The next day, they boarded the plane and took off.
After nearly a full day in the air, the two finally landed in Athens.
“Hmm, it’s not as cold as I imagined,” Lu Zheng said, blinking.
Lin Wan explained, “Warm winds blow in from the Mediterranean. This is southern Europe, so it’s milder than central or western Europe.”
“Your geography is solid!”
Lin Wan shrugged. “I picked it up last time I was here on a mission.”
Lu Zheng looked surprised. “When did you carry out a mission in Europe?”
“Last spring, I forget which month exactly.”
Lin Wan thought for a moment. “You’d disappeared off somewhere again at the time.”
“Oh, right.” Lu Zheng nodded quickly. The moment the conversation veered toward his habit of vanishing, he deftly changed the subject. “No wonder you said we didn’t need thick clothes.”
The two of them were wearing only a fitted knit layer plus a thin windbreaker. It looked a bit light compared to most people, but not dramatically so.
The sea breeze coming off the Mediterranean carried a faint salty tang. The air was humid and felt wonderfully comfortable.
Lu Zheng nodded. “No wonder it’s a tourist paradise. It really is nice.”
It was already evening, so their first day of the trip had been spent entirely travelling.
However…
“A whole day just getting here, now that feels like a proper prize trip.”
They arrived at the hotel, a well-known five-star establishment in Athens itself. The décor was luxurious, the service impeccable.
Sure enough, after handing over their passports and a quick registration, they were escorted to a high-floor junior suite. It wasn’t the presidential suite, but it was still seriously upscale. Lu Zheng glanced at the rate card; this room cost several hundred euros a night.
They dropped their bags, freshened up, changed into casual clothes, and went out to enjoy the Athens nightscape.
Snapped a few photos, posted on Moments, and immediately harvested a wave of named envy.
Huang Xiu Min: [Aaaah you two are too much! Can you block me from your Moments or what!]
Zhao Xiaodao: [So jealous, I want a holiday too. Bosses, take me with you next time please (pitiful.jpg)]
Tian Jinsong: [Have fun. The action team’s quiet lately anyway. No rush coming back (thumbs-up.jpg)]
Li Ying: [Sister Lin, I’m pulling overtime here]
…
Nothing to be done about it. Everyone knew Lin Wan had landed herself a loaded boyfriend, and now that she was attached to Interpol’s Haicheng liaison office she had plenty of free time. Of course she could globe-trot whenever she felt like it.
The Interpol Haicheng office had no objections either. The action team was never a fixed-hours post anyway, and every time Lin Wan went out she completed her missions smoothly, on several occasions displaying extraordinary combat ability.
Talent like that was impossible to find even with a lantern. Why would they complain?
Headquarters in Europe had tried multiple times to transfer Lin Wan over so she could work global cases and eventually rise straight into senior Interpol leadership, but each time she had turned them down without hesitation.
Well, to be accurate, the higher-ups had floated the idea, but the Haicheng office naturally didn’t want to lose an asset like Lin Wan. After she proactively refused, she became the office’s treasured guardian.
…
“What was the mission last time?”
“A fugitive who fled with embezzled funds. He escaped to Italy and got mixed up with the Mafia.”
“You fought?”
Lin Wan nodded. “I did.”
The two were strolling through the brightly lit central streets of Athens.
On one side were modern squares and shopping malls ablaze with lights; not far away stood the ancient Acropolis and the Temple of Olympian Zeus.
“A few Mafia enforcers. They weren’t even as tough as lions on the African savanna, and they were pretty timid. In the end they never even drew guns,” Lin Wan said.
“Why? Because the guy wasn’t worth the Mafia protecting with their lives?”
“That’s my guess. Those guys in black suits felt like they were just going through the motions,” Lin Wan replied. “They knew they couldn’t stop me, so they probably only put up a token resistance because they’d already taken the money, then scattered and left the target for me.”
Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow. “That doesn’t sound right. A fugitive with cash and no way out; wouldn’t the Mafia normally bleed him dry, suck him to the bone, then finish him off? That’s unprofessional!”
Lin Wan shrugged and asked, “Remember Tony?”
“Of course. He even invited us to his private island for a few days. Super hospitable guy.”
“Tony has Mafia ties too. Do you think he’d dare shelter someone wanted by China?”
“Ah, I get it.” Lu Zheng understood.
Anyone doing business with China naturally wouldn’t dare offend China.
Take the money and then abandon the guy; they earn a quick buck and sell a favour at the same time. The ones who really make it big are all sharp operators!
Reading the situation, knowing when to advance and retreat. That Tony only got fooled because Lu Zheng and Lin Wan had deliberately held back; otherwise, with his superb acting skills, he’d probably have escaped with nothing worse than “friendly contact” status.
“Thinking about Tony makes me miss that private island of his.”
Lu Zheng sighed. “If he were still around, lounging on that private island would be way more comfortable than this seven-day dash across multiple cities.”
Their itinerary was two nights in Athens, then heading north with three more cities over three days, before looping back to Athens for the final night and the flight home.
Lin Wan laughed. “If you’d taken him on as a little brother back then, you could be enjoying it right now.”
Lu Zheng spread his hands. “Nah, better he stayed dead.”
…
They wandered the Athens nightscape, grabbed some late-night snacks, then returned to the hotel to rest.
The next day marked the official start of sightseeing.
As both a tourist city and a historical ancient capital, Athens had plenty of famous sights.
The Acropolis, the Parthenon, the Temple of Zeus, and other ancient Greek ruins, plus modern-era spots like Syntagma Square and the Athens Museum.
“The Olympian gods…”
Lin Wan ran her fingers over the massive stone blocks and columns on the Acropolis. “It’s a pity only ruins remain. Their stories have survived, but the people who once worshipped them are gone.”
Lu Zheng shrugged. “Maybe they never cared about worshippers in the first place.”
After travelling to the Great Jing dynasty and learning that the Three Pure Ones, the Buddha, the Jade Emperor, and others actually existed, Lu Zheng no longer dared swear that the gods of Earth’s other pantheons were definitely fictional.
Lin Wan rolled her beautiful eyes. “Come off it. No worshippers, no gods.”
Lu Zheng: “Heh heh!”
Lin Wan: “Heh heh?”
Lu Zheng immediately nodded. “You’re absolutely right!”
Like hell I’m going to argue with my wife over some random foreign gods.
It’s your own fault for being useless. Who else can you blame?
…
They spent the whole day exploring Athens, stayed another night, got up early the next morning for one last loop around town, checked out at noon, and boarded a coach to their second stop.
“This prize is seriously worth it. I thought for sure the airline would ask us to take promotional photos or something. I never expected it to be pure holiday!”
“Classy! Next trip we’re definitely booking this airline again!”
After a little over an hour on the coach, they arrived at their second destination: a tiny coastal town on Greece’s eastern shore called Molos.
A very small town with no big hotels, just charming guesthouses, but the scenery really was gorgeous.
The travel company had booked them into a somewhat remote guesthouse. It was clean and tidy enough.
They dropped their luggage, went to admire the Aegean Sea views, enjoyed a local dinner, and only returned to the guesthouse around eight.
“It really is off-season. Are we seriously the only guests?”
Lu Zheng sent out his senses and discovered that, apart from the owner and a few staff, this modestly sized guesthouse contained exactly two guests: him and Lin Wan.
