XG 38 - We do not allow outsiders in

The rest of the journey to the military base went smoothly without trouble. The helicopter was already prepared, full of fuel, and waiting for their arrival.

"There are some people who could not make it here in time? We are only informed to prepare one helicopter for Mrs. Wong's party and to immediately set off as they reach the base." The soldier checked the flight schedule list and gave them an indifferent look.

Suddenly feeling a threatening gaze, the soldier turned in that direction and expected something dangerous. But what he found was a young girl. Their gaze met and she gave him a polite smile, with none of the dangerous feelings he felt earlier. The young soldier thought that he must have been overworked that he would foolishly think a friendly girl would give him a hostile feeling. Even if she did, there was no way she could hide her emotions this quickly and neatly.

Wong Xue Guo really wanted to wait for her mother to arrive after hearing that, no matter what the soldier said. But the hard disk hidden in her backpack reminded her of her task, forcing her to contain her fury. Her phone vibrated, receiving a reply from her mother. Upon reading the message, she immediately felt cold.

As expected, her mother already knew she would not be going to Penang Island with air transportation. She either had to take a train or car, but both of them were exposed to great risk.

Plastering a modest smile, Wong Xue Guo nodded at Aurora before informing the soldier, "We shall leave now. Thank you for your help."

Surprisingly, the pilot will be Nana, who also had a license to pilot the helicopter. The army does not have enough men to spare being their pilot. In deciding so, the military was willing to sacrifice a helicopter for them.

But with a condition.

"A royal family happens to be going to the same destination as your group. To make things easier, it's best for both groups to head there in a single helicopter."

Since it was just sharing a ride, they did not refuse.

Surprisingly, the second prince of Negeri Sembilan state was traveling by himself without any guards. He looked like a college student with his casual clothes and backpack. He was modest without air or arrogance, willing to give them a friendly smile before taking a seat opposite Wong Xue Guo and Chen Yibo.

Wong Xue Guo returned her own version of a friendly smile but did not start a conversation with him even if she was curious about why he would go to Penang Island instead of Negeri Sembilan, his hometown. Was the rest of the royal family at Penang Island too?

Actually, she was also puzzled as to why her parents would decide Penang Island as their meeting point. Does that island have something?

With everything in their cars transferred into the helicopter, they could finally take off to the island.

There was no trouble during their plane ride, with her ears covered with headsets. It was quite peaceful as if she was going on an overseas trip. Even the birds flying below their altitude, which she squinted her eyes to identify, looked normal with no sign of being a zombified version.

Do animals turn into zombies? If they could, humans will have fewer options when it comes to hunting food. It will also pose more danger to humans. It was another question she needed to jot down to ask her mother.

Lulled by the motor sound, she gradually grew sleepy. But with a stranger seated facing her, she was not comfortable in doing so. She regretted not taking a nap in the car earlier, but she was too tense to relax. She could already feel her brain was processing much slower now.

Wong Xue Guo, who had envisioned a climatic and action-packed adventure while heading to Penang Island, was slapped by the reality of technology's might. In just an hour, they arrived at Penang Island and landed at a military base without being stopped.

Turns out that as long as one has money and connections, surviving was not impossible.

"Something's wrong," Chen Yibo murmured, gazing out of the window.

"What?"

"This does not seem to be the place we are supposed to land. There's a crowd below."

The place they landed was another military base, but how Chen Yibo knew was not something she needed to know. Getting out of the helicopter after Chen Yibo, Wong Xue Guo was greeted with the sight of soldiers holding their guns. What frightened her was they were aiming their guns at them.

This scene was similar to when they exited the shopping mall. Now that they have sunlight, it was even more terrifying to look at. The armed soldiers do not look friendly even after knowing they were not infected.

"Your Royal Highness Ibrahim?"

The Second Prince nodded and he was immediately escorted away by a group of men without looking back at the group he came with.

What a clean-cut business deal.

Aurora stepped forward, looking sharp in her business pantsuit. "Apologies, we had no choice but to land here without permission. We had scheduled to arrive at the next base, but the helipad seems to be missing and we could not contact them."

Wong Xue Guo quickly counted their side having ten men and each of them was assigned to a person. There were two men that followed Aurora's movement with their guns as she stood forward.

"That base is compromised. We need to know the purpose of your landing."

"We are here to meet up with our people before leaving the country. This is the document that your supervisor provided." Aurora passed her tablet to the one in charge.

After reading the letter, the army finally relaxed their guard, albeit not much. "Our Island chooses to separate from the government's ruling to protect our people. We do not allow outsiders from other states to enter, but we will exempt you this time."

Separate from the government's ruling? Had Penang Island decided to lockdown, preventing people from coming in?

How will Suzie Yap get in later?

"Sergeant Abdullah." A woman in a similar business pantsuit as Aurora stride powerfully towards them with a stern-looking face framed with a bob-cut hairstyle. Only when she stopped near them did they notice her height was even shorter than the youngest of their group.

Sergeant Abdullah lowered his gun rather reluctantly before facing the short woman. "Madam Lok."

Everyone could recognize the stern-looking woman, Lok Hui Man. She often appeared in the news, being the leader of an opposition party that managed to grab enough seats to take control of this island. In two years, her leadership showed improvement and Penang Island's tourist rate increased triple the original amount.

"No matter the reason, we do not allow outsiders in," Lok Hui Man said in an unyielding posture. "Sergeant Abdullah, please send them away."

Originally, Wong Xue Guo thought Sergeant Abdullah's reluctance in compliance was because of Madam Lok's identity. But it was actually his reluctance to let her group go scot-free. Her perception was corrected just from a gaze of respect in the sergeant's gaze, with other soldiers following suit.

Aurora frowned when the soldiers started to move. "On what grounds do you have us forcefully sent away? Even if you had gotten the approval of the separation of Penang Island from the ruling of the government, that does not mean you are exempt from martial law."

Lok Hui Man's eyes narrowed. "The martial law is not in effect yet. My decision is to keep things fair. No outsider is allowed exemption to enter Penang Island."

"We have documents approved by the military base in Penang Island," Aurora countered. "Are you voiding the contract one-sidedly?"

"That base is acting without authorization and whatever was agreed is not considered legal," Lok Hui Man coldly refuted.

"Madam Lok," Wong Xue Guo inserted herself when it looked like they were going to start an argument. Two stubborn people would take ages to finally compromise, which time was not what they have. "Calling us outsiders is rather harsh and quite untrue."

Lok Hui Man paused from the interruption from a teenage girl. Yet she was not irritated at the interruption, as it was from a person with a smiling face with the right degree of respect and not subservient. The young lady's gaze was one that treats the other as equal, which was rather absurd when Lok Hui Man was a high-ranking politician while the other was just a young girl with an unclear identity.

Scanning the girl from head to toe, Lok Hui Man could identify her as nobility with her straight and proper posture. The young girl could likely be an important person's daughter when the adults showed no sign of displeasure from her interruption.

"You have purchased land on this Island?" Lok Hui Man questioned. Rich families had the interest in buying real estate at places they liked to spend their holidays.

"Just a house. It's rather impossible to purchase land when there are many people interested in this golden island. Madam Lok, since I have a house here, am I considered a resident?" Wong Xue Guo smiled with one part tenderly and another part imploringly. "I'm just returning to my second home. Please don't kick me out of my home."

Author's Note

Aiyah, this author has no knowledge of how to rule a country. So it's utter nonsense about separate state ruling. Unless this author accidentally hit jackpot. This novel is completely fictional, similar names are coincidental, except for the country names! But Penang Island really exists.