Coming to Myself

Since no pattern had been found in other aspects, could the killer have accessed this system to identify targets?

Following this line of reasoning, aside from the company HR personnel and managers who had already been investigated, who else could freely enter this system without drawing police attention?

……

You Mingxu immediately asked the IT colleagues to investigate which company had developed these two office systems. Now, the colleague had a response—

They were created by the same software outsourcing company! A bathhouse like this wouldn’t maintain a fully developed IT department, so their computer systems were outsourced. However, such outsourcing companies often had high employee turnover. But You Mingxu’s colleague was a tenacious investigator—through extensive screening and following leads, he discovered that one employee had left the outsourcing company three months ago but had been involved in building the systems for both bathhouses.

Moreover, the colleague found that this employee had recently been frequently logging into the bathhouse systems from external IP addresses and had logged in just last night!

You Mingxu’s heart pounded as she slowly exhaled and said, “Is his IP address…” She recited a string of numbers.

The colleague exclaimed, “Huh? How did you know?”

There was no time to explain. You Mingxu said, “Send this employee’s photo and information to my phone immediately. Also, can you see his browsing history from yesterday? Which female massage therapist’s information was he looking at?”

The colleague replied, “Damn, Sis You, you even know that! He repeatedly browsed the files of two female employees last night and eventually downloaded the complete file and photos of one of them. I’ll send this, along with his registered information from the outsourcing company, to you right away!”

The next target was that female employee!

To share the information in real time, You Mingxu had put the call on speakerphone. After hanging up, she saw Yin Feng and Xu Mengshan looking at her—they had understood everything from the conversation.

You Mingxu smiled slightly, then glanced at the various crime tools and items around them and said to Yin Feng, “It seems you had it backwards earlier. I’ll handle the arrest, and you can work hard to find the evidence for me.”

Yin Feng looked at her slightly raised phoenix eyes, clear and bright, and felt a stir in his heart. He realized he loved seeing You Mingxu like this—commanding and unstoppable, even when she was showing off in front of him. In the past, he had detested women trying to dominate him.

But now… he’d let her take the lead.

Yin Feng smiled faintly. “As you wish, my lady.”

You Mingxu chuckled lightly. Xu Mengshan, now certain of Sis You’s status at home, felt a surge of admiration. Just then, the IT colleague sent the information to You Mingxu.

She picked up her phone and froze.

The first thing she saw was the name and photo of the outsourcing technician who had been frequently logging into the system—their freshly identified suspect.

Mingtao.

The photo appeared to be his onboarding picture at the outsourcing company—a standard blue-background headshot. The Mingtao in the photo looked somewhat different from over a year ago. He was still fair and delicate-featured, but the bangs that had always covered his eyes were cut away, revealing a pair of slightly profound eyes. Only the corners of his mouth still curled up slightly, carrying a hint of defiance and aloofness.

You Mingxu looked up and met Yin Feng’s deep, shadowed gaze. Both were startled, yet it was unexpected but made perfect sense.In Tibet, scenes involving Mingtao suddenly flooded You Mingxu's mind. That boy who claimed to have just graduated from university matched in height, age, and build. No wonder she found his back view somewhat familiar when reviewing the surveillance footage.

Mingtao's bangs always covered his eyes. When he lifted his head to smile at them, you could never clearly see the light in his eyes. At their first meeting, he laughed heartily and said: "Interesting, interesting. Perhaps the serial killer is among us?"

His interest in criminology, his obsession with serial killers. On that confrontational night, he accused one person, then another of being the killer—was he just causing trouble, or was it intentional?

The more You Mingxu thought about it, the more alarmed she became. She recalled another scene: her and Gu Tiancheng sitting by the tent talking, when a faint, cold snort carried on the wind: "Hypocritical and boring, no wonder he enjoys killing."

Gu Tiancheng heard it too but acted as if he hadn't.

At the time, You Mingxu thought the "he" Mingtao referred to was the unidentified highway serial killer—Gu Tiancheng.

But what if it wasn't?

What if it was another serial killer Mingtao had been fascinated with since childhood, feeling deeply regretful about?

...

You Mingxu steadied herself. Regardless of what Mingtao had experienced this past year, whether he had concealed something in Tibet, or even if his appearance had hidden motives—now, he was the prime suspect in this case. He had fixed his sights on a new target and could detect the police's intentions and flee at any moment. They had to apprehend him immediately!

Before the Punisher might possibly appear!

Yin Feng seemed to see right through her thoughts. Glancing at the pitch-black night outside, he said, "It's currently the bathhouse's closing time, which is also his active period. I think he's probably meticulously conducting surveillance work, filled with fresh excitement and passion, and might not immediately notice our movements. Let's go intercept him now!"

—

Indeed, it was already 2 a.m.

You Mingxu immediately made arrangements:

On one hand, they contacted the bathhouse to confirm that the third target—a girl named Jiang Mei—had clocked out ten minutes ago. Meanwhile, they learned from her close colleague the specific route Jiang Mei took home—the fastest method available.

On the other hand, they located Jiang Mei via her phone signal on a night-shift bus. After confirming her safety, the police decided not to contact her immediately to avoid raising suspicions and alerting Mingtao, which could endanger her.

Was Mingtao also on that bus?

Police forces along the bus route were rapidly being mobilized.

Twenty minutes later.

You Mingxu and Yin Feng hid behind roadside flower beds, while other officers lay in ambush. The bus would arrive at this stop—where Jiang Mei was to get off—in two minutes.

You Mingxu held her breath, focused. Yin Feng stood silently behind her. Out of habit, she warned, "Don't come out later. He might be armed. Wait until we've apprehended him."

"Mm," Yin Feng said. "I'll listen to A Xu."

You Mingxu couldn't help but smile.

Then she felt his chest nearly pressed against her back, his breath close to her ear. She turned her head to see him gazing into the distance, seemingly completely absorbed.He also withdrew his gaze and looked at her: "Be careful."

"Mm."

Between the two of them, it seemed unnecessary to say too much. Even though she was now the one charging ahead, that feeling of intimacy—as if they were one person—remained just as strong.