Chapter 108 Stray Dog's Surprise Attack 2 Quick, the boss wants us to go a few more times...

The police searched this mountainous area yesterday, with police dogs present. If the severed hand had been there, it would have been impossible for it not to have been discovered.

That means it can only appear at night.

Qiu Xiaoman exchanged a glance with the two men and quickly deduced several possibilities—

The robbery gang had internal strife, and the severed hand belonged to one of the robbers.

The hunter who led the way betrayed them and was purged; the severed hand belonged to the hunter.

Other unrelated people broke into the mountains in the middle of the night and were killed by robbers. The severed hand belonged to the innocent intruder.

A police officer acted without authorization and was killed; the severed hand belonged to the officer.

In either case, going into the mountains to search now will most likely yield some clues.

It was only a little past six o'clock, and most of the officers, except for those on the night shift, hadn't gotten up yet. Besides, by the time the police force arrived, the robbers might have already left.

The best course of action is to first call the duty room and request that officers be urgently assembled to provide support, and then they can proceed into the mountains first.

Unfortunately, Qiu Xiaoman and his team only came with three people and three untrained stray dogs. Even though these three dogs were familiar with the mountains, their obedience to commands was not as good as that of professional police dogs.

If a glutton like Xiao Tuo causes any trouble, it will only backfire.

Moreover, if they actually encounter the robbers, how can they possibly defeat them with just two guns?

No matter what they did, there was danger, and no solution was foolproof. For a moment, the three of them stared at each other, sweating profusely with anxiety.

Finally, Qiu Xiaoman suggested a different approach: "How about this, I'll find more dogs and set up ambushes on all the mountain paths leading in and out of this area. If we encounter robbers, they shouldn't rush in to attack, but rather secretly follow them until reinforcements arrive, then we can wipe them out in one fell swoop. This way, we can just stay on the outskirts of this mountain area for now, and we're unlikely to run into the robbers. By the time the robbers are ready to move, the reinforcements will have arrived."

"Alright, then call the duty room quickly." Liu Xuezheng was more supportive of this plan, since they were only setting up an ambush on the outer mountain road, which was much safer.

It wasn't that he was afraid of death, but there was a special talent in the team, Qiu Xiaoman, and he had to consider her safety.

Qiu Xiaoman nodded and quickly notified the police team to assemble immediately. After briefly explaining the situation, she hung up the phone and instructed, "I'll go find more stray dogs. You two, don't wander off, wait for me."

Ten minutes later, Qiu Xiaoman arrived with more than twenty stray dogs of all sizes. A few others had gone to other parts of the city to call for their dog friends and had not yet come.

She stopped in front of the drainage ditch where she was hiding at the intersection and whispered, "Wait five more minutes, the more dogs the better."

After all, stray dogs are very deceptive. Most people would never think that stray dogs would do things for the police. Even if the robbers really encountered a few stray dogs, they would just assume that the dogs were starving and had come into the mountains to find food.

Liu Xuezheng and Wu Shirong exchanged a glance. "Let's wait another five minutes," they said. "There are many narrow paths in this mountainous area. If we set up an ambush at every intersection, we will definitely need more dogs."

Soon, a lame yellow dog led seven or eight stray dogs over. They were all skin and bones and looked pitiful.

After this case is over, regardless of whether these dogs have made any contributions, Qiu Xiaoman plans to find them adoptive families.

She can't just take someone's dog and then abandon them; she can't be that heartless.

A little while later, a black dog missing its left ear led five or six dogs and two stray cats over. They were all dirty and pitiful, living near garbage cans and sewers.

Qiu Xiaoman talked to them and found that more than 80% of them were abandoned by humans, one or two had gotten lost on their own, and the rest were second-generation homeless people.

The survival rate of second-generation strays is very low. After all, the first generation has been fed by humans for a period of time, and their most vulnerable period has ended. But the second generation is different. They have to face the worst living environment from birth. It is considered good if one out of ten survives to grow up.

This data is truly heartbreaking. With such a vast country, Qiu Xiaoman simply cannot manage everything. All she can do is try her best to keep an eye on these dogs in front of her.

A minute later, a spotted dog with a broken tail led about ten dogs over, followed by six stray cats. Because cats are not very obedient, the spotted dog only mobilized these few to help. The others didn't quite believe him. After all, how could any human possibly understand cats and dogs? It was simply a fantasy.

They all live near the market, and their living conditions are better than those of dogs and cats raised in garbage cans. They are also a little chubby and look more presentable.

However, even so, they were still much thinner than the police dogs in the police force and Mimi from Wu Shirong's family.

Qiu Xiaoman chatted briefly with them, promising to bring them a better life afterward. Then she took stock of the cats and dogs, assigned tasks, and prepared to go into the mountains.

Qiu Xiaoman also made sure to arrange the assembly signal – once a gunshot is heard, no matter where the dogs and cats are, they must all rush to the sound of the gunshot immediately.

The dogs and cats all came from humble beginnings. Now that they've seen a human who can communicate with them and has promised to find them adoptive families, they immediately perk up, wagging their tails, breathing out warm air, and rubbing their hands together, ready to make their mark.

Qiu Xiaoman was deeply moved. When she has time, she will set up a few relief stations to the best of her ability. Although an individual's strength is small, it will always attract like-minded people to join.

One becomes ten, ten becomes a hundred, a hundred becomes a thousand...

Just as grains of sand can form a tower, and rivers can form a sea, one day there will be no more tragedies of abandonment or homelessness in this world.

Qiu Xiaoman took a deep breath and gave a command. Soon, fifty or sixty stray dogs and cats dispersed into the hazy morning light.

Qiu Xiaoman, Liu Xuezheng, and Wu Shirong each led a few dogs and cats and headed towards several main roads.

To ensure Qiu Xiaoman's safety, the two men disagreed with the three of them splitting up, so they had to go together to block the most frequently used road.

As Qiu Xiaoman walked, she removed the battery from the mobile phone to prevent the people on duty from calling her and disturbing the robbers.

By the time the three of them, along with their dogs and cats, had taken cover in the roadside bushes, the police force had almost assembled.

Qiu Xiaoman touched the dry grass on her head and whispered, "I don't think they're likely to go this way. If there's still no movement after a while, we'll go to the path leading to the back mountain."

"Okay." Liu Xuezheng had no objections. They had already done their best, and whether they could catch the culprit was up to luck.

About ten minutes later, footsteps could be heard in the distance. A man lowered his voice and muttered, "Are you sure that guy is running this way?"

Another man whispered, "We're not sure. Let's search around. If he escapes and alerts us, we're all doomed."

“He lost an arm, so there should be blood on the ground, but there isn’t. I have a feeling we’re going in the wrong direction.”

"Who cares? Anyway, people are chasing us on the other two roads, so let's take the main road."

"What if they catch up? Kill them?"

"What else? Keep him around to report the crime?"

"Hey, why did he have to do that? It's all the fault of those policemen yesterday, they made such a commotion and scared him."

"He was forced into this by the boss, so it's normal for him to turn against us. Hey, stop talking. There's a cave over there. Let's go take a look. That beast might be hiding inside."

Then came the rustling sound of shoveling through the bushes and weeds, heading towards a cave on the left.

Qiu Xiaoman glanced at the cats in the group, but had no intention of cooperating with them for the time being. After all, cats' thinking was too unpredictable. They might see a few insects during the chase and then go after the insects. Qiu Xiaoman didn't dare to take the risk.

She placed her bet on the rabbit, whispering, "Hey, little guy, you take two dogs and quietly follow them. Don't show yourselves. If you see someone with a missing hand, don't make a sound. Just send one of the dogs back to tell me."

The rabbit twitched her long, thin ears and whispered, "No problem, leave it to me."

As she spoke, she chose one that was petite, making it easier to lie in wait, and one that was muscular, making it easier to act as a henchman in times of crisis.

Then they crawled together toward the cave.

Qiu Xiaoman held her breath, strained her ears, and kept an eye on the direction from which the group of people had come, just in case.

Soon, cursing and swearing came from the cave. The two men hadn't found the traitor, but they were startled by the leopard that was dozing in the cave. They screamed and ran away with their heads in their hands. They came out a moment later, panting and looking like they were about to wet themselves.

Qiu Xiaoman didn't move, but squinted at the direction of Rabbit and the others, wondering if they would follow.

It's all her fault. She forgot there might be wild animals in the cave, and she overestimated the courage of these two men. She didn't expect them to be such cowards.

Hopefully, the rabbit will be a little smarter and know to follow.

After all, she's a bit far from the rabbit right now, so she can't get the message over in time.

Just as she was getting worried, she noticed the rabbits' change in trajectory and breathed a sigh of relief. Wow, that handsome dog is really quick-witted.

The rabbit, accompanied by two dogs, one big and one small, had already quietly caught up. Not forgetting to stop, it turned back, squinted at Qiu Xiaoman, and stuck out its tongue.

She's so cute! I really don't know how her owner could bear to abandon her.

Qiu Xiaoman waited patiently, and about ten minutes later, the small yellow dog returned: "Hey, human, good news, we've found more humans."

"Oh?" Qiu Xiaoman exchanged a glance with Liu Xuezheng and Wu Shirong: "Let's go, follow them."

But the little yellow dog added, "By the way, the boss told me to tell you that the humans over there have several guns, both long and short."

That's it, following them would be incredibly dangerous.

The two men immediately shook their heads in opposition, but Qiu Xiaoman decided to give it a try. The Taihang Mountains are so vast; if they were let go today, who knows when they would meet again?

Why not take a gamble? After all, she's a woman. Once she's out of uniform, who would think she's a threat?

She immediately stood up, took off her uniform and handed it to Wu Shirong: "You two stay here and wait for the main force. I'll go and meet them."

Before the two men could react, Qiu Xiaoman had already dashed out: "Let's go! Custard Bun, lead the way!"

"Creamy Bun" is the name she gave to her little yellow dog. It's tiny, cute, and a perfect match for her.

Custard Bun immediately followed, not forgetting to call out to a few more dogs: "Quick, the boss told us to send more to protect this human!"

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The author's note: The survival rate of second-generation stray dogs is less than 10%, making them a very pitiful group. I hope everyone will not abandon them. If circumstances truly do not allow it, please find another adoptive family before ending your relationship with the dog.