National Forensic Doctor
Chapter 1261 - 1188: Capture and Transfer

Chapter 1261: Chapter 1188: Capture and Transfer

Li Hong weaved through several streets, taking advantage of the time while crossing the road to glance around before heading towards the alley of her destination. At the corner, she tucked a note into a milk crate and bent up a corner of the metal nameplate on the crate.

This was their agreed-upon dead drop, used only once and only at the most critical moments. As their instructor had put it, the messages received here were essentially farewell letters.

Li Hong had listened with a smile that day and had even fantasized about writing a poetic farewell letter, so that when everyone reunited, they could read it aloud dramatically amid laughter and tears.

When the moment actually came, Li Hong realized that reality left no room for poetry. Though reality exists in pursuit of eventual poetry, all poetry is birthed from the overflow of reality.

When Li Hong left the office, she only had time to write three words with a pen: Leave, Plan 2.

This referred to Evacuation Plan 2. Each person had a different route to escape, but it didn’t mean destroying all information or fleeing recklessly. It was more about proper transition and only pausing work. If there was a leak, this route wouldn’t normally be chosen.

Li Hong was aware that Ren Kuangshan and Liu Bangshun had been captured, suspecting that a single line had led to them, hence choosing Plan 2.

The most important aspect was that choosing Plan 2 did not signify abandoning everything in a total retreat. She was not prepared to discard the network she had established over the years, which was her lifeline. Li Hong was even confident that if she were captured, her superiors would find a way to rescue her, or at least exchange her back.

Years ago, a Vietnamese-born Chinese had managed such an efficient and large spy network that after her capture, even Obama intervened to negotiate her release.

Li Hong knew her value was not as significant, so she needed to protect the network she had meticulously woven.

She looked one last time at the milk crate, hoping her comrades would strictly adhere to the protocol and collect their milk on time.

Li Hong closed her eyes briefly before turning and swiftly leaving. When she reappeared under surveillance, it was as if she were casually shopping, frequently entering and exiting small stores along the street.

In one of the shops, Li Hong discreetly swapped SIM cards, sent her final message, and then broke the card and disposed of it. Taking advantage of the time while changing clothes, she removed the socks hidden in her shoe soles and spat out the chewing gum in her mouth.

As long as she passed another checkpoint, Li Hong would be flagged by gait monitoring or facial recognition, and those ordinary image investigation officers would belatedly check surveillance and trace her deliberately undisguised trail to reconfirm her location.

At that moment, Li Hong even had the time to look up and assess the number and status of the surrounding surveillance, feeling utterly relaxed.

She had done everything she could, and these foolish policemen probably still had no idea what was happening.

The thought amused Li Hong. Her true opponents should have been those unspeakable mysterious departments. Unfortunately, the government here was too inefficient. Such an important matter hadn’t been escalated up, allowing her to benefit from the oversight.

Even so, what could those so-called mysterious departments do about her? She had executed her plan so perfectly that, even if they mobilized elite forces, they might still remain clueless about what had transpired.

...

Changyang City Image Detection Command Center.

Wei Shikan was shaking coffee beans with his Commander C40 grinder while watching Li Hong insert a note in the alley on the screen, exclaiming in bewilderment, "Why is she so brazen?"

Liu Wenkai, with nothing much to do, was imitating Wei Shikan in making coffee, and said, "She probably hasn’t encountered someone like Captain Jiang."

Wei Shikan was slightly perplexed, "Can’t the cameras in front pick her up?"

"There are more cameras in one district of Changyang than there are policemen, and the coverage is extensive. Knowing which camera to watch is the key." Liu Wenkai, a seasoned detective, had long attended multiple courses on image investigation.

Wei Shikan understood a little but not much. Unlike others who dare not ask if they don’t understand, he asked purely out of curiosity and indifference: "The milk crate just now, that wasn’t an ordinary camera, right?"

"A drone flew over temporarily. We had to circle quickly to avoid getting detected."

"Right. Couldn’t we just have the drone follow her all the time?" Wei Shikan asked.

This question left Liu Wenkai speechless, and he subconsciously looked towards Jiang Yuan.

The Image Investigation Captain coughed a couple of times and said, "There are mainly three reasons. First, there are airspace restrictions. There are places in the city center where drones are not suitable to fly and are prohibited. The second point is the complex city sky background. Normally when looking up, drones might not be visible against the sky, but with a building as the background, or when pollution is heavy or light shines on it, one can spot it. We often just fly the drones during reconnaissance, but at Captain Jiang’s level, it’s disdainful to do it so crudely."

"There shouldn’t be airspace restrictions on such a major case," Wei Shikan’s thinking was first to consider breaking the rules.

The Image Investigation Captain shook his head helplessly and said, "If today a case needs airspace restrictions to be broken, tomorrow someone might use it as a pretext to cause trouble. Of course, we don’t need to consider such things."

"What’s the third point?"

"The third point is condition constraints. For example, when she enters this alley, we have to position the camera a bit precisely from high above. If the angle is too steep, we wouldn’t see the situation over here. If the drone is always hovering, experienced people could spot it against the different city backgrounds. Captain Jiang directs us to fly over only when necessary and leave immediately, much like a satellite." The Image Investigation Captain added a compliment, "Indeed more challenging than maneuvering satellites."

"Is it challenging?" Wei Shikan looked at the Image Investigation Captain and then at Jiang Yuan, occasionally issuing commands, wondering whether he should consider "seeing is believing."

The Image Investigation Captain didn’t understand the point, only assuming Wei Shikan was complimenting Jiang Yuan, so he said, "Everything is like that. For those who know, it’s not difficult; for those who don’t, it’s impossible."

"Right." Wei Shikan nodded, then continued to shake the hand grinder while attentively observing Jiang Yuan’s operation.

At the same time, Yu Wenshu was even busier.

Several vehicles disguised as streetcars, which were actually streetcar cameras, were positioned at the mouth and end of the alley, with one car directly parked beside the milk box, disguised in a sentinel mode, indeed operating in a sentinel mode, monitoring the milk box.

Although it seemed a bit obvious, in reality it was indeed a bit obvious, but in this era, domestic streetcars were already ubiquitous. Spies coming for the exchange, no matter how unwilling, could only face the streetcar cameras to open the milk box.

And this scene didn’t wait too long.

Just after noon, a man in an administrative jacket passed by the alley with a bag under his arm.

He casually glanced at the milk box, obviously paused, then pretended to reach for a cigarette, and entered the convenience store next door.

Once out, the man eagerly lit a cigarette, walking and inhaling, and as he passed the milk box, he casually took out a key and unlocked the milk box.

He opened it twice. The man took out the bottled milk inside and let a slip of paper slide into his wrist.

Thunk.

Before he could turn around, the man was pinned against the wall by two sturdy action team members.

Then, they covered his mouth and pushed him into the car beside them.

With no surveillance in the alley and entry and exit personnel already recorded, this capture was essentially a semi-secret arrest, giving the task force at least a few hours to interrogate him.

"Zhang Wutian, deputy researcher at the Photonics Research Institute..."

"The content on the slip, go, number 2."

In the command post, the information on the man who had just been captured was quickly retrieved.

"Arrest him! Interrogate him." Song Tiancheng had no more hesitation.

"I think we can hand it over now." A white-shirted man standing in front of Song Tiancheng spoke up, "Leave the rest to us to investigate."

"Fine, it’s not convenient for us to continue the investigation anyway." Song Tiancheng agreed without any hindrance, as he was originally here to oversee the academician murder case. Reaching this step was sufficient.

The white-shirted man in front of him thanked him, then turned to Jiang Yuan, saying, "Let Jiang Yuan follow us for a while, we just happen to need..."

"That’s not possible." Song Tiancheng resolutely refused: "We have plenty of cases, and if you need to transfer people, go through the proper channels."

Wei Shikan watched with his face turning red, unable to imagine that if one day he were contested by mysterious big shots and military policemen, his old man would be so amused, probably enough to laugh his butt off.

"I want to learn this." Wei Shikan placed the rich, oily coffee in front of Jiang Yuan.

"Coffee?" Jiang Yuan looked at Wei Shikan.

"Image Investigation..." Wei Shikan pointed at the screen and asked Jiang Yuan, "Captain Jiang, teach me, please. I will do whatever you say!"

Liu Wenkai, standing nearby, couldn’t help but glance over: "Don’t say such things, you don’t know..."

"Captain Jiang!" Wei Shikan interrupted Liu Wenkai, only looking at Jiang Yuan, "I am very obedient, you can teach me anything, and I will learn it seriously."

Before Jiang Yuan could speak, a system option popped up in front of him:

Task: The Second Generation Also Has Woes.

Task Content: Guide Wei Shikan in learning image investigation technology, allowing him to gain recognition beyond his background—second-generation individuals not only need their own lives but also need to prove their choices to their elders. They have acquired a lot, but what they have to bear... is only this much. Fulfill Wei Shikan’s wish, preventing him from falling into endless joy... and pain.

After the prompt on the screen disappeared, Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but scrutinize Wei Shikan up and down.

One has to admit, the second generation is indeed a bit fortunate, not only enjoying a comfortable and affluent life but also having external support when they want to advance.

Jiang Yuan could only nod, taking a sip of the coffee Wei Shikan offered, and said, "Alright. You can learn, but you must follow orders and observe the rules, understand?"

"Understood!" Wei Shikan exclaimed, shouting, "Master!"

Everyone in the command room turned their heads, except for Wei Shikan, who grinned like a "Yu Wu Leaf Monkey."