48 Hours a Day

Waldo’s mod was the best on the plane. Usually, he would not step out of his house, spending most of the time nestling in his mother’s attic. What he needed to do in this operation was very simple. As long as he arrived at the casino before Philip and Justina, he would need to use the pinhole camera hidden within a magazine to record how the poker machines worked. After that, he was required to send the footage back to the team for analysis. It should be an easy and straightforward process.

His only regret was that he did not get a female companion like Philip.

In retrospect, he was compensated by getting to fly first-class to Grenoble. While there, Philip had to visit four separate casinos in three days to hit multiple royal flushes. All the previous missions carried out by the 01 guerrillas were all in the name of accumulating enough funds for the next operation.

In addition to cracking slot machines, oi’s members had also considered cracking ATM machines and hacking shopping websites, using security loopholes to copy an unlimited number of coupons, then selling them to consumers to make more money. That said, this could create a lot of unnecessary trouble for them. Once the loophole was discovered, the coupons would be quickly voidedvoiding coupons was equivalent to cheating consumer’s money, which violated 01’s principles. In the end, everyone decided that it was best to squeeze money from the casinos.

Of course, the operation was risky, but since they targeted casinos, they weren’t too worried. In Waldo’s own words, casinos made money by tricking gamblers into playing games that they could never win, and they were hitting these casinos to avenge the gamblers. Moreover, the game was about picking the right cards, and all they did was to bypass the layers of obstacles and pick the right cards. No matter what, they were not at fault.

Even Philip, the most nervous of the lot, had to admit that it gave him a great deal of pleasure when the confident casino staff used a ROM reader to check on the machine, eventually finding nothing wrong with it. At that time, he felt as if he had outsmarted the entire casino.

In fact, everyone in the 01 was experts in their respective fields, but they rarely used their skills to make money through improper channels. This was their first time hitting a casino, and it was all very exciting for the lot. It wasn’t the peak tourist season either; hence there weren’t many passengers on the plane. They were only six passengers in this flight’s first-class zone, making conversations an ease for the group.

Among the five members of the guerrilla team, Philip and Waldo apart, and Little Boy, whom he later met in the mall, Zhang Heng didn’t know much about Ponytail and the guy who had been wrapping himself tightly. They had not talked much in the cafe.

“Semiprime, cryptography expert,” Ponytail introduced.

“Semiprime?”

“Yes, if you multiply two prime numbers, you can get a semi-prime number. The calculation process is very simple. The computer can solve it within half a second, but it becomes extremely difficult when you calculate it backward. The larger the number, the calculations required to solve the equation will become more complex as well. Hence, it will take a longer time. Perhaps even hundreds of computers won’t be able to complete the equation after hundreds of years. Credit cards and online shopping use this kind of encryption method nowadays. Only you and the bank know the two prime numbers that are used for decoding. This is one of the most secure encryption methods known.”

“…but?”

Semiprime smiled. Without elaborating further, he shook hands with Zhang Heng and apologized, “I am dressed up like this because I have albinism. I don’t want anyone to see me.”

Zhang Heng nodded to express his understanding.

According to Ponytail, 01 actually had one more member, but due to personal reasons, he wasn’t able to participate in this operation. He would meet up with the team when the matter at hand had been dealt with.

Those were all the members that made up the 01 guerrillas.

Among them, the one most hostile to Zhang Heng was Little Boy, and although Zhang Heng promised to help save people in exchange for 01’s trust, Little Boy still did not buy what he said. She looked at him cautiously, before turning to look at Ponytail, “Must we let this guy with unknown origins join us? He doesn’t fit the spirit of 01, right? And Tom, according to our previous agreement, more than two-thirds of the members must agree before a newcomer can join us.”

The ponytailed man smiled bitterly, not knowing how to continue.

Considering the current situation, they could not say no to Zhang Heng even if they disagreed with him joining the 01. As for Zhang Heng, he seemed very calm even at a time like this. After hearing that, he said to Little Boy, “I can make up for your shortcomings.”

“Shortcomings? We are the best of the best in our field. The 01 guerrillas are the perfect team, and I believe we can overcome whatever difficulty thrown at us,” Little Boy adamantly insisted, obviously unconvinced.

“Technically speaking, you may be right, but you have obvious shortcomings. There are no actors in your team. For example, now, the five of you have no chance of winning against me.”

Philip was ashamed, knowing that despite how bad it sounded, Zhang Heng was right. The biggest problem of the 01 guerrillas was that every member there was technical personnel; all professionals working in the background. They had caused quite a bit of trouble dealing with the slot machines, and Phillip couldn’t imagine what would happen if they went against Black Nest. After all, not everything could be solved by using their skills.

Little Boy hadn’t seen what Zhang Heng could do before, and just as she was about to say something, she felt the cold steel of a metal knife placed on her neck.

Ponytail was shocked, “How did you bring this knife onto the plane? Did you hack the airport security system?”

Waldo, on the other hand, was awestruck, “He is a pro! I learned today that Jason Bourne does exist!”

Suddenly, Little Boy’s life flashed before her eyes, and goosebumps started sprouting the moment the knife landed on her skin. But unlike what she had imagined, Zhang Heng did not use this opportunity to threaten her with harsh words, not seeming to have any intention to make her suffer. When Zhang Heng shook his fingers, the knife disappeared.

“This is the quintessence of forming a team,” he said, “Everyone has their own forte and weakness. I heard Tom say that you are an excellent communications expert, and I look forward to working with you.”

Looking at the palm stretched out before her, Little Boy hesitated for a moment, then stretched out her right hand. She touched Zhang Heng’s hand for a second, only to quickly draw it back as if she was afraid of being burned.

“OK, since everyone has known each other, we can now start discussing the plan.”

Seeing that the most troublesome problem was being solved quickly, Ponytail was impressed by Zhang Heng’s skills. He then turned on his laptop and showed Zhang Heng the photos.

“I remember you told me that it was supposed to be a ‘he,’ said Zhang Heng as he looked at the smiling female student in the photo.

“Uhh… because I didn’t know whether if you were an enemy or an ally at that time. You can never be too careful,” Ponytail said, pointing to the girl in the photo, “She is Edward’s sister and the person he cares about the most. After Edward escaped, Black Nest started paying attention to her. Edward was worried that if he released the information he has, the people from Black Nest would definitely attack her. So, we must rescue her first.”