Reborn in 1950: Shorting the Federal Reserve at the Start

As the first rays of dawn pierced through the thin mist and shone on the wooden sign that had just been hung up at the Shenzhou Bureau, the jeep, covered in dew and mud, finally roared back into the compound.

Shen Jinghong jumped out of the car.

He wrapped his military overcoat tightly around himself. Although he hadn't slept all night and his eyes were bloodshot, he was surprisingly energetic.

The thrill of wiping out a whole nest of venomous snakes lurking in the shadows is more intoxicating than drinking two pounds of strong liquor.

"Chief, why don't you go and rest for a while?"

Chen Weiguo followed behind, carrying the captured radio and codebook in his hand. Looking at his director's slightly thin back, his eyes were full of admiration.

This guy is no scientist!

This is clearly a special forces king whose talent was wasted on scientific research!

"What rest? Marshal Nie is still waiting for news."

Shen Jinghong waved his hand and strode towards the office building.

Push open the office door.

A strong smell of tobacco wafted over.

Marshal Nie Rongzhen was not sitting behind his desk, but standing with his hands behind his back in front of the wall covered with battle maps. The ashtray on the floor was already piled high with cigarette butts.

Clearly, the veteran coach had also not slept all night.

Hearing the door open, Marshal Nie turned around abruptly.

Seeing Shen Jinghong standing there unharmed, his brows, which had been furrowed all night, finally relaxed, and a hint of relief flashed in his bloodshot eyes. But soon, this relief was replaced by a strange smile.

"You're back?"

Marshal Nie pointed to the still-steaming interrogation report that had just been delivered by the confidential clerk on the table.

"I have read the report."

Marshal Nie picked up the document and couldn't help but chuckle. His originally serious face was now filled with barely suppressed laughter.

"Good for you, kid! Quantum mechanics? General relativity?"

"I've led troops in battle for most of my life. I've seen the tiger bench, chili water, and even the torture of hawks. But I truly never imagined that a physics formula could be used as a torture device?"

"That spy named Wang Ergou, supposedly he begged you to stop talking, saying he'd rather be shot than hear about gravitational waves?"

Shen Jinghong walked to the table, picked up Marshal Nie's teacup, and without any hesitation, tilted her head back and took a big gulp of the cool tea to soothe her parched throat.

"Sir, you don't understand."

He wiped his mouth, giving a completely innocent look that said, "I did this for his own good."

"That's the weight of knowledge. For this kind of uncultured scoundrel, the vastness of science is the greatest blow to his soul. I'm helping him improve his scientific literacy; he should be thanking me."

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Marshal Nie finally couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter, the sound so loud that dust fell from the roof.

He walked over and patted Shen Jinghong hard on the shoulder twice, so hard that Shen Jinghong grimaced.

"You're a real prodigy!"

"You're skilled in both academics and military matters, capable of drawing blueprints and building airplanes, as well as catching spies and conducting psychological warfare. Sometimes I wonder if it's a waste of your talents to have you as the chief engineer? You should be sent to the intelligence department; those counter-espionage experts probably don't have your skills!"

"No, no, no, sir."

Shen Jinghong quickly waved his hand, his face showing a polite refusal. "I'm just a blueprint maker; catching spies is a side job. Besides, dealing with these stupid thieves every day would just lower my IQ."

Jokes are jokes.

Marshal Nie suppressed his smile, and his expression gradually became serious.

He straightened his military uniform, walked up to Shen Jinghong, and instantly unleashed the aura of authority befitting a founding father.

Comrade Shen Jinghong.

"arrive!"

Shen Jinghong instinctively stood at attention and straightened her spine.

"Well done, 'Operation Slay the Snake'!"

Marshal Nie's voice was loud and clear, each word ringing with conviction:

"You not only unearthed the 'Viper,' a malignant tumor that had been buried for three years, but more importantly, you followed the clues and tore apart a huge network lurking in Beijing! This is a great achievement for our National Security Bureau and for the national defense security of the entire country!"

"After overnight discussions, the Central Military Commission has decided to award you a First-Class Merit!"

Shen Jinghong was stunned for a moment.

First-class merit?

In this era, a first-class merit is an honor earned with one's life. Countless soldiers shed blood and sacrificed their lives on the battlefield to earn a medal, while he only moved his lips and used some advanced technology.

"Commander, this is too heavy, I am unworthy of it," Shen Jinghong said sincerely. "It is mainly due to Wei Guo and the others, I was just offering an idea."

"Just take it if I give it to you!"

Marshal Nie glared at him, his tone leaving no room for argument, "I remember Wei Guo and the others' contributions too! But you deserve the most credit! You need to understand, if these spies had succeeded, our Project 501 would have been crippled before it even took off! The loss would have been immeasurable!"

He took a small red box out of the drawer and solemnly placed it in Shen Jinghong's hands.

"Put it on."

"This is the country's recognition of you, and also a heavy responsibility."

Shen Jinghong held the box, her fingertips slightly hot.

Looking into Marshal Nie's expectant eyes, a surge of emotion welled up within him. He knew that this medal was not only for this counter-espionage mission, but also for the "family fortune" he had brought back from the United States, and for the responsibility he was about to shoulder called "major national equipment."

"Yes, sir! Mission accomplished!"

Shen Jinghong saluted, his eyes as firm as iron.

"Alright, stop being so serious."

Marshal Nie waved his hand, sat back in his chair, lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and exhaled a cloud of bluish smoke.

His gaze pierced through the smoke, looking at the already bright sky outside the window.

Sunlight streamed into the Shenzhou Bureau's compound, where engineering corps soldiers had begun their work, and the distant roar of bulldozers could be heard.

That's the sound of construction.

That was the sound of hope.

"That's good."

Marshal Nie exclaimed, "The yard is now spotless, and all the flies and mosquitoes have been swatted. Now we can finally focus on construction and building airplanes without worry."

"Jinghong, I'm entrusting Project 501 entirely to you. The entire army and the people of the whole country are watching."

"Don't worry."

Shen Jinghong walked to the map, his gaze falling on the red dot marked "Mining Area No. 3," his eyes gleaming with fanaticism:

"Three months. Give me three months, and I'll get the first domestically produced turbojet engine off the production line. Within six months, I'll have our supersonic fighter jet taking to the skies!"

"Good! You've got guts!"

Marshal Nie slammed his hand on the table, about to get excited again, but then he seemed to remember something, his tone changed, and his eyes became somewhat strange.

He pulled a thin sheet of paper from under the pile of documents; it was a copy of a court judgment.

"Oh, right, Jinghong."

Marshal Nie looked at Shen Jinghong, his tone softening slightly, with a hint of probing:

"Now that we've finished discussing business, let's talk about personal matters."

"Your younger brother... Shen Yaozu, the verdict has been handed down."

Shen Jinghong paused for a moment as she was organizing the blueprints.

That name now sounds like dust from the last century, distant and unfamiliar.

He turned around, his face expressionless, showing not even a hint of curiosity, as indifferent as if he were listening to news from a stranger.

"Oh? So fast?"

Shen Jinghong said calmly, "Although I don't care much, since you brought it up, I'd like to hear... what happened to this kid in the end?"

Looking at his indifferent expression, Marshal Nie sighed inwardly and then handed over the judgment.

"See for yourself."

"Attempted murder, huge sums of money involved in speculation, multiple crimes to be punished concurrently..."

Shen Jinghong took the paper.

My gaze fell on the last line of the bright red judgment.

A meaningful smile slowly curved at the corners of his lips.