Chapter 9
If you keep going like this, Li Mengxue will get tired of you sooner or later, believe it or not?
This sentence weighed on Wen Sibao’s heart like a mountain, making him feel unusually heavy. But just a moment later, he finally sensed something was wrong and suddenly realized, “Wait a minute! Why is Murong Shui so quiet today?”
As he spoke, Wen Sibao turned around, only to see Murong Shui quickly pulling a USB drive out of his computer’s mainframe. She said to Xu Tiannan, “All done.”
Xu Tiannan didn’t waste any time. He stood up and said, “Alright, Officer Wen, these six minutes and twenty-eight seconds with you have been very pleasant. I just remembered something important, so I’ll be leaving now.”
“Wait! Stop right there!”
The two in front of him were about to leave, and Wen Sibao’s instincts told him that something was definitely wrong. He walked to his desk and suddenly noticed that his computer had logged into the Public Security Internal Network at some point, and the resident information displayed on the screen was that of Chen Jialuo’s family, which had just been mentioned. It seemed that Murong Shui had copied this data onto the USB drive earlier.
“Murong Shui! What on earth are you up to? The Public Security Internal Network isn’t something you can just mess around with!” Wen Sibao hurried over, trying to snatch the USB drive from her hand, but Murong Shui mischievously twirled the USB drive around her index finger, then casually flicked her hands, making the USB drive vanish, only for it to reappear in Xu Tiannan’s hand moments later.
Wen Sibao was anxious, his voice rising in pitch, “I beg you two ancestors, please stop messing with me. Just give it back! There’s a log of every access to the Internal Network on this computer. If something goes wrong, I’ll be held responsible!”
At this point, Wen Sibao suddenly thought of something even more unbelievable and exclaimed, “Wait a minute! My Public Security Internal Network account has a password. How… how did you know it?”
Wen Sibao couldn’t figure it out. From the moment Murong Shui entered his office until now, only a few minutes had passed, yet the password he had carefully set for the Internal Network had been cracked just like that.
At this moment, Murong Shui suppressed a laugh and raised her eyebrows at Xu Tiannan. Wen Sibao immediately understood-it was his doing. Before he could say anything, Xu Tiannan spoke up, “I’ve lost count of how many years I’ve known you. Do you think I wouldn’t know your tastes? Isn’t your type exactly someone like Li Mengxue-quiet and introverted, like a Little White Rabbit?”
Wen Sibao’s face turned red at once. “I… I’m asking how you cracked my Internal Network password. Why are you talking about this!”
Xu Tiannan said, “I’m surprised that after all these years, your reserved nature hasn’t changed. Do you remember what your campus network password was back at the Police Academy?”
Wen Sibao averted his gaze and kept silent.
Xu Tiannan chuckled, “It was dsbxtn, wasn’t it? You didn’t change it for four whole years. Did you really think I wouldn’t know? That password translates to… well, let’s not get into that.”
“But!” Xu Tiannan changed the subject, “But it’s precisely because you can’t shake this reserved nature of yours, always turning all the messy things you want to say into passwords, that I was sure your Internal Network password had something to do with Li Mengxue.”
Xu Tiannan paused and began to explain.
-“The first possible combination for the password is 520lmx or lmx520. Of course, the probability of this is only 15%, since besides being reserved, you’re also timid when it comes to feelings, so you probably wouldn’t use such a bold password.”
-“The second combination is your name and Li Mengxue’s together: wsblmx or lmxwsb. But the probability of this is only 5%, since it’s too simple and easy to guess.”
-“The third combination is very common, which is using your Police Badge Number as the password. But after someone got into trouble for using their badge number as a password and there was an internal notice, most people stopped doing that. So for someone as by-the-book as you, the probability is only 1%.”
-“That leaves the last and most likely combination, which is still related to you and Li Mengxue: your two birthdays combined-701319 or 319701. July 1st is your birthday, March 19th is hers. The probability of using a birthday combination as a password is over 70%, and this password is a little bond between you and Li Mengxue in your own inner world. So while I was talking to you just now, I sent these two sets of numbers to Murong Shui, and sure enough, she got it on the second try.”
Wen Sibao was shocked at how thoroughly his inner world had been dissected. His mind was about to explode, and he finally asked the last question, “Then how… how did you know Li Mengxue’s birthday?”
Xu Tiannan calmly helped Wen Sibao tidy up his clothes and smiled, “Li Mengxue just walked past me, and I noticed she pays exceptional attention to her appearance. Although she wears a white lab coat and a standard police uniform, I could tell she secretly altered the waist, hips, and pant legs to a smaller size. This way, her outfit looks more refined on her.”
Wen Sibao suddenly understood, the long-standing confusion in his heart finally resolved. He had always felt something different about Li Mengxue in her uniform, but couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was. However, at this moment, he was more curious about something else, so he asked again, “But what does all this have to do with her birthday?”
“A person’s appearance is a reflection of their inner world,” Xu Tiannan explained. “Although the police uniform, shirt, and tie are all issued by your squad, and even if she secretly alters the size, she can’t change how she wears them at work. But Li Mengxue’s shoes, notebook, water cup, and even her earrings are her last bit of stubbornness. These items are both exquisite and expensive, showing her love for beauty and matching things. Yet, I noticed one thing: all her stationery and accessories have a pattern of two fish. Do you understand what that means?”
Wen Sibao blinked, “It means she really likes marine animals?”
Xu Tiannan sighed deeply, “You’re such a fool! It means she’s a Pisces, get it?”
Wen Sibao frowned, “Those are things kids like. I don’t play with that stuff!”
Xu Tiannan nodded, his tone turning serious, “You can choose not to play or like these things, but as a criminal investigator, many things aren’t up to your personal interests. You must understand everything ordinary people care about, because who knows, maybe one day there will be a zodiac serial killer in Mobei City? Tell me, if that day comes and you don’t even know what’s on the suspect’s mind, how will you solve the case?”
Wen Sibao pondered carefully and muttered to himself, “Hmm… makes sense.”
Xu Tiannan smiled, “Then let’s continue the lesson.”
“Alright!” Wen Sibao was now fully engaged in the conversation, sitting up straight like a primary school student listening to a lecture, having completely forgotten about Murong Shui taking his USB drive.
Xu Tiannan said, “From the information above, we can tell that Li Mengxue grew up in a wealthy family, and she herself is a refined girl who cares a lot about the things around her, right?”
Wen Sibao replied earnestly, “Yes, that’s right!”
Xu Tiannan continued, “Then do you know what is the most important item for a girl like her?”
Wen Sibao answered immediately, “I know this one, it’s her phone!”
“Exactly,” Xu Tiannan explained. “Given that, why is Li Mengxue’s phone number ending in 0319 on the internal contact list under the glass of your desk? For a girl like her, why not choose a neater number, but instead pick 0319, which is ordinary and even a bit hard to remember?”
After listening to Xu Tiannan’s five-minute deduction, Wen Sibao’s throat was parched, and after making a raspy ‘hiss’ sound, he finally answered as if waking from a dream, “Because… because 0319 is her birthday.”
Xu Tiannan nodded and said word by word, “That’s right. Therefore, your intranet password is 3,1,9,7,0,1, and the ultimate proof that Li Mengxue has feelings for you, this blockhead, is… this!”
As he spoke, Xu Tiannan pulled out a delicate notebook from behind him. The cover featured two playful, intertwined little fish-no doubt, it was Li Mengxue’s notebook.
“Ah! When did you… steal that from her!” Wen Sibao asked nervously.
Xu Tiannan smiled, “Just now, when she dropped her things on the ground, I couldn’t resist and took it.”
After speaking, Xu Tiannan pulled out the first page tucked inside the notebook’s cover, which turned out to be a portrait-and the person in the drawing was Wen Sibao himself.
Seeing his own portrait in Li Mengxue’s notebook, Wen Sibao was completely stunned, his senses overwhelmed. Yet, somewhere in his subconscious, he felt there was still something very important left unfinished. Suddenly, he snapped back to reality and shouted, “Xu Tiannan, you almost got me sidetracked! Give me back the USB drive! This is a matter of principle!”
Knowing he was no match for Wen Sibao physically, Xu Tiannan simply threw the notebook far away. The sound of pages scraping across the floor echoed, and the notebook fell through the gap in the staircase. Soon, voices from the colleagues on duty downstairs could be heard.
――”Eh? Whose stuff is this?”
――”Isn’t there a name written on it? Li… Mengxue.”
――”Ah? Her? That young girl from the Forensic Team?”
After three sentences, the downstairs area instantly fell silent. Wen Sibao’s mind was buzzing; if they really opened the notebook, they would definitely see the portrait Li Mengxue had drawn for him. He immediately dashed downstairs, not forgetting to warn Xu Tiannan fiercely before leaving: “I’m warning you two-wait here for me! Don’t go anywhere!”
……
In less than two minutes, when Wen Sibao returned, panting, Xu Tiannan and the others were already nowhere to be seen. He sat back down at his computer and carefully examined the resident information on the screen, discovering that the person being searched was named “Chen Jialuo.” Scrolling further down, Wen Sibao was even more shocked to find that Chen Jialuo’s father was a well-known wealthy businessman in the city. This revelation made him feel that the case Xu Tiannan was investigating was far from simple.
Suddenly, the office door was pushed open. The Squad Leader walked in and asked sternly, “What’s all this commotion? Wen Sibao, what are you doing?”
The Squad Leader’s surname was Du, full name Du Yongzhi. Perhaps because of his name “Yongzhi” (which means ‘eternal support’), he had somehow perfectly missed every promotion opportunity during his eight years as the Squad Leader of the Criminal Investigation Squad.
Du Yongzhi was Wen Sibao’s direct superior, always stern and unsmiling, and he was strict about police discipline. As a result, he was the person Wen Sibao feared most.
At this moment, Wen Sibao’s heart was in his throat. Du Yongzhi already had a strong bias against Xu Tiannan due to the previous assault and theft case, so Wen Sibao absolutely didn’t dare let him know that they had just been here, and even less so that his internal network password had been cracked. He immediately replied, “N-nothing, sir?”
“Nothing? Then why do you sound like that?” The Squad Leader’s observation was sharp; he immediately sensed Wen Sibao’s abnormality and noticed that his gaze was fixed on the computer screen, so he walked straight over.
Privately checking resident information was a disciplinary violation and would leave an indelible record in the system. If no one pursued it, it was fine, but if the Squad Leader saw it, Wen Sibao would be in serious trouble.
The office was five meters long; it would take the Squad Leader about three seconds to walk from the door to Wen Sibao’s desk. Wen Sibao immediately prepared to close the inquiry window, planning to make up an excuse and claim he was preparing to investigate a case.
Seeing the Squad Leader about to reach him, Wen Sibao grabbed the mouse and clicked the close button in the upper right corner of the screen, but nothing happened. He clicked several more times, but the screen remained unresponsive.
Only then did Wen Sibao realize that this wasn’t an inquiry window at all-it was a screenshot Murong Shui had taken while searching for information earlier, and she had set it as his desktop background. Clearly, Murong Shui was deliberately getting back at him for calling her a tomboy. At this moment, he cursed her a thousand times in his heart, a sense of despair washing over him as he seemed to foresee the miserable future of being harshly reprimanded by the Squad Leader.
But just as the Squad Leader was about to see the screen, Wen Sibao suddenly yanked out the cable connecting the monitor to the computer with a loud “bang,” then looked at his superior with a meaningful expression.
A moment later, the Squad Leader said, “Wen Sibao, what exactly are you doing! If you don’t have a reasonable explanation, don’t blame me for being harsh!”
Wen Sibao’s mind raced, suddenly recalling something Xu Tiannan had once told him-if you want to avoid being caught in a lie, make up a lie that’s very unfavorable to yourself.
“I… I…”
After thinking for a moment, Wen Sibao gritted his teeth and said, “Squad Leader, I’m sorry! I was wrong! I was just looking at a porn site!”
Just as Wen Sibao spoke, Li Mengxue walked in from outside.
“Senior, did you see my notebook just now? Also, why is your work badge in my pocket? I brought it over for you.”
Li Mengxue was stunned; she never expected that her usually upright, serious Senior would be this kind of person-caught by his boss watching a porn site in the office. When Wen Sibao nervously handed her the notebook, Li Mengxue shrank back two steps in fear, trembling as she said, “Don’t come near me! The notebook… I don’t want it anymore.”