Step 1: The beta cell builds insulin in stages, starting from pre-proinsulin and trimming it down step by step.
Step 2: Removing the signal peptide yields proinsulin, the immediate precursor of insulin.
Step 3: In proinsulin the future A and B chains are linked by the connecting (C) peptide, so the C-peptide is an integral part of this prohormone.
Step 4: At secretion the connecting peptide is snipped out, and equal amounts of insulin and free C-peptide leave the cell. Thus C-peptide is located within proinsulin, ruling out pre-proinsulin, a post-secretion insulin complex, or any gut molecule.
\[\boxed{\text{In Proinsulin}}\]