The autumn rain in the old district of the capital was entirely different from the simulated downpours on the film set.
It fell in a heavy, continuous drizzle, washing over the weathered grey stone of the city's library and television guild archives.
The old quarter had been preserved under historical protection laws, meaning the towering steel skyscrapers of the modern financial center fell miles away, replaced instead by low-slung stone brick facades and narrow, winding alleys that trapped the cold mist.
Chen Ying drove herself, intentionally leaving her security detail behind at the company headquarters under the guise of a quiet, personal afternoon inspection of a minor real estate asset. She knew that if an enemy truly possessed the power to trace her through the cosmic void, a digital network was the worst place to look for answers.
