Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 162 Deadly Chip

After leaving Hu Ruoxi's villa, Wu Zhiyuan received an encrypted message from Li Xiaoyu: Gao Bowen finally made his move tonight. He just left the milk tea shop and was acting suspiciously. We are following him and have now entered Xiangyang Village in the east of the city, which is slated for demolition.

Wu Zhiyuan's spirits lifted, and he replied: Keep your distance, prioritize your own safety and concealment, find out Gao Bowen's contact target, and if necessary, try to get close for reconnaissance, but do not alert the enemy.

Under the cover of night, Li Xiaoyu and Xiao Zhu followed Gao Bowen at a distance.

At this time, most of the houses in Xiangyang Village were vacant, with only a few households still remaining.

Gao Bowen weaved through the alleys, cautiously looking back from time to time.

Finally, he slipped into a tiled house with a courtyard wall.

Li Xiaoyu and Xiao Zhu exchanged a glance, indicating that they needed to go around to the back of the house; otherwise, with a courtyard in front, they wouldn't be able to hear anything at all.

Under the moonlight, the two tiptoed around to the back of the tiled house.

They kept their heads down and walked along the base of the wall to avoid being seen by the people inside the house.

A window had its curtains drawn, but there was a small gap.

Gao Bowen was unaware that he was being followed.

A few days ago, he went to a bubble tea shop and shook off many tails, which made him extremely confident, thinking that the tracking skills of the national security personnel were nothing special.

After arriving at the milk tea shop, he remained silent for a few days, partly to await instructions from his superiors and partly to observe the situation.

The room was dimly lit, with only a low-wattage incandescent bulb.

Gao Bowen sat facing an elderly man with white hair and glasses.

Li Xiaoyu peeked through the gap in the curtains, her movements cautious, and suddenly recognized the old man as Ding Zhiyuan, the old expert from Dadi Company who had been dismissed for leaking secrets!

She had seen Ding Zhiyuan's photo before.

Why does Ding Zhiyuan live in an urban village?

She crouched under the window, not daring to peek out rashly, for fear of being discovered by Gao Bowen.

"Has anyone noticed?" That was Ding Zhiyuan's voice.

"No. You have to trust my counter-tracking abilities. When they came a few days ago, they made a huge fuss, but I easily shook them off. Those rookies, do they even deserve to be my opponents?"

"It's always better to be careful. Look at me, I don't live in the city, I live here."

"Is this your parents' old house?"

"Yes," Ding Zhiyuan said, his tone becoming more serious. "You have no integrity whatsoever! I've done more than enough for you!"

Last time, I risked ruining my reputation by bringing out those data, and what was the result?

You promised me that if I did as you said, you would help my daughter get out of trouble!

Why is she still in captivity?

I don't want anything right now, I just want my daughter to return home safely!

"Mr. Ding, please be patient. The criminal case your daughter is involved in in the United States is complicated and will take time to resolve."

Moreover, the data you provided last time was only interim and had limited value.

What we need is the latest and most core rare earth purification process technology data from Dadi Company.

This is the key to truly exonerating your daughter.

"You framed me!" Ding Zhiyuan said in a low voice, but his anger was barely concealed. "You set a trap for my daughter!"

Then, they threatened me with my daughter's safety! They wanted me to do things for them! You're despicable!

Moreover, you went back on your word and didn't keep your promise!

Last time, you said you'd release my daughter after it was all done, but so much time has passed and she still hasn't come out!

Ding Zhiyuan, tears streaming down his face, cried, "My wife died young, and I only have this one precious daughter. She's my lifeblood! What exactly do you want?"

"Mr. Ding, I have made myself very clear."

"Those technologies are core national secrets; I can't afford to make another mistake!"

Gao Bowen sneered, "Old Ding, isn't it too late to say all this now?"

From the moment you first took the documents out of the company gate, there was no turning back!

Think of your daughter, young, beautiful, and talented. Can you bear to let her spend the best years of her life in a prison in a foreign land?

You should know the laws there; once a conviction is proven, the sentence can be very long.

Mr. Ding, if only you could help us complete this last, and most important, task.

I assure you, your daughter will be free immediately, and we will arrange for her safe return home so that you and your daughter can be reunited.

"As you know, I was fired from my company. Even if I wanted to help you, I was powerless to do so!"

"It's very simple. Although you have left Dadi Company, your prestige remains. Many of the apprentices you trained are now technical backbones, mastering core aspects."

Whether you use the mentor-apprentice relationship or offer them substantial benefits, you can win over one or more of them to obtain complete and up-to-date process flow drawings, key parameters, and data packages.

Funding is not a problem.

"This is sending me to harm my own apprentices! They're all good kids, I raised them myself, how could I..."

"Old Ding, don't put it so harshly," Gao Bowen interrupted him. "This isn't about harming them; it's about giving them a chance to choose a better life."

Think about it, even if they become top experts at Dadi Company, how much would they earn in a year?

As long as they are willing to cooperate, the compensation we offer is an amount they could never earn in their entire lives.

That's enough for them, and for you, to fly far away and live a life free from financial worries.

Isn't this another form of helping them?

Gao Bowen paused, then continued to threaten, "On the contrary, if you refuse, or if something goes wrong on your end and we can't get what we want, Mr. Ding, your daughter's future will truly be ruined."

You're a smart person; you should know what to choose. This isn't a request, it's an order! You have no room for negotiation!

After a long silence, Ding Zhiyuan finally spoke: "I'll give it a try. I don't want money; I just want my daughter to come back safely."

"Of course, we value our reputation most. I will contact you again regarding the specifics of who to recruit and how to proceed."

The target must be someone in a key position who has access to the complete core technology.

Among your apprentices, the one named Zhao Zhiqiang is now the director of the purification workshop.

And there's also Liu Qian, the female PhD, who's the head of the core data analysis group. They're both good candidates. You could start with them.

Ding Zhiyuan was astonished: "How do you know so much?"

Gao Bowen smiled dismissively: "Do you think we came to you just to try our luck?"

Mr. Ding, just do what you're supposed to do and don't have any unnecessary curiosity.

Remember, your daughter's fate is in your hands.

I will let you know the time and method of our next contact.

After speaking, Gao Bowen stood up, walked to the window, and observed the situation outside through the gap in the curtains.

Li Xiaoyu and Xiao Zhu had already pressed their bodies tightly against the wall.

After confirming that there was nothing unusual outside, Gao Bowen went out and disappeared into the night.

After listening to the report, Wu Zhiyuan reported back to Chu Jianguo.

The provincial government office building was still brightly lit late at night.

Inside Chu Jianguo's office, Wu Zhiyuan, Jiang Yongsheng, Li Xiaoyu, Ma Xiangyang, and other core members of the task force gathered.

Chu Jianguo tapped his fingers on the table: "The forces behind Gao Bowen are despicable. They used Ding Zhiyuan's daughter as a hostage to force him to reveal secrets, and they also tried to turn other core technical personnel against him."

Wu Zhiyuan added, "Director Chu, I suggest we try to rescue Ding Zhiyuan's daughter."

As long as his daughter is safe, Ding Zhiyuan is entirely likely to side with us and do something for us.

Based on my assessment, the enemy is definitely not just Ding Zhiyuan, Gao Bowen, and Su Manli; there must be others among them.

Jiang Yongsheng agreed: "Zhiyuan is right. Ding Zhiyuan is now a key figure, both a coerced person and a potential mole we can plant inside the enemy."

But only if his daughter's safety is guaranteed. Otherwise, he won't genuinely cooperate with us.

Chu Jianguo made a decisive decision: "This matter is of great importance and must be reported to Director Han and the ministry immediately."

We need to activate international cooperation channels, through the assistance of embassies and consulates abroad, especially the embassy in the United States, to verify the case involving Ding Zhiyuan's daughter.

Where possible, seek legal and covert means to intervene or rescue.

But this will take time and there is uncertainty.

He looked at Wu Zhiyuan: "Zhiyuan, your task is very important before the results of the high-level coordination are released."

First, the surveillance of Ding Zhiyuan should be relaxed on the surface but tight on the inside.

We need to keep track of his every move to prevent him from being coerced by Gao Bowen into doing something irreversible, but we also need to avoid monitoring him too closely so that Gao Bowen notices something is wrong.

He needs to be in a state that appears free but is actually controlled.

He needs to be able to get in touch with Gao Bowen immediately if Gao contacts him again.

Second, the surveillance of Gao Bowen and Su Manli cannot be relaxed in the slightest.

They are the fish in the open; the goal is to use them to catch bigger fish.

Third, immediately contact the Shield Comrades and secretly inform them of the possibility that Ding Zhiyuan may have been coerced into turning Zhao Zhiqiang, Liu Qian, and other core technical personnel against him.

The company's security department and technical management are required to immediately conduct a thorough review and security reinforcement of all aspects of the latest purification process and all personnel with relevant knowledge of it.

In particular, Zhao Zhiqiang and Liu Qian should be educated in a proper manner to raise their awareness of espionage, but they should not reveal Ding Zhiyuan's situation.

Fourth, you should continue your contact with Hu Ruoxi.

It now seems that the possibility of Hu Ruoxi being directly turned is decreasing, but she is still a target that the enemy is trying to approach and exploit. Moreover, her father's death is likely related to Yang Baocai, who is also likely a spy.

I predict that Yang Baocai will come back and continue to play the emotional card.

I want to remind you of something: when interacting with Hu Ruoxi, you need to be careful to maintain appropriate boundaries. You need to gain her trust, but you also need to be mindful of the limits of your personal feelings.

Wu Zhiyuan's heart skipped a beat, knowing that Chu Jianguo was referring to the subtle development of his relationship with Hu Ruoxi. He said solemnly, "Please rest assured, Director Chu, I understand the disciplinary requirements and will prioritize the mission above all else."

Chu Jianguo smiled slightly: "Zhiyuan, I know you are single now. When we are on a mission, we must not get involved in any emotional entanglements with the people we are investigating. This is a matter of discipline."

However, if this case is settled and Hu Ruoxi is innocent, then it's perfectly acceptable for young people like you to have normal romantic relationships. No one says young people can't date.