After Su Die finished expressing her thanks, she walked out of the police station with Yang Xiong.
“Deputy Chief Yang, you don’t need to escort me. Those three bastards still need your attention.”
Su Die said this seriously.
Now that the corruption had been exposed, it was bound to stir up a bloody storm.
“You going back alone isn’t safe.”
Yang Xiong still wanted to see her off. After everything that happened today, any ordinary girl would have been mentally crushed.
“I can escort Sister home.”
A small, thin figure emerged from the corner.
“Why are you here?”
Su Die was surprised it was the little boy who had helped her earlier by calling the police.
Feng Tao looked up. “I was worried… that you’d end up like my second sister… so I called Uncle Zheng.”
Feng Tao’s second sister, Feng Yao, had been abducted by Xue Hu in broad daylight, locked in a cellar, and tortured for three days and nights.
Unable to endure the humiliation, she ultimately bit her tongue and died.
The Feng family was powerless and small; they simply couldn’t fight against the all-powerful Xue Hu and Liu Guangyao.
After Feng Yao died, Grandma Feng, long ailing, also passed away in bitterness.
From then on, Feng Tao dropped out of school and wandered around collecting evidence of Xue Hu’s crimes.
But he was still a child too weak to act alone.
“You called Deputy Director Zheng?” Su Die asked in surprise.
Feng Tao nodded, his voice choked. “Uncle Zheng’s niece was also victimized by Xue Hu. He came down from the provincial city specifically to deal with these scum.
Sister, you’re the first person in all these years capable of standing up to Xue Hu.”
Hearing this, Su Die felt as if a wet cotton ball was lodged in her chest, suffocating her.
Without the ability to protect herself, she would have suffered the same fate as Feng Yao and Uncle Zheng’s niece.
For such atrocious crimes to continue for so long… the darkness behind them must have been terrifying.
“Evil people will be brought to justice.”
Su Die’s words were not just for Feng Tao they were for herself and Yang Xiong as well.
Yang Xiong nodded heavily. “Exactly.”
Without further delay, Su Die pushed her bicycle and left with Feng Tao.
Feng Tao insisted on escorting her home, and Su Die did not refuse.
“Sister Su, can I come see you later?”
Looking at the frail yet determined boy, Su Die smiled: “Of course you and I are allies.”
“Okay, then I’ll go.”
“Wait… can you draw me a map…”
After Feng Tao’s thin figure disappeared into the darkness, Su Die finally turned back to enter the yard.
Two small dogs, already hungry, ran to her with soft, excited barks.
She heated up the leftover rice porridge from lunch and poured it into their bowls before entering her space.
First, fill the stomach, then analyze the detailed county map Feng Tao had drawn.
To be honest, Feng Tao had put in a lot of effort to avenge Feng Yao.
Even the locations of the scum’s homes were clearly mapped out.
It seemed tonight would be a sleepless night.
Xue Hu had been so arrogant and gotten away with major crimes for years because he had powerful backers.
Liu Guangyao and Qi Dazhuang needed no introduction; as for that police chief… a little investigation would reveal his true nature.
Su Die left safely; Xue Hu and his three accomplices were taken by Zheng Hongwei. Qi Dazhuang, meanwhile, was furious, pointing at Yang Xiong:
“You think that Deputy Director Zheng has any real power? Even if he takes them away, they’ll be released tomorrow. Yang Xiong, picking the wrong side has severe consequences.”
Yang Xiong sneered. “We’ll see.”
This profession was sacred. He couldn’t betray his conscience by watching these people continue their crimes.
Even if it cost his life, Yang Xiong was determined to bring them to justice.
“Fine! Just you wait!”
Qi Dazhuang glared at Yang Xiong viciously before storming out of the station.
“Deputy Chief Yang… will we be implicated?”
“Well… with how this has blown up, sigh…”
The two young officers who had helped arrest Xue Hu were visibly shaken, almost in tears.
Xue Hu was a demon hardly anyone dared to cross him. Anyone who did would bring disaster upon their entire family.
They regretted it; they should have just released Xue Hu on the street to avoid trouble.
“Evil can never triumph over justice.”
Yang Xiong said no more, skipping dinner and riding his bicycle to the county police bureau.
Meanwhile, Qi Dazhuang had gone to Liu Guangyao’s house.
“Director Liu, this isn’t good. That Zheng guy seems to have some backing.”
Liu Guangyao lit a cigarette, unconcerned:
“Even if he has backing, he has no evidence. Besides… Director Wan is in charge. Zheng Hongwei can’t stir up trouble, don’t worry.”
“So… what about Xue Hu and his three accomplices? They really were held overnight?”
Qi Dazhuang’s twitching eyelids betrayed his anxiety something major was about to happen.
“Huzi has indeed been reckless lately. One night in jail will teach him a lesson. Tomorrow morning I’ll personally go to the police station to fetch him.”
Xue Hu handled all the dirty work for his only nephew there was no way he wouldn’t save him.
“When Huzi is released, find people to deal with Yang Xiong and Zheng Hongwei.
You’re the chief? This is the courage you have?
Next time something like this happens, handle it the same way.
With Director Wan overseeing, crushing someone is easier than crushing an ant.”
Since Liu Guangyao became the Cabinet Committee director, life had been carefree—he could crush anyone at will, and no one had dared challenge him.
So this newcomer Zheng Hongwei was hardly a concern to him.
Elsewhere.
Disguised, Su Die first went to Xue Hu’s house according to the map.
Xue Hu’s three wives had all been killed, no children were left his home was empty.
With her face covered, she began ransacking the place.
To her surprise…
The kitchen cupboards were full of brown sugar, white sugar, salt, malt extract, milk powder, and matches.
The storage room was packed with flour, cornmeal, rice, soybean oil, and dozens of dried chickens, rabbits, and slabs of preserved meat hung from the ceiling.
Su Die smiled, waved her hand, and stored everything in her space.
Entering the bedroom, she was even more shocked.
Ten large wooden chests at the head of the bed were filled with large yellow croakers and cash.
Xue Hu had been overconfident, never imagining anyone would dare rob him.
But sorry, Su Die had arrived and cleared everything clean.
What puzzled her, however, was that there was only money no account books.
So the next stop would have to be Liu Guangyao’s house.
Before leaving, she found a dozen letters.
And Liu Guangyao?
Already satisfied, he was in bed with his new wife, twenty years younger, engaged in compromising activities.
Su Die used two of her homemade potent sleep-inducing powders to knock them both out.
Liu Guangyao was still cunning, hiding valuables in a secret room, hard to find.
But Su Die wasn’t ordinary she understood architecture and soon uncovered the hidden study room.
Sure enough, she found four thick account books.
After taking the books, it was time for the treasures.
Fifteen boxes of gold bars, eight boxes of old yuan coins, ten boxes of art and calligraphy, five boxes of rare medicinal herbs collecting them was immensely satisfying.
From Liu Guangyao’s house, Su Die went straight to Qi Dazhuang’s.
Same method: knock them out first.
Qi Dazhuang’s home had no gold bars, but plenty of bonds and various tickets.
In the study, she found two account books and several letters.
The cupboard held dozens of bolts of cotton cloth and new shoes all taken without hesitation.
By the time she finished sweeping these three homes, it was 2:30 a.m.
She needed to hurry to Director Wan’s home.
After knocking him out, she found… three people in bed.
Wan in the middle, two girls on either side.
Su Die immediately felt her eyes were defiled.
Just a county director… playing this wildly?
No wonder Xue Hu dared to harass people on the street the protector behind him was even more disgusting.
Suppressing her nausea, she ransacked Wan’s house, finding a bundle of Fuso letters wrapped in three layers of oilcloth.
Su Die’s brow twitched Director Wan was a covert agent.
This was serious. After taking all the gold, silver, and food, she left immediately.
The night had been thrilling beyond measure never in her past life had she experienced such excitement.
Seeing the dawn approaching, she hurried to deliver the items to Zheng Hongwei.
If the three woke up and fled, she had to secure the evidence immediately.
With that in mind, she placed all account books and letters into a single box and headed to Zheng Hongwei’s home.
Knock knock knock.
After placing the box, she knocked three times and quickly climbed over the yard wall to hide.
Zheng Hongwei, a light sleeper, awoke at the knocks and got up.
Su Die squinted, watching him bring the box inside before finally heading home.
After a night of hard work, she was exhausted.
She washed in her space, cooked a bowl of noodles, and by the time she finished, the sun had risen.
Sleepiness overcame her, and she went to bed.
While Su Die slept, chaos erupted in the county.
Wan, Liu Guangyao, and Qi Dazhuang’s roars in the morning almost tore off their rooftops.
Why?
Their homes had all been robbed.
Su Die had cleaned them out completely.
All gold, silver, and food were gone, and the deadly letters and account books disappeared as well.
Wan trembled while dressing, dragged the two girls he had been sharing a bed with to the cellar if his identity were exposed, the consequences would be unimaginable.
While pondering a plan, the door was violently knocked open.
“Zheng Hongwei, this is my home! How dare you?”
It was the disheveled Liu Guangyao and Qi Dazhuang.
“Director Wan… help! Our houses and his were all… ah!”
Liu Guangyao had tried to appeal to Wan, only to find Wan’s house ransacked as well.
“Come in and talk.”
Wan pinched his throbbing brow and closed the door.
“Director Wan… what do we do?”
Liu Guangyao’s legs shook like sieves, his speech weak and trembling.
Qi Dazhuang was already pale and lifeless, unaware even of wetting himself.
Losing money wasn’t the worst but those items…
“What about Xue Hu? Was his house… too?”
Wan suddenly remembered Xue Hu being held in the interrogation room by Zheng Hongwei.
“Yes… Huzi’s house was… completely robbed.”
The once proud Liu Guangyao now looked like a decapitated rooster, weakly speaking.
“This is unbelievable! How could this happen!?” Wan paced furiously, temples throbbing.
“Director… should we report this to the police?” Liu Guangyao asked, sobbing.
“Report the police? Have you forgotten I am the police!”
Wan bared his teeth and smashed a teacup over Liu Guangyao’s head; he didn’t even dodge.
He wished he could be knocked unconscious if only this were a nightmare.
If he woke and nothing had happened… how wonderful that would be.
Remembering past glory, the three sat in silence.
Time ticked by, and no one went to work.
“First, hold positions, investigate in secret…”
Before Wan could finish, the door was kicked open.
“Zheng Hongwei, this is my home! How dare you?”
Wan tried to remain defiant.
Zheng Hongwei glanced at the three and sneered, “This is so convenient all taken in one go. No need to capture them house by house.”
Yang Xiong, no longer able to restrain himself, entered and punched Qi Dazhuang hard.
“Grandson, your end has come!”
With the evidence so complete, once reported to the county, the bureau mobilized fully, armed.
No one had expected Director Wan to be a traitorous spy.
Liu Guangyao, Xue Hu, and Qi Dazhuang were all guilty of numerous crimes.
On the day they were arrested, former victims surrounded the station, leaving no room to enter.
Feng Tao squatted outside the station, crying his eyes out.
His second sister’s revenge had finally been achieved.
But Zheng Hongwei couldn’t understand who had sent him such evidence?
Hidden in plain sight, Su Die had spent two days at home, eating and sleeping, without stepping outside.
Everything happening outside seemed unrelated to her.