Insights Chapter 121: Battle

Chapter 121: Battle

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

This seemed like an ordinary night, with lights still on at the fourth floor of a high-end office building in the flower market district of Penang city’s east. The nearby companies and properties were unfamiliar with this company and its people, only knowing of their tight security, abundant equipment setup, numerous servers, and people dressed like programmers coming in and out.

Moreover, the business of this company was peculiar, with someone watching over it essentially twenty-four hours a day. The boss here was extravagant, buying an entire floor of office space with just a dozen or so employees. They had a dedicated elevator that didn’t connect with other floors and refused all visitors.

To enter, one needed a special work card and underwent multiple verifications like fingerprint and password checks. As the night grew deeper, there were still a few people working overtime in the office. Dong Xingle was a programmer who was recruited into a video website company after graduation. But later on, he was recognized by a leader for his outstanding skills, who said they would introduce him to a new job opportunity that could make him rich.

This new company was very mysterious, yet offered extremely generous salaries, and everyone coming in had to sign strict confidentiality agreements. Later, Dong Xingle discovered that it was actually an underground voyeurism website, involved in the operation and maintenance of peeking at others. The core team consisted of only nine people, all male, responsible for different aspects.

Dong Xingle knew this was illegal, but tempted by the fivefold salary increase plus bonuses, after much deliberation, he agreed to the offer. Initially, he was uneasy, but later on, he became more accepting. Someone upstream was doing this, someone downstream was spending money on it, and he was just a small part of this dark industry chain. Even if he didn’t do it, they would recruit other employees.

There’s a saying, “wealth and danger go hand in hand,” and he was also doing this to make a living. Otherwise, how many years would it take to afford a house in Penang, to stay here? Clearly, there were bigwigs behind the company. Every time they conducted checks, they always got wind of it beforehand, temporarily avoiding trouble, changing domain names when necessary, and rising again. 

In addition to programming, Dong Xingle was also responsible for cutting off the connection in case of anomalies. Just in case, Dong Xingle developed an automatic destruction program. Once activated, it would take about three minutes to destroy all data. For developing this program, he received a bonus of three hundred thousand yuan and was praised by his superiors.

Tonight, the night was calm. His colleague Jia Lin was monitoring while holding a cup of coffee.

Feng Pingyu, the person in charge of the operation, walked over for inspection, “How’s it going today? Any anomalies?”

Jia Lin smiled and replied, “Everything’s normal. Number 6 is taking a bath, and profits are soaring. Number 8 bought new pajamas, and there’s also a beauty in Number 15, increasing profits as well.”

The colleagues beside them stared at the screens, sighing as they watched the girls. The counter showed the number of simultaneous online viewers, which kept increasing with the arrival of the evening peak. Sales of some historical videos also began to soar. Soon, the real-time online number reached over fifty thousand.

Although new user registrations were closed, the website still had many old users paying to consume, unlocking new fish tanks, unlocking new camera positions, and some using the replay function. The website kept receiving tips, with the largest one being directly a million.

Feng Pingyu stretched lazily and smiled, “With this momentum, your end-of-month bonuses won’t be small.”

Dong Xingle watched the numbers fluctuate on the side, feeling happy yet also somewhat eerie. This illustrates that behind the screens of over fifty thousand computers and mobile phones, there are so many men peering at those young girls. He was somewhat worried and turned back, saying, “I heard there’s been some activity near the mansion recently, like they baited someone?”

Feng Pingyu was extremely confident, “They operate offline; it won’t affect us online.”

Dong Xingle asked, “Is it because of this that we stopped new user registrations?”

Jia Lin reassured, “Don’t worry, we know about the bait, but they have no idea about our location. The boss didn’t instruct us to stop, so it can’t be a big deal.”

Feng Pingyu chuckled, “The website’s encryption system was developed collectively. Even the best cyber police couldn’t find our specific location… Those incompetent cops can’t even trace us here.”

They all laughed together. But before the laughter died down, the office door was suddenly kicked open with a loud bang, and a group of people stormed in. They were young and agile.

“Don’t move!”

“Police!”

“Don’t move! Put your hands up!”

The people in the room were momentarily stunned. They hadn’t expected things to escalate so quickly.

Jia Lin was the first to react, shouting, “Destroy the data!”

Dong Xingle’s hands were shaking. With a click, he pressed the button to activate the self-destruct program. Suddenly, he remembered there were some stored items in a nearby host. He grabbed the main control computer and threw it out of the window. With a bang, the computer smashed through the window, landing heavily on the grass below, shattered into several pieces. He attempted to jump out of the window, but before he could climb onto the window sill, he was pulled back by someone and pinned to the ground, hands cuffed behind his back.

The leader looked at the computer outside the window and said, “Falling objects from height, adding another charge. Lu Ying, get someone to retrieve the computer.”

All of this happened in just a few seconds. The group had already subdued them. Feng Pingyu still felt like he was in a dream, trembling as he asked, “Who are you?”

He still couldn’t quite believe these people were the police. How could the police carry out such an operation without any prior information? And how could the police have such advanced technology? They had broken through their multiple restrictions on the way up, and the surveillance didn’t capture anything?

Leading them was Gu Yanchen, who took out his police badge and waved it in front of them before handcuffing Feng Pingyu. Feng Pingyu looked at the badge, his face pale, and hung his head low. His mind raced, considering how to handle the subsequent police interrogation.

Dong Xingle held his head in his hands. There was only a small amount of data in the host, and he felt immensely grateful that he had pressed the self-destruct button. This self-destruct program would first erase the website’s records, wiping out all customer and boss information. This way, they would become the ones holding the secret. As long as they remained silent, the bosses behind the scenes would find a way to get them out.

Just as he thought of this, Dong Xingle glanced at the computer screen. He wanted to see how far along the self-destruct program was. Even if it took only three minutes to destroy all the data, even if the program was interrupted due to time constraints, it could still destroy the crucial data. But as soon as he looked at the screen, Dong Xingle’s eyes widened in astonishment.

The progress bar for destroying records was stuck at 0, and the number didn’t change, as if an invisible hand had halted the program’s continuation. Then, the pop-up disappeared. The program closed automatically.

Dong Xingle could hardly believe his eyes; this was completely illogical. The screen flickered a few times, the mouse moved erratically, someone was remotely controlling the computer. Numerous pieces of information on the computer jumped out on their own. The live stream was cut off, software recording internal information opened one by one, and even encrypted directories were accessed.

In just a few minutes, the complex encryption was effortlessly cracked, as if solving a simple elementary math problem. Dong Xingle watched this scene and almost spat out a mouthful of blood. He realized that the other party must have experts with higher skills than theirs. That’s why they were able to find their address before the raid, decrypt their cameras, and bypass their door entry alert devices.

They were doomed this time! Dong Xingle’s whole body trembled, his teeth chattering. Although he had awakened countless times in his dreams, he had imagined this scenario, but when it actually happened, he was completely caught off guard.

They were all handcuffed and escorted downstairs to be taken away in cars. The cyber police took over the servers of the entire building, treating the information inside as evidence, organizing and storing it.

Late at night, Shen Junci controlled Dong Xingle’s computer. He had seized control before the self-destruct program activated, so all that information was preserved intact. Modern people relied too much on electronic devices. With strong enough skills, one could break through.

Gu Yanchen called him, saying the operation was successful. Shen Junci opened the list of high-level members of the voyeurism website and sent a copy to Gu Yanchen.

There were a total of 89 names on the list, all of whom had had real-life contact with those young girls. This meant there were at least 89 or even more related cases. Shen Junci habitually propped his chin with his hand, scanning over each name on the list. Some names on the list used overseas accounts, and some might have used others’ accounts, but there were still a few who used their real names.

There were a few names that even ordinary people would never think of. In this case, talented artists, knowledgeable scholars, even those from the entertainment industry, fashion world, internet, and finance sectors were implicated. These seemingly glamorous individuals also had such sordid and unknown sides. Some names even represented money, power, and status.

Shen Junci could imagine that if this case and the list were made public, it could cause a huge stir. He held the printed list and his laptop, slowly walking to the opposite room. Just having these names wasn’t enough; it was crucial, so he needed to cross-reference with Yan Chi.

Late at night, Li Zhongnan also rushed over. Yan Chi and Xie Yuna were in the room. After listening to Shen Junci’s explanation, Yan Chi took the list.

Xie Yuna was deeply moved on the side, “You took down their company’s servers? That’s amazing!”

The girl was so moved that she was almost in tears. Her nightmare was finally over, and from now on, there would be no new victims.

Yan Chi looked at the list, scanning each name, “The list is correct. I’ve seen some of these people at the mansion. They’re regulars there.”

Under each person’s name, he made a mark. Then he pointed at a few of them, “These people used their secretary’s accounts.” He annotated the names as well. Then he said, “Before I left, I secretly took a few photos of those people entering Mansion 13 using a spare phone.”

Those few nights, coincidentally, there was a party. Entering the mansion required surrendering phones, but for them, the bait, the mansion felt they had leverage, so the supervision was lax. At that time, he had made up his mind to escape. On the second-floor balcony of the staff dormitory in the mansion, he took pictures from a distance of them entering the mansion.

After Shen Junci and Li Zhongnan finished looking at the photos he took, their brows furrowed. Shen Junci finally understood why Gao Shixuan had been so confident all along. It was because those big shots were all regulars at the mansion. If anything happened to the mansion, someone would be afraid of being implicated and wouldn’t allow the mansion’s affairs to be exposed.

Police investigations rely on evidence, which needs to be reasonable and legal. However, those wealthy and powerful people would do anything to cover up the truth. Destroying evidence, seeking connections, finding the best lawyers… Now, not only Yan Chi, but even those who knew about these matters, would probably be considered thorns in the eyes of those people.

This had become a test for the police and justice.

Li Zhongnan spoke up, “I have a method.”

Shen Junci asked, “What method?”

After pondering for a moment, Li Zhongnan said, “Expose it to the public.”

Then Li Zhongnan explained further, “When one person knows a secret, they can be silenced by murder. If ten people know the secret, the other party might try to silence them through threats. If a hundred people know the secret, they can only be bought off. But if thousands of people know about it, they can’t silence everyone.”

Although it sounded risky and illogical, it was actually the safest way for them.

Yan Chi said, “If we can take down those people behind the scenes, I’m willing to step forward and report them publicly with my real name!” He paused and added, “And this is something I’ve wanted to do myself. If anyone is held accountable for this, I will admit my actions and won’t involve you.”

Xie Yuna asked on the side, “Then, how do we expose it to the public? I posted on the internet before, but it was quickly deleted. I suspect there are many of their people online.”

Shen Junci said, “Let’s wait for now.”

He had already synchronized the information to the provincial department, and Director He was in a meeting with several leaders. With such a big matter, he needed to follow orders.

Soon, Director He’s call came through. Shen Junci avoided Yan Chi and Xie Yuna, went into the room, and answered the phone.

The voice of the old director came through, “Medical examiner Shen, you’ve worked hard. I’ve seen the information you sent over. Afterwards, I met with several leaders in the province. We discussed and decided that this case is a good opportunity for the supervisory team to enter Penang. If the case causes a serious social impact, we can more legitimately deal with those behind the scenes.”

From the tone of his words, the leaders also hoped that the case would be made public. Shen Junci asked, “Yan Chi wants to make a real-name report online. If he really does it, will it have a negative impact on public opinion?”

Director He asked, “What do you think the impact will be?”

Shen Junci said, “Will people think that the police have been negligent, that these people are too powerful and have covered up the security issues in Penang?”

Director He said, “I think people will be encouraged because we, the police, discovered such a situation and dealt with it. “

Shen Junci thought for a moment, “I understand.”

Things have two sides.

Director He continued, “If we don’t talk about it, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. It’s not by pretending to be ignorant that we can solve the problem. We need to face everything. I believe people have the right to know the truth. Public opinion serves the people. If personal safety cannot be guaranteed, what’s the use of having a smooth surface in the media?”

The words were harsh, but they made sense.

“Some people don’t want things to be exposed because they’re guilty and afraid of others knowing. Sometimes, nothing can be accomplished without breaking the status quo. Covering up wounds may not be conducive to solving problems. As long as the authenticity of the matter is guaranteed, I think it will attract public attention and be a good thing. You can say many things, but in recent years, there have actually been many major cases where after people raised their voices on the internet, the police conducted deeper investigations. Without public outcry, we wouldn’t discover so many cases. If Yan Chi is willing to speak the truth, we shouldn’t silence him. If the events at Mansion 13 are reported online, the supervisory team can rightfully come down to handle this case.”

Shen Junci then briefed the chief on the current situation, informing him of some names on the list and the existence of those photos.

The chief said, “Medical examiner Shen, I’ll reply to your email. I’ll also introduce you to some friends who can help you systematically disclose the events. Additionally, to ensure the safety of Yan Chi and Xie Yuna, I’ll send two cars later to temporarily transfer the witnesses to the provincial capital. Our provincial department will take responsibility for their safety. Even if those Penang people have long arms, they can’t reach over here. In short, I trust your judgment. Go ahead boldly, and I’ll back you up.”

After finishing the call with the chief, Shen Junci finalized the entire plan in his mind. He then contacted Gu Yanchen, “I just finished talking with the chief. I’m ready to proceed to the next step. You should also prepare on your end, issue the police announcement as soon as possible, and also alert the cyber police and Director Ding.”

Gu Yanchen replied, “Got it, I’ll cooperate with you.”

With Gu Yanchen’s response, Shen Junci’s heart settled. He reviewed the details once more.

“It should be fine,” Gu Yanchen encouraged him, then paused and added, “Take care of yourself. If you feel better, have something to eat.”

After hearing Gu Yanchen’s words, Shen Junci suddenly felt his eyes welling up. He had been pushing himself, burning like a candle. He had been hungry for a long time, but before, he had been in a state of excitement. When fully focused, he hadn’t even felt the pain of his wounds.

After chatting with Gu Yanchen, those words of encouragement made him feel that his efforts were worthwhile. And he realized that there were still people caring about him. To prepare for the upcoming busyness, he followed Gu Yanchen’s advice, grabbed a few pieces of chocolate, drank some hot water, took his medication, and then sat back in front of his computer.

His blood was boiling. This was what Lin Xianglan had wanted to do but didn’t complete. This was a battle without gunpowder, but the climax was yet to come. Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night for those people. The earthquake in Penang was about to arrive.