Chapter Thirty-Four: The First Signs of Crisis

"Once this Trojan horse program is activated, what will happen?" Nangong Zhiwen turned his head to look at Xie Baorong and asked.

Xie Baorong shook his head slightly and said in a low voice, "All I know is that it takes over the weapons system. What happens after it takes over, I’m not sure."

"After all, this is a back-end Trojan. I don’t need to worry about the front-end program, but once my Trojan is activated, it will inevitably replace the original program and take control of the weapons system."

"Is the success rate of the Trojan high?" Nangong Zhiwen asked, as if clinging to a glimmer of hope.

Xie Baorong looked back at Nangong Zhiwen and asked, "You don’t really understand this field, do you?"

Nangong Zhiwen nodded slightly.

"There is no such thing as a success rate," Xie Baorong said, shaking his head. "If it takes over, it takes over. As long as the front-end conditions are met, the back-end Trojan I set up will definitely seize control of the weapons system."

"I’m not clear on the specific details of the front-end, but... I saw that drone. It had a genetic sniffing system installed on it. My previous company designed the code for this system, so I recognized it at a glance. Does this information count as useful?"

Nangong Zhiwen narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at Xie Baorong, and asked, "Are you sure that was a genetic sniffing system?"

"I'm certain." Xie Baorong nodded immediately. "It wasn't just one; all the drones in the Ji family's armory had this system. Every unit of every model had it. I don’t know much about it, but do modern combat drones really need to be equipped with this?"

Nangong Zhiwen shook his head and whispered, "A small number of search-and-rescue drones do need such devices to locate survivors during disaster relief. Standard combat drones typically rely on thermal imaging or spectral analysis to search for targets, or they lack sniffing functions entirely, relying solely on the operator's input to execute attacks."

"Generally, genetic sniffing systems are installed on search-and-rescue drones because they are sent to areas struck by geological disasters. Since areas with survivors are often accompanied by blood, a place where genetic material can be sniffed is highly likely to contain survivors."

"There is little point in equipping a combat drone with a genetic sniffing system."

Xie Baorong listened, completely bewildered. These professional technicalities were difficult for a programmer like him to grasp, so he simply buried his head in his pancake and kept eating.

Nangong Zhiwen took a deep breath, looked at Xie Baorong, and asked, "How much does the medicine you’re taking cost now? Where can I buy it?"

Xie Baorong frowned slightly, looked at Nangong Zhiwen, and said, "Donggui Street, from a guy named Brother Tyrannosaurus."

"Brother Tyrannosaurus from Donggui Street? Is that 'Tyrannosaurus' as in the fish?" Nangong Zhiwen asked.

Xie Baorong nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, yes, that’s him!"

Nangong Zhiwen nodded slightly and said, "Alright, just focus on your recovery. I will get the medicine to you by tomorrow night."

"You must stay alive until the truth of this matter is uncovered," Nangong Zhiwen added.

Upon hearing Nangong Zhiwen’s words, a look of surprise and joy appeared on Xie Baorong’s face. "You have a way to get the medicine?"

"Yes," Nangong Zhiwen nodded, then walked out of the ward.

At the base of the wall outside the hospital, Nangong Zhiwen squatted, surrounded by a ring of extinguished cigarette butts. Clearly, he was in a deep internal struggle.

Based on what he had gathered, Major Ji Yun had secretly hired a programmer to install a Trojan horse program on one of the thirty "Strangler" drones sent to support the Eastern Theater.

This drone was equipped with a genetic sniffing system; once it sniffed its pre-set target, the Trojan installed by Xie Baorong would take over the Strangler’s weapons system.

Although Nangong Zhiwen could not yet deduce exactly what Ji Yun intended to do, his attitude toward Xie Baorong suggested that he had some dark, hidden secret. If it were all legitimate, he wouldn’t need to approach Xie Baorong privately, let alone fly into a rage over him.

However, the trail had gone cold for now. Nangong Zhiwen realized that Ji Yun—or perhaps the entire Ji family—was not as grand and pristine as they appeared on television. Instead, there was a gray area that Nangong Zhiwen could not yet reach.

He had pried open a crack in the mask of the Ji family, but there was still a long way to go before he could tear it off completely.

Therefore, even though Nangong Zhongjian was his biological father, he dared not report it. What could he report? That the glorious Major General Ji Yun, who had become a national idol on television, might be a hypocrite? Just a mere possibility? Should he let a decorated major general suffer an unjust accusation based on that?

This was clearly irrational. Who would believe him?

But the situation was now imminent. He knew full well that the Strangler drone infected with the Trojan had already been sent to the Eastern Theater and had been in combat for an entire afternoon. That modified drone was one of those thirty.

Although no disastrous results had occurred yet, the outcome felt inevitable. He could not contact the soldiers in the Eastern Theater, and a Trojan program could not be shut down remotely. Even if it could, it would require a signal to be transmitted through, but if a signal could reach them, there wouldn't be a communications blackout.

His years of experience as an agent made him realize that panic was useless. The situation in the Eastern Theater was now a matter of fate.

Having grasped a piece of the puzzle regarding Ji Yun, he knew that if he wanted to dig deeper, the priority was to keep Xie Baorong alive. As long as he lived, there would be a chance to prove the truth in the future.

Thinking of this, he finished his last cigarette, crushed the butt with his left hand, crumpled the empty pack with his right, and tossed it into a nearby trash can. He pulled out his phone and made a call.

"Hello, Bao Long."

Upon hearing Nangong Zhiwen's voice, Bao Long on the other end of the line was instantly terrified into silence. "Brother... Brother Wen... I, I’ve been very obedient lately. I, I haven't done anything! Why, why did you think to call me?"

Nangong Zhiwen let out a cold snort. "Hmph, the mighty Brother Tyrannosaurus, is that all the courage you have?"