Chapter 121: *"Was It You, Jing Shu, Who Tortured and Killed Five People in the Community?"*

Su Mei Mei’s phone displayed the following data:

- Jing Shu: Score of 55. Owns a villa with an unpaid balance and a car with outstanding payments. On May 29, 2023, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., she was at an office building across from the Ai Jia Supermarket in the development zone. On that same day, five cases of brutal killings from her community occurred nearby, adding 30 points.

- Jing An: Score of 20. Good credit rating, works in livestock farming.

- Su Lanzhi: Score of 10. Good credit rating, works in agricultural management.

The newly implemented data system had only been in use for about half a month, but its results were incredibly accurate. A score of 55 indicated a 55% likelihood of committing a crime. Reaching 100 would confirm the person’s involvement in criminal activity, while a score of 200 indicated a history of multiple violent crimes like robbery or murder.

At present, the highest score belonged to the leader of the group *遮天* (Zhetian), who had a score of 800, showing involvement in numerous criminal cases.

Depending on the level of authority granted, the amount of personal information available for viewing varied. It was rumored that the highest authority could monitor someone’s activities 24 hours a day, including tracking the websites they visited, the photos they took, and the apps they used.

Cloud data preserved every trace of an individual’s actions, while big data linked events and individuals, leaving no room for secrecy.

Su Mei Mei’s main responsibility was to verify whether these high-scoring individuals had indeed committed crimes.

Once she reported someone, a team of interrogation experts would be sent to confirm the suspicions, often employing methods that couldn’t be openly discussed.

"Hmph, when the time comes, even if you beg me, I won’t forgive you."

Su Mei Mei could already picture Jing Shu’s family kneeling before her, pleading for mercy.

Feeling smug, Su Mei Mei ordered Wang Qiqi to kick the deceased members out of the group. A group that once had over 100 members now had about 80.

"@everyone, please change your nickname to the following format: Real Name + Building Number + Unit Number + Gender for better management. Wang Qiqi, please add the others from the community who haven’t joined yet."

The group chat went silent. No one responded to her demands, and nobody changed their nicknames. Everyone pretended not to see the message.

Even Wang Qiqi, who was usually cooperative, didn’t say a word.

Sure, Su Mei Mei might be a government official, but why was she acting so high and mighty? Now, she wanted to turn a casual group chat into a work group and have everyone follow her orders? Why should they?

Jing Shu, munching on a fresh carrot, watched the drama unfold in the group. Su Mei Mei was really digging her own grave. It was almost impressive how she’d managed to survive this long despite her antics.

As the silence in the group dragged on, Su Mei Mei became furious. "What, are you all pretending not to see me? I told you to change your nicknames and report in. Don’t you understand?"

At this point, someone finally spoke up.

Zhang Bing Bing’s older husband: "Why should we listen to you? Do you plan to feed us if we report to you every day? Do I have to tell you if I spend the whole day with my wife?"

Zhang Bing Bing’s younger husband: "Yeah, who do you think you are? The government doesn’t even care anymore. We dig for worms to survive, so why doesn’t the government give us the food they promised?"

Su Mei Mei was livid. As a new official, she had been eager to assert her authority, but her fire was being doused before it could even start burning. "@Wang Qiqi, what’s with these two? What are their real names?"

She had access to the records, so it wasn’t as if she couldn’t find out their names. She was determined to make them pay!

Wang Qiqi responded, "We don’t know their real names. They once assaulted Zhang Bing Bing, which left her mentally unstable and pregnant. We wanted to drive them away, but the crazy Zhang Bing Bing refused to let them go."

Fat Girl 25 chimed in: "Those two men are father and son. They’re beasts!"

"How could you allow something like this to happen? Those two men must be criminals. I’ll report this and have them arrested immediately. You ask why I have the authority to control you?" Su Mei Mei’s tone was arrogant and condescending.

Wang Qiqi replied, "What about Zhang Bing Bing? Who’s going to take care of her? She’s still pregnant. Are you, as a government official, going to look after her?"

Su Mei Mei was left speechless. She wanted to say, "What does Zhang Bing Bing’s life have to do with me?" but she knew that saying something like that could get her in serious trouble.

"Fine, we’ll deal with those two later. Is Wang Dazhao here? If you don’t speak up, I’ll report you as a high-risk criminal and have you officially recorded."

Silence returned to the group.

Jing Shu sneered. It was fortunate that she had integrated Wang Dazhao into the military police system. Once he completed his current mission, his record would be clean, and Su Mei Mei’s report would be useless.

"Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Wang Dazhao. If you don’t respond, I’ll assume you’re guilty and report you."

"Is Shi Zi here? Were you at the crime scene on May 24 at West Hill? Zhu Fan, did you rob the Ai Jia Supermarket and commit murder on May 15?"

"Lu Zhu, were you involved with *遮天* in bombing the Ai Jia Supermarket on May 29? If you don’t speak up, I’ll report you, and you’ll be blacklisted. You won’t be able to buy anything, not even water or food."

Su Mei Mei’s barrage of accusations quickly forced several people to apologize.

Within two minutes, most of the group had changed their nicknames according to Su Mei Mei’s demands. After all, in this day and age, it was hard to come up with excuses like, "Sorry, I was busy."

With most people no longer working and the temperature reaching 60°C, many stayed indoors all day, only venturing out in the early evening to catch worms for work points.

With only two hours of electricity a day, people could barely charge their phones and turn on a few lights. Cooking was unnecessary since food and water had to be obtained from the government.

Naturally, many were intimidated by Su Mei Mei. The government controlled access to all food and water. If they were blacklisted, they could still catch worms for food, but without water, they might as well be dead.

Su Mei Mei’s threats had gripped everyone’s lives in her hands. Most people didn’t fully understand the power of big data yet, but seeing Su Mei Mei reveal so much personal information made them fearful of her authority. Even the innocent feared being falsely accused.

The group quickly became lively again, with people explaining what they had been doing on the days in question, all trying to prove their innocence. Soon enough, Su Mei Mei was being showered with praise.

The power of the early "comforting officers" in the apocalypse was clear.

Su Mei Mei was basking in her newfound glory.

"There are still a few people who haven’t changed their nicknames. ‘Lady of the Villa’—Oh, isn’t that Jing Shu? On May 29, five people from our community went missing, and their tortured bodies were later found at Ai Jia Supermarket. Based on reports, you were there between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. that day. There’s a strong suspicion that you’re responsible for their deaths. So, was it you, Jing Shu, who tortured those five people to death?"

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