Then, Let Them Offer Their Loyalty!

Chapter 76: The Strange Book

Qiu Tu pointed to the remaining seven or eight agents and said, "They are under your command."

"My requirements are simple: make sure not to alert the big merchants. They must not detect any investigation."

Cao Dabiao's mouth slowly dropped open, "And they can’t detect it?"

At that moment, Cao Dabiao suddenly thought that being locked up in the holding room wasn’t so bad after all, at least compared to facing such an impossible task.

However, seeing Qiu Tu’s encouraging eyes and thinking about the pressure Qiu Tu had endured for his sake, Cao Dabiao gritted his teeth and resolutely said, "Don't worry, sir! I will complete the task!"

Qiu Tu smiled and patted Cao Dabiao's shoulder, continuing to motivate him, "Dabiao, you’re the person I trust the most in this investigation team. Don’t let me down."

Cao Dabiao nodded vigorously and then left energetically with the remaining agents.

Once everyone was assigned, Qiu Tu walked to the window of the empty conference room, gazing out and quietly contemplating.

Despite Jia Shu hinting that he could simply pin the crime on someone and close the case, Qiu Tu didn’t want to do that. While it might please Jia Shu, it was too risky. This high-profile case had the attention of many powerful figures. If his fabricated case wasn’t exposed, he’d be fine. But if it were, neither Jia Shu nor Yan Chen would protect him. He’d become a disposable pawn.

Therefore, after careful consideration, Qiu Tu decided the case needed to be thoroughly investigated. Only by finding the real culprit could he secure his position. The case involved significant factions, and discovering the truth would give him leverage over them. He could either trade for benefits or hand over the perpetrator to protect himself, placing him in an unbeatable position.

However, he felt uneasy about Jia Shu's unusual behavior today. As Yan Chen’s right-hand man, Jia Shu should be loyal to Yan Chen and the Investigation Bureau. But today, Jia Shu’s attitude was ambiguous, raising concerns about a deeper conspiracy behind the female spy's death and the possibility that the Political Division might be involved in covering it up. If that were true, he’d be in serious trouble.

As he pondered this, Qiu Tu's hands clenched behind his back.

Ten minutes later, groups of agents began returning, bringing more information about the case.

First, there was a medical report on Yin Caimei (the female spy) after her capture by the Interrogation Office. All indicators were normal, with no external injuries or hidden illnesses.

Next was the medical report after her interrogation, showing traces of various interrogation drugs in her system, a fractured right pinky, and multiple external injuries and bruises, but none were fatal.

Then came the surveillance footage from the Information Surveillance Office.

The footage showed that after her interrogation and medical check, Yin Caimei was sent back to the holding room. She behaved normally, and no unauthorized personnel approached her. She ate dinner at 6 PM, sat on her bed to rest, and even picked up a book to read. Around 9 PM, she suddenly collapsed to the floor. The guards, noticing something was wrong, opened the cell and found her dead.

Since Qiu Tu had taken over the case, all evidence, including the book Yin Caimei was reading and her leftover food, had been handed over to the investigation team.

Qiu Tu ignored the other items and focused on the book. It was a black-covered book that looked somewhat oppressive and eerie. The title on the cover read "Brave New World".

Qiu Tu opened the book to find a neat line of writing on the first page:

"Death is merely the disappearance of the body, the spirit remains connected to the world. Only a world where the spirit persists is the final hope for our suffering tribe."

Reading this, Qiu Tu frowned and skimmed through a few more pages. The content mainly consisted of metaphysical theories or descriptions and aspirations for an "eternal spiritual world," with no other significant information. However, the book made Qiu Tu uneasy.

While an ordinary person might dismiss this book as nothing special, Qiu Tu, being aware of the supernatural, knew the existence of a mental world called the Boundless Mind Sea. This world was the source of all disaster phenomena and the origin of supernatural powers. The book’s description of a spiritual world and its call for death to approach it seemed too coincidental to ignore.

Moreover, who had given this book to Yin Caimei, and for what purpose?

Qiu Tu immediately assigned Liu Fuping and Song Qing to investigate the book's origins. Since it wasn't classified information, the answer came quickly: Yin Caimei had brought the book herself. Due to her special status, she was allowed to carry a small number of personal items after her capture, and this book was among them.

Qiu Tu's mind raced with thoughts and implications as he continued to analyze the information gathered.

The special approval for bringing the book in was granted by Jia Shu. As Qiu Tu looked at the black book in his hand, he took a deep breath, his expression thoughtful.

Before he could process this information fully, the last group of agents—Chen Feng and Zhu Huoyan—returned with unexpected news: Yin Caimei's body had not been autopsied, so there was no autopsy report. The morgue could arrange for an autopsy room, and it would be up to Qiu Tu's team to assign a suitable forensic doctor to perform the initial autopsy.

"No autopsy?" The most surprised by this news wasn’t Qiu Tu, but Liu Fuping. Her face changed color rapidly as if she had realized something, standing there frozen in shock and disbelief.

Qiu Tu hadn’t expected this outcome either. His brows furrowed deeply. The lack of an autopsy revealed something significant: Jia Shu hadn't bothered to investigate Yin Caimei's death, nor had he looked into the cause of her death.

This led to two possibilities: either Jia Shu didn’t care about Yin Caimei's death and its consequences, or he knew she would die and possibly even knew the cause. Realizing this, Qiu Tu felt the case heading in a very dark direction.

After contemplating for a while, Qiu Tu addressed Chen Feng, Zhu Huoyan, and Wang Xi. "Chen Feng, take Zhu Huoyan and Wang Xi to request a forensic doctor and conduct the autopsy."

Chen Feng acknowledged the order and was about to leave when Qiu Tu stopped him, "Wait. Leave your communicator."

Chen Feng, puzzled by the request, complied due to his high loyalty and handed over his communicator.

After they left, Qiu Tu fiddled with the communicator, then stood up, instructing the remaining team members to continue analyzing the case while he stepped out to make a call. As soon as he left the conference room, he heard footsteps behind him.

Qiu Tu turned to see Liu Fuping following him with a frosty expression. He didn’t speak and instead headed to another empty conference room. Liu Fuping followed him inside.

Once they were sure the room was empty, Liu Fuping closed the door and dropped her facade. For the first time, she showed her true self to Qiu Tu, pointing at him and accusing coldly, "Qiu Tu! You knew! You knew all along! This is a trap!"

Qiu Tu’s gaze was complex. He pulled out a cigarette, intending to light it, but Liu Fuping snatched it from his hand and threw it on the floor, glaring at him.

Seeing this, Qiu Tu sighed deeply and gently embraced the furious woman in front of him. Liu Fuping froze for a moment, her body tensing.

Perhaps feeling she had been too harsh, she sighed softly, her body starting to relax as if ready to talk things out with Qiu Tu.

Suddenly, she felt Qiu Tu’s arms tighten around her like a vise, crushing her with immense force.

Panicking, she struggled, but her strength was nothing compared to Qiu Tu’s. She heard her bones creak under the pressure. Desperately, she looked up at Qiu Tu, only to see a pair of abyssal black eyes staring back at her.

In that moment, she felt the real terror of death.

"Please, please, please," she stammered, tears welling up in her eyes as she pleaded for her life.

Qiu Tu looked at her with deep, inscrutable eyes. As she teetered on the brink of despair, he suddenly released her.

Liu Fuping collapsed to the floor, gasping for air, her eyes wide with the relief of surviving.

Without a word, Qiu Tu stepped over her and walked to the window, coldly stating, "There won’t be a next time."

"You’re a spy. Killing you won’t bring me any consequences."

Liu Fuping gulped, her face pale with fear as she looked at Qiu Tu. She had thought their shared secrets and physical intimacy over the past few days meant Qiu Tu had at least some affection or pity for her. But she was wrong.

Just now, she had truly smelled the scent of death.

A sharp sound drew her attention, and she realized her gun was missing from her waist. Qiu Tu had taken it again, showing his deep mistrust. This realization filled her with a sense of defeat.

Qiu Tu spoke again, still facing the window. "I only guessed the truth this morning."

"This is all a trap."

"From the moment your superior contacted you last night and you started investigating, you both were caught in it."

"So, even if I had figured out the truth and told you, it wouldn’t have mattered. You were already being monitored, with no way to escape."

Liu Fuping’s expression kept changing as she processed Qiu Tu's words.

Qiu Tu continued, "Unfortunately, I think I might have fallen into the trap myself today."

He paused, then turned back to her, asking, "By the way, who is your superior?"

Liu Fuping looked at him, bewildered, as if unable to process everything at once.

Author's Note