Chapter 842: Finding the Rice Harvesters

Uncle, looking dejected, extinguished his cigarette in the ashtray and said, “Comrade officer, I just don’t get it. If people willingly engage with it, why is it illegal? Isn’t marijuana legally sold in many countries now?”

Chen Shi pointed at the cigarette on the table, “Do you smoke this because you’ll starve, thirst, or die without it? Clearly, it makes your throat uncomfortable, causes coughing and phlegm, disrupts your breathing, blocks your nose, upsets your stomach, makes your meals tasteless, gives your body a bad odor, and might even lead to cancer after a decade or so. With so many drawbacks, why must you smoke the moment you wake up? Are you consuming it, or is it consuming you? Don’t you understand? How can you not understand? It’s just that you’re making money, so you choose not to understand.”

Uncle hung his head in shame.

“Want to make amends for your crimes?”

Uncle nodded desperately.

“Do you know how to do that?”

“Confess everything. I’ll confess! That guy next door, not only does he use drugs, he’s involved in fraud…”

“Shut up, you XXX! I’ll XXX all of you…” The younger man’s curses grew louder.

As the noise swelled, Lin Dongxue stood up and closed the door, which somewhat reduced the volume.

Chen Shi said, “There’s been a fool in Xu family gorge who died three years ago, and a young man died a few days ago. Do you know the inside story?”

“Uh… That fool died horribly. He was buried alive. We were terrified back then because the harvesters discovered marijuana circulating in the village’s nightclub. The fool… was pushed out by us… no, by them…” Uncle pointed next door, “as a scapegoat!”

“I see. Did you continue selling after that?”

“We did, but very cautiously.”

“I must say, you’ve got nerve, snatching food from the mouths of these fierce and evil people… When was the last time you saw the harvesters?”

“The day before yesterday. They were going door to door in our village, warning us about the tightening security and telling us not to say anything to the police, or else… Our village is obedient; that’s why there are so many rice growers here.”

“Do you know where they went?”

“Uh, if you leave the village and head south, there’s a mountain called Taishi Mountain. There’s an observatory there; they might be hiding there.”

“Are you sure?” Chen Shi was surprised to extract such detailed information so suddenly.

“I’ve been there. If they were hiding, that’s the most likely place.”

Outside, a siren sounded. Lin Dongxue looked around and said, “My brother and the others are here.”

After explaining the situation, Lin Qiupu arranged for some officers to stay behind and handle the matter. It was getting dark, and time was of the essence, so the police headed towards the mountain.

Chen Shi drove while watching the GPS. This place was so remote that the map kept failing to refresh. As the last traces of sunset disappeared, Chen suggested they leave the car and walk to avoid startling anyone.

About twenty minutes along the mountain path, the silhouette of a huge building appeared. Lin Dongxue asked, “Is that the observatory?”

“Looks more like a hydrological monitoring station,” Chen guessed.

The building, long abandoned, was surrounded by overgrown s, adding to the desolation.

Suddenly, there was movement in the bushes on the side. Everyone tensed up, and some even drew their guns.

A ragged figure emerged, and when Lin Qiupu shone his flashlight on his face, the man shielded his eyes with his hands. Lin Qiupu exclaimed in surprise, “Officer Xu?”

Officer Xu was dirty and haggard. He pointed to his mouth, and Xu Xiaodong offered him a cigarette.

Officer Xu shook his head, so Xu Xiaodong then offered a chocolate bar.

“Dumbass, he needs water. Does anyone have water?” Lin Qiupu said.

They handed a bottle of water to Officer Xu, who guzzled it down quickly, coughing violently. Lin Qiupu patted his back, and Officer Xu gasped, “I… escaped… Save Xia Jia… in the well…”

“Are the people who kidnapped you still here?” Chen Shi asked.

“I don’t know… They kept us… in the well…”

Lin Qiupu left someone to take care of Officer Xu while the others, armed, approached the nearby building. Indeed, there was a dry well in front of the door. When they shone a flashlight down it, a ragged man at the bottom started crying, probably relieved that someone had finally come to rescue him.

“Don’t worry,we’ll get you up soon,” Lin Qiupu called down, instructing someone to find ropes or something similar.

An officer replied, “There’s no rope or ladder nearby.”

“Check inside the building, be careful, the suspects might be hiding there,” Lin Qiupu instructed.

The group entered the building and walked down a long corridor. To the left were windows, none of which were intact, and to the right were a series of offices. The officers checked each room—one office contained leftover food and burnt-out candles.

Chen Shi sniffed the remnants of the food on the desk—it was still fresh.

“We’ve found something!” someone called out from the corridor.

In a windowless room, the officers discovered several hundred kilograms of fresh marijuana leaves, vacuum-sealed in layers.

Chen Shi examined marks on the floor, noting, “Some of it has been moved. We didn’t see any vehicles when we came in; they might be in the process of moving the goods!”

Just then, gunfire and engine noise erupted outside.

Everyone rushed out to find that the shots had been fired by the officer left to guard Officer Xu. He reported, “A truck just turned around and fled when it saw us!”

“Chase them! Go, go, go!” Lin Qiupu shouted.

They sprinted down the mountain path and soon spotted a truck attempting to escape. After reaching their vehicles, the police pursued relentlessly, soon catching up on the main road.

It was a dark, rural road with no other vehicles and no street lights. Lin Qiupu ordered the sirens on, and a chorus of alarms filled the air, with flashing police lights piercing the night. They clung tightly to the truck, creating an impressive scene.

After an uncertain amount of time, with a loud crash, the truck slid on a turn and rolled to the roadside, shattering its windshield.

The officers jumped out and surrounded the vehicle. Inside, a man was frantically fiddling with something, his face covered in cold sweat and blood. Lin Qiupu barked, “Don’t move! Hands on the window!”

The man smirked disdainfully, mouthing a curse before putting something in his mouth—it was a freshly rolled marijuana cigarette.

He took a deep inhale, a look of satisfaction on his face, then suddenly stiffened and convulsed, collapsing onto the seat.

Seeing this, Lin Qiupu quickly yanked open the door, and the man tumbled out, falling to the ground with his body twitching and foam at his mouth.

“Damn, what did he mix into that smoke!” Lin Qiupu examined his eyes. “Call an ambulance, quick!”

“It’s too late, brother,” another officer said.

The man’s expression gradually relaxed, and under the incredulous stares of the officers, he slowly passed away…