Chapter 121: Shadows of Spies Emerge

Liu Yaofeng, recently, was actually quite troubled.

Ever since he started a business with Du Qiu, the company has been flourishing, and he became one of Du Qiu’s most trusted right-hand men.

His treatment improved substantially, and right before the year’s end, his wish was fulfilled – he made a down payment and bought a large house in Magic City, planning to marry his girlfriend, Tian Ya, next year.

Unexpectedly, lately, Tian Ya has been making trouble frequently, always saying that he doesn’t love her and that he’s too busy working overtime to spend time with her.

This really puzzled Liu Yaofeng – without working overtime, where would the high salary come from? From where would the money to buy a house and car arise?

A few nights ago, his female assistant called to report an issue, and consequently, Tian Ya began to accuse him groundlessly, insisting that he must be fooling around under the pretense of working overtime.

Today is Saturday, and after discussing it with Du Qiu, Liu Yaofeng invited his girlfriend to the company, wanting her to see firsthand how he worked.

He hoped this would dispel Tian Ya’s doubts, considering it was no easy feat for them to be together for eight years.

Du Qiu looked at Liu Yaofeng, who couldn’t hide his fatigue, and said with a touch of unwillingness to scold, “I put you in charge of the R&D center not to accompany the researchers every day in overtime.

Look at you, you’re not only wearing yourself out, but you aren’t taking the time to accompany your girlfriend, you know?”

Liu Yaofeng smiled wryly and replied, “We’re like an old married couple already, all that lovey-dovey stuff isn’t as important as working and making money.

Besides, you, the billionaire boss, spend all day in the lab – I have to keep an extra eye out for you.”

Du Qiu was somewhat touched. “A lone brave man with three helpers – if not for the help of these core business partners, how could I focus entirely on researching extraterrestrial civilization technologies?

Dream Technology is now considered a large company with various affairs, and if Du Qiu had to intervene in everything, even the 712 might be too busy to handle it.

There are some entrepreneurs who die of exhaustion because they like to do everything on their own.”

Du Qiu shook his head and said, “Liu Yaofeng, are you not worried your girlfriend will despise you for not spending time with her and break up with you?”

Liu Yaofeng chuckled and said, “Our relationship started in our school days and it’s solid – I’ve also bought a house in Magic City recently, finally making her Magic City dream come true.

Lately, she’s been emotional; maybe she’s worried because I’m making more money, she’s started to fear that I no longer love her, always saying that when men get rich, they turn bad.”

“Really? Apart from a house, she didn’t make any other demands? Did she volunteer to come to the company today?” Du Qiu asked.

Upon hearing Du Qiu’s question, Liu Yaofeng felt that something was off and asked with a suspicious look, “Boss, has something happened?”

“Prepare yourself mentally; there’s something you may not want to see,” said Du Qiu, his voice heavy.

“Boss, just say it, I can handle it,” replied Liu Yaofeng, feeling a sense of unease but still firmly.

“Then turn around and look at that video,” Du Qiu directed, pointing to a monitor on the wall.

Upon turning around, Liu Yaofeng saw the image of his girlfriend in his office and then saw what she was doing.

In a flash, Liu Yaofeng stood up abruptly, his face showing a complex mix of emotions.

“This… she… how could she…”

Liu Yaofeng was at a loss for words and finally collapsed back into his chair, bowing his head deeply.

After a long time, Liu Yaofeng expressed in a low tone, “Boss, can we let Tian Ya go? I guarantee I’ll recover that USB drive from her.”

“Liu Yaofeng, don’t rush. I’m asking you, do you know she’s in huge debt?”

“What?!” Liu Yaofeng looked up at Du Qiu in surprise.

“Tian Ya has been in debt since last year, racking up an online loan, and this loan snowballed to a whopping 3.6 million yuan!”

“Is it a loan-shark debt?” Liu Yaofeng asked with bloodshot eyes.

“It seems to be. And yet, this money was paid off a week ago.”

“What? Paid off? Where did Tian Ya get the money to pay it off? We didn’t touch the down payment money for the house,” Liu Yaofeng asked, somewhat anxiously.

“A week ago, a woman who claimed to be called Tian Minghui transferred this huge sum of money to Tian Ya.”

Liu Yaofeng said in amazement, “Tian Minghui? Could she be a relative of Tian Ya’s? But I’ve never heard her mention having such a wealthy relative.

I remember Tian Ya saying if she had a rich relative, she could have borrowed money to make the down payment sooner and not watched the house prices skyrocket.”

“I’ve investigated, and Tian Minghui is not her relative; the name is also fake, her real name is Akita Minghui!”

“Japanese?!” Liu Yaofeng exclaimed.

“Correct, Japanese.”

“So you’re saying Tian Ya did this under the direction of Akita Minghui? Then she’s a spy for the Japanese…” Liu Yaofeng suddenly stopped, unable to continue.

Liu Yaofeng had no fondness for the Japanese, as his grandfather’s village had been massacred by Japanese soldiers, with only his grandfather and two others surviving.

He had been raised with his grandfather’s warnings, never harboring any good feelings towards the Japanese.

With a dejected look, Liu Yaofeng said, “Boss, let Tian Ya bear the responsibility she should. Of course, I will submit my resignation shortly…”

“What are you talking about? You did nothing wrong. Agreeing to let Tian Ya into the R&D center was my decision.”

Du Qiu waved his hand and continued, “I think Tian Ya may not have acted willingly. Right now, the priority is to catch Akita Minghui, the person who instructed her.

If you agree, I’ll notify security to follow her and catch her in the act of delivering the information to Akita Minghui.”

Before the New Year, Ning Yuzhe’s safety measures, which he had applied for with the higher-ups, were finally approved and implemented.

Currently, a security team has quietly taken position at Dream Technology, and although most are concentrated in the factory district producing parts for Xingguang Precision, if needed, they can intervene.

Liu Yaofeng with a worried expression asked, “Can this be considered meritorious? Will she be sentenced? For how long?”

Although Liu Yaofeng just said to let Tian Ya bear the responsibility, now, when actually having to take action, he was a bit torn.

Du Qiu said, “Here’s what we’ll do: if security asks, you say that a few days ago you felt Tian Ya was acting strangely, and after consulting with me, I found out there was a Japanese female spy.

To catch the spy, you and I discussed, and you brought Tian Ya to the company today to give her a chance to steal information.

Using this as bait, security can catch the spy in the act.

In this case, even if Tian Ya is sentenced, it can be reduced due to her role in the sting operation.”

Liu Yaofeng nodded and said, “Boss, we’ll do as you say.”

Du Qiu looked at Liu Yaofeng and asked, “If she does get sentenced, will you still be with her?”

Liu Yaofeng wiped his face with his hands and said, “We’ve been together for eight full years, and I think of her as family.

As you said, I’ve indeed neglected her feelings before, no matter how long her sentence, I will wait for her and marry her after she gets out!”

“Okay, since you’ve decided, call Tian Ya now and tell her I have something important to discuss with you and ask her to go home first. Be careful not to let anything slip.”

Liu Yaofeng nodded firmly without saying much.

He then took out his mobile phone and dialed the number.

“Tian Ya, my boss has an urgent matter to discuss with me, and it might take a long time. Maybe you should go home first?”

On the phone, Tian Ya’s voice could be heard, “Oh, go ahead with your work. I can go back by myself, no need to worry.”

“Alright, be careful on your way; call me once you get home.”

“Okay, okay.”

After hanging up, Liu Yaofeng saw Du Qiu use the landline to make a call.

“Captain Fang, there’s someone I need you guys to keep an eye on; the relevant information will be sent to your phone right away.”

“She has important information from the R&D center and may deliver it to the Japanese, Akita Minghui; I hope you can catch her with the evidence.”

“Oh, no need to be polite. By the way, she is Liu Yaofeng’s girlfriend from our R&D center, and we deliberately arranged her as bait.”

“Alright, we appreciate your effort.”

Du Qiu hung up the phone and, seeing Liu Yaofeng tense, got up, walked over to him, and patted his shoulder, saying, “Don’t worry, this will be over soon.”

“Boss, I’m sorry! I…”

“Don’t think about backing out now! Can’t you see the Japanese are getting restless? Don’t you want to stand with me at the pinnacle of world science and technology?”

“Boss, do you still trust me?”

“Of course, I trust you! You are Liu Yaofeng!”

Du Qiu extended his hand and took Liu Yaofeng’s, “My good brother, it’s my lack of concern for you all that let this happen; otherwise, it wouldn’t have happened at all.”

“Don’t say that. You’ve been living in the company because of the super precision processing center. Recently, you were secluded in the lab, researching – I’m the one who’s held you back.”

“Alright, stop being mawkish, it’s not like you, Liu Yaofeng. Go get busy, go home early today! Tian Ya might not be able to go home tonight; she may need to cooperate with the security investigation.”

After Liu Yaofeng left, Du Qiu sighed, aware that the Japanese had started to resort to underhanded tactics and that he himself needed to be more vigilant.

Luckily, the birth of Star Ocean happened just in time; otherwise, today’s incident would have been missed.

Although the R&D center was secured with surveillance in every office, someone at Liu Yaofeng’s level wasn’t normally the focus of observation.

With Star Ocean now in place, there’s no longer any need to worry about such situations – artificial intelligence really is so convenient.