章節 78: Chapter 78：Shadows of Betrayal
A hint of a smile flashed in Guo Xiaopeng's eyes as he thought to himself: his mixture of kindness and severity had indeed worked. Meanwhile, in the Haizhou Martyrs' Cemetery, a light drizzle fell. The national flag flapped in the cold wind, and the song of the People's Police echoed through the sky. Two rows of policemen in new uniforms stood solemnly alongside the gravel path, extending from the cemetery gate to the high tomb in front. All the policemen stood at attention, saluting solemnly.
Li Xinjian, carrying the urn with Duan Hai's ashes covered by the Party flag, walked slowly in the middle of the line. Behind him, Lu Xiaofei held a young and handsome police portrait of Duan Hai.
Gunshots rang out.
Qiang Min led the criminal police in releasing white doves of peace from their hands.
After the ceremony, Lu Xiaofei, dressed in her first-class police uniform, placed a bouquet of flowers in front of Duan Hai's memorial. Unable to suppress her tears any longer, she choked up and wept.
After the memorial service, Zhang Xiaohua immediately chaired a meeting to discuss the next steps in the case. The director of the Ministry of Public Security, Liu Shi, and Director Zhao Lingjun also attended.
Li Xinjian first reported the latest situation: "According to the Coast Guard, Guo Xiaopeng's speedboat was found fifty kilometers off the coast. There were three unidentified bodies on board, but Guo Xiaopeng is still missing."
"Have we identified the three deceased?" Zhang Xiaohua asked.
Li Xinjian replied, "They are the Master and his two men."
Qiang Min interjected, "With the strong winds, high waves, and dark night, Guo Xiaopeng probably drowned."
Lu Xiaofei shook her head and said firmly, "He wouldn't have drowned."
Liu Shi handed a fax to Zhang Xiaohua and said, "The accounts on the confiscated PDA are all real. Except for two accounts in South America, all others have been frozen through Interpol." He glanced at Zhao Lingjun.
Zhao Lingjun then provided an update on the overseas investigation.
Liu Shi instructed, "Work quickly to negotiate with other countries to recover this public money as soon as possible." Zhao Lingjun replied, "Yes."
Liu Shi then said to Zhao Lingjun, "Update everyone on the situation with G." Zhao Lingjun nodded and explained, "G has long been under our surveillance. We didn't move on him earlier because we wanted to use this meth case to uncover his global drug trafficking network. That work is now mostly complete, and police in relevant countries have started their operations. G's several hideouts have been monitored. We can say he is now a fish in our net." Lu Xiaofei, Li Xinjian, and Qiang Min, along with Zhang Xiaohua, all showed excited expressions.
Liu Shi continued emotionally, "So, the Haizhou Public Security Bureau has made significant contributions to our anti-drug efforts." He looked at Lu Xiaofei, "Especially Comrade Lu Xiaofei, who infiltrated the tiger's den and completed this extremely difficult task at the risk of her life. And Comrade Duan Hai, who sacrificed himself gloriously. They are the pride of the People's Police!"
Applause erupted. Lu Xiaofei, her eyes wet, stood up and bowed deeply.
Liu Shi continued, "Although Guo Xiaopeng is still at large, I discussed with Director Xiaohua, and Comrade Lu Xiaofei will remain in Haizhou to assist with the investigation."
Zhang Xiaohua concluded, "We must track down Guo Xiaopeng. Whether alive or dead, he cannot be allowed to escape justice. This is a task the Haizhou Public Security Bureau must complete!" Everyone stood in solemn agreement.
In the Criminal Police Unit office, Li Xinjian, Lu Xiaofei, and Qiang Min were discussing investigation plans. Zhang Xiaohua entered, signaling them to remain seated, and said with a smile, "The Haizhou drug case has made significant progress. About 450 million yuan flowed abroad, and about 400 million has been recovered." He excitedly knocked on the table, "Four hundred million, comrades! That's the blood and sweat of the Haizhou people!" Everyone showed solemn expressions.
Zhang Xiaohua continued, "Meanwhile, production at the Haizhou Pharmaceutical Group has fully resumed. Fei Jingwei has been appointed as the general manager. This is a major event in Haizhou's political and economic spheres. The city leaders asked me to thank you on their behalf."
Li Xinjian and Lu Xiaofei, though maintaining serious expressions, felt a surge of excitement.
"But the main culprit, Guo Xiaopeng, is still missing. Bringing him to justice is our next key task." Zhang Xiaohua paused, raising his voice, "I now appoint Comrade Li Xinjian—"
Li Xinjian stood up.
"Comrade Lu Xiaofei—"
Lu Xiaofei stood up.
"You two will be the lead and deputy of the special task force for Guo Xiaopeng."
Both responded in unison, "Yes!"
Zhang Xiaohua motioned for them to sit and took out a stack of photos from his briefcase, placing them in front of Lu Xiaofei. "Director Liu Shi wants you to identify if any of these include old G. Once identified, report directly to the Ministry of Public Security. I have another meeting with the city committee, so you can continue here." He then left the room.
Li Xinjian and Qiang Min gathered around Lu Xiaofei to look at the photos. After careful examination, Lu Xiaofei pointed to one, "It's this one."
Li Xinjian, excited, asked, "No doubt?"
Lu Xiaofei confirmed, "No doubt!"
Li Xinjian examined the photo repeatedly, "These photos all look similar to me."
Lu Xiaofei teased him, "In medical terms, that's called 'facial recognition impairment.'"
"Impairment or not!" Li Xinjian felt a sweet sensation despite the teasing. He had been careful not to provoke her, knowing she had been gloomy since Guo Xiaopeng's escape and Duan Hai's sacrifice. Today, seeing her smile was a joy, even if at his expense.
Lu Xiaofei added, "It's also known as amnesia."
Not wanting to lose face in front of his colleagues, Li Xinjian quickly changed the subject, "How did you recognize him?"
Lu Xiaofei noticed Qiang Min and others were secretly laughing, and immediately realized that attacking Li Xinjian was like tightening the noose around her own neck. She smoothly followed his topic and pointed out, "G's nose is long and narrow, typical of people from colder regions." She indicated two other photos, "These two have short, wide noses, typical of tropical people. Also, there's a small growth under G's eyelid, which these two lack."
Li Xinjian looked at her with great admiration and said, "You know, capturing G would be a major contribution to humanity." Lu Xiaofei, with a hint of sadness, replied, "But Comrade Duan Hai sacrificed his life. And Guo Xiaopeng is still at large." Li Xinjian fell silent, lowering his head. The room's atmosphere grew heavy again.
Nothing could change Chen Ran's habit of going online. Despite the enormous psychological pressure, he couldn't resist immersing himself in the virtual world.
Guo Xiaopeng sat on the sofa, his eyes half-closed. The images of Lu Xiaofei and his mother alternated in his mind, like countless insects gnawing at his heart. He struggled to drive away these torturous thoughts, steadied himself, and focused all his attention on Chen Ran's profile.
After a long while, Guo Xiaopeng suddenly called out, "Feng Yang."
Chen Ran turned his head, "Chairman, what's up?"
Guo Xiaopeng smiled, "If a person truly transforms from Chen Ran to Feng Yang, it's indeed a process of rebirth."
Chen Ran shrugged, "Names are just symbols. When the symbol changes, the original person ceases to exist." Guo Xiaopeng nodded, "That's true."
As Chen Ran prepared to go back online, Guo Xiaopeng said, "Shall we move to a new place tomorrow?" Chen Ran's eyes widened in surprise, "Why?"
Guo Xiaopeng stretched lazily, "We've stayed here too long."
Li Xinjian paced in his office, "So long without any news. Has Guo Xiaopeng fled abroad?"
Lu Xiaofei turned from the map, "I don't think so."
"Can you explain why?"
"He's a filial son. With Lin Xiaoliang dead, he would think of a way to get his mother out. Also, knowing his foreign accounts are frozen, he'd be aware Interpol is after him. So, he'd hide domestically for a while," Lu Xiaofei deduced.
Qiang Min sneered, "That ruthless guy is filial?"
Li Xinjian pondered for a moment, "A person can be a good husband or lover and still be a criminal. For example, Shenzhen's Wang Jianye. Human nature is complex. Besides, Xiaofei's information and analysis should be authoritative." He said the last sentence with a hint of jealousy.
Qiang Min asked, "Why do you think he's still in the country?"
"A Chinese in a foreign land is easily recognizable," Lu Xiaofei explained.
Li Xinjian supported her, "Like the Wang brothers from the Northeast who fled to the mountains of Jiangxi and were recognized immediately. Imagine, two Northeasterners suddenly appearing in a southern mountain village, speaking their dialect. It stands out."
Lu Xiaofei looked at Li Xinjian with mixed emotions, "Should we issue another wanted notice through the police network?"
"I think that's a good idea," Li Xinjian agreed immediately.
Qiang Min added, "Remind local police to watch for small hotels and saunas." Lu Xiaofei dismissed the idea, "From what I know of Guo Xiaopeng, he'll find a fixed place to hide, not low-end places."
Li Xinjian also glanced at Lu Xiaofei with mixed feelings.
Gulangyu, surrounded by vast blue waves, stood like an immovable battleship. In a three-bedroom apartment in Gulang West, the new furniture looked much like that in the Kangqiao Peninsula villa.
Guo Xiaopeng pointed to the computer on the table, "IBM's latest model." Chen Ran, as if sucked by a vacuum, rushed to the computer, his face glowing with excitement, "Chairman, you have a great taste. This must have cost seventy or eighty thousand."
"We're both fugitives; money means nothing! I'll cover all expenses, with one condition." He pointed to the phone, "This month, you can only go online, no calls anywhere." Chen Ran understood, nodding, "Got it."
Guo Xiaopeng picked up his leather bag from the sofa, "Try out the new computer. I'm going for a walk. Getting familiar with the surroundings is important for us." He left the room. Wandering through narrow streets, he finally found a mailbox. He took a letter from his bag and read it again: Haizhou City, Xishan Villa No. 7, Pei Jingzhi for Mrs. Guo. No signature. He mailed the letter and then went to a public phone, dialing Lin Xiaoliang's mobile, but it was off. He didn't know his brother had been killed by Lu Xiaofei in the Wolf Fang Point shootout. Suspecting the worst, he called his mother. Mrs. Guo's elderly voice came through, "Hello..."
Choking up, he couldn't speak. Mrs. Guo, with a woman's intuition, asked, "Peng'er?" Afraid he couldn't hold back, he quickly hung up.
He hurried back to the apartment. Chen Ran was still engrossed online. Guo Xiaopeng went to his bedroom balcony and carefully mixed a gasoline-based fuel. Satisfied, he returned to Chen Ran's room and said, "Can you deliver something to Guangzhou for me tomorrow?" Reluctantly, Chen Ran agreed, "Okay."
Guo Xiaopeng patted his shoulder, "Once you get confirmation the delivery is made, you'll find this when you return." He placed a savings passbook on the table. Chen Ran opened it and saw the one-million figure.
"Your commission is included," Guo Xiaopeng said.
Excited, Chen Ran replied, "I'll book a flight now."
On the balcony, watching Chen Ran's hurried departure, Guo Xiaopeng muttered, "Money can indeed move mountains."
Returning to his room, he opened an English chemistry dictionary, then took several small bottles from a drawer and started mixing a blue powder.
In a small village in Hong Kong's New Territories, G sat in a wicker chair reading a book on Go.
The police, in a fan-shaped formation, quietly surrounded the house.
Inside, all was quiet except for the ticking of an old clock. G, unaware of the danger, continued reading. Suddenly, the door was kicked open, and four or five burly officers rushed in, shouting, "You're under arrest!" G slowly put down his book and looked around. Black gun barrels protruded from the windows. Sighing, he surrendered.
The police led G out. G saw the scattered police force and estimated they had used a platoon. Simultaneously, international operations led to the capture of numerous drug traffickers, dealing a devastating blow to a global drug network.
The next day, Hong Kong's major media headlined, "World-Famous Drug Lord G Captured in Hong Kong."
Chen Ran and Guo Xiaopeng sat at a well-set dining table with exquisite dishes and a bottle of Rémy Martin XO. Chen Ran praised, "I didn't know the Chairman could cook so well. Impressive." Guo Xiaopeng, feeling nostalgic, said, "In the US, I worked part-time at a Chinese restaurant, learning by smell. Those days are hard to look back on."
Chen Ran seemed to share the sentiment, "We all had tough student days." With a million in his pocket, he felt especially eager to bond with Guo Xiaopeng.
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