Help Me Investigate Someone

Xiang Kun pretended to get up to pee, went to the bathroom, flushed, and came out. He then went over to Zicheng and watched for a while. After they were wiped out again and their crystal was destroyed, he shook his head and said, "Shall I play a round for you?"

Zicheng asked curiously, "Aren't you going to sleep? Did I disturb you?"

"No, I slept too much on the plane today," Xiang Kun said, taking the phone from Zi Cheng.

Although Xiang Kun has hardly played games since starting work, he was quite good at gaming in college. Before playing any game, he would research the game's classes and skill settings, and before tackling any dungeon, he would analyze the mechanics of each boss, study strategies, and summarize techniques.

So when we used to team up, Xiang Kun was mostly the commander, and he could always play all the classes, filling in whatever role he was missing.

In Zicheng's mind, Xiang Kun was better at playing games than him. When Xiang Kun offered to play a game for him, he immediately agreed and handed him his phone.

And Zicheng did indeed play a few rounds with Zhang Qian, Yang Jie, and the others, and he was exhausted; his thumbs were swollen from rubbing them.

Xiang Kun took the phone, took off his earphones, and switched to speakerphone.

Zhang Qian and her friends were clearly unaware that the players on their side had changed, and while waiting in line, they were still discussing the previous game in voice chat.

"Xiao Jie, you're really not good at jungling. I'll jungle next game, and you should go play top lane." It was Zhang Qian who said this.

"Sis, why don't you play support? Pick a tanky one, how about Zhang Fei?" This was Yang Zhuo.

"How about... I play support?" The one speaking softly was Yang Zhuo's girlfriend, Xiao Min.

Yang Jie, somewhat exasperated, retorted to Zhang Qian, "You're not even a better jungler than me! I got 1 kill and 5 deaths, while you got 2 kills and 9 deaths. In terms of net contribution, you're -7, and I'm -4."

"It's normal for you to die less as a jungler like Arthur, and besides, the kill you got was stolen from me," Zhang Qian retorted.

"Alright, alright, do we really have to argue about this?" Yang Zhuo said helplessly. They were clearly in the same room, so why did they have to argue on voice chat?

As the four were talking, they suddenly noticed that Zicheng's account instantly selected A Ke, and the summoner spell was Smite, clearly indicating that he was going to play jungle.

"Whether Brother Liu plays jungle or not, it'll be the same as the first game. I'll play support and roam, my older sister will play top lane, Sister Qianqian will play marksman, and Xiao Min will go to mid lane. Let's play well this game, and whether we win or lose, we'll go to sleep." Yang Zhuo was worried that Zhang Qian and Yang Jie would raise some objections again, so he quickly selected Alistar to confirm.

Xiang Kun had never actually played the game Honor of Kings. He had changed so many phones, but he had basically never installed any mobile games.

However, not having eaten pork doesn't mean you've never seen a pig run.

He's seen far too many pigs run away!

This game is so popular that he often encountered people playing it when he was practicing his sensory information gathering and processing skills in various cafes and other places.

Even without deliberately paying attention to the details of the game, the long-term, fragmented information gathering gave him a basic understanding and some knowledge of the game's mechanics, skills, and tactics.

Moreover, I had played MOBA games like LOL and DotA before, so the game modes were familiar to me.

During the brief intervals between entering the "Hyper-Sensory State," he subconsciously paid attention to the game several times, establishing a basic "cognitive model" of the game.

This is why he chose the hero A Ke – Liu Chuang had played this hero the most recently, and he had collected the most information about her.

Of course, Xiang Kun didn't think that just because he took over the game now, he could take on five opponents at once and lead Zhang Qian and the others to great heights, even if they weren't high-level players.

He helped Zicheng play this game mainly to test what kind of operations could be supported by the cognitive model built from the collection of fragmented information.

On the other hand, it is also necessary to see whether he can predict and judge the behavior of the other four players in the game to a certain extent by using his cognitive model of them.

At the start of the game, Xiang Kun's A Ke and Yang Zhuo's Minotaur were both killed by the four enemy heroes who grouped up to invade their jungle. Arthur Yang Jie, who came to provide support, also lost.

As a result, not only was the upper half of the jungle cleared out, but the kill score also became 0-3, a disastrous start.

"Damn it, I've run into another expert." Xiao Min cried out in the voice chat.

"Stay calm, we can win." Yang Zhuo, who had been in charge, stopped talking and only sent a system notification.

Despite the unfavorable start, Xiang Kun was not worried.

This initial experience has already made him realize that relying solely on fragmented information and superficial observations won't make him an expert immediately. After all, he only understands about 80% of the skills and passive mechanics of all ten heroes on both sides. His understanding of skill damage, equipment bonuses, level bonuses, jungle monster and minion experience data, and so on, is somewhat inconsistent with reality.

However, after this small team fight, his cognitive model was quickly revised, and he also gained a basic understanding of the operating habits of the four opposing players.

As the game progressed, Xiang Kun's cognitive model rapidly improved. Within ten minutes, he was able to accurately "predict" the movement trends of enemy heroes through the minimap, knowing what they were planning to do and when.

As for the tactics and positioning of his teammates Zhang Qian, Yang Jie, and others in team battles, he also had a very clear understanding and prediction.

These are all based on a cognitive model of the four individuals. People with different personalities will exhibit different behaviors when playing games. Moreover, these behaviors can, in turn, supplement the information from regular observations and refine Xiang Kun's understanding of their personalities.

Just like Zhang Qian, her gameplay is noticeably more aggressive and risky, but she can still maintain relatively stable operations in critical situations, showing good mental fortitude. However, sometimes she takes too many risks, such as tower diving for kills, easily miscalculating her health, failing to kill the enemy and getting herself killed as well.

When Yang Jie is developing normally without engaging in combat, her thinking is relatively clear and her actions are standard. However, once a fight breaks out, she easily gets carried away, loses her rationality, and only focuses on chasing down low-health enemies.

Yang Zhuo has good observation skills, a good understanding of the game, and a willingness to sacrifice. He doesn't focus too much on his own statistics but prioritizes the overall outcome of the game.

Based on their gaming style and skill level, Xiang Kun can anticipate the positioning of both sides and their reactions after the team fight begins to some extent. He can then quickly devise a plan, considering his own economy, damage output, and skill level to determine how to enter the battlefield and maximize his impact.

He didn't utter a single word throughout the entire game, but during team battles, it was as if everyone was following his instructions, and even the opponents' actions seemed to be controlled by him.

So, starting thirteen minutes later, Xiang Kun, who had been under constant pressure, began to fight back. They narrowly won the final team fight, wiping out the opposing team. Although they were still behind in total kills, they successfully destroyed the enemy's crystal and secured the victory.

After the enemy's crystal exploded, Yang Zhuo's voice suddenly came out. "Is A Ke played by Brother Xiang?"

Zicheng, who was watching Xiang Kun with an excited expression, paused for a moment, then deliberately said, "Of course it was me playing it, why did you say it was Xiang Kun?"

"Hehe, if it were Brother Liu, he would have already boasted triumphantly after the triple kill, instead of being so quiet. And judging from A Ke's style, it's like she has the whole map on her hands, knowing the location of everyone on the enemy team, and always appearing at the perfect moment. That's more in line with my brother Xiang's way of thinking. Hehe, those first three deaths were probably Brother Liu's doing, but around the eight or nine minute mark, it became Brother Xiang's turn. The difference in skill is huge. I was playing support next to you, so I saw it most clearly!" Yang Zhuo said with great certainty and a hint of pride.

Zicheng was stunned for a moment, then said with a mix of grievance and anger, "Hey, you Xiao Yang, you're really treating people differently! How come I'm the one who died the three times, but Xiang Kun the triple kill? He was the one playing from beginning to end!!!"

Then Yang Jie and Xiao Min exclaimed in surprise, "Was it really Xiang Kun /Brother Xiang who did this?"

Zhang Qian said, "Come on, Xiang Kun, let's play another round!"

"What the hell! Go to sleep! Are you guys even going to the scenic spot tomorrow? It's settled then, if you can't get up, just stay in the hotel, we're not waiting for you!" Xiang Kun said, handing the phone back to Zi Cheng.

He knew that if he continued playing, he would get better and better as his cognitive model rapidly improved. However, he had already achieved this through the experiment with the game, so there was no need to continue playing.

Inside a sprawling self-built villa in Tongshi Town, Liu Feibao, dressed in silk pajamas and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, sat in his study, using a tablet to look up some information he had asked someone to look up that afternoon.

In the afternoon, his car rear-ended someone on the road, resulting in a minor unpleasant incident.

Although his esteemed guest, General Manager Qi, gave him a "stern warning" forbidding him from seeking revenge, he couldn't resist his curiosity and secretly instructed his employees to investigate.

Of course, he specifically instructed that he should not do anything and should not let the other party find out.

President Qi's "warning" was quite intimidating. If President Qi were truly displeased and the cooperation fell through, he probably wouldn't even be able to celebrate the New Year properly.

However, in Tongshi Town, it wouldn't be difficult for him to secretly investigate a few people from out of town. Moreover, knowing the license plates of their two vehicles made the investigation even easier.

After having dinner with President Qi, a message came in. However, he had been with President Qi all evening, so he didn't have time to check it. It wasn't until he had settled President Qi in and returned home that he went to his study alone to check the message.

Liu Feibao's men used their connections at the hotel to locate the two cars, and then used the hotel's system to find information on the eight newly checked-in guests.

Liu Feibao's people even took photos of the registration information of eight people on the hotel's display screen with their mobile phones, and then used their ID cards to find out the employment information of these eight people and the information of some of their immediate family members, and compiled them into a document.

Upon seeing the titles following Zhang Qian's name and the shareholding structure of her company, Liu Feibao's eyes narrowed, and his expression became slightly tense.

"Is she Zhang Hongpu's granddaughter? No wonder..." Liu Feibao nodded thoughtfully. Although President Qi was a wealthy and powerful tycoon, someone he had to rely on, he was still insignificant compared to Zhang Hongpu and the Zhang family. It was normal for President Qi to be wary of the Zhang family.

However, Liu Feibao's gaze shifted downwards and he quickly noticed the title following Liu Chuang's name, the company Liu Chuang belonged to, and his father's name.

Another bigwig, running a chain of supermarkets?

Liu Feibao's expression tightened even more. How could two rich kids of such high status come to Tongshi Town in a Sagitar and a Corolla respectively?

Looking further down, there's Yang Zhen'er. Although her family background isn't as good as Zhang Qian's or Liu Chuang's, Yang Zhen'er's father is already at a level where he can keep an eye on her.

Don't be fooled by his boastful words about how powerful he was in Tongshi Town and how right he was. He knew very well that while he might intimidate ordinary people, he could easily be crushed by these people. Even President Qi couldn't handle these three families combined, let alone him.

The information about the other people didn't seem particularly special. His employee also found out about the two people who didn't stay at the hotel. One was named You Meng, and the other was named Liang Yulong. They were both locals from Tongshi Town and now ran a restaurant on the New Pedestrian Street.

But even if President Qi hadn't said anything, let alone given any instructions, Liu Feibao wouldn't dare to have any thoughts of revenge. It was originally just a small matter; he paid over 2,000 yuan, which was enough to settle things. If there were no further interactions between them, the matter would just end there.

Liu Feibao closed the document and prepared to get up and go to sleep, but as soon as he put down the tablet, he felt something was amiss.

He sat down again, turned on his tablet, brought up the document, and frowned slightly as he looked at the eight ID photos.

President Qi Haoguo really can't afford to offend the Zhang family. They can't compete with them in terms of wealth, power, or influence.

But when President Qi got into the car, the woman named Zhang Qian had just walked over from the Sagitar in front. She didn't say a word to President Qi, and she might not even have seen what he looked like.

Based on his understanding of President Qi, this guy had always been a bit reckless, so it was unlikely that he would be so frightened as soon as he recognized the Zhang family's daughter.

Yes, President Qi was clearly "frightened".

The more Liu Feibao thought about it, the stranger it seemed. The Zhang family was powerful, but not powerful enough to scare Qi Haoguo like that. Even if Zhang Hongpu himself, the business tycoon, appeared here, let alone Zhang Hongpu's granddaughter, there was no reason why Qi Haoguo would be so frightened.

Moreover, Qi Haoguo had drunk quite a bit at the time and was somewhat intoxicated, making him more prone to impulsiveness and recklessness than to immediately back down.

Recalling Qi Haoguo's behavior in the car, three words popped into Liu Feibao's mind. "It's a ghost."

Yes, Qi Haoguo didn't seem like someone who chickened out, ran away, or got angry when he saw someone he couldn't afford to offend. Instead, he seemed to have seen something terrifying and was scared out of his wits.

What could be so terrifying back then?

The second-generation heir of that supermarket chain did have a direct scuffle with them, being the first to rush out and speak rudely to President Qi, but there was no reason for President Qi to be intimidated by him.

Where did everything turn around?

When that tall, bald guy with glasses came over?

Yes, after he came over and pushed us aside, Mr. Qi fell silent behind us.

Then, he got on the bus, huddled in his seat, looking like he couldn't wait to run away.

What's wrong with that bald guy?

Liu Feibao scrolled through the information on the tablet computer for the person named Xiang Kun. At first glance, he didn't recognize that the headshot was the same bald, burly man he had seen that afternoon. It was only after using a process of elimination to first identify the corresponding information for other people and then carefully examining the photo that he vaguely saw a resemblance.

His ancestral home is Citong City. Not counting You Meng and Liang Yulong, who are locals, he is the only person from the province among the eight people who registered at the hotel.

His family and job situation seem quite ordinary, and he works at an IT company. If you didn't know this information, you'd think he was a fitness instructor or something.

This guy is really strong. His driver, who is so tall and big, couldn't push him at all. He was just shoved aside.

But to say that Qi Haoguo was scared by this bald man would be a stretch.

Could this bald man be some kind of monster? Or does he have some hidden identity?

In the afternoon, he was quite annoyed that the bald man had asked for three thousand yuan for a private settlement regarding repairs, and he was determined to get his revenge. But now, after being warned by Boss Qi and having seen the background information of Zhang Qian, Liu Chuang, and the others, he no longer felt any anger or desire to get revenge. Instead, he was filled with curiosity, intense curiosity.

What exactly terrified Qi Haoguo like that?

Looking at the document on the tablet showing the cities where the eight people usually lived, Liu Feibao took out his phone, searched for a while, found a number, and dialed it.

Not long after, the call connected, and a warm voice came from the other end. "Brother Liu! You finally remembered your little brother!"

"Haha, Brother Qin, I hope I didn't disturb your rest by calling you so late?" Liu Feibao said with a laugh.

"Hey! What's so late about this? You know I own a bar, it's just dusk for me! Brother Liu called me, are you planning to come over and hang out?"

"Once things are mostly settled here, I'll probably bother you!"

"Haha, then I'll be waiting for Brother Liu's arrival!"

"By the way, I called you today because I need your help with something," Liu Feibao said, giving the name of a neighborhood, and then asked, "Is this neighborhood close to your place?"

"Uh... it's alright, not too far."

"I want to look up someone. If you have time, could you see if you can find someone to help me? I can only find some very basic information here, and it doesn't seem very reliable."

"Brother Liu... who do you want to investigate?" The voice on the other end seemed hesitant.

Liu Feibao gave a specific mailing address. "His name is Xiang Kun, bald, wears glasses, looks tall and strong, seems to be a white-collar worker at an IT company, someone in the tech field. But I feel this guy might have some other connections. If you have any connections, help me investigate, but of course, find a reliable person, and don't let the other party find out."

There was a sudden silence on the other end. Liu Feibao paused for a moment, then made up another excuse, adding, "Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything to him. I'm just a little curious. That guy recently came to our town, and one of my nieces likes him, acting like she's determined to marry him. I think this bald guy seems a bit secretive, so I'm a little worried and want to investigate. If you take care of this for me, I'll come find you for a drink later. You know what kind of person I am."

He didn't directly promise how much compensation he would receive, but he knew that Qin Dong across from him understood what he meant.

However, there was still no response. After waiting for almost half a minute, just when he thought the call had been disconnected, he said "hello" twice more, and finally the other end responded, "Brother Liu, did you... mess with that bald guy?"