Tan Cong, as deputy director of the Celestial Mechanism Institute and the man long responsible for liaison between the institutes in every prefecture, had always been closely watched. Now that he had been arrested, the news quickly spread. Under the urging of those with ulterior motives, it indeed soon stirred up no small amount of turmoil.
Yet it did not last long. Once Duke Jiang stepped forward to soothe the situation, his personal prestige quickly stabilized matters once more.
Not long after, Tan Cong's written confession was submitted to the two authorities. Together with the testimony of several master craftsmen from the Kaiyang Artifact Institute, Tan Cong's guilt was confirmed. On the surface, the Celestial Mechanism Institutes in various places gradually returned to calm, but the ripples raised by this affair would not settle so swiftly.
At an overseas Celestial Mechanism Institute outpost, the old man with a cane became deeply unsettled upon receiving the report of Tan Cong's arrest. He immediately summoned Master Craftsman Jin, informed him of the news, and asked, "Did Tan Cong know about this outpost of ours?"
Master Craftsman Jin thought for a moment, hesitated, and said, "We never mentioned this place to him, but he came into contact with far too many things. I cannot guarantee that he did not learn something through other channels."
The old man with a cane frowned. "So this place is no longer safe?"
"I'm afraid so," Master Craftsman Jin said. "But Director Wu, we can move."
The old man with a cane said gravely, "If we relocate at a time like this, will the plan not be affected?"
"It will be affected," Master Craftsman Jin replied, "but that is still better than being exposed. To be safe, we should leave this place as soon as possible."
The old