428 General Xie

Even though the partition was covered with the System's protection, the unknowing Yang Ling was paranoid enough to place some of her self designed inscription charms to make sure that no one else was listening to their conversation.

Jin could not recognise any of them, but Kraft including Pei easily penetrated through the inscription's abilities. The counterintelligence agent identified them to be mainly strengthened Illusion and Veiling charms to prevent the Jin and Yang Ling from being spied on.

"I heard from a little snake that you're considering the idea to conduct military exercises." Yang Ling said as she stirred her coffee a little before taking a sip. The mild acidity and rich coffee flavour from the Blue Mountain beans permeated her taste buds and almost immediately giving her a feeling of instant rush.

"Don't you mean old hagged snake?" Jin questioned her with a slight chuckle which made her giggled along as well.

"Yes, yes that's the one. Still, I cannot believe you have been able to get in touch with someone directly from the Royal Zodiac Snake family." Yang Ling commented.

"Oh? He is part of the Royal Zodiac Snake family? You mean like you? I didn't know that. No wonder that snake kept avoiding me and told me to get the information from you instead." Jin initially wanted to comment with a tinge of sarcasm, but he realised acting ignorant might lead to some information which he might not be privy about otherwise.

And he was right.

"Yea well erm no not exactly, his father had married one of the daughters of the main Snake family. Sigh...let's just put it this way. Their relations are a tad more complicated than the rest of the Royal Zodiac family. The important point is, you have built up a relationship with one of the big shots from the Royal Zodiac Snake Clan. And if you are wondering, the way he talked about you when he was discussing matters with me, I could sense it was not on the level of mere acquaintances... Neither was it a face value friendship. There was more to it than that." Yang Ling explained while trying to deduce his exact relationship with Hou Fei in her head.

"Oh I forgot, you can read minds," Jin said while he playfully tried to cover his head with his hands as if to signal that he was trying his best to protect himself from being read telepathically.

"Nah, his subtle body language gave it away. Whenever he talked about you, he had a small smile on his face. Hmmm, kind of like a grandpa boasting about his favourite grandchild. Even though it's near impossible to find stuff out from someone that important from their clan, I also don't seem to be able to read you…" Yang Ling then paused for a while and stared at Jin.

"But I'd love to get into your head." Yang Ling replied with a slightly sexual inclination in her tone, seeing how relaxed Jin had become compared to the last few meetings. She was genuinely enjoying her time right now, even though she always put a straight face when it comes to business dealings.

There was something about Jin that made her put her guard down. She was aware that it was dangerous in the long run, yet Yang Ling couldn't contain herself.

"Well, well, well! If you cannot read my mind, then it looks like my evil masterplan can proceed without any hitches!" Jin played along with Yang Ling as he took another scoop of ice cream and waffles. "Seriously, how big is he a shot in that clan? Hou Fei purposely did not reveal too much to me when I spoke to him about the military exercises. He only mentioned that he could make it happen after I have your permission. That sly old snake!"

"Perhaps, he just wanted to keep this as a surprise. Fine, I can tell you, but you didn't hear it from me okay?" Yang Ling felt it was okay to trust Jin. No, she wanted Jin to trust her more. More than that. She wanted Jin to know that she could be trusted.

Yang Ling desired to have the same closeness as how she perceived Hou Fei. She yearned for that badly. Given her circumstances, especially the current political clout that Yang Ling wields, she was not able to find anyone trustworthy. She would be lying if she said that she was able to trust her bodyguard Ku Wai completely.

But Jin was an exception.

Jin had done the impossible for her. He had protected her, aided her, as well as giving her a second chance to walk again when she herself had already abandoned that fantasy.

Yang Ling understood the odds when she created the Gearbox. Even the most optimistic prognosis from her engineers revealed that without some miracle improvement to the Gearbox, it would be impossible to completely give her a 100% range of movements such as bending, crouching or kicking.

But the miracle happened. Jin somehow managed to improve on the design in an incredibly short amount of time and most importantly, Yang Ling was able to walk again. Even better, she was able to run and jump after getting used to it.

"You sure no strings attached?" Jin questioned her with an evil grin, but he could see a quick change in Yang Ling's expression. She was solemn before showing a wide smile towards him.

"No strings attached. It's just general information of the Royal Zodiac Clans. You may acquire it from any black market information broker, but in our inner circles, it's just considered gossip." Yang Ling answered before continuing.

"He has served under Xie Ming, one of the few but very accomplished generals I had ever known. However, General Xie was never publicly acknowledged or given the recognition that he'd deserve for his deeds because he was not affiliated with any of the Royal Zodiac Clans. It's a shame our country is as biased as that, but that's the reality."Yang Ling went on, which made Jin very surprised. He tried his best to keep his emotions under the wraps as he continued to listen to what the tiger princess had to say.

"Though General Xie was not recognised publicly, at the peak of his career, Xie held major influences over nearly every possible corner of military politics because of his prowess and renowned wisdom in tactics. You could say the modern Chinese military wouldn't be in its current state if not for him." Yang Ling recalled whatever information she had in her head.

"If you remember the history text on counterterrorism that we were taught in high school? He was the one that led the infamous 666th Special Forces into Somalia to thwarted the attempted hijacking of two Iranian tankers and one Chinese war frigate. It was a pretty complex situation which resulted in zero casualties except for many dead terrorists." Yang Ling gave an example about General Xie's heroics.

"But they did not mention his name in the textbooks. Instead, they cited the Dragons and Horses." Jin vaguely remembered what she was talking about.

"Exactly, he gave them the credit which allowed them to be terrific friends with the Iranians after that incident. Russian literally became VERY VERY good buddies with us." Yang Ling stressed a lot on the last part.

"Because of that and many other achievements, General wielded his a large influence in the military that he was able to overrule the decisions of the other 'less military oriented' Zodiac families, and he often made use of this. Sometimes it even appeared as if he did it arbitrarily, just to mess with them, but there were always 'good reasons' which lead to his ideas being incorporated most of the time instead." Yang Ling continued and she noticed that Jin was listening very intently to her conversation. With him at all ears, she continued her story to keep his attention.

"Eventually General Xie retired for personal matters. I heard rumours that it was because he could not tolerate the incompetence in our police and military counterparts, including the intelligence agencies for the death of his daughter. Nastier rumours claim that investigation had been slowed down intentionally by those he had butted heads with..."

"So when General Xie retired, Hou Fei, which had been considered his most trusted aide, was asked to take up his mantle. To the surprise of everyone he actually refused the offer, stating that he shared the same sentiments as General Xie, even going so far as to express the wish to follow him in retirement. Naturally, the Chinese Military could not take the blow of losing two of their most competent high level military officials. Through some negotiations, most likely directly with the Main Branch Clan of the Royal Snake Zodiac, they ultimately decided to compromise and promoted Hou Fei by making him a General in title, while also allowing him to conduct his personal business."

"And his personal business of selling weapons is all thanks to his military influence?"Jin questioned which Yang Ling nodded with acknowledgement.

"Most importantly to this day, he has retained the title of Major General. Therefore, he technically has control of a few military bases, which are very loyal to him because of his stint with General Xie. While his position inside the clan is fairly complicated, he is the one enabling the Snakes to have a major say in military matters despite the clout the Dragons and Horses had. " Yang Ling commented, and Jin grinned widely.

"Looks like I have some dirt on him and can perhaps play that to my advantage instead of him controlling me. Hahahah!" Jin laughed as Yang Ling could not help wondering on a particular issue.

"So…is that mysteriously supplier you have…Hou Fei?" Yang Ling questioned in a very formal and courteously tone. Jin stared at her eyes seriously for a moment while swallowing his saliva in as if to pretend that he had been caught until Jin broke into another bout of laughter. He then told her that it was not the case. Some purchases did came from Hou Fei's weapons company, but not everything.

For Yang Ling, it was a different matter entirely. That momentous stare felt like an eternity to the tiger princess. It made her desire for Jin grow to the point that she felt like confessing to him there and then. As she felt powerless trying to keep her urges together, Jin was the one that broke the tension with his bout of laughter, and she secretly thanked him for saving her sanity.

"What's going on with me? Why did I…"Yang Ling had those thoughts in her head but little did she know that it was the System as well as some nudging from Kraft himself. Yang Ling might be a high level psychic, except she did not expect her opponent to be way beyond her grade.

"Krafty, didn't you just say to let the youngsters do their own thing? You seem to have learned some new tricks while I was away. How did you do that? Subtle hypnotic suggestions? " Kiyu guessed as she noticed the sudden changes Yang Ling exhibited.

It was slightly exaggerated with her expressions and body language, but their dear Master Jin really was too dense to even notice though Kraft knew he cared more for his grandfather's history than anything else. (But Kraft still felt proud that Ming's achievements were still recognised in history. Not to mention, he had much to play in that aspect. Fun times for him.)

"Her inscriptions prevent things from coming in and information from going out. It's a good idea, with only one slight problem. What if whoever is spying, is already there? Too bad, she did not take the time to check out where she was. Every partition seating area has an air freshener which can be used as a catalyst if you have access to it. "Kraft stared lazily at Kiyu for a moment before he continued.

"The System offered me a deal. My 'suggestions' coupled with some of Evon's pheromones, to make a person of the opposite sex appear more likeable… in exchange for the right to visit our friend. I'm guessing you want to tag along?" Kraft then answered with a slow big grin as he enjoyed the show every bit.

"In any case, we seem to have gotten off-topic. Let's resume what you came for." Jin said as he pushed the dishes aside while he took out a few pieces of drafts he had already done beforehand. "Ah sorry. Seems the blueprint draft is a little too big for the table." Jin was a bit embarrassed as he fiddled to rotate the draft. As he moved the bluprint, Jin slowly realised, that it would be hard for her to see upside down, but seeing him stop in his tracks, it made Yang Ling take the initiative.

"It's okay. I can just go over to your side and it will be easier for you to explain." She said with confidence, but inside her slender body, her heart was beating crazily.

"So you see, I was planning to have the Zodiac Tiger pit against the Zodiac Snake Army in this particular terrain. That way we can do some Urban Warfare training as well as monster horde attacks simulations….." Jin rumbled on as he enthusiastically pointed and explained his ideas to Yang Ling, who sat right beside him. (Whenever he looked down to point at something she tried to take advantage of the moment to inch her butt closer to him.)

"But what if we want to simulate a surprise attack from external forces. How fast they react etc?" Yang Ling had her body turned towards him as she involuntarily curled her hair behind the ears.

"It will be tough to simulate that since bases and cities are quite far away from each other. The response team will generally be from the police first. And I'm not sure if I can create a dungeon instance that far reaching." Jin sighed as Yang Ling playfully pouted.

"I received a few reports from my clan mates that the Goblin Raid Event you did in the beginning was able to do that! Don't you dare trick me!" Yang Ling accused him as she playfully jabbed Jin's shoulder which he laughed bitterly in response.

"That one wasn't a dungeon. It's a freaking new world!!" Jin shouted in his thoughts as he had a bit of cold sweat. He was trying his best to impress her, but the more he present to Yang Ling, the more she felt unsatisfied with his answers. It felt like she expected things beyond what he presented.

"While I love how everyone thinks, that I can do anything, let me tell you a little secret. You know, how the current Goblin Raid Instance, is more akin to my standard dungeon, unlike how it was in the beginning? Truth is, some things happened, and we are currently unable to use that giant instance for the things that you want. To be more honest, it was more like a fluke of luck, that I even managed to do as I did in the first place. I will look into it." Jin tried to defend himself, but at the back of his mind, he wondered if he could do the same for the offensive against Demon Rats.

"But in the meantime, this is the proposal. You can take it back for further study. I've already sent a piece of the drafted blueprints to Hou Fei." Jin concluded, giving her some half truths, hoping that there were no qualms to it.

"Mhmm, will definitely look into it but in return, you have to do something with me." Yang Ling decided to use the situation to her advantage.

"If it is within my powers, I will do it." Jin was beginning to feel there was some cold sweat rolling down his back.

"This is a theme park, right? Bring me to play a game or a ride, then I will consider your proposal." Yang Ling answered and Jin suddenly felt burdened that he had to continue entertaining his…investor.Meanwhile, both Kraft and Kiyu cheered when they heard Yang Ling practically asking Jin out for a date. Their yelling attracted a few unwanted stares before they cowered back to what they were doing.

"I love where this is going. The pheromones may be one thing, but she has guts!" Kiyu praised as she now began to cheer for her secretly. Separately, Jin was wrecking his head to think of a suitable and then he realised… there was one station which might be able to impress her as well as help her rehabilitation.

"Alright deal, I will bring you there now." Jin decided as he used his Pandamonium App to pay the bill they incurred in the Hot Ice Café, but before Jin could do anything else, Yang Ling was already pulling his hand out of his seat.

"C'mon what are you waiting for?" Yang Ling portrayed the friendliest and most beautiful smile which Jin had ever seen on her. (Kraft definitely took a picture! That sneaky fox!)