The veteran detective looked away. Seeing Shi Qiang's triumphant expression, he knew his student had once again moved a step ahead of him.
"Ye Wenjie... I seem to have heard of her."
The light from the overhead fluorescent lamp was somewhat piercing. For the first time in many years, the veteran detective felt discomfort from this familiar glow.
"Did she used to work at Red Coast?"
"Red Coast?" Chang Weisi asked.
Seeing Chang Weisi's expression, David suddenly realized that, up to this point, the plot had not yet fully unfolded. Even though the Planetary Defense Council (PDC) had been established, Chang Weisi did not necessarily have the authority to access all unclassified documents in the national archives.
"That was a military base located deep in the Greater Khingan Mountains of Inner Mongolia." Because the era was so distant, the veteran detective had to prop his head up with one hand to save energy and sink deeper into his memories.
"It was classified as Top Secret Level 1 within the national defense security projects, designed to counter space threats from the US and the Soviet Union. It's normal that you wouldn't know about it." The detective shook his head.
"At that time, I was ordered to enter the Red Coast military base under the guidance of the PLA Second Artillery Corps to investigate the accidental deaths of the base political commissar and a base engineer during high-altitude operations."
"The name of the Chief Engineer who perished was Yang Weining." The detective's voice grew heavier. "And he was Ye Wenjie's husband. Since I visited Yang Weining's widow at the time as a representative of public security, I was left with a very deep impression of Ye Wenjie—a woman who had just lost her husband, was pregnant, yet remained persistent in her work."
David nodded.
Meanwhile, through the PDC internal network, Chang Weisi quickly applied to view the long-sealed documents in the archives. Almost instantly, approval from the higher-ups appeared.
"I think your guess is correct." General Chang turned his military laptop toward the group. The data clearly showed Ye Wenjie's detailed history, from her time at Red Coast to her teaching at Yan University until her retirement and subsequent re-employment.
"Yang Dong's mother and Shen Yufei's supervisor is indeed the Red Coast researcher you mentioned: Ye Wenjie."
The atmosphere in the room suddenly became oppressive. No one expected that a single shooting incident would pull back the curtain on so many personal connections and old stories. Even more surprising was that, aside from the core members of the PDC, the auxiliary personnel involved in the "scientist suicide cases" all seemed to have intricate ties to the subjects of the investigation.
"Back to the point." For the first time in public, the veteran detective lit a cigarette. He didn't speak immediately; it seemed that as long as he watched the faint glow of the burning tip, his mind could regain its steady footing.
"Since you feel you know Shen Yufei better than anyone," the detective said, his gaze toward David softening considerably, "then tell us—which direction will they flee?"
"Northwest." David pretended to be lost in thought for a moment. In reality, he was looking at the psionic marker that had just crossed the border, considering how to explain it.
"The Western world, led by the US, is equally dangerous for 'global fugitives' like them. Even on the high seas, as long as they are on a vessel from a Western nation, they risk being arrested by Marines at any time."
"If I were them, I would never flee toward the dangerous West. Moreover, Shen Yufei is much smarter than I am. So, I believe the Dutch passenger ship is mostly a smokescreen they released."
David's answer, though filled with subjective assumptions and impractical deductions, gained Shi Qiang's approval.
"Great minds think alike. I also don't think they'd flee toward the West." Shi Qiang's gaze toward David was full of appreciation. Compared to the rookie officers at the station, he liked this courageous and agile young man more and more.
"Then where will they go? Africa? Latin America? The infrastructure there is abysmal, and the governments are mostly corrupt and incompetent. If they really escape to those places..." Chang Weisi expressed deep concern.
David didn't answer. Although from the route, Shen Yufei and Pan Han looked like they were going to use the former Soviet rail lines to cross Siberia and disembark in Central Asia, rather than heading to Africa or Latin America. If they truly wanted to reach those two regions, planes or sea transport would be much more convenient. The ETO had its own fleet; given their abundant funds, acquiring a few private jets wouldn't be difficult.
David suspected they wanted to flee to Central Asia or head south to Arab nations. However, he didn't intend to inform Chang Weisi and the others. He couldn't explain why his guesses about their whereabouts were so accurate, and doing so would inevitably raise Sophon's suspicions.
Furthermore, with a league formed by the strongest national machines of humanity, once they cleared the smokescreen created by the Trisolaran Sophons, would their reconnaissance capabilities really be much weaker than his psionic powers?
"Very well. That's it for today. I will inform the consulates to notify our allies to strengthen defenses in Africa and the Americas." Chang Weisi nodded slightly. Faced with the sudden leads, he was eager to put his body—stiff from working on the "scientist suicide cases"—into motion.
'Africa and the Americas.'
Hearing Chang Weisi's words, a flash of surprise appeared in the veteran detective's eyes. As a leader of the Third World, for a century, the East has been utilizing the bipolar confrontation and the collapse of old colonial rule to gradually reclaim spheres of influence from the old powers in Africa and maintain political balance. And Latin America—
"Good news." Chang Weisi put down his phone and breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the official response in his inbox. "The Americans have decided to conduct a small-scale maritime military exercise in Panama within three days."
"For now, the momentum is still on our side."
...
It was late at night by the time David returned to the hotel. He sat on the bed, casually placing his ID—stamped with the "Planetary Defense Council" seal—on the nightstand. Then, he sat cross-legged and opened the system panel.
[David | Race: Human]
[Class: Psyker]
[Psionic Level: Manifest Grade 2 (1/20)]
[Skills: Psionic Precognition / Astral Projection]
[Equipment: Abominable Intelligence]
[Remaining Warp Salvage Attempts: 4]
Although the last exploration of the lunar base cost David less than two points, assisting the PDC in the investigation had unexpectedly earned him many points from the police side, thanks to his connection with Shi Qiang.