Chapter 56: Would You Believe It?

Ministry of State Security...

The moment those six words came through the earpiece, Lin Xu’s expression changed instantly.

The Ministry of State Security!
The State Security Bureau!
What the hell, what on earth did I do?

Lin Xu was certain that from beginning to end, he had not done anything out of line.
Likewise, he had not leaked any information that should not have been spread.
Everything related to the apocalypse ended right here with him.
He had been cautious to the absolute extreme, yet he had still managed to draw the attention of State Security.

So what was the reason??

There was only one possibility.
The materials.
Those two documents had caught the attention of certain people.
And these "certain people" were likely connected to Xu Jin!

Damn it!
How did that saying go again?
Every gift bestowed by fate had already been marked with a price behind the scenes.
He had used Xu Jin to leverage official resources, acquiring equipment and setting up the factory in the shortest time possible.
But at the same time, this had naturally attracted the attention of the authorities.

With just a little investigation, the authorities would discover that the information in his hands was entirely ungrounded.
The industrial manufacturing methods for the two materials had simply appeared out of thin air, with no traceable logical chain whatsoever.
It was completely normal for them to question him; if they hadn't reacted at all, that would have been the truly ghostly thing...

Since it had come to this, he had to take it in stride.
Lin Xu took a deep breath and said to Jiang Xingye, who was waiting quietly nearby with deep concern evident in her eyes:
"I need to go out for a while."
"Don't worry too much, it's nothing major."
"As for that Bai Mo, keep communicating with her."
"We need to keep her around; we'll have use for her later."
"Right, don't chat with her about random things; help her sort out her housing issue first."
"Okay."

Jiang Xingye nodded. Just as Lin Xu turned around to head out, she suddenly grabbed his arm, hesitated for a moment, and asked:
"Are you... going to be okay?"
"Come on, bro, stop acting like the devoted mob wife sending her boss off to a hit."

Lin Xu patted the back of Jiang Xingye's hand to signal her to let go and continued:
"Put your mind at ease; I should be back in time for dinner tonight."
".......Stay safe."

Jiang Xingye said no more. Lin Xu uttered a brief acknowledgment and pushed the door open to leave.
After heading downstairs, Lin Xu hailed a taxi and went straight to the Liuzhaolu Police Station.
Sitting in the car, his mind continuously reviewed everything he had done recently while mapping out a communication plan for when he arrived at the Ministry of State Security.

He had no intention whatsoever of spilling everything at this exact moment; after all, the chips in his hands were still not enough.

At least, they weren't enough to make the authorities willing to grant him sufficient discretionary space while fully knowing he was hiding something.
Therefore, how to communicate, how to reasonably leak true yet limited information to them, and how to achieve the goal of persuading the other party appeared particularly crucial.

Fabricate a pack of lies?
Impossible.
Even if he were facing ordinary public security organs, making up a set of lies might muddle through.
But he was facing State Security.
Their methods and their information clearance were not something to be trifled with!

There was only one possible approach.
Keep his mouth shut and stick to his story.
As long as he ensured his direction was correct and that he wouldn't impact the overall situation or national interests, theoretically, they wouldn't be overly harsh.

Let's find out.
The car stopped at the entrance of the Liuzhaolu Public Security Bureau. Lin Xu got out and walked toward the gates. He was still wondering where to go inside and who to look for, but the moment he stepped out of the vehicle, a crew-cut man in plainclothes was already walking toward him.
"Mr. Lin Xu, come with me."

Lin Xu wasn't overly surprised.
Since they had already tracked him down, his background must have long been crystal clear to them.
Without a shred of cowardice, he followed along. Although his heart rate was close to one hundred and sixty, his expression remained as calm as still water.

Giving up was simply out of the question.
Talk about a bluff—the fate of humanity was resting in his hands; he was the damn protagonist!

Lin Xu took a deep breath, followed closely behind the man up to the fourth floor, and entered what looked like a completely ordinary office.
Inside the office, sitting there, was... a wheelchair.
This completely deviated from the "interrogation" or even "talk" scenario he had imagined!

Lin Xu frowned as he looked at the elderly man in the wheelchair.
He seemed extremely frail.
Yet his gaze remained razor-sharp.

"Sit."
Noticing his expression, the old man smiled gently and said:
"Student Lin Xu, please sit."

Lin Xu hesitated for a moment and took the chair opposite the old man.
The chair had clearly been carefully selected; once seated, both parties were at eye level, making conversation effortless.

"You are... Xu Qianli, Elder Xu?"
Lin Xu guessed the old man's identity, and the other party nodded, smiling with a trace of self-deprecation.
"What Elder Xu, Elder Xu... just call me Engineer Xu."
"I'm not in this state because of old age; it's cancer."
"There's still a fundamental difference between the two."

".......Pardon your hardship."
Lin Xu didn't know what to say.
The atmosphere wasn't tense at all; instead, it carried a peculiar awkwardness characteristic of a junior conversing with an elder.

Seeming to notice his expression, Xu Qianli stopped exchanging polite pleasantries and cut straight to the point:
"My time isn't long either, so let's get straight to the point."
"I started paying attention to you from the moment you sought out Xu Jin."
"You provided him with industrial manufacturing process documents for two materials, M46X and PEEK-RTM, met with him, and finalized a partnership."
"To be honest, at first I thought you merely represented Dome Technology, seeking official endorsement through Xu Jin."
"But soon, through investigations by my colleagues in the economic crime investigation department, we discovered that things differed from our expectations."
"The reason you pulled Xu Jin into this wasn't fundamentally for any so-called 'endorsement'; rather, you used him as your cover."
"The technology was your own, Dome Technology was the platform, and Xu Jin was the means to legitimize the information source."
"You tricked two forces into playing the game simultaneously, and your objective was clear: to achieve rapid mass production of the two materials."

"That raises a very strange question."
"Let's temporarily set aside how you acquired the technology in our hands—after all, we intelligence workers aren't omnipotent; there are bound to be blind spots."
"Let's discuss just one point."
"If your ability is strong enough to output two technologies that clearly transcend this era... why were you in such a rush?"
"Or rather, why did you resort to such a noticeably flawed method to roll out your plan?"

"There is only one answer."
"You didn't have much time, or rather, you urgently needed to implement this plan."
"So..."
"Can you tell me why?"

As the words fell, Lin Xu was left speechless.
What the hell...
You've already said everything I was going to say, so what else is left for me to say??

At that moment, he deeply experienced the might and terror of this state machine.
Forget about "facts."
It was no surprise that they knew the "facts."
The reality now was that they had figured out his motivations with near-perfect accuracy.
In front of them, he was practically transparent.

What else could he do?
Lin Xu took a deep breath.
Then, he spoke:
"I am indeed pushing forward with this work urgently."
"But as for the specific reason..."
"Even if I told you, you wouldn't believe it."

"You can tell me first."
Xu Qianli looked at Lin Xu mildly.
Lin Xu paused slightly and asked:
"What if I told you that the apocalypse is coming?"

"I believe it."
Xu Qianli nodded solemnly.
"Because you aren't the first person to say that."