boyutpedia Chapter 18 This matter is debatable
Chapter 18 This matter is debatable
The day after the explosion at the gunsmith's workshop, major newspapers unsurprisingly followed up with reports:
[Explosion at Nanning Street Workshop Kills One; Preliminary Investigation Indicates Accident Caused by Improper Operation – Chongqing Workers' Daily]
[A careless mistake led to an accident that ultimately cost sixteen people their money – Morning Bell]
No cats were injured in yesterday's explosion, but nine cats and seven dogs were frightened – Cat Lovers' Club
……
On the desk, more than a dozen newspapers with the word "explosion" printed on them were casually laid out.
After the last newspaper was placed on top, the man, having done all this, picked up the coffee cup beside him and slammed it down on top.
"I've finally finished reading these reports. As expected, it's the same old stuff, nothing too outrageous... Now, can you elaborate on yesterday's case?"
This is an office on the second floor of the FBI headquarters. The man speaking is Holt Radford, an FBI official and senior director of operations. He's two ranks above the team leader.
Inside the office, all those involved in yesterday's bombing, including Luo Qiu, Smith, and Clyde, were prominently displayed.
Today we will report on yesterday's investigation.
After all, there are quite a few people involved in this case, including several investigation teams, and the investigation has also reached a stalemate to some extent.
Therefore, the main purpose of this meeting is to decide who will lead the case, how many people will be involved, and how it will be carried out.
However, sitting upright in the corner, Luo Qiu didn't care about today's meeting, and didn't even flinch at the look the supervisor gave her.
While it's good that higher authorities are paying attention to the case, the fact that they care so much about what's written in the newspapers suggests that the aftermath of the bombing might not be pleasant.
Besides, he doesn't have the energy to deal with these things right now.
He had overexerted his mental energy studying runes last night, and although he still looked energetic, he had yawned several times in private.
Reporting on such matters is naturally Clyde's job. Besides, he was in charge of the bombing operation yesterday.
"Sir, the deceased is Daniel Drake, male, 42 years old, owner of the gunsmith's workshop at 74 South Street. At the time of the explosion, he was in the reception room, facing the basement entrance. The source of the explosion was in the underground warehouse directly below, containing approximately 40 pounds of black powder..."
"The issues currently under investigation are: no one was in the underground warehouse at the time of the explosion, the warehouse door was locked, and the cause of the explosion needs to be determined."
"The autopsy team investigated the cause of death as mechanical asphyxiation combined with traumatic shock, and there were no obvious signs of explosion burns on the deceased's body. The cause needs to be determined."
"The deceased had unexplained injuries on his back, and no sharp weapon was found at the scene. The cause needs to be investigated."
Clyde handed over a ten-page report; as a senior agent, he was certainly prepared for today's scene.
At this moment, he spoke with far more seriousness than when facing reporters.
His mustache twitched up and down, as if he was helping to exert force.
However, the senior manager he needed to persuade was looking down at the report and had not yet given a response.
Mr. Radford was over fifty years old. Although he was in good spirits, his eyesight was failing. When engrossed in reading, his face was less than ten centimeters away from the report.
Furthermore, his sparse curly hair fell onto the report. All that remained for everyone else was a bald patch of hair.
"Hmm, not bad."
After an unknown amount of time, Mr. Radford finally raised his head. His gaze refocused and fell upon Clyde.
"This report is good. I've also seen the problems in it, and they are indeed significant. If you were given the authority to investigate this case further, in which direction would you proceed? How many people would you need?"
"If it were handed over to me, that Daniel would be a key target of the investigation."
"Our preliminary investigation report shows that Daniel's shop was opened five years ago. Although Daniel was also doing gunsmithing before, he was not well-known. After the shop opened, the monthly tax amount skyrocketed from one hundred kronor to three thousand kronor in just one year, which may be suspicious."
"And all these investigations indicate that Mr. Drake is not as simple as he seems. If we could investigate his key clients and what he's been up to lately, perhaps we'd make some new discoveries..."
Clyde answered without hesitation, which immediately drew the attention of some of the new agents at the meeting.
This was probably the first time they had witnessed Clyde's prowess in investigating cases.
Of course, Luo Qiu, who was huddled in the corner, was not surprised by this. Knowing Clyde well, he even guessed that when Clyde asked for everyone's advice in front of the ruins yesterday, he may have already thought about doing this.
However, while investigating in this direction might yield unexpected results, it would consume a significant amount of manpower.
Luo Qiu also began to pay some attention to the direction of the meeting.
At this moment, Clyde was making his final statement.
"Mr. Radford, according to my plan, I will need the assistance of six Operations Department agents initially. If we make any further discoveries, we will likely need the help of a technical team and a communications monitoring team."
"Um."
After listening to the story, Mr. Radford nodded, then looked down at the report in his hand. After a few seconds of silence, he looked up at Clyde again.
"You just said 'maybe,' right?"
"So, you're still unsure about the direction of the investigation? From your description, you seem to believe the incident involves some kind of conspiracy, but you also think there's another possibility—that it was an accident?"
"……yes."
"Mr. Castleton, I appreciate your frankness. But I hope you understand that I cannot make a decision so easily."
"There are many points that are open to discussion, such as the waste of investigation resources and whether the allocation of manpower will put pressure on other cases."
"Of course, these aren't major problems..."
"You all read the newspapers, so you must have heard about the big star coming to Chongqing for a concert, right? Although one big star isn't worth our serious attention, the newspapers say that the number of people gathered for this concert may exceed 100,000."
"A large gathering involving 100,000 people is a first for our Bureau of Investigation. We'll be under immense pressure to manage manpower in the coming period... So, I apologize, Mr. Castleton."
Mr. Radford spread his hands, expressing his attitude in a slightly tactful way.
Of course, he did not explicitly state that the investigation into the case should be suspended.
It may require a limited investigation, a less urgent investigation, and it is very likely that Mr. Castleton will conduct the investigation alone.
After these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the meeting room became somewhat agitated.
Clyde didn't react much to the apology, but the rookie agents had varying reactions.
After hearing the result, Luo Qiu turned his gaze to Smith beside him.
Unsurprisingly, his face turned a little red.