idea that Ye Jingshan and Qin Mangs were master and disciple, so he felt that there was something strange about the man.
Is the old man around? Id like to talk to him, Xia Fei said.
Hes just been sedated, so hes already asleep, Xia Fei said.
Oh, Ill give him a call when I get back.
Ye Jingshan shook his head. Hes hoping that youre able to come back to see him soon, and its precisely this wish of his that has kept him going until now. I think its best if you just come back and dont ever contact the old man again.
Xia Fei nodded. In the medical world, it was not uncommon for people to rely on their mental fortitude to stay alive right before they died. Once this kind of motivation passed, the outcome would not be hard to predict, so Ye Jingshan had his reasons for telling Xia Fei not to reveal his whereabouts.
Alright, got it. Ill get back as soon as possible, Xia Fei said with furrowed eyebrows.
Turning off the screen, Xia Fei lit a cigarette and fell into deep thought. Beside him, Uncle Porter said, Xia Fei, the old man seems to have an unusual relationship with you. The person he wanted to see before he died was actually you? Doesnt he have any children?
Generally speaking, the people a person wanted to see the most in the final stages of their life would be the people closest to them. Though Xia Fei and Qin Mangs relationship was very good, they were far from being close relatives, so Uncle Porter could not be blamed for being suspicious. Things were indeed a little strange.
From what I know, the old man doesnt seem to have any relatives, Xia Fei said.
Is that so …
Porter furrowed his eyebrows in silence for a moment before saying, Best get back as soon as possible. Since he managed to hold on until now, he must have something important to tell you.
Xia Fei nodded. Porter patted Xia Fei on the shoulder and turned to leave the warship command deck.
Uncle Porter was not much younger than Qin Mangs, and what Qin Mangs was going through would not be long before Porter was going through the same thing. After all, getting old, getting sick, and dying were the natural laws of mankind. Unless one was a peerless expert who had cultivated to the point of immortality, no one would be able to escape the shadow of death.
Furthermore, Porter had recently lost Windchime, which was why he was secretly hiding in his room to be depressed.
Something doesnt seem right with Ye Jingshan, Xia Fei muttered to himself as he looked up at the ceiling.
Phantom quietly came out from the Moore Stone pendant around Xia Feis neck and stood beside him. Indeed. Why do I feel like he is hiding something from you?
Xia Fei smiled. "It's rare that even you can feel it."
Phantom rolled his eyes at Xia Fei. As a famous assassin, Phantom's analysis and judgment often lagged behind that of the nineteen-year-old Xia Fei, causing this assassin to suffer quite a bit from Xia Fei's pettiness.
Sighing, Xia Fei said, When Ye Jingshan mentioned the old man, there were tears in his eyes. This shows that he is very concerned about Qin Mangs life and death. Tears are the hardest part of acting in a movie. Unless you are a top-notch actor, there is no way you can act it so well.
"But when I mentioned that I wanted to talk to the old man, his pupils dilated by 0.3 times. This meant that he was distracted for a moment, but he hid it very well. He blinked and looked at the ground. If I hadn't been concerned about the old man's condition at that time, I might have been fooled by him."
However, what Ye Jingshan said next completely betrayed him. There was a slight tremble in his voice. There are two kinds of times when a person's voice will tremble: one is when they're excited, and the other is when they're lying, yet Ye Jingshan's voice is both. Thats rather unexpected, Xia Fei analyzed.
Phantom was in a daze as he listened. Could it be that he doesnt want you to see Qin Mangs?
Xia Fei nodded, a hint of viciousness flashing in his eyes. Yes.
That doesnt make sense. What reason could Ye Jingshan have to not let you see Qin Mangs before he dies? Phantom was puzzled.
Xia Fei was speechless. He was also at a loss about this.
Why don't we just call the hospital and go around Ye Jingshan to find Qin Mangs? Phantom suggested.
It's no use. Ye Jingshan is the battalion commander of Heaven Execution Training Camp. He has plenty of ways to not want me to see the old man.
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