Chapter 72 – “Do you know why he wants you?”
Novel Title: 龙血 (Dragon Blood)
Author：水千丞 (Shui Qian Cheng)
Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)
Protagonists: 单鸣 (Shan Ming -MC), 沈长泽 (Shen Changze -ML)
*Please read at Novels Space.space, the original site of translation. TQ*
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The two slept until midnight when they suddenly woke up at the same time.
The Moroccan soldiers are also on guard against them. So they are all arranged to be placed on the first floor for easy management. The room where Shan Ming and Shen Changze is sleeping faced the street. The place where they sleep is not a formal guest room. It is a spa room with large windows. When a suspicious person approached their window, the alertness they had cultivated for a long time immediately caused them to open their eyes.
The two slipped down and got under the bed. One on the left while one on the right. They took out their guns holstered around their waists and climbed to the window against the wall. A hand stretched out from outside in the dark by the window. It carefully pushed the window open.
That hand pushed the window open slightly and then retracted it. After a while, that hand was holding a black object and threw it into the window through the gap. Shan Ming caught the black thing while Shen Changze grabbed that hand all at once.
The owner of that hand yelled and struggled desperately. He seemed frightened. His voice was very high-pitched and tender. It clearly sounded like a child’s.
Shen Changze pushed open the window, grabbed the hand and threw the person from outside the window into the room. He then stepped on his chest.
Shan Ming assessed the black thing in his hand. It was very light. It shouldn’t be explosives so he was relieved. He stood up and turned on the light.
The three adjusted their eyes to the light together. They then looked at each other. Sure enough, it was a Moroccan child on the ground. He was around eleven to twelve years old, very thin, and wearing shabby clothes. He was frightened as he first babbled in Arabic, probably begging for mercy. He then tried to speak in French when they didn’t seem to understand him. But he was obviously uneducated so whatever he was trying to communicate failed.
Shan Ming ignored the child and unwrapped the thing wrapped in black cloth in his hand. It was a CD. He had already guessed what it was when he assessed it before.
Shen Changze asked him a few words in simple Arabic, but there was a problem with communication between the two. So they had no choice but to take the child out.
They avoided Moroccan soldiers. They went to the room of Zouhuo and Kali. Zouhuo spoke fluent Arabic. According to the interrogation, the child was just stuffed with money by adults and they asked him to throw this thing into this hotel anywhere without any specifics.
It is estimated that there are soldiers at all the doors so only the windows on this side are free so the child chose this place. But he unintentionally chose the place where Shan Ming and Shen Changze slept.
Several people speculated that this incident was related to the kidnapping of Pell and Job. So Kali went to call Tiger Shark and Ayer. Ayer brought a computer with him.
After the CD was put in, almost everyone held their breath. They were afraid of seeing some pictures they didn’t want to see. That would be too cruel.
The screen flickered for a while and the person in it was speaking English, asking if it was tuned. It was standard American pronunciation.
Then the video recording started. The background was a grey earthen wall and there was nothing else. It was very dark and whatever is in the video could barely be seen clearly. When the camera turned to a corner, they saw Job and Pell!
Several people stared fixedly at the screen, wishing they could stare a hole out of it.
Job was lying on the ground looking bad. Pell lowered her head until the man who spoke touched Pell’s shoulder with a gun. Only then did Pell raise her head.
Pell didn’t seem to be in good spirits but she didn’t look like she had been injured. She asked them clearly, “What do you want me to say? I need antibiotics. If you don’t give me antibiotics, I won’t say anything.”
“Read these words and I will give you the medicine.”
Pell snapped: “Give the medicine first. My friend’s life is in danger.”
The man pointed the gun barrel to Pell’s temple and said in a vicious voice, “You are not qualified to negotiate terms.” He threw a piece of paper onto Pell’s face, “Read this.”
Pell turned her head to the camera, blinked her eyes, and then brushed the messy hair from her forehead to the back. She then looked down at the note.
Everyone noticed her momentary surprise.
Then she raised her head and said, “If you want these two people to live, exchange them with Tang Tingzhi.” Even though the pronunciation was a bit inaccurate when she pronounced the Chinese name, everyone could understand who she was talking about.
This group of kidnappers are after Tang Tingzhi.
Tiger Shark said to Kali, “Call him over here.”
Kali asked, “Which room is he in?”
Ayer said: “I know which one. I’ll go.” Then he turned and went out.
The recording ended there and the screen instantly turned black.
Several people froze for a moment. Shan Ming said to Shen Changze, “Bring the CD.”
Shen Changze went over and took it. He flipped through it carefully and found a small note with a string of numbers on it. He said: “These are the coordinates.” He said and gave the note to Tiger Shark.
Tiger Shark glanced at it and memorised it. He then tore the little piece of paper into pieces bit by bit, as if he was tearing the kidnapper’s skin.
After a while, Tang Tingzhi followed Ayer into the room.
Tiger Shark played the video to him again. He watched it intently and then nodded, “Pell is right. Job is not in a good condition. His breathing is too shallow. The wound might have been infected. If he goes on untreated, he will die.”
Ayer snapped: “Who told her to read this? They specifically mentioned you!”
“I heard it. I think Tang Jingzhi must have done this.”
Ayer grabbed his collar, “I feel so angry when I see your emotionless face. How the hell did you grow up? Do you even have any emotions!”
Tiger Shark pulled him away, “Don’t do useless things.”
Tang Tingzhi fixed his collar back in place and then answered seriously, “I am also very interested to know the answer to this question. It is reasonable to say that a person’s personality should be largely determined by innate genes. But my younger siblings have different personalities. It was brought up by people over the age of fifty to sixty years old and I studied on my own during my childhood. I think it is probably because…”
Ayer was so angry that he wanted to punch him, “Shut up!”
Tang Tingzhi closed his mouth and glanced at Tiger Shark.
Tiger Shark pointed at the screen, “Can you tell me any reasons why they want you?”
Tang Tingzhi shook his head, “I can’t say.”
“We’re going to take you to the place where the coordinates are marked and exchange you with these two people.”
Tang Tingzhi nodded, “Okay.”
“Don’t you have any suggestions?”
“No.” Tang Tingzhi said calmly, “It’s easy for any of you here to kill me and he wants to see me. I have no reason not to go since I’m also looking for him.”
“Do you know why he wants you?”
Tang Tingzhi shook his head, “I don’t know. I never know what he is thinking.”
Tiger Shark said in a deep voice: “I don’t think there will be any good things for you if you go. We will try our best to ensure your safety.”
Tang Tingzhi nodded, “I still have a lot of experiments to complete so I don’t want to die just yet.”
Ayer snorted coldly: “I really don’t know what’s the point of living for a person like you.”
Tang Tingzhi’s deep black eyes glanced at him, “Mr. Mauri, you have a bad temper. It may be due to calcium deficiency. There is a type of bird in Morocco, which is rich in nutrition. You can cook them and put their meat in a porridge. It might help you relieve your symptoms.”
Ayer’s eyes widened, wishing he could slap him a few times.
Kali and Zouhuo turned their heads to another side to hold back their laughter. Ayer, who had always regarded himself as a gentleman, was severely knocked down with words.
Tiger Shark stood up, “Go and inform everyone. We’re going to set off right away. Job will be in a much critical condition if we delay any longer.” After speaking, he walked out first.
Ayer glared at Tang Tingzhi and walked out of the room.
Tang Tingzhi glanced at Shen Changze and gave him a wink. He then left, followed by Shan Ming and Shen Changze.
They walked to a hidden place in the corridor. Shen Changze asked: “What do you know about this? Tell us all. We must save them.”
Tang Tingzhi shook his head, “I really don’t know what they want but there is one thing I’m sure of. Tang Jingzhi, like me, is very fanatical about the ‘National Weapons Program’.”
“‘National Weapons Program’?” This was the first time they heard of this name.
“There is no time for me to explain about it now. But to put it simply, it is a plan centred on the Dragon Blood people. I know about you so he basically knows about you too. It is not surprising that he found out we are now together. I think his ultimate goal is not me, but you.” He looked at Shen Changze.
Shan Ming and Shen Changze could more or less guess this already. After all, Tang Jingzhi couldn’t directly say that he wanted Shen Changze in the video. But he knew that Shen Changze would definitely come with them.
Shen Changze said, “Even so, how sure is he that he will be able to control me?”
“He knows all your weaknesses. And he still has ten millilitres of dragon’s blood that he had stolen. That blood belonged to the original ‘Sea Dragon’. That dragon blood is 100% pure while your blood is only 96% pure. It’s very close. But we don’t know what kind of gap there is between the 4% of difference. All I know is that as long as there is enough time and funds, ten millilitres of dragon’s blood can create an army for him. Everyone on his side can win the championship in ‘Genting’. There is only one ‘Sea Dragon’ and the blood is not much but the 10 millilitres are worth a fortune. American engineers didn’t bring back much of the blood back then. Now, they probably no longer have any pure blood. They spent a huge price last year in exchange for the opportunity to study with China. But it was stolen halfway. So it is not surprising that they suspect that we are the masterminds. In fact, we also suffered heavy losses.” Tang Tingzhi looked at Shen Changze, “The ‘Sea Dragon’’s blood will run out one day and you are the only substitute. Do you understand this? Your blood purity is closest to that of the ‘Sea Dragon’ and you are alive. Your blood can be regenerated. You can replace ‘Sea Dragon’ to become the main body of all newly produced Dragon Blood people! Since your blood has been fused with human genes in the mother’s body, the rejection reaction only exists between human beings. It was just like the probability of two people transplanting organs. Compared to cross-species, the rejection between humans and ‘Sea Dragon’ is much smaller, and the probability of success is much higher. You are the only hope of the ‘National Weapons Program’.” Tang Tingzhi looked at him seriously. His usually calm eyes showed an unconcealable obsession, “You will change the military strength of our country.”
Shen Changze broke out in a cold sweat. Although he had already guessed such a plot, when Tang Tingzhi really told him of this, he still couldn’t accept it. Anyone who knows that there are countless biological weapons flowing inside his own body won’t be able to calm down.
Tang Tingzhi took a deep breath and said slowly: “So, everyone wants you. And Tang Jingzhi is no exception. Although we don’t know what his purpose is, I will not let you fall into his hands.”
Shen Changze clenched his fists, “I only belong to myself. No one can take advantage of me.”
Tang Tingzhi shook his head lightly, “You are still too young. One day you will know that with such a fate, you have no other choice.”
As Shan Ming listened, he felt his chest tightened and short of breath. It was as if there was a heavy burden in his chest, making it difficult for him to breathe.
He finally understood the feelings of Shen Changze’s biological parents.
He understood why he should be hidden since he was a child and why he should be sent away at the risk of treason. No parent wants their child to accept such a fate. What kind of bullshit is him being the only hope for the country? Who is willing to take on such a heavy proposition? Who wants to have their blood drawn from their own body to create a lot of murder weapons? It is disgusting to think about it.
But Shan Ming can imagine how huge the gap is between a person’s thinking and a country’s thinking. To him, Shen Changze is just the son he picked up, but to the country, he is an indispensable tool on the road to becoming a world power. He is an indispensable weapon. Shan Ming could almost feel that the hand of fate had already started to push the development of the whole thing from the moment the child was born. He realised that things were even more out of his control. He didn’t know what the future would hold, nor did he know what his own future would be like. What will happen to Shen Changze’s fate? For the first time, because of Shen Changze’s identity, he felt a little afraid of the unknown future.
Shen Changze glanced at Shan Ming. He noticed the confusion on Shan Ming’s face. His heart tightened suddenly and he suddenly grabbed Shan Ming’s arm. He said firmly, “Baba, I am your son. I am not going anywhere else.”
Shan Ming opened his mouth but there was like a lump stuck in his throat.
Shen Changze was anxious, “Baba, I’m not going anywhere. I don’t care about what he said. I just want to be with you and the ‘Peregrine Falcon’.”
Shan Ming came back to his senses and forced himself to calm down instantly. His eyes returned to the usual firmness, “You are not going anywhere. You are my son.”
Shen Changze squeezed his palm, feeling his body full of strength.
No one can separate him from Baba. No one!
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Next update: 2023.–.–
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