Chapter 120: The Return

"Young Master Tony! We have returned! The other side let us go and told us that while they don't care about our past grievances with Jones, they are now responsible for his safety because he is working for them. If we continue to harass and threaten them, they will take action against us!" one of the two men released by Wei Hua reported to Tony Jason.

"To hell with their safety concerns! I’m not trying to kill Jones; I just want the treasure he found. Do I look like an idiot? If I kill him, who’s going to find the treasure for us? Who is their leader? How many people are there? What kind of weapons and equipment do they have? And how did you get ambushed?" Tony Jason demanded.

"Including Jones, there are eight of them. The leader is a young man of Asian descent. Judging by the language they spoke, he seems to be Chinese. I used to hang around Chinatown and have met many Chinese people; I can recognize the tone and sound of their speech. Each of them is armed with automatic weapons, and their firepower is immense. Furthermore, I suspect the others are professional bodyguards or soldiers. We were attacked by only two of them, and we didn't even have a chance to resist. They are too professional, Young Master! We seem to have run into real trouble this time," the man replied.

"What do you think?" Tony asked the other members of the Jason family.

"I think we should retreat! The opposition is formidable. They only have a few less people than us, but they seem to be professional soldiers, and their skills are far superior to ours. We’ve already been exposed; a forced attack would certainly lead to heavy casualties. We are here for money, not to conquer territory as an army. I have no intention of throwing my life away for wealth I haven't even seen yet. I haven't finished spending the money I've earned over the years, and I don't want it to become an inheritance for someone else," one of the men said.

Only two of the men who accompanied Tony to the Amazon were his trusted subordinates; the others were local personnel from the Jason family’s Rio de Janeiro branch, who did not answer to Tony. They had joined the expedition only in hopes of making a quick fortune. Though Tony was the youngest son of the family patriarch, John Jason, his status was low because he had contributed little to the family, leaving him with no real authority over these men.

"Fine! We'll retreat! These yellow monkeys got lucky this time. Once we’re back, look into who these people are. If we let them threaten the Jason family without teaching them a lesson, what kind of face will our family have left?" Tony grumbled, clearly unsatisfied.

"Don't worry, Young Master! We will definitely dig up their background. Since we’ve crossed paths with them, we must know exactly who they are. They clearly aren't ordinary people, which makes finding out their identity even more important!" the head of the Rio branch replied.

"Alright, let's pull out!" Tony and his men departed.

Wei Hua had already anticipated that Tony wouldn't risk a direct confrontation. While Tony’s group had a slight numerical advantage, Wei Hua’s team possessed superior combat capability. Tony wasn't a fool; he would have realized the situation was disadvantageous and had no reason to continue the ambush. Shortly after they left, Ding Peng returned to Wei Hua.

"Mr. Wei, Tony Jason and his men have left. Should we get moving as well? In two days, we can exit the jungle and reach Manaus. We can get some proper rest then. We’ve been stuck in this godforsaken jungle for over twenty days, and I’ve had enough of it."

"Agreed! Let's move out. But we must remain vigilant in case Tony decides to double back," Wei Hua said.

Two days later, they emerged from the jungle and reached the town of Manaus. After resting for two days, the group took a vehicle to Rio de Janeiro and then caught a flight back to New York. Mary met them at the airport and escorted them to Wei Hua’s home. Once they were settled, she turned to him.

"A-Hua, there’s been an incident at our laboratory."

"What happened?" Wei Hua asked calmly. He wasn't worried; from Mary’s expression, he could tell the situation wasn't critical.

"Our security team caught someone stealing data. We haven't handed the person over to the police yet, and I wanted to ask how you’d like to handle it."

"Who is the thief? Is it an outsider or someone from our internal staff? Do you know why they stole the data? What was stolen, and was anyone else involved?" Wei Hua inquired.

"It’s an internal employee—a young woman who has been with us for over a year as a research assistant. She stole technical data regarding our high-efficiency solar battery. We are currently investigating her background. We suspect she was acting under orders, but she hasn't revealed who is behind her. She is still being held at the lab. How should we proceed?"

"Wait until I see her before we decide. How did your negotiations with the Space Agency go? How much are they willing to pay for the patent license for our solar battery technology?"