Reesi was talking about a colorless, tasteless transparent chemical reagent. It was exactly the sleepy potion Luo An had previously put in the perfume bottle for Mona.
Luo An was quite speechless and puzzledly asked Reesi:
"Your villa is in an upscale community. If your neighbor's dog is off-leash, you could totally report it to the community's self-governing committee and let them handle your neighbor."
Self-governing is a major feature of federal communities. Wealthy communities always pool money together to install security features and surveillance, and even hire professional security personnel to ensure the safety of the whole community.
"Uh…"
Upon hearing Luo An's suggestion, Reesi blinked and explained quietly:
"You know I like throwing parties, and there have been a few times the volume was a bit loud and accidentally caused the neighbors to report me.
I've turned down the volume at parties, but the neighbor still got that dog to intimidate me, so…"
Luo An squinted his eyes and asked:
"How much did you 'turn down' the volume?"
Reesi shifted his gaze awkwardly:
"Three notches down on the speaker."
"…"
Luo An rolled his eyes wordlessly. He had seen the speakers at Reesi's place, which had twenty notches in total.
Every time Reesi turned it up to the max, lowering it by three notches didn't make a noticeably quieter sound, it was barely even noticeable.
Seeing the helpless expression on Luo An's face, Reesi quickly explained:
"That's why I asked you for that reagent.
Look, I throw my party, I have fun; the neighbor lets the dog chase me, he vents his emotions;
I knock the dog out where the neighbor can't see, it not only fulfills its duty but also gets to rest and sleep. Plus, it won't accidentally bite someone, which would lead the neighbor to compensate.
It's a win-win situation, everyone's happy."
"…"
After Reesi finished, Mona rolled her eyes in disbelief, Luo An's forehead throbbed with black lines, and he retorted:
"I suddenly feel that you working at the FBI is a misuse of your talents, you should be a lawyer."
In the end, Luo An still refused Reesi's request, first because the sleepy potion was somewhat special, and second because being chased by the dog was entirely Reesi's own doing, knocking it out wouldn't solve the problem at its root.
Several hours later, Michelle, Winslow, and Chenier rented a plane and arrived at the Paris Embassy.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the task of guarding Valery was handed over to them. It had been several busy days for the team of three, and now it was time for them to rest.
At 4:30 in the afternoon, while Luo An was sleeping, his cell phone suddenly rang, awakening him instantly.
He glanced at Mona, who was still sound asleep, picked up his phone, walked out of the room, yawned, and pressed the answer key:
"Who's this?"
"It's me, Vireness."
Vireness's voice was a bit cold on the phone and she got straight to the point:
"You need to leave the French Republic and return to the Federation with Valery immediately. A plane is already prepared for you."
"Huh?!"
Luo An instantly became vigilant, frowning slightly:
"Now?"
"Yes, now."
Vireness spoke rapidly:
"Immediately, right now, take everyone from your investigative team and leave the French Republic. I'll explain later."
"Okay, Chief."
Luo An nodded seriously in agreement, and Vireness hung up without further ado.
Staring at his phone, Luo An's mind raced with numerous thoughts as he quickly went back to the bedroom and tapped Mona's arm:
"Mona, wake up, it's an emergency."
"Hm?"
As Mona opened her eyes, somewhat dazed, Luo An briefly explained the situation to her, urging her to hurry up and change clothes, then he called Chenier.
Winslow, Michelle, and Chenier immediately took action, responsible for escorting Valery to the airport.
Mona went to wake up Reesi, and once the two of them came downstairs, Luo An started the car. As soon as the two women got in, Luo An pressed the gas pedal to the floor, and the car quickly headed towards the airport.
Speeding along, Luo An and the two women soon arrived at the airport Vireness had mentioned. Winslow's group also just happened to arrive beneath the airplane with Valery.
Without pleasantries, Michelle and Reesi quickly escorted Valery onto the plane. Winslow and Chenier walked up to Luo An, their brows furrowed:
"Luo An, what's happened?"
"I'm not sure either."
Luo An shook his head, then he looked towards the smoke and dust that suddenly appeared not far away, along with the convoy beneath it, squinting his eyes slightly, then said:
"If I'm not mistaken, these tailgaters who came with you to the airport are probably from the Seventh Bureau."
The faces of Winslow and Chenier instantly darkened; they had not noticed they were being followed while driving.
Mona, with a tight frown, said:
"Let's hurry and board the plane to leave here."
"I would as well, but clearly, they aren't letting us go."
Luo An pointed to the convoy not far away, only to see that the vehicles split into two groups, one heading directly towards Luo An and his group, and the other heading straight for the airplane, blocking the runway for takeoff.
Winslow, Chenier, and Mona's expressions turned even grimmer. Luo An's gaze shifted slightly, waving his hand to suggest everyone stay calm.
Three SUVs quickly arrived in front of Luo An, stopping in a line, with four Caucasian men in suits stepping down from each of the left and right SUVs, subtly surrounding Luo An and his party.
From the middle SUV, likewise, four Caucasian men stepped down, with the one in the front being very tall but skinny, sporting brown short hair, and a pair of sunglasses resting on his nose.
"Hello, Group Leader Luo An Greenwood."
The man with the sunglasses walked up to Luo An, his mouth stretching into a smile that was 7 percent sincere and 93 percent fake:
"My name is André Clermont von, from the Seventh Bureau."
Hearing the surname "von," Winslow, Chenier, and Mona's eyes flickered with an unexplainable expression; they knew this was one of the notable noble family surnames from the time before the French Republic.
"Hello, Mr. André."
Luo An smiled, shaking hands with the man:
"Nice to meet you."
"I'm sorry, I am not very pleased."
André's eyes narrowed, Luo An shook his hand, intending to let go, but André didn't just not let go, he instead grabbed Luo An's hand and forcefully pulled...
Which didn't work, and André staggered forward a step.
"..."
The scene grew silent, amid the varied gazes of everyone, André's face gradually turned red. Luo An slightly curved his lips and coughed lightly:
"Do you, Mr. André, need any assistance from us today by bringing people here?
Feel free to speak. Please rest assured, we will provide you with all support, beyond just help."
"..."
The scene became even quieter, as agents from the Seventh Bureau looked towards Luo An with a mix of shock and confusion.
André's forehead twitched, lowering his voice:
"Luo An Greenwood, you indeed are a talent."
Luo An's face brightened with a sunny smile:
"Thanks for the compliment."
"…I am not complimenting you."
André's expression darkened, his voice becoming stern:
"About that night on Saint Michel Mountain, you all from the CIA…"
"Sorry, Mr. André."
Luo An quickly gestured with his hand to interrupt, shaking his head:
"I am not from the CIA, one shouldn't spread rumors or wrongly accuse others."
"..."
André's eyes blazed with greater fury, just as he was about to continue speaking, his phone in his pocket suddenly rang.