Attending ex-girlfriend's wedding, arresting the groom's officer on the spot

The investigators on the special task force worked through the night. In a dilapidated residential building in the west of the city, Li Jianguo's roommate was huddled on a moldy sofa, the ashtray overflowing with cigarette butts: "He was very excited before he left that day, saying he had landed a big deal and could earn a five-figure commission." He suddenly grabbed a beer bottle and took a big gulp, his Adam's apple bobbing violently. "Who knew he would never come back after that trip? The last call he made on his phone was to Tian Feng's secretary, saying, 'This matter must be resolved tonight.'"

When the iron gate of the debt collection agency was kicked open, the room was filled with a pungent odor of cheap perfume mixed with cigarette smoke. Wang Hu, the company owner with a burly face, propped his feet up on his greasy desk, his thick gold chain gleaming under the fluorescent light. "Li Jianguo? I fired him a long time ago!" he exclaimed, suddenly leaning closer, revealing gold-plated canine teeth. "That kid was disobedient, taking on side jobs and breaking the rules!" But when the investigators showed him the bank transfer records between Li Jianguo's phone and Wang Hu—30% of every debt collection fee over the past six months had gone into Wang Hu's account—the man's face instantly turned deathly pale.

Following this clue, Tian Feng's financial situation gradually came to light. Over the past six months, his personal account had been transferring money to multiple unknown accounts on the 15th of each month, with amounts ranging from 50,000 to 200,000 yuan. Even more suspiciously, three days before the incident, he suddenly transferred ownership of two properties under his name to distant relatives. "Seven of these transfer records perfectly match the time and location of Li Jianguo's debt collection efforts," said technician Xiao Li, zooming in on the bank statements, a red arrow drawing a glaring path on the screen. "Tian Feng wasn't paying off his mortgage at all; he was paying off high-interest loans!"

When the investigators knocked on the door of Tian Feng's villa, the woman who opened it was wrapped in a mink robe, her eyes filled with terror: "He...he left three days ago, saying he was going on a business trip out of town." She trembled as she handed over a note, on which was hastily written: "Don't look for me, your life is the priority." But in the safe in the villa's study, there was not only the property certificate and gold bars, but also a USB drive—filled with densely packed recordings of Tian Feng's phone conversations with Li Biao, each conversation revolving around "how to deal with the troublesome Li Jianguo."

“On the evening of November 14th, Tian Feng’s dashcam recorded him going to the underground parking garage of Haorui Building.” Wang Shuai pulled up the surveillance footage, which showed a black sedan parked in parking space number 37 on the B2 level for a full forty minutes. “And this parking space is the exclusive parking space of the chairman of Yuantu Technology.” More crucial evidence came from the building security guard’s recollection: “Around ten o’clock that night, I saw Vice President Tian running down the fire escape in a panic. His collar was covered in oil stains, and he was carrying a bulging black plastic bag in his hand.”

In the interrogation room, Wang Hu finally broke under the pressure and stammered, "Tian Feng contacted me! He said Li Jianguo knew too many secrets and told me to 'clean things up.'" His nails dug deeply into his palms. "I just wanted to scare that kid, but who knew that madman Li Jianguo would actually say he'd expose the evidence of Tian Feng and Li Biao's collusion to the police!" He suddenly broke down in tears, "I...I just leaked the information to Li Biao, and the rest...I really don't know anything else!"

Lu Chuan stared at the interrogation video, suddenly noticing that Wang Hu swallowed three times unnaturally when he mentioned "evidence." He immediately led a search party to Li Jianguo's rented room. In a metal box under the bed, besides debt collection records and threatening letters, there was an old-fashioned voice recorder. Pressing play, Li Jianguo's hoarse voice broke the silence: "I've made five copies of the evidence of Tian Feng and Li Biao's shoddy construction project. If something happens to me, these will..." The recording abruptly ended; the last update time was 11 PM on November 14th.

Meanwhile, the manhunt for Tian Feng also made progress. Surveillance footage from the highway exit showed that his vehicle was last seen on a winding mountain road in a neighboring province.

On the mountain road, where torrential rain poured down, police lights pierced the rain curtain. Lu Chuan gripped the walkie-talkie tightly, the windshield wipers swirling back and forth on the windshield, yet still unable to clear the rain and fog before his eyes. "Attention all teams, Tian Feng's vehicle was last seen at the abandoned gas station. Make sure to seal off all exits!" His voice, laced with static, echoed in every police car.

The SWAT officers' combat boots slammed through the puddles, making a dull thud. The abandoned gas station's corrugated iron roof groaned in the howling wind, and the gas pumps hung askew beside the dispensers, like silent witnesses. A sniper took position on a high vantage point, his gun aimed at the lone black sedan inside the gas station. The car was covered in mud, and a half-dried leaf clung to its rearview mirror, swaying gently in the wind and rain.

"Tian Feng! We are police! Get out of the car immediately for inspection!" The loudspeaker boomed through the empty gas station. The figures inside the car shifted, then huddled even tighter. Lu Chuan gave a hand signal, and two SWAT officers approached the vehicle like cheetahs, close to the sides, riot shields in front, guns locked on the target. Rain dripped from their tactical helmets, splashing small droplets on the ground.

"Final warning! Refusal to cooperate will result in coercive measures!" Lu Chuan's voice was cold and firm. Just then, the car door slowly opened, revealing Tian Feng's pale face. His hair was disheveled, his suit was wrinkled beyond recognition, his tie hung askew around his neck, and his eyes were filled with fear and despair. His hands were tightly clutching his black briefcase, his knuckles white from the force.

"No, don't kill me." Tian Feng's voice trembled, his legs went weak, and he almost collapsed to the ground. The special police quickly stepped forward and subdued him. But he still clutched his briefcase tightly, muttering to himself, "I'll tell you everything, I'll tell you everything." Lu Chuan signaled his team to remain vigilant and stepped forward himself.

The moment the briefcase was opened, everyone held their breath. Inside was a neatly stacked pile of documents, the top one containing Li Jianguo's debt collection records, every amount and date clearly visible. Beneath these records lay a thick report on engineering fraud, the words "Yuantu Technology Smart City Project" prominently displayed on the cover. Lu Chuan put on gloves and carefully opened the report. Among the yellowed pages, the signatures of Tian Feng and Li Biao were clearly visible, each signature like a heavy hammer blow striking everyone's hearts.

Tian Feng slumped to the ground, rain streaming down his face, indistinguishable between tears and raindrops. "I knew I couldn't escape it," his voice was drowned out by the wind and rain. "Li Jianguo came to me with evidence, saying he was going to report me. I panicked, so I consulted Li Biao. We only meant to scare him, but things just spiraled out of control." His body trembled uncontrollably. "This report is my last resort; I thought it might save my life." (End of Chapter)