Ji Shuyu thought for a moment and decided to inspect the area carefully herself. Although she didn’t hold out much hope, she thought it was possible she might find something. In truth, she simply couldn’t let it go and wanted to uncover some flaw of Old Qian’s.
She reached out and pulled open the drawer. It was empty. She ran her fingers carefully along every corner of the drawer. The wooden board was smooth, seemingly normal. Of course, since he had prepared to flee, he must have cleared everything out long ago.
Just as she was about to give up, her fingertips brushed against a slight raised spot deep inside the drawer, beneath the inner baseboard. If she hadn’t been examining it with extreme care, she would never have noticed it.
Her heart stirred. She immediately found a small pair of tweezers and carefully probed the area. It seemed to be a small, extremely thin piece of something with a hard texture, attached to the back of the wooden board with a transparent adhesive similar to fish glue.
Holding her breath, she gently pried it loose with the tip of the tweezers. A few minutes later, she extracted a tightly rolled, translucent piece of film smaller than a fingernail.
Her heart leaped. She immediately realized this could be backup intelligence or a contact method that Old Qian had hidden in a hurry—or perhaps even left behind intentionally.
She didn’t dare delay. Wrapping the film carefully in a clean handkerchief, she instructed her assistant and hurried toward He Yuan’s office. This item could serve as a breakthrough. Until Old Qian was captured, Ji Shuyu wouldn’t feel at ease.
He Yuan was in the middle of deploying a new round of investigations. Seeing Ji Shuyu arrive hurriedly with a grave expression, he immediately dismissed the others. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” His first concern was still her health.
Ji Shuyu shook her head and quickly unfolded the handkerchief to reveal the microfilm. “I found it hidden in a secret compartment in Old Qian’s drawer. It was very well concealed.”
He Yuan’s eyes sharpened as he took it. He held it up to the light for a closer look. The film seemed to have dots and lines, resembling some kind of code or a miniature map.
“I suspect this might be the location of another dead drop or his emergency contact method,” Ji Shuyu whispered. “The previous newspaper contact method is probably obsolete or compromised. This is his backup.”
He Yuan made a swift decision. He immediately called for Zhao Qiang and two soldiers skilled in investigation, while also sending for a magnifying glass and a simple projection device.
After magnification and examination, the dots and lines on the film gradually became clear. As He Yuan had suspected, they formed a simple map pointing to a remote reef area on the northern part of the island. Beside one marked spot was an extremely small number.
“It’s the Three-Finger Reef in the reef cluster!” a soldier who was a local immediately recognized it. “The terrain there is complex, with significant tidal changes. Few people usually go there!”
“He likely set up a backup contact point there or hid something,” He Yuan said, standing up abruptly. “Zhao Qiang, take a team and set out immediately! Stay hidden and move quickly!”
He turned to Ji Shuyu. “Stay at the research institute. Don’t go anywhere. Wait for my news.”
Knowing the urgency of the situation, Ji Shuyu nodded firmly. “Be careful.”
He Yuan led a small team of elite soldiers to the reef cluster on the northern shore at top speed. Waves crashed against the bizarrely shaped rocks. The terrain was complex and, set against the azure sea, somewhat intimidating.
Following the map’s guidance, they quickly located the Three-Finger Reef, which resembled three fingers. In a crevice at the base of the middle rock, Zhao Qiang discovered a small, rusted iron box corroded by seawater. Opening it, they found it empty.
“Regimental Commander, the item has already been taken!” Zhao Qiang’s face was grim. They hadn’t expected the enemy to act so quickly. Presumably, they also feared the backup contact method would be discovered.
He Yuan crouched down, carefully examining the crevice and the surrounding traces. Fresh marks from prying with a hard object were visible on the edges of the crevice, and a footprint pointed toward the deeper coastline on a nearby rock.
“He’s been here! And he left not long ago!”
He Yuan’s heart sank. Old Qian had taken something from here. What could it be? New instructions? Or means of escape? Why would he risk coming to retrieve it? Could it be… he was no longer satisfied with just transmitting intelligence but intended to escape with it personally?
“After him!”
Without hesitation, He Yuan immediately led his men in pursuit, following the footprints and possible directions.
“He can’t have gone far. Notify the coastal outposts to increase vigilance. We absolutely cannot let him slip away by sea!”
The footprints were intermittent and eventually disappeared on a beach covered with crushed stones. But He Yuan deduced that since Old Qian had taken the item, his most likely plan was to escape by sea. Although this area was dangerous, during high tide, small sampans could potentially come ashore.
Old Qian was making a desperate gamble, attempting to break through personally with the intelligence. He must have sensed the danger. It seemed their strategy of trapping him was working.
He Yuan’s sharp eyes scanned the turbulent sea, internal alarms ringing. He could not allow this big fish to escape with classified intelligence.
“Expand the search perimeter! Focus on checking all possible hiding spots for boats! Quickly!”
He Yuan’s order spread on the sea breeze, and the soldiers immediately dispersed.
Meanwhile, Old Qian was hiding in a dark, damp sea cave, his chest heaving. He clutched the item he had just retrieved tightly in his hand. It wasn’t instructions but a small key and a simple route map, indicating that a small boat would pick him up at a designated location during the next high tide.
This was his final chance. He had to gamble!
Old Qian’s food was exhausted. He had only one biscuit left, which he needed to save for the journey. Now, in his bag, were only some dried salted fish he had stolen from an islander’s home. If he didn’t leave now, he would either be captured or starve to death.
It was all Ji Shuyu and He Yuan’s fault. All their fault. He had already obtained the intelligence; why couldn’t they just let him leave? Why did they have to cause him so much trouble now?
He Yuan held a pair of binoculars, watching his soldiers search the reefs. His brow was furrowed in thought. The sea was calm, with no signs of disturbance. What exactly was written on the item Old Qian had taken?
“Looks like the tide might be coming in soon,” a young soldier remarked casually. He came from a fishing family and had gone out fishing with his father as a child. Having heard his father talk about it often, he knew a lot about the sea.
“What did you say?” He Yuan lowered the binoculars and looked at the young soldier.
The soldier replied, “Reporting, Regimental Commander! When I went out fishing as a boy, I heard my dad say that with conditions like this, the tide will likely come in about two hours!”
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