Changjie Branch of the Beijing Public Security Bureau, Interrogation Room No. 2.
Xu Haoran watched as four detectives, guns drawn, approached him step by step. His mind remained unusually calm. Four years at the Army Command Academy had honed him into an exceptionally skilled special operations officer. He was confident he could take them all down in a short time with a surprise attack.
After all, the interrogation room was quite cramped, and the police officers were hesitant to fire. However, for Xu Haoran, a master of hand-to-hand combat, the environment was perfect.
Xu Haoran stared intently at the approaching police, his muscles tensing, his feet poised to strike.
Just then, a flurry of footsteps and panicked shouts from the corridor outside came from the doorway. Immediately afterward, Chen Yang shouted from outside the door:
"Haoran, that's enough! Stop playing around!"
Upon hearing Chen Yang's voice, Du Changsheng jumped up from his chair as if he'd seen a ghost. He rushed to the interrogation room door, opening it while shouting angrily:
"What's going on? How did the suspect escape…"
Du Changsheng's words trailed off as if someone had grabbed his throat, rendering him speechless. He stared dumbfounded at the scene before him, utterly unable to believe his eyes.
Branch Chief Liao Yongchang, beaten like a pig's head, was now being dragged along by Chen Yang like a dead dog, while Chen Yang was holding a police pistol! Many police officers gathered around, but they were hesitant to approach, only shouting warnings from a distance. Chen Yang brandished the gun in his hand, and Du Changsheng, startled, immediately pulled his head back. Chen Yang grabbed Liao Yongchang by the collar and dragged him into interrogation room number two.
Four detectives instinctively raised their guns and pointed them at Chen Yang and Liao Yongchang. Before Chen Yang could speak, Liao Yongchang shouted in terror:
"Bastard! Put...put your gun down right now!"
The detectives then realized that the person Chen Yang had taken hostage was actually their branch chief. They quickly lowered their guns, fearing an accidental discharge that might injure their chief.
Xu Haoran, seeing this, couldn't help but burst out laughing:
"Wow! Chen Yang, you're pretty bold!"
To cause a ruckus at the police station and even take the chief hostage—that's truly audacious! Chen Yang curled his lip and said,
"This guy actually smashed my phone! It's true what they say: you try to reason with him, he'll fight you; you fight him, he'll just throw a tantrum!"
After saying that, Chen Yang casually sat down in the chair, Liao Yongchang's obese body blocking his way. Chen Yang toyed with his sidearm and said calmly,
"These guys with submachine guns can leave now. I'm a coward; my legs go weak at the sight of a gun..."
The four detectives were quick to react this time. Before Liao Yongchang could speak, they left the interrogation room without a word.
The situation was clearly that Chen Yang and his team held the absolute initiative. Anything they said would be pointless; they might as well just do as they were told.
"You're incredibly reckless! What kind of coward are you!" Du Changsheng thought to himself.
Chen Yang's gaze fell on Du Changsheng, and he said with a smile:
"Captain Du, right? Please go to the other rooms and invite my two companions over as well! Remember, don't try anything funny, or your chief's head will be in danger!"
Du Changsheng looked at Chen Yang, then at Liao Yongchang, and finally stomped his foot helplessly and walked out the door.
...
"Holy crap! What's going on here?" Liu Zhengyi was startled by the scene before him as soon as he entered the room. He looked at Xu Haoran with some concern and said, "Haoran, you've gone a bit too far, haven't you?"
Xu Haoran grinned and pointed at Chen Yang, saying:
"Old Liu, you've wronged me! I haven't even had a chance to stretch my muscles yet! Chen Yang did this today!"
"Chen Yang?" Liu Zhengyi's mouth dropped open in surprise. From his interactions today, he felt Chen Yang was a fairly composed person. How could he suddenly lose his temper in the police station?
Liu Zhengyi couldn't help but glance at Chen Yang a few more times. Chen Yang put on an innocent expression and said,
"It's not my fault. This bureau chief first smashed my phone to destroy evidence, then tried to torture me to extract a confession. Although I'm just an ordinary citizen, I can't let people bully me, so I fought back a little..."
"A little..." Liu Zhengyi was speechless for a moment, then glanced at the dejected Liao Yongchang and said, "This guy is the bureau chief! Chen Yang, it seems these people take you quite seriously! The bureau chief is actually interrogating you personally!"
Liao Yongchang felt even more depressed being judged by these kids. However, he also felt a vague unease. These people were clearly fearless. If an ordinary person committed such a serious crime, they would be living in constant fear, but he saw that Xu Haoran and Liu Zhengyi were completely nonchalant. Although Liu Zhengyi was slightly surprised when he first came in, it was just surprise, not worry. Moreover, the capital has always been a place where hidden talents abound. You never know how deep the waters run in the capital; perhaps even a little kid squatting on the street eating barbecue is a spoiled brat from one of the seven great families.
These young men seem to have quite a background! Who exactly are they? Liao Yongchang wondered to himself.
Chen Yang rolled his eyes and said,
"Guys, stop with the chit-chat! There are more and more police outside. Make your calls, cry your eyes out, and get this over with! I'm exhausted and just want to get some sleep!"
Xu Haoran looked annoyed and said,
"This is outrageous! You caused this mess, why should I clean up your mess? I didn't hit any cops! I was just drinking at Red Era, I was supposed to go sing karaoke, but you dragged me out and that's how this happened!"
Chen Yang smiled and said,
"Nonsense! If you don't find someone, do you expect me to? I need to be able to find someone myself!"
"What a scoundrel!" Xu Haoran muttered, pulling out his phone.
Liu Zhengyi nodded repeatedly in agreement, expressing his disdain for Chen Yang. "Listen up, you inside! You're surrounded! Release the hostages immediately, surrender is your only way out!"
Just as Xu Haoran was about to make a phone call, someone outside started shouting through a megaphone. Chen Yang, after hearing this, stood up, tossed his gun to Liu Zhengyi, and said:
"Brother Zhengyi, keep an eye on this bureau chief!"
After saying that, Chen Yang walked to the interrogation room door, glanced outside a few times, then kicked the iron door shut, turned around, and laughed:
"Wow! Even the anti-terrorism SWAT team has been deployed. Looks like tonight's operation is going to be big!"
Xu Hao Ran's face fell.
"Chen Yang! You've really screwed us over! It's chaos here, and Grandpa's going to find out soon... Damn it! I even faked a sick leave to sneak out of the training camp! Now I'm doomed!"
"Then hurry up and call for help!" Chen Yang said with a grin. "Just consider it doing a public service; Grandpa's reasonable, after all!"
"Get lost!" Xu Hao Ran muttered, frustrated, but he did take Chen Yang's words to heart and quickly searched for phone numbers in his phone's contacts.
...
In the courtyard of the Changjie branch police station, Deputy Director Bai Ming of the Municipal Bureau, dispatched by his superiors, arrived at the scene to oversee operations. Bai Ming's already somewhat dark face was now even more grim, like Bao Gong (a famous judge known for his strictness).
Squads of police officers arrived one after another to provide backup. The entire courtyard was a flurry of activity, with flashing police lights and officers coming and going. "Are the snipers in position?" Bai Ming asked, his face dark.
"Director Bai, we've deployed three snipers, each occupying a different firing position. However, the interrogation room is a bit of a problem; there are no windows on any side, only a small iron window on the door. If the suspect doesn't show himself, the snipers are powerless..." replied Xu Gang, the anti-terrorism brigade captain.
"Hmph..." Bai Ming snorted coldly, his sharp gaze sweeping over Luo Jingsheng, the political commissar of the Changjie branch, beside him. He said with displeasure, "What kind of mess is your branch making?! The bureau chief has been kidnapped by a criminal suspect!"
A bead of cold sweat appeared on Luo Jingsheng's forehead. His eyes darted around as he said,
"Director Bai, I don't know the specifics. I was supposed to be on duty today. Director Liao had already gone home, but around nine o'clock he suddenly rushed back without saying what was wrong. A while later..." "The security team brought back a few people shortly after, and I didn't think much of it. I never expected Director Liao to personally go downstairs to interrogate them, and that such a big thing would happen. It was truly unexpected..."
Luo Jingsheng and Liao Yongchang didn't work together very well. The Public Security Bureau operated under an administrative leadership system, and Liao Yongchang was extremely assertive. Therefore, Luo Jingsheng's influence in the branch office was sometimes even less than that of a lower-ranking captain. He harbored considerable resentment, and thus, when faced with the city bureau leadership's fury, he didn't forget to subtly undermine Liao Yongchang.
Sure enough, Bai Ming frowned and pondered after hearing Luo Jingsheng's words.
Liao Yongchang's behavior was indeed very abnormal; it wasn't normal investigative procedure at all. However, Bai Ming didn't dwell on this issue too much. The most important thing right now was to rescue Liao Yongchang and apprehend the suspect who had taken the police hostage. Other issues could be investigated later.
"Keep shouting!" Bai Ming ordered loudly. "Also, contact the armed police and ask when their people will arrive."
Luo Jingsheng, seeing Bai Ming's expression, knew his words had worked, and he smiled subtly.
"Screech!" A sharp screech of brakes rang out, followed by the sound of a car door opening and closing.
"This is the commander of the garrison command. Call your on-site commander immediately!" a commanding voice came from the doorway…