Chapter Eight: The Operation Begins

"Ring, ring, ring!" The shrill alarm jolted Li Weiwei from her dreams. She sat up groggily, grabbed the alarm clock from her nightstand, and glanced at it. Instantly, she was wide awake. "Oh no, I'm going to be late!" she exclaimed. Leaping out of bed, she hurried through a quick wash, dressed, and dashed out the door.

When Li Weiwei arrived breathlessly at Ming City University, it was exactly eight o'clock. Zhao Zhijie was already waiting at the entrance. Spotting him, she parked her car in a roadside space and walked over.

"You're right on time today!" Zhao Zhijie greeted her with a smile.

Li Weiwei pouted and replied, "I'm always punctual. Yesterday was just an exception."

Zhao Zhijie looked at her with admiration. Today, Li Weiwei wore a brown, half-turtleneck T-shirt with elbow-length sleeves, paired with high-waisted, wide-legged beige silk trousers, and white casual sneakers. Her long hair cascaded down, making her look especially radiant and full of youthful energy—a perfect match for the beautiful campus.

"Let's go, everyone's waiting for us inside," Zhao Zhijie said, leading the way onto the campus. Li Weiwei followed close behind.

When Li Weiwei entered the room and saw Qiu Zhiyong sitting there, her eyes widened in surprise. "Uncle Qiu, what are you doing here?"

Qiu Zhiyong was just as startled to see her, though he kept his composure. "So you're the expert Xiao Zhao mentioned. Please, have a seat."

After everyone settled in, Qiu Zhiyong continued, "You all know each other. Weiwei, why don't you introduce yourself?"

Li Weiwei stood up, bowed slightly, and said, "Hello everyone, my name is Li Weiwei. I'm a hacker—just call me Weiwei. It's a pleasure to meet you all, and I hope to learn from you."

Once she finished, Qiu Zhiyong turned to Zhao Zhijie. "Why don't you introduce the team to Weiwei?"

"Of course," Zhao Zhijie began. "Seated to Deputy Director Qiu's left is our team leader, Hai Feng. To his right is our legal expert, Liu Zhiyang, Team Leader Liu. My name is Zhao Zhijie—you already know me. Next to Team Leader Hai is Dr. Li Mengyang, a psychologist, and beside him is Zhang Mufeng."

"I'm good at disguise and communication," Zhang Mufeng added.

Qiu Zhiyong looked at this group, his face beaming with pride. What an outstanding, vibrant team! He could already envision the formidable future that awaited them.

Zhang Mufeng gazed at the young woman opposite him, unable to believe she was the formidable cyber specialist Zhao Zhijie had described. "Are you really a hacker? You sure don't look the part!"

Li Weiwei smiled at him, took out her phone, tapped on it for a moment, then said, "Your number is 1385205XXXX—nice! And your girlfriend is quite pretty. Planning to get married soon?" She waved her phone playfully.

When Zhang Mufeng saw his own wedding photo with his girlfriend on her screen, his eyes widened in shock, mouth agape. He was amazed by her extraordinary hacking skills.

Qiu Zhiyong, seeing Zhang Mufeng's stunned reaction, was now certain that Li Weiwei was indeed the rare hacker talent Zhao Zhijie had spoken of. He couldn't help but wonder how the gentle girl he often saw at Li Shaoxian's house had grown into such an exceptional expert.

He produced a report and had Liu Zhiyang hand it to Li Weiwei. "Take a look at this to get a general sense of the team."

The room fell silent as everyone waited for her to finish reading. As she read, Li Weiwei wondered why Uncle Qiu was here. She knew he was a deputy director of the provincial police, and couldn't fathom why such a powerful figure would be involved with a team hidden away on campus. She didn't know the others, but the team leader's name sounded familiar: Hai Feng. Was he the famed "Justice Hai," known for his incorruptible righteousness?

Hai Feng was very pleased with the young woman. He felt that Li Weiwei was a promising talent, brimming with intelligence and hope, just like Zhao Zhijie and the others. Though her technical expertise was beyond him, he saw it as a gift of their generation, and believed his duty was to help them grow into towering trees, able to withstand any storm and embrace their new era.

Liu Zhiyang was also stunned by her skills. He had never truly understood what a hacker could do until he witnessed her demonstration. He thought to himself that if someone like her ever turned to crime rather than serving justice, there would be nothing he could do to stop her.

Liu Zhiyang knew the legal provisions for cybercrime—damaging an information system, profiting from illegal use, or unauthorized access—all of which could be used to prosecute hackers. But with the current level of technical ability in Mingzhou, someone as skilled as Li Weiwei could commit a crime right under their noses and they would never even know. Laws, without a strong team to enforce them, were merely empty words. He had to admire Hai Feng's foresight in breaking convention to form this group; otherwise, they would be powerless against such cybercriminals. At the same time, he felt a twinge of regret for Mingzhou—a province so large, yet with so few who valued technical talent, least of all in Ming City or Mingdong.

Unnoticed, ten minutes passed. Seeing Li Weiwei still absorbed in the report, Qiu Zhiyong finally spoke, "Weiwei, are you finished?"

Jolted back, she closed the report and looked up. "Yes, Uncle Qiu. Just as Zhao Zhijie said, it's like a Justice League!" she replied, breaking into a cheerful smile.

Zhang Mufeng couldn't hold back a laugh either. "I think it’s more like The Avengers, actually. With your skills and looks, you’re practically Black Widow. And Zhao Zhijie, as your close friend, could be Hawkeye. Li Mengyang, our perceptive psychologist, is Vision. Team Leader Liu, with his build, could be the Hulk. I’m Quicksilver. Our justice-driven Team Leader Hai is Captain America, and Deputy Director Qiu is Nick Fury himself. Don’t you all think so?"

Everyone burst out laughing, and Li Weiwei even pictured Uncle Qiu wearing an eye patch in her mind.

Qiu Zhiyong laughed along with the young group. "We really should give our special team a name. But 'The Avengers' doesn’t quite fit. 'Justice League' is all right, but lacks a local flavor. Any better ideas?"

"How about White Tiger?" Zhang Mufeng suggested. "In ancient mythology, it was one of the four great beasts, feared by all evil and unmatched in power. It’s the god of war and a symbol of justice—well-suited to our team's mission."

"Anyone else?" Qiu Zhiyong asked.

The others all shook their heads. Everyone was satisfied with the name, both for its cultural resonance and deep meaning.

"Then from now on, our special team will be the White Tiger Squad." Qiu Zhiyong paused, then said, "With that, the team is officially established. Now, Team Leader Hai, please brief everyone on the case."

Hai Feng nodded, turned on the projector, and began, "A month ago, a student at Jinghua University committed suicide. His name was Huang Guan. During the investigation, our colleagues discovered he had been scammed by someone named 'Li Mengyao,' a girlfriend he met through an online game."

"Because of 'Li Mengyao,' the victim suffered tremendous financial pressure, and his studies were affected, eventually leading to his suicide. 'Li Mengyao' vanished before his death. That’s all we know for now." Hai Feng glanced at Liu Zhiyang and continued, "We have jurisdiction over this case, so we’ll be leading the investigation. There are no legal issues. Our job is to find 'Li Mengyao,' uncover the truth, and bring closure to the victim."

Qiu Zhiyong said nothing as Hai Feng outlined the case, but his face was full of pain. Huang Guan's death had left a deep wound in him. He couldn't help but blame himself for failing to protect the orphaned son of his fallen comrade—he felt his own negligence had contributed to Huang Guan's death. He wished he had given more help to Xu Ting and paid closer attention to Huang Guan; perhaps this tragedy could have been avoided.

Liu Zhiyang was startled to hear the name Huang Guan, and even more unsettled when the victim’s photo appeared. He glanced at Qiu Zhiyong, unable to imagine how he must feel. Though he still questioned whether they were the right team to handle the case, he said nothing.

Liu Zhiyang knew how Huang Jifeng had died, and what Huang Guan's death meant to Qiu Zhiyong and Hai Feng. He told himself, "Sometimes the law must bend, for its true purpose is to punish evil and uphold justice, not to shield wrongdoers."

Li Weiwei was more surprised than anyone else. She couldn't understand how a student from Jinghua University could be so easily deceived, nor why someone would choose suicide over financial hardship. To her, any problem that could be solved with money was not really a problem—and money had never been a problem for her.

"In which online game did they meet? Is there any other information about 'Li Mengyao'? Did they ever meet in person? How did they communicate? Are there any chat records?" Zhao Zhijie fired off a string of questions as soon as Hai Feng finished.

"None of that information is available. The victim deleted everything before his death. The name 'Li Mengyao' only came up because classmates had heard him mention her, but no one ever met her, and we don’t know if the two ever met in person," Hai Feng replied.

He continued, "That’s the situation. We don’t know who 'Li Mengyao' is, where she is, or what exactly happened between her and Huang Guan. That’s where we stand."

After a pause, he added, "That’s all for the briefing. Zhao Zhijie, start with data recovery—your specialty. We need more clues before we can proceed. Li Weiwei, since your computer skills are top-notch, help Zhao Zhijie with the recovery."

Li Weiwei nodded, and together with Zhao Zhijie, took Huang Guan’s belongings and headed to the next room.

The five people left in the room remained silent, waiting quietly for results. Hai Feng watched Qiu Zhiyong, unsure what was going through his mind. He himself was filled with anguish, unable to understand why the Huang family had suffered so much, how Xu Ting could bear losing both husband and only son, or how he himself could face her.

Hai Feng’s expression grew grim. He swore to himself that he would bring the culprit behind Huang Guan's suicide to justice, no matter who or where they were, even if he had to track them to the ends of the earth.

Liu Zhiyang sat quietly, watching Qiu Zhiyong. He remembered when Qiu Zhiyong was a legendary investigator, a terror to criminals—so many had been sent to prison by his hand. Even the most arrogant offenders would lose their swagger at the mention of his name.

But now, even as a high-ranking deputy director, Qiu Zhiyong was powerless against cybercrime—unable even to protect the orphan of a martyr. For the first time, Liu Zhiyang truly felt the dread of online crime.

If traditional criminals were like swordsmen, then the police, as enforcers of the law, were martial arts heroes, easily besting them and keeping them at bay. But cybercriminals were different—they were like the master poisoners in martial arts novels: rarely seen, skilled in toxins. No matter how great your skill, you could not defend against their colorless, tasteless, lethal poisons. And those poisons had begun to spread across the nation, bringing harm everywhere.