Naming Technique of the Night

Chapter 605: 379, in good condition Chapter 605: 379, in good condition The midnight corridor was silent and deserted.

Qing Chen heard the six people outside quickly enter Song Niannian’s code, then push the door open, and swiftly close it behind them.

Their movements appeared very concealed, avoiding any unnecessary noise as they walked.

Once the door closed, no other sound came from that room.

Qing Chen realized Song Niannian might have added a high-polymer soundproofing layer to her entire dwelling for privacy, and even he could not hear any movement from inside.

He sighed internally, knowing this was a significant disadvantage to his rescue attempt, as he had no idea what was going on inside.

Qing Chen glanced back at the window of his own apartment, where the beautiful, dazzling holographic neon lights interweaved and shifted, and further away, holographic fireworks celebrated the new year.

The fireworks were colorful, and even formed various animals after they burst.

Holographic neon had thoroughly replaced fireworks in this era, and every city’s night was like a grand party of lights.

At one moment, Qing Chen even felt like he was in the movie “The Great Gatsby,” attending the daily extravagant parties held by Jay Gatsby.

However, beneath this brilliance, countless dirty deeds and crimes still lurked.

Shadow’s parting words were intriguing, essentially asking him, “You could guess that I arranged this, but if you’re wrong and Song Niannian dies, would you still go to her rescue?”

Qing Chen even felt that Shadow was probably waiting to see his reaction.

He quietly opened his apartment door and silently walked down the dim corridor.

The silenced pistol was already in his hand, ready to serve his will at any moment.

Knock knock knock.

Qing Chen calmly knocked on Song Niannian’s door.

He listened intently but unexpectedly found that the Inner World’s soundproofing was even more potent than he had imagined; he still couldn’t hear anything from his position at the door.

Qing Chen silently raised his pistol, standing to one side of the door to avoid being shot by villains inside without them opening the door first.

He knocked again, knock knock knock, but still, no one responded.

Qing Chen glanced back once more at the corridor that belonged to the five people, then raised his hand and fired two shots at the door lock. With a click, the door opened.

Boisterous music came from inside the room, and faintly, the voice of Song Niannian singing could be heard.

It was like a carnival in progress.

Qing Chen kicked the door open swiftly, and only then did he see seven young men and women jumping around on the couch.

Song Niannian, the hostess, was wearing a birthday hat on her head and holding a piece of cake, as happy as an angel.

The six people who had entered earlier were among them, with one holding an electric guitar and another blowing a trumpet, playing a rock version of the “Happy Birthday” song.

To Qing Chen’s surprise, he recognized one of them as someone he had seen before.

At this moment, Song Niannian had taken off her heavy scarf and coat and was wearing a pink short-sleeved T-shirt.

Even though Qing Chen had seen her photos online, he still found the girl incredibly beautiful.

But right now, the girl was staring blankly at him, her eyes filled with shock and incomprehension.

Luckily, Qing Chen reacted quickly and hid the gun behind his back; otherwise, her reaction would be more than just shock and incomprehension; she might even scream like she did in the elevator.

“Happy birthday,” Qing Chen sincerely said to the girl.

His toes curled tightly inside his shoes from the awkwardness of the moment; he almost carved out a three-bedroom apartment in the floor.

Qing Chen could even imagine that Mr. Shadow of Qing’s Family was probably laughing hysterically and pounding the floor by now.

Shadow must have known the identities of these people, after all, he was merely a door away from them recently. How could Shadow, being so close, not know when someone approached?

Qing Chen surmised that these six must not have been arranged by Shadow, but after discovering their arrival, Shadow immediately concocted a plan and took delight in the mischief.

Then, Shadow deliberately misled him with his words, making him think assassins were coming to the door, waiting to see him make a fool of himself.

At that moment, Qing Chen wanted to find Shadow and fiercely question him, why was he so playful?!

It was incredibly difficult for the average person to deceive Qing Chen, but Shadow was the most advanced among the con artists, easily tricking Qing Chen thoroughly with simple ruses.

Now, Qing Chen had recognized the identities of those six individuals; they were all well-known music producers from the Federation’s entertainment circle.

The kind you would be familiar with instantaneously.

He quickly scanned the table, there were no drugs, no Dopamine Chips, or any party favors; this was a clean party.

And this place was likely where Song Niannian, a top-tier celebrity, regularly hung out with her friends.

Hence, the whole dwelling was wrapped in such expensive soundproofing material.

The musicians stopped playing, looking curiously at Qing Chen, then at Song Niannian. A female guitarist exclaimed, “Wow, Niannian, you’ve even got a guy hidden here!”

Another young man shouted, “Niannian, you said you weren’t dating, but you found such a handsome boyfriend?”

The others sized up Qing Chen curiously, the cleanliness of his white tracksuit and his looks… if he debuted in the Federation now and sang a song or two, he’d definitely attract a lot of young female fans.

It was precisely his appearance that made them mistakenly believe Qing Chen was here to attend Song Niannian’s birthday party.

It must be said that this indeed was a world where looks mattered; a person with a good appearance, even if hiding a gun, still looked like a good person.

Song Niannian did not listen to what they were saying; instead, she looked incredulously at Qing Chen and asked, “How did you get in?”

Qing Chen thought for a moment and said, “Your door wasn’t properly closed.”

Song Niannian glanced at everyone and said, “This is not who I invited, this is a bad person!”

The girl directly defined Qing Chen’s identity.

Qing Chen became even more embarrassed.

Song Niannian had more friends around her, and she didn’t seem to be as afraid of Qing Chen anymore, “Inspector Sir, do you realize this is a violation of human rights? Please leave now, and also, please stop harassing me!”

A girl sensed something was off and looked towards Song Niannian, “Is this your crazed fan? He actually ran to your house!”

After saying that, the girl looked at Qing Chen, “My father is Li Menglin, the Captain of the seventh brigade of the Immigration Bureau. Do you believe that I can call a PCE detective right now with just one phone call?”

Qing Chen sighed, “No, no, there’s been a misunderstanding here.”

He could not explain why he was there; the others were merrily celebrating a birthday. Could he say that he suspected a kidnapper was about to strike?

They wouldn’t believe it anyway.

And he had shot their door lock…

As for Li Menglin, he really was an acquaintance.

When it was time to capture Li Menglin, Qing Chen had investigated his close relations too, so he had seen a photo of this girl.

Qing Chen couldn’t fathom how the fat-eared Li Menglin managed to have such a delicate daughter.

This girl was named Li Zhaoen, a well-known violinist in the Federation, skilled with many musical instruments.

In the girl’s eyes, Li Menglin belonged to the Federation’s power hierarchy, but to Qing Chen, Li Menglin was just an informant.

But whether or not Li Menglin counted as part of the power hierarchy, or whether he was Qing Chen’s informant, it had nothing to do with the mistake Qing Chen had made, so he could only admit his wrong and apologize.

And now, what Qing Chen thought about was what to do with the bullet hole in the lock; damn it…

He could only escape first.

After getting away, have Yang Xuyang speak with Li Menglin and try to smooth things over.

Qing Chen backed away to the outside and said with a smile on his face, “Happy birthday to everyone, may you all have this day each year, and this moment every year…”

Having said that, he stepped out the door and turned to leave, wishing he could start jogging.

At this time, Li Zhaoen and Song Niannian noticed the door lock was broken by Qing Chen; Li Zhaoen immediately picked up the phone to call her father, Li Menglin, reporting that there was a pervert in the Utopia Building who was attempting to attack Song Niannian.

Qing Chen listened to all this, thinking to himself what a mess this was.

He quickly packed his things, grabbed his water kettle, tea leaves, and a change of clothes, and left once more.

However, just as Qing Chen was preparing to stay at Intelligence Department One for a while, two middle-aged men brushed past him.

Their familiar steps and posture made Qing Chen frown.

The two middle-aged men gave him a cold glance, but did not stop, continuing towards the end of the corridor.

At the end of the corridor, Li Zhaoen, seeing the two middle-aged men approaching, asked curiously, “Did my dad send you? The kid behind you is the creep I was talking about, that’s him, catch him!”

The middle-aged men glanced back at Qing Chen but showed no intention of apprehending him; instead, they continued on to the end of the corridor, “Your father sent us to protect you.”

Qing Chen retreated back to his own room deep in thought, making a judgment that first, these two men were definitely not good people, and second, they had probably been listening to Li Zhaoen’s phone call, because Li Zhaoen had reported her location to Li Menglin, allowing the two men to locate her.

When the two sturdy middle-aged men reached Li Zhaoen’s side, they looked back towards the corridor to ensure Qing Chen was no longer there, then suddenly they grabbed Li Zhaoen and quickly pushed her into the room.

The room’s small door closed again, sealing off the sounds, as if separating into two different worlds.

Inside the room, seeing Li Zhaoen being subdued, Song Niannian immediately felt something was wrong and turned to run inside to grab her pocket-sized handgun for self-defense.

But the middle-aged men were quicker than her, already drawing their guns and pulling the trigger.

The bullet hit the door frame beside Song Niannian, petrifying the girl as if she were a statue in place.

The middle-aged men spoke calmly, “It hasn’t been easy to find this opportunity, so please cooperate. Once we have the money transferred to us, you will all be free.”

Song Niannian asked weakly, “How much money do you want? My parents manage my money, I don’t have any on me…”

The two middle-aged men looked at each other then said, “Then have your parents transfer it to our account.”

At that moment, another middle-aged man walked to the side and silently took a call, “Yes, she’s been found, don’t worry, she’s unharmed, the client will be satisfied.”

In conversation, they were discussing the quality of goods, as it were.

…

Having just settled in Wuzhen, the accommodation arranged by the Internet Conference didn’t even have a decent table; I’m still pondering where I should write, trying to update another chapter before 11 PM tonight.