Chapter 205: Life in the Past
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Compared to Sheng Ke, Zhang Zian still lacked social experience, so he did not expect that Sheng Ke would use handshakes to test him. He just felt that Sheng Ke's grip was a little bit too hard, but the handshake did not last long and he did not give it a second thought. Though he had just started practicing Wing Chun not long ago, both his master and himself were serious about his training, so the effect was quite good.
Sheng Ke released his hand and then looked at Fina.
Fina looked around with disdain at the dirty place, so it was not squatting on the ground as usual. It was standing casually to look at the scenery and pedestrians, mainly picking on the fashionably dressed young women.
Fina was too eye-catching. Zhang Zian had been used to its look in the shop, but here outside, its golden fur and dark gold spots were attracting the attention of pedestrians like a black hole, and many people had stopped to watch it and take pictures.
"Is that a little leopard? Can people bring leopards on the streets? Should we call the police?" Some people pointed at Fina and said quietly.
"Well, there is a police officer standing next to it."
"No, it's not a leopard. I like animals, and I saw what leopards look like in documentaries. I have also seen them in zoos. Leopards' faces are totally different from this animal's face. It's obviously a cat."
"What kind of cat? Leopard cat?"
"It looks a bit like leopard cat, but it's not. The most obvious difference is its strange stripes on its forehead – seldom do cats have stripes on their foreheads, and even they do, the patterns are irregular or in an 'M' shape. For example, all sorts of tabby cats have the stripes in the shape of character 'Wang' (王), which are similar to that of Manchurian Tigers. As for the forehead stripes of this cat, they are not irregular, but I really can't recognize the pattern…"
Fina remained calm and cool among these comments. It even raised its face so that it looked even more arrogant.
Some girls came very close to tease Fina, but it simply turned its head, as if it was saying, "Show some respect. I'm not for you to play with." But its arrogant attitude just made the girls want to tease it more.
The invisible Old Time Tea, on the other hand, could move freely. It was curiously circling around the police vehicle, and put its face up against the window glass to see what was inside.
Now that they had greeted each other, and that more of a crowd was gathering around them, Zhang Zian pointed to the Yuanhua Building. "Shall we go in now?"
Sheng Ke nodded, "Let's go. The management of this office building is quite strict on weekends because people are afraid that something might be stolen again, especially after that case. People can't go in without work permits from the companies in that building."
"I remember you told me that, this is not the only office building that has lost something?"
"Yes, but the case of this building is a typical one."
"It happened on the fifth floor. We have photographed the scene and kept the evidence found there, but it is of no damn use —" Sheng Ke quoted a buzzword of the internet. He grabbed a bag from the passenger's seat and said, "Let's go."
They walked side by side toward the Yuanhua building with Fina was behind them. It impatiently walked quickly, trying to get rid of the girls that were teasing it. Old Time Tea cautiously kept a distance from them and walked at their side.
Yuanhua building looked very desolate on the weekend. Only a security guard on duty could be seen on the first floor.
Seeing that Sheng Ke was wearing a police uniform, the security guard immediately greeted him.
"Captain Sheng, you are here again. The same case, huh?" The guard smiled humbly. "It's a small case, and we've troubled you many times."
"Don't mention it. It's what we should do, to serve the people." Sheng Ke greeted the guard back, "You are Xiao Yu, right? Where is your boss?"
"He's not here today. But he told me that if you come again, I should listen to your orders… or do you need me to call him and have him come over?" Xiao Yu was surprised that Sheng Ke still remembered him, and he felt flattered.
"No need to call him." Sheng Ke waved his hand to refuse Xiao Yu's gesture. "In this case, the fewer people, the better for solving it. Besides, I also bring…" he pointed to Zhang Zian, "He's an expert that I invited to help, and you may support him later."
This expert was so young!
Xiao Yu was astonished, and he was carefully looking at Zhang Zian who he had ignored just a moment ago.
The moment Zhang Zian stepped into the office building, he immediately had a mixed feeling that he was familiar yet also strange to him.
The shiny and clean marble floor, the tall columns in the lobby, the metal nameplates written with the corresponding floors and names of the companies, the cleaning staff walking by pushing cleaning carts, and the security guards wearing uniforms… Not long ago, he was also a suit-wearing office worker who arrived at the office on time daily and everyday was pretty much the same. He felt the office work life was not bad back then, but if he were returned to that kind of life right now, he would be suffocated by it.
Fina once owned a magnificent Sacred Palace, and it went to a luxury beauty salon last time, so in its eyes, this office building was nothing special.
Old Time Tea was looking up and around curiously, especially at the surveillance cameras in the corners of the ceiling.
Zhang Zian glanced at Old Time Tea. He knew that it was worrying whether the cameras could spot it even with the invisibility effect. In fact, he also had a similar concern. But there should be no problem; after all, invisibility was the black technology provided by that game.
Sheng Ke introduced Zhang Zian to Xiao Yu, "This is Mr. Zhang. He may be young, but he has unique skills that even I need to learn from him." He worried that if the guard did not take Zhang Zian seriously, Zhang would angrily walk away. So, he was emphasizing the importance of Zhang Zian to Xiao Yu.
And his efforts worked. Xiao Yu didn't have a doubt about Zhang Zian's expertise anymore. "Oh! Hi, Mr. Zhang! It's an honor to finally meet you. My name is Yu Fei, and I am a security guard of this building. I will do my best to assist you today."
Sheng Ke told Zhang Zian, "He is today's shift boss. If you need anything, do not hesitate to let him know."
Zhang Zian shook Xiao Yu's hand, "Hello. Thank you for your assistance in advance."
"You are the expert invited by Captain Sheng, so we will definitely fully support you." Yu Fei patted his chest to show his determination.
"OK, show me the control monitor first." Zhang Zian gave his first order right away.
Yu Fei was stunned by Zhang Zian's speed, but he immediately reacted. "The surveillance video of the day when the case happened?"
Sheng Ke remained silent. He had watched that video for many times, and he had shown it to Zhang Zian before. Could they really find something new if they watched it another time?
"No." Zhang Zian pointed to the camera in the corner of the ceiling. "Can you show me the real-time monitoring screen?"
"Well, yes, of course. Mr. Zhang, have you found some new clues?" asked Yu Fei curiously.
Sheng Ke was greatly surprised. He didn't understand why Zhang Zian asked such a question.
In fact, Zhang Zian just wanted to see if the surveillance camera could capture the image of the invisible Old Time Tea. The camera in his shop was smashed, so he had no way to take this experiment. Well, this idea did not dawn on him before.
"This way, please."
Zhang Zian waved his hand at Old Time Tea secretly to tell it to stay there temporarily.
Yu Fei showed Zhang Zian to the monitoring room on the first floor. He informed the security guard who was responsible for the monitoring about their purpose, and that guard quietly withdrew from the monitoring room.
"You can take a look now."
The wall was fully covered with twenty to thirty screens, and each screen was divided into four small screens, which were monitoring every important location in the office building.
"I want to see the real-time images of the lobby." Zhang Zian requested.
Yu Fei operated on the panel, found the surveillance screens of the lobby, and zoomed in on the main screen in the center.
Zhang Zian looked at the screen, and he rested assured. Nothing. The surveillance cameras couldn't see Old Time Tea.
Black technology was impressive indeed!
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