Chapter 69: The Buffer Zone
Translator: Kim_Guo Editor: Tehrn
A Bentley was quietly driving through the noisy city under the protection of the cars in front and behind, enjoying enormous admiration from the masses.
Zhang Xinyi looked at her son with surprise, not because of his words but his prudence with sophistication and confidence, which was seen in his father. It was a strange feeling.
Huang Xuan’s uncle, Zhang Si, was in his early thirties. He used to be troublesome too. When Huang Xuan had been little, Zhang Si had said that Huang Xuan was just like the younger version of himself. However, compared with Huang Xuan’s performance at school, Zhang Si had done much better. Perhaps it should have been attributed to the times, Zhang Si, who had spent most of his time playing football and fighting with others had succeeded in the entrance exam of a military academy. By virtue of his own efforts and the background of the Zhang Family, he had been awarded countless times and been transferred to the Ministry of State Security five years later.
He had said that, in this way, he would find a wife much more easily, just as 007 did in the movies.
As Huang Xuan had known, his uncle, who wasn’t refined at all, had become pretty powerful. At least, he would be helpful in finding a person that hadn’t fit in the society. Nevertheless, he seldom cared a damn about what others said or thought. For example, Huang Xuan’s cousin, Zhang Haoji, had never gained any benefit from him. Zhang Xinyi, however, was the one whom Zhang Si would listen to.
“Son, what do you want your uncle to help you with?” Zhang Xinyi asked, looking into Huang Xuan’s eyes. She was clueless about Huang Xuan’s plan and was worried.
“Finding a person.”
“Whom?”
“Just ask my uncle to help me. You can ask my uncle about it afterward. You know I won’t do anything illegal.” Huang Xuan was unwilling to tell.
“My son has started keeping a secret,” Zhang Xinyi thought. Still, she gave her brother a call.
When Huang Xuan saw Zhang Si, he was chatting with a beautiful woman in a Hawaii shirt. He looked friendly and very happy.
Had it been in the past, Huang Xuan would have gone up and had fun. However, now he wasn’t in the mood.
“Uncle,” Huang Xuan went up quietly and greeted him.
The pretty woman next to Zhang Si whispered something in his ear laughingly, handed him a scrap of paper and then left.
“Here,” Huang Xuan said to him and pointed at his shoulder, smiling. It turned out to be a kiss mark.
Zhang Si smiled casually and said, “I have an alternative one in my car. It’s OK.” Then he wiped it off and walked toward the car. Huang Xuan followed him closely. Zhang Si had an Audi A6, which had been well preserved. However, compared with his cousins, he hadn’t done so well. He lifted his eyebrows and smiled.
“What? Do you despise your uncle’s car?” Zhang Si curled his lips and continued, “I have forgotten that my nephew is a billionaire now.”
Huang Xuan got in the car and sat in the passenger seat. He rolled the window down and said, “I want to give you a BMW, but do you dare to take it?”
Zhang Si giggled but said nothing. The Zhang Family had stricter family rules and was much less luxurious than the Huang Family. Most of the family members were public servants and thus were very cautious about gifts.
Huang Xuan smiled scornfully and then leaned backward comfortably.
Outside the parking lot, Zhang Si sped up a little. He glanced at Huang Xuan and said, “Now, talk. What do you need me for?”
“Finding a person.” Huang Xuan sat in a more comfortable position. “I want all the information on the people that entered from Brazil in the past few days, legal or illegal, especially the ones that stayed in Jiangsu province.”
“Easy to check the legal ones. How am I supposed to check the illegal ones?”
“Do I need you to check the legal ones? Still, I need their detailed information. Present residences are essential,” Huang Xuan replied bluntly.
“But there are so many of them. Are you looking for your girlfriend?”
“It’s business.” Huang Xuan looked serious. “Uncle, this is huge. If you dare take money, I am willing to offer 100 million dollars.”
“You’re bluffing.” Zhang Si had never seen 100 million dollars all his life. “If you are rich, donate 10 million RMB to Project Hope first. Don’t talk nonsense!”
Huang Xuan didn’t respond. He dialed Li Shenggang’s number and said, “Donate 10 million RMB to Project Hope.”
Li Shenggang didn’t understand. He blinked his eyes and asked, “Boss, what?”
“Donate money. You have three minutes.”
Sensing Huang Xuan wasn’t joking, Zhang Si started feeling awkward.
“Are you going against me? Unbelievable.”
Huang Xuan remained silent until Li Shenggang sent a message after he had donated money. Huang Xuan put his phone away and said to Zhang Si, “10 million has been donated. You can check it out for yourself later.”
“Really? You don’t take money seriously at all,” Zhang Si asked doubtfully, hands on the wheel. ”Really?” he added.
“Really,” Huang Xuan looked at him and answered sullenly. “Uncle, I will do anything you ask. I really need your help. If you heartily want to help me, put other things aside and focus on this. I will thank you a lot.”
“Save the formalities,” Zhang Si still spoke in the way of joking, but stopped talking about it and kept on driving.
At the traffic lights, Zhang Si’s phone started ringing. He took the call. The caller was a man that spoke loudly.
“Half an hour ago, there was a series of accidents on bridge two of the freeway. 27 people have been killed in the accidents, including Wang Shiyin, his wife, and daughter. Come back as quickly as you can.”
This kind of accident happened every day. However, Zhang Si’s facial expression changed. When the green light was on, he geared up, stepped on the gas, swirled the wheel, and said to Huang Xuan, “I’m sorry, Huang Xuan. I have to take care of something. I can inquire it of the Immigration Service. Something happened. I can’t make the time.”
Huang Xuan became sullen. But before he could find anything to retort, Rolin suddenly spoke, “Huang Xuan, the energy in the buffer zone is being consumed greatly. I am searching for more information.”
“Is it that time traveler?”
“I’m searching and confirming.”
“Does the searching usually take so long?” Huang Xuan was anxious because it seemed that Zhang Si was going to make him get out of the car.
“Once the space is changed, the buffer zone will use energy to recover the change. Hence, it is usually very difficult to find the reason before the change. This is the basic theory of similarity.”
“Whatever.” Huang Xuan glanced at Zhang Si, who was driving the car with regrets. Suddenly he was a little touched and asked, “Are you sure it is that time traveler?”
“I am sure he is involved, but I am not sure he did it alone.”
Huang Xuan was relieved. This answer was good enough to him. He closed the window and looked at his uncle.
“Uncle, are you rushing back because of the death of that president?”
“Yes,” Zhang Si responded faintly. “Little Sixteenth, what you asked me for is the responsibility of the Bureau of Exit and Entry Administration. I will be free in one or two days. Why don’t you ask your elder uncle?”
“I might need my elder uncle’s help too, but I certainly need yours. Besides, the person I am looking for is probably involved in the matter you are going to deal with.”
Hearing this, Zhang Si suddenly stepped on the brake and asked, “Do you know Wang Shiyin?”
“A little.”
“Is this murder?”
“Even if it wasn’t done by the person I mentioned, at least he is involved.”
“You’d better not be joking.”
Huang Xuan took out his phone, threw it in the front of the car and responded, “Do you think I am joking at the cost of 10 million RMB? Do I look stupid?”
The car was speeding. Zhang Si was driving with a heavy heart while Huang Xuan was playing with the phone chain out of boredom.
“What else do you know?” Zhang Si asked after a long moment.
“He is in Nanjing. He entered after me and very likely used a legal identity.” These were all Huang Xuan’s guesses.
Zhang Si looked ahead and nodded unconsciously. But he was still worried.
“Huang Xuan, this is very serious.”
“I have told you.” Huang Xuan knew that his uncle wasn’t taking him seriously. He felt resigned.
Zhang Si was silent.
“Huang Xuan, our current energy storage is enough to maintain our routines, and even kill the time traveler, but not enough to catch him,” Rolin said.
“Didn’t you say humans could catch him?”
“I can’t confirm his location. The energy in the buffer zone is decreasing. It’s actually all about energy right now. Either his energy is at last depleted and gets him exposed, or the buffer zone can’t withstand the pressure and opens the passage.”
“You said that the increase of our energy was faster than his.”
“But we can’t afford to transmit energy to the buffer zone while he can continuously make oscillations. If he had had a base that helped him absorb energy, this space would have crashed a long time ago. We must increase the energy of the buffer zone.”
“How?”
“By causing the decrease of the buffer zone in another space. In this way, our base will absorb the energy it is losing.”
“That means making oscillations in another plane.” Huang Xuan shook his head and continued, “It is too dangerous. I don’t want to be trapped in another place like this time traveler. I am not as capable as he is.”
“He is trapped in P112 because his base failed. He doesn’t even have enough information or proper equipment, so he can’t risk using too much energy. But you are in a different condition.”
“What if the time traveler escapes when we are in another plane?” Huang Xuan found another excuse.
“I will watch the situation of this plane. Do you want to risk it?”
“Think about your grandfather. If the time traveler escapes, our base won’t be able to cure him,” Rolin added before Huang Xuan answered his question.
“But perhaps the time traveler can’t cure him either.”
“Who knows?”
Huang Xuan exhaled deeply as if he was trying to vent all the pressure and depression. Zhang Si felt it strange and looked at him.
“We can carry weapons. Our aim is to make oscillations. We will be back soon. Around P112 is all space deserts. It is impossible to see a base of such a high level as me. Think about it: you are in a backward space where there was no base, intelligence bureau, or police station. But you are carrying modern equipment, so you are absolutely safe,” Rolin pushed further.
“I want the best weapons, especially a bulletproof jacket. The shirt must be as hard as an armor,” Huang Xuan finally compromised.
“No problem. I have searched a lot of materials. The advancing bases are good at making weapons.” Rolin was only generous when there was a possibility of getting energy.
Huang Xuan didn’t know what to say. He clenched his teeth and made a decision.
“Uncle, stop the car.”
“Here?” Zhang Si was still stepping on the gas.
“Yes, hurry.” Now that he had made up his mind, he must start getting prepared right now. Rolin would choose a long period. Huang Xuan didn’t want to lose chances because he had been badly prepared.
Huang Xuan got out of the car as soon as the car had been stopped. He called Li Shenggang and Li Qing while walking. He also needed some equivalent and more energy besides weapons.
While Huang Xuan was making calls, the car was reversed. Zhang Si rolled down the window and said, “Huang Xuan, how many of them?”
“No more than three. Call me, if there are any problems.” Huang Xuan wasn’t being candid.
Zhang Si drove away speedily. Huang Xuan wasn’t sure whether he had heard him or not. But he wasn’t worried. They could keep in touch by phone calls anyway except that the time delay would be extremely long.