Chapter 552: Why Didn't You Say So Earlier?

Liu Anhua scrutinized Lin Sicheng carefully: he was in his twenties, with a callow appearance.

Yet he gave off a very composed feeling, not at all fitting for his age group.

What was even stranger was his attitude toward him: that batch of equipment was worth tens of millions, and if things went wrong, it could all go down the drain. But why was this person still so polite when meeting him? It even carried a hint of amiability.

Thoughts whirled back and forth, and Liu Anhua narrowed his eyes: "How did you get in?"

Lin Sicheng was nonchalant: "I'm quite familiar with this place!"

Liu Anhua let out a "Hah": You really dare to brag.

This wasn't a Police Station, but the General Administration of Customs; it was a Ministry.

And regardless of whether it was himself or this young man opposite him who was unnaturally mature, neither was an ordinary person: one side was a person involved in the case, and the other was a suspect.

Just consider this: how much liability would Customs and the Police need to shoulder to dare let a person involved in the case meet the main suspect during the investigation stage? Furthermore, he was a Chinese-American; during detention, the Consulate visited at least once a month, and he could meet with his Lawyer regularly. Moreover, all case-handling procedures and interrogation content were supervised by the diplomatic department.

If the Consul and the diplomatic department found out that the police had arranged for a person involved in the case to meet him, all the evidence would be invalidated, and all the procedures would be illegal. Even if it were a closed case with ironclad evidence.

Convict him? What are you going to convict him with?

Therefore, Lin Sicheng being able to get here had nothing to do with being familiar with the place; it required connections that could reach the heavens.

The more he thought about it, the more wrong it felt, and Liu Anhua narrowed his eyes: Could this person be a fake?

But that wasn't right either: if he were impersonated by the police, that would constitute entrapment, which was also illegal. Even if he confessed everything today, the Judge would not accept it. For a moment, Liu Anhua was suspicious and paranoid, his vigilance spiking to the peak.

In the Command Center, a group of Experts looked at each other in dismay: Why wasn't Lin Sicheng following the script?

It wasn't that his identity couldn't be exposed; this was originally a part of the interrogation plan. But according to the plan, it was supposed to be at the very, very end.

If you introduce yourself the moment you walk in, his guard will be raised to one hundred percent. From then on, no matter what you say, he will filter it through his mind at least three times. With his attention extremely focused and his mindset extremely defensive, let alone breaking through his psychological defenses, he wouldn't even have the slightest emotional fluctuation. Therefore, this interrogation today was equivalent to interrogating for nothing.

And it was hard to say if it might even cause trouble...

One of the Experts couldn't help but ask: "Division Chief Zhao, did we show him the interrogation plan we made?"

Zhao Zongmin nodded: "We did!"

Not only was there a plan, but there were also detailed contingency strategies: what to ask first, what to ask next, how to make him relax his guard, how to apply pressure to him, and so on and so forth.

This included Liu Anhua's attitude, and all the content of his answers had been preset: whether he spoke or not, what he said, whether it was an affirmation or a denial, there were targeted pre-plans.

What's more: the accompanying Deputy Interrogator was the most professional psychology Expert in the Criminal Investigation Bureau. He could judge the suspect's psychological state based on the suspect's tone, expression, body language, and even breathing frequency, and change the rhetoric and guidance strategy at any time.

But no one expected that even with such a comprehensive plan and such rigorous planning, Lin Sicheng wouldn't execute it?

"Division Chief Zhao, should we remind him?"

Zhao Zongmin shook his head: It's useless.

Because Lin Sicheng had emphasized that he would not execute according to the plan, and he had emphasized it more than once:

Division Chief Zhao, I don't understand interrogation; if you let me ask, I will only follow my own rhythm!

I also won't communicate with the interrogation Experts because I'm not a professional, and I won't be able to communicate clearly. So, just watch my improvisation.

Zhao Zongmin sighed: "Even if we remind him, he won't change."

No... isn't this just messing around?

"Division Chief Zhao, isn't he afraid of problems?"

That's right, why wasn't he afraid?

Division Chief Zhao was stunned for a moment, and Lin Sicheng's voice echoed in his mind: Division Chief Zhao, I am a person involved in the case; you know better than I do what the consequences will be if I meet the main culprit?

How did he answer at the time?

Teacher Lin, don't worry, the leaders have personally guaranteed it: if the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up.

So, since the leaders had made a guarantee, what did he have to be afraid of?

Zhao Zongmin was both depressed and bewildered: After all that, was Lin Sicheng fishing for his words back then?

"No... Branch Chief Hu, Lin Sicheng has tricks, why does he use them all on his own people?"

"Division Chief Zhao, have you seen it now?" Hu Poyuan laughed, "If he didn't have some ability, he wouldn't have been specially requested by the Police Training Department (Personnel Bureau) to come to the Ministry to conduct a training session."

Zhao Zongmin just remembered: Next week, Lin Sicheng was going to the Ministry to hold a symposium.

It was called sharing experience, but in fact, it was no different from training. And the content was the Wang Chun Case.

Zhao Zongmin realized belatedly: That's right, if he didn't have some ability, why would the Personnel Bureau arrange for him, a non-police personnel, to share experience with a group of interrogation Experts?

Even he himself had been fooled by him; if this fake foreigner was so cunning, could he be more professional than himself, an old criminal investigator who had been working for twenty years? Taking a step back: Lin Sicheng was not a layman, but rather very professional, professional to the point that even the Ministry had to invite him to share his experience.

Since he understood, why did he leave the set pre-plans unused and instead do the opposite, revealing his biggest trump card the moment they met? Suddenly, Zhao Zongmin was not alarmed but happy: "He still has tricks?"

"In all likelihood, he does!"

Branch Chief Hu thought for a moment, "The premise is, do you dare to let him use them!"

Zhao Zongmin's heart stirred: "For example?"

Branch Chief Hu lowered his voice: "For example, when interrogating Wang Chun at the end, a lot of the content was not recorded in the file!"

Why wasn't it recorded?

Because it was against the rules.

Have you ever seen an interrogation method that threatens a suspect by using the safety of the suspect's family members?

But as long as they knew the inside story, no one said Lin Sicheng did the wrong thing.

Someone like Wang Chun had dozens of lives on her hands. Let alone that Lin Sicheng was just bluffing her. Even if Lin Sicheng had really done it, it would have been acting on behalf of heaven. But they were police, they had to follow the law...

Zhao Zongmin suddenly realized: No wonder there was no detailed record of Lin Sicheng's interrogation in Wang Chun's file?

But just not recording it in the file doesn't seem useful, right?

"What about the video recording of the interrogation?"

Hu Poyuan paused: The video recording was certainly there. Even if you gave them eighty guts, no one would dare to delete the video.

But when the Judge made the verdict, they didn't look at the video, but at Wang Chun's confession.

"That's why I said, do you dare to let him use them!"

Zhao Zongmin understood: there might not necessarily be a result, but there would certainly be a violation of regulations; it all depended on whether you dared to take responsibility.

More crucially, this case was fundamentally different from the Wang Chun Case: when Wang Chun was caught, she, as the principal offender, was already facing a certain death sentence; all that was missing were the accumulated cases she hadn't confessed to, as well as her accomplices and the funds involved in the case.

Even if it were determined that Lin Sicheng conducted an irregular interrogation, it would not affect the final verdict.

But Liu Anhua was a foreign national, and communication with the Consulate had not fully concluded. As long as a lawyer discovered the interrogation was irregular, all previous investigation results would be overturned.

Thinking of this, Zhao Zongmin finally understood why the Bureau Chief had specifically instructed him: he must explain things clearly to Lin Sicheng and ensure he had no concerns. Just that one sentence: if the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up... This was clearly for fear that Lin Sicheng wouldn't be able to let go and act freely.

He stood stunned for a good while, rubbing his gums as if he had a toothache: couldn't the leader just say it plainly, instead of acting like they were using secret codes?

And Lin Sicheng too, since he had concerns, why couldn't he just ask directly instead of fishing for information as if he were treating him like a suspect?

This pair, they really are something else...

Just as he was secretly grumbling, Detachment Chief Hu pointed at the screen: "Division Chief Zhao, start..."

On the screen, the two were looking at each other, exceptionally direct.

Liu Anhua carried a look of scrutiny, as well as suspicion.

Lin Sicheng, however, was exceptionally calm.

"Since we haven't met before, General Manager Liu must be doubting my identity. If you want to verify it, it's actually very simple: that batch of machines!" Lin Sicheng said unhurriedly, "General Manager Liu must also be wondering, if I am who I am, why am I able to come here, and why am I able to meet with you? The answer is still very simple: it's also because of that batch of machines!"

"General Manager Liu must have thought even more: you've done this so many times before, every time it went smoothly without any surprises or dangers, why did you capsize this time? Likewise, it's still because of that batch of machines..."

Liu Anhua did not speak, only the corners of his mouth twitched. He appeared very calm and also very disdainful. But the Deputy Interrogator clearly observed his pupils constrict, which meant Lin Sicheng had spoken right to his heart.

The Deputy Interrogator's heart stirred: is there a chance?

Just as he was feeling suspicious, Lin Sicheng tapped the table: "General Manager Liu, time is limited, let's keep it simple..."

"I'll state a few places first, you see if they are correct: Houston, Vancouver, Juarez, Munich, Sofia, Budapest, Bangalore..."

Every time he mentioned a city, Liu Anhua's eyelids would twitch; by the end, his eyes were wide open, staring fixedly at Lin Sicheng with an expression as if he had seen a ghost.

Even an inexperienced Clerk could see it: how surprised and shocked Liu Anhua was at this moment.

The Deputy Interrogator could see it even more clearly, but he didn't understand: what did these few places Lin Sicheng mentioned have to do with those machines, and what did they have to do with this case?

But he was certain: they definitely had a connection, and a big one at that. Otherwise, Liu Anhua wouldn't have been shocked to this extent.

So what exactly was it?

The Deputy Interrogator was as curious as a cat scratching at his heart, but he knew that now he absolutely must not interrupt Lin Sicheng's rhythm.

He silently wrote those seven cities down in his notebook:

United States Houston, Canada Vancouver, Mexico Juarez, Germany Munich, Bulgaria Sofia, Hungary Budapest, India Bangalore...

The Clerk followed suit and also recorded them in the transcript notebook.

Seeing the Police taking notes so seriously, Liu Anhua's eyelids twitched violently.

Because these seven cities were the sources of that batch of Refurbished Machines:

Analytical equipment was refurbished in Houston, bioreactors and electron microscopes were refurbished in Vancouver, Spectrum instruments were refurbished in Juarez, microscopes were refurbished in Munich, and circuit boards were refurbished in Sofia.

Especially the last two places: Firmware cracking and log forgery were completed in Budapest, Hungary. Software resetting, data clearing, and deep formatting of the equipment hard drives, as well as flashing the genuine system, were completed in Bangalore, India.

What did this amount to?

It amounted to a gray industry chain that only existed on the dark web, with regional division of labor, technical grading, and deep refurbishment of second-hand scientific research equipment. But let alone the China Police, even the original manufacturers of this equipment didn't know there was such a technically dense and extremely well-operated refurbishment chain. So, where did this person find out about it?

He really wanted to ask, but Liu Anhua knew that today, as long as he dared to open his mouth, he would completely fall into the other party's rhythm.

He couldn't guarantee whether key information would be captured by the Police during a normal question-and-answer session.

Liu Anhua pursed his lips tightly.

He dared not ask, but Lin Sicheng could speak.

He raised one finger: "General Manager Liu, first of all, it was I who reported the case!"

Liu Anhua understood: so, that was how Fang Yin and the two Engineers were brought down?

Lin Sicheng raised a second finger: "I told Fang Yin: with a case value of ten million, she couldn't shoulder it!"

Liu Anhua was stunned for a moment, the corners of his eyes twitching uncontrollably: so, Fang Yin sold herself out?

But that still wasn't right: his communication with Fang Yin was entirely verbal, with no text and no recordings. Which meant, no matter what Fang Yin said, she couldn't produce evidence.

Therefore, no matter how much Fang Yin confessed, the Police had no right to arrest him.

As if guessing what he was thinking, Lin Sicheng raised a third finger: "General Manager Liu, I didn't finish earlier: after reporting the case, I also went to Customs to file a report."

"At that time, I mentioned a place in passing: Hong Kong... because that is easy to investigate. And another one, because it's not easy to investigate, I didn't mention it at the time..." Lin Sicheng paused slightly and spat out three words: "Singapore!"

Liu Anhua was suddenly stunned, his complexion turning pale at a speed visible to the naked eye.

His fingers couldn't help but tremble, and his teeth were clenched tightly together.

Now, let alone the Experts, even the ordinary officers in the command room could see it: Lin Sicheng's blow had struck Liu Anhua's Achilles' heel. But why?

They knew about Hong Kong; it was a transit point for smuggling syndicates. Through the cooperation of police on both sides, evidence of Liu Anhua's participation in smuggling was discovered in the smuggling syndicate's transit Treasury.

To put it bluntly: that was how he got caught.

Then what about Singapore?

Lin Sicheng didn't speak in riddles: "Document whitewashing, tax planning, issuing fake certificates of origin, forging Pro Forma Invoices for entrepôt trade... as well as labeling and fund transfers..."

Everyone seemed stunned, including the Deputy Interrogator, the Clerk, the Experts in the command room, as well as Division Chief Zhao and Detachment Chief Hu.

There was no need for Liu Anhua to admit it; one could judge from his current expression: what Lin Sicheng said was accurate without a single discrepancy.

At the same time, it also meant: as long as they put in some effort, the Public Security and Customs would soon be able to find key clues regarding the sources of the suspected Refurbished Machine's genuine documents, genuine labels, and Pro Forma Invoices, as well as the flow of the funds involved in the case.

Especially the funds; if they could freeze the accounts, Liu Anhua would be no different from a dead dog that had fallen into a river.

No... since you knew, why didn't you say so earlier?

Because Lin Sicheng had also just found out.

And even if he had known earlier, it would have been useless to say it: Singapore is an international offshore financial center; let alone just clues, even if you held the evidence, they wouldn't cooperate.