42: Chapter 42 Finding the Mole

"There is one more thing... At the time, because it was my first time seeing the 'evil' manifested in Senior Engineer Gao Yayin's physiognomy, I subconsciously ignored the others in the surrounding environment." He chose his words carefully. "But looking back now, the physiognomy of the man in the gray jacket and the cleaner was also not good."

In his memory, Lin Ning recalled the light red names that he had considered worthless at the time.

Two of them were precisely those two people.

Chen Zhi asked: "In other words, these two people, using your so-called physiognomy reading, have some kind of connection to Senior Engineer Gao Yayin?"

"At the very least, in the forty seconds before Senior Engineer Gao Yayin left, she shifted her gaze three times toward their direction, and they were clearly in a 'criminal state'." Lin Ning nodded.

Chen Zhi stood up and signaled for Lin Ning to follow him. The two arrived in the room next door, a large ready room equipped with various devices and instruments.

Walking to the whiteboard on the wall, he picked up a marker and quickly drew a relationship diagram. "Senior Engineer Gao Yayin is the core, but she couldn't have completed the theft and escape alone. There must be internal personnel to help her bypass security, external personnel to assist with the transfer, transportation support, and identity camouflage..."

He drew a core circle on the whiteboard with four lines extending from it.

"The three points you just provided—" He drew circles in three directions.

"The man in the gray jacket in the green plant area is likely an external lookout, responsible for confirming whether she left safely while monitoring for any abnormal pursuit."

"The silver sedan is the extraction vehicle, also responsible for guarding against abnormal situations outside, but it should only be the first leg; it wouldn't take her directly to the final destination."

"The cleaner..." Chen Zhi tapped heavily on the circle for the fire exit. "Is the key. She is likely the loophole in internal security, using her position to help Senior Engineer Gao Yayin complete some kind of handover in a security blind spot or at a specific time—possibly the hard drive, or perhaps camouflage tools."

The line of thought became clear.

A technician looked up and reported: "Division Chief Chen, we've found the owner of the silver Lavida! It's registered under a man named Liu Jianjun, forty-five years old, unemployed, living in the old city district in the west. Traffic monitoring shows that after the incident yesterday afternoon, the car detoured from the Science and Technology Park to the North Fourth Ring Road, and then lost its trail near the building materials market—monitoring coverage in that area is very low."

"Liu Jianjun..." Chen Zhi narrowed his eyes. "Check his communication records, bank statements, and social connections. Focus on checking if he has had any abnormal income recently, or if he has been in contact with any suspicious individuals."

"The cleaner's information has also been retrieved." Another technician chimed in. "Her name is Wang Xiumei, fifty-two years old, and she has been a cleaner at Chuangxinzao Property Management for six years. Family situation... Her son is studying abroad, and her husband passed away last year. Bank statements show that her monthly salary is 4,200, but for the last six months, there has been a deposit of 20,000 in cash every month, with the deposits made at ATMs of different banks."

"Cash deposits, deliberately scattered..." Chen Zhi sneered. "A typical money laundering technique. Arrest her!"

As soon as the order was given, a hurried report came through the earpiece.

After listening, Chen Zhi's expression darkened.

"The identity of the man in the gray jacket has been confirmed," Chen Zhi said, his voice suppressing anger. "Zhao Xiaoqiang, twenty-nine years old, a former security company employee, fired two years ago for unauthorized copying of client surveillance footage. Ten minutes ago, his mobile signal last appeared at the South City Long-Distance Bus Station, then it vanished."

Lin Ning asked, "Did he run?"

Chen Zhi rubbed his temples. "He won't be able to run far, but we don't have much time..."

He looked at the whiteboard and pondered for a moment.

He turned around and looked at Lin Ning. "We must find the person inside the laboratory who helped Senior Engineer Gao Yayin steal the hard drive, otherwise..."

Before he could finish, Chen Zhi asked Lin Ning with some anticipation, "If I give you the surveillance videos or file photos, can you list your so-called 'suspects'?"

Lin Ning shook his head and said with some regret, "I can only do it when facing a real person, and at least see a part of their face."

Chen Zhi's determination to use metaphysics to narrow down the range of suspects only grew firmer at this moment.

He said to Lin Ning, "Then you will go and identify them in person."

As Chen Zhi spoke, his tone became even firmer. "We will arrange for you to enter the group as a member of the safety inspection team, using your eyes to pick out those who 'don't seem right'."

Lin Ning was stunned: "Huh?"

Chen Zhi had already picked up his coat. "Your identity will be arranged immediately—a temporary spot check by the municipal fire department and safety supervision bureau; you are an accompanying technical assessor. Remember, you don't need to speak, just watch. When you see someone who makes you think there is a 'problem', note their characteristics and location, and we will handle it."

"I..." Lin Ning hesitated. "I can only tell if this person likely has criminal behavior, but... I can't tell if they are related to this incident, or if they are a spy."

Chen Zhi walked up to him, his bloodshot eyes staring straight at him.

"That's enough!" He said. "Narrowing down the scope is already gaining the upper hand in this war! Leave the rest to us!"

A war! Lin Ning immediately straightened his back. Yes, a war without smoke!

Chen Zhi patted his shoulder, with heavy force.

...

Chuangxinzao Technology Building, 3:00 PM.

Lin Ning was wearing slightly oversized navy blue work clothes, holding a specially made tablet computer in his hand, wearing non-prescription camera glasses, and with a real-time communication headset hanging on his ear, following behind the real fire and safety inspection team.

His heart was beating a little fast.

Not because of nervousness—although there was indeed a bit.

But because of a strange sense of excitement, his brain felt like a precision instrument with its springs fully wound, the sensitivity of his vision, hearing, and smell all tuned to an unprecedented height.

—He could clearly see the fluorescent tube reflected on a researcher's eyeglass lens ten meters away;

—He could hear the subtle differences in pitch when different fingers landed on different keycaps while typing in the office next door;

—He could even distinguish the mixed scent of coffee, printer ink, human sweat, and some kind of chemical reagent floating in the air.

Is this the world after the upgrade?!

"Xiao Lin, over here." The team leader, Section Chief Lao Zhou of the Safety Supervision Bureau, turned back and called out to him.

Lin Ning quickly followed.

They were inspecting the material analysis laboratory area on the third floor of Building B. On both sides of the corridor were transparent glass partitions, inside which researchers in white lab coats were standing or sitting, operating various instruments.

Chen Zhi had given him a list of seven people whose behavior had been found to be abnormal during their investigation over the past two days; these were the people who needed to be "observed" with priority.

In addition, personnel who had direct or indirect work intersections with Senior Engineer Gao Yayin's project team, as well as security personnel, all needed him to screen them one by one.