Chapter 216 Zhao Gang's Intelligence

One week later, Zhao Gang knocked on the door of Lin Mo's office.

"Dr. Lin, I have something to report."

Lin Mo looked up and, seeing Zhao Gang's expression, knew it wasn't a small matter—his brows were furrowed, his eyes were sharp, and he was in a state of high alert.

"Come in and talk."

Zhao Gang walked in, closed the door, then pulled a document from his pocket and placed it on Lin Mo's desk:

"Intelligence forwarded by the Security Bureau. For the past month, overseas organizations have been trying to contact several suppliers on the periphery of the base through third-party companies."

Lin Mo picked up the document and scanned it quickly.

On the list were four companies—one making gas valves, one making precision sensors, one making quartz glass, and one making high-purity graphite. They were all upstream suppliers for the Carbon Nanotubes project.

"How are they making contact?"

"In various ways," Zhao Gang said. "Some are offering high-price acquisitions, some are proposing technical cooperation, and some are offering 'consulting services.' On the surface, they all look like normal business activities, but the Security Bureau's analysis indicates they all point to the same source."

Lin Mo looked at him: "Who?"

Zhao Gang shook his head: "Not locked down yet. But the methods are very professional; they don't look like ordinary corporate spies. Director Fang suspects—"

He paused and lowered his voice: "She suspects it's George's people."

Lin Mo's hand paused slightly.

George.

This name hadn't appeared in a long time. Ever since Black Sparrow was arrested and George fled to South America, the intelligence front had gone quiet. But Lin Mo had always known that man wouldn't just disappear.

"Is there any evidence?"

"No direct evidence," Zhao Gang said. "But the methods are very similar—not contacting core personnel directly, but starting from peripheral suppliers, infiltrating through legal channels, advancing layer by layer, and finally pointing straight to the core."

Lin Mo was silent for a few seconds, then asked: "On the supplier side, has anyone been compromised?"

Zhao Gang shook his head: "No. We gave them a heads-up in advance. But two companies reported back that the other side is offering very high prices, absurdly high. For one company that makes gas valves, the other side is willing to pay three times the annual salary to poach their chief engineer."

Lin Mo's brows furrowed.

Three times the annual salary. This wasn't probing; this was being determined to succeed.

"What's Director Fang's opinion?"

Zhao Gang said: "Director Fang's idea is to conduct anti-espionage education for all staff and increase vigilance. At the same time, the Security Bureau will increase monitoring of suppliers. But she asked me to pass a message to you—"

He paused and looked at Lin Mo: "Once the space elevator is launched, the covetous attention it attracts will be ten times more than that of Nuclear Fusion. You need to be mentally prepared."

Lin Mo nodded without speaking.

At 3:00 PM, Zhao Gang convened an emergency meeting of the security team.

Lin Mo didn't attend, but he knew what Zhao Gang would say—increase vigilance, strengthen patrols, strictly check incoming and outgoing personnel, and re-screen the backgrounds of all suppliers.

Four years ago, Zhao Gang only knew how to say "protect you." Now, he could recite a whole set of anti-espionage protocols.

Li Xiao pushed the door open, her expression somewhat nervous: "Senior Brother, I heard something. Someone wants to steal our technology?"

Lin Mo nodded.

Li Xiao bit her lip: "Carbon Nanotubes?"

"Yes."

Li Xiao was silent for a few seconds, then asked: "Who could it be?"

Lin Mo looked at her without answering.

Li Xiao thought about it herself, then suddenly widened her eyes: "It wouldn't be… George, would it?"

Lin Mo still didn't speak.

Li Xiao's face changed.

In the evening, at the Canteen.

The atmosphere was somewhat oppressive. The usually lively dinner time was exceptionally quiet today. People sat in twos and threes, talking in low voices, their eyes drifting toward the door from time to time.

Zhao Gang sat in a corner with a bowl of noodles in front of him, but he hadn't taken a single bite. His gaze was constantly scanning the people in the Canteen, like a mobile security camera.

Li Xiao walked over with a tray and sat down opposite him: "Brother Zhao, eat."

Zhao Gang shook his head: "Not hungry."

Li Xiao sighed: "You can't go on like this. No matter how big the case is, you have to eat."

Zhao Gang looked at her, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly: "You sure know how to persuade people."

Li Xiao smiled: "I learned it from Senior Brother."

Zhao Gang was silent for two seconds, then suddenly asked: "Xiaoer, why do you think those people want to steal our technology?"

Li Xiao was stunned for a moment, then said: "Because it's valuable, I guess. Carbon Nanotubes, space elevator—take out any one of them, and it's worth hundreds of billions."

Zhao Gang nodded and asked again: "Then why don't they do it themselves?"

Li Xiao thought for a moment: "Maybe… they can't? We have the system, they don't."

Zhao Gang frowned: "System? What system?"

Li Xiao's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly backtracked: "I mean, we have a complete technical system, and they lack that."

Zhao Gang nodded and didn't press further.

Li Xiao secretly breathed a sigh of relief, scolding herself in her heart: Why is my mouth so fast!

Late at night, Lin Mo stood alone in front of the window.

Outside the window, the moonlight over the Gobi Desert was bright, illuminating the entire base in silver white. In the distance, the tokamak-3 device stood silently, like a silent guardian.

He remembered Zhao Gang's words: "Once the space elevator is launched, the covetous attention it attracts will be ten times more than that of Nuclear Fusion."

Ten times.

During the Nuclear Fusion days, there were ghosts, there was Black Sparrow, there was George. Those people almost destroyed the entire project.

What about the space elevator?

How many ghosts would there be? How many Black Sparrows? How many Georges?

He didn't know.

But he knew those people wouldn't give up.

They knew the value of the Carbon Nanotubes. They knew the strategic significance of the space elevator even better. If they couldn't get it, they would try every possible means—theft, sabotage, bribery, infiltration.

Lin Mo took a deep breath, turned around, and walked back to his desk.

He opened his computer and pulled up a document—sky ladder project Safety Plan (Draft)》.

This was a first draft written a few months ago, and he hadn't had time to refine it.

Now, it was time.

He began to type:

"1. Personnel Security Screening System: All scientific research personnel, engineering personnel, and management personnel participating in the sky ladder project must pass the highest level of background screening..."

"2. Supplier Tiered Management System: Based on the level of confidentiality, suppliers are divided into three tiers. Tier 1 suppliers are directly supervised by the Security Bureau..."

"3. Physical Isolation of Core Technologies: Core secrets such as the Carbon Nanotubes formula, weaving technology, and control systems must be physically isolated and completely disconnected from the internet..."

"4. Anti-Infiltration Emergency Mechanism: Establish a 24-hour intelligence monitoring system; if any abnormality is detected, activate emergency response immediately..."

He wrote slowly, carefully weighing every word.

He didn't finish the first part until 3:00 AM.

Saved, encrypted, and closed the computer.

He stood up and walked to the window again.

Outside the window, the moonlight remained.

He thought of the person who had fled to South America.

George.

Where are you?

What are you thinking?

When will you come again?

He didn't know the answer.

But he knew he would be ready.

The next morning, Lin Mo convened a plenary meeting.

In addition to the core team, all project members were present, including the Equipment Section, the Materials Section, and supplier representatives. Everyone who could come came, and the conference room was packed.

Lin Mo stood on the podium, his gaze sweeping over everyone:

"Everyone, something happened yesterday. Someone wants to steal our technology."

The room went quiet.

Lin Mo continued: "The Security Bureau has intervened in the investigation. Zhao Gang will inform everyone of the specific details. But what I want to talk about today is not how to prevent thieves."

He paused, his voice rising a little:

"What I want to say is—what we are doing is valuable. Valuable enough that someone is willing to pay three times the annual salary to poach our suppliers, willing to spend tens of millions to buy our technology, and willing to risk imprisonment to steal it."

He looked at the audience:

"What does this mean? It means we are on the right track. It means what we are doing is a great undertaking. It means the space elevator is something that can truly change the destiny of humanity."

Some people began to nod.

Lin Mo continued: "But this also means that the days ahead will be harder. There will be more people watching us, trying every possible way to snatch it from our hands. We will face more pressure, more risks, and more challenges."

His gaze became firm:

"But I am not afraid. Are you afraid?"

The audience was silent for a second, then someone shouted:

"No!"

Then a second, a third, a tenth—

"No!"

"No!"

The voices grew louder and louder, finally merging into one.

Lin Mo smiled.

"Good. Then let's do this together, to the end."