"Damn it, these guys are definitely the same ones from last time. Too bad we didn't catch them, or I'd have them skinned alive," Supervisor Gu said, angrily pounding the frame of the department store door after the black-clad figures had disappeared.
With that one blow, the already damaged door frame nearly came off.
Seeing this, Supervisor Gu quickly stepped aside, asking an employee to find someone to repair the door. After all, the door was the face of the department store, and it couldn't be seen in disrepair.
The employee acknowledged and turned to leave. The dozen or so security guards standing behind Supervisor Gu all clenched their fists, simmering with indignation.
"Supervisor, these people are from the Tiger Dragon Gang, and they're also Zhu Lao Si's men."
"Supervisor, I know them, they're from the Tiger Dragon Gang."
"I heard Zhu Lao Si got out this morning."
Hearing this, Supervisor Gu froze. He turned and grabbed the last security guard who spoke, "What did you just say? Zhu Lao Si is out?"
This was impossible. They had submitted evidence of Zhu Lao Si's illegal activities and crimes. How could he possibly be out?
"It's true, my friend saw him."
The security guard, whose arm Supervisor Gu had grabbed, stammered his reply, his injured face bruised.
He didn't understand why the supervisor was so surprised that Zhu Lao Si was out. In his opinion, it would be strange if Zhu Lao Si *wasn't* out.
No matter how serious the crimes the Tiger Dragon Gang committed in the past, Zhu Lao Si always got away with it. It was impossible that he wouldn't get out this time.
If Supervisor Gu could hear the security guard's thoughts, he would have said that this time was different. This time, they had found enough evidence of Zhu Lao Si's crimes to put him away for life. There was no way he should be out.
But Zhu Lao Si was indeed out. This could only mean that Zhu Lao Si had immense power, so much so that Supervisor Gu didn't know what to do. He could only wait for the boss to arrive.
Fortunately, he knew the boss would be there soon, so he waited outside for Zhang Liunian to arrive.
Meanwhile, Zhang Liunian, who had not long entered the provincial city, encountered a group of menacing roadblocks halfway. The leader was Zhu Lao Si, the same person Supervisor Gu had mentioned.
Zhang Liunian narrowed his eyes as he looked at Zhu Lao Si, who was standing in front of his car, leisurely smoking a cigar. He was out?
The evidence of his crimes was more than enough for him to face severe punishment, yet why was Zhu Lao Si out?
Zhang Liunian thought for a moment and had a direction. Perhaps the evidence hadn't been submitted, or perhaps there was someone within their ranks.
"Long time no see, Comrade Zhang Liunian." Zhu Lao Si, seeing Zhang Liunian's surprised expression inside the car, exhaled a smoke ring with great pleasure. He then rested one hand on the car window and greeted Zhang Liunian.
Zhang Liunian glanced at him, remaining silent.
Zhu Lao Si was not angered. He continued to provoke, "Are you very disappointed to see me here?"
Zhang Liunian still said nothing. He wanted to see what else Zhu Lao Si had to say.
Zhu Lao Si did not disappoint him and continued, "In the future, I will disappoint you even more and make you understand who is truly in charge in the provincial city."
It wasn't that easy to bring down Zhu Lao Si. Did Zhang Liunian think that evidence alone was enough?
Too naive. Did he really think Zhu Lao Si would dare to be so arrogant without any backup? How was that possible? He had brothers who helped him strategize. Even if he lacked the brains, his brothers had them.
This was precisely how he managed to get out, relying on the hidden arrangements his brothers had made.
"How can someone who walks the dark path be the king of the provincial city? You flatter yourself too much," Zhang Liunian couldn't stand Zhu Lao Si describing himself as king and couldn't help but retort.
This remark truly angered Zhu Lao Si. He had always considered himself the most powerful person in the provincial city, and no one had ever dared to speak ill of him or deny his assertion. Therefore, hearing Zhang Liunian's words, his expression instantly changed. He took the unfinished cigar and fiercely pressed it against the car window, saying, "A newborn calf fears no tiger. It seems you need a little lesson."
With that, he waved his hand and retreated, clearly intending to cede the spotlight to the group behind him.
Seeing this, Zhang Liunian thought another fight was about to break out and was about to go out to brawl. Unexpectedly, these people suddenly rushed forward and, without a word, flipped his car. They continued to push, like rolling a log, directly sending Zhang Liunian's car tumbling into a ditch from one end to the other.
However, Zhang Liunian and the others inside the car were naturally not spared. They tumbled from top to bottom, finally landing in the ditch. Fortunately, they weren't submerged in water, or they would have become drenched rats.
Thinking of this, Zhang Liunian felt a pang of frustration. He hadn't expected Zhu Lao Si to use such a disgusting tactic against him. He scrambled out of the car, only to hear Zhu Lao Si mockingly throw a parting shot, "Zhang Liunian, I have one more surprise for you. Go check the department store quickly!"
After saying this, he put his hands in his pockets and turned to leave.
Zhang Liunian wanted to climb up and catch him, but there were several people still in the car, and he couldn't abandon them. He went to the front and first pulled Zhang Qian out, then rescued the two sons of Old Guo Tou. By the time he looked back, Zhu Lao Si and his group were long gone.
"Brother Liunian, why is Zhu Lao Si out? Didn't we submit the evidence Uncle Yi found?" Zhang Qian, having accompanied Zhang Liunian in his ventures in the provincial city, naturally knew that Zhu Lao Si shouldn't be here, yet he clearly was.
"Yes, how is he out? We found both witnesses and evidence. He shouldn't be out..." Zhang Liunian muttered, then suddenly remembered that Tang Guo had also disappeared inexplicably last time. Afterward, the police began searching for her whereabouts, which clearly wasn't a legitimate release. Now it was Zhu Lao Si. The two incidents, put together, made him even more suspicious that the police station had people from the Zhu family.
Otherwise, there was no explanation for why they were released after being apprehended.
Of course, it was also possible that they had someone higher up. But logically, that was impossible. If they truly had someone higher up, no one would dare to apprehend them, nor would they have searched for them after their departure.
Therefore, Zhang Liunian concluded that the most likely scenario was that their helper was within the police station.
It seemed that to ensure Zhu Lao Si was imprisoned permanently, they needed to find that helper. This task should be left to Uncle Yi; he was skilled at such things.
"Brother Liunian, earlier he said he had a surprise for you and told you to go to the department store. What does that mean? Could he have done something else?" Zhang Qian saw Zhang Liunian's words trail off and then remembered Zhu Lao Si's parting words.
"The department store might be in trouble again. I'll go check. You guys fix the car," Zhang Liunian, worried about a major incident at the department store, straightened his clothes, said this, and left.