No nonsense, Augustus forcefully patted Luo An on his shoulder:
"The six banks have deposited $600,000 as a thank you fee into Team 5's account.
$400,000 of which will be transferred to you shortly!"
Upon hearing this, Luo An immediately smiled and loudly said:
"No need to thank me, you earned it."
Augustus waved his hand dismissively, Luo An had put in the most effort in the serial bank robbery case, so of course he should get the lion's share.
Just as Augustus was about to say something else, his phone in his pocket suddenly rang.
It was a call from Vireness.
Vireness spoke in her usual succinct and efficient manner:
"Have Luo An come to my office."
Upon receiving the message, Luo An immediately went to Vireness's office.
Inside the office, Vireness tossed her signing pen aside, her shapely body leaning back in the chair, she looked at Luo An and spoke in a muted tone:
"I was just notified, at this afternoon's press conference, aside from Special Agent In Charge Kobert, one of the candidates for the Governor of New York, Councilman Ma Tai will also attend."
Hearing the name of Councilman Ma Tai, Luo An looked confused:
Vireness slightly squinted at him:
Luo An shook his head repeatedly, as he didn't pay much attention to New York's politics, and wasn't very familiar with the governor's race.
Upon hearing this, Vireness lowered her head in thought.
Luo An wouldn't lie about such a minor matter; he genuinely did not know the person.
Why would Councilman Ma Tai want to attend this press conference?
The person is a competitor for Governor, and they are the FBI.
The two sides aren't exactly enemies but their relationship isn't particularly friendly either.
Thinking of Councilman Ma Tai's campaign slogan "Reduce Crime Rate in New York," Vireness felt a throb in her brow, her mind starting to race.
Hearing Vireness's description of Councilman Ma Tai, Luo An's eyelids twitched, and he suddenly remembered something:
Luo An hurriedly looked up and said:
"I inadvertently appeared on television during that serial murder case; Councilman Ma Tai might have recognized me then..."
Thinking of his joining Team 5, where he inadvertently achieved a 100% case-solving rate.
Luo An felt that Councilman Ma Tai might admire him partly, but more so likely wants to use him.
Upon hearing Luo An's words, Vireness was initially stunned but then was jolted awake.
She had overlooked this point.
If it were really the case, then it means Councilman Ma Tai also saw the moment Luo An used a pen to kill the serial murderer.
Thinking back to Councilman Ma Tai's campaign slogan...
Vireness immediately also concluded the same as Luo An.
That is, the opponent probably wants to use this opportunity to get acquainted with Luo An, ultimately finding a way to achieve his own political aims through Luo An.
There's no helping it, Luo An's performance in this period has been too conspicuous to those with ulterior motives.
Although Luo An is an FBI agent, he is too young.
Old political foxes love people like Luo An.
With this in mind, Vireness decisively said in a deep voice:
"Luo An, you don't need to attend this afternoon's press conference."
Luo An nodded: "Okay, Sir."
Luo An wasn't keen on attending press conferences anyway.
Luo An had mentioned the reason before; he didn't want fame, just quietly solving cases to make money and quietly prospering.
Being a well-known FBI agent would definitely attract the constant attention of those in New York who prioritize ratings over everything, the "crownless kings."
This would inevitably add numerous difficulties to Luo An's future case resolutions.
Luo An would never create troubles for himself.
Of course, if it's internal FBI events like award ceremonies or commendation conferences, Luo An would still attend.
After all, there were bonuses or medals to be received.
On the other hand, Vireness decided to look into Councilman Matai and then, tilting her head, pulled a blue folder from the stack next to her and handed it to Luo An, speaking softly:
"By the way, this is the $1 million reward from Jacques."
Speaking of rewards, Vireness looked at Luo An with great satisfaction.
The reward money was wired into the account by the CIA yesterday afternoon, but Jacques was caught by Luo An last night...
Remembering the green faces of the people at CIA when they heard this news, a smile appeared on Vireness' face.
But she quickly reined in her smile.
In front of her subordinates, Vireness always made sure to maintain her dignity.
Luo An hadn't noticed the smile on Vireness' face; his attention was all on the folder in his hands.
Just now from Augustus he got a check for $400,000, now here's another million...
Luo An decided to stroll down to Wall Street after work tonight.
It's 2005 now, and the stock prices of companies like Apple and Google aren't very high yet.
Also, this Councilman Matai needs looking into.
At least to understand what his motives truly are.
Ten minutes before the start of the press conference in the afternoon, backstage.
"Hello, Ma'am, the group supervisor."
A serious-faced elderly Caucasian man in a suit, with a shaved head approached Vireness, smiling as he extended his hand:
"Nice to meet you, Councilman Matai."
Shaking hands with him, Vireness turned and introduced the Mediterranean man beside her:
"This is our special agent in charge at the FBI."
"Hello, Mr. Councilman."
Mediterranean's Kobert also reached out to shake hands.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Councilman Matai sat down and started looking around.
Ever since he saw Luo An killing a serial killer with a pen on TV, Councilman Matai remembered Luo An's name.
But he was suddenly overwhelmed with work at that time, so he set Luo An aside in his mind.
When Councilman Matai saw the name Luo An Greenwood again in his notebook, upon inquiry, he learned Broson had been kicked out of FBI headquarters, and Luo An had even solved the case Broson couldn't.
Now Councilman Matai was even more interested in Luo An.
After hearing about the press conference happening here, Councilman Matai contemplated briefly and decided to cancel another appointment to attend this press release.
According to the information collected by his subordinates, Luo An Greenwood was the main investigator in the recent cases.
Facing this situation, Councilman Matai believed that Luo An would definitely attend this press conference.
He wanted to talk to Luo An in person at the venue to see what kind of man he was, then decide on further plans.
Scanning the surroundings carefully, Councilman Matai's mouth twitched, his face showing confusion.
Vireness noticed the expression and gestures of Councilman Matai from the corner of her eyes and slightly furrowed her brows.
But now was not the time to dwell on this, as the press conference had already started. Vireness took a deep breath and walked towards the cameras.
Facing the barrage of cameras, Vireness still looked very composed:
"Ladies and gentlemen from the press, this press conference is now starting."
Meanwhile, in the office area of Investigative Unit 5, Luo An looked at the information on Councilman Matai that Mona had helped him find, resting his chin on his hands, deep in thought.