Chapter 99: Suspected Target Locked
by xennovelChapter 99: Suspected Target Locked
Xiao Yu’s heart skipped a beat.
A deep, inexplicable pain surged through his chest.
A police officer had just died.
Perhaps his death was partly due to his own negligence.
But after all, he was a police officer!
Xiao Yu paused the surveillance feed and picked up a file.
Zhao Jun, 34 years old…
He graduated from the police academy at 22.
At 23, he was assigned as an intern.
By 24, he became a full-fledged officer.
In just five years, he had cracked dozens of cases.
Although most were minor, he was still only a police officer.
At 29, Zhao Jun received an internal warning.
For what reason?
On the day of his wife’s birthday, he took his wife and child to a restaurant celebration.
Midway through, his wife went to the restroom with their daughter.
A drunken man barged in and harassed his wife.
She clutched her daughter and fled, with the drunkard in hot pursuit.
Zhao Jun arrived on the scene.
A few drinks had clouded his judgment as he processed the situation.
Seeing the drunk man pulling at his wife and daughter right before his eyes…
Zhao Jun lost control and beat the man savagely.
Was he wrong?
Because of his position, he should have intervened rather than engaging in a mere brawl—indeed, he was at fault.
Yet, as a husband and father, what fault did he truly bear?
In the end, nefarious individuals leaked a cropped surveillance video of Zhao Jun’s incident online.
Unscrupulous media outlets fanned the flames, and online commentators began accusing him of stirring up trouble.
Only when the original video was released did the onlookers understand the truth.
But by then, it was too late.
Zhao Jun received an internal reprimand and was reassigned to the Detention Center.
Unless something unexpected happens, he might remain there until retirement.
But then…
A wife loses her husband; a child loses his father.
Xiao Yu’s face turned as cold as ice as he set Zhao Jun’s file down.
He pressed the play button on the video…
And unsurprisingly, nothing new emerged.
Inside the monitoring room, another prison guard had been killed in the same way by Lu Jia and Ma Hexuan.
They had snatched two sets of police uniforms from the guard’s locker, donned caps, and grabbed the guard’s keys and security card.
Then they escaped from the Detention Center…
The surveillance feed ended.
“The irregularities are right here!”
Xiao Yu muttered coldly, “This makes sense—Ma Hexuan couldn’t possibly be that familiar with the Detention Center. Only habitual offenders who know the ins and outs would understand it so well.”
“They know how to bribe the janitors, how to contact the wardens for the access map and layout blueprints, and even how to escape the cell…”
“The disinfectant was likely a ruse, meant to mask the odor released when the toilet was lifted. They normally hide the blueprints and weapon underneath. Why weren’t the blueprints taken? Because they memorized them. And the extra two toothbrushes—were they backup weapons?”
“The mastermind behind the jailbreak was never Ma Hexuan—it was Lu Jia!”
“I was careless at first, misled by the disinfectant and overestimating your cunning… the enemy’s strength truly lies in their wild imagination!”
“So now the question is: why did Lu Jia do this?”
“He was on the verge of completing his sentence—so why stage an escape? And why take Ma Hexuan along?”
“The trigger… still lies with Ma Hexuan!”
“This is further confirmed by the fact that both their escape from the Detention Center and the death of the girlfriend’s friend can be traced back to him.”
“So were the three accomplices Lu Jia’s men or Ma Hexuan’s?”
“And those three responders carried an unusual scent… what could it be?”
“Judging by the depth of their footprints, they were all very robust individuals… three strong men suddenly appeared and even kidnapped a woman, delivering her to Ma Hexuan… wait a minute.”
“During the jailbreak, Ma Hexuan was clearly frantic. It seemed he was forced into action by Lu Jia, didn’t it?”
“At one point, Lu Jia, with a menacing glare, said something to Ma Hexuan… a threat, perhaps?”
“From beginning to end, Lu Jia was the one pulling the strings. That being so, those three accomplices must be his men, right?”
“That doesn’t add up…”
Xiao Yu lifted his head, a splitting headache pounding his skull.
He felt his thoughts scattering in chaos.
How could a petty thief dare orchestrate a jailbreak with three kidnappers?
And… wasn’t that woman brutally tortured by them before being killed?
Suddenly.
Xiao Yu’s pupils contracted as his heart sank into despair. A possibility struck him.
A portable hard drive!
“Retrieve all surveillance footage from the Detention Center for the past three months!”
Xiao Yu issued the order.
Soon, the surveillance footage was laid out before him.
For a full five hours, Xiao Yu scrutinized the video.
His focus was on the footage of Lu Jia and Ma Hexuan.
Was he merely watching them?
No, he was checking everyone they had come into contact with.
Before long, one suspect was locked onto by Xiao Yu!
This man had been seen on Ma Hexuan’s third day in the Detention Center as a suspect.
On the fourth and fifth days, he constantly hovered around Ma Hexuan.
Until on the sixth day, he made the first move and contacted Ma Hexuan.
The two hid in the common restroom of the Detention Center, whispering unknown words.
Afterwards, Ma Hexuan stormed off in anger, with the man trailing closely behind…
On the eighth day, the man approached Ma Hexuan again.
This time, emerging from the restroom, Ma Hexuan’s face paled and he looked terrified.
Still, gritting his teeth with furious determination, Ma Hexuan left in a huff.
The man didn’t go after Ma Hexuan next; instead, he sought out… Lu Jia!
On the eleventh day, Lu Jia grew close to Ma Hexuan, tending to him attentively.
On the twelfth day, the man found Lu Jia again. The two conversed in the restroom in hushed tones.
Soon, Lu Jia emerged from the restroom wearing a grim expression.
At first, he seemed shattered, but then he appeared to make a resolute decision.
On the fifteenth day, the man left the Detention Center…
The very next day, Lu Jia met a familiar prison guard and introduced Ma Hexuan as a janitor.
On the eighteenth day, Ma Hexuan was reassigned to janitorial duties, becoming one of the custodians…
“So, the plan actually began at that moment!”
Xiao Yu hit the pause button, his eyes locking on one individual on the screen.
This was someone who had once met with both Ma Hexuan and Lu Jia.
Files and documents soon appeared before Xiao Yu.
Yang Zhichao, male, 31, a local… unemployed.
All his records were spotless, not even a criminal record.
Investigations revealed that unemployed Yang Zhichao never seemed short of cash.
He was a regular at upscale venues, well-connected, with many influential friends.
From corporate executives to company owners, and even heirs to fortunes…
Xiao Yu issued an order.
Arrest Yang Zhichao!
…
On the second day of February, during the Dragon Raising Its Head festival, he wished the readers good luck and great wealth!