Hidden Assassin 247

## Volume 3: The Cohabitation Era Chapter 247: Ya Han’s Decision

2013-02-08

The door was knocked on again. About ten minutes later, Ya Han opened it and let Mantou (馒头) in. After Mantou took a sip of water, Ya Han asked, “Did you finish the call? Can you tell me now?”

“Yeah.” Mantou nodded and smiled. “They said they can tell you some things. Luckily, I don’t have to make up excuses anymore. To put it simply, I belong to an organization called Yan Huang Jue Xing (炎黄觉醒), which is actually part of China’s National Security. It’s like the US’s National Security Agency or the FBI you often see in movies. I’m an agent, and after this operation, my identity has been exposed. I’ll probably go back with you guys.”

“Agent?” Ya Han widened her eyes. “Why are you following me?”

“Like what happened in the mall today, you’re in danger.”

“Really me? Why would anyone kill me?”

“It’s not killing, it’s more likely to be kidnapping. The main reason is that they want to use you against Jian Suyan (简素言) Miss Jian.”

Ya Han was stunned for a moment, and an indescribable look flashed in her eyes. “Against her? Is she really here?”

“Yes, you’ve actually seen her before, you just didn’t believe it.”

“The woman who killed people the other night?”

During this conversation, Mantou felt like he was looking at a completely different woman. The sparkle returned to her eyes, and a genuine smile gradually appeared on her face. He remembered the speculation from the organization about Jian Suyan and Zhang Ya Han possibly being lesbians. He couldn’t help but sigh, “百合万恶啊 (Baili Wan’e a – a common saying that expresses disapproval of lesbian relationships)” – he didn’t even have a girlfriend yet, this was a waste of societal resources…

He thought these things in his heart, but naturally couldn’t show them on his face. He just nodded and said, “Yes, that woman has been confirmed to be Miss Jian Suyan. The reason she acted like that is because the people in that car were all assassins who came to scout the area in advance. They were preparing to kidnap you. And then… unfortunately, they met someone they shouldn’t have met.”

“Oh. Hehe…” Ya Han smiled. “Her temper has always been terrible…”

“By the way, that young brother named Gu Jia Ming (顾家明) has also arrived. He did what happened in the mall today. You ran out to find someone and didn’t even notice him. He was actually following you all along, but you didn’t notice.”

“He was following me?” Ya Han smiled. “He… They two… Um, have they contacted you guys? I mean… did Suyan ask you to protect me?”

“That’s not it. We’ve been wanting to officially meet Miss Jian Suyan. She’s helped us a lot, and we haven’t been able to express our gratitude. We just came to protect Miss Zhang. It’s like offering flowers to Buddha (借花献佛 – to offer flowers to Buddha to show respect, but also to indirectly benefit oneself). We are just expressing our sincerity. By the way, you have a good relationship with Miss Jian. If you see her next time, maybe you could tell her…”

“It’s useless.” Ya Han interrupted him. “Whatever she decides, I can’t persuade her on anything. You guys should know that. She has a bad temper, and she’s an anarchist, but since she’s willing to help you guys, doesn’t that mean she has some feelings for you? Don’t go looking for her. I upset her last time. Look, she still won’t come out to see me.”

As she said these lies, Ya Han couldn’t help but blush. Mantou could only nod and smile. After a while, Ya Han raised her head: “Did I really cause her a lot of trouble?”

“To be honest, I think that between friends, there’s no such thing as trouble. But since the terrorist attack at Sacred Heart Academy in Jiang Hai City (江海市) last time, there have been a lot of things happening behind the scenes.” Mantou nodded. “Since you’re such good friends with Miss Jian, you should also know from that incident that there is a group of people who want to harm Miss Jian. After the Sacred Heart Academy incident, we noticed that she was going to cause a commotion in Tokyo, Japan, because that’s where the enemy’s headquarters is.”

“Japan? Militarists? Racists?”

“No, it has nothing to do with ethnicity or nationality. It’s just a profit-driven organization.” Mantou laughed. “While she was preparing, you came to the US for treatment. There are also branches of that organization in the US. They sensed that they would be a threat to you, so Miss Jian abandoned Japan and came to the US first, with the purpose of protecting you. It’s something to be proud of. This organization has branches all over the world, but in Jiang Hai City, every one of their operations has failed. If they weren’t able to deal with Miss Jian, they wouldn’t be scheming against people close to her.”

“So… it’s because of me…” Ya Han muttered to herself.

They talked for a while longer in the room, and Mantou recounted all the events and exploits of Jian Suyan. Ya Han listened attentively, occasionally exclaiming in surprise. She never imagined that the extraordinary Gu Jia Ming could be so extraordinary. Compared to him, her own little thoughts seemed childish and insignificant. After about half an hour, she nodded and saw Mantou out. “Thank you. If nothing unexpected happens, I’ll probably book a flight back tonight. I can’t stay here and cause trouble anymore.”

“Leaving tonight? Your treatment and observation should last another two days?”

“What’s the point of treatment and observation? It’s just for reference. It’s not a terminal illness anyway. If I get proper treatment back home, some people recover. If not, I’ll have to get a kidney transplant in the end.” Ya Han smiled resolutely. “No matter what, I have to leave tonight.”

“Okay, I’ll report it to the higher-ups. There should be a group of reliable people to escort you back to China safely, besides your bodyguards. Of course, I’m one of those reliable people.” Mantou pointed to himself and laughed. “But I guess you’re going to have to give up the rest of your treatment. I don’t think it’ll be easy to convince Mrs. Zhang.”

“Just cry in front of her.” Ya Han smiled and opened the door, letting Mantou go out first. Then she turned to the head of the security detail outside. “Mr. Chen, please book a flight for all of us back to Jiang Hai tonight. I remember it’s 1:30 AM?”

“Leaving tonight?” Mr. Chen looked puzzled. “It’s snowing heavily today. Although the TV didn’t say it was cancelled, the situation might not be good. And… Mrs. Zhang’s opinion…”

“I’ll go talk to Mom right now. It’s okay. I have a very important reason to leave. You go ahead and book the ticket. I want the earliest flight, direct or connecting, it doesn’t matter. If they’re cancelled today, then book the next one.”

“Okay, I’ll go right now.” Mr. Chen nodded and walked towards the corridor. Ya Han was going to find her mother, so she walked in the other direction, followed by Mantou. After a while, Mantou suddenly turned his head: “I have a question.”

“What?”

“Why don’t you have any doubts? You just believe me, don’t you? You know, I’ve been thinking, if you didn’t believe me, what would I use to convince you? We don’t have any documents with us. And we definitely can’t get any answers through official channels. Why do you believe what I said?”

“I don’t know if you’re real or not, but I know you wouldn’t hurt me.”

“Is it because I look honest and trustworthy? That’s why you believe me?”

“No, it’s because you know her (Jian Suyan) power.”

“Uh…”

Ya Han gave a bright smile: “If you were someone who wanted to harm me, could you have stayed by my side for so long with her watching? You would have already died.”

Listening to Ya Han’s confident words, Mantou tilted his head and stared blankly for a long time before nodding helplessly: “That’s true…”

**************************************************

“The plane leaves at 1:30 AM tomorrow. That means we have at most 12 hours before the target flies out of our sight. After that, a large number of Yan Huang Jue Xing people will be guarding her side. That means unless we find someone to do a suicide bombing or use the military’s ground-to-air missiles, it’ll be very difficult to keep that beautiful Miss Zhang in the US…”

In a formal office, John Amir crossed his arms and reported the situation to Castro in a straightforward manner. Across the desk, Castro held a piece of paper handed to him, with a troubled look on his face: “Of course, that’s impossible. Blowing up a plane would cause diplomatic disputes and force the US government to crack down on us. But… what’s different about your plan?”

“It doesn’t involve blowing up a plane.”

“Oh, that’s good.” Castro repeated appreciatively. “It doesn’t involve blowing up a plane.”

“If she gets away, we’ll lose face. We won’t be able to hold our heads up in front of the Japanese branch.” John Amir said. “And now that El is dead, we haven’t been able to figure out the configuration of Yan Huang Jue Xing or Yu Jin Xiang’s (郁金香) background. What frightens me is that Yu Jin Xiang seems to know our every move, otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to kill El so easily and accurately. He was the best tracker. This current plan, though it seems crazy, can be handled at most as a gang fight. Most importantly, this is the right way according to military strategy. On our turf, this plan can be used against anyone. It’s invincible… You understand, you’ve been too cautious for too long. You know it’s the best plan.”

“Heh.” After a moment of silence, Castro raised his head. “If we use this plan against everyone, then what do I need you for?”

“I need to convince you to use it.”

“Okay.” This time, Castro nodded decisively. “Let’s do it. Time is of the essence.”

On the other side, almost at the same time as Castro received the plan, Jia Ming closed his laptop in a café across from the hospital where Ya Han stayed. He frowned.

“1:30 AM… That means tonight… This is a headache…”

Previous Chapter | TOC | Next Chapter