Chapter 307: On the Verge of Breaking Out

Looking at the bald middle-aged man in front of him, Li Xuewu put down the teacup in his hand.

From the moment he entered the room, Li Xuewu asked ten questions, and this Security Li Kezhang's answers were at most "not very clear," while others used uncertain words like "maybe," "probably," "perhaps," etc.

Li Xuewu had already lost his patience and said with a serious expression, "Li Kezhang Xiao, security work isn't about watching the gate. Being a monk for a day and ringing the bell for a day won't do."

Hearing Li Xuewu's impolite words, Xiao Changqing's expression didn't fluctuate at all, and he even picked up the teacup in front of him and took a sip.

"Most of the general affairs of the section were handled by Fu Haibo. There were basically no important matters, and those that were, were reported to the leaders for decision. My ringing of the bell as a monk was very timely."

Li Xuewu took out the cigarette from his pocket, lit one for himself, narrowed his eyes, and said, "You were also once a capable security cadre; otherwise, the organization wouldn't have sent you here when the branch factory was taken over."

Because Li Xuewu was now the same rank as Xiao Changqing, Li Xuewu's speech was neither polite nor left any room for maneuver.

Xiao Changqing naturally knew what the second half of Li Xuewu's unsaid words were; it was nothing more than a pity for why he had fallen or degenerated to this point.

But looking at the general factory security section Ke-zhang who had just turned 20, he was just like himself in his prime, full of spirit.

Especially the "official struggle" between Li Xuewu and Fu Haibo recently made these two young talents the romantic figures within the Steel Rolling Mill system.

Now Li Xuewu, carrying the prestige of a great victory, traveled thousands of miles to Steel City to arrest Fu Haibo, his momentum was like a rainbow, unstoppable.

Li Xuewu's youth and success made Xiao Changqing's wasted years even more prominent.

"I was transferred to Steel City at 26, and this is the 14th year."

Xiao Changqing looked at Li Xuewu calmly and said, "What I feel most deeply isn't the cold wind in winter in Steel City, but the icy cold of disappointment after my applications to be transferred back to Beijing were rejected time and time again."

Li Xuewu leaned back on the chair, chuckled, and asked, "Oh, you have grievances? We are the same rank, but I am willing to convey your opinions back to the factory."

Xiao Changqing put down the teacup in his hand, his momentum changed from the timidity just now, and he stared at Li Xuewu, saying, "You say I'm not doing my job, isn't it because I didn't supervise or manage Fu Haibo well?"

"But is the area where he commits illegal crimes something I can control? Is he a person I can control? He had a leave request approved by the leader, what can I do?"

"Now that Fu Haibo went to the general factory to compete with you for this deputy division director position, you investigated him. Fu Haibo's situation hasn't been just one or two days, why didn't you manage or supervise him when Fu Bin arranged for him to come over?"

"When Fu Haibo was promoted in violation of regulations, why didn't you discover it? As soon as he entered Beijing, you saw it? What were you doing earlier?"

Li Xuewu didn't speak, smoking and watching Xiao Changqing vent his anger.

Xiao Changqing didn't mean to stop at all, continuing, "You, Li Xuewu, use the general factory's cadre status to say I'm not doing my job, then what about the general factory's leaders and cadres?"

"Yang Fengshan and Yang Yuansong appointed Fu Bin to preside over the Security Section. He planted his own people, colluded inside and outside, and formed cliques for private interests. Yang Fengshan, as the number one leader, really didn't know anything at all?"

"Before Fu Haibo had an accident, I heard that the masses reported him constantly, but the general factory leaders turned a deaf ear to cover up the lid."

"Fu Haibo fell, Fu Bin will also fall, right? But the general factory leaders are unscathed. Is this called having achievements?"

Li Xuewu tucked his left arm into his right elbow, supporting his right hand holding the cigarette, narrowed his eyes, and said, "Regarding Fu Haibo's matter, no one can run away, and there won't be any unscathed situation as you said. Negligence in using people, dereliction of duty, no matter who it is, the general factory will investigate to the end."

Xiao Changqing curled his lips in disdain and said, "Forget it, Ke-zhang Li, is the matter of Hu Zhengquan last time known to everyone?"

"What responsibility did the general factory leaders, including Fu Bin, take? Demoted? Or punished? I'm afraid they didn't even have a penalty of three cups of wine. If shouting slogans was useful, what would the Discipline Inspection Commission be for?"

Looking at the indignant Xiao Changqing, Li Xuewu knew this wasn't Xiao Changqing targeting him, but a resentment toward the factory leaders' indifference to him for many years, toward the injustice of his own fate, and toward the lack of smoothness in his work.

"If you feel that the factory leaders or certain leaders have problems, go report them to the relevant departments. Today I am talking to you about not doing your job, discussing the matter as it stands. Do you have no responsibility for Fu Haibo's matter?"

Stiffening his neck and looking at Li Xuewu, Xiao Changqing said, "You, Li Xuewu, say I'm not doing my job. I, Xiao Changqing, have worked in the Steel Rolling Mill for 14 years. Am I not doing my job?"

"Why has the Steel Rolling Mill's Security Section's case-solving rate always been number one in the entire system? Why has the Steel Rolling Mill never had any destruction or attacks? Is this the result of me not doing my job?"

"I have worked conscientiously for 14 years, can't go back to the general factory, can't advance in the branch factory. Who doesn't know what's going on here?"

"You, Li Xuewu, are Dong Wenxue's beloved disciple, Fu Haibo is Fu Bin's nephew. You are all people with resources in the dragon-and-tiger struggle, rising like sitting on a plane. I, Xiao Changqing, have worked in the Steel Rolling Mill for 14 years, and have been standing still for more than 10 years. Isn't it because I don't have a good teacher or a good uncle?"

"Hehe."

Li Xuewu flicked the cigarette ash in his hand and said, "I won't shout slogans with you, and I won't belittle your personal pursuit, but."

His finger moved, turning the cigarette in his hand and poking the cigarette butt into the ashtray in front of him, saying, "Ice three feet thick is not formed in a single day. You say the general factory leaders are indifferent to you, but you should also look back at the path you have walked."

"Regardless of whether you say Fu Haibo is Fu Bin's nephew, just speaking of myself, my starting point is the same as yours. Saying that the times create heroes seems deliberate, but every opportunity was actively fought for by me, and I was able to obtain the progress I could satisfy by seizing every opportunity."

"And regarding the interpersonal relationships you resent, I don't know how you view this kind of relationship in government units, but what I can tell you is that no one can live on this for a lifetime."

Li Xuewu stood up, put on his hat, and walked out.

Walking to the door, he opened the office door, turned around, and said to Xiao Changqing, "It's better to take a step back and see the vast sea and sky than to seek but not get. There are plenty of section-level positions in the general factory. If section-level ones aren't given, deputy section-level ones should be fine, right? In any case, it's always better than occupying the latrine and not defecating while complaining that the pit isn't good."

After saying this, Li Xuewu closed the door and waved to Liu Zhaolun before going downstairs.

A sidecar was waiting at the building entrance.

Standing by the motorcycle was a young man with fine pockmarks on his face.

Liu Zhaolun looked at the mottled paint of the sidecar and was about to step forward to take action against the young man standing on the side.

Li Xuewu pulled Liu Zhaolun from behind and said, "What are you doing? No rules."

Hearing Li Xuewu's words, the pockmarked young man laughed dryly and said, "Secretary Yu said that the vehicles in the factory are really tight, and this car was transferred from the Security Section. The branch factory isn't as wealthy as the general factory, so please make do with it."

Li Xuewu looked at the pockmarked young man, then looked at the third floor, and then said to Liu Zhaolun, "Get in the car, let's go out for a stroll."

He patted the young man's shoulder, who was embarrassed, and said, "Thank Secretary Yu for me, just say what I said, I'll treat him to a meal when he returns to the general factory."

"Okay."

This young man didn't know if Li Xuewu's words were polite or not, but he still hurriedly agreed.

Getting into the sidecar, Li Xuewu sat directly on the wooden seat that had lost its sponge cover and said to Liu Zhaolun, "Let's go."

Liu Zhaolun glared at the "burnt cake" standing on the side, kicked the motorcycle, and walked outside.

Yu Decai stood behind Luo Jiaping, and the two stood on the third floor watching Li Xuewu's motorcycle drive out of the main gate.

"Factory Director, is this a bit..."

"Humph!"

Luo Jiaping snorted in his nostrils, then glanced at Yu Decai and asked, "Scared?"

"No, what am I afraid of!"

Yu Decai explained with a dry laugh, "With you, the Dinghai Divine Needle, here in the Steel Rolling Mill, what am I, a small fish or shrimp, afraid of?"

After explaining this, seeing Luo Jiaping's complexion return to normal, he added, "I'm just worried that this Tiger of the Security Section won't let it go."

Luo Jiaping narrowed his eyes and looked at the direction where Li Xuewu's motorcycle disappeared, saying, "He counts as a fart of a tiger."

"A hard object is easy to break. Our Steel Rolling Mill just doesn't fear this kind of hardness. Don't be scared by his deeds in the general factory."

Turning around, Luo Jiaping looked at Yu Decai and said, "Nine out of ten of the things he did were likely directed by Dong Wenxue from behind. Can a little brat who just turned 20 make any big waves?"

Although Yu Decai didn't agree with Luo Jiaping's point of view in his heart, now wasn't the time to say unpleasant but truthful words; it was easy to get himself involved.

Seeing Yu Decai didn't speak, Luo Jiaping didn't want to waste his breath on him anymore.

"Tell the guesthouse to keep a close eye on them. As soon as they return, call me immediately."

"Yes."

Li Xuewu, who had no harvest, let Liu Zhaolun find a telephone point to park, checked his watch; it was already 11 o'clock, time to call back to Yan Brother Jiecheng at the guesthouse.

There were no public telephone booths at this time, so he could only find relatively large restaurants or bookstores, etc.

The location Liu Zhaolun stopped at was the entrance of the Xinhua Bookstore.

Other units might not have telephones, but the Xinhua Bookstore definitely had one, and it was for public use.

Li Xuewu entered the bookstore and saw there weren't many people. At this time, everyone was at work, so there were mostly half-grown boys or little girls in the bookstore.

"Comrade, making a phone call."

Li Xuewu took off his gloves and greeted the attendant at the counter. The attendant looked at Li Xuewu and said impatiently, "Unit."

Li Xuewu handed his identification to the attendant.

The attendant, who was wearing two big braids, saw that Li Xuewu's identification was actually a deputy division director, and raised her head in disbelief to look at Li Xuewu's face, then looked at the photo on the identification.

Even if the unit address was Beijing, this was scary enough.

"Can only make local calls, and it's 5 cents per minute."

The attendant who saw Li Xuewu's identification had a significantly better tone, no longer as impatient as just now.

Li Xuewu smiled and took the telephone handed by the attendant and started shaking it.

Li Xuewu didn't really understand the principle of this thing either; it was probably that shaking the phone here might generate current, and the operator would receive the request for a call, then ask where you wanted to connect.

Telephones now still relied on operators to help connect, so the efficiency was artificially slow, and sometimes it wouldn't connect for a long time.

Some people said that shaking the phone backward would generate current that would make the operator's hands numb, and it would connect very quickly.

Li Xuewu didn't know if doing this was right or if there was any scientific basis, he had never used it once.

If this trick didn't work, it would look brain-dead; if it worked, he would be scolded as brain-dead by the operator, not worth it.

It was still okay; Li Xuewu had just shaken it a few times when the sound of "Where to?" came from the receiver.

Maybe all operators in the world are the same, their tones were very bad, so Li Xuewu didn't care about the tone on the phone, and said "Room 308, Station Front Guesthouse."

"Connected."

This sentence came from the phone, and then he heard Yan Brother Jiecheng's voice.

"Ke-zhang, is that you?"

"Yes, I am Li Xuewu. Did Han Zhan call back?"

"He did. They said Fu Haibo's home has been abandoned for a long time and no one has lived there. Now the two of them are going to investigate a person named Ma San'er, saying he has close contact with Fu Haibo."

"Understood. I didn't have much harvest here. The branch factory leaders aren't cooperative, and I couldn't get Fu Haibo's information. Now we are going to investigate Fu Haibo's family."

"Received."

Before hanging up the phone, Li Xuewu instructed Yan Brother Jiecheng, "Go to the restaurant at the entrance to order a portion for lunch, and hurry back to be on duty."

After speaking, he hung up the phone.

The attendant looked at the watch and said, "One dime."

Li Xuewu knew he hadn't made a two-minute call, but he was too lazy to care about these 5 cents, given the nature of the three major operators who didn't solve this problem even in later generations.

He took out a small bill and placed it on the counter, and wrote his unit, name, and the direction of the call on the phone record.

This was the procedure for making phone calls outside. It wasn't as chaotic as later, with phones used casually.

Even Li Xuewu's recycling shop strictly followed the registration system for receiving and selling goods.

You sell second-hand goods, okay, bring the receipt for this item, if not, call the police.

Making a "public" phone call was the same; without a unit work permit, don't even think about using the phone.

Even with a work permit, you have to leave a phone record.

Li Xuewu walked out and said "Find a restaurant" to Liu Zhaolun, then got into the car.

These five people didn't eat breakfast on the train, and after tossing around all morning, they were all hungry. Even an emperor doesn't starve his soldiers; if they didn't eat, they wouldn't have the strength to encounter situations, which would be bad.

The two found a noodle shop, the most ordinary kind, and bought two bowls of noodles with gravy using national grain coupons and money.

It wasn't that Li Xuewu was bragging about the purity of this era, nor was he belittling the deterioration of later generations.

It was just that what difference could this bowl of noodles with gravy have? Could it be that beef could be eaten?

Beef couldn't be eaten, but there was a difference.

A large bowl of noodles with gravy was served, the slightly yellow noodles poured with light brown gravy, and then sprinkled with a little green onion, looking appetizing.

The noodles were slightly yellow because the grinding degree of the flour wasn't as fine as in later generations, but it was precisely this grinding degree that made the noodles taste much better than the wheat-core flour of later generations.

Including the steamed buns made at Li Xuewu's home, they didn't look as white and clean as in later generations, but were slightly yellow, sometimes with some black spots.

This was because of the wheat bran residue during flour grinding.

In this cold winter, eating a bowl of hot noodles with gravy, Li Xuewu and the other's bodies recovered their spirit.

A thousand days of goodness at home, everything is difficult when going out.

Han Zhan and Jing Yongjie left the residential area of Fu Haibo's old home and walked out, preparing to visit the worker residential area of the Steel Rolling Mill.

Whether it was Fu Haibo or Ma San'er, they both relied on this worker residential area to survive, so there must be clues about them.

Han Zhan and the other first went to the nearby supply and marketing cooperative, checking little by little from the daily system; after all, rascals also have to live, right?

But what disappointed Han Zhan and the other was that no matter who they asked, they all kept their mouths shut about the name Ma San'er.

Gradually, the two also saw the clues and knew that continuing to ask like this would be futile.

Looking at the time, the two walked into a state-run restaurant.

They had to eat; Han Zhan's body was trembling, a symptom of hypoglycemia.

Because time was tight, the two ordered four steamed buns and a plate of stewed tofu.

While waiting for the meal, Jing Yongjie habitually asked the attendant, "Comrade, do you know Ma San'er?"

"What about Fu Haibo?"

The attendant glanced at Jing Yongjie, then looked at Han Zhan, shook his head twice in succession, and returned to the back kitchen without saying a word.

The two had been rejected like this too many times today, so they didn't care.

After the steamed buns and tofu were served, the two took them to the table and started eating with a slurping sound.

Just as Han Zhan picked up the second steamed bun and prepared to eat, a young man with a square face entered the door.

The young man scanned the shop and immediately locked onto Han Zhan's table.

Watching the young man who entered the door walk toward this side, Han Zhan put down the steamed bun in his hand, kicked Jing Yongjie opposite him under the table, and then his hand touched the holster on his waist.

Jing Yongjie looked back and also found the abnormality, put down the bowl in his hand, and stood up.

The young man walked to three steps away from their table and stopped, asking softly, "May I ask if you two comrades are asking about Fu Haibo?"

Jing Yongjie looked back at Han Zhan, who was frowning, raised his eyebrows, and asked, "May I ask what's the matter?"

Seeing that he had found the right person, the young man said with a mournful face, "I know where Fu Haibo is."

Jing Yongjie was excited by the sudden surprise and walked forward two steps, but was then stopped by Han Zhan.

"Yongjie!"

Jing Yongjie heard Han Zhan's reminder and knew he couldn't be excited now, but still grabbed the young man's arm and asked, "Where is he?"

The young man looked at the shop with a bitter face, then looked at the two and didn't speak.

Jing Yongjie naturally knew what this meant; it was nothing more than too many people in the room, making it inconvenient to talk.

"Let's go, let's go out and talk."

"Yongjie."

Han Zhan called Jing Yongjie again, looked at the young man, and the implication of the reminder was self-evident.

But Jing Yongjie was already fascinated by the sudden surprise, turned back to Han Zhan and said, "Let's find a place at the door to talk."

Han Zhan had no choice, took the two steamed buns into his pocket, and followed Jing Yongjie out the door.

Standing in the wind-sheltered area by the street, Jing Yongjie let go of the young man's hand and asked, "Where is Fu Haibo?"

The young man hesitated and asked, "Who are you? What's the matter with finding Fu Haibo?"

Jing Yongjie saw the young man was dawdling, reached out and pinched the young man's neck, saying, "Stop talking nonsense, I'm asking you where Fu Haibo is?"

"Jing Yongjie, let go!"

Han Zhan saw Jing Yongjie was emotionally excited, frowned and said, this reminder had already called his full name, indicating Han Zhan's attitude was very firm and also very resistant to Jing Yongjie's current actions.

But Jing Yongjie wouldn't listen to Han Zhan at all now, his hand still pinching the young man's neck and asking, "Are you going to say it or not?"

The young man looked stupid, but he was stubborn, letting Jing Yongjie pinch and hit him, but he just wouldn't say it.

Finally, there was no way, Han Zhan couldn't stand it anymore, grabbed Jing Yongjie's collar and pulled him away.

Looking at the young man who was weak on the ground, and then at Jing Yongjie, who had red eyes and was panting heavily.

Han Zhan frowned and said, "Are the cases handled by your station all so rough?"

Jing Yongjie didn't speak, just stared at the young man on the ground.

Han Zhan squatted down, opened his identification, and placed it in front of the young man, saying, "I am a security cadre of the factory Fu Haibo belongs to. Fu Haibo has committed a crime, and we are here to arrest him to face the law. If you know anything, you can tell us."

The young man raised his head in surprise, looked at the identification in Han Zhan's hand, and then asked with tears in his eyes, "Are you telling the truth? Are you really here to arrest that bastard?"

Hearing the young man say this, Han Zhan glanced at Jing Yongjie, who was standing on the side with a face full of astonishment, and then nodded to the young man, saying, "Identification can't lie, we've been looking for him for a while."

The young man looked at the identification in Han Zhan's hand with fear, then asked Han Zhan, "Can I know how big Fu Haibo's crime is this time? Will he be able to come out?"

Han Zhan chuckled and said, "I can't tell you how big the crime is, but I can tell you whether he can come out or not: he can come out."

"Ah?!"

The young man looked at Han Zhan with a face full of blood, all the excitement just now turned into bubbles, looking at Han Zhan with a face full of dead ash.

"He can come out, but his ashes can come out; it's impossible for him to come out alive."

"Ah?!"

The young man said "Ah" again, but the tone was different. The whole person seemed to have come alive, looking at Han Zhan in disbelief and asking, "Comrade, are you telling the truth?"

Han Zhan glanced at Jing Yongjie, who was full of guilt, and shook the identification in his hand, saying, "If it were for a treat, we wouldn't have come all the way from Beijing to find him, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes."

The young man nodded frantically with excitement, then started crying with excitement, muttering in his mouth why did you come so late.

Han Zhan and Jing Yongjie looked at each other, both frowning.

How much evil did Fu Haibo do to make this young man so excited?

"Comrade, we are here to arrest and punish Fu Haibo. Can you stabilize your emotions and cooperate with our action?"

"Wuwuwu, I'll cooperate!"

The young man wiped the tears on his face, but it was a mess of previous blood and snot, looking like a ghost.

Han Zhan took the young man back to the restaurant and washed his face by the water pool at the door.

The young man washed his face and controlled his emotions, then followed the two back to the side of the low wall of the street.

Looking at the young man who was somewhat afraid of Jing Yongjie, Han Zhan explained, "Fu Haibo has done too many wrong things, so much so that our comrades can't wait to bring him to justice now, so I was a bit excited just now, please forgive me."

As he spoke, he signaled Jing Yongjie to apologize.

Jing Yongjie said to the young man embarrassedly, "Really sorry, I was reckless just now."

The young man shook his head and said, "As long as you arrest Fu Haibo, even if you beat me ten times, it's fine."

As he spoke, the young man had signs of crying again, but seeing the two were anxious, he still tried hard to stabilize his emotions and took a long breath.

"Hu~~"

Then he explained, "My name is Yang Zhao, I'm a worker at the Steel Rolling Mill. Once my wife went to the unit to find me and was met by Fu Haibo."

Speaking of this, Yang Zhao's throat choked up again, but he still endured and said, "I don't know how the two hooked up, but every time I went to work, Fu Haibo went to my house."

Speaking of this, Yang Zhao couldn't help it anymore, tears streaming down his face, crying and saying, "Once I had something to do and went home and bumped into them. I reached out to hit him, but was beaten up by him holding a gun to my head."

"Wuwuwuwuwu."

As he spoke, Yang Zhao covered his face and cried again. This time, neither Han Zhan nor Jing Yongjie stopped Yang Zhao.

Especially Jing Yongjie, who was already gnashing his teeth.

Yang Zhao cried for a while and said with a hoarse voice, "Beating me wasn't enough, in the evening he called Ma San'er to my house and hung me on the roof beam. Fu Haibo, that beast, actually... in front of me... with my wife... wuwu."

Jing Yongjie listened and was furious; how could there be such a despicable and shameless person in this world?

"Why didn't you report the case?"

"How could I report it?!"

Yang Zhao said with a crying voice, "Fu Haibo is from the Security Section. Do I report the case to him?"

"He warned me that if I dared to say it out, he would make me unable to work in the Steel Rolling Mill, and also let Ma San'er kill me."

"Grass his grandfather!"

Jing Yongjie hammered the mud wall beside him and asked hatefully, "Where is Fu Haibo now?"

"Where else could he be, on the kang of our house."

Yang Zhao said with empty eyes, "Since that time, Fu Haibo has been going to my house openly, and often stays at my house, not allowing me to go home."

As he spoke, Yang Zhao said with tears, "Today is my day off, my wife told me in advance that he was coming, and didn't allow me to go back, wuwu."

Watching a big man crying bitterly, Han Zhan also twisted his eyebrows into a knot.

Jing Yongjie said hatefully, "Let's go, take us to your house, I want to see how this young talent does such beastly things."

"Wait!"

Looking at Jing Yong

Jing Yongjie stared wide-eyed and said, "What time is it now? Even if we get in touch by phone, it will be over an hour before Division Chief Li can rush over here."

As he spoke, Jing Yongjie asked Yang Zhao, "How long does Fu Haibo usually stay at your house?"

Yang Zhao wiped away his tears and said, "I don't know. Sometimes he leaves when he has business, and I don't know when he leaves because he's already gone by the time I get back."

Jing Yongjie patted Yang Zhao on the shoulder to comfort him: "Don't worry, we'll bring that animal to justice right now."

"It would be safer to report this to the Li Kezhang. After all, we're unfamiliar with this place, and there's no one to back us up if something goes wrong."

Seeing that Han Zhan was still nagging, Jing Yongjie glared at him and said, "The Guard Team is always at the forefront of this operation. There isn't a single coward among us. You're starting to make me look down on you."

Feeling that his words were a bit hurtful, Jing Yongjie added, "Besides, Division Chief Li did say to arrest Fu Haibo the moment we saw him."

"Can those two things be the same?"

Han Zhan ignored Jing Yongjie's sarcasm and advised, "The Li Kezhang's order was to arrest Fu Haibo on sight, not for us to conduct this kind of secondary reconnaissance and arrest operation..."

An agitated Jing Yongjie waved his hand and said, "I don't care. I'm going now. If you don't want to go, I won't force you. You can just go back to the guesthouse and wait for my news. It's not like I haven't arrested people on my own before. Can Fu Haibo really have three heads and six arms?"

As he spoke, he took Yang Zhao by the arm and prepared to leave.

Han Zhan sighed helplessly as he watched Jing Yongjie. It was always troublesome when people weren't from the same unit; they weren't under the same command, so there was no way to resolve disagreements.

How could Han Zhan let Jing Yongjie go take risks alone? He had no choice but to follow Jing Yongjie toward another street in the residential area.

Jing Yongjie looked back at Han Zhan, who was following him, and said in a cold voice, "I know you're blaming me. Don't worry, I'm not someone who covets credit. As long as we catch him, half the credit will be yours."

Han Zhan frowned at Jing Yongjie and remained silent.

This Jing Yongjie really was a reckless hothead; he had no idea how Li Kezhang Duan had chosen such a person.

Was this a matter of credit?

The Steel Mill Guard Team had never judged success or failure by credit. This was the first time Han Zhan had encountered such a hothead who cared about so-called credit.

Yang Zhao had composed himself by now and led the two of them to the entrance of the street where he lived.

Just as they were about to enter, Yang Zhao stopped and said with some hesitation, "The third house is mine. Can I not go in?"

"Why?"

Han Zhan pulled out his gun, which gave Yang Zhao a start.

"I... I... I'm scared."

Yang Zhao lowered his head and said, "I'm afraid Fu Haibo will know it was me who tipped you off. There are many of them, and I'm afraid they'll retaliate."

"You..."

Han Zhan was about to say more, but Jing Yongjie said dismissively, "This is normal. We aren't afraid of criminals' retaliation, but ordinary folks are. Stop talking nonsense, let's go."

As he spoke, he ignored Han Zhan's reaction and had already crept inside along the street wall.

Han Zhan looked at the reckless Jing Yongjie and said to Yang Zhao, "You wait for us right here."

"Okay, okay, okay."

Yang Zhao agreed hurriedly, as if he had been relieved of a burden.

Han Zhan took one last look at Yang Zhao. Since Jing Yongjie was already preparing to climb the wall, he didn't think twice and followed, helping Jing Yongjie climb over the wall into the courtyard.

After Jing Yongjie got in, Han Zhan took a running start, climbed the wall, and jumped into the courtyard.

After landing, Han Zhan held his gun and ran toward the tile-roofed house, as he had already seen Jing Yongjie kick the door open and rush inside with his gun.

But before Han Zhan could rush into the room, he heard a woman's scream from inside.

"Help! There's a thief! Someone's trying to rape me!"

Han Zhan didn't know what was going on yet when he heard the sound of a gong being struck outside the courtyard wall behind him.

"Help! There's a thief! Someone broke into my house to rape my wife!"

Han Zhan realized things were going badly and thought about calling Jing Yongjie out.

Before he could shout, he saw Jing Yongjie run out with three bloody scratches on his face.

"Team Leader Han, it's bad, we've been set up. There's only a naked woman in the room!"

Han Zhan cursed: "You don't have to tell me that!"

Without explaining to Jing Yongjie, he pointed to the courtyard wall behind them and said, "Go, let's go out the back."

Jing Yongjie was panicked by now. Seeing Han Zhan point to the back, he didn't stand on ceremony and turned to run toward the back wall.

Han Zhan had already seen the main gate being kicked open; he fired a shot at random and followed him toward the back.

Han Zhan didn't have time to call Jing Yongjie a waste of space; he could only cover him.

When the Guard Team assaults a target, they are supposed to coordinate before and after climbing the wall, but Jing Yongjie hadn't even opened the door for Han Zhan after entering the courtyard, rushing inside just to grab the credit.

It was the same now; they weren't covering each other during the retreat, just looking out for themselves.

Running to the base of the wall, he watched Jing Yongjie nimbly climb up. Just as Han Zhan was about to follow, he heard a "Bang!" and saw Jing Yongjie, who was crouching on the wall preparing to climb over, get blasted back.

After landing, Jing Yongjie's face and body were covered in blood, mixed with black gravel.

"Ah! ~~~"

Watching Jing Yongjie howl in pain as he rolled on the ground, Han Zhan gritted his teeth, grabbed Jing Yongjie's arm, hoisted him onto his back, and charged toward the front courtyard.

"Damn it!"

Because Jing Yongjie was injured, Han Zhan's bloodlust was ignited. He hit anyone he saw in the head, and after shattering two skulls, no one dared to show their face again.

Fortunately, there were no sand-shot guns in the front courtyard, otherwise, both of them would have been finished here.

Han Zhan looked at the rifles dropped on the ground and knew these people were out for their lives. He didn't dare stay to explain his identity, so he burst out the door and ran.

But how could he run while carrying someone? He had to look back every few steps to see if anyone was following.

"Bang!"

Feeling Jing Yongjie twitch on his back, Han Zhan fired a shot behind him.

"Bang!"

This shot took down another person.

Han Zhan didn't dare check if the person he hit was dead; he turned and kept running.

Heaven never closes all doors; even a blind sparrow can find food.

Just as he reached the street entrance, he saw a sidecar motorcycle parked by the side of the road.

It hadn't been there when they arrived, and the keys were still in the ignition. It must have been ridden by the people who were shooting at them.

Han Zhan threw the motionless Jing Yongjie into the sidecar, got on the motorcycle himself, kicked it to life, and rode toward the city.

Although a few more gunshots rang out behind him, Han Zhan had no time to return fire. Jing Yongjie in the sidecar looked truly terrible.

His face, exposed to the air, was unrecognizable; the sand-shot had left it black, and then it was covered in blood.

Han Zhan didn't know how Jing Yongjie was doing elsewhere, but his eyes were likely gone.

No one could survive a direct hit from a sand-shot gun and keep their eyes intact.

Li Xuewu climbed the stairs with Liu Zhaolun, checked the door number, and confirmed this was the place he was looking for.

"Knock, knock."

Li Xuewu knocked three times before there was any movement inside.

"Who is it?"

"Hello, I'm a colleague of Li Kezhang Fu. There's an urgent case at the Steel Mill that he needs to handle, and we can't find him."

"Click."

The lock clicked open, and a woman in her fifties pushed the door open.

"Why are you coming here to look for Haibo?"

That was the first thing the woman said upon opening the door, and her tone was very unfriendly.

Li Xuewu smiled and said, "Li Kezhang Fu never told us where he lived. We actually got this address from our leader."

The woman frowned and asked, "Are you from the Steel Mill?"

Li Xuewu took out his security credentials, gestured with them, and said, "Yes, Auntie. We are indeed in a hurry; the people over there are waiting for Li Kezhang Fu to make a decision."

Seeing Li Xuewu's red credentials and hearing his Northeastern accent, the woman nodded and said, "He doesn't live here. I'm his mother-in-law. He lives at No. 17 Guancun Street. You should go look for him there."

"Alright, thank you, Auntie."

As he spoke, Li Xuewu politely said goodbye and went downstairs.

After exiting the building with Liu Zhaolun, Li Xuewu signaled for Liu Zhaolun to get on the motorcycle quickly.

"No. 17 Guancun Street."

Liu Zhaolun kicked the motorcycle to life, twisted the throttle, and rode out of the residential area.

"Li Kezhang, do we have a lead?"

Because of the strong wind, Liu Zhaolun had to shout. Li Xuewu didn't want to talk against the wind, so he patted Liu Zhaolun's leg to signal him to keep driving.

Liu Zhaolun smiled knowingly; they finally had news.

Li Xuewu hadn't paid much attention to the address Fu Haibo's mother-in-law gave him at first, but as he got off the bike to ask for directions, the looks on the passersby's faces told him that place wasn't simple.

When they arrived, he could see even more clearly how different this Guancun Street area was.

It was like an American-style villa district, with American-style architecture mixed with Chinese elements.

This must have been a building complex left over from before the Liberation, similar to the situation at his own place, No. 1 Haiyun Road.

Detached two-story villas, small courtyards enclosed by white wooden fences, and an iron swing in a courtyard covered in white snow.

Liu Zhaolun parked the motorcycle in front of the villa, and Li Xuewu got off and stood at the gate, looking it over for a few moments.

Just as he was about to knock, he saw the villa door pushed open. A man walked out looking somewhat flustered, followed by a tall woman with a rosy complexion.

Seeing Li Xuewu and Liu Zhaolun standing in front of the wooden fence gate, the woman frowned, opened the gate to let the man out first, and then asked Li Xuewu, "Who are you looking for?"

The man who walked out glanced at Li Xuewu, but seeing Li Xuewu's sharp gaze, he lowered his head and walked away.

Li Xuewu watched the man's back, saw him enter the neighboring courtyard, then turned his head to look at the woman in front of him and asked, "Is this Li Kezhang Fu's home?"

The woman was clearly taken aback by Li Xuewu's question, but she replied, "How did you find this place?"

Li Xuewu put his hand into the pocket of his leather jacket, watched the woman's expression, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Your mother told us."

The woman was very annoyed by Li Xuewu's rudeness and said in a cold tone, "Fu Haibo is not home. You should go look for him at his unit."

As she spoke, she glared at Li Xuewu and prepared to close the door.

Li Xuewu reached out and pushed against the wooden gate, tilted his head slightly, and said, "Then I'll have a chat with you."

The woman pushed hard on the door, but seeing she couldn't close it, she said irritably, "I don't even know you, what is there to chat about?"

"Oh, there's plenty to chat about~!"