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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 176: Sword Drawn, Tension Rising
A single clue set a massive operation into efficient motion.
Starting at 3:40 PM, the Police Force gathered from various cities including Zhongzhou and Jining rushed to Houji Town. With Houji Town as the center, big data collection began swiftly due to the identification of this target point, leading to rapid analysis and separation of vehicles, personnel, and communications. All information that could be found in the big data became clear and intuitive because of this target point.
"The current progress of communication data is as follows: The target point is located seven kilometers south of the center of Houji Town. The three nearest mobile Signal base stations, based on our analysis of call volumes over the past few days, show that mobile base station number bh03374 has two very suspicious call volumes. The numbers are 134＊＊＊＊, which made 34 calls to Taizhou and 24 calls to Suzhou and Hangzhou within four days, with a total call duration exceeding four hours. In the vicinity of Houji Town, apart from scattered calls, we cannot find such high and frequent call volumes..."
A Technical Investigator displayed the call volume data comparison, clearly showing an abnormal peak that stood out among thousands of communication records with Taizhou and Suzhou and Hangzhou.
"This is it. Where's the reverse lock?" Lin Qizhao asked.
The Technical Investigation screen changed to show a match; it was indeed the target point marked by Thunder Zero—a common local mold factory specializing in ceramic molds.
"Power levels?" Lin Qizhao inquired.
The power peak matched.
The power of big data lies in its ability to use interactive data connections to narrow down suspects to a small range. The factory's phone connected to Taizhou, which then linked to Suzhou and Hangzhou. This number from San Shui was unsurprisingly traced back to Li Yingzong, who was currently enjoying afternoon tea at a teahouse. No one knew that big data had already crossed barriers of time and space to connect them.
Another significant connection was that another phone line from the factory was currently on the highway; tracing back through time revealed two elongated Tank vehicles prominently displayed on the project team's screen.
At this point, the two supervising Inspectors couldn't help but chuckle. Inspector A remarked, "It seems there’s no doubt about it; it's them, even though we still don’t know how many people are involved."
Inspector B raised a question: "It seems we haven't grasped this number from Suzhou and Hangzhou yet."
"We're currently locating it; the suspect number is situated at CITIC Tower. There are too many Signals there, making accurate positioning difficult. The management by operators is poor; obtaining an additional number is too easy... If this number moves, we have a chance to track it," the Technical Investigator replied.
"Keep a close watch. Assign this task to the Suzhou-Hangzhou Criminal Investigation Team Five," Lin Qizhao said, relying on people he trusted.
The case situation was advancing at a speed faster than time itself, and excitement replaced all other emotions. When Lin Qizhao glanced back at Shen Lingchen, Shen smiled and waved his hand, saying, "I'm just an outsider here. Whether we can catch everything depends on your skills."
"Everyone think about it—where else might there be oversights? We must ensure the informant's safety during the operation. According to our calculations, these two tanks will arrive at their destination in five hours, which means between 10 PM and midnight. That will be their loading time, the perfect moment to strike," Lin Qizhao stated.
"Don't worry. These are two SWAT teams directly under the Provincial Department; we won't be using local police forces. I will issue a lockdown order to the locals before we initiate the operation," Inspector A replied.
"There are no issues on the San Shui side; he won't get away."
"Taizhou is also fine. Sun Dazheng's gang of smugglers has been under local police surveillance for some time now. We'll take this opportunity to wipe them out."
"That leaves the suspicious number from Suzhou and Hangzhou. Who could it be?"
The group deliberated but found it hard to reach a conclusion. The suspected mastermind, Sun Yongshang, was abroad, and if there was a representative within the country, it would complicate things. These individuals would deliberately keep their distance from the illicit funds and goods, making it impossible to gather any evidence of their crimes.
"Don't worry too much. The rewards and punishments in the underworld are very strict. Once this group is taken down, the remnants will pose no threat; they will clean up after themselves," Shen Lingchen said calmly.
Lin Qizhao smiled, understanding his mentor's meaning, but Zhou Qunyi reminded him, "What about Anyang? There's been no movement there at all."
"Let's check on Qiu Guanghan; he should be arriving soon," Shen Lingchen suggested.
"He has arrived; he's at the Anyang high-speed railway station." A technical investigator reported, marking Qiu Guanghan on the surveillance feed where he had not left sight.
"What does this mean? This guy is really getting impatient," an inspector chuckled, returning to familiar ground.
"Be patient, just a bit more patience. The harvest from this operation might exceed expectations... They might be preparing to start work; with two machines operating in tandem, once this side wraps up, they can begin over in Anyang..." Shen Lingchen mused thoughtfully. Based on his understanding of the suspects, if they felt secure, they would act without restraint.
"We have a sighting... He's here, matching the description provided by the informant." A technical investigator captured footage from the station surveillance. Despite some lag in the network transmission, it was clear that Qiu Guanghan met with several men at the station, carrying large bags like migrant workers. Among them were four or five individuals, two of whom bore an almost identical resemblance to the provided portraits, startling even the technical investigator.
Two nests, indeed two nests, the other nest has also started to work. Several Commanders exchanged glances, then looked at each other and burst into laughter.
...
At six in the evening, as the workday was coming to an end, in the CITIC Tower of Suzhou and Hangzhou, a finely crafted phone on a large desk buzzed. The owner glanced at it and saw a message: Who is he? Any news?
The owner replied: Mu Wanbo, family Mental Patient, has records in the Mental Hospital, nothing else found.
“Keep looking. We’re shipping tonight; there must be no mistakes,” the other party said.
“Okay,” he replied, then casually cleared the entire message directory.
He stood up, put on his coat, and went downstairs. In the bustling crowd at the entrance, he spotted Dai Qiongshi driving up. He waved with a smile and hurried towards the car. Once inside, Dai Qiongshi asked, “What’s going on? You look so happy?”
“Just closed another deal; of course I’m happy! Where do you want to go?” Gexi asked.
“Well, since we’ve made some money again, I won’t be polite. How about Jinzuo?” Dai Qiongshi replied with a smile.
“Okay, I like to showcase my charm through spending,” Gexi said with a grin.
The car didn’t go far before it got stuck near a traffic light. After a brief pause, Gexi’s phone rang. He looked at the instant messaging notification. Dai Qiongshi teased, “You can get out and send your message if you need to; should I look away?”
“Is it necessary? It’s just confirming the shipping time and price… I can show you; aside from you, I don’t even have a woman’s contact number in my phone,” Gexi said defensively as he held his phone up for Dai Qiongshi to see. However, Dai Qiongshi was quite moved and embraced him tightly, kissing him passionately while resting his head on his shoulder.
The phone displayed a new message: The ID photo has been sent.
Okay, let me check again. He replied while not forgetting to kiss the beautiful person beside him. Unexpectedly, that beauty’s eyes widened in surprise as she blurted out, “How do you know him? This world is too small.”
"What? You know him?" Gexi exclaimed in surprise. The person on the identification was thousands of miles away.
"No, he's my classmate, Xiao Mu... Wait, that's not right. His name is Mulin Shen, how did it become Mu Wanbo?" Dai Qiongshi said, puzzled, as the ID seemed incorrect.
"Take a closer look," Gexi urged seriously.
"The photo, the name, and the address are all wrong. I'm confused," Dai Qiongshi replied.
Gexi quickly flipped through the documents and found another photo. Looking at it, Dai Qiongshi exclaimed, "Yes, that's him! What do you mean Mu Wanbo? You must be mistaken!"
"So what does he do?" Gexi asked in fear.
"Unemployed. His dad is a restaurant boss, quite wealthy. He even pursued me in high school... but then he turned out to be a failure and got kicked out by his dad. After that, I don't know what he did; I just know he won't be up to any good," Dai Qiongshi explained.
"Quite... wealthy?" Gexi was confused.
"Very wealthy. He has been running a restaurant for nearly thirty years. Qingchen Grand Hotel, it's an old establishment... Oh right, you..." Dai Qiongshi said curiously.
"Oh, it's nothing; I have some business dealings with him," Gexi replied suspiciously as she put her phone away.
"Then you should be careful. My classmate is skilled in scams and tricks; ordinary people are no match for him," Dai Qiongshi laughed lightly.
A woman in love often has her intelligence lowered without limits. As the car resumed its journey, she didn't notice that Gexi's earlier joy over "closing a deal" had been replaced by a serious and solemn expression.
"Report one: Suspect identified, one male and one female, heading towards Golden Seat Hotel..."
In the command center of the task force, the strange number Suzhou and Hangzhou had successfully pinpointed their location. However, the appearance of the individuals left Guan Yiqing stunned. Almost instinctively, she screamed:
"Department Head Lin, something bad is happening... Xiao Mu is in danger!"
The sound of knocking echoed, thud… thud… thud. Xiao Mu heard it; it was the guard dog. He pointed in Xu Tonglei's direction, and casually tossed a stack of U.S. Bills. When Xu Tonglei turned around, Xiao Mu gestured towards the door, and Xu Tonglei hurriedly dashed outside.
The light outside flickered and faded; it was almost dark. As the time drew closer to the critical moment, Xiao Mu felt increasingly anxious. Despite believing he was hiding his nerves well and that Baldy's methods were clever, an ominous premonition lingered in his heart, the source of which he could not pinpoint.
A spy… a spy connects two ends, and now he felt like a severed vine struggling to move in a perilous environment.
Indeed, what would happen if they didn’t come soon?
He looked at the stacks of bills leaning against the wall, feeling troubled.
Outside the workshop, the hurried Xu Tonglei noticed something was off with the dog and asked in alarm what was wrong. The dog handed him his phone; it was Boss on the line. The message was simple: there’s a problem with the newcomer you brought in; don’t let him leave the workshop.
After hanging up, he stared in disbelief and asked, “What problem? That’s impossible.”
“This is serious; do you want to die?” the dog scoffed.
“It can’t be! This guy was knocked out and dragged to Anyang; he followed us selling counterfeit bills and is sharper than us. How could there be a problem? If there was, wouldn’t we have been caught by now? Tell me, has anything happened?” Xu Tonglei felt positively about Xiao Mu and was determined to protect him.
No, that’s what’s strange, the dog replied. “Not having an incident doesn’t mean there won’t be one. Boss said he’s the son of a wealthy family; they have more money than our counterfeit bills. Do you think that’s not a problem?”
“Damn… what is going on? Oh no, Old Man has gone back to Anyang to work… Quickly ask him; he’s been there.” Xu Tonglei said nervously.
The dog dialed Old Man's number and handed it to Xu Tonglei. Cautiously, Xu Tonglei asked, “Guanghan, have you arrived?”
“Just got here.”
"How is it?" Xu Tonglei asked.
"What do you mean, how is it? Everything's fine, everyone has arrived."
"Did you notice anything unusual?" Xu Tonglei inquired.
"Unusual? What the hell are you talking about? I didn't see a single ghost on the way here. That damn guard wanted to charge extra, so I gave him a beating."
This was typical of Qiu Guanghan; there was clearly no problem. This indicated that Anyang was still safe. Xu Tonglei said, "It’s impossible. If there were an issue, it would have been exposed after staying in Xiaogan for several days. That place hasn’t moved at all; it must have been raided already. It’s a money-printing machine."
"This doesn’t help me," the dog replied.
"Then what does Boss mean?" Xu Tonglei asked.
"He did it," the dog said nonchalantly. This startled Xu Tonglei, causing him to clench his teeth in anger. "It's still going on now; why don’t you try doing it? Let’s see who still has the mood to work!"
"Then finish the job and don’t leave the workshop for dinner. Keep a close watch... Now even Boss is scared; he might stop work and pull out people at any moment. Be prepared," the dog said, shoving a shiny black gun into Xu Tonglei's hands.
He turned and hurried upstairs, his urgency making Xu Tonglei anxious as well...
………………………
………………………
Gexi came into the project team's sight, and his identity clues were quickly ruled out. The registered phone number was incorrect; it should have been another number, but his identity revealed his suspicion. He was American, involved in securities research. While Technical Investigation was checking the accounts of his company, they found that the inflow and outflow of funds were alarmingly low. Further investigation showed that the registered house and car belonged to a wealthy businessman, with credit card spending records exceeding hundreds of thousands in just one month.
Such a person posed no threat, but the individual beside him did pose a threat. Soon, communication anomalies confirmed Guan Yiqing's concerns: Haoji traveled from Taizhou to Suzhou and Hangzhou, then back to Anyang. The sudden increase in connections coincided perfectly with the time Dai Qiongshi was dining with Gexi.
"Department Head Lin, if Dai Qiongshi accidentally sees Xiao Mu's photo, he won't be able to explain himself," Guan Yiqing said, once again reminding the hesitant Lin Qizhao.
Outside the Su Hang Golden Seat, the detectives were already in position, ready to take down the target at any moment. However, at this point, detaining someone without solid evidence or understanding of their criminal activities could lead to serious consequences.
Lin Qizhao glanced at Shen Lingchen, who remained expressionless. As he pulled out his phone, Inspector A spoke up: "Until we locate the target, the success of our operation relies solely on the informant; and right now, it all rests on you."
Lin Qizhao felt troubled. Acting prematurely under such immature conditions was risky. The police force was still en route, and the transport vehicle was also on its way. It was unclear how many people were inside or whether they were armed. If they made a move here, those inside could get wind of it and flee, destroy evidence, or even eliminate witnesses, leaving them with no options.
"Maybe they've been discovered, maybe not. But if we make a move now, there will be no 'maybe'—they will definitely notice," Shen Lingchen emphasized, reminding Lin Qizhao. It seemed a bit unfair to put the young man under such pressure at this moment, yet his expression remained unchanged. In this critical moment where one action could trigger a chain reaction, no one dared to be careless.
"Suzhou and Hangzhou, widen your surveillance distance and maintain a safe distance; it's better to lose sight of them than to risk detection... Add them to the blacklist at the immigration office."
"Notify all Thunder teams to accelerate their advance."
"Inform Thunder Zero to create distance in case they catch on; desperate people can act recklessly. We must ensure that the transport vehicle is secured."
Lin Qizhao issued several commands in quick succession, his face turning pale as if covered by a layer of frost, devoid of any personal feelings...
A few shadows quietly circled around the greenhouse area and retreated a mile back. Aeming finally stopped when he caught sight of a faint light from a distance while crouched on a mound of dirt. Xu Jian, who had followed closely behind, whispered, "Instructor, why did everyone pull back?"
"There’s been a change; they're worried about being detected," Aeming replied.
"That’s impossible! There are only a few of us in the Police Force, and we're all disguised as scrap collectors," Xu Jian argued.
"The informant... might have been exposed," Aeming said anxiously.
"That’s even less likely; we only took a glance," Xu Jian insisted.
"Not a leak from here... The big data investigation revealed a problem. Mr. Sun's mistress is actually connected to this place. If Xiao Mu's identity is exposed, it could easily raise the other party's suspicions," Aeming said softly. He glanced at the time; it was already 7:40 PM, but time seemed to drag on. The backup had not moved, the transport vehicles had not arrived, and it was still uncertain whether his few Scouts could take down the hideout.
"Damn... What a coincidence! We should just take them out directly," Xu Jian suggested.
"No, this is a coordinated operation across several locations. Even Anyang's crew has started moving. If we recklessly eliminate one, the others will slip away. Plus, those Hazardous Material Transport guys are crucial; they hold more information about the crimes. They should lead us to the higher-ups," Aeming replied.
"So what do we do? Just wait?" Xu Jian asked.
"Yes, wait... Be careful with your weapons; never let them misfire. If we let them go now, they won't escape. We can't have anyone acting out of desperation," Aeming said, his eyes fixed intently on the dim yellow light ahead, though his vision was becoming increasingly blurry. What remained clear was Xiao Mu's mischievous face, that wicked smile, and the constant teasing about his foolishness. Memories fermented in the silence, everything vivid in his mind.
"Mu... you have to hold on. You must hold on... It's almost time, almost time..."
Aeming murmured to himself, feeling that time was passing far too slowly, far too slowly...
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