National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 1072 - 1005: Both Spontaneous and Premeditated

Chapter 1072: Chapter 1005: Both Spontaneous and Premeditated

The reference to Midway Island is a well-known story, and decades later, if China’s territory were to extend there, "AF lacks fresh water" might just become an idiom.

The cipher-related story it embodies is also straightforward, so Qi Changye and the others quickly grasped Jiang Yuan’s analysis.

"So, the oil printing facility is the place Li Dianzhong often references in his ciphers?" Qi Changye pondered, then spoke: "Is that because he works there? No, a courier shouldn’t expose his workplace to other members of the spy group. Repeated exposure is even more unnecessary. In that case, the oil printing facility must be the operational target of this spy group?"

After speaking, Qi Changye glanced at Jiang Yuan and then at Liu Jinghui.

Liu Jinghui replied, "You’re the espionage expert; you decide."

"What use is it if I decide? What matters is the actual evidence." Qi Changye deflected responsibility, then added, "I’ll share your idea with the experts. Now, can you explain your analysis in detail?"

"I’ll write it down for you." Jiang Yuan, whose expertise in cryptography had yet to be fully recognized, was in no rush to showcase his abilities. He calmly wrote down several pages and handed them over to Qi Changye to pass on to the cryptography experts for verification.

Qi Changye hurriedly contacted headquarters to update the information.

He couldn’t possibly know all the relevant intelligence, so he simply asked about whatever he encountered.

After a few rounds of back-and-forth communication and document exchanges, Qi Changye cast a deep look at Jiang Yuan before heading into a private office.

Half an hour later, Qi Changye came out and said, "It’s confirmed. ’Three’ indeed represents the oil printing facility."

Jiang Yuan didn’t ask how it was confirmed and instead inquired, "What next?"

Jiang Yuan had provided more than just one word. Moreover, with this simplest monoalphabetic cipher substitution, the more known words there are, the easier it becomes to deduce the meanings of other words.

Based on the sheer volume of classified advertisements Li Dianzhong posted in middle columns, the experts in Qi Changye’s unit should be able to extract quite a bit of intelligence.

Qi Changye’s tense expression softened with a smile, and he shook his head, saying, "I don’t know how you learned this, but in such a short time, you’ve turned into a cipher-breaking expert... Our people took a closer look; the oil printing facility where Li Dianzhong worked truly handles classified operations."

"What kind of operations?"

"Printing materials for certain entities, including classified research institutions’ subsidiary units. This includes promotional materials as well as documentation for meetings." Qi Changye paused before continuing, "These subsidiary units themselves aren’t classified, but many attendees at their meetings are researchers or cadre members from the institutes, working part-time. The materials prepared for their meetings may not only pertain to these subsidiaries but also to the meetings of the research institutes themselves."

The subsidiary companies Qi Changye referred to essentially functioned as satellite companies for various entities. In China during the 90s, the prevailing mindset was that securing a position in a state-owned entity, so-called "formal employment," was desirable. Due to limited staffing allocations, some units sought to solve unemployment issues for their workers’ children by establishing satellite companies. What they did wasn’t significant; whether they turned a profit wasn’t important either—it was purely about addressing employment burdens.

Under such circumstances, the operations of these satellite companies were often a mess. If there was one thing they took most seriously, it was organizing meetings.

Not only the satellite companies but also research institutes, academies, and corporate units all needed to organize meetings—and they approached them with great earnestness. The closer a leader was to the core operations, the more documentation they needed to prepare—even if it might not be used, it still had to be ready.

With widespread funding shortages, some leaders opted to save money by assigning the task of printing or oil-printing conference materials to their own or associated satellite companies—a form of repurposing waste.

Who would have thought that someone like Li Dianzhong would set their sights on this waste?

Afraid that Jiang Yuan might not grasp this, Qi Changye specially explained, "The factory Zhang Xiaoming worked at is a ministry-affiliated facility, and because of its large scale, it handles many operations within Beijing. Oil printing facilities like these satellite companies are often bundled within."

"What kind of meetings would be classified?" Liu Jinghui asked, "If they’re just scavenging treasures from garbage, wouldn’t the spy group pose only a limited threat?"

"It’s hard to say for now, given that the spy organization hasn’t been dismantled, so no damage assessment has been conducted." Qi Changye grew more serious as he spoke, then slowly added, "Let me give you an example. It’s now known that many achievement-recognition conferences at the time were organized at that factory. In theory, the oil printing facility would print numerous documents and materials used in those recognition meetings. They might not be highly classified, but..."

"They’ve already reached a classified level?"

"Correct. It also depends on the awareness of the people involved. For example, based on my inquiries, back then, participants from certain local units were reluctant to write down sensitive data, fearful it might get lost during transit. However, once they arrived here, they would have the oil printing facility type out some data in documents because it was more visually presentable for the higher-ups."

Liu Jinghui’s expression darkened: "That poses significant risks."

"Indeed. So, Zhang Xiaoming probably wasn’t killed for advocating layoffs but rather because he pushed for dismantling these satellite companies altogether. Fortunately, Li Dianzhong was silenced by his own people." Qi Changye sighed, "For now, the loophole seems to have been patched up."