"Is there any danger in our car now?" Jeanne d'Arc asked as she stepped forward when she saw the two fake policemen getting off the bus. Compared to others, as a petite young woman, she was less likely to arouse suspicion.
"Everything is normal. Thank you for your cooperation," the elder leader nodded. "I think you can get back on the bus now—"
Before he finished speaking, he noticed something was wrong. He saw that the previous passengers, including the driver, inexplicably distanced themselves from the minibus.
However, at this moment, he and the other person were already at the door, and because of someone behind them, they couldn't retreat.
In this situation, he instinctively reached for his waist and tried to alert the other person. But as soon as he raised his hand, the girl he planned to take hostage punched him in the stomach.
He felt like he had been hit by an enraged bull. The severe pain instantly incapacitated him, and he fell to his knees.
At the same time, the young man behind him was seized by Liang En and Fan Meng, who grabbed his arms and pinned him down, disarming both of them.
These two were clearly trained, but facing Liang En and the others, they were no match, especially with the element of surprise.
"What are you doing—" the elder fake policeman attempted a final effort, shouting, "Attacking the police is a serious crime. Even if you're celebrities, you can't escape this!"
"How do you know we're celebrities?" Liang En's lips curled into a smile as he spoke. "We've met many police officers before, but none have recognized us."
Even the most famous archaeologists aren't well-known, at least to the general public. Most people might have heard of a famous archaeologist's name but wouldn't recognize their face.
Their vehicle had bypassed inspections not because of their archaeological fame but due to a high-ranking officer's explanation. These two strangers shouldn't have recognized them.
More importantly, during the subsequent search, Liang En and his group retrieved six clay tablets from these two, one of which detailed the bronze smelting technique.
"This means there's a mole among us," Professor Harry said grimly upon seeing the tablet. "We must find the mole when we return, or we're in big trouble."
This tablet was mixed in with others and shouldn't have been easily identified. More importantly, the text on it was unrecognizable.
The fact that they picked it out meant someone had leaked a photo of the tablet, allowing the fake policemen to accurately target it.
After inspecting the boxes in the car, they confirmed this suspicion. The positions of the stolen tablets were filled with new ones.
These new tablets were crudely made, clearly rushed. However, a cursory glance would likely deceive most people.
This situation was beyond what Liang En and his group could handle. They called the police, who soon arrived and took the two suspects and the images captured by Liang En's editor.
"They must have been the ones tailing us a few days ago," Fan Meng relaxed and told Liang En on their way back to the hotel. "But we don't know who they are yet."
"Probably just part of the group. Don't forget, that guy named Mr. Speer is still at large. I suspect they're a team with more plans in place," Liang En said seriously.
Previous investigations revealed that Mr. Speer's name and career were real, indicating he might be a plant from a long-prepared organization.
While many criminals use fake identities, sophisticated illegal organizations have members with legitimate identities.
These people live normal lives until they receive further orders, making it difficult to identify them among ordinary citizens.
However, those sent for long-term undercover work are usually elites. Liang En doubted the police would catch Mr. Speer through these two.
His doubts were confirmed. By the next afternoon, the police got information about Mr. Speer from the two suspects, but by then, he had already sailed back to Athens and vanished.
"I always thought such criminals only existed in novels and movies," the editor remarked during dinner, "but their vigilance is impressive."
He marveled because, according to the police, Mr. Speer was already waiting offshore when the suspects acted.
The suspects and Mr. Speer had an agreement to contact every seven minutes. If they didn't, it meant trouble, and Mr. Speer would sail to Greece.
If successful, the suspects would meet Mr. Speer at the port and escape with their loot.
Mr. Speer was indeed a cunning adversary, prepared for any scenario before the operation began.
As for the mole, it was a worker bribed to photograph the tablets during lunch. The chosen tablets were those Liang En and his team had discussed frequently, not due to any knowledge of ancient texts.
"Modern criminals are highly vigilant, especially seasoned organizations. Otherwise, they'd be caught already," Liang En nodded to the editor. "By the way, did you come to talk about signed copies? I remember signing them a few nights ago. If you need them early, you can come to my room."
The editor, who usually dined with the photographer, approached with a purpose. "It's related, but there's more. The live stream was unexpectedly successful, so we need more signed copies," he said sheepishly.
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