Chapter 553: This is China

The Command Center was very quiet, and the atmosphere was slightly eerie.

A group of Experts stared at the screen: Lin Sicheng held a pen, listing the nine cities he had just mentioned one by one.

Where the circuit boards came from, where the optical glass was replaced, where the precision parts were refurbished, where the Firmware was cracked, where the system logs were tampered with, where the part numbers were re-engraved, where the Software was reset, where the labels were forged, how the funds were laundered... Every single point was listed clearly and explicitly.

What did this amount to?

It amounted to a gray industrial chain that utilized the technical advantages of various scientific research giants' foundries and the loopholes in international regulatory differences, with the refurbishment of second-hand scientific research equipment as its core, which had already become perfected, mature, professional, and involved the entire globe.

Not to mention seeing it, they hadn't even heard of it before.

The Public Security Bureau hadn't heard of it, and Customs had heard of it even less.

Then why did Lin Sicheng know?

Furthermore, he was crystal clear about which country's city possessed which technology, what its advantages were, and which node it occupied in the chain. It felt as if he were also a member of this Smuggling ring, and a high-ranking one at that.

Zhao Zongmin and Hu Poyuan looked at each other.

They knew that Lin Sicheng was one of the few domestic insiders who understood this batch of equipment. But they hadn't expected Lin Sicheng to understand it to this extent. Looking at Liu Anhua's expression again: his eyes were bulging, his face was deathly pale, and he was both shocked and suspicious.

This wasn't just grabbing him by the throat; it was enough to cost him his life.

But why?

Lin Sicheng was just someone who did Artifact Research; even if he understood machines, it was limited to configuration, performance, and parameters.

Yet what he wrote on the paper not only involved professional scientific research equipment knowledge but was also scattered across the globe.

And until now, Lin Sicheng had never even stepped outside the country's borders...

The two were completely baffled and subconsciously turned their heads to look at Li Shichen, who had just been invited over.

Li Shichen wanted to say something, but the words reached his lips and he swallowed them back down.

When the General Team leadership recommended Lin Sicheng to him, they had said this:

Lin Sicheng is not a professional interrogator, and he hasn't even been in this line of work before; if we are talking about professional knowledge, he doesn't even count as a novice. But there is one thing: his powers of observation and his grasp of a suspect's psychology are stronger than most interrogation Experts.

Especially when it comes to inferring a suspect's psychological state based on micro-expressions and body language; his accuracy rate can reach one hundred percent.

Besides this, there is something even more incredible: he understands the criminals' modus operandi better than the criminals themselves, and he understands the gang's operational model better than the gang leaders.

At the time, Li Shichen was rather dismissive.

If you talk about observation, Lin Sicheng is certainly strong: in the business of Cultural Relics and antiques, what you compete on is your eye—first you must look at the object, second you must look at the person, and even more, you must know how to fathom the human heart.

But to say he could be mentioned in the same breath as a psychology Expert, and even be stronger, was a bit ridiculous.

As for the latter part—understanding the modus operandi better than the criminals and the operational model better than the gang leaders—Li Shichen didn't believe a single word of it. The so-called "drawing inferences about other cases from one instance"—Lin Sicheng studied Cultural Relics and worked in Cultural Relics; it was possible he knew a bit about trading antiques or the lore of Grave-robbing. But to say he knew more about Grave-robbing than a criminal leader who had been robbing graves for decades? That was impossible. Even if he wanted to learn, wouldn't someone have to teach him? At the time, Li Shichen found it quite funny: had he pushed the General Team leadership too hard, and were they just blowing smoke about Lin Sicheng to get him to quiet down?

But now, is it still funny?

Lin Sicheng had given Li Shichen a solid lesson right to his face: he really did understand the criminals' modus operandi and the criminal gang's operational model.

But it shouldn't be.

This was second-hand precision machinery reprocessing, deep refurbishment of semiconductor equipment, equipment Firmware cracking, old data clearing, and system Software resetting. It didn't have half a cent's worth of connection to Cultural Relics or antiques.

The key was that the global refurbishment factories were a new model completely independent of traditional forms: technical grading, outsourcing of parts, and terminal assembly. Li Shichen had been in anti-smuggling for twenty years; he had seen all kinds of cases, but this one in particular, he hadn't even heard of.

So where did Lin Sicheng know it from?

He wasn't the only one with this thought. It included Zhao Zongmin, Hu Poyuan, and the group of Experts in the Command Center.

It even included the Deputy Interrogator sitting next to Lin Sicheng, and Liu Anhua across from him.

In just a few short minutes, sweat had seeped out on his forehead, and his heart was beating like a drum.

The desire to ask Lin Sicheng reached its peak: How did you know?

But Liu Anhua held back, because he knew that once he asked, he wouldn't be able to stop.

Lin Sicheng was focused, still writing and drawing on the paper. Whether it was the Experts in the Command Center or the Deputy Interrogator, they all thought he was putting pressure on Liu Anhua.

In reality, it was far from that.

Like the three axe moves of Cheng Yaojin, Lin Sicheng was accustomed to using bluffs, and this time was no exception.

He just hadn't expected that every bluff would hit the mark, and Liu Anhua had let the cat out of the bag on the spot.

This further proved that his deductions were correct, and it further proved that his efforts during these ten days in Shanghai had not been in vain.

What he was writing now felt extremely shocking, extremely incredible, and unexplainable to Liu Anhua, the Experts, and Director Li.

But for Lin Sicheng, it actually wasn't that hard; having a good memory was enough.

In 2009, this model of equipment refurbishment—using graded customization, leveraging countries' priority technologies and regulatory loopholes, and searching for foundries globally—was rare. But more than a decade later, in the 2020s, it was an open secret.

Many countries had done this; the United States was number one, followed by Germany, and the Netherlands third.

Even more countries had fallen for this trick: Vietnam was third, India second, and China ranked first.

And most of the time, you knew it was refurbished equipment, and you knew it was transported via Smuggling routes, yet you had no choice but to buy it. Because Europe and the United States implemented technical blockades: if you wanted to buy new ones, no one would sell them to you, especially in the medical industry.

After suffering losses many times, one's experience grew richer, and more and more people understood it.

Lin Sicheng didn't understand it perfectly, but at least he knew: where the strengths of each brand's equipment lay, what the performance differences were between each generation of instruments, and the origins and characteristics of various Refurbished Machines.

Therefore, after the machines were dismantled at the Center, he started to check and compare.

For these ten-plus days, he had been doing exactly this: bypassing the firewall, going on foreign websites, checking original manufacturers, checking foundries, checking regional divisions, and checking technical grading. As long as it was an instrument shipped to the Center, he didn't miss a single one; he compared them all.

So, what Lin Sicheng found was far more than what was written on this paper; he only wrote down the places where the refurbishment technology was most advanced, the performance of the Refurbished Machines was best, and the possibility of being exposed was lowest.

He also had to thank General Manager Liu; although he hadn't said a word, Lin Sicheng could tell which was the correct answer just by looking at his expression.

Lin Sicheng's pen didn't stop, writing in more and more detail: what characteristics the analyzers refurbished in Houston had, how the circuit board modules in Sofia were repaired, how the factory in Hungary used lasers to erase equipment serial numbers, and how they re-imprinted them.

As well as how hacker teams forged Firmware logs, and what characteristics each key component had after being refurbished.

After filling three full sheets of paper, Lin Sicheng handed them to the Deputy Interrogator: "My personal suggestion is to follow this and investigate first. You might not necessarily find results, but as long as you verify the relevant links, and as long as you can match them with that batch of refurbished equipment at the Center, it will be more than enough for a public prosecution..."

To put it bluntly: it was enough to convict Liu Anhua.

The Deputy Interrogator treated it like a treasure, reading it word for word.

There would indeed be no results, because in these countries, these refurbishment and processing industries were basically all legal.

Many underdeveloped countries even specifically seek out this equipment that developed countries have already phased out to use after secondary refurbishment, such as medical equipment. Therefore, even if you wanted to investigate, these secondary technical subcontractors would not cooperate, and naturally, there could be no results.

But for law enforcement departments, especially for Customs, these three sheets of paper are equivalent to execution standards:

If you don't understand the machines, can't you at least compare them to what is written on this paper?

At the very least, you can unscrew a few bolts and take a look to see if the connectors have been polished or if the paint has been touched up, right?

The Deputy Interrogator became more excited the more he read, and just as he was preparing to clip them into the Folder, Lin Sicheng stopped him.

He stood up and placed those three sheets of paper in front of Liu Anhua: "General Manager Liu, take a look and see if there is anything you need to add!"

In an instant, everyone's eyes widened: he could actually do this?

Because Lin Sicheng had made it very clear: these few sheets of paper were among the evidence that could send Liu Anhua inside and determine how many years he would be sentenced.

You ask him to add to it; had his brain been kicked by a donkey?

Glancing over them, Liu Anhua's eye sockets trembled incessantly, and his lips quivered.

X-ray diffraction instrument, X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy, Raman Spectroscopy, Laser Cleaner, Flaw detection imaging instrument, C-14 dating, Thermoluminescence... not a single one of those twenty-plus Refurbished Machines was missed.

Every component of every piece of equipment, where it was refurbished, what flaws it had compared to the original, what the performance differences were, and how to identify them—it was all written clearly.

Liu Anhua finally knew what the three sentences Lin Sicheng had said earlier meant:

He understood that batch of machines; whether they were original machines or Refurbished Machines, he understood them all. Therefore, no matter how well they were refurbished, they couldn't deceive him, which is why he reported the case. And that is why Liu Anhua ended up here.

He not only understood the machines, but he also knew the sources, pros and cons, and flaws of all the refurbished components. He even knew the operational model of the Smuggling group. With this as a premise, let alone the fact that he was just the victim, even if he were his own accomplice, the Police would still dare to let him meet with him.

Even if the Consulate and the Lawyer knew, they would advise him to cooperate: because what these few sheets of paper involved was no longer a single Smuggling Case, but a black industrial chain involving the entire world, encompassing almost every country where the original manufacturers of scientific research equipment were located.

In these countries, refurbishing equipment is indeed not illegal, but it cannot be sold as brand new. Otherwise, it is stealing business from these countries, and even more so, stealing business from the original manufacturers.

In front of those tech giants and the entire nation, a small foreign Executive is not even worth a fart...

In an instant, Liu Anhua's heart fell into an ice cellar. Even though the warm air was on, a layer of goosebumps rose on his body.

He also finally knew why Lin Sicheng had deliberately emphasized: he would capsize this time.

Because this ship was already destined to capsize.

Thinking of this, Liu Anhua's complexion turned even paler. His lips moved, but he didn't know what to ask.

After a long while, he spat out three words: "Why?"

Lin Sicheng paused: "Why what?"

Liu Anhua's eyes were red: "Where did you find all this?"

Lin Sicheng said nonchalantly: "Found it online!"

Impossible.

Even in the United States, there are only a few people who understand these links and know which foundries accept black-market orders.

Let alone finding it on the internet?

Unless one is like him, an Executive at a top-tier global purchasing company. Being able to purchase research equipment of all industries and types, and cooperating deeply with all original manufacturers and foundries.

Otherwise, it is impossible to know: which foundry can refurbish which components, and which manufacturers dare to accept black-market orders.

The most critical point is: Firmware cracking, log tampering, and Software system resetting.

Counting across the whole world, there are few who can do it, and even fewer who dare to do it. Knowing who dares to accept such black-market orders is even rarer.

In the entire group, Liu Anhua is neither the organizer nor a high-level backbone, but why is he able to take the lion's share every time they split the loot? This is what he relies on.

It is even more impossible for the young man in front of him... No, except for a few brokers on this industrial chain, no one knows this Information. Therefore, Liu Anhua could not figure it out no matter what: how did he know?

Looking at the two sheets of paper in front of him again: it was as if Lin Sicheng had designed this batch of Refurbished Machines, personally contacted the foundries, watched the refurbishment and processing with his own eyes, and watched the assembly with his own eyes. Then, he personally loaded the ship, personally escorted it, personally applied the labels in Singapore, forged the documents, and personally transported it to Hong Kong, and then cleared customs.

Once, twice, three times... He suddenly raised his head and stared fixedly at Lin Sicheng. The corners of his eyes trembled slightly, and the whites of his eyes were bloodshot. It's over!

The foreign status he relied on before, the belief that Saishi Company would protect him, and the fantasy that the Consulate would intervene, all became bubbles. It's all over!

Liu Anhua gritted his teeth and squeezed three words through them: "Impossible!"

"General Manager Liu, there is nothing impossible. I think you shouldn't be considering whether it's possible right now, but rather: whether more serious consequences will occur!"

Lin Sicheng paused, "For example, something more terrifying than going to jail!"

Consequences more terrifying than going to jail?

Liu Anhua's heart shrank: could such a situation happen?

If he were to tell the truth, of course there is.

But he did not believe that this young man even knew this.

Liu Anhua gritted his teeth tightly.

Knowing he didn't believe it, Lin Sicheng couldn't be bothered to keep him in suspense; he leaned down and said two sentences.

They were loud enough for Liu Anhua to hear, but just enough to make them sound muffled and unclear to the Deputy Interrogator and the Clerk.

The key was that what he said was not in Chinese, nor was it in English.

It was one sentence in German and one in Japanese, and after each sentence, he added a string of numbers, looking like some kind of serial number.

In an instant, Liu Anhua's face was whiter than paper. His body couldn't help but tremble, and then, he began to shake like a sieve.

Lin Sicheng picked up those two sheets of paper and returned them to the Deputy Interrogator. Then, he walked straight toward the door.

The on-duty Armed Police helped him open the door, and just as he was about to step out, Lin Sicheng stopped and turned back: "General Manager Liu, think it over clearly!" Liu Anhua was trembling, his eyes blood-red, as if they had been dyed.

His two rows of teeth clattered hard, "Clack, clack, clack, clack": "Th... this is China!"