The afternoon of the next day.
At the appointed time, a black Mercedes S600 Pullman bulletproof sedan silently glided to the villa's doorstep.
Song Heping donned a brand new desert-colored digital camouflage combat uniform and shaved his beard clean.
The Chef also tidied himself up as best as he could, wearing his best casual attire.
The car smoothly exited the estate and merged into the slightly sparse afternoon traffic of Damascus.
Song Heping silently observed this ancient city, with four thousand years of history, through the dark bulletproof windows.
In 2014, Damascus exuded an extremely complex and indescribable atmosphere.
Pedestrians and vehicles continued to flow on the streets, some shops stubbornly remained open for business, and even in the Old Town's cafes, a few elderly folks could be seen leisurely smoking water pipes, trying to maintain the fragile semblance of a leisurely life from before the war.
