Chapter 330: James’ Dilemma

— Several Hours Later - USA —

Wei Chen’s party had finally arrived at the estate just outside Washington, D.C. Security was tight, and it was clear that the Americans were trying to keep their arrival discreet. Wei Chen could easily guess at their motives.

He explained these possible motives to Mo Xingyao, Dream Butterfly, and Lian Cheng.

Of course, Mo Xingyao did not mind their little games. It was all fun and games, as long as their games did not cause trouble for them down the line.

Mo Xingyao was true to her name. She easily perceived the United States’ intention and saw it as a sign that she could use this situation to her advantage at the negotiation table. This meant that this country called the USA did not want their existence to be revealed to other countries, which she completely understood.

If she were in their position, she would definitely do the same!

New kinds of resources? New opportunities? Who wouldn’t want to keep them for themselves?

But understanding their intentions and refusing to use them for her own gain were two completely different things.

She would definitely pull a stunt like, "If you don’t like my price, then I’d rather sell to another country," or something similar. It was an old trick, but that did not make it any less useful.

As for Dream Butterfly and Lian Cheng?

Dream Butterfly did not mind either, as long as Wei Chen did not mind and the Americans did not cross the line.

And Lian Cheng?

It was not his job to mind. He was simply here to evaluate the infrastructure and determine how things could be built on this side.

And as things stood, those representatives weren’t half bad. They had chosen a very nice place for their lodging!

The estate chosen to accommodate them was located well outside the metropolis, far enough from the city’s noise and population density to provide privacy, yet close enough that it could still be reached within a reasonable amount of time.

It was an expansive private estate surrounded by several acres of carefully maintained grounds. From the outside, there was nothing particularly suspicious about it. A long private driveway led from the main road to a large mansion built in the style favored by wealthy American families, complete with a broad front lawn, ornamental trees, a swimming pool, and several smaller buildings scattered across the property.

It looked less like a government facility and more like the secluded residence of an old and extremely wealthy family.

That appearance was precisely why the location had been chosen.

The estate had enough land around the main residence for the security agencies to establish a substantial perimeter without making it obvious that the property had been turned into a fortress.

Temporary security posts could be positioned near the entrances, along the surrounding roads, and at strategic points around the grounds, while surveillance equipment could be concealed among the existing landscaping.

Wei Chen also noticed that some of the people working as gardeners were carrying firearms. More specifically, they had submachine guns concealed beneath their oversized coats.

The main mansion itself had been prepared to accommodate the diplomatic delegation. Several guest rooms had been renovated, while the larger halls and dining rooms were suitable for formal meetings and diplomatic receptions. One of the gardens had even been arranged for outdoor gatherings, allowing visiting officials to entertain their guests without ever leaving the secured property.

Wei Chen felt like he had somehow stepped into a Victorian-era European setting. He even saw several beautiful ladies walking around the estate in classic French maid uniforms, apparently posing as maids.

However, judging by the shape of their skirts, it seemed that at least some of them had submachine guns strapped beneath those large skirts.

The maid uniforms and the dangerous aura of these beautiful ladies...

Hmm... These folks were very cultured.

Er... he meant... These folks were very keen on security details.

10/10 service, definitely would come again!

While Wei Chen was still immersed in the... "culture" of the folks working at the estate, a few kilometers away, James was sitting in a room filled with monitors, with many people working around the clock to monitor the situation around the estate.

It was a small building not far from the estate, chosen by the CIA as the field operation HQ.

Inside the field operation HQ, one of James Stanton’s subordinates approached him with a tablet.

"Sir, we have the search activity from the smartphones we provided to the delegation."

James looked at the report, skimming through it.

"What did they search for?"

"Mostly information about Earth. History, geography, politics, economics, major countries, and important historical events."

"I see... That’s normal for them. They need to know about us before the negotiations, after all."

James did not mind. None of this information was particularly secret. Otherwise, they would not have given the diplomatic party smartphones and allowed them to use them freely.

"Sir, the man named Wei Chen seems to be adapting to our technology very quickly."

"Huh?" James raised an eyebrow.

"In a short time, he went through the most information. He seems particularly interested in our history and the United States. He even spent quite a while reading about the 9/11 incident."

"What about the others?" James asked, curious.

"They mostly skimmed through it. Wei Chen actually stopped and read the material in detail."

James nodded thoughtfully.

It seemed this Wei Chen had also learned their language.

He checked the activity of the others. They seemed to be more interested in websites with lots of images, especially travel websites and blogs written by people promoting various tourist destinations.

According to the onsite report, the others also seemed to need Wei Chen’s help to use the smartphones. His two wives, Mo Xingyao and Dream Butterfly, in particular, seemed to bother him quite a lot whenever they wanted help searching for something.

James almost smiled at the thought.

Then his eyes settled on a monitor displaying an old report from the expedition team.

This Wei Chen seemed to be able to read people’s minds, but he needed to touch their heads to do it. That was likely how he had already learned their language.

And considering that they were going to negotiate face to face in a few days, they needed to find a countermeasure against mind reading.

Otherwise, if Wei Chen could learn their cards beforehand, the negotiations might end badly for them.

Especially considering that these people were far stronger than normal humans. Using non-lethal physical means to restrain them was not going to work in their favor.

And they could not simply use lethal force against a diplomatic party, either.

After all... their job was to do everything they could to prevent an interdimensional war, not start one.

Speaking of interdimensional war... war was one of the things that could lead to connection and understanding between people. It could even be said that war was a form of communication born from differences.

And speaking of communication, through the process of all those conflicts and interactions, both sides must have learned something from each other. This meant there should be traces of the other side’s culture somewhere in their history.

That brought them to one of the most important questions the US government was trying to piece together.

Why did the otherworlders use the same language as China? Had they made contact with each other at some point in history?

He did not think Chinese culture had spread to the other side, though. China’s history was only a few millennia old, while the other side had already established its civilization for more than a hundred thousand years.

This could mean...

The other side was the original homeland of Chinese culture.

And considering the tales and folklore surrounding Chinese demons, Xian, or immortals, as well as the way Chinese folklore and literature had always been obsessed with immortality, the possibility was not something they could simply dismiss.

If they allowed these people to establish connections with China, the familiarity between them and the Chinese could become a serious problem for the United States.

Thus, they also needed to come up with a countermeasure for what would happen after the discreet period ended.

Right now, they could keep the guests to themselves and control who had access to them. But once they officially established diplomatic relations, they would no longer be able to keep their guests isolated forever.

And that was when China, the country they were most worried about, would inevitably enter the picture.

And he had also been given the mission of finding a solution. Of course, it was not his responsibility alone. The think tank working for the White House would also need to come up with solutions of their own.

But considering that he had the most opportunities to interact with the guests, this was like... half the expectation placed on him.

"Ugh... I really want a vacation," James muttered as he massaged his forehead.