110: Chapter 110 The Truth Comes Out

A few days later.

The laboratory lights flickered off, and Zhang Weijie dragged his exhausted body out of the building.

Under the dim yellow glow of the streetlights, two men in ordinary jackets stepped out from the shadows, blocking his path with steady strides.

"Mr. Zhang Weijie?"

The one with an honest-looking face spoke in a calm tone, while flashing a dark-covered identification badge.

The other man stood silently a step behind, observing him with a tranquil gaze.

Zhang Weijie's heart skipped a beat, but he quickly composed himself.

He believed his record was clean and that he usually kept to himself and followed the rules.

The matters Professor Sun had arranged weren't due yet; he could say with a clear conscience that he hadn't done anything wrong.

"I am. Is something the matter?" He tried to make his voice sound as natural as possible.

"We are from the relevant authorities,"

The honest-looking man put away his ID, his tone remaining amiable.

"There's a situation we need to understand from you. Would it be convenient for you to come with us? Please cooperate with our work."

Zhang Weijie's brow furrowed immediately.

His instinct was to refuse; this kind of vague 'cooperation' was always a major hassle.

"Can't you just ask here? I'll tell you everything I know," he ventured, showing a hint of reluctance.

The man who had been silent stepped forward half a pace. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unquestionable weight.

"No. Please get in the car."

His gaze swept over Zhang Weijie, calm and rippleless, yet it made Zhang Weijie swallow his remaining words.

For an adult, maintaining dignity in such moments meant knowing when to yield.

He silently followed them toward an unremarkable sedan parked by the roadside.

The car door closed, sealing off the outside world. The man in the passenger seat reached out his hand.

"We'll keep your phone for the time being. Don't worry, it's just procedure."

Zhang Weijie silently pulled out his phone and handed it over. As the cold metal casing left his palm, he realized his hands were slightly damp with sweat.

The car moved through the night, turning into a secluded street and stopping before a building without any signage.

Zhang Weijie was led inside, through quiet corridors, and finally into a room.

The room wasn't large—just a table and a few chairs. The lighting was a cold white, and the walls were covered in a layer of padding that even felt somewhat comfortable.

It wasn't quite what he had imagined an interrogation room to be.

"Sit."

The man who led him in pointed to the chair in front of the table.

He and his colleague sat opposite him.

"Name?"

"Zhang Weijie."

"Age?"

"Thirty-seven."

"Work unit?"

"XX Research Institute, Professor Sun Liren's laboratory."

"Home address?"

Zhang Weijie gave his dormitory address.

The two across from him recorded quickly on paper as they questioned him.

"I haven't done anything illegal! I'm a law-abiding citizen!"

Zhang Weijie's heart rate accelerated. He couldn't help but emphasize this, his voice sounding somewhat abrupt in the quiet space.

The man who had been mostly silent looked up, his sharp gaze fixed on him.

"What is your relationship with Sun Liren?"

"I work in his laboratory. He is my boss and the project leader," Zhang Weijie answered quickly.

"Where did you obtain the project data regarding A-705 Laboratory?" The question went straight to the core.

Zhang Weijie's heart sank abruptly. It really was about this! He licked his dry lips.

"It... it was given to me by Professor Sun."

"Do you have any personal conflicts with Chen Youhua?" the other party continued to ask, his tone unreadable.

"No! I... I've hardly spoken a few words to him," Zhang Weijie denied hastily.

"Then why did you report him to the relevant authorities?" The man's eyes were locked onto him.

The secret was out! Zhang Weijie's head buzzed.

He never expected that a report, which seemed to have vanished into thin air, would actually lead to such a direct investigation.

Just because he reported someone he didn't like?

Was it really worth all this?

Under the immense pressure, he didn't dare hide a thing. He spoke rapidly, spilling the entire sequence of events.

How Professor Sun had hinted, how he had provided the data, how he himself had angrily filed the report, and the emptiness and numbness that followed... By the end, he even sounded a bit aggrieved.

"I really... it was just an impulse. I didn't think about the consequences... I, I definitely won't do it again!"

The two across from him exchanged a look.

The honest-looking man looked at him, the lines of his face softening slightly.

"Zhang Weijie, rest assured. Based on what you've disclosed, you are not personally implicated in anything, and the information you provided is very important."

He paused.

"For the next few days, we need you to stay here temporarily to cooperate with us in further verifying some details."

"A few days?!"

Zhang Weijie stood up abruptly.

"No! I have important experiments in the lab! The cells need their medium changed! Data needs to be recorded! If I'm gone for days, my work will be ruined! Professor Sun's side..."

He was incoherent with anxiety.

The corner of the serious man's mouth twitched upward ever so slightly, like a silent sneer.

He didn't answer Zhang Weijie's question, simply closing his notebook and standing up.

"That's all for today. Stay here quietly. Cooperation is your best option."

With that, the two left the room directly.

Work? Professor Sun? At this moment, they all seemed so distant and unimportant.

...

Early the next morning, Sun Liren discovered that Zhang Weijie hadn't come to the lab.

He called his phone, but it was off.

A trace of unease quietly crept into his heart.

He called over a young Researcher.

"Xiao Liu, go check Old Zhang's dorm. What's going on? He's not answering his phone."

Before long, Xiao Liu returned, looking confused.

"Professor Sun, Senior Zhang isn't in his dorm. There was no response when I knocked."

"I see."

Sun Liren waved him away, but his heart skipped a beat for no reason.

Decades of experience with storms instantly set off alarm bells.

Something was wrong!

Zhang Weijie wasn't the type of person to skip work or disappear without reason.

But it wasn't time to act yet; there wasn't even a shadow of anything on the internet.

He thought it over and over but couldn't make sense of it.

Was it an emergency at home? Or... had the kid buckled under the pressure and quit?

He picked up his phone and dialed Zhang Weijie's number again. The receiver still gave the cold prompt that the phone was turned off.

A faint unease, like tiny ants, began to crawl at the bottom of his heart.

When the office door was knocked, Sun Liren was staring out the window, lost in thought.

"Come in."

The door opened, and in walked two men in ordinary jackets, their expressions calm and their steps steady.

The middle-aged man leading them walked straight to his desk and efficiently flashed an ID.

"Professor Sun Liren?" His voice wasn't loud, but it was like a stone thrown into a calm pool of water.

Sun Liren's gaze swept over the ID, and his heart sank abruptly. A chill instantly surged from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.

The composure on his face froze instantly, and he subconsciously straightened his back.

"We are from the relevant authorities. There are important matters we need to verify with you. Please come with us."

Sun Liren sat upright in his large leather chair. His fingers trembled almost imperceptibly. He barely maintained the usual composure of a scholar on his face, but the look behind his glasses was completely frantic.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, his Adam's apple just bobbed once, and he spoke hoarsely.

"...Alright."