Chapter 533 - 437: Must Be More Ruthless Than the Drug Traffickers

Shen Xin felt there was a high probability that the first theory was correct—that the culprits' real target was Celestial Skill.

The consequences of attacking a police officer were too severe.

Besides, the checkpoint was heavily guarded and had patrol teams. It would be difficult for a stranger to loiter nearby and conduct long-term surveillance on Pan Chenghai and Celestial Skill.

Pan Chenghai was also frequently away from home, and Celestial Skill was always kept at the checkpoint.

Therefore, Shen Xin didn't believe someone had been monitoring Pan Chenghai for a long time, noticed Celestial Skill being taken from the checkpoint, and then waited for an opportunity to strike.

His own trip to Simao and bringing Celestial Skill out had been unplanned. That meant discovering Celestial Skill's whereabouts must have also been a coincidence.

In that short timeframe, Liu Jia'ang was the only person with ties to drug dealers who had witnessed Celestial Skill being taken from the checkpoint.

Shen Xin shared his thoughts with Pan Chenghai.

Surprised, Pan Chenghai furrowed his brow in thought for a moment before nodding. "You're right. Our checkpoint is very strict."

"We work in two shifts, so it's manned twenty-four hours a day. We've had cases of 'man-vehicle separation' before, where a car passes through the checkpoint normally, but someone gets out beforehand to bypass it on foot through the mountains on either side, carrying drugs."

"That's why we have patrol teams to prevent that from happening. We also investigate any strangers who frequently loiter near the checkpoint, because they might be observing our operations, looking for a chance to smuggle drugs."

"We'll even pay closer attention if the same vehicle shows up frequently."

"So for someone to conduct long-term surveillance on us, as you said, would be impossible. It must be that Celestial Skill was taken out and just happened to be spotted by someone."

"And since Celestial Skill being out was an accident, like you said, then within that short window, Liu Jia'ang is a prime suspect."

At that, he immediately pulled out his phone and contacted Wang Feng.

Wang Feng was on his way to find Sun Xin. After hearing Pan Chenghai's analysis, he nodded repeatedly and said, "Shen Xin's analysis makes sense. And if that's the case, then the night before last, when that punk Liu Jia'ang was being taken away, he wasn't looking at you."

The night before last at the street stall, Liu Jia'ang had been taken away by colleagues from the local police station.

Just as he was getting into the car, he had kept looking in their direction.

Wang Feng had noticed.

At first, he thought Liu Jia'ang was looking at Pan Chenghai. Now that he thought about it, it was also possible he was looking at Celestial Skill, who was right beside Pan Chenghai.

After a moment's thought, Wang Feng said, "Alright, Old Pan, let's tackle this from two sides. I'll keep looking for Sun Xin. You meet up with Guofeng and go pick up that kid Liu Jia'ang directly."

The Guofeng that Wang Feng mentioned was Qu Guofeng, the deputy chief of the narcotics division.

A little over half an hour later, Shen Xin's group met up with Qu Guofeng.

Compared to Wang Feng, Qu Guofeng was a bit younger and taller, with a slight stoop. He had short hair and a vibrant energy about him.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they headed straight for Erxiang Village, where Liu Jia'ang lived.

It was across from the commercial center, an area full of self-built houses with narrow roads and complex terrain.

When they arrived, officers from the local station were already there and had done some preliminary reconnaissance.

His mother had gone to work. They found a pretext to call her.

The kid had been busted multiple times and was a person of interest under constant surveillance by the local station. They often called his mother, so they weren't worried about alerting their target.

According to his mother, he was still sleeping when she left that morning.

Neighbors hadn't seen him leave, so he should be at home right now.

He was just a Little Kalami. Qu Guofeng made a snap decision and moved in immediately.

They blocked the rear and knocked directly on the front.

They banged on the metal roll-up door for a long time before an impatient voice from inside finally asked who it was.

"It's me."

An officer from the local station answered, telling Liu Jia'ang to open up.

The door didn't open, and it went silent inside.

Shen Xin, standing beside him, immediately looked at Qu Guofeng. 'Something's wrong.'

But Qu Guofeng wasn't flustered at all.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before colleagues who had gone around back dragged Liu Jia'ang over.

The punk was only wearing a pair of boxer shorts.

Qu Guofeng walked up to him with an amused look. "In a hurry to run, were you? Did you clean up the house?"

Liu Jia'ang squatted on the ground, his eyes darting around. He quickly said, "Captain Qu, don't frame me! I've turned over a new leaf. If you don't believe me, ask Lin Suo."

Qu Guofeng didn't believe a single word of that crap. He stepped closer and hauled him up again.

Then he pointed at the roll-up door and said, "Liu Jia'ang, think carefully. The outcome if we go in and find something will be very different from the outcome if you confess on your own right now."

The night before last at the street stall, this punk had been a real smooth talker.

He still wasn't panicking. "Captain Qu, don't try to trick me. I swear on my conscience, whatever happened, it has nothing to do with me."

Qu Guofeng's eyes narrowed. "So you *do* know something happened."

Liu Jia'ang quickly shook his head. "Hey, Captain Qu, I really don't know anything."

One second, Qu Guofeng was speaking calmly, like a gentle breeze and fine rain; the next, he erupted like a summer storm, barking in a cold voice, "Liu Jia'ang, you know our methods. I'm giving you a chance right now. Don't be a damn fool."

"You think I can't smell whether you've been using or not?"

He grabbed Liu Jia'ang's shoulder with one hand, looming over him, his gaze so fierce it looked like he was about to eat him alive.

Pan Chenghai whispered to Shen Xin, "Old Qu has a special talent. His sense of smell is incredible. He can tell if someone's been using just by sniffing."

Shen Xin was secretly amazed, but he couldn't help but feel a sense of melancholy.

'What special talent?'

'Wang Feng's photographic memory, Qu Guofeng's sense of smell... weren't these skills born out of necessity?'

Liu Jia'ang's gaze had already started to shift evasively.

Qu Guofeng wasted no more words and simply gestured for his men to open the door.

At that moment, even Shen Xin could tell. The punk's expression was off, and his eyes were wild with panic. He had definitely used.

They had just arrested him the night before last, and his urine test was clean then. He must have used yesterday.

But these types always think they can get lucky. Even if you put the results right in front of them, they'll deny it to the death.

The roll-up door was opened in seconds, and several of Qu Guofeng's men quickly entered the house to search.

He himself didn't say much more, just watched Liu Jia'ang quietly.

His calm gaze was enough to make Liu Jia'ang's heart race with anxiety.

Pan Chenghai and Shen Xin stood a little further away.

Ding Yuwei suggested using Celestial Skill to track him. It had only been about thirty hours since yesterday's incident; there was a good chance of retracing his steps.

"No need."

Pan Chenghai shook his head and said in a low voice, "Drug traffickers are extremely ruthless in their revenge, so these small-time peripheral players are actually terrified. They don't dare to sell people out easily."

"But they're even more afraid of us. So don't worry. If he's involved, he'll talk."

Pan Chenghai's tone was full of confidence.

Dehong is different from the mainland. To fight drugs here, you have to be more ruthless than the traffickers.

Only then can the east wind prevail over the west wind.

Sure enough, before the search team could find anything, Liu Jia'ang caved under the pressure and confessed.

Over half an hour later, Wang Feng rushed over.

He personally questioned Liu Jia'ang again, glanced at the paraphernalia found on the table, and with a wave of his hand, had the man taken to a car.

"Guofeng, what are your thoughts?" he asked Qu Guofeng, folding his arms.

The situation had been clarified.

Liu Jia'ang had noticed Celestial Skill and informed this Brother Fei.

He was afraid of trouble and only gave a stupid tip. All he got was two hundred yuan, which he immediately spent on more drugs.

The guy had a bit of street smarts, but he was just an incurable junkie.

Qu Guofeng said, "Captain Wang, I have a theory."

Seeing everyone looking at him, he continued, "According to Liu Jia'ang's confession, last month, this Brother Fei told them to let him know if they ever saw Old Pan and Celestial Skill."

"That means this group either has a grudge against Old Pan, or they suffered huge losses because of Celestial Skill, which is why they got the idea to get rid of him."

"Liu Jia'ang also said that Brother Fei has an upline, someone involved in big deals, who took a fall last month and disappeared for a few days."

"I'm wondering if this group could be related to the Xinzai case. That group's factory was the one we took down last month, and their losses were massive."

"Their boss is overseas and wasn't caught. We only destroyed one factory; their drug trafficking organization wasn't completely dismantled."

The so-called Xinzai case was a drug manufacturing case they had cracked last month with the help of Celestial Skill, seizing several hundred kilograms of methamphetamine.

But the gang's leader was not caught.

The subordinates they captured were interrogated. They only knew the man's surname was Cai and that his movements were secretive.

Wang Feng didn't comment on Qu Guofeng's judgment, since it was only speculation.

After a moment of thought, Wang Feng said, "Alright, let's hurry up and grab this guy first. We can talk later."

"Those two idiots only made their move last night. They deliberately hired strangers because they were afraid we'd be watching them."

"But on the other hand, they'll get complacent, thinking we can't trace it back to them."

"This is our chance. We can't miss it."

"As for whether this Brother Fei is connected to the Xinzai case, we'll find out once we catch him."

When handling cases on the mainland, they might focus on 'letting the line run long to catch a big fish.'

But things were different here in Dehong.

You let the line run long here, and the person just lifts a leg and runs across the border.

Besides, the emphasis was on deterrence.

As soon as someone was discovered, they were dealt with immediately. This was especially true for the upper echelons of the drug network. One by one, they were found, arrested, sentenced, and sent on their way.

Qu Guofeng nodded in agreement.

Based on Liu Jia'ang's description, he figured this Brother Fei was likely a peripheral member of the drug organization, responsible for distribution.

Not a big fish.

Therefore, there was no reason to let someone like him stay free overnight.

He turned and got into a car to question Liu Jia'ang.

Wang Feng looked at Shen Xin, a smile returning to his face.

He hadn't found Sun Xin, which had been giving him a headache, so he hadn't expected a breakthrough on this front.

"Shen Xin, your judgment was spot-on."

If Shen Xin hadn't brought it up, Wang Feng really wouldn't have paid any attention to Liu Jia'ang.

Pan Chenghai nodded in agreement. "When I was in Nanjiang, I heard them say that Shen Xin is an expert case-cracker."

Shen Xin quickly waved his hands and said that wasn't the case.

"What do you mean, 'no'?" Jiang Wengang clapped Shen Xin on the shoulder. "This kid was still at the local station last year. Just after his probation, he was transferred to our sub-bureau's criminal investigation division. And now, he's been transferred directly to the city bureau."

Jiang Wengang was exceptionally clear about Shen Xin's situation.

Wang Feng was taken aback.

In the police system, that kind of transfer speed was faster than a rocket.

That in itself was direct proof of how capable Shen Xin was.

The only location Liu Jia'ang knew of where Brother Fei hung out regularly was a certain pool hall.

Speed is paramount in military matters. Without hesitation, the group headed straight for the pool hall.