When leaving, Yang Yi truly felt as if he were fleeing.
He destroyed anything in his home that couldn't be seen by others, deleted anything on his computer that couldn't be seen, and simply packed some clothes and personal items. Yang Yi left his home with just one suitcase.
He had already sold his car to a wealthy car enthusiast for 1.2 million, not too low a price, but poor Yang Yi couldn't even collect the money. He couldn't very well ask the buyer to hand over 1.2 million in cash. But he didn't need to worry about such matters.
Li Fan's car was waiting downstairs, yet Yang Yi couldn't help feeling as if Li Fan were escorting him to the airport rather than simply seeing him off. One word difference, yet a world of difference.
Once in the car, Yang Yi didn't speak, mainly because he didn't know what to say. After Li Fan glanced at Yang Yi, he suddenly asked, "How have you felt these past few days?"
"Not great, but it's nothing."
Yang Yi's actual feelings were not as nonchalant as he claimed, but he didn't plan to reveal his true feelings, and Li Fan didn't seem intent on probing further.
"It's good you can adapt. If you truly embark on the path of becoming a spy, then these last few days will become the norm for you. Hand over your ID and phone."
Yang Yi took out a plastic bag containing his phone, along with his ID card, household registration, property deed, student ID, and passport—all his documents, used or not, were inside.
Li Fan took the plastic bag and then handed Yang Yi a passport, whispering, "Your name is still Yang Yi, but everything else has changed. Make a note of it yourself."
Yang Yi opened the passport and found a bank card and a ticket to London inside.
"A bank card from the Bank of England, in your name, with twelve thousand British Pounds in it. It includes the money from the car sale; I've rounded it up for you."
Yang Yi said softly, "Didn't I tell you, Uncle Li, that you don't need to give me money? I won't need that much. How can I repay you?"
Li Fan said expressionlessly, "It's always good to have more money when setting out on the road. There's not much else I can help you with, so let's just leave it at that."
Yang Yi nodded without further words.
Li Fan spoke no more; he wasn't a man of many words.
They arrived at the airport. Li Fan looked at Yang Yi and said softly, "I won't go down to see you off. From now on, by yourself... be extra careful."
Yang Yi nodded, opened the car door, but as he was about to get out, Li Fan suddenly said, "Wait, you... no, never mind, just be careful."
Yang Yi sat back in his seat, looked at Li Fan, then suddenly wrapped his arms around him, whispering, "Uncle Li, thank you for looking after me all these years. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
Li Fan, a bit uncomfortable, shrugged his shoulders and muttered, "Hmm."
Yang Yi let go of his arms, got out of the car, closed the door, and watched as Li Fan's car drove forward until it was out of sight.
Yang Yi and Li Fan didn't really have a deep emotional connection, nor were they very close, having met only a few times. But Yang Yi could imagine what this man, who had no blood relation to him but had essentially watched him grow up, had done and sacrificed for him behind the scenes.
Taking a deep breath, Yang Yi turned and walked into the airport.
Li Fan had prepared everything for him, and all Yang Yi, carrying a small suitcase, had to do was board the plane.
As he was boarding, Yang Yi suddenly realized that this might be his last moment in this country, that his feet might truly never again touch this land.
Thus, Yang Yi knelt on the ground amidst the surprised looks of many, kneeling down to kiss the land under his feet.
There were no complex emotions or overwhelming patriotism. Yang Yi simply wanted to bid farewell with a kiss to this land he might never set foot on again.
The airplane took off, and as the familiar sights quickly shrank until they were covered by clouds and no longer visible, Yang Yi withdrew his gaze.
It was time to look forward.
After all, there was no turning back.
But Yang Yi's forward-looking gaze was somewhat confused, especially as he set foot in the United Kingdom after an absence of more than a decade, and he felt a bit nervous.
Everything went smoothly on the plane, but would it remain smooth after disembarking? Although he had confidence in Li Fan, Yang Yi couldn't help but worry until the immigration officer stamped his passport, after which his worries finally disappeared completely.
The United Kingdom doesn't have ID cards; although the British government had once planned and even tried to implement an ID card system, it was quickly abandoned.
A birth certificate, driving license, passport, and bank statement are enough to prove a British national's identity, and Yang Yi now had a passport and a bank card, which meant that Li Fan had already taken care of his citizenship issues,
After leaving the airport, Yang Yi truly arrived in the United Kingdom; his most important task now was to buy a phone and get a SIM card, otherwise the uncertainty about his future would linger.
Although he had been away for eleven years, Yang Yi had grown up in the United Kingdom, so naturally, there were no issues with his language; his speech was still marked by a pure and fluent London accent.
After purchasing a phone, Yang Yi considered whether to call the number in the United Kingdom in his address book or to call all five numbers one by one.
This issue seemed simple, but Yang Yi had been indecisive since getting the address book and still hadn't made up his mind, as there were pros and cons to each option. But now that he could make calls, he naturally needed to make a decision quickly.
In the end, Yang Yi decided to call each number in turn; at the very least, he needed to make sure whether the people in the address book his father had left him were still reachable.
The first call was made to a number in the Netherlands; last time, Li Fan had intercepted it, but this time there was no hindrance, and the call connected quickly.
"Hello."
A very gentle-sounding woman spoke a phrase in Dutch, and Yang Yi, with a somewhat anxious heart, said in a deep voice, "Hello, I'm looking for Felice."
The woman on the phone switched to English and said in confusion, "Sorry, I think you might have the wrong number?"
Yang Yi replied softly, "That's possible, may I ask how long you've had this number?"
"A long time, at least five or six years."
"Oh, then I really have the wrong number, sorry to bother you, goodbye."
Yang Yi hung up the phone and mentally crossed off the first contact; this contact information was useless.
The second contact was in the United Kingdom, but Yang Yi decided to save the call to the UK for last, as he was in the UK, and if he could make contact, it was most likely he would seek out this British person. Thus, Yang Yi made the second call to the United States, where the number was a landline.
"Hello, I'm looking for Mr. Mike Smith."
"Mr. Mike Smith? If this is not a prank, then I want to tell you that he passed away three years ago."
The phone hung up, and Yang Yi paused before dialing the third call to Poland, only to hang up quickly again as it turned out to be a disconnected number.
The fourth call Yang Yi made was to Hong Kong; this time it was not a disconnected number, someone picked up, but a man jabbered nonsensically for a while and Yang Yi did not understand a single word, and his English clearly was not understood by the person on the other end either.
Whether the person answering the call was the one he was looking for or not, Yang Yi decided not to contact them again, as it was clear they were speaking past each other, not understanding one another. Whether the other party truly didn't understand or was pretending not to, the contact value of this number was non-existent.
Only one number remained, and Yang Yi made the call with true trepidation, because he feared that the greatest legacy left by his father had completely lost its significance.
The phone was dialed and connected quickly, answered by a man who sounded rather old.
"Good evening, who's this?"
Yang Yi took a breath and replied softly, "Hello, I'm looking for Mr. John Jones."
The person answering the call was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, "I am he, who is this?"
Yang Yi took a deep breath and then, with a slightly trembling voice, said, "I am the son of James Yang."
This time the silence lasted longer.
After at least ten seconds, John Jones finally said in a low voice, "James Yang, that James Yang? I don't remember knowing this person, let alone his son."
Yang Yi's heart sank halfway, and then after pondering for a moment, he said softly, "He also had another name, Yang Sheng, he told me to call this number, a long time ago, he left me this number."
John Jones was silent for a moment again, and then he finally said, "I remember him now. So, what do you want with me?"
"Yes, but I think it's best if we could meet to talk."
John Jones immediately said, "No, no, I don't think it's necessary to meet, or maybe you should state your purpose first."
Yang Yi was at a loss for words because even he didn't know what to do after contacting the people on the list left by his father.
Though the list had been left by his father, said to be people his father deemed trustworthy, eleven years had passed. With so much time gone by, who knows what changes had occurred; could the people once trusted still be trusted?
Or to put it another way, did Yang Yi dare say what he truly wanted to do?
The ideal scenario planned was to initially meet one of his father's old friends, or at least observe them first; but this John Jones did not even want to meet and directly asked Yang Yi his purpose for the meeting, so Yang Yi really hesitated. Although he was not a man who second-guessed himself, he had to be cautious about some matters.
After only a brief moment of hesitation, Yang Yi made his final decision; now that John Jones was the only contact available, he truly had no choice.
"I'd like to talk to you about how my father died."
Half in a probing manner, Yang Yi offered a reason, and after a moment of silence, John Jones said in a low voice, "And what if I don't want to hear it?"
"Then that's it, I'm very sorry for disturbing you, goodbye."
"Thank you."
John Jones immediately hung up the phone, and just like that, Yang Yi was utterly at a loss.
But just as Yang Yi was contemplating what to do next, his mobile phone suddenly rang again.
John Jones said calmly, "I've changed my mind, if you still want to meet me, tell me where you are."