SWNOVELS Chapter 32
Chapter 32
In the silent night, even the brief notification sound from the phone seemed unusually clear.
Gideon then pulled over to the side of the road.
He saw that the message was from Ray.
The assistants staying at the hotel met a problem.
Two of them couldn’t open their hotel doors with their room cards, and even the manager’s password entry failed. It took a locksmith’s effort until now to open the doors. Both of the assistants’ phones seemed to be invaded by some virus, constantly receiving international calls.
Ray found it suspicious and decided to do a quick check.
He discovered that the security systems of these two rooms had been tampered with in a manner similar to that of the hacker who had previously infiltrated the company’s computers.
‘A coincidence?’ Gideon wondered.
After pondering for a couple of seconds, Gideon felt it was more likely intentional.
Watching the video of the programming restored by Ray, Gideon’s eyes narrowed.
Gideon thought, ‘Could it be that those two women also did something to offend the hacker? Wait, why am I using ‘also’ in this context?’
Gideon pressed his temples, feeling inexplicably confused.
He couldn’t imagine what two people, who had been in the country for less than a day, could have done to attract the hacker’s attention.
‘Could the hacker be seeking revenge for Jeanne?’ Gideon pondered.
As this thought flashed through his mind, Gideon felt like he was almost catching on to something, yet his mind was in turmoil.
He thought, ‘Edith doesn’t even understand programming. She definitely can’t be the hacker. Then who else could it be…
Gideon instinctively thought of Ruben, who tended to blend into the background and wasn’t very talkative.
He muttered under his breath, “He’s barely five years old and might even have tendencies of autism. How could he possibly be that skilled…”
Gideon then clicked his tongue, started the car, and drove toward the direction of the Peterson Villa.
At eight o’clock, the alarm clock went off on time.
Edith woke up and felt refreshed.
She had a good night’s sleep for a change, relieved not to have to wake up at seven and endure the usual morning strain.
Once Edith had breakfast, she dropped Jeanne and Ruben off at kindergarten before rushing to the company.
Upon clocking in, she saw people moving boxes into the lab, about three or four of them.
These were boxes used for transporting artifacts.
As Edith was about to inquire, Charlie came over with a camera and explained, “Edith, these are all
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freshly excavated. I’ve just finished taking photos and am about to upload the images to the
association’s intranet.
“Oh! Mr. Simmons said to get the restoration diagrams done as soon as possible when you arrive. Since there are many fragments, the sorting process must be quite challenging, so it’s better to work on it sooner.”
Edith nodded. “I’ll go change into my work clothes.”
After changing into her work clothes and putting on gloves, she began sorting through the artifacts that had just been unearthed.
Edith’s enthusiasm waned after three hours.
She thought with a sigh, “This is too difficult! The fragments make up to 40%.
This meant that nearly half of the artifacts required manual restoration.
Exhausted, Edith collapsed on the floor.
She took off her gloves to wipe the sweat and complained, “Are we sure there’s no issue with the excavation method?”
Charlie handed Edith a bottle of water and opened one for himself.
Having spent the entire morning taking photos at the excavation site, Charlie felt that his legs were numb.
He took a breath and said, “The excavation method is fine. The tomb under the soil layer was damaged, and years of rainwater erosion and soaking have taken their toll. To have 60% of the artifacts intact is actually quite fortunate.”
Edith understood the situation and didn’t ask any further.
Three days later, they managed to sort the fragments but encountered difficulties with a clay statue.
This clay statue was so shattered that even the term “broken” seemed inadequate. It was a pitiful sight. Even creating a restoration diagram was challenging, prompting many in the team to suggest giving up on its restoration.
However, Edith argued that this clay statue had significant historical importance, holding greater archaeological value than other artifacts excavated from the same period.
With differing opinions within the team, Victor had no choice but to call an emergency meeting for discussion.
As the developer, Gideon naturally had to be present.
He also brought along a team of experts with him.
Once everyone had gathered, Victor briefly explained the situation of the clay statue.
The expert group shook their heads after hearing the details.
The lead expert commented, “It’s too difficult. You can’t even produce a restoration diagram, let alone think about repairing it.”
Victor attempted to salvage the situation.
“We have roughly estimated the size of this clay statue. It’s about the size of a palm. If we can create the restoration diagram, we might be able to try repairing it…”
“Mr. Simmons, you’re being unreasonable. Smaller objects are harder to repair than larger ones!” the expert retorted, “I still think you should focus your efforts on other artifacts.”
Edith felt these people were too arrogant, but their points were valid.
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She stood up and countered. “Isn’t the purpose of archaeology to restore these artifacts? Are you suggesting we abandon this clay statue because there are more, potentially more valuable artifacts underground?”
Charlie nodded in agreement. “Exactly. Although the clay statue is fragmented, at least we can discern its shape and size. Give us some more time, and we’ll surely be able to create a restoration diagram and repair the statue. We don’t even know what the other fragments belong to yet…
One member of the expert team disdainfully replied, “I understand you young people’s ambition, but don’t bite off more than you can chew.”
“I didn’t pay you all to come here and argue,” Gideon interjected coldly.
He scanned the room with a stern face, finally resting his gaze on the bald man leading the expert team. “Is there really no possibility of restoration?”
The bald man hesitated for a couple of seconds, then awkwardly said, “It’s not impossible…but it will cost quite a bit of money. Mr. Peterson, what do you think?”
Edith, with her keen intuition, immediately understood their intention.
She thought in annoyance, ‘So, all that arguing was just a lead-up to extorting money now!’
Edith sneered, “Just now, you said it couldn’t be repaired, and now you’re saying it requires money. Just what kind of restorer are you even?”
She really wanted to give Gideon a piece of her mind.
Edith pondered in anger, ‘Where did he find this so-called expert group? They lack scholarly integrity, and all they think about is money!
The bald man’s face turned grim after being ridiculed. He retorted sarcastically, “I forgot, you’re also a restorer. Since you’re so confident, why even bother asking us for advice? Just do the restoration yourself.”
He had heard of Edith’s reputation, but seeing how young and that she was a woman, he couldn’t help but look down on her. He didn’t believe Edith was capable of such a feat.
“Fine, we don’t need your services or attempts to extort money. I’ll handle the restoration myself,” Edith declared, determined to stand her ground today.
She thought, ‘If the future of artifact restoration is filled with those only motivated by money, how dreadful will that be?’
Edith’s intent wasn’t to save Gideon money but purely to uphold principles.
The bald man, infuriated yet amused, clapped his hands. “You have quite the guts! Let’s make a bet, then. You have one month. You must quit your job if you can’t restore this clay statue.”
He had been eyeing the historic district’s artifacts for a while but hadn’t found an opportunity to intervene.
Edith nodded, retorting, “Fine, but what if I succeed in restoring it?”
The bald man scoffed dismissively, “If you manage to restore it, I’ll do whatever you want me to.”
Gideon thought Edith was acting recklessly, his expression growing even more displeased.
“Edith, do you realize what you’re doing?”