Atlas of Heaven and Man

Bureau Chief Lei acted with swift efficiency. By noon the next day, he called Chen Chuan to inform him that the Foreign Affairs Bureau had completed the necessary procedures, and Bureau Chief Liu had also agreed.

The commission to recover the Oak Leaf would be issued soon and specifically entrusted to him. The reasoning was sound: he had been the first to pursue the fleeing criminals, and he had single-handedly eliminated Du Ma on the road, risking being shot.

Considering the difficulty of this commission, the Foreign Affairs Bureau, after Bureau Chief Lei's advocacy, had no choice but to invest heavily. Therefore, the reward for this commission would be very generous.

In the commission, the Foreign Affairs Bureau would also provide all possible informational assistance, but the specific actions would depend on them.

Bureau Chief Lei finally told him that the Esoteric Order Review Board would use the Flying Head Cult case as a pretext to speak with the delegation members, trying to delay the delegation's itinerary and give him more time to prepare.

Hearing this, Chen Chuan had a general idea. After asking about some specific details, he hung up the phone.

Next was gathering manpower. Even if the Esoteric Order Review Board delayed them, the delegation would definitely not stay for too long. Especially after obtaining the item, they would definitely try to send it back. Therefore, their time was not particularly abundant.

He thought about it and took the opportunity during lunch to greet Luo Kaiyuan, Feng Xiaoqi, and Wei Dong, telling them he had something to discuss with them.

Knowing that he must have something important to say, the three of them came to his dormitory together after lunch.

After the three sat down, Chen Chuan told them about accepting the commission to recover the Oak Leaf and invited them to join.

Feng Xiaoqi was very enthusiastic. He had never done a commission mission before, and he knew that Chen Chuan had been doing commission missions outside all the time, which he greatly envied.

Generally, because of their experience and combat skills, most students didn't have this opportunity until their second or even third year. Now that there was a major commission in front of him, and he could participate, he was naturally willing.

He said, "Chen Chuan, Luo Kaiyuan, I couldn't go to the exchange meeting last time. This time, please be sure to take me with you!"

Luo Kaiyuan said seriously, "It's right to retrieve the item. Since Chen Chuan trusts me, I am willing to participate. I will fully cooperate with you."

Wei Dong's eyes lit up, "Are we going to fight someone? Okay, count me in!"

Seeing that they had all agreed, Chen Chuan felt that the foundation of the team had been established. He said, "Okay, after receiving the specific information, we will meet again. Because this time we may face the Maca delegation, our strength alone is not enough, so I will find other people to participate. I'm letting you know in advance."

The three of them had no objections. None of them had much experience. Chen Chuan was the leader, and he was willing to take them on a commission, and such a big commission at that. So, they would definitely follow his ideas and arrangements.

After the three left, he called Wei Changan. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he brought up the matter of the commission.

"Wow, Junior, you are much better than Wei-ge. You can even get this kind of commission."

Wei Changan was very surprised. As a commissioner, he knew how difficult it was to get a department commission. It required very deep connections and channels. Usually, it would have been taken away by various commission companies who had caught wind of it. How could it be the turn of some individual at the bottom?

If he could participate in such a commission, he would have a chance to become a senior commissioner. He would do it even without pay. This wasn't Chen Chuan asking him for help; it was clearly giving him a leg up.

He said with emotion, "Junior, you are taking care of Wei-ge again this time. Wei-ge won't say anything insincere. I will push aside all the commissions I have on hand and wait for your notice. As long as you say the word, I will be there whenever you need me!"

Chen Chuan said with a smile, "Okay, Wei-ge, then it's settled."

In the afternoon, Cheng Zitong called him and said that Ren Xiaotian had already said that he would take the time to come to the school to find him in the next two days.

After learning of this news, Chen Chuan felt relieved. Ren Xiaotian was experienced and steady in his work. With this senior's help and advice, the chances of success would be greatly increased.

That left Wu Han. At this time, the latter should be in the training hall. So, he left the dormitory building and came to the training hall. After successfully finding Wu Han, he didn't rush to talk about the matter. After sparring with him for more than an hour, they each took a bottle of water and sat down to the side. During the casual conversation, he extended the commission invitation to him.

After listening to the general idea, Wu Han also became excited, "Junior, I have to participate in this matter. How to do it? Same as last time, you say the word!"

Last time, he had listened to Chen Chuan and participated in the elimination of Fang Dawei and his gang, and he had obtained a firearms license. So, he trusted Chen Chuan very much in his heart.

Chen Chuan nodded. Wu Han was a person with a firearms license and could openly carry firearms. With such a person joining, things would be much easier.

The specific information had not been obtained yet, and the time had not been set, so he told Wu Han not to take on other commissions in the next few days and wait for his notice. Wu Han patted his chest and agreed.

After returning to the dormitory, Chen Chuan needed to consider some other issues. So many people were acting, and in the end, they might have to leave Yangzhi City. So, they needed to prepare a lot of vehicles in advance, as well as some essential supplies. If he talked to the company about these things, it wouldn't be difficult to solve.

However, this was his personal commission and had nothing to do with the company, so he planned to borrow from the company. The expenses could be repaid later, or deducted from future rewards.

Vehicles and supplies were easy to solve, but firearms were a bit of a problem. However, Cheng Zitong should have a way. Even if he didn't, he could think of a way to get a certificate from the Foreign Affairs Bureau and then go to the patrol bureau for approval.

The Foreign Affairs Bureau didn't have much influence with the Patrol Bureau, but as long as he provided a justification for action, the Patrol Bureau could legitimately issue him weapons. After all, he had the identity of a Patrol Bureau member, and more importantly, he had a weapons permit, making the process not too difficult.

For the next two days, he was busy with this matter. On the third day, Chief Lei called him again, telling him that the exchange group would depart in five days at the latest.

Originally, the Review Bureau had planned to continue delaying, but the exchange group's attitude this time was very firm. In fact, staying for an extra day or two wouldn't have been a problem at all. Such a move was enough to indicate that these people must have set a deadline in advance and couldn't wait any longer.

So, after telling him some information, Chief Lei also gave him a suggestion: observe more around the checkpoint leading to the port, and there might be some gains.

Chen Chuan thanked him and took note of it.

Chief Lei finally said, "Liu Zhan asked me to convey some words to you. I think it's necessary, after all, it's an exchange group, and our two countries haven't completely fallen out, so don't make things too ugly."

"However, if the situation is urgent, or if you encounter a threat to your own safety, then don't hold back. It's not difficult to link the exchange group with the Flying Head Sect."

Chen Chuan said, "Chief Lei, rest assured, I will pay attention to the solution."

At 6:10 p.m., everyone arrived except for Ren Xiaotian. Luo Kaiyuan, Feng Xiaoqi, Wei Dong, Wu Han, Wei Changan, and others were all present.

Chen Chuan knew when he made the call that Ren Xiaotian wouldn't be able to arrive for a while. He didn't wait and immediately spread a map in front of everyone, beginning to explain the situation.

"The Maca exchange group wants to return, and after leaving Yangzhi City, they need to go to Yuanwang Port by boat. Due to the impact of the Xie Shan mudslide, the railway along the line has not been repaired since last year, so going east from Yangzhi City, there is only one road left." He pointed to a long line on the map, "The National Highway."

He said, "I've considered it, and after the exchange group gets the item, there are two possible plans. One is to use certain connections to send the item directly to the port, because the port is relatively independent, and after leaving Yangzhi City, there won't be strict checks."

"However, this possibility is relatively low. First of all, there are checkpoints on the National Highway, and the checks have been increased in the past two days, so they can't pass. On both sides of the road are large areas of wilderness and no-man's-land, and the conditions in the wild are very complex, with a large number of smuggling groups and wild vagrants."

"As foreigners, in order to prevent the item from being lost, they should not take such a risk. Besides, even if they arrive at the port early, without proper identification, prolonged stays will easily expose them, even if the checks are not strict. After all, the Maca's ocean-going ferry cannot return now."

"So, the most likely choice is that these people are now hiding somewhere outside Yangzhi City, waiting for the exchange group to come out and then reunite, and then go to the port together."

Luo Kaiyuan then looked up and asked, "Is it possible that the item has already reached the hands of the exchange group?"

Chen Chuan replied, "I also considered this situation before, but based on the information provided by the Foreign Affairs Department, the possibility is not very high."

"Because now is when the Political Affairs Hall suspects them, and under the pretext that the exchange group may be attacked again, they have dispatched a security team to be responsible for 'protecting' them."

"Now the entire exchange group is being watched every day, and their movements are also controlled. The items they carry with them may be subject to inspection, so they probably won't dare to bring the item directly, at least not before leaving Yangzhi. The key is on the way to the port after departure."

Wei Changan looked at the map and pondered, "The best way is to find those hidden Maca students."

Chen Chuan said, "Yes, the Maca exchange group has a total of forty-eight people, and there are twenty people responsible for security. These people not only possess force but also have firearms and armored vehicles. If they don't use heavy weapons during the journey, it is almost impossible to stop them."

"Even if we have this ability, for the sake of everyone's safety and the impact of the situation, we should try to avoid direct conflict with them. This limits what we can do. Intercepting the side carrying the Oak Leaf before the two sides meet may be the only way."

Feng Xiaoqi thought for a moment, suddenly had an idea, and looked up to say, "Everyone, I have an idea."

Chen Chuan signaled him to speak freely, "Classmate Feng, tell us."

Feng Xiaoqi clenched his fist and said, "Can we announce to the outside world that the Oak Leaf has been recovered and try to let the Maca exchange group know about it? If they have a channel to contact those Maca students, then they may try to confirm it, then we just need to keep an eye on them, and maybe they will help us find the people!"