Invasion of the United States

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The car left Washington D.C., drove north along the winding road, entered Maryland, and finally stopped in front of a country villa.

Lucy had called ahead, and an elegantly dressed elderly lady was standing under the porch to greet them. She glanced at Hammer, who was asleep, through the car window, then turned her gaze to Zhou Qingfeng and Lucy, extended her hand, and said:

"I'm Lady Grey. Let Hammer sleep; the outdoor temperature is just right, and the air is quite good. You both come inside."

The two followed Lady Grey into the villa's study.

After sitting down, Lucy explained their purpose: "Lady Grey, my grandfather Hammer is the founder of the Tree of Justice, and Victor has been funding the organization.

But now, Dias, who controls the Tree of Justice, wants to kill us. We hope to get support from members within the organization, like you."

Lady Grey gently stirred the red tea in her cup, her eyes lowered, shaking her head slightly, "Lucy, I might have some ability to pass messages, but I can't protect you, let alone offer support.

If I were you, I would immediately flee the United States, get far away from Dias.

As long as you run fast enough, he doesn't necessarily have to kill you. Staying alive is more important than anything. Given time, you can come back."

Lucy had anticipated this response. She took a document from her bag and placed it lightly in front of Lady Grey:

"This is information about the X-virus, along with data on 'excess deaths.' Dias's plan is far more dangerous than you imagine."

Lady Grey glanced at the document's title but still shook her head, "I know about this. Dias provided us with a vaccine, promising this was just a severe flu..."

"Dias's promises?" Zhou Qingfeng suddenly spoke, letting out a low laugh, a laugh filled with undisguised mockery.

Lady Grey frowned slightly, thinking this young man would share some profound insight, but no follow-up came.

Her expression gradually grew grim, and she placed her coffee cup heavily on the table with a crisp sound. She was about to issue an eviction order but suddenly paused.

Thinking about Zhou Qingfeng's wealth, and the "Electric Flight" he now controlled, perhaps it was worth being more patient with the young man.

Suppressing her irritation, the old lady took the initiative to ask, "Victor, do you have any special insights?"

"No." Zhou Qingfeng shook his head coldly, "I provided Dias with over seventy million US Dollars in funding, and he never considered giving me any special treatment or promises.

And you...an elderly lady of sixty or seventy, who has no value left to extract, yet you naively believe in Dias's promises. What else is there to say?"

Lady Grey was furious upon hearing this.

Zhou Qingfeng stood up and said to Lucy, "Let's go to the next address. Hopefully, your grandfather's friends aren't all this brainless."

Lucy did not insist, she just sighed and followed Zhou Qingfeng as they left.

The study door closed softly, leaving the old lady alone in the room. Her gaze fell on the document on the table, unmoving for a long time.

At this moment, there was a soft knock on the study door.

Before Lady Grey could respond, the door was pushed open, and Old Hammer poked half his body in, laughing heartily as he greeted, "Hey, Grey, it's been many years, and you're still as beautiful as ever."

Lady Grey raised her head in surprise, giving him a cold glance, then mocked herself: "I'm already old, no longer beautiful, and I've just been insulted by a young man as being brainless."

Old Hammer familiarized himself quickly, sat on the sofa, and casually poured himself a cup of tea from the coffee pot on the table.

"Young people, they're all like this. When you were in your twenties, you had the same bad temper, I remember it clearly."

Lady Grey snorted, not responding.

Old Hammer took a sip of coffee, restrained his smile, and asked softly, "Is the vaccine Dias provided really effective? Several members of Congress have died recently, didn't they get vaccinated?"

Lady Grey's face instantly turned extremely unpleasant, as if an invisible needle had pierced her heart, making it impossible to argue or explain. Th!is cont^e*n.t* is p+re!s&ent*ed by M@4VL@E&M-PY@R.&

After a long time, the old lady finally deflated and asked softly, "What can I do? The damn virus has already leaked, what can I do besides believing the vaccine is effective?

As for those two young people, I can't fight Dias, so I can't help them. What do you expect me to do?"

A glint of cunning flashed in Old Hammer's eyes as he put down his teacup, leaned forward slightly, and lowered his voice even more: "Maybe you need a shelter."

"What...a shelter?" The old lady suddenly became spirited, staring at Old Hammer and asked, "Did you set up a shelter?"

Old Hammer nodded, his tone becoming serious: "If...everything is as Dias said, just a large-scale flu,

then for elderly people like us, finding a place to hide, avoid the peak of the virus's potency, is also necessary."

Lady Grey's brows furrowed, her mind racing. She countered, "A shelter might not be a good idea; maybe I should look for a high-end nursing home now."

Old Hammer laughed mockingly, "A shelter is enclosed, but a nursing home is not. Plenty of people have died in nursing homes."

This was true; against a virus, the best method was the most straightforward—seclusion.

The old lady's mind was a bit muddled; she rubbed her temples and muttered to herself softly, "I admit a shelter is a good idea, but...but..."

Old Hammer didn't give her much time to think and continued:

"Two months ago, Victor wanted to rent a missile silo in the Montana desert for modification, but the silo was too small.

He then found an abandoned mining town in Kansas, but the town lacked water, and the living conditions were poor, not ideal.

So he finally settled on a bankrupt resort camp in the forests of Mississippi, refurbishing the internal facilities.

Don't forget, he's a billionaire; once this money is spent, the shelter can be built quite nicely."

He paused, then continued: "Shelters also have levels. For example, the mining town is relatively poor, with limited medical staff and mostly canned food.

The resort camp would be better, as it originally had good living facilities; with money in place, there would be enough medical staff.

Additionally, he's planning to rent a cruise ship of over ten thousand tons.

Of course, it's an old, nearly scrapped cruise ship, but it has all the necessities and can accommodate thousands.

Anyone entering the shelter must first undergo a health check to ensure they aren't infected before entering."

As Old Hammer spoke, he suddenly sighed, "But now it seems, not many people realize the severity of the problem. Many are still hopeful.

Victor's shelter business isn't very popular. But I've already decided to leave tomorrow, after all, I'm getting old..."

The old lady finally couldn't hold back; she slammed her hand on the table, interrupting Old Hammer: "Hammer, stop talking.

Tell me, how much does the best shelter spot cost? I want to leave immediately.

The last pandemic lasted three years, and that yellow-haired president even had us drink disinfectant to kill the virus. Who knows what fools support him?

I've long known those Washington bureaucrats are unreliable, and I have no confidence in them now."

Old Hammer laughed heartily, pleased with his cunning plan. He continued, "Grey, you're my friend; you can enter the shelter for free.

Of course, if you want to live better, you can spend your own money to add life facilities. There will be someone to coordinate with you.

However, Victor is encountering some trouble now; the shelter project isn't progressing well. As you see, at this critical moment, we are still wasting time."

The old lady's face turned cold, "Say it, what do you need me to do?"

"Nothing special, just use your channels to spread the message that the X-virus outbreak is imminent."

The old lady took a deep breath, "Hammer, you really are the most ruthless of all the CIA people I know. This is aiming for Dias's life."

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Meanwhile, Zhou Qingfeng and Lucy were waiting in the car outside the villa. He suddenly received a call from Jennifer, who immediately scolded him, "Victor, what did you say to my father?"

"What's wrong?" Zhou Qingfeng was confused.

Jennifer said frantically, "My father suddenly wants to go to 'Dongda,' to join my sister, and Old Beck is going with him.

He also wants to take me along, saying the US's epidemic prevention is incompetent, and he wants to go to the safest fortress in the world."

Ah...?!