The next morning.
The sky was overcast, threatening rain.
At the north gate of Tianhe Platinum Apartments, a suspicious figure loitered and lingered outside the guardroom.
Inside,
Uncle Wang, dressed in the uniform of the security captain, had his old, aching legs propped up on the glass table by the window. He held a cylindrical stainless steel thermos, unscrewed the lid, and inhaled the fragrant aroma of Longjing tea.
His eyes glanced at the door, focusing on the exceptionally attractive woman outside.
"Hoho... It's been a few days, and here you are, staking out again."
"Let's see how you plan to get in today."
At 69 years old, Uncle Wang's observational skills were far beyond that of ordinary people.
If not for his vigilance on par with that of a chief eunuch,
he wouldn't have risen above the cutthroat competition among retired folks to secure the position of security captain in such a high-end community.
Of course, his upper-class Beijing hukou (residency) also played a role.
Coming here to be a security guard was merely to accompany his son, who worked in Tianhai.
As everyone knows, Tianhe Platinum Apartments has exceptionally strict controls on outsiders. Non-residents are not allowed in.
The community has two gates in total, both guarded by smart iron bars and card-activated doors, making the defenses formidable.
Cars, except for those from moving companies like Huolala, are strictly prohibited.
Even delivery riders have to park their electric bikes outside and walk into the community to deliver to the door, ensuring utmost respect for the residents.
"Hohoho... That little lady has been successfully stopped by me 28 times, yet she still doesn't give up?"
Uncle Wang took a sip of green tea, his gaze sharp like an eagle, as he muttered, "You're quite persistent."
Seeing the woman still lingering, he turned on the radio placed on the plastic stool next to him. While keeping an eye on her, he prepared to enjoy the morning broadcast of a wuxia story narrated by Mr. Shan Tianfang.
He had to stay vigilant.
After all, one night not long ago, he had dozed off.
The next day, upon reviewing the surveillance footage, he discovered that a young woman had sneaked in during the heavy rain, reaching through the bars to flip the internal switch.
She definitely wasn't a resident.
As the security captain, Uncle Wang took this incident to heart after Uncle Ge in the monitoring room had grumbled about it.
"I, Old Wang, can be negligent once, but I won't make the same mistake twice."
That night had been too cozy with the rain,
but now, in the early morning, you won't have any chances.
"Hohohoho..."
Slurp.
A sip of Longjing tea.
Delightful.
...
Outside.
Tang Hua, in a daze, wandered back and forth, feeling extremely troubled by the colossus in the guardroom.
Every time she came here, she faced a significant problem—
whether Security Captain Uncle Wang was on duty today.
If it wasn't this old man, she could simply follow the delivery riders to sneak in.
However, Security Captain Uncle Wang was so dedicated that he functioned like a Silver Mountain antivirus firewall, filtering out most intruders.
"No, this won't do..."
Tang Hua felt a bit distressed.
Tang Hua was very distressed.
After all, she hadn't slept well, yet she had ended her sleep early due to "excessive longing to see the boss."
She hadn't eaten or drunk water, just climbed down from her bed and rushed here.
Her stomach was empty.
Her face wasn't washed.
She was wearing too little.
A bit chilly.
Tang Hua hugged herself, shivering,
and squatted on the steps of the old Tiandu Supermarket at the entrance of the community, pouting slightly, feeling wronged.
The guy at the cashier inside the supermarket was stunned upon seeing such a stunning beauty outside.
He quickly ran out, asking, "Miss, do you need any help?"
However, in the next moment,
Tang Hua's pout froze on her face—
Abruptly, with a gaze that looked down on trash, or even somewhat like looking at "maggots,"
she slightly raised her chin,
stared at him,
deadly,
without uttering a single "word".
"..."
The guy quickly retreated back inside.
Tang Hua disdainfully spat, stood up,
shouldered her black fitness bag, and stepped down from the platform, deciding to strategize further.
For a professional stalker, even if one path is blocked, she would find a new way to break through.
All roads lead to Rome.
If this path doesn't work, she'll switch to another.
With this in mind, she left the main entrance of the community,
—and headed towards the back gate.
...
...
Old Liu, a 58-year-old bachelor, was a security guard who, due to earning 500 yuan less per month than Security Captain Uncle Wang, liked to loaf around all day.
As everyone also knows, Tianhe Platinum Apartments has two gates, the north gate being the main entrance, and the south gate referred to as the back gate by the residents.
The security booth at the south gate was less comfortable and less luxurious than Uncle Wang's spot at the main entrance,
so Old Liu chose to make this his sleeping den.
Even if a resident forgot their key and couldn't enter the courtyard, he would be too lazy to press the switch to open the smart sensor door outside.
Today,
he squinted, leisurely placing his third-hand phone on the windowsill,
Playing an interesting novel from "Xijie Novels" — "The Divine Crystal Palace".
Listening to audiobooks was one of his few ways to pass the time.
Outside, a woman gradually approached.
Old Liu, immersed in the novel, was in a state of blissful oblivion, unresponsive.
The suspicious woman confirmed that today, the south gate had a high chance of success.
Indeed, after only 8 minutes of waiting, a young man in a red uniform drove up in an electric vehicle and parked it at the gate.
He then took out a key, opened the cargo compartment, and stacked the various packages outside.
Despite such a commotion, Old Liu remained in his meditative state.
like a carefree immortal, free and easy (at ease and unhurried).
In the world of cultivation, he would at least be at the ninth layer of Qi Refining.
Tang Hua's face lit up with joy.
Feeling that today she could sneak in.
Hiding in the corner, she waited for another ten minutes or so.
The courier in red uniform stuffed the items that needed to go into the Hive Courier Cabinet and
then plopped down (clipped) took out the community card, carrying a few small packages into the complex.
Tang Hua seized the moment, following closely behind!
Click!
With the iron gate closing behind her, her mood was more exhilarated than ever!
A great success!
She was in!
Before the joy could dissipate, she heard the courier in front of her open his phone and dial a number—
"Hello? Is this Mr. Lu's home? Ah, you have a package. Can you receive it now? Yes, it's from Jingdong, not SF Express. Okay, great."
The Jingdong courier hung up and started another call.
Tang Hua followed behind him, keeping a distance of about ten meters.
She noticed that the direction he was heading was exactly where she needed to go—Building C.
What a coincidence.
Isn't this just perfect.
However.
This time, she absolutely wouldn't go up.
At least, not until she confirmed there were no dangers around.
"I must eliminate all possibilities of a crash."
Tang Hua thought to herself.
Last time, she had been extremely cautious, placing the equipment at the boss's doorstep with certainty.
Yet inexplicably, she was targeted by an external force.
This was something Tang Hua couldn't understand.
"Someone is messing with me."
Tang Hua had come to this conclusion.
Therefore, even with the courier leading the way, she wouldn't easily fall into a trap.
Fufu.
First, observe for a few hours.
Tang Hua thought.
Visibly, each floor of Building C had a corridor outside the doors, allowing one to see the vague scenes of each household's doorstep from the ground floor.
Tang Hua watched as the Jingdong courier carried the cargo box into the elevator, which rumbled straight to the 19th floor.
"Indeed, he's delivering to the boss. The boss's surname is Lu. Hehehe."
Tang Hua's face showed a smile,
she opened her shoulder bag,
and from the pile of black equipment inside,
took out a single-tube adjustable-focus telescope.
Skillfully adjusting the magnification to the maximum, she attached it to her right eye.
Standing in the shade of the trees and bushes,
she silently aimed at C1901.
...
...