Chapter 53: Reporting Upward

Qingcheng Garrison Command.

Commander's Office.

Li Wenshan sat on the sofa, looking at Lin Yi and Su Qi, who had just taken their seats, with a deep frown.

"You two, quickly tell me, what on earth is going on here?" Li Wenshan asked with some anxiety.

Lin Yi pondered for a moment and said, "It is like this, Commander Li. It can now be confirmed that these two fighter jets are genuine, combat-capable military fighter jets. It's just that, for the sake of better marketing, the person named Wang Yang apparently borrowed the exterior design of the F22 fighter jet, and publicly marketed them as F22 fighter jets."

Li Wenshan nodded thoughtfully, "In other words, there is currently no way to confirm whether they are actually F22 fighter jets."

"Yes," Su Qi replied, and then added, "If we want to conduct further testing, we might need to carry out test flights or use higher-precision instruments to inspect the fighter jets' engines, aerodynamic systems, and other components in order to evaluate their performance."

Li Wenshan nodded, "Very well. Do we currently have such high-precision instruments in our garrison's research institute?"

"Commander Li, it is impossible for an institute like ours to have such instruments. They are currently only available at the Fighter Research and Development Center in the capital and at certain military research institutes under the General Military Command," Lin Yi reminded him.

Su Qi nodded in agreement, "There is another problem. Research institutes of that level generally do not lend out such equipment—not just because of transportation issues, but also because of the operators required. That means even if we manage to borrow the instruments, it will be useless if we cannot borrow the personnel to operate them."

"Therefore, Commander Li, we must secure the personnel along with the instruments before borrowing anything."

After speaking, the two men rose and left the office.

Having grasped the situation, Li Wenshan resolutely returned to his desk, picked up the landline telephone, and quickly dialed a number.

Soon, the call was connected.

"Hello, this is the Yan Province Command Headquarters," a pleasant female operator's voice came through the line.

Li Wenshan got straight to the point: "I am Li Wenshan from the Qingcheng Garrison Command. I need to speak with Commander Zhang Yuan of the Yan Province Command Headquarters. I have a matter of great importance to report."

"Understood, please hold for a moment," the operator's voice replied.

Following that came a stretch of dead air on the line.

Before long, the call was connected, and a majestic voice sounded from the other end.

"I am Zhang Yuan."

"Reporting to the Chief! I am Li Wenshan. Two military fighter jets have recently been discovered inside a warehouse within the Qingcheng jurisdiction! Current testing results indicate that these two military fighter jets are fully operational," Li Wenshan bypassed the pleasantries and spoke directly.

Zhang Yuan immediately asked, "Is this information accurate? Can it be confirmed?"

This was no trivial matter and required repeated verification.

This was precisely why Li Wenshan had not notified the General Military Command immediately, but had instead waited for Lin Yi and Su Qi to return and consulted them first.

Li Wenshan took a deep breath, "It can be confirmed, Chief. I have already ordered the warehouse to be sealed off and had the relevant personnel sign confidentiality agreements."

"You did well," Zhang Yuan said.

Li Wenshan continued, "However, since these two military fighter jets are currently registered under a company, and that very company publicly broadcasted a live stream just a few days ago to sell these two jets, it has presumably caused quite a stir on the internet. Although, it seems most netizens simply believe they are nothing more than models."

"Chief, is it necessary to suppress and block this information?"

Zhang Yuan pondered for a moment before replying, "Not for the time being. Besides, it is unlikely that anyone would believe that company is actually selling real fighter jets."

And indeed, items like fighter jets do not circulate among the civilian population. Therefore, no matter how cheap someone claims they can get a fighter jet, the general public would simply assume it's a scam; very few would fall for it, and hardly anyone would dare to tell such a colossal lie to deceive people.

Furthermore, initiating information suppression would practically validate the rumor, easily triggering public panic and making it difficult to answer inquiries from higher authorities later on.

Li Wenshan nodded, "Understood, Chief."

"There is another issue: we currently cannot determine the performance of these two fighter jets. We can only tentatively suspect that they may use outdated technology. The members of our research institute are unable to deduce their corresponding performance based on the data obtained."

In his understanding, the private sector completely lacked the conditions to develop fighter jets; whether in materials or instruments, there was a vast difference between private enterprises and military research institutes.

After all, even the military research institute of the Qingcheng Garrison Command lacked such conditions, let alone a small company run by someone like Wang Yang.

Therefore, following the deductions of Lin Yi and Su Qi, the only possibility was that the company had somehow acquired outdated technology—perhaps engines and aerodynamic systems and other components using relatively backward tech bought from abroad or through special channels—and installed them onto two fighter jets modeled after the F22.

They were using these to impersonate F22 fighter jets and sell them over the internet.

Regardless, managing to acquire all these components was no easy feat.

Li Wenshan thought for a moment and went on, "To conduct a more thorough and comprehensive test, we would need higher-precision instruments. However, our garrison's research institute is not equipped with such instruments. We might need to borrow them from higher-level fighter research institutes..."

"Are there any other methods for testing?" Zhang Yuan asked.

Hearing this, Li Wenshan realized that borrowing instruments might be something even Commander Zhang of the General Military Command could not easily pull off.

After all, borrowing such equipment required submitting formal applications, going through bureaucratic procedures, and waiting. By the time the paperwork cleared, half a year or a full year could pass, unless it was an exceptionally urgent matter that qualified for a fast-track process.

Clearly, the current situation did not meet the criteria for a fast-track process.

"Then only one option remains: test flights, and conducting tests during the flight process," Li Wenshan said.

Zhang Yuan thought for a moment. "I see. Here is what we will do: I will immediately dispatch personnel to the Qingcheng Garrison Command. First, find a way to transport those two fighter jets back to the garrison command. Once the personnel from the General Military Command arrive, we will proceed with the test flight phase to test and confirm the performance of the fighter jets."

"Right, you can also consult the scientific researchers at the Fighter Research and Development Center. Send the data to them and see if they can deduce the performance from it. If they can, it will save us a lot of trouble."

"This matter must not be allowed to spread widely at present. Until things are clarified, your inquiries must strictly prioritize confidentiality. Do you understand?"

Hearing the Chief's reminder, Li Wenshan nodded solemnly, "Please rest assured, Chief. I will handle this matter with the utmost caution."