Miss Assassin is heavily addicted

Chapter 58, Section 15: Oh, the Sinful Sweet Club

—Greeley Downtown Archives—

After deciding to investigate Mr. Humphrey, the police car drove for 30 minutes to the political heart of Gladley—the power hub of Silver Lily Avenue.

The streets are home to the city government building, the cabinet office, the obsidian mansion (the prime minister's office area), the cavalry parade ground, and the state banquet hall, among other political structures. This area, spanning four kilometers, is the absolute power center of Gladley.

The two parked the police car on the side of the road, and He Ye followed Loris into the National Archives building.

Generally, spies can investigate a person from two perspectives:
One method involves using publicly available archives, such as information published in newspapers, where politicians will inevitably have their own portraits, or stealing relevant documents. This type of theft relies on media reports and carries a medium risk.

The second method involves spies personally contacting their targets, making contact through a lavish banquet, offering money or sex, and then subtly extracting information from their lips. Further methods may involve planting miniature listening devices in their homes or clothing to eavesdrop.

These two types are the methods commonly used by spies to obtain intelligence.

Loris, being an official, can be classified as a third-tier official.

In a room on the third floor, amidst stacks of bookshelves, the busy mornings are still a sight to behold. This is a Level II document room located in the National Archives—who would have thought that He Ye would one day be able to swagger into this place?

The two officers were slightly conspicuous, sitting at the table surrounded by a messy pile of documents, looking so focused.

At least it appears so.

Loris had already brought He Ye to the archives to check information; as members of the intelligence investigation department, they had this authority.

Having presented their credentials and received permission, their visit will be officially recorded.

There must be some hidden risks involved, after all, investigating his own people for no reason... But even if there is trouble, what does it have to do with him? He Ye is just an auxiliary police officer who wants to slack off.

When the sky falls, the tall ones hold it up.

In short, after being in the archives for a while, He Ye walked over to Loris with a pile of documents in his arms, then hesitated and carefully put them down.

These blue leather wallets were quite heavy, containing five folders, all of which Loris had sent He Ye to find.

To be honest, I can't understand the numbering above. It's an official document from country A. They seem to use a department abbreviation + year + serial number - for example, CO/1932/015 at the top of this pile of documents. Who can understand this?

There seemed to be a surveillance camera in the corner of the room, so He Ye didn't do anything out of line, but quietly 'accidentally' took a few files from different places and mixed them in.

Besides personnel files, there are also a considerable number of architectural blueprints here, such as those for the National Opera and the Parliament Hall. Although they are not top-secret, they still remain for purely political institutions.

This is also an opportunity. Even if you're not a spy, you'll always be tempted by these documents.

"The constituency work report, the member's financial disclosure form, the whistleblower letter and the historical investigation record you asked for... In short, I've brought you everything I could find; it's all in this pile."

He Ye patted the document (which was on the table) that reached her chest, and looked at Loris beside her, asking involuntarily:
"So, how's the investigation going?"

Loris's expression was serious, and she didn't really want to talk to He Ye, so she just tossed a file over.

He Ye took it and glanced at it.

This is about Mr. Humphrey's career resume.

"Humphrey Xavier, the 9th Earl of Douglas, came from a working-class family; his father was a miner and his mother was a primary school teacher. He entered the University of Manchester on a scholarship to study politics and later became a community lawyer."

As He Ye looked at the document, he muttered to himself, thinking to himself, "This is actually an ordinary person from a humble background? I thought he was a high-ranking official."

In 13, he was elected as a Labour Party candidate for the House of Commons in the Glen Industrial Region.

This was his first time in politics... He was only 25 years old at the time, right?

He Ye had a fairly good understanding of the system in Country A. He knew that the representatives of the lower house were elected by the people, which was also the only way to enter politics. The positions of ministers and deputy ministers in the cabinet were all obtained by winning partisan struggles in the lower house.

"For his outstanding performance in the healthcare reform debate, he was promoted to Shadow Health Secretary by the Labour Party leader in 18."

"Following the Labour Party's victory in the 22 general election, Humphrey Xavier officially assumed the position of Health Secretary in the Cabinet."

OK, now he's a high-level employee.

Next, let's look at his achievements during his term. He seems to be a pragmatist who has done many good things for the country and its people.

For example, the enactment of the "Medical Drug Reduction and Exemption Act" included several major categories of common life-saving drugs in the national fiscal subsidy program. Behind this, there must have been a lot of bloodshed and struggle, after all, it cost the Ministry of Finance a lot of money, but in the end, it was successfully enacted.

Then there are the various medical measures taken. This promotes humanitarianism and provides end-of-life care for the elderly.

The reason he even resigned from his cabinet post was that he had been working overtime for a long time and was diagnosed with cardiovascular disease.

For a high-ranking official like He Ye who has achieved political success, a slightly chaotic private life is a minor matter.

Turn the page and look at the next page.

"In February of 2004, the Prime Minister nominated him to become a life peer and join the House of Lords."

February 24? That was just two or three months ago.

To be honest, He Ye doesn't care when Country A will change its ruling party, so he was a little surprised to see this message, and this sentence is also the ending of Sir Humphrey's file.

Being a member of the House of Lords is a leisurely job; all they need to do is review bills submitted to the House of Commons and attend meetings once or twice a week. In a way, it can be considered a retirement.

After reading through the entire file, He Ye put it down, pondered for a moment, and said to Loris:
"I've finished reading it. He's a decent politician; his resume is spotless. Are you sure you want to investigate this former health minister thoroughly? Just because he likes some commoner girl?"

Loris sat in her seat, her brows furrowed but her expression unchanged, and said:

"The stag antler coat of arms represents Douglas, but Sir Humphrey's surname is Xavier."

"...You mean he changed his surname?" He Ye asked.

Lorice paused for a moment and then said, "No, the car he was in this morning had the family crest, which means it's not as simple as just changing his surname."

"He probably married into the Douglas family after he came of age, and according to the law, he doesn't have to change his surname. It's probably just a mutually beneficial arrangement between the two parties."

“Party victory is not so easy. If Humphrey married into the Douglas family and gained their support, then his series of extraordinary achievements would make sense and explain why someone of humble origins could rise to such a high position.”

"Official records often do not include his personal life and interpersonal relationships."

Loris seemed to hesitate at this point, and didn't continue.

“So what you’re trying to say is—Sir Humphrey just appears to be a pragmatist?” He Ye chimed in.

“No…” Lorice sighed softly, “His achievements have indeed helped ordinary people. Ultimately, what I can’t understand is why such a knight would suddenly get involved with an ordinary woman? And even openly drive his family crested car to pick her up.”

"Open and aboveboard, huh...?" He Ye recalled the conversation between the two in the coffee shop and spoke up to remind them:
"Didn't Miss Mia say that all she knew about the other person was that he was very rich? Maybe it's not as bad as you think. Maybe it really is just an 'ordinary' romance."

He Ye knew that Loris's suspicions had shifted, from Miss Mia to the politician Humphrey Xavier; she seemed to suspect anyone worthy of suspicion.

While it's possible, it's too risky. Although He Ye is interested in learning about high-ranking officials, this is only the former Minister of Health, and doesn't involve the classified information he needs.

Loris hesitated for a moment, then rubbed her head and said, as if to complain:
“Every clue is worth investigating. After all, spies don’t wear their spies on their faces. Many clues are dug out from such trivial matters.”

"As for what you said, perhaps Miss Mia really only remembered the feature of being rich. After all, she seems very naive... Even if Humphrey introduced himself to her, she probably wouldn't remember that much."

He Ye could hear the helplessness in her words, after all, it was the two of them who were having a face-to-face conversation, and He Ye was just focused on drinking coffee.

Even he, who was just listening in, could sense the subtle, childlike questioning in the voice; Loris, as the person involved, was even more so.

She stopped talking to He Ye and continued to look through the documents, trying to learn about the knight from other angles.

He Ye remained cautious about the matter, so he sat down next to her pretending to keep her company, while actually flipping through the architectural drawings casually.

He Ye looked at it 'casually,' but it was enough for him to remember it.

Time passed in the library-like atmosphere.

During this time, He Ye felt hungry. He glanced at his watch and realized it was already past 12 o'clock, so he put his hands in his pockets and went out to a bakery on the street to buy some bread and bacon for lunch.

Of course, I didn't forget to bring lunch for Lorice, the workaholic, when I got back.

"Here you are, sir, your lunch."

He Ye held the paper bag in front of her.

"Ah... thank you." Loris was clearly a little surprised, stiffly touching her pocket. "How much? I'll pay you."

"The baker said they're giving it away for free today as part of a promotion." He Ye accepted her kindness, thinking that it would be better to use the few dollars to build a better relationship and avoid being treated unfairly again.

Seeing this, Lorice subtly averted her gaze; such an excuse was easily seen through. However, after taking a bite of her bread, she continued flipping through the files on Sir Humphrey—truly a workaholic.

He Ye ate while resting his chin on his hand and watching her, his unconscious actions indicating that he was lost in thought.

He thought to himself that it would be great to stay in the archives all day, investigating fish day after day, which would be so comfortable, and he could also freely look through some relatively important documents.

Yesterday was exhausting and I was so thirsty.

Lost in thought, He Ye didn't realize that she had been watching Lolis for quite a while, resting her chin on her hand... about a minute or two.

It wasn't until the other person turned their head and gave them an unnatural glare that He Ye withdrew his gaze as if facing a formidable enemy.

Oh my god, that's a bit dangerous.

We can't just squander the favor we just gained by exchanging bread for it.

People come and go in the archives. Sunlight filters through the windows, casting shadows that slant westward, as if in a classroom where one has just woken up on an afternoon. He Ye sits on the left, resting his chin on his hand, reading a report, while Loris sits on the right, intently investigating the files.

At 1 p.m., He Ye changed his posture for the third time while looking at the written documents, as he was getting restless.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, He Ye's eyelids became heavy, and the drowsy atmosphere of the afternoon enveloped him.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, He Ye couldn't resist the drowsiness. She propped her cheek up with one hand, sat pretending to work, but actually closed her eyes for a nap.

"Hey, wake up, you idiot, stop sleeping."

Perhaps because of the favor of having been treated to lunch, Loris didn't scold He Ye more when she woke him up this time. When He Ye looked around in confusion, Loris had already stood up, and the documents on her desk were still messy.

"What's wrong?" He Ye asked, snapping out of his daze.

“We’ve got news from Rayleigh and the others; we need to go check it out,” Loris said.

Well—it seems I can only rest until 3:37. That's the time on my wristwatch.

They've spent half a day investigating the files, yet they haven't given up on finding that knight. This incident will probably drag on until the truth is revealed.

Moreover, judging from Lorice's expression, she seemed to have uncovered more suspicious points that afternoon.

However, it was enough for a nap... He Ye stretched and followed Loris. The documents left in the archives would be collected by the staff, so they didn't need to worry about them.

But he never expected...

This time, we're keeping up with the pace.

This will be the kind of embarrassing beginning that he'll remember even 12 hours later—even when he's back home sleeping.

Grass (grinding teeth)
……

The camera turned.

At 4:30 p.m., roses bloomed on the wall in front of a certain 'flashy' building, and the brick road along the street was paved in a way that made people swoon.

The fourth team of the National Security Bureau's intelligence division, led by Loris, is standing in front of a place called "Sweet Honey Club".

The three men and one woman fell silent.

Their gaze shifted downwards.

The sign below reads "Couples Only".

There was no doubt that this was an inviolable condition, and even the four officers with police identification were helpless, because they had already changed into plainclothes and were carrying out a surveillance mission, and the person they were following had been there just five minutes earlier—

Five minutes ago, Sir Humphrey and Miss Mia walked into this Sweethearts Club, arm in arm.

They are a couple and can come in.

For the four-man police squad, this is a potentially fatal phrase that could easily lead to their deaths.

"What should we do?" Rayleigh asked, scratching his head.

He Ye hesitated for a long time, glancing at Loris, then at Rory, and finally at Rayleigh, finding the question truly difficult to answer.

How to do?
Let's make a cold dish!
(End of this chapter)