Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 803 802 Caught in the Net
After finishing his meal, Tang Zhitong wiped his mouth and said goodbye.

The Zhang family only has two beds: one for the elders and one for Zhang Chengping and his wife. If they were to stay here, the beds would have to be redistributed, and the three of them would have to squeeze into one bed.

Tang Zhitong wasn't unwilling to squeeze in; it was mainly because he wasn't full and needed an excuse to go out and fill his stomach.

“This won’t do. It’s so late at night, you can’t see anything. Stay here for the night and then go back.” Zhang Yongxiang was the first to object. His nephew had come all this way, and he hadn’t even provided him with food. If he didn’t provide him with a place to sleep, his sister would gossip about him.

“Uncle, there’s a moon tonight, so we can see the road clearly. I’m not going home, I’m going to the commune. I’ve already made an appointment with someone, and I have some materials to organize tonight.” Tang Zhitong brought up “official business,” a reason that many people couldn’t refuse in this day and age.

"Then... let Xiaoping see you off." Sure enough, Zhang Chengping hesitated, but he was still worried.

"No need, I can see clearly at night. I'll get there in no time on my bike. It'll be a waste of time for Xiaoping to come back, and I'm worried about him. It's settled then." Tang Zhitong had made thorough arrangements for herself, not wanting to give Zhang Chengping a chance to see her off. The less she had to walk, the longer she could eat…

But despite all that, the Zhang family still had to send what they were supposed to.

After much persuasion from Tang Zhitong, the family stopped at the entrance of the alley outside the gate.

From the moment they stepped outside, Zhang Chengping consciously reached out to support Zhang Yongxiang. Looking at his uncle's outstretched hand groping forward, Tang Zhitong sighed. His uncle had night blindness!
Fortunately, night blindness only causes blurred vision at night and is not fatal, so Tang Zhitong was not too worried when he left.

By the moonlight, Tang Zhitong rode his bicycle slowly along the uneven country road, heading not towards the commune, but towards the next production team where the barefoot doctor was.

This area is mostly mountainous, with sparse wheat fields on both sides of the road, but there are no longer militia guarding it.

Tang Zhitong guessed that this might be due to night blindness; the guards might not be able to spot their surroundings in time, and those who wanted to steal the grain might not be able to pinpoint the wheat field...

After riding west for about twenty minutes, we entered the mountains. The trees on the mountains were sparse, and occasionally we could hear the purring of owls, which sounded a bit eerie.

At this time of day, there are no pedestrians on the mountain road. When encountering an uphill section, Tang Zhitong simply puts his bicycle into his spatial storage and walks up the hill. He then takes the bicycle out when he reaches the downhill section to save his energy.

Once inside the mountains, Tang Zhitong felt relieved. Given the current state of hunger, the militia and hunters would have already plowed through the mountains several times over with their guns. There were probably few wild boars or wolves, let alone rabbits.

Tang Zhitong walked for a while, then stopped to observe. There were no farmlands or terraced fields within sight, which meant there were no production teams nearby. No production teams meant no residents, making it a perfect place to set up camp!

Without hesitation, Tang Zhitong avoided the mountain path and climbed up the hillside for about thirty or forty meters. He chose a prime spot, used a feng shui tool to level the ground, and then pulled out the small wooden house he had built earlier.

The location is good, with a wide view, but it's also easy to be spotted. However, there's nothing that can be done about it. After the steelmaking two years ago, and the fact that nearby farmers go into the mountains to cut firewood for heating in the winter, there aren't many trees left on the mountain.

In just three to five minutes, they were all neatly arranged. Tang Zhitong clapped his hands, as if he had really done a lot of hard work.

Since he built this little wooden house, he never imagined that one day he would be able to use it in Beijing.

After entering the house, Tang Zhitong lit candles, washed his hands, and first treated himself to a hearty meal of cornbread and braised pork head. Then he cooked a large pot of Jingxi rice.

Tang Zhitong hadn't brought much food with her on this trip. After witnessing the production team's communal meals today, she gave up the idea of ​​eating and living with the commune members. Firstly, she didn't want to cause trouble for the commune or the production team, and secondly, she didn't want to put her stomach through the wringer.

Although the cabin is small, it's enough to feed and drink your fill.

The next day, May 5th, Tang Zhitong got up to take care of personal matters, washed up briefly, ate a hearty and satisfying meal, and then, with a wave of his hand, packed up the cabin and set off again.

At the same time, Wu Aijun stared intently at the suspect in front of him with bloodshot eyes.

The Science and Technology Commission initially told the Municipal Bureau that the man surnamed Qin intended to retaliate against researchers, had injured people, and that the nature of the crime was very serious. They requested that the Municipal Bureau take the matter seriously and immediately begin an investigation.

The municipal bureau acted swiftly, reporting the investigation results to the Science and Technology Commission immediately. However, after Ding Hui consulted with his superiors, the matter was escalated because the Science and Technology Commission determined that the man surnamed Qin had the intention to leak state secrets.

Ultimately, the case went to the highest level of public security authorities, and the municipal public security bureau also upgraded the case, specially selecting elite personnel to form a task force.

Wu Aijun, a key member who was both politically sound and professionally competent, was brought back directly from the Public Security Cadre Academy to participate in this case.

The initial investigation is basically complete, but we still need to delve into the suspect's interpersonal relationships and find out where he might be hiding.

Some say he's still hiding in the city, some say he's likely gone to find his wife and children, and others say he's meticulously planned and is definitely defecting south...

Every possibility has its merits, and every direction needs to be investigated, but manpower is limited and confidentiality is involved, so progress is not fast this time.

Interpersonal relationships within Beijing are relatively easy to manage; one can simply ride a bicycle to visit each person's home to confirm their situation. However, this is not the case when traveling to other cities, as both transportation and relationship coordination present problems.

After a long day of work, the municipal police department did not leave empty-handed, but their gains were limited. They did not arrest anyone, but they did find the suspect's bicycle at a repair shop.

After the car dealership explained that someone urgently needed money that morning and was selling the car, the city police officers were exasperated; the worst-case scenario had still occurred...

Qin's work responsibilities and food responsibilities are both in Beijing. Where could he go?
While some were busy analyzing the suspect's interpersonal relationships in other places, Wu Aijun took the photos to the train station ticket window.

There were several ticket windows, and they operated in two shifts. Moreover, it was uncertain whether the suspect had bought a ticket or when he had bought it, so Wu Aijun had to ask each one individually.

Those who are still at work are fine; it's just a matter of suspending ticket sales, and they can be identified by looking at the photos. But those who have already left work will have to be investigated in person.

Wu Aijun ran until nightfall. Just as he was about to visit every ticket agency in Beijing, a ticket seller who was resting at home finally confirmed that he had seen the suspect and gave him the information about the ticket he bought.

The case suddenly had a direction.

Wu Aijun also specifically asked which unit issued the certificate the suspect had. With this information, he had another clue to stake out at the ticket window. He didn't even need to see the suspect's face; as long as the certificate was issued by the Metallurgical Institute, he could directly stop the suspect and question him.

Thanks to the current requirement to show a letter of introduction when traveling, although staff may not ask occasionally, the municipal bureau will give advance notice, which makes it easier to verify.

Wu Aijun returned to the municipal bureau and reported this important clue to the task force. The task force immediately arranged for someone to buy a ticket for the next train to Tianjin. At the same time, they also confirmed with the railway department the destination station and time of the train the suspect was on, and obtained the phone number.

This long-distance call lasted for more than half an hour, and the train conductor and the train attendant in the suspect's carriage were located using the most primitive method of finding people from one another.

The city bureau has two main questions: whether the suspect got off the bus midway and whether he purchased a ticket to another stop.

Whether or not a supplementary ticket is available is easy to understand; it simply means that if you pass the final destination on the ticket without getting off, you pay the difference in fare for the rest of the journey. Getting off midway is also a common practice in this era, and the ticket will have a stamp indicating that it is valid for three days.

The "three-day validity" does not mean that you can take the train to a certain destination within three days from the departure date. Rather, it means that you can get off the train midway and use this ticket to take another train to your destination within three days without having to buy a ticket.

Of course, if you get back on the bus, there might not be any seats left.

When questioned by the municipal bureau, the train attendant gave a very affirmative answer: "I remember this person. He was a bit impatient after boarding the train. He checked his watch every three to five minutes and asked me three times when the train would arrive in Tianjin."

The train attendant was so impressed not only because Qin's behavior was different from others, but also because he annoyed her with his questions and she lost her temper, but she didn't tell the municipal bureau about it.

The municipal bureau didn't care about her work attitude. After getting the information they wanted, they thanked her profusely and hung up.

Next comes the case analysis: the suspect either went to Tianjin to seek refuge with a friend whom the municipal bureau did not yet know, or he used Tianjin as a transit point.

People tend to prefer the latter, because Tianjin is also a transportation hub. By train, one can travel north to the three northeastern provinces, or south to Jinan, Xuzhou, Shanghai, or even further south.

Furthermore, Tianjin also has maritime transport, allowing people to travel north and south by ship.

The good news is that the suspect did not have a passport and could not buy tickets to Hong Kong, Macau, or overseas. The bad news is that Tianjin is a large city, and the task force of just a few people is simply not enough.

At this point, the benefits of the intervention of the highest public security department became apparent. They made phone calls overnight to mobilize people to cooperate with the special task force in Tianjin.

The moment the call ended, the train tickets were bought. The task force didn't even have time to discuss how to proceed before they mustered their forces, grabbed their supplies, and headed to Tianjin overnight.

It's not far from the old city to Tianjin, just over 100 kilometers.

If there were a high-speed train, it would only take half an hour to get there, but right now the locomotive is burning coal and emitting white smoke, so it took more than two hours to arrive.

Due to the special circumstances, the group bought sleeper tickets with letters of introduction for this last-minute business trip. After boarding the train, they showed their identification to the train conductor and arranged for a separate compartment.

Many members of the task force had been busy all day and hadn't had time for dinner. They asked the train conductor to arrange noodles for them, and then they began to quietly discuss the action plan.

While other passengers in their compartments were fast asleep, they had no idea that a group of police officers, working tirelessly and yawning, were protecting state property day and night.

Three cobblers are as good as one Zhuge Liang. After reaching a consensus, everyone wolfed down a bowl of noodles before finally having a chance to lie down on the sleeper berth and take a nap. However, in order to avoid missing the time to get off the train, Wu Aijun voluntarily gave up sleeping and took on the function of a human alarm clock.

To avoid dozing off, Wu Aijun came out of the partition, stood outside the partition door, stretched, pinched himself, and finally couldn't resist lighting a cigarette.

He didn't dare to smoke in the aisle connecting the carriages, because everyone was carrying weapons this time.

Although the probability of someone daring to steal from his doorstep was extremely low, he dared not gamble.

Fortunately, there are no no-smoking areas right now, and everyone else is sleeping soundly, so no one is standing up to stop Wu Aijun.

About an hour or so later, after Wu Aijun finished his third cigarette, the train finally slowed down and pulled into the station.

Wu Aijun woke up several colleagues and they packed their things.

At one o'clock in the morning, Tianjin was quiet and dark. At the exit of the train station, a few light bulbs emitted dim light, barely illuminating the way home for the passengers.

To show their respect, Tianjin sent two cars to pick them up.

The task force left one person to stake out the train station entrance, while the others followed the car to the municipal bureau.

There was no one on the road at night, and the driver clearly did not have night blindness. Urged by the task force, the two convertibles floored the gas pedal and roared all the way to the city bureau.

Once their identities were revealed, the work commenced immediately.

The most urgent task is to check all the hotels. If the man surnamed Qin doesn't have a bicycle and doesn't have any friends to stay with after arriving here, then he definitely won't go far.

As a high-income earner, and with the money he got from selling his bicycle yesterday, he certainly wouldn't stoop to sleeping on the street.

The task force brought not only the certificate but also a photo of the suspect. Although the photo was small, his appearance was clearly visible.

Due to limitations, it was impossible to give everyone a copy; everyone had to pass it around, take notes of the suspect's facial features, and then return the photo.

It is precisely because of these limitations that many police officers have developed a keen eye, able to remember a suspect's photo for three to five years, or even ten years, after just one glance.

If it were someone with face blindness, they might get into the wrong bed, but they wouldn't be able to do this job.

As we all know, around 3 a.m. is the best time to check hotels. At this time, customers have already finished what they need to do and are washing away their fatigue and heading to sleep. Many ladybugs who love the "one-stop foot massage" service are caught at this time.

The task force required that the investigation of hotels be completed before 6:00 a.m.

After six o'clock, the city enters work mode. Citizens get up to prepare breakfast and go to work. If people see the police making such a large mobilization, it will inevitably attract attention. However, this case involves classified information and should not be handled in this way.

Finally, the task force emphasized that no questioning was allowed after the suspects were apprehended, and then the meeting adjourned. Watching their local colleagues file out of the meeting room, the task force didn't rest. Several members huddled in front of a map, analyzing what mode of transportation the suspects would use and where they would go if they fled to other areas...

In the plans discussed by the project team on the way, if they could not find anyone by checking the hotels, they would go to the ticket agency and ticket window to stake out the place around 7:00 a.m. before they opened. In addition, the task force also planned to place two people at the port entrance.

The man surnamed Qin did indeed buy a train ticket after arriving in Tianjin, but since the departure time had not yet arrived, he was fast asleep in a hotel room near the train station. He had planned everything carefully, but he hadn't expected the city authorities to take him so seriously, and as a result, he was caught red-handed by the Tianjin police.

After catching the suspect, the police officer immediately used the hotel's phone to report the good news to the task force. At that time, it was just 3:30 a.m.

The task force took the man in, confirmed his identity, and without even asking him any questions or buying him a ticket, rushed to the train station before the citizens woke up, picked up the comrade who was lying in wait, and boarded the train back to Beijing with the certificate...

(End of this chapter)