Chapter 20

LiJinwasreelingfromhisgoodfortune.HehadfoundaRussianbuyerforBlackJade’sneuroprocessoronthesectorofcyberspacethatteemedwithdealersfromawholeloadofformerEasternBloccountries.Thefindhadbeenmuchquickerthananticipated.HehadplacedcrypticinformationaboutthechiponabulletinboardthatheknewwasamagnetforfencersofstolentechnologiesinEasternEurope,especiallyRussia.Theseguysdealtincontrabandofvariousdescriptions,advancedprocessordesign,cutting-edgesoftware,blueprintstoclassifiedputersystems,aircraftdesignandwhoknewwhatelse.

LiJinknewthattheseriousbuyersautomaticallymonitoredtheboardswithbotsthatnotifiedthemwhensomethinginterestingemergedonthemarket.Thebotsweretrainedtofilterouthoaxmessagesandotherwell-knownelectronicscams.LiJinhadwrittensuchbotshimselfsoheknewhowtheyworked.ApotentialbuyerhadpickeduponhispostandthemessagehadebackfromanOlegKrachevfromtheMoscowInstituteofSuperputing.

LiJinhaddonehishomework,findingtheinstitute’spatchofcyberspaceandbingitwithafinetoothb.TherewasanOlegKrachevtherealright,headofpurchasing.Hepresidedoverasizeablebudget.LiJinwaspleasedtoseethatthebudgetwasofsuchasizeastofortablyabsorbtheamounthewasaskingforwithoutevenmakingadentinthewhole.ThisRussianKrachev’sbarelyconcealedexcitementwasanotherpieceofgoodnews.HewantedmoreinfoonthechiptodetermineitsauthenticityandLiJinhadfollowedupwiththequantumputingtheoriesheknewonlyanexpertwouldbiteon.

Apreliminarydealhadbeenreachedelectronically.TheexchangewouldbedoneinHongKong.LiJinwoulddepositthechipinasafetydepositboxattheHongKongandShanghaiBankingCorporation.HewouldthenmeetupwithKrachevinKowloonParkwherehewouldexchangethedepositslipforthecredit.Hehadalreadysetupseveralcyberspacebankaccountswithcarefullyselectedfinancialinstitutions.TheaccountsallusednamesofrandomvillagersfromhishometowninShaanxiprovince.Thevillagewouldetogetherforthisonehethought.But,howtomakesurethatKrachevdidn’tcheathimoutofthechip?Hehadonlythoughtofonesolution.HewouldinstructKrachevtomakethepaymentbyradioandoncesatisfiedthatithadgonethrough,hewouldinstructtheRussianonwheretopickupthechip.ThenhewoulddisappearintothecrowdsonKowloon’sbustlingNathanRoad.

LiJinhadslippedoutoftheputerlabatTsinghuaUniversityunnoticedandgoneshoppinginnearbyZhongguancunfortheradio,acredittransferdeviceandabatknifewithawicked-lookingserratededge.Nowwithallthesethingsinhisbackpackhehadjustonemoreerrandtorun.HeneededtopayavisittoProfessorYao’shometoretrievethebackdoorrig.Thiswaseasilythemostdangerousthinghehadtodo,notcountingtheunknownfactoroftheRussian.InHongKonghecouldtakeprecautions.Hewasincontrolofthebattlefield.Theprofessor’shomewasanothermatteraltogether.TheplacecouldbecrawlingwithPSBagents.Worsestill,theycouldhavealreadyfoundtheprofessor’sbackdoorrig.Buttheywouldn’tknowwhattolookforandneitherdidhe.Hefiguredhe’dfinditsomewhereintheprofessor’sden.Althoughhehadbeentotheprofessor’shome,hehadneverbeenintheprofessor’sstudybefore.Mentally,hetriedtopicturewhichsideofthesiheyuanorfour-sidedpoundtheprofessorwouldhavelocatedhisstudy.Traditiondictatedonthesouthernside.Butthesedays,whowasthatfastidiousabouttraditionandthelawsofgeomancy?LiJin’slifewasgovernedbythelawsofbitsandbytes.

LiJinguessedthattheprofessor’shousewouldbedesertedonlyforafewdays.HehadheardthatthefamilyhadtakenthebodytoProfessorYao’svillageneartheMutianyusectionoftheGreatWall.Yet,itwasn’tthefamilyhewasonthelookoutfor.PublicSecurityBureauagentswereprobablylookingalloverBeijingforhimandiftheywerethoroughthey’dhavestakedouttheprofessor’shouse.LiJinhadignoredinstructions.Thatwascrimeenough.Iftheyfoundouthehaddupedthem,hewasdeadmeat.Buthowcouldtheyprovethathehadswitchedtheneuroprocessorandthesoftware?Actually,theseguysdidn’tneedproof.Oncetheygottheirhandsonyouthatwasalltheprooftheyneeded.Moresubstantialevidencecouldbemanufacturedlater.

Atanyrate,LiJinhadfiguredthatwiththeprofessor’svisittoNewYorkitwasalloverforhimanyway.Itwastheprofessorwhohadgivenhimtheresearchgrantandasmallstipenduponhisgraduationtocontinuehisstudies,otherwisehewouldhavehadtoreturntohisvillageinShaanxiandteachprimaryschoolkidsorworkforthevillageheadman,hisbenefactor.Itwasthevillageafterallthathadpooledtogethertosendhim,theirmostpromisingstudent,toBeijingtositthedifficultentranceexamstoTsinghuaUniversity.Andhehadbeenassurprisedasanyonewhenhehadbeenaccepted.Oncethiswasallover,he’dhavetomakeasizeablecontributiontothevillagecoffers.Theycouldusethemoneytobuildthenewschoolthey’dbeentalkingaboutforsolongandtorepairthetreacherousdusttrackthatleaduptothevillage.Yes,therewasmuchtodo.First,hehadtogethishandsonthebackdoorrig.

ItwasafewminutespastmidnightwhenLiJinmadehiswaydownthedesertedBeijingroadthatleadtothehutongwhereProfessorYao’shousewaslocated.Hutong’swerethenorth-south,east-westlanesbetweenthewallsofadjacentquadranglecourtyardhouses.LiJinrecalledthatthewordhutongwasderivedfromtheMongolianwordhottog,whichmeantwaterwell.Communitieshaddevelopedaroundwaterwells,leadingtotheBeijingversionofthesamewordhutong,nowsynonymouswithwhatwasleftofthemyriadsprawlofgraybrickthatusedtospreadoutwardsfromtheForbiddenCity.

Therewasadecidedbitetotheair.Ablanketoffoghaddescendedlendingthestreetaneerieatmosphere.LiJinwalkedthroughthisicyshroudofgrayuntilhearrivedatthevermilliongateslocatedatthesouth-easternsectionofthepound.Ablackcatleaptoffthepoundwallanddisappeareddownanearbydrain.LiJinalmostjumpedoutofhisskin.Hetriedthegate,histhinhandsfeelingtotallyinadequateonthegiganticcopperdoorrings.Thegaterefusedtobudge.Itwaslockedfromtheinside.Thedilapidatedstonelionssatthere,theirfaceserodedwithtime,staringstraightaheadbuttheirall-seeingeyeswerefixatedonhimasthoughwillfullydenyinghimentry.

Theclosedgateprobablymeanttherewassomeoneasleepwithinthedarkconfinesofthepound.Servants?ThePSB?UnlessofcoursethefamilyhadleftthroughasidedoorontheirwaytoMutianyubutthosewererareinapoundofthissize.ThenLiJinremembered.Therewasatreetoonesideofthehousethatmightaffordhimaccesstotheroofofoneofthebuildings.Hewalkedroundthecornerofthepound,hisearsalertforanysoundsfromwithoutorwithin.Tothesouth-eastofthepoundhespottedthegnarledcypresstreewhosebranchesstretchedoutintothepound.Excellent.

LiJinclimbedthetreewitheaseandcrawledalongoneofitsbranchesuntilhewashangingovertheroofofthesouthern-mostbuildinginthepound.Hejumpedandfeltacoupleoftilescrackunderfoot.IftherewasanyoneathomeorPSBagentslurkingabouttheywoulddefinitelyhaveheardthesmallmotion.Hecrouchedontheroofandwaited.Nothingbutsilenceandthecoldnightairnippingathisears.

ProfessorYao’sresidencewasaclassicsiheyuanpoundwithtwocourtyards.LiJinfoundhimselfintheoutercourtyard,whichhousedbuildingsthathistoricallyacmodatedservantsandvisitingguests.LiJinrememberedthatmostoftheouterbuildingswereusedasstoragefacilitiesforthemyriaditemsthattheprofessorhadcollectedduringthecourseofhiseventfullife,awards,scrolls,paintingsoflittleculturalormercialvalueandanassortmentofcorporategifts.

Aftersatisfyinghimselfthatnothinghadstirredwithinthepound,hejumpedoffthelow-hangingroofintotheyard.Hewincedashefelthistendonsreacttotheimpact.Itwasonethinginghereduringthedaytimeandquiteanotheratnight.Yetluckilyallsiheyuanfollowedcertainrulesofdesign,layoutandbuildinguse.Justinfrontofhimwasthespiritwalloryingbi,whichpreventedpeopleontheoutsidefromseeingtheinteriorofthepound.LiJinsmiledashethoughtoftheother,perhapsmoreimportant,functionofspiritwalls.Theypreventedghostsorevilspiritsfromenteringthepound.Sincespiritscouldonlywalkinstraightlines,thespiritwallseffectivelybroughtanyinvadingspecterstoanabrupthalt,impedingtheiraccessintothepoundproper.Thatisifthey’dmadeitpasttheraisedwoodenfloorbeaminfrontofthegatedesignedtotripthemup.LiJinchuckledtohimself.Thiswasonespiritwhoseaccesswon’tbedeniedtonight.

LiJinwalkedaroundthespiritwallandthroughthesmallpavilionthatleadintotheinnercourtyard.Tothenorthwasthemainhousewheretheprofessorusedtolivewithhiswife,nowdeceased.Thesouth-mostbuildingintheinnercourtyardwouldhousehisstudy.LiJinhadnoticedalockeddoornexttothereceptionroomthelasttimehehadpaidtheprofessoravisit.

Youcouldn’ttellfromthetraditionaloutlookoftheprofessor’shousethathewasatthecuttingedgeofputingtechnology.ThiswasadichotomythatgovernedthelivesofmanyofNewChina’sleadingminds.ItwastheChineseway.Hemovedtowardsthedooroftheroomthathefiguredwastheprofessor’sstudy.Wouldtheprofessorhavekeptsomethingsovaluableinanouterroomorinthemainbuildinginthenorthofthepound?Knowingtheprofessor,LiJinreckonedthatthestudywasthebestplacetolook.ProfessorYaohadn’tbeenthemostsecretiveofpeopleconsideringthetypeofclassifiedstuffthatheworkedon.Hewasthetypeofpersontoleavestuffexactlywhereyouwouldn’texpecttofindit.

LiJinstoodinfrontofthedoorofwhathethoughtwasProfessorYao’sstudy.Hepushedforwardonthewoodendoor.Surprisingly,thedoorgavewayopeningupintowhatlookedlikequitealargeroom.Itwastoodarktoseeinside.Hefishedinthepocketsofhisjeansforhiskeyringwhichhadatinyflashlightonit.LiJinplayedthethinbeamoflightoverthecontentsoftheroom.Thestudywasdominatedbyahugedesk,surroundedbynumerousbookshelves.Asthelightdancedacrossthewalls,thecoarsepaperofcalligraphyworksandinkpaintingscameintoview.TheprofessorhadbeenakeencalligrapherandadabhandatlandscapepaintingbutLiJinwasnotinterestedinthattoday.

Heshiveredasheenteredtheroom.Therewasamustysmellofagingink,ricepaperandsomethingelsehecouldn’tputhisfingeron.LiJincouldfeelthepresenceoftheprofessorintheroom.Wastheprofessorlookingathim,wonderingwhathistrustedassistantwasdoinginhisstudynotlongafterhisdeath?OrwastheprofessorguidingLiJin’sactionsfrombeyondthegrave,willinghimtofindthebackdoorrig.LiJinwouldneverknow.Yethereamongthescrolls,thereamsofdocumentsandthebottlesoffermentingsnakewinetheprofessor’sbackdoorrigprobablylay.TherewasanondescriptGreatWallconsoleandmonitoronthedeskbutnothingresemblingwhatLiJinwaslookingfor.

LiJintriedvariousdrawerstonoavail.Therewereputerdiscs,pilesofprintout,variousdatachipsbutnobackdoorrig.Anothersweepoftheroomwiththetinylight.Therewasalargecupboardatthebackoftheroomwithoneofitsdoorspartiallyopen.LiJin’sheartbeatfasterashemovedtowardsthecupboard.Heopenedthedoorswitheageranticipation.Disappointment.Morestacksofpaper,somewiththeprofessor’shandwritingandwrittenonthemcrypticcodingsub-routinesthatechoedtheprofessor’sthoughtsonvariousaspectsofcodedesign.Thebackdoorrig,ifitexistedatall,wasprobablyinthemainbuildinginthenorthofthepound.Theprofessorhaderredonthesideofcautionafterall.

AsLiJinwalkedbacktowardsthedoorofthestudy,somethingdeepdowninhispsychewasawakened.Therewassomethingintheroomthatdemandedfurtherinvestigationbutforthelifeofhimhecouldn’tputhisfingeronit.Hestoppedandlistened.Allhecouldhearwastheicecoldwindwhistlingoutsideandthedistantsoundsofthecity.Inthegloomofthecourtyardproper,thebuildingscastimposingshadowsenhancedbythemutedlightofthemoon.Therewasaloudcoughoutsideandthesoundofsomeonespitting.Itsoundedveryclose.LiJinswitchedoffthetinyflashlight.

Justintime,LiJinmadeouttheamberglowofacigarettecuttingintothenight.Someonewasawakeandheadingtotheveryroomwherehewasstanding.Hemovedquicklybehindthedoorandwaited,tryingdesperatelytocalmhisnervesandpreparefortheworst.Hehadtheknifewiththeserratededgeinhisknapsackanditwasheavy.Itsblunthandlewouldhavetodoasaweapon.TherewasnowayhewaskillingaPSBofficeroramemberoftheprofessor’sfamily.Hisbonyfingerssnakedintothebackpackcarefullysearchingfortheknife.

Footstepsinchedcloserandthenahandholdingacigarettegrabbedthesideofthedoor.Aheadloomedintotheroom.LiJincouldbarelymakeoutitsoutlineinthegloom.Abodyfollowedasthemantookafewstepsintotheroom.LiJinwassoclosehecouldsmellthecheaptobaccooftheman’scigarette.Themanstayedwithinthemoonlitquadranglecreatedbytheopendoor.Hewaslistening.LiJinknewthathehadtokeepabsolutelyquiet.Beingcaughtwasnotanoptionnow.

“Bloodycats,”themanmutteredasheretreated,closingthedoorbehindhim.LiJinhadbeenholdinghisbreathallthattime.Ashewalkedtowardsoneofthehalf-openwindowstowatchthemanandhisglowingcigarettedisappearintooneofthepound’ssidehouses,itdawnedonhimwhathadbeenbotheringhimabouttheprofessor’sstudy.Thewoodenfloorsoundedhollow.

Withtheterrifyingthoughtoftheclosecallhehadjustexperiencedechoingthroughhismind,LiJindecidedtoeschewtheuseoftheflashlight.Insteadhewentdownonallfoursandstartedfeelingalongthefloorboards.Therewasdefinitelysomethingbelowthefloor.Hecouldsenseitmorethananything.Fiveminuteslater,LiJinwasabouttogiveuponfindinganythingwhenhisfingersbrushedagainstmetaljustbelowtheprofessor’sdesk.Hefeltwhatappearedtobeahandleandwaspleasantlysurprisedwhenitcameawayfromitshousingallowinghimtoraisewhathehopedwasatrapdoor.

Heopenedthetrapdoorwitheaseandpeeredintothedarknessbelow.Adampmustysmellassaultedhisnose.Hereacheddownintothedarkness,expectingtofindthebottomwithhisfingers.Nosuchluck.LiJinstartedtobelievethatthetrapdoordidn’tleadtoahiddenpartmentbuttoanundergroundroom.Hehadneverheardofhiddenbasementsinasiheyuanbefore,yethewasnotsurprisedbytheprofessor’singenuity.

LiJinbracedhimselffortheunexpectedandbegantoinchhisbodydowntheholeintheground.Hepausedandlistened.Theonlysoundhecouldhearwastheconstantraspofhisownbreathing.Holdingontothesidesofthetrapdoor,heloweredhisbodyuntilhisarmswerefullyextended.Stillnofloor?Itcouldn’tbetoofaraway,hethought.Orwasthatwishfulthinkingonhispart?Whatwerethechancesofthisbasementroombeingmorethaneighttotenfeethigh?Hefiguredtheywereslimtonone.Yethebracedhimselfandrelaxedhismusclesinabidtominimizewhateverimpactorinjurylaybelow.LiJintookadeepbreathandlethisfingersslipfromthetrapdoor.Immediatelyhefeltthedarknessbelowwelinghim.