Chapter 566 Hacker
George's face was dark as he listened to his subordinate's report. His personal secretary, Ryan Martin, stood nearby, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
"Mr. Russell, we've checked all the surveillance within a five-mile radius of the hotel, and there's no sign of the suspicious black Mercedes," Ryan reported cautiously. "And the forensic results confirm that there were indeed traces of hallucinogens in your system."
George's long fingers drummed on the desk, creating a dull sound. He squinted, recalling the blurry figure. "How did that young man manage it?"
Ryan hesitated. "Mr. Russell, is it possible you were just too exhausted and hallucinated? After all, Wanda did escape on her own."
George slammed the folder onto the desk, making Ryan flinch.
"Hallucination?" George sneered. "Is the needle mark on my neck also a hallucination?" He stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, feeling the cold glass. "Someone's playing games with me, and they're very skilled."
George turned and pressed the intercom on his desk. "Get me Chase from the tech department."
Half an hour later, a young man with thick glasses was brought into the office. He stood nervously in front of George, his fingers twisting the hem of his shirt.
"Chase, I need you to hack into the Empire View Hotel's surveillance system," George said bluntly. "I want the original footage, not the edited version."
Chase adjusted his glasses, his voice barely audible. "Mr. Russell, the Empire View Hotel uses the latest firewall. It will take time."
"24 hours," George said firmly. "Or you know the consequences."
Chase shuddered and quickly nodded.
The next evening, Chase rushed in with a USB drive. His dark circles were more pronounced, but his eyes sparkled with excitement. "Mr. Russell! I found a shocking vulnerability!"
The secretary immediately plugged in the USB drive. The screen displayed a completely different scene, showing a young man in a white T-shirt entering the room with a golden retriever.
George's smart glasses detailed the scene, matching his memory perfectly.
"Just as I thought," George's eyes glinted coldly. "The surveillance was tampered with."
Chase explained excitedly, "They used quantum encryption! This technology can overlay new footage without damaging the original data. Regular viewing only shows the overlay, but cracking the quantum key reveals the real footage!"
George squinted. "Quantum encryption? Isn't that military technology?"
Chase nodded. "Theoretically, yes. But this hacker's skills are even more advanced. They even set up a memory interference program, using electromagnetic waves through the surveillance signal to affect people's memories in conjunction with the drug."
George stood up abruptly. "So that person not only hacked the surveillance but also my brain?"
Meanwhile, Wanda was hiding in a secluded villa. She examined the bruises on her neck left by George, her eyes burning with hatred.
"George, Emma," she muttered through gritted teeth. "I'll make you pay!"
Phoenix walked over with a glass of red wine, a smug smile on his face. "Kieran has everything arranged. He said he'll continue to protect you. I don't get it, why does someone like you need protection?"
Wanda downed the wine in one gulp. "Protection? I don't need protection!" She smashed the glass on the floor. "I want Emma's reputation destroyed!"
Phoenix's eyes gleamed with calculation. "I have an idea. We can leak that scandal about the high-ranking official again."
Wanda narrowed her eyes. "You mean that fake news that didn't do much last time?"
"Exactly!" Phoenix said excitedly. "Even though it didn't crush Emma then, the internet has a long memory. Many people haven't forgotten. We can hire trolls to push the 'Emma is a mistress' topic to the top of the trending list! This time, it won't just be baseless rumors. We'll give her a real problem!"
Wanda looked at Phoenix skeptically. "Why would you help me, given our relationship?"
"I can't stand you, but I hate Emma even more!"
Wanda smiled knowingly. "Fine, contact the media and prepare the press release. This time, I want Emma to never recover!"
Three days later, a wave of online harassment against Emma erupted. On all major social platforms, the topic "Emma is a mistress" quickly climbed to the top of the trending list.
A well-known gossip site published a long article titled "Exposed: The Scandalous Past of Socialite Emma," accompanied by several photoshopped intimate pictures, claiming Emma had an improper relationship with a high-ranking official for years.
Troll accounts flooded the comments: "So pure on the surface, so dirty behind the scenes!" "No wonder she married George first, then Michael. She must have practiced a lot!" "George's downfall is all Emma's curse!"
Emma sat on her couch, her slender fingers gripping her phone tightly.
On the screen, the topic #EmmaIsAMistress had over a billion views, and the comments were filled with vile insults. She took a deep breath and forced herself to turn off the social media app.
"Ms. Jones, should we inform Mr. and Mrs. Jones?" the butler Gabriel asked, his face full of concern.
"No," Emma shook her head, her voice unnaturally calm. "This isn't the first time there's been such ridiculous rumors. They'll die down in a few days. No need to worry my parents."
Emma turned and walked towards the study, but as she rounded the corner, she overheard two maids whispering:
"I heard the official's wife is holding a press conference." "Really? Then Ms. Jones is..."
The maids fell silent and lowered their heads when they saw Emma. She walked past them without changing her expression, but her nails dug deeply into her palms.
In the villa, George was staring at the surveillance footage on his computer screen. The young man was smiling eerily at the camera.
When no one was around, he never bothered to pretend to be blind.
"Mr. Russell, we've identified this person," Chase said as he entered, his face alight with excitement. "His name is Sidney Lawson, a member of the hacker group 'Night.'"
George squinted. "Are you sure it's him?"
"Absolutely!" Chase handed over a file. "This is Sidney's dossier. Three years ago, he hacked into the defense system and then disappeared."
George flipped through the file, his frown deepening.
As Chase marveled at George's ability to see the documents, George furiously threw the file at Chase.
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