Chapter 870: Must Save Xiaodong

At 7 PM in the evening, Chen Shi followed the police to the address provided by the suspect – Wangcheng Xinyuan Phase Three.

Looking at the vast silhouette of grey buildings ahead, Chen Shi pondered why they had chosen this place. It was isolated with no nearby villages or shops. Once the special forces sealed off the traffic, they wouldn’t be able to escape.

Surrounded by the police, Zhou Xiao was left with only two choices: to die with the hostage or to surrender.

Unless Zhou Xiao had gone mad, why turn a surefire cat-and-mouse game into a hostage situation with potential traps, bombs, and machine guns set up in those dark buildings against the police? The likelihood was very low, almost negligible, especially since firearms were hard to come by here – this wasn’t the United States.

Lessons from past experiences told Chen Shi that Zhou Xiao wasn’t a reckless brute; he must have a backup plan. There had to be a reason for choosing this location!

So he called Sun Zhen, “Check out Wangcheng Xinyuan Phase Three!”

“Huh? Check what?” Sun Zhen replied.

After a moment’s thought, Chen Shi said, “Zhou Xiao has hostages here. I want to know if there are other exits. Hurry!”

“Got it.”

Suddenly, the car in front swerved sharply, causing two police cars to collide. Luckily, Chen Shi reacted quickly, slamming on the brakes. Lin Dongxue in the passenger seat nearly hit the roof but managed to stay strapped in. She quickly unbuckled to check on the situation.

“It’s Xiaodong’s mom,” Lin Dongxue shouted outside the window.

Chen Shi immediately got out of the car. A woman lay in the middle of the road, a few hundred meters from Wangcheng Xinyuan Phase Three. With no streetlights on the sides, the road was pitch black. The approaching police cars only noticed her just in time, almost rolling over her, which frightened the driver nearly to a heart attack.

“Auntie, wake up,” Lin Dongxue shook Xiaodong’s mom, noticing a small spot of blood at the back of her neck, a mark left by an injection. Xiaodong’s mom was breathing steadily with a normal pulse, and her pupils showed a slight reaction to light.

“She’s been drugged. Call an ambulance quickly,” Lin Dongxue said.

“Don’t call an ambulance. Just send her to the hospital directly. Dongxue, you and Chen Shi go,” said Lin Qiupu.

“I can’t leave now!” Lin Dongxue protested.

Lin Qiupu was worried about the danger here. Chen Shi said, “We’ve been worried about Xiaodong all afternoon. Now you want us to leave?”

Lin Qiupu shook his head and sent Old Zhang and another policeman to escort her.

The group parked their cars here, and the special police took their vehicles to surround the area. Lin Qiupu instructed everyone to check their firearms and radios, divide into several groups, and cover each other. Then, they proceeded towards the darkened buildings with flashlights in hand.

On the way, Lin Dongxue whispered, “Lao Chen, you were right. They really released Xiaodong’s mom and took Xiaodong.”

“What puzzles me is why Xiaodong’s mom was left in the middle of the road and injected with drugs. She’s a seventy-year-old lady. There was no need for them to do this to her. It seems something unexpected happened here just now.”

“What could have happened? Xiaodong?”

“Only he could be the variable!”

“He’s braver than anyone else, a bit of a hero. Maybe he clashed with Zhou Xiao here… Let’s hope he’s okay!” Lin Dongxue’s heart tightened again.

Chen Shi nodded silently. They wouldn’t know exactly what happened until they saw it for themselves. He hoped that when they did, Xiaodong would be safe and sound.

Entering the residential area, they saw a two-story large building, an unused shopping mall surrounded by frosted glass doors. There was light inside, and a truck was parked outside with its engine still running, its headlights blinking.

“Check it out!” Lin Qiupu pointed at the truck.

Two explosive experts got on board but found no dangerous items. However, they discovered that the onboard recorder was connected to a cell phone, which had been turned into a remote monitor. They unplugged the phone.

At that moment, a figure passed behind the frosted glass door, vaguely a woman. A young policeman aimed his gun there, and Lin Qiupu noticed that the guy had his finger on the trigger. He shouted sternly, “Don’t shoot. Slowly release your finger!”

The figure in black was clearly Ling Shuang, calmly walking back and forth as if confirming the number of people outside. Even Chen Shi admired her boldness – there were dozens of guns pointed at her outside!

A piercing noise suddenly came from the mall’s speaker, followed by Ling Shuang’s voice from inside, “Place your guns on the steps in front of the door, separate the clips and guns, you have five minutes.”

Lin Qiupu had already prepared a loudspeaker and shouted inside, “Before negotiating terms, we need to confirm the safety of the hostages!”

“Unless you meet our demands first.”

“We can’t do that. Let us know the current condition of the hostages!”

Ling Shuang’s sinister laughter came through the broadcast, “I’ll go cut off a hand now to let you slowly confirm!”

Lin Qiupu threatened, “If you dare to do that, you’ll have no way out. Hostages are police officers. From the day they became police officers, they were prepared to sacrifice. Don’t play tricks with us!”

“No way out…” Ling Shuang sneered at this phrase.

Chen Shi murmured softly, “If she really does what she says, we’ll be in a very passive situation.”

Lin Qiupu unwillingly said, “As passive as throwing away our guns.”

“If you intend to give up on Xiaodong, don’t let him suffer. The special police can storm in directly. We’re here now just for that slim hope that Xiaodong will come out safe and sound,” Chen Shi questioned.

These words struck Lin Qiupu’s heart. He looked around at the faces and remembered the afternoon’s strategy meeting with several leaders from the bureau. The special police were firm, willing to subdue such fierce bandits at all costs. The implication was that Xiaodong’s sacrifice was acceptable. Most leaders also supported this position, talking about many detached “noble” viewpoints.

At first, Lin Qiupu fought desperately, saying he didn’t want anything to happen to Xiaodong for selfish or humanitarian reasons. But under pressure from the leaders, he could only imply that he would act accordingly.

“You guys stay, others spread out around the perimeter, keep an eye on every entrance!” Lin Qiupu ordered.

The remaining members were all elite members of Team Two. Lin Qiupu said, “The upper echelon’s opinion is not to prioritize Xiaodong’s safety, but I want him alive because Mr. Li’s father died, Old Zhang’s wife died, Miss Gu… whereabouts unknown. They never missed a beat, and we’ve lost all of them. If Xiaodong and Xiaodong’s mother can’t survive, we’ve really lost the battle, even if we manage to arrest them!”

“You’re right. Humanity is above all else. We must save Xiaodong!” Lin Dongxue nodded, and in the darkness, glowing eyes agreed with Lin Qiupu’s words.

The group arrived at the entrance, ready to put down their guns. Xiao Li said, “Captain Lin, what if they grab our guns?”

“Yes, dismantle the guns and mix the parts together.”

Everyone had received this kind of training at the police academy. They quickly dismantled their pistols and scattered the parts together. Even Chen Shi noticed that Lin Dongxue still had a gun hidden behind her waist – the one Xiaodong had thrown down earlier…