Chapter 221

In Lin Gong Guan's study, sandalwood incense curled.

Lin Yu was reviewing documents, the night outside growing darker.

"Knock knock knock."

The door was gently knocked.

"Come in."

Feng An pushed open the door, leading in a solemn-faced Qi Ming Yuan, who strode in quickly. Qi Ming Yuan stood ramrod straight, his immaculate uniform accentuating his bearing, but the urgency in his brow could not be concealed.

"Commander." Qi Ming Yuan got straight to the point, without any pleasantries: "Just received a secret report from Lan Zhou. Sun Lingyun was ambushed while returning to the outskirts of Lan Zhou, shot, and is currently undergoing emergency treatment; his fate is unknown."

Lin Yu's pen paused in his hand.

Qi Ming Yuan took a deep breath, his tone intensifying: "Multiple assassins were found at the scene, their methods extremely professional, some having committed suicide, the traces cleaned up neatly." He paused, then continued: "According to our informant in the Sun Family, Wang Zhenwu and others have concluded that we did this, and the Sun Family's internal sentiments are inflamed."

Lin Yu slowly set down his pen and lifted his head. Upon hearing the words "Lan Zhou outskirts" and "assassins' suicide," his eyes sharpened like a hawk's, as if he could pierce the night and see through the fog behind this.

"Oh?" he said, a cold curve forming at the corner of his mouth, his fingers ceasing their tapping, "They waited until returning to Lan Zhou to act? And left assassins for people to 'discover'?"

He gave a soft snort, his tone laced with undisguised mockery: "This framing tactic is far too obvious. Want to use me, Lin Yu, as a knife to ignite a feud between me and that old fox Sun Dingyuan? Dream on!"

The oil lamp's light flickered across his face, casting shifting shadows.

Lin Yu's gaze swept over Qi Ming Yuan, his eyes bearing unquestionable authority: "Bureau Chief Qi, the Intelligence Bureau of Shen City faces its first major test."

His voice was steady yet each word struck like iron: "I give you 24 hours; mobilize all resources at your disposal to ferret out the mouse hiding behind the scenes, stirring the flames! I want him alive—I need to know who he is and which faction he belongs to!"

Qi Ming Yuan snapped to attention, his military boots' heels clicking together, and replied in a deep voice: "Yes! I guarantee mission completion!"

His eyes flashed with sharpness. This was both immense pressure and a prime opportunity to demonstrate the Intelligence Bureau's value. He gave Lin Yu a standard military salute, then turned and strode away, his steps exuding decisive vigor.

The study returned to silence, only the sandalwood incense still rising slowly. Lin Yu gazed out at the night, his eyes deepening. Someone is playing with fire in Shen City—fine; let them know this fire will scorch whoever lit it.

Shen City Intelligence Bureau headquarters, the Intelligence Analysis Center.

Stepping into this space felt like entering a self-contained, tense world. The vast room was divided into countless work areas, towering file cabinets stretching to the ceiling. Walls were covered with massive maps of Shen City, regional power distribution charts, and various relationship network diagrams, dense red lines and markings revealing the tangled intelligence web.

The air was thick with the mingled scent of caffeine, nicotine, and paper ink. The incessant "tick-tock" of telegraph machines, the urgent ringing of phones, the crisp clack of typewriters, and the low murmurs of analysts wove together into an atmosphere both highly tense and orderly.

Liang Shu Bai stood before a huge glass analysis board, his signature gold-rimmed glasses reflecting the light. The board was already filled with different-colored markers tracing complex logic chains and branches of possibility.

"Everyone," he said, his finger quickly tapping several key points, addressing the newly arrived Gu Mo, Chu Wu Sheng, and Yan Bei Chen, "the timing was chosen at the outskirts of Lan Zhou; this is the first critical point."

His voice low and clear: "The way the assassins were employed clearly points to an organized powerful institution. Combined with our previous purge of Shen City's forces, especially the devastating blow to the Foreigners' forces......"

Liang Shu Bai pushed up his glasses, his gaze sharp: "Only those Foreign agents who luckily escaped and went underground have the capability, motive, and willingness to use such extreme means to frame us and stir internal chaos. Having lost their consulate and open outposts, they must have gone deeper underground, and their actions will only grow more reckless and ruthless."

He drew a heavy circle with a red pen around "Foreign remnants."

Qi Ming Yuan stood to the side, his face grim, killing intent flashing in his eyes: "Old Liang is right! Though the purge was thorough, some always slip through. These rats hiding in the sewers have now jumped out to bite!"

He turned to the Communications Section chief: "Gu Mo, abandon broad surveillance; concentrate all equipment and personnel to screen every possible covert communication method the Foreigners might use—shortwave, underground radios, disguised commercial codes—dig three feet deep if needed to find their contact signals!"

Gu Mo nodded immediately, turned and hurried off to gather his technical staff.

Qi Ming Yuan then looked to the External Operations Department commander: "Old Chu, have your external operations personnel immediately conduct a carpet search and covert surveillance of all previously grasped pre‑day concession networks and possible hiding places for Foreigners! Let no anomaly slip!"

Chu Wu Sheng silently accepted the order, a glint of cold light flashing in his eyes.

Finally he turned to the Special Operations Section chief: "Yan Bei Chen, the action team enters highest alert! The target is the hidden Foreign agents; they are now desperate men—if encountered, kill on sight! But be sure to capture a live one; I need to know who their leader is!"

As a series of orders were issued, the entire intelligence center instantly shifted into high‑gear. All resources were directed toward a single goal: uncover those hidden Foreign agents!

Shen City Intelligence Bureau Technical Department Communications Section monitoring room.

A more oppressive atmosphere than usual hung over this enclosed space. A dozen or so monitors wore headphones, eyes fixed intently on their equipment. No longer conducting broad sweeps as usual, they now performed precise scans of specific bands based on the suspicious areas provided by the analysis center.

Gu Mo personally sat before the latest signal analyzer. This device, issued by the Shadow Office, is cutting‑edge equipment capable of simultaneous multi‑band monitoring and signal analysis. The screen streamed dense data flows, every minute signal fluctuation captured clearly.

"Focus on these areas," he said, pointing to several marked spots on the map, "especially the vicinity of the former concession and the western abandoned industrial zone. These places have complex terrain, ideal for hiding clandestine radios."

The monitors nodded silently, adjusting equipment settings. Each had undergone the Shadow Office's most specialized training and was intimately familiar with every sort of secret communication method.

The wall clock ticked, each second feeling like a hammer blow on everyone's nerves.

Suddenly——

"Section chief!"

Old Zhang of the technical team slammed his hand on the headset, eyes locked on the screen: "Got it! The western abandoned industrial zone! The signal is extremely weak, a military‑grade frequency‑hopping encryption! This encryption matches exactly the Foreign agents' agency communication signatures in our database!"

Gu Mo shot forward like an arrow, grabbed the data port, and his fingers flew across the keyboard. On the screen, a faint but regular frequency‑hopping signal flickered in and out.

"They're using high‑power radios for short, directed bursts!" Gu Mo's eyes lit up. "Their counter‑surveillance awareness is extremely strong—this is definitely professional agents!"

He immediately hit the comms button: "All units, attention! Concentrate all resources and lock onto this signal source! Code‑breaking team, stand by to receive the data!"

The monitoring room instantly erupted.

A dozen or so devices simultaneously trained on the same band, forming a three‑dimensional monitoring net. Technicians' fingers flew, constantly tweaking parameters to capture every data packet.

In the adjacent code‑breaking section, Liang Shu Bai and his expert team were already on high alert.

When the encrypted signal data stream arrived, they immediately went to work. The display flashed complex ciphertext, but for this team equipped with the most advanced decryption system, it was no impregnable fortress.

"It's a variant of the Chrysanthemum Agency encryption!" Wang Team Leader quickly determined, "Although they've made some alterations, the basic structure is still recognizable!"

The experts immediately adjusted their decryption strategy. The Shadow Office's large‑scale computing equipment roared to life, lines of code flashing across the screen, each calculation bringing them closer to the truth.

Sweat soaked their clothes, yet no one paused. Time ticked by second by second.

Finally——

"Success!"

On the screen appeared a clear Japanese fragment:

"……Sun target severely wounded……frame‑up plan succeeded……Mr. Xiaoli Daifu's orders……next step……relocate……"

Liang Shu Bai's eyes narrowed instantly.

Though brief, this message confirmed their suspicion. More importantly, a key name emerged—Xiaoli Daifu!