Chapter 216 Catching a Turtle in a Jar: A Counterattack

She only wanted to ruin Su Yue's reputation and make those medicines disappear without a trace. She never thought that things would involve such a serious crime as "treason"!

Once those two words are mentioned, not only her, but her entire family will be skinned alive!

A crack appeared in her psychological defenses.

Just then, the office door was suddenly pushed open.

Gu Beixiao rushed in like a gust of wind, his face showing an unusual seriousness and excitement.

"Second Brother! We have a new lead!"

He ignored Yun Lan, who was present, and walked straight to Gu Beichen's side, lowering his voice.

“My friend at the port said that a group of people recently smuggled in from overseas. They all claimed to be fishermen visiting relatives, but they were all incredibly strong and generous. Their behavior was very strange, and they only operated at the docks and in the black market.”

Gu Beichen listened, and Su Yue on the other end of the phone listened to every single word.

stowaways... Zhou Qihang missing... Yun Lan... explosives...

A bold, almost insane guess instantly formed in Su Yue's mind.

Her breathing quickened slightly.

Zhou Qihang did not defect, nor was he kidnapped.

He discovered the people behind Yunlan, and after realizing that he had been caught in this huge vortex and could not escape, he chose to track them down in his own way!

That note was his pledge of allegiance!

This man is a real man.

"Bei Chen." Su Yue's voice rang out again, this time with a hint of barely perceptible solemnity, "I've changed my mind."

Inside the interrogation room, Yunlan was still restless and uneasy because of the word "defection".

Gu Beichen hung up the phone and walked back to her.

"Yunlan".

He called her name.

"Just now, comrades from the mainland's discipline inspection department went to your parents' house and your brothers' workplaces for 'tea'."

These words were like the last straw, completely breaking Yunlan's spirit.

She suddenly stood up, causing the chair to overturn and make a loud, jarring sound.

"No! This has nothing to do with them! I did it all by myself!"

She finally broke down.

"Speak," Gu Beichen uttered only one word.

“It was a man… a very mysterious man who contacted me.” Yunlan trembled and spoke incoherently, “I don’t know who he is. He always called me from a public phone. He gave me the explosives, the transport route map, and he taught me how to do it!”

"He promised me that if things went well, he would send me to Hong Kong, give me a large sum of money, and let me live a life of luxury!"

"I was only responsible for carrying out the orders; I knew nothing else! I really knew nothing!"

She was in tears and looked utterly disheveled.

After listening, Gu Beichen dialed Su Yue's number again.

On the other end of the line, Su Yue's voice was frighteningly calm.

"Use their plan against them."

"Make her call that man right now."

"Tell him that the mission is complete, Su Yue's pharmaceutical factory's reputation is ruined, and now he is required to fulfill his promise."

"Let her arrange a place to make the deal."

Gu Beichen's instructions were concise and cold.

Under the watchful eyes of two female soldiers, Yunlan, her hands trembling, dialed the number she only dared to recall in her nightmares.

The phone rang only once before it was answered.

There was no sound from the other side, only deathly silence.

Following Gu Beichen's instructions, Yunlan mustered her courage and said in as calm a tone as possible, "The matter has been settled. Su Yue's goods all fell off the cliff. When will you send them to Hong Kong?"

The other side remained silent for a good ten seconds.

Just as Yunlan was about to be driven mad by this deathly silence, a cold, synthesized electronic voice, altered and indistinguishable in gender, finally rang out.

"very good."

"Half an hour later, we arrived at the abandoned lighthouse at South Bay Wharf."

"I came alone."

Just as Yunlan was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the electronic voice added another sentence, which made her feel as if she had fallen into an ice cave, and her blood instantly froze.

“If you dare to follow the tail, your husband will be stuffed into a sack and thrown into the sea.”

The call ended.

The interrogation room was deathly silent.

Yunlan held the microphone, her hands trembling uncontrollably. The words, "Your husband will be stuffed into a sack and sunk into the sea," still echoed in her ears.

She's finished.

She messed with someone she couldn't afford to offend.

Gu Beichen didn't look at her again and turned to walk out of the interrogation room.

Outside the door, Huo Shouzhen had been waiting for a long time. This veteran general, who had emerged from the flames of war, exuded an aura of calm and steadfastness.

"The plan has changed; the other side has taken hostages," Gu Beichen said succinctly.

Huo Shouzhen nodded, showing no surprise. "Then tighten the net even more."

The order was quickly relayed.

Nanwan Wharf, a secluded corner where only fishing boats usually dock, was transformed into a deadly battlefield within just twenty minutes.

The sea breeze is salty and damp.

On the abandoned warehouse at the highest point, two top snipers were already in position, their cold scopes locked onto the only entrance to the lighthouse.

Beneath the pitch-black sea, several frogmen, like ghosts, silently approached the base of the lighthouse, setting up a second line of defense underwater.

Outside the dock, two companies of troops had completed their encirclement, completely sealing off all escape routes.

A vast net has been quietly laid out, waiting for its prey to walk right in.

Gu Beichen and Huo Shouzheng sat in the makeshift command vehicle, watching the only path leading to the lighthouse through high-powered binoculars.

Time passed by, second by second.

A figure appeared at the end of the path.

It's Yunlan.

She was wearing a thin hospital gown, shivering in the sea breeze, and walked with great difficulty, like a condemned prisoner walking to the execution ground.

She was the bait.

Gu Beichen picked up the walkie-talkie, preparing to issue instructions to all units.

Just then, another figure appeared in the telescope's field of view.

The man was dressed in tattered fisherman's clothes and wore a straw hat pulled low. He followed Yunlan furtively, keeping a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

Gu Beichen's finger stopped on the call button.

He adjusted the focus and zoomed in.

Beneath the straw hat was a weathered, stubble-covered face.

Despite his haggard appearance, the familiar silhouette made Gu Beichen's breath catch in his throat for a moment.

Zhou Qihang!

He did not die, nor was he taken hostage!

He actually kept following behind!

Huo Shouzhen also saw it and put down his binoculars. "Interesting. It seems we all underestimated this Deputy Regiment Commander Zhou."

Inside the abandoned lighthouse.

A blonde, blue-eyed woman with a stunning figure was leaning against a rusty spiral staircase, slowly wiping a strangely shaped dagger.

She is Elena.

Yunlan pushed open the heavy iron door and walked in.

"I'm here, you promised me..."