Captain Zhao's heart raced as his anxiety shot up.
"Xia Zixin," he inquired nervously, "is there anything special on the eighth floor?"
Xia Zixin shrugged innocently. "It's something a bit bigger than guns.
"My father said that one shot from those guys can eliminate many bad guys at once.
"It could make or break a battle."
Captain Zhao unconsciously held his breath as his expression soured.
From Xia Zixin's description, he could roughly surmise the nature of the weapon on the eighth floor.
It was likely artillery!
There were artillery shells right beneath them!
Cold sweat dotted Captain Zhao's forehead.
Concurrently, a disturbing thought crossed his mind.
If Xia Qi could enhance the pistol's power and range by combining it with a special alloy, what could he have done to artillery shells?
Captain Zhao's headache intensified.
If that were the case, he would never be able to assemble enough men to resolve this case.
He exhaled deeply.
"Xia Zixin, are you pulling my leg?" Captain Zhao asked skeptically.
Xia Zixin raised her head confidently.
"I never tell lies!
"My father always says that liars are bad children."
Captain Zhao sighed. It sounded very much like her.
Since his first meeting with Xia Zixin, she had been an honest, innocent child.
Moreover, she did not seem like the boastful sort.
He could only hope that they were conventional artillery shells.
He couldn't allow anything like nuclear bombs to show up!
Captain Zhao clenched his fists.
"Let's go see how interesting the eighth floor is."
Xia Zixin excitedly bounced up and down, "That's fantastic! Let's go!"
Captain Zhao followed her. His nerves were clearly on edge.
Saa and the others, puzzled by the situation, followed behind with quizzical expressions.
Unlike Captain Zhao, they hadn't guessed the contents of the eighth floor.
They only knew that the eighth floor was going to be very interesting.
The chat grew impatient.
"Oh my god, we're going to another floor!"
"If the ninth floor has all sorts of firearms, then the eighth floor must be stocked with various grenades!"
"Who knows, it might not just be grenades. It could be all sorts of cannonballs or similar items!"
"Surely not nuclear warheads, right?!"
"Are you daft? Ordinary folks can't access the raw materials for nukes!"
"Hey. Have you forgotten who we're talking about?! Does Xia Qi strike you as an ordinary man?!"
"Damn, I'm so excited!"
This time, Xia Zixin chose to walk. As they traversed the corridor, they stumbled upon a large portrait adorning the wall.
The centerpiece of the painting was none other than the most familiar figure from their school days—Xia Wenxuan!
In a time of national crisis, he had developed an array of firearms to safeguard the country.
As the head of the nation's first-generation military reserve manufacturing plant, he was the hero behind the weapons wielded by the nation's warriors.
"Wow! I never expected to see Mr. Xia's portrait here!"
"Mr. Xia is a national hero!"
"They even hung Mr. Xia's portrait here. Xia Qi must greatly admire him, right?"
"That's definitely the case!"
"At this rate, isn't he like a house deity for weapon manufacturers!"
Xia Zixin was confused by the strange reactions from her companions. She turned to them for an explanation.
"Mr. Saa," she asked. "What's going on? I thought I heard you say something about my father admiring someone?"
Saa smiled and shook his head.
"We were just chatting casually a moment ago.
"Don't walk too quickly. We can't keep up."
Saa avoided the topic of Xia Qi.
After all, it was uncertain if he was going to be extolled as a national hero, or put behind bars.
Professor Wang may have recognized him, but the sheer number of firearms he had produced was staggering.
Furthermore, they did not even know what was on the eighth floor.
If he were to get arrested, Xia Zixin's world would be ruined.
Xia Zixin did not seem to realize this. She slowed her pace and walked alongside the group.
Many in the chat immediately recognized Xia Wenxuan.
"A national hero!"
"It's him! He looks just like the drawing in the textbook!"
"Yesterday, I even helped my son memorize Xia Wenxuan's accomplishments for the nation. Seeing this portrait is truly moving!"
"It's precisely due to heroes like him that our nation can stand tall!"
"Ah... isn't it obvious? Xia Wenxuan's surname is Xia, and Xia Zixin's surname is also Xia. Could they be related? Moreover, Xia Zixin's father is a genius at crafting guns!"
"My goodness, you definitely sound like you're on to something!"
"Are you guys out of your minds? That's a fairly common surname. Don't be swayed by mere speculation. Mr. Xia is a national hero, whereas Xia Qi is some glorified thug!"
"That's right, don't lump heroes in with villains!"
"If they are truly related, why would he clandestinely manufacture weapons? Wouldn't it be better to conduct research openly at an institute?"
As the online discussion heated up, Professor Wang and Sun Liang had already arrived at Director Zhu Kun's residence.
As Director Zhu emerged from his study, Professor Wang promptly stood up from the sofa and approached him. "Director, I've been waiting anxiously!"
"Hello, Director Zhu!" Sun Liang also rose and greeted.
Director Zhu smiled and nodded at Sun Liang. "Liang, there's no need to be so formal. Your mentor has never stood on ceremony."
Sun Liang smiled while scratching his head. At a loss for words, he simply sat on the sofa and obediently sipped water.
Director Zhu then turned to Wang Guoxing. "Wang, have you lost your mind? I still have so much to do!
"I've been here for less than five minutes, and my grandson has already prodded me five or six times. What's going on?"
Despite their hierarchical relationship, their rapport was excellent.
Sun Liang, in fact, often frequented Director Zhu's home for meals.
However, what Director Zhu hadn't anticipated was for his playful teasing resulting in Professor Wang taking the matter seriously.
"Director Zhu, you're right. We've achieved epoch-making technology..."
*Puff!*
Director Zhu had just taken a sip of tea. Upon hearing this, he sprayed it onto Sun Liang's face.
Sun Liang leapt up from the sofa.
"Wang, what did you say?!
"You're saying you've successfully developed epoch-making technology even before fully understanding the research direction?!
"Are you trying to pull my leg?"
At that moment, Sun Liang nodded earnestly.
"Director Zhu, it's true!"