A technician immediately stepped forward and enlarged the city map projected across the wall.His fingers moved rapidly over the keyboard before three locations were highlighted in red."Boss...there are only three river crossings outside the city that match the route mentioned in the recording." Everyone's attention shifted toward the glowing map.Cai Lang slowly stood from his chair.He walked toward the projection and stopped directly in front of it.His eyes swept across every marked location before he spoke in a low,steady voice."The pendant." His gaze shifted toward the enlarged photograph."The symbol."He looked at the strange graffiti displayed beside it."The black sedan."His eyes moved toward the school photograph."The recording."His expression hardened further."Jun Wei's notebook."
He slowly clenched one hand behind his back. "None of these appeared by coincidence."He turned around and looked directly at everyone gathered inside the office."They're all connected."Nobody dared interrupt him.The secretary opened his notebook while the technicians waited for the next order.Cai Lang's voice became even colder."I don't care how much money it costs."He pointed toward the photograph of the sedan."Find every black sedan carrying that pendant."His finger shifted toward the strange crow symbol."Find every place using this mark."Another step brought him closer to the city map."Search every River Road."He paused briefly before continuing,"Trace every vehicle that crossed those three river crossings during that entire night."
The secretary quickly asked,"Boss...should we limit the search to private vehicles only?" Cai Lang looked at him."No!" His answer came immediately."Cars,Trucks,Vans and motorcycles.Anything that moved through those crossings."The secretary nodded and wrote everything down."Understood." Another technician cautiously raised his hand."Boss...if they changed license plates after leaving the city..."Cai Lang calmly interrupted him."Then find where they changed them."The technician lowered his head."Yes,Boss."
Another employee stepped forward."Boss, the traffic department may refuse to release all the camera archives without authorization. "Cai Lang's expression didn't change."Then buy the authorization."The employee blinked. Cai Lang's eyes turned icy.Nobody spoke again.Cai Lang slowly looked around the room,meeting each person's eyes one after another."From this moment..."His voice echoed clearly through the office."Everything else becomes secondary."He paused."Jun Wei comes first."Everyone straightened their posture and answered together,"Yes,Boss!"
The quiet office instantly erupted into activity.Chairs scraped across the floor and keyboards began clattering nonstop.Phones rang one after another.Maps were enlarged while surveillance footage loaded across multiple monitors.Secretaries hurried between desks carrying fresh reports. Technicians rapidly connected to city traffic databases while others contacted different departments to obtain additional camera access.
Within seconds,the entire investigation team had begun moving at full speed.Cai Lang silently watched them for a brief moment before turning toward the office door.Just as he was about to leave,a hurried voice suddenly echoed from outside."Boss!"The office door burst open.The secretary rushed back inside,breathing heavily from running. His usually neat appearance had become slightly disheveled,and sweat covered his forehead.He stopped only after reaching Cai Lang."Boss..."He took a deep breath before speaking again."We found another traffic camera."Cai Lang immediately turned back.His eyes narrowed."Where?"The secretary quickly handed over a storage drive."Hidden behind an abandoned toll inspection office."He swallowed once before continuing."It wasn't connected to the main surveillance network..."He looked directly at Cai Lang."so whoever erased the other cameras overlooked it."
Cai Lang's expression sharpened."What did it record?"The secretary's breathing remained uneven."Not much..."He inserted the storage drive into the projector."But..."His fingers trembled slightly as he opened the recovered footage."It recorded the driver." Several technicians gathered around the screen.One of them whispered,"If the image quality is good enough..."Another quietly finished,"...we finally have a face."The projector flickered once.Static briefly covered the wall before a grainy nighttime recording slowly appeared.A black vehicle entered the frame.The driver remained hidden beneath the shadow of the roof for several long seconds.
The secretary enhanced the brightness. "Increase contrast!" Cai Lang ordered immediately."Yes,Boss."Another technician adjusted the image."Sharpen frame thirty-two."The blurry silhouette gradually became clearer.The driver's head slowly lifted toward the windshield.Every pair of eyes remained fixed on the screen as the indistinct face slowly...very slowly...began to sharpen.The driver's outline slowly became clearer.His shoulders were broad.He wore a black jacket with the collar pulled high around his neck.A dark cap covered most of his forehead.
The secretary leaned forward unconsciously. "Zoom in another ten percent." The technician obeyed."Yes."The picture enlarged once more and static briefly flashed across the screen before fading away.This time...the driver's jawline became visible.A faint scar could be seen near the left side of his chin."Almost..." the technician whispered. "Just a little more..."Another enhancement loaded.The driver's face slowly lifted toward the windshield as if responding to something outside the vehicle.For a split second,the streetlight reflected across the glass,partially hiding his features.Then the reflection disappeared and his face finally became visible.
The office fell into complete silence.One employee's eyes widened."Boss..."Another technician compared the image against the company's internal criminal database.The computer began searching at full speed. Progress bars flashed across the monitor. One second...Two seconds...Five seconds... The search completed and loud notification echoed through the room."No match."The secretary frowned."Run the national database."The technician nodded and started another search.The office was so quiet that the hum of the computers sounded unusually loud.Cai Lang never took his eyes off the screen.His expression remained unreadable,but his fingers slowly curled behind his back.The second search finished. Another notification appeared."No match." The secretary looked surprised."Nothing?"
The technician shook his head."His face doesn't exist in any registered criminal database."Another employee quietly said, "Maybe he's never been arrested."A different technician immediately disagreed."Or..."He looked toward Cai Lang."...it's not his real face."Cai Lang slowly stepped closer to the projector.His eyes studied every detail of the driver's face.He noticed that there was distance between the eyes.He suddenly pointed toward the driver's jaw."Stop."
Everyone looked at him."Enhance this area."The technician quickly enlarged the lower half of the face.After several seconds, the image sharpened again.Cai Lang narrowed his eyes."There."The secretary followed his gaze."What is it?"Cai Lang spoke quietly."The skin tone."Everyone looked more carefully.The forensic technician suddenly understood."Boss..."He leaned closer to the screen."There's a separation line."He enhanced the image once more.A faint outline slowly appeared beneath the driver's left ear.Running along the jawline. Almost invisible unless viewed frame by frame.
The technician's breathing stopped for a moment."It's..."He looked toward Cai Lang. "A disguise."Another employee stepped closer."A silicone mask?"The forensic technician slowly nodded."Most likely."The secretary stared at the screen in disbelief."So even if we searched every database..."He quietly finished his own sentence."...we'd never find him."Cai Lang's eyes gradually became colder."No."He looked directly at the disguised driver's face."We won't find him." His gaze slowly shifted toward the steering wheel where one gloved hand rested calmly. "We'll find the person who made him wear that mask."
The office fell silent once more.Just then... another technician suddenly called out from the back of the room."Boss!"Everyone turned toward him.He was staring at another monitor with obvious shock."The driver's face isn't the important part."He swallowed once before continuing."Look at the passenger seat..."The projector immediately switched to another enhanced frame.The image slowly zoomed toward the dark interior beside the driver.A shadowy figure sat silently in the passenger seat.As the image gradually sharpened...something metallic hanging from the figure's hand caught the light.
The technician immediately froze the frame. "Enhance the passenger side." he said as his fingers flew across the keyboard."Reducing shadow...increasing exposure...stabilizing motion."The image flickered several times before gradually becoming clearer.Everyone unconsciously leaned closer to the screen. The figure remained completely hidden beneath darkness.A hood covered the head and black gloves concealed both hands.The face couldn't be seen at all.Then...a brief reflection from the dashboard illuminated one hand for less than a second.Something metallic rested loosely between the gloved fingers.The technician enlarged the object. "Another twenty percent."Static flashed across the screen before disappearing.
The object slowly came into focus.It wasn't a weapon or jewelry either.It was a keychain. The secretary frowned."A keychain?" The forensic technician shook his head."No..."He pointed toward the metal object."Look carefully."Everyone narrowed their eyes.The secretary suddenly noticed it."Boss..."His voice became noticeably lower."That shape..."Cai Lang didn't answer.His eyes remained fixed on the screen.The technician enlarged it again.The tiny metal object became much clearer.A small silver rabbit...worn from years of use.One ear was slightly bent,and a faint scratch ran across its body.
Cai Lang slowly stepped closer until he was standing directly beneath the projector.His eyes didn't move from the image for several long Then suddenly he ordered,"Pause."The technician immediately stopped the footage. Cai Lang quietly asked,"Can you make it any clearer?"The technician swallowed."I'll try." He ran another enhancement algorithm.After several moments,the rabbit keychain became even sharper.And bent ear, scratch and every tiny detail became unmistakable.
The secretary suddenly looked toward Cai Lang."Boss!"He hesitated."Do you recognize it?" Cai Lang's fingers slowly curled into a fist at his side.After several long seconds,he finally spoke."I've seen it before."Everyone immediately looked at him.The secretary frowned."Where?"Cai Lang's eyes gradually darkened."On Zheng rui's desk."
The secretary stared at the screen in disbelief."That's impossible..."Another employee immediately shook his head. "Maybe it's just similar."The technician quickly overlaid an old company photograph onto the screen.It showed Zheng rui's desk taken during a company anniversary celebration. Everyone looked carefully.At the corner of the desk...hung from a drawer handle...was the exact same silver rabbit keychain.Every detail matched perfectly.The technician slowly lowered his hands from the keyboard."Boss..."His voice had become noticeably tense."It's identical."
The secretary instinctively took one step backward."How could Secretary Zheng's keychain..."He couldn't finish the sentence. Cai Lang continued staring at the two images displayed side by side.His expression had become frighteningly calm."Run one more comparison."The technician immediately nodded."Yes,Boss."Within seconds,the system displayed its result.
Similarity: 99.8%.
The secretary slowly looked toward Cai Lang."Boss..."His voice almost trembled. "Does this mean..."Cai Lang quietly interrupted him."It means..."His eyes never left the screen."Zheng Rui is connected to this case..."A long silence followed before he finished the sentence."...or someone wants me to believe he is."His gaze sharpened instantly."Those are two very different things." Everyone stared at the matching keychain,realizing the investigation had just taken a completely unexpected turn.
The secretary swallowed hard before speaking."Boss...could someone have stolen it?"Another employee immediately nodded."That's possible.Secretary Zheng has carried that keychain for years.Anyone close to him could've taken it."The forensic technician slowly shook his head."Or..."He looked at the comparison results."Someone deliberately wanted us to notice it."
Cai Lang remained standing in front of the projector.Zheng Rui wasn't careless...He knew better than anyone how investigations worked.If that really was his keychain...there was only one question.Why?...He quietly folded his arms."Replay the footage."The technician restarted the recording.Frame by frame,the sedan rolled across the screen again.Cai Lang watched without blinking. "Stop."The technician froze the image."Go back three frames."Click."Forward one. "Click."Again."
The driver's hand remained steady on the steering wheel.The passenger's gloved hand rested loosely against the door.The silver rabbit keychain dangled from one finger, swaying gently with the movement of the vehicle.Cai Lang narrowed his eyes."Zoom out."The technician obeyed.The interior of the sedan gradually came into view again.Cai Lang studied every detail without speaking. Then something caught his attention. "Wait." Everyone looked toward him.He pointed toward the passenger seat."That isn't hanging from his finger."
The technician leaned closer to the screen. His eyes widened slightly."You're right..."He immediately enlarged the image."It's attached to something."And Another enhancement loaded.The silver rabbit slowly shifted into focus.They noticed that It wasn't hanging freely.It was attached to a zipper.The secretary frowned."A bag?"The technician nodded slowly."Looks like a tactical shoulder bag."Another employee quietly muttered, "Then the keychain wasn't being carried in someone's pocket..."The forensic technician finished the thought."...It was attached deliberately where it could be seen."Cai Lang slowly looked away from the screen."No professional kidnappers accidentally display personal items during an operation."His voice remained calm."Especially not something that can identify them."
The secretary immediately understood. "So..."He looked back at the screen."It was left there on purpose."Cai Lang gave a faint nod."Either to send a message..."He paused."...or to create a false trail."Another technician suddenly spoke."Boss...there's something else."Everyone turned toward him.He had paused the footage at another frame."The passenger moved for just a fraction of a second."He enlarged the image. The gloved hand shifted slightly.As it moved, the sleeve pulled back just enough to expose part of the wrist.A thin black tattoo became visible.
The technician enhanced it repeatedly until the lines became clearer.It wasn't the crow symbol.It was a number 17. The secretary frowned."Seventeen?"Another employee whispered,"A code?"The forensic technician shook his head."Could be a unit number...a rank...or..."He stopped.Cai Lang quietly finished the sentence."...a location."His eyes slowly narrowed.He remembered something almost instantly.Not the number itself...but the way it had appeared before.He turned sharply toward the secretary."Search every report Zheng Rui handled during the last six months."The secretary blinked."Looking for what, Boss?"
Cai Lang's voice became colder."Anything connected to seventeen."The secretary nodded immediately."Yes,Boss."The office turn back into activity. Computers began searching through thousands of archived files while technicians compared old investigations,property records,and surveillance reports.Minutes passed but nobody spoke.Then...one young analyst suddenly stood up so quickly his chair rolled backward."Boss!"Every head turned toward him.He stared at his monitor in disbelief."I found it..."He swallowed before continuing. "Secretary Zheng accessed a sealed file... three days before he disappeared."He slowly turned the monitor toward Cai Lang.On the top of the confidential document,only two words were visible.*Project 17.*
Cai Lang's gaze remained fixed on the title for several long seconds."Project...Seventeen!" he repeated quietly.The young analyst swallowed nervously before speaking.''Boss
...this file was opened exactly three days ago."He quickly pulled up another screen. "The access log confirms it."He pointed toward the monitor."Secretary Zheng was the last person to view it."The secretary immediately stepped closer."Any record of what he did afterward?"
The analyst nodded. "Yes."His fingers moved across the keyboard. "Approximately twenty-three minutes after accessing Project Seventeen...he downloaded several attached documents."He clicked and another window appeared."Ten minutes later...he printed twelve pages."Click."Then..."He hesitated slightly."...he left the company." Cai Lang slowly walked toward the monitor.His eyes scanned every line displayed on the screen."Who authorized his access?"
The analyst immediately answered."No authorization was required."He looked confused himself."Secretary Zheng already had Level Seven clearance."The secretary frowned."Then why was the file sealed?" Another employee quietly replied,"Level Seven allows access...but sealed files are automatically recorded every time someone opens them."The analyst nodded."Exactly." He pointed toward another line."An automatic notification should've been sent to senior management..."His voice slowly trailed off.
The secretary looked at him."Should've?" The analyst's face turned pale."There isn't one." "What do you mean there isn't one?" the secretary asked sharply.The analyst quickly searched again."The notification log is empty."He looked up in disbelief and replied, "Someone deleted it."Cai Lang's eyes slowly narrowed."Not someone... Someone with higher authority than Zheng Rui."
The secretary quietly whispered,"Meaning..." Cai Lang calmly finished,"Whoever erased that notification knew exactly what Project Seventeen was."The forensic technician cautiously stepped forward."Boss...should I try opening the file?"Cai Lang gave a slight nod."Open it."The technician immediately double-clicked the document.A loading symbol appeared on the screen.For several seconds...nothing happened.Then...
*ACCESS DENIED.* The technician blinked. "That's impossible."He quickly tried once more. *ACCESS DENIED.*
The secretary frowned."Use Secretary Zheng's credentials."The analyst complied. After several seconds...*ACCESS REVOKED.* The analyst slowly lowered his hands from the keyboard."His clearance..." He looked at everyone."...was removed."The secretary's eyes widened. "When?"The analyst checked the system log."Boss..."His voice became noticeably lower."Exactly two hours after Secretary Zheng disappeared."
Cai Lang closed his eyes for a brief moment before opening them again. "Someone expected him not to come back."The secretary quietly clenched his fists."Boss..." He hesitated."Do you think Secretary Zheng discovered something inside Project Seventeen?"Cai Lang's gaze remained fixed on the locked document before he finally spoke."No."Everyone looked at him."I think
..."He paused,"...Project Seventeen discovered him." At that exact moment...
Buzz...Buzz...Buzz...One of the technicians' computers suddenly began flashing red.An emergency alert appeared across the screen.
*UNAUTHORIZED LOGIN DETECTED.*
The technician immediately stood up."Boss! Someone just tried to access Project Seventeen again..."He stared at the monitor in disbelief before slowly continuing."...using Zheng Rui's employee ID."
The secretary hurried over first."Is it an old log?" he asked while leaning over the technician's shoulder."Or is someone trying to log in right now?"The technician shook his head quickly."No...this isn't an old record." His hands moved across the keyboard."The timestamp..."He enlarged the screen."Thirty-two seconds ago."The secretary's expression became serious."Trace the connection."The technician nodded."I'm already doing it."Another technician rolled his chair beside him without waiting to be asked."I'll help."The two immediately divided the work.One searched the server logs while the other began tracing the network route.
Lines of code rapidly filled both monitors. After several tense seconds,the first technician suddenly frowned."Boss..."Cai Lang slowly looked toward him."The login didn't come from inside the company."The secretary immediately asked,"Outside the network?"The technician nodded."Yes."The secretary's brows drew together."Location?" The technician stared at the loading bar."Still tracing..."The percentage slowly climbed. Forty-three...Sixty-one...Seventy-nine... Eighty-eight...Then suddenly,the monitor flickered violently and the lines of code disappeared at once. *CONNECTION TERMINATED.*
The technician froze."...It disappeared." Another technician quickly checked the backup server before his face changed. "No..."He slowly turned toward everyone."It didn't disconnect."The secretary frowned. "Then what happened?"The technician swallowed."Someone erased the connection remotely."Another employee muttered under his breath,"They noticed us."The forensic technician immediately opened another recovery program."I'm checking temporary memory."Several long seconds passed before he finally stopped typing."Boss...I recovered one surviving log."
Everyone immediately gathered around his monitor.He enlarged the remaining line of data. *LOGIN LOCATION...PARTIAL MATCH...RIVER DISTRICT NODE 04.*
The secretary's eyes widened slightly.He walked toward the projector and pointed at the city map.His finger stopped near one of the highlighted routes."Boss..."He traced the road carefully."River District Node 04..."His finger slowly moved toward the eastern side of the city."...is less than two kilometers from the eastern river crossing."He looked back toward Cai Lang before continuing."The recording mentioned they would stop at a river crossing."His finger tapped the highlighted bridge."Now this unauthorized login appears beside the same area."He slowly slid his finger along the marked route."We know when they left."His voice became noticeably steadier."And we know which road they took."
Everyone's attention shifted toward Cai Lang.He stared at the map for several long seconds before speaking in a calm voice. "Then..." He slowly lifted his eyes."...we still have a trail."Cai Lang walked toward the center of the conference table and rested both hands against its edge.His sharp gaze swept across everyone present."Listen carefully."The secretary said, "Yes! Boss!" Cai Lang pointed toward the first highlighted bridge."Check every surveillance camera near all three river crossings."His finger moved across the map without hesitation. "Traffic cameras and security cameras.I don't care who owns them."He looked toward another technician."If a camera exists..."His eyes narrowed."...I want its footage."
The technician nodded."Understood." Cai Lang continued issuing orders without pausing."Every toll booth."He pointed toward another location."Retrieve every license plate that passed through after the recording ended."Another employee quickly wrote everything down."Yes,Boss."His finger moved again."Every gas station within a thirty-kilometer radius."He looked toward the logistics supervisor."Fuel receipts.Credit card payments.CCTV. Someone driving that far eventually stops."
The supervisor answered immediately."I'll have teams there within thirty minutes."Cai Lang gave a slight nod before turning toward another group."Cross-reference every vehicle traveling with that van."He looked directly at the data analysts."I don't want only the van."His expression hardened."I want every car that stayed near it for more than two minutes."One analyst raised his hand cautiously."Boss...that could be hundreds of vehicles."Cai Lang looked at him without expression."Then eliminate them."The analyst blinked."Using what criteria?"
Cai Lang answered immediately."Repeated appearances."He pointed toward the map. "Vehicles changing lanes together."Another point."Stopping together and Disappearing together."His voice grew lower."People rarely commit crimes alone." The analyst nodded firmly. "Understood.We'll build movement patterns."Cai Lang turned toward the forensic technician."The crow symbol."The technician immediately responded."We're already searching historical records."Cai Lang shook his head."Not enough."The technician looked confused."Boss?"Cai Lang explained."Search museums. Private collectors, Archaeological records and local folklore."
Everyone looked at him."If it isn't modern..." His eyes became noticeably colder."...then it survived from somewhere."The technician immediately understood."Yes,Boss."The secretary quickly added,"I'll also contact universities and historical researchers."Cai Lang nodded once."Good."Another employee stepped forward."Boss...what about the abandoned warehouse districts?" Cai Lang didn't hesitate."Search them."The employee asked carefully,"All of them?"
Cai Lang's reply came without the slightest pause."Every one."He slowly looked around at every member of his team."I don't care how many doors you have to open."His voice became quieter."I don't care how many false leads you chase."His sharp eyes settled on each of them one after another."But if Jun Wei spent even one minute inside one of those buildings..."He paused briefly."...I want to know which one."No one spoke.Everyone simply nodded.Cai Lang picked up the black coat across the back of his chair.He slipped one arm into the sleeve before fastening the first button of his cuffs with practiced movements.He adjusted his loosened tie with one hand,his expression returning to its usual calm,but everyone present could still feel the anger hidden beneath it.
He looked toward the secretary."Prepare the vehicles."The secretary immediately replied," They're already waiting downstairs."Cai Lang gave a small nod."Notify every field team." His voice remained steady."Nobody acts alone."The secretary answered firmly." Understood."Another employee hurried over."Boss...should we inform the police?" Cai Lang stopped halfway through putting on his coat.He looked at the employee for several seconds before quietly replying,"Not yet."The employee looked surprised."Why?"
Cai Lang buttoned his coat completely before answering."Because I still don't know who I can trust."No one questioned him again.Cai Lang walked toward the door.He stopped with one hand resting on the doorknob before speaking without turning around."I don't want any mistake!" Everyone nodded at the same time.