45: Chapter 45 Arrest of Gao Yayin

Qingda International Airport, Terminal 3, 8:50 PM.

The international departures hall was brightly lit, with flight information scrolling across massive electronic screens. The sounds of announcements in various languages, the rolling of suitcase wheels, and the hubbub of the crowd blended into a noisy ocean.

Lin Ning was wearing a fluorescent vest for airport ground staff—an identity Chen Zhi had temporarily arranged for him.

Standing near the check-in counters in Zone E, tablet in hand, his eyes scanned the top of everyone's head in the hall like a radar.

A woman, thirty to forty years old, potentially disguised with any age or appearance.

His brain was running at high speed.

His enhanced vision allowed him to process information on multiple moving targets simultaneously. He ignored the green, yellow, and light red ones; he only wanted red!

He told Chen Zhi it was "reading faces," so he claimed he had to see their faces, but in reality, catching a vague silhouette was enough, just like with Wang Lijun and the others back then.

So, he was truly firing on all cylinders now.

If it weren't for the fact that it would be hard to explain, he would have even wanted the team members running back and forth to take a break. Seeing them with their stamina bottomed out and their spirit burning was heartbreaking.

Time ticked by, second by second.

9:10 PM.

9:30 PM.

10:00 PM...

Sweat had already soaked through Lin Ning's back and was streaming down his face.

His complexion gradually turned pale. Overusing his brain, he had never concentrated for such a long time, especially on top of the 'Memory Palace' session that afternoon.

Lin Ning felt a familiar sense of dizziness, just like the precursor to the Eye of Insight.

Chen Zhi and his team were in an even worse state, especially Chen Zhi. He didn't know which flight Senior Engineer Gao Yayin would take, when she would take it, whether it was an international or domestic flight, or even if she would come to catch a flight at all.

He made the judgments, and he issued the orders. This pressure, rising every second, was becoming too much even for a veteran like Chen Zhi, but he knew that unless he died, he would keep going.

Chen Zhi's calm voice came through the earpiece: "Attention all units, expand the screening range. Repeat! Focus on solo female travelers who have little luggage, look vigilant, and are observing the environment frequently."

Lin Ning took a deep breath. While watching the people coming in and out of the hall, he pondered if there were any omissions and if it would be more useful for him to stand on the tarmac.

Just then.

A large group of people entered the hall one after another—it must have been a bus or an airport shuttle that had arrived.

Men and women, young and old, transformed into various shades of color in Lin Ning's eyes.

Red! A glaring red that carried an aura of evil!

Lin Ning's radar instantly went haywire in his mind.

A woman wearing a beige trench coat, pulling a small carry-on suitcase, slowly entered the hall.

Lin Ning's gaze was nailed to the top of the woman's head—[Senior Engineer Gao Yayin, Unemployed]

It's her!

Got you!

Lin Ning withdrew his direct gaze, using only his peripheral vision to keep watching her.

He pressed his earpiece and reported quickly, "Senior Engineer Gao Yayin has appeared!"

A burst of heavy breathing came through the earpiece, followed by Chen Zhi's hoarse voice: "Where? Describe her current appearance!"

Lin Ning: "Just entered from the hall entrance, in the direction facing Counter E. Beige trench coat, black-rimmed glasses, chestnut curly hair worn down. She is coming toward me."

Chen Zhi swiftly issued several urgent orders.

—Group A, follow.

—Group B, set up surveillance in the waiting area.

—Group C, contact the airport police, prepare to close the net at the boarding gate. Also, pay attention to everyone she comes into contact with. We aren't sure if the hard drive is on her; be careful not to let her destroy or discard it!

"Received..."

Lin Ning lowered his head slightly, pretending to check the flight schedule on his tablet, while his peripheral vision followed Senior Engineer Gao Yayin.

She seemed completely unaware that she had been exposed. She calmly completed the check-in process, took her boarding pass, and turned to walk toward the security checkpoint.

Her pace was steady, but Lin Ning noticed that her right hand was gripping the handle of her carry-on suitcase tightly, her knuckles turning white.

She was nervous.

There was a long line at the security checkpoint. Senior Engineer Gao Yayin was in the front, and it was soon her turn. She took off her glasses, removed her trench coat, placed her carry-on suitcase into the X-ray machine, and walked through the metal detector herself.

Everything went smoothly.

She put her trench coat back on, picked up her suitcase, and walked toward the international departures waiting area.

Lin Ning followed behind, keeping a distance of about twenty meters.

There were even more people in the waiting area.

Senior Engineer Gao Yayin found a seat in a corner, took a magazine out of her suitcase, and lowered her head to flip through it.

But Lin Ning saw that her gaze wasn't on the magazine at all; instead, she was quickly scanning the surrounding environment over the top edge of the magazine.

What was she waiting for? Or rather, what was she confirming?

The time jumped to 10:55 PM.

The boarding announcement for Flight SQ501 began, and business class and priority passengers started to line up.

Senior Engineer Gao Yayin closed the magazine, stood up, and dragged her suitcase toward the line. She queued at the end of the line with a calm expression.

Lin Ning's heartbeat began to accelerate.

She was about to board. Once she walked onto the jet bridge and entered the plane, the difficulty and risk of the arrest would increase dramatically.

"Brother Chen, she's about to board," he whispered.

"I see it," Chen Zhi's voice remained calm. "Wait a bit longer. She might still have accomplices observing nearby, or there might be a final handover. When she walks to the boarding gate, the moment she scans her boarding pass—take action."

Lin Ning subconsciously looked up and quickly scanned the area. There were indeed a few red names, but they were far away, yet he couldn't tell Chen Zhi.

The line moved slowly forward.

Senior Engineer Gao Yayin was getting closer and closer to the boarding gate counter.

Ten meters, five meters, three meters...

She handed over her boarding pass.

The ground staff took it and swiped it on the scanner—

A soft "beep" sound.

At this very moment!

From behind the advertisements on both sides, behind the pillars, and from the crowd of seemingly ordinary passengers, six people suddenly rushed out, lunging toward Senior Engineer Gao Yayin with lightning speed!

Senior Engineer Gao Yayin's reaction was also very fast.

She didn't try to run; instead, she violently smashed the suitcase in her hand at the nearest arresting officer.

At the same time, her body retreated sharply, and her right hand reached lightning-fast toward the inner pocket of her trench coat!

"She's trying to destroy the evidence!" Chen Zhi roared in the earpiece.

But someone was faster than him.

The moment the action signal was given, Lin Ning had already moved.

His enhanced body erupted with terrifying speed. He streaked across the ground like a shadow. Just as Senior Engineer Gao Yayin's hand touched the edge of her pocket, his left hand had already clamped firmly onto her wrist!

"Snap!"

A counter-joint technique was executed. Senior Engineer Gao Yayin let out a grunt of pain, her entire arm was twisted behind her back, and her body was slammed onto the ground.

Another team member quickly stepped forward and pulled a palm-sized black plastic box from the inner pocket of her trench coat.

It was a strong magnetic eraser. Just by pressing the button, it could instantly destroy the data on all magnetic storage devices nearby.

That was close.

Senior Engineer Gao Yayin was handcuffed and pulled up from the ground.

Her wig was askew from the struggle, revealing her real, short black hair underneath.

Lin Ning saw that completely different face and couldn't help but gasp. This could be called the art of disguise!

She raised her head and looked at Lin Ning first. There was no anger or fear in her eyes, only a knowing calmness.

"It's you!" Her voice was very soft, almost inaudible. "The delivery guy from the lobby that day. You guys have been targeting me for a long time?"

Lin Ning did not speak.

Chen Zhi walked over, signaling for the team members to take her away, and then he looked at Senior Engineer Gao Yayin's carry-on suitcase.

The suitcase was opened. Inside were only a few changes of clothes, cosmetics, a passport, and a wallet. No hard drive.

"Where is the hard drive?" Chen Zhi asked.

Senior Engineer Gao Yayin tugged at the corner of her mouth, revealing a mocking smile. "I don't know what you are talking about."

She was taken away.

Chen Zhi stood in place, looking at the items in the carry-on suitcase, his face so gloomy it could drip water.

Lin Ning walked over, feeling like a bone was stuck in his throat. "Brother Chen..."

"The hard drive isn't on her," Chen Zhi said.

Lin Ning felt as if he had aged ten years in an instant.

"She gave it to someone else. 'Greyhound' Zhao Xiaoqiang, or perhaps there is a third person we don't know about. Or maybe it has already been sent out..." Chen Zhi's voice grew lower and lower.

A moment later.

He looked at Lin Ning with complicated eyes. "You did a great job today. Without you, she would already be in Singapore by now."

Lin Ning was not happy because of Chen Zhi's praise. If he had a choice, he would rather they had found the hard drive instead of Senior Engineer Gao Yayin.

Chen Zhi saw his disappointment and patted his shoulder. "We will find it."

His voice carried an unquestionable ruthlessness. "Senior Engineer Gao Yayin's arrest is just the beginning. The network behind her, the people she handed things off to, the things she sent out... we will dig them out one by one."

The airport's broadcast continued; Flight SQ501 was delayed due to an "incident," and passengers were discussing it in hushed tones.

Chen Zhi's back, which had been slightly hunched just a moment ago, straightened again. "You should go back and rest first. We have to interrogate Senior Engineer Gao Yayin, so we won't be able to see you off."

Chen Zhi did not exchange much pleasantry with Lin Ning; after today, they could be considered comrades-in-arms.

Lin Ning stood in the noisy hall, watching Chen Zhi and his team's backs, his heart feeling incomparably heavy.

If he didn't have the ability, it would be one thing, but—the Eye of Insight...

He asked himself, would he be exposed? Could he bear the risk of exposure? Should he watch their own hard work be stolen by robbers and used against them? The war was already won, yet he still had to watch those who carry the heavy burdens burn themselves to protect him?

Outside the window, the night was deep. The city's lights stretched to the horizon like a galaxy that would never go out.

Lin Ning made a certain decision and quickly chased out of the hall.