My childhood friend is in her mature, sophisticated form again today. - Chapter 64

He walked into the residential complex and found Zhang Wen’s building. The lights in the hallway were voice-activated; he stomped his foot, and the lights came on. The dim light illuminated the mottled walls, which were covered with small advertisements and children’s graffiti. He went up to the fourth floor, stopped in front of apartment 401, took a deep breath, and then knocked three times.

No one answered. He knocked three more times.

“Who is it?” a man’s voice came from inside, tinged with wariness.

“It’s the property management. They’re checking resident information.”

The door opened a crack. Zhang Wen’s face appeared in the gap, his eyes looking at him above the security chain. He wasn’t wearing glasses, his hair was a little messy, and he was wearing an old set of loungewear. “Property management? Didn’t we check last time?”

“Last time it was the water bill, this time it’s the electricity bill. The system has been upgraded, so we need to confirm again.” Lin Jiqiu held up the fruit basket in his hand. “I’m also bringing some fruit. It was arranged by the homeowners’ committee.”

Zhang Wen looked at the fruit basket, then at his face. After hesitating for a few seconds, he closed the door, removed the security chain, and reopened it. “Come in.”

The room wasn’t large, a two-bedroom apartment with simple furniture. An old blanket covered the sofa, and a remote control and a few magazines sat on the coffee table. The television was on, broadcasting the news. The air smelled of cooking oil, and steam was rising from a pot in the kitchen. Zhang Wen was cooking.

“Sit down.” Zhang Wen pointed to the sofa, went to the kitchen to turn down the stove, and then came out to sit on the chair opposite him.

Lin Jiqiu placed the fruit basket on the coffee table, sat down, and took out a form from his pocket—a forgery by Cheng Ran, quite convincing. “Check the information. Name, ID number, electricity account number.”

Zhang Wen took the form, glanced at it, and handed it back to him. “It’s all correct. No need to look at it anymore.”

Lin Jiqiu put the form away but didn’t stand up to leave. Zhang Wen looked at him, his brow furrowing slightly. “Is there anything else?”

Lin Jiqiu paused for a second. “Engineer Zhang, I came for something else.”

Zhang Wen’s expression changed. “Who exactly are you?”

“My name is Lin Jiqiu. I’m not from the property management. I’m here to ask you some questions about Fengyuan Agriculture.”

Zhang Wen’s breath hitched for a moment. His hands rested on his knees, his fingers curling slightly, but he didn’t stand up or shoo anyone away. He simply looked at Lin Jiqiu, his gaze holding something indescribable—not fear, not anger, but a kind of long-awaited, finally arriving calm.

How did you find me?

“Your photo is in the employee files of Fengyuan Agriculture. I have been to Professor Song Zhiyuan’s laboratory, and your name is in the visitor log.”

Zhang Wen remained silent for a long time. The news on TV finished, and the weather forecast started. He stood up, walked to the TV, and turned it off, leaving the room quiet.

Are you a police officer?

“no.”

“reporter?”

“no.”

“Then who are you?”

Lin Jiqiu looked at him. “Someone who is investigating the Beichen Court.”

Zhang Wen’s expression completely changed. It wasn’t fear, but something deeper. He lowered his head, his hands clasped on his knees, his knuckles white. After a long while, he finally spoke. “How do you know about the Northern Star Court?”

“I’ve been investigating for a long time. From underwater facilities to Huanxin Growth Camp to Mingyuan Consulting to Stargazer. Now I’ve found Fengyuan Agriculture.”

Zhang Wen looked up, meeting his eyes. “Do you know what you’re investigating?”

“I know. An organization that has existed for two thousand years.”

Zhang Wen remained silent for a long time. He stood up, went to the kitchen, turned off the stove, took the pot off the counter, and then came back to sit down. His hands were trembling slightly, but his voice remained relatively steady. “You saw my photo in Fengyuan Agriculture’s files. That photo was fake. The name was fake too. But they tied my face to that name, and I became that person. The ‘identity’ that Beichen Zhiting arranged for me.”

“You know your identity is fake?”

“I know. I’ve known since day one.” Zhang Wen leaned back in his chair, looking at the ceiling. “When they came to me, I was a recent graduate student. I studied materials science, had good grades, but couldn’t find a good job. He came to me alone, tall, thin, and wearing glasses.”

“telescope.”

“He said his name was ‘Telescope.’ I thought it was a nickname. He showed me those technologies—Originium technology. I didn’t know what it was called at the time, I only knew that it wasn’t something from this era. He said, ‘I need a new identity. Forget your name, forget your past. From now on, my name is Zhang Wen.’”

“You agreed?”

“I agreed.” Zhang Wen’s voice was low. “I need money. My mother is sick and needs to be hospitalized. The money they gave me is enough for her to get better and for her to live until now.”

Lin Jiqiu was silent for a few seconds. “How many years have you worked for the Beichen Court?”

“Twelve years.”

Do you know what you’re doing?

“I know some. Not all of it.” Zhang Wen lowered his head. “I’m in charge of optimizing production processes at Fengyuan Agriculture. I can’t understand the origin of the technical parameters they gave me. But I know that stuff is not simple. Its performance exceeds the current understanding of materials science.”

“That’s Originium technology.”

“Originium?”

“They found a substance in the deep sea. The Qin Dynasty people discovered it. The Northern Star Court used it to create technology for two thousand years.”

Zhang Wen’s lips trembled slightly. “The Qin Dynasty?”

“Um.”

Zhang Wen stood up, walked to the window, and turned his back to Lin Jiqiu. “Twelve years. I’ve been making things whose origins I don’t know. I tell myself I’m just an engineer, I only need to do the process well, I don’t need to know where the materials come from. But I know. I know those things don’t belong to this world.”

Why don’t you leave?

“Leave?” Zhang Wen turned around, looked at him, and gave a bitter smile. “You think I haven’t tried? Three years ago, I handed in my resignation. The next day, the telescope arrived. He didn’t say anything, just put a photograph in front of me. My mother was walking in the community garden. He said, ‘How is your mother?’” Zhang Wen’s voice was a little hoarse. “I tore up the resignation letter. I never mentioned it again.”

Lin Jiqiu’s fingers tightened slightly on his knee. “The binoculars are still there?”

“I don’t know. He hasn’t shown up for a long time. But the instructions are still there. Every Friday, someone sends the production plan to my email. I don’t know who sends it. I just know to execute it.”

“echo?”

Zhang Wen’s pupils contracted slightly. “You know about echoes?”

“I know a little. It’s the command transmission system of the Northern Star Court.”

“All I know is that Echo is an account. Every Friday at 3 PM, it sends an email. There’s no heading, no signature, just one attachment. Production plan, quality standards, and shipment quantity.” Zhang Wen walked back and sat down. “I’ve never seen the sender. And I’ve never replied. I’m just carrying out the orders.”

“What if one day, the echo stops?”

Zhang Wen looked at him. “What do you want to do?”

“I want the North Star Court to stop.”

Zhang Wen remained silent for a long time. “You can’t do it. I’ve been here for twelve years and have seen many people like you. They thought they could change something. Later, they all disappeared.”

“I know. My father was one of them.”

Zhang Wen looked up. “Your father?”

“Lin Yuanzhou. Do you know him?”

Zhang Wen thought for a moment and shook his head. “Never heard of him. But maybe I’ve seen him. When Beichen Zhiting came to see me, he showed me some documents. Among the names on those documents was Lin Yuanzhou. I didn’t know who he was at the time. Now I do.”

Lin Jiqiu’s breath hitched. “What are those documents about?”

“The application of Originium technology. The chip design scheme. The process I later optimized was based on those schemes.” Zhang Wen looked at him. “Your father was the developer of those technologies?”

“He is a scientist who studies Originium.”

Zhang Wen lowered his head. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

The two remained silent for a long time. Outside, the sky had completely darkened, the streetlights came on, and their orange glow shone through the curtains onto the ceiling like a thin veil. The soup in the pot in the kitchen had cooled, the range hood had stopped humming, and the whole house was so quiet you could hear the refrigerator compressor.

“Zhang Wen, I need your help.”

“What kind of help?”

“Fengyuan Agriculture’s production line. I want to know its weaknesses.”

Zhang Wen looked at him. “You want to sabotage the production line?”

“It’s not about destruction. It’s about stopping it when necessary.”

Zhang Wen remained silent for a long time. He stood up, walked to the study, took a USB drive from a locked drawer, and returned to hand it to Lin Jiqiu. “This contains the production line blueprints for Fengyuan Agriculture. It shows the location, model, and control system architecture of each piece of equipment. The weaknesses are marked on it.”

Lin Jiqiu took the USB drive. “Why did you help me?”

“Because I didn’t want to continue.” Zhang Wen’s eyes reddened. “Twelve years. Every night I thought about what I was doing. Where did those chips go? What were they used for? I don’t know. But I know that if anyone is harmed because of what I did, I will be held responsible.”

Lin Jiqiu carefully put the USB drive away. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Zhang Wen said, looking at him. “But there’s something I need to remind you of.”

“What?”

“The telescope probably already knows you’re here. It knows where I live. Maybe it’s watching me from somewhere right now.”

Lin Jiqiu nodded. “I know.”

“Aren’t you afraid?”

“I’m afraid. But I can’t stop.”

Zhang Wen looked at him, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he just nodded.

Lin Jiqiu stood up and walked to the door. “Zhang Wen, how is your mother’s health now?”

“Much better. She doesn’t know what I do. She thinks I’m just an ordinary engineer.”

“That’s good.”

Lin Jiqiu opened the door and went out. As he went downstairs, the motion-activated lights in the stairwell turned on, casting a dim yellow light that illuminated his shadow as he descended the steps. Once outside the building, the night breeze felt cool on his face. He reached the entrance of the complex; the security guard glanced up at him, then looked down at his phone again.

They got into the car. Cheng Ran sat in the passenger seat, a tablet resting on his lap.

“Did you get it?” Cheng Ran asked.

“Got it. The production line blueprints for Fengyuan Agriculture.” Lin Jiqiu took out a USB drive from his pocket and handed it to him. “Zhang Wen also mentioned two things. The telescope knows where he lives and may have been monitoring him all along. He worked for Beichen Zhiting for twelve years and wanted to leave, but the telescope threatened him with his mother.”

Cheng Ran looked at the USB drive. “He’s a key figure.”

“Yes. He knows more than we think.”

A-Zuo started the car and drove out of the residential area. Lin Jiqiu leaned back in his seat, looking out the window. The streetlights receded one by one, their orange light casting streaks on the car window. He closed his eyes, his mind filled with Zhang Wen’s tired face. Twelve years. A recent graduate student, his life bought off by a telescope with a sum of money. He wasn’t a bad person, just someone with no choice. But he chose to give the USB drive to Lin Jiqiu. This was the first time in twelve years that he had made a conscious choice.

“Cheng Ran”.

“Um.”

“The email address Zhang Wen mentioned—Echo’s email address. It sends emails every Friday at 3 PM sharp. If we could intercept that email—”

“This will allow you to track the sender.”

“right.”

“It will take time. Echo uses the encryption system of the Northern Star Court, not a regular email protocol. But if we have control over the production line, we might be able to access it from the reverse.”

Lin Jiqiu opened his eyes. “You mean, you hacked into Echo’s system through Fengyuan Agriculture’s internal network?”

“Possibly. The production line blueprints Zhang Wen provided should include the architecture of a control system. If we can find the access point—”

“Then let’s give it a try.”

It was almost nine o’clock when I got back to the office. Ah-you was waiting at the door with a broom in his hand. When he saw the car stop, he put down the broom and came to greet me.

“Boss, you’re back?”

“Um.”

Lin Jiqiu changed her shoes and went into the office. Ayou went to the kitchen to get some dishes. Cheng Ran followed her in, plugged the USB drive into the computer, and opened the files inside. A series of drawings unfolded on the screen—the layout of Fengyuan Agriculture’s production line, the location and model of each piece of equipment, and the network topology of the control system. It was so detailed it looked like Zhang Wen had drawn it himself.

“This person is very professional.” Cheng Ran zoomed in on a blueprint. “He marked out all the weaknesses in the control system. The firewall vulnerabilities, the PLC debugging interface, and even the location of the backup power supply.”

“Did he consider sabotaging the production line?”

“Maybe. But I dare not.” Cheng Ran looked at the markings. “He made preparations, but took no action.”

Ayou brought the dishes to the table: stir-fried seasonal vegetables, braised pork ribs, and a bowl of seaweed and egg drop soup. Lin Jiqiu sat down and picked up her chopsticks, and Chengran followed and sat opposite her.

“Boss, is that Zhang Wen trustworthy?” Ayou asked while serving rice.

“He’s credible. He has no reason to lie to us.”

“What if he gets spotted by the telescope?”

“Possibly. But after we leave, the telescope probably won’t look for him. He’s just a small cog in the North Star Court’s system, not worth paying special attention to.”

Ayou placed the rice bowl in front of Lin Jiqiu. “I hope he’s alright.”

Lin Jiqiu picked up a piece of pork rib. “Ayou, the pork ribs are delicious today.”

Ah You’s eyes lit up, but he didn’t say anything and turned back to the kitchen.

That night, Lin Jiqiu lay in bed, Zhang Wen’s face etched in his mind. Exhausted, helpless, yet with a hint of relief. When he handed the USB drive to Lin Jiqiu, the look of relief on his face was like someone who had been carrying a heavy load for a long time finally putting it down. It wasn’t because he thought Lin Jiqiu could win, but because he finally didn’t have to carry the burden alone anymore.

“Cheng Ran”.

“exist.”

“Zhang Wen said that the document the telescope showed him had my father’s name on it. It was about chip design schemes from Originium Technologies. My father participated in the design of those schemes.”

“Your father wasn’t just a scientist who researched Originium. He also applied those technologies.”

“He wanted those technologies to benefit humanity. But he didn’t know where they were used.” Lin Jiqiu paused for a few seconds. “Maybe he found out later.”

“So he wrote that email.”

“So he was eliminated.”

The streetlights outside cast blurry patches of light through the curtains. Looking at those patches, Lin Jiqiu thought of his father. If he were still alive, seeing Lin Jiqiu investigating Beichen Zhiting, what would he say? Perhaps he would say, “Stop investigating.” Perhaps he would say, “Be careful.” Perhaps he would say nothing at all, just like before, sitting by the window reading, occasionally glancing up at him.

She doesn’t know. She never will know.

She pulled the blanket over herself and closed her eyes. The round ball on her wrist vibrated slightly, in sync with her heartbeat. She placed her hand on the ball, feeling its faint warmth.

“Cheng Ran”.

“exist.”

“Tomorrow, we’ll start analyzing the blueprints Zhang Wen gave us. Let’s see if we can find a way to connect it to the echo system.”

“good.”

“Good night.”

“Good night.”