Hong Lian (红莲, born July 12th 2027) is a Chinese customer service contractor working for Omnius who was briefly implicated in the assassination of Xu Shaoyong and Yuri Golitsyn on October 1st 2049, which led to suspicions that she is Adira.
Chinese investigators coordinating with Zhupao have linked Hong’s work terminal to the compromised drone that carried out the attack. She was arrested in Chennai, India and held until the investigation cleared her of any involvement.
After Hong’s release on October 2nd 2049, her identity was leaked to the media, which has led to increased public scrutiny of her life. On October 3rd 2049, Hong was reported missing by Chennai police.
Table of contents
Early life
Hong Lian was born on July 12th 2027 in Xianggang, China. She is the oldest of two children born to Hong Fengyi, a police officer, and Choi Siu-lai, a civil servant. Hong left her family in January 2049 and settled in Chennai, India. [1] She started working for Omnius as a customer service representative in May 2049.
In August 2049, Hong was interviewed for a research study about Chinese expatriates and how their reputation scores are affected by G6 and its algorithms. Under a pseudonym that has since been deanonymised, Hong contributed how she relocated to India to “escape an abusive household,” which resulted in a negative weighting to her reputation score because G6 penalised Hong for ignoring the Chinese cultural obligation to visit and provide for one’s parents. [2]
Connection to Adira
At 15:20 IST on October 1st 2049, Hong was arrested by the National Security Guard (NSG) as part of the Chinese investigation into the assassination of Xu Shaoyong and Yuri Golitsyn. She was taken from her home at a residential tower in Perambur and transported to the Chinese consulate. On October 2nd 2049, Hong was handed off to Chennai police by consulate officials and taken back to her residence.
Though Hong’s name was not mentioned in the reports about the arrest, it was confirmed by internet sleuths on October 2nd 2049, when an announcement from Omnius about the involvement of one of its contractors was linked to eyewitness reports of the NSG raid at Hong’s residence. [3] This led to an increased level of public scrutiny and close examination of Hong’s life following confirmation from the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) that Adira is “the likely culprit” in the assassination. [4]
Disappearance
On October 3rd 2049, Chennai police reported that Hong has disappeared, adding that “her neurometric ping stopped” after 03:30 IST during the previous night. It is assumed that Hong has made use of a collocidal to facilitate her disappearance. On October 4th 2049, Hong’s family launched an appeal for her safe return, with her mother expressing her concern that Hong’s purported use of a collocidal would have also disabled her anti-anxiety colloid.
On October 5th 2049, MPS Police Commissioner General Ren Yinpeng confirmed that the investigation has renewed its focus on Hong, stating that her disappearance “could not have succeeded without the aid of powerful parties with access to substantial resources.” He also addressed rumours that Hong suffered a blankout when she approved the request to fire the drone missile, hinting at the “possible intervention in this action” of Efua Amankwah-Crouse. [5]
See also
References
- Zhao, T. (February 2049). “Likely victory of anti-G6 candidate in Indian elections prompts exodus of Chinese citizens.” South China Morning Post. ↩
- Stanca, M; Fogel, A. (August 2049). “Lacking context: Global enforcement of Chinese values through G6 algorithms.” CHI. ↩
- Lockton, D. (October 2049). “Chennai police arrest and subsequently release suspect in killing of Xu Shaoyong.” The Guardian. ↩
- Xiaoming, F. (October 2049). “Police Commissioner General Ren Yinpeng announces suspect arrest, claims connection to Adira.” Xinhua. ↩
- Huang, Y. (October 2049). “Efua Amankwah-Crouse linked to Adira, to be cited in international arrest warrant.” Xinhua. ↩