One person: Lu family bodyguard, who shattered Longhu Mountain with a single palm strike.

In the dimly lit restroom stall, the faucet dripped.

Xiao Li stared intently at the backup communicator in his hand, his fingers digging so hard that his knuckles turned white. The garbled text on the screen was quickly translated into words by the built-in program.

What happened? How did you suddenly get exposed?

Didn't you say tonight's check was just a routine check?

Veins throbbed on Xiao Li's forehead as he gritted his teeth and replied quickly.

[This wasn't a routine check! Xu Xiang, that old man, has gone mad. He personally brought a young man in black back to the company in the middle of the night. His intentions are unclear; his authorization level is that of a temporary outsourced security consultant.]

[As soon as he came in, he locked down the park, cut off the internet, and checked access logs. Now the outside is swarming with security personnel; they're most likely after me, and I can't get out at all.]

[The situation has changed! Who's outside? Someone come to my rescue!]

After the message was sent, the screen remained dark for a long time. Outside the cubicle, the loudspeaker continued to repeat the park lockdown notice, and the sound of security guards urging employees to assemble could be heard constantly in the corridor.

Xiao Li stared at the blacked-out screen, cold sweat trickling down the back of his neck and into his collar. Just as he was about to send another message urging him on, the screen finally flickered.

[Wait, we're calling someone. They'll be there within half an hour.]

Don't panic. As long as you're not caught red-handed, just pretend you know nothing.

Upon seeing these lines, Xiao Li let out a long sigh of relief, and his tense shoulders relaxed a little. Half an hour—if he could stall for more than half an hour, the people outside could rush in and create chaos, giving him a chance to escape in the confusion.

Having worked in various places for so many years, he knows the blind spots in fire exits with his eyes closed. Moreover, the fact that the short-range relay is working means that there were already people outside to provide backup; this isn't a last-minute call for help, but rather the activation of a backup evacuation plan.

Xiao Li stuffed the communicator back into the lining of his shoe, patted his face hard, and forced out a blank smile that was similar to his usual one.

He then pressed the flush button, pretending he had just finished using the toilet, walked to the sink and carefully washed his hands twice, before lowering his head and blending into the crowd in the corridor.

At this moment, dozens of employees who were on duty or working overtime were brought to the conference area on the third floor.

The crowd huddled together in a noisy commotion. Xu Xiang stood at the very front with a cold face, surrounded by a group of serious-looking confidants. The atmosphere was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

On the side of the meeting area, Lin Mo pulled up a genuine leather boss's chair and sat down, holding a paper cup in his hand, slowly blowing on his hot tea. Next to him, Xu Xiang's face was as black as the bottom of a pot; he didn't look like he was there to investigate a case, but rather to acquire a branch office.

Xu Xiang glanced at him, his voice hoarse: "You're quite calm, but now I suspect you're just dawdling."

"Mr. Xu, that's not a professional way of putting it." Lin Mo put down his paper cup, his expression serious. "Catching an insider requires a closed-loop process. If you want me to slap the suspect against the wall right now, it might feel good, but what about the subsequent chain of evidence?"

He paused, then added, "What if the other party claims I was tortured into confessing? Would you have to draft a waiver of liability?"

Xu Xiang's face darkened for a moment, but he didn't refute. He knew very well that this matter tonight couldn't be resolved with fists alone; the mole had to be found and dealt with.

A trusted confidant next to him coughed and almost couldn't hold back his laughter.

Xu Xiang glanced at the man, and the man immediately stood up straight, even his breathing became lighter.

Lin Mo had obviously noticed something was wrong with the crowd. But outsourced work can't be finished in three seconds.

The client has spent a lot of money, so they need to see the process, the difficulties, and that the money was well spent.

Otherwise, you'll end up like a locksmith who agrees to charge 100 yuan for unlocking, but because he's too skilled and unlocks the door too quickly, the customer tries to cheat you out of the money.

Conversely, if the unlocking process is complicated and tiring, and the user appears exhausted, then the unlocking process is also problematic.

The customer also felt embarrassed not to pay.

This is called service experience, and also known as confidence in settling accounts.

"Everyone, there's been a little trouble at the branch tonight." Lin Mo leaned back in his chair, his voice not loud, but clear enough for everyone to hear. "Someone's been up to no good."

The employees looked at each other, some nervous, some frowning, and some subconsciously glancing at Xu Xiang's expression.

Lin Mo tapped his fingers on the armrest: "There's nothing shameful about outsourcing internal projects. As long as the money is right, outsourcing can solve the core pain points."

Xu Xiang coldly replied, "You only have one chance to step forward now."

The meeting area fell silent instantly. Most people reacted normally; some panicked, some were bewildered, and some lowered their heads, too afraid to speak.

Xiao Li mingled in the back of the crowd, a wry smile typical of veteran employees on his face, and exchanged a puzzled look with the colleague next to him. But to Lin Mo, his heart was already racing.

One hundred and twelve years of refined Nine Yang Internal Energy had made Lin Mo's five senses abnormally acute. The heartbeats, breathing, and subtle muscle contractions of dozens of people in the hall were as if they were being disassembled and laid out in front of him.

The moment Xu Xiang said, "You only get one chance," Xiao Li's heart skipped a beat. Then, his heart began to race uncontrollably, sweat beaded on his forehead, his palms became damp, and the muscles in his right calf twitched slightly.

found it.

Lin Mo's lips curled slightly, but he did not make a move immediately.

He turned to Xu Xiang: "It seems no one is willing to confess. Mr. Xu, bring over the surveillance footage and the duty roster for that period, connect them to the big screen, and I'll personally investigate."

Xu Xiang turned his head immediately: "Check the surveillance footage and pull up the list."

Soon, the two laptops connected to the intranet, and the images were projected onto the large screen in the conference area. Lin Mo sat up straight, placed his hands on the keyboard, and began fast-forwarding the recording, occasionally scribbling on his notebook, his brows deliberately furrowed.

Xu Xiang stood to the side, coughing twice, his face growing increasingly pale. Lin Mo glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and could sense a cold, stagnant feeling in the old man's meridians, indicating severe physical depletion.

"Mr. Xu, given your physical condition, if you stay up past 1 a.m., I suggest adding an extra fee for the risk of needing to accompany you."

Xu Xiang's face darkened: "I'm not going to die yet."

"That's good." Lin Mo nodded. "Customer survival is the foundation for smooth settlement."

Xu Xiang took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the urge to curse.

He now understands that the biggest expense in cooperating with Lin Mo isn't money, but blood pressure.

Time ticked by. The more leisurely Lin Mo moved, the more agonizing it became for Xiao Li in the crowd.

Fifteen minutes, twenty minutes.

Xiao Li stared intently at Lin Mo's hand as he slid the mouse, frantically praying that the people outside would act quickly.

"stop."

Lin Mo suddenly pointed to the upper right corner of the large screen: "During this time period, the corridor surveillance footage showed three minutes of static. Also, who designed this blind spot?"

The technician whispered, "It's been like this since the wiring was modified before, we haven't had time to fix it yet."

Lin Mo nodded: "Make a note of this. Consultation fees for monitoring layout loopholes will be charged separately. Compile a list of people who checked in around the archives room within the last fifteen minutes."

The technician worked quickly, and the list was printed out in no time. Lin Mo glanced at it and drew a few circles on it.

"Just these five people. Call them to the front."

The atmosphere in the lobby instantly tensed. Five employees came out one after another, with Xiao Li being the last in line.

He walked at a moderate pace, a wry smile still on his face. But Lin Mo heard it clearly: Xiao Li's right foot landed a fraction of a second lighter than his left, and there was a very faint sound of plastic shells colliding inside his shoe.

Ordinary people can't hear it, but it can't escape his ears.

The first four people were quickly identified. One had surveillance footage, one had call logs, one had computer room alarm records, and the last one was even captured on camera by Chen Hai from the security department, which confirmed that he had been stealing cigarettes on the basement level.

Xu Xiang's expression grew increasingly grim. Finally, he stopped in front of Xiao Li.

"Li Jianguo".

Xiao Li swallowed hard, forcing a smile: "President Xu, I've worked at the branch for almost eight years. Don't you know who I am?"

Xu Xiang's gaze sharpened: "I'm asking you, where were you during that time?"

"I'm checking next month's fieldwork expense reports at my workstation," Xiao Li said quickly, "and doing routine access control maintenance as well."

Lin Mo flipped through the operation logs, his tone casual: "You're looking at the access control terminal on the third floor? The one by the window?"

Xiao Li's palms instantly started sweating: "Right...no, I remembered wrong, it's the one inside. I was too busy that day and got it mixed up."

Lin Mo smiled. "It's normal to have a bad memory. But since you were doing maintenance, why were the low-level operation logs on your computer completely blank for three minutes?"

Xiao Li's mind went blank for a moment, and his face turned pale instantly.

"I...I suddenly had a stomachache!" He cried out, his voice rising as if grasping at a straw. "I leaned on the table for a while to recover! Really, Mr. Xu, I also had diarrhea tonight!"

Xiao Zhao, who was standing next to him, was stunned for a moment and didn't dare to say anything.

"Stomach ache, a perfectly normal physiological excuse." Lin Mo slowly tapped the table. "Then check the backup machine. See if it logged into the temporary maintenance account for the archives during that period."

The technician immediately started typing. A few seconds later, his expression changed, and he gasped.

"Mr. Xu, you're logged in! The account and password administrator has it!"

Xiao Li's face froze completely. He took a half step back, his voice shrill: "What kind of evidence is this? Anyone can use a public account! What right do you have to interrogate me?"

He became increasingly agitated as he spoke: "Isn't it normal for me to be nervous when I'm suspected? You can't treat me like a criminal without solid evidence!"

"It's normal to be nervous." Lin Mo stood up, cracked his knuckles, and said with a hint of mockery in his eyes, "That's why I never said you were the mole."

As he said this, he took two steps forward and stopped in front of Xiao Li.

"But you're very entertaining. When you heard 'backup phone,' your heart beat 30% faster. When you heard 'public number,' your breathing became erratic twice."

Xiao Li's lips were pale, and he could no longer suppress the cold sweat on his forehead.

Lin Mo glanced down at his shoes, her tone as casual as if she were just mentioning it.

"If we want to be even more precise, we can also check the soles of your shoes."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Li's legs went weak, and he almost knelt down.

It’s over.

Once the communicator hidden in the sole of the shoe is found, everything is over.

Xu Xiang's eyes flashed with anger, and he was about to order the security department to arrest the person.

Just then—

"Ugh—!!!"

A piercing red alarm suddenly blared throughout the entire branch building. Emergency lights flashed wildly, turning everyone's faces a blood-red glare.

Immediately afterwards, a loud "boom" came from the east. The floor of the conference area shook violently, and the overhead lights creaked and rattled.

The security captain's urgent shout came over the loudspeaker.

"Alert! The main gate and the east wall have been violently damaged!"

"An unidentified group of people has forced their way into the park!"

Chaos erupted in the hall instantly.

Many employees tensed up, finding it unbelievable.

Xu Xiang's close associates also dispersed at the same time to protect several key entrances.

Li, who had been ashen-faced, suddenly looked up, a fervent joy flashing in his eyes.

coming!

The backup has finally arrived!

Xu Xiang's expression changed drastically, and a powerful azure energy surged from his body. He was about to give the order to engage the enemy when Lin Mo, standing beside him, glanced down at his new sneakers.

The shoe uppers were clean and tidy.

Lin Mo sighed slowly.

"Mr. Xu."

Xu Xiang gritted his teeth: "Speak!"

Lin Mo stepped in front of Xu Xiang, grabbed his arm, and with his other hand flipped the notebook containing the contract to the page with the supplementary clauses, handing it directly to Xu Xiang.

"Don't rush to give the order. This is stipulated in the contract."

Xu Xiang's temple throbbed with a vein: "What time is it? You're still looking at the contract?"

"Precisely because the situation is urgent, it is even more important to confirm the cost." Lin Mo pointed heavily at a line of text on the notebook, his tone rising sharply.

"According to Article 3 of the supplementary terms of our outsourcing contract, encountering a violent attack by a high-risk non-human group during the performance of a mission shall be considered an emergency."

He looked up, his eyes shining like two high-wattage searchlights.

"The enemy has come to pick up our people. The situation has changed, Mr. Xu."

"This is a high-risk combat job."

Lin Mo spoke each word with utmost seriousness.

"You need to pay more!"

……