Chapter 844: Arrest

It was already past six in the evening; the setting sun cast golden light as Meng Tong Huai Zhi stood motionless before the office window for a long, long time.

Everyone who should have left had gone; the office building was silent. Meng Tong Huai Zhi let out a long sigh.

"Ding ling…"

The phone on his desk suddenly rang. Meng Tong Huai Zhi froze for a moment, then spun around sharply and snatched up the receiver. Only Zhao Jian would call his office at this hour.

"Old Zhao?"

Zhao Jian's voice came through the receiver: "Arrest!"

Meng Tong Huai Zhi straightened up instantly. Without saying a word, he hung up and quickly dialed another string of numbers.

At the municipal bureau, Tan Tan Zongwei sat behind his desk, leaning back in his chair, smoking cigarette after cigarette.

Even with the window open, the office was thick with smoke—though this smoke was choking.

The phone on his desk rang, startling him out of his daze.

He picked it up and heard Meng Tong Huai Zhi's voice: "Arrest!"

Meng Tong Huai Zhi shot to his feet, knocking his chair over behind him.

"Understood!"

………………

The Da Da Shijie Dance Hotel, opening its doors for the first time today, stood on Bukui South Street, not far from the Department Store Building, directly across from the plot Zhou Andong had chosen.

The hotel had three floors: the first and second housed restaurants serving Cantonese cuisine; the third floor was a dance hall.

The proprietor was from Xiangjiang; both the dining and dance hall exuded strong Xiangjiang flair.

It was said that all the dancing girls, except the Russians, had been brought over from Xiangjiang.

At this moment, many sedans were parked in front of Da Da Shijie, including luxury models like Mercedes and BMW.

This further proved that among the first to grow wealthy after reform and opening-up, there were indeed many.

At that moment, a Tiger-head Benz pulled up. The doorman, wearing a bow tie and a white shirt with a vest and slacks, spotted the license plate and rushed over, eagerly opening the door and bowing in greeting.

"Boss, welcome!"

Sun Hexin stepped out of the car, pleased with the doorman's performance. He raised his hand and snapped his fingers sharply.

One of his men pulled out a hundred yuan from his pocket and tossed it onto the doorman.

The doorman stammered thanks, bending low to pick up the money.

Sun Hexin ascended the steps of Da Da Shijie, where two beautiful hostesses in qipaos bowed in unison.

"Welcome."

Sun Hexin smiled. This time, he personally tipped them, taking the money handed to him by his subordinate, then thrust both hands into the hostesses' chests.

The two hostesses beamed: "Thank you, Boss!"

Sun Hexin stepped inside, silently cursing: Damn, Xiangjiang people really knew how to make money. He had already decided: his own venues would also have doormen and hostesses—this was damn impressive, damn prestigious.

At that moment, a middle-aged man in a suit, hair combed perfectly, wearing glasses, approached with a beaming smile. He spoke Cantonese-accented Mandarin with a thick tongue.

"Brother Xin, I thought I'd offended you somehow, so I didn't come by at noon. I was just planning to visit your place tomorrow to beg forgiveness."

This man was Zheng Zheng Zelong, owner of Da Da Shijie. He had once operated a dance hall in Xiangjiang, but it went bankrupt due to poor management.

For some reason, he heard there were vast opportunities on the mainland, so he came—and ended up in Qishan, deep in the Northeast.

Upon arriving, his first stop wasn't any government office—he went straight to Sun Hexin to pay his respects, then contacted the relevant departments.

As a Hong Kong businessman, both Zhao Jian and Meng Tong Huai Zhi treated him with great importance; all procedures were green-lit. From site selection to renovation and opening, it took less than three months.

Sun Hexin treated Zheng Zheng Zelong with courtesy—he was from Xiangjiang, and upon arriving in Qishan, he'd come first to pay homage.

Such a thoughtful, wealthy Hong Kong businessman had given him great face. For Da Da Shijie's opening, he naturally came to lend support—that was precisely why Zheng Zheng Zelong had sought him out first.

The invitation had been delivered to him three days earlier, but today his younger brother had left Qishan, and he didn't know when he'd return.

Then he received a call from the Gap-toothed Monkey: those mud-stained peasants from Zhenxing Village had struck a nerve.

After sending Scar and his men to Zhenxing Village, he'd been waiting for news—and had completely forgotten about Da Da Shijie's opening.

Only after dinner did he suddenly remember. Though Scar and Daya had sent no word, he assumed: over a hundred men, armed with shotguns—no problem. So he came tonight.

"Too many things to handle. Couldn't get away at noon."

Whether he came at noon or evening didn't matter to Zheng Zheng Zelong. As long as Sun Hexin showed up and lent him face, his goal was achieved.

"Brother Xin, shall we eat first, or go straight to the third floor?"

"I've eaten." Sun Hexin pointed upstairs. "Let's go to the third floor. Let me feel the warmth of Xiangjiang girls."

Zheng Zheng Zelong laughed heartily: "I guarantee you'll be satisfied, Brother Xin."

The two walked up the stairs side by side, with Sun Hexin's two men following behind.

At that moment, two young men entered and followed Sun Hexin up to the third floor.

On the third floor, Zheng Zheng Zelong seated Sun Hexin and his men at the table closest to the stage.

The two young men walked over and sat down not far from Sun Hexin. Then one of them stood up and left.

The young man exited Da Da Shijie, raised his hand in a strange gesture, then turned and went back inside.

A van parked by the roadside opposite Da Da Shijie held five men; one young man held a walkie-talkie.

Seeing the gesture, he spoke into the walkie-talkie: "Command, Target One has entered the third-floor dance hall of Da Da Shijie. Proceed with arrest?"

The walkie-talkie crackled: "Command received. Confirm Target Two?"

"Command, this is Team Two. Target Two has not left home."

"Team Three, Team Four, Team Five… confirm targets."

"Team Three confirms target!"

"Team Four confirms target!"

"Team Five confirms target!"

"Target Nine not found!"

"Target Eleven not found!"

"Target Twelve not found!"

"Target Fifteen not found!"

"…"

"No more waiting. It's 7:09. Action at 7:15."

Time ticked away. At 7:15, the young man's walkie-talkie blared a loud shout.

"Action!"

The van's side door slid open with a clang. Five plainclothes officers jumped out. Simultaneously, two police cars and a military vehicle sped up, screeching to a halt at Da Da Shijie's entrance.

Immediately, seven police officers disembarked from the police cars, and over twenty fully armed armed police officers exited the military vehicle, following the young man into Da Da Shijie.