"Stop!" Zhou Changke's expression changed drastically, and he abruptly blocked their path. "What are you doing?! This is outrageous! This is against discipline! Get back here right now!"
Is this going to escalate things?!
"Old Zhou! Get out of the way!" the lead officer roared, his eyes red. "We're here to avenge Captain Sheng! To force that kid out! If you really care about Captain Sheng, then don't stop us!"
"Yes! Move aside!" Other officers also surrounded them, their emotions running high.
Yuan Guoyao's eyes flickered, but he ultimately remained silent. Instead, he stepped forward and subtly pulled Zhou Changke aside. His silence was undoubtedly a tacit agreement.
Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. As long as we can rescue Sheng Xu, or at least prevent those inside from destroying the evidence, some means are acceptable.
As Zhou Changke watched Yuan Guoyao's actions, his heart sank. He knew that he wasn't a core figure within the system, and at this moment, his words carried little weight.
As he watched several police officers rush out of the hospital, he could only lean helplessly against the wall, close his eyes, and have only one prayer left in his heart.
Xu Kuo, faster! Even faster! You must succeed!
......
Meanwhile, in a village dozens of miles away, the scene in Xu Kuo's newly built brick house was quite different.
In the kitchen, Jiang Xiuying was wearing an apron and busily preparing dinner. Meat was stewing in a pot, emitting an enticing aroma.
In the living room, a dim kerosene lamp was lit, and Liu Yuan, a rural female teacher, was chatting with Ren Hongmei, Xu Kuo's mother, on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).
Liu Yuan spoke in a gentle voice, recounting amusing anecdotes from school. Ren Hongmei was occasionally amused, a satisfied smile on her face. The room was filled with a simple yet warm atmosphere.
Suddenly, a cacophony of footsteps and barking dogs broke the tranquility of the village.
"What's going on?" Ren Hongmei looked up in confusion.
Before they could react, the courtyard gate was violently pushed open with a loud bang!
Several police officers in uniform, with gloomy faces and covered in dust and exuding a menacing aura, barged in!
Behind them, a large number of villagers who had heard the commotion and rushed over to see what was going on quickly gathered, craning their necks and discussing among themselves.
The lead officer's sharp gaze swept across the courtyard, and when he saw the several brand-new red brick and tile houses, a look of disdain and knowingness flashed in his eyes.
This house stands out conspicuously among the surrounding low and dilapidated mud-brick houses!
Hmph! Just as I expected! Where did he get so much money to build such a nice house at such a young age?
They must have made their ill-gotten gains by following Wang Ming and his gang!
"Officers, what are you doing here..." A bolder villager stepped forward and asked cautiously.
The lead officer snorted coldly, his gaze sweeping over the villagers watching. He deliberately raised his voice, speaking in a judgmental tone.
"Hmph! Xu Kuo, the 'capable man' of your village, has committed a serious crime of murder! He's now on the run and hiding! We suspect his family members are accomplices, and we're taking them away for investigation!"
"What?!"
The villagers who were watching were instantly in an uproar, their faces filled with shock and disbelief!
"Xu Kuo... killed someone?!"
"My God! How is this possible? He looks like a very honest and upright young man!"
"I knew it! There was definitely something fishy about their sudden construction of such a nice brick house!"
In the crowd, Li Tie, who had previously bet with Xu Kuo on corn yield, suddenly lit up and jumped out, spitting as he led the cursing.
"Pah! I knew he was no good! So young and already doing all sorts of crooked things! Growing weird corn and building a new house! Where did he get the money? He must have killed and robbed it! This kind of scum should have been arrested and shot long ago! Officers, arrest his mother too! They're definitely in cahoots!"
Li Tie's incitement immediately drew the support of many villagers, and in an instant, all sorts of harsh curses and speculations poured towards the brick house with its lights on.
Li Tie's curses, which were meant to incite trouble, instantly ignited the villagers' pent-up doubts and inexplicable panic!
"Yes! Li Tie is right! The houses were definitely built with dirty money!"
"I knew he was just a young kid, how could he have such great skills? Turns out he's been doing such heinous things!"
"Shoot him! He must be shot! Keeping this kind of person in the village is a disaster!"
All sorts of foul language and malicious speculations were hurled at the brick house that appeared particularly isolated and helpless in the night.
"Shut the fuck up!"
The lead officer, annoyed by the commotion, suddenly roared and swept his fierce gaze across the villagers watching. The menacing aura he exuded from the hospital silenced many of them instantly.
A bunch of fools, but that's perfect, that's the effect I wanted. Let's see if that kid still dares to hide!
He turned around, ignoring the villagers, raised his hand, and pounded on the brand-new wooden door with such force that it seemed he was going to tear the door panel off!
The three people inside were quite startled by the sudden turn of events and the shouts and curses outside.
"Who is it? Why are you banging on the door so late?" Ren Hongmei stood up uneasily, her heart pounding.
Liu Yuan's face also turned a little pale. She walked to the door and peeked out through the crack. She could only see shadowy figures and the color of uniforms, as well as the suppressed noise outside.
She took a deep breath, composed herself, and reached out to pull the latch.
Unexpectedly, the person standing at the door was a police officer?
What happened?
"Squeak—"
The door was just opened a crack!
"Charge in!" the lead officer ordered.
"Bang!" A group of police officers, seething with anger, suddenly burst through the door and stormed in, looking menacing!
Liu Yuan was knocked back by the enormous force. Before he could react, two police officers roughly grabbed his arms and twisted them behind his back!
"Ah!" she exclaimed.
"Police officers! What are you doing?!" Ren Hongmei was terrified and rushed forward to try to pull the officers away.
"Behave yourself!" Another police officer shoved the old lady aside without any politeness. Ren Hongmei lost her balance and fell to the ground with a thud.
"Hands on your head! Crouch down!" A cold, authoritative voice rang out.
Liu Yuan and Ren Hongmei, who were completely terrified, had never seen anything like this before. In fear and humiliation, they could only tremble and cover their heads with their hands, slowly squatting down.
"Police officers... what... what happened?" Liu Yuan's voice was trembling with fear as he asked.
Just then, Jiang Xiuying, who was busy in the kitchen, heard a loud commotion and exclamations from the living room, and rushed out with a spatula in hand.
"What's wrong?!"
When she saw the scene in the living room, she froze instantly!
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