Madness ecstasy

"Hold on. Did you hear me correctly?"

He raised his head, and his small eyes on his fat face sparkled:

"What do they mean by this? Are they trying to follow the same pattern as the Latin American branch?"

"The Analysis Department intends for our branch to directly intervene in urban planning and construction? They want to get into real estate? They want to do engineering? After they destroy their target, they'll come back with funding to rebuild the entire city of Mong Cai?"

"The pilot experiment in Colombia was a complete failure. What led to the idea of ​​trying this in Jiaozhi Autonomous Prefecture?"

Inoue Marie was at a loss, she wanted to put her hand over her mouth but put it down again:

"I'm just repeating—"

The supervisor waved his hands, interrupting Inoue Mari's confused explanation:

"What about risk control? Did they mention this: With such a long preparation period and such huge losses, will the government consider intervening? According to the analysis department's thinking, in addition to headquarters, we also need to consider obtaining funding from the authorities."

Inoue Mari twisted her fingers and blinked unconsciously:

"Uh, the Analysis Department didn't mention that."

The supervisor sat down on the edge of the desk he had just stepped on, looking at Inoue Mari - between her gray and white curly hair, one could see the malice in her eyes.

Seeing the supervisor's eyes, Inoue Marie quickly added:

"However, I have a guess: the Analysis Department should have obtained the information, but we haven't--"

The director raised his eyebrows—the contempt in his eyes was mixed with surprise, creating a complex look:

"Oh? Go ahead."

Inoue Marie closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the sour smell in the office. But her worry about her future in the workplace overcame her nausea and fear in that moment:

“I guess! Mong Cai City might become a new testing area!”

Chapter 89 Conjecture

The silence seemed to become a physical entity, stretching across the entire office.

The floor was strewn with spit and cigarette butts, and worn socks and spare leather shoes lay on the sofa bed by the window. Combined with the stench of sweat, body odor, and farts, the room was more pungent than mustard. The central air conditioning seemed completely useless; it felt like awls were pricking at Marie Inoue's nasal cavity.

Sweat slid across her false eyelashes and dripped into her eyes; but she didn't dare wipe it off.

The supervisor suddenly raised his hand, as if trying to reach across several meters and cover Inoue Marie's mouth with his palm.

"Stop. Where did you hear that?"

The word [guess] was tacitly forgotten by the two of them.

Inoue Marie twisted the notebook in her hand until it made a clattering sound:

"My brother-in-law works in the Intelligence Department, don't you remember? He said that there have been too many cases in Mong Cai in the past two years. Although most of them are [waste], this density has never appeared before. The people at headquarters are also—"

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!

The director lifted his hips from the desk, stood up, and clapped his hands vigorously. For the first time this quarter, Inoue Marie saw something resembling a smile on his face:

"Ah, brilliant! Brilliant intelligence gathering! I always forget why we snatched you up to our branch in the first place! Good, good; HR almost sent you to the Philippines as a janitor, but you were pretty useful, weren't you?"

"Talented, very talented! Everyone really has their own talents! I've seen countless people, and I almost made a mistake with you!"

"As your sister-in-law, you have to help your sister tie down this wealthy husband! If you need any, remember to go to the logistics department to get some medicine to improve family relationships."

The assistant opened his mouth - but didn't know how to thank these words that sounded like an insult and a compliment - and in the end, he just curled up a shy and flattering smile at the corner of his mouth.

She thought: It would be better for her not to continue speaking at this time.

The supervisor didn't waste another second on this topic:

"I understand: If this comes true, we'll have a first-mover advantage in this area's supporting industries. This is far more advantageous than simply acquiring a single pillar. Headquarters wants to coordinate their efforts and transform it into a fully controlled experimental zone!"

The supervisor lowered his head and looked at the shiny leather shoes and the ground covered with spit and cigarette butts.

Suddenly, the supervisor raised his head. His previous fatigue and inattention were like water being wiped away by a windshield wiper, leaving only a trace.

"What is the name of our company?"

Inoue Marie straightened up like a cat whose tail was stepped on.

"Ah? Ah, Asia-Europe Post, Asia-Europe Post Southeast Asia Branch: I mean, if you mean our branch--"

Bang, bang!

The supervisor snapped his fingers impatiently:

"Okay, okay, I'm talking about Asia-Europe Post. Just know that if this is done right, Asia-Europe Post might be able to have another subsidiary."

"What future do you have as an assistant in a shabby place like the Southeast Asia branch? You should be more proactive and don't just act when you're being criticized."

"Go back, hang up the phone and tell those guys in the analytics department: This direction is feasible, but we need an actuary to come up with an estimate. I'm not sure the funding from the Mong Cai city authorities will be enough, and whether the return will be enough depends on how the PR department handles it. Oh, we have to include emergency food, and we have good suppliers for building materials. Add all of this to the specific plan. If we can't lower the price, then it's meaningless."

"Also, get those lazybones in the office to wake up and get ready to work with the architectural design institute. Develop a plan to demarcate the old urban areas that need to be cleared in Mong Cai City. Later, we'll guide them to targeted areas for clearance. This will make it easier to report to the higher-ups and the PR department."

Inoue Marie nodded repeatedly, her pen almost leaving a trail of ink and rustling the paper. But the supervisor spoke faster and faster:

"Didn't the Special Package Handling Division previously lead the [Shouzhu 151] project? Now that the building has been damaged by the target, we're taking over and repairing it. Their leader has been captured and silenced at headquarters, so no one has the guts to challenge our branch."

"Why did they bypass the branch and hold on to this project for so long?"

"Also, we have to get the Analytics Department to finalize the rating: no matter what I just said, it has to be [Pillar] level, it has to be [Pillar] level—our branch's annual reports haven't looked good in the past few years. Forget it, there's a plan for this kind of performance: if we don't get the Pillar rating, I'll make a couple more calls to finalize the rating."

"As for the plan, our branch can't approve it. Someone higher up needs to approve it. Wait until the analysis department has the final say, so they don't have to fax it over. I'll give you two days off, so you can go directly over to check in."

It's not so much that the supervisor is talking to his assistant - it's more like he's thinking "out loud," pouring out everything in his mind with his mouth.

Inoue Marie was dizzy from the director's rapid-fire barrage of words, but she instinctively grasped the key to his words. She widened her already round eyes, even to the point of bulging like hyperthyroidism:

"I'll go over there during the holidays to meet with you - will you be paid?"

The supervisor raised his eyes - from Inoue Marie's perspective, he could only see most of the whites of his eyes; his pupils were almost rolling into his brain.

At that moment, Inoue Marie regretted the interrogative request she had just made; her spine felt numb as if an electric shock had passed through it.

But the answer she received was surprisingly gentle:

"No, it will be counted as your annual leave, and it will be used in your personal capacity. But I will consider taking you to the annual meeting of the head office this year - you know what this opportunity means, right?"

"Remember this: we're solely responsible for implementation and action. Everything is a proposal from the Analysis Department. We're the executors of this project, so we're solely focused on execution. Got it? Remember this perspective!"

Inoue Marie nodded like a woodpecker, writing down everything her supervisor said in the notebook in her hand.

pat!

The supervisor suddenly snatched the notebook from Inoue Marie's hand - no one would have thought that this middle-aged man with a big chest and abdomen could have such quick and agile movements - then tore off the page with dense writing and stuffed it into the shredder next to him.

Buzz buzz.

brush!

The supervisor flung open the lid of the collection box, snatched up the shredded paper, and held it before Inoue Marie:

"How many times have I told you? There's no written record of the conversation. Is your memory this bad? Do you want me to give you a note to go get checked for brain damage?"

"Yes, sorry, sir."

Inoue Marie took the note and put it in her mouth. After chewing and coughing several times, she swallowed the entire wet and pulpy paper ball into her stomach.

The supervisor waved his hand calmly:

"Alright, no apologies between superiors and subordinates. I know you have a terrible memory, but I just wanted to help you remember this oversight."

"Also—even though I think you know this, I still want to emphasize: conversations in this office must not be leaked—don't get too close to your brother-in-law during New Year's Eve dinner or the Mid-Autumn Festival, remember? The people in the Intelligence Department are different from us. Those bastards there are too troublesome."

Inoue Marie covered her mouth with her hand, feeling a fishbone stuck in her throat. But she still moved her head up and down vigorously, almost dizzy.

The supervisor stuck his index finger into his nostril and scratched it vigorously, then looked thoughtfully at the slimy contents on his fingertip:

"Let's go. Oh! Call all the field officers in the department who have nothing to do, and call back those on leave: it's time to get to work. Before the Analysis Department and the Intelligence Department start, I need to get a personality profile of the target, a family background check, a medical diagnosis, and a suspected crime--"

He pointed to the whiteboard behind his desk. It was covered with dense handwriting, photos, maps, and documents, all pinned together with thumbtacks. All of this material centered around a young man:

"Hey, are there really parents who give their children a name like Dou Dou?"

Chapter 90 Ai Xi

It was past dawn, but not yet midday; the sunlight that penetrated the clouds was scorching, setting flies buzzing. Yet, many residents braved the humid, hot wind of Mong Cai and ventured out for a stroll.

Tianhu Community, Building 5, Unit 2, 4th Floor:

The corridor was not much different from before the summer vacation, except that there were a few yellow police seals on the elevator and one of the room doors.

The new neighbor who had just moved in a few days ago had disappeared; but at the end of summer, another visitor came here.

The girl, carrying her schoolbag, stopped in front of the door at the end of the corridor. Although it was mottled, it was much cleaner. There was a time when this place was covered with cobwebs, and the slightest touch would make your hands gray and black.

Knock knock, knock knock.

She raised her hand and knocked on the screen door frame.

"Hello Doudou, it's me, open the door."

The girl's eyebrows are very straight, almost close to and parallel to her slender eyes; when she smiles, they narrow into two upward arcs.

There was a prominent, curled scar on her left cheek, pink with a hint of white, like a burn mark; it spread from her jaw all the way to the end of her ear and cheekbone, and was slightly covered by the hair that just passed the base of her ear.

Perhaps because of the wrinkled skin caused by the burn scars, the girl did not have much expression: her eyes did not shift and jump, but were fixed on the door like nails, lacking some of the agility of her age.

Sometimes she would raise her hand and press the heel of her palm against the bump on her face; relieving the itchiness of the connective tissue.

It was like a face made of cloth, with a red patch sewn on one corner. The attention that could be drawn to her facial features was almost ignored, and the piece of hyperplastic skin became the center of her face.

-

The inner iron door opened, and the outer screen door was pushed open; Doudou poked half of his head out from the gap:

"Oh! Ai Xi, you're here! Come in quickly, it's so early; I thought you would arrive in the afternoon."

Ai Xi followed Dou Dou and closed the double door. He took off his sneakers and carefully placed them next to the entrance.

"The sun is still too strong today. If I come over in the afternoon, my scar will get itchy from the sun."

She found a place to stay among the scattered textbooks and homework papers, and dodged the carefully stacked "tower" of videotapes that was almost as tall as a person:

"Want me to help tidy up the house? You'll be more efficient finding things this way."

With a wave of his hands, he circumvented numerous obstacles like traps with ease:

"Thank you! But no thanks. Last time you helped me put my things away, I couldn't find them. I'm more used to the random placement of things now, so I can just grab them easily."

Ai Xi moved the various chairs that formed a circle in front of him. Doudou had used them to help him record his application for membership in "Parapsychological Exploration" a few days ago, but he hadn't been able to get himself ready.

"Doudou, are the owners of your community going to hold a party at your house? There are so many chairs."

Doudou grabbed the remaining chairs and piled them haphazardly in the corner of the room until it looked like a jungle gym at an amusement park.

"No, I was getting a videotape for 'Parapsychology'; setting up some seats would create a more lively atmosphere. Our neighborhood is deserted, so why would there be a homeowners' association?"

Ai Xi jumped up and down until he stopped in front of Doudou's desk. Compared with the rest of the room, the desk was as clean as a deserted wasteland that no one had ever set foot on.

"Oh, I understand. It's like an interview for a mysterious organization. It's more exciting."

All the mirrors in Doudou's house have been put away because Ai Xi never looks in the mirror.

She stepped onto the ottoman chair in her socks, squatted down, knees to her chin, and took out the tools for assembling the model from her schoolbag: a pen knife, pliers, and sandpaper ranging from 400 to 1,200 grit; she carefully arranged them parallel on the table.

Doudou pulled out an unopened model from the drawer—it was a box of the 1:12 scale model of "Demon Man" that had just been released this year (the 15th anniversary edition!), featuring the villain named Dr. Torment—and carefully placed it in the middle of the table:

"Eh? It's not even a mysterious organization, it's just a reader's club. Come on, come and help me put it together. I've come across something interesting these days, and I'd like to tell you about it."

Ai Xi consulted the instructions, picked up the pliers, and began to cut the panels one by one:

"No hurry, just tell me slowly. This will take a while to put together."

She picked up the penknife from the table, cut the 600-800 grit sandpaper into a rectangle, and stuck it on the ruler:

"I came to look for you a few mornings ago, but the room next to yours was full of police officers. I was so scared that I quickly went back."

"Also, you haven't been to the model airplane class at the Children's Palace these past two days. The teacher won't refund your tuition if you skip classes or ask for leave, which is really a loss. Even though they didn't teach anything new."

Doudou clapped his hands lightly, a hint of pride showing in his smile:

"That's what I'm going to tell you!"

He leaned in closer, pressed his right palm together, leaving only a gap in the middle. He passed the base of his palm through Ai Xi's tangled hair and pressed it against his scalp, then placed his mouth over the hole formed by his thumb and index finger.