Chapter 348: It’s the End of the World, That’s All

“Vice Chairman Tang, were you looking for me?” Minister He Lifen asked as he sat down on an empty sofa.

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang had only managed to draw him into his inner circle yesterday. In a situation like this, he couldn’t simply dump Cha Jiham’s request on him right away.

“Did you verify the information I gave you?”

“Of course,” He Lifen replied, recalling the events of the previous evening.

Yesterday, Vice Chairman Tang Guochang had told him that North Korea was storing nuclear weapons somewhere in North Pyongan Province. To verify his claim, they had mobilized reconnaissance satellites and combed through the entire specified area.

“And what were the results? I’d like to hear them.”

“The area where the nuclear weapons storage facility is located is deep in the mountains, but division-sized forces are stationed there. Moreover, there is an airstrip nearby, and an ICBM launch base is located only ten kilometers away.”

“Hmm... That certainly looks highly suspicious.”

“I plan to report the results of our verification to the Chairman along with the information you provided.”

Tang Guochang realized things were about to go badly.

He had received the information about the nuclear weapons storage facility from NIS Director Om Giyeon. But since he couldn’t mention Om Giyeon, he had claimed that the source was Kim Changho, the head of North Korea’s Reconnaissance General Bureau.

If He Lifen mentioned Kim Changho’s name to Chairman Xi Jinping, it would cause a catastrophe of monumental proportions, because Kim Changho had absolutely no intention of fleeing abroad.

After desperately running through every possible option in his head, Tang Guochang continued.

“Minister He, you must not tell the Chairman the whole truth.”

“Why are you suddenly saying that?”

“The Chairman is extremely skeptical of the MSS’s intelligence capabilities.”

He Lifen couldn’t argue, because Vice Chairman Tang was absolutely right.

“Vice Chairman Tang, you certainly know where it hurts.”

“But this time, you can make the Chairman change his opinion, can’t you?”

The words, ‘Do you think it’s that easy?’ lingered on the tip of He Lifen’s tongue for a long time, but he didn’t dare say them aloud.

“I’ll do everything I can.”

“That’s what you should do. If you report to the Chairman that you received the information from me, won’t he think the MSS once again did absolutely nothing?”

“But I could report that the information came from Reconnaissance General Bureau Director Kim Changho.”

“The fact that he is supposedly planning to flee abroad is the strictest secret imaginable.”

“That’s true... Now that I think about it, you’re right. Then what should I tell the Chairman?”

“Report that you pushed the MSS operatives working inside North Korea harder and that they obtained the information.”

“That’s it! We’ll do exactly that!”

Thinking the idea was brilliant, He Lifen slapped his knee.

Tang Guochang breathed a sigh of relief and decided it was time to move on to Cha Jiham’s request.

“Minister He, are you satisfied with my idea?”

“Of course.”

“Good. Then let’s talk about something else. How does the Chairman intend to replenish the secret funds that disappeared?”

“I haven’t thought about it that deeply. Do you have something in mind?”

“This morning, I received information that the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China invested an enormous amount of money in purchasing gold futures.”

“Don’t tell me...”

Tang Guochang immediately understood why He Lifen had stopped.

“I think your ‘don’t tell me’ is perfectly justified.”

“So that really is what happened.”

“As you know, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China is not the Chairman’s personal property. If my suspicions are correct, then the Chairman simply appropriated state funds for his own personal use. What I’m asking is for you to verify whether that is true.”

“I’d gladly do it, but I can’t think of any good way to confirm it.”

Tang Guochang had expected that answer.

Fortunately, he already had an ingenious plan from Cha Jiham ready to go.

“The largest investment company on the planet is Bongard Investment Group, headquartered in New York...”

***

“Minister He is here?” Chairman Xi Jinping asked Chief of the Central Committee General Office Zhang Hui in surprise.

“He says he has an urgent report for you, Chairman.”

“Send him in.”

After receiving permission, He Lifen entered the office, feeling somewhat confused.

Yesterday, Tang Guochang had asked Chairman Xi Jinping why he had summoned him to the reception room.

Xi Jinping had replied that he disliked the sofa in his office and was having it replaced.

Yet for some reason, the sofa was exactly the same as before.

On the other hand, all the other furniture and equipment, including the television, were brand new.

While wondering about the reason, He Lifen remembered Politburo member Liu Peiqi.

After learning that Liu Peiqi had stolen his secret funds, the Chairman must have been unable to contain his rage and smashed his own office to pieces.

‘What would I have done if I were in the Chairman’s position?’

Lost in such pointless thoughts, he slightly bowed his head respectfully toward Xi Jinping, who sat at the head of the table, then took a seat on an empty sofa.

The Chairman immediately addressed him with curiosity.

“Minister He, you said you had an urgent report?”

“That’s correct. We have managed to determine the location where North Korea stores its nuclear weapons.”

“What?!”

Chairman Xi Jinping’s eyes widened in surprise.

He Lifen sat there with a faint smile on his face, as though he had known in advance that his report would cause a sensation.

A moment later, the Chairman continued questioning him with a puzzled expression.

“Minister He, how did you obtain information that secret?”

“The moment I received your instructions, I immediately tore into my subordinates operating inside North Korea, and they managed to obtain the information.”

He Lifen presented Xi Jinping with a report based on Tang Guochang’s words and the results of his own verification.

“...Considering all these factors, the probability that this is a nuclear weapons storage facility is extremely high.”

“Hmm... I see.”

However, Chief of the Central Committee General Office Zhang Hui had a different opinion.

“Minister He, is there any possibility that it isn’t a nuclear facility?”

“To be honest, that possibility cannot be completely ruled out.”

“Then why don’t we send MSS agents there to make absolutely certain?”

At that moment, He Lifen felt an intense wave of irritation.

North Korea wasn’t their own country. There was no freedom of movement between regions, and the MSS operatives were Chinese.

They would face countless difficulties on the way to the nuclear facility.

Yet Zhang Hui spoke about it so casually, as though he were suggesting a stroll to a neighbor’s house.

The truly infuriating part was that his suggestion was perfectly logical, making it impossible to reject.

“I was already planning to send operatives to the site.”

“Understood. Please continue your discussion with the Chairman.”

Having satisfied his curiosity, Zhang Hui withdrew into the background.

“Minister He, assuming that this really is a nuclear facility, when can we destroy it?”

He Lifen intended to destroy the facility before the end of the year.

However, because the plan could fall apart at any moment, he decided against making any grand promises.

“At the latest, during the first half of next year.”

“I cannot wait that long. Shorten the timetable.”

“Yes, Chairman. I’ll do everything I can to make it happen as quickly as possible.”

“Do you have anything else to report?”

He Lifen was genuinely grateful to the Chairman for asking that question, sparing him the trouble of finding an excuse to raise the subject himself.

He had been waiting for the right opportunity to bring it up.

Recalling Tang Guochang’s words, he replied.

“Chairman, have you ever heard of Chairman Bongard from the United States?”

Xi Jinping turned his gaze toward Zhang Hui.

As though reading the Chairman’s mind, Zhang Hui immediately explained.

“Chairman Bongard owns the world’s largest investment company. He is also President Douglas’s primary financial backer.”

Xi Jinping nodded to show that he understood, then turned back to He Lifen.

“Explain why you brought up Chairman Bongard.”

“One of Bongard Investment Group’s high-ranking executives is our spy.”

“Was there really any need to recruit a top executive from an investment company?”

“We took into consideration the fact that Chairman Bongard is President Douglas’s primary financial backer.”

“Ah, now I understand. Continue.”

“We received information that Bongard Investment Group invested an enormous amount of money in gold futures.”

“Hmm...”

Xi Jinping fell into thought without finishing what he was saying.

However, the pause didn’t last long.

“Chief Zhang, what do you think about Minister He’s report?”

“It appears that Bongard Investment Group entered the gold futures market, causing gold prices to surge sharply.”

“My suspicions were correct again.”

After making that brief remark, Xi Jinping turned back to He Lifen.

“Do we know exactly when Bongard Investment Group entered the gold futures market?”

“The gold futures market began experiencing turbulence three days ago.”

Xi Jinping once again turned toward Zhang Hui.

Understanding what the Chairman was thinking, Zhang Hui quickly took out his phone and began searching for something.

A moment later, after finding the necessary information, he spoke.

“Until three days ago, gold futures were holding at approximately 1.05 million dollars per kilogram.”

“I see. What is Bongard Investment Group’s target rate of return?”

“For almost every investment company, the target return is at least thirty percent.”

“In that case, how high would gold futures have to rise?”

“Assuming a target return of thirty percent, the price should rise to approximately 1.36 million dollars.”

“Ha-ha-ha!”

He Lifen became completely convinced that Xi Jinping had used money from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to purchase gold futures.

Otherwise, there was absolutely no reason for him to laugh so loudly.

‘A man who can’t distinguish between personal property and state property is running our country. It’s the end of the world, that’s all.’

While he was immersed in those gloomy thoughts, Xi Jinping’s laughter died away.

As though he had been waiting for that moment, Zhang Hui addressed He Lifen.

“Report regularly to the Chairman on Bongard Investment Group’s movements.”

“Yes, sir.”

“If you’ve finished reporting to the Chairman, return to work.”

Having received the unmistakable order to leave, He Lifen bowed to Xi Jinping and exited the office.

The moment the door closed, Xi Jinping asked Zhang Hui,

“If gold futures rise to 1.36 million dollars, how much profit will we make?”

Zhang Hui used the calculator on his phone, ran the numbers, and replied,

“Approximately 8.5 billion dollars.”

“That’s far too little.”

Xi Jinping’s words clearly implied that they should inject additional capital into gold futures.

However, Zhang Hui had a different opinion.

“Chairman, the maximum amount we can withdraw from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China is fifty billion dollars.”

“Then withdraw money from other banks.”

“Haah... Understood.”

“Now, something else. Where could the fourteen tons of gold that bastard Liu took be?”

The moment Zhang Hui received the report that all the gold had vanished, he immediately dispatched the police to search for it.

The police had turned Politburo member Liu Peiqi’s secret hideout upside down, but they found no significant clues.

He had reported this to Xi Jinping, but the Chairman suspected that the gold might have been stored somewhere else.

Because of that, the police were currently searching every property connected to Liu Peiqi in any way.

“We’re conducting an intensive search right now, so we should know soon.”

***

At the same time.

Vice Chairman Tang Guochang was passing the time talking with Commander Wang Dazhong.

“I’m planning to be discharged this afternoon.”

“Isn’t that a little early?”

“You know perfectly well that I’m only pretending to be sick.”

“Well, if you say so. By the way, do you think Minister He Lifen will obey your instructions without question?”

“I’ll make him obey.”

Ring-ring-ring!

The phone lying on Vice Chairman Tang Guochang’s bed suddenly burst into a melodic ringtone.

Picking it up and checking the caller ID, he answered without hesitation.

“Minister He, how did it go?”

[The Chairman definitely withdrew an enormous amount of money from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and invested it in gold futures.]

“What are you basing that conclusion on? Tell me.”

[Just as you told me...]