A retired reincarnator from a certain American film studio

"What if I were to communicate with the Nevada state governor?"

We'll see.

"Say more?"

"Correct."

"alright."

Maria Hill didn't press the matter further, smiled and said, then turned to Natasha and asked, "Natasha, does Director Dane have a few new friends still on our command plane, especially that new female friend he's recently started dating and who's worried about him?"

Lu Ke raised an eyebrow.

Natasha glanced at Luke and replied, "Yes, Commander, Ms. Heather Miller is still waiting for news in the lounge we arranged."

Maria Hill nodded: "Then let's not keep our Ms. Heather Miller worried. Send an agent to explain things to Ms. Heather Miller properly, and don't let her misunderstand our great Director Luke Dane."

Natasha opened her mouth and looked at Luke.

Luke had already realized what Maria Hill was up to, and a smile crept onto his face: "Commander Hill, you wouldn't be playing me like this, would you?"

He never intended to hide it from Heather Miller.

after all……

As a real man, Lu Ke would never do something as despicable as turning his back on someone after he's done his bidding.

Heather Miller knew his true identity, which was no big deal.

Whether you learn it from him or from someone else, that's a completely different matter.

At least.

What she said herself was a pleasant surprise, but if Heather Miller heard it from someone else, it would be a different story.

Commander Hill smiled and said, "Director Dane is going to leave this mess to me, I can't take the blame for this."

Lu Ke laughed and said, "Can't you carry it?"

Hill shook his head: "I can't carry that burden. Besides, Director Dane and Director Pierce have been following up on this case from beginning to end. It's not fair for you to take the credit and we to take the blame."

Lu Ke shook his head, speechless.

"Does Commander Hill have any good suggestions?"

"A joint investigation, with credit split evenly and blame shared equally, ensuring fairness and impartiality."

"I reject."

"what?"

"The preliminary work was all done by me and Director Pierce."

Luke smiled and shook his head, saying, "Besides, this time I risked my woman and my little brother, and you're trying to steal half of my credit right off the bat. Is that fair? No, it's not fair, Commander Hill."

Maria Hill pursed her lips: "So, we can talk?"

Luke shrugged.

"We can talk."

"Alright, tell me how to divide it. In any case, S.H.I.E.L.D. will never take the blame for what happened here, at least not 100% of the time."

"You don't have to pay the full amount, and you can split the credit 50/50. When the higher-ups ask, we can compare our statements and say that we've been secretly working together all along."

"condition."

Maria Hill was not someone like Nick Fury who could be easily fooled. She was not blinded by those words and calmly asked, "Director Dane's generosity reminds me of a saying from the East: 'When someone gives a gift, there is always an ulterior motive.'"

Luke laughed and said, "I didn't know that Commander Hill was also familiar with Eastern culture."

Hill smiled and said, "Understanding the culture of the people I deal with is the best way to know what they're thinking."

Before joining S.H.I.E.L.D., she was a Middle East intelligence analyst in the military's General Staff.

Moreover, he is the best of the best, without exception.

To achieve this, you need to put in the effort. At the very least, you need to understand the other person's lifestyle and thoughts in order to address the problem effectively.

Upon hearing this, Luke didn't beat around the bush with Maria Hill and went straight to the point: "I've got my eye on this base. It's mine."

Maria Hill raised her eyebrows.

"This underground base?"

"Correct."

Luke laughed and said, "I took over this base, so it's only fair that the spoils belong to me."

Maria Hill thought for a moment: "It's under the FBI's jurisdiction..."

Lu Ke interrupted him directly.

"It doesn't belong to the FBI, it belongs to me."

"Uh……"

"The kind that isn't recorded in the files, I don't want any other FBI agents besides me to know, especially Quantico's."

What do you need this base for?

"This environment is perfect for a safe house."

"The definition of a safe house is something that no third person knows."

"Is Commander Hill still considered an outsider?"

"..."

Maria Hill was silent for a moment, thinking it over, and then said, "Okay, but how Dr. Zola is dealt with is up to S.H.I.E.L.D., and it won't be recorded."

Luke raised an eyebrow: "Zora hasn't logged on yet."

Maria Hill said, "But Zola won't die, right? SHIELD needs to know the inside story of this case, so, Director Dane, would you accept this deal?"

Luke's thoughts raced.

next second.

Lu Ke smiled slightly.

"Row!"

"Does this mean Director Dan has agreed?"

"can."

Luke nodded and said, "But if you take Zola, you can't take Cipher too. Besides, I have to meet with Zola first, after all, my daughter hasn't been found yet."

Hill nodded in agreement: "No problem. S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't care about the Cypher organization. As long as Director Dane keeps an eye on Cypher and makes sure they don't cause any major trouble that triggers our alarms, that's fine. If it weren't for Zola being Arnim Zola, S.H.I.E.L.D. wouldn't even bother with this."

Because Dr. Zola used to belong to Hydra, and now he's been recruited by Luke to become an informant and infiltrate some Cobra organization.

This is what Hill is concerned about.

It doesn't matter if you're a hydra or a cobra.

Must die.

In the eyes of S.H.I.E.L.D., let alone Cobra, even Rat Snake is not allowed to appear.

soon.

Hill left with the message that she would arrive at her destination in two hours before hanging up.

After Luke ended the call, he looked up at the ceiling.

"Alice!"

"Buzz!"

The projection of Alice in the red dress fell instantly.

"Father."

Has Zola logged in yet?

"My mother is trying to restart my grandfather's core server, which is expected to be online in about ten minutes."

"it is good."

Luke had already reached the point of automatically ignoring the title "Alice in the Red Dress." After responding, he looked at Natasha and Alexander Pierce: "Sasha, do you want to go see Zola together?"

Alexander Pierce waved his hand: "I must get back to Washington as soon as possible and find out what that imposter did while I was away. Maybe we can find clues about Cobra's lair."

He did not inform Lu Ke.

At the very least, I never had the chance to speak with Lu Ke alone.

but……

Smart people don't need to chat one-on-one; a glance and a few words are enough for them to figure out 70% of things.

The most important thing.

Too many words will be lost.

Rather than staying here and risking being spotted by Aegis, it's better to settle for second best and leave first.

Lu Ke wasn't surprised and nodded: "Alright, this time we angered them. It must be because our previous or ongoing investigations are about to reach them, which is why they're getting anxious. You have higher authority than me. They stole your identity, so they must have done something. We should investigate them thoroughly, especially since the news hasn't leaked out yet."

Alexander Pierce grunted and looked at Hawkeye.

When will the plane arrive?

"Already arrived."

Hawkeye lowered his right hand from his ear and looked at Alexander Pierce: "The commander instructed me to escort you and Brigadier General William Stryker back, so that I can provide you with some testimony."

talking.

Hawkeye said something to Natasha beside him, then looked at Alexander Pierce and William Stryker.

The two rescued individuals didn't say much more. After embracing Luke, they left the underground Hive base under the escort of Hawkeye and three S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. They boarded a plane that was already parked on the ground and took off for an emergency flight to Washington, D.C.

Luke, who remained behind, along with Jack and Natasha, followed Alice in the red dress to Dr. Zola's computer room, which was heavily guarded but had been inadvertently taken offline by Dr. White after he discovered something amiss.

The temperature in the computer room was somewhat humid and hot.