Southern Washington D.C., a well-known hotel. In the meeting room next to the side hall, the Deputy Secretary of Defense Hernandez took out a cellphone and a photo from his briefcase and slid them across to Luo An. Luo An did not reach out to take them. He looked at Hernandez with a slight frown and asked, "Mr. Secretary, if this is a secret operation, wouldn't it be more appropriate for a department under the Department of Defense to handle it? I come from the FBI, which is under the Department of Justice." "Under normal circumstances, that would indeed be the case." Deputy Secretary of Defense Hernandez nodded. The Department of Defense, Department of Justice, Department of Agriculture, Department of Education, Department of Finance, and the like are on the same level, each with their administrative organs. "However, this case is a bit special." Hernandez took a sip of water from the table and said with a heavy tone, "Certain departments under the Department of Defense are not suitable for participating in the investigation." Luo An still did not immediately agree to the other party's request. After all, he was from the FBI, which belongs to the Department of Justice, and the other party was the Deputy Secretary of Defense, so he indicated that this matter required the FBI Director's orders. Hernandez's expression didn't change, not showing any anger, and even the appreciation in his eyes seemed to increase. This is because Hernandez saw that Luo An was not the kind of person with strong professional abilities but zero political intelligence. On the contrary, Luo An's political savvy was not weak; he understood the boundaries of various matters. The source of thɪs content is NoveIＦire.net Working within the Federation Government, it's alright to have lesser abilities, but understanding and using the rules lets you go further. Hernandez set down his glass, stating that he had already sent someone to deliver the relevant information to FBI Director Robert, and Luo An would receive it soon. He continued, "The second matter is related to the Federation Army." Hearing the word 'military,' Luo An's brow twitched slightly, as he recalled the recent nuclear missile case that hadn't happened long ago. Hernandez spoke unhurriedly, "Regarding that incident earlier, Group Leader Greenwood was of great assistance to the Federation Army, for which the army is very grateful. After all, the security company is connected with the involved parties, and the military is not good at handling such matters, so they have entrusted Group Leader Greenwood to help handle the company." Luo An's eyebrows lifted slightly, understanding the meaning behind Hernandez's words. Clearly, the security company was a kind of hush money; the military wanted things to end there. The military is a special entity within the Federation. Luo An had no intent to create conflicts with those people, nor did he have any interest in the struggles between the Department of Defense and the military. After a moment of consideration, he agreed to Hernandez with a smile, "No problem, Mr. Secretary. I will definitely handle the security company appropriately." Seeing Luo An's quick response, a smile appeared on Hernandez's face, and the admiration in his eyes intensified. Hernandez, as the Deputy Secretary, had little free time, so after finishing talking about official matters and having a brief chat, he left the meeting room. Watching the meeting room's door open, Luo An silently reflected on the conversation they just had, pondering the details. At that moment, Louise once again walked into the meeting room alone, closing the big door behind her and even locking it. The sound of the door locking brought Luo An back to his senses. He looked up to see Louise with a smile on her lips, holding a champagne glass, her light and charming perfume scent wafting over as she walked towards him with a catwalk gait. He raised his eyebrow and said, "Miss Louise, your father has just left." Louise walked up to Luo An, looked up, her fox-like delicate face beaming with a smile, her eyes slightly squinting as she said, "Since you mentioned my father, have you ever thought about wanting to work ten years less?" Luo An smiled and shook his head: "I like to earn what I want on my own." "Isn't it better to take a shortcut?" "I enjoy the scenery along the way." "Miss Louise, let's be straightforward, what can I help you with?" "You're really boring." Louise rolled her eyes subtly, took a sip of champagne, turned around, and sat directly on the conference table. The long skirt slid to the side, revealing a pair of long and white thighs, and she spoke faintly: "Group Leader Luo An, I'd like to join your special investigation group." Luo An didn't think twice before he rejected Louise. From their first encounter until now, Luo An was certain that Miss Louise was not an easy person to deal with. Adding to that her deputy minister father and Mona in the investigation group, he would be crazy to let Louise into the special investigation team. Luo An shook his head and said: "Miss Louise, a reporter's life is colorful. The work in the special investigation group is dull, tedious, and dangerous. Considering your safety in the future, I cannot agree." "You're afraid that Mona Evans will get jealous, afraid that I will confront her, right?" Louise put her champagne down on the table, crossed her arms in front of her chest, revealing an unfathomable cleavage, and asked with a smile: "Is that Mona really that good? Standing beside her, I really don't see what you like about her." Luo An spread his hands and said with a smile: "Liking someone is a feeling. Coincidentally, I feel comfortable with her, and she feels the same with me. It's that simple." Louise narrowed her eyes slightly: "Are you implying that you don't feel comfortable when you're with me?" Luo An gave a slight smile without a word. Louise's eyes flashed with annoyance, she huffed lightly, and left the conference table, saying: "Group Leader Luo An, I heard recently that an action movie based on you is going to be released, right?" Luo An was taken aback for a moment, it took him a little while to remember that Louise was referring to the movie rights that Columbia Pictures bought after the conclusion of "The First Lady Explosion Case." After the story rights were sold and he got the money, Luo An put the matter out of his mind. In the meantime, directors had phoned him, inviting him to the company to review script modifications and to visit and tour the filming sites. But the original contract stipulated that Luo An would not receive a penny from the movie's box office earnings after its release, So after Luo An finished reading the script and made sure he was portrayed in a positive light, he rejected the other invitations and didn't concern himself with how the film was made. Good or bad, he didn't care. If it weren't for Louise bringing it up, Luo An would have nearly forgotten about it. "There is indeed such a matter." After quickly calculating the time in his mind, indeed the movie production cycle seemed to be coming to an end, Luo An nodded and asked: "Miss Louise, would you like to make a cameo appearance in that movie?" Luo An remembered that once a mayor or governor's daughter, who was eager to become a big star, had mentioned this to him. Louise scoffed and shook her head: "No, I have no interest in exposing arms and legs in a movie, and flirting with half the men of the Federation." She was a feminist, and coupled with her family background, Louise looked down upon Hollywood actresses. Luo An frowned slightly, not understanding Louise's point: "Then what are you thinking?" "The highest honor a reporter can achieve is the Pulitzer Prize in Journalism." Louise crossed her arms and stared at Luo An: "But the conditions behind winning the Pulitzer are all about political maneuvering, full of darkness… Haha, it's pointless. So, I want to shift to writing a story, a book that can sell throughout the entire Federation. Group Leader Luo An, your experiences are rich, and I'd like to write a detective novel like Sherlock Holmes based on you. In other words, I want to follow you around for a few months to see how you solve cases, to gather material."