Gu Yanran sat up and said unhappily, “Lawyer He, what exactly do you mean? I wanted to find my younger sister more than anything, but I just couldn’t. What could I do?”
“Is that true?” He Zhichu smiled again and said slowly, “you’re our law firm’s biggest client. My assistant and Wen Shouyi are your acting lawyers, but they’re not around anymore. I, as her boss, think I can take over the case and help you with finding your sister.”
Gu Yanran was suspicious. She had a theory, but she did not dare confirm it.
Holding on to a piece of yellow jackfruit she asked, “are you implying you already know my sister’s whereabouts? You know this has to be handled very carefully.” The Gu’s wealth in Barbados was comparable to that of the entire nation. Not just anyone could claim she was Gu Yanran’s little sister.
“I know. That is why I wanted to ask you for your sister’s doctor and dentist.” He Zhichu wanted to use the medical records of Gu Yanran’s little sister to confirm her identity.
All of Gu Nianzhi’s hopes disappeared in an instant.
Did he want a DNA test?
But, they’d already tested her.
Gu Nianzhi cast this thought out of her mind and shook her head. He Zhichu saw her reaction and gestured for her to calm down and continue listening to Gu Yanran.
Gu Yanran thought for a while and said, “we had the same family doctor and dentist. Would you like their contacts?”
“Yes please, send them to me. I’ll contact them.” He Zhichu took another phone and prepared to record their contact information.
Nodding, Gu Yanran replied, “sure, I’ll send them to you.”
Gu Yanran found the contact details of her family doctor and dentist and sent them to He Zhichu. After she was done, she felt exhausted.
Standing from the sofa bed, she told He Zhichu lethargically, “it’s late. I’m turning in. Goodnight, Lawyer He.” It was day time in Huaxia Empire, but in Barbados, it was already late into the night.
“Goodnight. Sweet dreams.” He Zhichu replied.
After he hung up, he looked at Gu Nianzhi’s nonchalant expression and said, “if I had just told you out of the blue, you wouldn’t have believed me. I’m searching for evidence piece by piece and giving them to you, so you can gauge the authenticity on your own.”
“I’m looking forward to it.” Gu Nianzhi smiled. She did not tell He Zhichu that Huo Shaoheng had already checked her DNA, and he was taking the wrong route. She knew she was not supposed to reveal anything about Huo Shaoheng’s, even if it concerned her.
…
In the Cuban airport 12 hours later, the Honorary Military guards were standing neatly at attention, waiting for the arrival of the highest Army representative team in the Huaxia Empire.
Huo Shaoheng was visiting Cuba with the title of Vice Secretary of Huaxia Empire’s Military Supreme Committee. This was his public title. No one knew he was really the head of Special Forces.
The year before, Huo Shaoheng had secretly taken a submarine into Cuba to settle Bai Yusheng’s case. This time, however, he was the Vice Secretary of Huaxia Empire’s Military Supreme Committee, visiting Cuba for an official interview. The private aircraft he took had a fierce dragon painted on it. An eagle was painted, flying out of its mouth.
“The arrival of Huaxia Empire’s Military Supreme Committee General!”
Cuba’s Honorary Military guards cheered as the door of the aircraft opened, and the Huaxia Empire’s Military song played. A flock of white pigeons flew into the air. Their chirps complemented the military song from the skies.
Wearing the Huaxia Empire’s Army’s dark green Major General Uniform, Huo Shaoheng appeared at the door of the aircraft. He was tall and muscular. He stood at attention, and his handsome face was accented by the sunlight. Gasps of admiration could be heard from across the airport. The Huaxia Empire’s students who were studying in Cuba had been brought there to welcome Huo Shaoheng, and they screamed enthusiastically from the bottom of their hearts.
“Welcome, Major General Huo!”
“Welcome, Major General Huo!”
“Welcome, Major General Huo!”
Beautiful, tan Cuban beauties moved closer to Huo Shaoheng as they began their welcome dance. Standing at the door of the aircraft, Huo Shaoheng smiled politely, raised his hand, and waved at the Military and cheering crowd. He steadily descended the red carpet steps of the aircraft.
“We meet again, Major General Huo.” The leader of the Cuban Revolutionary Army, Vakterlo, greeted Huo Shaoheng in basic Mandarin.
Huo Shaoheng shook his hand and returned his greetings in Cubano.
“It is an honor to see you, Marshal Vakterlo.”
Vakterlo was impressed. Switching back to Cubano, he asked excitedly, “Major General Huo, you speak Cubano as well!”
Huo Shaoheng smiled as he shook his head, “my Cubano is only as fluent as your Mandarin.”
Both of them looked at each other and smiled knowingly. Turning around, they walked towards the Honorary Military guards, entered their respective cars, and began the inspection.
Even though the Honorary guards of the Cuban Revolutionary Army had the proud South American trait of passionate service, their formation was not neat or coordinated. The Honorary Army of Huaxia Empire’s standard was much higher.
Of course, Huo Shaoheng would never criticize the Army of another country. On the contrary, he hoped that the Cuban Army would be as weak as possible. He didn’t want them to go through trials or rigorous training. It would be best if they were the kind of military group that called off training sessions in the summer because they were afraid to get dehydrated. If they were like that, Huo Shaoheng thought, they’d get along just fine.
Upon the completion of the inspection, Huo Shaoheng led his team and checked in to a 5-star hotel solely funded by the Chinese in Cuba’s capital, Havana. The people there were all on their side; it would be easier for him to move around even if he changed his identity.
…
“Mr. Huo, our official schedule is over for today. What are your plans after this?” Zhao Liangze held on to his iPad and stood in front of Huo Shaoheng, waiting for his command.
Huo Shaoheng crossed his arms and stood in front of the French windows, admiring the sea outside. The sky was slightly grey, unlike its usual brilliant hue of blue. It highlighted the color of the ocean – a bright shade of turquoise. The color of the ocean blended into the horizon far away, and it was almost impossible to differentiate the areas between the ocean and the sky.
Without turning, he said, “where are the Special Forces men? I want them to meet up.”
“Yes, Sir.” Zhao Liangze acknowledged the command and went off to arrange a meetup. The Special Forces men based in Cuba were not allowed to meet with them directly. They were also not allowed to know who Huo Shaoheng was. They couldn’t even know who Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze were. They’d need a middleman to meet up. This middleman was already there as well. He was an officer in the Huaxia Empire’s embassy in Cuba. His surname was Fei, and he was a Lieutenant Colonel. People addressed him as Lieutenant Fei.
Lieutenant Fei’s was secretly a member of the Special Forces. However, this identity was so well hidden, no one from the embassy knew about it.
At sunset, Huo Shaoheng put on a pair of sunglasses and changed into brownish yellow hunting attire. On his back, was a huge hunting backpack. He walked into a bar in Havana with Zhao Liangze and Yin Shixiong.
People of all trades frequented this bar. Many had just returned from hunting in the plains. They brought their trophies and were busy showing them off in the bar. The hunting bags that Huo Shaoheng, Zhao Liangze, and Yin Shixiong were carrying actually contained dismantled heavy-duty weapons. In the event of an emergency, they would be able to assemble the weapons in five seconds, and the weapons had a shooting range of a thousand meters.
The curvy barmaid brought them to a table by the window. Then, she served them their locally brewed Havana beers and three cut cigars. Huo Shaoheng picked up a cigar and toyed it around in his fingers. His other hand covered his glass, and he glanced around the bar quickly.
The bar was built from wood. A couple of extremely old posters were posted behind the cashier’s wall. In the middle of the posters, was a rudder hung on the wall. Nicely polished wine glasses hung upside down above the cashier, and some bottles of quality wine were placed in dark brown wine racks. An ancient jukebox was playing some of the disco music that had been popular half a century ago. Time seemed to have stopped in the bar. It felt as though nothing had changed.
Small groups of men spoke with strong accents. Some spoke Cubano dialects, some spoke in English and others in Spanish. Two Chinese men in flower print shirts and Bermudas were seated at the table beside them. They were having a small drinking competition amongst themselves, but their words were miraculously sent to Huo Shaoheng, Yin Shixiong, and Zhao Liangze’s Bluetooth earpieces. One of them was Lieutenant Fei in disguise. That meant the other would have to be a member of the Special Forces based in Cuba.
