CHAPTER 51: CHAPTER 51: THE HIJACKERS

The fourth floor of the command tower was even more tightly secured. The military officer did not directly bring Sun Hang and the others into the command room but instead moved a computer connected to the monitoring system over to them.

"The hijackers have forbidden anyone from entering the command room, so I can’t take you inside," the officer said helplessly. "If you’re here to handle this matter, I need to know your detailed plan. Every step and detail of your actions must be communicated to us... of course, we will cooperate with your actions as much as possible."

Sun Hang glanced at the surveillance footage on the screen and saw that in the center of the command room were two chairs facing each other, approximately three meters apart. On one chair sat the base commander, with hands and feet tied, and on the other sat a young man with delicate features, holding a finely crafted small pistol pointed at the commander’s vital parts.

Elsewhere in the room, various tables, chairs, and cabinets were toppled over and piled up as makeshift barricades. A group of people dressed like bodyguards with black suits over bulletproof vests and tactical sunglasses hid behind these barricades, aiming fully automatic weapons at the command room’s entrance.

Behind one of the rear barricades, a man in black had a bandage wrapped around his leg, presumably the injured person the officer mentioned.

Most of the surveillance cameras inside the command room had been destroyed, leaving only a few in hidden locations still functioning.

Sun Hang counted and found that, including the young man and the injured person, there were exactly seventeen people involved in the hijacking, matching the number of special operation team members sent down.

"Wow, they’ve really sent everyone on this," Sun Hang remarked in a low voice. "But the leader of this group, why do they look so flamboyant?"

"It seems to be a woman disguised as a man," Wang Xiyi said, crossing her arms in front of her chest, obscuring the white spring light—a moment ago, the two buttons on her shirt had finally burst free and flew to the back of Sun Hang’s head. "The surveillance footage isn’t very clear, but I didn’t see an Adam’s apple."

"She’s the daughter of Federation Council member Ye Shaochun, Ye Xuan... I didn’t expect the leader of this special operation team to be her," Yang Lian said.

"What? You know her?" Sun Hang asked curiously.

"Not personally, I’ve just heard of her. She grew up in a military camp, always appearing in male attire. After coming of age, she joined the Mysterious Creature Investigation Bureau in Chunming City," Yang Lian explained. "The special operation team’s roster is confidential. I never expected Chunming City to send someone who just turned twenty to carry out this mission... Given her experience, she should at most be an accompanying member."

"Perhaps she’s here to get some credentials," Wang Xiyi commented. "After all, in the eyes of those big shots, the follow-up investigation of the South Cemetery incident isn’t considered important."

"This information has now been strictly sealed, and the encryption level of the special operation team’s roster has been raised by three levels. Only the director has the authority to view it... I wonder how things are going on Chunming City’s side?" Yang Lian’s ten slender fingers quickly tapped on the tablet, her brows furrowed.

"Over in Chunming City, Council member Ye Shaochun has already been detained, and a series of emergency measures have been initiated," the accompanying officer said solemnly. "Now, you should tell us about the situation with the mysterious creatures, right?"

"This girl really knows how to set her father up," Sun Hang couldn’t help but laugh. "Speaking of which, where is the special plane carrying the council representative now?"

"It’s been intercepted and is currently returning to Shuzhou under fighter escort. It is expected to land at this base in twenty minutes," the officer replied.

"Excellent!" Sun Hang couldn’t help but snap his fingers.

"What’s so excellent?" the officer looked at Sun Hang with some suspicion. "Are you guys really here to handle the hijacking incident?"

"Of course!" Sun Hang replied.

"Then what do you plan to do?" the officer pressed on.

"Have your people clear the way; I’ll go in personally to negotiate with the hijacker," Sun Hang said.

"You must be joking?" the officer’s eyes were filled with increasing doubt. "We won’t let anyone into the command room before a decision is made from above."

"Decision from above? Isn’t your superior the one being held at gunpoint inside?" Sun Hang asked.

"...I’m referring to the Federation Council; only they have the authority to make decisions!" the officer exhaled forcefully, showing that his limited patience was almost exhausted by Sun Hang.

"Have you tried rescuing the hostages?" Sun Hang asked. "What exactly does the so-called ’decision’ entail?"

"We attempted to fill the command room with anesthesia gas, but the hijackers all have gas masks and oxygen tanks. After this failed attempt, they have refused further negotiation with us," another officer standing by said.

"Refusing negotiation? Then, what are they waiting for?" Sun Hang squinted at the surveillance footage on the screen.

Are they waiting for the council representative’s plane to land? Or are they waiting for... me?

"We can’t delay any longer." Sun Hang stood up. "Let us in... I can guarantee your commander’s safety."

"No!" the officer replied flatly.

"Let me be blunt: the so-called council decision is essentially one of two scenarios—either send a sniper to directly eliminate the daughter of Mr. Ye, or use Mr. Ye or another member of the Ye Family as leverage to force Ye Xuan to surrender. In either case, the likelihood of the military chief of this air force base being replaced is very high," Sun Hang said.

"..." The officer glared at him but didn’t refute.

"A hijacker who refuses negotiation is the most troublesome because you can’t even fathom what she wants... Have you ever considered why she’s still in a standoff with you, neither choosing to kill the hostages nor break out? What is she waiting for?" Sun Hang asked. "Since in the eyes of the council, this commander is probably already seen as a pawn to be discarded, why not let us give it a shot? Desperate times call for desperate measures—what if, just what if, we actually manage to rescue him. Don’t you agree?"

Sun Hang shrugged and added, "I don’t care, as the life and death of everyone here doesn’t concern me. If you insist on not letting me in, that’s fine... but I still suggest you make a call and ask for instructions to avoid taking the blame later."

"Wait here, I’ll call now." The officer gave Sun Hang a look and walked away.

"Are you so sure the people above will let us in?" Yang Lian tugged on Sun Hang’s sleeve and asked softly.

"The situation is already utterly deadlocked, and the folks above are probably at their wits’ end... They’re desperate for someone to step forward and break this stalemate. Moreover, the person must be able to take responsibility for what happens after breaking the deadlock... Don’t you think our identity makes us suitable scapegoats for this?"