I am a Big Player
Chapter 495 - 489, Tricked Steve (Second Update)_1

Chapter 495: 489, Tricked Steve (Second Update)_1

Ren He wasn’t in a hurry, so Steve didn’t need to be either. Ren He had even specifically instructed not to let this matter affect the other’s Hawaii vacation—after all, it was already quite embarrassing to disrupt someone’s normal life...

Steve never felt like Ren He had anything to be embarrassed about! He returned to New York with his wife and kids and, in the dead of night, drove to a suburban house, cautiously surveying the surroundings before entering.

This was his safe house, where all the equipment he had ever used was stored in the basement. The house was registered under a name that had nothing to do with him, so even if this safe house was compromised, it wouldn’t be a problem.

The CIA’s work is primarily overseas, and they have no law enforcement authority in the United States. Setting up safe houses abroad is unregulated, but it’s not the same domestically.

Steve had mostly worked in Europe before, but that didn’t hinder his familiarity with his own country.

Many people might imagine a safe house as a place brimming with weapons—a scene straight out of science fiction. However, the very definition of a safe house is merely a hiding spot, the so-called "three burrows of the cunning rabbit" no more than that.

Steve’s cash and items he could use to escape were all here. When danger loomed, he would quietly stay put, and if the situation turned irreversible, he would disguise himself, take new documents and equipment, and leave.

Some say a safe house is never truly safe, which was why after Steve had set up this one, he had only visited it three times. He wanted to keep it forever out of the US government’s sight.

Stealing undetected is quite difficult, but for Steve, it just meant more work was needed.

There were different sets of clothes for various stages, strict surveillance of the route to be done, and during investigations, he had to ensure he didn’t appear within the range of the surveillance cameras. Although he couldn’t yet discern what Ren He was up to, he always felt that Ren He was planning something big.

In case, he thought, in case something major happened, the US government would assuredly not spare any suspect.

Steve arrived at a house on the list, starting his search from the garage. An expert in hiding and finding things, what surprised him was that on the very first night, he stole a mobile hard drive that seemed to be what Ren He had mentioned—wedged under the car chassis, tough for others to find but trivial for Steve.

Not just under the chassis, there was another drive stuck on top of a cabinet in front of the passenger seat, making a total of two hard drives!

Ren He had previously mentioned that the data was measured in terabytes, and that the hard drives should be easy to locate, but Steve had never thought they would be this easy to find!

He decided to end the night’s operation there and planned to go back and see what was on the hard disk before understanding what Ren He was really up to.

What kind of thing would make Ren He offer such a high bounty? There were 50 people on the list, and stealing from one was worth 100,000 US Dollars. The total sum reached a windfall of 5 million US Dollars.

With that money, he could not only retire comfortably but also lead a very affluent life!

Steve was unaware that Ren He had really splurged for revenge, just for those seven days in the sewers without a glimpse of daylight.

After returning home, Steve disconnected the internet cable, turned on his computer, and connected the hard drive, eager to know what Ren He was really planning. Disconnecting the internet was to prevent anything on the drive from exposing him through the network, and he also planned to dispose of the computer afterward.

Caution, caution, and more caution—that was all Steve could think of at the moment.

And the reason Ren He had entrusted Steve with this task was precisely that he knew Steve was cautious, and he himself didn’t want to be exposed.

However, when Steve opened that unprotected hard drive and saw those densely-packed files and pictures, he instantly regretted everything!

The file names were very straightforward—it was a collection of documents issued by the National Security Agency, there were even intercepted files from the CIA and FBI. Some of the CIA files were all too familiar to Steve!

Damn, he had boarded a thief’s ship!

All that talk about business competition, all those crappy codes—Steve now clearly understood that the person Ren He had made him steal from worked as a security consultant for the National Security Agency.

It was also at this time that he realized that agencies under the National Security Agency actually operated in the guise of ordinary cybersecurity companies.

This was the result of an information imbalance between the CIA and the National Security Agency, and even many of the CIA’s operations were based on information from the National Security Agency.

Looking at the screen full of classified documents, Steve wished he could smash the computer and destroy the hard drive! If this matter was ever exposed, it would definitely lead to an irreconcilable confrontation.

Moreover, within these files, he found many things that even he was unaware of, such as the Prism program!

At one glance at this program, he broke out in a cold sweat. It turned out that all of the everyday online and phone information of the masses was being monitored, and with just a keyword, they could trace anyone’s slightest clue!

Steve thought he’d better reflect on whether he had ever said anything he shouldn’t have...

Could that young man from across the ocean have come for the Prism program, or perhaps he already knew about the existence of the Prism program? Otherwise, why did Ren He insist that he must use an encrypted satellite phone during their previous conversation?

Steve was sensitive enough to guess that Ren He’s target might be the Prism program, but what benefits could Ren He gain from it? He was well aware that Ren He didn’t have much to do with the Chinese government. If it wasn’t the government, who would be interested in such a plan?

Ridiculous!

Steve picked up the satellite phone and called Ren He, his tone very unfriendly, "Is this how you screw over your own old friend? Didn’t you say it was just ordinary business code?"

To be honest, Steve had almost believed him previously, because the people on the list Ren He provided led lives that seemed completely undefended, making it unimaginable that they could have anything to do with national security! If this weren’t the case, Steve would rather risk being convicted of theft than get involved in this!

What a scam! Is this how the National Security Agency operates?

Yet Ren He wasn’t surprised at all. When Snowden fled the US for Hong Kong, the US only then began a real manhunt... and even that ended in failure...

Indeed, the operations of American spies are nowhere near as formidable as depicted in movies, of course, except perhaps in war-torn countries like those in the Middle East...

"Find something?" Ren He asked cheerfully, as if Steve’s knowledge of the truth meant that he had indeed succeeded!

"Is it the Prism program you want?" Steve asked coldly, "Ten million US dollars, all the data is yours, and we’re even. If you try to blackmail me again, we’ll both go down."

Steve felt that if he continued dealing with Ren He, he’d sooner or later die because of the money!