Chapter 223: Two Birds with One Stone

Alley entrance.

The police officer following behind Han Fei stared dumbfounded.

He saw a massive lump of trash suspended in the air by a net woven from a hemp rope!

The trash was moving.

From within the trash, occasional explosion sounds from fireworks and the shouts of curses and pleas for help echoed.

"Clap... clap... clap..."

"Damn! What the hell is going on? So stinky, ugh..."

"My eyes are burning so badly I can barely open them, anyone? Help! I'm drowning in trash!"

"..."

"Han Team, there seems to be someone inside this pile of trash!" the officer said, looking at Han Fei.

Han Fei, of course, knew there was a person inside the trash.

Wasn't that obvious?

He isn't blind!

At this moment, Han Fei could probably guess that the people trapped in the trash and hanging in the air were the two Escapees the police were after.

Whether they rushed or delayed, Xu Mo still got a step ahead.

"Go bring them down," Han Fei gestured to the officer behind him.

A few officers immediately stepped forward.

"Don't move around, we're here to rescue you."

After a great effort, they finally cut a hole large enough in the net for a person to crawl through, rescuing the two people suspended by the net.

The rescued two were now a mess, filthy all over, looking like famine refugees.

One of them even had half a watermelon rind upside down on his forehead.

Their dreams shattered.

Not long ago, on their way to find Xu Mo, they were still indulging in a grand dream of earning a hundred million a year.

They had even planned how to spend the money once they got it.

But now, everything has turned to bubbles.

Even if they were still foolish.

During the time they were hanging just now, they should have figured it out.

Their predicament wasn't a coincidence, but a trap meticulously designed by Xu Mo.

Xu Mo never intended to cooperate with them; any talk of cooperation was merely an excuse to lure them here.

As for why Xu Mo set up a capture for them,

they have also worked it out.

It must be to eliminate all competitors quickly, so he could get the ten‑million prize the program had prepared sooner.

But now that they've realized it, it's already too late.

Han Fei and the group of officers stood at the only exit of the alley; the two's fate was singular—be captured and then eliminated!

Both of them gave a wry smile, voluntarily extending their hands, ready for the handcuff gesture.

However...

Han Fei had no intention of arresting them at all!

His expression even showed some resistance.

They were just too filthy, even smelling foul...

But there was no choice; even though it's a program, the capture segment still had to be performed.

Moreover, after these two Escapees are captured, they must go to the Police Station to hand over the cameras on their bodies and the phones the Program Crew issued.

Of course, Han Fei didn't plan to personally take the two Escapees back to the Police Station.

Instead, he assigned this glorious yet arduous task to an officer behind him.

"Xiao Zhang, take these two back, and give a heads‑up to the Program Crew."

Upon hearing that, Xiao Zhang's complexion immediately soured.

"Han Team, why not let Lao Wu take them back? I'm a rookie; I still want to learn more from you."

"Tsk," Han Fei clicked his tongue. "Lao Wu has experience; he can help a bit staying by my side. Just have him take them back."

…

Xiao Zhang led the two Escapees away.

Han Fei carefully observed the scene.

He noticed that the rope on the net extended to the other side of the wall.

He pointed at that rope and said, "Chen Ke, you're agile, climb over the wall and take a look."

After climbing over, Chen Ke found a van; the rope was tied to the trailer hitch at the back of the van.

He didn't see Xu Mo inside or around the vehicle, presumably he had already fled.

From behind the wall, Chen Ke shouted.

"Han Team, you all come over; there's a car Xu Mo left here."

The group stepped on boxes and crossed the wall one by one.

After everyone arrived, Chen Ke pointed at the rope tied to the van's trailer hitch and voiced his assessment.

"The net on the other side of the wall must be a trap Xu Mo set up in advance; he's waiting on this side. After the two Escapees step into the trap, Xu Mo uses the van to pull the rope, lifting the net to hoist them up... It's impressive he thought of this move, and that van—who knows where he stole it from."

Although there's no evidence that this was Xu Mo's doing.

But even Cai could figure it out, those two Escapees being hung up are definitely linked to Xu Mo.

Besides him, no one else would do such a thing.

Hearing Chen Ke's words, Han Fei nodded.

He then spoke to the officers.

"Go scout the surroundings and see if there's any surveillance or the like."

Five minutes later, the officers sent to scout the area all returned.

"Report to Han Team: no surveillance found nearby; this is a residential area, and the alleys are a tangled maze, making it impossible to determine which road Xu Mo took to leave."

Upon hearing this, Han Fei did not show any disappointment.

Because he originally didn't have much hope either, he only brought the officers out to scout the area with a try‑and‑see attitude.

Just as Han Fei expected, there was indeed no surveillance in the narrow alley.

Moreover, there are many side streets, making it impossible to tell which path Xu Mo actually took to leave.

The reason Xu Mo chose this spot as the crime scene was probably precisely because it lacks surveillance and has many branching paths.

"If there are no clues, forget it; for now, ignore Xu Mo and capture the others first," Han Fei told the officers.

He knows this well.

Since Xu Mo is intent on leaving no trace, there's no point in wasting time on him.

They can first apprehend the remaining Escapees, and then focus on Xu Mo.

Han Fei's decisive demeanor stems from his knowledge that Xu Mo will inevitably cause trouble when they capture the next Escapee.

Rather than laboring now to find Xu Mo's clues, it's better to set a proper plan when they seize the next Escapee, and capture Xu Mo at the same time—a one‑stone‑two‑birds move!

With that in mind, he pulled out his phone and called the officer who stayed at the Police Station to check the surveillance.

"Lao He, do we have any leads on the remaining Escapees now?"

"I was just about to call you. When I checked the footage, I found that two of the Escapees haven't been captured on any surveillance since the program began. I also reviewed yesterday's footage and saw that they bought a lot of food and water and went home last night. I suspect there's a high probability they're hiding at home and haven't gone out, though I'm not certain. How about I send you the address now and you take a look?"

"If it's really as you say, then they might indeed be holed up at home. Send me the address, and I'll go check." Han Fei replied after a moment's thought.

They purchased supplies before the program started, returned home, and never left again after the program began.

Isn't that just hiding at home?