Chapter 428: Going with the Momentum

The domestic purchase price for raw rubber is 12 to 15 yuan per kilogram.

After a year of toiling from dawn to dusk, one mu of a rubber plantation only brings in 2,400 to 3,000 yuan in revenue. Even for farmers who tap the rubber themselves without hiring workers, there’s hardly any profit.

The industry was a thankless business.

With no real profit to be made, farmers had very little enthusiasm for growing it.

Jiang Miao’s plan was to use the Hevea Plant to replace traditional rubber trees. Then, by planting durian and banana trees in their place across Qiongzhou and Yunnan Province, not only would farmers’ incomes skyrocket, but the country could also become the world’s dominant producer of natural rubber, durian, bananas, and abaca.

Once the 17 million mu of tropical rubber plantations were freed up, there would not only be ample space for durian and banana cultivation, but also for developing many other types of tropical and off-season fruits.

Tropical fruits were generally expensive within the country. This was especially true for tree-grown tropical fruits, whose seasonality, long maturation periods, and logistical challenges drove up market prices in regions north of Lingnan.

A high market price meant there was profit to be made.

Therefore, the Hevea Plant industry was a critical one, capable of revolutionizing the country’s 17 million mu of tropical plantations.

While Jiang Miao was absorbed in his research on the Hevea Plant and other crops…

…

In the manager’s office of the Security Department at the South Lake research base—the only department that hadn’t relocated to the new headquarters.

Ke Yong’s brow was deeply furrowed as he stared intently at the document in his hands.

Across from him sat Wang Ke, the vice manager of the Security Department and head of the guard division. He was also one of the few personnel in the department authorized to carry a firearm.

Wang Ke was the one who had brought the document.

Ke Yong put down the document, his expression grave. “Vice Manager Wang, we need to conduct a full review of these vulnerabilities. It’s the only way to properly protect the boss and his family.”

Wang Ke nodded. “Yes. I’ve been authorized to use certain internal privileges to run deep background checks on all visitors. From now on, we must do everything we can to prevent any strangers from getting close to Mr. Jiang.”

“What a pain. There are too many social obligations to navigate. We can’t just have the boss cut off all social contact,” Ke Yong said, rubbing his temples. After a moment’s thought, he looked at Wang Ke and asked:

“Vice Manager Wang, what parts of this document can be disclosed?”

“What are you planning?” Wang Ke asked, confused.

Ke Yong explained his idea. “I want to share some of this with the boss’s family. It might make them more mindful, to stop bringing strangers around, and to be more wary of foreigners.”

“I see. Let me make a call and ask.” Wang Ke picked up his secure, company-issued phone and dialed a number.

The call lasted for half an hour.

Wang Ke hung up. “Manager Ke, you heard. A small portion can be disclosed, but we have to wait. They need to take care of a few things on their end first.”

“I understand. In that case, let’s go over what can be disclosed.”

“Okay.”

The two men went through the document, meticulously reviewing it sentence by sentence. They obscured, replaced, or deleted any words that could potentially leak sensitive information. Some sections were so classified that not a single word could be allowed out.

As the two men reviewed the document…

At Yangcheng Airport, Li Wujiang was preparing to return to Malacca Slope County. He had just used the restroom, and the moment he opened the stall door, he was caught completely off guard by what he saw.

“Mr. Li Wujiang, please come with us.”

Forcing himself to remain calm, Li Wujiang narrowed his eyes and asked, “What is this about? I’m headed back to Po County for business, and my flight is boarding soon. Can’t we discuss it here?”

“Take him!”

“What?” Li Wujiang’s face fell.

In an instant, his arms were forced behind his back and he was pinned firmly to the floor. Everything on his person and in his suitcase was swiftly moved aside.

“You…”

Just as Li Wujiang started to shout, a cloth was pressed over his mouth and nose. A strange chemical smell filled his lungs, and his limbs grew heavy. His pupils constricted. ‘This technique… I’ve been exposed? How is that possible…?’

But his eyelids were already growing heavy. In less than three minutes, he passed out.

“Take him away!”

A black hood was pulled over his head, and Li Wujiang, supported on both sides, was whisked away in silence.

「Meanwhile, in the Half Mountain Villa District of Xiangjiang.」

Rut Brooks, having just returned from his job at the bank, had barely opened his villa door when a sudden shove from behind sent him sprawling onto the living room carpet.

“Ugh… Fuck…” Rut Brooks cursed before he could even process what was happening. The next instant, his back was pinned down and his wrists were caught in an iron grip, making it impossible for him to get up.

“HUFF… HUFF… Do you have any idea who I am? Fuck you…”

“Rut Brooks. Head of the Morgan Group’s Xiangjiang branch and the behind-the-scenes manager for the Greater China Region. Am I wrong?”

By now, Rut Brooks had calmed down. He realized the situation was far more serious than he’d imagined. His villa was protected by four professional bodyguards, yet there wasn’t a sound from any of them.

“What do you want? Money? How about ten million? Just leave, and I’ll pretend this never happened.”

“Heh. Should I remind you of something?”

“Remind me?”

“Liu Tonghai.”

“…” Rut Brooks’s pupils constricted. “You…”

BANG! BANG! BANG!…

Seven bullets tore through Rut Brooks’s back in an instant. He went still, his eyes wide with disbelief even in death.

The scene was left as it was, with no attempt to clean up.

By the next morning, Rut Brooks’s secretary found that his phone was unreachable. She also tried the villa’s landline, but there was no answer from the house where a Filipina maid always used to pick up.

「Noon.」

Liu Tonghai, who was driving home, saw police cars parked outside a villa in the Half Mountain Villa District. A police cordon was up. He instinctively slowed down.

Suddenly, his eyes widened. ‘Isn’t that villa…’

He quickly pulled over, got out of his car, and grabbed a bystander. “Hey, what happened over there?”

“Someone was killed. Looks like a shooting.”

“GULP… Who died?”

“The owner of the villa. An American. I think he was some executive at an investment bank.”

Cold sweat beaded on Liu Tonghai’s forehead.

The young man he was questioning noticed his reaction. His eyes filled with suspicion, and he quickly backed away.

Realizing too late how he must have looked, Liu Tonghai gave a dry laugh and tried to explain. “Hey, don’t get me wrong. I knew the victim. I’m just… shocked something like this could happen in the Half Mountain Villa District. I was just worried for a second.”

“Right…” The young man was now even more convinced the guy was shady. He quickly got on his bike and pedaled away.