Chapter 4 Zheng Zha: Yes, Chu Xuan gave up on me.
"My memory isn't complete, but the Red Queen wouldn't release nerve gas without reason."
Fang Ge pointed in the direction of the train, "If nothing unexpected happens, the stolen T-Virus is still there."
"Is there any cause and effect between these two events?" Captain James retorted.
Fang Ge winked at his teammates.
This was an opportunity to show that he wasn't a security guard, but rather a high-ranking Umbrella Corporation official.
Of course, Zheng Zha, the gorilla, wouldn't understand, and Zhang Jie remained aloof. Mou Gang and the old woman were both passive individuals unwilling to take risks.
Only Zhan Lan and Chu Xuan could pick up the conversation.
Chu Xuan revealed a slight smile and explained, "The Hive has complete security measures, and the Red Queen isn't an ordinary artificial intelligence..."
"Then wasn't it still stolen?" Rain said indignantly.
"If the Red Queen discovered the T-Virus was stolen while the suspect hadn't yet left the main part of the Hive, to catch the suspect, she would only need to close a few large doors," Chu Xuan pushed up his glasses, his eyes gleaming with wisdom.
"Assuming the suspect has already completely left, or has a way to resist nerve gas... then releasing nerve gas would just be a futile effort and would instead affect subsequent investigations by the company."
"AI doesn't do meaningless things, so the answer is very obvious. The suspect is between the station, the train, and the castle, these three landmarks."
"Doesn't that mean we could all be the suspect?" The protagonist, Alice, interjected to make her presence known.
"Hiss..." Zheng Zha gasped, feeling his brain becoming increasingly inadequate.
"Alice has the least possibility. The time it takes for the train to travel to the castle is not short, and if the Red Queen and the security system were truly this inefficient, the Hive wouldn't have only been stolen from today."
Zhan Lan patted her cheeks, trying hard to stay calm.
Alice blinked, clearly not expecting Zhan Lan to speak up for her before clearing her own name.
Girl help Girl!
"No, this is just conjecture; no possibility can be ruled out."
Chu Xuan maintained a rigorous attitude.
"When we were found, we were all unconscious due to nerve gas, and the suspect was no exception; he definitely didn't have time to transfer the stolen goods."
"So, whoever is closest to the stolen goods is the suspect!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Spence Parks, the primary culprit behind the T-Virus leak, suddenly interjected:
"Hey, I think we've fallen into a misconception; no one stipulated that there could only be one suspect."
— It seems he's already recovered relevant memories. Is he crying wolf? Things are developing into a Werewolf game.
"This..." Mou Gang showed an anxious expression, but the tongue-tied middle-aged man couldn't find a suitable reason to refute.
This performance, instead, made the mercenaries look sideways.
— It's useless, Spence is indeed thinking from the perspective of a mercenary... These people will not truly believe any of the Reincarnators.
— Chu Xuan and I are temporarily considered individuals with information and identity, Zhan Lan also showed an information acquisition beyond that of an ordinary security guard, and Zhang Jie looked like a qualified soldier.
— Until now, Zheng Zha, Mou Gang, and the old woman, who have no reasonable identity and have been slacking off, will only face more suspicion!
"You make a good point; the possibility of a team operation cannot be ruled out."
As expected, Captain James nodded slightly, agreeing with Spence's viewpoint.
"Along the way, have any of you seen anything that looks like stolen goods?"
"My memory has recovered somewhat. I am Chu Xuan, indeed a security guard, primarily responsible for train safety. I also participated in the design of the Hive's security system. As for how to prove it... if there's a need to overcome the Hive's security system later, I can offer my humble assistance."
Chu Xuan's voice carried a certain convincing magic.
"I can only confirm the identities of Zhang Jie and Alice... Alice was responsible for guarding the Hive's exit at the castle. Zhang Jie was mainly responsible for handling security issues in B Restaurant."
"As for Fang Ge... Fang Ge is not a member of the security sequence, I can confirm that. But he does work inside the Hive; I remember him wearing a white lab coat."
"Combining the previous deductions and my understanding of the train's layout, there's a metal box at the rear of the carriage that shouldn't be there—most likely it's the stolen goods."
— So the Seer is revealing identities, huh? He immediately roped in the veteran, me (the most active one), and the slacking main character of the plot. And he's offering methods and information for self-proof.
As expected of Chu Xuan.
But this also means... Chu Xuan has selectively abandoned Zhan Lan, Zheng Zha, Mou Gang, and the old woman.
This is very much in line with his style; he only screens for teammates with an advantage.
Captain James didn't think too much, and quickly ordered:
"You lead the way. JD, Rain, go with him to find it."
Chu Xuan cooperatively raised his hands, allowing Rain and JD to flank him like two door gods as he moved forward.
He acted perfectly in line with the persona he had created, as if he truly knew the train's environment like the back of his hand. He walked directly to the rear of the carriage, then moved the box containing the T-Virus and the antidote out.
Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately handed the stolen goods to JD.
Spence's gaze was firmly drawn to the box, his body jolted as if by electricity, and his previously blurred impressions quickly became clear.
"Damn it, I had this feeling... I'm the mole!"
Silently cursing, Spence's muscles tensed, and he quickly calculated ways to clear his name.
The problem was, he hadn't recalled any memories related to Fang Ge and the others; he was still completely unaware of his enemies' identities!
Seeing everyone moving towards the box in JD's hands, his anxiety grew more and more serious!
He would recover his memories due to the visual impact of the box, but what about the others? What if they immediately recovered their memories and identified him?
The arrow was on the string, and he had to shoot!
Spence immediately shouted urgently: "I remember! I remember everything!"
"This is the company's product! Those three are spies!"
As he shouted, his finger pointed at Mou Gang, the old woman, and Zheng Zha!
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Almost the instant his words left his mouth, the mercenaries' guns were raised in unison, aimed precisely at the three he had indicated!
Oh no!
Zheng Zha was struck by lightning, immediately raised his hands in surrender, and at the same time, desperately racked his idle brain.
The more you say, the more mistakes you make; the less you say, the fewer mistakes. As long as he posed no threat to them, before things were completely clear, even though the mercenaries raised their guns quickly, they wouldn't shoot indiscriminately.
In the original work, Rain was bitten precisely because she hesitated to shoot the zombies immediately!
But his idiotic teammates didn't think that way.
"It's not me! I didn't steal the T-Virus! It's him, he stole it, he's framing me!" Mou Gang felt a chill all over his body in the summer heat, his eyes bloodshot, and his whole body trembling.
"No... no... don't kill me! Don't kill me!" The old woman was even worse, her legs trembling, only knowing how to beg for mercy.
— Begging for mercy is the worst choice, it's roughly equivalent to admitting guilt...
Fang Ge covered his face with his hands, beginning to think about how to pull Zheng Zha out of the quagmire.
Zheng Zha dying was roughly equivalent to a corrupted save file; he could protect him with his life if necessary.
As for Mou Gang and the old woman...
Not to mention they were just two NPCs of average aptitude, giving them resources wouldn't yield much effect.
In his process, whether they lived or not—it didn't matter.
Their responses were too terrible, hopelessly terrible. When it was time to conclude and fulfill dreams, even resurrecting them for a family photo would feel strange.
Spence's flash of inspiration became the last straw that broke their backs:
"You all got into the Hive through the back door... I thought you chose such a tough job because you weren't smart, but it turns out you wanted to take a risk and make a fortune!"
Mou Gang, caught in the self-incrimination trap, racked his brains but couldn't think of a way to clear his name.
He looked at his teammates with pleading eyes.
Zhang Jie, who had turned his head away.
Fang Ge, who was covering his face.
Zhan Lan, who was hiding behind people.
Only one person dared to face him—Chu Xuan.
But Mou Gang's heart was not comforted by this...
Because Chu Xuan's eyes behind his glasses... looked like he was looking at a dead man.
For a moment, Mou Gang was no longer afraid of death...
His parents were seriously ill, his wife only knew to make him drive, treating him as a money-making tool. His eldest child was a disappointment, and whether the second child was even his was another matter...
There was nothing to be happy about living.
"What the hell are you spouting!"
Mou Gang, after more than twenty years, finally became fierce again.
The middle-aged man's arms were like a pair of tiger pliers, firmly gripping Spence's throat!
"You!"
Then came a dense volley of gunshots.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"