Chapter 329: Treasures Should Be Hidden in the Most Ordinary Places

Ring-ring-ring!

A melodious ringtone came from the phone lying beside the head of the bed.

Still half-asleep, Jiham groped for the device and looked at the screen. Vice Chairman Wei Chen was calling.

At that very moment, a bad feeling flashed through his mind.

After all, they had spoken only an hour ago.

A second call could mean only one thing—something unexpected had happened.

Instantly shaking off the last traces of sleep, Jiham sat up in bed and answered the call.

“Vice Chairman Wei, I’m listening.”

“Chief Cha, I’m sorry for waking you.”

“It’s fine. Don’t tell me... they found the trackers or the fake gold bars?”

“How could that possibly happen? I called because Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan’s behavior seemed suspicious to me.”

“What exactly seemed suspicious?”

“After leaving us, he didn’t go to a hotel. He went to some private residence not far from where we’re staying.”

“What’s strange about that? Couldn’t he be living there?”

“That’s exactly the problem. He isn’t. He has a luxury apartment right in the center of Beijing.”

At that moment, something clicked in Jiham’s mind.

“Vice Chairman Wei, did you check the security around that house?”

“There are no visible guards, and there aren’t even any surveillance cameras on the fence.”

Judging from Wei Chen’s description, it was just an ordinary residential house.

And yet Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan’s behavior was extremely suspicious.

Jiham simply had to find out what was going on.

“Deputy Secretary Zhang told us he would rest at the hotel and then return to the warehouse.”

“Hmm... If that’s the case, then it really does look suspicious.”

“I’d like to send my people there to scout it out, but all of my men are currently tied up with the gold inspection.”

“We’ll check it ourselves. You focus on inspecting the bars.”

“Understood. I’ll send you the address by message.”

Bzzzt!

Jiham had barely ended the call when a message from Wei Chen containing the address arrived on his phone.

After reading it, he left the bedroom and went downstairs to the living room on the first floor.

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan, Director Lee Menghong, and Team Leader Seo Donghun were sitting on the sofa, quietly talking about something.

Jiham strode over to them and took the empty main armchair.

Kang Inhan looked at him in surprise.

“Chief Cha, can’t you sleep?”

“No. Vice Chairman Wei’s call woke me up.”

“Did something happen?”

The highly experienced Chief Secretary instantly grasped the situation.

“Yes. Something unexpected came up.”

Without hiding or omitting anything, Jiham recounted the substance of his conversation with Wei Chen.

“...So we need to pay that house a visit.”

“Understood. Send the address to Team Leader Seo.”

However, before Jiham could forward the message to Seo Donghun, NIS Director Om Giyeon emerged from a bedroom on the first floor.

Jiham gave up the main seat for him. Sitting down on the sofa, the NIS Director immediately got to the point.

“Chief Cha, what’s the situation?”

“I think Directors Griffin and Nevers should hear this too.”

“At least tell me the important part first. Is the situation critical?”

“Not exactly.”

“Phew... That’s a relief. Director Lee, go get Griffin and Nevers.”

“Yes, sir!”

Giving a short reply, Lee Menghong sprang up from the sofa and hurried up the stairs to the second floor.

Before long, he returned to the living room accompanied by the two Americans.

CIA Director Griffin sat down in an empty seat and immediately asked what had happened.

Jiham once again explained the details of his conversation with Wei Chen.

“...I’m planning to send Team Leader Seo Donghun to that house.”

“But Seo Donghun is a civilian,” Griffin objected.

His disagreement was obvious from his tone.

“Team Leader Seo didn’t just serve in the special forces for a long time. He also has extensive experience infiltrating enemy territory.”

“That may be true, but that experience is all in the past.”

Jiham knew perfectly well what Seo Donghun was capable of.

That was exactly why, whenever Jiham traveled abroad, Seo Donghun was the first person he brought along as his personal bodyguard.

Jiham could easily counter Griffin’s argument, but decided not to escalate things and paused instead.

“Then what do you suggest, Director Griffin?”

“Let’s use my agents to infiltrate the house.”

At that point, NIS Director Om Giyeon joined the conversation.

“CIA agents are too large and will stand out. Our operatives, on the other hand, are almost indistinguishable from Chinese people in both appearance and build. Why don’t we leave this task to my men?”

“If that’s what you think, then let’s do it your way,” Griffin conceded, taking a step back.

Om Giyeon nodded and turned toward Lee Menghong.

“Director Lee, take the operatives and head to Zhang Jinan’s house. But remember: if you sense any danger, withdraw immediately.”

“Yes, sir!” Lee Menghong answered sharply.

***

“Director Lee, why weren’t you able to enter the house?”

Lee Menghong immediately understood what lay behind Om Giyeon’s question.

Not long ago, he had been assigned to scout the house where Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan was staying.

He and his men had immediately headed there.

And the fact that they had returned only half an hour later naturally raised doubts among their superiors.

“We did get in. We climbed over the fence and entered the property.”

“Is that so? And what did you find?”

“The fence is about two meters high, with no surveillance cameras. There’s a main house and an annex on the property. Only one driver was sleeping in the annex, but every window in the main house was tightly shut, so we couldn’t get inside.”

“What about the windows on the second floor?”

“There’s no balcony on the second floor. The only way to reach it is from the roof. But we didn’t have the equipment needed to climb onto the roof.”

The reason for Lee Menghong’s quick return became obvious.

“Damn, what a shame we didn’t bring Saho with us!”

“I completely agree, sir.”

“Chief Cha, any suggestions?”

There was an obvious implication in Om Giyeon’s question.

Shouldn’t they bring Saho here right now?

But Jiham had a different plan.

“I think we should simply bring the proper equipment and try again.”

“Tonight?”

Jiham shook his head.

“Deputy Secretary Zhang is supposed to be at the warehouse and take part in the gold inspection by ten in the morning.”

“Ah, so you’re suggesting we enter the house after he leaves?”

“Exactly, sir. In the meantime, I’ll contact Vice Chairman Wei.”

Jiham dialed Wei Chen’s number and gave him a detailed account of Lee Menghong’s report.

“...We’ll make another attempt. Because of that, the gold inspection may need to drag on a little longer.”

“All right. I’ll stall for time. Let me know the results afterward.”

“Understood. Goodbye.”

Click.

As soon as Jiham ended the call, Om Giyeon gave an order.

“Director Lee, prepare everything you need and wait for instructions.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Now then, how about we get the rest of our sleep?”

***

“Aaah!”

Jiham’s eyes flew open with a shout.

Quickly looking around, he realized with relief that he was in his bedroom.

“Phew, thank goodness. It was only a dream.”

After catching his breath, he noticed morning sunlight already streaming in through the window.

He picked up the phone beside the bed and looked at the screen.

It was eight in the morning.

Getting out of bed and dressing, Jiham went downstairs.

He immediately froze in surprise.

The entire group, led by NIS Director Om Giyeon, was already sitting in the living room.

Jiham quickly approached them, sat down in an empty armchair, and asked Om Giyeon,

“Sir, didn’t we agree to gather at eight-thirty?”

“Yeah, well... I’m not used to this place. I couldn’t sleep, so I got up early.”

Bzzzt!

At that moment, the phone in Lee Menghong’s hand vibrated briefly.

After reading the message at lightning speed, he immediately reported,

“Sir, Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan just left the residence.”

“So early?”

“It looks like he decided to have breakfast before heading to the warehouse.”

“Hmm... That makes sense.”

“We’re heading to the house immediately.”

Springing up from the sofa, Lee Menghong darted out the door like a shadow.

Watching him leave, CIA Director Griffin said,

“It looks like today is going to be a long day. Maybe we should have a proper breakfast too?”

“Ha-ha, couldn’t agree more!” Om Giyeon replied with a faint smile as he rose from the sofa.

Still, it could hardly be called a peaceful breakfast.

Everyone’s thoughts were occupied by Lee Menghong’s team infiltrating Zhang Jinan’s house.

After hastily eating something, they gathered in the living room again.

Griffin glanced at the wall clock and addressed Jiham.

“Chief Cha, don’t you find this strange?”

It had taken Lee Menghong only half an hour to scout the property during the night.

Granted, they had failed to get inside the house then.

But now an hour and a half had already passed since they left.

That was more than enough time to search the entire house from top to bottom.

That was why Griffin was beginning to worry.

“Maybe the second-floor windows were locked again, and they still can’t get inside?”

“If that were the case, they would have reported it long ago.”

Bzzzt!

While they were speculating about the reason for the delay, Om Giyeon’s phone vibrated.

After quickly checking the screen, the NIS Director switched the call to speakerphone.

“Director Lee, why haven’t you reported in yet?”

“We got into the house without any trouble, but we had some difficulty with the lock on the basement.”

“The basement? Was there something unusual down there?”

“Sir, don’t be too shocked... We found gold bars in the basement!”

“What?!” Om Giyeon roared so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the living room.

“We counted and weighed the gold. The total weight is 19 tons and 150 kilograms.”

“So this is the same gold that was supposed to be presented as tribute to Chairman Xi Jinping?”

“That’s our assumption as well.”

“Erase every trace of your entry and get out immediately!”

Click.

The moment Om Giyeon ended the call, Griffin asked,

“Director Om, why would Deputy Secretary Zhang store such enormous wealth in such an unremarkable place?”

Om Giyeon did not answer. He merely looked at Jiham.

Understanding the Director’s silent hint, Jiham said,

“There’s a saying: «Treasures should be hidden in the most ordinary places.»”

“Ah, now I understand,” Griffin said with a nod.

“Excuse me. I need to make a call.”

Breaking off the conversation, Jiham immediately dialed Wei Chen.

Wei Chen seemed to have been waiting for the call, because he answered after the very first ring.

“Chief Cha, I’m listening.”

“Vice Chairman Wei, has Zhang Jinan arrived yet?”

“Not yet, but...”

Jiham immediately understood the reason for his hesitation.

“That’s perfect. Before he arrives, remove the tracker from the specialized container immediately.”

Click.

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Wei Chen did not even reply and immediately hung up.

FBI Director Nevers cautiously asked,

“Chief Cha, why did you ask him to remove the tracker?”

“We attached the tracker to the specialized container for only one reason—to find out where Zhang Jinan would hide the gold.”

“Ah...”

Realizing Jiham’s plan, Nevers nodded in understanding. Вставленный Markdown