Chapter 477: He Never Disappointed

It wasn't him who betrayed us?

Yu Dazhang's expression soured slightly at this answer—it was clearly beyond what he had expected.

If Liu Hai was telling the truth, then this matter had just gotten a lot more complicated.

The whole incident had started with the disappearance of the researcher.

They'd found the mole, yet still hadn't figured out how the researcher's identity had been exposed.

Could that researcher really have given himself away?

No.

That's not it.

That possibility had already been ruled out before.

The chance that the researcher had defected had also been ruled out.

If the problem wasn't with the researcher, then it had to be something inside the test zone itself.

Yu Dazhang glanced at Liu Hai, then turned his head to look at Chen Yang.

Human factor...

Besides Liu Hai, there was another mole inside the test zone!

The moment this thought struck him, Yu Dazhang felt his heels go numb, his heart pound, and cold sweat break out across his palms.

For a research project the state held in such high regard, having one mole was already deadly enough—and now there was another.

No, putting it that way wasn't accurate.

The other mole had been here longer, burrowed deeper, and had very likely already gotten hold of the most core secrets.

What kind of classified unit was this... Yu Dazhang felt that the 53rd Institute now was like a colander—people kept slipping through the holes.

All those seemingly rigorous layers of vetting, and yet they couldn't see into a man's heart.

"Did that education foundation send people to infiltrate us long ago?" Yu Dazhang asked tentatively.

"I don't know about that." Liu Hai shook his head:

"The foundation never told me who exactly it was funding."

He wasn't lying.

Yu Dazhang had been watching his face the whole time and saw no sign of deceit.

Besides, that foundation wouldn't make such a rookie mistake.

If the moles knew each other, the moment one of them was exposed, the others wouldn't escape either.

"What information did you pass out those two times?" Yu Dazhang pressed on, his face dark.

The first message was impossible to verify, but the second was right here in his hands.

So he wasn't afraid of Liu Hai lying.

Because once they found the codebook, they'd know the truth.

"The first time, it was the research team's personnel makeup and each member's basic information."

Liu Hai answered:

"This time, it was the specific locations of the researchers in the living quarters."

Their target really was the people... just as Yu Dazhang had deduced earlier.

"Which book is the codebook?"

He already knew everything he wanted to know; all that was left was to find that book and verify it.

The rest, the Ministry of State Security would handle.

"The Chinese translation of *Bel-Ami*." Liu Hai answered truthfully:

"It's right there on my desk."

Yu Dazhang then had the guards notify the Ministry of State Security, while he himself went to Liu Hai's room and found that copy of *Bel-Ami*.

The Ministry of State Security moved fast—by the time Yu Dazhang had barely made it back to Chen Yang's room, Li Mingzhao and the others had already arrived.

The moment they met, Li Mingzhao couldn't help but ask:

"Confirmed?"

Yu Dazhang hesitated for a moment, then nodded:

"He's already confessed, and the codebook has been found."

He handed the book in his hand to Li Mingzhao and went on:

"He's been very cooperative. I suggest we don't need to use any heavy-handed tactics—just ask him whatever you need to directly."

Yu Dazhang was well aware that the Ministry of State Security would certainly start the interrogation over from scratch.

Only by getting every last detail perfectly clear could they work out the next step of the plan.

And if they put this mole, Liu Hai, to good use, they could deal the enemy a fatal blow.

He was like a double-edged sword—it all depended on how the one holding it chose to wield it.

"Don't worry."

Li Mingzhao agreed at once:

"As long as he cooperates honestly, we'll naturally treat him with leniency."

By now the entire building had been sealed off—no one outside could get in, and those inside were confined to their rooms. "Give me a few more days." Yu Dazhang said hesitantly:

"There are still some things I haven't figured out."

What he meant was clear: he wanted to stay undercover.

Li Mingzhao only had to look at his expression to guess what he was after.

"You think there's another mole?" Li Mingzhao asked in a lowered voice:

"Also a researcher?"

His tone was very calm, but a cold light flashed in his eyes.

In such a confidential unit, the appearance of one mole was already enough to be troubling.

If there were another one, it would simply be a disaster for the entire project.

"Hard to say."

Yu Dazhang looked left and right, then replied in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"That person is hidden too deep. I deduced it logically, but I feel it should be correct."

As he spoke, his expression also became serious:

"If I am not mistaken, the person the other side truly wants to contact is not Liu Hai, but the one hidden even deeper."

Hearing this, Li Mingzhao could not help but frown.

After pondering for a moment, he finally spoke:

"Why does it get more complicated the more we investigate?"

Although he said this, he had not the slightest doubt about Yu Dazhang's judgment.

The truth was, this fatty's logical ability was too strong.

Whenever he raised a doubt, it would eventually, by following the vine to the melon, become a key clue, and without exception, all were confirmed.

More importantly, Yu Dazhang had never disappointed anyone.

Before he arrived, Li Mingzhao had secretly sent out three groups to investigate the mole situation.

The result was, let alone finding the mole, they couldn't even last two days before being easily exposed by the researchers.

No way around it; every single person in the research team here was a highly educated individual. Without certain professional knowledge, one simply could not blend in.

"I don't want it to be like this either."

Yu Dazhang sighed:

"But since the problem has been discovered, we can't just leave it alone. Whether being a police officer or being a person, I have no habit of giving up halfway."

He rarely took such a high moral ground.

It had to be said, standing on the high ground of morality to accuse someone was indeed very satisfying.

Li Mingzhao was countered with a remark, but instead of getting angry, he smiled:

"Whether being a police officer or being a person, I have high hopes for you. I know you certainly won't let me down."

Done for, I've been pinned with a label... Yu Dazhang's heart tightened.

Thinking carefully, it seemed he had never gained the upper hand in front of this Group Leader Li.

One moment he was still in the advantageous position, but with just a casual remark from the other party, the situation was reversed.

Yu Dazhang knew very clearly that what Li Mingzhao valued most was his case-solving ability.

But only he himself knew that every doubt he raised was screened out from countless hypotheses.

Sometimes, for a single doubt, he had to conduct dozens of hypotheses, and often many of these hypotheses were not used at all.

Therefore, in Yu Dazhang's view, there was simply no shortcut to investigating cases.

Except for the rebirth benefits.

The next day.

The test hall.

Of Yu Dazhang's two close companions, only one remained now.

During a break, the two gathered together.

"Rest assured." Chen Yang said with a serious face:

"I will absolutely not tell anyone your true identity."

Yu Dazhang looked at him and smiled:

"I actually hope you tell."

"Why?" Chen Yang looked completely confused.

"That way I'd save myself the trouble." Yu Dazhang stared at him and said in a low voice:

"You are also within my range of suspicion. If my identity is exposed, it must be you who leaked it."

(End of this chapter)