Chapter 51: Bathhouse Theft Case

Dalian, Naval Guesthouse, bathhouse.

"Hey, we've just arrived, this briefcase hasn't been returned to the guesthouse yet!" Qiao Ziqiang looked at the brown leather briefcase in his hand and said.

"It's fine, go in and wash; I, Old Ding, will keep watch outside." Ding Wanchun said.

"How can I be so embarrassed?"

"No problem, go in!"

Northern bathhouses are largely similar; outside is a changing room with a row of lockers. Here you take off your clothes and go in naked; inside is a large bathhouse. Before showers became popular, it was just a big pool; after they became popular, it became a row of showerheads, with no partitions.

A dozen or so naked men bathing together inside makes a spectacular sight: amidst the steam, hazy, bodies swaying, certain parts also swaying left and right, giving a unique visual impact.

Others took off their clothes and went in; the southern comrades were noticeably unaccustomed, especially since there was a naked bed in the bathhouse, like a cutting board, with a middle-aged man holding a scrub towel standing beside it.

"Leaders, first rinse off your bodies, absolutely no soap, then lie down one by one!"

Qiao Ziqiang was the first to lie down, then a hot sensation came over him.

"Ouch!"

"Leader, don't dodge, you have to scrub hard, otherwise the dirt won't come off, you see..."

Qiao Ziqiang looked at the grime that had been scrubbed off him, then lay down again.

One, two, three... after getting used to it, it felt very comfortable!

"Old Qiao, how does it feel?"

"I am the fish on the chopping block!"

Everyone laughed.

After being scrubbed, Qiao Ziqiang felt completely relaxed.

"Old Ding, Old Ding, come in too, it's fine to leave the bag in the file cabinet! I'll rinse off quickly and then go keep watch for you!"

At that moment, the bathhouse's hot air blew onto him, Ding Wanchun felt sticky and uncomfortable, the more uncomfortable the worse, while listening to the scrubbing sounds inside.

"All right, Old Qiao, hurry up and come out!"

Ding Wanchun took off his clothes, entered the bathroom, and glanced back at the bathroom cabinet.

By rights, this is the Navy's guesthouse, with sentries outside; what could go wrong?

Taking another look at Qiao Ziqiang showering under the showerhead, Ding Wanchun strode in.

Experiencing a scrub bath for the first time, Qiao Ziqiang felt satisfied, feeling his pores all open, greedily inhaling the steam; after three minutes of rinsing, he slipped on his slippers and walked out.

He wiped his face with a towel while going to check the bathroom cabinet.

"Old Ding, which cabinet did you put the briefcase in?"

"Number eighteen."

"Number eighteen is empty, there's nothing; did you misremember?"

Thump thump thump... Ding Wanchun ran out in a few strides, seeing the empty bathroom cabinet, his face turned pale instantly.

He went crazy, checking several nearby bathroom cabinets, but still found nothing.

It's over, it's over!

"Quick, notify the guards and lock down the entire guesthouse!"

When Huang Lao and Qin Miao, etc., rushed back, the guesthouse's meeting room already had someone speaking with a sobbing tone.

"I deserve to die, I deserve to die, how could I be so greedy for just a few minutes? Now it's really over; inside are all classified materials!"

"Also blame me, I didn't go out earlier; if responsibility is to be pursued, then... I and Old Ding will bear it together! If we are to be shot..."

"Now is not the time to talk about this; now we need to think of a solution and solve the case quickly!" The leading leader said: "Obviously, this is a serious case of enemy agents infiltrating to steal national defense secrets. The guesthouse has already been investigated; next, we will expand the scope to the coastline, nearby villages, stations, hotels, carry out a detailed investigation, and quickly find the enemy agents and the stolen documents."

Huang Lao's face also looked grim.

Giant Wave-1, submarine-launched ballistic missile, important national defense secrets, were actually stolen while a group of engineers were taking a bath!

"Everyone, Leader Zhang is right; the most important thing now is to solve the case quickly. As for responsibility... since the accident happened in our Project 8291, I will take the blame!"

This is the awareness of the older generation of leaders!

When working, take the initiative! When problems arise, bravely take the blame for your subordinates! Now look at later generations...

Qin Miao's eyes were full of admiration, and he could no longer keep it to himself.

"Leaders, I have an immature idea; I don't know... whether to speak or not."

"Speak!"

"Could this just be an ordinary theft case? A large group of engineers, returning from the seaside to the guesthouse with briefcases in hand, bulging, looking like they're carrying a big wad of 100,000 yuan, could they have been tailed by thieves along the way, who then waited until they discovered the engineers had gone to the bathhouse and went in to steal?"

In 1980, everyone's minds were tense with political concerns; when something happened, the first thought was the worst possible outcome, but perhaps... it wasn't that serious? After all, Qin Miao clearly remembers that Project 8291 once had a bathhouse theft case, and after investigation it turned out to be just an ordinary petty thief!

"How could that be?" Leader Zhang shook his head.

"Old Zhang, you just said we need to solve the case quickly; could we split forces? One team to set up surveillance and capture enemy agents, another to investigate the thief?"

"Not possible, we don't have enough people; even if we called in Public Security Bureau comrades, it probably wouldn't be enough."

"Could we investigate whether similar cases have occurred before? Our high-end venues, namely the guesthouse, workers' sanatoriums and the like—have they had similar theft cases? Also, if it really is a thief, and he discovers he stole not money but confidential documents, he would certainly..."

"He would dispose of the documents!" At that moment, a big-cap person nearby agreed: "Very likely he would tear them up and throw them into a cesspool or the like! I'll take people to check!"

Qin Miao also breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't want the engineers developing missiles for the nation to bear too long a burden; if he didn't speak up, focusing only on the enemy-agent direction would require investigating for over a month before someone would suggest it might just be an ordinary burglary, and then after waiting a long time, a second offense would occur before catching the thief!

If the case isn't solved in a day, those engineers who lost the documents due to their mistake will feel uneasy every day!

Moreover, Huang Lao still has to bear responsibility.

Now, I'm just giving a heads-up; next will be the Big Cap operation; in the end, whoever finds it will get the credit, which is also Big Cap's, and I'll avoid being too conspicuous.

Several minutes later.

"Some document fragments have been found, in the public toilet near the guesthouse!"