I slept with my sister's classmate, and she turned out to be my boss.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Hu Yuheng glanced at the doorway and said:

"Come in."

When the door opened, it was Zhang Kaiyou from the petition office.

He was holding an envelope in his hand.

Hu Yuheng looked at his face, then his gaze fell on the envelope in his hand.

"Something wrong? That envelope in your hand?"

"Um."

Zhang Kaiyou nodded, went inside, stood opposite Hu Yuheng's desk, and handed over the envelope.

"I just received a petition, and the envelope was addressed to you. So I brought it over immediately."

Hu Yuheng paused for a moment, picked up the envelope, opened it, and took out the letter inside.

It was printed on A4 paper, so the handwriting is not visible.

Just like last time, there was no signature or contact information.

However, the content is no longer a vague "situation report," but directly specifies the target and method:

"Chen Dapeng, a member of the task force, used his friend Lin Chen to pass on case-related information to the outside world. This friend has been frequently in contact with unidentified individuals recently, and is suspected of acting as an intermediary. Please take this seriously."

A photograph was also attached to the bottom of the letter.

Lin Chen was sitting in a restaurant, opposite a man in a dark coat. Cutlery was set in front of them, and they seemed to be eating and chatting.

The photo was taken from the side, where the lighting was bright.

It looks like someone deliberately chose an angle that would capture the two people's faces.

After watching, Hu Yuheng did not offer any comment.

"Okay, you go ahead and do your thing."

Zhang Kaiyou nodded, turned and left.

Then, Hu Yuheng flipped the photo over and glanced at the back—

There is no time stamp, no location, only the photograph itself.

"This is the second time, it's Chen Dapeng again..."

She chuckled softly.

"These people are really persistent. What's the point of continuously reporting Chen Dapeng?"

She put the anonymous letter and photos into a drawer, then dialed Chen Dapeng's number.

"Director Hu, what are your instructions?"

"Dapeng, come to my office."

A few minutes later, Chen Dapeng arrived at Hu Yuheng's office.

Hu Yuheng placed the letter and the photo side by side on the table.

She gestured for him to look by raising her chin:

"Another letter arrived. This time it was specifically named."

After reading the letter, Chen Dapeng picked up the photograph and looked at it for a while.

He didn't recognize the person in the photo who was having dinner with Lin Chen.

But one could recognize Lin Chen's seat and the clothes he was wearing—

That was the coat he had seen Lin Chen wear before.

He put down the photo, looked up at Hu Yuheng:

"Director Hu, this is a frame-up."

I did not pass on any case information through Lin Chen.

I don't recognize the person in this photo.

Who Lin Chen eats with is his private matter and has nothing to do with me.

Hu Yuheng did not respond immediately.

She looked into Chen Dapeng's eyes, remained silent for a moment, and then spoke:

"I did not say that what was written in the letter was true."

But the letter has already come twice. The last time it was vague, but this time it directly named your friend.

This means someone is watching you.

She paused for a moment:

"Who has your friend met with recently?"

Chen Dapeng thought for a moment: "I'm not sure. But he's not the kind of person who would get involved in this kind of thing."

"I know," Hu Yuheng nodded, "but you'd better ask clearly. At this stage, anything that can be used as a pretext will be magnified."

Chen Dapeng said helplessly, "I'll find out."

After leaving the office, he did not immediately return.

I first walked to the window at the end of the corridor and stood there for a while.

He was still clutching the photo in his hand—Lin Chen's face was turned to the side, and sitting opposite him was someone he didn't recognize at all.

He folded the photo and put it in his pocket, then took out his phone and dialed Lin Chen's number.

The phone rang twice before being answered.

Lin Chen was stunned for a moment:

"Dapeng? Calling during work hours, what's wrong?"

Chen Dapeng didn't beat around the bush.

"I have a question for you. Have you had any contact with strangers recently?"

The person on the other end of the phone sounded somewhat surprised.

"Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"Someone took your picture and said you were connected to the case through me. The photo shows you having dinner with someone you don't know."

Lin Chen was silent for a while:

"I don't know this person... Wait a minute, let me think."

After a few seconds, he spoke:

One day I went to eat, and there was a person sitting at the next table who kept looking at his phone.

I didn't pay attention at the time, assuming he was just an ordinary customer.

But you said someone took a picture of me. There was indeed a group of people sitting diagonally across from me at that meal; they ordered a pot of tea and sat there for a long time, barely eating anything.

Chen Dapeng didn't respond, waiting for him to continue.

"I remember that restaurant. It's on that street in the south of the city, not too remote. If the photo you're referring to was taken that time, then it should be the people at that table."

Lin Chen's voice became serious.

"Is someone on your end watching me?"

"Possibly. Be careful lately, and don't go out to dinner with people you don't know well."

"I understand." Lin Chen thought for a moment. "I'll check the restaurant's security footage. Let's see who was sitting diagonally across from me that day."

Chen Dapeng didn't stop him: "Be careful."

"Don't worry. I'll let you know after I check."

……

The next morning, Lin Chen sent Chen Dapeng a set of screenshots.

He found the restaurant owner, reviewed the security footage from that day, and captured a screenshot of the person at the next table—

A middle-aged man in a dark jacket sat diagonally opposite Lin Chen, with a cup of tea in front of him and his phone held in front of his chest with the camera pointed in Lin Chen's direction.

The surveillance footage shows him occasionally looking down at his phone and occasionally looking up at Lin Chen. He sat there for nearly forty minutes before leaving.

Lin Chen added a sentence to the message:

"I found out. This person was indeed taking pictures of me. I checked, and he's not a regular at the restaurant, nor has he ever been seen in the vicinity."

Chen Dapeng saved the screenshot and then went to Hu Yuheng's office.

He pulled up the surveillance screenshots on his phone and placed them on Hu Yuheng's desk:

"Director Hu, Lin Chen checked the restaurant's surveillance footage and captured this person. He was sitting diagonally across from Lin Chen, with his phone constantly pointed in Lin Chen's direction. He's not a regular customer and doesn't know Lin Chen."

Hu Yuheng looked down at the middle-aged man in the screenshot for a while, said nothing, and first wrote down the date and restaurant name in the screenshot.

She didn't ask who this person was or who they were related to; she simply said:

Leave the screenshot with me.

Chen Dapeng didn't ask any more questions and turned to leave the office.

He understood what Hu Yuheng meant by "put it aside for now"—

Investigating this person now might alert the enemy.

Save the evidence first, and use it when the time is right.

……

After getting off work, he called He Ying when he got back to his residence.

After the call connected, he didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point:

"Sister Ying, I've been reported again."

There was a moment of silence on He Ying's end:

"What happened?"

Chen Dapeng briefly recounted the anonymous letter and photos: "This time, Lin Chen's name was directly mentioned, and a photo was attached. But Lin Chen checked the surveillance footage and found that someone was filming him, deliberately creating the illusion that he was related to the case."

He Ying paused for a moment, then asked, "What's Director Hu's attitude?"

"She neither believed it nor ignored it. She said to leave it for now."

He Ying thought for a moment and said, "Then let's leave it for now. The more they act like this, the more it shows they're panicking."

"I know," Chen Dapeng said, holding his phone, "but Lin Chen is being watched."

He Ying sensed his worry: "Lin Chen isn't an ordinary person. He knows what he's doing and how to protect himself. What you need to do now isn't worry about him, but rather not let these things affect your work."

Chen Dapeng was silent for a moment, then said, "You're right."

"Then get some rest. You have things to do tomorrow."

"it is good."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Dapeng sat in the living room without moving.

He remembered the surveillance screenshot Lin Chen had sent him—

A stranger sat in the restaurant and took pictures for almost forty minutes.

He wondered who sent that person, who got the photos, and if there would be a next time.

From the vague wording of the first letter to the direct naming of names in the second.

This indicates that someone is speeding up their efforts to remove him from the case...