Both directors were startled but didn't move.
Their reaction actually made the two gunmen pause momentarily.
Something's wrong!
Simultaneously from inside and outside the door, numerous people rushed out, immediately pinning the two men to the ground. Their guns were somehow already seized, and they were left panting heavily, each with at least three strong police officers pressing down on them, unable to even lift a finger.
"You're under arrest!"
...
When You Mingxu and her team arrived at the television station, the police had already wrapped up their operation, and most of the audience had been evacuated.
Below the building stood a dense crowd of police officers. Police cars with flashing lights surrounded the entire building.
You Mingxu remarked, "It seems things went quite smoothly."
Yin Feng stood beside her: "Feeling pretty good about being the oriole stalking the mantis?"
You Mingxu thought to herself, just a few days ago, you were the dying cicada. Despair seemed to last only a moment for this man. As soon as he straightened his back, the situation reversed dramatically behind him.
In the end, You Mingxu only murmured, "Justice has long arms."
They had been quite lucky—the arrests at both locations had gone smoothly. Otherwise, if the Punishers had actually managed to infiltrate the studio, who knew what might have happened? There were 200 audience members present! And it was a confined space. This showed how meticulous the Punishers' original plan had been.
At that moment, Ding Xiongwei had already met with the deputy chief in charge of the scene. The deputy chief reported, "We've arrested a total of 12 people—6 of them are on the wanted list, and 6 are unidentified. All were carrying weapons. This is a resounding victory!"
Ding Xiongwei immediately turned to ask You Mingxu, "According to her black notebook... how many people were deployed tonight?"
You Mingxu remembered clearly: "13 people."
Everyone fell silent.
Yin Feng was the first to speak: "Is Yin Chen among them?"
As soon as the arrests were made, the deputy chief immediately sent people to carefully verify the identities. Soon, the response came—
"Yin Chen isn't here!"
This time, without Yin Feng having to ask again, the deputy chief immediately ordered another search of the entire building for Yin Chen.
Yin Feng suddenly turned and walked away. You Mingxu caught up with him and saw his cold expression.
He said, "They won't catch him!" Clenching his teeth, he added, "He's always been exceptionally alert. Maybe he fled as soon as the police showed up; or maybe he had another way of detecting the movements on Fan Shuhua's side."
You Mingxu also felt somewhat frustrated, but she knew that the results achieved tonight were already a tremendous success. She grabbed his hand and said, "Alright, don't be upset! The outcome is already very good—he's the only one left!"
Yin Feng sneered twice. Meeting her gaze, he was eventually soothed and said calmly, "When cutting weeds, remove the roots—or they'll grow back with the spring breeze!"
For some reason, his words made You Mingxu laugh. She held his hand and said, "I only know that when soldiers come, we block them; when water comes, we divert it."
Yin Feng turned and planted a firm kiss on her forehead, almost like a bite, with a hint of fierceness. You Mingxu was stunned for a moment, but he had already turned his face away.
That night, the police's final operation against the Punisher Organization came to a close.
The founder and leader of the Punisher Organization, the renowned criminal psychologist Professor Fan Shuhua, confessed to her crimes without reservation. Beyond that, she refused to provide any further clues and declined to communicate or interact with anyone.
Twelve members of the Punisher Organization were captured. According to Fan Shuhua's notebook, these were the last remaining forces of the Punishers.Yin Chen was confirmed to be at large, and the police issued a nationwide warrant. Within Xiangcheng, the search efforts were intensified, with a massive deployment of police forces launching a dragnet-like pursuit.
The Punisher Organization was declared completely eradicated. The police achieved a resounding victory, marking a significant chapter in the history of the provincial police force's campaign against organized crime.
—
A few days later.
The young officers at the police station, having been granted a rare three-day break, all went out drinking to celebrate.
Ding Xiongwei declined all invitations to dinners and drinking parties, staying in his office instead. Late at night, most people on this floor had already left, and the surroundings were quiet.
Ding Xiongwei turned on the desk lamp and sat at his desk. Piled in front of him was a thick stack of documents related to the Punisher case.
On his left were photocopies of those black softcover notebooks. He flipped through them for a while, though he had long since familiarized himself with the details of these criminals' actions from the case files. Gradually, he stopped focusing on the content of the text and instead stared at the handwriting itself. Row after row of familiar, delicate handwriting. Yet what it recorded was a twisted and evil soul.
Ding Xiongwei lowered his head, lit a cigarette, and smoked quietly.
On his right, however, was a stack of documents that had never been made public. These were confiscated from the Punishers during the operation that night.
The Punishers had even brought a group of actors, planning to perform in the studio—truly driven to madness. However, those actors were unaware of the criminals' identities, believing they had been invited by the television station. What Ding Xiongwei obtained were the scripts the Punishers had prepared for the actors.
What they intended to present on stage, in front of television audiences, was a story from many years ago.
In the story, there was an innocent little girl who had been abducted.
There was a selfish and heartless father, and a weak but kind-hearted mother. There were those seeking revenge for years of injustice, and others who were wolves in sheep's clothing, hiding dark hearts. Thus, there was blood, fear, death, and perseverance.
The final scene of the story was the little girl, standing in a pool of blood, before the bodies of her loved ones, wailing uncontrollably. And all the evil had been slain.
...
Fan Shuhua refused to explain the purpose of presenting this story to the world. Coupled with the failure of the Punishers' plan, no one could delve deeper into this story.
Ding Xiongwei, however, carefully examined the story's background. He discovered that if the surviving little girl had grown up, she would now be...
Additionally, according to the contents of the black softcover notebook labeled "Television Station," performing this story was only the first step in the Punishers' plan. Next, they had planned a series of horrifying criminal actions, intending to take 200 audience members hostage, questioning good and evil, torturing souls, with cruel and dark methods... But now, with the destruction of the Punisher Organization, those sacrificial performances and crimes would remain forever sealed, unknown to the world.
For the police, this was the best outcome.
Ding Xiongwei slowly finished his cigarette. Finally, he locked all the documents in a cabinet, humming a sad tune he had picked up from somewhere, and went downstairs alone to head home.
—
Ding Xiongwei was right. Tonight, for these detectives who had pursued the Punishers for many days, it was a rare, exhilarating celebration and indulgence.They didn't pick any special location, just a hot pot restaurant near the police station known for good quality, low prices, and generous portions. You Mingxu, Xu Mengshan, and their team sat together at a full table. They had piled up ten plates each of lamb and beef slices alone. There was no helping it—Ding Xiongwei had said he would foot the bill.
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